“Chartres, Centre-Val de Loire, France“ 2019

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Thought for the Day – 10 April

Chartres Cathedral has been called a “sermon in stone and stained glass” and it demonstrates what can happen when faith bursts into culture.   St Fulbert of Chartres recognised that unless faith influences culture, it’s voice remains weak.   It is not enough to believe – we have to make the Christian faith part of our lives and part of the world we live in.   So, as Chartres teaches and impacts our hearts and minds with awe and faith, so our lives too should be a “school of faith” and teach our world with awe and belief!

St Fulbert pray for us!

The Stained Glass Windows of Chartres Cathedral

The 167 stained glass windows of Chartres Cathedral, built 1190-1220 CE, are the most complete group surviving anywhere from the Middle Ages. Several windows date to the mid-12th century CE while over 150 survive from the early 13th century CE. There are religious scenes to tell the faithful the key stories of the Bible as well as countless depictions of saints, kings, queens, nobles, knights, and priests. The city's merchants donated 42 windows to the cathedral, and they crop up in many smaller scenes showing the full range of medieval professions from barrel-makers to butchers.

Medieval Stained Glass

The technique of staining glass for windows using metal oxides dates back to at least the 7th century CE and the churches of the Byzantine Empire. However, the craft really became a refined art in the 12th and 13th centuries CE. The five main colours used to 'stain' glass were bright ruby red, which came from copper oxide, sapphire blue from cobalt oxide, green from iron oxide, yellow from sulphur or soot, and purple from manganese oxide. These materials were added to the glass while it was being heated, but because the result proved too opaque to allow much light through, often a thin layer of coloured glass was laid on top of a thicker pane of transparent or white glass. Painted on the interior side of the glass, details of scenes were rendered using a mixture of glass fillings, metal oxides, and vinegar or urine. The paint was then permanently fused onto the glass by putting the pieces into a kiln.

Individual pieces of stained and painted glass were specially cut according to a design chalked out beforehand on a wooden board and then inserted into lead borders to make a single composite panel. The finished panel was then mounted into the metal armature of the window frame using dowels and metal strips. A single tall lancet window at Chartres may include over 50 such panels of all shapes and sizes.

Not only decorative, the windows were also intended as a pictorial guide to the Gospel message in an era when few could read. Consequently, the wages of sin, the benefits of salvation, and the lives of the most important saints and biblical figures are shown as a lesson to all. Most windows, when they tell a narrative such as the life of an apostle or Bible parable, should be read from left to right starting at the base. Four-leafed rosette or quatrefoil panels are read by looking first at the bottom leaf, then the left, centre, and right leaf, and finally the top leaf. Following are descriptions of only some of the most important and striking windows in Chartres cathedral.

The Stained Glass Windows of Chartres Cathedral

The 167 stained glass windows of Chartres Cathedral, built 1190-1220 CE, are the most complete group surviving anywhere from the Middle Ages. Several windows date to the mid-12th century CE while over 150 survive from the early 13th century CE. There are religious scenes to tell the faithful the key stories of the Bible as well as countless depictions of saints, kings, queens, nobles, knights, and priests. The city's merchants donated 42 windows to the cathedral, and they crop up in many smaller scenes showing the full range of medieval professions from barrel-makers to butchers.

Medieval Stained Glass

The technique of staining glass for windows using metal oxides dates back to at least the 7th century CE and the churches of the Byzantine Empire. However, the craft really became a refined art in the 12th and 13th centuries CE. The five main colours used to 'stain' glass were bright ruby red, which came from copper oxide, sapphire blue from cobalt oxide, green from iron oxide, yellow from sulphur or soot, and purple from manganese oxide. These materials were added to the glass while it was being heated, but because the result proved too opaque to allow much light through, often a thin layer of coloured glass was laid on top of a thicker pane of transparent or white glass. Painted on the interior side of the glass, details of scenes were rendered using a mixture of glass fillings, metal oxides, and vinegar or urine. The paint was then permanently fused onto the glass by putting the pieces into a kiln.

Individual pieces of stained and painted glass were specially cut according to a design chalked out beforehand on a wooden board and then inserted into lead borders to make a single composite panel. The finished panel was then mounted into the metal armature of the window frame using dowels and metal strips. A single tall lancet window at Chartres may include over 50 such panels of all shapes and sizes.

Not only decorative, the windows were also intended as a pictorial guide to the Gospel message in an era when few could read. Consequently, the wages of sin, the benefits of salvation, and the lives of the most important saints and biblical figures are shown as a lesson to all. Most windows, when they tell a narrative such as the life of an apostle or Bible parable, should be read from left to right starting at the base. Four-leafed rosette or quatrefoil panels are read by looking first at the bottom leaf, then the left, centre, and right leaf, and finally the top leaf. Following are descriptions of only some of the most important and striking windows in Chartres cathedral.