Stained Glass of Percy Bacon & Brothers

The Percy Bacon & Brothers stained glass at St Stephen's is a bit of a mystery. There has undoubtedly been some moving of at least one of the windows over the years. The clue is from an article in The Builder of 6th January 1911 which states, "The first of a series of four lancet lights on the south side of St Stephen's Church Twickenham has just been filled with stained glass by Messrs Percy Bacon & Brothers; The figure represents St Michael".¹ At some moment in time, the St Michael window was moved from the south aisle to the north.² This scheme of four lights may have taken some time to complete. The listing on the Church Stained Glass Records website suggests the only lights which were filled in the south aisle after 1911 were the two lights in the SA3 location, which were eventually executed by Jones and Willis in 1931.

North Aisle 1: Left light by Percy Bacon. The right light is by H. G. Soper.

North Aisle 1: Left light detail.

North Aisle 1: Detail of the imagery on St. Michael's breastplate which bears closer scrutiny. At the top is an Agnus Dei, and lower down a depiction of Christ the King. The iconography seems to suggest Christ's address to his diciples the day before his crucifixion; "I am the tree, and ye are the branches" (John 15:5). He is depicted as King and Priest, with arms raised against the backdrop of a tree symbolising the cross on which he died. Percy Bacon would often include such imagery to bring extra meaning to a window, and shows his keen attention to detail.

North Aisle 1: St Michael (left light only).

Posted 06 November 2024.

Only the left light is from the Bacon Studios, the right light being by H. G. Soper of circa 1916/17. The St Michael light was originally installed in 1911¹ in the south aisle, but moved to the present position when the church was remodelled. The dedication reads:

The window is unsigned.

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North Aisle 4. St Anna and Dorcas. Window is now in the kitchen.
Photos © Paul Danaher.

North Aisle 4: St Anne.

North Aisle 4: St Anne.

North Aisle 4. St Anne and Dorcas.
Photos courtesy of Paul Danaher.

This two light window is now located in the kitchen area. The standing figures of St Anne and Dorcas are represented. Above each a scroll with the words:

St Anne: "And the greatest of these is Charity".
Dorcas: "She stretcheth out her hand to the poor".

Unusually, St Anne is depicted as a young woman.

The window is signed in very small letters, partly obscurred, at the bottom right of the St Anne window, "PERCY BACON, 11 NEWMAN ST."

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1. The Builder, Vol 100, 06 January 1911, p11.
2. Recorded by Robert Eberhard. Church Stained Glass Records, entry for St Stephen's, East Twickenham.