This job has been going on for a while now. It is VERY controversial in the stained glass conservation community. I worked on the rose window at this Church about 15 years ago. We just did minor repairs and cleaning. I estimated in my report to the architects that the lead was good for another 50-100 years. The church and their consultant decided that ALL the windows in the church needed to be removed and rebuilt. IMOP this is highly unlikely. Anyway they removed a number of windows by chopping/destroying the border glass. It was found that there was a small amount of asbestos in the putty used to set the windows, and this propted the distruction of the border glass so that the windows could be removed an an abatement crew come in and remove the old putty.
Due to money issues after phase 1 is completed the job will be on hold for a while.
Thanks for the additional information Vic. I never realized that putty could have asbestos in it. Although I have heard about siding and flooring that has it in it too.
