York Cathedral
 Cathedrals |
The pride of York is its glorious Minster, towering high above the city. It is the largest medieval cathedral in England, 519ft long with a central roof some 198ft high. Construction began in the 1220's by Archbishop Walter de Grey, with the aim of building on a scale to rival Canterbury, and took more than 250 years to complete, being consecrated in 1472.
On entering the cathedral, shafts of kaleidoscopic light explode from over a hundred medieval stained glass windows, the most dazzling of which is the great East Window, the size of a tennis court. Located behind the altar, it is one of the largest surfaces of medieval stained glass in the world, depicting God the Father, alpha and omega, presiding over saints and prophets. In the north transept, Early English in style, is the ‘Five Sisters' window, decorated in grey ‘grisaille' glass; it was constructed in 1250 when coloured glass was only made overseas and too expensive to import.
The great West Window incorporates the shape of a heart in its stonework tracery and is thus called the ‘Heart of Yorkshire'. The south transept houses the Rose Window, built to commemorate the end of the Wars of the Roses. One of the windows near to the naïve's west door is said to contain the oldest glass in England, dating from about 1150; some 60% of Britain's surviving medieval stained glass is in York Minster.
The arcading down the wide Gothic naïve is decorated with the coats of arms of the Knights who fought with Edward I against the Scots. Either side of the naïve are 100ft high limestone pillars topped with a rib-vaulted roof. Most standard services nowadays take place in the choir. The stone choir screen, separating it from the naïve, is carved with figures of all the king's of England from William I to Henry VI. After Henry's death people began to worship his statue as a result of which it was removed until 1810, when another one was put back. The choir itself is all Victorian, as it had to be rebuilt after one of many fires to disfigure the cathedral.
Once the main body of the cathedral has been explored there are adjacent smaller areas to discover; for example, downstairs is the 12 th century crypt containing early sculptures. The Undercroft Treasury is a spellbinding museum encompassing the whole history of the Minster. It provides a guide through the various underground levels of the building, including the crypt, displaying Roman remains from the original fortress and the early Norman cathedral. The beautiful 13 th century chapter house is still employed today as the meeting place for the dean and chapter, the governing body of the cathedral. The Minster library and archives may be visited by appointment and for the fittest of visitors there are 275 steps waiting to be climbed to the top of the tower.