Stained-glass Window V25

An important restoration was completed in 2019, which was necessary because of the subsidence of leadwork, a risk to the preservation of stained-glass window. Therefore 30 panels were dismantled.

A selection of six panels, representative of the artistic quality achieved by Maestro da Varallo, was the subject of an exhibition in the Cathedral's retrochoir between June 27–September 1, 2019.

The panel provides an extraordinary portrait of typically 15th-century interiors, described with great precision and realism. The restoration of the window has made evident refined narrative details, has given new brilliance to the colors and the forms are now perfectly delineated.

The mother's bed, foreshortened on the left and partially enclosed by a curtain, is worthy of note...

... as is the step with the chest of drawers in the lower part of the panel.

The first bath scene emerges on the right side of the panel, with the chimney, the visibility of which has been fully recovered.

Together with female faces depicted with great naturalism, outlined in notable volume.

The second panel tells us about a subsequent phase in the life of Saint John: he is represented as a young boy, with a halo, standing before the Sicilian monk Cosmas with a book in his hand.

The restoration has removed some leadwork that was making the faces not properly visible. The sublime realism of the figures and clothing is to be noted.

The beauty of the original grisaille and the pinkish color of the cheeks of the young children are striking.

The upper part of the architecture, towards the left, was modified by the Bertini workshop in the 19th century.

The young Saint, not yet a monk, is represented here on his knees in prayer in front of an apparition of the Virgin Mary with Child. The restoration, cleaning, and removal of some leadwork have restored improved visibility of the image.

The third panel depicts the Saint when he takes the decision to move to the Mar Saba monastery, or Lavra of Saint Sabbas, a few kilometers from Bethlehem, in the desert.

Saint John of Damascus is represented in a red habit with headgear, surrounded by monastic confreres. 

The cleaning has restored full depth to the scene.

The architectural perspective in the background is worthy of note.

In this panel, Saint John is represented kneeling, surrounded by his fellow monks, stripped of his red robes and wearing instead a monk’s habit and tonsure, the haircut which represents the renunciation of the world by the devout who have taken their vows.

In 726 CE, the Emperor Leo III decreed iconoclasm, i.e., the destruction of sacred images. However, Saint John was a great defender of the cult of images. The emperor decided to slander him with an untrue letter to the Caliph of Damascus, who fell into the trap and punished John by cutting off his right hand. The panel depicts the moment when the slanderous letter was written.

Thanks to the restoration, the legibility of the characters of the Rev[erend]us inscription in the hand of the young boy at the scene of the deception of the false letter has been fully recovered.