MEET some of York Minster’s newest grotesques.

Stone carvers have been at work on these stunning figures for two years or more down in the Minster stoneyard.

Now 20 of them have been lifted into place high above the streets of York, more than 90 feet above ground at the top of the South Transept buttress on the Minster’s east front.

There, they are being fixed in place by molten lead or mortar.

The grotesques – they’re not gargoyles – were carved out of magnesian limestone from Tadcaster quarry to replace figures eroded by time, as part of the ongoing restoration of the East Front.

The grotesques they replaced were actually replacements, probably carved in the nineteenth century, admits master mason John David.

So the carvers didn’t have authentic medieval grotesques to copy. Instead, they used their imaginations – carving the figures in a medieval style inspired by other stonework from the period at the Minster.

Many of the grotesques, which went on display in the Minster’s All Saints Chapel earlier this year, depict medieval figures afflicted by diseases and ailments common at the time.

“There’s a cripple, a blind beggar, someone with leprosy, a plague doctor with a beak,” John said.

There is a wonderful earthy quality about them – like characters from Chaucer carved into stone – but the quality of the work is astonishing.

Sadly, you won’t be able to see much detail from ground level. But its is nice just to know they are there, looking out across the rooftops of York.

If you want to see the work of stone carvers up close, you will have the perfect chance in a couple of weeks.

The Minster stoneyard is holding a festival of stonecarving over the weekend of August 14 and 15.

Stonecarvers from across Europe will be in the Minster School yard, next to the stoneyard, showing off their carving skills to any members of the public who want to go along.

Their theme for the festival will be animals and mythical beasts, and the pieces they carve will be auctioned off on the Sunday afternoon to raise money for charity – the Minster Fund, and York Against Cancer.

So if you fancy bagging a carving for you garden or home, don’t miss it.