Leaving the east end of Precentor's Close, the Minster becomes visible in all its glory. You can get a stiff neck looking up at its impressive height. This is the west end of the building, and I first took a photo of it in about 1970.
At that time the future of the Minster was uncertain, with the effects on the building of inadequate foundations from the time it was first built.
A remarkable project was started to build new foundations below the Minster. This part of the building was temporarily supported by massive steel buttresses while the work took place. The scheme was a success, and today we can see the building in all its glory again.
I mentioned a couple of days ago that Precentor's Court was close to the heart of the city - well, towards the top of the large central stained glass is the Heart of Yorkshire window.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
York Minster is a wonderful building to take photos of, both inside and out. It is almost certainly the building that I have taken most photos of, but there is always another viewpoint or feature to take just another photo of!
Thank you John. In answer to your question, all the niches would once have had statues in them, but along came the reformation, and the English church breaking away from Rome in the 16th century, and most such 'icons' were destroyed. The statue of Queen Elizabeth II was probably the first to be placed in one of the niches since the reformation, and as far as I am aware there are no plans for any others. To be honest I was surprised when the statue was placed her. When I heard of the project I assumed it would be on a plinth in front of the Minster, rather than on the church itself.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
York Minster is a wonderful building to take photos of, both inside and out. It is almost certainly the building that I have taken most photos of, but there is always another viewpoint or feature to take just another photo of!
Ian
Thank you John. In answer to your question, all the niches would once have had statues in them, but along came the reformation, and the English church breaking away from Rome in the 16th century, and most such 'icons' were destroyed. The statue of Queen Elizabeth II was probably the first to be placed in one of the niches since the reformation, and as far as I am aware there are no plans for any others. To be honest I was surprised when the statue was placed her. When I heard of the project I assumed it would be on a plinth in front of the Minster, rather than on the church itself.
Ian
Thanks for taking time for the extra info