"Nimbed figure" Anglo Saxon Colored Glass Window Replica

"Nimbed figure" Anglo Saxon Colored Glass Window Replica - NOTE : This is not a painted window but it seems like it would be fun to do!

Updates:

January 13, 2013 - explanation of the project, pattern, picking colors
January 14, 2013 - more on the history of the window , starting the cutting and caming
January 18, 2013 - update on the cutting and caming
January 31, 2012 - finished the cutting and the caming, patina and cementing!
February 6, 2013 - all framed and finished!


This project will be to recreate an Anglo Saxon window that has been found."Fragments of unpainted coloured glass making up this figure were excavated at the Anglo Saxon sites of Monkwearmouth and Jarrow and retain their colour and translucency despite centuries of burial. This is no double due to their high soda content typical of the highly durable glasses maufactured in the Roman Tradition": Medieval Craftsmen glass painting Sarah Brown pages 8-9

"no complete windows survive from the fith and sixth centuries, although literary evidence for them is plentiful. ...In seventh century England the craft of glazing which had died out when the Romans left and so was lost to the Anglo Saxons, was reintroduced through contact with the churches of Gaul. Eddius Stephanus'life of Bishop Wilfrid describes his church in York in about 670, glazed against the wind, rain, and the passage of birds, but allowing the light to shine within, a neat description of the practical and aesthetic roles of the new material. Bede's Historia Abbatum [History of the Abbots of Monkwearmouth and Jarrow] reveals that in 675 Abbot Benedict Biscop sent to Gaul for craftsmen both to make and to glaze the windows of his monastery church at Monkwearmouth in Northumbria." Page 8

I will be doing what is called the "nimbed figure" from Wearmouth-Jarrow quarries.  "based on the shapes of some of the Jarrow quarries, rather than any recovered lead lines, Rosemary Cramp and her colleagues were, in her words, "emboldened to think" of yet another possibility, The well known conjectured scheme of unpainted quarries assemled to produce a nimbed figure in an arched frame, was the result" Vidmus issue 42

PICKING THE GLASS COLORS

"Glass recovered from the sites [Anglo Saxon] has shown that it consists overwhelmingly of "soda lime silica glass" The alkali, soda [a sodium compound] was mixed with sand to provide the flux to facilitate melting....Although most of the glass is techlnically uncolored [actualy often pale blue or greenish owing to iron compound in the sand used in the manufacturing process] archaeologist also found blue glass of several hues together with examples of green, yellow green, greenish amber, brownish amber, reds and two colour glasses including some with trails or streaks of red, and others with a red marble like effect." Stained glass in Anglo Saxon Vidmus issue 42

"The glass found at Wearmouth and Jarrow has been shown to be cylinder or Muff  glass" Vidmus issue 42.  This is glass blown into a cylinder than cut and flattened. Based on this I have picked out a very pale green and a light blue for the main colors.  I have also picked out a purple, amber, red and yellow based on the picture above.

DOING THE PATTERN

When I was drawing up the pattern I was surprised at how many small pieces that there are.  However I have now read that there is a possibility that some of this glass was "salvaged from Roman Tesserae" Vidmus issue 42. This would make alot of sense!

 

 I have made it 13" by 7" in size.  I am still looking for information on how churches where built during the Anglo Saxon era.  However common sense tells me that the windows would have been on the smaller size.



STARTING THE TRACING

Since the colors that I have picked are so light it is very easy to see the patterns through the glass. They would have drawn the pattern on a chalked washed board.

STARTING THE CAME

"By contrast with the scale of glass found on the site very few lead calmes were recovored, probably due to recycling. Some glass hjstorians have suggested that H section lead networks were an eight century refinement" Vidmus issue 42. I am going  to be using 3/16" H came

As stated in Theophilus On Divers arts - I will be starting in the middle with the head.

January 18, 2013

UPDATE ON THE CUTTING AND THE CAMING

I have been cutting and caming this piece over the last few days.   I am becoming more and more convinced that these pieces of glass were "recycled" by the Anglo Saxons from  a ruined Roman site near Wearmouth or Jarrow.  These pieces are very small and alot of  effort would have been  needed to cut each piece

On Monday I will post more about the history of Anglo Saxon window glass and on the Monastaries at Jarrow and Wearmouth.

January 31, 2012

Finishing the cutting and caming

I finally finished the cutting and  the caming.  This was ALOT of work!  I had a hard time figuring out some of the colours at the bottom as the only picture that I have was not clear on those colors other than they were not blue or green!

I soldered the front and back with 60 tin/40 lead solder and a liquid flux. Because I have worked on it so long the came has a lot of oxidation on it. I used a flux brush with stiff bristles to clean the came before soldering.

Applying the Patina

Then I cleaned the flux off using very hot water and comet granular cleaner. Once it had dried I took a soft toothbrush and black patina and covered all of the came. You need to so this before you cement as the chemicals in the cement can react to the cement and create a mess.

Cementing

Next Using a two part cement I cemented the front and back applying a whiting compound to absorb some of the moisture so that the cement will set.

Using a brush, I brushed the whiting compound over the entire piece

Using a piece of wood with a sharp point, I have started to clean the edges of the inside corners of the came - taking out the extra cement

I have done the first cleaning and need to wait a day or so to do the second cleaning of any extra cement

Thoughts on framing

Because of the time and place of the original window - Anglo Saxon - 7th century - I am figuring that It would have been installed in a grey stone in the church wall..  So off to the local home supply box store to see what they have that I can make a frame out of!!!


Making the frame

Okay, I had to go to many home improvement stores looking for grey tile....not a currently popular color.  I guess that there is not a huge call for "anglo Saxon Style grey tiles for framing ".  However I did find some finally.  I built a wooden frame for the piece and then I tiled it with the grey tiles.  I wanted the arch but these tiles were impossible to cut so I did an overlay design to get the arch.  Below is the finished window and the picture that I took my inspiration from!