The History of Stained Glass
Beginnings of Stained Glass History
The first chapter in the history of stained glass windows starts in Anglo-Saxon churches way back in the 7thC. Fragments of these old stained glass windows bear no traces of paint, so we can assume that they were decorative rather than narrative in character. This is an imagined reconstruction of such a panel, bearing the hallmark mosaic feel of the medieval stained glass yet to come.
Painted glass from as early as the 9thC has been found on mainland 
Europe, but the oldest surviving medieval stained glass windows are c.1100 from Augsburg Cathedral in Bavaria. Thought to be from a larger series of twenty-two, five prophets remain - they’re an impressive 2.5m (8ft) high and boldly painted with trace lines. They manage somehow to be both elaborate and monumental – no mean feat!
It is really only in the late 12thC that glass painting came to the fore. Here in the UK, we have the fantastic Canterbury Cathedral stained glass windows to prove it, spanning the transition from Romanesque to Gothic. Here’s the Parable of the Sower, c.1200, from the choir, north side. The dramatic palette is worth noting, but look too at the quality of the stained glass painting. The patterning and detail is absolutely exquisite.
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