Maries at the Tomb by Lavers & Barraud, designed by Nathaniel Westlake (1833-1921). Installed in the west of the north aisle of All Saints Church, Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, in 1866, according to the Church Guide (see Eberhard). Westlake had been designing for Lavers & Barraud for about eight years now, and would become a partner a couple of years after this. This lovely three-light window, on a popular subject for church stained glass representation, and one which Westlake had taken up before (see "Related Material"), gave him plenty of scope for his love of colour and floral highlights.
The whole window is positively scintillating. Mary Magdalene on the left has long Pre-Raphaelite tresses and is brilliantly attired in deep red, with a contrasting floral pattern. The Virgin Mary on the right, being addressed by the angel in front of the empty tomb, is also in her traditional colours — blue, with a white head covering. But beneath the gold lining of her cloak are hints of different shades of pink. The other Mary, perhaps Mary the mother of James (see Mark 16, 1), wears a cloak of deep olive green offset by touches of violet and red, and a blue-striped head-covering. Even the angel, in violet, pink and a gold-patterned white, with decorated armband and cuff, has rainbow-coloured wings. The backgrounds and superstructure of the figures are equally dazzling, as if to reflect the sacred and miraculous nature of the event that has just taken place.
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 it in a print one. [Click on the images to enlarge them.]
Related Material
- The Three Maries at the Sepulchre, an earlier window by Westlake at St Nicholas, Thames Ditton
- All Saints, Kingston-upon-Thames
- [Selected windows:] West Window, by John Milner Allen for Lavers & Barraud
- Life of Abraham, by Nathaniel Westlake
- Old Testament scenes, by Nathaniel Westlake
- Andrew, Peter and James, by Lavers and Barraud
- Angels Announce Jesus's Birth to the Shepherds, by William Wailes
References
Eberhard, Robert. "Stained Glass Windows at All Saints." Church Stained Glass Windows. Web. 13 May 2015.
FreeBMD. Web. 13 May 2015.
Created 13 May 2015