The St Mary’s Church window above the main entrance to the building was created by Master Stained Glass Artist – Jean Orval. Mr Orval was commissioned by Fr Dunworth in 1959 for the sum of Twelve Hundred Pound.
The following information has been provided by his son Noel Orval in 2015.
“Starting from the top depictions one can see the four “Tetramorphs”. These depict: St Matthew as man, St Mark the lion, St Luke the ox and John the eagle. All paralleling the divine nature of Christ. (Book of Ezekiel). Revelation 4:7.
The Tablets as the 10 Commandments.
The stars above signifying the tremendous light that appeared when Christ was born.
The Angels that appear above each window. Starting from the west side – depiction of a cornucopia that expresses the gift of life. The horn depicts the voices and music heard by the shepherds in the fields at the birth. Angel holding the star directly above the stable and as the light of the world. Angel with the golden urn.
The actual windows from the west side are the shepherds kneeling as worshippers.
Mary and the child Christ with manger in the foreground.
Joseph and the Three wise men.
For further information on the works and life of Jean Orval – visit www.orvalstainedglass.com
Anne Slattery
Parish Team Member
