CHRIST THE GOOD SHEPHERD
Brief description: Stained glass light of Christ the Good Shepherd, designed by Karl Parsons in the Arts and Crafts style. The upper part shows a chalice surrounded by crown of thorns. Jesus Christ is shown in front of a cross, dressed in purple robes, holding a shepherd's crook and a lamb. Grape bunches are used as a symbolic decorative ground.
Christ as the Good Shepherd is a popular subject in Christian art. Christ is shown standing in front of a cross, his head at the junction at the arms of the cross, holding a lamb in his right hand and a shepherdÂ’s crook in his left. His hands display wounds emphasising his sacrifice by death on a cross. This symbolism is further carried through the vine and grapes in the border, and the chalice surrounded by crown of thorns at the top of the window which alludes to the celebration of the Eucharist. Christ is shown standing in front of a cross, his head at the junction of the arms of the cross. He stands The artist, Karl Parsons (1884-1934) makes effective use of the sumptuous gold-pink slab glass of which he was so fond. Made by the addition of gold dust to the crucible of molten glass, it was one of the most expensive colours available. At the age of fifteen, Parsons became a pupil-apprentice of Christopher Whall, the leading stained-glass artist and teacher of the Arts and Crafts movement. Parsons later taught at both the Royal College of Art and the Central School of Arts and Crafts.
Object type: stained glass window
Number of objects: 1
Production date: 1913
Production period: 20th century, early
Designer: Karl Parsons (1884 - 1934)
Manufacturer: Parsons, Karl 1884=1934
Dimensions: Height: 1225 mm, Width: 356 mm
Original location: St Michael Sulhamstead Berkshire England
Acquisition: gift 1977
Acquisition source: Diocese of Oxford
Bibliographical references: P. Cormack, Arts and Crafts Stained Glass (2015), pp. 269, 250, 98, 100, 276-280, 249-255.
Accession number: ELYGM:1977.3.2
