Abstract

Expressing the compelling beauty and majesty of Lincoln Cathedral in words is as elusive as grasping the colours cast on the floor and pillars by the light shining through its stained-glass windows. Lincoln Cathedral's breathtaking stained glass is one reason many believe this to be the finest Gothic cathedral in the British Isles. Much of its medieval glass has been lost, but what remains is the most important collection of English early thirteenth-century glass after Canterbury Cathedral. The north transept Dean's Eye is outstanding as an early and very large rose window of c. 1220. The Victorian glazing programmes feature the leading firms of the day, as well as the gifted amateurs Augustus and Frederick Sutton, who made the great west window, depicting Old Testament Kings and Prophets in the style and colours of medieval glass. The best examples of twentieth-century glass are four striking Archangel windows by Harry Stammers. Given the existence of so many treasures, it is surprising that Lincoln's stained glass is hardly known. Until now there has been no book published on the subject as a whole. 'The Stained Glass of Lincoln Cathedral' celebrates the range and quality of Lincoln's glass, combining new scholarly perspectives with sumptuous illustrations.