Century-Old Tiffany Church Window Could Fetch $2 Million

For 125 years, worshippers at Second Congregational Church in Winsted, Connecticut have gazed up at a breathtaking stained-glass window featuring a cascading waterfall, blooming lilies, and a sunset melting into purple mountains. This June, that masterpiece could bring the small church up to $2 million at a Christie's auction.

The Boyd Family Memorial Window was installed in 1899 above the church balcony as a tribute to John and Emily Boyd. John Boyd served as Connecticut's secretary of state and was a steel industrialist who documented the town's early history in an 1873 book.

His daughter Ellen commissioned Tiffany Studios to create the double-panel window in her parents' honor. One side shows water tumbling down brown rocks, while the other bursts with irises and greenery against an orange and blue sky.

"Windows featuring a waterfall prominently in the foreground are exceedingly rare within Tiffany's oeuvre," says Victoria Tudor, head of Christie's design department. The piece showcases the studio's revolutionary approach to working with opalescent glass.

Unlike traditional stained glass, Tiffany's technique allowed single pieces of glass to feature multiple colors and textures. This created realistic illusions of water, fabric, and natural scenes without painting on the glass surface.

Louis Comfort Tiffany founded his studio in the late 19th century with financial backing from his father, who owned Tiffany & Co. He hired talented designers and craftspeople, many of them women, who elevated glassmaking into a new art form.

The Ripple Effect

The church isn't losing all its Tiffany treasures. Two other works by the famous studio will remain, including a mosaic honoring a longtime deacon and another stained-glass window depicting Christ with children.

The historic church itself, built in the 1890s from local granite and sandstone, stands as a testament to Gothic Revival architecture. The sale of one window ensures the building and its ministry can continue serving the community for another century.

Last year proved the enduring value of Tiffany's vision when another church window sold for $12.4 million at auction. These artworks remain as vibrant and moving today as when they first caught the light more than a hundred years ago.