Left: Whole window. Right: The figure of St Paul.

This is the southern window beside the baptistry of St George's Church, Jesmond, complementing the one on the north wall here showing St Barnabas. As elsewhere in the church, it is the work of the architect Thomas Ralph Spence (1845-1918), as main designer, helped by Newcastle-born artist John William Brown (1842-1928) who developed the figures, and the Gateshead Stained Glass Company which executed the designs. Like the rest of the church stained glass, too, it was installed by the consecration of St George's in 1888.

Upper part of the window.

The church website suggests that these windows "demonstrate the genius of T. R. Spence: at first glance they appear to be fine examples of gothic design, but on closer inspection one sees the gentle introduction of art nouveau at the base of each window." The website also points out how well the two windows here match other designs in the church: "at the top the designs first noted on the entrance gates are repeated in a different form. Other examples of this unity of design can be found in other parts of the building, notably the East window, the lectern and the south windows." The pattern includes the pairing of thistles and roses, which Neil Moat sees as a tribute both to benefactor Charles Mitchell's Scottish background, and the Queen's Jubilee (144-45).

Photographs and text 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 for larger pictures.]

Related Material

Sources

"Baptistry." St George's Church website. Web. 19 October 2015.

Moat, Neil. A Theatre for the Soul: St George's Church, Jesmond: The Building and Cultural Reception of a late-Victorian Church. Newcastle University: Doctoral thesis, 2011. Web. 19 October 2015.


created 19 October 2015