An admirable little book written by a lady

The preservation of the papers of Emily Williams (1835–1900) allows a close examination of the work of an important female antiquarian of the late Victorian period. Williams, the first known woman to write a book on English stained glass, published Notes on the Painted Glass in Canterbury Cathedral anonymously in 1897. The book formed the foundation for later studies of the cathedral's monumental glass and includes multiple illustrations based on Williams’ drawings. In addition to writing this book, Williams partnered with the cathedral glazier to reinstate medieval glass in a number of the cathedral's windows, glass that is viewed by many thousands of tourists annually. A study of Williams’ work in the 1890s brings to light a new chapter in the history of Canterbury's famed stained glass; it also adds to our understanding of the work of female antiquarians, the activities of women in clerical communities, the publication and illustration of female-authored works, the roles played by women in the Victorian obsession with stained glass, the lives and self-fashioning of spinsters, and the gendering of types of intellectual labor

Aesthetics · Art · Art history · Performance art · Stained glass · Visual arts · Historical Architecture and Urbanism · Historical Art and Culture Studies · History · Scottish History and National Identity