Salisbury Cathedral’s stained-glass team, led by head glazier and conservator Sam Kelly, are temporarily removing a 19th-century window designed by the Pre-Raphaelite artist Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones and designer and craftsman William Morris, 145 years after it was first installed.

Following the window’s removal to the workshop, which began on Tuesday, February 20 and remains ongoing, it will undergo a slow process of cleaning and restoration over the next two years.

Salisbury Journal: The glazing team remove the upper sections of Angeli Ministrantes in Salisbury Cathedral.

Featuring two large figurative designs - Angeli Ministrantes (Angels Ministering) and Angeli Laudantes (Angels Praising) by Burne-Jones - that sit within Morris’s acanthus leaf design that reflects the medieval grey painted windows elsewhere in the cathedral, the windows were not well received by the cathedral’s clergy at the time and what should have been a series of windows by the Pre-Raphaelite duo stopped at one.

The process of dismantling the historical work of art and moving it to the cathedral glass workshops began with the team carefully chipping away the neat cement mortar holding the window in place and untying the copper ties holding it to the internal framework.

Once released, the team of three then lifted it out in 1.8 metres by 1.22 metres (6ft by 4ft) sections onto the exterior scaffold.

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Sam said: “Despite their solid appearance, stained glass sections of this size can be fragile, and it is always a relief to get them into the workshop. They are also incredibly heavy (around 40 kilograms per section) so moving each section down off the scaffolding is physically difficult.

“Once we get it onto the lightboxes in the workshop, we will be able to see the extent of the deterioration and what conservation is required. Exposure to the elements, especially condensation internally caused by ancient heaters in the Cathedral (which have now been replaced) and water ingress have taken their toll.

"Painted details, especially on the faces and robes of the angels have faded over time, due to poor firing of the glass paint at the point of execution and the colours and patterns have been dulled by layers of accumulated dirt.”

The Morris/Burne-Jones window was commissioned by Barbara Townsend, a former resident of Mompesson House in the Cathedral Close, in memory of her brother, Captain George Townsend, who died in 1875 having contracted a terminal illness while in India.

The restoration of the window will cost an anticipated £120,000, with just over half the cost being contributed by The Dulverton Trust, Benefact Trust and the Society of Antiquaries of London. Members of the public can also contribute toward the project here.