SHERBORNE ABBEY

Originally a Saxon church, it became a Benedictine abbey in 998 and was subsequently extensively enlarged and decorated. It is one of the finest examples of Perpendicular Gothic in the region, and should not be missed. The building's most striking feature is its magnificent, typically English fan vaults. The one over the choir is even the oldest large vault built in England. Simon Jenkins once wrote: "I'd put Sherborne's roof up against any contemporary Italian Renaissance work".