Minster’s 20-year windows project
Expert glaziers starting 20-year protection work
CATHEDRAL: Winter may be the worst time of year to replace windows, but the team at York Minster can’t wait.
The cathedral’s glaziers are at the start of a 20-year project designed to protect the Minster’s 600-year-old medieval glass from the elements and the first section has to be back in place by the end of February.
EVERYONE KNOWS that the winter is the worst time of year to replace windows.
However, the team at York Minster do not have the luxury of waiting until the spring.
The cathedral’s expert glaziers are at the start of a 20-year project designed to protect the Minster’s 600-year-old medieval glass from the elements and the first section has to be back in place by the end of February.
Sarah Brown, the director of York Glaziers Trust, who is overseeing the operation, said: “We are just praying we don’t have a really cold snap. Freezing temperatures can cause the mortar to crack. That’s what we don’t want, but when you work here you get used to dealing with the unexpected.
“Whatever happens we have to hit that first deadline, because that section of window in the South Quire Aisle needs to be back in place before the newly restored organ is fitted.”
That is why on a blowy December afternoon two of the conservators are high up on scaffolding carefully positioning various sections of protective glass in place.
Like everything connected with the conservation of one of Europe’s largest Gothic cathedrals, it is another delicate step in an already painstaking business.
Ms Brown said: “When the original glass is removed and brought to the studio, every piece is photographed so we can create a digital archive.
“While conservators then work to clean the panels and make vital repairs, protective glass panels which will sit in front of the original stained glass are cut to size.”
Currently 70 of the Minster’s 128 windows are without protection and once work on the South Quire Aisle is complete, the team, which was responsible for the successful restoration of the Great East Window, will move onto another landmark piece of stained glass.
The St Cuthbert window in the North Choir Aisle dates back to 1440.
One of Britain’s largest narrative windows, 70 panels detail the life of the saint and having last been touched in the 1890s, it requires significant work.
Ms Brown said: “It is very dirty and some of the heavy leading will need replacing, but I am really excited to see this section come down as it coincides with the publication of some new research delving into its design and creation by a University of York PhD student, Dr Katie Harrison.
“Hopefully, it will be a chance for the public to get up close to this spectacular piece of stained glass and for us to raise awareness of how it came into being.”
The National Lottery Heritage Fund has given £1m for the project, but any grant requires the Minster to show it is committed to public engagement.
“When we were working on the Great East Window, the York Minster Revealed project, which put visitors absolutely front and centre, was a game changer. It
showed that better connecting with the public really pays dividends. The amount of interest was astonishing and it showed that there was a real appetite to learn about the skills and the craftsmanship we have here.
“Good conservation costs an incredible amount of money, but if you can show people exactly what it takes to restore one small section of glass then it also increases understanding of where the money goes.”
Every five years the Minster’s dedicated architect, known as the Surveyor of the Fabric, carries out a survey of the building to help identify the areas most in need of work. With the York Glaziers Trust contributing a report about the state of the windows, it should mean that there are no nasty surprises for the team working on the protective glass.
Ms Brown said: “It also means our successors will know exactly what work has been carried out.
“There have been times when we have been staring at a piece of glass thinking: ‘What on earth, have they used to glue those two sections together?’ It has required some head scratching and a lot of detective work, but it does mean that no day is ever boring.”
Good conservation costs an incredible amount of money. Sarah Brown, director of York Glaziers Trust.