Widening the Window

Yesterday’s wedding was in the Rose Historic Chapel, in north Colombo Street.

This beautiful small building was designed by the Luttrell Brothers and constructed in 1910 from Hoon Hay and Oamaru stone, as part of St Mary’s Convent.  When the Convent was demolished in the 1990’s the City Council bought the Chapel, which has one of the finest collections of English stained glass windows in Canterbury.  It was renamed for the wheel-shaped rose window above the entrance.  The Chapel’s been de-consecrated, and is an ideal venue for those who want an historic sacred setting for their ceremony yet don’t want a religious service.

It has a special attraction for me, because one of the windows (above) is dedicated “In memoriam deceased members of the Gardner family”.  My Gardners have all been staunch non-conformists, with no links to Roman Catholicism, yet I’m happy to believe that prayers associated with this window encompass my beloved dead.

The Chapel is open to visitors on Sundays, October to April, from 2-4 p.m.

“The Chapel window seems to be
Intended for my family.”