Ten years after York Minster hosted its first international carving festival it has held a second, organised by Tina Roberts, office manager at the Minster, in co-operation with the Cathedral’s Master Mason, John David. Theme for the carvings was ‘Nature’s form and the Fabulous’.

The event attracted 72 carvers. Many came from Europe but they also came from further afield and Graham Wilson travelled the furthest, having taken a two-week holiday from his home in Australia to take part in the event. An Iranian, Pourang Tajally, took one of the two prizes presented for the work produced. His piece was judged the best apprentice work.

The other prize for the best carving during the weekend event was judged by participants themselves, scoring each others’ work. The winner was Nina Bilbey with her carving of snails.

Bankers were set up for the participants in a marquee in the Minster School grounds, where the public were able to come and see them at work – and around 15,000 people are estimated to have taken the opportunity to do so. Some of them even went home with some of the work, which was auctioned off at the end of the festival on Sunday afternoon.

Local schools and youth groups joined in the fun with the children entering a competition to draw a design that would be carved into stone. There were more than 300 entries. Winners were 10-year-old Alex Walker and six-year-old Alfie Savage. Alex’s was carved by Lee Godfrey, a carver conservator at the Minster, and Alfie’s by Danny Sampson, the stone yard manager.

Stone for the carvers was donated by some of the quarries that supply the Minster masonry workshops (and the workshops themselves were open to the public on the Friday before the carvers got down to the serious business of the festival).

The carvers were given camp beds in the Minster School during the event and local people helped feed them – someone donated pasties, for example, and a local pub supplied a chilly that was so heavy it took two men to carry it.