Minster Nave Cleared - 2 January 2007

Issued By: York Minster

Issue Date: 2 January 2007

News Release

The Nave of York Minster will be cleared of all chairs today, Tuesday 2nd January 2007, so that people can see how spacious the Nave would have originally seemed. The Nave is only emptied of its furniture once a year, at a quiet time in the Minster's year, making this a special opportunity to see the Nave free of its 800 chairs.

Emptying the Nave provides the opportunity to host special and unusual events in its vast space. The liveliest of these events is the Diocesan Youth Event XLS. This event is to be held on 16th February 2007. Young people from all over the Diocese of York will come to York Minster to celebrate and praise God through a diverse mix of music and activities. The empty Nave will also host the Spire event, a striking and magical exploration of sound and space by world-class musicians and composers on 20th January.

During the time that the Nave is clear there will also be a Taizé Service on Sunday 28th January, which will focus on scripture, silence and song. Daphne Wood, the organiser of the Taizé service at the Minster has described what the Minster's empty Nave adds to Taizé prayer: "One enters at the West door to the enormity of the vast hallowed space, subdued lighting and flickering candles". This year, there will also be an evening of Circle Dancing on Saturday 27th January, and the Christian Unions of the University of York and York St John will hold their annual Minster Ball on the evening of Friday 26th January.

The building of the Nave began in 1280, and took seventy years to complete. Built in the Decorated style, it replaced the old Norman Nave of Thomas of Bayeux. Diverse uses of the Nave are by no means a modern innovation, in medieval times, the Nave would have been used for a variety of purposes: markets were held there, and in the 1500s there were complaints about boys playing football in the Nave!

The Nave will be empty of chairs until Monday 19 February. York Residents can use their Minster Passes to come in free of charge. To obtain a Minster Pass, York Residents can send an SAE to the Visitors Department, St William's College, College Street, York, YO1 7JF, or pick one up in the Minster.

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Notes to the Media:

For general Media Enquiries, please contact Alix Peacock, Press Co-ordinator, York Minster. Tel: 01904 557216 or email alixp@yorkminster.org