Abbey Stained Glass Studio

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RESTORING AN IRISH MASTERPIECE

Once the pieces were cleaned and arranged, we had to fill in the gaps. Advice on the depths of color of various pieces and aid in some of the destroyed Latin inscriptions came from Dr. Micheal Wynne, Keeper of the National Gallery of Ireland.

Artist Kevin Kelly began painting glass to match artwork which the great Micheal O'Connor had painted 150 years earlier. One of the problems we encountered was that the stained glass had aged. Over the years, some of the painted work had faded. We therefore had to reproduce this aging by gently rubbing the painted work with an artist's brush before kiln-firing the glass. These newly-painted pieces match closely the older, aged elements of the panels. Approximately 20 percent of the original glass had to be replaced.

With the glass pieces replicated, the leading-up started in earnest, and all hands in our studio were involved. New leads were cut and fitted around the irregularly shaped glasses and soldered at the joints. The panels were then cemented, making the lead cames more rigid and, of course, waterproof. The final in-studio portion of this job was to solder on copper tie wires to hold the windows securely to the new tie bars on site.

One year after the explosion in the Guiness Brewery, the craftsmen of the Abbey Stained Glass Studios returned the window to St. James Church. It took three weeks to carry out the reinstallation and refitting of the many panels of this window. When the protective screen and scaffolding were removed, one could almost hear the gasps of amazement from those in attendance, who anxiously waited to see the restored stained glass window. It was impossible to distinguish the new glass from the old. Because all of the glass was cleaned, it looked and sparkled like it must have when it was originally installed, almost a century and a half ago.

Abbey projects - explosion - detail from the east window - click to view larger image

The Abbey Stained studios were founded by my late father in 1944. We are proud of our records of restoration of stained glass in Ireland. Some of our recent projects include Lough Derg Basilica, Cavan Cathedral, Enniscorthy Cathedral, Kildare Cathedral, Limerick Cathedral, St. Patrick’s Cathedral Dublin, Killarney Cathedral, pro Cathedral Dublin, Loughrea Cathedral, Tuam Cathedral, Ballina Cathedral and many other projects.

The Abbey Stained Glass Studios, 18 Old Kilmainham, Dublin 8, Ireland. The Abbey Stained Glass Studios can be reached by telephone at: Contact Dublin on 01-6777285

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