Stained Glass

Lycurgus Cup

400

Evidence of stained glass dates back to the Ancient Roman Empire, when craftsman began using colored glass to produce decorative wares. While few fully in-tact stained glass pieces from this period exist, the Lycurgus Cup indicates that this practice emerged as early as the 4th century.

Saint Vitale in Ravenna, Italy

540

In 1930 at Saint Vitale in Ravenna, Italy, the archaeologist Cecchelli dug up three glass fragments showing Christ with a cruciform nimbus standing between an alpha and omega painted with grisaille. (The word grisaille applies equally to vitrifiable glass paint, as well as a style of lightly toned window that has been painted and stained in a decorative pattern.) It is assumed these fragments date from approximately 540 AD, the time of the construction of the building.

Medieval Monasteries

686

By the 7th century, glass makers began shifting their attention from wares to windows. As expected, these stained glass windows were used to adorn abbeys, convents, and other religious buildings, with St. Paul's Monastery in Jarrow, England as the earliest known example.

Islamic Architecture

800

By the 8th century, stained glass had made its way to the Middle East. The magic behind the medium is discussed at length in Kitab al-Durra al-Maknuna (“The Book of the Hidden Pearl”), a colored glass cookbook written by Persian chemist Jābir ibn Ḥayyān.

Gothic Cathedrals

1200

Unlike Romanesque buildings, churches and cathedrals built in this style illustrate an interest in height and light. This focus is evident in all aspects of Gothic design, including sky-high spires, delicate, thin walls, and, of course, large stained glass windows

American Opalescent Glass

1800

John La Farge is known as the inventor of the opalescent stained glass window and is the father of the American mural movement in the late nineteenth century. He was regarded as the premier American muralist of his time and an eloquent art critic. La Farge and Tiffany’s friendship came to a bitter end over the rights to use opalescent glass in windows, which La Farge patented in 1880. Tiffany filed a similar patent in 1881.

Art Nouveau

1851

The Worlds’ Fair was originally a forum in which visitors from all over the world were able to evaluate and imitate each other’s products. The first Worlds’ Fair was the Crystal Palace Exhibition in London in 1851. It was organized under the patronage of Prince Albert to show off the products of the Industrial Revolution. The increasing wealth of the middle class and their increasing mobility, due to railroads, induced the crowds to come.

Louis Comfort Tiffany

1885

In the 19th century, American artisans transformed the ancient art of stained glass into a modern art form. This approach is particularly evident in the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, the pioneer of the Prairie School movement, a style of architecture and interior design that emphasizes craftsmanship and a connection to nature.

American Arts And Crafts

1900

In the 19th century, American artisans transformed the ancient art of stained glass into a modern art form. This approach is particularly evident in the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, the pioneer of the Prairie School movement, a style of architecture and interior design that emphasizes craftsmanship and a connection to nature.

American Stained Glass After World War II

1950

The depression of the 1930s and 1940s diminished the amount of building and new stained glass in the United States.The shortage of craftspeople and supplies, little activity took place during World War II. These two relatively unproductive periods closely followed each other and resulted in a renewed demand for stained glass when the war was over.Architects organized tours abroad to visit the European churches. It was not difficult to convince Americans that European styles were more up-to-date.

Twentieth Century Stained Glass in England

1961

From William Morris forward, the English produced a lively amount of work, but in more or less the same style, by more or less the same studios. Replacing glass destroyed during World War II resulted in some new work, just as it did in France and Germany. Most significant of all was the new Coventry Cathedral built in 1962. A whole new building was constructed at right angles to the ruins of the old.

Citation

2023

Work Cited
The Stained Glass Association of America. “History of Stained Glass.” The Stained Glass Association of America, https://www.stainedglass.org/learning-resources/history-stained-glass. Accessed 12 October 2023.