Mayer & Co. (Königliche Bayerische Hofkunstanstalt) was founded in Munich in 1847 by Joseph Gabriel Mayer. The firm became one of the most influential nineteenth-century stained-glass studios in Europe and developed an extensive export market, particularly in Britain, Ireland, and North America.

Mayer & Co. specialised in richly coloured figurative windows characterised by painterly modelling, elaborate canopies, and a strong devotional focus. Their work often reflects the influence of Nazarene art and German academic religious painting, combining naturalistic figure drawing with saturated colour and detailed architectural framing.

The firm supplied numerous Roman Catholic churches during the period of Catholic revival in Britain, though it also produced windows for Anglican commissions. Mayer glass is frequently identifiable by its dense chromatic harmony, expressive faces, and finely painted drapery.

By the late nineteenth century the studio had become one of the largest ecclesiastical art manufacturers in Europe, producing stained glass, mosaics, and liturgical furnishings. Mayer & Co. continued into the twentieth century, adapting its style while retaining a recognisable devotional character.