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Abbey staff say thank you

Hundreds of people flocked to Glastonbury Abbey to mark the Queen’s Jubilee and discover why it has launched a £500,000 appeal to rescue the ruins.

Janet Bell, the Abbey’s acting director, was delighted by the response to the open evening.

She said: “It was wonderful that so many people came to enjoy what the Abbey has to offer. Visitors of all ages came along and many wanted to know about the Rescue Our Ruins appeal which we launched last month.

“All the profits from the night and the raffle will go towards the appeal and the generosity of visitors was overwhelming – the money collected is being counted after the jubilee so we don’t know how much was given yet but every penny and every pound counts and we are very grateful for the support we have received.

“The open night was our first fund-raising event for the appeal and given the austere times we are living in, I think people appreciated the fact we are only asking for a pound from individuals. After all if everyone in Somerset gave a pound we would have the money we need for the much-needed conservation work.

“But the open evening wasn’t just about raising money, we wanted to play our part in celebrating the Queen’s jubilee and we hope all those who came enjoyed themselves and saw it as a fun-way of starting their jubilee celebrations.”

The Abbey itself has connections to Royalty with St Dunstan who was abbot in the 10^thcentury and officiated at the coronation of King Edgar and some of the wording has been used throughout the centuries, including for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

Three Saxon kings are buried at the site along with the legendary King Arthur and over the centuries there have been many visits by monarchs.

The money raised will fund conservation work and enhance the visitor experience to the Abbey in the following areas:

• The North Wall – the oldest standing part of the Abbey dating to the Norman period.
• The Lady Chapel, Crypt and Galilee – an outstanding example of an Romanesque building.
• The Abbot’s Kitchen – an iconic building and a very rare survival in Europe of a medieval monastic kitchen.

If you want to hold a fund-raising event, have a collection box or would like to donate please visit www.glastonburyabbey.com or call 01458 832267

* Unclaimed raffle ticket numbers will be uploaded shortly

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