Flora - Fathingston Northamptonshire

This stained glass window in St Mary the Virgin, Farthingstone, Northamptonshire, is dedicated to Philip and Alexandra Agnew's daughter Joy (d1921). It is a celebration of nature’s bounty and human resilience. It attributed to J.H. Dearle who took over the management of the stained glass department of Morris & Co, when William Morris died in 1896. This window, featuring a central female figure entwined with lush flora, Rising approximately 10-12 feet in a three-lancet arrangement beneath a trefoil-arched tracery, the window bathes the church interior with a soft, verdant glow, its palette of emerald greens, ruby reds, and creamy whites evoking a woodland glade.

The central lancet features a graceful female figure, an allegorical embodiment of Flora (the Roman goddess of flowers) or Saint Dorothy, standing amidst a verdant embrace. She is depicted with flowing auburn hair cascading over her shoulders, her serene face turned slightly upward in quiet contemplation, lips parted in a gentle smile. Her attire, a long, flowing gown of deep blue with a red undergarment peeking at the hem and sleeves—mirrors the rich hues of twilight skies and ripe berries, its folds rendered with subtle leadline shading to suggest a breeze stirring the fabric. In her hands, she holds a garland or sheaf of ivy and roses, the greenery curling around her arms like a living mantle, symbolizing life’s continuity and the Agnew family’s rural heritage tied to the Woodleys estate. Her bare feet rest lightly on a grassy mound, grounding her in the earth’s embrace, while her pose, arms slightly outstretched, evokes both offering and reception, a bridge between the divine and the mortal.