r the little children to come unto Me and forbid them not; for of such is the kingdom of God.’ (Matt 19.14)
The inscription reads To the glory of God and in loving memory of William Burton Ashton and Mary Ann his wife, daughter of Henry Angier.
Again the windows are by Mayer of Munich. They depict scenes between the Resurrection and the Ascension of Christ.
The layout of the windows is unusual in that the narration proceeds from the bottom left panel to the top left, then down to the bottom panel again and so in zigzag fashion to the top right.
20 The bottom left panel shows Peter, John and Mary mourning outside the tomb (John 20.1–3)
Mary is carrying a jar of ointment ready to anoint Jesus’ body. The top left panel is Christ’s appearance to Mary Magdalene in the Garden. Thinking He was the gardener she asked him if he knew where Jesus’ body had been taken. He spoke her name at which point she recognised Him. He told her not to touch Him, but to go and tell the disciples of His resurrection (John 20.10–17).
The second lower panel shows Jesus and His two followers walking on the Emmaus road (Luke 24.13–28).The corresponding top panel is at the house of the two men from Emmaus. Jesus walked with them from Jerusalem but they did not recognise Him until He blessed the bread and wine at supper, at which point He disappeared from their sight. The picture shows the two men left with their meal (Luke 24.30–32).
The lower central panel shows the Emmaus disciples hurrying back to Jerusalem to tell the other disciples that they had seen the risen Christ (Luke 24.33–35). The top central panel shows the appearance of Jesus to all the disciples (except Thomas) immediately after they had received confirmation of His resurrection from the Emmaus disciples (Luke 24.36–40). The fourth panel shows Thomas declaring his disbelief when the disciples told him that Christ had appeared to them (John 20.24–25). A week later Christ returns and shows Thomas His wounds in His hands and side (John 20.26–29).
The bottom right panel is Christ helping the fishermen make a miraculous catch of fish. After an unsuccessful night’s fishing, He appeared to them and told them where to cast their net. Scripture records that there were 153 large fish in the catch (John 21.1–11). This number is significant because it was the number of different types of fish known at that time. The final panel, top right, shows the reinstatement of Peter by the lakeside after Jesus had prepared breakfast for the disciples. Jesus gave Peter the bread and fish to eat and afterwards commanded him ‘Feed my sheep’ (John 21.12–17).
The top third of the window depicts the angels and archangels in glory praising the risen Christ. Some are playing harps, cymbals and tambourines while others sing ‘Alleluia’. The four central figures are probably representations of Moses, Isaiah, Ezekiel and Jeremiah.
The damaged inscription reads IN MEMORY OF WILLIAM RICHARD SUMPTER AND CATHERINE.
All photos are by kind permission of the Rev’d Steve Day Copyright © 2010
Article researched and written by Angela Watts