Featured Window

Our Lady of Grace, Dearborn Heights, Michigan

Click any image to enlarge.

MSGC : Collections : Window

Window

Building Name: St. Mary's of Redford Church

City: Redford

Window Shape: 3 (arched)

Subject/Title of Window: Immaculate Heart/Mary Taught To Read/Mary Presented in Temple

Brief Description of Subject: This is one of two windows in "Our Lady's Shrine" located in the chevet.

In the top quatrefoil is a depiction of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The flaming blooded heart (burning love) is encircled by what looks like lilies (Immaculate Conception). Angels are paying homage to Our Lady. The quatrefoils below refer to the Virgin Mary's early life as written in the Protoevangelium of James. Mary's parents were given as St. Anne and St. Joachim who, like Elizabeth and Zacharias, were childless in old age when they had their child. Like Hannah's son Samuel at age three, Mary was given to God --- turned over to priests to live.

In the middle quatrefoil is Mary's aged parents teaching her to read. A popular subject which normally has just St. Anne teaching Mary to read.

In the bottom quatrefoil is the "Presentation of Mary in the Temple". Her aged parents are presenting Mary to a priest of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. When Hannah presented Samuel to the priest Eli she made a sacrifice (Samuel 1:27-28). I believe the basket in St. Anne's hand contains two doves that were meant to be sacrificed.

Height: ~100"

Width: 36"

The MSGC is a constantly evolving database. Not all the data that has been collected by volunteers has been sorted and entered. Not every building has been completely documented.

All images in the Index are either born-digital photographs of windows or buildings or are scans of slides, prints, or other published sources. These images have been provided by volunteers and the quality of the material varies widely.

If you have any questions, additions or corrections, or think you can provide better images and are willing to share them, please contact donald20@msu.edu