Set in the quiet valley of the River Rye near Helmsley, Rievaulx Abbey is one of the most impressive monastic ruins in England. Founded in 1132, it was the first Cistercian abbey established in the north of England and grew to become one of Britain’s most powerful and influential medieval monasteries.
What remains today is remarkable for its scale. Tall Gothic arches, rows of stone columns and fragments of the great abbey church create a strong sense of the size and ambition of the medieval complex. Walking through the ruins, changing viewpoints reveal new combinations of arches, walls and open sky, making Rievaulx particularly rewarding to photograph.
These photographs are a personal record of my visit, concentrating on the architecture, surviving stonework and atmosphere of the abbey rather than attempting to document every part of the site.
