Having mentioned the wonderful medieval stained glass in All Saints Church, North Street, York, in my last two posts, it seems appropriate to post a shot of one of the recently restored windows.
This shot shows the Nine Orders of Angels Window, believed to date from around 1410, and which has a fascinating story.
The church website gives the following recent history - it is quite long but I found it quite absorbing:
"This window has a fascinating recent history. Until 1965 it was in a very fragmented condition and nobody knew what it had originally represented. In the 18th century it was thought to have contained an angel, a cardinal-bishop, a pope, and a religious procession, possibly a Corpus Christi procession. A 19th century restorer suggested it might be the coronation of Edward IV in York in 1464. Some 20th century scholars believed it was simply a jumble of glass fragments from several unknown windows.
Then in the early 1960s the sketchbooks of an antiquarian called Henry Johnston came to light in the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Johnston visited York in 1670 and made sketches of many of the sights, including stained-glass windows in various churches. He left a clear sketch of this window which enabled it to be identified.
It depicts the nine 'orders of angels' as described by the 5th-century writer Pseudo-Dionysius in an infuential book. Dionysius placed them in three hierarchies each containing three 'choirs'. The three horizontal rows in the window represent the hierarchies, and in each panel there is a single angel on the left, representing his 'choir', with various onlookers. The angels of the highest hierarchy (top row) have three pairs of wings each - one pair is crossed above the head, another is behind the back, the third is in front - recalling Isaiah's vision of seraphim in attendance on God (Isa. 6.2): 'Each had six wings: with one pair of wings they covered their faces and with another their bodies, and with the third pair they flew.' In the second row they have two pairs each, in the In the bottom row one.
The restorers of 1965 when they found a piece of glass missing replaced it in clear glass. At the bottom right a man wearing spectacles is peering over someone's shoulder - a very rare illustration of what spectacles looked like in 1410. Is it the glass painter himself, eyesight worn out with years of close-up work? Possibly, but there is no evidence."
It is really nice to see information about the stained glass on the church website. Many churches neglect or ignore this part of their history, but I find it one of the more interesting elements of a church.
It’s a wonderful little church with the most beautiful windows. I’m pleased the restoration works are going well. Didn’t know this fascinating story. Thank you.
I to have a great collection of books. To many already.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
We are very fortunate to have so many old churches in York, with their varied, interesting histories. They are well worth exploring.
Ian
Thank you Vesna, I'm pleased that you like it.
Ian