Joan of Arc - Orleans Cathedral

This stained glass window, crafted by the French artist Pierre Carron in 2000, graces the south-facing lancet of the Cathédrale Sainte-Croix d'Orléans, a Gothic edifice spanning the 13th to 19th centuries. This modern addition, bathed in the interplay of light, celebrates the heroic figure of Joan of Arc, the city’s revered patron saint and a symbol of national pride. Carron, renowned for merging traditional vitrail techniques with a contemporary abstract flair, employs layers of antique glass, silver stain, and enamel painting to infuse the work with emotional depth, harmonizing the cathedral’s medieval roots with a 21st-century vision.

Set against the historical backdrop of Orléans Cathedral, rebuilt after Huguenot devastation in the 16th century, this window honors Joan of Arc, who liberated the city from English siege in 1429. Commissioned as part of the millennial festivities, it draws inspiration from the 15th-century Vigiles du Roi Charles VII manuscript, capturing her divine visions and ultimate martyrdom. Installed during a period of restoration, it reflects France’s enduring devotion to Joan, canonized in 1920, and the cathedral’s status as a pilgrimage destination.

The window rises tall and arched, stretching approximately 15 to 20 feet, its design divided into three registers framed by delicate Gothic tracery adorned with red and blue borders. Vibrant hues of cool blues, symbolizing hope, and fiery reds, evoking her trial, dominate the pot-metal glass, while silver stain adds golden highlights that dance in the light. The upper register unveils a celestial canopy, where a radiant mandorla glows with a golden sunburst, cradling serene angelic faces in white and gold, their wings outstretched. At its heart, a haloed dove or cherub, representing the Holy Spirit or St. Michael the Archangel, Joan’s heavenly guide, casts a gentle presence.

In the central register, Joan emerges as a commanding figure, clad in silver and blue armor, astride a rearing white horse amid swirling flames and fluttering banners. Her banner, a striking white expanse emblazoned with golden fleurs-de-lis and the inscription "Jesus Maria" in gothic script, waves with dynamic energy, its edges tinged with red and blue to echo French royal colors and the blood of her sacrifice. The fiery reds that lick the scene blend her triumphant moment at Orléans with the tragic pyre of Rouen in 1431. Below, the lower register grounds the composition with stylized waves or fields in green and blue, dotted with faint crosses or lilies that whisper of purity and French kingship, while subtle script like "Orléans 1429" or Latin phrases from her trial anchor the narrative.