Welcome to Lichfield Cathedral's online fundraising page in support of
THE RACE TO SAVE THE HERKENRODE GLASS - The East End Appeal
The Herkenrode Glass in the Lady Chapel at Lichfield Cathedral is one of Europe's greatest artistic treasures, and it needs your help. Designed and made in the Abbey of Herkenrode, Flanders during the sixteenth century, the glass panels were purchased for Lichfield in 1803, to save them from the destruction of the Napoleonic Wars that claimed so much of the low countries' artistic heritage. The Herkenrode Glass is among the finest remaining unrestored examples of its kind in the world.
Having survived so many religious and political upheavals and a perilous journey to England, the glass has, ironically, faced its biggest threat from exposure to over 200 years' worth of condensation, grime and pollution, and the crumbling of the Lichfield Sandstone supporting it, which had become so severe that by 2009 complete structural collapse was imminent. Fortunately, emergency funding from English Heritage and other benefactors has allowed us to remove the glass to safety and begin the respair of the masonry.
Now, £980,000 is needed to complete the painstaking conservation programme to bring the glass back to its former glory, and restore it as the central icon of the religious and spiritual life of the Cathedral. We need your help to win the race to save the Herkenrode Glass.
Your support is most appreciated - thank you.
The East End Appeal is a three-stage project comprising the strengthening of the South and North Choir Aisles, the replacement of the external stonework of the Lady Chapel and the conservation of the Herkenrode Glass. The Appeal is the first phase of Lichfield Inspires, a long term programme of conservation and development.
If you would like further information please visit the Cathedral website: www.lichfield-cathedral.org.
For updates on the Appeal, advice on raising funds for it yourself or to become an appeal ambassador, please contact Judith Ayton, Fundraising Officer, via judith.ayton@lichfield-cathedral.org or call 01543 306106.
Image copyright IRPA-KIK, Brussels
