Medieval Stained Glass

With its use of natural light and vibrant, jewel-toned colors, stained glass is one of the most exquisite art forms produced in medieval times. It is also one of the most fragile, and much has been lost over the centuries due to iconoclasm, wars and windstorms. Thankfully, however, significant amounts of Europe's medieval glass has survived to be enjoyed today. Below is a working catalogue of where to see medieval stained glass, listed by country and then site name. Links go to detailed articles and photo galleries. Sites listed in bold have the most and best (in our opinion).

Image	Location and Link	Dates	Summary of Medieval Glass
England
	Burford Church Oxfordshire	1400s	Good amounts of 15th-century glass, but reassembled from fragments, in the east window.
	Canterbury Cathedral Kent	1200	Probably the best collection in the country. There's a nearly complete set of ancestors of Christ (c.1180) in the west and south windows, eight windows depicting the Miracles of St. Thomas (c.1220), three windows depicting typological parallels between the Old and New Testaments (c.1200), and some 15th-century kings and saints. See our special Guide to Canterbury Cathedral's Stained Glass.
	Deerhurst Church Gloucestershire	1300, 1450	South aisle west window: St Catherine of Alexandria holding her wheel under a flamboyant canopy (c.1300); depiction of St Alphege (c.1450); kneeling family of donors.
	Dorchester Abbey Oxfordshire	1250, early 1300s	Oldest window is a medallion of St. Birinius from c.1250. The east windows (including a magnificent Jesse Window with sculptures on the tracery) have large amounts of early 14th-century glass, alongside some Victorian replacements.
	Durham Cathedral		Some nice fragments of medieval glass in the Galilee Chapel.
	Exeter Cathedral
	Fairford Church Gloucestershire	1500-10	Nearly complete set of stained glass windows from 1500-10. Old Testament scenes, Life and Passion of Christ (east window), Life of Mary, Twelve Prophets, Twelve Apostles, Four Latin Fathers, Twelve Martyrs, Twelve Persecutors, Last Judgment (west window).
	Gloucester Cathedral Gloucestershire	c.1350	The Great East Window has an area the size of a tennis court was installed in about 1350 and still has most of its medieval glass. The subject is rows and rows of delicately-posed saints and kings, with no narrative scenes. The canopies over the saints exactly match the canopies carved of wood for the choir stalls of the same date.
	Great Malvern Priory Worcestershire	1480s-1501	East window is largest of any parish church in England, but most is reassembled fragments. West window of Last Judgment (1480s); north transept window of Magnificat (1501); three south windows in St Anne's Chapel of Old Testament scenes.
	Haydour Church Lincolnshire		Interesting medallions
	Lincoln Cathedral Lincolnshire		Two fine rose windows in the transepts, the Bishop's Eye and Dean's Eye, plus medieval glass (1270s) in the Angel Choir.
	V&A Museum London
	All Souls College Oxford, Oxfordshire	1400s
	Merton College Oxford, Oxfordshire	c.1300	Seven lancets and rose in east window and side windows in the choir, all filled with late 13th- or early 14th-century stained glass. The side windows were donated by Henry de Mamesfield, shown kneeling in prayer to either side of a saint.
	Shiplake Church Oxfordshire		Substantial medieval glass rescued from the abbey church of St Bertin at St Omer and presented to the church in 1828.
	Tewkesbury Abbey Gloucestershire	c.1330	The stained glass windows of the choir were given by Eleanor de Clare (d.1337). The left window centers on several of the church's patrons, an unusual subject for medieval stained glass.
	York Minster Yorkshire	1250-1490	The Great East Window (1408) is the largest medieval stained glass window in the world; it depicts biblical scenes from Genesis and Revelation. The Five Sisters Window in the north transept has glass from 1250; the South Rose from c.1490. The Great West Window (1338) has a heart in the top center. Windows in the nave date from the early 14th century.
France
	Amiens Cathedral
	Bourges Cathedral
	St Nazarius' Basilica Carcassonne
	Chartres Cathedral	1100s and early 1200s	Chartres is justly famous for its medieval glass, which is almost entirely intact throughout the cathedral. It is both exceptionally early in date and of exceptional beauty. Subjects include Last Judgment, prophets and saints, Labors of the Month, Glorification of the Virgin; Glorification of Christ; the Blue Virgin Window; and scenes of donors conducting their medieval trades.
	Le Mans Cathedral	c.1140
	Poitiers Cathedral
	Reims Cathedral
	Saint-Denis Basilica Paris	1140s	Tree of Jesse and much more
	Troyes Cathedral	1250	Each light is divided horizontally into three areas filled with scenes or figures, framed by painted architecture or a kind of extended foil.
Germany
	Augsburg Cathedral
	Cologne Cathedral		Typological scenes (Old Testament alongside New Testament) and Tree of Jesse in east chapel.
	Barfüsserkirche Erfurt	1235-45	Restored choir has 13th-century window of St. Francis of Assisi.
	Naumburg Cathedral	1250s	Saints and others
	Regensburg Cathedral	1300-70	Original glass survives nearly in entirety, especially in the chancel and south aisle. Subjects include lives of Christ, Mary and the saints.
Switzerland
	Lausanne Cathedral	1200-10	Rose window
USA
	The Cloisters, Metropolitan Museum of Art New York, NY