A CANDLELIT Swedish service celebrating the bringer of light during the long darkness of winter has taken place at York Minster.

Now in its seventh year, the atmospheric Sankta Lucia service featured a candlelit procession and traditional Swedish carols and songs for all the family in celebration of St Lucy, a young Sicilian girl who was martyred for her Christian faith in the early fourth century.

The service, run in partnership with the York Anglo-Scandinavian Society (YASS), featured Chorus Pictor and Friends, a Swedish choir which travelled to York for the service.

The choir opened the evening with a candlelit procession, led by ‘St Lucy’ wearing a crown of candles, thought to symbolise a halo, and a red sash which represented her martyrdom.

The Revd Catriona Cumming, Succentor at York Minster, said Sankta Lucia had become a firm favourite in the cathedral’s calendar.