Beverley Minster re-visited

Well I went and did it today, nearly gave myself a heart attack climbing to the top of Beverley Minster in East Yorkshire with a heavy chest cold - I must be bloomin' mad! Took me 10 minutes to get my breath back. But wow - was it worth it? - it certainly was and is thoroughly recommended providing you are reasonably fit.

You may remember in a previous blog that I had visited Beverley Minster earlier this year for the first time in my life and was enthralled by it but I mentioned that I had never been to the top in the roof to see what's behind the glorious front facing part of the Minster that everyone sees. I took two of my three lads, one who is in his final year as an archeology student at Nottingham and he is doing his dissertation on the defences of Hull. The other lad is hoping to go to Liverpool University this year to read classics with archaeology. Both are passionate about history, particularly that which is on their own doorstep.

We went on spec for something to do, neither of them had ever been and it was such a nice day and when we got there, tours of the roof were available but we had missed the last one of the day. However the ever so friendly staff got hold of the virger (which is spelt correctly in this instance) who took us for the tour and we were spell-bound by it. Neil Pickford is a 'virger' rather than a verger because he's a carrier of the long metal rod and the Latin name for rod is 'virga'. His role is based on what was, 500 years ago a church bouncer using the rod as a practical tool to get the vicar through the mad thronging crowd of people and animals to the altar. Today fortunately the people of Beverley behave at services and his role is ceremonial, although he does much more in the background to keep the day to day running of the building as smooth as possible.

The virger, Mr Pickford was a friendly intelligent man full of information and a thousand facts about the minster in his head all articulately delivered at just the right level. The answers to our many questions were thoughtful and a testament to his depth of knowledge. I suspect we were lucky in that Neil only had the three of us to guide and did a great job - thanks Neil. So what did we see after 113 steps worth of cardio-vascular exercise? Wondrous vaults of roof space with some timbers nine hundred years old, some of them reused even at the time the Minster was built. There were different stages of construction which when pointed out are obvious.

There were the ornate windows with legalised graffiti etched upon them by workers and church staff responsible for the Minsters construction and maintenance. Not only were there names and dates, someone had etched the popular RAF planes (and a helicopter) that would have been seen around the Minster both in time of war and peace. The views through the spectacular windows were breathtaking looking both north toward Leconfield and the Wolds and also to the south and the Humber Bridge and much of the north and west of Hull. The picture below shows St Mary's Church in Beverley though the north window.

Then there was the huge quarter of a ton boss in the roof that could be lifted to create a hole in the ceiling through which large and heavy objects could be lifted upward into the roof space. The mechanism - a huge wheel worked by a person walking in it still works today and he ably demonstrated it for us.

There was plenty of evidence of dangerous periods in the life of the building when walls started to partially collapse and the fascinating and often highly technical work that was done to save the building - over 250 years ago. The masons who constructed this beautiful Gothic inspiration were on peace work and their collective marks can be seen over most of the masonry, a mark of reaching a certain point when payment was due. The sad thing is that most of these men were probably illiterate and were only known by their mark even in the books which showed that they had been paid. I am looking forward to seeing the published research about these amazing men and their incredible achievements.

After an hour of looking at how the Minster was constructed and looking at the evidence, we were left to tour the ground floor which in itself is both awesome and calming. Neil writes a blog for the Hull Daily Mail newspaper once a week on life at the Minster and you can catch an example of his witty repartee by clicking here.

I hope you may also one day have chance to see the history of centuries laid bare in the roof of this building.

Sorry for the length of the blog today - there was loads I had to miss out that I really wanted to tell you.

Chat soon

Ta-ra

A Wonder of Yorkshire on our doorstep

There are many wonders in Yorkshire and recently, local BBC weatherman Paul Hudson decided that his seven wonders of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire were:

Malham Cove and Gordale Scar; Flamborough Head; Hornsea Mere; Spurn Head; The peat bogs of Thorne and Hatfield Moors; The Three Peaks (Ingleborough, Pen-y-Ghent and Whernside); The Wash.

I wouldn't argue with any of these beautiful places being natural wonders however, the original seven wonders of the ancient world traditionally described by Philo of Byzantium were all man made and one of my favourite man made wonders of Yorkshire is the Beverley Minster.

I don't want to dwell on the history too much but the place itself which is both beautiful and iconic - a picture postcard of a historical town frozen in time; indeed a visitor to the area would have seen the same sight over 500 years ago as he or she descended from the Wolds that they would see today driving in on any of the approach roads. The light coloured local Tadcaster stone from which the building is constructed makes it stand out even on a dull day. Started in 1220 AD, the building was completed around 1445 AD and although many alterations have been made since, it is larger than many English Cathedrals and is in pristine condition unlike its cousin in Kingston upon Hull - Holy Trinity which is in a sad state of disrepair.

The different styles harmonised together makes it interesting to view visually with clean detail all around. There are many fascinating and unique features about the church, such as having the tomb of Saint John of Beverley within it as well as the largest collection in the world of medieval musical instrument carvings. There is so much to see. But what is special about the whole place is the atmosphere. It is open to the public and you are warmly welcomed by the guides who advise on the history of the church and point you in the right direction and leave you with it. Soak in the atmosphere. Take your time and wander through the different chapels, look at the tombs, the decorations, the windows and perhaps meditate in the small chapel within especially put aside for quiet reflection. I have meditated there and it's inspiring.

If you are very lucky, you can climb to the higher parts of the place, rarely opened to the public except on special days - I've never been fortunate enough to have gone up there, but those who have describe it as magical and wondrous. You don't have to be religious at all to go there and marvel at this Yorkshire building - just enjoy.

By the way, what do you get when you cross an atheist with a Jehovah's Witness?.... Someone who knocks at your door for no apparent reason.

Have a great weekend!

Chat soon

Ta-ra