Design

This is the tale of a medieval masterpiece. York Minster boasts one of the great artistic achievements of the Middle Ages - a stunning expanse of stained glass of unparalleled size and beauty in Britain. The Great East Window, created by the 15th-century glass painter John Thornton, contains over 300 glazed panels, including a remarkable sequence depicting that most inspiring and controversial Biblical text, the Revelation of St John. The four horsemen, the Archangel Michael and the dragon, the whore of Babylon, the coming of the new Jerusalem - all of the famous phantasmagorical images of John's vision are here in searing colour and detail. Specially commissioned as the Minster received a generous grant to clean and preserve this masterwork, Apocalypse reproduces the entire cycle in colour for the first time. Expert commentary by medieval stained glass expert Sarah Brown is supplemented by a chapter on the interpretation of the Apocalypse by theologian Paula Gooder and an introduction by the Dean of York.