Design for 'Pelican in her Piety' stained glass

This design is a finished drawing in coloured pastel of the East window of St. Martin's Church, Brampton, Cumbria. The stained glass scheme at Brampton is one of Morris & Co's masterpieces. After the windows were completed, Burne-Jones used coloured chalks to transform his design into this highly finished work.

The pelican feeding its young with drops of blood from its breast is a Christian emblem for the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. The nest sits on top of a highly stylised tree with sinuous curves. In the 20th century, the art historian Nikolaus Pevsner published this design as a precursor of Art Nouveau.