York Minster

Minster Nave to be cleared

Published Monday 31st December 2007 by Alix Peacock

The Nave of York Minster will be cleared of all chairs on Wednesday 2nd January 2008, 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 see this space as it was originally intended.  It also presents 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 Friday 8th February 2008.  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.

During the time that the Nave is clear there will also be a Taizé Common Prayer Service on Sunday 27th January, which will focus on scripture, silence and song in the beautiful candle lit Nave.

This year, there will also be an evening of Circle Dancing on Saturday 19th January, and the Christian Unions of the University of York and York St John University will hold their annual Minster Ball on the evening of Friday 25th 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 18th February 2008.  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.