English Stained Glass before 1603
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Glasgow Museums has a collection of over 300 stained glass panels that were made in England or installed in English buildings. Collected by Sir William Burrell and donated to Glasgow in 1944, the collection of stained glass is of international importance and contains many excellent examples of both religious and secular glass. Amongst the earliest English work is the thirteenth century panel depicting Beatrix van Valkenburg, wife of Richard, Earl of Cornwall, King of the Roman Empire. This example, taken together with a beautiful late fifteenth century panel from Canterbury Cathedral depicting Princess Cecily of York, are two of the most prestigious items in the collection which relate directly to members of historic royal families in England. The majority of the English glass is armorial, depicting the heraldic shields and emblems of English families. These include some royal subjects, but predominantly relate to members of the aristocracy and landed gentry. Significant ‘sets’ of heraldic glass from two houses are held in the collection – 37 panels from Vale Royal in Cheshire and 39 panels from Fawsley Hall in Northamptonshire. Two fine examples of fifteenth century English glass, previously installed at Hampton Court, Herefordshire, depicting ‘The Annunciation’ and ‘The Assumption of the Virgin’, were acquired for the collection by the Burrell Trustees in 1979.
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