A Pair of Stained Glass 'Marital Alliance' Panels with Washington Family Coat of Arms

Early 20th Century

Each 12 x 18 inches (including suspension loop).

Both panels feature the Washington family coat-of-arms, two horizontal bars below three mullets (five-pointed stars) alongside the coat-of-arms of family allies through marriage. The "Wasshington and Light" marital shield celebrates the alliance through marriage of Robert Washington and Elizabeth Light in 1565 while the "Wasshington and Kytson" shield celebrates the alliance of John Washington and Margaret Kytson in 1495. The spelling of the family name "Wasshington" reflects the centuries-long evolution of the name from Wessyngton (ca 1100s) to Washington.

In the 1500s-1600s, a series of 7 marital alliance panels was made for Sulgrave Manor, England, the ancestral home of George Washington. According to the Corning Museum of Glass, after the Washington ancestral home changed hands in the nineteenth century, the original stained glass panels were removed. Five of the original stained glass panels remain in England at St. Mary's Church in Fawsley while the Corning Museum is home to the remaining two panels. Replicas were made for the original house and installed after World War I. It is believed several other series of copies were made around this time which found their way onto the market in the early 20th century. The examples offered here are likely copies from this period.

Auction records indicate just one sale of similar panels, in February 2021. Documented replicas are found at Sulgrave Manor; at the "Virginia House" (collections of the Virginia Museum of History and Culture); the White House (presented to Calvin Coolidge); and in two private collections.

"Wasshington and Light" panel with several cracks.

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Please email [email protected] for any additional information or questions you may have regarding this lot.

Ben Fisher

Managing Director, Furniture and Decorative Arts

[email protected]312.447.3270

Mr. Fisher rejoined the firm in 2019 after working as a specialist in the American Furniture and Folk Art department at Sotheby’s New York. His areas of expertise include 18th, 19th, and 20th century American, Continental, and English furniture, decorative and folk art. Before coming to Hindman in 2013, Mr. Fisher worked in European Furniture and Decorative Arts in Philadelphia. He began his career working for a prints dealer focusing on works from the 16th through the 20th centuries.

American Furniture, Folk & Decorative Arts

A Pair of Stained Glass 'Marital Alliance' Panels with Washington Family Coat of Arms

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