The ‘end of the world’ is here - at a York church

Now the stained glass ‘Pricke of Conscience’ window has been beautifully restored and returned home – to York’s All Saints Church, North Street.

The church’s medieval patrons commissioned the window in the early 1400s.

It depicts Biblical scenes from the end of the world, in which the seas rise and fall, the stars fall from heaven and the earth burns.

Now the magnificent window has been carefully restored as part of a three-year project funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund to conserve some of York’s finest medieval stained glass.

It was reinstated at the church this month after restoration work by local conservator Keith Barley of Barley Studios.

The story it tells is one that is all-too-appropriate in the modern-day world of pandemic, climate change and international tension, says David Titchener, the chair of the Friends of All Saints.

“With our world in turmoil, it’s hard not to draw parallels with these often disturbing images” he said.

“Prayer may have been the response for our medieval forebears, but today a more practical approach is required to the ills of our planet.

“We welcome visitors to come and view the work and perhaps to reflect on the how we can work to secure a future not only for wonderful artefacts like our intricate and delicate glass and make the huge steps needed to secure a future for our world.”

The parish church, which dates primarily from the 14th and 15th century, stands on a site that has been hallowed for worship since Norman times, and its medieval glass is recognised as among the most important in the British Isles.