Brecon Cathedral, Powys
Address
Cathedral Church of St John the Evangelist, Cathedral Close, Brecon LD3 9DPTheme
Overview
The cathedral was formerly the priory church of St John the Evangelist, founded in the twelfth century. It was raised to cathedral status for the new diocese of Swansea and Brecon in 1923. Most of the major windows of the cathedral are by the successive incarnations of O’Connor’s firm after W.J. Taylor became a partner of the firm, which then traded as Taylor & O’Connor and Taylor & Clifton. There is also work by Clayton & Bell and John Hardman & Co., as well as early twentieth century windows by James Powell & Sons and Horace Wilkinson.
For further information see: Stained Glass in Wales – Brecon Cathedral
Highlight
Three light window of St Keyne with St Illtud and St Cadog, north wall of the north aisle (St Keyne's Chapel)Artist, maker and date
Horace Wilkinson, 1922Reason for highlighting
The smaller windows in the cathedral by James Powell & Sons and Horace Wilkinson are more interesting and more attractive than the larger windows by W.G. Taylor’s firm. Two of these are bespoke designs of Welsh saints, and the window of Cain (better known in England as Keyne) with Illtud and Cadog is a fine example of Horace Wilkinson’s fifteenth-century style that was often favoured by the Arts and Crafts architect W.D. Caröe. Best admired up close for the quality of the glass painting, his beautiful figure of Cain with the ammonites recalls the story of the snakes that she turned to stone. His son A.L. Wilkinson, who served as Honorary Secretary of the British Society of Master Glass Painters in the 1950s, singled out his father’s work at Brecon as ‘outstanding’.
Artist/maker notes
Horace Wilkinson (1866-1957) studies at Brighton School of Art and South Kensington School of Art. Between 1866 and 1901 he worked with Arthur J Dix, Gibbs & Howard, Edward Frampton, Burlison & Grylls, Clayton & Bell and Drake of Exeter. He worked independently from 1901 to 1945.
Source: Stained Glass Marks & Monograms, complied by Joyce Little, and edited by Angela Goedicke & Margaret Washbourn (NADFAS, 2002)
Comments by
Martin Crampin