MEDIEVAL stained glass that was removed from a church 70 years
ago, and almost forgotten about, is to be returned.
The rare fragments of glass (right), which date from
the 14th century, came from St Andrew's, Heckington, near Sleaford,
Lincs. The pieces were taken away in 1946 during the restoration of
a stained- glass window, and never returned.
Keith Barley discovered the fragments at his glass studio in
York, where they had been stored. "This is a chronicle of the
destruction of the period of the Reformation, and Puritanism
subsequently," he said. "That makes these pieces such a remarkable
survival."
The fragments date back to when the church was founded by
Richard de Potesgrave, a chaplain to Kings Edward II and Edward
III.
The church is intending to raise funds to install a new window
to display the find, which they hope will attract visitors. Lesley
Pinchbeck, of St Andrew's, said: "The Vicar felt that we need to
encourage visitors - it's a very important church. . . We really
want to make the heritage of the church enjoyable for
visitors."
There is no arrival date yet for the lost glass, which dates
from the time when King Edward III made an unexpected visit to
Heckington.
An art-history lecturer at the University of Lincoln, Dr Jim
Cheshire, said that such fragments were very rare: "We probably
have about five per cent of the stained glass we had in the Middle
Ages."