Jean-Paul Sartre once wrote: ‘Essences and facts are incommensurable, and the one who begins with facts, will never end up with essences’.1 It is true that positivism rarely if ever gives way to hermeneutics, so this chapter will not present a traditional art historical account of Durham Cathedral. For one thing, there are already several and wonderful volumes dedicated to that purpose, to which I consider myself neither particularly suited nor called upon to making a noteworthy contribution. For another, adding to this literature would not really answer my purpose, which is simply to employ the splendid example of sacred architecture that is Durham Cathedral in exploring the effect this type of building has on people in this (increasingly) secular age. In other words, I propose to examine the experience of Durham Cathedral, on myself and on others. In order to do so I will describe the cathedral and its environs, but only insofar as the architecture, setting and story of the cathedral can be said to inform the experience of those who have spent time, short or long, within its leonine walls.