Francis Skeat
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Francis Walter Skeat (3 December 1909 – 31 August 2000) was an English glass painter who created over 400
stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...
windows in churches and cathedrals, both in England and overseas. Skeat was a
Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...
of the
Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...
, a Fellow of the
British Society of Master Glass Painters The British Society of Master Glass Painters (BSMGP), was found in 1921, it is British trade association for the art and craft of stained glass. It promotes the trade of glass painting and staining in Britain. BSMGP activities include: lectures ...
, and a member of the
Art Workers Guild The Art Workers' Guild is an organisation established in 1884 by a group of British painters, sculptors, architects, and designers associated with the ideas of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. The guild promoted the 'unity of a ...
.


Education and career

Skeat was born in
St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
in
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...
; his mother Theodora had an embroidery studio in
Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
and his grandfather was
Walter William Skeat Walter William Skeat, (21 November 18356 October 1912) was a British philologist and Anglican deacon. The pre-eminent British philologist of his time, he was instrumental in developing the English language as a higher education subject in th ...
, the etymologist. Skeat was educated at Lyndale School, St Albans and
Whitgift School ("He who perseveres, conquers") , established = , closed = , type = Independent school , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head Master , head = Christopher Ramsey , c ...
,
Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...
. At the age of eighteen, he was apprenticed to Harry Scott Bridgwater who was a leading
mezzotint Mezzotint is a monochrome printmaking process of the '' intaglio'' family. It was the first printing process that yielded half-tones without using line- or dot-based techniques like hatching, cross-hatching or stipple. Mezzotint achieves tonali ...
engraver. He was a follower of
Sir John Ninian Comper Sir John Ninian Comper (10 June 1864 – 22 December 1960) was a Scottish architect; one of the last of the great Gothic Revival architects. His work almost entirely focused on the design, restoration and embellishment of churches, and the des ...
; after exhibiting at the
Paris salon The Salon (french: Salon), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art ...
in 1932, he returned to St Albans in 1933 and the following year he became a pupil of
Christopher Webb Christopher Rahere Webb (1886-1966) was an English stained glass designer. His unusual second name was derived from that of the founder of St Bartholomew-the-Great, St Bartholomew's Priory in London where his father, Edward Alfred Webb and hi ...
, who had a studio in St Albans and encouraged him to work in stained glass. He later worked for A.R. Mowbray and Co. in
Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
and for J. Wippell and Co. of
Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
; he also designed glass for the firm of Barton, Kinder and Alderson. In 1934 he presented two glass panels to the Church of St John in Old London Road, St Albans, where he was a parishioner. These panels, featuring the
Good Shepherd The Good Shepherd ( el, ποιμὴν ὁ καλός, ''poimḗn ho kalós'') is an image used in the pericope of , in which Jesus Christ is depicted as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. Similar imagery is used in Psalm 23 ...
and
St John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
, were his first church windows. In 1955 St John's was demolished and the panels were moved to St Peter's. In 1937 he married Birgit Ann Mari Lindquist from
Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
, Sweden, where he lived until the end of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. After the war, he opened his first studio at 7a Market Place, St Albans, before moving his studio to Cross Lane,
Harpenden Harpenden () is a town and civil parish in the City and District of St Albans in the county of Hertfordshire, England. The population of the built-up area was 30,240 in the 2011 census, whilst the population of the civil parish was 29,448. Har ...
. His first major commission was for the largest window in the southern hemisphere, for the south
transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...
of
St George's Cathedral, Cape Town St George's Cathedral (also referred to as The Cathedral Church of St George the Martyr) is the anglicanism, Anglican cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa, and the seat of the Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, Archbishop of Cape Town. St. Geor ...
, South Africa. The
rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' w ...
was installed in 1957, and was designed by
Frank Spears Frank Sydney Spears (4 August 1906 – 25 March 1991) was a South African artist. He was born in Walsall, Staffordshire, England and arrived in South Africa as a designer for Brimble and Briggs Ltd. in 1928. He established a high profile as an ...
.


Style and mark

Skeat's works employ crisply drawn figures on a largely clear glazed background, which was a popular formula in post-war stained glass. The panels he created for St John's church in St Albans bear his marks described as "a hart lodged at gaze in a small shield within a larger shield with walled top and alternate horizontal sections" and a "scrolled shield with a hart statant". The
hart Hart often refers to: * Hart (deer) Hart may also refer to: Organizations * Hart Racing Engines, a former Formula One engine manufacturer * Hart Skis, US ski manufacturer * Hart Stores, a Canadian chain of department stores * Hart's Reptile W ...
is taken from the Arms of the county of
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...
. The lines across the shield are an allusion to a ford, a pun on the county's name. His mark later became a
rebus A rebus () is a puzzle device that combines the use of illustrated pictures with individual letters to depict words or phrases. For example: the word "been" might be depicted by a rebus showing an illustrated bumblebee next to a plus sign (+) ...
,
St Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a Mysticism, mystic Italian Catholic Church, Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most vener ...
, around whom radiate small flying birds, together with his initials.


Works

Among Skeat's works is the memorial to the footballer,
Duncan Edwards Duncan Edwards (1 October 1936 – 21 February 1958) was an English footballer who played for Manchester United and the England national team. He was one of the Busby Babes, the young United team formed under manager Matt Busby in the mid ...
, who played for
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
and
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. He was one of eight players who was killed in the Munich air disaster in February 1958; Edwards was only 21 at the time of his death. On 27 August 1961 a stained-glass window depicting the player, designed by Skeat, was unveiled in St Francis's Church, the parish church for the
Priory Estate The Priory Estate is a housing estate in Dudley, West Midlands, England, which has largely been developed since 1929. History The Priory Estate is so named because it is located near the Priory ruins and Priory Park. It stands on the land whic ...
,
Dudley Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
, by
Matt Busby Sir Alexander Matthew Busby (26 May 1909 – 20 January 1994) was a Scottish association football, football player and manager, who managed Manchester United F.C., Manchester United between 1945 and 1969 and again for the second half of the 197 ...
, Edwards's former manager. In the
City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...
church of
St Sepulchre-without-Newgate Holy Sepulchre London, formerly and in some official uses Saint Sepulchre-without-Newgate, is the largest Anglican parish church in the City of London. It stands on the north side of Holborn Viaduct across a crossroads from the Old Bailey, and ...
there is a memorial window to John Smith, the governor of
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
and associate of
Pocahontas Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, known as Matoaka, 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman, belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of ...
who was buried there in 1631. The window was designed by Skeat and given to the church by Bradford Smith in 1968. Captain John Smith is shown in the central panel of the window with his navigational instruments at his feet. The east window in the Lady Chapel of St Andrew's Church,
Swavesey Swavesey is a village lying on the Prime Meridian in Cambridgeshire, England, with a population of 2,463. The village is situated 9 miles to the north west of Cambridge and 3 miles south east of St Ives. Listed as ''Suauesye'' in the Domesday ...
in Cambridgeshire, contains a 1967
Tree of Jesse The Tree of Jesse is a depiction in art of the ancestors of Jesus Christ, shown in a branching tree which rises from Jesse of Bethlehem, the father of King David. It is the original use of the family tree as a schematic representation of a ge ...
by Francis Skeat. In a letter to the incumbent and the churchwardens, Skeat writes:- Jesse appears in the right hand light and is in a standing position facing left. The figures in the window are:- first light,
Boaz Boaz (; Hebrew: בֹּעַז ''Bōʿaz''; ) is a biblical figure appearing in the Book of Ruth in the Hebrew Bible and in the genealogies of Jesus in the New Testament and also the name of a pillar in the portico of the historic Temple in Jerusa ...
; second light,
Ruth Ruth (or its variants) may refer to: Places France * Château de Ruthie, castle in the commune of Aussurucq in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France Switzerland * Ruth, a hamlet in Cologny United States * Ruth, Alabama * Ruth, Arka ...
and above her
Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...
; middle light,
Abraham Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Jew ...
and
Isaac Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was the ...
; above them, the
Blessed Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...
and Child; at the top,
Asa ASA as an abbreviation or initialism may refer to: Biology and medicine * Accessible surface area of a biomolecule, accessible to a solvent * Acetylsalicylic acid, aspirin * Advanced surface ablation, refractive eye surgery * Anterior spinal ar ...
; fourth light,
David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
with
Solomon Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...
above him; fifth light,
Jesse Jesse may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jesse (biblical figure), father of David in the Bible. * Jesse (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Jesse (surname), a list of people Music * ''Jesse'' (a ...
. The text at the bottom of the window, taken from the 1662 ''Book of Common Prayer'' version of
Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...
, reads:-


Publications

In May 1977, Skeat published "''Stained Glass of St Albans Cathedral''". Other works to which he has contributed include: *''The Stained Glass Work of
János Hajnal János “Giovanni” Hajnal (Budapest, 27 August 1913 – Rome, 9 October 2010) was a Hungarian naturalized Italian artist and illustrator. He is considered one of the major contemporary creator of glass walls and mosaics. Hungarian born, Hajna ...
'': Vol. XV No. 3 (British Society: London, 1974–75) *''A Survey of Stained Glass in Museums'': Vol. XVII, No. 2 (British Society: London, 1978–79) *''A Survey of Stained Glass in Museums and Art Galleries (Part Two)'': Vol. XVI, No. 3 (British Society: London, 1979–80) *''The Vanished Glass of Exeter Cathedral''


References


External links


List of Stained Glass Windows created by Francis Skeat

List of Stained Glass Windows designed by Francis Skeat
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skeat, Francis 1909 births 2000 deaths People from St Albans People educated at Whitgift School British stained glass artists and manufacturers