Salisbury Cathedral: Detail, view from cloister looking into courtyard

Salisbury Cathedral, formally known as the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Anglican cathedral in Salisbury, England, considered one of the leading examples of Early English architecture. The main body was completed in only 38 years, from 1220 to 1258. The cathedral has the tallest church spire in the United Kingdom (123 m or 404 ft). The cathedral also has the largest cloister and the largest cathedral close in Britain (80 acres (320,000 m2)). There is no evidence that Elias of Dereham, supervisor of the work (1220-1245), was actually the architect, although he was a sculptor.