S. Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus, the sixth Station of the Cross. Designed by John Standen Adkins, assistant to the architect James Brooks, at St John the Baptist Church, Holland Road, Kensington, London. This is another of the set which the church's listing text dates to 1912-15. The plaque below it reads, "Gift of the Communicants 1914." The emphasis here is on the terrible ordeal, and the gesture of sympathy which ennobles the saint. But the soldier in the background is helping to steady the cross. Perhaps there has been some change wrought in him during this slow procession.
The next in the sequence. "Jesus Falls the Second Time," is not a mosaic. It is entirely different, and was perhaps added later, though it looks worn and damaged. It is shown here for the sake of completeness.
Photographs by John Salmon 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 to enlarge them.]
Bibliography
"List Entry" (for St John the Baptist, Holland Road). Historic England. Web. 4 June 2015.
Created 4 June 2015