Throughout history, the art of stained glass has been restricted to ornamenting churches and momentous architectural designs. Stained glass usually refers to colorful material itself or to artworks made with it. Similar to mosaic art, stained glass designs can raise and fall. Stained glass ornaments can decorate your home with colorful abstract lights, floral patterns or landscapes. Figurative and splendid medieval stained glass windows can be witnessed in a church or a parliament building to narrate and commemorate tenses from the Bible, literature or history. You can even find stained glass within college halls. Stained glass art is still present for modern glass artists and their creations including third dimensional structures and sculptures.

10 • Coventry Cathedral in the United Kingdom

The Coventry Cathedral became is well recognized in England by its stained glass windows, designed by Lawrence Lee, Keith New and Geoffrey Clarke. These conceptual windows were made just like a mosaic mural by puzzling small and multihued glass tiles together. Their opposite pairs represent a pattern of growth from birth to death to prove the celestial magnificence around the sanctum. According to spiritual realms, these windows were designed to represent human beings inside the divine and the connection is obvious due to this unique three dimensional mural!

9 • Cathedral of Saint Sebastian in Brazil

The Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Sebastian was designed by Edgar Fonseca and was built between 1964 and 1979. This Cathedral became a center for spiritual growth in Rio de Janeiro. Fonseca gave this cathedral a discriminating modern style influenced by the Mayan architectural style of the pyramids. He made four astounding stained glass windows greeting a cross in the ceiling.

8 • Grossmünster Cathedral in Switzerland

The Grossmünster is a Romanesque-style protestant church in Zurich, Switzerland. Construction of the church began around 1100 and it was inaugurated around 1200. It became renowned and correlated to the fascinating history of catholic saints and the protestant preaching. The Grossmunster features today distinctive and modern stained glass windows made by the Swiss artist Augusto Giacometti in 1932.

7 • Cathedral of Maringá in Brazil

Jose Augusto Bellucci was influenced by the Soviet satellites and sputnik program, pushing him to design the Cathedral of Maringá in a modern and narrowed shape. The cathedral of Maringá towers 124 meter above the ground, hence being the tallest Cathedral in South America. Amazing stained glass windows make anyone who believes in indefinite growth to go through an odyssey of a vibrant muse!

6 • Resurrection Mausoleum in Illinois

The stained glass walls at the Resurrection Mausoleum are the largest glass installation in the world according to the Guiness Book of World Records. The murals and windows were created from thick pieces of colored glass puzzled in a matrix of mortar just like a mosaic artwork. The glass glows with brilliant shades of red, blue and yellow to cast kaleidoscopic glows on the walls and floors. The design narrates the life of Jesus, the Saints with tenses from the Bible.

5 • National Cathedral of Washington

There are 231 stained glass windows in the Washington National Cathedral that vary from Gothic to Modern styles.The Space Stained Glass Window in the National Cathedral of Washington became renowned after the Donation of Dr.Thomas O.Paine, NASA’s administrator. During the Appollo 11 mission Dr.Thomas offered a piece of the Moon to embed in the window, which was perfectly designed by Rodney Winfield.

4 • Sainte Chapelle in France

The most eminent features of the Sainte Chapelle in Paris are the stained glass windows, finest of their type in the world. The stone mural surface was reduced in fragile framework technique. To dominate the western wall, the French thought of adding the flamboyant large rose window tracery to the top of the chapel. These windows illustrate the New Testament narrating scenes of the Passion, the infancy of Christ and the life of John the Evangelist. In order to create a contrast, the windows of the nave are traced by the Old Testaments. The final window illustrates the kingship with a series of scenes showing the rediscovery of Christ’s artifacts and the relocation to Paris in the hands of King Louis!

3 • St Nicolaaskerk Church in Amsterdam

Saint Nicholas Basilica of Amsterdam is a splendid fairyland that features artworks from a variety of artists with a variety of mediums and styles. Adrianus Blejis was the architect designer of this church, combining several revival styles of which Neo Baroque and Neo Renaissance (the most prominent flairs prevalent in the 19^th century). What distinguishes the basilica is a heavenly dome that rises 190 feet. Celestial light excels brightly through the stained-glass windows that encircle the octagonal tower.

2 • Nasir Al Mulk Mosque in Iran

Also known as the Pink Mosque due to the usage of peerless pink color tiles, the Nasir Al Mulk Mosque became a traditional futuristic fantasy of Shiraz, Iran. The mosque was built during the Qajar era in 1876 and was finished in 1888 by the request of Mira Hassan Ali Nasir Al Mulk. Muhammad Hasan Memar and Muhammad Reza Kashi Pz-e-Shirazi were the architect designers who made this fantasy real. The facade of the mosque is totally ornamented with stained and colorful glass, illustrating traditional elements and designs such as Panj Kaseh-I (five concaves).

1 • La Sagrada Familia in Spain

The first stone laid at La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona was in 1882, as it became the most illustrious symbol of Barcelona and one of the most impressive futuristic fantasies in the world.

The deeply admired Antoni Gaudi was the ingenious architect designer who brilliantly designed the Sagrada Familia. The layout of the church and facade are ornamented with a rich symbology and yet it’s still fragmentary. It’ll finally be done in 2026 according to builders, nearly 150 years after the work began. It will be ready in time for the centenary of Gaudi’s loss.

Were you as dazzled as we were after seeing such marvelous artworks?
If you like this post, be sure to check out our: 10 Most Impressive Mosaic Murals of All Time

You can also discover Mozaico for some mosaic art of your own!