Issue 39 Sept 23 - Journal - Page 34
Conservation of
Coventry Cathedral’s
five ‘Swedish Windows’
In 2020, following a successful tender bid, the York Glaziers Trust (YGT) was instructed to
undertake the conservation of Coventry Cathedral’s five ‘Swedish Windows’, a project that included
the conservation of the windows’ original copper alloy frames, in preparation for relocation of
the glass to the Cathedral’s new Pavilion Extension, where the windows are now presented in
a permanent new back-lit display.
In 2019, the international arts consultancy Büro Rauch
had compiled a thorough technical and art historical
assessment of the five Swedish windows. This report
determined the windows’ high significance and exceptional rarity, created in 1961 by Swedish artist Einar
Forseth (1892-1988) in collaboration with N.P. Ringström
of Stockholm; Sweden’s oldest established stained glass
studio. The series depicts the somewhat gory origins
of Christianity in Sweden, and includes hyper stylised
renderings of the Swedish saints Sigfrid and Botvid,
together with deconstructed British armorial devices.
needles as well as the impression of his own finger prints,
before finally adding trace lines. In places the glass has
also been mechanically abraded with a wheel and the
paint also sometimes follows the striations in the glass,
enhancing them.
Forseth’s windows have suffered from extensive paint loss,
likely to have been caused by poor paint formulation
and incorrect firing temperature, which in combination
has left the surface of the paint with a coarse grain-like
appearance. These issues have been exacerbated by
regular contact with moisture (rain on the exterior, and
condensation on the interior). The windows were also
extensively bowed, which had caused stress cracks in the
glass, and tears in the original lead.
In common with other post-war windows, the Swedish
windows employ a mixture of traditional and nonstandard artistic techniques. Forseth made rich and
sophisticated multi-layered pieces by first applying thin
washes of paint, into which he scribed the marks of
Below, window details
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Conservation & Heritage Journal
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