Collection: Stained Glass Museum

Collection-level records:

• Collection history (Collection development policy)

  The Stained Glass Museum’s core collection of stained glass windows were rescued in the 1970s and 1980s from redundant churches across the British Isles. The museum’s founding Trustees and first Curator, Martin Harrison, were principally involved in identifying and rescuing Victorian and Edwardian stained glass windows from such churches during a time when appreciation of post-medieval stained glass was at its lowest ebb, and this role continued under the succeeding administrator Tony Rose.

  From its inception The Stained Glass Museum’s mission was to rescue, display and preserve such windows for future generations, and raise public awareness of the art form. Under successor curators Carola Hicks, who joined the museum in the late 1980s, and then Susan Mathews in the 1990s and 2000s, the collection slowly evolved to incorporate a wider range of stained glass from all periods. Important examples from the 13th, 16th, 17th, 18th and late-20th centuries were acquired during these decades, as gifts, bequests or purchases.

  In the last 20 years, the collection has continued to evolve with several additional significant stained glass windows, both medieval and modern, acquired by gift, purchase and bequest. In recent years efforts have focused on collecting 20^th and 21^st century stained glass. The museum’s permanent collection of stained glass has always been supplemented and enhanced through loans from private individuals and public organisations including the Victoria and Albert Museum. Designs, cartoons, tools, and glass materials have been acquired at various points since 1975, and many of these items have been acquired following the sale or closure of stained glass studios.

  In the last 10 years, several long-term loans have been converted to gifts.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2023

  Licence: CC BY-NC

• Collection overview (Collection development policy)

  The Stained Glass Museum’s accessioned collection can be broadly broken down into three categories: – Stained Glass; Preparatory Designs, Cartoons and Maquettes; and Tools, materials and other objects. The nonaccessioned collections are formed of the library and picture resources.

  Stained Glass

  The Stained Glass Museum’s collection encompasses representative stained glass panels and windows from the 13th-century through to the present day, from both religious and secular settings from all parts of the British Isles. The chronological range and scope of its collections ranks it amongst the most significant collections of stained glass in the world. The collection includes approximately 900 individual stained glass panels of varying size, including autonomous panels. Some of these panels are part of larger windows, and the collection includes approximately 500 different stained glass windows, some of which are entirely complete and others which represent the most part of a window, with some fragments missing. The collection also includes representative stained glass panels by international artists from Europe and the USA that demonstrate significant stylistic, technical or architectural developments.

  In addition to the many completed stained glass panels and windows, the museum has approximately 350 smaller pieces of stained and painted glass, fragments and samples of clear and coloured glass, many of which came from stained glass studios or glassmaking factories.

  The Stained Glass Museum owns a small but significant selection of stained glass panels from the medieval period, including key works from the 13th, 15th and 16th centuries. This collection of medieval glass is supplemented by loans. Stained glass from the 17th through to the early 19th centuries forms a smaller but representative part of the collection, reflecting the reduced production of stained glass in this period. The major strength of The Stained Glass Museum’s collection compared to other comparable collections is its post-medieval collection of stained glass panels and windows, especially those made 1840-1960, which reflects well the enormous quantity and diversity of stained glass windows made in this period.

  Preparatory Designs, Cartoons, Maquettes

  The Museum has a small but significant collection of approximately 300 preparatory designs, maquettes, cartoons and cut-lines relating to 19th- and 20th-century stained glass made by individual artist-craftsmen as well as large commercial studios. Most of these objects are works on paper, although some of the maquettes are three-dimensional models made using plastic or resin. These objects reveal the various artistic processes involved in the design and making of stained glass.

  Tools, materials and other miscellaneous objects

  Tools and materials related to the design, manufacture, recording and conservation of stained glass windows make up approximately 300 objects in total. Many of these items are tools used to blow, form, colour, cut and shape glass; brushes and utensils used to apply and remove paint and decorate the surface of the glass; fix or fire painted glass; or tools used to mould, mill, cut and solder lead and fix panels. Most of these items date to the 19th and 20th centuries and were acquired from glassmaking factories or stained glass studios both large and small. In addition a small number of items relate to the recording or conservation of stained glass, e.g. sketches of stained glass in situ, rubbings, or photographs.

  Non-accessioned collections

  In addition to its accessioned collection The Stained Glass Museum also has the following non-accessioned collections (not covered by this policy, but relevant to understanding the museum’s current collections):

  • A library resource of over 3,500 books, pamphlets and articles relating to the history, techniques and conservation of stained glass, as well as the study of glass art, architecture, decorative arts, heraldry and iconography. The library is catalogued separately to the accessioned collection and accessible to visitors by prior appointment.
  • A slide library of over 32,500 slides, together with postcards and photographs of stained glass windows, many of which were acquired from leading scholars.
  • A handling collection of tools, materials and stained glass, which is used as a learning resource for visiting groups and during learning outreach sessions. The handling collection is labelled and catalogued separately to the accessioned collection.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2023

  Licence: CC BY-NC