These two windows in the north aisle of the nave in Romsey Abbey are a pair, depicting aspects of Christ’s ministry and teaching, by Alexander Gibbs. Both are likely to date to 1865 (see below for more on the dating). In the window which is on the left, there are two roundels: of Christ the Good Shepherd at the top, and, below this, Christ surrounded by children, recalling his injunction to "Suffer the little children to come unto me." Note how the glazing bars are bent around the image in two places so as not to interfere with the design. In the righthand window of the pair, there are three scenes. These show: top, Christ healing the lame who have who have come to him using crutches; in the centre, the parable of the Good Samaritan; and at the bottom, Christ healing the blind man (the same subject as Franz Meyer was to depict later in the south nave aisle).
The roundels of the window on the left, showing Christ the Good Shepherd, and Christ with the children.
Robert Eberhard cites an account in the Alnwick Mercury of 9 September 1865 as evidence of the date assigned to the one on the left; but he dates the one on the right to 1875, quoting the Hampshire Chronicle of 16 January 1875. However, the Romsey Register of October 1865, headed, "Memorial Window," it reported that:
the northern nave aisle of the Abbey Church has just been enriched by the insertion of a stained window by Mr Tylee, his brother and son, in memory of three members of their family. The window (which is by Mr Gibbs of London) comprises three medallions of which the subjects are — Christ at the Pool of Bethesda, the Good Samaritan and the Saviour giving sight to the Blind. The subjects are excellently brought out and the richness and harmony of its colours, it is certainly not second to either of the memorial windows which have been previously inserted in the Abbey.
This is fully supported by another report of 1865, which goes into more detail about the structural preparation for the new window
The same pairing as that found in the righthand window (Christ Blessing Children and Christ, and the Good Shepherd) can also be found in two adjacent lights of 1860, in the chancel of St Cwyfan, Llangwyfan, Denbighshire (see "Alexander Gibbs & Co.").
Photographs by Liz Hallett, Parish Historian, who also kindly contributed the text. Formatting by Jacqueline Banerjee. You may use these images without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one. Click on the images to enlarge them.
Related Material
Bibliography
"Alexander Gibbs & Co. (1958-1915)." Gwydir Lliw Nghymru: Stained Glass in Wales. Web. 25 May 2019.
Eberhard, Robert. "Stained Glass Windows in the Church." Church Stained Glass Windows. Web. 25 May 2019.
Created 26 May 2019