Christ and the Children

 

Location: South transept, south wall.
S
tudio: Unknown.
Memorial Inscription: In Memoriam Olivia Hoadley. (Olivia Hoadley, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. David Hoadley, was a beloved teacher in our Church School for many years.)
D ate: 1892.


On the south wall of the south transept, above the three Easter Windows, is another window which may be referred to as a rose window because of its circular shape though it does not have the pattern or design of a true rose window.
This is an example of a window technically described as "Antique Pictorial Glass." Without the grisaille-covered background or the subtle and traditional symbolism of other styles, this window tells a simple straightforward story in almost photographic detail.


The scene is the familiar one when Christ told His irritated and impatient disciples, "Suffer the little children to come unto me." The children have gathered around Him—one peers out of an open window above His head, a small one sits on His lap, and a fond mother urges her charming young daughter in her new blue robe to offer Christ a small bouquet. How appropriate a selection for a memorial window honoring a beloved teacher in our Church School.


Christ's outer cloak is a rich bright yellow, not a common color in stained glass windows and supposedly one of the last to be perfected. Legend says it was not until the early 14th Century that a busy glassmaker, vigorously stirring his molten glass one day, popped a silver button off his jacket and it fell into the steaming brew. When he poured his sheet of glass to cool, he found he had a clear bright yellow glass such as no man had ever made before. How could anyone have suspected that a touch of silver was the secret for producing golden yellow glass?

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