The cooler coloured modern window of the Lady Chapel is a meditation on the theme of grief and consolation and it is inspired by the grief of Our Lady. This window contains the letter M signifying Mary; a crown to represent Mary as Queen of Heaven and tears of a sorrowing mother.
The original rose window above the altar depicts the Annunciation, the announcement of the Incarnation by the angel Gabriel to Mary.
Both modern windows in the side chapels are made of flashed glass imported from France. A flash is a thin layer of colour applied over a clear base, and this thin layer can be etched away with hydrofluoric acid to show the underlying colourless glass or to give any shade between the original deep blue (or red) to the palest tint. The firm shapes of the letters and hearts were made using a plastic film to resist the acid and the more organic textures were created using a bituminous resist.
