‘Bunyan in Stained Glass’ was the title of a talk given by Jasmine Allen, Curator of the Stained Glass Museum, Ely, on May 7th, 2026. Jasmine is also author of a chapter on stained glass in the recently published book, Global Bunyan and Visual Art, edited by Angelica Duran (Bloomsbury Academic: Bloomsbury, 2025; Global Bunyan and Visual Art: Angelica Duran: Bloomsbury Academic – Bloomsbury), which featured prominently at the 2025 Conference of the International John Bunyan Society, and was reviewed in the newsletter.
Jasmine spoke to us in the main church space at Bunyan Meeting, as a glorious evening sun streamed through our own suite of windows, based on scenes from The Pilgrim’s Progress. As the evening progressed, the windows provided an ever changing, glowing background to her sumptuously illustrated talk.
As we are becoming aware, Bunyan, and The Pilgrim’s Progress feature in stained glass in a great variety of settings, with the context giving meaning to the image. We have seen how he often appears in non-conformist chapels and churches in the company of other religious dissenters, notably William Tyndale (the martyred Bible translator, whose 500th anniversary falls this year) and John Wycliffe.
Elsewhere, it is the religious and moral message of The Pilgrim’s Progress that takes centre stage, or, as in many memorial windows following the two World Wars, the narrative of valour in the face of danger and temptation, which inevitably rang true with a generation that had confronted similar perils.
The talk was organised through the Friends of John Bunyan Museum and Library, and attracted a lively audience, which engaged in vigorous debate following the presentation. Among other things, the irony of a Puritan author, who would have regarded stained glass as the idolatry of the Established Church, being so widely depicted in that medium, was not lost!
The discussion ended on a personal note, as a former Trustee of Bunyan Meeting, turned our attention back to the glowing stained glass windows that surrounded us, to speak to speak movingly of a close family connection with one of them.
Jasmine Allen closed by calling on Bunyan Museum, and Bunyan400 to follow up on the research she had begun, into stained glass and other monumental representations of John Bunyan. In a sense, this has already started, as people have been contacting us with their own information.
Visit the Friends of the John Bunyan Museum and Library website to find out more about similar upcoming events, or even become a member.
If you have been informed, or even inspired by this subject, and would like to engage in this exploration of stained glass, please email [email protected].