{chicago} the stained glass window museum

A what? A Stained Glass Window Museum. No, I am not kidding. I mean, there must be museums out there for everything if one can sustain a Stained Glass Window Museum, right? Probably.

Anyway, while Navy Pier’s huge ferris wheel is one of the most iconic images of all of Chicago, the Stained Glass Window Museum is probably not as well known, but it’s there! In fact, the Smith Museum of Stained Glass Windows is a 800-foot-long series of galleries exclusively dedicated to the art of stained glass. It’s free and open year-round just like Navy Pier and it’s quite the sight. The galleries include all kinds of stained glass in all sorts of styles: Religious, Victorian, Prairie, Modern, and Contemporary. What I found very interesting is that Chicago has been a world center of stained glass windows ever since the 1870s when, after the Great Fire, European immigrants brought with them a desire for stained glass windows. Many of Europe’s most talented stained glass designers also happened to move to Chicago and opened some 50 stained glass studios. Who knew?

A stained photo adventure:

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