The Bhagavad Gita

The statue  is placed in a formally empty niche adjacent to the South West Door on the West Front of the 800 year-old cathedral.

The new statue marks Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee – the 70th anniversary of her accession to the throne in 1952 – and pays tribute to her long life of faithful service and duty to her country and to the Commonwealth.

An expert architectural carver and stone mason, Richard has been a member of York Minster’s renowned Stoneyard team since 2011.  Richard’s design depicts the Sovereign in her Garter robes with the orb and sceptre, the symbols of her office as Head of Church and State and wearing the George IV State Diadem. Richard’s initial concept design has been developed in close consultation with York’s Fabric Advisory Committee and the Cathedrals Fabric Commission for England who recently gave their permission for the principle of the statue under the Care of Cathedrals Measure, the legal framework against which all major changes to cathedral buildings are considered.

The statue will be carved from a block of Lepine stone – the French stone that has previously been used for figurative carvings on the Minster as well as the restoration of the West Window in 2000.  Once completed, the statue will stand two metres tall and will weigh nearly two tonnes. Richard will begin carving the statue in the Minster’s Stoneyard later this year and it will be installed in its niche in the autumn of 2022.

Richard said:  “There have been several challenges to overcome with this project in terms of the design.  First and foremost I have to complement the magnificent medieval façade of the Minster.  The statue needs to be part of the fabric, not a distraction from it, yet it also has to have the poise and presence befitting of the Queen’s unique role as Head of Church and State.  The figure is posed to form a protective gesture around the orb and sceptre, while Her Majesty’s gaze is aligned across the proposed Queen Elizabeth Square, the principal approach to York Minster.  She will stand proud and resolute in her niche, welcoming worshippers and visitors alike”.

The Dean of York said: “We are delighted to be marking Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and to give thanks for a life of dedication to this nation and the Commonwealth.  We are incredibly proud that the statue has been designed and will be carved by one of our own masons which is testament to the incredible craft skills we have here in our Stoneyard.

We arrived at breakfast to find that it was ‘to order’ as starters and mains. Everything was there although perhaps not in quite the right order for me personally. I opted for the American stacked pancakes with berries. The breakfast room was a little chaotic, so rather than linger at the table we returned to our room where we could chill out before walking to York Minster in time for when it opened.

As we walked to the Cathedral we took in a few of the ice sculptures that were part of the Ice Sculpture trail that was taking place over the weekend. Mr C toyed with the idea of visiting the Yorvik Centre but soon changed his mind when entry was slow and the queues were getting longer.

When we arrived at York Minster we waited in a short queue before we were able to enter the Church. Once inside we tried to book in at the ticket desk, but the computer said ‘NO!’. This meant entering the Minster took a little longer than anticipated. The Minster was as spectacular as always. I particularly enjoyed the display (which included a full size replica) about the statue of Queen Elizabeth II that was commissioned for her Platinum Jubilee but which was installed in a niche on the West front of the Minster after her death.

We spent longer in the Minster than we had anticipated leading us to join the queue for Betty’s tearoom later than was ideal. The queue was the longest I have experienced. During the 40 minute wait I was bumped and pushed by several members of a family who were queuing behind us. For some reason bodily contact with me was acceptable; some people have no concept of manners or personal space. Our waitress was lovely as was our sandwich and cake. Before we left we had a conversation with the manager about lockdown, its consequences and the length of time staff had worked there. She is quite rightly proud of the lovely, loyal team that provide us, the customers, with one of the ultimate lunchtime experiences.

Next we embarked on the wall walk which I had initially intended to do on my own whilst Mr C was attending a trade show. I had a change of plan because I thought he might enjoy the wall walk too. We started the walk at Bootham Bar but due to our late lunch we only made it as far as Clifford’s Tower. Dusk was arriving so the wall walk was left to be completed the following day after the trade show.

After our hectic day we chilled out in our room before having a pre-dinner drink in the hotel bar, where the bar man talked us through all the local gins; I chose Spiced Apple (with cinnamon spice)  whilst Mr C opted for a more traditional Gin. We dined in the hotel. I chose Haddock and Chips and was advised that the portion was large portion but when it arrived, to my relief, I found it to be a modest, manageable portion.

Our meal was accompanied by Lily Kersby who was performing in the hotel bar area. She has a beautiful voice and it was a shame that she was singing to herself. After dining we joined her, which she appreciated. For her last song of the evening she sang the Proclaimer’s ‘I will walk 500 miles’ which made me smile because it is the adopted song for the #walk1000miles Country Walking Challenge. I couldn’t resist showing her my badges and explaining how that had become a special song for me.

I always find the light from the top window panels above the ‘Five Sisters’ mesmerising and inspiring.

Roger Miller

On Monday I returned from a mini break in York, walking the glass trail, the walls and exploring the city beyond.

We returned home to find that we had an electrical problem, part of the electrics were off and the fridge and freezer had defrosted. We reset the trip switch but it tripped several times more that evening leading us to call out an engineer (we are covered by a service contract).

This meant that on Tuesday I was stuck in the house waiting for an electrician and gas service man. Being house bound led me to seeing this beauty in my garden. I wasn’t quick enough to capture him on the ground before he flew onto the fence.

Our electrical problem is inconclusive. After extensive tests the electrician thought it was the central heating pump causing the problem but when the gas engineer arrived he couldn’t find any faults and no matter what he tried he couldn’t replicate the problem that caused the switch to trip. We are left with an empty freezer that we are reluctant to restock and the niggling suspicion that it is the fridge/freezer that is at fault.

I will be sharing more about my travels soon, I am currently editing my photographs.

This mid 15th century carving shows the Virgin being taught to read by her mother. It is carved from Derbyshire stone and retains some of its original paint. *

*from a signboard next to the carving