Editing Westminster Abbey (section)

=== 21st century ===
[[File:Conservation work on the Cosmati pavement at Westminter Abbey, 2009..png|thumb|Conservators carrying out restoration work on the Cosmati pavement, June 2009|alt=Two conservators kneeling on the Cosmati pavement, surrounded by conservation and cleaning tools]]
In June 2009, the first major building work in 250 years was proposed.<ref name="BBC News-2009">{{Cite news |date=28 June 2009 |title=Building work announced for Abbey |work=[[BBC News]] |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8123241.stm |access-date=29 June 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221020195813/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/8123241.stm |archive-date=20 October 2022}}</ref> A [[crown steeple|corona]] – a crown-like architectural feature – was suggested to be built around the lantern over the central crossing, replacing an existing pyramidal structure dating from the 1950s.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2009/jun/29/westminister-abbey-roof-project|title=Dean lines up new crown shaped roof for Westminster Abbey|last=Kennedy|first=Maev|date=29 June 2009|work=The Guardian|access-date=29 June 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131204193343/http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2009/jun/29/westminister-abbey-roof-project|archive-date=4 December 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> This was part of a wider £23-million development of the abbey completed in 2013.<ref name="BBC News-2009" /> On 4 August 2010, the Dean and Chapter announced that, "after a considerable amount of preliminary and exploratory work", efforts toward the construction of a corona would not be continued.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Abbey Development Plan Update |url=http://www.westminster-abbey.org/press/news/news/2010/august/abbey-development-plan-update |date=1 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100809205418/http://www.westminster-abbey.org/press/news/news/2010/august/abbey-development-plan-update |archive-date=9 August 2010 |website=Westminster Abbey |access-date=20 February 2024}}</ref>

The [[Cosmati]] pavement underwent a major cleaning and restoration programme for two years, beginning in 2008.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kennedy |first=Maev |date=2008-05-05 |title=Carpet of stone: medieval mosaic pavement revealed |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/may/05/archaeology.art |access-date=2023-11-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230517193815/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/may/05/archaeology.art |archive-date=17 May 2023 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> On 17{{Nbsp}}September 2010, [[Pope Benedict XVI]] became the first pope to set foot in the abbey when he participated in a service of evening prayer with archbishop of Canterbury [[Rowan Williams]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Schjonberg |first=Mary Frances |date=17 September 2010 |title=Benedict becomes first pope to visit Lambeth, Westminster Abbey |url=https://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_124609_ENG_HTM.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611204830/https://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_124609_ENG_HTM.htm |archive-date=11 June 2011 |access-date=17 September 2010 |website=Episcopal News Service }}</ref> On 29{{Nbsp}}April 2011, the abbey hosted the [[wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton]].<ref name="BBC News-2011" />

In 2018, the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Galleries were opened. Located in the medieval [[triforium]], high up around the sanctuary, they are areas for displaying the abbey's treasures. A new Gothic access tower with a lift was designed by the abbey architect and Surveyor of the Fabric, [[Ptolemy Dean]].<ref name="gallery">{{cite web |date=8 June 2018 |title=The Queen opens The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Galleries with the Prince of Wales |url=https://www.royal.uk/queen-opens-queens-diamond-jubilee-galleries-prince-wales |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180728221715/https://www.royal.uk/queen-opens-queens-diamond-jubilee-galleries-prince-wales |archive-date=28 July 2018 |access-date=28 July 2018 |publisher=The Royal Household}}</ref><ref name="Wainwright-2018">{{Cite web |last=Wainwright |first=Oliver |date=29 May 2018 |title='A gothic space rocket to a secret realm' – Westminster Abbey's new £23m tower |url=http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2018/may/29/westminster-abbey-weston-tower-ptolemy-dean-gallery |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205160137/https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2018/may/29/westminster-abbey-weston-tower-ptolemy-dean-gallery |archive-date=5 December 2022 |access-date=24 January 2023 |website=The Guardian |language=en}}</ref>

In 2020, a 13th-century [[sacristy]] was uncovered in the grounds of the abbey as part of an archaeological excavation. The sacristy was used by the monks of the abbey to store objects used in [[Mass in the Catholic Church|Mass]], such as [[vestment]]s and [[chalice]]s. Also on the site were hundreds of buried bodies, mostly of abbey monks.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Mark |date=23 August 2020 |title=Lost medieval sacristy uncovered at Westminster Abbey |url=http://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/aug/23/lost-medieval-sacristy-uncovered-at-westminster-abbey |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221215155902/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/aug/23/lost-medieval-sacristy-uncovered-at-westminster-abbey |archive-date=15 December 2022 |access-date=24 January 2023 |website=The Guardian |language=en}}</ref> On 10 March 2021, a vaccination centre opened in [[Poets' Corner]] to administer doses of [[COVID-19 vaccine]]s.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Vanderhoof |first=Erin |date=23 March 2021 |title=Kate and William Visit One of the U.K.'s Most Surprising Vaccination Clinics |magazine=Vanity Fair |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2021/03/kate-and-william-westminster-abbey-vaccination-clinic |access-date=5 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220624231754/https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2021/03/kate-and-william-westminster-abbey-vaccination-clinic |archive-date=24 June 2022}}</ref>