St.
Joseph
RC Cathedral - Table of Contents
Altar and Rose Windows
-
St.
Joseph's RC Cathedral
AKA
St.
Joseph's RC Old Cathedral
50 Franklin St., Buffalo, NY
St.
Joseph
RC Cathedral - Official Website |
Dedicated: |
Crucifixion
window 1855 Nativity and Resurrection windows 1855(?) |
Designer: |
J[osef] Scherer (See photo of signature below) |
Fabricator: |
J[osef] Scherer |
Style: |
Munich Pictorial style |
Altar
Windows Behind the altar are three windows depicting the Nativity,
theCrucifixion and the Resurrection. These were once
believed to be displayed
in the Munich Exposition of1850 and donated to the church by
King Ludwig I.
Sadly this legend is just a story as King Ludwig I abdicated
in 1848, there was
noExposition in Munich in 1850 and it is documented that the
windows were
purchased for $5,000. -
Gregory Witul, St.
Joseph
Cathedral Reprinted from Exploring the
Burned Over
District (online March 2015) |
Altar windows (3 lancets) and rose window above Far left window: Nativity Nativity Nativity Nativity
Note
three shepherds Nativity Shepherds Nativity Shepherd Nativity Mary & Joseph Nativity Gift of slaughtered pig Center lancet - Crucifixion "25
Now
there stood by the crosse of Jesus, his mother,
and his
mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary
Magdalene. Crucifixion
- detail
df Crucifixion - detail Angel preserving Christ's blood in a chalice Crucifixion - detail Crucifixion - detail Crucifixion - detail Angel
preserving
Christ's blood in a chalice Crucifixion - detail Crucifixion - detail Crucifixion - detail Crucifixion - detail Crucifixion - detail Artist's signature: J[osef] Scherer / [translation: Munich] Matthew
27:50-53: Resurrection
-
detail Resurrection - detail Resurrection - detail Resurrection - detail Resurrection - detail Artist's signature: [translation: Munich] |
Rose
window above
altar windows Rose
window –
detail
Pelican
and
chicks |
Altar WindowsBehind the altar are three windows depicting the Nativity, the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. These were once believed to be displayed in the Munich Exposition of 1850 and donated to the church by King Ludwig I. Sadly this legend is just a story as King Ludwig I abdicated in 1848, there was no Exposition in Munich in 1850 and it is documented that the windows were purchased for $5,000.
Regardless of their origin, these are three of the oldest stained glass windows in the burned over district. The panels were executed by Josef Scherer of the Königliche Glasmalereianstalt in 1854 and took over a year to prepare and install. Scherer was a pioneer in the now referred to “Munich-style” of stained glass that is defined by its large, pictorial scenes with painted and enameled details.
The two large windows at the ends of the transepts, scenes of the Holy Family on the north end and the Life of Mary on the south, were made in New York City around the same time. The rest of the windows found in the church were manufactured by the Tyrolese Art Glass Company and installed in 1902, with one exception, the Father Kelly Memorial Window. The two panel window depict St. Charles Borromeo on the left and St. Edward the Confessor on the right with the lives of each saint in small panels surrounding them. This window is a rarity in the Catholic world as it was made by Hardman & Co. of England, a firm whose windows are usually found in Episcopal churches.
- Gregory Witul, St. Joseph Cathedral Reprinted from Exploring the Burned Over District (online March 2015)