fire window

This spectacular window in Manchester Cathedral marks the area where a bomb fell during the Blitz in 1940 damaging part of the cathedral and breaking all the stained glass windows.

Fortunately the main body of the cathedral, dating back to the 15th century, survived the blast. This section was rebuilt after the war, and then restored again after an IRA bombing in 1996.

I have always been intrigued about how these huge buildings were constructed, but I have a new appreciation of Cathedrals after reading Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth.