If you can observe several churches, you can see that some of them have coloured glass windows. Such windows are made of stained glass panels, which are pieces of glass that have been applied with metallic salts while they were manufactured. They turn out to become beautifully coloured glass that can be easily turned into a piece of artwork by depicting certain pictures or scenes.
Roman and Egyptian Empire to the Early Part of the Last Millennium
Most of the artworks related to decorative stained glass show scenes lifted off the Bible, which is just appropriate for use in churches. These artworks are considered as the most appropriate pictures that churchgoers must get to see whenever they go to mass and pray. These pictures that are clearly etched onto the doors and windows already served as a good tool in conveying the message of the church to the public because most of them before were illiterate. The history of this stained glass can actually be traced to the first few centuries of the last millennium.
However, this history was not preserved, which is why there are a lot of debates about how stained glass came to be what it is now. Jewellers and mosaic makers are said to be the ones who thought about using metallic salt to incorporate colours into glass. The development of stained glass became even more popular as it was used in churches. However, history also pointed out that stained glass was already produced during the Roman and Egyptian empires, which were the best manufacturers of small pieces of stained glass items.
During the 4th and 5ht century, churches learned about stained glass and started using it on their windows. In the 7th century, these colourful windows could be seen in British churches to decorate the huge structure. The French also worked on stained glass being used in their monasteries.
Middle Ages
During the Middle Ages, stained glass was used for its beauty and for depicting events from the Bible due to their illustration on the windows. The stained glass artworks during this period were called “Poor Man’s Bible.” This application was still popular until the Gothic Era, though images were already depicted on larger and larger windows.
Renaissance
Large stained glass windows continued to exist in the Renaissance, but these artworks were destroyed during the Revolution and Reformation. Plain glass was used to replace them.
19th Century
It was not until the 19th century when the Catholic church remembered just how stained glass can be created after it was forgotten during the Renaissance period. This new interest in coloured glass spread across Europe, especially in Britain and France.
20th Century
Now, you can see a lot of applications for stained glass, including being an alternative to venetian blinds in doors. When more destruction happened during World War II, stained glass windows were severely affected. However, seeing coloured glass against concrete has given way to modern stained glass applications. Today, you can still find stained glass used in churches, public buildings, sculptures, and other structures all around the world.