Izaak Walton - up with the saints

Happy birthday Izaak Walton! Izaak is pretty much the doyen of Staffordshire's greatest writers, though Arnold Bennett runs him a close second.  For some reason, a good number of pubs in the county are named after Izaak.
Of course, it's doubtful if anyone reads his works much any more, four hundred years later - even his famous 'Compleat Angler' but - would he have ever expected that anyway?

He has the unique (I think) honour of being the only writer to have his statue in the pantheon on the exterior of a cathedral - though I'd love to know if I'm wrong.
In this picture, he takes his place in a niche on the outside of Lichfield Cathedral along with saints and angels and demons (and occasional king and bishop) - beat that, Arnold Bennett!

Bishop waits for light

As he is in a kneeling position, he looks like a humble supplicant - but Henry Ryder was actually Bishop of Lichfield, and, erm, this is (was) his cathedral.
The great Victorian sculptor, Francis Chantrey, made the piece; and when the sun comes from the north-west, it is washed in light.