Winchester College Medieval Glass | Page 18

crown , halo , and hair of the Virgin originally in the centre of the east window ( see fig . 11 ) exemplify this technique .
III . In composition , the main lights of Twygge and Wodshawe ’ s early sixteenthcentury window are a continuation of the side-panel saints in the chapel . The figures stand under similar architectural canopies , while the space between is filled with an acanthus pattern , alternating between red and blue for each window . The sixteenthcentury figures , however , show a stark change to their predecessors . The female saints are elongated , with curved , swan-like necks and slender , delicate hands . Their facial features are smaller , their eyes less bulbous , and their silhouettes less rigid .
Twygge and Wodshawe ’ s later work represents a pivotal moment in English-led stained glass production . After completing the Thurbern ’ s window , Twygge went on to glaze a selection of windows in Westminster Abbey around 1507 – 10 . Meanwhile , Henry VII was making plans for the glazing of his new chapel in the east end of the abbey , but did not choose Twygge to carry out the work and instead turned to foreign glaziers . This incident reflects a wider demand for the most sophisticated styles of mainland Europe . Twygge and Wodshawe ’ s later work , including the window of Thurbern ’ s Chantry , therefore represents some of the last medieval Gothic glass to be produced by English workshops .
II . King Richard II from east window of chapel ( 1392 – 93 ), reassembled in Thurbern ’ s Chantry ( 1951 )
III . St Helena from Thurbern ’ s Chantry , south window ( 1502 – 3 )
Medieval Glass at Winchester College 17