Upon one of our thirteenth century pilgrimages the reader has already
been taken to Poitiers (see page 47). Not only has he visited the
cathedral and seen its glorious Crucifixion window, but he has also
entered the smaller church of St. Radegonde to view the thirteenth
century glass there. For the purpose of this trip he must again repair
to the latter church to see a unique manifestation of the effect
produced by the new demand for more light, which is the most marked
feature of the taste in glass of the fourteenth century. The windows
which we are now seeking are the four in the north wall between the
north portal and the choir. They are undoubtedly interesting, but can
hardly be called beautiful. In order to admit as much light as possible,
the greater part of their surfaces is filled with light greenish-grey
grisaille, whose design is that of a number of circles, each circle
impinging on the next. Scattered irregularly upon the grisaille are many
small-sized personages in deep colour. Around the whole is a brilliant
border. The contrast between the gay hues of the figures (and also of
the border) and the light tone of the grisaille is not only too sharp to
be pleasant, but it also destroys the harmonious ensemble which is the
great charm in the early canopy window. It seems logical that the
light-admitting canopy should be used as a frame for the richly-coloured
figure which it encloses, but there is no artistic excuse for spotting
light grisaille with sharply-outlined, strongly-toned figures, and then
framing the whole by the harsh lines of a coloured conventional border.
At Bourges the beauties of the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries can be
seen at the same time, and each enjoyed, although for different reasons.
Here at St. Radegonde, however, the charming thirteenth century rose
window above the north portal enjoys an easy victory over the glaring
contrasts of its fourteenth century neighbours. The latter should be
inspected because they are unique in their elaborate method of admitting
light, but they point to a road which should not be followed. It is
interesting to note that at the time of their construction these windows
were very highly considered. There was no reason why they should not
have been of the best, because this church has long benefited by the
generosity of pilgrims to the tomb of the saint beneath its choir. Among
these none was more devoted than Anne of Austria, the queen of Louis
XIII. Nor is this shrine the only attraction to the pious which the
church can boast, for in the south wall there is a small recess
protected by an iron grille enclosing what is represented to be a
footprint of Jesus Christ. This is still an object of much veneration.
These facts must be taken into consideration, because a church to which
crowds of votaries for centuries resorted would surely contain no glass
inappropriate to the wealth and high standing of these pilgrims. In
fact, a certain hallmark is thus given its windows, which enables us by
means of it to judge of the taste of the time.