Exhibition shows 2000 years of York Minster history

Finishing touches are being made to a new exhibition which shows off the 2000 year history of one of our region's most famous buildings for the first time. The display will go on show at York Minster from May 25th.

With just days till it opens there is still much to do to get the new York Minster Undercroft ready. It now contains the archaeological remnants of buildings that used to stand on the site. The story of the cathedral's 2000 year history weaves around the remains of earlier buildings. Old and new side by side. The new Dean of York considers it a gift:

It has taken eight years of planning to replace the old outdated display with a new one which details the building's full history as detailed in our factfile. Pride of place goes to the Horn of Ulf, a 10th century elephant tusk that was handed over by the Viking nobleman who donated the land to the church as Collections Manager Vicky Harrison explains:

The chambers containing the new exhibition were hastily dug in the 1970s during work to shore up the tower that was subsiding. This exhibition fits round the foundations of the different buildings that have stood there among stonework from many different ages. Work on this new display allowed more careful digging to unearth valuable archaeology led by archaeologist Ian Milsted:

The finds in these new excavations have led to new discoveries about the history of the building which lead archaeologist Stuart Harrison has been overseeing:

Interactive screens guide visitors through the building's history, much of it paid for out of a £10.5m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Spokesperson Fiona Spiers has been checking on final preparations:

The undercroft opens to the public on Saturday 25 May and admission is included in the usual price for visiting York Minster.

Watch James Webster's full report about the new exhibition below: