Hospital exhibition showcases minster treasures

The York Minster Collections comprise around 300,000 objects

Photos showcasing a "treasure trove" of rare artefacts from York Minster's collection have gone on display at hospitals in the city.

Photography students from York St John University were invited to take pictures of objects not normally on show to the public, including 15th Century prayer books, illuminated manuscripts and a road map of Yorkshire from 1675.

The images are on show at York Hospital and Foss Park Hospital.

York Minster Collections curator Kirsty Mitchell said: "We are delighted to share them beyond the walls of the minster and see how the students have interpreted them."

The exhibition will run throughout the summer

The Minster Collections comprise around 300,000 objects, with some on display at the minster but many others kept in the nearby Old Palace.

They span 2,000 years of history, from Roman coins and building fragments, to the York Gospels manuscripts written about the year 1000, and stained-glass window pieces from both medieval and modern eras.

The items had to be photographed in situ, so York St John technicians set up a temporary studio in the Old Palace.

Second-year photography student Ethan Goodrich said it was an "incredible opportunity", adding: "The unique invitation from the Minster Archive to photograph and document objects of significant historical importance to York and its surroundings was fascinating.

"The resulting display in a hospital setting created something special for both the students and the viewers."

'Positive impact'

Fellow student Lewis Mitchell added: "It was very fulfilling knowing that the project would be used in such a way that allowed the hospital’s often closed-in community to experience the joy and inspiration that a museum would elicit, whilst ensuring they are in safe hands.

"It makes me, and so many others, proud that through something so simple as a photograph, you can make a small, positive impact on the world."

The exhibition, a partnership between the minster, university, and York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, will run until September.

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