CONTEXT 177 : SEPTEMBER 2023 21 WORKING WITH GLASS All stone was sawn on site, and banked and carved by hand. Stone chippings and dust were re-used by the mason’s shop in the formation of traditional lime mortars. Poured molten lead joints were necessary to allow the window to be rebuilt with its characteristic deformations and to allow it to move and settle over time. The relearning of this long-lost skill led to later collaborations and skill-sharing with York Minster and Durham Cathedral in their own major conservation projects. With a lineage traceable back to 1819 and the appointment of George Austin (Senior), the conservation of stained glass at Canterbury Cathedral has been prolific, with four generations of the Austin family working on the glass for the next 130 years. Building on that legacy, The Cathedral Studios of today, founded in 1972, still undertakes all of the cathedral’s glass conservation in house and on site, alongside a growing portfolio of conservation and new glazing design both nationally and internationally. The window’s glazing, which had been extensively conserved in the 1970s, was removed and placed under the care of the studio. This was the first time in two generations that specialist glaziers were able to inspect and assess the stained glass. As a known assemblage of the best of Canterbury Cathedral’s glass, the team was able to establish the provenance of some panels which, alongside the known provenance of Ancestors of Christ from the Trinity Chapel, further included architectural lancet heads and quatrefoil lights from the now lost glazing of the nave. Future care and repair methodologies are now embedded in the design. Significant improvements to the 1970s protective glazing system now provide the historic glass with enhanced protection from atmospheric pollutants, rain and condensation, and thermal buffering performance for the church interior. Ventilated to the interior and supported on new phosphor-bronze glazing bars, the historic glass now exists within the comparative stability of the internal environment. The three new eight-metre-long stainless steel tie bars that restrain the window can move through precision manufactured milled stainless steel slip joints in the mullions. The metalwork can withstand temperature changes over 100 degrees Celsius without exerting pressure on the masonry. These modifications to traditional glazing techniques mean that the window retains an authentic appearance, while being better equipped to deal with its immediate environment and to meet future requirements for access and maintenance. It is more than just the window that has been preserved. Over the course of the project, six stone masonry apprentices have honed their conservation and carving skills and qualified as stonemasons, continuing a centuries old tradition of training on site. The conservation teams have duly received multiple accolades for their work, including a RICS Conservation Award and a Natural Stone Award. A sense of collective ownership and responsibility for cultural heritage has blossomed through the life of this project. The temporary removal of the glass created a unique opportunity to see the dazzling medieval art displayed at ground level. In 2013–14, six of the ancestor figures travelled to the J Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles and to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York before returning to the cathedral. There they and another 11 figures were exhibited in the Chapter House, giving the local community a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ‘meet the ancestors’ face-to-face. The Canterbury exhibition was accompanied by evening lectures throughout 2015. And while every conservable stone has been reused, those that could not be reinstated were rehomed through a public stone auction that raised £210,000 towards future projects, training and development. The £2.5 million project was funded through the generosity of private sources. Taking 24 months to complete, the window was dedicated by the Archbishop of Canterbury in October 2016 and completed in March 2017. Photos by Richard Chivers Jonathan Deeming is a partner at Purcell and surveyor to the fabric of Canterbury Cathedral. The historic stone was supplemented with matching limestone from two French quarries.
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