The stained-glass windows of Saint-Denis

Why is there so much glass here

The Gothic choir rests on piers and ribs, not on solid walls: once the loads are redistributed, the wall no longer has a supporting function and can disappear. The radiating chapels of the ambulatory open onto one another and are almost entirely glazed. It is this system, invented here in the 1140s, that makes all the subsequent Gothic stained glass possible. See Suger and the birth of Gothic art.

What you see, and what has been restored

A church that spans nine centuries does not keep its glass intact: fires, storms, 1793, 19th-century restorations. The current programme therefore combines different periods. I prefer to say this clearly rather than letting people believe they are looking everywhere at 12th-century glass. What remains true is the overall effect: coloured light that moves across the stone throughout the day.

When to come and see them

In the morning, light enters from the east and illuminates the ambulatory; in the late afternoon, it shifts and the nave takes centre stage. In January, the ambulatory is freezing and almost empty, and in my opinion, this is the best time of year to admire the stained glass without anyone in front of it. The quietest time slots are on the best time to visit.

Photographing them

Photography is allowed without flash: in any case, a flash on stained glass is useless. Rest your phone against a pillar to stabilise it, and measure the light on the illuminated stone rather than on the glass. One visitor wrote in their review that they found here "a well-signposted route, fun interactive screens and magnificent stained glass"; that’s a good summary. Other reviews are on our reviews page.

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