Jane Gray (b.1931)

St Margaret’s Church, Downham, Billericay, Essex, Design for Stained Glass Window

Watercolour

15.5 x 7.5 cm

Signed and studio stamp verso.

It is likely that Christians have worshiped at this site for over a thousand years, but it wasn’t until the mid13th century that the first recorded church appeared. The church is dedicated to St Margaret of Antioch, a dragon slayer and patron saint of child bearing. Devotion Saint Margaret of Antioch became popular in the 13th century and there are around 80 churches today that share this dedication from the 13th century. The oldest part of the present church is the tower which dates from c.1470. The nave was rebuilt in the nineteenth century using much of the material from the thirteenth century church. An arson attack in March 1977 resulted in the gutting of the church, resulting in a highly modern interior. This window features the symbol of St Margaret and a red Cross on quarry background. The window was installed in 1988.

Provenance: the artist’s studio sale.

Literature: Jane Gray, Playing with Rainbows. (Shropshire: Ellingham Press, 2011), p.79.

Condition: very good.

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