Chartres Cathedral, The South Rose Window and Lancet

Title and Date of Work: Chartres Cathedral, The South Rose Window and Lancet, 1225
Name of Artist: Various Masons but donated by Mauclerc family
Exact Location: Chartres, France
Medium: Plain or Grisaille glass
Dimensions: 10.5 meters in Diameter

     Chartres Cathedral is one of the best examples of French High Gothic style. The current Cathedral is the fifth to be on this site since the fourth century. What makes this Cathedral important is its state of preservation. It has the most original stain glass windows in any Cathedral in the world from about the thirteenth century and most are still intact even after World War Two. Each of the windows tells a different story. Famous historian Malcolm Miller says, “Just like a library one cannot read all the books in one day, therefore Chartres should be the same. No one can read all the stain glass windows in one day.”
    The Trinity is apparent in the famous South Rose Window. In this window it contains Christ, who is surrounded by adoring angels, two outer rings of twelve circles each contain the 24 Elders of the Apocalypse who are carrying musical instruments. The central lancet beneath the Rose shows the Virgin carrying the infant Christ. Then there are four lancets showing the four evangelists sitting on the shoulders of four Prophets. Chartres is also knows for its flying buttresses, having over 4,000 sculptures and the relic of Virgin Mary’s tunic worn during Jesus’ birth.