Herod (left), and Jesus baptising a child (right), by Shrigley & Hunt, in the Baptistry vestibule at the Cathedral Church of St Peter (RC), Lancaster. The Baptistry was consecrated in 1901. Christopher Martin has described this unusual window as a "masterpiece" (100). A grim-looking Herod, ready to draw his sword, is shown with his foot on an infant's body, and with a fox peering out from his right side. A snake twines round the foliage surrounding him, while the apples hanging there recall the sinfulness of man from the original fall in Eden. The Latin text ("Herodes iratus occidit pueros") refers to Herod's decree for the "Massacre of the innocents" (see Matthew 2, 16). Jesus, in contrast, is seen tenderly holding a prayerful little girl beside the baptismal font, with the dove of the Holy Ghost in attendance, and a stem of flowering lilies beside him. The Latin text here refers to Jesus's welcoming children ("Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven," Matthew 19, 14). The windows make a dramatic contrast, presenting both Jesus and the sacrament of baptism as sure refuges from the treachery and cruelty of the world. The impact of the windows may not be immediate, because the colours are muted, but, as Martin says, they give "dim and subtle illumination" to the stone font with its high, octagonal oak cover. — Jacqueline Banerjee.
Photograph by Colin Price, reproduced here by courtesy of Cathedral's Dean. You may use this image 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.
Related Material
Bibliography
"St Peter's: The First 50 Years." Lancaster Cathedral. Web. 17 December 2018.
Martin, Christopher. A Glimpse of Heaven: Catholic Churches of England and Wales. London: English Heritage, 2006.
Last modified 19 December 2018