
- Panel
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Panel
- Place of origin:
England (made)
- Date:
ca. 1570 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Unknown
- Materials and Techniques:
Clear, flashed and coloured glass, with painting, coloured enamels and yellow stain
- Credit Line:
Given by Mrs L. S. Kinsman, in accordance with the wishes E. Fordham Newling
- Museum number:
C.63-1946
- Gallery location:
British Galleries, Room 58, case WS
Object Type
Heraldry was a common feature of 16th-century domestic glazing schemes. The great hall was the usual setting for such displays, since it was here that the medieval lord feasted with his household and guests. These eye-catching decorations not only advertised his wealth, but also proclaimed his lineage and social alliances.
People
This shield shows the arms of Edward Beaupré. Usually children did not display their mother's arms, but because Margaret Fordringaye was the heiress of her family, Edmund was entitled to 'quarter' her arms (on the right) with those of his father, Nicholas Beaupré (on the left). Edmund died in 1567 leaving his daughter, Dorothy, the sole heiress of the Beaupré line.
Place
This is one of a series of coats of arms relating the Beaupré family history. It is thought to have been commissioned by Sir Robert Bell for Beaupré Hall, the family's ancestral home near Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. Bell married Dorothy, the sole heiress of the Beaupré line, in 1559 and succeeded to the Beaupré estate following his father-in-law's death. The windows seem to date from the completion of a new great hall in around 1570, but were later moved and cut down to fit narrower lights.
Materials & Making
The increasing complexity of heraldic shields made them almost impossible to assemble from pieces of coloured glass leaded together in the traditional way. Instead, the design was painted on clear glass in enamel colours and a silver-based yellow stain. Once fired, the surface of this stained glass could be 'abraded' or scratched away to reveal white details which could, in turn, also be coloured. This technique is known as 'flashing'.