The Steinfeld Cloister Glazing

The cloister of the Premonstratensian abbey of Steinfeld in the Eifel region in Germany was built in 1499-1517. Its twenty-seven windows were glazed with an extensive typological series, donor figures, and saints in two campaigns between ca. 1522 and 1558. On several occasions the glass was removed, carried away for protection against war damage, and then replaced. Finally, in 1802, through the efforts of John Christopher Hampp of Norwich, it was brought to England where it was sold and dispersed. Thirty-eight panels were acquired by Lord Brownlow and installed at Ashridge Park in the first half of the nineteenth century. These were later given to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Two other panels were identified in Bristol. All of this glass was extensively discussed in 1955 in a German publication which included a manuscript description of all the windows from 1719. This led to the identification of nearly ninety panels of Steinfeld glass in many locations, including collections in the U. S. A.; one panel sold at Sotheby's, London, was returned to Steinfeld. These newly identified panels have enabled the correction and refinement of earlier conclusions concerning the iconography and composition, although much further work remains to be done. An appendix lists all extant panels discovered to date.

Publisher: [University of Chicago Press, International Center of Medieval Art]