The Beauty in Stained Glass and Information

Stained glass windows have always made me feel a sense of awe and wonder.  I've seen more stained glass on this trip than I have in my lifetime at home.  Today, the above sparked a curiosity in me and I began to question how it is made.  Eager to find the answer to my question, I jumped on my computer as soon as I got home from a beautiful day in Oxford.

Making glass in Medieval times was not as easy as it may seem.  In fact, furnaces back then were unable to get hot enough to melt the silica on their own, so additives like lead or soda had to be incorporated to help the process along.  Colored glass was made by adding various substances into the molten silica - depending on the desired color of the final product.  For example: blue was made by adding cobalt, and red by adding gold.  An elaborate process of either hand blowing or hand stretching the materials produced colored glass. 

Once the glass was prepared, the window had to be measured and the plans sketched out.  The window maker needed to be especially mindful to ensure a secure fit for the glass.  These windows would have to survive all sorts of weather conditions.  Once a pattern was laid, each piece was painstakingly cut out to the desired shape.  Details such as hair or faces could be painted on and were usually made out of a combination of lead or copper filings, gum arabic, ground glass, and a sort of acid (vinegar, wine, or urine).  The final step would be to fit the glass into the soldered lead housing and force an oily cement between the cracks to prevent rattling (information found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stained_glass).

Each window has its own character, purpose, or story.  My favorite stained glass window on this trip has to be this one from the Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford:

This beautiful piece depicts the life of St. Frideswide, the patron saint of Oxford.  Knowing her story of being pursued by a man pleading for her hand in marriage helps make this window wonderful.  I encourage you to read about this lovely lady. 

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Being able to look up this information and to have the ability to learn something new so instantaneously is a direct contrast to what we learned about information at Oxford's historical Bodleian Library.  Here, we were able to view books as they were presented hundreds of years ago - chained to the wall.  Library school has taught me how precious books were prior to the invention of the printing press and I saw it in action today.  

I am so thankful to be living in an information age, where the answers to all of my questions can be found if I look hard enough.  Online resources are helpful, as is the printed word.  Libraries are free to use, thus knowledge is free to those who seek it.

As beautiful and wonderful as stained glass is - I also find my freedoms to obtain information wonderfully beautiful, too.

Flying free -- Tara