Holy Family scenes from the infancy and boyhood of Jesus Christ: sleeping in the Virgin Mary’s arms as she rides a donkey with Joseph walking beside them, and shaving timber for his earthly father as Joseph works as a carpenter and Mary spins thread. Detail of modern stained glass in a window of the Oude Kerk or Old Church in Delft, South Holland, Netherlands.
Delft, South Holland, Netherlands: these two scenes from the infancy and early life of Jesus Christ are depicted in modern stained glass created for one of the windows lighting the Dutch city’s medieval Oude Kerk or Old Church. On the left, the infant Christ Child sleeps in the Virgin’s Mary’s arms as she rides on a donkey, with Joseph walking beside them. On the right, in a scene from Jesus’ boyhood, he helps his earthly father, a carpenter, by whittling a length of timber with a knife, while Mary uses a distaff to spin thread. The Gothic former Roman Catholic Oude Kerk, founded in 1246, is Delft’s oldest church. A devastating fire in 1536 and the Dutch Thunderclap, a massive gunpowder explosion in 1654, destroyed all of its medieval stained glass; most of the windows were then either bricked up or filled with plain glass. A total of 27 new stained glass windows were inserted as the church underwent years of restoration beginning in 1949. Renowned stained glass artist Joep Nicolas (1897-1972) was responsible for 25 of the colourful designs, with the final two completed after his death. They depict Dutch historical events as well as biblical stories.
Size: 3008px × 2000px
Location: Delft, South Holland, Netherlands.
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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