How town hall's ornate windows were turned into jewellery

Fragments of coloured glass salvaged from the windows of a town hall undergoing a £500m restoration have been transformed into tiny pieces of jewellery.

The collection of earrings, pendants and cuff-links made from the stained sheets of glass used in Manchester Town Hall was created by jeweller Lin Fletcher.

The Grade-I I listed Victorian building has been shut since 2018 as work continues on a restoration project estimated to cost in the region of £520m.

"I realised this waste glass from the Town Hall could be beautifully repurposed, giving Mancunians everywhere a chance to have a souvenir of the much-loved icon," Fletcher said.

Fletcher set to work on a revamp of her own, cleaning and re-setting the stained glass from the windows, ready for a new purpose.

The stained glass came from the more than 4,000 windows in the town hall, which was built in 1878 and is the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council.

As part of the restoration works, the condition of the glass used in the original windows was assessed, with many pieces found to be in good condition.

Fletcher crafted the jewellery using fragments of the original glass, alongside off-cuts from the authentic replacement glass which was specially created to replace the worn sections of the original windows

A Manchester City Council spokesman described the jewellery as "wearable art that celebrates Manchester's heritage".

Fletcher said the profits from her new collection will be donated to the Lord Mayor's charity, We Love MCR.

Councillor Garry Bridges, deputy leader of Manchester City Council said: "Manchester Town Hall is one of the jewels of the city's heritage and this creative jewellery project breathes new life into the historic stained glass and respects the original craftsmanship of this wonderful building.

"It is yet another way of preserving the legacy of our beloved town hall and allows people to own a tangible and wearable piece of the city's history."

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