The Primrose Trust has given a grant to assist in the conservation of a very important window in Agher Church, Co Meath.
The painted enamel window by Thomas Jervais (d. 1799) in Agher Church was executed in 1770 and depicts St Paul Preaching to the Athenians, based on the painting by Raphael. It was commissioned by the Wellesley family and was formerly in the private chapel of nearby Dangan Castle, childhood home of the Duke of Wellington. Following a fire in 1809 which devastated the house, the window was relocated to the East window of Agher parish church.

Thomas Jervais

The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography notes the following in its entry on Jervais:

Though several windows were commissioned from Jervais by Irish patrons most are now lost and so this window is a precious survivor of an important artist’s work.

Restoration of the window

The Select Vestry of Rathmoylan Union of Parishes applied for a grant from the Irish Georgian Society (IGS) in 2014 following which the IGS agreed to sponsor a condition report prepared by the York Glaziers Trust. The report concluded that the window at Agher was set in cementitious mortar which was cracking and missing in places and supported by copper wires soldered to the leaded panels and twisted around rusting internal saddlebars. The deteriorating leadwork and putty contributed to significant buckling of the window, which became heavily reliant on the saddlebar supports.  The glass surface was affected by cobwebs, mortar splashes and dust build-up and sections had become detached and were lying on the window cill. The survival of the window was threatened by a significant delay of works which were identified as being urgent in 1992 (Lawrence 1992). The window was at risk of collapse and partial loss.

1992 Lawrence Report on Agher Church Jervais Window

Based on this report IGS commissioned the York Glaziers Trust to conserve the window on behalf of the Select Vestry of Rathmoylan Union of Parishes. Funds were raised from a variety of sources, including the Parish, and a successful application made to the Primrose Trust. The project was managed by Deirdre McDermott, conservation architect and IGS volunteer.

The glass was repaired and releaded in the studios of the York Glaziers Trust and the window replaced in Agher Church in August 2016. On Sunday 21 August a Songs of Praise was held in Agher Church to celebrate the conservation of the Jervais window and the church was open on 24 August during Heritage Week. There was a lot of interest in the project and people from far and wide came to see the church and the window. An attractive brochure about the project and the funders was produced by the Irish Georgian Society.