Part of the Elizabethan plaster ceiling at St Nicholas Priory

The fashion for plaster ceilings was adopted in Exeter in Elizabeth's reign. They provided a new refinement to the city's early modern houses. This ceiling at St Nicholas, with its ribs forming simple geometric patterns, interspersed with sprays of foliage, illustrates the new style. It dates to c. 1580, when the Priory was occupied by one of Exeter's leading citizens.

Acknowledgments: RAM Museum