Excitement Builds Ahead of ‘Table For The Nation’ Residency
The latest in a series of high profile exhibitions and art installations celebrating our centenary year - The Table For The Nation - is about to be unveiled.
Created from a section of the nation’s most significant tree – a gigantic 5,000 year old Fenland Black Oak – the 13m Table is made from ancient, fossilised oak and is a masterpiece of craftsmanship.
Unlike anything seen before, the Table is made from timber older than the pyramids and gives a unique insight into the scale and majesty of our ancient high forests.
The oak was discovered in 2012, the year of Her Majesty the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and was completed, unveiled, and dedicated to her in 2022, her Platinum Jubilee year.
It will now enjoy a twelve month residency at Blackburn Cathedral where all are warmly encouraged to visit and marvel at this stunning piece of history.
Having previously been displayed at Ely, Rochester, Lincoln and Lichfield cathedrals, Blackburn Cathedral is the furthest north the table has been.
Available to view during normal opening hours, it will be used for special worship, community activities and commercial events throughout our centenary year and until April 2027.
The installation will be accompanied by a fascinating exhibition detailing the entire process from trunk to Table.
Speaking ahead of the arrival of the Table, Revd. Canon Andrew Horsfall, Interim Dean of Blackburn said:
We are delighted and deeply honoured that Blackburn Cathedral will be home to the Fenland Black Oak Table.
This magnificent work of exceptional skill and artistry is genuinely without equal. We trust it inspires all who gather around it.
As a powerful centrepiece that draws people together, we hope it will stand as a unifying focal point – truly living up to its calling as ‘A Table for the Nation’.
Learn more about the Table at Blackburn Cathedral and see how you can get involved.
Find out more about the Table itself at the Fenland Black Oak website.
