Clear glass painted with enamels and yellow (silver) stain. Depicting the Virgin of the Seven Sorrows with the Dead Christ. Netherlandish or German, early 17th century.

The Virgin Mary is seated in the centre. She wears a red gown with a blue overmantle. She holds the Dead Christ on her lap. Seven swords pierce her heart and the instruments of Christ’s Passion, the pincers, hammer, nails and a basin holding the vinager-soaked sponge, lie at her feet. There is a fortified townscape painted in grisaille in the background.

Bequeathed by Mrs Matilda Mary Wesley

The original location for this panel is unknown. This is not unusual as many stained glass panels were removed from their original context because of wars or changes in religious preferences. They were then sold off to dealers and collectors who were more interested in their monetary and decorative worth rather than their historical provenance. Consequently, historians often have to rely on stylistic similarities to other, provenanced, works of art to place the stained glass panels in a cultural and historic context.

The style of painting and the minimal use of enamel paints would suggest that this panel was made in a Netherlandish workshop in the early 17th century. However, the full, rounded features of the Virgin Mary possibly point to the work of a German artist.

The Virgin Mary is depicted here holding the body of the dead Christ on her lap. This is the medieval devotional image of the 'Lamentation over the Body of Christ'. It is commonly described by the Italian term 'The Pieta'. The addition of the seven swords piercing her heart show that this image is meant to be viewed as the 'Virgin of the Seven Sorrows'. The Seven Sorrows refers to the events in the life of her son, Jesus Christ, that culminate in his death.

The Virgin Mary is depicted here holding the body of the dead Christ on her lap. This is the medieval devotional image of the ‘Lamentation over the Body of Christ’. It is commonly described by the Italian term ‘The Pieta’. The addition of seven swords piercing her heart show that this image is meant to be seen as the ‘Virgin of the Seven Sorrows’. The Seven Sorrows refers to the events in the life of her son, Jesus Christ, which culminated in his death.

The original location for this panel is unknown. Many stained glass panels were removed from their original context because of wars or changes in religious preferences. They were then sold off to dealers and collectors who were more interested in their monetary and decorative worth than in their historical provenance. Consequently, historians often have to rely on stylistic similarities to other, provenanced, works of art to place the stained glass panels in a cultural and historic context.

The style of painting and the minimal use of enamel paints would suggest that this panel was made in a Netherlandish workshop in the early 17th century. However, the full, rounded features of the Virgin Mary possibly point to the work of a German artist.

945-1907