Advent Calendar 2021

Lampshade panel illustrating the Adoration of the Shepherds, made in the late 1930s or early 1940s. Glencairn Museum, Bryn Athyn, PA, 11.OP.02. To view a zoomable version on Google Arts & Culture, **click on the image**.

7. ADORATION of the Shepherds

This handcrafted lampshade panel illustrates the Adoration of the Shepherds. According to the Gospel of Luke, “So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us’” (2:15).

The panel is one of six scenes from the Nativity narrative decorating a Christmas-themed lampshade in Glencairn’s Chapel. The plexiglass shade was commissioned by Raymond Pitcairn in the late 1930s or early 1940s; it was designed and painted by Francis (“Frank”) Eugene Snyder (1908–1995). Synder painted the plexiglass with oils and other media in order to achieve the appearance and texture of stained glass when the lamp is turned on.

Visit us at Follow the Star: A 2021 Advent Calendar.