Durham Cathedral

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• Behind The Scenes: Glass Act
• The History of Durham Cathedral

Behind The Scenes: Glass Act

Elusive Origins
No one knows exactly when decorators started using stained glass. Because it's so fragile, few early examples survive. The Romans were known to use coloured glass, although archaeologists believe this was more to do with domestic ostentation than a proper art form. Traces of coloured glass dating from the 7th century have been found at St Paul's Monastery in Jarrow. By the 12th century, however, stained glass had become an established branch of ecclesiastical architecture.

Blowing Bubbles
Making medieval stained glass was not for the impatient. Glassmakers added metallic oxides to the glass while it was still molten. Copper produced a ruby colour, cobalt made blue, manganese made purple, antimony made yellow and iron made green. The glass was blown into a bubble which was then rolled into a cylinder. The ends of the cylinder were sliced off, allowing craftsmen to cut along the tube. Still pliable, the tube could then be flattened into a coloured sheet of glass.

The History of Durham Cathedral

Cuthbert's Shrine
The cathedral was built to hold the body of St Cuthbert, the monk who became Bishop of Lindisfarne and whose body was rescued and hidden many times during the Viking raids of the 8th century. To protect his body, the monks carried it on their wanderings until they arrived in Durham in 995 and built a shrine in the White Church - this was later replaced by the Cathedral we see today.

Cuthbert is described by Bede (who wrote the first history of the English people, and who is also buried in the church) as 'unassumingly patient and kindly to all who came to him for comfort'. There is a story that the head of King Oswald, the 7th-century King of Northumbria, also lies in Cuthbert's tomb. St Oswald, St Cuthbert and St Bede all have bells named after them in the cathedral tower.

Natural Defences
Like the castle which stands next to it, Durham Cathedral sits on a naturally defended site - on a loop in the River Wear, almost cut off by water and protected by a steep gorge. It is nearly 200 metres long and the central tower was added in the 15th century. The dimensions, huge vaulted roof and massive stone piers are just as the Norman architects intended.