Scenes from the Lives of Saints Nicasius and Eutropia
maker
Unknown
Dateabout 1205
Place MadeSoissons, Picardy, France, Europe
MediumPot metal glass
Dimensions366 x 157.5 cm (144 1/8 x 62 in.)
ClassificationsArchitectural Elements
Credit LineIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Accession numberC28s2
eMuseum ID730138
EmbARK ObjectID12764
TMS Source ID1825
Last Updated8/14/24
Status
Not on viewWeb Commentary
This window was made for Soissons Cathedral, the earliest of the great High Gothic cathedrals. In addition to its beauty, the window—considered by scholars to be the finest example of 13th century French stained glass in America—has a fascinating history. It survived Huguenot attacks, the French Revolution, and World War I bombardments. When Isabella purchased the window on the advice of her friend, historian and novelist Henry Adams, she thought it was from the Abbey Church of Saint Denis. Perhaps Isabella pictured it as a perfect companion for Paul Helleu’s nearby painting of the same church. In 1960, scholars determined it was from Soisson.
The window narrates the story of two locally important saints—Nicasius, archbishop of Reims, and his sister Eutropia—who were martyred in 403. Look for the entombment of Nicasius in the center of the window: two figures carrying crosses flank the saint’s body, while shovels used to dig the grave appear at the bottom.
In Gardner’s lifetime she used this space as her personal chapel, and in her will stipulated that a service be held here annually on her birthday, April 14.
BibliographyNotesMorris Carter. Isabella Stewart Gardner and Fenway Court (Boston, 1925; Reprint, Boston, 1972), pp. 216-18. (excerpting letters from Henry Adams)
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), pp. 258-59. (the scenes as possibly the life of Saint Denis or King Dagobert; as Northern France, early 13th century with much replacement glass)
H.D. Cater. Henry Adams and his Friends: A Collection of his Unpublished Letters (Boston, 1947), pp. 585-87.
Philippe Verdier. "A Stained Glass from the Cathedral of Soissons." The Corcoran Gallery of Art Bulletin 10 (1958), pp. 17, 19, n15, fig. 17. (the scenes as Saints Nicaise and Eutropie; as by the Soissons atelier)
Louis Grodecki. "Les Vitraux Soissonais du Louvre, du Musée Marmottan et collections américaines." La Revue des arts (1960), pp. 163-78, figs. 2-4. (the scenes as Saints Nicaise and Eutropie; as by the workshop responsible for the windows in Soissons cathedral, 1205-1230)
Corinna Lindon Smith. Interesting People (Norman, Oklahoma, 1962), p. 166.
Orin Skinner. "Stained Glass Tours: Boston." Stained Glass (1965), p. 10.
George L. Stout. Treasures from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1969), pp. 198-99, ill. (the scenes as possibly the life of Saint Denis or King Dagobert; as French, possibly from Chartres Cathedral or the Abbey-Church of Saint-Pierre, early 13th century with repairs)
Madeline H. Caviness. Medieval and Renaissance Stained Glass from New England Collections. Exh. cat. (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Busch-Reisinger Museum, Harvard University), p. 99. (the scenes as the martyrdom of Saints Nicasius and Eutropia; as Soissons, about 1220)
Jean Ancien. Vitraux de la cathédrale de Soissons comme on les voyait entre 1817 et 1882 (Soissons, 1980), pp. 23, 31-32, 37. (consult for early manuscript sources)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "Another Dispersed Window from Soissons: A Tree of Jesse in the Sainte-Chapelle Style." Gesta (1981), p. 198, n29.
Rollin van N. Hadley. Museums Discovered: The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1981), pp. 138-39, ill. (the scenes as the martyrdom of Saints Nicaise and Eutropie; as Soissons, 1205-1230)
Jane Hayward et al. Radiance and Reflection: Medieval Art from the Raymond Pitcairn Collection. Exh. cat. (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982), p. 139.
Suse Childs. "Two Scenes from the Life of St. Nicholas and their Relationship to the Glazing Program of the Chevet Chapels at Soissons Cathedral" in Madeline H. Caviness et al (eds.). Corpus Vitrearum: selected papers from the 11th International colloquium of the Coprus Vitrearum (New York, 1982), pp. 26-28, figs. 4-5. (as Soissons, 1200-1205)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. Stained Glass before 1540: an annotated bibliography (Boston, 1983), p. 301.
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "The Gothic Window from Soissons: A Reconsideration." Fenway Court (1983), pp. 6-25, figs. 1, 4-5. (as Soissons, about 1205; as 60% original glass)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "Stained Glass Before 1700 in American Collections: New England and New York. Corpus Vitreaum Checklist 1." Studies in the History of Art (1985), pp. 14-15, 40, ill. (as Soissons, 1195/1210-1215)
Louis Grodecki. Le Moyen Age retrouvé: Idees et recherches (Paris, 1986), pp. 498-519, figs. 200-01, 208. (as Soissons (?), 1205-1230)
Marilyn M. Beaven. The Legendary Stained Glass from the Thirteenth Century Choir of Soissons Cathedral. MA Diss. (Medford, Massachusetts: Tufts University, 1989), op. cit., figs. 5-8, 13, 26-28. (as by the Master of the Bishops' Lives and restorers, about 1207-1212)
Marilyn M. Beaven. "A Medieval Procession: Sacred Rites Commemorated in a Stained Glass Panel from Soissons Cathedral." Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts (1992), pp. 30-37, fig. 5. (as by the Master of the Bishops' Lives, about 1207-1212)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "The Gothic Window from Soissons: A Reconsideration" in Madeline H. Caviness (ed.). Paintings on Glass: Studies in Romanesque and Gothic Monumental Art (1997), pp. 6-25, figs. 1, 4-5. (a reprint of the 1983 Fenway Court article)
Virginia Chieffo Raguin et al. Stained Glass Before 1700 in the Collections of the Midwest States. Corpus Vitreaum: United States of America, Part 8, Volume 1 (London, 2002), pp. 153-59, fig. 3. (as from Soissons Cathedral, 1207-1212)
Jane Hayward et al. English and French Medieval Stained Glass in the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 2003), pp. 119-21, no. 17.
Alan Chong et al. (eds.) Eye of the Beholder: Masterpieces from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 2003), pp. 26-27, ill. (as French (Soissons), about 1205)
Thirerry Jordan. Reims: La Grace d'une Catédrale (Strasbourg, 2010), p. 235, fig. 18. (as French (Soissons), about 1205)
Sylvie Balcon-Berry. "Stained Glass and the Chronology of Reims Cathedral" in Kathleen Nolan et al. (eds.). Arts of the Medieval Cathedrals: Studies on Architecture, Stained Glass and Sculpture in Honor of Anne Prache (Surrey, 2015), p. 96, fig. 5.3. (as attributed to Soissons; as probably by the same hand as that of a lower window at Reims Cathedral, now lost, see fig. 5.2)
Matthew del Grosso, "Preserving Our Colorful History: The Soisson Window," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 15 December 2020, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/preserving-our-colorful-history-soisson-window
Adrienne Chaparro, "Remembering Isabella: Her Yearly Memorial Service," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 12 April 2022, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/remembering-isabella-her-yearly-memorial-service
Diana Seave Greenwald and Casey Riley (ed.). Fellow Wanderer: Isabella Stewart Gardner's Travel Albums. Exh. cat. (Boston: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2023), pp. 30, fig. 10.
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), pp. 258-59. (the scenes as possibly the life of Saint Denis or King Dagobert; as Northern France, early 13th century with much replacement glass)
H.D. Cater. Henry Adams and his Friends: A Collection of his Unpublished Letters (Boston, 1947), pp. 585-87.
Philippe Verdier. "A Stained Glass from the Cathedral of Soissons." The Corcoran Gallery of Art Bulletin 10 (1958), pp. 17, 19, n15, fig. 17. (the scenes as Saints Nicaise and Eutropie; as by the Soissons atelier)
Louis Grodecki. "Les Vitraux Soissonais du Louvre, du Musée Marmottan et collections américaines." La Revue des arts (1960), pp. 163-78, figs. 2-4. (the scenes as Saints Nicaise and Eutropie; as by the workshop responsible for the windows in Soissons cathedral, 1205-1230)
Corinna Lindon Smith. Interesting People (Norman, Oklahoma, 1962), p. 166.
Orin Skinner. "Stained Glass Tours: Boston." Stained Glass (1965), p. 10.
George L. Stout. Treasures from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1969), pp. 198-99, ill. (the scenes as possibly the life of Saint Denis or King Dagobert; as French, possibly from Chartres Cathedral or the Abbey-Church of Saint-Pierre, early 13th century with repairs)
Madeline H. Caviness. Medieval and Renaissance Stained Glass from New England Collections. Exh. cat. (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Busch-Reisinger Museum, Harvard University), p. 99. (the scenes as the martyrdom of Saints Nicasius and Eutropia; as Soissons, about 1220)
Jean Ancien. Vitraux de la cathédrale de Soissons comme on les voyait entre 1817 et 1882 (Soissons, 1980), pp. 23, 31-32, 37. (consult for early manuscript sources)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "Another Dispersed Window from Soissons: A Tree of Jesse in the Sainte-Chapelle Style." Gesta (1981), p. 198, n29.
Rollin van N. Hadley. Museums Discovered: The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1981), pp. 138-39, ill. (the scenes as the martyrdom of Saints Nicaise and Eutropie; as Soissons, 1205-1230)
Jane Hayward et al. Radiance and Reflection: Medieval Art from the Raymond Pitcairn Collection. Exh. cat. (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982), p. 139.
Suse Childs. "Two Scenes from the Life of St. Nicholas and their Relationship to the Glazing Program of the Chevet Chapels at Soissons Cathedral" in Madeline H. Caviness et al (eds.). Corpus Vitrearum: selected papers from the 11th International colloquium of the Coprus Vitrearum (New York, 1982), pp. 26-28, figs. 4-5. (as Soissons, 1200-1205)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. Stained Glass before 1540: an annotated bibliography (Boston, 1983), p. 301.
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "The Gothic Window from Soissons: A Reconsideration." Fenway Court (1983), pp. 6-25, figs. 1, 4-5. (as Soissons, about 1205; as 60% original glass)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "Stained Glass Before 1700 in American Collections: New England and New York. Corpus Vitreaum Checklist 1." Studies in the History of Art (1985), pp. 14-15, 40, ill. (as Soissons, 1195/1210-1215)
Louis Grodecki. Le Moyen Age retrouvé: Idees et recherches (Paris, 1986), pp. 498-519, figs. 200-01, 208. (as Soissons (?), 1205-1230)
Marilyn M. Beaven. The Legendary Stained Glass from the Thirteenth Century Choir of Soissons Cathedral. MA Diss. (Medford, Massachusetts: Tufts University, 1989), op. cit., figs. 5-8, 13, 26-28. (as by the Master of the Bishops' Lives and restorers, about 1207-1212)
Marilyn M. Beaven. "A Medieval Procession: Sacred Rites Commemorated in a Stained Glass Panel from Soissons Cathedral." Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts (1992), pp. 30-37, fig. 5. (as by the Master of the Bishops' Lives, about 1207-1212)
Madeline H. Caviness et al. "The Gothic Window from Soissons: A Reconsideration" in Madeline H. Caviness (ed.). Paintings on Glass: Studies in Romanesque and Gothic Monumental Art (1997), pp. 6-25, figs. 1, 4-5. (a reprint of the 1983 Fenway Court article)
Virginia Chieffo Raguin et al. Stained Glass Before 1700 in the Collections of the Midwest States. Corpus Vitreaum: United States of America, Part 8, Volume 1 (London, 2002), pp. 153-59, fig. 3. (as from Soissons Cathedral, 1207-1212)
Jane Hayward et al. English and French Medieval Stained Glass in the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 2003), pp. 119-21, no. 17.
Alan Chong et al. (eds.) Eye of the Beholder: Masterpieces from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 2003), pp. 26-27, ill. (as French (Soissons), about 1205)
Thirerry Jordan. Reims: La Grace d'une Catédrale (Strasbourg, 2010), p. 235, fig. 18. (as French (Soissons), about 1205)
Sylvie Balcon-Berry. "Stained Glass and the Chronology of Reims Cathedral" in Kathleen Nolan et al. (eds.). Arts of the Medieval Cathedrals: Studies on Architecture, Stained Glass and Sculpture in Honor of Anne Prache (Surrey, 2015), p. 96, fig. 5.3. (as attributed to Soissons; as probably by the same hand as that of a lower window at Reims Cathedral, now lost, see fig. 5.2)
Matthew del Grosso, "Preserving Our Colorful History: The Soisson Window," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 15 December 2020, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/preserving-our-colorful-history-soisson-window
Adrienne Chaparro, "Remembering Isabella: Her Yearly Memorial Service," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 12 April 2022, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/remembering-isabella-her-yearly-memorial-service
Diana Seave Greenwald and Casey Riley (ed.). Fellow Wanderer: Isabella Stewart Gardner's Travel Albums. Exh. cat. (Boston: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2023), pp. 30, fig. 10.
ProvenanceNotesCreated for the second chapel from the west on the north side of the chevet, Chathedral of Saints Gervais and Protais, Soissons.
Documented in nearly its current configuration by the antiquarian Baron François de Guilhermy (1808-1878) in the mid 19th century.
Probably removed from the church in the 1890s by the workshop of the French stained glass artist Édouard Didron (1836-1902), Paris, who had been comissioned to restore the cathedral's colored glass.
Purchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner (as a window from the Basilica of Saint-Denis, Paris) from an unknown Parisian collector for about 17,000 francs before about July 1906, through the art and antiques gallery Bacri Frères, Paris, on the recommendation of the historian, novelist, and critic Henry Adams (1838-1918).
Documented in nearly its current configuration by the antiquarian Baron François de Guilhermy (1808-1878) in the mid 19th century.
Probably removed from the church in the 1890s by the workshop of the French stained glass artist Édouard Didron (1836-1902), Paris, who had been comissioned to restore the cathedral's colored glass.
Purchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner (as a window from the Basilica of Saint-Denis, Paris) from an unknown Parisian collector for about 17,000 francs before about July 1906, through the art and antiques gallery Bacri Frères, Paris, on the recommendation of the historian, novelist, and critic Henry Adams (1838-1918).
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