S is for STAINED GLASS

Welcome to ABC Wednesday, the superlative of weekly memes, created by the stellar Mrs. Denise and administered by the saintly Mr. Roger.  This week we celebrate the letter S as in sunshine, salad, sensational, soup, and sincere.  During my travels last summer, I chanced upon several spots where I stood in awe at stained glass windows. 

I was very excited to arrive at the sacred Liverpool Cathedral and exited the Hop On/Hop Off bus with spirit and sparkle.  After seeing the singularly exceptional entrance, I excitedly entered the cathedral.  Such was my anticipation of this visit that I had my camera secure and at the ready!  To the left, was a beautiful window with flower boxes brimming full of splendid and stately selections of showy blooms.

This stained glass window, although extremely pretty with its pinks, blues, yellows, and greens was nothing compared to what awaited me in the cathedral proper. As I slowly walked down the wide entry hall, I was completely unaware of what awaited me. To the right, I gazed upward toward the west window which has been designed around the "Benedicite," a canticle (hymn of praise). Below it, in pink neon, reads "I felt you and I knew you loved me“ and was installed 2008 when Liverpool became the European Capital of Culture.

 I then turned to the east where the altar is located and took a photo of it with its stained glass window rising strikingly above it.  Unfortunately the lighting was not conducive to very good photos, but this is the best I could do.  Then I moved closer to take a shot of just the window itself.

In the front of the abbey in Rosedale (that I wrote about last week) I found this next stained glass window with a lace-covered table beneath it. 

The Liverpool Cathedral has many more stained glass windows within its walls, but as I mentioned, the lighting was not good for taking photographs, but I must say I thoroughly enjoyed my visit.  When I had a day in York, I found two more very special stained glass windows.  One was in the Medieval Guild Hall, one of the most important buildings in the medieval city.  It was built in 1357 by a group of influential men and women who came together to form a religious fraternity called the Guild of Our Lord Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is the largest timber-framed building in the UK still standing and used for its original purpose. Inside, I found this stained glass window that appears to evoke life in medieval times in York.

Finally, in a second location, I found this one that symbolises agricultural life in the York area.

We don't see many stained glass windows here in western Canada, but there are probably some in the Catholic churches here or in the east.  So it was a real treat to see these ones in Liverpool and York.  There are some artisans who make them here, but they're more modern and artistic in style, not like the old religious ones of the "old country."  Hope you enjoyed these shots, and that you have a sensational week.  I'll see you all back here for the letter T when I'll show you what it's like in the town of Tenby in the south west of  Wales.