Left: Whole window. Right: A closer view of the central part of the window. [Click on the images to enlarge them.]

Jesus Blessing the Children; Jesus with Mary Magdalen, by John Hardman & Co., with a closer view of the central figures. This is the baptistry window in Alexander Ross's Inverness Cathedral, dedicated to St Andrew, Inverness-shire, Scotland. Hardman's didactic scheme of 1869-70 starts at the east end of the nave with the Annunciation, following Jesus's life through to the Crucifixion in the apse, the Ascension in the North Transept window and the Last Judgement in the West Window. Here, Hardman's "clearly drawn archaic designs in bright colours" (Gifford 189) are complemeted by cheerful geometrical and floral patterning, giving a certain lightness to this little space occupied by a kneeling marble angel holding out a shell-shaped bowl. It should indeed be a place of joy, for this is where the minister baptises children and other newcomers to the Christian church.

Photographs by Colin Price, reproduced here by kind permission of the cathedral; text and 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.

Related Material

Bibliography

Gifford, John. Highland and Islands. The Buildings of Scotland. London: Penguin, 1992.

"Inverness, Ardross Street, Cathedral Church of St Andrew." British Listed Buildings. Web. 11 January 2018.

"A Tour of the Cathedral." United Diocese of Moray, Ross and Caithness. Web. 11 January 2018.


11 January 2018