York Minster

York Minster was beautiful - the architecture and stained glass just awe-inspiring. Sadly, the photos fail to do the Minster justice but they will give you a small idea of how beautiful it is if you have never been.

The Cathedral is the largest surviving Medieval Gothic cathedral north of the Alps. It is 264 ft (80m) in length with a width of 100 ft (30m) and the height from floor to vaulting is 94 ft (29m). York's nave is one of the longest in England.

Sorry for the amount of photos - far too many especially as they are not very good. You were allowed to use flash but as usual my inbuilt flash does not seem to work very well especially at distance. I can adjust the flash intensity control but that just tends to bleach everything out. If anyone has any ideas how I could improve my flash photography I really would be very grateful!


















The South Transept - the oldest part of the Minster visible above ground was started around 1220. The circular rose window was re-glazed around 1500 following the Wars of the Roses with the red rose of Lancaster alternating with the newly formed Tudor rose.













Cope chests in the foreground and a memorial to Archbishop John Dolben







Archbishop Tobie Mathew tomb in the Lady Chapel



At present the East End of the Minster contains information about the conservation and restoration of the Great East Window. There is a really interesting exhibition giving visitors a rare opportunity to see the close detail of Medieval stained glass. Specialist conservators have revealed the original medieval glory of these panels. Below are a few examples

St John Glimpses God in Majesty



The Seven Churches



St John sailing to Patmo







Three Gossiping Angels







There is also a of information about stonework restoration.



The Mighty Angel and the Seven Thunders















For me, the most beautiful part of the Minster was the octagonal Chapter House. It was completed around 1290 and was designed for the Canons of York, the governing body of the cathedral, to meet and discuss policy. It has what I can only describe as the most incredible atmosphere. Unfortunately no photo of the amazing ceiling - it turned out incredibly blurred.















Brian, David and Emily decided to go up the 275 tower steps to see the views. I decided against - even if I had made it up the steps I am not keen on heights!!!! Apparently half way up there was a parapet walk with what sounded like a big drop on one side! So I think I made the right choice! It also gave me an extra three quarters of an hour to look round the Minster. We met up afterwards in the shop and I bought a couple of Green Man items :)

Outside the Cathedral a pavement artist was at work



and nearby was a model of York.



I really thought York was a beautiful City and we had a wonderful day out.

A Day Out in York

It was Emily's birthday weekend so we had a day out in York last Sunday.

York is a walled city located at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss. It was founded by the Romans in 71AD and they named it Eboracum. By the Middle Ages it had become a major wool trading centre.



There were several Greylag families by the side of the river with goslings of various ages.



The Medieval Clifford's Tower once the central stronghold of York Castle.









The Golden Fleece public house - the oldest and most haunted licensed premises in York.









The Shambles - a Medieval narrow street. It was almost impossible to take photos the place was that crowded. In fact, even at 10.30 on a Sunday morning the whole of York seemed crowded!















There was an outdoor market in one of the courtyards with a lovely gardening stall.







York Minster -











We spent several hours looking round the Minster - but I will do a separate post on this in a day or two. Don't want to upload too many photos in one go in case Blogger decides to play up and put them all out of order!



Betty's Cafe Tea Room. The larger famous Betty's tea room was just round the corner and there was a very long queue extending out of the shop and down the pavement for afternoon tea - we didn't bother!!!







The Mansion House - home of the Lord Mayor of York



David and I went round the Jorvik Viking Centre.

In 866 the Vikings raided and captured York. Under Viking rule York became a major river port. The last Viking ruler of Jorvik Eric Bloodaxe was driven from the City in 954 by King Edred in Edred's successful attempt to unify England.




The museum contained lots of information about Vikings and their way of life together with a ride round a recreation of a busy street in Jorvik (York) complete with sights, sounds and smells (!) from this era. The recreation is based on information found from archaeological excavations conducted on the site by York Archaeological Trust from 1976 - 1981. It was too dark for photos and you weren't allowed to take any on the ride - so just one of a display case.



Emily and Brian had planned to go a ride on a Big Wheel but ended up having a look round the castle.

York is a beautiful City with so much to do and places to visit. You could easily spend several days here.

One of the highlights of the day was a beautiful display of thousands and thousands of cowslips on the road verges as you join (and leave) the A1 for York. I am not sure if they have been planted or occur naturally. I haven't seen so many cowslips in one place since I was a child.