Windows peer into the past
SUNDERLAND’S 12 NEW STAINED GLASS WINDOWS UNVEILED
THE first stained glass believed to be made in England was created on the banks of the River Wear more than 1,300 years ago.
Now history has come full circle with the completion of 12 new stained glass windows – also made on the riverside – at St Peter’s Church in Sunderland.
The windows have been installed at Bede’s Bakehouse café at St Peter’s to mark the completion of a major project to enhance the setting of the seventh century church and the Anglo-Saxon archaeological remains in the grounds.
The Wearmouth-Jarrow twin monastery was the home of the Venerable Bede.
The completion of the work just before Easter is timely, as it was Bede who was one of the first to propose a calender that counted backwards and forwards from the birth of Christ.
Bede was also involved in helping to set the date for Easter each year.
Benedict Biscop, founder of Wearmouth-Jarrow, created a building unique at the time in Britain, bringing in French craftsmen to create lead roofing, glass windows and detailed carving at St Peter’s Church.
The enhancement project, which aims to increase public awareness of the site, was funded by Sunderland City Council.
The 12 new windows in the café were designed and made by artists Rachel Welford and Adrian Riley.
In Bede’s writings he makes reference to a “bakehouse” on the monastic site, and the volunteer-run café sets out to emulate the hospitality that the monastery offered.
Their designs for the windows were inspired by Bede’s 725AD book “The Reckoning of Time” – his greatest scientific achievement.
Bede’s observations of the changing seasons, tidal patterns, phases of the moon and the daily passage of time are celebrated in the imagery used in the windows.
Adrian Riley said: “The trees and plants depicted in the design are thought to have grown around St. Peters monastery in Bede’s time.
A band of coloured blocks runs through the design to represent the mediaeval units of time – different to our own – that are explained at the start of the book.”
The bible passages used in the design were chosen by the presentday community of St Peter’s church and the glass made at Sunderland Glass Centre.
Rachel Welford added: “Unlike most traditional stained glass they are also intended to be viewed from the exterior of the building as well as inside.
“St Peter’s is recorded as the first building to have coloured glass in Britain and these windows use equally cutting-edge glass-making processes.”
Council cabinet secretary Councillor Mel Speding said: “The installation of the new stained glass windows in Bede’s Bakehouse marks the completion of a major project aimed at reflecting the importance of the church and monastery and its continuing relevance to the people of Sunderland.
“Bede and Benedict Biscop aren’t just significant to us – they are important figures in our national history.”
The council worked on the project with the local Parish of Saint Peter’s the Diocesan Advisory Committee of Durham, the Church Commissioners for England, Historic England and Durham University emeritus professor of archaeology Rosemary Cramp.