Details

Object type

stained glass heraldic panel

Title

Siegfried Von Gelnhausen and his Wife (possibly)

Place Associated

Germany, Boppard am Rhein, Carmelite Church (place associated); Germany, Rhine Region (place of manufacture); Jesse Tree window (place of use)

Date

circa 1444

Materials

white, coloured, pot metal, silver stain, stained and painted glass, lead

Dimensions

overall: 580 mm x 767 mm x 10 mm;framed: 580 mm x 756 mm x 12 mm 6.65 kg

Description

Stained glass heraldic donor panel with kneeling figures, possibly representing Siegfried von Gelnhausen and wife with their arms (dexter shield: per pale argent and gules, an eagle displayed sable and lily argent dimidiated; sinister shield: sable a swan naiant argent). Intertwined banderols above, executed in Latin and German, read: ‘Miserer mey deus un si uns gnedig here got bis uns barmhertzig’ (Have mercy on me, God…)

This panel once formed part of much larger window commissioned for the Carmelite Church of Boppard-am-Rhein, Germany. The Carmelite Church and former monastery at Boppard was under construction in 1320 and extended with a new north nave which was consecrated in 1444. Seven monumental windows were made for the extension between 1440-1446.

Jane Hayward, Associate Curator at The Metropolitan Museum, in her 1969 article, ‘Stained-Glass Windows from the Carmelite Church at Boppard-am-Rhein’, placed this panel at the base of the so-called 'Tree of Jesse' window (see 45.485). The heraldic shields were first identified as those of the rich merchant, Siegfried von Gelnhausen and his wife, by Professor Hans Wentzel of Stuttgart in the mid-20th century. This identification of the sitters is contested, however, what is certain is that this is a donor panel depicting a man and woman who funded part, or all, of the construction of the window.

Stained glass windows featuring donors first appeared in the 12th-13th centuries, becoming more widespread in the 15th and 16th. These panels were presented in the hope that the donors’ piety and generosity would be recognised and remembered by the church and local community, and their souls rewarded in the afterlife. These prominent images also conveyed the donor’s wealth, status, and influence.

The church at Boppard was renowned for its extensive library and was a notable centre of learning. Outside the seclusion of the monastery, the learned monks served as mendicant preachers, teachers, and scholars, and assisted the townspeople as nurses and healers. They were a powerful presence, associated with prosperous religious guilds and brotherhoods and linked to the region’s influential nobility and wealthy families. Despite only ever being home to around twelve regular clergy and a small number of lay brothers, the church also operated as a parish church for the town and neighbouring communities and was a much sought after burial ground. As a result, this relatively small religious house was greatly enriched by the contributions of a generous citizenship.

Removed from Boppard in 1818 by the German aristocrat, Count (later Prince) Herman Von Pückler, this panel was later acquired by the American tycoon William Randolph Hearst before entering the collection of Ogden Goelet, Newport, Rhode Island. It was acquired by Sir William Burrell in 1939 via the dealers Thomas and Drake. It was once attached to another panel originating from Boppard (45.489.1), this pairing is now considered to be inauthentic.

Credit Line/Donor

Gifted by Sir William and Lady Burrell to the City of Glasgow, 1944

Collection

Burrell Collection: Stained Glass

ID Number

45.489.2

Location

Burrell Collection