We are very pleased to announce that Friends has received a donation of $500,000 in honor of the late Richard H. Driehaus, to be used for the restoration of the “Mount of the Holy Cross” window, made by Tiffany Studios in 1902. This will be the third of our Tiffany windows to undergo restoration by Venturella Studio in New York. The window will be removed in March 2023 and reinstalled in late spring 2024.
The window will be restored over fourteen months at the New York Venturella Studio. Also assisting with the framing, masonry surround, plaster, and paint are the following companies: Wiss, Janney, Elstner; Bulley Andrews Masonry Restoration; Kelly Plastering, National Decorating Service, Gilco Scaffolding, Ralph H. Simpson and Aurora.
There are two aspects of this window that make it especially significant. It is believed to be a unique Tiffany window, meaning the design was created specifically for the donor, Sarah Kellogg, and was never used again. This was the most expensive way in which to create a window, as the donor would fund the design process, rather than selecting existing designs that could be modified to meet their expectations. Kellogg funded the original Tiffany window in this location in 1889 (the first Tiffany in the church and one of the first in Chicago), but that window was destroyed in the 1900 fire. It was of similar theme, but different design, as it was set within wood tracery. The second unusual aspect of the window is that it portrays an actual scene in Colorado, where the Kellogg family was known to have summered. The window depicts two angels, their backs facing the viewer, looking across a valley toward a mountain with a huge cross carved into its face. The Mount of the Holy Cross was “discovered” in the 1860s, and a photograph and painting in the early 1870s made it well known, despite its somewhat remote location. One other detail of the window is worthy of note. Tiffany was known for his plated glass – layers of glass manipulated to achieve various effects. The cross seen on the mountain is not set into the front layer of glass, but rather the second layer, to give the illusion it is set off in the distance. However, the construction is truly remarkable in that Tiffany imitates nature. The cross is only visible during the day when light passes through the window. When the sun sets, the cross disappears, only to reappear in the light of a new day, as would be the case with the actual mountain. The restoration of the window will be a fitting tribute to Richard H. Driehaus, a major collector of Tiffany’s windows and other objects, and the lead funder of our “St. Paul Preaching at Athens Window” reinstalled in October 2022. To learn more about the window and the Kellogg family, see our article “Mount of the Holy Cross Window Has Fascinating Story” in the Fall/Winter 2010 issue of The Herald.
Photo credit: Martin Cheung