The original of tiiis bool< is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029242330 BR133.G6''a42""'™"'""-"'"^ ^^"^'YiiimKSti?" symbolism in Great Brita oiin 3 1924 029 242 330 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM GEEAT BRITAIN AND lEELAND. CUOSS AT OASTLEDF.RMOT, CO. KILDARE. EARLY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND BEFORE THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY. t!L\iz Eljinli JLectures m arcfiaeologp for ISSS. J. ROMILLY ALLEN, F.S.A. Scot. St. George overcoming the Pagans. Sculptured above Doorway of Fordington Church, Dorsetshire. LONDON: WHITING & CO., 30 and 32, SARDINIA STREET, W.C. 1887. .. f-,v«-V^- 4^ - rnell\ : UNIVERStTV' \. tISRARV PEINTED BY WHITING AlfD CO., 30 AND 32, SAEBIlflA BTEEET, "W.C. PREFACE. The most pleasing duty which falls to the lot of the author is to thank those who have been kind enough to help ijm in his work. I have endeavoured to mention in the foot-notes all the various sources from which my information has been obtained. It is not too much to say, that had it not been for the previous labours of Miss Margaret Stokes, Professor I. O. Westwood, and the late H. O'Neill, the second and third Lectures could not have been written. In dealing with the Symbolism of the Norman period, the chief difficulty to be contended with was the entire absence of books on the subject to "crib" from (a school-boy term, for which I know of no suitable equivalent). In this dilemma I received invaluable assistance from the Rev. G. F. Browne, B.D., President of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society, Charles E. Keyser, Esq., F.S.A., and Robert Blair, Esq., F.S.A., who sent me accurate descriptions of a large number of sculptured fonts and doorways hitherto unknown. Only those w'ho have had experience of the way in which many archaeologists hide their information, as a dog does a bone, until they can go and dig it up again themselves, will understand how great an obligation is due for the help so generously accorded. The last Lecture, on the Mediaeval Bestiaries, was suggested to my mind first after reading Dr. Joseph Anderson's Scotland in Early Christian Times (2nd Series) ; aud in pursuing my investigations in this direc- tion, Dr. Anderson has from time to time given me hints as to the best line of inquiry to follow, and always placed his vast stores of knowledge most courteously at my disposal, for which I owe him a deep debt of gratitude. I have availed myself largely of the works of the late Thomas Wright, F.S.A., and of the French writers on the VI PREFACE. subject of the Bestiaries, amongst whom M. Cahier, M. Martin, and M. Hippeau should specially be mentioned. The illustrations are printed from photo-blocks made from my own drawings. In all cases accuracy has been aimed at rather than artistic beauty, and therefore the plates must be looked at merely as diagrams. I have to acknowledge the kindness of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in allowing me to make use of a number of blocks which illustrated my paper on " Early Christian Symbolism" in vol. xviii of their Proceedings; and to thank J. T. Irvine, Esq., F.S.A., for his excellent drawing of the font at Melbury Bubb, Dorsetshire. Besides the gentlemen already mentioned by name, who have helped me in my work, there are numerous clergymen to whom I am indebted for answering letters making inquiries about the sculptures in their churches. I must also give my best thanks to the officials of the Manuscript Department in the British Museum for their kindness, especially to E. Maunde Thompson, Esq. F.S.A., and W. de Gray Birch, Esq., F.S.A. With regard to the Lectures, the chief object held in view by the author has been to endeavour to make his countrymen take a greater interest in the art and monuments of the early Christian period in Great Britain. It seems to be forgotten that there was once a National School of Art in this country entirely distinct from that of Greece or Rome. Progress in the future will result from developing what is national in our art, and can never commence until the classical tradition is broken down. Great Britain, owing to its geographical position having made certain parts of it safe asylums for Christianity, whilst the rest of Europe was being overrun by Northern paganism, possesses a series of monuments which are quite imique, and of the utmost possible value, as illustrating history during its darkest period. Yet the authorities who direct our public Museums, especially the one at South Kensington, set their faces steadily against forming a representative series of casts and photo- graphs illustrating Early Christian Art in Great Britain. In the meantime the monuments are in many cases wholly unprotected either from the weather or from wanton destruction at the hands of vandals For instance, last summer, when visiting the Celtic Cross at Penraon in Anglesey, which has survived the destructive effects of time for a PEBFAOE. Vll thousand years, I found that tourists had amused themselves by making it a target to shoot at. What the pious reverence of count- less past generations had served to protect and hand down safely to their successors, the brutal stupidity of the nineteenth century had mutilated in the space of a few minutes. Of course this sort of thing cannot go on for ever ; and in the future, although our museums will be able to tell us much of the civilisation of Egypt, Greece, and Eome, there will be nothing to show how the bright light of Christi- anity spread over Great Britain, destroying Saxon heathenism in its course, and leaving its traces not only in the minds of lawless Vikings, but in hard stone of the Crosses of Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. CONTENTS. LECTURE I. Eaely Christian Symbolism in Foeeign Countries. Period to be dealt with.— Meaning of term Symbolism.— Classification of Christian Symbols ; according to the nature of the thing by which the idea is suggested ; according to the literary source whence it is derived. — Sources of the materials for the study of Christian Symbolism. Change of source as regards geographical area, time, and class of build- ing, monument, or object. — Change in subjects at different periods. — Change in style of Christian Art. — Christian Symbolism in Foreign Countries. — The Catacombs at Rome (a.d. 50-400). — Gilded glass vessels from the Catacombs (a.d. 250-350). — Sculptured sarcophagi (a.d. 250- 650).— Mosaics (a.d. 350-850).— Lamps (a.d. 200-500).— Holy Oil vessels (A.D. 600-700).— Holy Water vessels (a.d. 500-1000).— Belt clasps from Burgundian and Frankish graves (a.d. 500-700). — Ivories (a.d. 400-1200). —Church Doors (a.d. 1000-1200).— MSS. (a.d. 500-1200). Pages 1 to 70 LECTURE II. Romano-British Period and Celtic Sepulchral Monuments. Romano-British Period (a.d. 50-400). — Earliest historical records of the existence of Christianity in Britain (a.d. 814). — Christian Symbols on Roman sarcophagi, pavements, viUas and objects. — Sarcophagus of Valerius Amandinus at Westminster. — Roman pavement at Frampton, Dorsetshire, and Villa at Chedworfch, Gloucestershire. — The Chi-Rho Monogram. — List of Romano-British objects bearing Christian Symbols ; number very small. — Celtic Sepulchral Monuments (a.d. 400-1066). — The early Celtic Church. — Differences from Roman Church in method of keeping Easter and Tonsure. — First historical notice of Christianity in Ireland (a.d. 431). — Origin of Celtic Christianity. — First introduced into Scotland from Gaul by St. Ninian (a.d. 410), and subsequently from X CONTENTS. Ireland by St. Columba (a.d. 563).— Northumbria converted from Pagan- ism by Aidan, first bishop of Lindisfarne (a.d. 635).— Early Welsh Saints (a.d. 550-600).— Duration of the Celtic Church in Great Britain.— Clas- sification of Celtic Christian monuments. —Their geographical distribu- tion.— Dated examples.— Rude Pillar Stones (a.d. 400-700).— Symbolism of rude pillar-stones with debased Latin and Ogham Inscriptions. — The Chi-Rho Monogram and its development into the Cross. — Various forms of the Chi-Rho Monogram. — Earliest forms of the Cross. — Crosses on rude pillar-stones -without inscriptions. — Crosses on rude pillar-stones with minuscule inscriptions. — DNS, dni, dno abbreviations. — Symbolism of the later Celtic Sepulchral Monuments (a.d. 650-1066). — Sepulchral Slabs at Clonmacnois and elsewhere. — Various forms of Crosses. — The IHC, xps, and xpi abbreviations. — The Alpha and Omega. — The Fish Symbol. — Early Erect Head-stones. — Tombstone of Frithburga at Whit- church. — Hog-bached Recumbent Monuments. — Zoomorphic Examples at Brompton, Yorkshire, Govan, Renfrewshire, and Heysham, Lancashire. — Man in ancient attitude of prayer. — Sculptured sarcophagus at Govan. Pages 71 to 129. LECTURE III. TnE High Crosses op Ireland (10th Cent.).— Subjects on the Heads. Changes in class of building, monument, and object on which sym- bolism occurs at different periods and different geographical areas. — Changes in subjects chosen for illustration. — Changes in treatment of subjects.— The High Crosses of Ireland, not sepulchral, but commemo- rative, or terminal. — Called High Crosses or Crosses of the Scriptures in the Annals of the Four Masters. — Monuments at Monasterboice, co. Louth. — Scheme of Decoration applied to the High Crosses of Ireland. — Subjects on the heads, shafts, and bases of the Crosses. — The Cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice (a.d. 924).— The Crucifixion. — Does not occur in the Catacombs at Rome. — The Palatine Graffito. — Preceded by the Agnus Dei placed on the Cross instead of the Saviour in His Human Form. — Byzantine type of Crucifixion. — Irish type. — Scottish type. — Crucifixion associated with figures playing harps, and others holding horns.— David playing the Harp.— Saxon type of Crucifixion.— Sol and Luna. — The Hand-Symbol, or Dextera Dei. — Scenes in which it occurs. —Other ways of representing the First Person of the Trinity.— Christ in Glory, at the Transfiguration, the Ascension, the Second Advent and the Last Judgment.— St. Michael weighing Souls. Pages 130 to 181. CONTENTS. LECTURE IV. The High Crosses of Ireland.— Subjects on the Shafts and Bases. Greelc Painter's Guide from Mount Athos. — Arrangement and relative position of subjects on Christian monuments dependent on the import- ance of the subject, on the shape of the surface to be decorated, and on the use for which the building, monument, or object is intended. — Subjects on the shafts of the High Crosses of Ireland. — The importance of the sculptured stones in supplementing the knowledge of early Christian art, derived from the study of the contemporary MSS. — Subjects on the shaft of the Cross of Muiredach, at Monasterboice. — Temptation of Adam and Eve. — The Expulsion from Paradise. — Adam and Eve condemned to work. — The Adoration of the Magi. — Christ seized by the Jews. — Subjects on the Great Cross at Monasterboice. — Scenes from the Life of David, copied from miniatures in the MS. Psalters. — The Sacrifice of Isaac. — Survival of Archaic Symbolism on the Logierait tombstones. — The Three Children in the Fiery Furnace. — The Soldiers guarding the Sepulchre. — Subjects on the Moone Abbey Cross. — Daniel in the Lions' Den. — The Flight into Egypt. — Enthroned Figures. — Bird holding disc or loaf between two ecclesiastics. — Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. — Monuments at Kells, co. Meath. — Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells.— Subjects on the base of a similar nature to those on the pre-Norman sculptured stones of the East of Scotland.- — Chariots. — Subjects on the broken cross-shaft in Kells Church- yard. — Noah in the Ark.— The Baptism of Christ with the Rivers Jor and Danus. — Subjects on the Cross in the Street of Kells. Pages 182 to 235. LECTURE V. NoEMAN Sculpture, chiefly in the Architectural Details of Churches (a.d. 1066-1200). The Norman Style of Architecture introduced into England by Edward the Confessor {circa a.d. 1065).— Styles of Architecture in Great Britain before the Conquest.— Christian Symbolism in sculptured details of Celtic and Saxon Churches.- Sculptured details of Norman Churches of the eleventh century. — Sculptured details of Norman Churches of the twelfth century. — Dated examples of Norman Sculpture. — AU the richest specimens of Norman sculpture belong to the reigns of Stephen and Henry II, and are found chiefly in small parish churches in XU CONTENTS. remote districts. — Scheme of the decoration of a Norman Church.— Sub- jects sculptured on the tympana of Norman doorways. — The Cross. — The Agnus Dei. — Associated with figures of beasts and the Symbols of the four Evangelists. — Christ in Glory within the vesica-shaped aureole, sup- ported by Angels.— The Symbols of the Pour Evangelists.— The Cheru- bim and Seraphim. — The contest between Good and Evil. — St. Michael and the Dragon.— St. Michaerthe Guardian of Souls.— Christ trampling on the Asp and the i Basilisk. — Christ bruising the Serpent's head. — Virtues and Vices.— The Harrowing of Hell. — The Devil bound, or the Scandinavian Lok6. — The Coronation of the Virgin. — The Virgin and Child. — Inscriptions on Norman Tympana.^Subjects sculptured on Norman Fonts. — Arrangement of the Designs. — Subjects having refer- ence to Baptism. — Temptation of Adam and Eve. — Baptism of Christ. — The Rite of Baptism. — Scenes from the Life of Christ, copied from the series of miniatures found in the MS. Psalters. — The Nativity. — The Adoration of the Magi. — The Massacre of the Innocents. — The Plight into Egypt. — The Raising of Lazarus. — The Entry into Jerusalem. — The Last Supper. — Christ washing the Disciples' Peet. — The Descent from the Cross. — The Three Maries at the Sepulchre. — Christ giving the Keys to St. Peter. — Apostles. — Saints. — Ecclesiastics. — Seasons, Months, and Signs of the Zodiac, copied from the miniatures of the Calendars accom- panying the MS. Psalters^ — The Bell-Ringer. — The Dancing Woman. — Reversed Pigures. — Miscellaneous Norman Sculpture.— Details of Door- ways.— Details of Chancel- Arches. — Capitals of Columns in Nave, Chan- cel, and Crypt. — Slabs built into Walls. — Sepulchral Monuments. Pages 236 to 333. LECTURE VL The Medieval Bestiaries. Predominance of animal forms in the decoration of early Christian Monuments and Buildings. — The existence of a system of Christian Sym- bolism, founded on the characteristics of animals, in the literature of the Middle Ages. — The MediiBval Bestiaries: their nature and origin. List of MSS. and published texts.— Illustrated Bestiary MSS. The Mystic Zoology of the Bestiary applied to the decoration of Ecclesiastical Build- ings. — The thirteenth-century painted glass windows at Bourges Cathe- dral. — Subjects taken from the Bestiary associated with Scriptural types of the Resurrection. — The Pelican. — The Lion. — Other examples on painted glass windows at Tours, Lyons, and Le Mans. — The fourteenth- century sculptured Bestiary at Strasbourg Cathedral. — The Eagle. The Unicorn. — The Phoenix. — The twelfth-century sculptured Bestiary at Alne in Yorkshire. — The Fox. — The Panther. — The Ilyzena The Cala- CONTENTS. xm drius.— The Terrebolem.—The Whale.— The Dragon.— Further use of the Bestiary to explain the Symbolism of Norman Sculpture and the Celtic Crosses. — Difficulty of identifying foreign animals on account of the ignorance of the artist as to their real appearance. — Help afforded by the occurrence of animals in scenes from Scripture, such as David and the Lion, etc., and in the Zodiac ; by comparison with illustrations of the Bes- tiaries. — The Syren and the Centaur. — Sagittarius and the Savage Man. — The Serra. — The Griffin. — The Crocodile and the Hydra. — Beast swallow- ing or disgorging men. — Beast holding human head in its mouth. — Human head between two beasts. — The Stag. — Hunting Scenes. — The Serpent. — The Elephant and the Mandrake. — The Goat. — The Tiger. — Classification of beasts represented in Christian art. — Creatures really existing. — List of beasts which can be identified. — Birds. — The Tree which produces Birds. — The Tree of Life, or Arbor Peredexion. — Pish. — EeptHes. — The Basilisk. — Fabulous Creatures. —The Chimera. — Monstrous Creatures, made by reduplication of limbs, heads, and bodies, or putting them in the wrong position. — The Manticora. — Mystical Creatures, described in Daniel and the Apocalypse. — Conclusion. Pages 334 to 395. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Cross at Castle Dermot, oo. Kildare . . . Frontispiece. St. Greorge overcoming the Pagans. Sculptured above Doorway of Fordington Church, Dorsetshire . . Title FIG. PAGE 1. Cross on lid of Sarcophagus of Valerius Amandinus . . 73 2. The Chi-Eho Monogram from Roman Villas — (1 and 2) at Ohedworth and (3) at Frampton . . .74 3. The Chi-Rho Monogram on Stones in Cornwall — (1) at St. Just, (2) at St. Helen's Chapel, (3) at Phillack 4. Chi-Rho Monogram on Stone at Penmachno 5. Chi-Rho Monogram on Stones at Kirkmadrine 6. Combined Cross and Monogram on Stone at Whithorne 7. Various forms of the Chi-Rho Monogram . 8. Chi-Rho Monogram on Dedication Stone at Jarrow . 9. Development of Cross out of Monogram on Stones — (1) at Pen machno, (2) Kirkmadrine, (3) Whithorne, (4) Aglish 10. Circular Crosses on Stones — (l)at Trallong, (2) at Maumenorig. and (3) at Dugoed .... 11. Circular Cross on Stone at Aglish 12. Various forms of Crosses on rude Pillar-Stones with inscrip- tions ..... 13. Cross on rude Pillar-Stone at Trawsmawr . 14. Various forms of incised Crosses on rude Pillar- Stones without inscriptions ..... 15. PUlar-Stone with minuscule inscription at Kilnasaggart 16. Various forms of Crosses on PUlar-Stones with minuscule in- scriptions— (1) at Reask, (2) at Kilnasaggart, (3) at Llan- wnnws, and (4) at Papa Stronsay . . . 105 17. Various forms of Crosses on Sepulchral Slabs at Clonmacnois 109 18. Variations of the " Window Frame" pattern of Cross on slabs at Clonmacnois . . . _ 19. Various ornamental forms of Crosses and terminations of arms on slabs at Clonmacnois . jj2 20. XPS on stones— (1) at Llanwnnws, and (2) at TuUylease . 114 21. The Alpha and Omega, i S s, and x^'i on the tombstone of Gurmarc at Pen Arthur . , . .115 86 87 89 90 91 93 94 96 97 98 99 100 103 no LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS. XV 22. The Alpha and Omega, i h c, and x^c, on stone at St. Edrens . 116 23. The Alpha and Omega on the tombstone of Hildithryth, at Hartlepool . . . . .117 24. The %''« abbreviation on sculptured stones— (1) at Margam and (2) at Brechin . . . . .119 25. Pish symbol on tombstone of Oidacan at Fuerty . . 120 26. Tombstone of Donfrid at Wensley . . .123 27. Inscription round the headstone of Frithburga at Whitchurch 125 28. Hog-backed recumbent monuments at Brompton . . 126 29. Man in ancient attitude of prayer, on stones — (1) at Llanham- Uech, Brecknockshire, and (2) at Llanfrynach, in the same county ... . . 128 30. Two sides of Stone Coffin at Govan . . .129 31. Early Sculptured Slab at Wirksworth . . 140 32. Bronze Plate with Crucifixion, from Athlone. Now in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy at Dublin . facing 143 33. Slab of Slate with Crucifixion, from old chapel on Calf of Man 143 34. Crucifixion on Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells . 146 35. Crucifixion on Metal Plates in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy . .... 146 36. Crucifixion, from the St. Gall Gospels . . .147 37. Crucifixion on Sculptured Stones — (1) at Kirkholm and (2) at Monifieth . . . . . .149 38. David and Goliath, and David playing on the Harp, from the Irish Psalter in the British Museum . . . 152 39. Crucifixion on Cross at Llangan . . . .158 40. Crucifixion on Cross at Sandbach .... 155 41. Crucifixion on slab built into walls of Saxon Church at Daglingworth . . . . 158 42. Christ in Glory, with Hand Symbol, on Tympanum at Elkstone 162 43. St. Michael and the Dragon, with Hand Symbol, on Tympanum at Hoveringham . . . . .163 44. Hand Symbol on Cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice . 164 45. Hand Sjonbol over Crucifix, at Romsey Abbey . .165 46. Christ in Glory, on the Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells . . . . . .169 47. Miniature of St. Luke, from St. Chad's Gospels . . 170 48. Enthroned figures holding floriated Sceptres, on Cross at St. Vigeans, Forfarshire . . . . .171 49. Miniature of Christ in Glory, from the St. Gall Gospels . 172 60. St. Michael weighing Souls, on end of sculptured slab of four- teenth century in Kildare Cathedral . . .180 51. Temptation and Expulsion (?) of Adam and Eve, on shaft of Cross of Muiredach, at Monasterboice . . .186 62. Temptation of Adam and Eve, on broken cross shaft in Kells Churchyard . . • • .188 xvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 63. Temptation of Adam and Eve, on shaft of Cross at lona . 189 54. Temptation of Adam and Eve, on sculptured stone at Farnell. 191 55. Temptation of Adam and Eve, on eighteenth century tombstone at Logierait . . . . .192 56. Temptation of Adam and Eve, on Font at Gotham . • 193 57. Temptation of Adam and Eve, on Font at Cowlam . .194 58. Adoration of the Magi, on shaft of Cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice . . . . .196 59. Adoration of the Magi, on Font at Cowlam . .197 60. Adoration of the Magi, on the Franks Casket in the British Museum . . . . . .199 61. Christ seized by the Jews, on shaft of Cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice ..... 201 62. Christ seized by the Jews, from the Booh of Kells . . 202 63. David and the Lion, on Crosses — (1) in the town of Kells, and (2) at Kilcullen . . . . .204 64. David and the Lion, on sculptured slab at St. Andrews . 205 65. David and Goliath, and David and the Lion, from Irish iPsalter of St. John's College, Cambridge . . . 206 66. Sacrifice of Isaac, (1) on arm of Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at KeUs, and (2) on shaft of Great Cross at Monasterboice . 211 67. Sacrifice of Isaac, on eighteenth century tombstone at Logierait 212 68. The Three Children in the Fiery Furnace, etc., on the shaft of the Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Sells . . 214 69. Middle part of Moone Abbey Cross . . .217 70. Daniel in the Lions' Den, etc., on the ba.se of the Moone Abbey Cross ...... 218 71. Daniel in the Lions' Den, on Cross at Meigle, in Perthshire . 220 72. The Flight into Egypt, etc., on the base of the Moone Abbey Cross ..... 221 73. Pair of enthroned figures holding disc, on Cross at St. Vigeans 223 74. Circular Disc or Loaf held in Bird's Mouth, on the Cross at Nigg . . . . . .224 75. Bird holding circular Disc, with Ecclesiastics on each side — (1) on Cross in Street of Kells, and (2) on Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells . . . 224 76. Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, on bases of two Crosses at Castledermot, co. Kildare . . . _ 225 77. Two sides of the base of the Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells • ■ • . . 228 78. One side of the base of the Cross of Muiredach at Monaster- boice . . . . .229 79. The Baptism of Christ, with the two rivers Jor and Dan uniting in one Jordan, on the broken cross-shaft in Kells Churchyard . . . . .231 80. Noah's Ark, on the broken cross-shaft in Kells Churchyard . 232 LIST OP ILLUSTRATIONS. xvii 81. One side of the base of the Cross in the town of Kells . 234 82. Sculpture on arched stone from Forteviot . . . 239 83. Angels at Bradford-on-Avon .... 245 84. St. Peter and Christ in Glory, on sculptured slab at Dagling- worth . . . . . .246 85. Agnus Dei associated with birds and beasts, on tympanum at Parwich ...... 254 86. Agnus Dei associated with birds and beasts, on tympanum at Hognaston ...... 254 87. Agnus Dei associated with Sagittarius and Leo, on the tympa- num at Stoke-sub-Hamdon .... 255 88. Agnus Dei, on font from Hutton Cranswick, in the York Museum ...... 256 89. Agnus Dei with horns like a ram, on font at Helpringham, Lincolnshire ..... 260 90. Cross and Agnus Dei (?), on tympanum of south doorway at Beckford, Gloucestershire .... 261 91. Christ in Glory, on tympanum of doorway of Ely Cathedral . 262 92. Christ in Glory, on tympanum of doorway at Essendine, Rut- landshire ...... 263 93. The symbols of the Four Evangelists and the Cherubim and Seraphim, surrounding the Coronation of the Virgin, on the tympanum of the south doorway at QueningtoQ, Gloucester- shire ...... 266 94. St. George and the Dragon, on sepulchral monument at Con- ingsborongh, Yorkshire . . . .270 95. St. Michael carrying up soul to Heaven, on sepulchral monu- ment in Ely Cathedral . . . .272 96. St. Michael and the Dragon, on sculptured slab at St. Nicholas, Ipswich ...... 273 97. Christ treading on the Serpent, on Cross of Thurualtr at Bark Andreas, Isle of Man .... 275 98. Christ bruising the Serpent's head, on Font at Kirkby, near Liverpool ...... 276 99. The Harrowing of Hell, on tympanum of north doorway at Quenington, Gloucestershire .... 278 100. The Devil bound, on pre-Norman cross-shaft at Kirkby Stephen, Westmoreland . . . .281 101. The Harrowing of Hell, on tympanum of north doorway, at Beckford, Gloucestershire . . . • 282 102. Norman font at Walton- on-the-Hill, near Liverpool . 283 103. Virgin and Child, on font at Walton-on-the-HUl, near Liver- pool ....•• 104. Baptism of Christ, on font at Bridekirk, Cumberland . 288 105. Baptism of Christ on font at Lenton, near Nottingham . 289 I 284 xvm LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS. 106. Baptism of Christ, on capital of column of chancel-arch at Adel, Yorkshire . . . . • 290 107. Rite of Baptism, on font at Darenth, Kent . ■ 292 108. Christ in G-lory, Eite of Baptism, Christ giving the Keys to St. Peter, etc., on font at Kirkburn, Yorkshire . • 293 109. The Entry into Jerusalem, and Baptism of Christ, on font at West Haddon, Northamptonshire . . ■ 294 110. Raising of Lazarus, and the Three Maries at the Sepulchre, on font at Lenton, Notts. .... 298 111. The last Supper, on font at North ftrimston, Yorkshire . 303 112. Crucifixion with two Thieves, on font at Lenton, Notts. . 308 113. Descent from the Cross, on font at North Grimston, York- shire . . . . . .309 114. Descent from the Cross, on capital of column of chancel-arch at Adel, Yorkshire ..... 310 115. St. Peter with Key, on doorway at Hoveringham, Notts. . 314 116. Apostles, on sculptured slabs at St. Nicholas, Ipswich . 315 117. St. Margaret and the Dragon, on capital of column at Bret- forton, Worcestershire . . . .316 118. St. Margaret and the Dragon, on font at Cotham, Yorkshire . 317 119. Martyrdom of St. Laurence, on font at Cotham, Yorkshire . 318 120. Ecclesiastic, on doorway at Hoveringham, Notts. . . 319 121. Signs of the Zodiac and Months, on leaden font at Brookland, Kent . . . . . .322 122. Bell-ringer, on font from Hutton Cranswick, now in the York Museum ...... 324 123. Bell-ringer, on column of chanoel-arch at Stoke Dry, Rutland 325 124. Dragon, on font from Hutton Cranswick, now in the York Museum • . . . . 326 125. Celtic Bell, on Cross at Kilculleu, co. Kildare . . 327 126. Reversed figure, on Cross at Winwick, Lancashire . 329 127. Sepulchral slab at Bishopstone, Sussex . . 333 Sculptured Arch Stones of Doorway at Alne, Yorkshire /aciw^ 347 Illustrations from MS. Bestiary in Arsenal Library Paris 348 128. Irish Zodiac, with names of the twelve Apostles and twelve Tribes of Judah, from the Liber S. Isidori, in the library at B&le, in Switzerland . . _ gng 129. The Lion of St. Mark and the Calf of St. Luke, from the Gospels of Durrow . . _ ogg 130. Lion (?), on Cross at Papil, Isle of Burra, Shetland . 359 131. Syren, on tympanum of doorway at Stow Longa, Huntingdon- shire ... 132. Sagittarius and the Savage Man, on font at West Rounton Yorkshire . 360 361 133. Sagittarius shooting a monster, on tympanum of doorway at Kencott, Oxfordshire . 0^.2 LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS. XIX 134. Sagittarius shooting at a Dragon, on capital of pillar of chancel- arch at Adel, Yorkshire .... 363 135. Centaur and Lion, on tympanum of doorway at Salford, Oxfordshire ..... 364 136. Sagittarius, etc., on font at Hook Norton, Oxfordshire . 365 137. Centaur, with branch of tree and cross, on tympanum of door- way at Ault Hucknall, Derbyshire . . . 366 138. Centaur with pair of axes, on Cross at Glamis Manse . 367 139. Griffin and other beasts, on fonts at Lincoln Cathedral and St. Peter's, Ipswich . . . . .370 140. Griffin (?), on tympanum of doorway at Covington, Hunting- donshire ...... 371 141. Monster disgorging or swallowing man, on Cross at Abbots- ford, formerly at Woodwray, Forfarshire . . 372 142. Beast with human head in its mouth, on font at Ham, in Staf- fordshire . . . . . .373 143. Human head between two beasts, on wheel Cross at Kirk Braddan, Isle of Man . . . .374 144. Human head between two beasts, on Cross at Papil, Isle of Burra, Shetland ..... 375 145. The stag, serpent, lion, crocodile, etc., on font at Melbury Bubb, Dorsetshire ..... 376 146. Stag-hunt, wild-boar, goat, etc., on Cross of Arinbiorg, at Kirk Andreas, Isle of Man . . .377 147. Beasts devouring man, etc., on sides of recumbent sepulchral stone at Meigle in Perthshire .... 382 148. Wild boar, etc., on Cross of Drosten, at St. Yigean's, For- farshire ...... 384 149. Wild boar on tympanum of doorway of St. Nicholas Church, Ipswich ...... 385 150. Beast with its tail in its mouth, on tympanum of doorway at Penmon Priory, Anglesey .... 386 151. Tree with wild boar on one side and a lion (?) on the other, on the tympanum at Ashford in Derbyshire . . 387 1 52. Pair of fish reptiles, on sepulchral stone at Meigle, Perthshire 389 153. Beast with human face, called the manticora, pursuing a man, on end of sepulchral stone at Meigle, Perthshire . . 392 154. Baptism of Christ, on font at Castle Froome, Herefordshire . 395 LECTURE I. EAELY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES PREVIOUS TO ITS INTRODUCTION INTO GREAT BRITAIN. The subject chosen for the present course of lectures is Early- Christian Symbolism, with special reference to its manifesta- tions in Great Britain and Ireland. It is necessary at the com- mencement to define the exact meaning of the terms employed in the title. The word early has reference to the period of Christian art to be dealt with, and includes the space of five hundred years between the seventh and twelfth centuries. It will be seen, subsequently, that the amount of material for arriv- ing at the history of Christian art in this country before the seventh century is very small indeed ; and therefore our know- ledge of the subject in the preceding period is derived almosb entirely from foreign sources. I have fixed the year 1200 as the final limit of our investigation as regards time, because, in the thirteenth century an entire change took place in Christian art, which then ceased to be Byzantine in character and became mediaeval ; or, in other words, Northern influence began to pre- dominate over Eastern. Symbolism may be defined as a means of conveying ideas and facts to the mind by representations, which are, in the first instance, merely pictorial, but by frequent repetition gradually assume certain stereotyped forms. It is, in fact, a conventional system whereby pictures of historical scenes or natural objects are made use of to express something beyond what appears to the eye ; and set in motion a train of thought, leading the mind on to contemplate those abstract ideas that are associated directly, or otherwise, with the thing portrayed. For instance, the scene which shows Noah in the Ai'k, is pic- B 2 EARLY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM torially merely a man in a boat ; but symbolically is intended to teach the doctrine that, as God saved Noah from destruction in the waters of the flood, so will Christ deliver those who believe in Him from spiritual danger. Not only are the repre- sentations of events which actually took place, found in Chris- tian art, but scenes from the mj'stical or supernatural portions of the Bible, such as the Apocalypse, are also of frequent occurrence. The subjects adopted for the purpose of Christian symbolism may be classified, either according to the nature of the event or thing by which the idea is suggested, or according to the book or tradition whence the knowledge of the event having taken place is derived. All symbolism in the first instance results from the contemplation of the surrounding universe ; but with the development of abstract methods of thought, and the accumulation of ideas which results from the existence of literature, we obtain fresh sources of inspiration. We have, then, the following classification of subjects, ac- cording to nature of the outward forms, suggesting the idea in- volved in the symbolism. (1.) Historical Scenes, that is to say, events which are recorded as having actually taken place in this world, and are used as having a secondary meaning ; as, for example, the Sacrifice of Isaac, which typifies the Crucifixion of our Lord. (2.) Parables, or supposed events, which are already used in a secondary sense and, therefore, are allegorical in literature before being adopted in art, such as the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins. (3.) Mystical or Supernatural Scenes, connected with another world, such as the Dream of Ezekiel, or the Last Judgment. (4.) Representations of Eeligious Eites and. Ceremonies; the Church, and its officers. (5.) Subjects symbolical of the Moral and Spiritual Life ; such as the Soul, Death, the Christian Life, the Conflict between Good and Evil, the contrasts between Virtues and Vices, Deeds of Goodness and Deadly Sins. (6.) Subjects suggested by the properties of the Animal, Vegetable, and Mineral World ; such as the habits and qualities of birds, beasts, fishes, and minerals, which can be applied in a spiritual sense to Christian doctrines. IN FOREIGN COUNTRIE 3 (7.) Subjects connected with the Universe and the operations of Nature— such as the Seasons, the Months, the Signs of the Zodiac, and the Sun, J\j:oon, Stars, Earth, Wind, Eivers, etc., personified. (8.) Human pursuits and occupations capable of being applied figuratively to the teaching of Christianity ; as the trade of a fisherman, which is compared in the New Testament to' that of a preacher of the Gospel. (9.) Representations of inanimate objects occupying a promi- nent position in some historical scene, or associated with a parti- cular idea; as, for example, the Cross and the Keys of St. Peter. (10.) Monograms or symbols founded on combinations of letters. The other method of classification to be considered, is where the subjects are arranged according to the sources in literature or tradition whence they are obtained, as follows : (1.) Subjects founded on Pagan history, science or mythology, and adapted to Christian purposes ; as, for instance, the Story of Orpbeus applied to Christ. (2.) Scriptural subjects, which are chiefly the Three Persons of the Trinity ; Heaven and the Angels ; Hell, the Devil and his Angels ; scenes and persons described in the Old Testament typical of those in the New; and scenes and persons from the New Testament, specially chosen as having reference to the leading doctrines of Christianity. (3.) Apocryphal subjects, derived from the uncanouical books of Scripture, such as the story of Susanna and the Elders, and the Harrowing of Hell ; being generally only an amplification of the Bible narrative, filling in the details which are there omitted. (4.) Subjects from the Lives of Saints, which, however, are rare in early Christian art. (5.) Subjects founded on mediaeval science, applied in a spiritual sense ; as, for example, in the Bestiaries. Systems of symbolism have existed in the most remote ages, long before the dawn of Christianity ; as is shown by the fact that the phonetic alphabets of the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Eomans were originally developed out of the primitive picture- writing or hieroglyphics of the Egypt^ns. Christian symbolism will consequently be found in its earher stages to contain some B 2 4 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM of the elements of the pagan symbolism which preceded it. As centuries rolled on, Christian nations progressed in civilisation, and their ideas on spiritual matters underwent various modifica- tions, so that the syrabolism, which was the outcome of these ideas, changed also. In studying development, whether it be of plants or animals, or of ideas, no fact is more curious than the way in which archaic types survive, side by side with those which are the growth of yesterday. Thus some symbols have become extinct; others so profoundly modified as to be scarcely recognisable ; whilst not a few remain to the present day absolutely unchanged in any respect from what they were a thousand years ago. For instance, the conventional representation of Adam and Eve is the same now as it vcas in the third century ; whereas that of the Crucifixion has been materially altered. The reason of this is that, in the former case, no change of belief is involved, but in the latter new ways of considering the subject were introduced from time to time. At different periods of the Church's history, special portions of Scripture seem to have fired the imagination more than others, and particular dogmas were singled out to occupy a more pro- minent position ; the result being at once apparent in the system of symbolism. Survivals of archaic forms are due, not only to the more stable nature of particular doctrines, but also to the stereotyped modes of thought found in many of the nations who have em- braced Christianity. This is specially noticeable in comparing the East with the West, for, although the Eoman Church adapted its system of symbolism to suit new modes of thought, the religious pictures of the Greek Church are the same at the present day as those of the earliest times. Other survivals are owing to particular portions of the Christian Church having become isolated ; as was the case with the Celtic Church during the Saxon invasion. Christian symbols may then be divided into three classes, namely : — (1.) Those which have survived the destructive effects of time, and are in use in this country at the present time to express their original meaning. (2.) Those which, although they have ceased to be used in this country, are to be found still in use abroad. IN FOBEIGN COUNTRIES. 5 (3.) Those which have ceased to be used both in this country and elsewhere. This latter class may again be subdivided into — (a.) Those whose meaning is known either by inscriptions, or by written accounts, or by tradition. (&.) Those whose meaning is quite unknown. The scientific methods of archeology are applied to decipher- ing the meaning of Christian symbolic representations in the following manner. With regard to symbols belonging to the first class no investigation is necessary, as the original significa- tion is still retained. The meaning of symbols belonging to the second class is ascertained by comparison with those still in use in other countries. Symbols belonging to the third class, which have gone out of use everywhere, must be arranged, and then compared with those whose meaning is known by inscriptions or history. There will, probably, always remain a large residue whose signification is entirely lost, and with regard to these, when the archajologist has classified and arranged them, his work is done. By this process the known is separated from the unknown, and should fresh discoveries be the means of explain- ing one symbol of a class, then all those which have been ar- ranged with it will be understood as well ; but, until new light is thrown upon some of them, we must be content to admit the limits of our knowledge, which is indeed the first step towards further progress. A great deal of harm has been done to archfE- ology, and much discredit has been justly thrown on this pursuit, in consequence of the system of guesswork which has often taken the place of more scientific methods ; and by the dislike of autho- rities on the subject to acknowledge, frankly, their inability to give explanations. And in this matter the public must take no small share of the blame, for an explanation of some kind, although known to be grossly improbable, is always expected, and is preferred to the admission of ignorance. If the same careful methods that are applied to other branches of scientific research were used by the archaeologist, equally valuable discoveries would be the result, but as long as a system of guesswork prevails there can be no hope of progress. In some symbolic representations, the gioup of figures in the 6 BAELY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM scene may be so dramatically arranged, and may correspond so exactly in every particular with the description given in the Bible of some striking incident, that the interpretation is not difficult. It must not, however, be forgotten that a confusion may arise from the partial resemblance of different scenes : as for example, the Transfiguration- and Ascension of Christ. In addition to the systems of symbolism already described, there is the purely arbitrary one, where a particular geometrical shape or graphical picture of some object is taken to represent an idea -which has no connection with the thing itself, as for in- stance, the Greek letter tt, which is used by mathematicians to express the ratio of the diameter of a circle to its circumference. Once the meaning of any of these arbitrary symbols is lost, there is no conceivable method of scientific comparison by which it can be recovered. Any attempt at explaining mediaeval symbolism from a nine- teenth century point of view is certain to end in failure. All ideas which are the result of modern culture must be laid aside, and an endeavour must be made to imbue ourselves tho- roughly with the spirit of the thinker of the Middle Ages, and try and see things as he saw them, remembering that political and religious changes have entirely altered the cast of the na- tional mind, and that advances of knowledge have completely revolutionised science and art. For instance, everyone is now familiar with the appearance of foreign animals, from having seen either the beasts themselves in menageries, or illustrations of the various species in books on natural history. These sources of information were, however, quite unknown in the Middle Ages ; and it is not, therefore, surprising to find the imagination supplying the place of actual knowledge in the wonderful stories told of lions, tigers, elephants and all kinds of fabulous beasts, or to observe the grotesque shapes they assume in ancient illumi- nations and sculpture. The mediaeval naturalist did not dissect and classify animals scientifically, but he seems to have paid at- tention chiefly to such of their real or supposed habits and qualities, as would enable him to make religious capital out of the subject by appending morals to the description of each, in order to convey some spiritual lesson to the mind of the reader. Before the Eeformation, science did not exist in the modern ac- IN FOREIGN COUNTBIES. 7 ceptation of the word, and all learning was turned into a religious channel. The only possible way of understanding early Christian symboKsm is to study mediaeval literature, and by searching the contemporary manuscripts, find out what was the conven- tional method of treating particular scenes, and what the actual ideas were of the artists who drew them. The rudeness of the execution of some of the early Christian sculptures has proved a stumbling-block to many enquirers, who have misinterpreted the meaning of the subjects represented entirely, by not making sufficient allowance for the want of art-training existing in re- mote places and times. These sculptures, like the designs on ancient British coins, were copied from well-executed classic models, and are quite unintelligible until placed side by side with the originals, when the meaning is at once apparent. Many errors have arisen from the custom, common in remote districts far away from the centres of learning, of portraying figure-subjects in the dress of the day ; in consequence of which, Scripture scenes have been sometimes mistaken for representa- tions of contemporary events. The most usual dress for Scrip- ture characters is, however, long flowing drapery, probably copied originally from the Eoman costume, and handed down by means of miniatures in manuscripts from one century to another. It cannot be too clearly pointed out, that the system of early Christian symbolism was a general one, and dealt either with scenes from the Bible, which were intended to inculcate some vital truth, or with emblems typical of some special virtue which the Christian should possess, or vice that he should avoid, and not with the doings of public personages or private individuals, however celebrated. Portraits of some of the French emperors are found as frontispieces to MS. Bibles; and occasionally miniatures of Saints occur, as, for example, St. Jerome starting on his journey to revise the Scriptures, or St. Benedict promul- gating his rule. These are rare exceptions, and the representa- tion of a purely secular or historical event, having no connection with the Church, is probably not to be found on any Christian monument, or in any MS. of a religious book. In order to understand the early Christian symbolism of Great Britain, it will be necessary to take a brief survey of the chief 8 EAELY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM sources whence the materials for the study of Christian art, generally, are obtained. These are as follows : — A.D. SO to 400. — Paintings in the decoration of the walls and roofs of sepulchral chambers in the Catacombs at Eome. Sepulchral tablets ornamented with Christian symbols from the Catacombs. Sculptured sarcophagi from the Catacombs. Objects found in the Catacombs, such as gilded glass vessels, lamps, &c. A.D. 400 to 700. — Paintings and mosaics in the decoration of the walls, roofs, and floors of ecclesiastical buildings in Italy and the East. Sculptured sarcophagi from the early basilicas at Eome, Eavenna, Milan, Mar- seilles, Aries, and elsewhere. Carved ivories, chiefly diptyches, caskets, etc. Miniatures in Greek and Syriac MSS., coins, engraved gems, etc. Holy oil- vessels. A.D. 700 to 1050. — Paintings and mosaics in the decoration of the walls, roofs, and floors of ecclesiastical buildings in Italy and the East. Pre-Norman sculptured crosses in Great Britain. Miniatures in Greek, Carlovingian, Lombardic, and Celtic MSS. Carved ivories. Belt clasps from Burgundian graves. A.D. 1050 to 1200. — Decorative features of ecclesiastical buildings in Europe, such as paintings and mosaics on walls and roofs ; mosaic, marble, tile or other pave- ments ; doors ornamented with metal-work or wood- carving ; stained glass windows; sculptured archi- tectural details of columns, capitals, arches, etc. Ecclesiastical fittings of churches, such as altars, pulpits, fonts, screens, etc. Ecclesiastical furniture and utensils, such as shrines, croziers, vestments, chalices, crucifixes, etc. Miniatures in Eno-lish, French, German, Spanish, and other MSS. Carved ivories. Sepulchral monuments. It will be noticed that almost all the sources enumerated in the above list are connected either with the rites of relio-ion or burial ; and that at different periods the materials for the study of Christian art have to be sought in a new geographical area IN FOREIGN OOUNTKIES. 9 and on a special set of objects. There are various causes which have co-operated to produce this result. During the era of the persecution of the Christian Church by the Eoman emperors, between the years a.d. 64 and a.d. 303, religious art is entirely contined to the underground cemeteries which were purposely made inaccessible by means of concealed entrances and other precautionary measures. The open use of Christian symbols elsewhere, would doubtless have been speedily followed by a martyr's death. In the year 312 peace was restored to the Church, and Christianity thenceforward became the religion of the state, so that, there being no further need for secrecy, basilicas soon sprang up in all directions. The most appropriate method of decorating the large masses of wall-surface and the domed roofs of these early churches was either with frescoes or mosaic ; the latter being chosen in preference during the 500 years between the fourth and ninth centuries. Most of the sculptured sarco- phagi belong to 200 years (a.d. 350 to 550), during which the burials took place in the cemeteries round the suburban basilicas, above ground, before the time of intramural interments. The reason that sculptured sarcophagi were not employed to any great extent before the middle of the fourth century is, that during the time of persecution, the moving of such heavy masses of stone would have attracted attention to the entrances of the Catacombs, which it was desirable from motives of safety to conceal. The art. of the sculptor was also a dangerous one for a Christian to pursue, as he was forbidden by the Church to make pagan idols, and his refusal to do so would compel him to confess his faith at the risk of his life. The use of sculptured sarcophagi ceased when other forms of sepulchral monuments were introduced. From the eighth to the eleventh centuries, the mosaic decorations of churches still is the chief form in which Christian art exhibited itself in Italy ; but by this time the religion had spread over a far larger area than was the case pre- viously, and the examples of early symbolism in Great Britain must be sought in the Celtic and Saxon MSS. and sculptured stones, as it was on these that the highest skill of the workman was lavished. The ecclesiastical buildings were then of the 10 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM plainest description, and hava almost all been destroyed. During this period the same kind of contest was going on in Great Britain between Christianity and paganism as was the case in Eome during the first three centuries. In the eleventh and twelfth centuries the Danish and Saxon wars ceased, and after the Norman Conquest the Church became firmly established. As it grew rich its buildings became more important, and, con- sequently, the materials for studying the history of Christian art are much more numerous than before. Sculpture became a leading feature in the decoration of churches, wall-paintings were largely used, and encaustic tile pavements, and stained glass windows, introduced for the first time. Ecclesiastical vestments, and all objects appertaining to the church were ornamented with Christian symbols and figure-subjects. The MSS. are also more numerous, and illustrated by a greater number of miniatures. At this time, however, symbolism ceases to be found to any great extent on sepulchral monuments, which consist either of recumbent efiigies or slabs with plain crosses upon them. The large doors of some of the churches and Cathedrals abroad ornamented with symbolic sculptures and metal-work, belong to this period. Ivory carvings with Christian subjects are found from the fourth century onwards, and will be referred to hereafter. Having now reviewed the sources whence the materials for the study of early Christian symbolism are obtained, and having considered the changes which have taken place during each successive century in the localities where they are to be sought, and the structures or objects on which they are found, the next point to be dealt with is the quality of the art exhibited. That of the paintings in the Catacombs and on the earlier sculptured sarcophagi during the first four centuries, is debased Eoman or classical art. The result of Greek art reacting upon Roman art, when the seat of government was removed to Constantinople, in A.D. 328, was to produce the Byzantine style which is seen in the mosaics of the Italian basilicas, and has survived to the present day in the paintings of the Greek Church, From the time of Charlemagne, a.d. 742, when the Northern nations were incorporated in Christendom, Teutonic and Lom- bardic art began to react upon Byzantine art, the result bein" ir> IN FOEEIGN OOUNTEIES. 11 the production of the Carloviugian, or what may be called the Northern-Byzantine style. Celtic and Spanish early Christian art also owe their origin to the Byzantine style, but each have their peculiar characteristics, which will be referred to hereafter. Gradually, the Northern element became predominant, and, in the thirteenth century, the Northern-Byzantine style developed into the Gothic or mediaeval. The present course of lectures deals only with that period when the influence of Byzantine art continued to be felt in Great Britain, and which terminates in about the year a.d. 1200. Since early Christian symbolism in this country traces its origin, first to Byzantium, and then to Rome, it is absolutely essential to know something of subjects treated in the paint- ings in the Catacombs, on the sculptures of the Sarcophagi, on the mosaics in the Basilicas, and, in fact, on all those works of Christian art previous to the eighth century. The remainder of this lecture wUl therefore be devoted to acquiring that knowledge of the growth of Christian symbolism in its birth- place, which is to form the basis of subsequent investigation. The Catacombs at Eome. The derivation of the word Catacomb has not been satisfac- torily settled. The underground burial-places of the early Christians in Eome were originally called cemeteries, or places of repose. When the knowledge of the existence of the prin- cipal cemeteries was lost during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, one stiU remained open beneath the Basilica of St. Sebastian, on the Via Appia, which was called in all the ancient documents, "Coemeterium ad Catacumbas"; and the name Cata- comb was in the course of time given to all similar subter- ranean burial-places.^ There are about sixty different localities where catacombs occur, all situated in the suburbs of Eome, near the principal highways, within a radius from one to three miles of the wall of Servius TuUius^ ; and their extent may be gathered from the statement of De Eossi that, if stretched out in one continuous 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Rorm Sotterranea, vol. i, p. 262. 2 The catacombs are placed at a distance from the city on account of the Roman law forbidding burial within the walls. 12 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM line, the total length of the passages would exceed 350 miles. The position chosen is invariably on high ground, so as to avoid the possibility of the excavations being flooded with water, and the geological formation is volcanic tufa, which is dry, easy to work, and not liable to fall in, so that it is suited in every way for the purpose required. The Catacombs consist of a series of galleries, ranging from 2 to 4 ft. wide, and seldom exceeding 10 ft. in height, cut in the solid rock, with passages branching out at right angles, and leading in many cases into square chambers or "cubicula" with domed roofs. The galleries always preserve a horizontal direction, and there are often as many as three tiers one above the other, access being gained from one to the other by means of steps, but never by a sloping descent. The entrances to the oldest Catacombs, such as that of Doniitilla, were doorways of classical style of architecture situated near the public highway. During the period of persecu- tion, it became necessary to conceal the openings by various devices. Access is now obtained to the Catacombs either from the churches erected over their sites, after the persecutions had ceased, or from the vineyards in the neighbourhood of Eome. The simplest form of grave in the Catacombs is called a " loculus", and consists of a rectangular recess, cut horizontally in the side of the walls of the passages and chambers, large enough to contain one or more dead bodies. The loculi are ranged in tiers one above the other like the berths in a ship, and are closed by a slab of marble or terra-cotta, flush with the surface of the wall, upon which is incised or painted the epitaph of the deceased, together with certain Christian symbols having reference to a future life. The more important graves are called " arcosolia", and are formed by first cutting an arched recess horizontally in the side wall, and then hollowing out a sarco- phagus vertically beneath it to contain one or more corpses. The vaulted roofs of the chambers and the arches of the " arcosolia" were plastered and ornamented with paintings of figure-subjects, having reference to the doctrines of Christianity. The lighting and ventilation of the chambers were effected by means of vertical shafts leading to the surface of the ground, called " luminaria". IN FOKEIGN COUNTRIES. 13 The cemeteries took their names first from the private individuals who owned the ground where the burials were made, but afterwards from the Martyrs who were buried there. Thus the cemetery of Domitilla is, in later times, known as that of SS. Nereus and Achilleus. The Catacombs were not old quarries or sandpits, as has been suggested, but were purposely excavated as burial-places. This is clear from the fact that the rock in which the galleries are cut is unsuitable for building purposes, and the sandpits are made much broader, so as to facilitate the removal of the soil. The workmen who made the Catacombs were called " fossors", and their appearance, and the nature of the implements they used, may be gathered from the well-known picture of " Diogenes Fossor" in the cemetery of Domitilla, of the fourth century ; where he is shown wearing a loose tunic, and having a pick over his shoulder and a lamp in his hand. At his feet lie an axe and a hammer, and the pair of compasses with which he set out his work. The rectangular plots of ground belonging to indi- viduals, which formed the sites of the earlier cemeteries, were small, perhaps measuring about 200 ft. by 100 ft., and situated at the side of a road. The method of construction was to make an entrance by a flight of steps down to the proper depth at one corner, and then strike out two galleries at right angles to the extreme extent of the area occupied, to serve as base-lines for further operations. Finally, the whole space was filled in with a network of galleries opening into chambers at intervals. After the year 202, the cemeteries ceased to be the property of private individuals, and were transferred to the guardianship of the community of Christians as a body corporate, who appointed a special officer to administer them. Consequently, the smaller private cemeteries were gradually absorbed in larger ones, much in the same way that a city, when it extends, swallows up all the surrounding villages. In later times, the ground plan of the passages became still further modified on account of the crowding of burials round particular spots, caused by the desire to be near the tomb of some particular Saint or Martyr. When burials ceased in the Catacombs, in the year 410, the alterations which took place were chiefly with a view of rendering the different shrines more accessible and convenient for pilgrims, by closing 14 EAELY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM up passages in which they might get lost, and making larger openings to let in light. The chief evidence as to the history and age of the catacombs is obtained from coins, tiles bearing stamped names and inscrip- tions with the names of Eoman Consuls found in situ. Valuable information as to the names of the different cemeteries, and the martyrs buried in theim, has been derived from the study of the ancient martyrologies, the itineraries or guide-books for the use of pilgrims, some of which are as old as the fourth century, the " Liber Pontificalis", the Christian Almanack of Furius Dionysius Filoculus (a.d. 354), and the Monza Papyrus (a.d. 600).^ The history of the Catacombs may be divided into five periods. (1) A.D. 50 to 410. — The period of burial, during the last 210 years of which the cemeteries ceased to belong to individuals and became the public property of the Church. (2) A.D. 350 to 850. — The period of pilgrimage, during the first 200 years of which burials took place in the suburban cemeteries above ground, and afterwards within the walls of Eome. (.3) A.D. 650 to 850.— The period of the removal of the relics. (4) A.D. 850 to 1578.— The period of abandonment. (5) A.D. 1578 to 1886. — The period of modern research. Fi7'st Century. — The evidence as to the antiquity of cemeteries belonging to the first century, rests entirely for proof on the traditions contained in the ancient itineraries and martyrologies, and the character of the formulae and names in the inscriptions. Only one dated inscription of the first century has been found in the Catacombs, and is now in the Lateran Museum. It is of the third year of Vespasian, or a.d. 71, a mere fragment, con- taining nothing more than the date; and, unfortunately, the locality whence it came is unknown.^ Accordinc to De Eossi there are at least five cemeteries as old as the first century ; namely, the crypts of the Vatican, the traditional burial-place 1 Northcote and Brownlow, vol. i, chap. 11. 2 Northcote and Brownlow's Epitaphs of the Catacombs, p. 29. IN FOREIGN COUNTEIES. 15 of St. Peter ; and that of St. Paul's extra-muros, where the body of the Apostle of the Gentiles is supposed to rest ; the cemeteries of Priscilla, on the Via Salaria Nova ; of Domitilla on the Via Ardeatina ; and the Ccemeterium Ostrianum, on the Via Nomentana. The Second Century. — Two inscriptions only of the second century have been found in the Catacombs, both in the crypt of St. Paul's extra-muros. One is scratched on the mortar round a grave, and contains the names of the Consuls Sura and Senecio (a.d. 107). The other is on marble, and records the names of the Consuls Piso et Bolanus (a.d. 110).^ Pour ceme- teries are attributed by De Eossi to the second century, on the ground that, according to the old calendars and martyrologies, the festivals of martyrs who perished at that time were held at their tombs in the catacombs. The four cemeteries referred to are ; that of St. Hermes, on the Via Salaria^ whose martyrdom took place not later than the reign of Hadrian (a.d. 117-120) ; that of Maximus, on the Via Salaria Nova, in which was held the festival of SS. Pilicitas and Silanus, martyred a.d. 162 ; that of the Jordani, on the Via Salaria Nova, in which was held the festival of SS. Vitalis and Martial, martyred a.d. 162 ; and that of Pretextatus, on the Via Appia, containing the tomb of S. Januarius (martyred a.d. 162), and the inscription erected to his memory by Pope Damasus (a.d. 366-385). The Third Century. — The cemeteries ceased to belong to pri- vate individuals after the year a.d. 202, when Pope Zephyrinus (a.d. 192-215) set the deacon Callixtus over the cemetery {i.e., that called after his name on the Via Appia). In the crypt of St. Eusebius, in the cemetery of Callixtus, an inscription to the effect that "The Deacon Severus made this double chamber, with its areolosia and luminare, as a quiet resting-place in death for himself and his relatives, by permission of his Pope Marcel- linus" (a.d. 296-308). Tt is in the third century that the regular series of historical inscriptions begins ; the earliest being one now in the Lateran Museum, belonging to the year a.d. 238. There are about thirty other dated inscriptions between this and the year 300. In the Papal Crypt in the cemetery of Callixtus have been found the epitaphs of five Popes, namely. Urban (a.d. 230), 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. i, p. 114. 1(5 EAELY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM Anteros (a.d. 235), Fabian (a.d. 236-248), Lucius (a.d. 251), St. Eutychianus (a.d. 258). In the year a.d. 257 the first imperial edict against the Catacombs being visited or used as places of assembly was issued by Decius. The third century is the era of persecution, when the entrances to the Catacombs were purposely concealed and the passages blocked up so as to render them inaccessible. Tlie Fourth Oentury. — At the beginning of the fourth century the persecutions of the Christians ceased, and, in the year 312, peace was restored to the Church by the Edict of Milan. A new era in the history of the Catacombs was thus inaugurated, and Christianity became the religion of the state, so that, there being no further necessity for concealment. Basilicas began to be built above ground, round which the burials took place, instead of in the subterranean galleries. During the latter half of this cen- tury interments in the Catacombs became less and less frequent, and, after the year a.d. 371, the subterranean burials almost entirely ceased. The earliest dated inscription found in the cemeteries of the suburban basilicas above ground belongs to the year A.D. 358. When the Catacombs were no longer used as burial places the tombs of saints and martyrs still continued to be visited by large numbers of pilgrims. Pope Damasus (a.d. 366-385) altered the Catacombs so as to adapt those portions Avhere the bones of the martyrs lay for use as shrines. He blocked up passages where pilgrims might get lost, made access to the tombs to be visited easier and more direct, improved the lighting and ventilation, and finally wrote commem.orative verses which were inscribed on marble tablets in each of the sacred localities. The Fifth Century. —Aitei the capture of Rome by Alaric (A.D. 410) there were no more burials in the Catacombs, except in the special case of the bodies of bishops and martyrs brought from abroad, and none of any kind whntsoever took place after A.D. 45&. All mention of the fossors ceases after a.d. 426. The Sixth Century.— In a.d. 537 the tombs of the martyrs were injured by the irruption of Vitiages, but they were sub- sequently restored by Pope Virgilius (a.d. 538-555). After the devastation of Eome by Totila (a.d. 560-574), burial with- out the walls was rendered unsafe on account, of the disturbed IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 17 State of the surrounding country, and the latest dated inscription found in the suburban cemeteries above ground belongs to the year a.d. 565. After this all burials took place within the walls of Eome ; masses, however, still continued to be held in the Catacombs every Sunday, by order of Pope John III (ad 560-574). The Seventh Century. — In the year a.d. 648 the translation of the relics of saints from the Catacombs to the Basilicas within the walls was commenced by Pope Theodore and continued by Pope Leo II (a.d. 682), but masses were still held in the sub- terranean chambers by the order of Pope Sergius (a.d. 687). The Eighth Gentury. — In consequence of the devastations and sacrileges committed by the Lombards under Astolphus (a.d. 756), Pope Paul I removed the relics of more than one hun- dred saints from the Catacombs, and the natalia only of martyrs were celebrated, by order of Pope Gregory III (a.d. 731). The Ninth Century. — In the year a.d. 817, 2,300 bodies were removed from the Catacombs to Sta. Prassede by Pope Paschal I, but no translations of reljcs are recorded after the days of Pope Leo IV (A.D. 848). In the year a.d. 860 Pope Mcholas I visited the cemeteries and restored in some of them the celebra- tion of mass, which had ceased for many ages previously. The Tenth to the Thirteenth Century. — During the next four hundred years only occasional visits to about five cemeteries are recorded. The Fourteenth Century. — At this time only three cemeteries attached to suburban churches were known, namely those of SS. Hermes, Valentine, and Saturninus. The Fifteenth Century. — At the beginning of the fifteenth century only one cemetery remained open, namely, that known as the " Cemeterium ad Catacumbas", beneath the church of St. Sebastian, on the Via Appia. It is recorded that, between the years a.d. 1432 and 1482, the Catacomb of St. Callixtus was visited by Franciscan Friars, some Scotchmen, and Eoman academicians, none of whom, however, understood the meaning of what they saw. The Sixteenth Gentury. — The Catacombs were rediscovered in the year a.d. 1578 by some workmen, who accidentally broke into a gallery of graves, ornamented with Christian paintings, c 18 EARLY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM whilst digging for pozzolana in a vineyard on the Via Salaria. Although this discovery excited universal attention at the time it was made, no real investigations were set on foot until Antonio Bosio's first visit to the Catacombs, in A.D. 1593, at the age of eighteen. Between this time and his death he spent a period of thirty-sis years in the most indefatigable examination of about thirty cemeteries, the result of which was given to the world in his Roma Sotterranea. Tlu Seventeenth Century. — In the year A.D. 1629 Antonio Bosio died, but his Roma Sotterranea was not published until three years afterwards (a.d. 1632-1635). All further investi- gations in this century, until a.d. 1668, were made by private individuals, who kept no record of what was found, and the scientific results of their discoveries are therefore irretrievably lost. In A.D. 1651 P. Aringhi brought out a Latin translation of Bosio's work with considerable alterations and omissions. In A.D. 1688 Pope Clement IX put a stop to private explorations, and appointed a custodian over the Catacombs. The Eighteenth Century. — In the year a.d. 1700 E. Fabretti, the official custodian of the Catacombs, explored and described two new Catacombs, which were unknown to Bosio. M. A. Boldetti succeeded Fabretti as custodian, and the result of the discoveries during more than thirty years in which he held the office were published by him in A.D. 1720. Buonarroti, Bol- detti's assistant, wrote a work, in 1720, on the gilded glass vessels found in the Catacombs. In a.d. 1737, Bottari re- published Bosio's plates by the command of Pope Clement XII. Seroux d'Agincourt visited the Catacombs (a.d. 1780-1786) to collect materials for his history of the decline of the fine arts. The Christian Museum at the Vatican was founded by Pope Benedict XIV, in a.d. 1756, and it contains many objects of great interest from the Catacombs. The Nineteenth Gentury.~ln 1841 Padre Marchi, the custodian of the Catacombs, commenced those investigations which have since been continued by Giovanni Battista de Eossi with such extraordinary success. De Eossi's researches are the only ones which have been made on a scientific principle ; and the results he has arrived at are of the utmost possible value to archaeology IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 19 and throw a flood of new light on the history of early Christian symbolism. The Christian Museum in the Lateran, containing inscriptions from the Catacombs and sarcophagi, was founded by Pope Pius IX in a.d. 1854.i Having concluded the historical description of the Catacombs, the next points to be considered are the art and symbolism of the paintings on the walls and roofs of the chambers. The art as exhibited during the first four centuries, whilst burials still took place in the Catacombs, is debased Eoman art, differing but little in its earlier stages from the classical designs found in Pompeii, and not shewing any marked change until it was merged in the Byzantine style in the fifth century. The orna- mental features consist of wreaths of flowers, scrolls of vines and foliage, and sometimes birds and animals. The designs are always disposed symmetrically, and surrounded by margins. The figures are tolerably well proportioned, generally having flowing drapery, except in the case of Adam and Eve, Jonah, and Daniel, who are shown naked. The head-dresses worn fit close to the head and are of classical shape,^ but the heads are generally shown without any covering, and having short curling hair. A marked peculiarity is the entire absence of the nimbus round the head. The feet are shod with sandals in most cases. Christ is universally represented as being of youthful appearance, with a pleasing countenance and destitute of beard. The symbolism of the paintings in the Catacombs, as has been previously remarked, shows a considerable admixture of Pagan ideas, and this may be partly accounted for by the necessity for disguising Christian doctrines during the times of persecution under forms that would not be easily recognised, and partly because it is almost impossible to create a new system of sym- bolism without founding it to a certain extent on what has gone before. The most distinctly Pagan subject adopted by the Christians, but with a new signification, was that of Orpheus 1 During the times of persecution some of the larger chambers in the Catacombs were possibly used as places of assembly and for religious worship, but this does not affect the symbolism of the paintings in any way. 2 The Three Magi, and the Three Children in the Fiery Furnace, wear Phrygian caps, and the Jews have a special cap. c2 20 EAELY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM charming the beasts with the sound of his lyre, which occurs in three places in the Catacombs. The best instance is in the cemetery of Domitilla, where this subject is associated with others of a distinctly Christian nature, such as the raising of Lazarus.^ The application of the story of Orpheus to Christian doctrines is, that as Orpheus allured the beast by the sound of his lyre, so are sinners drawn towards Christ by the teaching of the Gospel. The representation of our Lord as the Good Shep- herd has also been traced to a Pagan origin, from the resemblance to such statues as that of Hermes-Kriophorus.^ However, both in this case and that of Orpheus, there is a marked difference between the copy and the original, for the Christian figures are always clothed, whereas the Pagan ones are undraped. The painting of the four seasons, of which there is an example in the cemetery of Pretextatus, perhaps as old as the second century ,8 is a subject which may be equally Christian or Pagan, Personifications of earth, river-gods, figures of Sol and Luna, etc., were also borrowed from classical sources, but generally in later times than those of the Catacombs. After the system of Christian symbolism founded on Pagan originals, but with a new meaning, come a series of scenes from the Old Testament which are used as types of those in the New ; the most common being : — (1.) The Temptation of Adam and Eve ; typifying the neces- sity of a Saviour to wash away the effects of the fall of man with His blood. (2.) Noah in the Ark ; where the ark symbolises the Church of Christ, by means of which believers may be saved from the de- struction of the surrounding world. (3.) Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac ; which typifies the sacrifice of Christ for the sins of the world. (4.) Moses striking water from the Eock ; typifying Christ the spiritual rock and source of living water. (5.) Moses putting off his shoes at the Burning Bush ; where Moses, being chosen by God to deliver the children of Israel from the bondage of the Egyptians, foreshadows Christ's delivery of believers from the bondage of sin. 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 31. 2 Ibid., p. 28. 3 fj^ia., p. 149. IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 21 (6.) Daniel in the Lion's Den. (7.) The Three Children in the Fiery Furnace. (8.) Jonah (four scenes — (a) swallowed by the whale ; (6) thrown up by the whale ; (c) under the shadow of the gourd ; (d) the gourd withered). The last three, Nos. 6, 7, and 8, show forth God's promise to deliver the true believer from danger, and the story of Jonah also has reference to the Eesurrection of Christ after the third day. David with his sling occurs in one rare instance. ^ The scenes from the New Testament, chosen for preference by the artists who decorated the chambers of the Catacombs, are those which refer to the doctrines of the Resurrection, the Eucharist, and the healing by faith, the ones which occur most frequently being as follows : — (1.) The Eaising of Lazarus, foreshadowing the Eesurrection of Christ. (2.) The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. (3.) The Miracle of Changing the Water into Wine. (4.) The Feast of the Seven Disciples by the Sea of Tiberias ; aU three having reference to the Eucharist. (5.) The Miracle of Healing the Blind, showing the power of Christianity to open the eyes of the soul. (6.) The Paralytic carrying his bed. (7.) St. Peter saved from drowning ; both examples of the power of faith. Other subjects, which are found less frequently, are the Virgin and Child, the Adoration of the Magi, Herod and the Magi, the Baptism of Christ, the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins, and Christ with the Woman of Samaria. In the paintings of the Catacombs, besides scriptural scenes, the first germs appear of that elaborate system of symbolism, founded upon the real or supposed qualities and habits of birds, beasts, and fishes, which received its highest development in the medieeval bestiaries. The ideas of which this system are the out- come, have been partly derived from the Bible, and partly from the books on natural history of the ancients, such as that of Pliny, and from the. fabulous tales told of particular beasts. The 1 Northoote and Brownlow, vol. ii, p. 31. 22 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM animal which is most frequently seen in the paintings of the Catacombs is the sheep, either being carried on the shoulders of the Good Shepherd, or forming portion of the surrounding pas- toral scene. The sheep symbolise the members of the iiock of Christ. The most remarkable instance of this class of sym- bolism is in the Catacomb of St. Callixtus, where Susannah and the elders are shown as a lamb between two wolves.^ There is no doubt as to the meaning of the picture, for over the lamb, which has bells round its neck, is inscribed the name svsanna, whilst above one of the wolves on each side is written seniokis (i.e., seniores). The scene recalls our Lord's words, " Behold, I send you as lambs amongst wolves." The two birds which occur most frequently are the dove and the peacock. The dove, which in many cases has an olive branch in its mouth, either represents the soul of the departed, or refers to the message of peace, telling of a haven of rest which was brought to ISToah in the Ark. In the scene of the Baptism of Christ the Holy Spirit appears as a dove. The peacock is supposed to be a type of the Resurrec- tion, on account of the legend that its flesh is incorruptible, and that it sheds its feathers in the winter only to attire itself in plumage of more brilHant hue in the spring. Opinions differ as to the interpretation of the dolphin, which is used as a symbol in the Catacombs often associated with the anchor. The fish generally is used as a type of Christ, because of the acrostic quoted by Eusebius and St. Augustine, in which the Greek word for fish forms the first letters of the Greek words for " Jesus Christ, the son of God, Saviour."^ Other symbols are taken from the vegetable creation ; as, for instance, the vine, which Christ, in His own words, has made a type of Himself The occupations of everyday life is the source whence the symbols of the ship, the anchor, and the wine jar are taken. The ship has a double meaning, and is taken either, like the Ark of Noah, to represent the Church in which Christians are carried safely through the perils of this world, or to symbolize the prosperous ending of a voyage when the soul enters its haven of rest. Sometimes, the dove with the olive branch, the messenger of peace, appears on the prow, and the mast takes the form of the 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 171. 2 Ibid., p. 61. IN FOEEIGN OOUNTEIES. 23 cross. The anchor, which occurs so often in association with the dolphin, signifies, in the words of St. Paul, " hope, the anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast." The amphora, or wine-jar, stands for the soul, the word being used in Scripture to mean an instrument chosen by God. In addition to the subjects already described there are others which deserve notice. The intervention of the Almighty in the scene of Moses and the Burning Bush is expressed by a hand emerging from a cloud,i and in the case of a shipwreck the head and arm are shown as well.^ In a large number of the paintings isolated figures, both male and female, occur, known as "oranti", with the hands out-stretched in the ancient attitude of prayer ; but the various authorities differ as to the explanation whether the Church, the Virgin Mary, or a private individual is intended to be represented.^ A man, standing beside a well, is to be found in some of the paintings, and the interpretation which has been suggested is that it is the well whence spiritual waters are to be drawn for the re- freshment of believers.* The palm-branch is a symbol taken from the Pagan custom of giving it as the reward of victory, and is used to express the triumph of those who have conquered in the fight, or won the race of life. There are several examples of people seated at a feast, the symbolism of which has not been satisfactorily explained.^ The representations of the Fossors, who excavated the Catacombs, have been previously referred to. The earliest example of the Chi Eho monogram of Constautine, which occurs engraved on an inscribed tombstone in the Catacombs, belongs to the year a.d. 331, and, in conjunction with the Alpha and Omega, it is not found until A.D. 362.^ There are only two instances of the monogram of Constautine occurring in paintings in the Cata- combs of St. Callixtus at the end of the fourth century.^ Some of the paintings ia which the nimbus is introduced round the heads of the figures may possibly be as old as the end of the ' Northcote and Brownlow's RoTtia Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 180. 2 Ihid., p. 164, 3 Ibid., p. 137. ^ Ihid., p. 101. * Northcote and Brownlow, vol. ii, p. 124. ^ Northcote and Brownlow's Inscriptions, p. 30. ^ Northcote and Brownlow, vol. ii, p. 183. 24 EARLY OHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM fourth century, but its use was not by any means common until a much later date.^ There are two classes of symbols not distinctly Christian in character, which are found on the tombstones in the Catacombs ; (1) representations of implements used in particular trades, to show the occupation followed by the deceased ; and (2) pictorial rebuses or puns on the names of the person buried, as a ship {navis) against the epitaph of Nabiva, and a pig against that of Porcella. In the preceding description of the symbolism of the Catacombs the subjects which are engraved or painted on the tombstones have been included with those of the paintings on the walls and roofs of the chambers, but there are some symbols, such as the anchor, the wine-jar, and the ship, which are ahnost entirely confined to the tombstones. The domed roofs of the chambers present the surface best adapted for decoration by means of frescoes, and the subjects are generally arranged symmetrically with definite relation to each other. One example from the cemetery .of St. Marcellinus will give an idea of the rest.^ In the centre is the Good Shepherd, and in eight surrounding compartments, divided' geometrically, are two scenes from life of Jonah, Daniel in the Lion's Den, Moses striking the Rock, Noah in the Ark, the Paralytic carrying his bed, the Miracle of the Loaves and Fislies, the Eaising of Lazarus. Next to the domes of the chambers, thg ancosoiia were most suitable for forming centres round which to group paintings ; the semicircular recessed space at the back, the soffit of the arch above the grave, and the portions of the wall of the chamber at each side and below the arch being all made use of. A favourite arrangement was to have the Good Shepherd in the middle, and Moses striking the Eock placed in contrast with the Eaising of Lazarus on each side. The essential characteristic of the paintings in the Catacombs is that they are symbolical and not historical, the subjects chosen being always those which lend themselves most easUy to the former method of treatment. In the earlier examples the groups consist of as few figures as possible, only the leading 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 190. ^ Garrucci, Sloria del Arte Crutiana, vol. ii, p. 51. IN FOREIGN COUNTEIES. 25 actors in some specially dramatic scene are shown, without any accessories which would detract from its simplicity, or draw away the attention from the central action. Thus the Good Shepherd stands alone, bearing the lost sheep on his shoulder. Daniel is a single .naked figure, with hands outstretched in the ancient attitude of prayer, between two lions placed symmetri- cally on either side. Noah is placed in an actual box (area), and from this fact only, and from the dove being shown flying towards him, is the meaning made clear. Moses with an up- lifted wand in his hand pointed towards a rock from which gushes forth a stream of water, constitutes a whole scene ; and, lastly, Christ appears in a similar attitude, calling forth Lazarus from the tomb, a small building like a sentry-box, with the upraised corpse, still swathed in its grave bandages, standing in the doorway. Subsequent developments in symbolical repre- sentations consisted in adding to the number of actors in the scenes, and making the surroundings more elaborate ; but it must not be forgotten that the object involved in these changes was not to carry the symbolism into the minute details, but merely to make the picture more complete. The original germs of the later compositions are generally to be found in the earlier catacomb paintings, which served as models for all that came after. Another point to be noticed is that as symbolism was the main object of the paintings the artist did not look upon historical accuracy as by any means necessary; thus, in the miracle of the loaves and fishes; the specified number of baskets' full of fragments is varied, and in the story of Jonah the fish is not a whale, but a conventional sea monster. In dealing with Christian art abroad, my object is not so much to give an exhaustive account of its various phases, as to point out the general nature of the sources whence the sym- bolism of this country originated, and to show what facilities exist at home for studying the subject more fully, should anyone wish to do so. The materials available in this country for becoming ac- quainted with foreign archeology consist of objects obtained from abroad, and now deposited in museums ; reproductions by means of casts or photography ; and, lastly, illustrations and descriptions in books. The principal museums are the British 26 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM Museum, containing a collection of the highest possible interest, but badly arranged and uncatalogued ; the South Kensington Museum, which has an admirable reference library connected with it, and a series of handbooks and catalogues, leaving little to be desired. The National Museum of Scotch Antiquities, and the Edinburgh Industrial Museum, are the best establish- ments of the kind in Scotland ; and the Museum of the Eoyal Irish Academy, in Dublin, contains a unique collection of Celtic works of art. Throughout the country there are many local museums, but very few of any importance, except those of Liverpool, Shef&eld, York, Newcastle, and Salisbury. With regard to information derived from books I think it is a mistake merely to give a list, of authorities, as is generally done, without saying anything as to their relative merits, or as to the contents and illustrations. Writers may be divided into two distinct classes, those who make original researches, and those who com- pile treatises from the works of others. Original research is often found buried in the transactions of learned societies, or published in volumes so large and expensive as to be quite beyond the reach of the general public, hence the necessity of the compiler, or book maker, to put the information together and present it in a palatable form to the ordinary reader. The value of the work of the book-maker depends entirely upon the skill with which he digests the materials at his disposal, and the critical acumen he displays in separating the wheat from the chaff. Anyone who wishes to study a sub- ject thoroughly must eventually refer to the original authorities, but, in order to get a general idea of its scope, he should begin by reading a compilation. I shall endeavour, therefore, in de- scribing the various sources of the materials for the study of Christian Symbolism, to point out (1) the best compilation or text book on each subject ; (2) the original authorities ; (3) the most accurate illustrations; (4) the reproductions or objects brought from abroad existing in our museums. With regard to the paintings in the Catacombs, the most complete and reliable account is to be found in Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, compiled f]'om the works of De Kossi ; Bourgon's Letters from Rome ; Maitland's Church in the Catacombs ; and Wharton Marriott's Testimony of the Catacombs, may also be read with advantage. IN i'OEEIGN COUNTRIES. 27 The original works on the Catacombs are A. Bosio's Roma Sotterranea (a.d. 1632), a translation of which was published by Aringhi (1651), and the plates reproduced by Bottari (1737) ; Boldetti's Osservazioni supra i cimeteri dei SS. Martini ed antichi Gristiani di Roma (1720) ; and, most important of all, G. B. de Eossi's Rom.a Sotterranea (1664), containing accurate de- scriptions of researches made under the author's supervision, chiefly in the cemetery of Callixtus. For illustrations, consult Bosio's Roma Sotterranea, and Garrucci's Storia del arte Cris- tiana, vol. ii. A series of photographs of the paintings in the Catacombs have been published by the late J. H. Parker. Gilded Glass Vessels fkom the Catacombs (A.D. 250-350). Of all the objects which have been found in the CatacoinbS; the most interesting to the student of Christian archaeology are certain fragments of gilded glass vessels with figure subjects and inscriptions. The number of specimens known to exist is about 340,^^ the greater part of which are preserved in the Vatican Library at Rome, the remainder being in the museums in Lon- don, Paris, Florence, and Naples. With the exception of two fragments found at Cologne, the whole of these have been dis- covered in the cemeteries near Eome, generally sticking to the plaster of the " loculi". In most cases all that remains is the bottom of the vessel, which being stronger than the rest, has survived, whilst the thin edges have perished. A nearly perfect example is figured by Garrucci,^ from which it appears that the shape was that of a shallow bowl or patera, having in the centre a circular medallion with a figure subject upon it, exe- cuted in the following manner : the artist took a round piece of glass and, having fixed a leaf of gold upon it with some kind of cement, traced the design with a sharp-pointed instrument, afterwards attaching the whole to the bottom of the vessel by fusion produced by heat. Sometimes silver leaf and colour were 1 The rarity of these objects may possibly be accounted for by their having been destroyed for the sake of extracting the gold. 2 Copied in Martigny's Diet., art. " Fonds de Coupe," p. 328. 28 EARLY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM used. Most of the gilded glass vessels have inscriptions of two kinds : (1) explanatory of the subject represented ; and (2) of a convivial character, showing that they were used for drinking purposes. As example of the latter we have the following : — DIGNITAS AMICORVM PIE ZESES CVM TVIS OMNIBVS VIVAS, "A mark of friendship, drink, and long life to thee and all thine." The words pie ZESES for the Greek irie f»?o-?5?, or " Drink, and long life to you", are of very frequent occurrence. It has not been satisfactorily settled on what occasions these cups were used. ISTorthcote and Brownlow^ suggest that they were connected with the celebration of the feast of SS. Peter and Paul, whose figures are found on eighty of the 340 specimens known. Martigny^ thinks some may have been sacramental, and others for the agapes — (1) at a funeral feast, when the subjects refer to Eesurrection, (2) at a wedding feast, when the ceremony of marriage is represented, (3) natal feasts, when children are shown, (4) the festivals of Saints whose portraits appear on the vessels. De Eossi assigns the gilded glass from the Catacombs to a period ranging from the middle of the third to the beginning of the fourth century. One fragment bears the name of Marcel- linus, who was martyred under Diocletian a.d. 304.^ No specimens have yet been found in any of the cemeteries or churches above ground, which became common after a.d. 312. Although the number of representations of Christian subjects on the gilded glass vessels is small as compared with those derived from other sources, yet the amount of light they throw on' early symbolism is out of proportion with their numerical quan- tity, on account of the existence of so many inscriptions ex- plaining the meaning of the figures, and thus supplying a key to the interpretation of similar ones in the Catacomb paintings, and on the sculptured sarcophagi. The most elaborately ornamented glass vessels are those which have a central subject surrounded ' Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 308. 2 Diet des ant. Chret, p. 328. '^ Garrucci, p. 32, No. 5. IN FOEEiaN COUNTRIES. 29 by others arranged in a circle outside ; then there are ones with a central subject only, enclosed in a circular medallion ; and, lastly, there ^,re vessels decorated with a large number of much smaller medallions, scattered over the whole surface of the plate. As an example of the first kind we may take one belonging to Mr. Wilshere. In the centre is the portrait of a man and his wife, with the inscription " pie zeses", " Drink and long life to thee ! " surrounded by the following scenes from Scripture. (1) The Temptation of Adam and Eve. (2) The Sacrifice of Isaac. (3) Moses striking the Eock. (4) The Paralytic carrying his Bed. (5) The Eaising of Lazarus. It will be noticed that the symbolism and the arrangement of the subjects is exactly the same as that found on the paintings of the circular domes of the chambers in the Catacombs, except that on the glass vessels we have a secular representation in the centre, instead of the figure of the Good Shepherd or some scene from Scripture. Another vessel of the same class in Mr. Wil- shere's Collection has St. Peter and St. Paul in the centre, sur- rounded by six radial compartments,, containing : (1) The Three Children in the Fiery Furnace. (2) A man standing in front of a symbolic figure of the Sun, which is supposed to refer to the text in Isaiah (Ix, 20).^ (3) A woman in the ancient attitude of Prayer. (4) The Prophet Isaiah being sawn in two (Heb. xi, 37). (5) Moses and the Brazen Serpent. (6) Moses striking the Eock. The gilded glass vessels are particularly interesting, as afford- ing us a large number of inscribed portraits of our Lord, the Virgin Mary, the Apostles, and Saints, both male and female. Our Lord is shown young and beardless, as in the Catacomb paintings, and without the nimbus, except in one rare instance. The name is written either oeistvs, or ZESVS ceistvs, and the Saviour appears sometimes alone, or between St. Peter and St. Paul, or seated on a throne with saints at each side, or raising Lazarus. Our Lord also appears as the Good Shepherd. The legend above the head of the Virgin is makia, and she is ' Martigny's Diet, art. " Prophetes", p. 684. 30 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM placed, in an attitude of prayer, between St. Peter and St. Paul, or between two doves. Of the apostles, St. Peter and St. Paul occur more frequently than any others, either alone, or with Christ, or a crown, or the Chi Eho monogram, or the Virgin Mary between them. In the Vatican Library at Eome there is a large circular medallion from the bottom of a glass vessel,^ the scene on which resembles very closely that found on the mosaic decoration of the apse of the church of SS. Cosmas and Damian, at Eome (a.d. 526-530).^ The picture is divided into two parts by a hori- zontal line. In the upper compartment our Lord is represented standing on an elevation, holding a scroll in his hand, inscribed (dom)invs, with St. Peter bearing the cross on l^is left, and St. Paul on his right. On each side are palm trees, the one behind St. Paul having a bird, with the nimbus round the head, perched in the branches. From inscribed examples, which occur . on a leaden seal of the deacon Siriacus, and over the doorway of the ancient Basilica of St. Paul,^ we know this bird to be the Phoenix, the symbol of the Eesurrection. The legend round the glass vessel is pie ze(ses). The scene shown in the lower compartment is the Lamb of G-od standing on Mount Zion (Eev. xiv, 1), from which flow the four rivers of Paradise, symbolising the Pour Evangelists, and uniting in the mystic Jordan, the name of which is inscribed ioedanes. On the right is the city of Bethlehem (becle), and on the left, Jerusalem (iervsale), from the gates of each of -which three sheep are issuing, to symbolise the Jews and the Gentiles.* We have also on the glass vessel portraits of the Apostles Timothy, Simon, Luke, and Judas ; of male Saints, Hippolytus, Lawrence, Vincent, Callixtus, Marcellinus, Ciprianus, Sixtus Justus, Plorus, etc., and of female Saints, Agnes, Peregrina, Libernica, Anne, etc. Of the scripture scenes from the Old Testament, perhaps the most remarkable is the Apostle Peter striking the rock instead of Moses, as is shown by the name PETEVS, which is inscribed above the head of the figure holding 1 Norticote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 317. ' Parker's Mosaics of Rome and Ravenna, p. 19. 3 Martigny's Diet., art. "Ph^nix", p. 641. * The same thing occurs on the mosaics at Sta. Maria Maggiore, SS. Oosmas and Damian, and St. Mark. IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 31 the rod. Upon the engraved glass plate found at Podgoritza, in Albania, a similar representation occurs, inscribed, " Petrus virga perquod set, fontis ciperunt quorere", for "Petrus virga percussit, foDtes caeperunt currere", or "Peter strikes the rock, streams begin to flow." The other Old Testament subjects are the same as those of the paintings in the Catacombs, and are as follows: — The Temptation of Adam and Eve, Noah in the Ark, the Sacrifice of Isaac, Moses striking the Eock, Moses and the Brazen Ser- pent, the Spies carrying the Bunch of Grapes, Daniel in the Lion's Den, Jonah and the Whale, Jonah under the Gourd. The scenes from the New Testament are : — The Miracles of the Loaves, the Miracle of Cana, the Paralytic carrying his bed, the Eaising of Lazarus. The scenes from the Apocrypha are: — Tobit and the Pish,^ Daniel giving the balls of pitch to the Dragon. In addition to the above, we have the ceremony of marriage shown by a male and female figure grasping each other's hands over an altar above which is a crown, the legend being vivatis IN DEO.^ Jewish symbols also occur, such as the seven-branched candlestick ; the ark containing the rolls of the law^ ; domestic scenes, such as parents and children together ; secular occupa- tions, such as the chase, carpentry, coining money, driving chariots, etc.; and scenes from pagan mythology, such as Hercules, Achilles, gods and goddesses. Besides glass vessels ornamented with gilding we have those where the design is produced by engraving, of which the most interesting specimen is a plate found at Podgoritza,* the ancient Doclea, in Dalmatia. It is 9| inches in diameter, and bears the following scenes and inscriptions, by means of which we are enabled to identify similar representations in the Catacomb 1 Martigny's Diet,, art. " Tobie", p. 760. 2 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterraiwa, vol. ii, p. 303 ; and Martigny's Diet., art, "Mariage Chretien", p. 446. 3 Martigny's Diet., articles " ^vangiles", p. 298, and " Cand^labre des Juifs", p. 113. * Northcote and Brownlow, vol. ii, p. 318 ; engraved in Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana. 32 EAELY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM paintiDgs : In the centre, uninscribed — The Sacrifice of Isaac. Eound the circumference — (1) The Temptation of Adam and Eve, abeam et fi evam. (2) Kaising of Lazarus, dom(i)nvs lazartm. (3) Moses-Peter striking the Eock, petevs viega peeqvod — SET FONTIS CIPEEVNT QVOEERE. (4) Daniel in the Lion's Den, daniel de laco leonis. (5) The Three Children in the Fiery Furnace, teis pveei de egne cami(no). (6) Susanna, in attitude of prayer, svsana, de falso CEIMINE. (7) Jonah in the boat, being swallowed by the whale, and under the gourd, divnan de ventee qveti liberatvs est. With regard to the facilities for studying the gilded glass vessels from the Catacombs available in this coiintry, we have in the British Museum a very good representative series, com- prising many specimens of high interest. Mr. Wilshere also possesses a good private collection. All the 340 known examples have been engraved by Garrucci, in his Storia del Arte Cristiana, but twenty are lost, and have been copied from Buonarotti's Osservazioni sopra al- cuni frammenti di vasa antichi di vetro, ornati di figure trovate nh di ciniitiri di Roma (Florence, 1716), who has described and illustrated seventy of them. The chapter on the subject in North- cote and Brownlow's Boma Sotterranea, and the article in Mon- tigny's Dictionnaire des AntiqtdUs Ghritiennes, and Dr. Smith's Dictionary of Christian Antiquities, will supply all the informa- tion necessary for obtaining a knowledge of the nature of the symbolism. ScuLPTUEED Saecophagi. (a.d. 250-650.) The practice of enclosing dead bodies in sarcophagi, or re- ceptacles formed out of solid blocks of stone, can be traced back to the time of the Egyptian kings who built the great pyramids. The Christians seem to have adopted this common Pagan method of burial in the earliest cemetries, such as that of Domitilla, belonging to the first or Second century; but during the persecutions the use of sarcophagi was abandoned owing to IN FOEEIGN COUNTKIES. 33 the danger of exposure which would follow from moving about the large masses of stone requisite, and from Christian symbols being publicly seen in the sculptor's workshop. The sarcophagi were placed in arched recesses in the sides of chambers prepared specially for their reception, or in the grand corridors, or on the landings of the staircases. During the second and third centu- ries the sarcophagi gave place to rectangular hollows cut in the solid rock, of which the sides of the chambers in the Catacombs were composed, instead of in blocks of stone provided for the pur- pose. These rock-cut sarcophagi are called arcosolia, and differ from the ordinary graves, or loculi, in being excavated vertically downwards beneath an arch, instead of horizontally in the sides of the passages. We learn from Northcote and Brownlow's Boma Sotterranea,'^ that " oven when the Christians did bury their dead in sarcophagi, they do not appear, until the ages of persecution had passed away, to have ornamented them with sculptures of a distinctively Christian character. Out of 493 dated inscriptions, described by De Kossi as belonging to the first four centuries, only eighteen are found on sarcophagi, and not more than four bear dates anterior to the time of Constan- tino. These are ornamented with genii, or grifSns, or pastoral or hunting scenes ; and the earliest dated sarcophagus, with a distinctively Christian subject sculptured upon it, is one from the Catacomb of SS. Peter and Marcellinus, upon which is represented the Nativity, bearing a consular date (•' Placido et Romulo'), corresponding to the year A.D. 343 Since sculpture cannot be said to have existed as a Christian art before the time of Constantino, we may safely attribute nearly all the sarcophagi with, distinctively Christian subjects sculp- tured upon them, to the fourth and fifth centuries. They come from the cemeteries above-ground, or from the basilicas and oratories erected in them." At Urbino there is a very interesting tombstone of the third century, on which a Christian sarcophagus-maker, named Eutro- pus, is shown at work. The carving is being executed by means of a drill revolved by a cord wound round the spindle, and pulled backwards and forwards. The inscription is : AriOG eEOCEBEC ETTROnOC EN IPHNH 1 Vol. ii, p. 235. 34 EARLY CHBISTIAN SYMBOLISM ("Holy, God-fearing Eutropus in peace"), and at the right-hand corner is the dove with the olive-branch. Sarcophagi may be divided into two classes : (1) those sculp- tured on one side only ; (2) those sculptured on at least three faces, and generally on all four, and also on the top. The former are generally ornamented, partly with panels enclosing figures, and partly with panels covered with s-shaped grooves or wavy flutings, called " strigils", from their resemblance to the imple- ment of that shape used by Eoman gymnasts for cleaning the body. We have, as examples of this class, a sarcophagus, perhaps of the second century, from the crypt of Lucina,^ inscribed blastiahe pax tecvm, now in the Vatican ; and another, still in situ, in the Catacomb of St. Callixtus,^ with the Good Shepherd upon it. In the case of the sarcophagi sculptured on the back, front, ends, and top, the figures are arranged either in a single row, or in two tiers one above the other. Sometimes each group is placed under an arch or pedi- ment, and separated from the next by a pillar, as is the case in the sculpture on Norman fonts. The sarcophagus of Junius Bassus^ is a good example of this method of treatment. In most cases, however, all the groups representing the various scenes from Scripture are crowded together, as on the sarcophagus from St. Paul's extra Muros,* so that it is difficult to distinguish one from the other at first sight. Another plan of arrangement, which is also rather confusing, is to divide up the figures belonging to one scene into separate groups, by pillars placed at intervals, as on the sarcophagus of Anicius Probus.^ The composition of the design of the sculpture on one of the sarcophagi in the Lateran Museum" is quite excep- tional and very clever. The principal feature of the whole is the story of Jonah, most graphically portrayed. In the centre are two sea-monsters, one swallowing the prophet, who is divine off the side of a vessel, and the other facing in the opposite direction towards the shore, and disgorging him. Above, on the shore, is the third scene, where Jonah is reclining under the ' Northcote and Brownlow, vol. ii, p. 238. ^ Ihid., p. 240. 3 J. W. Appell's Monuments of Early Christian Art, p. 9. * Ibid., p. 16. » Ibid., p. 12. t. Ibid., p. 19. IN POKEIGN COUNTRIES. 35 gourd. Every other available space which is left is filled in with groups of figures, so as to cover the entire surface, the most conspicuous being the Eaising of Lazarus, Moses striking the Eock, Noah in the Ark, and a Man Fishing. The art of the sculpture is, in the earlier examples, purely classical, getting more and more debased as time goes on, until, in the sixth and seventh centuries, it merges in the Byzantine style, which may be distinguished by the introduction of the nimbus round the heads of the figures, the lowness of the relief of the carving, and the figures being arranged more symmetrically in reference to a central group, and separated by wide intervals of plain background, instead of being closely packed together. Far the most important collection of Christian sarcophagi is that in the Lateran Museum at Eome, commenced by Father Marchi in 1851, under the auspices of Pope Pius IX, and since completed by De Eossi. There are smaller collections in other places in Italy, chiefly at Eavenna, Pisa, and Milan. When Christianity spread to Gaul in the fourth and fifth centuries, the practice of burial in sarcophagi was introduced into that country, and a large number of them are now preserved in museums at Aries, Marseilles, and St. Maximin. In the chapel of G-alla Placidia at Eavenna are three marble tombs of the fifth century, still in their original position, — (1) that of Galla Placidia (a.d. 440), now devoid of ornament ; (2) that of Constantius III, her second husband (a.d. 421), and Valentinian, her son ; (3) that of Honorius, her half-brother (a.d. 423). The subjects on the two last are, the Lamb ; the two Doves on the Cross ; the Drinking Doves ; Palms ; the Agnus Dei on Mount Zion, with the four Eivers. In the basilica of St. Vitale, at Eavenna, is the tomb of the Exarch Isaac (a.d.' 644), with the Adoration of the Magi; and at the church of St. ApoUinaris in Classe, in the same city, is a sarcophagus having a bas-relief of Christ, enthroned, with St. Peter carrying the cross on one side, and St. Paul on the other, and four Apostles, two of whom are carrying crowns of victory. The most interesting sarcophagus as bearing on the question of early Christian symbohsm is that of Junius Bassus, in the crypt of St. Peter's at Eome, because its date is fixed by unim- peachable historical evidence, and the series of sculptures with ,, which it is adorned supply us with information as to the art of d2 36 EAELY CHBISTIAN SYMBOLISM the fourth century, which it is impossible to obtain elsewhere. A classical cornice runs round the top, bearing the inscription : IVN . BASSVS VO QVI VIXIT ANNIS . XLII . MEN . II . IN IPSA PR^- FECTVEA VEBIS NEOFITVS IIT AD DEVM . VIII KAL SEPT EVSEBIO ET YPATio coss. ("Junius Bassus, who lived 42 years and two months. In the very year in which he was Prefect of the city he went to God, a neophyte, on the 23rd of August, Eusebius and Ypatius being Consuls.") This fixes the date as A.D. 359. The sculptured figures on the front are arranged in two tiers, one above the other, each being divided into five groups by beautifully carved Corinthian columns. The subjects are as follows : Top Bow.— (I) The Sacrifice of Isaac ; (2) Denial of Peter (?) ; (3) In the centre — Christ enthroned, with the personification of the heavens beneath His feet, and St. Peter and St. Paul on each side; (4) Christ before Pilate; (5) Pilate washing his hands. Bottom Eow.— (l) Sufferings of Job (?); (2) Temptation of Adam and Eve ; (3) Christ's entry into Jerusalem ; (4) Daniel in the Lions' Den ; (5) Christ led away to Caiaphas (?), or the apprehension of Peter. In the Spandrels.— The symbolic Lamb performing acts and miracles as follows : (1) The Three Children in the Furnace ; (2) Moses striking the Rock ; (3) Miracle of the Loaves ; (4) Baptism of Christ ; (5) Moses receiving the Law ; (6) Eaising of Lazarus. The two ends of the sarcophagus are ornamented with repre- sentations of the Four Seasons, and the back is plain. Amongst other sarcophagi in the Lateran Museum, the one from St. Paul's extra Muros (about fourth century) is specially deserving of notice, the subjects being as follows : — Creation of Eve ; Fall of Adam and Eve ; (in centre) Medallion, containing busts of a male and female ; Miracle of Cana ; Miracle of Loaves ; Eaising of Lazarus ; Adoration of the Magi ; Eestorino- sight to the Blind ; Daniel in the Lions' Den (in centre) ; Habakkuk with loaves; Christ foretelling the Denial of Peter; the Apprehension of Peter ; Moses striking the Eock. Another example, possibly of the fifth century, is interesting '■" IN T'OEEIGN COUNTRIES. 37 as presenting the earliest known series of scenes from the Passion : — Christ bearing the Cross ; the Crowning with Thorns ; (in the centre) the Labarum of Constantine, with doves on each side, and two soldiers below ; Christ led before Pilate ; Pilate washing his hands. There is also in the Lateran Museum a fine sculpture of the Ascent of Elijah, the idea of which is evidently taken from the chariot of the sun. The following is a list of the subjects which occur upon the sculptured sarcophagi at Rome ■} God the Father — as a man creating Eve — as the Dextera Dei at the sacrifice of Isaac. God the Son — as the Agnus Dei — as the Good Shepherd — as the Cross — enthroned between St, Peter and St. Paul — holding Cross, and standing on Mount Zion, with four rivers of Paradise. The Apostles. Scenes from the Old Testament. Creation of Eve (12). Temptation of Adam and Eve (14). Adam and Eve condemned to work. Offerings of Cain and Abel. Noah in the Ark (5). Sacrifice of Isaac (11). Passage of the Eed Sea. Moses taking off his shoe (2). Moses receiving the Law (4). Moses striking the Eock (21). Ascent of Elijah (2). Vision of Ezekiel. Three Children in the Furnace (4). Daniel in the Lions' Den (14). Habakkuk. Daniel feeding the Dragon. Story of Jonah (23). ' The numbers show the relative frequency with which the diflEerent subjects occur upon fifty-five sarcophagi in the Lateran Museum, and are taken from Burgon's Letters from Rome. 38 BAELY OimiSTlAN SYMBOLISM Scenes from the New Testament. Nativity (1). Adoration of the Magi (11). Christ and Woman of Satnaria. Miracle of Cana (16). Miracle of Loaves and Fishes (20). Christ healing the Paralytic (12). Christ healing the Blind (19). Christ healing the Hsemorissa (8). Christ raising Lazarus (16). Christ raising Jairus's Daughter. Entry into Jerusalem (6). Denial of Peter (14). Apprehension of Peter (20). Christ before Pilate (o). Christ crowned witli Thorns (1). Christ carrying tlie Cross (1). On the sarcophagi of GauP we have the following additional subjects : — Scenes from the Old Testmnent. Fall of Quails in the Wilderness. Fall of Manna in the Wilderness. Two Spies carrying Bunch of Grapes. Scenes from the New Testament. Baptism of Christ. Massacre of the Innocents. Christ washing Disciples' Feet. Betrayal. Soldiers watching at the Sepulchre. Delivery of Keys to St. Peter. St. Peter raising Tabitha. Martyrdom of St. Stephen. Also we have the apocryphal story of Susanna and the Elders; the scene of the Passage of the Eed Sea occurs far more frequently; the twelve Apostles are represented seated at 1 See Martigny's D'lct., article " Sarcophages", p. 719 ; and Millin, Midi de la France — Atlas. IN POEEIGN COUNTBIES. 39 the feet of Christ, instead of standing ; and the dolphin takes the place of the dove. The art of the later Italian sarcophagi resembles that of the mosaics of the sixth century, and palm-trees, doves, peacocks, sheep, the nimbus, together with various forms of the Chi-Rho monogram, are introduced. Inscriptions on sarcophagi explaining the sculptured subjects are very rare, but there is one instance at Saragossa, where the Fall of Adam and Eve has the legend, ad an evva, the mono- gram over the head of Christ healing the Blind, and isac above the Sacrifice of Isaac, also aeon , incrativ petevs et maeta. In another case, from Spoleto, the Saviour and Four Evan- gelists are seen in a boat, inscribed iests , (ioh)annes , lvcas , MAECVS. A good general idea of the sculptured sarcophagi can be obtained from Dr. J. W. Appell's excellent little book, called Monuments of Early Christian Art, published by the South Kensington Museum authorities. The chapter in Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea on the subject, and the article in Martigny's Dictionary, should also be read. The most complete and reliable series of illustrations is to be found in Garrucci's Storia del Arte Gristiana. Older engravings of those at Rome are given in Bosio's Roma Sotterranea, Bottari's ScuUure e pitture sagre, etc. The ones in Gaul are illustrated in Millin's Voyage dans les Ddpartements du Midi de la France — Atlas, and in Le Blant's Inscriptions chrdtiennes de la Gaule. Most of the sarcophagi at Eome have been photographed, either from the objects themselves or from casts, and the late J. H. Parker has published a series of them. I am not aware that there is a single cast of a Christian sarcophagus in any of our museums. Mosaics, (a.d. 350-850.) The art of mosaic, or producing pictures suitable for the decoration of the walls and vaulted roofs of buildings, by means of an aggregation of small cubes of gilded or coloured glass, probably owes its origin to the tesselated pavements of the Romans. The latter were composed of pieces of marble of various hues, and the improvement introduced in mosaics 40 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM during the early Christian period was to substitute artificial tesserffi for natural ones, and to make them of smaller and more even size, so as to be applicable to wall-surfaces instead of floors. Mosaic pavements were possibly derived from an Eastern source, and it is supposed by some that the " pavement of red, blue, and white and black marble", in the palace of King Ahasuerus, mentioned in the Book of Esther (ch. i, 6), was a work of this kind. Pliny describes a mosaic picture representing doves drinking out of a vase, executed by the artist Sosus for Attains, King of Pergamus, about 200 B.C., which corresponds exactly with the mosaic now in the Capitoline Museum at Eome, known accordingly as " Pliny's Doves''. The Christian mosaics belonging to the first three centuries derived from the Catacombs are fragmentary in character and unimportant in number, but as soon as the first basilicas began to be built above-ground, the appropriateness of this method of decoration was at once recognised. All the finest mosaic pictures are to be found in the churches of Eome and Eavenna, aithough there are isolated examples at Constantinople, Mount Sinai, and elsewhere. The art-periods of the mosaics are as follows : — A.D. 400 to 500 : Classical style. A.D. 500 to 900 : Byzantine style. A.D. 900 to 1100 : Decay of the art of mosaic ; no examples extant. After 1100 : Art of mosaic revived in style corresponding to that found in Western Europe generally. The following are the principal specimens of mosaics belonging to the first, or Classical, period. Fourth Century. A.D. 320.— Church of St. Constantia at Eome, a circular building surrounded by an aisle, the barrel vault of which is decorated with vintage scenes, foliage, birds, etc., but no dis- tinctly Christian symbol Ciampini preserves records of other mosaics of this period which have since disappeared. The mosaics of the Church of St Agatha at Eavenna, bxiilt by Bishop Ursus, a.d. 378, have been lost. Constantine, in a letter to Maximus about the church at Constantinople, founded IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 41 A.D. 337, mentions the artists in mosaic who were employed there. Fifth Gentury. A.D. 432-440. — Church of St. Maria Maggiore at Rome, decorated with mosaics executed in the time of Pope Sixtus III. On the walls of the nave, thirty pictures illustrating Old Testament history, chiefly taken from the lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and Joshua, arranged in double rows, one above the other, fifteen on each side. Some have been de- stroyed and others restored. On the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the tribune, scenes from the New Testament, in five rows, — the Annunciation, Presentation in the Temple, Jerusalem and Bethlehem, Lambs. A.D. 461-467. — The oratory of St. John the Evangelist, in the baptistery of St. John Lateran, a square building, the vaulted roof of which is ornamented with mosaics executed for Pope Hilary, representing the Agnus Dei, surrounded by the symbols of the four Evangelists. A.D. 440. — Church of St. Nazaro e Celso, or the Chapel of Galla Placidia, at Eavenna, a cruciform building, the domed roof of which is ornamented with mosaics, representing the Cross, surrounded by the symbols of the four Evangelists. The chief mosaics in the Byzantine style are as follows : Swcth Century. A.D. 526-530. — Church of SS. Cosmas and Damianus at Eome, built and decorated with mosaics by Pope Felix IV. On the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the tribune, the Agnus Dei, enthroned, surrounded by the seven lamps of fire which are the seven spirits of God, four angels, and the eagle of St. John and the angel of St. Matthew, as described in the Apocalypse (ch. iv). On the vaulted roof, forming a half-dome over the apse, a majestic figure of Christ in the centre, with a beard and nimbus, the right hand extended and the left holding a scroll. Below are a group of three figures on each side ; on the right, St. Peter introducing St. Cosmas, who holds a crown in his hand, and behind him St. Theodore, also with a crown ; on the left, St. Paul introducing St. Damianus, who has a crown in his hand, and behind him Pope Felix, holding a model of his church. 42 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM At the outside of each group is a palm-tree, the one on the left having the phoenix perched amongst its branches. Eound the lower part of the domed roof runs a horizontal band of mosaic, representing the Agnus Dei, with the nimbus round the head, standing on Mount Zion, from the foot of which issue the four rivers of Paradise, uniting in one mystic Jordan. Six sheep on each side coming out of the gates of Jerusalem and Bethlehem, typify the Jews and the Gentiles. A.D. 577-590. — Church of St. Laurence, without the walls of Rome, rebuilt and adorned by Pope Pelagius II, with mosaics on what was the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the tribune, representing Christ in the centre, seated on a globe and holding a cross ; on the right, St. Paul, St. Stephen, and St. Hippolitus, holding a crown ; on the left, St. Peter with cross, St. Laurence with cross, book, and model of church, and behind him Pope Pelagius II. A.D. 547. — The Church of St. Vitalis at Eavenna is richly decorated with mosaics of the time of Justinian. On the vaulted roof of the apse, Christ seated on a globe, with an archangel on each side, the one on the right introducing St. Vitalis, to whom Christ is presenting a crown, and the one on the left introducing Ecclesius (Bishop of Eavenna, who died a.d. 541), the founder, carrying a model of his church. In the centre of the groined roof of the chancel, out of which the apse opens, the Agnus Dei, within a circular medallion. On the soffit of the chancel arch, in front of this vault, the heads of Christ, the twelve Apostles, Gervasius, and Protasius. On the jambs of the two side-windows of the apse, the four Evangelists with their sym- bols. On the north wall of the chancel, an historical group of eleven figures, including a portrait of the Emperor Justinian, preceded by Maximianus, Bishop of Eavenna, a.d. 547. On the south wall of the chancel, a similar group of ten fio-ures the principal one being the Empress Theodora. On the north wall of the choir above the altar, beneath a semicircular arch, the offerings of Abel and Melchisedec ; on the right, the prophet Isaiah ; on the left, Moses taking off his shoe ; above the centre of the arch, two angels supporting a circular disc, on which is the cross and the Alpha and Omega; on the right, St. Mark and lion ; on the left, St. Matthew and angel. On the south IN FOREIGN COUNTEIES. 43 wall of the choir, above the altar, beneath a semicircular arch, Abraham entertaining the three men in the plains of Mamre (Gen. xviii), and the Sacrifice of Isaac. Over the crown of the arch, a pair of angels supporting the cross, as on the oppo- site side ; on the right, Moses receiving commands from God ; on the left, the prophet Jeremiah. Above, on the right, St. Luke and bull, and on the left, St. John and eagle. A.D. 553. — The Arian baptistery, afterwards St. Maria in Cos- medin (or St. Mary the Beautiful), at Eavenna, is said to have been built by Theodoric, and has mosaics on its domed roof, representing the Baptism of Christ in the centre, surrounded by the twelve Apostles, six on each side of a throne, on which rests a jewelled cross. The baptistery of St. John, in the cathedral at Eavenna, is said to have been buUt circa A.D. 451, but the mosaics are probably of the time of Bishop Maximian, who lived in the middle of the sixth century, and whose monogram is placed over one of the arches. The building is octagonal, and on the inside of the cir- cular dome or cupola are mosaics representing the Baptism of Christ in the centre, with the figures of the twelve Apostles round it. A.D. 567. — Church of St. Apollinare in Classe, near Eavenna, has mosaics on the domed roof of the apse, representing the Transfiguration, with St. Apollinaris below. On the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the tribune, Christ, the symbols of the four Evangelists, the Jewish and Gentile churches, symbolised by sheep issuing from Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and palm-trees. On the north wall of the nave. Archbishop Eeparatus and the Emperor Constantinus Pogonotus. On the south wall of the nave, the sacrifices of the old Law, typified by the offerings of Abel, Melchisedec, and Abraham with Isaac. A.D. 570. — Church of St. Apollinare Nuovo, built by Theodoric, and ornamented with mosaics on the north wall of the nave, re- presenting the city of Classis (the port of Eavenna), with sea and ships in front, a procession of twenty-two female saints, headed by the three Magi, who are presenting their offerings to the Virgin enthroned with Child. Above are two rows of pictures; the lower one, figures of saints, and the upper one, thirteen scenes from the life of Christ, chiefly miracles. On the south wall of the nave 44 EARLY CHBISTIAN SYMBOLISM the city of Eavenna, with a procession in front of twenty-five male saints, receiving the benediction from the Saviour, who is seated on a throne with an angel on each side. Above are two rows of pictures ; the lower one, figures of saints, and the upper one, crowns suspended above the heads of each. Seventh Century. A.D. 626-638. — Church of St. Agnes, without the walls of Eome, built by Constantine, rebuilt by Pope Symmachus, and adorned by Pope Honorius with mosaics on the vaulted roof of the apse, representing the patron Saint Agnes in the centre, with Pope Honorius on the right, holding a book, and Pope Symmachus on the left, carrying a model of the church. Above the head of St. Agnes is a hand holding a crown. A.D. 639-642. — Oratory of St. Venantius, near the baptistery of St. John Lateran at Rome, adorned with mosaics by Pope John IV. On the vaulted roof of the apse, busts of Christ in glory, giving the benediction, and an angel on each side ; below, a group of figures, St. Mary in the centre, in the ancient attitude of prayer ; on the right, St. Peter, St. John the Baptist, St. Domnius, and Pope Theodore ; on the left, St. Paul, St. John the Evangelist, St. Venantius, and Pope John IV, carrying a model of the church. On the east wall of the nave, above the ■ arch of the apse, the symbols of the four Evangelists, the two holy cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and figures of Saints. A.D. 642-649.— Church of St. Stephen, on the Ccelian Mount at Eome. On the vaulted roof of the apse, medallion bust of Christ, with hand holding crown above. Below, a large jewelled cross, with St. Felicianus on the right and St. Primus on the left. Eighth Century. A.D. 796. — The Church of SS. Nereus and AchiUeus, rebuilt by Pope Leo III, and ornamented with mosaics. On the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the apse, the Transfiguration. The mosaics of St. Pudentiana perhaps belong to this century, but there is so much doubt connected with their authenticity, that a description is omitted. IN FOREIGN OOUNTKIES. 45 Ninth Century. A.D. 817-824. — Church of St. Maria, in Navicella, or in Dominica, rebuilt by Pope Paschal I, and ornamented with mosaics. On the vaulted roof of the apse, the Virgin and ChUd, enthroned, with Pope Paschal kneeling at her feet, and his monogram above her head ; a crowd of saints on each side. On the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the apse, Christ in glory, within an oval aureole supported by two angels, and six Apostles on each side ; in spandrels below, two figures of prophets. A.D. 820. — Church of St. Prassede at Eome, rebuilt by Pope Paschal I, and adorned with mosaics. On the vaulted roof of the apse, a design similar to that in the Church of SS. Cosmas and Damian, a majestic figure of Christ standing in the centre ; on the right, St. Peter, introducing St. Pudentiana, followed by St. Zeno, a palm-tree being behind; on the left, St. Paul introducing St. Prassede, followed by Pope Paschal, with the square nimbus, carrying a model of his church, a palm-tree being behind and the phcenix in its branches ; below, a band with the Agnus Dei on Mount Zion, and the six sheep on each side, issuing from the gates of Jerusalem and Bethlehem. On the east wall of the chancel, above the arch of the apse, the Agnus Dei, enthroned, with the seven candlesticks, and symbols of the four Evangelists, illustrating the Apocalypse (ch. iv), copied, apparently, from the mosaics of SS. Cosmas and Damian ; below, in the spandrels, the four-and-twenty Elders, with crowns. On the east wall of the nave, above the outer or chancel arch, Christ standing, with rows of saints and martyrs on each side. On the soffit of this arch, the monogram of Pope Paschal I (A.D 820). A.D. 820.— The Church of St. Cecilia in Trastevere, beyond the Tiber, was built by Pope Paschal I, and adorned with mosaics. On the vaulted roof of the apse, Christ standing and giving the benediction, with a hand holding a crown above his head ; on the right, St. Peter, St. Agatha, and St. Valerian ; on the left, St. Paul, St. Cecilia, and Pope Paschal, carrying a model of the church ; below, a frieze, with the Agnus Dei on Mount Zion, and the sheep issuing from the gates of Jerusalem and Bethlehem ; at the top of the arch, the monogram of Pope Paschal I. 46 EAELY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM A.D. 858.— The Church of St. Maria N"ov£e Urbis, now St. Francesca Eomana, at Rome, was rebuilt by Pope Leo IV, and adorned with mosaics. On the vaulted roof of the apse, the Virgin and Child, enthroned; on the right, SS. Peter and Andrew ; on the left, SS. James and John ; all under arcading, as on Norman fonts, etc. This concludes the Hst of the most important examples of Christian mosaics at Ptome and Eavenna up to the end of the ninth century, when the art fell into decay, and was not revived until a couple of hundred years later. In the twelfth century, when mosaics again make their appearance, the Byzantine influence was gradually declining, and the style of workman- ship was assimilated to that generally prevalent in Western Europe. The chief defect of most of the books which treat on mosaic decoration is, that plans of the buildings are not given side by side with the illustrations of the pictures on the walls and roofs, and it is therefore difficult to understand in what position many of the mosaics are placed. Under these circumstances, the reader is advised to consult the plans of churches given in Fergusson's History of Architectii,re, and the perspective views of the interiors to be found in Gaily Knight's Italy. It will be seen there that the ecclesiastical buildings which are deco- rated with mosaics may be divided into two classes : (1) The basilicas, whose plan was derived from that of the Eoman Halls of Justice, consisting of a rectangular nave and side aisles, with a semicircular apse at the east end ; and (2) churches like St. Vitalis at Eavenna, and St. Sophia at Constantinople, whose architecture is akin to the domed structures found all over the East, with a more or less complicated ground-plan. In the cases of the basilicas, the chief surfaces suitable for decoration are as follows : (1) the roof of the apse in the form of a half-dome ; (2) the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the apse and the spandrels on each side ; (3) the north and south walls of the nave, in the space above the arcades, called in England the clerestory, but which is of large size, owing to the smaUness of the arches below. The Eastern type of domed church presents a greater variety of surface for mosaics, on IN FOBEIGN COUNTRIES. 47 account of the nature of the ground-plan. The different sur- faces may be thus classified according to shape : (1) Spherical surfaces, such as the domed roof of a round, square, or octagonal building, and the half-dome above a semicircular apse; (2) cylindrical surfaces, such as a barrel vault or the soffit of a semicircular arch ; (3) flat surfaces of rectangular form, such as the north and south walls of the nave of a church ; of semicircular form, such as the space under an arch or the tympanum of a doorway ; of spandrel shape, at each side of a semicircular arch. With regard to the symbolism of the mosaics, the chief difference between those of classical style belonging to the fourth and fifth centuries, and the paintings of the Catacombs, is in the introduction of the symbols of the four Evangelists, the cross in place of the Chi-Eho monogram, and regular series of scenes from the Old Testament, arranged in historical order, instead of being classified according to their symbolism. At the Church of St. John Lateran, at Eome, we have an early example of the Agnus Dei, with the nimbus round the head, but without the cross. The changes, however, which began in the sixth century, will be found to be of a far more sweeping character, and may be summed up shortly by saying that the art became essen- tially ecclesiastical, instead of Scriptural. The typical re- presentation of Christ in the Catacomb paintings is as the Good Shepherd carrying back the lost sheep on His shoulders, youthful in appearance, and of a loving countenance ; but on the mosaics of the sixth century, our Lord appears as a bearded man of advanced age, severe in aspect, and conveying the idea of Christ the Judge, rather than Christ the Saviour. The nimbus becomes common, being first placed round the head of the Agnus Dei and Christ in His human form, and afterwards applied to personages mentioned in the Xew Testament, and even to dignitaries of the Church. As the ecclesiastical element gradually began to predominate over the Scriptural, we find popes and patron saints, habited in regular vestments, carrying the models of their churches, introduced into the pictures which occupied the most prominent position on the roof of the apse above the high altar, and placed almost on an equality with our Lord, St. Peter, and St. Paul, as in the Church of SS. Cosmas 48 EAELY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM and Damianus at Eome. In the celebrated mosaic of Justinian, at St. Vitalis, Eavenna, the bishop, Maximianus, is habited in his full ecclesiastical robes, including the stole, and carries a cross in his hand. He is accompanied by two priests, one holding a book and the other a censer. The chief place of honour in the scheme of the decoration of the early basilicas is that occupied by the central figure of the group on the vaulted roof of the apse, and the degradation of symbolism may be traced by noticing the changes which took place from century to century, in the personage selected for this position. In the Churches of SS. Cosmas and Damianus, and of St. Laurence extra Muros at Eome, and St. Vitalis at Eavenna, all of the sixth century, the central figure is Christ. In the Church of St. Agnes at Eome, of the seventh century, - it is the patron, St. Agnes. In the Church of St. Maria in Dominica, at Eome, of the ninth century, it is the Virgin and Child, enthroned. Lastly, when the art of mosaic was revived in the twelfth century, the Virgin is placed in this position, seated on a throne, side by side and on an equaUty with the Saviour, as at St. Maria in Trastevere, at Eome. Scenes from the Apocalypse, which became so common in Nor- man sculpture and mediasval MSS., first make their appearance in the mosaics on the west wall of the nave, above the arch of the apse, of the Church of SS. Cosmas and Damianus at Eome, in the sixth century. The representation includes the Agnus Dei, now first associated with the Cross, and the symbols of the four Evan- gelists. The whole scene is reproduced with but few modifica- tions in the mosaics occupying a similar position in the Church of St. Prassede at Eome, of the ninth century. Palm-trees, and a hand holding a crown above the heads of saints, are charac- teristic features of the mosaics. We also find the germs of that system of spiritual allegory founded on the characteristics of the animal world, which was subsequently so fully elaborated in the mediaeval bestiaries, indicated by the phoenix, typifying Eesurrection, in the palm-tree, on the roof of the apse, at SS. Cosmas and Damian. The contrast between the old and new dispensation is symbolised by a procession of twelve sheep, six issuing from the gatesof Jerusalem, and six from Bethlehem, one representing the Jews, and the other the Gentiles, placed IN POEBIGN COUNTRIES. 49 symmetrically facing each other, on each side of the Agnus Dei, on Mount Zion. We see this iirst on the frieze round the bottom of the mosaic picture which decorates the roof of the apse of the Church of SS. Cosmas and Damian, of the sixth century, and copies by later artists in the Church of St. Cecilia in Trastevere, of the ninth century, and St. Maria in Trastevere, of the twelfth, all at Eome. The offerings of Abel, Melchi- sedec, and Abraham, in the Churches of St. Vitalis and St. Apollinare in Classe, at Ravenna, both of the sixth century, are typical of the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. The two baptisteries at Eavenna, in the cathedral and in the Church of St. Maria in Cosmedin, both of the sixth century, present us with the earliest representations of the Baptism of Christ in Christian art. The development of the twelfth century type of Christ in Glory, enclosed within a vesica, supported by two or four angels, may be traced back to the disc enclosing the cross, and held by a pair of angels, on the mosaic at St. Vitalis at Eavenna, of the sixth century, which resembles so closely the carvings on the great ivory book-covers at Eavenna, in the Vatican, and in the South Kensington Museum, and also the diptych of Eambona in the Vatican. In the two latter the bust of Christ takes the place of the cross. On the mosaic on the east wall of the nave, above the arch of the apse of the Church of St. Maria in Dominica at Rome, of the ninth century, the whole figure of Christ is enclosed within an oval aureole, sup- ported by an angel on each side. In the South Kensington Museum there are specimens of small mosaic pictures brought from Italy, and an admirable selection of reproductions of mosaics, full size, which were made by Mr. Caspar Clarke in 1872, by first taking paper casts, and then colouring them by hand. See Catalogue of Christian Mosaic Pictures in the South Kensington Museum, by J. W. Appell, 1877 ; Report on Mosaic Pictures for Wall Decorations, etc., by Mr. Cole and Lieut.-Col. Scott, E.E., 1869. The chief works containing illustrations of mosaics are as follows : W. von Salzenberg, Alt-Christlische Baudenkmale von Con- stantinopel, Berlin, 1854 (Mosaics in St. Sophia, Constanti- nople). 50 EAKLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM J. H. Parker, Historical Photographs, illustrative of the Mosaic Pictures in the Churches of Borne. E. Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. iv, pis. 204-94. J. Ciampini, Vetera Monumenta, Eome, 1690. G. B. de Eossi, Musaici Cristiani, Eome, 1872. Gaily Knight, Ecclesiastical Architecture of Italy ^ A complete list of mosaics and subjects will be found in the Universal Art Inventory, pt. i, Mosaics and Stained Glass, edited by H. Cole, and published by the Science and Art Department, South Kensington Museum. The following books and articles may be consulted for descrip- tions, in some cases accompanied by woodcuts. J. H. Parker, Mosaic Pictures in Rome and Ravenna. H. Barbet de Jouy, Les Mosaiques Ghritiennes de Rome. W. Burges on "Mosaics", in Gent.'s Mag., 1863. Kugler, History of Painting, edited by Eastlake. L, Vitet, Etudes sur VHistoire de VArt. E. St. J. Tyrwhitt, Art Teaching of the Primitive Church, chapter on Mosaics. Martigny's Diet, des Ant. Ghr6t., article "Mosaiques". Smith's Diet, of Christian Ants., article " Mosaics". Crowe and Cavalcaselle, History of Early Italian Art. Lamps. Lamps bearing Christian devices have been found in great numbers in Italy, France, Egypt, and other countries. The use of such articles was either domestic, for giving light in the house ; religious, for burning before the shrines of saints or during particular ceremonies ; or funereal, for depositing with the body of the deceased. The material of which these lamps are made is either terra-cotta or bronze, the former being the most common. The shape of the terra-cotta lamps is that used by the Eomans in pagan times, consisting of a shallow circular bowl covered over at the top, with a spout at one side for the wick, and a handle at the other. The ornament is generally concentrated on the circular top, which is formed into a medallion, surrounded sometimes by a border of smaller ones. The subjects correspond with those found on the paintings IN POEEIGN COUNTRIES. 51 in the Catacombs and on the sculptured sarcophagi, such as the Good Shepherd, Jonah and the Whale, Jonah and the Gourd, the sacred monogram, etc.i The style of the art is classical. The decorative treatment of the metal lamps is different, and consists in making the body of the vessel in the form of some object of devotion, such as the ship of the church or a basilica ; or in making the handle like a circular disc with the sacred mono- gram or Jonah upon it, or like a cross, or the head of a bird, or a lamb. Garrucci, in his Storia del Arte Gristiana, vol. vi, pis. 4:73-76, illustrates a large number of these objects, and their use is described in Martigny's Bid. des Ant. Ghrit, art. " Lampes Chrdtiennes". Holy Oil Vessels. Seventh Century. — In early Christian times it was generally believed that oil which had been burnt in lamps before the shrines of saints, or in the holy places at Jerusalem, acquired a peculiar sanctity, and it was therefore carefully collected on cotton-wool and enclosed in little vials, so as to be available, when required, for unction on certain days, or for effecting miraculous cures.^ The Popes used to send these holy oils as a special mark of favour to sovereigns and other distinguished personages ; the most remarkable instance being those collected by Abbot John, in the days of St. Gregory the Great (a.d. 600), and sent to Theodolinda, Queen of the Lombards, which are still preserved in the treasury of the Cathedral of Monza, together with the catalogue, written on papyrus, commencing thus : "Not de olea scorum martirum qui Eomffi in corpore requiescunt id est." Then follow the names of the shrines of the sixty-five saints from which the oils were obtained, arranged in two columns, and it concludes : — " Quas olea sea temporifes domini Gregorii papse adduxit Johannes indignus et preccator doming Theodolindse, ' With the addition of the Two Spies carrying the Bunoli of Grapes, and Christ treading on the Asp and the Basilisk. 2 Oil merely placed in vessels near sacred localities, or in any other way associated with them, was considered equally efficacious. e2 62 EARLY CHKISTIAN SYMBOLISM reginae de Eoma."^ Most of the vessels in which the holy oils are enclosed are of glass, but some are of metal, and ornamented with figures in relief. They are shaped like a circular flask with flat sides, and have a short neck at the top, ornamented with a cross. Almost all have Greek inscriptions, either running round the edge or written horizontally across the sidej having reference to the use of the vessels, such as : EAEON (for EAAION) HTAOT ZflHC TflN AriflN XPICTOT TOniiN (" Oil of the wood of life of the holy places of Christ"). Or— ETAOriA KTPIOT TUN AriflN TOnflN (" The blessing of the holy places of the Lord"). In some cases there are inscriptions descriptive of the scenes represented. The subjects are as follows : (1) Annunciation. (1) Salutation. (1) Nativity. (3) Adoration of the Magi (MAFOI, " The Magi"). (1) Baptism of Christ. (7) Crucifixion with the Two Thieves. (7) Two Maries and Angel at the Sepulchre (ANECTIO XTPOC, " The Resurrection of the Lord"). (4) Ascension (EMMANOTHL ME© HMXIN O ©EOC, " Emmanuel God with us"). Cross. Heads of Twelve Apostles. Christ and Twelve Apostles (O KC MOT KAI O OEOC MOT, " My Lord and my God"). The style of the art is Byzantine, and the treatment of the subjects is worthy of very careful examination, as some of them mark the transition between the forms found on the sculptured sarcophagi and those which continued in use down to the end of the twelfth century. The Crucifixion and the Maries at the Sepulchre on these vessels should be compared with the representations on the ' Frisi, Memorie della Chiese Monzese, vol. ii, p. 63 ; and Marini, Papiri Viplomatici, p. 327. IN FOBEIGN COUNTRIES. 53 Norman font at Lenton, near Nottingham, as they possess many features in common. The scenes which occnr with greatest frequency on the holy oil vessels are, — the Crucifixion, the Maries at the Sepulchre, the Ascension, and Adoration of the Magi. In the latter, the Virgin is shown with the nimbus round the head, seated on a throne, holding the Infant Saviour on her lap ; on the right are three shepherds ; and on the left, the three Magi, with Phrygian caps ; above the head of the Virgin is the star, to which two angels are pointing ; below are the shepherds' flocks. The treatment of the Crucifixion is most peculiar, Christ not being represented, as is usually the case, upon the cross; but His bust, with the cruciferous nimbus round the head, and Sol and Luna on each side, is placed above a small cross, at the foot of which are two kneeling figures. In one instance the cross is omitted, and our Lord has His arms, from the elbow to the hand, stretched out at right angles to the body. In all cases the two thieves are represented bound by the feet to a cross, the horizontal bar of which is con- siderably below the level of the shoulders. In the Ascension the figure of Christ is enclosed within an aureole, and the treatment is almost exactly the same as that found in the Saxon MSS. and in twelfth century art. Besides the holy oil vessels brought from Jerusalem, others came from Egypt, on which are portrayed the martyr Mennas of the Diocletian persecution, whose shrine, not far from Alex- andria, was the object of numerous pilgrimages. One found at Arles^ has upon it the figure of St. Mennas, with hands out- stretched in the ancient attitude of prayer, and a beast on each side crouching at his feet. It is inscribed : ETAOriA TOT AriOT MHNA (" The blessing of St. Mennas"). Many similar ones are pre- served in the museums at London, Paris, Florence, and Turin. Illustrations of twelve holy oil vessels will be found in Gar- rucci's Storia del Arte Gristiana, vol. vi, pis. 433 to 435 ; and their use is fully described in Martigny's Did. des. Ant. Ghret. (art. " Huiles Saintes"), and Smith's Diet, of Christian Ants. (art. '' Oils— holy"). ^ Martigny's Diet., p. 346. 54 eaely christian symbolism Holy Water Vessels. This is not the place to discuss the various uses to which holy water was put by the Church from the earliest times ; but the vessels in which it was contained, being ornamented with sym- bolical devices, cannot pass unnoticed. Some of the most ancient examples are vases of lead or marble, and the later onei', little situlm or buckets of ivory, or wood with metal fittings. Those belonging to the former class usually bore Greek inscrip- tions having reference to their use, such as the curious sentence which reads equally well backwards or forwards — NI^ON ANOMHMATA MH MONAN O^IN (" Wash thine iniquities, not thy face only"). This seems tohavebeen a well-recognised formula in the Eastern Church, being found on vases discovered at Constantinople and Autun, in France, and it has been carved on fonts in England at Sandbach in Cheshire (date 1667) ; Eufford in Lancashire, and St. Bartholomew's, Sydenham, near London. A marble vase, brought from Greece, and preserved in the Church of SS. Mark and Andrew in the island of Murano, near Venice,^ has upon it the text from Isaiah (xii, 3) — ANTAHXATAI TAOP META 2T*P02TNH2 OTI X1NH KT Eni TUN TAATflN. But far the most interesting specimen is one from Tunis,^ also bearing the first four words of the foregoing inscription, and ornamented, in addition, with the following Christian subjects : Two stags drinking from the Four Pavers of Paradise, issuing from Mount Zion ; the Good Shepherd ; Angel holding palm and crown to Orante ; pair of peacocks drinking from vase ; palm- trees ; border of vines. The style of the art is classical, and the subjects correspond with those found on the sculptured sarco- phagi. Two very curious holy water buckets, ornamented with Scrip- ' Martigny's Diet., p. 263. 2 Ibid., p. 264 ; and Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi pi. 428. IN POKEIGN COUNTRIES. 55 ture scenes, have been found in connection witli burials ; one in a Merovingian cemetery at Miannay, near Abbeville, in France,-' and another in a Saxon grave at Long Whittenham, in Berkshire.^ The subjects of the Miannay bucket, which has embossed gilt copper mountings, are as follows : Christ treading on the Serpent ; Temptation of Adam and Eve ; Daniel in the Lions' Den and Habakkuk ; Habakkuk lifted up by the hair of the head, inscribed — (ange)lvs miss(vs) daniel peofeta ABACV FEET (PANEM) IN LACV LEONVM The Long Whittenham bucket is like those found in the pagan Saxon graves, formed of staves and hoops, with ornamental designs on repoussSe plates of metal. It is 6 inches high, and 4| inches in diameter. The body with which it was associated was that of a boy, buried with the head lying to the west. At his feet was a bronze kettle, on the breast a small iron knife ; close to the right foot a spear-head point, downwards ; and on the right of the head the bucket in question. The subjects repre- sented upon it are as follows : The Chi-Rho monogram, and the Alpha and Omega within a circle ; the Miracle of Cana ; the Baptism of Christ, inscribed IXIANNHC; the Annunciation. This precious object is now preserved in the Mayer collection in the Liverpool Museum. The ivory siiul^ are fully described in Professor Westwood's Catalogue of the Fictile Ivories in the South Kensington, Museum, p. 266. The best typical specimens are those in the Duomo at Milan, and in Mr. Attenborough's collection, both inscribed and ornamented with Scriptural subjects, the former having been made for Otho II by Gotfred, Archbishop of Milan (a.d. 973-78), and the latter for Otho III (born a.d. 980). Casts of these are to be seen in the South Kensington Museum. 1 Ed. Le Blant, Inscr. Chret. de la Gaule, vol. i, pi. 251 ; and in Mem. de la Soc. des Ant. de France, vol. xxxv, p. 68 ; also Froc. Soc. Ant. Scot., vol. xi, pi. 16. 2 Archwologia, vol. xxxviii, p. 327. 56 EAKLY CHBISTIAN SYMBOLISM Belt-clasps from Burgundian and Feankish Geaves. In a previous course of Rliind Lectures/ Dr. Joseph Anderson has referred to the remarkable representations of Daniel in the Lions' Den, which occur upon certain belt-clasps found in the ancient Burgundian and Frankish cemeteries of Switzerland and Savoy. The graves from which these objects are obtained are formed of large slabs of undressed stone, placed in a north-west and south-east direction, and contained damascened weapons, personal ornaments, and fragments of coarse pottery. The age of the burials is not known with any degree of certainty, but from the fact of their being Christian,^ and from the charac- ter of the lettering of the inscriptions, it is not probable that any of them are earlier than the sixth century. The belt-clasps are made of bronze, in some cases encrusted with silver, and the average size is four inches long by two inches and a half wide. The buckle is of the ordinary shape used at the present day, and the flat part, which is attached to the leather, is ornamented with engraving very rudely executed. The subjects, which are in some cases explained by inscriptions, are as follows : — Daniel in the Lions' Den, with hands upraised in the ancient attitude of prayer, hetween two lions who are licking his feet. Example from Lavigny, in Lausanne Museum, inscribed nas- ALDVS NANSA VIVAT DEO VTERE FELIX DANINIL ; also from Dail- leus, inscribed dagninild dvo leones pedes eivs lengebant ; and four others without inscriptions from Mongifi, Severy, Blye, and Villecin. Daniel in the Lions' Den, shown in a similar manner, hut with Habakkuk or another figure. Example from Macon, now in the Museum at St. Germain, inscribed daniel peofeta abacv peo- FETA ; and another from St. Maur, inscribed renatvs deaconvs VIVAT CVM PACE ANNVS CENTVM. Figure in ancient attitude of prayer hetween two heasts rampant. Examples from Arnex and Montillier, in Lausanne Museum. 1 Scotland in Early Christian Times (2nd Series), p, 147 ; also see Proc. Soc. Ant. Soot., vol. ii, p. 363. ■^ Clevis, the first of the Frankish kings of the Merovingian Dynasty, was baptised a.d. 486, and the Burgundjans became Christians in the sixth century. IN FOEEIGN COUNTRIES. 57 Figures in ancient attitude of prayer, without accessories. Ex- amples from Bofflens and Tolchenaz, in the Lausanne Museum, and from Villechevreux and Balme. Cross in the centre, with man and sea-monster on each side. Examples from Echallens, Marnens, and Bofflens, in Lausanne Museum. Descriptions and illustrations of all these belt-clasps will be found in the following works : Ed. Le Blant, Inscriptions Ghrdtiennes de la Gaule, vol. i, p. 493, and vol. ii, pis. 42 and 43. Ed. Le Blant, " ISTote sur quelques representations antiques de Daniel dans la Fosse aux Lions." Mini, de la Soc. des Ant. de France, vol. xxxv, p. 68. F. Troyon, " Bracelets et Agrafes antiques." Mittheilungen der Aniiquarischen Gessellschaft in Zurich, vol. ii, pi. 3. E. Clerc, Essai sur I'histoire de la Franche GomtS A Vipoque Bomaine. De Surigny, Agrafes Ghretiennes Mdrovingiennes. IVOEIES. Uuder the heading of ivories are included all carvings executed in bone, walrus-tusk, or other substances of a like nature. From the third or fourth century, down to the time of the Pieformation, the Church employed this extremely beautiful and durable material, wherever it was possible, in the decoration of objects connected with Christian worship, such as the following : (1) Ecclesiastical Diptychs ; (2) Devo- tional Triptychs ; (3) Book-covers ; (4) Caskets or Eeliquaries ; (5) Pyxes; (6) Situlee ; (7) Liturgical Combs; (8) Flabella; (9) Pastoral Staves; (10) Paxes; (11) Episcopal Chairs; (12) Crucifixes ; (13) Images. In addition to the above, it will be found that secular objects occasionally bear Christian devices, as for instance : (1) Tenure Horns; (2) Chessmen ; (3) Draughtsmen; (4) Seals; (5) Mirror Cases. The style of art exhibited in ivory carvings varies according to the period and locality. The earliest examples resemble the classical sculptures on the sarcophagi at Eome, — as, for instance. 58 EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM the celebrated Brescia Casket, of the fifth or sixtli century,^ on which we find the stories of Jonah and Daniel, treated just in the same manner as in the Catacomb paintings. In the sixth century Classical art was superseded by Byzantine, and on the great book-cover in the Vatican Library^ two angels are to be seen supporting a circular disc enclosing the cross, exactly corre- sponding with the mosaics in the Church of St. Vitalis at Eavenna' (a.d. 547). On the South Kensington book-cover* the bust of Christ occupies the same position as the Cross on that in the Vatican, and from this was developed the vesica sup- ported by angels, and enclosing the full-length figure of the Saviour, which is so common in the twelfth century, both in the illuminated MSS. and on the sculptured tympana of Norman doorways. The most important work in ivory belonging to the sixth century is the chair made by Maximian,^ Archbishop of Ravenna (a.d. 546-556), and now in the cathedral at that place, ornamented with plaques illustrating the lives of Joseph and of Oar Lord. After this time a marked decline took place in ivory sculpture, but in the middle of the eighth century the art again revived under the auspices of Charlemagne (a.d. 768-814), who took advantage of the iconoclastic quarrels raging in the East (a.d. 750-867) to employ such workmen as were compelled to emigrate to the West, in consequence of the persecutions at Constantinople. The ivory carvings now existing of the Carlovingian School belong chiefly to the ninth and tenth centuries, the most authen- tically dated specimens being the plaques forming the covers of the Psalter and the Evangeliarium of Charles the Bald^ in the National Library at Paris. 'The Carlovingian style is dis- tinguished by the peculiar acanthus foliage which is introduced in the borders,^ by simplicity of composition, and absence of any highly ornamental features. Ivories of the eleventh and twelfth centuries are chiefly ' Westwood's Catalogue of Fictile Ivories in S. K. Mus., p. 36. 2 Jhid., p. 61 ; and Garrncci, Storia del Arte Cristia.na, vol. vi pi. 467. 2 Parker's Mosaic Pictures in Rome, p. 111. * Westwood, Catal., p. 62. ' Ibid., p. 31 ; and Garrucci, vol. vi, pis. 414 to 423. 6 Westwood's Catal, p. 102. ' See Westwood's Catal., pis. 11, 19, 23. IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 59 German or French, showing Byzantine and Carlovingian in- fluence, after which period the Gothic style, was introduced universally, except in the Greek Church. Ivories which can be shown to be Saxon, Irish, or Scandi- navian, either by the ornament, inscriptions, or other features, are of the greatest rarity, the following being those which are at present known.^ Anglo-Saxon. South Kensington Museum. No. 142-66, Plaque, with Adora- tion of the Magi. S. K. Mus. No. 3-72, Plaque, with Descent from the Cross. Cambridge Antiquarian Museum. Cast in S. K. Mus. No. GO- VS, Westwood, Catal, p. 138 ; Plaque, with Christ showing His wounds; found at Elmham, Norfolk. Inscribed in Saxon capitals. British Museum. Seal of Godwin, a thane, and Godgytha, a nun. Inscribed in Saxon capitals. Hiherno- Saxon. Brussels Museum. Diptych from Church of St. Martin, at Genoels Elderen, Limburg. Westwood, Catal., p. 479 ; Christ treading on the Asp and the Basilisk ; Annunciation and Salu- tation. Inscribed in Saxon capitals. Head of Pastoral Staff, found at Aghadoe Cathedral, in Ireland, with man being devoured by the Serpent forming the volute. Scandinavian. British Museum. Franks Casket. Cast in S. K. Mus. 240-73, Westwood, Catal., p. 234 ; with Adoration of Magi, and Flight of Jews from Jerusalem. Inscribed with Eunes. Copenhagen Museum. Cross of Princess Gunhilda, niece of King Canute (died a.d. 1076). Cast in S. K. Mus. No. 102-73, Westwood, Catal., p. 152 ; with Christ showing His wounds. The following Caskets have Scandinavian ornament, but no figure-subjects. Munich Museum. Casket of Cunigunda. Cast in S. K. Mus. No. 42-73, Westwood, Catal, p. 336. 1 A bone casket with interlaced work, belonging to Miss Drysdale of Kircaldy, is illustrated in the Proc. Soc. Ant. Scot., vol. xx, p. 390. 60 EAKLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM Cathedral of Cammin, in Pomerania. Eeliquary of St. Cor- dula. Cast in S. K. Mus. No. 59-72, Westwood, Catal, p. 336. Brunswick Museum. Nethii's Casket. Cast in S. K. Mus. No. 366-73, Westwood, Gatal, p. 335. Inscrib~ed in Eunes. Diptychs. — A diptych means anything folded together double (from the Greek StTTTuj^ov), the word being generally applied to the two-leaved tablets of wood or ivory on which the ancients used to write their memoranda. The inner faces of the diptychs were hollowed out into the form of a shallow tray, which was filled with wax, presenting a surface on which the owner could write his notes with a style, sharp-pointed at one end, but blunt at the other end for making erasures. The two leaves were fastened together by a hinge, consisting of two or three loops of wire threaded through holes in each side. When the leaves were shut the writing was protected from injury, and the out- side was usually ornamented with carving. The tablets used by private individuals were of small size, and made of common wood, but in the later days of the Eoman Empire it was the custom for Consuls on their appointment to make presents to important personages of elaborately carved ivory diptychs of much larger dimensions, varying from 4 to 6 inches in width, and from 12 to 15 inches in length. Most of the Consular diptychs bear inscriptions which enable the date to be fixed, and some are ornamented with Christian symbols, so that the light thus thrown on the history of early art is of very great value. Prof. Westwood has compiled a list of twenty-one Consular diptychs, still in existence, ranging in date from A.D. 248 to 541, which will be found given in W. Maskell's Handbook of Ivories in the South Kensington Museum (p. 28). Some of the best of these are in the British Museum, the South Kensington Museum, and the Mayer Museum at Liverpool, and the rest abroad. The Consular diptychs with Christian symbols are as follows: A.D. 406. — Of Anicius Probus, in Aosta Cathedral. The Em- peror Honorius, with nimbus round head, holding a labarum, inscribed : " IN NOMINI XPI VINCAS SEMPEK." A.D. 505. — Of El. Theodorus Valentinianus, in the Berlin Mu- seum. The bust of Christ, with cruciferous nimbus within a IN FOEEIGN COUNTRIES. 61 circular medallion. (Westwood, Catal. of Ivories in S. K. Mus p. 170 A.D. 506. — Of Flavius Dalagaiphus Areobindus, in the Lucca Library. The Cross. (Gori, Thesaurus Diptychorum, vol. i, pi. 8.) A.D. 513. — Of Flavius Taurus Clementinus, in the Mayer Museum at Liverpool. The Cross between medallions enclosing busts of the reigning emperor and empress. A.D. 516. — Of Flavius Petrus Justinianus, in the Paris Library. The Cross at the beginning and end of the inscription. (Millin, Voyages, vol. i, pi. 19.) A.D. 517.— Of Fl. Anastasius Paulus Probus Pompeius, in the Paris Library. The Cross at the beginning and end of the in- scription. (Labarte, Hist. Arts Industr. — Album, pi. 3.) Of the same Consul, in the South Kensington Museum. A.D. 530. — Of Eufinus Gennadius Orestes, in the South Ken- sington Museum. The Cross between busts of the Emperor Justinian and the Empress Theodora. {Gori, vol. ii, pi. 17.) A.D. 541.— Of Anicius Faustus Albinus Basilius, in the Uffizii at Florence. Ball and Cross held by the Consul. [Gori, vol. ii, pi. 20.) It is supposed that in the time of the Eoman Empire the Consular diptychs contained the Fasti Gonsulares, or list of all the preceding officials who had acted as Consuls ; but many of these tablets were applied subsequently to ecclesiastical pur- poses, and were then inscribed with the names of the newly baptised, benefactors of the Church, saints, martyrs, etc., which were read out at Mass. One of the best examples of a Consular diptych, applied to the use of the Church, is that of Flavius Taurus Clementinus, in the Mayer Museum at Liverpool.^ The diptych of Fl. Anastasius Paulus Probus Pompeius, in the Paris Library, contains a list of the Bishops of Bourges ; and another Eoman diptych, of the sixth century, in the Cathedral of Novara, has a similar list of bishops of that place, from St. Gaudentius to A.D. 1170. The Consular diptych of Flavius Anicius Justinianus Augustus, in the Paris Library, contains litanies of the ninth century and the names of saints. Perhaps the most remarkable ' Engraved in Gori, vol. i, pi. 10 ; inscription and translation given in Maskell's S. K. Handbook of Ivories, p. 38. 62 EABLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM instance of a Consular diptych put to ecclesiastical use is that at Monza, which was presented to the Empress Theodolinda by St. Gregory the Great, having upon it representations of St. Gregory and King David.^ Besides the Consular diptychs there are also purely ecclesi- astical ones, which had never been used previously for secular purposes, ornamented with Christian devices, as, for instance, the ,very interesting one of Eambona, in the Vatican,^ and many others. Sometimes diptychs have been utilised as book-covers at a later period. Triftyclis. — The name triptych is applied to any set of three ivory panels hinged twice, so as to fold together. Objects of this class are employed in the same way as devotional pictures, being placed upright, with the two side-wings open, and inclined at equal angles to the central plaque, so that the religious subjects carved on the three inner faces can be seen. Most triptychs are of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, but they are men- tioned by Anastasius in the Liber Pontificalis as early as A.D. 772, and there is in the Paris Library one of the finest Greek Byzantine triptychs known of the eleventh century.* Book-Covers. — The volumes of the Gospels, the Psalters, and other books used by the Church, were very frequently orna- mented with ivory plaques carved with Scripture subjects. Many of the MSS. still in existence retain their original bind- ings, there being an especially line collection in the Paris Library. The oldest ivory book-covers which have been pre- served belong to the sixth or seventh centuries, and are generally of large size, about 15 ins. by 12 ins., composed of five oblong plaques, one in the centre and the four others forming a kind of frame round it. There is a splendid specimen of a book-cover of this class in the South Kensington Museum, and casts of four other similar ones from Milan, Eavenna, the Vatican, and ' Engraved in Martigny's Diet, des Ant. Chret., art. " Diptyques", p. 255. 2 Westwood, Catal. of Fictile Ivories in S. K. Mus., p. 56. 2 Cast in S. K. Mus. Westwood, Catal., p. 83. Another example of the same date, from the SoltykofE Collection, is figured in Labarte's Album, pi. 11. IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 63 Paris, all of which are engraved in Garracci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, and described in Professor Westwood's Catalogue. These are all extremely interesting specimens of early Christian art, and the top panel is, in most of them, occupied by a pair of angels, supporting a circular disc enclosing the bust of the Saviour, as on the Eambona diptych in the Vatican; or the Cross, as on the mosaics at St. Vitalis at Eavenna. Many of the later book-covers are in single plaques of small size, with the Crucifixion or Christ in Glory. The ivory cover of the Psalter of the Princess Melisenda of Jerusalem, in the British Museum,^ of the twelfth century, is most beautifully ornamented with delicate carving, representing scenes from the life of King David on one side, and the Six Acts of Mercy on the other. Caskets. — Keliquaries and boxes used for ecclesiastical pur- poses are often Ornamented with ivory plaques, having Scripture subjects carved upon them, one of the oldest being the celebrated Brescia casket,"^ which is in the style of the sculptured sarco- phagi. The shape of these caskets is either rectangular, or some- times the top is made with sloping sides like the roof of a house, as in the case of the Carlovingian casket of the tenth century in tlie Louvre.^ The Franks casket in the British Museum, Nethii's casket in the Brunswick Museum, the casket of Cuni- gunda in the Munich Museum, and the reliquary of St. Cor- dula in the Cathedral of Cammin, in Pomerania, are all Scan- dinavian, and of the greatest interest. Pyxes. — Small cylindrical boxes which were used by priests for carrying about the consecrated wafer, to be used at the Sacra- ment, are called pyxes. The earliest of these objects date back to about the fifth century, as, for instance, the one at Milan Cathedral, with the story of Jonah treated as on the sculptured sarcophagi. An ivory pyx of the sixth century, in the British Museum, is remarkable as having carved upon it scenes from the legendary life of St. Mennas, being probably the first instance of a representation of the kind. 1 Westwood, Catal, p. 73. ' Jhid.. p. 36. 3 Ibid., p. 230. 64 EAELY CHBISTIAN SYMBOLISM SitulcB. — Buckets for holding holy water are called siiulcB and have been already described. Combs. — The liturgical comb was used formerly for dressing the hair of the bishop before celebrating High Mass, and formed one of the regular ceremonial properties of the Church. The earliest examples have teeth on one side only, and are some- times ornamented with Christian figure-subjects ; two of the finest being that of St. Herebert, in the Cologne Museum,^ of the ninth century, with the Crucifixion upon it ; and the comb of St. Lupus, in the Cathedral at Sens.^ Flabella. — The ceremonial fan, or flabellum, with which the flies were brushed away from the elements used at the Sacra- ment of the Mass in hot weather, often had an ivory case and handle carved with Scripture subjects, but such objects are by no means common.^ Pastoral Staves. — The volutes of pastoral staves are often made of ivory, in the form of a serpent, with the Agnus Dei in the centre.* A curious Irish example, found at Aghadoe Cathedral, has been already referred to. Paxes. — When the custom of giving the kiss of peace between the members of the Christian community fell into disuse, the cere- mony of kissing a small figure sculptured on marble or ivory was substituted. Martigny, in his Diet, des Ant. ChrM. (art. "Paix"), gives an engraving of a pax of the eighth century in the Church of Cividale, in Frioul, which he states is the oldest now in existence. It has an ivory plaque in the centre with the Crucifixion. There is in the Berlin Museum a pax of the twelfth century, with the decapitation and burial of St. John upon it.^ These objects are of great rarity. 1 Westwood, Catal., p. 315. 2 Cahier and Martin, Nouveaux Melanges d'ArcMologie, p. 72. ' See Westwood's Catal.., p. 61 ; and Didron's Annales Archeologiques, vol. xiii, p. 40. * See Cahier and Martin, Melanges d'ArcMologie, vol. iv, p. 198. ^ Westwood, Catal., p. 276. IN FOEEIGN COUNTRIES. 65 Episcopal Chairs. — The two most celebrated ivory chairs are the chair of Maximianus, Archbishop of Eavenna A.D. 549, preserved in the cathedral at Ravenna,^ having upon it scenes from the Lives of Christ and of Joseph ; and the chair of St. Peter at Rome/ ornamented with the Labours of Hercules. Images and Crucifixes. — Both images and crucifixes of early- date are exceedingly uncommon. The chief collections of ivories in this country are to be found in the British Museum, the South Kensington Museum, the Bodleian Library and Ashmolean Museum at Oxford, and the Mayer Museum in Liverpool. A magnificent series of casts of ivories from most of the foreign collections is displayed in the South Kensington Museum, and has been admirably catalogued and described by Professor Westwood. The Arundel Society also sell a set of casts of early Christian ivories. Illustrations of a large number of ivories will be found in the following works : R. Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, pis. 414-456. Labarte, Histoire des Arts Industriels du Moyen Age — Album. J. B. Waring, Art Treasures exhibited at Manchester. Cahier and Martin, Nouveaux Milanges d' ArcMologie. Didron, Annales ArcMologiques. Gori, Thesaurus Diptychorum. Westwood, Catalogue of Fictile Ivories in the South Kensington Museum. Maskell, Catalogue of Ivories in the South Kensington Museum. There is at present no really good text-book dealing with the subject of ivories as a whole, but the following short accounts may be read with advantage : Sir M. Digby Wyatt, Notices of Sculpture in Ivory. Professor Westwood, Ivory Carvings: W. Maskell, Ivories : South Kensington Art Handbook. > Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, plates 414-422. 2 Archieologia, vol. xlv, p. 426 ; and Vetusta Monumenta, vol. vi. F 66 EARLY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM CHtTRCH DOOES. Many of the doors of the Cathedrals abroad are of great size, and made to fold back in two leaves, which are divided up into rectangular panels, ornamented with scenes from Scripture. Most of these doors belong to the eleventh and twelfth centuries,^ and attention is called to them here, not because they preceded the introduction of Christianity into Great Britain, but as presenting several complete series of Old and New Testament subjects similar to those found in the contemporary MSS., which are of the utmost value for the sake of comparison with Norman sculptures of the same period. It may here be pointed out that in the early stages of Christian art in the Catacombs and on the sculptured sarcophagi, the subjects are mixed together quite irrespective of their historical order of sequence, and it was not until the art of miniature-painting in the MSS. had attained considerable development that we get a regular series illus- trating any particular part of the Bible, such as the first part of Genesis or the Life of Christ. In arranging the scheme of the decoration of a church, it will be found that only certain portions of the building and its fittings are adapted, by the shape of the surface presented, to receive a long series of pictures following each other in succession. The north and south walls of the nave were chosen in the early basilicas for the Old and New Testament histories, but in the twelfth century, when the interior wall-space was more broken up with openings, the large doors offered better scope for decoration of this kind ; and although the scale of the figures was smaller in the latter case, they were in a more favourable position for being seen, both as being nearer the ground and in front of the spectator, instead of to his right or left. Good examples of metal church-doors, with panels of Scripture subjects, exist at the following places : — Executed in the eleventh century : Amalfi Cathedral, Italy (a.d. 1066); Augsburg Cathedral, Bavaria (a.d. 1070) ; Hildes- ' The doors of the Church of S. Sabina at Rome are executed in the style of the early ivories of the sixth century. (See Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, pi. 499.) IN POBEIGN COITNTEIES. 67 heim Cathedral, Prussia (a.d. 1015); Monte Cassino, Italy (A.D. 1066) ; Monte Gargano, Italy (a.d. 1076) ; Church of St. Paul extra Muros, Eome (a.d. 1070), now destroyed. Executed in th6 twelfth century : St. Nicholas Church, Bari, Italy; Benvenuto Cathedral, Italy (a.d. 1150); Monreale Cathedral, Sicily (a.d. 1179); Novgorod Cathedral, Russia (A.D. 1171); Pisa Cathedral, Italy (a.d. 1180); Ravello Cathe- dral, Italy (A.D. 1179) ; Church of San Zenone, Verona, Italy. All of the foregoing are of cast-bronze, with the figures in relief, except the doors at the Church of St. Paul extra Muros at Eome, where the workmanship is of the kind known as agemina, or metal inlaid with silver wire. In a few rare instances, doors with panels of carved wood, illustrating the Bible, have survived, as in the Church of St. Maria am Capitol, at Cologne, Prussia ; and in the Churches of Abu Sargah and Sitt Miriam, at Cairo, Egypt. In Northern Europe and- in England there are a few examples of Christian figure-subjects on the ironwork of church-doors, as at Versas, in Vestergothland, Sweden^; Stillingfleet, Yorkshire^! Sempringham, Lincolnshire^; Staplehurst, Kent.* There are casts in the South Kensington Museum of the doors at Augsburg, Hildesheim, and Cologne. Illustrations of some of these doors will be found in the following works : J. Gailhabaud, L' Architeqture du F™« av, XVII"'^ Sitde. Doors at Verona and Cologne. Seroux d'Agincourt, L' Art par Us Monuments. Door in the Church of St. Paul extra Muros, Eome. F. Adelung, Die Korschionschen Thilren, etc., Novgorod. J. Von AUioli, Die Bronze-Thure des Domes zu Augsburg. The Egyptian wood-carvings are of very special interest. Those from Sitt Miriam, at Cairo, are now in the British Museum, and other similar ones are described and illustrated in Butler's Coptic Churches of Egypt. The subjects on the panels from Sitt Miriam are : Entry into Jerusalem ; Baptism of Christ ^ Oscar Montelius, Sveriges Historia, vol. i, p. 481. 2 Eaymond Bordeaux, Serrwrie du Moyen Age., pi. xl. 3 Brandon's Analysis of Gothic Architecture. * Archceologia Cantiana, vol. ix, p. 191. F -1 68 EAELY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM and Annunciation ; Descent of the Holy Spirit ; Nativity (with the washing after birth) ; Ascension ; Harrowing of Hell ; Five Crosses. Those on the panels at Abu Sargah : Nativity; Three Saints on horseback ; Last Supper. The saints on horseback, one of which bears a striking resemblance to the figure on the sculpture over the doorway at Fordington Church in Dorsetshire, will be referred to in a future lecture. The nimbus of Christ in the scene of the Entry into Jerusalem on the Sitt Miriam panels is marked with a cross, which peculiarity occurs in the Booh of Kells, and on some of the Isle of Man crosses. MSS. The earliest MSS. executed in this country are either Irish or Saxon, and do not date back beyond the seventh century. The foreign MSS., previous to the introduction of the art of illumin- ation into England, may be divided into three classes, according to the style of the art of the miniatures : (1) those in the classical style ; (2) those in the Byzantine ; and (3). those in the Carlovingian. Illustrated MSS. of the Bible in the classical style are of the greatest possible rarity, the only known ex- amples being — The Greek Genesis in the Imperial Library at Vienna, con- taining forty-eight miniatures explanatory of the text (see Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. iii, pis. 112-123 ; and Seroux d'Agincourt, Z'Art par les Monuments, vol. iv, pt. 1, pi. 19). The Greek Genesis of the sixth century, in the British Museum (Otho B. vi), originally containing 250 small square miniatures, most of which were destroyed in the Cottonian fire in 1731, those remaining being engraved in Vetusta Monumenta, vol. i, pi. 67. The History of Joshua, in the Vatican Library, of the seventh or eighth century (see Garrucci, vol. iii, pis. 157-167 ; D'Agin- court, vol. iv, pt. 1, pi. 28). The earliest illuminations in the Byzantine style are in the Syriac Gospels in the Laurentian Library at Florence, written by Eabula in a.d. 586, containing a large number of marginal drawings of scenes from the Old and New Testament, and the IN FOREIGN COUNTBIES. 69 first known representation of the Crucifixion (see A. M. Biscioni, Bibliothecce Medico Laurentianae Catalogus ; D'Agincourt, vol. iv, pt. 1, pi. 27 ; Garrucci, vol. iii, pi. 156). The Greek Gospels seldom have any pictures , except the portraits of the four Evangelists. The most valuable series of Byzantine drawings of Scripture subjects in England^ is to be found in the Greek Psalter in the British Museum (Add. MS. jSTo. 19,352), written a.d. 1066, which is a perfect mine of infor- mation on early Christian art (see Waagen, Treasures of Art in England, Suppl., p. 7). The principal Carlovingian MSS., containing illustrations of the Old Testament, are as follows : — The Alchuine Bible, of the ninth century, in the British Museum (Add. MS. ISTo. 10,546), with pictures of Adam and Eve, Moses, Eour Evangelists, and Agnus Dei. The Bible of St. Paul's extra Muros at Eome, of the ninth century, with scenes from lives of Adam and Eve, Moses, David (see B' Agincourt, vol. iv, pi. 42 ; and the Bible of the Monastery of St. Paul's at Borne, text by I. 0. Westwood, and thirty-eight photos, published by J. H. Parker). The Bible presented to Charles the Bald by Count Vivian, of the ninth century, in the Paris Library, with scenes from lives of Adam and Eve, Moses, and David, at the beginning of Genesis, Exodus, and the Psalms (see Dibdin's Tour in France and Germany, vol. ii, 156). The Psalter of Charles the Bald, of the ninth century, in the Paris Library. The illuminated Carlovingian MSS. of the Gospels are: — The Codex Aureus in the British Museum (Harl. 2788), of the ninth century ; the Gospels of St. Medard of Soissons, of the eighth century, in the Paris Library, with a picture of the mystic fountain, the Evangelistiarium of Charlemagne (a.d. 781), in the Paris Library, with the mystic fountain ; Otfrid's Para- phrase of the Gospels, in the Vienna Library, of the ninth century, with the entry into Jerusalem (see Westwood's Palxo- graphia Pictoria Sacra). There is no Celtic MS. at present known which contains drawings illustrating the Old Testament ; and the only Saxon 1 The Paris Library possesses some good illustrated Greek MSS. ; a few of the miniatures being reproduced in Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lm-d, and Canon Farrar's Life of Christ. 70 EARLY CHEISTIAN SYMBOLISM. ones (except the Psalters) are Caedmon's Paraphrase of the Scriptures, in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, and ^Ifric's Heptateuch, in the British Museum (Claud. B. iv). The Celtic Gospels only contain miniatures o£ the Four Evan- gelists and their symbols, except the Book of Kelts, at Trinity College, Dublin, which has pictures of the Virgin and Child, the Temptation of Christ, and the Seizure of Christ by the Jews. The best Saxon MSS. containing scenes from the New Testament are : Psalter in the British Museum (Tib. C. vi) ; the Benedictional of iEthelwold, belonging to the Duke of Devonshire ; the great Boulogne Psalter ; the Benedictional of Mthe\ga,T, and the Missal of Archbishop Eobert, at Eouen. The following Irish MSS. contain scenes from the life of David : Psalter of St. John's College, Cambridge ; Psalters in British Museum (Vesp. A. i, and Vit. P. xi). Illustrations of the miniatures are to be found in the follow- ing works : — Count Bastard, Peintures et Ornements des Manuscrits, etc., depuis le quatritme siicle, etc. J. B. Silvestre, PaUographie Universel. I. 0. Westwood, PalsRographia Pidoria Sacra. I. 0. Westwood, Miniatures of Anglo-Saxon and Irish MSS. Palseographical Society Publications. Seroux d'Agincourt, L' Art par les Monuments. E. Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. iii. Archieologia, vol. xxiv. C. Purton Cooper, Report on Rymer's Feeder a. Appendix A. Sir Wm. Betham's Irish Antiquarian Researches. The National MSS. of Ireland. Dr. J. Stuart, The Book of Beer. Oscar von Gebhart, Facsimiles of the Ashlurnham Pentateuch. The illuminated MSS. in the British Museum have been well catalogued by W. de G. Birch and H. Jenner, in their Early Drawings and Illuminations in the British Museum, vjith a Dic- tionary of Subjects, 1879. A good description of them will be found in Waagen's Treasures of Art in England. LECTURE 11. EOMANO-BEITISH PEEIOD AND CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. Romano-British Period, a.d. 50-400. At what time and by whom Christianity was first introduced into this country, will probably never be satisfactorily deter- mined; but there is every reason to believe that a British Church existed nearly three centuries before the landing of Saint Augustine on the shores of Kent in a.d. 597. The earliest historical record that has been preserved concerning pre-Augus- tinian Christianity in Great Britain is, that in a.d. 314 three bishops were present at the Council held at Aries, in France, to consider the opinions of the Donatists. One came from Yort, another from the town of London, in the province of York, and the third, either from Lincoln or Caerleon.^ The British Islands are described as possessing churches and altars by St. Chrysostom, writing a,d. 367 ; and it is to be inferred, from certain passages in the writings of St. Jerome, that the Britons made pilgrimages to the holy places in Palestine. Pelagius, the author of the Pelagian heresy, at the beginning of the fifth century, concerning man's dependence on the grace of God, was a British Christian whose Greek name was equi- valent to Morgan.^ Gildas, a Welsh monk, who wrote about A.D. 564, asserts that churches existed generally in Britain before the departure of the Eomans; and Bede confirms his statements. Turning from history to archeology, it will be necessary to examine the numerous remains belonging to the period of the ' Haddan and Stubbs, Councils, etc., vol. i, p. 7. 2 Ibid., p. 15. 72 ROMANO-BEITISH PEEIOD AND Roman occupation of this country (A.D. 1 to 401), and see whether any distinct traces of Christianity are to be found. It must be admitted that, as a general rule, the explorations of Eoman towns, villas, and cemeteries have revealed only objects of a purely pagan type ; there are, however, exceptions, as will be seen from the following instances. In the year 1869, in levelling the ground on the north side of Westminster Abbey, a stone sarcophagus was discovered at a point about 38 ft. from the north wall of the nave, and 46 ft. from the west wall of the north transept. It lay due east and west, and was buried about 2 ft. below the level of the floor of the Abbey, under the remains of some ancient walls. Inside it was found the skeleton of a man, and a few pieces of tile. On one of the long sides of the sarcophagus was an inscription in three lines, as follows : MEMORIAE . VALER . AMAN DINI . VALEEI . SVPEKVEN TOK . ET MARCELLVS . PATEI . FECER . showing that the tomb was made by Superventor and Mar- cellus for their father, Valerius Amandinus. The inscription is enclosed within a rectangular frame, at each end of which are moon-shaped shield ornaments, similar to those on the sculp- tured Eoman legionary tablet in the Museum of National Antiquities in Edinburgh. The cover of the sarcophagus is a massive block of stone, 7 ft. long and 2 ft. 5' ins. wide, thicker in the middle than at the sides, and having carved upon it a cross in relief, consisting of a long, narrow band running along the central ridge of the cover, and terminating in a head with expanded ends. If it could be proved that this cross was of the same date as the rest of the sarcophagus, it might safely be classed amongst the earliest examples of Christian symbolism in Britain. The character of the ornament on the lower portion of the sarcophagus, and the peculiarities of the lettering (as, for instance, the I extending above the line), show that it is Eoman, and probably not later than about the end of the third century. There is no doubt as to the reading of the inscription, which has been submitted to all the greatest authorities on the subject, CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. 73 both in this country and abroad, and the only point for discus- sion is as to whether the cross on the cover belongs to the same period as the rest. The chief argument against so early a date as the third century being ascribed to it is, that the use of the cross as a symbol, except in its monogrammatic form, did not become common until the fifth century. Probably one of the first dated examples of the occurrence of the cross is on the sarcophagus of Anicius Probus (a.d. 395), in St. Peter's Church at Eome.^ It is also to be found on the coins of Galla Placidia^ (a.d. 425). The lower end of the cross on the West- minster sarcophagus is slightly curved or floriated, wliich is supposed to indicate a late date. The stone of which both the body of the coffin and the cover are made is the same,- — a shelly Fig. 1. — CroBS on lid of Sarcophagus of Valerius Amandinus. oolite, such as is found in Oxfordshire. The workmanship of the cover appears to be ruder than that of the rest, and it has been also a good deal damaged by ill-usage. The narrower end of the coffin is carefully bevelled ; but the corresponding part of the lid is square. Shortly after the discovery of the sarcophagus, the late Dean Stanley read a paper on the subject before the British ArchfEo- logical Institute, and the whole matter was fully discussed''; but the opinions expressed differed very widely. The three suppositions to choose from are : (1) that both the body of the sarcophagus and the cover are of the same date, and that 1 J. W. Appell's Monuments of Early Christian Art, p. 12. 2 Journ. Brit. Archoeolog. Inst., vol. xxvii, p. 279. 3 See papers in Journ. Brit. Archwol. Inst., vol. xxvii, p. 107, by Dean Stanley ; p. 110, by Rev. J. MoCauI ; p. 119, by H. Poole, the Abbey mason ; p. 191, by Albert Way ; and p. 257, by Rev. J. G. Joyce. 74 EOMANO-BRITISH PEKIOD AND Valerius Amandinus was a Eoman Christian, buried probably in the third century ; (2) that the sarcophagus and its cover were appropriated by an unknown Christian, perhaps in the fifth or sixth century, at which time the cross was cut ; (3) that the sarcophagus only was used at a later date, and an entirely new cover with the Christian symbol added. On the whole, the second supposition seems the most likely. ■ The sarcophagus is now preserved, in the original state in which it was found, at the entrance of the Chapter House of Westminster Abbey^ so that it is open to the inspection of any one wishing to form an opinion on the subject. The dimensions are as follows: outside, 7.0 ft. long, 2 ft. 5 ins. wide at top, and 2 ft. Fig. 2.— The Ohi-Eho Monogram from Eoman Villas (1 and 2) at Ohed worth and (3) at Frampton. wide at bottom, by 2 ft. 2 ins. deep ; inside, 6 ft. 0|- in. long by 1 ft. 7i ins. wide by 1 ft. 1 in. deep. The cover is 8 ins. thick in the middle and 5 ins. at the sides. Leaving this rather doubtful example, we next come to what is probably the oldest authentic instance of Christian symbol- ism of the Eomano -British period in Britain. In the year 1794, a very fine Roman pavement was discovered at Frampton, five miles and a half north-west of Dorchester, in Dorsetshire which was thoroughly explored by the great antiquary, Samuel Lysons.i Three rooms and a passage were found to have tesse- 1 See full illustrations in S. hysons' Reliquice Britannico Romance, No. 3 pi. 5. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 75 lated floors, the largest of which measured 31 ft. by 21 ft. It was rectangular, with a semicircular apse at one end, and the band of ornament across the apse consisted of a row of seven circles, all filled iu with scrolls of foliage, except the centre one, which contained the " Chi-Rho" monogram of Christ. Imme- diately adjoining was a head of Neptune, with four dolphins on each side, inscribed as follows : NEPTVNI VERTEX REGMEN SORTITI MOBILE VENTIS SCVLTVM CVI CERVLEA EST DELFINIS CINCTA DVOBVS. The Chi-Rho Monogram. — The monogram in question consists of a combination of the two Greek letters x and p, which begin the name of Christ (xpictoc), one placed over the other, so that the vertical stroke of the p cuts the point of intersection of the two cross-strokes of the x. The earliest dated example known on inscriptions from the Catacombs at Eome belongs to the year 331.^ The origin of the symbol is as follows. On the 6th of the Kalends of November (October 27th), a.d. 312, the Emperor Constantine gained a great victory over his rival Maxentius. We learn from Lactantius,^ preceptor to the Emperor's eldest son, that on the eve of the encounter " Constantine was admonished in a dream to paint on his soldiers' shields the heavenly sign of God, and so to give battle. He does as he is commanded, and with the letter x placed transversely, having one extremity bent round, he marks their shields with Christ. Armed with this sign his army draws the sword." The next day, after conquering under the sign of the cross, Constantine entered Eome in triumph, and summon- ing artists, commanded them to make the labarum, or standard, of which Eusebius^ gives the following description. " It was a long spear, gilt and provided with a transverse bar like a cross. Above, at the top of this same spear, was fixed a wreath of gold and precious stones. Tn the centre of the wreath was 1 Northcote's Epitaphs of the Catacombs, p. 30. Martigny, in his Diet, des Ant. Chret., p. 478, mentions an earlier example dated a.d. 323, dis- covered recently. 2 De Mart. Persec., c. 44. ^ Vit. Constant., lib. i, c. 31. 76 EOMANO-BRITISH PEEIOB AND the sign of the saving name (of Jesus Christ) ; that is to say, a monogram setting forth this holy name by its first two letters combined, the P in the middle of the x. These same letters the Emperor was accustomed henceforth to wear on his helmet. Now to the cross-bar of the labarum which cuts the spear obliquely was hung a kind of veil, or purple fabric, enriched with precious stones, artistically combined with each other, and which dazzled the eyes by their splendour, and with gold embroidery of indescribable beauty. This veil fixed to the cross-bar was as broad as it was long, and had on the upper part of it the bust of the Emperor beloved by God and his children, embroidered in gold, or rather perhaps their medals in gold, hung beneath the banner. The Emperor always used this safe standard as a protecting sign of the power of God against his enemies, and caused ensigns made after the same pattern to be carried with all his armies." This standard occurs on the coins of Constantine,^ and is to be seen on one of the sarcophagi at the Vatican, with the words of the Emperor's dream, EN TOTTXl NIKA (" Under this thou shalt conquer") inscribed upon it.^ The use of the Chi-Rho monogram of Christ soon spread from Eome to other countries, and it is found on monuments in France between the years A.D. 377 and 340.^ The date of the Erampton pavement must lie between A.D. 312, when the mono- gram was first introduced, and A.D. 401, when the Eoman occupation of Britain ceased. Two other Eoman pavements found in this country may possibly be Christian, — that at Harpole,* in Northamptonshire, which has in the centre a circle divided into eight parts by radial lines, so as to resemble one form of the monogram ; and that at Horkstow Hall,^ in Lincoln- shire, which has some small red crosses amongst the decora- tions. The Christian monograiQ is carved twice upon a stone forming the under part of the foundation of the steps leading 1 Martigny's Diet. Ant. Chret., p. 520 ; and King's Early Christian Numismatics. 2 Martigny's Diet., p. 404. 2 Ed. Le Blant, Inser. Chret. de la Gaule. * Journ. Brit. Arehceol. Assoe., vol. vi, p. 126. » S. Lysons' Reliquice Britannico Romance, pi. 3. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MOKUMEKTS. 77 into the corridor of the Eoman villa at Chedworth/ in Glouces- tershire. (Fig. 2.) It appears, then, that the number of sepulchral remains and structures belonging, to the period of the Eoman occupation, which show any trace of the existence of Christianity, is infinit- esimally small ; and the same may be said with regard to the objects discovered in connection with them, the following being a list of the examples at present known : — A silver bowl, found at Corbridge,^ in Northumberland, and now lost, having upon it the Christian monogram repeated six times ; two oval cakes of pewter, found in the Thames near Battersea, and now in the British Museum,^ one stamped with the monogram and the word SPES, and the other with the monogram and the Alpha and Omega repeated twice ; a fragment of a metal foot-rule, in the York Museum,* marked with the monogram ; a piece of Saniian ware found at Catterick Bridge,^ in Yorkshire, belonging to Sir Wilfrid Lawson, with a cross upon it, perhaps Christian ; a terra-cotta lamp in the Museum at Newcastle-on-Tyne,^ with the monogram. The very small number of Eoman objects ornamented with Christian devices, as compared with the total quantity of anti- quities discovered in Great Britain, tends to show that Chris- tianity can have made but little progress here during the first four centuries. Celtic Sepulcheal Monuments (a.d. 400-1066). The next class of remains to which we shall turn our atten- tion are those which show no trace of Eoman influence, but yet bear witness to the existence of an early Celtic Church in this country before the landing of St. Augustine. There are cer- tain peculiarities of ritual, of ecclesiastical observances, of archi- tecture, and of the texts, lettering, and ornamentation of the 1 Jown. Brit. Archseol. Assoc, vol. xxiii, p. 228. ^ Gough's Camden, vol. iii, p. 509. 3 Journ. Brit. Achxol. Inst, vol. xvi, p. 88; and vol. xxiii, p. 68. * C. Wellbeloved's Handbook of the Antiquities in the York Museum (7th edition, 1881), p. 114. ^ Journ. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. vi, p. 81. ^ Hubner's Inscr. Brit. Christ., p. 81. 78 EOMANO-BRITISH PERIOD AND MSS., which show that the Celtic Church had an origin earlier and entirely independent of the Eoman form of Christianity introduced by St. Augustine. The two chief points of difference which existed between the observances of the Eoman and Celtic Churches previous to the Synod of Whitby in a.d. 664 were the time of keeping Easter and the method of tonsure. The Celtic calculation of Easter corresponded with that of the Eoman Church before the Council of Nice (a.d. 325), when the new fashion was introduced, the reason for the change being astronomical, and not theological.^ The Celtic Church, which was isolated from the rest of Christendom, still adhered to the old calculation, until, in the seventh century, the matter became one of crucial controversy at the Synod of Whitby, between Col- man, on the side of the Scots, and Wilfrid, on the side of Eome, and was decided finally in favour of the latter, the Celts agree- ing to conform to the Eoman usage.^ On the statue of St. Hippolytus, of the third century, in the Lateran Museum at Eome, is inscribed his Paschal canon.^ The difference between the Eoman and the Celtic tonsure was, that in the former case the crown of the head was shaved in a circle, whereas in the latter the whole of the hair in front of a line drawn over the top of the head from ear to ear was re- moved.* There were also other differences, as regards the rite of baptism, the ordination of bishops, and the consecration of churches, which need not occupy our attention here. The characteristics of the architecture of the Celtic Church have been treated of in a previous course of Ehind Lectures,^ and the peculiarities of the texts and the palaeography of the MSS. will be found fully described in the works of Professor I. 0. Westwood.® The earliest historical fact recorded about Christianity in Ireland is by Prosper Aquitanus, who describes the mission sent 1 F. E. Warren's Liturgy and Ritual of the Celtic Church, p. 64 ; Rev. G. F. Browne's Venerable Bede, p. 51. '' Bede's Eccl. Hist., book iii, chap. 25. ' Northcote and Brownlow's Moma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 263. ^ "Warren's Liturgy of the Celtic Church, p. 67 ; Bede's Eccl. Hist, book V, chap. 21. ^ Scotland in Early Christian Times, 1st Series. " Falceographia Fictoria Sacra; and Miniatures of Critic and Anglo- Saxon MSS. CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. 79 in A.D. 431, to "the Scots believing in Christ".^ This mission seems to have proved abortive, and led to nothing more than the baptising of a few converts and the erection of three wooden churches.^ The real Christianising of Ireland is, however, undoubtedly due to St. Patrick, who is supposed to have been born about A.D. 387, and probably landed in Ireland in a.d. 440. His death is recorded in the Annals of the Four Masters under the year a.d. 493.^ There was an intimate connection in early times between the Celtic churches of Gaul and Britain, as is shown by the presence of British bishops, attested by their signatures, between a.d. 461 and A.D. 555,* and the visit of Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, and Lupus, Bishop of Troyes, in a.d. 429,^ to confute the Pela- gians at Verulamium. Many of the Celtic churches are dedi- cated to Galilean saints, — as, for example, the very ancient ones at Canterbury, and Whithorne in Wigtonshire, to St. Martin of Tours ; others in Cornwall and Wales to St. Germanus of Auxerre; and in Glamorganshire to St. Hilary of Aries, and St. Lupus of Troyes (under the name of St. Bleddian).^ " The British Church employed the Paschal cycle of Gaul as drawn up by Sulpicius Severus, the disciple of St. Martin {circa a.d. 410), whilst the Irish Church followed the still earlier cycle of Anatolius. The Galilean Psalter, or the second revision made by St. Jerome, a.d. 387-391, wa,s also used by the British Church."' There are traces also of a connection between the Spanish and Celtic Churches (a.d. 380 to 693), indicated by the signatures of British bishops who were present at Spanish Councils, by the existence of the British method of calculating Easter, and by the tonsure.* 1 Haddan and Stubbs' Councils, etc., vol ii, p. 290. 2 Annah of the Four Masters, i, 129. 3 Haddan and Stubbs' Councils, etc., vol. ii, p. 295. * Warren's Liturgy of the Celtic Church, p. 59. 6 HaJddan and Stubbs' Councils, etc., vol. i, p. 16. 15 Rees' Welsh Saints, p. 126 ; and Haddan and Stubbs' Councils, etc., vol. ii, p. 86. 7 Warren's Liturgy of the Celtic Church, p. 60. « Warren's Liturgy of the Celtic Church, p. 62 ; Haddan and Stubbs' Councils, etc., vol. ii, p. 99. 80 EOMANO-BEITISH PERIOD AND Whatever similarities then existed between the Celtic and Eastern Churches in matters of observance, and in the symbolism and ornamentation of the MSS. and sculptured stones, are to be explained, not by there having been a direct intercourse between Britain and the East, but by the connection wich the Gallic Church at a time when Eastern influence affected the whole of Christendom.^ The early Celtic saint was essentially a celibate and a hermit, choosing the wildest and most inaccessible places,^ in order that he might devote himself to a life of seclusion and self-denial, and to the founding of those monastic schools^ which became in time the great centres of learning and missionary enterprise throughout the country. Foremost amongst such men in Gaul was St. Martin of Tours, who was born about a.d. 316 and died in A.D. 400. The school which he established in the west of France led directly to the Christianising of parts of Britain which had before been pagan ; for at the beginning of the fifth century (a.d. 410 to 432), St. Ninian, after visiting St. Martin at Tours, landed in Scotland, and at Whithorn e in Wigtonshire {Ad Candidam Casam) built a church of stone, after a fashion unusual amongst the Britons,* and dedicated it to . St. Martin. This was the first attempt to convert the Southern Picts, but the Christianising of the rest of Scotland did not begin until about 150 years later, when St. Columba came to Scotland from Ireland, in A.D. 563.f Northumbria received its Christianity indirectly from Ireland through lona, when Aidan was made first Bishop of Lindisfarne by King Oswald^ in A.D. 635. Our knowledge of the early Welsh saints is derived chiefly from lives written in the twelfth century. St. Dubricius, the first bishop of Llandaff, lived at the end of the sixth century (A.D. 550-600), and his successor, St. Teilo, together with St. 1 See Warren's Liturgy of the Celtic Church, p. 46. 2 Hence the frequent occurrence of the name Dysart, or desertum in Ireland and Scotland. ' The name Bangor was given to several of these schools, and places in "Wales and Ireland still retain the title. * Bede's Eccl. Hist., bk. iii, chap. 4. ' Haddan and Stubbs. • Bede's Eccl. Hist., bk. iii, chap. 3. CELTIC SEPULCHKAL MONUMENTS. 81 Padarn and St. Cybi, were contemporaries of St. David, who died A.D. 601. St. Cadoc, who founded the monastery of Llan- carvan in Glamorganshire, and who was educated at Lismore in Ireland, was present at the Synod of Llandewi Brefi, in a.d. 569. St. Iltutus was born in Brittany, and his name is associ- ated with Llantwit Major in Glamorganshire. He was the founder of the college at Caerworgen, in the diocese of Llandaff, where St. David, St. Samson of Dol, Paulinus, and Gildas are supposed to have been educated, so that he must have lived at the beginning of the sixth century.^ The duration of the Celtic Church in Britain was as follows. In Central England it became extinct about the end of the fifth century, owing to the Saxon invasions ; the Welsh conformed to the usages of the Anglo-Saxon Church at the end of the eighth century, but the supremacy of the see of Canterbury was not fully established until the twelfth century ; the British Church in Cornwall became subject to the see of Canterbury in the time of King Athelstan (a.d. 925-940) ; the Celtic Church established in Northumberland by King Oswald conformed to the Eoman usage after the Synod of Whitby in a.d. 664 ; the Britons of Strathclyde conformed in a.d. 688, and the Church of lona in A.D. 772 ; but customs peculiar to the ancient Church survived until the eleventh century.^ Prom the above historical evidence, which has been gone into somewhat at length, it appears that the extreme limits of the duration of the Celtic Church, which originated in Gaul, and thence spread to Brittany, Ireland, Wales, Scotland, and the North of England, are from about the year a.d. 400 to 1100. We shall now proceed to examine the objects and monu- ments belonging to this period which show traces of Christian symbolism. The early Celtic ecclesiastical buildings which have survived to the present time are exceedingly plain and simple, and have no ornamental features of any kind ; but some of the later round towers and churches have sculpture us6d sparingly over the doorways, which will be described hereafter. A few specimens of Christian Celtic metal-work, such as shrines for books, bells, or relics, croziers, chalices, and processional crosses, 1 See Haddan arid Stubbs, vol. i ; and Kees' Welsh Saints. ^ Warren, p. 1. G 82 BOMANO-BEITISH PERIOD AND have symbolical subjects upon them. Our knowledge of Celtic Christian symbolism is, however, derived almost entirely from the study of the sepulchral monuments and sculptured stones. It may be worth while remarking that no other nation possesses such a wonderful series of monuments, illustrating the history of Christian art at one of its most obscure periods, and probably no other nation would have treated them with such scorn, or allowed them to be so ruthlessly destroyed. Many of these priceless treasures have been lost altogether, others have been damaged by persons ignorant of their real value, and the whole are perishing miserably from exposure to the weather. Casts, or at least photographs, should be taken before every trace of the sculpture has disappeared. This is the more important, as many fragments, which have been preserved for centuries by being built into the walls of churches, are being brought to light from time to time in the course of modern restorations and alterations, and these are now also in many cases exposed to the weather. A gallery of casts of Celtic sculptured stones would be invaluable for purposes of archseological research, and might be the means of reviving the national taste for the art of sculpture, in which our own countrymen at one time attained so high a standard of excellence. The Celtic monuments of the Christian period are divided into two distinct classes. 1. Bude Pillar -stones — rough, unhewn monoliths, erect, with incised crosses, sometimes accompanied by an inscription in debased Latin capitals or in Oghams. 2. Sculphored Stones— ytith the characteristic forms of Celtic ornament and figure-subjects cut in relief, upon stones care- fully dressed and shaped either into the form of a cross, a sepulchral slab, or a recumbent coped stone ; sometimes accom- panied by an inscription in Irish minuscules, in Saxon uncials, or in Scandinavian Eunes. The chief peculiarities of the rude pillar-stones are : (1) the stone being used in its natural state, without any attempt at dressing or squaring. Long pieces of hard volcanic rock were generally chosen, not often exceeding 6 ft. in length, and they were placed upright in a hole dug in the ground, there being no socket-stone or base of any kind ; (2) the absence of orna- CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 83 mental features ; (3) the cross being incised, and of the simplest form, generally consisting either of two lines crossing at right angles, or a cross patee, within a circle ; (4) the inscription, which is cut vertically up the face of the stone, being in debased Latin capitals and in the Latin language, with the name of the deceased, and the formula "hicjacet" ; or in Ogham characters, and the name of the deceased with the word " maqui" (son of), in the Celtic language. In some cases the inscriptions are biliteral and bilingual. The geographical distribution of rude pillar-stones is as follows. In Ireland there are 121 ; in Wales 107 ; in Devon and Cornwall 30 ; and in Scotland only five. In England they are unknown, except in the two western counties mentioned. It seems clear, therefore, that Ireland was the chief centre from which this class of monument originated^ and their absence in Central England points to their date being post-Eoman. The actual date of the erection of any of the rude pillar- stones has not been ascertained ; for although almost all the inscriptions contain proper names, none of them have been identified with characters known in history, which alone tends to show the great age of these monuments. It is tolerably certain that they belong to the transition period between Chris- tianity and paganism, as they are only found either in connection with semi-pagan remains, or upon the earliest Christian sites. The absence of dressing or ornament, the archaic forms of the lettering, the names and the language, together with the fre- quent use of the formula " hie jacet", which occurs on Christian inscriptions in the Catacombs at Eome, all show that the rude pUlar-stones are older than the sculptured crosses with Celtic forms of ornament. The chief characteristics of the later sculptured crosses are entirely different from those of the rude pillar-stones, and are as follows : (1) That the stone is carefully dressed and cut out into the shape it is intended to assume, either of an erect cross, or an erect cross-slab, or a cylindrical pillar, or a recum- bent cross-slab, or a coped tombstone. The crosses are some- times made of several pieces morticed together, and are gene- rally fixed firmly in a stone socket at the base ; (2) that there is a profusion of those kinds of ornament which are peculiar 84 BOMANO-BRITISH PERIOD AND to Celtic art, such as interlaced-work, key and spiral patterns, and conventional animals, with their bodies, limbs, and tails interlaced, the design being divided up into panels, each of which is complete in itself, and is enclosed in a frame composed of a flat band, roll, or cable moulding ; (3) that the inscriptions are cut in horizontal lines across the stone, and that formula are more varied, being generally to the effect that " A. erected this cross to B. Pray for his soul" ; (4) that the language and letter- ing differs according to the locality, the language being either Latin, Celtic, or Scandinavian, and the letters Irish minuscules and Saxon uncials (corresponding with those in the MSS. of the same period), or the Eunes of ISTorthern Europe. In Scotland a few sculptured stones with Celtic ornament and Ogham inscriptions occur ; but these are exceptional. The dates of many of the later sculptured stones have been satisfactorily determined by means of the names mentioned in the inscrip- tions, which have been identified with historical personages. The most reliable evidence as to the age of sculptured stones with Celtic ornament is derived from the series of 179 sepul- chral cross-slabs at Clonmacnois in Ireland,^ eighty-one of which have been dated, by means of the names inscribed, between the years a.d. 628 and 1273. Out of these, only sixty-seven have any ornament besides the cross, thirty-two being dated by means of the names inscribed. The earliest slab with ornament is the tombstone of Tuathgal/ Abbot of Clonmacnois, A.D. 806. The tombstone of Suibine,^ the scribe of Clonmacnois (a.d. 887), of St. Fiacraich* (a.d. 921), and of St. Berechtuire^ at TuUylease (a.d. 839), are elaborate specimens of Celtic ornament, and there is no doubt whatever either as to the identity of the persons or the date. Of the free standing high crosses of Ireland, which are very ornate, five are dated by means of inscriptions con- taining historical names, namely, those at Monasterboice (a.d. 924) ; Clonmacnois (a.d. 914), and the two at Tuam (a.d. 1106)." Two of the Welsh inscribed and sculptured stones at Llantwit Major in Glamorganshire, set up to the memory of Samson and to Howel ap Rhys, are, from historical and palaographical 1 Petrie's Irish Inscriptions, vol. i, p. 13. * Ihid., pi. xii No. 29 3 Ihid., pi. xxxi, No. 82. i Ibid., pi. xxxvii, No. 95. ^ Ibid., vol. ii, pi. xxx, No. 64. c /jj^^^ p jg|_ CELTIC SEPULOHEAL MONUMENTS. 85 evidence, ascribed by Prof I. 0. Westwood to the close of the ninth century (a.d. 843-884). The inscribed cross at St. Vigeans in Forfarshire is of similar character, and probably belongs to the same period. The evidence as to the age of the sculp- tured stones of Northumbria is rather unreliable. Professor Stephens considers the crosses at Bewcastle, CoUingham, and Euthwell to have been erected in the seventh century. The cross at Hackness in Yorkshire is the oldest with a satisfactory date (A.D. 705-773). The crosses of the Isle of Man belong to the period of the Scandinavian occupation (a.d. 888 to 1226), as is proved by their Panic inscriptions.^ The general result of the above investigation is to show that in Ireland, where Celtic art originated, none of the ornamented sculptured stones can be proved to be older than the ninth century, and therefore it is very improbable that those in Eng- land, Scotland, and Wales can be ascribed to an earlier period. There is consequently a gap of about 400 years which has to be accounted for, between the first introduction of Christianity into Ireland, and the time when sculptured crosses began to be erected. What are the monuments belonging to this earlier period ? The rude pillar-stones supply the obvious answer to the question, and we shall now proceed to examine their sym- bolism. EuDE Pillar Stones (a.d. 402-700). Most of the rude pillar-stones with Christian symbols are inscribed, but there are others with simple incised crosses carved upon them, having no lettering whatever. At the outset we are met with difficulties concerning both these classes of monu- ments. As regards the former, it is not always possible to say with any degree of certainty whether the cross and the inscrip- tion were cut at the same time. The late JMr. Eolt Brash, in his Inscribed Monuments of the Gaedhil, looks upon most of the Ogham inscriptions as of pagan origin, and considers that the stones on which they were cut were appropriated ac a subse- quent period for Christian gravestones, when the cross was added. It will be seen, however, on examination, that most of the crosses referred to are of the simplest and earliest form, and ' Cumming's Rvnic Remains of the Isle of Man. 86 BOMANO-BEITISH PEEIOD AND there seems no reason to doubt that a large proportion at all events are coeval with the inscriptions. With regard to those rude pillar-stones which have crosses, but are without letters, there is often no means of determining the age, as a simple form of cross may be of any date. There are only three Christian symbols which occur on the rude pillar-stones, namely, the Chi-Eho monogram, the cross, and the Alpha and Omega. Fig. 3.— The OU-Eho Monogram on Stones in Cornwall— (1) at St. Just, (2) at St. Helen's Chapel, (3) at Phillaek. The Chi-Rlio Monogram and the Cross. — Very few examples of the existence of the Christian monogram on stone monuments are known in Great Britain, there being three in the west of England, one in North "Wales, four in the south-west of Scot- land, and none in Ireland. Those in Cornwall are as follows : In the chancel of St. Just in Penwith Church is preserved a CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 87 small stone, which was found in a watercourse near the ruins of St. Helen's Chapel, Cape Cornwall.^ It measures 11 inches by 9 inches,^ and is cut out rudely into the form of a cross, on the face of which is cai?ved the Chi-Rho monogram of the most common shape, that is to say, x and p combined. A simi- lar monogram, but enclosed in a circle five inches in diameter, is to be seen upon a small stone built into the wall of the porch Pig. i.—Ohi-Kho Monogram on Stone at Penmaohno. of Phillack Church, above the doorway, which was found when the church was rebuHt in 1856.^ The third Cornish stone is now deposited in the chancel of the Church of St. Just in Pen- with, where it was discovered during the rebuilding in 1834* ' J. T. Blight's Crosses of Cornwall, 3rd ed., p. 61. 2 Journ. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. iv, p. 304. ' Archceologia Cambrensis, 1858, p. 181. * Journ. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. iv, p. 303. 88 ROMANO-BBITISH PEEIOD AND It measures 3 feet 6 inches long by 1 foot 2 inches wide by 9 inches thick. On the edge is an inscription in debased Latin characters — SENILVS IC JACIT and on the adjoining face is the monogram in its later form, consisting of the P with a horizontal cross-stroke. The Welsh example is of the same shape, and is to be found on a stone in Penmachno Church, Caernarvonshire.^ The slab measures 1 foot 10 inches long by 11 inches wide, and the monogram is placed above the inscription, which is in debased Latin capitals, to the following effect : CARAVSIVS HIC JACIT IN HOC CONGERIES LAPIDVM. In Scotland the geographical area in which the stones with the monogram exist is confined to the two most southern pro- montories of Wigtonshire. In the old burying-ground of Kirk- madrine, in the parish of Stoneykirk, are two blocks of whinstone, about 5 feet high and 1 foot 6 inches broad, used at present as gateposts.^ One has an inscription in Latin capitals — HIC lACENT SCI ET PRiECIPVI SACERDOTES ID EST VIVENTIVS ET MAVOKIVS. (" Here lie the holy and excellent priests, to wit, Viventius and Mavorius.") Above the inscription is a circle enclosing a cross, the upper limb of which is bent round like the letter R. This is a form of the Chi-Eho monogram having a special interest, as it shows the way in which the early crosses were developed out of the monogram. Above are the Alpha and Omega. The other stone at Kirkmadrine has the same type of mono- gram, but without the Alpha and Omega. It is inscribed . . S ET FLORENTIVS. A drawing of a third stone, with the monogram just like the preceding, and inscribed INITIVM ET FINIS, has been preserved by Dr. A, Mitchell, in the Proceedings of ' I. O. Westwood's Lapidarium WalUx, pi. 79, No. 2, and p. 175 • Archceohgia Camhrensis, 1863, p. 257. 2 Proc. Snr. Aril. Scof., vol. ix, p. 568 ; Stuart's SciiJjitiifrd Stones vol. ii, pi. 71. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 89 the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland ; but the monument itself is unfortunately either lost or destroyed. On the high ground above the town of Whithorne, on the side of the road leading to the Isle of "Whithorne, stands a stone slab CiACEl^ CiETPPAE ...^yAv^^^wi — . Fig. 5, — Ghi-Eho Monogram on Stones at Kirkmadrine. about 4 ft. high and 2 ft. broad.^ Its original site is unknown. It has on the fa.ce an inscription in Latin capitals — LOCI (s)TI • PETRI APVSTOLI, ' Proc. Soc: Ant. Scot., vol. ix, p. .578 ; Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pi. 78. 90 EOMANO-BEITISH PEEIOD AND and, above, an incised cross with expanded ends of the Maltese pattern within a double circular line. It has a lower limb attached at the bottom, and at the right-hand upper corner is the termination like the letter E, showing that it is intended for the Chi-Eho monogram. This is probably one of the oldest memo- rials of Christianity in Scotland, and belongs to the time when, as Bede tells us, "the Southern Picts relinquished the error of idolatry and received the true faith, by the preaching of the word to them, by Bishop Nynias, a most reverend and holy man, of the nation of the Britons, who had been regularly taught at Eome the faith and mysteries of the truth, whose episcopal see, re- markable for a church dedicated to St. Martin, the Bishop (of Tours), where he himself, together with more Saints, rests in the body, is now in the possession of the nation of the Angles. Which place belongs to the province of the Bernicii, and is commonly called Ad Candidam Casam, be- cause he had there built a Church of stone, after a fashion unusual among the Britons."^ The Ad Candidam Casam of Bede has been identified with Whithorne, and " in a letter of James V, to Pope Innocent X, he says that the tomb of Mnian was still to be seen there, and that pilgrims from England, Fig. 6. — Combined Cross and Monogram ou Stone at Whithorne. 1 Bede, Eccl Hist, bk. iii, chap. 4. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 91 Ireland, the Isles, and adjoining countries, yearly flocked to pay their devotions at his shrine."^ The various forms of the Chi-Eho monogram, just described, illustrate the changes and developments which took place in the symbol from the time of Constantine (a.d. 312), when it was a simple combination of the two Greek letters x and p, to the sixth century, when it became a cross within a circle. The origin of the monogram must be referred to Constantine's dream, previously mentioned, with regard to which the historian Gibbon X P ICTOC D D Fig. 7.— Various forms of the Chi Bho Monogram. has expressed so much incredulity. It is not to be supposed that Constantine invented the symbol, for it is found on coins many centuries before his time ; but whereas there are hardly any examples of its occurrence on Christian monuments before A.D. 323,2 after that time it was universally recognised as signi- fying the name of the Saviour, and used on coins, memorial inscriptions, sarcophagi, mosaics, lamps, glass vessels, and, m fact, throughout the whole range of sacred art. 1 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, p. 62. 2 Earliest known instance found under the pavementof Basilica of St. Laurence, in agro Verano (a.d. 323). See Martigny's Diet., p. 478. 92 EOMANO-BEITISH PEEIOD AND The most ancient form of the monogram was in all proba- bility that in which an x is made on the down-stroke of the p ; but the other one, where a horizontal cross-bar is substituted for the X, was introduced soon after, for it is found also on the coins of Gonstantine. The accidental resemblance of the Greek letter X to the cross of the Passion gives a reason why the monogram should have become such a favourite symbol, and also explains the changes which took place in its shape. All the different variations can be traced to two causes — ( L) the addi- tion of a horizontal cross-stroke to the original form ; and (2) the gradual alteration in the shape of the top of the P, which became more like an E, and finally the little tail was dropped altogether. Thus the p with the horizontal cross-stroke was obtained, first, by adding an additional horizontal bar to the original monogram, and then dropping the x. The cross-forms, consisting either of an i and x combined, or a -I- and x, result from the omission of the top of the P. Two or three of the variations often occur together on the same coin, or sarco- phagus, showing that there was a good deal of caprice in the choice of forms, and that no special one was adhered to rigidly. The addition of the letters Alpha and Omega took place as early as a.d. 347,\ and the monogram is found enclosed in a circle in a.d. 339.^ The Alpha and Omega are generally placed at each side of the x in the first kind of monogram, and below the cross-bar in the second kind, being often hung by chains to it. The origin of the circle is either ornamental, or may be taken from the circular wreath or crown of glory within which the monogram is so often inscribed. The idea of eternity is also associated with the circle, as is seen from an inscription found at Milan^ : " Circulus hie summi eomprehendit nomini regis Quem sine principio et sine fine vides." The circle of tlie monogram survives in the ring which joins the arms of the Celtic crosses. The period during which the 1 Martigny's Diet., p. 478 ; Northcote, in his Epitaphs of the Catacombs, gives A.D. 362. The Alpha and Omega occurs on the coins of Constantius (Martigny, p. 522). ^ De Rossi, Christian Inscr. of Rome, No. 339. ■' Scotland in Earhj Christian Times, 2nd Series, p. 252. CELTIC SEPDLCimAL MONUMENTS. 9e monogram was most frequently used, was that of the sculptured sarcophagi at Eome, from the fourth to the sixth centuries. On the sarcophagi it occupies a central position in the design, which is arranged symmetrically on each side of it. Sometimes it is placed between a pair of doves, or peacocks, or lambs, or it appears on the summit of a cross, with soldiers below. When used in epitaphs, it is either placed at the top, in the middle, as a symbol, or has such words as " in signo", or merely " in", pre- fixed. A curious instance of the introduction of the monogram IHkl mm OLFRIDIAB CON DITORIS ANNO V-^. „ ____^ ' Fig. 8.— Chi-Rbo Monogram on Dedication Stone at Jarrow. in the middle of an inscription is on a stone at Trawsfynydd in Merionethshire, North Wales.^ PORIVS HIG IN TVMVLO JACIT HOMO XPIANVS FVIT. Here the monogram forms the beginning of the word chkisti- ANVS, and is of a remarkable shape, like a p with a c placed together. The period over which the use of the monogram extends 1 Westwood's Lripiilariuin Wallice, pi. 77, No. 7, p. 161. 94 ROMANO-BEITISH PERIOD AND in Gaul, as shown by dated inscriptions, is from a.d. 377 to 493.1 j{-g Tjge^ however, lasted longer in this country, as there is an instance at the beginning of the inscription on the dedica- tion stone of the church at Jarrow,^ in the county of Durham, which was dedicated to St. Paul, in the fifteenth year of 'the reign of Ecfrid, King of iSTorthumbria (or A.D. 685). The monograms on the pillars at Kirkmadrine bear a great resemblance to those sculptured over the doorways of houses in Syria, of the sixth century, which have been illustrated in Fig. 9. — Development of Cross out of Monogram on Stones (1) at Penmaehno, (3) Kirkmadrine, (3) Wldthorno, (4) Agliah. C. J. M. de Vogue's magnificent work on the subject.^ The bars composing the monogram have expanded ends, and inter- sect at right angles in the centre of the enclosing circle ; the loop of the P is now little more than the curving over of the upper end of the vertical bar, and when this disappears we get 1 Le Blant, Inscr. Chret. de la Gaule, vol. i, p. 12. 2 HUbner's Christian Inscr., No. 198. ' Syrie Centrale — Architecture Civile et Relirjieuse. Some illustrations reproduced by Martigny, p. 481. CELTIO SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 95 the simple Maltese cross, which is found on some of the Ogham inscribed and other rude pillar-stones of the earlier Celtic Christian period. To these we shall now direct our attention. Out of about 258 rude pillar-stones with Ogham and debased Latin inscriptions, in Great Britain, there are some thirty which have crosses in addition. The question of whether the crosses are of the same date as the inscriptions, or whether the Christian symbol was a later addition, is one on which there exists a considerable divergence of opinion. Unless, however, it can be shown, either that the form of the cross is one which is unknown at so early a period, or that it has ornamental peculiarities of a late character, or that it is cut in such a way as to interfere with the inscription, there is no reason to doubt that both the cross and the inscription were executed at the same time, — although, of course, there is no possible means of proving that such is the case. Out of all the examples which have been engraved by Brash and Westwood, in their works on the subject,^ there is only one instance where the cross destroys the inscription.^ The cross is generally of the simplest and most ancient form, and incised, without ornament of any kind. In Ireland the monuments in question are in many instances found on sites associated with the names of early saints, or in what were formerly Christian graveyards, but are used now only for burying unbaptised infants, and persons who have committed suicide. One of the oldest forms of the cross is that known as the Maltese within a circle. It is the same as that on the Whithorne stone, but without any trace of the monogram. There are four examples of rude pillar-stones on which this type of cross occurs : — three in the county of Kerry in Ireland,^ and one in Pembrokeshire, South Wales,* all with Ogham inscriptions. Perhaps the most remarkable is that at Aglish, in the county of Kerry, which has, in addition to a Maltese cross within a circle, two small Buddhist crosses, or ^ Ogham Monuments of the Gaedhil, and Westwood's Lapidarium Wallice. ^ At Silion, Cardiganshire ; Westwood, pi. 66, No. 1. 3 Maumenorig, Aglish, Brandon Mountain. {Brash, pis. 21, 24, 27.) ^ 'Dugoed, near Clydai. {Westwood, pi. 59.) 96 EOMANO-BKITISH PEKIOD AND Swasticas, on each side of an equilateral triangle. The Swastica, although originally a pagan symbol found on early Greek coins and pottery, and on the feet of Buddha, was adopted at an early period by the Christians, and is to be seen on the paintings of Diogenes Fossor^ and the Good Shepherd,^ of the fourth century, in the Catacombs at Rome. It is found on the Newton stone in Aberdeenshire,^ on a stone at Craigentarget, Glenluce,* and on three sepulchral slabs in Ireland.^ In later times the Swastica appears chiefly on ecclesiastical vestments, sepulchral brasses,^ Fig. 10, - Oircular Crosses on Stones (1) at Trallong, (2) at Maumenorig, and (8) at Dugoed. and church bells' ; but it was never a common Christian symbol. The origin and meaning of the pagan Swastica^ is beyond the 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. i, p. 206. 2 Ibid., vol. ii, p. 177. 3 Stuart's Sculptured Stones. ^ Proc. Soc. Ant. Scot., vol. xv, p. 2.51. ' Proc. R. I. A., vol. xxvii, p. 43 ; Journ. R. H. and A. A. of Ireland, 1880, p. 376. ^ Waller's Monumental Brasses. ' Reliquary, vol. xxii, pi. 6. ** For origin of Swastica, see Numismatic Chronicle, vol. xx, p. 18, and Schliemann's Troy. The Swastica occurs on a metal circlet with inter- CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 97 scope of our subject ; by the Christians it was used merely as a particular form of the cross. The Maltese cross enclosed within a circle, although one of the oldest forms, has survived in the crosses used for dedi- cating churches, and in the ones used over Norman doorways. In both these cases it is probable that at some time the Maltese cross has taken the place of the earlier monogram, which exists on the dedication- stone at Jarrow, and was also placed over doorways in Syria, in the sixth cen- tury. The Maltese cross without the circle occurs on three Ogham stones in Ireland,^ and one pillar with a debased Latin in- scription in Glamorganshire.^ There are three instances of an incised circle with two cross-lines being carved on Ogham stones,^ and seven which have perfectly plain crosses, consisting of two lines cutting at right angles.* The tau cross appears on a pillar with a debased Latin inscription at Fowey, in Cornwall.^ This is a very rare instance, although there is another amongst the inscriptions in the Catacombs with the Alpha and laced work, found in Westmoreland (Journ. B. A. Inst., vol. iv, p. 63), and on the capital of a Norman pillar in Essex {Essex Arch. Soc. Trans., vol. ii, New Series, p. 377). 1 Knookourane, co. Cork, and Maumenorig and Brandon Mountain, CO. Kerry. {Brash, pis. U, 21, 27.) 2 Mynydd Margam. {Westwood, pi. 13.) 2 Drumconwell, co. Armagh {Journ. R. H. and A. A. of Ireland); Llau- winio, Caermarthenshire ; and Trallong, Brecknockshire. {Westwood, jls. 36 and 47.) * Innisvioillane, Trabeg, Ballinahunt, Barrymorereagh, Killeenadree- nagh, and Keelogran, co. Kerry {Brash, pis. 16, 24, 25, 33, and 34) ; Caldy Island, Pembrokeshire {Westwood, pi. 52). Also on stones with Latin in- scriptions at St. Nicholas, Pembrokeshire ; Trawsmawr, Caermarthen- shire ; Fowey, Trigg Minor, and Nanteglos, Cornwall {Hubner). 5 Journ. B. A. Inst., vol. iv, p. 307. H Fig. 11. — Circular Cross on stone at Aglish. 98 EOMANO-BEITISH PERIOD AND Omega.i The inscribed pillar at St. Clement's, Truro, has the top formed into a circle with a cross upon it.^ There are a few other miscellaneous forms of crosses on rude pillar-stones. At Gowran, co. Kilkenny, and Drumkeare, co. Kerry, the cross has arms, each terminating in a square ; at Kin- naird East, co. Kerry, the cross resembles a window-frame, and consists of a square divided into quarters by two cross-lines, the two upper quarters being again subdivided in a similar manner ; at Ballintaggart, and Ballintarmon, co. Kerry, the crosses are formed of incised lines^; and at Staynton and Bridell, in Pembrokeshire,* the crosses are circular. Fig. 12.- Various forms of Crosses on rude Pillar-Stones with Inscriptions. It only remains now to refer briefly to the rude pillar-stones having crosses but no inscriptions. The age of such monu- ments can only be guessed at ; but when the cross is incised and of simple form, and when the stone on which it is carved is associated with inscribed monuments of undoubted antiquity, 1 De Eossi, Christ. Inscr. of Rome, No. 218. 2 Journ. B. A . Inst., vol. iv, p. 309. 3 Brash, pis. 28, 39, 25, 22, and 23. * Archceologki Cambrensis, and West wood, pi. 64. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 99 as in tlie case of the stone at Trawsmawr^ in Caermarthen- shire, or when it is found on an ancient ecclesiastical site now deserted, as in the case of St. Patrick's Chair, near Marown, in the Isle of Man, it may not be unreasonable to ascribe an early date. The cross at Trawsiuawr consists of two incised grooves, terminating in round holes or dots, and with four round holes in the angles of the cross. It is carved upon a rude monolith standing erect near a similar stone, with a debased Latin inscrip- Fig. 13.— Gross on rude Pillar-Stone at Trawsmawr. tion. St. Patrick's Chair is a small heap of stones, on the top of which are two upright slabs having incised crosses, just like the one at Trawsmawr, but without the four dots in the angles. A very similar cross exists on the stone in the burying ground at Eilean na Naimh,^ in Scotland, described in a previous course of PJiind Lectures by Dr. Anderson. Another early form of cross found on this class of monument is at Laggangan in Wig- 1 Westwood, pi. 49. 2 Scotland in Early Christian Tunes. 100 ROMANO-BRITISH PERIOD AND tonsliire/ and is of the Latin shape, made in outline with an incised groove, but incomplete at the bottom, where it is left open (fig. 14, No. 3). In each of the four corners are little crosses, taking the place of the dots on the Trawsmawr stone. This reduplication of crosses is also found on a stone at Llan- fihangel ar Arth in Caermarthenshire^ (fig. 14, No. 2), and at^ a later period on a cross ornamented with interlaced work, at Kil- martin in Argyleshire.^ It is possible that the five crosses thus produced, or the five round bosses on some of the Celtic orna- mental crosses, may have a symbolical significance as referring to our Lord's five wounds. Fig. 14. — Various formB of incised Crosses on rude Pillar-Stones without inscriptions. We have now concluded our survey of the earliest known Christian monuments in this country, and have shown that although there exists no means by which the exact date of their erection can be determined, yet the period to which they belong has pretty clearly defined limits. On the one hand, Christian symbols which had their origin in another geographical area, cannot be expected to appear in a place at a remote distance 1 Scotland in Early Christian Times, 2nd Series, p. 89. 2 Wistioood, pi. 48. ■' Scotland in Early Christian Times, 2nd Series, p. 128. CELTIC SEPULCI-IEAL MONUMENTS. 101 from the ceutre where they were first invented, until a suffi- cient time has elapsed to allow of their gradual diffusion through the intervening countries. Thus it would be unreason- able to assume that the cross was introduced into Britain before it found its way into Gaul, or that it was used in Gaul before it was known in Home. Again, on the other hand, the limit of duration of the earliest types of Christian monuments in Britain is fixed, because their place is taken at a later period by an entirely new class, whose age is determined by historical evidence. The period coniined between these two limits extends approximately from a.d. 400 to 700. We shall now proceed to examine the ornamented sculptured stones which superseded the rude inscribed pillars in the seventh or eighth centuries, and continued in use until the time of the Korman Conquest in a.d. 1066. The five chief points, already mentioned, in which the earlier Celtic Christian monuments differ from the later ones are : (1) the dressing of the stone; (2) the practice of incising the design instead of sculpturing it in relief ; (3) the use of peculiar geometrical and other forms of ornament ; (4) the alteration in the letters of the inscriptions ; and (5) the introduction of new formulte in the epitaphs. As regards the dressing of the stone, the same changes seem to have taken place in the sepulchral monuments as is to be observed in the ecclesiastical buildings ; for the early oratories of Ireland, built of uncemented stones put together without the use of the hammer or chisel, and the rude pillars erected to the memory of the Christians who worshipped in them, are nothing more than blocks of slate granite or sandstone in their natural state, untouched by the tool of the mason, except for the cutting of the inscription. Side by side with improvement in the art of building, we find an increased amount of thought and labour expended in the preparation of the memorials of the dead. At the same time that the mason began to square his stones care- fully and set them in mortar, the sculptor commenced to repro- duce in a harder material the beautiful forms of ornamentation which the Celtic scribes lavished upon the early MSS. of the Gospels. As the art of writing became more common, the shape of the letters altered, and in place of the debased provincial 102 ROMANO-BKITISH PEEIOD AND Latin capitals, which occur universally on the rude pillar-stones, the neater and more rounded minuscule or small letters of the MSS. were introduced for lapidary inscriptions, together with the peculiar Irish letters, y, 5, and y} In those areas where Scandinavian influence was strong, as in the Isle of Man and parts of Yorkshire and Scotland, the Northern Eunic alphabet was used. The angular Latin capitals, with the S formed like a Z and the diamond-shaped 0, such as occur in the Saxon and Irish MSS., are also found on inscriptions on stone in England. The inscriptions on the crosses are carved in horizontal lines across the stone, instead of reading vertically, as on the rude pillar-stones, and are often enclosed in a neat marginal line, so as to form a rectangular panel. Instead of the " Hie jacet" formula of the rude pillar-stones, the later sepulchral slabs in Ireland have "Oroit do"^ (" a prayer for", or " pray for") A. the son of B. ; on the crosses of Wales, A. " freparavit" , or "fecit, hanc crucem pro anima ejus', is not uncommon^; in the Isle of Man, A. "raisti cj^us" ("raised this cross") "aft" ("to the memory") of B. the son of C, is generally found* ; and on some crosses in England, " Gibidad der saide" (" pray for his soul") occurs.' Having now pointed out the chief peculiarities by means of which the rude pillar-stones may be distinguished from the later ornamental sculptured crosses, we shall proceed to examine the symbolism of the latter; but there are tirst an intermediate class which deserve some passing notice. These are monuments which, although having inscriptions in the minuscule form of letter, are yet almost destitute of dressing and ornamental features. Pei'haps the most typical example of the class is the pillar at Killnasaggart, co. Armagh, Ireland. " The name Cell na-Sagart signifies the Church of the Priests {Cella Sacerdoium); but no remains of any church can now be found. There is a small enclosure on a mound, where some. traces of ancient sepulture may still be 1 Petrie's Irish Christian Inscr., vol. ii, p. 135. 2 JU^,^ n, 146 ■'' Westwood's Lapidarium Walliw. ^ .). G. Curaming's Runic Remains of the Isle of Man. ■'• Stephens' Ruirir Monuments. CELTIO SEPULCHBAL MONUMENTS. 103 seen, within which stands a pillar of unmistakable antiquity, ou which the following inscription is carved : inioc rota tepnoc rnaCCCRan p£leT?ap Fig. 16.— Pillar-Stone with minuscule iuBcription at KUnasaggart. IN LOG SO TANIMMAIRNI TERNOHC MACCEKAN BIG EE CUL PETER APSTEL.''^ (" This place, Ternoc, son of Ciaran the Little, bequeathed it 1 Petrie's Irish Inscr., vol. ii, p. 27, and pi. 19. 104 EOMANO-BEITISH PERIOD AND under the protection of Apostle Peter.") The death of Ternoc, son of Ciaran, is recorded in the Annals of Tighernach, under the year A.D. 716, and in the Annals of the Four Masters, under the year a.d. 714. The possible date of the erection of the monument is therefore fixed by historical data at the beginning of the eighth century ; but Miss Stokes expresses some doubt as to its being so old.^ The inscription is in rounded Irish minuscules, and the language is Irish. The stone stands 7 ft. 4 ins. out of the ground, and measures 1 ft. 6 ins. wide by 6 ins. thick. On the inscribed face are two incised crosses, the upper one of the plain Latin form, and the one at the base having its ends curved round in little spirals, and being enclosed within a circle. On the back of the stone are ten similar crosses within circles, which are, however, in relief, instead of being incised. The pillar is not dressed into shape, but has tool-marks upon it. The dedication to the Apostle Peter recalls the inscription on the Whithorne stone, already described. The cross within the circle is also common to both, and points to an early date. There are two pillar-stones in the county of Kerry, in Ireland, inscribed in minuscules, and having Maltese crosses within circles and spiral forms of ornament below, all incised. One of these stones is at Kilfouutain, and stands near the founda- tions of an old church in a burial-ground reserved for unbap- tised children and suicides. It is inscribed with the founder's name, "Finten", and has some Ogham characters upon it which have not been deciphered.^ The other stone is in the burial- ground of Reask, and has the letters " dne", the contraction for " domine", upon it.^ The abbreviations, dns — i5Fi — dno, for dominus — domini DOMINO, are almost unknown except in the county of Kerry,* but there is what appears to be a similar inscription upon a stone with a cross found at Papa Stronsay in Orkney.^ A rude pillar standing near the doorway of the Church of Kilmalkedar, co. Kerry, has a complete minuscule alphabet cut 1 Petrie's Irish Inscr., vol. ii, p. 29. 2 Ibkl, pi. 3. 3 Ihid., pi. 4. * Ibid., vol. ii, Nos. 6, 8, 9. '> Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. i, pi. 47. CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. 105 upon it, together with the contraction i^ and a cross.^ There are two other rude monoliths with minuscule inscriptions in Ireland ; one near the oratory of Gallarus, co. Kerry ,^ and the other on Inchagoile Island, Lough Corrib, co. Galway.^ There are about ten instances in Wales of stones with minus- cule inscriptions and crosses, the most remarkable being the pillar of St. Cadfan, at Towyn in Merionethshire,* which is 7 ft. high and 10 inches wide, the language of the inscription being a very ancient form of Welsh. There are two plain incised crosses upon it. The tall, slender monolith in the churchyard at Fig. 16.— Various forms of Oroases on Pillar-Stonea with miniscule inscriptions — (1) at Eeaslf, (2) at Kilnasaggart, (3) at Llanwnnwa, and (4) at Papa Stronsay. Llandewi Brefi, in Cardiganshire,^ belongs to the same class, and is interesting from its traditional association with St. David, who is supposed to have leaned upon it when preaching at the Synod held at that place in the year a.d. 619, for the suppres- sion of the Pelagian heresy. ' Petrie's Irish Inscr., vol. ii, No. 9. 2 Ibid., vol. ii, No. 10. 3 Ihid., vol. ii, No. 11. ^ Westwood's Lapidarium WalUce, pi. 75. 6 Ibid., pi. 69, No. 2. 106 EOMANO-BBITISH PERIOD AND Eakly Ceoss-Slabs (a.d. 650-1066). Passing now from the transitional class of monuments which have just been described, we will turn our attention to the ornamental sculptured stones of the pre-Norman period, all of which are sepulchral, with the exception of some of the more important high crosses. These memorials to the dead are of four kinds : (1) cross-slabs laid horizontally over the grave of the deceased ; (2) coped or hog-backed tombstones, also horizontal ; (3) erect crosses ; (4) small erect head-stones. Each of these will be described in their proper order. Beginning then with cross-slabs, we find by far the largest and most interesting collection at Clonmacnois, in Ireland, which is situated on the eastern bank of the Eiver Shannon, and was in early times the most important seat of learning in the country. It was founded by St. Ciaran, about the year a.d. 554, and " the value set on this spot as a place of burial arose out of a belief in the power which the patron saint's intercession would have with the Deity on the last day."^ The remains which exist at the pre- sent day at Clonmacnois consist of eight ecclesiastical structures — two round towers, an ancient castle, two magnificent free- standing crosses,^ to be described hereafter, and about 180 sepul- chral slabs, with which we are at present concerned. The value of the information obtained from this source on the early Christian symbolism, palaeography, language, and ornamental art cannot be over-estimated, as out of 180 inscribed cross-slabs 81 have been identified, by means of the names recorded, as being the tombstones of bishops, abbots, priests, scribes, kings, lords, and chieftains, the years of whose deaths are mentioned in his- torical documents such as the Annals of the Four Masters, the Ghronicon Scotorum, and other authorities. We have thus, be- tween A.D. 628 and 1278, a regular series of dated inscriptions, spread over the different centuries in the following propor- tions : — ' Petrie's Irish Inset:, vol. i, p. 4. 2 See Petrie's and Lord Dunraven's works, On Irish Ecclesiastical Architecture. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONaMaP^; 107 7th century 4 8th „ 6 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 28 18 18 fi 1 Total 81 The method of obtaining a complete chrouological series is first to arrange and classify the inscriptions according to the variations in tlie forms of the letters, the grammatical and de- clensional peculiarities of the language, and the formulfe of the epitaphs ; the changes in the shapes of the crosses used at dif- ferent times, and the quality of the art exhibited in the orna- mental features being also taken into account. The dated inscriptions will then serve as landmarks for ascertaining the age of the undated ones, by merely placing the series arranged in groups archseologically side by side with the historical series arranged in chronological order. Finally, a certain amount of rectification will be necessary so as to render the whole con- sistent ; that is to say, where unimpeachable historical evidence throws doubt upon the arrangement according to the archaeo- logical and artistic features, a revision must take place, and vice versd. These are the principles which giiided De Eossi in dealing with the inscriptions of Eome, and Le Blant with those of Gaul. There are no sepulchral slabs at Clonmacnois which can on historical or other evidence be attributed to the first 84 years after the foundation of the monastery by St. Ciaran (a.d. 544), so that the monuments belonging to this period have either disappeared or present no peculiarities by which they may be identified. All the slabs at Clonmacnois are inscribed in Irish minus- cules, and the only Christian symbol seen is the cross in dif- ferent forms. They are sculptured on one side only, and were therefore probably intended to lie flat over the grave. An early 108 EOMANO-BKITJSH PEBIOD AND Irish poem, preserved in a MS. in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, commences as follows : — " Ciaran's city is Cluain-mic-Nois, A place dew-bright, red rosed ; A race of chiefs whose fame is lasting, Are hosts under the peaceful clear-streamed place. " Nobles of the children of Conn Are under the flaggy, brown-sloped cemetery, A knot, or an ogham over each body, And a fair, just ogham name."' Of the Ogham inscriptions mentioned in this poem only one is known to have existed, and it is now unfortunately lost. It was upon the tombstone of Colman,^ possibly the Abbot of Clon- macnois of that name whose death is recorded in Chronicon Scolorum, A.D. 661. The name Colman, in minuscules, is pre- ceded by a small, plain, incised cross, and below is carved the word " bocht", or poor, in Ogham letters, not on the angle of the stone, but on a stem line, as at Lunnasting and other places in Scotland. There is one other slab at Clonmacnois earlier than that of Colman, and which forms the starting-point of the series of dated stones. It is inscribed in Irish minuscules — OR DO CHOLUMBON ("Pray for Columban") ; and from the earlier character of some of the letters, such as the diamond-shaped O, it may possibly be the epitaph of Columban, Abbot of Clonmacnois, who died a.d. 628.^ Various forms of Grosses. The cross on this slab, which is drawn in outline and desti- tute of ornament, consists of a central circle connected with four semicircles, whose fiat sides face outwards, by bands nar- rower in width than the diameters of the circle (fig. 17, No. 3). In this particular instance the four arms of the cross are of equal length ; but the same shape, with the shaft prolonged, is the one which occurs oftener than any other at Clonmacnois, and may be taken as the one most typically characteristic of the locality. Its use extends from a.d. 887 to 1106, during which period there are 1 Petrie's Irish Inacr., vol. i, p. 5. ^ Ibid., pi. 2, No. 4. 3 iii^^^ y^i i_ pi_ 1^ jsfo. 3. CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. 109 about twenty dated examples, all except one being ornamented with key-patterns, spirals, or interlaced work. The earliest and most beautifully decorated cross of this class is on the tombstone of Suibine MacMaelhumai.^ The monument in question possesses a double interest as being one of the most important landmarks in the history of Celtic art in sculptured stonework, and as commemorating a scholar whose fame was so great that his death was considered an event of sufficient importance to be recorded, not only by all the annalists of Ireland, but by the chroniclers of England also. Thus we read in the Annales Pig. 17 Various forma of Orosaes on Sepulchral Slabs at Olonmacnoia. Camhriie, under the year a.d. 889: " Subin Scotorum sapientis- simus obiit"; and similar testimony to his learning and celebrity is borne by the Saxon Ohronicle, Florence of Worcester, the Anncds of Ulster, and the Chronicon Scotorum. The identifica- tion is rendered complete by the name of the father of Suibine being given in his epitaph, and by the entry in the Annals of the Four Masters, under the year a.d. 887,—" Suibhne, son of Maelhumha, anchorite and scribe of Cluain-mic-Nois, died." The name Suibine is equivalent to the modern Sweeney. 1 Petrie's Irish Inscr., pi. 31, No. 82. 110 ROMANO-BEITISH PERIOD AND Another fine cross, of a similar shape, ornamented with key- patterns, is on the tombstone of Conaing,i son of Congal, Lord of TefSa, who died a.d. 821. There is thus clear evidence that this form of cross was in use as early as the beginning of the ninth century, and also that Celtic ornament was applied to decorative stonework at this period, there being no proof forthcoming that it was used, except in MSS., at an earlier date. The next most common form of cross found at Clonmacnois to the preceding is one of which there are several variations, as shown on the accompanying diagram (fig. 18), and which in its Fig. 18.— Variations of the " Window Frame" pattern of Cross on slabs at ClonraaCQOis. simplest shape consists of a rectangle divided into four quarters by two straight lines cutting at right angles, somewhat resem- bling the panes in a window-frame. The idea, which is that of a cross within a square border, may have been suggested by the covers of the copies of the Gospels. The effect obtained is that of a geometrical pattern, rather than of a cross, the simple beauty of the symbol of our faith being entirely destroyed by the enclos- ing margin. There are altogether about thirty slabs at Clonmac- nois having this type of cross, seven of which have been dated between A.D. 783 and 926. It appears, therefore, that it was 1 Petrie, vol. i, pi. 38, No. 98. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. Ill amongst the earliest kinds used, but was gradually superseded by the one first described. Out of the thirty crosses of the win- dow-frame pattern three alone are ornamented, having a Greelc Iret round the border. The only one of these which has been dated is on the tomb of Tuathgal,i Abbot of Clonmacnois, who died A.D. 806. The most typically Celtic form of cross is derived from the plain Latin cross by surrounding it with a circular ring connecting the arms, and making four circular hollows at the corners where the arms intersect (fig. 17, No. 4). It occurs upon about twenty- two of tlie slabs at Clonmacnois, six of which are dated between, perhaps, A.D. 651 and 895. Only one shows any trace of orna- ment, having a pointed end filled in with a little three-cornered triquetra knot.^ The absence of ornament, and the age of the dated examples, tend to show that this was one of the earliest forms of the cross after the ones enclosed in circles found on the rude pillar-stones, from which it was probably developed by extending the arms beyond the circle. It is to be found on an inscribed slab at lona,^ and on a small stone at St. Edrens, in Pembrokeshire.'' The next shape of cross to be described consists of a central square, surrounded by four other squares, which are joined to- gether by four bands of narrower width than that of the side of the square (fig. 17, No. 5). A circular ring connects the arms. It occurs upon about seventeen slabs at Clonmacnois, of which eight are dated between a.d. 814 and 889. Except in one in- stance, which is the earliest (a.d. 889) example of interlaced work here,^ the cross itself is plain, but in two cases it is en- closed in a rectangular frame of key-pattern, and in others the foot is finished off iither with two volute curves,^ or with a triangular point^ and a triquetra knot. The form of cross just described is found 'frequently on the more important erect 1 Petrie's Irish Inscr., vol. i, pi. 12, No. 29. 2 Hid, pi. 5, No. 14. 3 Stu irt's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pi. 6.5. * Aruhceologia Cambrensis, vol. for 1883, p. 262. 5 Fei:ie, vol. i, pi. 35, No. 91. « Ibid., vol. i, pi. 18, No. 47. 7 lb d., pi. 34, No. 89. 112 EOMANO-BBITISH PEEIOD AND monuments in Scotland and Wales, and also on early sepulchral slabs in England. ^ Before leaving Clonmacnois two of the less common kinds of crosses must be mentioned. The first occurs on the tombstone of Daniel,^ and is composed of a double band, forming knots at the extremities of the arms, and passing through a circular ring in the centre. It is, in fact, a cross composed entirely of interlaced work, without any surrounding margin (fig. 19, No. 1). The other type of cross referred to is that enclosed within a circle, but instead of being plain, as on the early pillar-stones, it Fig. 19. — Various ornamental forme of Grosses and terminations of arms on slabs at Clonmacnois. is highly ornamented with key-patterns find interlaced work (fig. 19, No. 2). Three instances exist at CI )nmacnois, the most elaborate being on the tombstone of St. I .achra,^ who died in 1 On slabs in England, at Monkwearmouth, Hartlepool, Kirkdale ; on crosses in Wales, at Llantwit Major, Margam Lla larthney ; on slab at Abercrombie in Fifeshire ; on cross at Edderton, anc' about sixteen others in Scotland. (See Stuart's Sculptured Stones.) 2 Petrie, vol. i, pi. 35, No. 90, and on Scattery Island. (Ibid., vol. ii, pi. 18, No. 37.) 3 Petrie, vol. i, pi. 37, No. 95 ; also pi. 43, No. 109, and pi. 68, No. 104. CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. 113 A.D. 921 ; and there are three other similar ones at Pen Arthur,^ near St. David's in South Wales. The tombstone of St. Fiachra is interesting, both as being a reliable dated example of Celtic art at the beginning of the 10th century, and because the name of the Saint has been perpetuated in the French word fiacre. Of the plain Latin cross drawn in outline there are only four examples on slabs at Clonmacnois, one of which is dated a.d. 884.^ The simple cross, composed of two incised lines cutting at right angles, is more common, there being sixteen, out of which seven are dated between the years a.d. 664 and 1021. The various methods of finishing off the ends of the arms of the crosses with triangular points and spiral curves are shown in the accompanying diagram. (Fig. 19, Nos. 4 to 7.) The foregoing description of the peculiarities of form exhibited by the different crosses on the sepulchral slabs at Clonmacnois may, perhaps, have appeared to be rather lengthy and tedious, but it is only by studying the most minute details that we can hope to extend our very limited knowledge of early Celtic art and symbolism. We now pass on to those sepulchral slabs in Ireland and elsewhere upon which other Christian symbols are found in addition to the cross, consisting almost exclusively of abbrevia- tions of the sacred name of Christ, and the Alpha and Omega. The IHC, XPS, and XPI Abbreviations. Up to the present the only contraction of our Lord's name which has been noticed is the Chi-Eho monogram, but this only exists upon the very early pillar-stones, and is entirely wanting upon the later and more highly ornamented monu- ments. In its place we get the three Greek letters p^p?, written not in capitals but in minuscules, and sometimes with the old form of s made like a c. The XP'^ is composed of the first two and last letters of the word X/jtcrro?. There are altogether five examples known of its occurrence upon pre-Norman inscribed stones, — two in Ireland and one in Wales. The most interesting of these is perhaps that on the tombstone of St. Berechtir of 1 Westwood's Lapidarium WalHce, pi. 60, 2 Petrie, vol. i, No. 37. I 114 BOMANO-BEITISH PERIOD AND Tiillylease,^ whose death is recorded on the 6th of December, A.D. 839. He is supposed to have been one of the three sons of a Saxon prince who left England after the defeat of Colman, Bishop of Lindisfarne, by Wilfrid of York, at the Synod of Whitby (A.D. 664). The tombstone in question is still in the church at Tully- lease, in the county of Cork, dedicated to St. Berechtir, and is C|cunq Caua Hno c)i;Cione p no am Fig. 20.— xps on Btones— (1) at Llan nnwns, and (2) at Tullylease. one of the most beautiful, and at the same time earliest dated examples of Celtic ornamentation which has survived. The cross upon the slab is covered with a diagonal key-pattern, a central circle is filled in with a wreath of interlaced work, and there are four circles in each of the corners, having spiral devices. The top angle of the stone has been broken away on 1 Peirie, vol. ii, pi. 30. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 115 the left side, where probably the letters lis were carved, as on the right the i^? is still visible. On the lower part of the stone is the following inscription, in Irish minuscules : QVICVMQVE HVNC TITVLV LEGERIT ORAT PRO BEREGHTVIRE. (" Whoever may read this superscription let him pray for Berechtir.") ^urma^^ Fig. 21.— The Alpha and Omega, I H s, and yps on the tombstone of Gurmarc at Pen Arthur. The stone measures 3 ft. by 2 ft. The %p?, with a somewhat similar formula, is to be seen upon the stone of St. Gwnnws, near Ystrad Meyric Station,i in Cardiganshire, which is in- scribed as follows in minuscules : 1 Westwood's Lapidarium WalUce, pi. 68. 116 EOMANO-BEITISH PEEIOD AND QVICVNQVE EXPLICAVEEIT HOC NOMEN DET BENEDIXIONEM PEO ANIMA HIEOIDIL FILIVS CAEOTINN. (" Whoever shall have explained this name let him give a bene- diction for the soul of Hiroidil the son of Carotin."^) The two Welsh examples are both in Pembrokeshire ; one on a stone from Penarthur, now in St. David's Cathedral, which has a circular ornamental cross, and is inscribed with the name " Gurmarc"^; and the other upon a small cross-slab at St. Edrens.3 w m n ) R Fig. 22.— The Alpha and Omega, i h o and XPO, on stone at St. Edrens. The Alpha and Omega. On both the slabs at Penarthur and St. Edrens, besides the xpc, which has the old form of the Greek s like a c, there is the ' This formula appears to have been in use in Ireland in the eighth and ninth centuries; and in the Gospels of MacKegol, in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, there is an entry, — " Quicunque legerit et intellegerit istam narrationem orat pro Macreguil Scriptori.'' 2 Westwohd, pi. 60. ^ ArchceoJofjia Cambrensis, vol. for 1883, p. 262. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 117 Alpha and Omega and the ihc. The symbolic meaning of the Alpha and Omega is explained by the text in the Eevelations (i, 8). The only special feature to be noticed here is, that the line to signify a contraction is placed below the Omega instead of above it. Dr. Eeeves considers that the contraction is for the word et, between the Alpha and Omega. The Alpha is in the capital form, but the Omega, as is most usual, in the minus- cule. The IHC is an abbreviation of the name IH^OTC, com- J Fig. 23.— The Alpha and Omega on the tombstone of Hildithryth, at Hartlepool. posed of the first two and last letters, the old form of the Greek sigma being used. There is a unique example in Ireland of the Alpha and Omega, the ih and the xps all occurring together upon the tombstone of " Bresal", now preserved in St. Kevin's Kitchen at Glendalough, in the county of Wicklow.^ The slab measures 5 ft. 5 ins. long by 2 ft. 31 ins. broad by 6 ins. thick. The 1 Journal of the Archeeol. Assoc, of Ireland, vol. vi, Fourth Series (1883), p. 42. 118 BOMANO-BRITISH PEEIOD AND form of the cross is tlie same as that upon the tombstone of " Daniel", at Clonmacnois (see fig. 19, No. 1), having knots at the extremities of the arms. Amongst the very interestii^ series of small inscribed cross- stones found in the years 1833 and 1838, near the site of the Monastery founded by St. Heiu, a.d. 640,^ and now preserved in the British Museum, are two with the Alpha and Omega, one upon the tombstone of " Hildithryth"^ (inscribed in Runes), and the other upon the tombstone of " Berchtgyd"^ (inscribed in semi-uncials). The Alpha is in the capital form, and the Omega made like the letter 0, with a vertical stroke through it. The stones found at Hartlepool, nine in number, although resembling the ordinary cross-slabs in general appearance, differ from them entirely as regards size, as the smallest only measures 7k ins. by 5| ins., and the largest about 12 ins. square. The late Rev. D. H. Haigh has identified some of the names com- memorated with those of persons living in the seventh and eighth centuries.* An inscribed cross-slab at Billingham, in the county of Durham, bears the Alpha, only the Omega being broken off.'' There are only four texts in the Bible mentioning the Alpha and Omega, and these are all to be found in the Apocalypse. There is but one Irish MS. of the New Testament containing the Revelations, namely, the Boole of Armagh, the date of which is A.D. 807. The passage is thus given in the MS. : " Ego sum Alpha et &)"; the last letter being the Greek minuscule form of Omega, and all the rest written in the ordinary Irish charac- ters. Greek letters are retained in many of the early Celtic MSS., especially in the contraction xP''> for Christi, at the beginning of the historical portion of St. Matthew's Gospel, which usually occupies an entire page, magnificently illuminated with the ' Bede's Eccl. Hist., bk. iv, chap, xxiii. 2 Hubner's Christian Inscr., No. 189. 3 Ibid., No. 194. * Jour. Brit. Arcliceol. Assoc, vol. i, p. 185. ' Hubner's Christian Tmcr., No. 202. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 119 words "xpi autem generatio". This abbreviated form of the Saviour's name in Greek letters occurs upon one of the crosses at Margam, in Glamorganshire/ bearing the inscription CEVX -xpi ►!< ENNIAVN PRO ANIMA GVOGORET FECIT (" Enniaun made tliis cross of Christ for the soul of Guogoret") ; Fig. 24. — The XP^ abbreviation on sculptured stones— (1) at Margam and (2) at Breoliin, and also upon a sculptured stone at Brechin, in Forfarshire/ inscribed S. MARIA MATER XP'' (" St. Mary, the Mother of Christ.") The symbolism of the early sepulchral monuments is confined almost exclusively to the cross and m^onograms expressing the name of Christ ; there are, however, a few exceptions. 1 Westwood's Lcq}. WallicB, pi. 16. 2 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. i, pi. 138. 120 EOMANO-BBITISH PERIOD AND The Fish Symbol. The tombstone of " Oidacan", at Fuerty, in the county of Eoscommon, in Ireland, bears a cross, on one side of which is the representation of a fish. ^ The use of the fish as a Christian symbol began in the Catacombs at Eome, where it is found on about a hundred epitaphs, the first dated one belonging to the year a.d. 234. Most of the undated examples may, from various indications, be referred to the first three centuries, and by the <^ Ol^Q^ariinnciinoi^ oucam Fig. 25.— Fish Bymbol on tombstone of Oidacan at Fuerty. middle of the fourth the fish symbol had become so rare that it is only found on one out of nearly two thousand inscriptions, ornamented with palms, crowns, birds, sheep, and monograms, subsequent to the time of Constantine.^ " On the Christian inscriptions in Gaul, which generally both begin and abandon the use of each Christian symbol nearly a century later than ' Petrie's Irish Tmcr., vol. ii, pi. 8, No. 14. 2 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sottfrranea, vol. ii, p. 58. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 121 they were used or abandoned in Rome, there are only seVen examples, either of the word or figure of a fish, among the whole number (exceeding 700) collected and published by Le Blant."! It is found most frequently upon early engraved gems and rings^ from the Catacombs, and occurs also upon many of the sculptured stones of Scotland and in the Celtic MSS. whick will be described hereafter. The use of the fish symbol is con- tinually referred to in the writings of the early fathers, from the time of St. Clement of Alexandria, who, in the second century, recommends the faithful to engrave the figure of a fish upon their seals.** The symbol has several meanings, the most uni- versally accepted one being that the fish signifies Christ. The sacred acrostic, in which the first letters of the five Greek words — 'Iijcroi)?, Xpto-ros, ©rjov, Tto? 'ZcoTijp (" Jesus Christ, the Son of God : Saviour"), when put together, form the Greek word for fish (t%^vs), is well known. Whether the symbol suggested the acrostic, or the acrostic the symbol, can never be decided ; but when it was once found out, there is no doubt that the acrostic was the means of making the symbol more popular. This acrostic is quoted by Eusebius* in the fourth century, and St. Augustine^ in the seventh, from the so-called Sibylline verses,^ which appear to have been written about the year A.D. 180. The practice of composing sacred acrostics was a common one in all ages of the Church. Thus we read of St. Damasus exercising his ingenuity in writing verses the first letters of which formed the name Jesus'' ; and in later times, the Book of Prayers of -lEthelwald, Bishop of Lindis- farne (a.d. 721-740), in the University Library at Cambridge, contains an acrostic dedication in different-coloured inks, form- ing the name Aedelvald Episcopvs.^ A double-acrostic is also to be found in the enigmas of Aldhelm, Bishop of Salisbury. * Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 57 ; and Le Blant, Inscr. Chret. de la Gaule, vol. i, p. 370. 2 Garrucci, Storia della Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, pis. 478-9. 3 Pmdag., iii, 106. ^ Oratio Constant, ad Cmt. Sanct., § 18. 5 De Civit. Dei, xviii, 25. " Martigny's Diet, pp. 654 and 739. ' Ibid., art. " Acrostiche". * Westwood's Miniatures of Irish MSS., p. 45. 122 EOMANO-BRITISH PEEIOD AND When the fish symbol occurs on Christian monuments and objects, it is sometimes accompanied by the Greek word tyQv'; ; but upon an epitaph discovered in 1839, in the ancient cemetery of St. Pierre d'Estrier, near Autun, possibly of the fourth century, the whole of the sacred acrostic is given at full length,^ De Eossi illustrates a leaden tomb from Saida, in Phcenicia, which bears the Chi-Eho monogram, combined with the word 'IX@TS, thus showing clearly the meaning attached to the symbol. In the Catacombs the fish occurs frequently in associa- with the anchor, being then equivalent to " Hope in Christ", or with the dove, to signify " Peace in Christ". The Scriptural reasons for the adoption of the fish as a Christian symbol are very numerous. The four Apostles, Peter, Andrew, James, and John, were fishermen ; and after the mira- culous draught of fishes upon the sea of Galilee, our Lord ad- dressed specially to Simon the words, " Fear not ; from henceforth thou shalt catch men", upon which he, together with the others, forsook all and followed Him. This scene, although possessing as high a dramatic and religious interest as any incident described in the Gospels, and so familiar to most of us from Eaphael's celebrated cartoon, is not amongst the subjects usually found in early Christian art, although it occurs upon an ivory plaque of the' eleventh century in the Cathedral of Salerno, in Italy.^ The symbolic interpretation which makes the sea to mean the world, the fishes the souls of men, and the ship the Church, was perfectly well understood, as the whole is clearly set forth in the Lime, de Criatures of Philippe de Thann,^ of the twelfth century, which will be more fully described in a futiire lecture. The omission of the miraculous draught of fishes from the cycle of subjects found in the Catacombs may be accounted for by the fact that the explanation of the fishes to mean the souls of men, clashes with those which either refer to the more important sacramental doctrines, or to Christ Himself. There is, however, one instance of an ivory finial from the Catacombs, representing three men in a boat, one of whom is drawing in a net over the side con- ' Pitra, Annales de Philqsophie Chretienne, vol. xix, p. 195. 2 Cast in South Kensington Museum, Frame 35 (1874-94). 3 Thos. Wright's Treatises on Science during the Middle Ages, p. 108. CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. 123 taining a lish.i The two miracles of the reduplication of the loaves and the fishes, and Our Lord's feast with the disciples on the shore of the sea of Tiberias after His Eesurrection, appear to have given rise to the fish being used as a eucharistic symbol in the early representations of the Last Supper, which will be described subsequently. St. Melito of Sardis, and also St. Augustine, in commenting on the mystical scene in the last chapter of St. John's Gospel, Fig. 26.— Tombstone of Donfrid at Weneloy. explain that the fish that was broiled was typical of Christ, who suffered (" the Piscis assus, Christus passus," quoted by Bede).^ The fish, as a symbol of the Sacrament of Baptism, has not the warrant of Scripture, but we have testimony that the early Christian Church regarded it as such ; for Orientus, writing in A.n. 450, " Piscis natus aquis, auctor baptismatis ipse est";^ and > Northoote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 280. 2 Ibid., p. 68 ; Augustine Tract c.'cxiii, in Johannem xxi. ^ Martigny's Diet., p. 666. 124 EOMANO-BEITISH PEBIOD AND in Tertulliau, De Baptismo sub init., we find, " Nos pisciculi Secundum Ixdvv Nostrum in aqua nascimur."' Lastly, the miracle of the fish with the tribute money mentioned in St. Matthew, was made a type of Christ offering Himself a sacrifice to pay for the sins of the world ; and in the story of the fish caught by Tobias in the Tigris, to deliver Sara from the demon, and to give sight to his father (Tobit, ch. vi), was seen Christ, who conquered the Devil, and was the Light of the World.^ Similar fish legends are found in the folk-lore of most nations, especially in the East ; and the one related of St. Kentigern is illustrated upon the seals of the city of Glasgow. The cross-slab at Fuerty bearing the fish symbol, the meaning of which has now been fully explained, is quite unique, and the practice of ornamenting this class of sepulchral monument with figure-sculpture was extremely rare. There are, however, a few exceptions, such as the tombstone of " Donfrid", at Wensley, in Yorkshire,^ which has two birds and two beasts carved in the angles of the cross ; an uninscribed slab at Cross Canonby, in Cumberland,* has a rude figure of a man at one side of the cross ; and another, at Hackthorne in Lincolnshire,^ has an eagle at each side above, and three-cornered triquetra knots below. Early Erect Headstones. The most common form of early sepulchral monument ap- pears to have been a cross-slab laid horizontally over the grave ; but it was also the custom sometimes to place a small erect stone at the head of the grave. These headstones were very much like the ones in use at the present day in churchyards, being rounded at the top and ornamented with a simple cross. Early ones, perhaps belonging to pre-Norman times, have been found at Adel,® in Yorkshire, Thurnby,' in Leicestershire, Cam- 1 Tyrwhitt's Art Teaching of the Primitive Church, p. 339. 2 Martigny's Diet., p. 654. ^ Journ. Brit. Archceol. Assoc, vol. vii, p. 75. * Trans. Cunib. and West. Ant. Soc, vol. v, p. 149. ^ Journ. Brit: Archceol. Inst., vol. v, p. 400. ^ Ibid., vol. xxvii, p. 77. ' Assoc. Arch. Soc. Rep., 1871, p. 183. CELTIC SEPULCHRAL MONUMENTS. 125 bridge/ and elsewhere. The most remarkable example, how- ever, is one of the Saxon period at Whitchurch, in Hampshire,^ with the inscription : _, HIC CORPVS FRieSVEGAE REQVI ESGIT IN PACEM SEPVLTVM : . (" Here lies the body of Frithburga, buried in peace.") The stone measures 1 ft. 10 ins. high by 1 ft. wide by 9 ins. thick. The top is semicircular, and the inscription runs round the edge. On the front is carved a bust of Christ, with cruciferous nimbus, holding a book in one hand, and giving the benediction with the other. On the back is an elegant scroll ornament. Fig. S7.— Inscription round the headstone of Frithburga at Whitchurch. {From a nliing hy the Mev. O. F. Browne.) HOG-BACKED EeCUMBENT MONUMENTS. The last kind of early sepulchral monument we have to consider in this lecture is the coped or hog-backed tombstone, which is found in Scotland and the north of England, but not in other parts of Great Britain. There exists no means of determining the exact age of any of the coped stones, but the ornamental features correspond in many cases with those of the sculptured crosses of the pre-Norman period. Some of the coped stones still remain in situ, showing that they were placed horizontally over the graves of the deceased. The shape of one of these monuments somewhat resembles a boat turned upside down, the average size being about 6 ft. long by 1 ft. 6 ins. high and the same wide. There is generally a central ridge running the whole length of the stone, from which the two sides slope away on each side, like the roof of a house. T'his ridge is higher in the middle than at the ends, so as to give a hog-backed appearance, and the sloping sides are ornamented 1 Archoeologia, vol. xxvii, p. 228. ^ Hubner's Christian Inscr., No. 165. 126 ROMANO -BBITISH PEEIOD AKD with scales, either to imitate those of an animal or the tiles of a roof. The most remarkable feature of all is the way in which heads and bodies of grotesque beasts are made to form the two ends. Sometimes the whole stone assumes the shape of a scaly animal, with the head at one end and the four feet carved upon the side, as at Govan, near Glasgow^ ; at another time we find two muzzled bears facing each other, grasping each end of the stone with their paws, as at Brompton, in Yorkshire; but in Fig. 28. — Hog-t)acked recumbent monuments at Brompton. most cases there is nothing more than a huge head, with eyes and ears at each end, as at Heysham, in Lancashire.^ The later coped tombstones are not zoomorphic or hog-backed, but are made more in the shape of the metal shrines of the twelfth century, having the sloping top ornamented with scales and the sides with arcading. This was probably the form of 1 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. i, pi. 134. 2 Cutt's Sepulchral Slabs and Journ. Brit. Archxol. Assoc, vol. xlii p. 341. CELTIC SEPULCHEAL MONUMENTS. 127 the tomb of St. Chad, who died on the 2nd of March, a.d, 672, and was buried at Lichfield ; for Bede tells us that " the place of his sepulchre is covered with a wooden monument made like a small dwelling-house, having an opening in the wall, through which those who come for the sake of devotion are wont to put their hand, and take thence some of the dust, which when they have put in water, and given it to sick beasts of burden, or men to drink, the grievance of their infirmity being pre- sently removed, they return to the joys of desired health."^ Whether the zoomorphic terminations of the hog-backed stones have any special symbolic meaning, it is impossible to say. Man in ancient Attitude of Prayer. — In some cases the sides of these monuments are ornamented with figure-sculpture, as upon one on the Island of Inchcolm,^ which has a rudely executed figure of a man with both hands upraised. This is the ancient attitude of prayer, as seen in the representations of the Oranti and Daniel in the Den of Lions, in the paintings in the Cata- combs. Figures in this position are not uncommon in Celtic art, and there can be little doubt that they were copied from the early Christian Oranti, and that the meaning of both is the same. At Lower Heysham, in Lancashire, is a very fine hog-backed stone, 6 ft. 8 ins. long and 2 ft. high, with huge animal heads at each end, and having both sides covered with figure-sculpture. The subject on the front is a hunting scene, with a stag and hounds and four men with hands upraised, as at Inchcolm; upon the back is a stag, a man with his hands upraised, and a tree with three birds. The Christian interpretation of hunting scenes will be discussed in a future lecture, the peculiar feature here being the men in the ancient attitude of prayer. Of the coped tombstones shaped like a shrine there is a very beautiful specimen, which may possibly belong to the Saxon period, in Peterborough Cathedral. It is 3 ft. 5 ins. long, 1 ft. 2 ins. wide, and 2 ft. 4 ins. high. The two ends are vertical ; the sides taper slightly, and the top has two sloping faces like the roof of a house. Each side has arcades, consisting of six 1 Bede's Eccl Hist., bk. iv, ch. iii. 2 Proc. Soc. Ant. Scot., vol. xix, p. 406. 128 EOMANO-BRITISH PERIOD AND compartments, with semicircular arched tops, each enclosing a full-length figure, with the nimbus round the head and carrying a book. In one case the nimbus is cruciferous, so that the figure whose head it adorns is intended for Christ. The others are possibly the Apostles. Each of the sloping faces of the Fig. 29.— Man in ancient attitude of prayer on stones— (1) at Llanhamlkch, Brecknockshire, and (2) at Llanfrynach, in tlie same county. top is divided into, four panels, ornamented with scrolls of foliage, and birds, dragons, and interlaced work. Up to the present all the sepulchral monuments we have examined have been those placed as memorials over the graves of the deceased ; but there is at least one instance where the sarcophagus containing the body is decorated with symbolic CELTIC SEPULCHBAL MONUMENTS. 129 sculptures. The stone coffin referred to was dug up in Govan Churchyard, near Glasgow, in the year 1855.^ Its interior dimensions are 6 ft. long by 1 ft. 2 ins. to 1 ft. 4 ins. wide by 1 ft. 3 ins. deep, the thickness of the sides and bottom being 5 ins. The two ends are covered with interlaced work, and the two sides are each divided into four panels, filled in alternately Fig. 30.— Two Bides of Stouo Coffln at (Jovan. with figure-sculpture and interlaced work. The principal subject represented is a hunter on horseback, with a dagger at his side, pursuing a stag. On the flank of the horse is inscribed the letter A. The other subjects are groups of animals. 1 Stuart's Scul^Jtured Stones, vol. i, pis. 34 and 35. LECTURE III. THE HIGH CROSSES OF IEEL4-ND. Tenth Century. In studying the history of Christian art it will be noticed that each period is characterised by particular doctrines which attained special prominence at the time, and were therefore chosen in preference to all others as the subjects most suitable for illustration. Each new generation also looked upon the same doctrine from an entirely new point of view, and gave fresh interpretations of the various texts of Scripture upon which it was founded. Thus, during the first three centuries of the Christian era, we find no representations whatever of our Lord's Passion, whereas in later times the Crucifixion is the commonest subject of all. The early Church looked upon the death of Christ only as a means to an end, that end being the Redemption of the world. This is clearly shown by the pictures of Daniel in the Den of Lions, and the other series of symbolical paintings in the Cata- combs, which express faith in the power of God to save the sinner through the blood of Christ. The medieeval mind, how- ever, dwelt almost entirely on the bodily suffering of the Saviour, to the exclusion of the objects for which the pain was endured. Besides the changes in the subjects chosen for illustration in Christian art, due to difference of time, we have also to consider the 'alterations produced by planting Christianity in a new geographical area. Thus, in the Catacombs there are no pictures of the Devil, except where he appears as the Serpent tempting Adam and Eve ; but as soon as the Northern nations were incorporated in Christendom, the effect of the Teutonic THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. 131 imagination becomes at once apparent in the revolting concep- tions of the tortures of the damned, which owe their origin chiefly to pagan mythology. Not only has ea.ch period in the history of Christian art its special set of subjects, but the varying conditions of ecclesias- tical life, as regards the wealth and position of the Church in different countries, produced corresponding changes in the monuments and objects upon which the symbolism manifests itself. The natural materials available for construction in each country, and the aptitude of particular races for the arts of painting, sculpture, or metal-work, are also considerations which must not be neglected. For instance, during the first three centuries the persecution of the Church by the State caused all Christian art to be confined to the hidden recesses of the under- ground cemeteries ; and the danger attending the occupation of the sculptor, in case his religious opinions should become known, made painting a safer and easier method of decoration. When the persecutions ceased sculpture was applied to the decora- tion of sarcophagi, and with the building of the first basilicas above-ground the era of mosiacs commenced. From the time when Charlemagne revived literary learning in the eighth century, the art of illuminating manuscripts with miniatures illustrating the Scriptures, etc., was exten- sively practised. After the Classical School of sculpture died out, with discontinuance of making elaborate sarcophagi for the reception of the dead, a new school arose in Lombardy, who used sculpture la.rgely in the decorative features of their churches. In Great Britain Christian art was so far modified, first in Ireland and then in Scotland, as to constitute a national style, differing essentially from any other, botli in its orna- mental features and its symbolism. When the Church became rich, after the eleventh century, ecclesiastical buildings were most lavishly ornamented in every way, with painting, sculp- ture, stained glass, and carved woodwork ; and the metal-worker, the enameller, and the jeweller, vied with each other in beautify- ing the shrines of saints and the vessels used for performing the sacred rites. It appears, then, in dealing with the history of early Christian symbolism, that there are three factors to be taken K 2 132 THE HIGH CROSSES OF lEBLAND. into account: — 1. The class of monuments or objects upon which the symbolism chiefly occurs. 2. The special set of subjects characteristic of the period. 3. The particular treat- ment of subjects peculiar to the time and country. In the present lecture we are concerned with the ninth, tenth, and eleventh centuries, which may be called the period of the sculptured crosses, as it is from these monuments that our knowledge of the condition of early Christian art in Great Britain is principally derived. We shall now proceed to examine the symbolism of the crosses in detail, with a view to determining the subjects most frequently represented and the special methods of treatment adopted. The crosses in question are found in connection with ecclesi- astical buildings in England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, and although possessing certain features in common, such as inter- lacing and other forms of ornament, yet each group has its distinct local characteristics, which will be described in due course. The object of the erection of the more important free standing crosses was not as sepulchral memorials, but they were intended to be either dedicatory, commemorative, terminal, churchyard, or wayside crosses, being always placed in a pro- minent position, so as to attract the attention of the passer-by, and direct his mind to the contemplation of holy things, and more especially the Crucifixion and Eesurrection of our Lord. We have seen, in the last lecture, that the symbolism of the purely sepulchral monument was confined almost entirely to the cross and monograms of the name of Christ, but the erect crosses are covered with the most elaborate sculptures, repre- senting scenes from Scripture and other subjects. The object in the former case was to mark the resting-place of the deceased, and to express, in the simplest manner possible, the hope of a future life in Christ ; whereas in the latter the chief aim was to set forth the leading doctrines of Christianity, by means of out- ward forms, for the instruction of the unlearned, and to excite feelings of devotion and reverence in the minds of all persons visiting the sacred precincts. Thus, the cross of Fland at Clonmacnois, when referred to in the Annals of the Four THE HIGH CKOSSES OP IKELAND. 133 Masters, is called either the "High Cross" (under the year A.D. 957) or the " Cross of the Scriptures'' (under the year A.D. 1060).-'- The inscriptions upon the high crosses of Ireland show that these monuments were not sepulchral, because in cases where names of persons are mentioned they are known to have been buried elsewhere. The cross in Kells churchyard is inscribed, "Patricii et Columbse Crux" (the Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba) ; and since neither of the saints here mentioned were biiried at Kells, and the character of the ornamentation of the cross showing it to belong to the ninth century, it is clear that the monument is commemorative. We have seen examples of dedicatory inscrip- tions to St. Peter upon early pillar-stones at Kilnasaggart, in the county of Armagh, and at Whithorne in Wigtonshire ; and Pordun relates that in the year A.D. 1260 a cross of great magnificence was dug up at Peebles, upon the base of which was the inscription, " Locus Sancti Nicholai Episcopi".^ Many of the high crosses appear to have been terminal, marking the limits of the sanctuary, — as, for instance, at Castle Kieran, co. Meath, the eight mile-crosses at Papon in Yorkshire,^ and four at Hexham in Northumberland. Most of the early crosses in Cornwall are situated near the principal doorways of churches, so as to command the attention of worshippers enter- ing the sacred edifice. The general character of the symbolism of the high crosses of Ireland will be best understood from a description of some of the more important examples. There are at present remaining in Ireland about thirty high crosses,* in more or less perfect condition, out of which six have inscriptions by which their dates have been fixed,^ and two others have inscriptions giving no clue to their age.® The ordinary parish churches in Ireland do not differ much 1 Petrie's Ij-ish Inscr., vol. i, p. 43. 2 Forduni Scotichron., vol. ii, p. 96 ; quoted in Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, p. 53. 2 "Walbran's Guide to Bipon, p. 30. « O'Neill's Ancient Crosses of Ireland; Petrie's Irish Inscr., vol. ii, p. 153. 5 At Clonmacnois, Monasterboice, Cong (2), and Tuam (2). ■^ At Delgany and Kells. 134 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. from those in other parts of Great Britain, except that they are generally smaller and simpler in ground-plan ; but on the more celebrated ecclesiastical sites we find groups of buildings quite unlike anything to be seen elsewhere, consisting of an isolated round tower, several small churches, and one or more free standing crosses. The most remarkable examples are at Clon- macnois, King's County ; Monasterboice, co. Louth ; and Kells, CO. Meath. Others with figure-sculpture exist at Donaghmore and Ard- boe^ CO. Tyrone ; Tynan and Armagh, co. Armagh ; Clones, co. Monaghan ; Drumcliff, co. Sligo ; Taam, co. Galway ; Termon- feckin, co. Louth ; St. Kieran's, co. Meath ; Durrow, King's County ; Kilcullen, Castle Dermot, and Moone Abbey, co. Kil- dare ; Ullard, Graigne na managh, Killamery, and Kilklispeen, CO. Kilkenny. Eeaders desirous of obtaining a fuller knowledge of Irish ecclesiastical architecture are referred to the works on the subject by Lord Dunraven, Miss Margaret Stokes, Petrie, Wakeman, and Marcus Keane ; also to Dr. J. Anderson's Scot- land in Early Christian Times, 1st Series. Crosses at Monasterboice. Monasterboice is situated in the county of Louth, six miles north-west of the town of Drogheda. The name is derived from Mainister Buiti, which means the Monastery of Buite, "or Boetius, an Irish bishop, whose death is recorded in the Annals of the Four Masters as having taken place on the 7th December, a.d. 521. The remains existing at present are of much later date, and consist of a round tower, 110 ft. high, two small churches, and three elaborately sculptured crosses. Two of these crosses stand in their original positions, in a more or less perfect state of preservation ; but the third has been broken, and the head and part of the shaft which remain have been re-erected in the old socket-stone. The largest of the two perfect crosses is 22 ft. high (including the base, which is 1 ft. 6 ins. high), and is situated on the south side of the church nearest the round tower. It is called the Great Cross of Monasterboice. The other is 19 ft. high (inclu- ding the base, which is 2 ft. 3 ins. high), and stands at the south-east corner of the church farthest from the round tower. THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. 135 It is called the Cross of Muiredach/ from the abbot of that name, by whom the monument was erected. It is the most beautiful specimen of Celtic stonework now in existence, and the date is known from the inscription. We will, therefore, examine this cross first, as a typical example with which the others may be compared. It is composed of three separate stones, joined together by mortices and tenons, the base or socket forming the first, the shaft and two horizontal arms making the second, and the top arm of the cross being the third. The base is in the shape of a truncated pyramid of four sides, measuring 2 ft. 2 ins. high, 4 ft. 9 ins. at the bottom, tapering to 3 ft. 8 ins. by 3 ft. 4 ins. at the top. The shaft is rectangular, 6 ft. 6 ins. high, 2 ft. 6 ins. by 1 ft. 8 ins. at the bottom, tapering to 2 ft. 4 ins. by 1 ft. 7 ins. at the top. The form of the cross is that described in the last lecture (fig. 17, No. 4) as being typically Celtic, with four semicircular hollows in the angles, made by the inter- section of the arms, and having a connecting circular ring. The Irish crosses differ from those of Scotland, for, instead of having the cross sculptured in relief upon an upright slab, the whole stone is cut out into the shape of the cross, with the hollows be- tween the encircling ring and the arms pierced right through. The effect of the outline of the cross standing out against the sky is far more beautiful than the appearance of the Scotch slabs. In the middle of each of the four semicircular hollows are little round projections, which emphasise the whole and take away from the effect of weakness produced by the hollows. The top stone is in the shape of a little house, with a sloping roof like the metal shrines of the period, and has a crescent-shaped finial at each end.^ A bead or roll moulding runs round all the edges of the cross, and the sculpture is arranged in rectangular panels, each enclosed within a frame of cable moulding. The cross is made of a yellowish sandstone. On the west face, at the bottom of the shaft, is an Irish inscription in minuscules — • 1 O'Neill calls it the south-east cross, from its position with regard to the round tower. 2 Some crosses, like those at Kilklispeen, co. Kilkenny, are surmounted by a conical stone. See representation of the Temple, in the scene of the " Temptation of Christ", in the Booh of Kelts. (Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 11.) 136 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. OR DO MUIREDACH LAS (a)NDERNAD IN CHE0(SS)A ("Pray for Muiredach, by whom this cross was made.''^) The deaths of two persons of the name of Muiredach, who were con- nected with Monasterboice, are recorded by the Four Masters : "a.d. 844. Muredach, son of Flann, Abbot of Mainister Buite, died." "a.d. 923 or 924. Muiredach, son of Domhnall, tanist Abbot of Armagh, and chief steward of the southern Hy Neill, and successor of Buite, the son of Branach, head of the council of all the men of Bregia, laity and clergy, departed this life on the 5th day of the calends of December." The inscription prob- ably refers to the latter, since he was the most important per- sonage of the two, and therefore more likely to have been the erector of a monument of such celebrity, and also because the style of the sculptures corresponds so nearly with those on the cross of King Fland at Clonmacnois, which was set up between the years A.D. 914 and 924. The general scheme of the decoration and symbolism of all the Irish high crosses is more or less the same. The leading feature is always the Crucifixion, which occupies the centre of the head on the front cross, whilst Christ in Glory is placed in a corresponding position on the back. The spaces on the arms are filled in witli the accessories of the central subjects. Upon the shaft are a series of scenes from Scripture, leading the mind on to the main doctrine of the Christian faith. The sides and other portions of the cross are ornamented with alternate panels of geometrical patterns of the usual Celtic type, and miscel- laneous figure-subjects. The base, or socket-stone, is usually sculptured with symbolical subjects, more nearly resembling those found upon the upright cross-slabs of the east of Scotland than any of the rest of the design. The scenes portrayed con- sist of ecclesiastics, men in chariots, warriors, huntsmen, animals, and fabulous beasts, such as centaurs. The figure-subjects sculptured upon the cross of Muiredach, at Monasterboice, are as follows : — - On the front. — On the centre of the head of the cross is the Crucifixion, with the soldiers bearing the spear and sponge. Beneath the feet of the Saviour is a bird, and on each side of 1 Petrie's Irish Inscriptions, vol. ii, p. 66. THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. 137 His head an angel. A kneeling figure and an angel are placed near the soldiers to fill up the space. On the right arm is a group of six figures and an animal ; on the left arm a group of six figures holding musical instruments or other objects ; and on the top arm a figure with both hands upraised, and another figure on each side. On the shaft are three panels, each containing a group of three figures, wearing elaborately ornamented vestments reach- ing down nearly to the feet. The sculpture on the top panel represents an enthroned figure in the centre, delivering a book and a staff to figures standing on either side. The next panel shows three standing figures, probably of saints or ecclesiasticSj holding books, the central one being in the act of giving the benediction. The group in the bottom panel consists of a central figure, being led away by two soldiers armed with swords, and is supposed to be intended for Christ seized by the Jews. Nearly all the figures have heavy moustachios and thick curling hair. The nimbus is entirely absent. The inscription is on this face at the bottom of the shaft, and in front of it are carved two cat-like animals in high relief, one holding a bird and the other a toad (?) between its claws. On the base are sculptures of animals almost entirely defaced. On the lack. — On the head and arms of the cross is a group of more than forty-five figures, representing the scene of the Last Judgment. In the centre Christ standing up and holding a floriated sceptre in the right hand and the Cross of the Resurrection in the left. Eesting on the head of our Lord is a bird, perhaps intended for the Phcenix, the symbol of the Eesurrection. At the feet of the Saviour is a small kneeling figure with an open book above the head. On the right is David en- throned, playing the harp, upon which the Holy Spirit rests in the form of a dove, to symbolise the inspiration of the Psalmist ; and further on behind are the choir of angels playing trumpets. On the left are the lost souls, being driven away from the presence of Christ by a fiend holding a trident ; below the figure of the Saviour is the Archangel Michael weighing the souls, and above a soul being carried to heaven by two angels (?). On the top arm of the cross are two ecclesiastics with croziers, placed crosswise, and a circular disc between them. On the shaft are four panels 138 THE HIGH CBOSSES OF IRELAND. with groups of figures, the top one representing the Adora- tion of the Magi, and the bottom one the Temptation and Expulsion of Adam and Eve. The subjects on the two middle panels have not yet been explained. At the bottom of the shaft are a pair of animals carved in high relief. On the base are sculptures of animals almost entirely defaced. On the right side. — On the top arm of the cross is a figure on horseback ; on the end of the side arm, Pilate washing his hands ; underneath the side arm, two animals ; and on the edge of the circular ring, pairs of twisted serpents with human heads between each twist. At the bottom of the shaft are a pair of animals carved in high relief. On the base the sculpture is defaced. On the left side. — On the top arm are two ecclesiastics, with croziers placed crosswise, and a bird, holding a circular disc in its beak, between them ; on the end of the side arm, Christ, with a bird resting on His head, led away by the Jews to Caiaphas ; and underneath the side arm, the Hand Symbol, or Dextera Dei. At the bottom of the shaft are two figures, carved in high relief, representing men with long hair and heavy moustachios, grasping each other's beards. On the base is a man on horseback, preceded by a satyr, holding a trident, and a centaur shooting with a bow and arrow. We will now proceed to discuss the subjects of the sculpture. The Crucifixion. — Eepresentations of the sufferings of our Lord upon the cross do not occur amongst the paintings in the Catacombs of Eome during the first four centuries. This entire omission of scenes from the Passion from the cycle of subjects chosen for illustration in early Christian art may be accounted for partly by the repulsion with which the first converts from paganism looked upon crucifixion as a mode of death. Another reason for not openly displaying pictures of the sufferings of Our Lord, was in order to avoid the ridicule which the idea of a crucified God seems to have excited in the minds of unbelievers. Curiously enough, one of the most ancient representations of the Crucifixion is a blasphemous caricature scratched in outline with a pointed instrument upon the plaster walls of the palace THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. 139 of the CcEsars on the Palatine Hill at Eome.^ It was discovered in 1857, and is now preserved in the Kircherian Museum at Eome. The sketch or "graffito" shows a man with the head of an ass, attached to a, cross, at the foot of which stands a Christian. The meaning of the caricature is explained by the inscription in Greek, " Alexamenos worships God". The method of representing the Crucifixion at the present time has been arrived at by a gradual process of development, as has been the case with most other Christian symbols. In the previous lecture the evolution of the cross out of the Chi- Kho monogram was explained ; we shall now show how the Crucifixion was the outcome of a combination of the Lamb of God and the cross. On the sculptured sarcophagi at Eome and elsewhere, of the fifth and sixth centuries, the Agnus Dei is seen bearing the Chi-Eho monogram on its forehead, then with the plain cross on the forehead, then carrying a cross on its shoulder, then placed on an altar with a cross behind it, and showing wounds with blood flowing ; and lastly, the Lamb is enclosed within a medallion forming the centre of a cross.^ A unique instance of the Agnus Dei upon the cross occurs on a sculptured slab in Wirksworth Church, Derbyshire, which will be described sub- sequently. The next step was to substitute the actual figure of the Saviour for the symbolical Lamb. This change was effected by the Quinisext Council, held at Constantinople in a.d. 683, which decreed as follows : " We pronounce that the form of Him who taketh away the sin of the world, the Lamb of Christ our Lord, be set up in human shape on images henceforth, instead of the Lamb, formerly used."^ Scenes from the Passion only occur on one of the sculptured sarcophagi in the Lateran Museum at Eome,* and the Cruci- 1 Martigny's Did., art. " Calomnies", p. 110. 2 As on the bronze station-cross at Mayence (St. John Tyrwhitt's Art Teaching of the Privative Church, p. 249) ; and on the ivory cross of King Ferdinand (a.d. 1063) in the Madrid Museum (J. F. Riano, Industrial Arts in Spain, p. 137). The earliest instance is on the Vatican Cross presented by Justin II to Rome in the sixth century (Martigny's Diet., p. 226). ' St. J. Tyrwhitt's Art Teaching of tlie Primitive Church, p. 240. '' Appell's Momiments of Early Christian Art, p. 21. 140 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. fixion is not included in the series. A very early instance of the Crucifixion amongst the scenes from the Passion is to be found on a set of four ivory plaques in the British Museum/ which are executed in the same style of art as the sculptured sarcophagi of the sixth century at Eome. Probably the earliest illuminated MS. containing a miniature ' Westwood's Catal. of Fictile Ivories, p. 44. THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. 141 of the Crucifixion, with the actual figure of Christ in place of the Lamb, is the celebrated Syriao copy of the Four Gospels in the Medici-Laurentian Library at Florence, which was written in the year 586, by Eabula, a scribe, in the monastery of St. John, in Zagby, a city of Mesopotamia.^ Here Christ is shown crucified with the two thieves ; above are the sun and moon, and on each side below the soldier piercing our Lord's right side with a spear (his name, longings, being inscribed over his head), and the sponge-bearer carrying a vessel with vinegar. The other figures in the scene are three soldiers seated on the ground, casting lots for the garments, in the centre ; the Virgin Mary and St. John on the left side of the picture, and three other women on the right. The heads of Christ and the Virgin Mary only are surrounded by the nimbus. The arms and feet of the Saviour are bare, but the rest of the body is clothed in a loose tunic. Life has not yet become extinct, for the eyes are open. The body is fixed to the cross by four nails, one through each foot and one through each hand. The head is slightly inclined, and the legs are not crossed, but hang down vertically. This, then, is a typical example of the treatment of the Cruci- fixion in Byzantine art at the end of the sixth century. Although the accessories and minor details vary slightly, there was but little change in the main features of the scene until the eleventh century, after which time a marked alteration took place. The Saviour is represented after death has taken place instead of before^; the body is bent, the legs crossed, and a single spike substituted for the two nails through the feet ; the eyes are closed, and the body is naked, with the exception of a cloth round the waist. A very beautiful miniature illustrating the transition will be found in the Arundel Psalter in the British Museum, a MS. of the eleventh century.^ 1 'VVeatwood's PalceograjMa Pictoria Sacra. The miniatures are engraved in Assemanus'-s work on the Florence Library, published in 1842. The Crucifixion forms the frontispiece of St. J. Tyrwhitt's Art Teaching of the Primitive Church. ^ Martigny says (Did., p. 231) that the earliest example known of the Saviour shown dead on the cross is in a MS. written A.D. 1059, in the Laurentian Library at Florence. 3 Brit. Mus., Arund. MS. No. GO, illustrated in Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 49. 142 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. The representations of the Crucifixion upon the Irish crosses were probably copied from the illuminations of the Celtic MSS., which in their turn were derived from tbe Byzantine or Greek MSS. There are at least three Irish MSS. containing illumina- tions of the Crucifixion, namely, the Psalter at St. John's College, Cambridge,^ the Gospels (No. 51) at the Monastery of St. Gall in Switzerland,^ and a MS. at Wiirtzburg in Bavaria.^ The drawing in the Psalter of St. John's College, Cambridge, is conventionalised in a most extraordinary manner, but, notwith- standing the extreme and almost barbarous rudeness of the figures, the essential elements of the Byzantine original are still preserved. Here, as in all the other early Crucifixions, only the arms and feet of the Saviour are destitute of clothing, but the drapery, instead of falling in graceful folds, consists of broad purple bands, with narrow yellow edges, swathed round the body, and interlaced so as to form knots. No attempt is made to follow the natural colouring of the objects represented, — the flesh-tints, for example, being a bright red, and the hair yellow. Anyone who has examined an Irish illuminated MS. critically must have been struck by the marked contrast between the high artistic merit of the ornamental features of the designs and the utter want of a sense of beauty exhibited in the figure-subjects. This anomaly can hardly be explained by supposing that the Irish illuminators had no good examples of figure-drawing to copy from, because the particular ways of treating different scenes corresponds with those adopted in Byzantine art, and the source which supplied the inspiration of the general arrange- ment of the pictures might also have been the means of suggest- ing improved methods of drawing. We can only conclude, therefore, either that the figures were purposely conventionalised from religious motives, so as not to appeal to the senses, and thus encourage idolatry ; or, what is more probable, that the object which the Celtic scribe had in view was not so much to produce a likeness of actual things as to exercise his wonderful powers of penmanship and give full scope to his., exuberant fancy. Looked upon as a picture the result is a failure; but as a mosaic of brilliant colours and a pleasing combination of intricate 1 Westwood's Palxorjraphia. '' Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 28. ^ Archwoingia, vol. xliii, p. 141. ^ ,^2rW^ Fig. 3 2.— BaoNZK Plate with CRUcnaxioN. From Athlone. No w in the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy at Dublin. THE HIGH CROSSES OF lEELAND. 143 geometrical ornament, the miniature in an Irisli MS. stands un- rivalled. The human features, especially the ears, are ingeniously converted into spiral curves, beautiful as mere ornaments, but Fig. 33.— Slab of Slate with Crucifixion, from old chapel on Calf of Man. quite unlike the part of the body represented. The drapery is treated as a surface for the display of interlaced work, key- patterns, and the various kinds of Celtic decoration. Examples 6f this occur on three bronze plates in the Museum of the 144 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF lEELAND. Pioyal Irish Academy in Dublin/ and on a small slab of slate with a Crucifixion, found in the old chapel on the Calf of Man, and now in the possession of Mr. Quayle of Castletown, in the Isle of Man.^ The latter is one of the most delicately executed pieces of sculpture I remember having seen, and almost resem- bles engraving. There is a circular wreath of interlaced work on the breast, and the whole of the drapery is covered with ornament. The stone is unfortunately broken, the figure of the sponge-bearer being wanting. Although found in the Isle of Man, the character of the art is distinctly Irish. Irish Type of Crucifixion. The leading features of the treatment of the Crucifixion in Ireland are as follows. The body of the Saviour is entirely draped, with the exception of the arms and feet, and is fastened to the cross with four nails, one through each hand and one through each of the feet. The eyes are shown open, and the limbs are extended perfectly straight along the three arms of the cross, whilst the head rests unbent against the fourth. In the MSS. there is sometimes a nimbus round the head of Christ, but it is not seen on the Irish crosses. At each side of the head of the Saviour, resting on the horizontal arms of the cross, is an angel, or sometimes a bird.^ Angels occur on Byzantine ivories as accessories to the Crucifixion, but there is nothing in the Gospel narrative to warrant their introduction, unless, by a confusion of time and place, it is in reference to the angel that appeared to our Lord from heaven, strengthening Him (Luke xxii, 43) in the Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.* Above the head of Christ, and sometimes beneath His feet, is a winged figure like a bird with a human head, intended either for the Holy Spirit, or the Angel of Victory, or perhaps the Phoenix. The inscription over the head of the Saviour does not occur 1 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pi. 10 ; Westwood's Miniatures pi. 51. 2 Cumming's Runic Remains of the Isle of Man, fig. 30. 3 In the Wiirtzburg MS. {Archosologia, vol. xliii, p. 141). ^ Possibly the angels are introduced to show that the Crucifixion was witnessed by the hosts of heaven, in the same way that personifications of the Earth and Sea appear as witnesses of the scene. THE HIGH CEOSSES OP lEELAND. 145 on the Irish crosses, but it is found in the Wiirtzburg MS. before referred to, being partly in Greek letters, thus: IHS XIIS.-' In this remarkable miniature are also the two thieves, with good and evil spirits in the shape of birds ministering to each ; below is a boat containing the Virgin, nimbed, and nine other figures, underneath which is the cross with a pair of fish at each side. This may either be one of the personifications of the elements that witnessed the Crucifixion, as found on some Fig. 34.— Cruciflxion on Orosa of SS. Patrick and Columba at KbIIb. ivories, or intended to symbolise the ship of the Church sur- rounded by the tempestuous waters of the world. As a rule, the only actors in the scene of the Crucifixion, as treated in Irish art, are the two soldiers, one piercing our Lord's side with a spear, and the other offering Him a sponge, 1 The Crucifixion in the Hiberno-Saxon G-ospela in the Cathedral Library at Durham is inscribed " Hic est ihs eex ivdoevm". The Crucifixion in the Saxon Psalter in the University Library at Cambridge has the words lignvm vitae inscribed on the arms of the cross. L 146 THE HIGH OEOSSES OF IRELAND. or cup, shaped like a crescent, filled with vinegar, at the end of a reed. It is not stated in the Gospel of St. John (ch. xix, 34), who alone of the Four Evangelists describes the incident, which side was pierced, but on the Irish crosses it is generally shown as the left. There is an historical inaccuracy in repre- senting our Lord's side being pierced before death had taken place, but the incident is introduced botii as an instance of the fulfilment of prophecy and on account of its symbolical signi- ficance, having reference to the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. The apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus,^ which was used by the Church as early as the third century, tells us P' ^":^'P<'^^^ J^?^ ^l^'r'^ o" OollOIK>ll ^ spear. There is a curious legend concerning Longinus, that he struck Christ by accident, being blind, and that the blood of the Saviour fell upon his hand, which he lifted to his eye, and thus received his sight.^ In the St. Gall Gospels (No. 51) the blood spurting into the eye of Longinus is indicated by a wavy line of red ink.* Another tradition asserts that Longinus and the centurion who exclaimed, " Truly this man was the Son of God" 1 Hone's Apocryphal New Testament, ch. vii, 8. " Westwood's Miniatures, p. 49. ■■' Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord, vol. ii, p. 101. ', * Westwood, pi. 4g. THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. 147 (Mark XV, 39), are one and the same person. The following passage will be found in ^Ifric's " Uplifting of the Holy Eood" (Brit. Mus. MS., Jul. E. vii), translated by R. Morris in the Fig. 36.— Crucifixion, from the St. Gall Gospels. Legends of the Holy Rood, published by the Early English Text Society, p. 106 : — " The Saviour is so merciful that He would have mercy upon His own murderers if they would turn and l2 148 TFE HIGH CKOSSES OP IRELAND. pray for His mercy, as many of them did; for instance, the cen- turion wlio wickedly pierced Him (Christ) in His holy side and afterwards turned to Him. The centurion was named Longinus." This may account for the absence of so important a witness of the Cruciiixion as the centurion from most of the early representa- tions. That the same man should strike Christ and yet believe that He was the Son of God, is improbable, unless we accept the explanation that he used his spear inadvertently, as related in the legend. The name of the sponge-bearer is said by tradition to be Stephaton, and is so inscribed on a wall-painting of the tenth century in the Chapel of Saint-Eemy-la-Varenne (Maine et Loire),^ and on an ivory plaque of the tenth century in the Kunst Kammer at Berlin, a cast of which is in the South Kensington Museum (Westwood's Catal., No. 132). The Alpha and Omega symbol is used in connection with the Crucifixion. It occurs in the Hiberno-Saxon Gospels at Durham ; the Greek letters, of large size, being inscribed in red ink on each side of the head of the Saviour, whilst above the two four- winged angels are written the words " Initium et Finis". The Alpha and Omega is also to be seen on the two ends of the horizontal arms of the cross on an ivory plaqiie of Irish or Anglo-Saxon origin in the South Kensington Museum,^ repre- senting the descent from the cross. In this instance there is a skull at the foot of the cross, in reference to the name Golgotha, and the tradition that the cross grew out of Adam's grave.^ Upon some of the Irish crosses, as at Moone Abbey, co. Kil- dare, the Crucifixion is represented without any accessories or other figures besides that of the Saviour. This is universally the case upon the early churchyard crosses of Cornwall, which are made out of hard granite, and sculptured in the rudest pos- sible manner. The crucified Saviour, without accessories, also occurs on the key-stones of the doorways of the round towers at Donoughmore, co. Meath, and Brechin in Forfarshire. There is a fine example of the same method of treatment on a cross ornamented with interlaced work at Kirkburton, in York- shire. • Didron's Manuel (V Iconograplne Cliritienne Greque et Latine, p. 196 2' No. ,3-7--'. ■• J. P. BiTJoau, Ilixtory of the Holy Cross. THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. 149 Scotch Type of Gnicifixion. Upon the sculptured stones of Scotland the Crucifixion is a very rare subject, there being only two instances known, one in the Edinburgh Museum of Antiquities from Monifieth in For- Ir—t. a Fig. 37.— Cruciflxiou on Sculptureii Stones at (1) Kirkholm and (2) at Mouifleth. farshire,-"^ and the other at Kirkholm in Wigtonshire.^ The top of the Monifieth stone is broken off, so that only the lower por- tion of the body of the Saviour remains. The drapery extends 1 Stuart's Sculptured Stones of Scotland, vol. ii, pi. 80. 2 Ihid., vol. ii, pi. 70. Dr. Joseph Anderson informs me that there is a representation of the Crucifixion upon the Cross at Oamuston, in Forfar- shire, illustrated in Stuart's Sculptured Stones of Scotland, vol. i, pi. 87 ; but the engraving there given is so bad that it is impossible to make out the subject. 150 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF lEELAND. almost down to the knees, and the legs are not crossed, but fixed with two nails. On the right is a figure holding a book, and on the left a figure with the hands crossed over the breast. These may perhaps be intended for the Virgin Mary-and St. John. Below are three panels, the upper one containing a pair of figures with staves ; the next, two men with horns in their right hands ; and the bottom one, a man seated, playing a harp. King David playing the Harp. — There is some reason to sup- pose that the latter may represent the Psalmist ; for, setting aside the view that secular scenes are portrayed upon Christian monuments as being untenable, because not in accordance with experience, there are only a certain limited number of passages in the Bible to choose from which refer to the use of the harp. The most important texts are the one which describes the son of Jesse as being chosen to play before Saul, because he was a cunning player on an harp (Samuel xvi, 16) ; the ones mentioning David's four assistants, Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun (1 Chron. xxv, 1), and Ethan (1 Chron. vi, 44) ; the numerous verses in the Psalms ; and the one in the Eevelations (ch. v, 8), telling how the four beasts and the four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, every one of them having " harps and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints." The scene from the Eevelations belongs to the subject of Christ in Glory, which is sculptured on the back of the cross of Muire- dach at Clonmacnois, and will be described further on. King David playing on the harp is generally the miniature which forms the frontispiece of the early Irish and Saxon Psalters, as for instance in an Irish MS. of the ninth century in the British Museum (Vit. P. xi),^ where David is alone ; and in the Saxon MS. of the eleventh century, in the Cambridge University Library (F. f. 1, 23),^ where he is accompanied by his four assistants, with the names david rex — asaph — eman — ethan — IDITHVN, inscribed over each. In the latter, the Spirit of God inspiring the Psalmist (1 Samuel vi, 13) is shown as a bird. The same thing occurs in a Saxon MS. of the eleventh century in the British Museum (Tib. C. vi),=' on the back of the 1 Westwood's Miniatures, pi. .51, fig. 6 ; and for other examples, see pis. 3, 18, and 37. 2 Westwood's Palceographia, No. 41. 2 Miss Twining's Christian Si/mboh and Emblems, pi. 31. THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. 151 cross of Muiredach at Clonmacuois, and on the end of the Irish shrine of St. Moedog, in the Museum of the Eoyal Irish Academy at Dublin.^ Whether the figure playing the harp on the Monifieth stone is intended for David or not, there should be no reason for doubting that such is the case on the grounds of the appropri- ateness of the subject. David is, perhaps, the most important of all the Old Testament types of Christ, for reasons which must be familiar to everyone, — such as the frequent references in the Gospels to our Lord's descent from David, and because of the prophecies relating to the Crucifixion in the Psalms. The Biblia Paivperum and Speculum Humanm Salvationis of later mediseval times are full of instances of the close analogies which were supposed to exist between the events in the lives of David and Christ. The harper on the Monifieth stone is not an isolated example, for there is an exactly similar figure upon the cross at Dupplin Castle, in Perthshire.^ A harp without anyone playing on it is to be seen on the cross-slabs at Nigg^ in Ptoss-shire, and at Aldbar in Forfarshire,^ in both cases associated with a sheep or ram, probably indicating David's being called away from his pastoral calling to play before Saul (1 Samuel xvi, 19). There are other representations of harpers on Irish crosses at Ullard, CO. Carlo w^; Castle Dermot, co. Kildare, and on the cross of Fland at Clonmacnois, King's County.^ In the last instance the figure is more like that of a female than a male, and seems to be riding on the back of an animal. On the cross of Maelmor, at KirkmichaeF in the Isle of Man, there is a harper, and at the side a figure holding a horn. What makes it more probable that the harper is intended for David, is that other scenes from the life of David — such as his contest with the lion — are also 1 Archmolocjia, vol. xliii, p. 131. A man playing a harp also occurs on the cover of the Sto we Missal (see O'Oonor, Rerum liibern. Script.). 2 Stu&rt's Scul2itared Stones of Scotland, vol. i, pi. 58. 3 Ibid., vol. i, pi. 29. Examples also occur on late West Highland slabs at Keils and lona. See vol. ii, pis. 57 and 62. 4 Ibid., vol. i, pi. 82. » O'Neill's Irish Oi-osses, pi. 9. f Ibid., pi. 24. ' Oumming's Crosses of the Isle of Man, fig. 28a. 152 THE HIGH GROSSES OP IRELAND. found on the sculptured stones. In the MSS. David is generally shown crowned, but this is not the case in the Irish Psalter in the British Museum (Vit. F. xi), so that it is not without precedent that he should be represented uncrowned on the stones. Figures holding horns. — Immediately over the harper upon the Monifieth stone are two figures with horns in their hands. Fig. 38.— David and Goliatll, and David playing on the Hai-p, from the Irish Psalter in the British Museum. (Vit. P. xi.) This is the only representation of the kind in Scotland, but on the cross of Maelmor, at Kirkmichael in the Isle of Man, is a man holding a horn in front of a harper; at Llangan, in Glamorganshire, there is a man with a horn below the Cruci- fixion; and other instances occur at Eyam and Bakewell in Derbyshire. In the contemporary MSS. the only scene in which a horn appears is in the Anointing of David by Samuel (Samuel xvi, 13), as in the Greek Psalter written in the year a.d. 1066 (Brit. Mus., Add. MS. 19,.S52); in the Saxon Psalter of the THE HIGH CEOSSES OP IRELAND. 153 eleventh cent. (Brit. Mus., Tib. C. vi), and in the English Psalter (Brit. Mus., Nero C. iv). In the Saxon MS. (Tib. C. vi) the Hand of God is shown holding a horn above the head of King David playing on the harp. Throughout the whole of the Bible there are continual references to the word horn u&eA in a figurative sense, as when Hannah says, " Mine horn is exalted in the Lord" (1 Samuel ii, 1) ; and when Zacharias blesses the Fig. 39.— Oruciflxion on Cross at Llangan. Lord, who " hath raised up an horn of Salvation for us, in the house of his servant David". The above passages from Scripture are merely quoted to show what portions bear upon the subject under consideration, but it must be clearly understood that the apparent fitness of certain texts to explain symbolic scenes and objects represented in Christian art, does not in any way amount to proof that the analogies which seem clear to us were perceived by the early 154 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF lEELAND. Celtic sculptors. In order to complete the chain of evidence, it is necessary either to show by reference to the literature of the time what parts of the Bible were then singled out specially for comment, and how the words were interpreted ; or to prove, by the study of the pictures in contemporary MSS. and such representations as are inscribed, that particular subjects were treated in a certain conventional way, and no other. According to the amount of evidence forthcoming, we shall therefore have scenes of which there is a satisfactory explanation ; those which cannot be interpreted at all ; and, between the two, meanings suggested as being either possible or probable. The weight of the evidence should always be considered, and there should never be any confusion between what is only a working hypo- thesis and proved facts. After this somewhat lengthy digression, we will now return to the subject of the Crucifixion. Besides the stone at Monifieth there is one other in Scotland which has the Crucifixion upon it, at Kirkholm in Wigtonshire.^ The monument in question is a slab of grey whinstone, with crosses of the same shape on both back and front, one side being ornamented with scrolls of foliage and interlaced work, and the other having a very rude design incised upon it, consisting of the Saviour on the cross, with the figure of a man below in the centre, having two birds on his right, and a pair of pincers and a rectangular object on his left. It has been suggested by Dr. Stuart^ that the pair of pincers is one of the emblems of the Passion ; but it must be observed that although the pincers for extracting the nails from the Saviour's feet appears in the scene of the Descent from the Cross as early as the twelfth century,^ the use of this instrument as a symbol by itself belongs to a much later period of art. A pair of pincers occurs on the cross at Dunfallandy in Perthshire,* and also at Halton in Lancashire. 1 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pi. 70. It came originally from the Chapel of Kilmorie, and was afterwards built into the walls of the parish church, whence it was removed to the house of Corsewell. ^ Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, p. 34. ^ On capital of column of chancel-arch, south side, at Adel Church, Yorkshire. '' Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. i, pi. 47. THE HIGH CEOSSES OF IRELAND. 155 Saxon Type of Crucifixion. The treatment of the Crucifixion upon the Saxon sculptured stones in England differs in some particulars from the con- ventional representations found in Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, which we have already described as being of one type, having as leading features the fully draped figure of the Saviour, with Fig. 40. — Oruciflxion on Oross at Sandbach. unbent body and limbs, the four nails, the angels above, and the sponge and spear-bearers below. The chief modifications introduced into the Saxon Crucifixions are, that instead of the body being draped in a tunic without sleeves, there is only a cloth girt round the waist ; that the sun and moon occupy the places of the angels above the cross ; and that in some cases the feet of the Saviour are supported on a suppedaneum, and the 156 THE HIGH GEOSSES OF lEELAND. Virgin Mary and St. John stand at the foot of the cross, the soldiers with the spear and sponge being omitted. - The head of the Saviour is almost always nimbed. Examples of the Cruci- fixion, with the sun and moon above and the soldiers with the sponge and spear-bearers below, exist on crosses with Hiberno- Saxon forms of ornaments at Aycliffe in Durham, Alnmouth in Northumberland, and Bradbourne in Derbyshire. On the cross at Sandbach in Cheshire the Crucifixion is surrounded by the symbols of the four Evangelists, and Sol and Luna, placed side by side on the top arm of the cross above the head of our Lord. It is generally believed that the sun and moon are introduced in the scene of the Crucifixion to signify that there was dark- ness over the whole earth from the sixth to the ninth hour, as told by St. Matthew (ch. xxvii, 45), St. Mark (ch. xv, 33), and St. Luke (ch. xxiii, 44). St. Luke mentions specially that the sun was darkened ; and we learn from the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus (viii, 10) that the Jews explained to the governor that an eclipse of the sun had happened according to its usual custom. Martignyi believes the sun and moon to be symbolical of the Godhead and , Manhood of Christ, and supports his view by quotations from the Fathers, and by pointing out that the sun and moon are shown in other scenes besides, such as the Eesurrec- tion of Lazarus, on each side of the Good Shepherd, and on the corners of sarcophagi. The sun alone occurs in representations of the Harrowing of Hell,^ probably in reference to the words, " Lord, thou hast set the ensigns of thy glory in heaven", in the chapter describing it in the apocryphal Gospel of Nico- demus (xix, 10). The sun and moon are represented in several different ways, but, as in the case of the personifications of rivers and si^ns of the zodiac, classical models have been so closely adhered to that, except for the distinctly Christian character of the rest, they might be the work of a pagan artist. The sun is shown as a male figure, crowned, and with beams of light radiating from 1 Diet, des Ant. Chret., pp. 230 and 739. 2 On tympanum of Norman doorway at Quenington, Gloucestershire Brit. Mus. MS., Tib. C. vi, and Nero C. iv. THE HIGH CEOSSES OP IRELAND. 157 his head, and holding a flaming torch. The moon is a female flgtire, also holding a lighted torch, and with a crescent on her forehead. Sometimes the sun is in his chariot drawn by horses, and the moon in hers drawn by buUs.^ On the sculptured stones the busts of the sun and moon are enclosed within circular medallions, and the carving has, in most cases, altogether disappeared. The position of Sol and Luna varies, being most commonly placed in the blank spaces above the side arms of the cross, but sometimes on the top arm of the cross, either side by side or one above the other. There are two very beauti- ful examples of the Crucifixion, with the sun and moon, in the Saxon Psalter in the British Museum (Tib. D. xxvii),^ and the Great Psalter in the Boulogne Public Library,^ both written about the end of the tenth or beginning of the eleventh century. In the Boulogne Psalter* there is the superscription mc xpc over the head of the Saviour, and the feet are supported on a block. Below, on the left, piercing the Saviour's right side, is the soldier with the spear, and on the other the sponge-bearer, carrying in one hand the vessel full of vinegar, mentioned by St. John (xix, 29) only out of the Four Evangelists, who says that the vinegar was sprinkled with a plant called hyssop dipped in it, whereas St. Matthew and St. Mark mention a sponge on a .reed, and St. Luke omits the incident altogether. On the right of the picture is St. John holding a book, and on the left the Virgin Mary with her hands extended. Built into the walls of the Saxon Church of Daglingworth in Gloucester- shire, above the chancel-arch, is a slab on which is sculptured a Crucifixion, perhaps of the eleventh century, showing a vessel of vinegar and the hyssop, and a scourge in the hand of the soldier with the spear. The miniature of the Crucifixion in the Saxon Psalter in the 1 See beautiful miniature in Saxon Astronomical Treatise of Aratus (eleventh century), Brit. Mus., Tib. B. v, in Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 48. 2 Written (a.d. 978-998) by iElsine, a monk of New Minster, for ^if- wine, afterwards abbot of that monastery (a.d. 1035). 3 Written {circa A.D. 1003) by Heriveus, and illuminated by Odbert, in the Monastery of St. Bertin. ■i Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 39. 158 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IKELAND. British Museum (Titus D. xxvii)i is similar to that in the Boulogne Psalter, except that the soldiers with the spear and sponge are wanting, and at the top of the cross is a hand issuing from a cloud, in the attitude of giving the benediction. The names are inscribed as follows : SOL . LUNA . SCA MARIA . SCS lOHANNES ; and the title, Hic est mc nazarenus rex iudeoe. Fig. 41.— Oraciflxion on slab built into walls of Saxon Church at Daglingworth. Upon the magnificent cross at Gosforth in Cumberland,^ a good cast of which may be seen in the South Kensington Museum, there is a Crucifixion presenting some exceptional features. The figure of the Saviour with arms extended is enclosed within a rectangular frame of cable moulding. Outside this frame below are two figures : on the left, the soldier piercino- our Lord's right side, and causing a triple stream of blood to 1 W. de G. Birch's Early Drawings and Illuminations in the British Museum, 2 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pi. 24 ; and Joiirn. Brit. Archasol. Inst., vol. xl, p. 143. THE HIGH CROSSES OP lEELAND. 159 issue/ with a spear which passes over the side of the frame; and on the right, a faniale in a dress reaching to the feet, and with a long plait of hair behind and holding an object in her hand. I can recall very few instances in early art where the spear-bearer is unaccompanied by the sponge-bearer.^ The female figure is probably one of the women mentioned in the G-ospel account, and the object in her hand may be a vessel containing the spices and ointments for the burial.^ The finest conception of the Crucifixion in Saxon art, and the earliest instance of the Saviour being represented after He had bowed His head and given up the ghost, is to be found in a Psalter in the British Museum (Harl. 2,904),* whicli Professor Westwood attributes to the end of the tenth century, from its similarity to the Winchester Books of St. ^thelwold. Tlie head of the Saviour, which is surrounded by a cruciferous nimbus, is inclined to the left, and tlie eyes are closed. The body is slightly bent, the arms hanging down a little below the hori- zontal arms of the cross, but the legs perfectly straight. Instead of the nails, the five wounds, with triple streams of blood, are shown, one in each hand, one in each foot, and the other in the right side. The feet are supported on a square block. The drapery consists of a cloth girt round the waist ; over the head is the title, " mc est nazaeen ihc eex iudeoe." Below, on the right of the picture, is St. John holding a pen, and a scroll inscribed, " Hie est Discipulus qui testimoniii perhibet", in reference to the words of the Evangelist (John xix, 35), — " And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true : and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe." 1 The triple stream, indicated by three wavy red lines, is to be seen in the Saxon MS. in the British Museum (Harl. MS. 2904). 2 On the Norman font at Lenton, Notts, the soldier with the spear occurs alone. 3 The Three Maries, carrying boxes of spices for embalming the body, usually occur in the scene of the visit to the Sepulchre, not at the Cruci- fixion. In the Boulogne Psalter, previously referred to, the Three Maries at the Sepulchre are shown immediately below the Crucifixion, and one of the women carries a vessel shaped like a horn, and the other two round boxes. ^ Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 43. 160 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IBBLAND. On the left is the Virgin Mary, with a hood over her head and holding a cloak in front of her face. Both figures have the nimbus round the head. The drapery is drawn in the peculiar fluttering style of late Anglo-Saxon art, and the Virgin has that curious hump-backed appearance which is so common in draw- ings of the period. The latest Anglo-Saxon Crucifixion, and the one which comes nearest to the true mediaeval type, is to be found in the Arundel Psalter (No. 60)^ in the British Museum, a MS. of the eleventh century. It differs from the preceding one in having the knees bent and the whole body inclined. The wounds in the hands and right side are shown, but the feet have the two spikes through them. On each side below is a conventional tree, and at the four corners are the symbols of the Four Evangelists. The only further modification introduced subsequently was the substitution of one nail through the feet in place of two, with the crossing of the legs. Upon some of the Irish crosses the crucified Saviour wears a crown, as at Graigue-na-managh, co. Kilkenny,^ Tuam, co. Gal- way,^ and Glendalough, co. Wicklow. The only crown mentioned in the Gospels is that of thorns, but in the Eevelations (xiv, 14) the Son of Man is described as wearing a golden crown ; and in other parts of the New Testament the word is used in a figurative sense — a crown of life, of glory, of righteousness, and an incor- ruptible crown. The idea is fully brought out in a painting of the Crucifixion in the Chapel of St. Silvestro at Eome,'' where an angel is seen changing the crown of thorns for a real one. Figures of the crucified Saviour wearing a crown belono- generally to the twelfth century, and are seen in Limoges enamels.^ The Dextera Dei. In describing the miniature of the Crucifixion in the Saxon Psalter in the British Museum (Titus D. xxvii), we have 1 Westwood's Miniatures., pi. 49. 2 O'Neill's Irish Crosses, pi. 9. 3 Ibid., pi. 12. ' Mrs. Jameson's History of Our Lord, vol. ii, p. 176. ■^ Ibid., vol. ii, p. 334, crucifix belonging to Lord Zouche. Also Marcus Keane's Toivers and Temples of Ireland, p. 167. THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. 161 already referred to a hand issuing from a cloud at the top of the cross. This symbol is used throughout the whole range of early Christian art to express the First Person of the Trinity. It has its origin in the innumerable texts of the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms, which speak of the Hand of God, and such passages in the New as the one where St. Peter, on the Day of Pentecost, says that Jesus was " by the right hand of God exalted" (Acts ii, 23). Thus, in any scene where the power of God is specially manifested, or where the Almighty is described in the Bible as holding direct intercourse with man, the Hand symbol is used. Such scenes are far more common in the Old Testament than in the New ; for in the earlier stages of the world's history God saw fit to control human affairs by communicating openly with His chosen agents, but afterwards He made His unseen influence felt by inspired prophets, and through His Son, inter- vening only at rare intervals. Although there are so many passages in the Old Testament describing God's dealing with man, only a limited number are selected for illustration in Christian art, either as typifying or setting forth in some striking way the doctrines of the new dispensation. The principal scenes in which the Hand symbol occurs are as follows : — In the Old Testament. Offerings of Cain and Abel (Gen. iv, 9). Sacrifice of Isaac (Gen. xxii, 11). Moses and the Burning Bush (Exod. iii, 4). Moses receiving the Law (Exod. xix, 19). In the Neio Testament. Flight into Egypt (Matt, ii, 13). Baptism of Christ (Matt, iii, 17). Transfiguration (Matt, xvii, 5). Agony in Gethsemane (Matt, xxvi, 39). Crucifixion (Matt, xxvii, 36). Ascension (Acts i, 11). Christ in Glory (Rev. iv, 1). Story of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts v, 4). Martyrdom of Stephen (Acts vii, 59). St. Michael and the Dragon (Eev. xii, 10). M 162 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. In all these cases there is a distinct text of Scripture, which is given above, describing God as holding direct communication with man, or man appealing to God. In the scenes of the Sacrifice of Isaac,^ Moses and the Burn- ing Bush, and Moses receiving the Law, all of which are found amongst the paintings in the Catacombs, the Hand symbol is made to stand for the First Person of the Trinity ; but in the scene of the Offerings of Cain and Abel, the earliest examples of which occur on the sculptured sarcophagi, God is represented as an aged man. In later times, however, the Hand symboP Fig. 42.— Christ in Glory, with Hand Symhol, on Tympanum at Elkstoue. is used instead of God in His human form addressing Cain and Abel. An instance of the Hand symbol in the scene of the Flight into Egypt exists on one of the sculptured capitals of the twelfth century, at St. Benolt sur Loire, in France.^ Althouo-h the presence of all three Persons of the Trinity at the Baptism of Christ is distinctly specified in the Gospels, it is seldom that 1 As on tympanum of Norman doorway at Rochester Cathedral. 2 As in Csedmon's Saxon Paraphrase of the Scriptures, in the Bodleian Library at Oxford (Archmologia, vol. xxiv, pi. 76) ; and on the eleventh century bronze doors of Augsburg Cathedral (cast in South Kensington Museum). ^ De Caumont, Abe'ce'daire d' Archeologie, p. 257. THE HIGH CROSSES OF IBELAND. 163 more than two are represented in art, and the Holy Spirit as the dove is far more common than the Hand symbol placed above the head of the Saviour.^ Examples of the Hand symbol at the Transfiguration,^ the Agony in Gethsemane,^ and the Ascen- sion,* are to be seen on early ivories ; Christ in Glory on the tym- panum of the Norman doorway at Elkstone, Gloucestershire ; St. Michael and the Dragon on the Norman tympanum at Hovering- ham, Notts ; the Story of Ananias and Sapphira^ on the Brescia Casket ; the Martrydom of Stephen on a bronze plate engraved by Gori.^ Fig. 43.— St. Michael and the Dragon, with Hnnd Symbol, on Tympanum at Hoveringham. The Hand symbol at the Crucifixion refers to our Lord's words (Luke xxiii, 46), " Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit." It is to be seen upon two of the high crosses of Ire- land, namely, that of Muiredach at Monasterboice,^ and that of 1 The dove and the Dextera Dei occur together above the head of Christ on a few Carlovingian ivories. ("Westwood's Catal. of Fictile Ivories in S. K. Mus., Nos. 240, 275, 277.) 2 S. K. Mus. Ivory, No. 256, 1867. (See Maskell's Catal.) 3 S. K. Mus. Cast. (Westwood's Catal, No. 349.) 4 S. K. Mus. Ivory, No. 258, 1867. 5 This is, I believe, a unique subject. (See Westwood, Catal., No. 94 ; and Grarrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, pi. 441.) 6 See Martigny's Diet., art. " ^tienne". ' O'Neill's Irish Crosses, pi. 15. 164 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF IRELAND. King Fland at Clonmacnois.i In both cases the hand is sur- rounded by an ornamental nimbus ; but instead of being over the Crucifixion, as is usually the case, the Hand symbol is carved on the under-side of the projecting arm of the cross, at Monas- terboice to the left of the Crucifixion, and at Clonmacnois to the right. The effect produced is remarkable, for when the spectator stands beneath the cross and looks up he sees the Hand of God immediately above his head, as if issuing from heaven. The corresponding arms of the crosses on the other Fig. 44. — Hand Symbol on Cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice. side are in both cases ornamented with animal forms. A fine example of the Hand symbol above the Crucifixion in Norman sculpture exists at Eomsey Abbey, in Hampshire.^ Upon one of the panels of the cross in the town of Kells, co. Meath,^ the Hand symbol occurs in front of a tall, bearded man holding a large rectangular object in each hand, and witli two small kneel- ing figures below. I am unable to interpret the meaning of this scene. The Hand symbol, with the inscription dextera di, forms one of the principal ornaments upon the maniple found in the tomb 1 O'Neill's Irish Crosses, pi. 24. At Bishop Auckland, Yorkshire, is a Saxon stone with the cross within a circle and the Hand symbol above it. ^ Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pi. 2. 2 O'Neill's Irish Crosses, pi. 34. THE HIGH CEOSSES OF lEELAND. 165 of St. Cuthbert at Durham, which was made by Queen ^Ifi^d for Frithestan, Bishop of Winchester (a.d. 904-916).i It is also to be seen on the Bayeux Tapestry,^ above the church of St. Peter. The object in this case seems to have been to show that tlie blessing of God was specially bestowed upon the consecrated building, for the same symbol, with the inscription dex(tera), is also placed over a sculpture at Le Mans in France,^ on the Fig. 45. — Hand Symbol over Oruciflx, at Romsey Abbey. church of that town, with the patron saints, SS. Gervais and Protais, on either side. We see the same thing again in the con- secration of St. Martin of Tours, on a tapestry of the thirteenth century in the Louvre.* The Hand symbol is found on almost every page of the Utrecht Psalter, in which the words of the 1 J. Raine's St. Cuthhert. Other Saxon examples are to be met with upon the coins of Eadward the Elder, and .asthelred II. 2 Vetusta Monumenta, vol. vi, pi. 7 ; and Bayeux Tapestry, published for the Arundel Society by F. R. Fowke. ^ Martigny's Diet., p. 247. ^ Lacroix, Military and Religious Life of the Middle Ages, p. 281. 166 THE HIGH CBOSSES OP IRELAND. Psalmist are rendered literally/ and it is to be seen very fre- quently in ^Ifric's Saxon Heptateuch^ in the British Museum (Claud. B. iv). There are a great many varieties of this symbol, as regards the position of the hand, the attitude of the fingers, and the action performed. The position of the hand is generally facing either upwards or downwards in the centre of the picture, or in- clined diagonally from one of the upper corners. The attitude of the fingers is either that of giving the benediction, or outstretched, with the fingers sometimes close together, and sometimes apart.^ In many instances a cruciferous nimbus surrounds the hand,* or the Alpha and Omega are added,^ or rays of power are seen issuing from the tips of the fingers.* The actions performed by the hand are, — holding back the knife in Abraham's hand; pre- senting the Tables of the Law to Moses ; crowning saints with wreaths^; casting down great stones from heaven upon the Amorites (Joshua x, 11)^; holding the horn of oil for the anointing of David®; grasping a bundle of arrows, in illustration of the verse of the Psalms (xviii, 14), "Yea he sent out his arrows and scattered them ; and he shot out lightnings, and dis- comfited them";^'' and holding the scales in which St. Michael weighs the souls^^; extended to Christ when ascending into 1 W. de G-ray Birch's Utrecht Psalter. 2 Illustrating text, "Then men began to call upon the name of the Lord" (Gren. ii, 19) ; Abraham worshipping at altars at Bethel and Mamre ; Abraham rescuing Lot after the battle of four kings against five ; Abraham's vision of the lamp, etc. ' Miss Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pis. 1 and 2. ^ Doorway of Ferrara Cathedral, twelfth century. ' Doorway of Church of St. Peter at Vienne. (De Caumont's A bice- daire d'Archeologie, p. 20.) 8 Above head of Charles the Bald, in his Bible, in the Imp. Lib., Paris ; in the scene of the Martyrdom of Stephen, already mentioned • and over the head of the Prophet Isaiah in the Greek Psalter of the tenth century, in the Paris Library, No. 130. (Didron's Christian Icono- graphy, by Miss Stokes, vol. i, p. 202.) ' Chiefly on mosaics of seventh century at Rome. 8 Mosaic in the Church of Galla Placidia, Ravenna. 9 Saxon MS., Brit. Mus. (Tib. C. vi). 10 Ihid. (Harl. 603). " Tympanum of doorway of Autun Cathedral. (De Caumont A bece- daire, p. 248.) THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. 167 heaven^ ; holding the scroll of the G-ospel of St. Mark to the Evangelist.2 In fact, whenever the Almighty speaks with man, guides, protects, defends, blesses, or is appealed to by His chosen people, or avenges Himself on the wicked, there the Hand symbol appears as the outward and visible form under which His power is manifested. All attempts to symbolise the Creator of the Universe, except in the most abstract manner, are both unscriptural and profane ; for nothing can be plainer than the views held on the subject by the inspired writers, both of the Old and New Testament. Jacob, indeed, was privileged above others, and says, " I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved" (Genesis xxxii, 30). On Mount Sinai, " The Lord said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the Lord to gaze, and many of them perish" (Exodus xix, 21). " Manoah said unto his wife. We shall surely die, because we have seen God." St. John tells us (i, 18), " No man hath seen God at any time"; and (iv, 24), " God is a Spirit." The early Christians, during the first four centuries, adhered to the Scriptural view of the case, and the First Person of the Trinity was almost always symbolised by the hand^; but, from about the ninth century onwards, the difficulty of representing God as man, without diminishing those feelings of awe and reverence which would naturally deter the artist from approaching so sacred a subject, was avoided by assuming the identity between God the Father and God the Son. The Almighty is thus shown as a bearded man, with the cruciferous nimbus round the head ; and, except for the surroundings, there is no means of distinguishing between the figure of the Creator and that of Christ. In the Saxon Psalter of the eleventh century in the British Museum (Tib. C. vi),* in the miniature of the Trinity all three Persons have the cruciferous nimbus, God the Father in the centre in human form^ holding a book, and giving the benediction, having ' Saxon Benedictional of ^thelwold, circa 975 (Westwood's Minia- tures, pi. 45) ; and on Ivories, Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord, vol. ii, pp. 263 and 307. '■' Saxon MS., Brit. Mus. (Royal lE vi), "Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 15. 3 On some of the sculptured sarcophagi at Rome the First Person of the Trinity creating Eve is represented as an aged man. * Miss Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pi. 34. 168 THE HIGH CK03SES OF IRELAND. the letters Alpha and Omega at each side of the head ; on His right hand is God the Son as the Lamb, and on His left God the Holy Ghost as the Dove. In MSS. of this period the Almighty creating the world is also represented as Christ'- ; but where the identity between the Father and Son is shown in the most striking manner is in the Olumiaated initial letter D of the 110th Psalm, beginning, "The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand until I make thine enemies thy foot- stool."2 In the miniature of St. Matthew in the Lindisfarne Gospels in the British Museum^ (circa a.d. 710), the head of a man with a plain nimbus, and holding a book, protrudes from behind a curtain, to signify God inspiring the Evangelist, who is taking down the words in an open volume before him. The last stage of the degradation of symbolism was reached in the sixteenth century, when we find the Almighty in the guise of a human being, arrayed in pontiiical robes and tiara*; and the paintings of Eaphael in the Vatican of the Creator as a man,= however great their merit as works of art, cannot fail to shock the finer sensibilities of the more spiritually minded. Christ in Olory at the Transfiguration, the Ascension, the Second Advent, and the Last Judgment. It has been already stated that the central subject on the back of the cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice, corresponding with the Crucifixion on the front, is the Last Judgment.^ The chief features in the scene are the figure of Christ in the middle, with the righteous on His right hand and the wicked on His left, whilst below is St. Michael weighing the souls. The Saviour holds in His left hand the cross, symbolising His 1 Saxon MS., eleventh century, Brit. Mus. (Tib. C. vi), Mrs. Jameson's L\fe of Our Lord, vol. i, p. 72 ; also on an ivory of the ninth century, in the Douce Collection (Westwood's Catal., No. 147, and Didron's Christian Iconography, vol. i, p. 173). 2 Thirteenth Century Psalters in Brit. Mus, (Ar. 83 and 157) ; Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pi. 37. 3 Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 13. ^ Didron's Cliristian Icomgraphy, by Miss M. Stokes, vol. i, p. 218. ' Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord, vol. i, p. 85. « O'Neill's h-ish Crosses, pi. 10. THE HIGH CEOSSES OF lEELAND. 169 Passion, and in the right a floriated sceptre, to signify His triumph. This method of representing Christ in Glory seems to he peculiar to Celtic art in Ireland, and occurs upon six of the more important high crosses.^ The figure in the Irish MSS. which most nearly resembles that of Christ in Glory, as shown on the crosses, is the miniature Fig. 46.— Christ in Glory on the Cross of SS. Patrick and Oolumba at Kells. of St. Luke, in the Gospels of St. Chad, of the eighth century, in the Cathedral library at Lichfield.^ If it were not for the symbol of the Bull above the head of St. Luke, it might be sup- posed that the picture was intended to represent Christ, for upon the nimbus are three crosses, formed of red dots, and in the right hand he holds a sceptre, terminating in spiral scrolls of interlaced branches, bearing green leaves like the shamrock, 1 At Monasterboice, Termonfechin, Olonmacnois, Kells, Arboe, Drum- clifE. (O'Neill's Irish Crosses, pis. 10, 16, 22, 28, 31.) 2 Westwood's Palceographia, and Palasog. Soc. Publ., pi. 21. 170 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. and in the left a cross. Floriated sceptres are to be seen in the hands of angels and men in the Book of Kells} in the library of Fig. 47.— Miniature of St. Luke, from St. Chad'B Gospels. Trinity College ; on the metal shrine of St. Moedoc,^ in the 1 Miniatures of Virgin and Child (Westwood's Palmographia) and St. Luke (Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 10). ^ Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 52, figs. 5 and 6. THE HIGH CEOSSES OP lEELAND. 171 museum of the Eoyal Irish Academy at Dublin ; and on one of the crosses at St. Vigeans in Forfarshire. There is only one Fig, 48.— Enthroned figures holding floriated Sceptres on OrosB at St. Vigeans, Forfarshire. instance known of the picture of Christ in Glory in an Irish MS., and that is in the Gospels (No. 51) in the library of St. Gall in Switzerland.1 The treatment of the scene differs from that 1 Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 27. 172 THE HIGH CEOSSES OP IRELAND. found on the Irish crosses, the floriated sceptre being absent. The page of the 'MS. is divided into four rectangular panels. Fig. 49.— Miniature of Christ in Glory, from the St. Gall Gospels. three of which occupy the upper half of the page, and the fourth fills the lower half. In the centre panel, at the top, is Christ, with the nimbus round the head, holding a book in His THE HIGH CEOSSES OP IRELAND. 173 left hand, and raising the right in the attitude of giving the bene- diction. A cross, inclined diagonally, is supported between the arm and the body. In the panels on each side are nimbed angels blowing trumpets, and in the lower panel are twelve figures holding books and gazing upwards, possibly intended for the Apostles. In the Saxon MSS. of the same period the subject of Christ in Glory is not an uncommon one, the most interesting example perhaps being in the Saxon Psalter of King Athelstan, of the tenth century, in the British Museum (Galba A. xviii).^ There are three miniatures in the volume, one of the Ascension, and the other two of Christ in Glory. The first is inscribed ascensio DNi. The Saviour is enthroned, holding a book, and enclosed within an oval aureole, supported by four angels, with the Virgin (maeia) and the men of Galilee (viKi Galilei). In the next miniature Christ is enthroned, holding the cross, having the letters Alpha and Omega on each side, and enclosed within a vesica-shaped aureole, around which are the Choir of Martyrs (OMNis CHORUS maktyeum) , the Choir of Confessors (omnis chorus confessoeum), and the Choir of Virgins (omnis ciioeus virginum) . In the four corners are angels. The third miniature shows our Lord enthroned, holding a book, with the cross, spear, and sponge, emblems of the Passion, at each side, and enclosed within a vesica-shaped aureole. Around and below are the Choir of Angels (omnis chorus angelorum), the Choir of Prophets (omnis chorus prophetarum), the Virgin Mary, St. Peter, with the monogrammatic key, St. Paul, and the other Apostles. In the Greek Painter's Guide from Mount Athos,^ it is speci- fied that the saints who go to meet Christ at His Second Coming shall be divided into nine choirs, and those present at the Last Judgment into three choirs, in the following order— Apostles, First Parents, Patriarchs, Prophets, Bishops, Martyrs, Saints, Eighteous Kings, and Holy Women. It is possible, therefore, that the two miniatures in the Athelstan Psalter may be in- tended for the Second Advent. Strictly speaking, the repre- sentations of Christ in Glory should be purely symbolical, and no figures introduced except the angels supporting the aureole on. the evangelistic beasts. 1 Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 32. 2 Didron's Christian Iconogra.phj, by Miss Stokes, vol. ii, p. 345; 174 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. It will be seen that the chief difference between the Irish and the Saxon treatment of the subject of Christ in Glory is, that in the latter case the figure of the Saviour is surrounded by an aureole, a feature which we shall find subsequently in Norman sculpture. An aureole is a glory applied to the whole body, in the same way that the nimbus is to the head, but its use is more restricted ; for whereas the nimbus was given indiscrimi- nately to both Scriptural personages and also to Saints, the aureole is only an attribute of the three Persons of the Trinity, the Virgin Mary, and the Soul' Probably one of the earliest instances of the aureole round the figure of the Saviour is to be found in the miniature of the Ascension, in the Syriac Gospels of Eabula (a.d. 586), in the Medicean Library at Florence,^ before mentioned. The aureole may possibly have been de- veloped out of the rectangular and circular frames, enclosing a cross or bust of Christ, supported by angels at each side, which occur upon the sculptured sarcophagi at Eome and elsewhere.^ The aureole is quite unknown in Irish art, and the nimbus is but sparingly used. It is dif&cult to assign a reason for the absence of the nimbus round the heads of sacred personages upon most of the Celtic sculptured stones, and in some of the MSS., as the way of treating many of the subjects shows that they must have been copied from Byzantine originals, and in these the nimbus is always present. Upon most of the pre-N"orman sculptured stones of the ancient kingdom of Northumbria we find the nimbus, but the only example which exists in the purely Celtic area of Great Britain is upon the cross of King Fland at Clonmaenois.* In the Saxon and Hiberno-Saxon MSS. the nimbus is never absent ; but in the Irish MSS. it is either wholly omitted, or placed round some of the heads and not round others.^ The leaving out of 1 Miss Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pis. 33, 34, 71, 92. On pi. 80 is a figure of the Devil cast down into hell, within a vesica, copied from the twelfth century MS. in the Brit. Mus. (Claud. B. iv). " E. St. John Tyrwhitt's Art Teaching of the Primitive Church, p. 306 copied from Assemani's Catalogue of the Medicean Library. 3 Martigny's Diet., p. 257. * O'Neill's Irish Crosses, pi. 23. ^ As in the Booh of Kelts, where, in the miniature of the Virgin and Child, the former is nimbed, whilst the latter is not ; and in the Gospels THE HIGH CEOSSES OF IRELAND. 175 the nimbus upon the sculptured stones is one of the chief causes which renders the interpretation of the subjects so difficult. The figure of Christ within an aureole occurs in five different scenes, which must not be confounded with each other, namely, the Transfiguration, the Ascension, Christ in Glory, the Second Ad- vent, and the Last Judgment. They may be easily discriminated by the attitude of the Saviour's hands, the objects He carries, and the surrounding figures. In the Transfiguration Christ is sur- rounded by an aureole with eight rays like the spokes of a wheel ; on each side are Moses and Elias ; below are the three disciples, Peter, James, and John ; and above the head of the Saviour, the Dextera Dei.^ In the Ascension, Christ carries the cross of the Eesurrection, and stretches forth His hand towards the Dextera Dei, issuing from a cloud, the aureole being placed diagonally; below are the Virgin Mary and the Disciples.^ Christ in Glory is seated on a throne, gives the benediction with the right hand, and holds a book in the left. In this case there are no accessories, except the symbols of the four Evangelists or angels supporting the aureole. The Last Judgment is the most important subject that comes within the whole range of Christian art, both as being the final scene, for which the preceding ones are but a preparation, and on account of the scope it offers for the display of the imagina- tive faculty in grouping together all the actors in the great drama of life, and introducing those weird surroundings which make the mediaeval conceptions of the Doom so terrible. Tertul- lian calls the last and eternal judgment the greatest spectacle of all ; but notwithstanding this there is nothing in the paint- ings of the Catacombs at Eome during the first four centuries to show that the early Christians ever dwelt on the idea of of MacDurnan, where St. Matthew is nimbed, but St. Luke is not. The symbols of the four Evangelists are nimbed in the Stockholm and Lin- disfarne Gospels, but not in the Books of Kells, Durrow, Treves, St. Chad, and the Paris Gospels. The nimbus is to be found in the Gospels of Stockholm, Kells, Lindisfarne, St. Gall, St. Chad, MacDurnan, Treves ; Psalter, Brit. Mus. (Vesp. A. i), Cassiodorus on the Psalms, Durham. (See Westwood's Miniatures.) ' See Carlovingian Ivories in the South Kensington Museum. (Maskell, Catal.) * In the .iEthelwold Benedi'ctional. (Archceologia, vol. xxiv.) 176 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. Christ as the stern judge dealing out rewards to the good and avenging Himself on the wicked, or, indeed, that they believed in a place of future punishment at all. When the classical traditions which influenced the art of the Catacombs died out, all sense of beauty and belief in the loving characteristics of the Saviour disappeared with them, and in place of the Good Shepherd carrying the lost sheep tenderly on His shoulders back to the fold, the Byzantine mosaics represent Christ majestic, but stern and devoid of pity. The awe-inspir- ing appearance given to the Saviour in Byzantine art was re- tained in the sculptures of the Last Judgment of the eleventh and twelfth centuries, which are to be seen on the west fronts of many of the foreign cathedrals ; but other details, such as the tortures of the damned, are traceable to the vivid Northern imagination at the time when Christianity was being engrafted upon Teutonic paganism. One of the earliest and most in- teresting examples of the Last Judgment is the sculpture over the west doorway of Autun Cathedral, in France, executed by Gislebert, probably in the eleventh century.^ In the Latin Church this subject is usually sculptured upon the west wall outside, and in the Greek Church it is painted on the west wall inside. In England, paintings of the Doom over the chancel-arch are not uncommon, but they are mostly of late date. There is, however, one of the twelfth century still re- maining at Chaldon in Surrey.^ In MSS. before the twelfth century pictures of the Last Judg- ment occur but seldom. The conception of the scene is founded upon the descriptions given in Daniel (ch. vii), St. Matthew (ch. xxiv), and in the Eeve- lations (ch. xx), supplemented by texts from other parts of both the Old and New Testaments. A complete representation com- prises the following features. In the centre the Second Person of the Trinity, not the First, as Judge, according to our Lord's own words (John v, 22) and the testimony of the Apostles (Acts x, 42), enthroned (Eomans xiv, 10, and 2 Cor. v, 10), and 1 Journ. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. xl, p. 115 ; Du Sommerard's Les Arts du Moyen Age, Album, 3rd Series. 2 C. E. Keyser's List of Buildings with Mural Paintings, p. 354 ; Journ. B. A. Inst., vol. XXX, p. 35; Surrey Archceol. Coll., vol. v, p. 279. THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND. 177 surrounded by an aureole (Matt, xxiv, 30), with a rainbow across it (Rev. iv, 3), extending His hands evenly on each side to dis- pense equal justice to the good and evil alike. In the Greek Church, and the later examples belonging to the Latin Church, this attitude of impartiality is not found, but Christ is shown blessing the saints with the right hand, whilst He points out the place of torment to sinners with the left ; or, with the wounded hand (Eev. i, 7) extended palm upwards to the good, and pre- senting the back to the evil. The Greek Church represents His throne like the fiery flame, and His wheels as burning fire (Daniel vii, 9). Upon each side of Christ sit the Twelve Apostles, "upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (Matt, xx, 28), and the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist,^ in illustration of St. Paul's words, " Do ye not know that the Saints shall judge the world?" (1 Cor. vi, 2). With them, upon the right-hand side, are also the good, holding branches in their hands, symbolical of their virtues. They are distributed in three orders : first, the Choir of First Parents, Patriarchs, and Prophets ; secondly, the Choir of Bishops, Martyrs, and Hermits ; and thirdly, the Choir of Holy Kings, Women, and Martyrs. On the left hand of Christ are all sinners driven from His presence, and condemned with the devils and the traitor Judas. The sorrows and tortures of the damned by demons are shown in a variety of horrible ways. Angels are seen blowing trumpets (1 Thes. iv, 16, and 1 Cor. XV, 52), and gathering together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other (Matt, xxiv, 31). Other angels, for which there is no Scriptural warrant, hold emblems of the Passion, or help St. Michael to weigh the souls, and deliver the good ones to the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem. The scene of the Last Judgment is generally combined with that of the Resurrection from the Dead, which is placed be- low, forming a horizontal band extending the whole breadth of the picture. According to the Latin Church the bodies are shown rising out of stone cofiins, or sometimes from simple graves dug in the ground, the good being on the right hand of Christ the Judge, and the wicked on His left, with an 1 Or, in the thirteenth century, St. John the Evangelist with the Virgin kneeling and offering up supplications for the Holy Church. N 178 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF IRELAND. angel in the centre holding a drawn sword separating the two, in the words of the Prophet Daniel (xii, 2), " And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." The Greek Church represents the scene differently, and instead of the bodies coming out of holes in the earth they are shown being disgorged by sea-mousters and other beasts, following the text in the Revelations (xx, 13), "And the sea gave up the dead that were in it ; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them ; and they were judged every man according to their works." In a subsequent lecture we shall see the importance of this passage, as explaining the figures of animals throwing portions of human beings out of their mouths, which occur on the Scotch crosses and in Normaij sculpture. The Greek Church also includes, in the picture, an angel folding up a mighty scroll, on which is to be seen the sun, moon, and stars, in illustration of the verse in the Revelations (vi, 14), " And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled to- gether." Having reviewed the leading features in the scene of the Last Judgment, we are now in a position to examine more critically the peculiarities exhibited in the representation of the subject on the cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice. It should be noticed that some of the deviations from the conventional type are due to the shape of that part of the cross which has been chosen by the sculptor for his design, necessitating undue crowding togethei', or omission of figures where the space be- comes restricted by the hollows at the intersections of the arms. I think this accounts for there being only a single enthroned figure on the Saviour's left hand, where usually we see the Twelve Apostles, the Virgin Mary, and St. John. There is no room for a well-balanced composition, as on the tympanum at Autun Cathedral, where every detail on the right has one to correspond with it on the left — Christ in the centre, the four angels blowing trumpets at the four corners, Sol on one side, Luna on the other, the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem con- trasting with the Mouth of Hell ; St. Peter with key of Heaven being placed in opposition to St. Michael weighing souls, the good with angels on the right of Christ, and the wicked with THE HIGH CEOSSES OP lEELAND. 179 devils on His left. On the cross of Muiredach, in front of our Lord, on His right, is a kneeling figure, with an open book above the head. The book is described in the Eevelations (xx, 12), "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened : and another book was opened ; which is the book of life : and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." (See also Daniel vii, 10, and xii, 1.) The kneel- ing figure is probably the soul being judged. In some By- zantine Last Judgments we see an altar, with the book of justice, the cross, and other emblems of the Passion upon it, on each side of which kneel Adam and Eve.i David playing on the harp and leading the heavenly choir, on the right of the Saviour, in contrast to the souls of the wicked being driven from His presence by a devil with a three-pronged fork, has already been mentioned. St, Michael weighing the Souls. The only remaining subject to be considered is that of St. Michael weighing the Souls, which is placed immediately below the feet of our Lord. There are three figures in the composition. St. Michael is of gigantic stature, holding a staff with one hand and weighing a small human being in the pan of the scales nearest to him : a prostrate devil below is pushing up the light pan of the scale. The balance is suspended by a chain to a cross-bar above. On the wall-painting at Chaldon, in Surrey, St. Michael holds up the scales ; and on the Autun tympanum this office is performed by the hand of the Almighty issuing from a cloud. The weighing of the souls is not strictly speaking a Scriptural subject, although it may have been sug- gested by texts in the Bible. Michael is mentioned in only three of the books of Scripture : in Daniel (x, 13), where he is 1 Didron, Guide de la Peinture, p. 2 70. The inscriptions are — for Adam, "Adam per crucem redemptus, crncem adorat", and a similar one for Eve ; for the Cross, " Quae crux ita radiat quod splendorem solis et lunae sua claritate obscurat"; for the book, "Liber justiciae sunt exempla sanctorum, qui aperietur in prsesentia Dei, quia tunc aperte scient mali se non praedestinatos ad vitam. Liber Vitas est Christuf, qui suis dabit vitam.'' 180 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. described as one of the chief princes ; in Jude (9), as the Arch- angel contending with the devil, and disputing about the body of Moses; and in the Eevelation (xii, 7) as fighting with his angels against the dragon. Michael, Prince of Persia, seems to have been confused with Michael the Archangel, and the text which connects him with the Last Judgment is that in Daniel (xii, 1), which says: "And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince, which standeth for the children of thy people ; and there shall be a time of trouble .... and at that time thy people shall be delivered, 1 f^^^^/ /#) S' 1 ® r^ l\\\W :t^ i^^ & 1 Fig. 60.— St. Michael weighing souls on end of sculptured slab of fourteenth century in Kildare Cathedral. every one that shall be found written in the book." Balances are mentioned in Daniel (v, 27), " Thou art tried in the balance and found wanting" ; and also in the Revelation (vi, 5), " And I beheld, and lo a black horse ; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand"; but there is nothing to connect St. Michael with the operation of weighing, which fell to his lot as being chief of the angels and guardian of souls. THE HIGH CBOSSBS OF lEELAND. 181 Everyone who has studied Egyptian antiquities must have been struck with the marked similarity between the Christian representations of the weighing of souls and the pagan treat- ment of the same subject, as found on the wall-paintings in the tombs of Egypt, where Osiris, the Judge of the Dead, is seen on a throne, attended by Isis and Nepthys looking on, whilst Anubis stands on one side of a pair of balances, in which a soul is being weighed against an image of the God of Truth, whilst Thoth stands at the other recording the judgment on a tablet.^ By a curious coincidence the two symbols of office are held by Osiris exactly in the same way that the cross and sceptre are held by Christ upon the Irish crosses. For further information on this subject, consult Didron's Christian Iconogrci'phy, edited by Miss Stokes, vol. ii, chapter on the "Iconography of the Soul". St. Michael weighing the souls is not an uncommon subject in the twelfth century sculpture in France, there being good examples on capitals of columns at the church of St. Croix, at St. L6 in Normandy {Mim. de la Soc. des Ant. de la Normandie — Atlas) ; at the church of St. Pierre, at Chauvigny, near Poi- tiers (De Caumont, Bulletin Monumental, vol. ix); at Monti- villiers, near Havre (i^ewwe de I' Art Ghr6t.,\o\. v); and at Illats, in Gironde {Bevue de VArt CJir&t., vol vii). L'Abbd Crosnier gives some interesting details about the treatment of the Last Judgment in early art, in his Iconographie Ghrdtienne, and describes the capital of a column at St. Eev^rien, in the diocese of Nevers, upon which the soul to be weighed is not placed in a balance, but on a flat plate held by the Dextera Dei. The Last Judgments on the Greek wall paintings at Salamis and in the twelfth century MS. of the Hortus Deliciarum of Herrad, formerly existing at Strasbourg, are fully discussed in Didron's Guide de la Peiniure. ^ Sir G. Wilkinson's Ancient Egyptians, vol. iii, p. 468. LECTUEE IV. THE HIGH CEOSSES OF lEELAND,— SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. The name of M. Didron is, or should be, familiar to every student of Christian iconography. When the great French savant visited Greece in 1839 he was particularly struck by the stereotyped form of Eastern art as compared with Western. In the pictures and sculptures of the Latin Church, although ancient traditions are followed in the general treatment of the subject, a certain amount of freedom is allowed to the individual. In the Greek Church this is not the case. To use M. Didron's own words : " The artist is the slave of the theologian ; his work, which is copied by his successors, is in turn inspired by the painters who have preceded him. The Greek artist is enslaved by tradition, as the animal is guided by instinct ; he draws a figure as the swallow builds its nest, or as the bee makes its comb. He is master of execution ; the art is his, but the art alone ; because the conception and the idea belong to the Fathers, the theolo- gians, and the Catholic Church."^ M. Didron made it his business to find out how it was that the decorators of the churches were able to repeat the same figures and inscriptions, generation after generation, even when, as at Salamis, they are numbered by the thousand, without ever deviating from the prescribed copies. The mystery was solved when he arrived at Mount Athos,^ and, ascending the scaffold, he found the painter surrounded by his pupils, engaged in orna- ' Manuel d'lconograpMe Chretienne, p. ix. 2 For descriptions of the Monasteries of Mount Athos, see E. Curzon's Monasteries of the Levant, and Didron's Annales Archeologiques vol v p. 148. THE HIGH CROSSES OP IBELAND. 183 meriting the narthex of the church with frescoes. The master rapidly sketched the outlines of the figures entirely from memory, without ever making a mistake, stopping now and then to dictate long sentences to his pupils, which were to be inscribed on the pictures. On M. Didron's expressing his astonishment at the skill and prodigious effort of memory involved in the process, the artist replied, "But, sir, all this is much less wonderful than you suppose, for see here is a MS. which tells us all we ought to do. Here we are taught to prepare our plaster, our brushes, our colours, to compose and arrange our pictures ; there also are written the inscriptions and sentences which we have to paint, and which you heard me dictate to these young pupils of mine." The MS. in question is a sixteenth century copy of an original supposed to have been compiled by Dionisius the monk, painter to the convent of Fourna, near Agrapha, who had studied the famous paintings of Panselihos. Additions have been made from time to time, but it is still in use as the manual of fresco paint- ing in the chitrches of Greece.^ M. Didron had a careful copy made of this MS., which he presented to the King of Bavaria. It has been translated into French by M. Paul Durand, and published with notes by M. Didron in 1845, under the title of Manuel d' Iconographie Ohrdiienne Greque et Latine. The title of the original MS. is, 'Ep/iriveia ttj? ^(oypacpiKTJ^, or Guide to Paint- ing. It deserves careful study from every student of Christian antiquities. The book is divided into three parts; the first dealing with the methods of preparing the materials required for painting ; the second giving detailed descriptions of how all the subjects are to be treated, and what inscriptions are to be added ; and the third specifying the appropriate arrangement of the pictures as regards their position on the walls of the church.^ The latter question, although one of very great importance, has not received the attention it deserves from arch^ologists. Perhaps the reason of this is that we possess no complete series of frescoes or sculptures to show what scheme of arrangement 1 E. Curzon's Monasteries of the Levant, p. 17. 2 A translation of the Painter's Guide will be found in Didron's Chris- tian Iconography, edited by Miss Stokes, vol. ii. 184 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND: was generally followed. The practice of placing pictures of sacred subjects in a definite relation one to another began in the Catacombs at Eonie. Here the surface to be decorated was usually a hemispherical dome, in the centre of which was placed the principal subject, with others in radial compartments sur- rounding it. Both Old and New Testament types were used together, without any marked distinction being made between them ; and as nearly all the types were of about equal import- ance, there was no necessity for arranging them in an ascending or descending series. Historical sequence was also neglected. On the sculptured sarcophagi, owing to the difference of the shape of the surface to be decorated, the subjects were placed on each side of a centre instead of round it. With this new arrangement we find the idea of antithesis introduced, the Old Testament types being placed on one side of the centre and the New Testament types on the other. In the mosaics of the Basilicas we have another form of surface, namely, the half- dome, which gave an opportunity of placing the principal subject, which was generally Christ in Glory, at the top, and the Angels, Apostles, Prophets, Saints, and Martyrs in order of precedence one below the other, whilst the Old and New Testa- ment types were still separated, one on each side of the central axis. Besides the relation of the subjects to each other, when the ritual of the Church became more advanced, particular scenes were painted on those portions of the sacred edifice to which they were deemed most appropriate, so that the nave, chancel, transepts, east end, west end, baptistery, doorways, etc., each had their own special set of subjects. The shapes of spaces to be decorated may be classified as rectangles, triangles, circles, and semicircles, corresponding on rounded surfaces to cylinders, spherical triangles, domes, and apsidal or half-domes. The other considerations to be taken into account are symmetry, with regard to a certain point or line, and order of sequence. In all systems of decoration the most important subject is placed in the centre, and the others are made to lead up to it, the contrast being effected by arrang- ing the opposite elements, such as good and evil, type and anti- type, men and women, Jews and Gentiles, on each side of the axis of symmetry. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 185 The most complete scheme of decoration of an ecclesiastical building is probably to be found at Chartres Cathedral in France ; and in this country the west front of Wells Cathedral is a very fine example of symbolic sculpture. The earliest description which has been preserved of the scheme of decoration of an English church is to be found in the Venerable Bede's Lives of the Holy Allots} From this source we learn that Benedict Biscop, returning from Gaul a.d. 675, after his third voyage to Eome, " brought with him pictures of sacred representations to adorn the Church of St. Peter ,^ which he had built, namely, a likeness of the Virgin Mary and of the Twelve Apostles, with which he intended to adorn the central nave, on boarding placed from one wall to the other ; also some figures from Gospel history for the south wall, and others from the Eevelation of St. John for the north wall ; so that everyone who entered the church, even if they could not read, whenever they turned their eyes might have before them the loving countenance of Christ and His Saints, though it were but in a picture, and with watchful minds might meditate upon the benefits of the Lord's Incarnation, and having before their eyes the perils of the Last Judgment, might examine their hearts more strictly on that account." No such paintings have survived the destructive ravages of time, but we have on the high crosses of Ireland a complete scheme of decorative Christian sculpture as applied to monu- ments. In the last lecture we examined those subjects which were chosen, from their importance, to occupy the most pro- minent positions ; on the present occasion we shall study the scenes which lead up to them. The principal subjects, the Crucifixion and Christ in Glory, are placed in the centre of the cross ; the others are enclosed within panels on the shafts. The Temptation of Adam and Eve. On the cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice, on the lowest compartment of the shafts on the same side which bears the representation of tlie Last Judgment, described in the previous 1 A. Giles' edition, vol. iv, p. 369. 2 Monkwearmouth, founded a.d. 674. 186 THE HIGH CBOSSES OF IRELAND : lecture, we find a sculpture of the Temptation and Expulsion^ of Adam and Eve. These scenes occur together on three of the other high crosses of Ireland,^ and the Temptation by itself is to be found in seven instances.' In Scotland there are two crosses with the Temptation of Adam and Eve upon them * but I know of no example 'in other parts of Great Britain on sculptured stones of the pre-Norman period. With regard to the miniatures of the MSS. the case is re- versedj for although we have Saxon pictures of Adam and Eve Fig. 51.— Temptation and Expulsion (?) of Adam and Ere on shaft of Cross of Muiredacli, at Monasterboice. in Csedmon's Paraphrase of the Scriptures and in -.Elfric's Heptateuch, we have no Irish ones. The reason of this is because the scene of the Fall of our First Parents illustrates the third chapter of Genesis, and no illuminated Irish MSS. of the Old 1 Dr. J. Anderson suggests that the second scene is not the Expulsion, but the Murder of Abel, and the weapon held in the hand of one of the figures is certainly more like a club than the sword which the angel should carry. ^ At Monasterboice, and two crosses at Kells. ' At Kells, Arboe, Moone Abbey, Drumcliff, Tynan, and two crosses at Castle Dermot. * At Farnell and lona. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 187 Testament have survived to the present day. It will therefore be seen of what very great importance the sculptured stones are in supplementing our knowledge of early Christian symbolism in this country, and it is fervently to be hoped that an effort will be made to preserve some record ■ of the designs by means of photographs and casts, before the destructive effect of weather- ing has removed every trace. How long will it be before it is recognised that the scientific value of the results obtained from the study of the sculptured stones is in no way inferior to that derived from the miniatures of the MSS ? Yet it is curious to note the difference between the means taken to preserve the one and the other. In our great libraries no one is allowed to examine the more important MSS., except under special conditions, which preclude the possi- bility of their being injured ; but if anyone wishes to immortalise himself by cutting his name upon one of the early Christian monuments of this country, or feels inclined to break off a piece to carry away as a memento, I know of nothing to prevent his doing so. It is difficult to find words to express the folly of allowing such priceless treasures to decay year after year, without the slightest effort being made either to place them under cover, beyond the reach of the hand of the spoiler, or to take copies which may survive to be handed down to posterity, when the stones themselves no longer exist. However, the good work must not be further delayed, or it will be too late, for in a few years there will be nothing .remaining to show that we once possessed a national school of Christian art, of which, if it had existed in any other country but our own, we should have been the first to recognise the value. But to return to the subject of Adam and Eve. The position chosen for the scene on the Irish crosses is usually at the base of the shaft, although in two cases it occurs at the top. The Fall of Adam is the first and most important of all the Old Testament types which have reference to the doctrines of Christianity. It was the Fall of Adam which rendered the Atonement necessary, and the symbolism is made clear in the beautiful chapter on the Eesurrection in St. Paul's Epistle to the Corinthians (1 Cor. xv, 21), containing the verse, " For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." The 188 THE HIGH CROSSES OP lEBLAND : representations of Adam and Eve were also looked upon by the early Church as refuting the errors of the Gnostics, and showing that the creation of man was the work of God and not of the evil principle.^ No scene is found so universally throughout tlie whole range of Christian art from the earliest times down to the present day, and in none have the conventional features varied less. Fig. 52.— Temptation of Adam and Eve on broken cross shaft in Kella Cliurcliyard. The first dated example is to be seen on the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus at St. Peter's in Eome (a.d. 359). In the centre is a tree with leaves like those of an oak, round the trunk of which the serpent is coiled, his head looking towards Eve, who stands on the right. On the left is Adam, who, like Eve, hides his nakedness with a large fig-leaf, quite out of proportion with the leaves of the tree in the centre. A sheaf of corn stands next Adam and a sheep next Eve, typical of the labours which they had to undergo in order to make the earth bring forth its fruit after the Fall. It will be noticed that here, as in many 1 Martigny's Did., p. 19. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 189 other representations where symbolism is the point of greatest importance, historical accuracy is found wanting. The Bible distinctly says, that at the time of the Temptation " they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed" (Gen. ii, 25). It was not until they had eaten the fruit of the tree that " the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked ; and they sewed fig-leaves together and made themselves aprons" (Gen. iii, 7). However, the inaccuracy of the representations consists not in perverting the words of Scripture so much as in crowding several incidents into one, and Fig. 63.— Temptation ot Adam and Eve on shaft of OroBS at lona. making them take place simultaneously, instead of one after another. We have remarked upon the same thing in the case of the soldiers bearing the sponge and spear at the Crucifixion. The representations of the Fall of our First Parents may be divided into three classes — (1) where historical accuracy is adhered to, and neither Adam nor Eve evince any feelings of shame, but are entirely engaged in the act of receiving the apple from the serpent and handing it from one to the other. The number of apples varies according to whether one action only is shown, or whether the artist saw fit to make the three consecutive actions — Eve receiving the apple from the serpent, Eve handing it to 190 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF IRELAND : Adam, and Adam eating it — all take place at once. This form is the least common in early art. (2) Where Adam and Eve are receiving or presenting the apple with one hand and hiding their nakedness with the other. This form is most common in Norman sculp ture.^ (3) Where Adam and Eve are covering their nakedness with both hands. This is the form which occurs most frequently on the sculptured sarcophagi at Rome and on the Irish high crosses. Throughout all- periods of Christian art Eve is generally shown on the right side of the tree and Adam OJi the left ; but the rule is not always adhered to. The special features which characterise the Celtic representa- tions of the Temptation are the exaggeration of the crossing of the hands, in order to indicate an attitude of shame, and the peculiar way in which the branches of the tree are made to form an arch enclosing the figures on each side. Instead of leaves on the boughs, there are a quantity of round berries, each on a single stem. The kind of tree is not specified in the Bible, but as in the seventh verse of the third chapter of Genesis, immediately following the one describing the Fall, it says that Adam and Eve sewed fig-leaves together to make themselves aprons, the Greek Church has assumed that the tree of knowledge was a fig-tree. The species varies according to the locality, the apple being most common in the art of the Latin Church. Sometimes, however, the orange, vine, and cherry are seen.^ On sculptured Norman fonts at Cotham and Oowlam in Yorkshire, and at East Meon in Hants, the tree is shown with branches much interlaced, as is common in the art of the period. In the mediceval bestiaries,^ and in the Bihlia Pawperum^ the upper part of the figure of the Almighty, as Christ with the cruciferous nimbus, is shown in the midst of the foliage of the Tree of Knowledge, probably in reference to the verse in Genesis (iii, S), " And they heard the voice of the Lord God, walking in the ^ Occasionally two and three are combined. Adam hides his naked- ness with both hands, whilst Eve hides hers with only one. (Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, pi. 312, and vice versa, vol. vi, pi. 376. ^ Didron, Guide de la Peinture, p. 80. ' Cahier and Martin, MHanges d' ArcMologie, vol. iii, p. 284 : " We place the Saviour in this tree (Arbor Perindex) because He is the lignum vitm of all who believe on Him." ' J. P. Berjeau's reprint. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 191 garden in the cool of the evening." The companion picture in the Biblia Pauperum is the Creator appearing to Moses out of the burning bush, which scene is treated in a similar manner. There are some curious legends connecting the Tree of Know- ledge with the cross.^ In rare instances we find the tree placed at one side instead of in the centre, as on a sculptured sarcophagus given by Fig. 64. — Temptation of Adam and Eve on sculptured stone at Farnell. Garrucci,^ and in .iElfric's Anglo-Saxon Heptateuch.^ On the cross-slab from Farnell in Forfarshire, now in the Montrose Museum, there are two serpents introduced into the scene of the Fall, one at each side, with Adam and Eve standing by the tree in the centre. The serpent is, in later times, from the thirteenth century onwards, given the head of a woman, and this ' In the miniature of the Crucifixion in the Saxon Psalter in the Cam- bridge University Library, the word "Lignum Vitse" is inscribed on the cross. 2 Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. v, pi. 374. 3 Brit. Mus. (Claud. B. iv), eleventh century. (See T. Wright's Hist, of Caricature and Grotesque, p. 57.) 192 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND: receives sanction from the writings of Bede, who tells us Lacifer chose the species of serpent which had a female head, because " like are attracted to like".^ There are some remarkable sculptures of the Fall on the capital of one of the columns of the Cathedral at lona/ which, although executed in the fourteenth century, preserves all the TH.OUYOT.SC Fig. 55.— Temptation of Adam and Eve on eighteenth century tombstone at Logierait, archaic features of the Irish crosses. Even in the eighteenth century the ancient symbolic treatment of this subject still survived upon tombstones in remote village churchyards, as at Logierait in Perthshire,^ where Adam and Eve with aprons of hg-leaves sewn together to hide their nakedness, instead of the large cabbage-life leaf seen in the earlier representations, are ' Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord, vol. i, p. 100. ^ H. D. Graham's Antiquities of lona, pi. 41. 3 Other tombstones with Adam and Eve exist at Falkirk, Little Dun- keld, and Uphall, in Scotland, and at St. John Leonard, Gloucestershire. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 19c placed under an arch, round which is inscribed, " The serpent deceived Eve" The whole of the story of the Fall, as told in the third chapter of Genesis, is generally compressed into one scene, with the exception of the Expulsion from Paradise, which is treated separately. On three of the Irish crosses we have the Fig. 56.— Temptation of Adam and Etc, on Font at Gotham. {From a nihhing hy the Mev. (?. F. Browne.) Temptation and Expulsion side by side, enclosed in the same panel. On the sculptured sarcophagi at Eome the curse pro- nounced by God against Adam and Eve is symbolised by a sheaf of corn and a sheep, either placed beside^ them or being 1 Garrucoi, Storia del Arte Crhtiana, vol. v, pis. 314, 365, 366. 194 THE HIGH CROSSES OF lEELAND : presented to them by God.i In the Saxon MSS.^ and on Norman fonts^ the same idea is indicated by an angel, who gives a spade to Adam and a spindle and distaff to Eve. Apart from the symbolism of these representations, the ancient forms of agri- cultural implements and spinning apparatus exhibited are of the greatest interest. The Saxon spade is of the same one-sided Fig. 67.— Temptation of Adam and Eve, on Font at Oowlam. (R-om a ruibing by the Rev. G-. F. Browne) shape as those still in use in the Western Islands of Scotland, of which specimens may be seen in the Edinburgh Museum of Antiquities. The only two Saxon MSS. in existence containing ' G-arrucci, Storia del Arte Crisiiana, pi. 381. 2 vElfric's Heptateuch, B. M. (Claud. B. iv), twelfth century MS., B. M. (Nero C. iv). ^ East Meon, Hants ; Hook Norton, Oxon. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 195 pictures illustrative of the earlier books of the Old Testament are the Reptateuch of jElfric, Archbisliop of Canterbury, who died A.D. 1066, in the British Museum (Claud. B. iv) ; and the metrical Paraphrase of the Scriptures of CaedmOn, in the Bodleian Library at Oxford (Junius, No. 11), written in about the eleventh century. Both of these MSS. contain drawings of the Temptation and Expulsion of Adam and Eve. The whole of those in Csedmon's Paraphrase of the Scriptures have been engraved in the Archmologia} and the text has been published by Thorpe.^ A verbal description would in no way do justice to this most wonderful series of illustrations of Anglo-Saxon art, and I cannot therefore too strongly recommend a careful study of the book itself, a thorough knowledge of which is absolutely essential to a comprehension of the Christian symbolism of the period. In the series given in Csednion's Paraphrase the diffuseness with which the subject is treated forms a very marked contrast to the representations on the Irish crosses, where, symbolism being the chief object, as many different actions as possible are compressed into one. Side by side with the scenes described as having taken place in the Bible, we are shown their connection with the contest going on between the powers of good and evil in the spiritual world. The Adoration of the Magi. The subject occupying the top panel of the shaft of the cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice, on the same side as the Temptation of Adam and Eve, appears to be the Adoration of the Magi. The Virgin Mary is shown seated on the throne, holding the infant Saviour in her arms ; in front are the three wise men, with a fourth figure behind, and above the head of Christ is the star. The Adoration of the Magi is not found on the paintings in the Catacombs^ at Eome until the end of the third century, but upon the sculptured sarcophagi* it is one of the scenes most frequently represented. It occurs also upon the 1 Vol. xxiv. 2 Benjamin Thorpe. London, 1832. 3 Northoote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 169. 4 Ibid., vol. ii, p. 262. On eleven out of fifty sarcophagi in the Lateran Museum at Eome. 2 196 THE HIGH CEOSSES OP IRELAND : sculptured details of Italian churches^ in the eighth century, upon Norman fonts^ in England, and its popularity lasted down to a late period. I can find no example of it in the Irish MSS., and only two in Saxon MSS., the Missal of Archbishop Robert of Canterbury in the Public Library at Eouen,' and in the Benedictional of iEthelwold in the Library of the Duke of Devonshire.* Besides being an event in the history of our Lord, the Adoration of the Magi was used by the early Church to symbolise the belief in the divinity of Christ and the Virgin Pig. 68.— Adoration of the Magi, on shaft of OroBs of Mulredach at Monasterboioe. Mary, and also to typify the conversion of the Gentiles to Christianity. The traditional number of the wise men is three, probably because St. Matthew (ii, 11) mentions three kinds of offerings, — " And when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold and frankincense, and myrrh." This number is, however, considerably varied in the Catacomb paint- ings and elsewhere, chiefly for the sake of symmetry, the Virgin 1 On the altar of Raohtis, at Cividale in Frioul. del Arte Crisiiana, vol. vi, pi. 424.) ^ Sculthorpe, Norfolk ; Cowlam, Yorkshire. " Westwood'a Miniatures, p. 136. * Archceologia, vol. xxiv. (Garrucci, Sloria SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 197 and Child being placed in the centre, and either one or two wise men on each side. The names given to the Magi by tradition are Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. On the sculp- tured sarcophagi their dress consists of a short tunic, a cloak falling in long folds behind from the shoulders, and bandaged leggings. A direct connection may be traced between the Three Children in the Fiery Furnace and the Three Magi. Both are shown wearing the same kind of head-gear; and Martignyi gives three examples of sarcophagi on which a star is placed over the Fig. 59.— Adoration of the Magi, on Pont at Cowlam. (From a rubbing hy the Rev. Q. F. Browne.) Three Children. St. Matthew (ii, 1) simply tells us that the wise men came from the East to Jerusalem ; but in the apocry- phal Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus Christ (iii, 1) it is added that their coming was prophesied by Zoroaster ; and (iii, 6) we also learn that they were fire-worshippers, thus pointing to Persia as their native country. According to the Greek Church, the three wise men were kings, and they are thus represented in the art of the Western Church after about the eleventh ceur tury. ' Diet, des Ant. ChrU., art. "H^breux", p. Milan, and St. Gilles. 338, in the Vatican, at 198 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND. Sometimes the Magi are on horseback, and the Greek Painter's Guide from Mount Athos^ directs that outside the cave, de- scribed in the apocryphal Gospel of the Infancy (i, 6) as the place where Christ was born, a young man holding three horses by the bridle shall be shown, and that in the distance, on a moun- tain, the three Magi on horses, returning to their own country, being shown the way by an angel. Joseph is often represented standing behind the chair on which the Virgin is seated. In late examples the Virgin is crowned. The Saviour usually has the right hand raised in the act of giving the benediction. As regards the offerings, each of the wise men is drawn carrying a single object,— in the Catacombs, a flat dish or tray ; in later times, a metal vase. In many cases the first of the Magi has a wreath or crown in his hand, as well as the vessel containing the spices. The Adoration of the Magi is not a common subject on Celtic sculptured stones, and besides the example at Monasterboice I know of no other. However, we find the scene carved upon the Franks Casket in the British Museum, which Prof. Stephens believes to be of Northumbrian origin, and attributes to the ninth century. The learned Professor justly calls it " one of the oldest and costliest treasures of ancient English art now in exist- ence." This precious relic was purchased in 1857 by Mr. A. W. Franks in France, and presented by him to the British Museum. Nothing is known of its previous history beyond the fact that it was obtained by the dealer, who sold it to Mr. Franks, from Auzon, Brionde, Haute Loire, France, where it was in use as a work-box. The casket is made of the bone of a whale, which, according to the inscription on the front, was caught at Fergen-berg, or Fergen Hill, in the county of Durham. All four sides are most elaborately carved with scenes, which are described by Eunic inscriptions running round the edge and forming a sort of frame to each. The stories illustrated are those of Eomulus and Eemus, Titus and tiie Jews, the Adoration of the Magi, and two others, which have not been satisfactorily explained.^ 1 Didron's Guide de la Peintiire, p. 159. '^ One is a blacksmith at work at his forge, and the other a battle-scene inscribed ''Mgili", showing a king on a throne attacked in his strong- hold. 200 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND : Above the wise meu is written the word " Mtegi", or Magi, in Eiines. The Virgin is seated on a throne, with the infant Saviour on her lap. His head is larger than that of the Virgin, and is surrounded by a cruciferous nimbus. The star is indi- cated by a circular disc, divided by radiating lines. The three wise men are in front carrying gifts, tlie first kneeling on one knee. Between them and the throne is the figure of a bird. The companion scene on the same side of the casket represents a blacksmith at his forge,^ a prostrate figure below two women in front, and a man seizing two geese by the neck, as may also be seen on the cross at Eossie Priory in Perthshire.^ Prof Stephens sees in the blacksmith an illustration of the Scandina- vian Weland, but it seems rather improbable that a Christian and pagan should be placed in such close connection. Chr-ist seized hy the Jews. The cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice has upon the bottom panel of the shaft, on the same side as the Crucifixion, a sculpture of what is perhaps intended for Christ seized by the Jews. It consists of a group of three figures, the centre one being our Lord holding a staff, and on each side soldiers with drawn swords, the one on the right grasping the Saviour by the wrist. The beauty of the details of the drapery, which, exe- cuted with the minutest care, is specially remarkable ; and the circular Celtic brooch for fastening the dress on the shoulder, is also deserving of notice. There is no nimbus round the head of Christ. The subject was first identified by Prof. Westwood, who recognised its meaning on account of its similarity to the picture of Christ seized by the Jews in the Book of Kelln, illustrating Matthew xxvi, 30. The peculiar way in which the soldiers grasp the wrists of the Saviour is the same in both cases. The Seizure of Christ by the Jews belongs to the series of the Passion, the earliest example of which occurs upon a sarcophac^us 1 Pictures of Tubal Cain as a smith occur in Ceedmon's Para2)lirase of the Scri2>tures, in the Bodleian at Oxford, and in iElfric's Heptateuch in the British Museum. A blacksmith, associated with the Adoration of the Magi, is to be seen on the font at Ingleton, Yorkshire. 2 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pi. 98. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 201 in the Lateran Museum at Rome, of perhaps the fifth century.^ There is, however, a group of figures very much resembling that on the cross at Monasterboice, especially with regard to the attitude of the hands grasping the wrist, which is not uncom- monly seen upon the sculptured sarcophagi of the fourth cen- tury^ in association with Moses striking the Eock, and Peter denying Christ. The group consists of two Jews, who may be Fig. 61.— Christ seized hy the Jews, on shaft of Cross of Muiredaoh at MoDasterboioe. identified by the peculiar caps on their heads, arresting a man who stands between them. The usually accepted interpretation is that it represents St. Peter taxed with being a follower of Christ ; but Martigny^ thinks that it is the Jews reproaching Moses with having brought them out to die of thirst in the wilderness. It is well known that the early Christians traced a 1 Appell's Monuments of Christian Art, p. 21. 2 On sarcophagus from St. Paul's extra Muros, now in the Lateran Museum. {Appell, p. 16.) 3 Diet, des Ant. Chret., art. " Juifs", p. 402. 202 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND: resemblance between St. Peter and Moses, for upon a glass vessel from the Catacombs we see a figure striking a rock, with the name petrvs inscribed instead of Moses,^ Fig. 62.— CbriBt seized by the Jews, from the Book of Kells. The sculpture on the cross at Monasterboice differs from those on the sarcophagi, as the figures on each side are armed with swords in the former case ; and this fact, together with its similarity to the picture in the Booh of Kelts, makes it probable that the Seizure of Christ by the Jews is here represented. 1 Martigny's Diet., art. " Moise", p. 474. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 20)3 This scene is often combined with the Betrayal Kiss of Judas, as in the miniature in the Missal of Archbishop Leofric of Canterbury at Eouen,^ previously referred to. We also find it alone on other crosses in Ireland,^ and on the cross at Sandbach in Cheshire^ Christ is being led away bound. Prof. Westwood* thinks that the man standing between two figures, having hximan bodies and beasts' heads, which occurs on crosses in Ireland and Wales,^ represents the Seizure of Christ by the Jews, and refers to the verse in the Psalms (xxii, 16), " For the dogs have compassed me ; the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me ; they pierced my hands and my feet." The subjects which have occupied our attention up to the present are those which occur upon the cross of Muiredach at Monasterboice, but there are several others on the Great Cross at the same place, which must not pass unnoticed. As regards size, this is one of the most remarkable monuments in Ireland, being 22 feet high ; but it has, unfortunately, been very much injured. It does not bear any inscription, so that there is no means of determining its exact age, but it probably belongs to the same period as the other crosses at Monasterboice, which were erected in the tenth century. David, or Samson, and the Lion. The shaft is divided into seven panels, and the lowest one, on the same side as Christ in Glory, contains a sculpture of David slaying the Lion. This scene is very liable to be confused with the conflict between Samson and the Lion, but in almost all cases where it occurs on Celtic stonework a sheep, a harp, or a shepherd's crook are added, showing clearly that David, and not Samson, is represented. However, the symbolism is in either case the same, and is typical of God's power to deliver the Christian from the power of evil. David is a far more important type of Christ than Samson, and the texts on which 1 Westwood's Miniatures, pi. 40. 2 Monasterboice (two crosses), Olonmacnois, Arboe. ^ Lysons' Magna Britannia. * Miniatures, p. 39. 5 Moone Abbey, Kells, Castle Dermot, in Ireland ; and Penmon in Anglesey. 204 THE HIGH CROSSES OE IBELAND : the symbolism is founded are more directly connected with the former than the latter. First, there are the words of Da.vid himself (1 Samuel xvii, 37), " The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion and out of the paw of the bear. He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine." Then in the Psalm (xxii, 21), which is prophetic of the Crucifixion, are the words, " Save me from the lion's mouth"; and, lastly, we find St. Paul making use of the simile in the Epistle to Timothy (2 Tim. iv, 17), "Notwithstanding, the Lord stood with me and strengthened me ; that by me the preaching might bo fnlly known, and that all the Gentiles might hear ; and I was Fig. 63.— David and the Lion on Crosses— (1) in town of Kells, and (2) at Kilcullen. delivered out of the mouth of the lion." It is curious, however, that in the Greek Painter's Guide from Mount Athos the scene of Samson and the Lion is alone mentioned, that of David being omitted. Perhaps this may be accounted for by the fact that the former comes first in an historical series, and being so like the other, and involving the same symbolism, its repetition with David for the hero instead of Samson was unnecessary, and would only lead to confusion. The conventional method of representing the Killing of the Lion is the same in both cases, although the Scriptural account is somewhat different. In the Book of Judges (xiv, 6) we read of Samson, that he " rent the lion as he would have rent a kid"; but David says, when the SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 205 lion rose against him (1 Samuel xvii, 35), " I caught him by his beard and smote him and slew him." The bear mentioned in the latter account is generally omitted. Scenes from the Life of David do not occur in early Christian art in the Catacombs, with the solitary ■ exception of David holding a sling, of which there is only one example, nor are they to be seen on the sculptured sarcophagi. In later times, when the ritual of the Church became more developed, the Fig. 64.— David and the Lion on sculptured slab at SS. Andrews. Psalter was one of the regular service-books, and the illumin- ations of the MSS. consisted either of scenes from the Life of David, pictures illustrative of the words of the Psalmist, or series of the Life of Christ. Many of the early Psalters, were divided into three parts, having an illuminated initial page, with a full-page miniature opposite, at the beginning of the 1st, the 51st, and the 101st Psalm, and it is here that we generally find the exploits of David illustrated. In the thirteenth century the divisions were liturgical, and the Psalms with initial letters referring to the opening words are those with which the services 206 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND ; commenced on each day of the week according to the Eoman and Salisbury uses.'- There are other Psalters which are illus- trated throughout, either with marginal drawings^ or pictures in the text, giving a literal interpretation of the words of the Psalms.^ Several Irish* and Anglo-Saxon^ Psalters are in existence, con- taining scenes from the Life of David, of which the following Fig. 66.— David and Goliath, and David and the Lion, from Irish Psalter of St. John's College, Cambridge. are the most common : — David playing the harp with his four assistants, which usually forms the frontispiece to the volume ; 1 W. de Gray Birch, Early Drawings and Illuminations in the British Museum, p. 252— Sun., Ps. 1 ; Mon., Ps. 26 ; Tues., Ps. 38 ; Wed., Ps. 52 ; Thurs., Ps. 68 ; Fri., Ps. 97 ; Sat., Ps. 101 ; Sun., Ps. 109. 2 Greek Psalter, a.d. 1066, Brit. Mus. (Add. MS. 19,352). 3 Utrecht Psalter. (See W. de G. Birch.) < Brit. Mus., Vit. P. xi ; St. John's Coll., Cambridge. 6 Brit. Mus., Vesp. A. i ; Tib. C. vi ; Boulogne Public Lib. ; Cam- bridge Univ. Lib. ; Durham Cath. Lib., Cassiodorus Commentary. (See West wood's Miniatures and Palmographia.) SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 207 slaying the lion ; attacking Goliath with sling ; cuttting off Goliath's head with sword; carrying Goliath's head to Saul; and sometimes the anointing by Samuel. Out of these, two occur very frequently on Celtic sculptured stones, — David playing on the harp, which subject has been discussed in the last lecture, and David slaying the Lion, which is to be seen on four of the Irish crosses' and on two stones in Scotland .^ On one of the panels of the shaft of the Great Cross at Monasterboice is what may possibly be a representation of the Anointing of David by Samuel. The Celtic sculptors naturally reproduced upon the crosses those scenes which were constantly before their eyes in the illuminations of the MSS., but David and the Lion seems to have been specially chosen in preference to the others, because it belongs to that class which, like Daniel in the Lion's Den, Noah in the Ark, and the other cycle of scenes found in the paintings of the Catacombs, set forth God's power to save the faithful from spiritual danger. In the Biblia Pauperum^ a resemblance is traced between the mouth of hell, which in mediaeval art is always symbolised by the open mouth of a monster, and the jaws of the lion rent by Samson. Thus the type and antitype are placed side by side, — Christ delivering Adam from Limbus in the centre ; on the right Samson and the Lion ; and on the left David and Goliath. The same idea is carried out in the thirteenth century windows of Chartres Cathedral.* The triumph of man in his contest with wild beasts has always been a favourite subject in pagan as well as Christian art, and the representations of Samson and David slaying the lion bear a marked resemblance to Gistubar on Assyrian sculp- tures,^ and Hercules and the Lion in Roman mythology. In a Byzantine MS. of the ninth century, in the Imperial Library at Paris,^ there is a miniature of David with a club killing the lion, which is devouring one of the sheep, and behind him is a personi- 1 Monasterboice, Kells (two crosses), Durrow. (See O'Neill, pis. 19, 29, 34.) 2 St. Andrew's, Drainie. (See Stuart, vol. i, pis. 61 and 130.) 3 J. Ph. Berjeau's reprint. * Didron, Monographie de la Cathedrale de Chartres. ' Journ. Brit. Archceol. Assoc, vol. xli, p. 398. 8 Mrs. Jameson's Life cf Our Lord, vol. i, p. 204. 208 THE HIGH CROSSES OP lEELAND : fication of force with a nimbus round the head, and the inscrip- tion 'lo-^v? above. The bear is already dead, and a harp lies on the ground. The Sacrifice of Isaac. Upon the second panel from the bottom of the shaft of the Great Cross at Monasterboice is a sculpture of the Sacrifice of Isaac. This subject has always been a favourite one throughout the whole range of Christian art, and as the description given in Genesis (xxii, 1-14) is generally strictly adhered to, the tradi- tional features of the scene do not vary to any great extent. From the time of St. Paul (Heb. xi, 17) onwards the Sacrifice of Isaac was universally acknowledged as a symbol of faith, and as foreshadowing the greater sacrifice of Christ upon the cross. St. Gregory of Nyssa, who was born about a.d. 331, alludes to the frequency of such representations, and tells us that he often could not refrain from tears, " beholding Isaac, with his hands bound behind his back, and Abraham with one hand grasping the hair of his son, while looking down on him with sorrow, and in the other hand holding the weapon raised to strike."^ The subject occurs frequently on the paintings in the Catacombs,^ and on about eleven out of fifty sarcophagi^ in the Lateran Museum at Eome. The earliest dated example is probably on the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus (a.d. 539),* to which we have had to refer so often as one of the most important landmarks in the history of Christian art. Here Abraham, clad in long flowing garments, stands in the centre with one hand upraised, holding a sword ready to strike, and the other placed upon the head of Isaac, who kneels at his feet on the right, with his hands tied behind his back. The hand of the angel of God is shown above on the left, holding back the sword. In front of Isaac is the altar with fire burning upon it, and on the other side of Abraham is the ram (or, as it is here shown, a lamb) cauo-ht in a thicket (Gen. xxii, 13). The reason for this deviation from historical accuracy, in replacing the ram by a lamb, is that the 1 Cone. Nic, ii, Act 4 ; quoted in Mrs. Jameson's Hist, of Our Lord vol. i, p. 133. ' 2 Garrucci, Storia del Arte Crisiiana, vol. ii, pis. 24, 48, 69 71 77. 3 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 262. * Appell's Monuments of Early Christian Art, p. 9. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 209 early commentators saw in the ram a type of Christ crucified or crowned with thorns, and therefore the Agnus Dei was preferred to the ram. A third human figure is introduced standing by the side of Abraham, which is probably one of the two young men he took with him (Gen. xxii, 8). The early representations do not always follow the exact words of Scripture, in showing Isaac "laid on the altar, upon the wood" (Gen. xxii, 9), but place him sometimes kneeling beside the altar, with his hands tied behind him. Isaac is in many cases bound as well as blindfolded. The moment immediately preceding the sacrifice where " Abraham took the wood of the burnt-offering and laid it upon Isaac his son ; and he took the fire in his hand and a knife ; and they both of them went together" (Gen. xxii, 6), is chosen by the artist in some instances, especially in the thirteenth century, and there are also representations of Abraham after the sacrifice in an attitude of prayer, with Isaac standing upright on one side near the altar, and the ram on the other. ^ In the thirteenth century windows of Bourges Cathedral,^ and in the Bihlia Pauperum^ we see Isaac carrying two sticks over his shoulders, placed so as to form a cross, side by side with Christ carrying His cross, and a fanciful resemblance was traced between the wood carried by Isaac and the two sticks gathered by the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings xvii, 12). There is a passage in Bede's Lives of the Holy Abbott bearing on the subject, which is of the highest interest as throwing light on early Christian symbolism in this country. It is as follows : " NowwhenBenedict (Biscop) had made this man(Easterwine) Abbot of St. Peter's (Monkwearmouth), and Ceolfrid Abbot of St. Paul's (Jarrow), he not long after made his fifth voyage^ from Britain to Eome, and returned, as usual, with an immense number of proper ecclesiastical relics. There were many sacred books and pictures of the saints, as numerous as before. He also brought with him pictures of our Lord's history, which he hung round ' Grod blessing Abraham after the Sacrifice occurs on a twelfth cen- tury ivory plaque at Salerno Cathedral. (Westwood, Catal., p. 94.) ^ Miss Twining's Symbols and Emblems, pi. 20. 3 Facsimile, by J. P. Berjeau. * J. A. Giles's translation, vol. iv, p. 375. s About A.D. 685. P 210 THE HIGH CROSSES OF lEELANU : the Chapel of Our Lady in the larger monastery ; and others to adorn St. Paul's Church and Monastery, ably describing the connection of the Old and the New Testament, — as, for instance, Isaac bearing the wood for his sacrifice, and Christ carrying the cross on which He was about to suffer, were placed side by side. Again, the serpent raised up by Moses in the desert was illus- trated by the Son of Man upon the cross. Among other things, he brought two cloaks, all of silk and of incomparable work- manship, for which he received an estate of three hides on the south bank of the River Wear, near its mouth, from King Alfrid." On the station-cross at Mayence,^ of the twelfth century, are a most important series of Old and New Testament types, similar to those described by Bede, and all inscribed. The central panel on the back is occupied by the Sacrifice of Isaac inscribed with the first part of a hexameter verse, — " Cui patriarcha suum", which is finished round the corresponding medallion on the front enclosing the Agnus Dei, — " Pater offert in cruce natum." I cannot find any representations of the Sacrifice of Isaac in Irish MSS., and only two or three in Saxon ones, at the beginning of the Psycomachia of Prudentius/ and in .^Elfric's Heptateuch,^ where the subject is treated historically in several scenes. Besides the Great Cross at Monasterboice there are seven others* where this subject occurs. The scene is treated in a most conventional way, the chief peculiarity being the attitude. Isaac bends over the altar like a man on a block preparing to be beheaded. Above the bent body of Isaac is the ram ; and Abraham, standing erect with a sword in his hand, occupies the rest of the picture. On the cross at Moone Abbev, Abraham is seated on a high-backed chair. On the Great Cross at Monasterboice, on the two crosses at Kells, and on the one at Arboe, Isaac is engaged chopping the wood for the sacrifice on 1 St. J. Tyrwhitt's Art Teaching of (he Primitive Churchy p. 251. 2 Brit. Mus., eleventh century (Add. MS. 24,199, and Tit. D. xvi). ^ Brit. Mus., eleventh century (Claud. B. iv). * UUard, Moone Abbey, Arboe, Castle Dermot (two crosses) and Kells (two crosses). (See O'Neill, pis. 9, 18, 23, 28, 31.) SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. .211 the altar; and there is at Monasterboice and Arboe an additional figure close to the ram, which may be intended for the angel, or perhaps Abraham's servant. There is, however, no indication of the Dextera Dei, or Hand symbol, which is seen in most early representations. In Norman sculpture the Sacrifice of Isaac is a very rare subject, and I only know of one example,^ on the tympanum of a doorway at Eochester Cathedral. It is almost entirely destroyed by exposure to the weather, but the Hand symbol and the words AEIES per coenva, which formed part of an inscrip- tion running round the whole, can still be clearly distinguished. Fig. 66.— Saorifloe of Isaac— (1) on arm of Cross of SS. Patrick and Colamta at Kells, and (2) on shaft of Great Cross at Monasterboice. An eighteenth century tombstone in Logierait churchyard in Perthshire presents a very remarkable instance of the survival, or perhaps revival, of ancient symbolism. Here, side by side with the skull and cross-bones, the" hour-glass, the spade, and the cofan, which enabled a gloomy generation to remind the living of the horrors of death, we have a representation of the Sacri- fice of Isaac, recalling the beautiful symbolism of the early Christians, who looked upon death as the gate of eternal hfe. Abraham wears the dress of the eighteenth century, and holds a knife in his hand, as described in our version of the Bible, not a sword, as is commonly seen in early examples. Isaac in 1 In France it occurs on the capital of a column at St. Benoit sur Loire ; De Caumont's AUcedaire cV Archeologie, p. 213. p2 212 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND a kilt is lying on the altar, with his hands tied and his legs dangling over the side. Abraham has one hand placed on the head of Isaac, whilst the other is being held back by a very quaint figure of an angel. Below is the ram, caught in the bush, and an open book has the words, " Abraham offering up Isaac is stayed by an Angel" (Gen. xxii). The date is 1774. Fig, 67. — Safiriflce of Isaac, on eighteenth century tonahstone at Logierait, There seems to have been a revivaP of ancient symbolism in Puritan times, but whether the representations of Scripture scenes belonging to the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were copied from old woodcuts, or designed afresh from the texts in the Bible, it is difficult to say. The Temptation of ^ Or perhaps a survival, in Germany, which influenced this country by articles manufactured there and exported. SUBJECTS OK THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 213 Adam and Eve^ and the Sacrifice of Isaac^ were placed on tombstones even within the present century ; and the same scenes are to be found on carved woodwork used in the decora- tion of houses in the sixteenth century, there being a very curious example over the chimney-piece of a farm-house at Swayfield in Lincolnshire/ where Abraham is dressed in the trunk hose of the period. A panel of about the same date, with the Sacrifice of Isaac on it, found in London, is engraved in the Journal of the British Archmologiccd Association.^ Other survivals of the same class are to be found on a carved wooden peg tankard of the fifteenth century in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford,^ with Jacob's Dream, the Sacrifice of Isaac, and King David ; two fire-dogs in the South Kensington Museum, dated 1549, with Adam and Eve, Samson and the Lion, Samson carrying away the Gates of Gaza, David playing the Harp, and the Crucifixion ; and on seventeenth century Scandinavian powder-horns, with Adam and Eve, Samson, David, etc., of which there are several specimens in the Edinburgh Museum of Antiquities. The Three Children in the Furnace. Upon the top panel of the shaft of the Great Cross at Monasterboice, on the same side as Christ in Glory, is a sculp- ture which seems to be intended for the Three Children in the Eiery Furnace. Under a kind of arch with flames issuing from it, which represents the door of the furnace, are three little kneeling figures, and on each side is a man with a lump of fuel on a two-pronged fork. A similar representation occurs on two other crosses in Ireland," but I do not remember any instances on sculptured stones in other parts of Great Britain, or in the Irish or Saxon MSS. of the same period. This subject is found frequently in the paintings in the Catacombs, but on the sculp- tured sarcophagi it is less common, being only seen on four out of fifty in the Lateran Museum, examined by Dean Burgon, 1 St. John Leonard, Gloucestershire, 1834. 2 Horsham, Sussex, 1835. 3 Ashby-de-la-Zouche, Anastatic Drawing Soc, 1863, pi. 53. * Vol. xxxii, p. 242. 5 Illustrated in Shaw's Specimens of Ancient Furniture. 6 Kells and Arboe. (O'Neill, pis. 28, 31.) 214 THE HIGH CROSSES OF lEELAND : We have the testimony of St. Cyprian^ that the early Christians were encouraged to profess their faith without fear of death by martyrdom, believing that they would be delivered, as were the Three Children, who openly acknowledged their belief in the true God regardless of consequences. St. Irenseus and St. Turtullian saw in the Three Children a type of the Resurrec- Fig. (18. — The Three Children in the Fiery Furnace, etc., on the shaft of the Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells. tion and St. Cyril of Alexandria compares the furnace to the Church, where men may in concert with angels continually do homage to the Saviour.^ In the hymns of St. Ephrem* the ' Epist. Ixi, ed. Baluz ; quoted by Martigny, and Northcote and Brown- low. 2 Martigny's Diet., art. " H^breux", p. 340. ' Hymn 43 ; quoted by Northcote and Brownlow, Roma Sotterranea, vol. ij, p. 113. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 215 stories of Daniel in the Lion's Den, the Three Children, and Jonah, are associated together as having one meaning. " Tlie body," it is said, " has triumphed over the lion's den, over the liery furnace, over the monstrous fish, which was obliged to surrender him whom it had swallowed." The word children does not, of course, refer to the age of the Israelites in question, but means that they were descendants or children of Judah, as mentioned in the first chapter of Daniel. We learn from the Bible that their names were originally Hananiah, Misael, and Azariah, which were afterwards changed by the prince of the Eunuchs to Shadrach, Mesech, and Abed- nego (Dan. i, 7). The connection between the Three Children and the Magi may be partly due to the former being described as being skilful in all wisdom (Dan. i, 4), and the Magi being called wise men. The Three Children are also mentioned as being of royal descent (Dan. i, 3). The scene of the Three Children refusing to worship the image, which is of much rarer occurrence than the Three Children in the- Furnace, is the one which is placed side by side with the Adoration of the Magi on some of the sarco- phagi and the later paintings in the Catacombs.^ The early conventional representation of the Three Children in the Fiery Furnace consists of three figures, " in their coats, their hosen, and their hats, and their other garments" (Dan. iii, 21), standing with their hands upraised in the ancient attitude of prayer on the top of a furnace, having flames issuing from its three doors. The headgear consists of Phrygian caps, similar to those worn by the Magi. The fourth figure, "like the Son of God" (Dan. iii, 25), is hardly ever seen. The Gi-eek Painter's GuicM from Mount Athos gives the following description : " A furnace, within, the three children fully dressed, the hands and, face lifted to heaven ; the Archangel Michael in the midst of them ; the soldiers are devoured by the flames. Hard by is erected the King's image." The Three Children in the Furnace is not a subject which occurs in Norman sculpture, and is rare in later mediaeval art, 1 Northcote and Broionlow, vol. ii, p. 114 ; Martigny's Diet., article " Hebreux", p. 338. 2 Didron, Gidde de la Peinture, p. 118. 216 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF IKELAND : although it sometimes is seen as a type of the Last Judgment, in allusion to being saved by Christ from iire. In the Biblia Pauperum the scene is associated with the Transfiguration, and Abraham and the Three Angels. Soldiers gtiarcling the Seimlchre. Before leaving the Great Cross at Monasterboice a subject must be noticed which occupies the bottom panel of the shaft on the opposite side to those just described. The sculpture, which is a good deal defaced, -seems to show two soldiers with helmets and spears bending over a tomb, and a cross in the centre. Similar representations occur on two otlier Irish crosses, at Kells and Clonmacnois, and it is supposed to be intended for the Soldiers watching the Sepulchre of Christ (Matt, xxvii, 66). If this is the case, the three small crosses on the tomb, which appear in the bottom panel of the cross of King Fland at Clonmacnois, may be the seals on the stone. In the Gi-eeh Painter's Guide from Mount Athos^ four seals are specified. The scene belongs to the series of the Passion, and comes between the Entombment and the Descent into Limbus. MooNE Abbey Cross. Having exhaustively examined the symbolism of the crosses at Monasterboice, we will now turn to some of the other monu- ments of the same class in Ireland which present new sub- jects. In the churchyard of Moone Abbey, which lies eight miles east of Athy, in the county of Kildare, is a very fine granite cross in admirable preservation. It is 12 ft. 9 ins. high, and measures 4 ft. across the arms. The shape of the head is the same as that of the other Irish crosses, but the lower part is somewhat different, there being only a short shaft, then an intermediate piece with sloping sides, and lastly, the base with sides which are more nearly perpendicular. On one face of the head of the cross is the figure of the Saviour crucified, with His arms extended, and a sort of fish or dolphin above the head. The rest of the sculpture on the upper part of the cross consists of little panels, enclosing single figures of men and animals and ' Didron, Guide de la Peinture, p. 199. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 217 geometrical ornament. The middle part of the cross between the shaft and the base has a panel of sculpture on each of the four sides: (1) the Crucifixion; (2) the Temptation of Adam and Eve ; (3) two figures seated on thrones facing each other, and with a circular disc between them ; (4) tliree little figures under an arch, and an angel with four wings above. Fig. 69.— Middle part of Moone Abbey Cross. The base has on the front a single panel, enclosing twelve figures arranged in three rows, perhaps intended for the Apostles; on the back two panels— (I) the Sacrifice of Isaac ; (2) Daniel in the Lions' Den ; on one side two panels— (1) the Flight into Egypt; (2) a pair of fishes facing each other, with five circular o^'ects below, and a long fish on each side. Perhaps these are symbolical of the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes; on the other side two panels— (1) Man between two 218 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND figures with human bodies and beasts' heads ; (2) four serpents and two beasts interlaced. Daniel in the Lions' Den. Most of these subjects have been already discussed, but there are others which we have not met with before. Daniel in the Lions' Den has been described by Dr. J. Anderson in a previous course of Khind Lectures/ and also in a very interesting paper read by him before the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.^ Fig 70. — Daniel in the Lions' Den, etc., on the base of the Mooue Abbey Cross. The early Christians, following the example of Darius (Dan. vi, 26-27), looked upon the delivery of Daniel from the power of the lions as a proof that God will stand by those who believe on Him, and rescue them from the dominion of evil. By St. Irenaeus and Tertullian Daniel in the Lions' Den was used as a symbol of the Eesurrection.^ In the prayers for the dead in the early liturgies, and on an inscribed glass plate of the fifth century found at l*odgoritza in Albania, the same meaning is attached to the delivery of Daniel from the Den of Lions, the Three Children from the Fiery 1 Scotlandin Early Christian Times, 2nd Series, pp. 144 to 150. 2 Vol. xi, p. 388. ■> Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 113. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 219 Furnace, Susanna from a false accusation, and Jonah from the Whale's Belly.^ Daniel in the Lions' Den is found frequently on paintings in the Catacombs at Eome, the most ancient example being perhaps of the second or third century, in the cemetery of Domitilla.^ He is represented as a nude figure, with his two hands upraised in the ancient attitude of prayer, and with a lion on each side looking towards him. On the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus the subject is similarly treated, but the figure of a man on each side is added, supposed by Martigny to be the Persian satraps who condemned the Prophet. On some of the sarcophagi Abacuc is seen carried by the hair of the head to Babylon,^ or bringing food to Daniel,* as described in the Apocrypha. Daniel feeding the Dragon with balls of pitch^ occurs in a few cases. On the later sarcophagi the Prophet is clothed, and wears a Phrygian cap, and sometimes the number of the lions is increased from two to four. The meaning of this subject is proved beyond possibility of doubt by the numerous inscribed examples found engraved on belt-clasps from Bur- gundian graves.^ The only instance I have seen in a MS. of Daniel in the Lions' Den treated after the ancient conventional fashion, is in the Spanish Apocalypse of the twelfth century in the British Museum.^ It will be noticed that on the Moone Abbey cross the number of lions given in the Vulgate is adhered to, namely, seven, there being three on the right and four on the left. This is the number also specified in the Greek Painter's Guide from Mount Athos. As a general rule, however, symmetry is preferred to historical accuracy, two and four being the most common number of lions. 1 Scotland in Early Christian Times, 2nd Series, p. 152. 2 Northcote and Brownlow, vol. ii, p. 123. 3 Appell's Monuments of Early Christian Art, p. 31 ; Sarcophagus in Brescia Museum ; Proc. Soc. Ant. Scot., vol. xi, p. 390— Bucket from Miannay; Tympanum of doorway of Chapel of St. Gabriel, near Tarascon in France. H. Revoil, Architecture Romane du Midi de la France, vol. i, p. 17. 1 Appell, p. 16— St. Paul's extra Muros, Eome. 5 Martigny's Diet., art. " Daniel", p. 236. s Found chiefly in Savoy, and the Jura, Switzerland. (Le Blant, Inscr. Chret. de la Gnule ; Troyon, in ZiXrich Ant. Soc, vol. ii.) 7 Add. MS. No. 11,695. 220 THE HIGH CROSSES OP IRELAND: Daniel in the Lions' Den occurs very frequently on Celtic sculptured stonework, and is to be found on seven crosses in Ireland and six in Scotland. After the twelfth century the subject becomes rare ; but there is a very remarkable piece of Norman sculpture on the west front of Lincoln Cathedral, representing Daniel draped and seated, holding a book, with five lions round him, two above facing outwards, and three below, looking towards the prophet. The only scene from the Life of Daniel in the Biblia Pauperum is his accusal by the Baby- lonians. On an ivory plaque of the tenth century, in the collection of M. Uzielli, of which there is a cast in the South Kensington Museum (Westwood's Gatal., No. 274), the scene of Daniel in Fig. 71. — Daniel in the Lions' Den, on Cross at Meigle, in Perthshire. the Lions' Den includes King Darius and Habakkuk, held up by the hair of the head by an angel. The, FliijM into Egypt. The Plight into Egypt, which is seen on the base of the Moone Abbey cross, belongs not to the symbolical representa- tions found in the paintings in the Catacombs and on the sculptured sarcophagi, but to the regular series of the Life of Christ, which first make their appearance in Christian art in about the tenth or eleventh century, and become exceedingly common in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The sculp- ture shows the Virgin and Child seated upon an ass, which is being led by Joseph. In the Gospel of St. Matthew, the only one of the four Evangelists who describes the Flight into SUBJEOTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 221 Egypt, no particulars are given beyond that Joseph, being warned by an angel in a dream, " arose, betook the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt" (Matt, ii, 14). The method of travelling adopted in art, and consistently adhered to, was probably that in vogue at the time when the scene was first introduced. The Greek Painters Gkdde describes Joseph as walking behind the ass^ on which the Virgin is seated, and also introduces an attendant leading another ass laden with a basket of rushes. Sometimes an angel is directing them on Fig. 72.— The Flight into Egypt, etc., on the base of the Moone Abbey Gross. their journey, or the Hand of God is seen issuing from a cloud to express the same thing. In the apocryphal Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus Christ^ (iv, 6-13), it is related that as soon as our Lord entered Egypt, the idol which the inhabitants of that country worshipped, on being questioned, told the people that the un- known God, who is truly God, had come amongst them,and having thus spoken, the idol fell down. The same story is told in the » The Feast of the Ass was anciently celebrated at Beauvais on the 14th of January, to commemorate the Flight into Egypt (see Hone's Mysteries, p. 161). The cross on the back of the ass is traditionally believed to have been placed there by God, in consequence of his having been ridden upon by Christ when entering Jerusalem. '■' Hone's edition. 222 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND : Golden Legend,'^ which calls the name of the city of Egypt Hermo- polis, and also mentions a tree, which bowed down in adoration of the Saviour as He passed by. The fall of the idol is referred to in the Greek Painter's Gioide, and it is illustrated in the Biilia Pcmperum side by side with the Adoration of the Golden Calf and Dagon falling before the Ark. The story evidently originates in the text in St. Matthew's Gospel (ii, 15), quoting the prophecy of Hosea (xi, 1), " and called my son out of Egypt", the following verse being, " As they called them so they went from them ; they sacrificed unto Baalim, and burned incense to graven images." The rest is founded on the prophecies of Isaiah (xix, 3, 19-22). Dr. J. Anderson recognises the Eall of the Idols on the arm of the cross in the Street of Kells. I do not know of any miniature of the Flight into Egypt in the Irish or Celtic MSS., but the subject occurs in MSS.,- sculptured details of churches/ and on ivories,* in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The description of the Return from Egypt in the Gospel corresponds so nearly with that of the Flight, that, except in the Bihlia Pauperum and in the diffuse series of the Life of Christ in later mediaeval art, it was not considered necessary to represent both. Enthroned Figures. One of the panels of the middle portion of the Moone Abbey cross has upon it a pair of enthroned figures facing each other, and holding a circular disc between them. No satisfactory explanation of the meaning of this representation can be given, but several other similar ones may be seen on pre-Norman 1 Didron, Guide de la Peinture, p. 160. 2 Brit. Mus. (Nero C. iv). 2 Cap of oolumn, St. Benoit sur Loire, France (De Caumont's A hice- daire d'ArchSologie, p. 257) ; St. Maire a Toscanella, Italy (G-ailhabaud's Architecture, vol. ii, Part I) ; Pulpit at S. Michele, Groppoli (Builder, Deo. 10th, 1881). * Plaques of shrine, Salerno Cath., Italy ; Carlovingian Casket in the Louvre. (Westwood's Catalogue of the Fictile Ivories in the South Kensing- ton Museum, pp. 93 and 231.) i SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 223 sculptured stones in Scotland/ the Isle of Man,^ and England,^ in many cases associated with the elephant, double disc, crescent and V-shaped rod and other symbols, one of the best examples being at Dunfallandy in Perthshire. t « Fig. 73.— Pair of enthroned figures holding disc, on Cross at St. Vignans. Thrones are continually mentioned throughout the Bible, especially the throne of David, of Christ, and of God. Perhaps the most important text bearing on the subject is in the Eevela- 1 Kirriemuir, Dunfallandy, Kingoldrum (2), Crail, St. Vigeans (2), Aldbar, Meigle. (Stuart's Sculptured Stones; Proc. Soc. Ant. Scot., vols. ix and xii.) ^ Kirk Manghold. ' Halton, Lancashire. 224 THE HIGH CEOSSES OP IRELAND I tions (iii, 21), "To hitn that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne." It is possible that the en- throned figures on the sculptured stones may be intended for Fig. 74.— Circular Disc or Loaf held in Bird's Mouth, on the Cross at Nigg. ecclesiastical dignitaries or kings, but they do not hold croziers or wear crowns. Sometimes there is only a single figure on a throne, and sometimes a pair of figures seated side by side on Fig. 76.— Bird holding circular Disc, with Eoolcsiastlcs on each side— (1) on Cross in Street of Kells, and (2) on Cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells. one throne. The circular disc (generally held in the mouth of a bird) between two ecclesiastics occurs on crosses at Nigsr Eoss-shire ; Kirriemuir and St. Vigeans, Forfarshire ; Kells, CO. Meath ; Monasterboice, co. Louth ; and Castledermot, co. Kildare. It may be that this subject is intended for St. Paul SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 225 and St. Anthony breaking bread in the desert, as represented on the inscribed cross at Ruthwell in Dumfriesshire. Fig. 76.— Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, on 1 CO. Kildare. Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. The sculpture on the base of the Moone Abbey cross, of two fishes and five circular discs, which are probably symbohcal of 226 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND : the miracle of tlie Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, is almost unique as far as the art of this country is concerned/ the only other instances being on the bases of the two crosses at Castledermot, co. Kildare, apparently executed by the same artist ; and on the top panel of the cross in the town of Kells. In the paintings in the Catacombs there are several representations of loaves and fishes,^ which are supposed to have reference either to the feeding of five thousand with five loaves and two fishes (Matt, xiv, 17), or feeding four thousand with seven loaves and a few little fishes (Matt, xv, 34), or to our Lord's feast with His disciples, described in the last chapter of St. John (xxi, 13). St. Augustine considered that the last of these was typical of the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper (Piscis assus, Christus passus). A most curious monument, having on it two fishes and seven loaves marked with a cross, was found at Modena, in- scribed with the name syntrophion.^ The fishes are facing each other and the loaves in a straight row between them. The symbolism of the Moone Abbey cross is of the same abstract nature, but it refers to the first of the two miracles of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, instead of the second, and the loaves are arranged not in a row, but like the spots on a die. On the crosses at Castledermot the figures of Christ holding one of the loaves, and the disciples, are introduced. On the cross in the town of Kells, our Lord is seated, having five loaves in His right hand and two crossed fishes in His left. Crosses at Kells. Next to Clonmacnois and Monasterboice, Kells, in the county of Meath, must have been one of the most important schools of early art in Ireland, as is clearly proved by the architectural remains and sculptured crosses still existing there, and the illuminated MSS. and metalwork which it has produced. Kells was the site of the royal dun or fort of Diarmait Mac Cerbhaill, and St. Columba is supposed to have founded a church' here in 1 A curious example of this subject occurs on an ivory plaque of the eleventh century at Salerno Cathedral. {S. K. Mus. Cast, 1874, 103.) ^ Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 66. 2 Martigny's Diet., art. " Poisson", p. 658. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 227 the sixth century ; but the place does not seem to have risen into eminence until a.d. 804, when, on account of the dangers to which the community at lona was exposed, an asylum was found for them at Kells, which henceforth became the chief seat of the Columbian monks in Ireland.^ The works of art in metal connected with this place are the crozier now in the British Museum,^ made for Maelfinnen, Bishop of Kells, who died A.D. 968, and the Cathac, or shrine of Columba's Psalter,^ in the Museum of the Eoyal Irish Academy at Dublin, made by Sitric Mac Aeda, artificer, of Kells, for Cathbar O'Donnell, who died a.d. 1106. The finest Celtic MS. ever executed is known as the Booh of Kells, and is now preserved in the Library of Trinity College, Dublin. The volume has been associated with Kells since the year A.D. 1006, when its shrine is recorded, in the Annals of the Four Masters, to have been stolen in the night, and it contains grants of land to the Abbey of Kells, by Melaghlin, King of Meath, a.d. 1152. It remained amongst the chief treasures of the monastery until the time of Archbishop Ussher (a.d. 1621- 1624), when it was transferred, with the rest of his library, to Trinity College, Dublin.* The remains still existing at Kells consist of a round tower 90 feet high, a stone-roofed church called " St. Columkille's House", and three elaborately sculptured crosses, similar to those at Monasterboice and other places in Ireland ; one stands in the churchyard near the round tower, and bears an inscrip- tion in minuscules on its base — "PATKICII ET COLUMBE (CEUX)" (" The cross of SS. Patrick and Columba") ; the shaft of the second has been erected on the old base, but its head lies in a mutilated condition in the churchyard ; and the third, although much damaged, still stands in a street near the market-place of the town of Kells. The cross of SS. Patrick and Columba in the churchyard is 11 ft. high, including the base, which is 1 ft. 9 ins. high, and 1 Petrie's Irish Inscriptions, vol. ii, p. 63. 2 Ihid., p. 116. ^ Hid., p. 91. * Westwood's Miniatures, p. 25. Q 2 228 THE HIGH CROSSES OP lEELAND I measures 3 ft. 2 ins. across the arms. On the front, in the centre of the cross, is Christ in Glory, holding the cross and sceptre, with a beast on each side ; above, within a circular medallion, held up by two arms, the Agnus Dei ; and below, on the shaft, is the Crucifixion (see figs. 34 and 46). On the back we have on the top arm David playing the harp, and another figure with two crossed fish below, perhaps intended to symbolise the miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, as on the cross in the town of Kells ; on the right arm, two ecclesiastics seated on thrones and holding croziers, with a bird holding of the base of the OrosB of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells. a circular disc between them^ ; on the left arm, the Sacrifice of Isaac, much defaced, and on the shaft Daniel in the Lions' Den ; the Three Children in the Fiery Furnace; and the Tempta- tion and Expulsion of Adam and Eve (see fig. 68). On the sides are two ecclesiastics with books, seated side by side; David and the Bear ; a bull and another animal ; and David and the Lion. All these subjects have been already described except the Agnus Dei. A similar representation occurs on the cross at Durrow, King's County, but I do not know of any other ' This subject also occurs on the two crosses at Castledermot co. Kil- SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 229 instance of it on Celtic sculptured stones, or in the Irish MSS. of the period.^ Two sides of the socket-stones of the cross are covered witli in- terlaced ornament, and the remaining two have iigure-sculpture, consisting of a chariot containing two persons and drawn by a horse, with an animal and two men on horseback in front ; a stag, a bird, and other animals. There are several other crosses in Ireland which have carved socket-stones,^ and the scenes represented are not so obviously Scriptural as those on the shafts and heads, and in this respect, as well as in other particulars, they have more in common with the crosses of the East of Fig. 78. — One side of the base of the Cross,of Muiredach at MonaBterboice. Scotland than anything to be found elsewhere. For instance, the chariots on the bases of the crosses at Kells and Kilklispeen in Ireland, correspond with the figures on one of the slabs at Meigle in Perthshire/ now destroyed, but of which an engrav- ing has been preserved. The hunting scenes, the warriors, the centaurs, birds, beasts, and the ecclesiastics with peaked hoods behind their heads on the same crosses, all have their counter- parts on the Scotch stones. The centaurs and animals will be referred to iii a future lecture on the medieval bestiaries. Chariots.— With regard to the chariots, we must suppose that 1 The Agnus Dei occurs in a Saxon MS. of the eleventh century in the British Museum (Tib. C. vi). ' Kilklispeen, Monasterboice, Kells (2), Castledermot (2), Clonmacnois. 3 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. i, pi. 76. 230 THE HIGH CEOSSES OF IRELAND: they represent the usual method of locomotion of the period, or else that they are intended for the chariots forming a feature in some Scripture scene. In the Old Testament chariots are very frequently mentioned, generally as being used in war- fare, but more rarely for ordinary means of getting from one place to another. Sometimes, also, chariots are made use of in a figurative sense. In the New Testament the word chariot only occurs once, in the description of the meeting of St. Philip and the Eunuch (Acts viii, 29). Out of all these passages, how- ever, only two are illustrated in Christian art, namely, the Destruction of Pharaoh's Hosts in the Eed Sea, and the Ascent of Elijah, both of which subjects are chosen on account of their special symbolical bearing on the doctrines of Christianity. The Passage of the Eed Sea is used as a type of Baptism, and the Pursuit of Pharaoh was supposed to signify the attempts of the enemies of the soul to place obstacles in its path. The Translation of Elijah was typical of the Ascension of Christ, and his mantle falling on Elisha foreshadowed the spirit and office of our Lord descending upon the Apostles after His passing out of this world to the Father. The Destruction of Pharaoh's Host, as seen on the sculptured sarcophagi, includes a great number of figures ; on the centre, chariots, men, and horses in great confusion perishing in the Red Sea; on one bank, Pharaoh, with other horses and chariots, advancing in pursuit, and on the other Moses and the Israelites, who have passed safely over, leading their children by the hands.^ The chief features in the Ascent of Elijah as represented on sculptured sarcophagi, ivories, and in Byzantine MSS., are Elijah driving a chariot with four horses, and his mantle falling from him into the hands of Elisha, who stands behind. Below is a personification of the River Jordan, and sometimes accessories, such as the Raven who fed the Prophet (1 Kings xvii, 6), or the Children who mocked Elisha, and the Bears (2 Kings ii, 24). Above is the Hand of God issuing from a cloud. Of the other passages in the Bible mentioning chariots, which are more historical than capable of symbolical inter- pretation, very few illustrations occur. Joseph in his chariot ^ Sepulchral urn from Aries. (Martigny's Diet., art. '^ Mer Rmuje" p. 461.) SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 231 meeting his father Israel (Genesis xlvi, 29), is to be found on an ivory caslcet of the twelfth century at Sens in France/ and in the Biblia Pauperum Ahab is drawn in a chariot, with the dogs below ready to lick up his blood (1 Kings xxii, 35, 38). Chariots are desc^^ibed in Isaiah's vision of the destruc- tion of Babylon (Isaiah xxi, 7-9), but I have never seen, the text illustrated. In the representations of Sol and Luna in Christian art chariots occur, but they are, of course, borrowed from classical sources. In Adamnan's Life of St. Oolumha (chap, xliv) the Latin word currus, or chariot, is used to describe the vehicle in which the saint made his journeys. Fig. 79.— The Baptism of Christ, with the two riTers Jor and Dan uniting in one Jordan, , on the broken cross-shaft in Kells Churchyard. There is an ancient Irish poem called the "Demoniac Chariot of Cu Chulaind" (see Jour. B. H. and Archceol. Assoc, of Ireland, vol i, 4th Series, p. 371). The fragments in the churchyard at Kells consist of part of the head of a cross lying on the ground, the broken shaft belonging to it being now erected on the old base. The head has the Crucifixion upon it, and the base is plain. The shaft, which measures 8 ft. 9 ins. high, and 2 ft. 6 ins wide, by 1 ft. 6 ins. thick, has upon it the following sculptures. On the front six panels, the lowest representing the Baptism of Christ, the others ' Viollet-le-Duc, Diet, du MobUier, vol. i, p. 80. This scene is also iUustrated in ^Ifric's Heptateuch in the British Museum (Claud. B. iv). 232 THE HIGH CROSSES OF IRELAND : difficult to identify. On the back five panels — (1) the Tempta- tion of Adam and Eve ; (2) Noah's Ark ; (3) greatly defaced ; (4) a fish with three kneeling figures on one side and four on the other. The sides are ornamented with spiral patterns and interlaced work. We have already discussed all the subjects found on this shaft with the exception of the Baptism of Christ, discussed in the next lecture, and ISToah's Ark, of which this is, as far as I am aware, the only representation in Celtic art on stone or in illuminated MSS. The sculpture shows a vessel with high prows, having four windows or port-holes, and the dove perched on the top. The Ark of Noah has been used Fig. 80. — Noah's Ark, on the broken cross-shaft ia Kells Churchyard. for purposes of symbolism from the time when the earliest paintings in the Catacombs were executed, and it has always been looked upon as a type of the Church, by entering which Christians may be saved from the spiritual destruction that overwhelms those without. The dove bearing the olive-branch signifies the peaceful rest awaiting the soul when the struggle with the world is over. We have ample evidence of the Scrip- tural origin of the symbol of the Ark. Ezekiel (xiv, 14) com- pares the delivery of Noah with that of Daniel; our Lord (Matt. xxiv, 37) likens the days of Noah to the coming of the Son of ]\ran ; St. Paul (Heb. xi, 7) tells us that Noah was saved by faith ; and St. Peter (1 Pet. iii, 20) makes the saving of the Ark by water a figure of Baptism. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES. 233 The earliest representations of Noah in the Ark in the paint- ings of the Catacombs and on the sculptured sarcophagi are of the most abstract possible character. The word ark is taken literally to mean a chest, and Noah is seen draped in a tunic, standing up in a square box, the lid of which is open, and pro- vided in many cases with a hasp and lock.^ His hands are either extended towards the dove, who is flying in the air with an olive-branch in its mouth, or raised in the ancient attitude of prayer. The meaning of the subject is made clear from examples inscribed NliE on coins of Apamea in Phrygia, belonging to the reign of Septimius Severus^ (in the third century). The town of Apamea assumed the name KIBflTOS, or Ark, from its pretensions to be the place where the Ark had rested.^ Noah in the Ark occurs less frequently on the sculptured sarco- phagi than on the paintings in the Catacombs, and perhaps about the sixth century it disappears from art as an abstract symbol, and takes its place in the historical series illustrating the events in the Old Testament. 1 only know of one instance of Noah's Ark in Norman sculp- ture, which occurs on the very remarkable slabs built into the west wall of Lincoln Cathedral.* An interesting early series of the Life of Noah is to be found on the ivory plaques in the Cathedral of Salerno, of which there are casts in the South Ken- sington Museum.^ Instead of a mere box containing the figure of a man, we have, from the eleventh century onwards, an elaborately drawn vessel supporting a house, with highly finished architectural details, from the windows of which Noah and his family and the various animals can be seen looking out. Saxon representations of this class are to be found in .^Ifric's Eei^tateuch (Brit. Mus., Claud. B. iv), and in Csedmon's Paraphrase of the Scriptures in the Bodleian, and twelfth century examples in the Brit. Mus. ^ In one case Noah is placed in a round tub with beasts' heads on it. (G-arrucci, Storia del Arte G'istiana, vol. ii, pi. 72.) 2 Martigny's Diet., art. " Numismatique Chretienne", p. 518. 3 Northcote and Brownlow, Roma Sutterranea, vol. ii, p. 107. * Jour. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. xxv, p. 1. 5 Westwood's C.Ualoffue of Fictile Ivories, p. 93. 234 THE HIGH OEOSSES OP lEELAND : MSS. (Nero C. iv), and the Spanish Apocalypse (Add. MS. 11,695).! The cross near the market-place of Kells is 11 ft. 6 ins. high (including the base, which is 2 ft. 6 ins. high), and measures 4 ft. across the arms. The top arm has been broken off, and one panel of sculpture at the bottom of the shaft is entirely effaced by an inscription cut in 1688. The subjects of the sculpture are : on the front, the Crucifixion in the centre of the head of the cross, with pairs of ecclesiastics holding croziers on each side, and a figure tumbling head downwards ; below, on the shaft, three panels much defaced.^ On the back, Daniel surrounded by four lions in the centre of the head of the cross, with a man between two figures having human bodies and beasts' heads on Fig, 81.— One side of the base of the Cross in the town of Kells. the right, and the Sacrifice of Isaac on the left. Below, on the shaft, three panels — (1) Temptation and Expulsion of Adam and Eve ; (2) a gigantic warrior and several small figures ; (3) soldiers watching the sepulchre of Christ. On the ends of the arms of the cross, two ecclesiastics with croziers placed crosswise, and bird holding circular object between them,^ and David rending the Lion's Jaw. On the left side of the shaft four panels— (1) Man with horns between two beasts ; (2) three men with legs and arms clasped together; (3) two figures 1 Also see Spanish Apocalypse belonging to Messrs. Firmin Didot, of Paris, illustrated in Paul Lacroix, Literature and Science of the Middle Ages, p. 111. 2 The top one appears to have upon it a seated figure, holding in his right hand five circular discs and in his left a pair of fish crossed, possibly symbolising the miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. 3 As on cross of SS. Patrick and Columba at Kells. SUBJECTS ON THE SHAFTS AND BASES, 235 defaced ; (4) two men wrestling. On the right side four panels — (1) Hand symbol and three figures ; (2) male and female figure ; (3) man placed head downwards with figure at each side ; (4) stag and man. On the four sides of the base — (1) Two centaurs, three birds, fish, and two animals ; (2) five warriors with spears, shields, and swords, fighting ; (3) man, bird, two stags, and five other animals ; (4) four warriors on horseback. In concluding our review of the symbolism of the Irish crosses, it must be observed that, although we have been able to explain the subjects which occur most frequently, there is still much which, in the present state of our knowledge, we cannot expect to understand, and it is not until more workers enter this field of research that further progress can be made. At present we only see as in a glass darkly, but the ghmpses we get through the dim mists of past ages are enough to stimulate our curiosity to the utmost, and make us hope that the veil will some day be raised which now obscures our view. LECTURE V. NOEMAN SCULPTUEK CHIEFLY IN THE AECHI- TECTUEAL DETAILS OE CHUECHES. A.D. 1066-1200. The period upon which we enter in the present lecture is separated from preceding centuries by tlie greatest landmark in our national history, the conquest of England by William of Normandy ; and the far-reaching political and religious changes that followed entirely revolutionised the art of this country. Pagan England of Saxon times was converted, chiefly by Irish missionaries from lona, who in their turn had received their Christianity from the Continent whilst the Church of Eome was still under Eastern influence. Hence the art of Great Britain in pre- Norman times was Byzantine art intensely Celticised, and but little affected either by the 8axon or Scan- dinavian element. After the Conquest, Normandy took the place of Ireland, as the source whence all the art-inspiration was to flow, and the supremacy of Eome, which had been asserted at the Synod of Whitby in a.d. 664, was finally esta- blished. Even in the middle of the eleventh century the change had already begun, for Edward the Confessor, who then reigned, was, as Dr. E. A. Freeman tells us, more of a Frenchman than an Englishman, and whenever he had an opportunity he ap- pointed Norman ecclesiastics to fill English sees, which had not known a foreign bishop since the days of St. Augustine. It was then for the first time that " we hear of bishops going to Eome for consecration or confirmation, and of the Eoman court NOEMAN SCULPTUEE. 237 claiming at least a veto on the nomination of the English king."^ Just before the death of Edward the Confessor, the abbey church of St. Peter at Westminster, built in the new style of architecture,^ was consecrated in a.d. 1065, and although most of the present edifice is of later date, some idea of the appear- ance of the original church may be gathered from the highly conventionalised representation on the Bayeux Tapestry.^ As soon as William the Conqueror had established his power firmly in this country he excluded all abbots and bishops of the English race from preferment, and promoted Lanfranc, Abbot of Caen in Normandy, to the see of Canterbury. Henceforward the style of architecture in England became identical with that of Normandy, which was a development of the classical style known as Eomanesque. The ravages of the Danes came to an end during the comparatively peaceful reign of Edward the Confessor, and a new era of church building commenced, so that not many years after, when Doomsday Book was compiled, there were no less than 1,700 places of worship in England. After the accession of William to the throne, any repetition of the scenes of robbery and violence, by which the Vikings had laid waste most of the ecclesiastical establishments in the kingdom, became impossible ; and during the twelfth century every country village was supplied with a church, built according to the improved methods of construction introduced by the Normans, and ornamented with a profusion of sculptured details. It is with the latter that we have to deal at present, but before doing so it may be well to take a passing glance at the architecture of the preceding period. Sculptured Details of Celtic Churches. The earliest ecclesiastical buildings in Great Britain are pro- bably the stone-roofed oratories of Ireland, some of which may be as old as the seventh century, but on these we find no trace ' Freeman's Norman Conquest, vol. ii, p. 67. 2 WUliam of Malmesbury, De Gestis Regum, book ii, ch. xiii ; and Matthew of Paris. 3 Vetusta Monumenta, vol. vi ; and F. E. Fowke's reproduction, pub- lished by the Arundel Society, 1875. 238 NOBMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE of architectural details or sculpture of any kind. The first instances of Christian symbolism on the sculptured details of ecclesiastical buildings are to be seen above the doorways of the Eound Towers at Donoughmore, co. Meath, and Antrim, in Ireland, and at Brechin, Forfarshire, in Scotland. The Eound Tower at Antrim is composed of large blocks of stone, fitted to- gether after the fashion of what is called Cyclopean masonry. The doorway has plain sloping jambs, destitute of mouldings or ornament, and above the lintel is a rectangular block of stone, with a cross in relief cut upon it. The cross is of the usual Celtic form, with hollows in the angles of the intersections of the arms, and with a connecting ring. The custom of placing a cross over the doorway of a Christian building may be traced back to the sixth century in Palestine, where the Chi-Eho monogram occurs on the lintels of the doorways of the houses.^ The meaning of the symbolism is explained by the blood of the lamb, which was struck upon the lintels of the doors of the houses of the Israelites in Egypt at the Pas'sover (Gen. xii, 21-23), and our Lord's words, " I am the door ; by me if any man enter in he shall be saved" (John x, 9). The most remarkable instance I know of the introduction of the custom into this country is in one of the primitive Christian cells at Oilen Tsenaig and at Skellig Mhichel in Ireland, where five water- worn quartz pebbles are arranged in the form of a cross over the doorway, showing up white against the dark background of grey slate.^ Another early example is to be seen carved on the lintel of the doorway of the seventh century church of St. Fechin at Fore, co. Westmeath f and a similar one is to be found over the doorway of one of the earliest churches in Ireland, on Ardoilean, or High Island, off the coast of Connemara. Crosses also occur in Saxon churches over the doorway at Stanton Lacy 1 The cross is also placed over the doorways of Coptic churches in Egypt (Building News, April 24, 1884), and Nestoriau churches in Asia Minor (Rev. E. L. Cutts, Christians under the Orescent in Asia, p. 216). 2 Miss Stokes' Early Christian Architecture in Ireland, pi. 7, fig. 10 and p. 35 ; and Dr. J. Anderson's Scotland in Early Christian Times, 1st Series, p. 82. 3 Petrie's Irish Architecture, p. 174. AECHITECTUBAL DETAILS OP CHTJRCHBg. 239 in Shropshire/ and over the windows in the tower at Earls Barton, ISTorthamptonshire.^ The Eound Towers at Donoughmore and Brechin appear to be of later date than the one at Antrim, as the doorways are in the two former round instead of flat-headed, and are ornamented with mouldings and sculptured details. At Donoughmore there is a small figure of the crucified Saviour on the keystone of the arch, and two human heads at the top of each of the jambs. At Brechin there is also a Cruci- fixion on the keystone, an ecclesiastic holding a crozier on each of the jambs, and two beasts at the bottom. Besides the instances just described, I am unacquainted with Fig. S2. — Sculpture on arclied stone from Forteviot. any pre-Norman Christian building in Ireland or Scotland exhibiting symbolic sculpture. There is, however, in the Museum of Antiquities in Edinburgh, a very curious specimen of early carving, which may belong to the pre-Norman period. It is an arched stone that was found in the bed of the Eiver May, near the supposed site of the palace of the Pictish kings on Holy Hill at Forteviot in Perthshire.^ The sculpture consists of a cross in the centre, with an animal seated on its haunches on the right (perhaps intended for the Agnus Dei), and three men holding staves beyond. On the left is a similar figure of a man 1 Bloxham's Gothic Architecture, vol. i, p. 50. 2 Jour. Brit. Archxol. Inst., vol. i, p. 30. 3 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pi. 103. 240 NORMAN SOULPTTJEE IN THE holding a staff and resting one foot on the hack of a horned beast. I am unable to suggest any explanation of this subject, as it is quite unlike anything which occurs in the contemporary MSS. or on Celtic stonework elsewhere. The churches of Wales are so devoid of ornament that there is nothing except absolute simplicity of detail to suggest that any of them are of pre-Norman date. Sculptured Details of Saxon Churches. In England, however, there are a large number of early buildings presenting architectural features entirely different from those of the Norman style, which are therefore supposed to be of Saxon date. The best known examples are at Barnack and Earl's Barton in Northamptonshire; Barton-upon-Humber, Lincolnshire ; Eradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire ; Deerhurst, Glou- cestershire ; and Worth and Sompting in Sussex.^ The chief peculiarities of the so-called Saxon style are — (1) the angles or coigns being formed of what is termed long and short work, i.e., long, narrow, dressed stones, placed with the longest dimension alternately horizontal and vertical, so as to bond in with the rubblework of which the rest of the wall is composed ; (2) the walls being of rubblework, divided into panels by vertical projecting ribs of dressed stone ; (3) the doors and windows being often triangular-headed, occasionally having sloping jambs ; (4) the jambs having no columns, and only a plain or moulded abacus at the top for the arch to spring from ; (5) a projecting moulding being carried entirely round the whole of the outside of the door or arch openings, so as to form a kind of frame; (6) the belfry windows being double, with a central baluster, placed far back near the inside of the wall ; (8) the frequent use of balusters, resembling those of turned wood rather than stone ; (9) the mouldings having special characteristics of their own. Some authorities, whose opinion is entitled to a certaiu amount of weight, have endeavoured to ignore Anglo-Saxon architecture altogether, and would have us believe that all the 1 Bloxham's Gothic Architecture, vol. i, p. 74 ; Rickman's Gothic Archi- tecture, aixth edit., p. 95 ; Sir Gilbert Scott's Lectures on Mediceval Archi- tecture, vol. ii, Lecture X. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 241 buildings presenting the peculiarities which have been enume- rated were erected after the Conquest. At one time there was a tendency amongst antiquaries to make everything far older than was really the case, but latterly modern sceptics have rushed to the opposite extreme, and reject without hesitation any facts which happen to clash with their pet theories. The late Sir Gilbert Scott, who deals most fairly with the whole question in his Lectures on Medimval Architecture^ says : " There exist, however, throughout the length and breadth of the land, remnants, and in a few cases, large portions of buildings of a wholly exceptional character, not assignable to the Norman or any of the well-known styles which have prevailed in England, but evidently of earlier date. They are clearly not early Norman, for, with the single exception of the round arch, they have nothing in common with the specimens of that style erected in the reign of the Conqueror, but are clearly of a style quite distinct from them. ... In some instances, as at Monkwear- mouth, Jarrow, Brixworth, and Deerhurst, the remains of this style are on the sites where churches are recorded to have been built in Anglo-Saxon days. These remains correspond in cha-,_ racter with buildings represented in Saxon illuminated books. . . . The most obvious rules of induction, then, point to the con- clusion that these are the remains of buildings of Anglo-Saxon date." It is probable that a great many of the Saxon churches were of wood, like that at Greenstead in Essex, which still exists ; but there is ample historical evidence of the erection of stone buildings before the Conquest. In the fifth century St. Ninian " built a church of stone, after a fashion unusual amongst the Britons", dedicated to St. Martin, at Whithorne in Wigton- shire (a.d. 412). In the seventh century Benedict Biscop built the church of St. Peter at Monkwearmouth, "in the Eoman style, which he had always admired", by the aid of masons from Gaul (a.d. 674), and also the church of St. Paul at Jarrow, the dedication stone of which is still to be seen there (a.d. 685). In the seventh century Wilfrid, Bishop of York, built stone churches at York, Eipon, and Hexham. 1 Vol. ii, p. 35. R 242 NORMAN SCULFTUEE IN THE In the eighth century Ceolfrid, Abbot of Jarrow, acceded to che request of Naiton, King of the Picts, to send architects " to build a church of stone in his nation, according to the fashion of the Eonians", on the understanding that it was to be dedicated to the blessed chief of the Apostles (a.d. 710). The ninth and tenth centuries were occupied with the Danish invasions, and the period is one of the destruction rather than the building of churches; but Canute commenced his reign (a.d. 1017) by the erection of a stone basilica at Ashenden in Buck- inghamshire,^ and a general restoration took place of the monas- teries which had been ravaged by the Danes. The belief that the end of the world would happen at the expiration of the year 1000^ seems to have been prevalent throughout Europe, and may have had some influence in arresting the material progress of the Church. However this may have been, we have evidence of a contemporary writer, Ealulphus Glaber (who died a.d. 1045), that as soon as the dreaded time had passed "the number of churches and monasteries which were building in all countries, more espe- cially in Italy and France, was so great that the world appeared to be pulling off its dingy old attire, and putting on a new white robe. Then, nearly all the bishops' seats, the churches, and even the oratories in the villages, were changed for better ones."* It was probably during the peaceful reign of Edward the Con- fessor (a.d. 1042-1066) that most of the Saxon churches still remaining were erected. Earl Leofric (who died A.D. 1057) and his wife Godgifu (Godiva) were great benefactors of monasteries, and built churches at Coventry in Warwickshire and Stow* in Lincolnshire, part of the latter being still in existence. Besides the historical evidence which has been brought forward, there are Saxon dedication stones,^ of which two are dated, namely those at Holy Trinity, Deerhurst, Gloucestershire (a.d. 1053), and ' William of Malmesbury, lib. ii, c. 181. 2 Said to have been first promulgated by one Bernard, a hermit of Thuringia, about a.d. 960. (See Waddington's Church History.) 3 Glahri RalulpU Historice, lib. in, cap. iv, quoted in Riokman'a Gothic Architecture, sixth edit., p. 99. * William of Malmesbury, De Gestis Regum. "" Holy Trinity Church and St. Peter's Chapel, Deerhurst, Gloucester- shire, Kirkdale, Aldborough, St. Mary's Castlegate, York, in Yorkshire, and Postling in Kent. AECHITECTTJBAL DETAILS OP CHUECHES. 243 Kirkdale, Yorkshire, (a.d. 1046), at both of which places are remains of the original buildings. The question we have now to investigate is, whether there is any historical evidence showing that Saxon churches were deco- rated with painting or sculpture, and also whether any such ornamental features still exist. We have already quoted the passages from Bede,i in which he tells us that Benedict Biscop on two occasions (a.d. 678 and 685), after his return from the continent, brought back religious pictures to adorn the churches at Monkwearmouth and Jarrow. Eichard Prior of Hexham, writing, circa A.D. 1180, a description of the building of the original church at Hexham, under Wilfrid of York (a.d. 674), says that the capitals of the columns and the apse were deco- rated "with histories and various figures sculptured in relief upon the stone, and with a pleasing variety of painting and colour" ; adding that it was never " heard that such another church was erected on this side of the Alps."^ At the second Council of Calcuth in Northumberland (held a.d. 816), a canon was issued requiring every bishop before con- secrating a church to see painted on the walls, or over the altar thereof, a portrait of the patron saint.^ The traces of Saxon painting which have been found on early buildings in England are of so fragmentary a character as to be scarcely worth recording; there are, however, a few examples of sculptured architectural details, which are of pre-Norman- date. In the illuminated MSS. of the eleventh century there is a distinct style of Saxon drawing, the chief characteristics of which are the flut- tering drapery and lanky figures, but it seems very doubtful whether a corresponding school of Saxon sculpture ever existed. The most perfect specimens of pre-Norman decoration are the arches at Britford* and Bradford-on-Avon^ in Wiltshire, and the doorway of the porch at Monkwearmouth,*' co. Durham. The peculiarity of the sculpture is that it is worked in low relief on flat slabs placed against the jambs of 1 Bede's Lives of the Holy Abbots, J. A. Giles's edit., vol.iv, pp. 369 and 375. 2 Jiicardi Prioris Eagustaldensis, lib. I, cap. iii. 2 Wilkins's Concilia, vol. i, p. 169. * Jour. Brit. Archceol. Assoc. ^ Ibid. s Sir Gilbert Scott's Lectures on Mediaval Architecture, vol. ii, p. 49. e2 244 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE the archways, there being no pillars, capitals, or other archi- tectural features as are seen in later work. The ornament is enclosed in panels, and consists of scrolls of foliage and inter- laced work, similar to that found on the pre-Norman crosses. At Monkwearmouth the carving on the jambs of the doorway represents a pair of serpents with bird-like beaks and tails twisted together. Upon the wall above the doorway is a frieze of animals, resembling those at St. Vigeans in Forfarshire. Benedict Biscop's church at Monkwearmouth (built a.d. 674) was destroyed by the Danes, probably in the ninth century, at the same time as Tynemouth ; and the late Dr. Eaine of Durham has shown that the present structure was erected A.D. 1075-83. The doorway, however, which Sir Gilbert Scott says is decidedly the most remarkable of this kind yet known, seems to me to be of earlier date. The church of St. Lawrence at Bradford-on-Avon is perhaps the most perfect specimen of Saxon architecture in England.^ William of Malmesbury, writing circa A.D. 1120, asserts that " there is to this day in that place (Bradeford) a little church, which Aldhelm is said to have founded and dedicated to the blessed St. Lawrence."^ Dr. E. A. Freeman^ has expressed an opinion that the present building is the one known to have been founded by St. Aldhelm, Bishop of Sherborne, at the same time as the monasteries of Malmesbury and Frome, A.D. 705.* There is a good deal to be said in favour of this view of the case, as we have the evidence of contemporary history that St. Wilfrid had already, in the latter half of the seventh century, " erected and finished at Eipon a basilica of polished stone from its founda- tions in the earth to the top, supported on high by various columns and porticoes."^ The arguments on the other side are founded on the fineness of the joints of the masonry and the general character of the work, which are supposed to indicate a date not earlier than the eleventh century.^ 1 Canon W. H. Jones's Account of the Saxon Church of St. Lawrence, Bradford-on-Avon. 2 William of Malmesbury, Gesta Poniificnm. 3 Somerset Archceol. Soc. Trails., 1874. ■• William of Malmesbury, De Vita Aldhelmi. 5 EMn Vita Wilfr., Gale xv Script., vol. iii, p. 60. ^ Rickman's Gothic Architecture, sixth edit., p. 94. AECHITECTUEAL DETAILS OF CHUEOHES. 245 Over the chancel-arch at Bradford-on-Avon, which is only 3 ft. 5 ins. wide, on the side facing the nave, are two slabs of sculpture, built into the wall, representing nimbed angels flying with outspread wings, and carrying what look like napkins over the arm. These figures bear a marked resemblance to the angels which are generally seen supporting the vesica enclosing Christ in Glory. The slabs were discovered in situ about thirty years ago, when they were removed, but they are now Pig. 83.— Angels at Bradford-on-A-Ton. replaced in their original position. The carving is very rudely executed, and of the same style as that found on some early ivories. In the church at Daglingworth in Gloucestershire are three slabs of early sculpture, built into the west wall of the chancel, one on each side of the chancel-arch, and one above the crown of the arch. This church has all the well-known peculiarities of Saxon architecture, — long and short work on the angles of the building, a window made out of a Eoman inscribed stone, a 24G NORMAN SCULPTUEB IN THE Saxon sundial over the south door, and a chancel-arch only 5 ft. 7 ins. wide. The subjects of the sculpture are,— on the slab above the crown of the arch, the Crucifixion (see fig. 41) ; on the north side, at the level of the springing, Christ enthroned, holding a cross in the left hand and giving the benediction with the right ; on the south side, St. Peter holding a book in his right hand and the key in his left. The sculpture is probably coeval with the church, which is, to all appearance, of the eleventh century. All the figures have belts with a peculiar Fig. 84.— St. Peter and Christ in Glory, on sculptured slal)S at Daglingworth. fastening, consisting of a ring interlaced with the double bands of the belt. The Crucifixion, with the uncrossed legs and the spear and sponge-bearer, has been already referred to. The key held by St. Peter is of the peculiar Saxon form, seen in the Benedic- tional of St. Ethelwold (circa 975), in the Library of the Duke of Devonshire,^ and in the Donation of King Edgar to Win- chester Cathedral (A.D. 966), in the British Museum (Yesp. A. viii).^ Christ is shown with the cruciferous nimbus. Deerhurst Church, Glou cestershire, which we have pointed out as being the oldest dated church in England, its consecra- 1 Archceologia, vol. xxiv, pi. ^ "Westwood'a Miniatures, pi. 47. AECHITECTmiAL DETAILS OF CHUKCHES. 247 tion having taken place A.D. 1056, has a few specimens of Saxon sculpture. The outer moulding of the chancel-arch, in the well-known Saxon church of St. Benedict, Cambridge, springs from rudely carved figures of beasts with semi-human heads and tails twisted over their hacks. At Headbourne Worthy in Hampshire is a stone rood of early date ; and three slabs of sculpture, representing foliage and birds, are used in the decoration of the Saxon church at Barnack in Northamptonshire. Besides the examples cited of sculpture found on buildings of the Anglo-Saxon period, there are, in a great many later churches, slabs with figure-subjects, which have been removed from early structures on the same site. Mr. Matthew Bloxam, who is perhaps the greatest authority on the interior arrange- ments of ecclesiastical buildings, calls these slabs of sculpture " tables", and says that they were placed over or at the back of altars as a reredos/ but he does not consider that any of them date back beyond the twelfth century. I do not think, however, that this theory will explain such groups of sculpture as exist at Lincoln, Chichester, and Bristol Cathedrals, all of which are of very great size and have every appearance of , age. As there is no means of proving that these slabs, which do not actually form part of Saxon buildings at present, are of pre- Norman date, I propose to class them with the miscellaneous sculptures of the twelfth century, to be described subsequently, merely pointing out when there are indications of apparent antiquity. ScuLPTUEED Details of Noeman Chueches of the Eleventh Centuey. Having concluded our review of the remains of the Saxon period, we now turn to the examination of the details of buildings which are undoubtedly Norman. The period during which the Anglo-Norman style of archi- tecture prevailed in this country embraces, roughly speaking, the whole of the twelfth century. There are a few specimens still existing of early Norman churches, built during the eleventh cen- 1 Bloxam's Gothic Architecture, eleventh edit., vol. ii, p. 65. 248 NORMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE tury,inthe reigns of William I (a.d. 1066-1087) and William II (A.D. 1087-1100), but the majority of buildings in this style belongs to the reigns of Henry I (a.d. 1100-1135), Stephen (A.D. 1135-1154), and Henry II (a.d. 1154-1189). At the end of the twelfth century the Norman style gave place to the Early English or Pointed Gothic style ; and we have a very reliable dated example, marking the transition, in the round part of the Temple Church in London, which has a dedication stone of the year A.D. 1185.^ The best typical specimen of early Norman architecture is the Chapel of St. John in the Tower of London, built by Guudulph,^ Bishop of Eochester, the first Anglo-Norman archi- tect, in the reign of William the Conqueror (cio-ca A.D. 1081). The capitals of the columns in St. John's Chapel are all sculp- tured with spirals at the angles, in rude imitation of classical art, and Tau-shaped crosses, being the earliest instance of Christian symbolism in Norman architecture. The only other examples of figure-sculpture I have met with belonging to the end of the eleventh century are upon capitals of columns at St. Woollos' Church, Newport, Monmouthshire^; Nether Avon Church, Wilts ; and Bramber Church, Sussex. The columns at St. Woollos' Church, Newport, are at each side of an archway in the west wall of the nave ; the subjects on the capital on the north side are a bird pecking at fruit, and two men with hands upraised in the ancient attitude of prayer ; and on the south side the Dextera Dei, a man, a bird with outstretched wings, and a fish, perhaps symbolical of the Baptism of our Lord ; and two figures, supposed to represent the Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise. The capitals at Nether Avon are under the tower at the west end of the church, and have rude figures of beasts carved on 1 Over the west door. (Rickman's Got?tic Architecture, sixth edit p. 174. 2 Grundulph, a monk of the Abbey of Bee in Normandy, was made Bishop of Rochester a.d. 1077. Part of the crypt at Rochester Cathedral, the lower part of the west front of Mailing Abbey in Kent, the keep of St. Leonard's Tower at Mailing, and the churches of Dartford and Uarenth in Kent, are probably his work. ■' Arckwolorjia Cainhreiwh, 1885, p. 285. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS OP CHURCHES. 249 them. At Bramber, on the capital of the chancel-arch, on the south side, is a cross. Sculptured Details of Norman Churches of the Twelfth Century. All the richly carved architectural details of Norman build- ings belong to the time of Stephen and Henry II (a.d. 1135- 1190), and they are generally to be found, not in the great cathedrals, but in small country churches in remote districts. This may be accounted for partly by the pulling down and rebuilding, which was constantly going on in the larger churches, to meet the increased requirements of the congrega- tion and the rapid changes of style, whilst the smaller parish churches remained unaffected by any such causes. The following dated examples of Norman buildings with sculptured figure -subjects will serve as landmarks of the style.^ A.D. 1124. — Caistor Church, Northamptonshire. Capitals of columns of chancel and tower arches. Dated by dedication stone. A.D. 1127-1134. — ^Cormac's Chapel, Eock of Cashel, Ireland. Tympana of north and south doorways. A.D. 1141-1150. — Shobdon Church, Herefordshire. Tympana of two doorways. This church was founded by OUver de Merlemond, steward to the Mortimers, on his return from a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. James of Compostella in Spain, and a minute description of it is given in the Monasticon Angli- canum} A.D. 1133. — Porchester Church, Dorsetshire. Sculptured font. A.D. 1146.^Lincoln Cathedral. West doorways with figures on columns. Built by Bishop Alexander. A.D. 1150.— Stewkley Church, Bucks. Tympanum of door- way. Given by Geoffrey, son of the founder, to Kenilworth Priory. A.D. 1150. — Barton Seagrave Church, Northamptonshire. Tympanum of doorway. Given by Geoffrey to Kenilworth Priory. ' Taken from Rickman's Gothic Architecture. 2 Vol. vi, p. 345 (see Rickinan, p. 146). 250 NOEMAN SCULPTUEB IN THE A.D. 1160.— Iffley Church, Oxon. West and south doorways, with figures on arch mouldings and capitals of columns. Given by Juliana de St. Eemi to Kenilworth Priory. It must have struck everyone who has had an opportunity of studying buildings of the twelfth century, what an extraordinary amount of pains was expended on the ornamental features, which, for richness of effect, have never been excelled. In its way I know nothing more perfect as regards finish than a small jSTorman parish church, such as that at Dalmeny in Linlithgowshire, or at Lenchars in Fifeshire.^ We will now examine one of these structures, in order to show where the sculptured details occur, and to explain the technical names of the various architectural details, so as to render the subsequent descriptions of the symbolism intel- ligible. The plan of a small Norman church usually consists of' a simple nave and chancel, the latter sometimes having an apse or semicircular end. Looking first at the outside, we see a bell- cot at the west end, and gable-crosses on the points of the roof. Eunning along under the eaves and at the top of the wall is what is called a corbel-table, consisting of a series of small corbels jutting out from the wall at regular intervals, the space between each being bridged over by horizontal stones or small arches. The object of the corbel-table is to make the eaves of the roof prqject well beyond the walls, so as to throw off the water. The corbels are very frequently sculptured into the shape of heads of men and beasts, and sometimes more elaborate symbolical subjects are represented. The walls are built of ashlar or squared stones, laid in regular courses, the dressing being done with an axe and not with a chisel, as was the case after A.D. 1180.^ The windows are round headed, ornamented with zigzag and other character- istic Norman mouldings round the arch, and having small columns at each side. There is seldom any symbolic sculpture upon the details of the windows, very few of which remain, having been generally removed in later times in order to admit 1 Good examples exist in England — Barfreston in Kent, Edstastou in Shropshire, Adel in Yorkshire, Steetley in Derbyshire. 2 The two kinds of dressing are to be seen side by side at Canterbury Cathedral (see Riokman's Gothic Architecture, sixth edit., p. 169). AEOHITEOTUBAL DETAILS 01? CHUECHES. 251 more light Below the ■windows a horizontal moulding, called a string-course, runs all round the building. It is often orna- mented, but not with figure-sculpture. The Norman architects seem to have concentrated the whole of their energy and skill upon the doorways of the churches, which are decorated with a profusion of the most elaborate sculpture, and their beauty has been a source of admiration to all subsequent generations, causing this part of the building to be preserved when every- thing else was ruthlessly destroyed to make room for work in a newer style. The principal doorway was generally on the south side of the nave near the west end, but sometimes in the centre of the west wall. Porches, or a kind of half porch, made by thickening the wall round the doorway, are frequently seen. It may be well here to say a few words on the technical names of the different parts of the portal. The simplest form of doorway is a rectangiilar opening in a wall. The horizontal stone at the top is called the lintel, and the two sides the jambs (from the French word jamb, a leg). The next simplest form is a rect- angular opening, with a semicircular arch at the top. The first attempt at introducing architectural featured is to be seen in the doorways of some of the round towers in Ireland, where the opening is treated like the frame of a picture, and the outline emphasised by running a moulding or chamfer round the whole. The next step was to separate the arch from the jambs by a horizontal stone at each side for the arch to spring from, as is seen in early Saxon doorways. This horizontal stone is called the abacus. All the special characteristics of Norman architecture originated in the idea of making the arches and jambs of the doorways in a series of steps recessed within the thickness of the wall, one beyond the other, instead of cutting the openings square through. Each step or order of the arch was in the earlier stages covered with surface ornament, and in later times with mouldings. In the angle of each step of the jamb a small column or nook-shaft was inserted, with a capital supporting the abacus. In many cffses it was thought more con- venient to make the head of the doorway square instead of round, and consequently, although the arch was retained for supporting the weiglit of the superincumbent masonry, the semicircular space between it and the top of the door was filled 252 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE in with a lintel-stone, recessed back from the face of the wall. This space between the arch and the top of the door is called the tympanum. The method of construction varies ; generally the tympanum is in one stone, being in reality a lintel with an arch on the face of it, by which its form is disguised. Some- times the tympanum is composed of several stones, built like a flat arch in brickwork, and occasionally there is a horizontal lintel with a recessed tympanum above. The wall is purposely thickened all round the doorway so as to give sufficient depth to allow of as many orders of mouldings as possible, one receding beyond the other in succession. This buttress round the doorway is either carried up to the top of the wall, or is terminated by a pent-house roof of stone sloping outwards, or by a gable forming a pediment, as at St. Margaret-at-Cli£fe, Kent, and Adel, York- shire. A hood or drip moulding, projecting a few inches from the wall, runs round the outside all arches of doors and windows to throw off the water, and afford protection from the weather. In some cases there are niches over doorways with sculptured figures in them. Every part of the portal which has been enumerated is decorated with sculpture, but the figure-subjects are generally found on the tympana, the capitals of the columns, and on the arch mouldings. As regards the latter, either each group of figures is enclosed within a medallion placed on the face of a square moulding, or, as in the case of the well-known beakheads, the figures are placed at intervals on the moulding which is hollowed out between each. Entering the inside of the church, we find the sculpture con- centrated principally on the font, but also sometimes on the capitals of the columns and other details of the chanceP and tower arches. The capitals of the arcade and vaulting columns are but rarely ornamented with figure-sculpture. There is no instance of a font which can be proved to be of Saxon date, although there are early examples at Little Billing in Northamptonshire, and Potterne in Wiltshire, inscribed in letters of the eleventh century, and one at Deerhurst in Gloucestershire, with spiral ornament similar to that on pre-Norman crosses. There are, however, a very large number of fonts of the twelfth ^ As at Caistor, Northamptonshire (a.d. 1124), and Liverton in Cleve- land, Yorkshire. AECHITEOTUBAL DETAILS OF CHDEOHES. 253 century of massive proportions, and frequently covered with geometrical patterns and symbolic sculpture. The two most common shapes are a square stone hollowed out into a hemi- spherical bowl inside, and supported on a large central column with four disengaged shafts at the corners ; and a cylindrical bowl placed on steps without any stem. The figure-subjects are either enclosed within arcading or medallions, or occupy the whole of one of the square sides of the font. Churchyard or other erect crosses of the twelfth century are very rare, although there are a few specimens known. Sepulchral slabs with symbolic sculptures are also uncommon, but they are to be found occasionally. The different parts of Norman buildings upon which figure- subjects occur may be classified as follows : — Tympana ; fonts ; details of doorways ; niches over doorways ; details of chancel, transept, and tower arches ; details of arcade arches ; capitals of columns of vaulting and crypts ; corbels ; slabs built into walls ; sepulchral slabs ; churchyard crosses. We will now proceed to consider the symbolism exhibited by each class of architectural detail separately. Tympana. The Cross. — The custom of placing a cross over the principal entrance of a church is one which we have already traced back to a very remote period, and in Norman architecture it is con- tinually seen on the tympana of doorways. The form of cross most commonly used is that known as the Maltese, either square or circular, having arms of equal length, with expanded ends. It is placed in the centre of the tympanum, and the remaining space covered with the incised geometrical patterns that are so characteristic of the sculptured ornament of the twelfth century. There is a very early example at Portskewett in Monmouthshire ; and others, surrounded by chequer-work, exist at Findern in Derbyshire, Wold Newton in Yorkshire, and many other places. Sometimes there is a central cross and figures of men or animals at each side, as at Beckford, Glouces- tershire ; Little Paxton, Huntingdonshire ; and Salford, Oxford- shire.i 1 At Egleton, Rutlandshire, there is a circular floriated disc in the ' place usually occupied by the cross, and a dragon on each bide. 254 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE The Agnus Dei. — Next to the cross the most common symbol found on the tympana of Norman doorways is the Agnus Dei, either in the centre, enclosed within a circular medallion, or in Fig. 85. — Agnus Dei associated with birds and beasts, on tympanum at Parwich. a group with other figures. The circular medallion is often supported on each side by the symbols of the Evangelists, as at Fig. 86.— Agnus Dei associated with birds and beasts, on tympanum at Hognaston. Aston in Herefordshire; or by ecclesiastics with croziers and books, as at Tets worth in Oxfordshire ; or by conventional beasts, as at Pen Selwood, in Somersetshire. AEOHiTEOTURAL DETAILS OP CHURCHES. 255 One of the most remarkable features in Norman sculpture is the way in which the Agnus Dei is associated with what appear to us to be the most incongruous surroundings, such as animals, serpents, and a bird, at Parwich in Derbyshire ; animals, and a figure holding a pastoral staff, at Hognaston in Derby- shire ; a tree, with birds and Sagittarius and Leo, at Stoke-sub- Hamdon in Somersetshire ; aud St. Michael and the Dragon, at Hoveringham in Nottinghamshire (see fig. 43). 256 NOEMAN SGULPTUKE IN THE Similarly incongruoits combinations are found, not only on tympana at the places just mentionedj but also on fonts, as at Hutton Cranswick (now in York Museum) in Yorkshire, where an archer is shown shooting at the Agnus Dei ; at Kirkburn in Yorkshire, where the Lamb of God is placed between a man with an axe over his shoulder and a man leading a beast by a rope ; at Ham and Tissington in Derbyshire, associated with an Agnus Dei on font, from Hutton Oranswici, in the Torli: Museum. animal holding a human head in its mouth. Again, upon the arch-mouldings and other details of doorways, we see the Agnus Dei in the midst of dragons and all sorts of other curious creatures like nothing in heaven or on earth, as at St. Lawrence extra Walmgate, York ; Alne, Bishop's Wilton, Barton-le-Street, and Brayton in Yorkshire ; and Dalmeney in Linlithgowshire. It is quite clear, from the number of instances brought forward, that such combinations cannot be accidental, and that the most sacred Christian symbol would never have been so frequently placed side by side with representations of animals and monsters AEOHITEOTURAL DETAILS OP CHUEOHES. 257 except intentionally, with a view to convey some deep meaning to the mind of the beholder. When we find Christian symbols of well-known significance in close contact with other devices, whose interpretation is more obscure, it is only reasonable to assume that in both cases the object is to set forth some spiritual doctrine by means of an allegory, however inappro- priate the outward clothing of such ideas may appear to persons accustomed to modern ways of thought. We shall see in the next lecture that there is ample evidence in contemporary MSS. of the existence of a system of Christian symbolism in medieval times, founded on the habits and characteristics of the animal world, which in a great measure explains many of these anom- alies. The Agnus Dei has its origin chiefly in the words of St. John the Evangelist,—" Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world" (John i, 29) ; and also the text in 1 Peter i, 19, — " But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb, without blemish and without spot." St. John the Baptist is frequently represented in the art of the thirteenth and four- teenth centuries, carrying a book or circular medallion with the Lamb of God upon it, to which he points, and inscribed with the words " Ecce Agnus Dei".^ The Crucifixion of Christ is foreshadowed in the Old Testa- ment by Abel's sacriiice of the firstling of the flock (Gen. iv, 4), and the Paschal lamb^ (Exod. xii, 3). The passage of Isaiah (liii, 7), " He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter", was being read by the Eunuch when St. Philip explained its meaning (Acts viii, 32), and the comparison of our Lord to the lamb is brought out to the fullest extent in the Eevelations. It is not, therefore, surprising to find the symbol employed so frequently throughout all periods of Christian art. 1 Stone statuette dredged up from the Forth, in the Edinburgh Museum of Antiquities {Catalogue, p. 141). Statue ia Chartres Cathedral (Twin- ing'a Symbols and Emblems, pi. 10). Hence St. John is called sometimes " Agniferus". 2 The name " Agnus Dei" is given to little medallions made of the wax of the great Paschal candle, stamped with the effigy of the Lamb, and blessed by the Pope, to be used as amulets for suspension round the neck, enclosed in a heart-shaped case. (Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord, vol. ii, p. 336 ; and Martigny's Diet., art. " Agnus Dei", p. 32.) S 258 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE In the oldest part of the cemetery of Domitilla, at Eome, the Lamb is painted with the shepherd's crook and milk-pail.^ On a gilded glass vessel of the fourth century^ the Lamb stands on the top of a mountain, from the base of which issue four rivers, in reference to the texts in the Eevelations (xiv, 1), "Lo a Lamb stood on Mount Zion"; and (xxii, 1), " And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb." On the glass vessel the four rivers of Paradise, which are typical of the Four Evangelists, unite in the mystic Jordan (inscribed ioedanes). On a paint- ing in the Catacomb of SS. Peter and Marcellinus, of the fifth century, the Lamb still stands on the mountain, but has- a nimbus round the head, and the Chi-Eho monogram on the forehead (Eev. vii, 3, and xiv, 1), with the Alpha and Omega on each side.^ On the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus* (a.d. 359) the Lamb is seen in the place of our Lord, performing miracles, being here used as a substitute rather than as a symbol. On the mosaics of St. John Lateran at Eome (a.d. 462), and St. Vitale, Eavenna (a.b. 547), the Lamb is standing with the nimbus round the head, but without accessories. On some of the later sarcophagi the cross, either in its mono- grammatic" or in its simple form, is placed behind the Lamb, instead of on the forehead, and in this way the representation with which we are most familiar seems to have originated, where the Lamb stands supporting the Cross of the Eesurreetion with the fore-foot, which is bent, and has the cruciferous nimbus round the head. The " Cross of the Eesurreetion" is so called to distinguish it from the "Cross of the Passion"; the latter being the one on which the Saviour was crucified, whilst the former is the symbolical cross held in the hand of Christ in such scenes as the Harrowing of Hell, the Ascension, Bruising the Serpent's 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Boma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 75. 2 Ibid., vol ii, p. 317. ^ Northcote and Brownlow, Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 204. * Ibid., vol. ii, p. 261. ^ trarrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. v, pi. 389. At the Quini Sextum Council of Greek Bishops, held at Constantinople a.d. 692, it was decreed that " instead of the ancient Lamb, Jesus Christ our Lord shall be shown henceforth in His human form in images"; but the law seems to have had but little efEect on Christian art. ABCHITECTUEAL DETAILS OF OHUKCHES. 259 Head, and sometimes for performing miracles in place of the wand found in the oldest representations. In the thirteenth century the Cross of the Resurrection has generally a banner attached, as the emblem of victory. In the case of the Agnus Dei it has reference probably to the text in the Revelations (xvii, 14), " These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them."^ In Norman sculpture the nimbus and the banner on the cross are seldom seen, although both occur on the pediment of the doorway at Adel in Yorkshire, where the Agnus Dei is sur- rounded by the symbols of the Four Evangelists. The form of the cross varies, the most common being the plain Latin one ; but sometimes it has expanded ends, as on the tympanum at Aston in Herefordshire, and at Hoveringham in Nottingham- shire; or it is surrounded by a circular ring, as on the tympana at Hognaston and Parwich in Derbyshire, and Elkstone and Preston in Gloucestershire, on the lintel stone at Penselwood in Somerset, and on the font at Tissington in Derbyshire.^ In the later examples, as at Adel in Yorkshire, the cross has round knobs at the ends of the arms. This is a character- istic of the thirteenth century representations, rather than those of the twelfth. On the font at Ham in Staffordshire, a dove is perched on the top of the cross, held by the Agnus Dei, recalling some similar but rare examples of the fifth century .^ On the font at Hutton Cranswick, now in York Museum, the Lamb of God is combined with three spear-heads, — a device I have- never seen elsewhere; although in a twelfth century MS. of the Apocalypse in the Bodleian the Lamb is shown transfixed with a spear.* Occasionally the Agnus Dei has horns like a ram, as on the late Norman font at Helpringham in Lincolnshire, in allusion to the > The contest between the dragon and the Agnus Dei is frequently represented on croziers, the spiral crook having a serpent's head and enclosing the lamb. (See Cahier and Martin, IManges d'ArcMologie, vol. iv, p. 198.) The same subject also occurs on the capital of one of the columns of the doorway of St. Lawrence extra Walmgate, York. 2 Reliquary, vol. i, New Series, p. 24. 3 See lamp in form of Lamb, with cross and dove on forehead, in Mar- tigny's Diet, art. "Agneau", p. 28 ; and sculptured sarcophagus, Garrucci, Sloria del Arte Oristiana, vol. v, pi. 356. , i Twining's Symbols and Emblems of Christian Art, pi. 12. S 2 260 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE sacrifice of Isaac.^ Tiiere is a very remarlcable representation of the Lamb of God placed upon the cross, instead of carrying it,2 and surrounded by the symbols of the Four Evangelists, upon a sculptured slab at Wirks worth Church in Derbyshire, perhaps of Saxon date (see fig. 31). The earliest dated example of the Agnus Dei in this country with which I am acquainted occurs on the maniple found in St. Cuthbert's tomb at Durham Cathedral, which was made by Queen ^IfHasd for Frithestan, ipminimjnr^ MO DE R M PfECE LET IN Fig. 89.— Agnus Dei with horns lilce a ram, on font at Helpringham, Lincolnshire. Bishop of Winchester (A.D. 904-916).3 It is placed within a square frame, and inscribed AGNV ra. The sculptures of the Lamb of God on the crosses at Kells and Durrow in Ireland, have been commented upon in the previous lecture. The Agnus Dei also 1 See article "Belier" in Martigny's Z>ic«. ; other instances occur at the Cathedral of Troyes (thirteenth century). See Didron's Iconog. Ckre't., p. 332 ; and on crozier in the Soltikof Coll. See Cahier and Martin, Melanges d' ArcMologie, vol. iv, p. 198. 2 As on station cross at Mayence, and cross of Ferdinand in the Madrid Museum, already referred to. 2 Hiibner's Inscr. Brit. Christ., p. 82 ; Drawings in the Library of the Society of Antiquaries. AECHITEOTUBAL DETAILS OP CHUECHES. 261 occurs on the pre-Norman crosses at Bewcastle, in Cumberland, and at Euthwell in Dumfreisshire.^ The ordinary representation of the Agnus Dei standing, holding the cross with the foreleg bent, is sometimes varied by having a wound in the side, from which a stream of blood fiows into a chalice,^ typifying the Eedemption (Rev. V, 9) and the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. The Lamb generally has the head facing straight forwards, but occasionally it is bent back so that the eyes look over the shoulder, as on the tympanum at Helpringham, Notts (see fig. 43). The other types Fig. 90. — Cross and Agnus Dei (?) on tympanum of south doorway at Beckford, Gloucestersliire. of the Agnus Dei which occur in Christian Art are not used as isolated symbols, but occupy a prominent position in scenes from the Apocalypse. Thus, in the mosaics in the churches of SS. Cosmas and Damianus, and S, Praxedes (a.d. 818) at Eome,^ the Lamb is portrayed lying down in the midst of the throne, as if slain (Eev. v, 6), and in the Apocalypse MSS. of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the words of St. John are interpreted literally, and the Lamb is drawn with seven horns and seven ' Anderson's Scotland in Early Christian Times, 2nd Series, p. 235. 2 Twining's Syiubols and Emblems of Christian Art, pi. 10. 3 Ibid., pis. 9 and 10. 262 NOKMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE eyes (Rev. v, 6), opening the book with the seven seals (Rev. V, 9), sometimes placed opposite the Lion of the Tribe of Juda (Rev. V, 5).i I am not aware of any examples of the Agnus Dei being repre- sented thus in Norman sculpture, unless the curious animals on the tympanum at Beckford in Gloucestershire are intended for lambs with seven horns. Christ in Glory. — Besides the Agnus Dei, another very common subject on Norman tympana is Christ in Glory, seated Fig. 91. — Christ in Glory, on tympanum of doorway of Ely Cathedral. on a throne, giving the benediction with the right hand and holding a book in the left. The figure of the Saviour is generally enclosed within an aureole or vesica, supported by two^ or four angels,^ or surrounded by the symbols of the Four Evangelists.* Perhaps the finest example is on the tympanum ' Twining, pis. 11 and 12. 2 As on tympana at Rochester and Ely Cathedrals ; Water Stratford, Bucks ; St. Kenelm's Chapel, Shropshire ; Prestbury, Cheshire ; Essen- dine, Rutland ; on font at Kirkburn, Yorkshire ; on capitals of columns at lona. 3 As on tympana at Shobdon and Rowlston, Herefordshire ; on slab at Wirkswoith, Derbyshire. ^ As at tympana at Pedmore, Worcestershire ; Elkstone, Gloucester- shire ; Rochester Cathedral ; on pediment at Adel, Yorkshire. ARCHITEOTUBAL DETAILS OP CHUEOHES, 263 of the south door of the nave of Ely Cathedral. Here the cross is introduced; and the book is open instead of being closed, as is more commonly the case.i On the tympanum at Elkstone in Gloucestershire (see fig. 42) there is no vesica, but Christ is seated upon a very elaborate throne, and holds in His left hand a closed book, inscribed with the Alpha and Omega (Eev. xxii, 13). Above the head is the Dextera Dei. In addition to the symbols of the Four Evangelists surrounding the throne (Rev. iv, 6-8), the Lamb of God appears (Rev. v, 6). This is seen also on the pediment of the doorway at Adel in Yorkshire, with the "THiOUVOT.SC. Fig, 93. — Christ in Glory, on tympanum of doorway at Essendine, Rutlandshire. sun and moon on each side (Rev. vi, 1 2), and conventional trees below (Rev. vi, 18), or perhaps (Rev. xxii, 2). On the tympanum at Essendine in Rutlandshire the abbreviated name of Jesus, ihc is inscribed. Although Christ in Glory is so frequently sculptured above doorways, both in this country and abroad, it occurs but rarely upon fonts,^ or other architectural details.^ The symbolism is 1 The hand is usually placed above the book, which rests on the knee, but at Elkstone in G-loucestershire the hand is holding the book from below. 2 I have only met with one example at Kirkburn in Yorkshire. ^ There is a curious late representation on the capitals of the arcade columns at lona Cathedral, with an angel on each side, one of which plays a harp (Kev. xiv, 2). 264 NOKMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE founded chiefly on the description given in the fourth and fiftTi chapters of the Eevelations. The rainbow round about the throne (Eev. iv, 3, and Ezek. i, 28) is represented by the vesica. The Symbols of the Four Evangelists. — Although there is nothing in the Bible to warrant the assumption that the four beasts mentioned in the Apocalypse were in any way connected with the Four Evangelists, the early Christians traced a resem- blance, suggested perhaps in the first instance by the identity of the numbers in both cases between the mystical creatures who surrounded the throne of Christ (Eev. iv, 6), giving Him glory and honour and thanks (Eev. iv, 9), and the writers of the Gospels who proclaimed His name to the whole world. The system of finding types in the Old Testament to illus- trate the doctrines of the new dispensation, which was so pre- valent during the first stages of Christian thought, was the means of establishing a connection between the beasts of the Eevelations (iv, 7) and the living creatures (Ezek. i, 10), and the Cherubims (Ezek. x, 14) in the two visions of Ezekiel. The representations in art vary according to whether the descrip- tion in Ezekiel or the Apocalypse is taken as the model, the latter being generally followed in the Western Church. The four beasts in the Eevelations are full of eyes before, behind, and within, and each with six wings round about him ; the first like a lion, the second like a calf, the third with the face of a man, and the fourth like a flying eagle. The four living creatures in Ezekiel have the likeness of a inan, each with four faces, — that of a man, a lion on the right side, an ox on the left, and an eagle. They have straight feet, the soles being like those of a calf, and the hands of a man under their wino-s. They have four wings, two stretched upwards and two covering their bodies. They have wheels like a beryl stone, with the appearance and work of a wheel within a wheel. Their wines are full of eyes, and the spirit of the living creatures is in the wheels. They go straight forward and run and return without turning. The Cherubims in the second version of Ezekiel (ch. x) are similar, except that one of the faces is that of a cherub instead of that of an ox. The Seraphims mentioned by Isaiah (ch. vi, 2) liave also points of resemblance, having six win^s i^O AEOHITECTUEAL DETAILS OP CHUECHES. 265 " with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly." In the first instance the application of the symbolic beasts to the Fonr Evangelists was general, as in the case of the four rivers of Paradise issuing from Mount Zion, which have a similar meaning, but we have evidence in the Fathers of the fourth^ century of their being individualised. There appears, however, to have been a difference of opinion as to the appro- priation of the symbols of St. Matthew and St. Mark, although there is none with regard to the other two Evangelists. The most widely accepted view is that of St. Jerome, founded on the beginnings of the different Gospels, — the beast with the face of a man standing for St. Matthew, the lion for St. Mark, the calf or the ox for St. Luke, and the eagle for St. John. Other commentators found their interpretations upon the general teaching of the Gospels and the nature of Christ.^ The symbolic beasts do not occur either in the paintings in the Catacombs or upon the sculptured sarcophagi, but they are very common in the mosaics of the early Italian basilicas, the first dated example being in the church of St. Sabina at Eome (a.d. 424). Here the upper portion only of the beasts is shown, resting on clouds, and the nimbus is absent. In the mosaic at St. Nazario e Celso, Eavenna (a.d. 440), similar representations are placed round the cross. In the mosaic at St. Giovanni Laterano, Eome (a.d. 462), the symbols are inscribed and placed above figures of the Evangelists holding books.^ A very curious bas-relief of the symbolic beasts holding books, and with ex- planatory verses, exists upon the baptistery of Callistus, in the collegiate church at Gividale in Erioul (a.d. 744).* In Korman sculpture the symbolic beasts do not occur alone, but either surrounding the cross, as on the slab at Wirksworth, or Christ in Glory, as on tympana at Pedmore in Worcester- shire, and Elkstone, Gloucestershire; or round the Agnus Dei, as 1 St. Jerome, St. Augustine, St. Ambrose. 2 Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, vol. i, p. 133 ; Twining's Symbols and EmUems of Christian Art, p. 96 ; Martigny's Did., art. " Evangelistes", p. 295. 3 Tunning, pis. 44 and 45. * Garrucci, Storia del Arte Crisliana, vol. vi, pi. 425 ; Didron's Aiinales Archeologiques, vol. xxr, p. 323. 266 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE on the pediment at Adel in Yorkshire, and at Aston, Hereford- shire; or round the Coronation of the Virgin, as at Quening- ton in Gloucestershire. The order in which the symbols are placed is not that of the Gospels as they occur in the New- Testament, nor of the beasts as mentioned in the Eevelations and Ezekiel. There are many fanciful theories on the subject to be found in the writings of the various commentators. There is an obvious reason for placing the eagle at the top, because it typifies Pig. 93,— The symbols of the Four Evangelists and tlie Oherubim and Seraphim, surrounding the Coronation of the Virgin, on the tympanum of the south doorway at Queuington, Gloucestershire. St. John, who, in a spiritual sense, soared upwards to the greatest height of inspiration. St. Matthew, the historian of the Incarnation, represented by a man clothed in the glory of an angel, would also naturally occupy a prominent position. At all events, in Norman sculpture the eagle and the angel ap- pear above, and the ox and the lion below ; but the same arrange- ment as to which is on the right side and which on the left, is not adhered to in all cases. It is clearly specified in Ezekiel (i, 10) that the lion is on the right and the ox on the left, but perhaps some confusion arises in the mind of the artist as to whether the right and left of the picture is meant, or the right AEOHITECTUBAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 267 and left of the central fisure of the Saviour. The foUowino' table will show the variations as regards order. Order of Gospels Man. Lion. Ox. Eagle. Ezek. i, 10, as written. Man. Lion. Ox. Eagle. As described. Ox (on left). Man and Eagle. Lion (on right). Ezek. X, 14. Cherub. Man. Lion. , Eagle. Rev. iv, 7. Lion. Calf. Man. Eagle. Norman sculpture. Eagle, Angel (above). Ox, Lion (below). The symbolic beasts usually carry either books or scrolls, the latter being sometimes inscribed ^ with the names of the Evangelists. In the art of the Western Church historical accuracy is not adhered to with regard to the number of wings, there being only two, although four is the number given in Ezekiel (ch. i, 4), and six in the Eevelations (ch. iv, 8) ; nor is any attempt made to represent the eyes which the beasts were full of before and behind (Eev. iv, 6 and 8 ; Ezek. i, 18, and X, 12). In Byzantine art, however, we find the description given in Ezekiel realised in every detail, including the wheels and the hands under the wings, in the curious composite figures called " tetramorphs".^ 1 On tympanum, Blkstone, Gloucestershire. 2 The earliest example is in the Syriac MS. of Rabula (a.d. 586), at Florence. In the Strasbourg Hortus Deliciarum (a.d. 1180), the New Dispensation is represented by a female figure carrying the cross of the Resurrection, with the banner attached, riding on a beast having the four heads and four feet of the symbols of the Evangelists ; it is in- scribed " Animal Bcclesiffi" (see Twining's Symbols and Emblems, pis. 49 and 50 ; and Mrs. Jameson, Sacred and Legendary Art, vol. i, p. 135). There is a curious tetramorph in the Celtic Gospels at Treves (West- wood's Miniatures, pi. 20). 268 NORMAN SCULPTUBE IN THE Upon the tympanum at Quenington in Gloucestershire, in addition to the symbols of the Four Evangelists surrounding the Coronation of the Virgin, there are two figures of Cherubims, each with four wings, two of which are in one case folded across the body, and having the form of a man's hand under their wings, as described by Ezekiel (ch. x, 8 and 21 ; ch. i, 8). On the tympanum at Elkstone in Gloucestershire, a Cherubim with crossed wings is substituted for the usual symbol of St. Matthew, and the Agnus Dei occurs, in addition to the other symbols surrounding the throne of Christ in Glory. The sculp- tured slab at Wirksworth, previously mentioned, affords an instance of a very peculiar type of Evangelistic symbol, having the head of a beast, but with a human body, which is also found on pre-lSTorman crosses in England and Scotland,^ and is specially characteristic of the Lombardic MSS.^ The symbols of the Evangelists occur but rarely on Norman fonts,^ although at a later period they very frequently form part of the decoration of those of the Perpendicular style. In the illuminated MSS. the symbols are found above the heads of the portraits of the Evangelists at the commencement of each Gospel, or all together on the frontispiece of the volume ; also in MSS. of the Apocalypse, surrounding Christ in Glory, and sometimes round the Crucifixions in the Psalters. In the Irish MSS. of the Gospels the symbols of the Evan- gelists are very highly conventionalised. The nimbus is generally absent ; in some cases the beasts have four wings ; and in the Book of Armagh the eagle of St. John holds a fish between its claws, as is the case on the cross at St. Vigeans in Forfarshire ; on the jamb of the Norman doorway at Eibbes- ford in Worcestershire ; and on a metal plate in the British Museum. The Book of Kells contains some extraordinary variations in the ways of representing the symbols of the 1 At llkley, Yorkshire ; Halton, Lancashire ; also at Kirriemuir and luchbrayock in Forfar.shire. , 2 See Ed. Henry, Manuscrits de Laon ; Nouveaux Melanges d'Archeologie, pp. 44 and 112; Martigny's Die/., p. 297; Tvf ining's Symbols and Eiiiblevu, pis. 45 and 51. ^ At St. Michael's, Southampton ; Casilefroome, Herefordshire ; on a fragment of a font in the porch at Bakewell Church, Derbyshire, in- scribed MAliCVS. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS OP CHURCHES. 269 Four Evangelists, the most curious being perhaps in the full- page miniature,, where each beast has a nimbus with small crosses on it. The Contest hetiveen Good and Evil. — The never-ceasing con- flict between good and evil afforded a prolific source of inspiration, whence much of the symbolism in mediaeval times was derived, and the final triumph of the righteous over sin was set forth in a variety of ways. These may be classed as Scriptural, — such as Christ trampling upon the Asp and the Basilisk, or over- coming the Devil with the Cross (i.e., bruising the Serpent's head), and St. Michael fighting with the Dragon ; legendary, such as the contest between St. G-eorge and the Dragon ; and moral, such as the opposition of Virtues and Vices. St. George and the Dragon. — It has always been a charac- teristic of human nature to identify our own cause with that of good, whilst it always seems that our enemies are on the side of evil ; hence, at the time of the crusades and the wars of the middle ages, it is not surprising to find St. George chosen as the patron saint of England, and St. Michael that of Normandy first and France afterwards, so that the banner under which each nation fought should be that of righteousness, leading on to victory over the wicked. St. George was first acknowledged as patron saint of England in A.D. 1222, previous to which time Edward the Confessor had occupied that position.^ No less than 163 churches are dedi- cated in his honour, and on many of these we find a sculpture of St. George and the Dragon on the tympanum of the principal doorway.^ St. George is generally represented on horseback, riding full tilt at a huge serpent or dragon which lies on the ground, and thrusting a spear down its throat. Sometimes, however, he is seen on foot, and armed with a sword and a shield bearing the cross on it, or accompanied by a dog. It is not always possible to distinguish between St. George and St. Michael, but the latter should have wings. The stories of St. George of Cappadocia are probably all fabulous ; and accord- ing to Gibbon, the historian of the Decline and Fall of the 1 J. Parker's Calendar of the Prayer Booh, p. 38. 2 At Kuardean and Moreton Valence, Gloucestershire ; Brinsop, Here- fordshire ; and Pitsford, Northamptonshire. 270 NOEMAN SCULPTUBE TN THE Rojnan Empire} he began life as a fraudulent army contractor, and after succeeding to the throne of Athanasius, was killed, A.D. 361, by an infuriated mob, who had determined to put an end to his iniquitous career. His subsequent popularity is perhaps due to his having supported the Arians against Athanasius, and thus become the cham- pion of this particular sect. St. George and the Dragon became in England a type of the conflict between good and evil, in consequence of Kichard I having put his army under the special protec- tion of this saint during the crusades in Palestine, which were undertaken in order that Christianity might conquer paganism. The well-known legend, re- lating how St. George saved ;the beauti- ful woman from being devoured by a dragon,^ accounts for the esteem in which he was held in a chivalrous age. He is the patron saint of soldiers, and he is specially venerated in the Greek Church. Over the doorway of the church dedi- cated to St. George, at Fordington in Dorsetshire (see vignette on title-page), is a sculpture which seems to represent a legend related by Matthew of Paris,* that this saint miraculously appeared and came to the assistance of the Christians in a battle with the Saracens at Antioch, A.D. 1098. What gives greater probability to this explanation of the subject is, that it was just about this time (a.d. 1091) Fordington Church was founded by Os- '(!==: ' Vol. iii, p. 166. (See also Dr. Heylin's Life of St. George ; Baring Gould's Curious Myths of the Middle Ages.) ''■ Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, vol. ii, p. 399. 3 Matt. Paris, Hist. Angl., sub anno 1098, quoted in Bloxam's Gothic Architecture, vol. i, p. 87. AKCHITBCTURAL DETAILS OP CHUECHES. 271 raund, Bishop of Old Sarum. The sculpture shows a nimbed saint on horseback, thrusting the butt-end of a lance, with a cross bearing pennon attached, down the throat of a pros- trate warrior. In front are two other soldiers lying dead, one with a broken spear, and behind are two more, disarmed and begging for mercy on bended knee. The details of the armour and the costume are extremely interesting, and the harness of the horse, with little pendent crosses, deserves special notice, from the resemblance to similar ornamental appendages on the trappings of a horse in a scene of the same kind on carved wooden panels of the eighth century in the church of Abu Sargah (St. Sergius), at Old Cairo in Egypt.i St. Michael and the Dragon? — The veneration paid to St. Michael is due in the first instance to the mystical passages in the Bible describing his character, and secondly, to the legends of his miraculous apparitions on four different occasions — (1) at Colossa in Phrygia ; (2) at Siponte in Apuleia, to Galgano (a.D. 493) ; (3) at Eome, to St. Gregory, in the sixth century ; (4) in Normandy, to Aubert, Bishop of Avranches (a.D. 706), commanding him to build a church upon the rock which still bears his name.^ The abbey, which replaced the original church upon Mont- Saint-Michel, was begun by Eichard, Duke of Iformandy, in 966, a.nd finished by William the Conqueror. The worship of St., Michael rapidly spread to England, and in France the Archangel was chosen as the patron saint. In Christian art St. Michael appears — (1) as guardian of souls, either weighing the spirits of the dead, or carrying them up to heaven in the folds of his garments ; (2) as leader of the heavenly host, who fought against the dragon and his angels (Eev. xii, 7), or con- tending with the Devil (Jude, 9) ; (3) as chief of the angels, be- cause he is called the Archangel in the Epistle of Jude (ver. 9), 1 Butler's Coptic Churches of Erjypt, vol. i, p. 191. 2 This subject is ably dealt with in the chapter on the Iconography of the Soul, in Didron's Christian Iconography, edited by Miss Stokes (vol. ii, p. 173). 3 Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, vol. i, p. 97, and Parker's Calendar of the Prayer Book, p. 93. 272 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE and from his supposed identity with Michael, one of the chief princes mentioned in Daniel (x, 13). Out of these the scene most commonly represented is St Fig. 95.— St, Miolmel carrying up soul to Heaven, on sepulehril monument in Ely Cathedral. Michael fighting with the Dragon, to typify the conflict between good and evil. The subject is treated symbolically, the two principal actors only being introduced, without the historical AEOHITECTUBAL DETAILS OP CHUECHES. 273 accompaniments of the heavenly host or the angels of the Devil. It occurs in this form upon the sculptured details of churches in Italy of the seventh century/ and in Saxon MSS. of the eleventh century.^ Perhaps the oldest and most interesting example in Norman sculpture is upon a slab built into the in- terior wall of St. Nicholas Church, Ipswich, inscribed her sg (m)ihael FEHTiDJi DANE DEACA (" Here Sanctus Michael fighteth the Dragon"). The Archangel, armed with a sword and shield, is advancing to attack a winged monster having the twisted tail — W. JJoVStJc Fig, 96.— St. Michael and the Dragon, on sculptured slab at St. Niche las, Ipswich, of a serpent, formidable claws, and a trebly-barbed sting issuing from the mouth. Similar representations are not uncommon upon Norman tympana,** but are rarely seen on fonts. Some- times the figure armed with sword and spear fighting the dragon 1 At Cortona Oathedral and San Michele, Pavia ; Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, vol. i, p. 103. 2 Brit. Mus. (Tib. C. vi), inscribed "Michael pugnat cum dracone", 'W'est- wood's Miniatures, pi. 46. Also in Menelogium Grecum, Vatican MSS., No. 1613, A.D. 989. ^ As at Moreton Valence, Gloucestershire; Hallaton, Leicestershire; Southwell and Hoveringham in Nottinghamshire ; Dinton, Bucks (on liDtel below tympanum); also abroad on tympanum of doorway of Church of St. Michel d'Entraignes, near Angouleme, with inscription (De Caumont's Ahecedaire d'Archeologie, p. 164). T 274 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE has no wings,^ so tha.t it is doubtful whether he is intended for St. Michael or for St. George, but I think probably for the former, as St. George is generally on horseback. Exceptional features occur at Ault Hucknall, in Derbyshire, where a cross is placed between St. Michael and the Dragon, and at Steetley and Coningsburg, where the dragon has got a human being in its clutches. On the tympanum at Hovering- ham (see fig. 43) St. Michael and the Dragon is associated with the Agnus Dei and the Dextera Dei. On the tympanum at Southwell, David or Samson and the Lion occur together with the same scene; In both cases the interlacements of the dragon's tail are very curious, and show the influence of Scan- dinavian art. Besides the conventional way of representing the scene which has just been described, there is another type, where the Archangel is shown trampling the serpent under his feet, and thrusting a spear or a cross^ down his throat, of which instances are found in Norman sculpture.^ Christ trampling on the Asp and the Basilisk. — The triumph of good over evil, and the power of God to deliver (Ps. xci, 14), is often typified in early Christian art by the figure of Christ holding the cross of the Resurrection, and trampling on the asp and the basilisk with one foot, and the lion and the dragon with the other, in reference to the verse in the Psalms (xci, 13). This subject occurs as early as the sixth century,* and there is an in- stance on an ivory diptych of Saxon workmanship belonging to the church of St. Martin, Genoels-Elderen, Limbourg, inscribed with the words out of the Vulgate version of the Psalms — -I- UBI DNS AMBULABIT SQPEE ASPIDEM ET BASILISCUM CON- ^ As on lintels of doorway at St. Bees, Cumberland, and Ault Hucknall, Derbyshire ; on arch moulding of doorway at St. Margaret's, Walmgate, York ; on sepulchral slab at Coningsburg, Yorkshire ; on font at Thorp Arnold, Leicestershire ; on capital of column of chancel-arch at Steetley, Derbyshire. 2 As on seal of port of Hastings, inscribed " Draco crudelis vincet vis Michaelis" {Sussex Archmol. CoU.,yol. i, p. 16). ^ As on slab at Seaford, Sussex ; and on details of doorways at Riccal and Barton-le-Street in Yorkshire. * On terra-cotta lamp found at Rome {Martigny's Diet., art. " Serpent", p. 755). ARCHITECTUEAL DETAILS OP OH0BCHES. 275 CULCABIT LEONE ET draconem", or as it is rendered in our translation, " Thou shalt tread upon the lion and the adder ; the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet." The meaning of the symbolism is also further explained by our Lord's words to his disciples (Luke x, 19), — " Behold I give unto you power to tread upon serpents and scorpions,"'- and to the Apostles after the Resurrection (Mark xvi, 17, 18), — " And Fig. 97.— Ohrist treading on the Serpent, on Cross of Thurualtr at Kirk Andreas, Isle of Man. these signs shall follow them that believe They shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them." I have only found one instance of this subject in Norman sculpture, on a slab built into the tower of New Malton Church, Yorkshire. Christ bruising the Serpent's Read. —Ghiist bruising the head of the serpent, the meaning of which is the same, occurs occasionally upon Norman fonts,^ the treatment on the one at » On a Rune-inscribed stone at Kirk Andreas in the Isle of Man, a figure holding a cross and a book is seen treading on a serpent. , 2 Kirkbv, near Liverpool ; Avebury, Wilts. T 2 276 NORMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE Kirkby, near Liverpool, being very ingenious ; the cable moulding round the base of the bowl forming the body of the serpent, and the figure of our Lord thrusting a spear down his throat is en- closed within one of the arches of the arcading. Fig. 98, — Christ bruifling the Serpent's head, on font at Kirkby, near Liverpool. The symbolism has its origin in the texts in Genesis (iii, 15) and in Romans (xvi, 20), and when the subject is carved on a font it possibly is intended to set forth the Eedemption from sin through Baptism. On the font at Avebury, Wiltshire, the dragon is beiug overcome with a pastoral staff, and on a slab built into the interior wall of Jevington Church, Sussex, a cross AROHITBCTURAL DETAILS OF CHUECHES. 277 is used for the purpose.'- On an early Christian gem, illustrated in Didron's Christian Iconography, edited by Miss M. Stokes (vol. ii, p. 201), Christ is striking a human-headed serpent with a staff bearing the Chi-Eho monogram. Christ trampling on the Devil and bruising his head with the cross forms part of the scene of the Harrowing of Hell. Virtues and Vices. — We lastly come to the contrast between good and evil as shown by the Virtues and Vices placed in opposition to each other. This was a favourite method of setting forth the moral doctrines of Christianity in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, but early instances are scarce, one of the best being on a Transitional Norman font at Stanton Pitz- warren, in Wiltshire. The cylindrical bowl of the font is sur- rounded with ten figures under arcading, which are as follows : (1) Figure with drawn sword and six wings, two of which are folded across the body (inscribed " Cherubym"). (2) Symbolical figure of the Church, crowned and holding a chalice and cross, trampling on a winged dragon (inscribed " Ecclesia Serpens occiditur"). (.3 to 10) Crowned figures armed with shields, and holding sceptres, to symbolise the Virtues trampling upon the Vices overcome, which are represented by prostrate human forms, in- scribed thus — Virtues. Largitas. , Humilitas. Pietas. Miserioordia. Modestia. Temperancia. Paciencia. Pudicitia. Vices. Avaritia. Superbia. Discordia. Invidia. Ebrietas. Luxuria. Ira. Libido. The contest between the Virtues and the Vices is described in the Pyscomachia of Prudentius, a poem of which there are four Saxon MS. copies with illustrations, three in the British 1 On a medallion on the doorway at Fishlake, two female figures are thrusting the cross into the open mouth of an animal. Croziera are sometimes made in the shape of a serpent with a cross down the throat (Cahier and Martin, Melanges d'Archeologie, vol. iv, p. 191). 278 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE Museum^ and one in the library of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. This subject does not occur on Norman tympana. The Harrowing of Hell—The little church of Quenington in Gloucestershire has two very rich Norman doorways, both with sculptured tympana, that on the north side of the nave repre- senting the apocryphal subject of the " Harrowing of Hell", and the one on the south side the legendary subject of the " Corona- tion of the Virgin". The Harrowing of Hell is defined in Wedgwood's Dictionary of Etymologij as being "the triumphant expedition of Christ after Fig, 99.— The Harrowing of Hell on tympanum of north doorway at Quenington, Glouceeterahire. His Crucifixion, when He brought away the souls of the righteous, who had died and been held captive in hell since the beginning of the world." " Harrowing" is part of the verb " to harry", also written "harow", meaning to rob or spoil. In the Saxon MS. of the eleventh century in the Brit. Mus. (Tib. C. vi) the inscription over this scene, which corresponds in all its principal features with that on the tympannm at Quenington, is " xps INFEKNV dbspoliat", i.e., " Christ harrows or spoils Hell". The subject, although not strictly Scriptural, forms one of the regular 1 Add. 24,199 ; Cleop. C. viii ; Titus D. xvi. ABCHITEOTUEAL DETAILS OP OHUECHES. 279 series of the Life and Passion of Our Lord, coming between the Entombment and the Eesurrection, and is found in mediajval art from the eleventh century onwards.^ It occurs also in Byzan- tine mosaics^ and MSS.,^ being generally inscribed "Anastasis", or " making to rise up". In the Biblia Pauperum the Harrowing of Hell is placed in the centre, with David and Goliath on one side, and Samson and the Lion on the other. In the Speculum RumansR Salvationis it is associated with Moses leading the children of Israel out of Egypt., In the Speculum Sanctis Marise Virginis* Christ's Descent into Limbus is compared to Daniel in the Lions' Den, and the Delivery of Souls is typified by the ostrich releasing her young from the glass vessel in which it had been imprisoned by Solomon.^ The Harrowing of Hell formed the subject of mediceval Mystery Plays,^ and it is also described in the Vision of Piers Ploughman (a poem of the fourteenth century), and in the Golden Legend, printed by Wynkyu de Worde. The Descent of our Lord into HelF has its origin, in the first instance, in certain passages of Scripture, but all the medieval conceptions of the scene. are founded on the detailed description given in the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus.^ Upon the tym- panum at Quenington Christ is portrayed as the King of Glory, who, "trampling upon death, seized the prince of hell, deprived him of all his power, and took our earthly father, Adam, with him to his glory" {Nicod., xvii, 13). 1 Twelfth century MSS., Brit. Mus. (Nero C. iv ; Eg. 1189 ; Add. 30, 337). See W. de G. Birch, Early Drawings and Illuminations. 2 Torcello Cathedral, near Venice, twelfth century. s Greek Gospels, Vatican Library; D'Agincourt, VArt par les Monu- ments, vol. iv, pi. 59. The scene is also described in the Painter's Guide from Mount Athos ; Didron, Guide de la Feinture, p. 199. " The Boxhall Speculum, Italian, thirteenth century, of which there is a block-book copy in the Brit. Mus. 5 Mrs. Jameson's Life of our Lord, vol. i, p, 219 ; Margaret Stokes in Art Journal. ^ W. Hone's Ancient Mysteries, p. 120, ' The Apostle's Creed merely says, " He descended into Hell." The par- ticular region beneath the earth into which our Lord descended is called " Limbus", or the place for the reception of the spirits of the unbaptised, in contradistinction to "Purgatory", the abode of the baptised (Mrs Jameson's Life of Our Lord, vol, ii, p, 250). 8 JV. Hone's edition, chaps, xiii to xx. 280 NOEMAN SOULPTUEE IN THE The mouth of hell is shown in the usual conventional way by the open jaws of a monster, and from it are issuing three naked figures, with hands clasped in prayer, the foremost being led out by Christ, in reference to the words, " Then the Lord stretching forth his hand, made the sign of the cross npon Adam and all his saints. And taking hold of Adam by his right hand he ascended from hell, and all the saints of God followed him" (NieocL, xix, 11 and 12). The Saviour carries in the right hand the cross of the Eesurrection, the butt-end of which he is thrust- ing down the throat of Satan (or perhaps Death), on whose pros- trate form He treads. Above is the sun, indicated by a human face, surrounded by rays of light. " Lord, thou hast put the ensigns of thy glory in heaven, and hast set up the sign of thy redemption, even on thy cross on earth ! So, Lord, set the sign of the victory of thy cross in hell, that death may have domi- nion no longer" {Nicod., xix, 10). The most interesting pecu- liarity of the Quenington sculpture is the way in which the Devil's hands and feet are bound, with a ring interlaced through them, as it affords a connecting link between the symbolism of the pre-Norman crosses and that of the sculptures of the twelfth century. Satan, or the Scandinavian Loke, bound in this manner, occurs on the cross at Gosforth in Cumberland,^ on the fragment of a cross-shaft at Kirkby Stephen in Westmoreland,^ on one of the crosses at Kirk Andreas, in the Isle of Man, and in the illustrations of Csedmon's Metrical Paraphrase of the Scriptures,^ which thus graphically describes in Saxon verse the nature of the bonds. " Heavy ring clasps A merciless manacle Mock my weakness Foil the struggles Of feet sore boundea Hands tied helpless.'' On the atone at Kirby Stephen the Devil has horns, and is bound by the rings to a frame, as in one of the illuminations ' Jour. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. xl, p. 143. ^ Prof. Stephen's Studies in Northern Mythology, ^ MS. of the tenth century in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. (See Archceologia, vol. xxiv ; and Prof. Stephen's Studies in Northern Mytho- logy. ARCHlTECTtEAL DETAILS OF CHUECHES. 281 in the Spanish Apocalypse of the twelfth century, in the library of Messrs. Firmin Didot of Paris.' Other examples of the Harrowing of Hell, exhibiting these interlaced ring-clasps upon the limbs of Satan, occur on the sculptured slabs on the west front of Lincoln Cathedral,^ on a twelfth century wall-painting at Chaldon in Surrey,^ and in two early series of the Life of Christ in the British Museum MSS. (Tib. C. vi, eleventh century, Fig. 100.— Ttie Devil bound, on pre-Norman cross-shaft at Kirbky Stephen, Westmoreland. and Nero C. iv, twelfth century). Christ's Descent into Limbus is to be seen on tympana at Beckford in Gloucestershire, and at Shobdon in Herefordshire ; as also on a slab built into the walls of the chapter-house at Bristol Cathedral. The Coronation of the Virgin. — The carving on the tympanum of the south doorway of Quenington Church (see fig. 93) repre- 1 Paul Lacroix, Science and Literature of the Middle Ages— Occult Sciences, p. 222. 2 Jour. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. xxv, p. 1. 3 Ibid., vol. XXX, p. 35 ; and Surrei/ Archceol. Coll., vol. v, p. 270. 282 NOEMAN SOULPTUEE IN THE sents Christ on a throne, placing a crown on the head of the Virgin, who is seated on His right hand. Around are the sym- bols of the Four Evangelists and the Cherubims, previously referred to, and at the right corner of the tympanum below is a building, probably intended to symbolise either the Church^ or the Heavenly Jerusalem. The costume of the Virgin and the architecture of the building should be noticed. The Coronation of the Virgin is not a subject found in early Christian art, but is most frequently met with in illuminated y°irr >V^(^*1A»r 3«o s-VSA Fig. 101.— The Harrowing of Hell, on tympanum of north doorway, at Beckford, GIoucRstersliire. MSS. of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries,^ forming the last scene in the series illustrating the legendary Life of St. Mary. It is supposed by some to typify the final glorification of the Church. The oldest representations of the Virgin, unconnected with Christ, are to be seen on the gilded glass vessels of the fourth century found in the Catacombs at Eome, where she stands in 1 The Virgin was considered a type of the Church. See Northcote and Brownlow, Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 135. 2 Brit. Mus. (Arund. 83), and others given in W. de G. Birch's Earli/ Drawings and Illuminations, p. 21 7. ARCHITEOTUEAL DETAILS OF CHUECHES. 283 au attitude of prayer between St. Peter and St. Paul, the uames being inscribed above the heads of each. The Virgin and Child.— The Virgin and Child occurs in the paintings in the Catacombs, and on the sculptured sarcophagi, but always in the scene of the Adoration of the Magi. In the later mosaics of the Italian basilicas the Virgin and Child appears in the place of honour usually accorded to Christ Him- self, in the centre of the roof of the apse. On Norman tympana the subject is extremely rare, and I only know of one instance, at Fownhope, Herefordshire, where the central figure of the V ..tJ' Fig. 102.— Norman font at Walton-on the-Hill, near Liverpool. Virgin and Child is surrounded by foliage, amongst which is a bird at one side and a winged lion at the other, possibly intended for two of the evangelistic 'symbols. The rarity of sculptured representations of the Virgin may perhaps be accounted for by the iconoclastic fury which raged at the time of the Eeforma- tion. A few examples, however, still remain — as, for instance, above the chancel- arch at Langridge in Somersetshire ; on the font at Walton-on-the-Hill, near Liverpool ; and on a slab built into the east wall of York Minster, inscribed sca maeia, the heads of both Mother and Child being knocked off. Besides the Scriptural subjects already mentioned, others are 284 NOKMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE found less frequently on the tympana of Norman doorways, sach as the Temptation of Adam and Eve at Thurleigh, Bed- fordshire ; Bridge, Kent ; and Caton, Lancashire ; the Sacrifice of Isaac, at Eochester Cathedral ; David and the Lion, at South- well Minster, Notts; Daniel in the Lions' Den, at Shalfleet, Isle of Wight ; the Entry into Jerusalem, at Aston Eyre ; the Crucifixion, at Bolsover, Derbyshire ; Christ giving the Keys to THAuVOtJSC. Fig. 103.— Virgin and Child on font at Walton-on-the-Hill, near Liverpool. St. Peter, at Siddington St. Peter, Gloucestershire ; and St. Peter holding the Key, at Hoveringham, Notts. Many of the scenes represented on Norman tympana are not strictly Scriptural, and are often difficult to explain. The figure of an ecclesiastic holding a pastoral staff occurs frequently, as at Hognaston, Derbyshire, and Stony Stanton, Leicestershire, associated with various animals ; at South Eerriby, Lincoln- shire, between two crosses; at* Little Langford, Wilts, with birds in & tree, and a hunting scene ; and at Tetsworth, Oxford- shire, with the Agnus Dei. There are several instances of a ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 285 man standing between two beasts, as at Charney, Berksbire, and Down St. Mary, Devon. Some of these may^-be intended for Daniel in the Lions' D%n, but at Charney the beasts are winged, and more like dragons or griffins than lions.^ Another not uncommon subject is a tree with'*a beast on each side of it, as at Lullington, Somersetshire ; Fritwell, Oxfordshire ; Knook, Wilts ; Ashford and Swarkestone (now destroyed), Derbyshire ; Lathbury and Dinton, Bucks ; Wordwell, Suffolk ; and Llan- badarn Vayvr, Eadnorshire. Hunting scenes'occur occasionally, as at Kedlestone, Derbyshire ;S',Tutbury,p^Staffordshire ; and Little Langford, Wilts. At Eibbesford a man is represented shooting at a beast with a bow and arrow. Many tympana have fabulous creatures sculptured upon them, the meaning of which will be more fully discussed in the next lecture. Winged dragons are to be seen at Houghton-le-Spring, Durham ; Austerfield Chapel, Yorkshire ; Long Marton, West- moreland ; Everton, Notts ; Stony Stanton, Leicestershire ; Stone- leigh, Warwickshire ; Ridlington and Egleton, Rutland; Stewkley and Leckhampstead, Bucks. Centaurs at Stoke-sub-Hamdon, Somerset ; Salford and Kencott, Oxon ; Cormac's Chapel on Eock of Cashel, Ireland ; and Ault Hucknall, Derbyshire. Sirens at Stow Longa, Huntingdonshire ; and Long Marton, Cumberland. The following tympana are inscribed : — Essendine, Eutland, Christ in Glory, inscribed IHC ; Kencott, Oxon, Centaur shooting arrow down throat of Serpent, inscribed Sagittarius ; Dinton, Bucks, tree, with beast on each side, and St. Michael and Dragon, inscribed " Premia pro meritis si quis desperet habenda . Audiat hie precepta sibi que sunt retinenda" ; Eochester Cathe- dral, Sacrifice of Isaac, inscribed . . . aries per cornva . . . (part of the verse from the Vulgate relating to the scene). In a few cases Norman tympana are ornamented with rows of figures under arcading, as at Bishops Teignton, Devon, and Syston, Lincolnshire. ' Lyson's Berkshire, p. 204. Th« man between two griffins on the tympanum at Charney may perhaps be intended to represent the Ascent of Alexander. (See Oahier and Martin, Nouveaux Melanges d'Archeologie, for similar scenes at Bale and Fribourg en Brisgau in Switzerland, and St. Mark's, Venice.) 286 NORMAN SOULPTUBE IN THE Fonts. The symbolism of the Norman fonts differs in many respects from that of the sculptured tympana of the same period. In the first place the surface on which the representations have to be placed is of a different shape, the arcaded sides of a font being specially adapted for subjects which can be arranged in a series, such as scenes from Scripture, saints, officers of the Church, the seasons, months, and so on ; and secondly, those subjects which refer to the rite of baptism are chosen in preference to others. As regards the arrangement of the design, fonts with a square bowl have either a group of figures occupying the whole of each of the rectangular sides ; or the sides are subdivided by little columns supporting arches, so as to form an arcade ; or a set of circular medallions are placed at intervals. In the case of fonts with a cylindrical bowl, the design is either made con- tinuous right round, or the surface is subdivided by arcading. Tonts are often ornamented with human or grotesque heads at each of the four corners, and are sometimes supported upon figures of men or beasts. Fonts with hemispherical bowls do not present a surface so suitable for sculptured figures as either the cylindrical or square ones, and they are consequently much rarer, although examples are to be seen at St. Austell, Corn- wall ; Chaddesley Corbett, Worcestershire ; and Eardisley, Here- fordshire. The Temptation of Adam and Eve. — The only scenes from the Old Testament found on Norman fonts (except David play- ing the Harp, at Darenth, Kent) are the Temptation of Adam and Eve,^ and their expulsion and subsequent work, delving and spinning.2 These subjects have been already described when dealing with the Irish crosses. Jt seems probable that as Adam and Eve are seen so often upon fonts, it was intended thereby to tj-pify the putting off the old Adam at baptism before entering the new Christian life. Tlu Baptism of Christ. — The rite of baptism is a very common subject on Norman fonts, either as a sacrament administered by I At Cowlam and Gotham, Yorkshire ; Kirkby and Walton-on-the Hill, both near Liverpool ; and Fincham, Norfolk. ^ At East Meon, Hants, and Hook Norton, Oxon. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS OP CHURCHES. 287 the officers of tlie Church, or as the scene from the New Testa- ment in which our Lord and St. John the Baptist are the chief actors. The Baptism of Christ is not represented in the paint- ings of the Catacombs (except in one doubtful instance)/ nor does it occur upon the sculptured sarcophagi. The earliest examples now existing are on the mosaics of the domed roofs of the baptisteries of St. John and St. Maria in Cosmedin at Eavenna, executed in the middle of the sixth century, and upon the ivories of the same period.^ A very interesting representa- tion occurs on the carved wooden doors of the church of Sitt Miriam at Cairo, now in the British Museum, attributed to the eighth century. The conventional method of treating the scene does not vary to any great extent, and follows the de- scription given in the Gospels, except that events which are recorded to have taken place in succession are made to occur simultaneously ; the Spirit of God being shown descending like a dove, whilst our Lord is still in the water, instead of after He had come up out of it (Matt, iii, 16). Accessories not mentioned in Scripture are added, such as angels holding the tunic of Christ^; trees, perhaps in reference to the words of the Baptist (Matt, iii, 10)*; and the river-god, leaning on an urn, and holding a reed, to personify the Jordan (or in some cases two river-gods, in accordance with the legendary belief that our Lord was bap- tised at the meeting of the Jor and the Danus, as shown on the broken cross-shaft at Kells, co. Meath).^ (See fig. 79.) One of the best sculptures of the Baptism of Christ in England exists on the Eune-inscribed font at Bridekirk in Cumberland. ' Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 132. 2 Milan Oathedral and South Kensington Museum (Westwood's Cata- logue of Fictile Ivories, pp. 39 and 43) ; also very interesting inscribed ivory of tenth century in Brit. Mus. 2 Or baptismal garment ; in early example in baptistery at Ravenna it is held by the river god. (See Martigny's Diet., art. "Aubes baptis- males".) \ A palm-tree occurs in the scene of the Baptism of Christ on the doors of Pisa Cathedral. A withered and a fruitful tree appear on a sculpture at Aquileja (Twining's Symbols and Emblems, pi. 65). 5 MS. of ninth century, Bibl. Imp., Paris, Suppl. Cat., 641, and thirteenth century, painted glass at Chartres Cathedral ; Didron, Guide de la Peinture, p. 164 ; Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord, vol. i, p. 204 ; Martigny's Diet., art. " Jourdain", p. 401. 288 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE Here Christ, with the cruciferous nimbus, is shown, undraped and immersed up to the waist in water, treated after the usual con- ventional fashion, rising up in a heap, either to give the idea of Fig. 104.— Baptism of Christ, on font at Bridekirk, Cumberland. perspective, or, as some suppose, to symbolise the Jordan soma forward to meet the Saviour. St. John, clothed in raiment of camel's hair (Matt, iii, 4), is placing each hand on the shoulders ABOHITECTUBAL DETAILS OF CHDECHBS. 289 of Christ, not on the head, as is most usual. The Spirit of God is shown descending from heaven like a dove (Matt, iii, 16), but the size of the bird is quite out of proportion to the other figures, and it is more like a swan than a dove. On each side conventional trees with interlaced branches bearing fruit are in- troduced. The following variations of details may be noted in different examples. The figure of the Saviour is generally shown covered with water up to the waist, and the two arms down close to the side 'm^m^MW^ M mmmm mM Fig. 105.— Baptism of Olirist, on font at Lenton, near Nottingham. of the body, as at Wansford, Northamptonshire ; but sometimes the right hand is raised giving the benediction, as at St. Nicho- las, Brighton ; or both hands are upraised in the ancient attitude of prayer, as at Lenton, Notts ; and on capital of column of chancel-arch at Adel, Yorkshire. The attitude of St. John is, most commonly, placing the right hand on the head of Christ, as at Kirkburn, Yorkshire ; or on the shoulders, as at Bridekirk ; or round the waist, as at Lenton. St. John sometimes holds a book in the left hand, as at Kirkburn ; or a vessel and a napkin, as at Brighton. According to the account given in the Gospels, u 290 NORMAN SCULPTUEB IN THE all three of the Persons of the Trinity were present at the Baptism of Christ, but in art it is seldom that more than two are represented. Thus, the dove alone occurs at Bridekirk, Adel, and Kirkburn, and the Hand symbol alone at Lenton, and Castle Froome, Herefordshire. On the very rude sculpture at Kirkburn are some curious features : the Saviour, has no nimbus, and is being baptised in a font, and not a river ; St. John has AEOHITEGTUBAL DETAILS OT? CHURCHES. 29] a cruciferous nimbus, and a figure stands on the opposite side of the font holding a book and a floriated branch, the meaning of which has given rise to much speculation. A crowned figure holding a somewhat similar branch is to be seen at Adel, and in this case perhaps it is intended for the personification of the Pdver Jordan. The cruciferous nimbus is hardly ever applied to any other personage besides the Saviour, so that it is possible that the scene represented at Kirkburn is not the Baptism of Christ, but the rite of Baptism.i Angels holding tunics occur at Lenton, Brighton, West Haddon, and the capital at Adel ; trees at Bridekirk ; animals at Adel ; fish at Castle Proome. The Baptism of Christ does not occur in any of the Irish MSS., but there is an instance in the Saxon Benedictional of ^thelwold belonging to the Duke of Devonshire. After the twelfth century^ the subject is frequently seen in illuminations. The earliest sculptured example in this country is on the broken cross-shaft in Kells Churchyard, co. Meath (see fig. 79). Here the two sources of the Jordan are seen issuing from circulai' wells and uniting below. St. John is pouring the water over the head of the Saviour with a sort of ladle. In the Biblia Pau- perum this scene is compared with the Israelites crossing the Eed Sea, and the spies sent by Moses into the land of Canaan carrying the bunch of grapes (ISTumb. xiii, 23), after having gone over the Paver Jordan. In the Speculum Humanm Salvationis the Baptism of Christ is liliened to the vessel of brass in which the Jews washed themselves upon entering into the Temple. The rite of baptism^ is distinguished from the Baptism of Christ 1 Compare ■with miniature from Flemish Bible of the fourteenth cen- tury iu the British Museum (Harl. 1526), copied in Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pi. 65, fig. 7, where the three Persons of the Trinity, two with the cruciferous nimbus, and the third as the Dove, are seen officiating at the rite of Baptism. 2 Brit. Mus., Greek MSS. (Eg. 1139), (Harl. 1810), English MS. (Nero C. iv), all twelfth century. "W. de Q-. Birch, Early Drawings and Illumi- nations, p. 168. 3 See painting in the Church of Ste. Pudentienne, inMartigcy's Diet., art. " Baptlme", p. 83 ; font of twelfth century at Pont-^-Mousson, France ; De Canmont, AbecSdaire d'Archeologie, p. 307; Flemish Bible, fourteenth century, Brit. Mus. (Harl. 1526) ; Twining's Symbols and Emblem~f, pi. 65. i U 2 292 NORMAN SCULPTURE. by the absence of the cruciferous nimbus round the head of the figure being baptised, by a font being used, and by ecclesiastics Examples on Norman fonts being substituted for St. John, exist at Darenth, Kent ; Kirkburn, and Thorpe Salvin in York- shire ; in none of which are there any of the distinctive features which we find in the scene of the Baptism of Christ, and it is a 5 ■c .a o a o I 294 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE to be presumed, therefore, that the Sacrament of the Church is what is symbolised in all these cases. Scenes from the Life of Christ. — Besides the Baptism of our Lord, several other scenes from the New Testament are found sculptured on Norman fonts, which have no special reference to the Sacrament of Baptism. The presence of these subjects may be accounted for by the very natural tendency there would be to rig. 109.— The Entry into Jerusalem and Baptism of Chriat, on font at West Haddon, Northamptonshire. transfer to stone some part of the series of the Life of Christ, which was continually before the eyes of the media3val artist in the devotional pictures bound up in the same volume with the Psalter.i The same reason would also explain the predilection shown in the twelfth century for ornamenting fonts with the seasonsj months, and signs of the zodiac, evidently copied from I Brit. Mus. MSS. (Tib. C. vi), eleventli century ; (Nero 0. iv), twelfth century (1 Dx), and (Ar. 157) thirteenth century. AKCHITEOTUKAL DETAILS OF CHUECHES. 295 the MS. calendars at the beginning of the Psalters.^ Perhaps if all the original Norman fonts were still in existence, it might be possible to put together a complete series of the Life of Christ derived from this source alone. As it is, however, we must be content with those which remain, the subjects repre- sented beings as follows : the Nativity^; the Adoration of the Magi^; the Massacre of the Innocents*; the Flight into Egypt^; the .Eaising of Lazarus^; the Entry into Jerusalem''; the Last Supper^; the Crucifixion^; the Descent from the Oross^"; the Three Maries at the Sepulchre^^; Christ giving the Keys to St. Peter^^; the Ascension.'^^ The Nativity. — The conventional treatment of the Nativity of Christ must be familiar to every one. According to the Eastern Church, the scene takes place in a cave, as described in the apocryphal Gospel of the Infancy (i, 6) ; but the art of the Western Church always surrounds the group of figures with architectural facades in the earlier examples of the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and in later times the interior of a lowly dwelling forms the background. The chief features, which have hardly varied at all since the fourth century, when the subject first appears in Christian art,^* consist of an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger (Luke ii, 7), over the top of which the heads of an ox and an ass appear gazing at Christ. On the right, below, the Virgin is ' Brit. Mus. MSS. (Jul. A. vi), (Tib. B. v), Saxon, eleventh century. 2 At Fincham, Norfolk ; and West Haddon, Northamptonshire. 3 Sculthorpe, Norfolk ; Coulham and Ingleton, Yorkshire. * Ooulham and Ingleton, Yorkshire. 5 Walton-on-the-Hill, Lancashire. ^ Lenton, Notts. ' West Haddon, Northamptonshire. 8 North Grimston, Yorkshire ; and St. Nicholas, Brighton. 9 Lenton, Notts ; Coleshill, Warwickshire ; Cottesmore, Rutland ; Lostwithiel, Cornwall. 1" North Grimston, Yorkshire. 11 Lenton, Notts. 12 Kirkburn, Yorkshire. 13 Kirkburn, Yorkshire ; and Lenton, Notts. " On a sculptured fragment with consular date, a.d. 343 (Placido et Eomulo Co.), from the Catacomb of S8. Peter and Marcellinus (Northcote and Brownlow, vol. ii, p. 235). 296 NORMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE reclining on a couch, and on the opposite side Joseph is seen seated.! ijj^g i>i"ativity, with the shepherds, and the sun and moon above, is carved on the wooden door-panels in the church of Abu Sargah, Old Cairo, Egypt (see Butler's Coptic Churches, vol. i, p. 191). In the South Kensington Museum there is an ivory plaque, where a stool is placed beside the bed, with the Virgin's shoes upon it. The angel appearing to the shepherds is often included in the scene of the Nativity, and the star is shown above the manger. A curious legendary addition, which occurs in a Saxon illumination of the ninth century in the Bodleian Library at Oxford,^ is the Washing after Birth. This is also found in Greek MSS. ; on a sculptured font of the twelfth century in the Church of St. John at Verona* ; on the carved wooden panels from Sitt Miriam, Cairo, in the British Museum; and on the pulpit at S. Michaele, Groppoli, A.D. 1193 (see Builder, Dec. 10, 1881). The Nativity occurs on a Norman font at Kucham in Norfolk, where the subject is reduced down to its simplest elements, — a manger containing the infant Saviour, the heads of the ox and the ass above, and the star at the top of all. The font at West Haddon, Northamptonshire, appears also to have this scene sculptured on the side, partially hidden from view by being built against the wall. The Nativity is to be found in the following Saxon MSS. : the great Boulogne Psalter ; the Benedictional of ^thelwold, belonging to the Duke of Devonshire ; and the Missal of Archbishop Eobert at Eouen. The Adoration of the Magi, the Massacre of the Innocents, and the Flight into Egypt. — The conventional representations of the Adoration of the Magi and the Flight into Egypt on the Irish crosses have been described in a previous lecture. The only change of importance which was introduced in the twelfth cen- 1 There is a very good inscribed example of this type on an ivory of the tenth century, in the British Museum. 2 (Eawlinson, B. 484.) Supposed to have belonged to the Athelstan Psalter in the Brit. Mus. (Westwood's Mmiatures, pi. 32). The washing after birth forms part of the birth scenes described in the Book of Genesis as illustrated in iElfric's Heptateuch in the British Museum. The vessel in which the washing takes place resembles a bowl-shaped font. 2 Gailhabaud's Architecture, French ed., vol. ii. AKCHITECTUEAL DETAILS OP OHUKOHES. 297 tury into the details of the scene of the Adoration of the Magi is the crowning of all the figures, of which instances may be seen , on the fonts at Scultliorpe, Norfolk, Cowlam (see fig. 69), and Ingleton, Yorkshire. The attitude of the Infant Saviour is varied ; at Sculthorpe His hands are resting on the lap ; at Cowlam giving the Benediction ; and at Ingleton upraised to show the wounds. The Massacre of the Innocents is carved on the fonts at both Cowlam and Ingleton, as a companion scene to that just de- scribed. At Cowlam, King Herod is seated on his throne with a drawn sword, and the soldier in front also holding a sword, receiving orders to slay all the children of two years old and under. At Ingleton, Herod is standing with a sword, about to kill one of the children, and the soldier is holding up a child by the leg in one hand and an axe in the other. The Massacre of the Innocents is only described by St. Matthew, and without any details as to the method of execution. The subject is not found in the earlier stages of Christian art, but belongs to the regular series of the Life of Christ, which became common after the eleventh century.^ It was probably omitted in Koman art on account of the repulsive nature of the scene, and because it Vas not symbolic of any special doctrine. It is, however, minutely described with all its horrors in the Grreek Paiyder's Guide from Mount Athos, together with the legend which relates how Elizabeth escaped with St. John the Baptist by means of a cleft in the rock, which opened miraculously and closed behind her, thus baffling her pursuers. The Flight into Egypt is rudely sculptured on the font at Walton-on-the-Hill, near Liverpool (see iig. 103). The figures are much damaged by exposure to the weather. Above the head of the horse on which the Virgin is riding is placed a cross. There is also a carving of the Flight into Egypt on a font at Clonard Abbey in Ireland, illustrated in Sir William Wilde's The Boyne and the Blackwater. In this instance the Infant Saviour is swathed in bandages, as at the Nativity. 1 One of the first instances occurs in the great Boulogne Psalter of the eleventh century, and another in a Psalter of the twelfth century, in the British Museum (Nero C. iv) ; and the scene is also sculptured on the capitals of Notre Dame de Chartres in Prance, of the same period. 298 NORMAN SCULPTURE IN THE The Raising of Lazarus. — There are at least two instances of the occurrence of the Eaising of La?;arus in Norman sculpture, one on the font at Lenton, Notts, and the other on the slabs built into the walls of Chichester Cathedral. The subject was introduced in the earliest period of Christian art in the paint- ings of the Catacombs, where the scene is reduced to the sim- plest possible elements, consisting only of the figure of Christ standing with arm outstretched towards the mummy-like body yggw^Uufitoafl^. . ^w^i^/Stt Fig. 110.— Eaising of Lazarus, and the Three Maries at the Sepulchre, on font at Lenton, Notts. of Lazarus, which is placed erect, swathed in grave-clothes, in the entrance of a tomb resembling a sentry-box, with a flight of steps leading up to it. On the sculptured sarcophagi our Lord has the nimbus round the head, and often holds in His hand the rod, which indicates the power of working miracles. The scene is represented in the same conventional form with great fre- quency on early ivories, such as the Brescia Casket, and on the great sixth century book-covers at Milan, Paris, and Eavenna.i ' Westwood's Catalogue of Fictile Ivories in South Kensington Museum, Nos. 96, 108, and 116. AKCHITEOTURAL DETAILS OP OHUECHES. 299 The chief feature to be noted in the ivories is the substitution of the cross for the rod as the symbol of supernatural power.^ As time went on the number of figures was increased and various accessories introduced, making the whole more complete as a picture, but less impressive as a symbol. Thus, in the sixth century we find the figures of Mary aud Martha added to the primitive group, as on the Milan book-cover; then in the eleventh century we have three disciples and two attendants, as on an ivory plaque in the Kunst Kammer at Berlin, which is specially interesting as bearing the explanatory inscription, AAZAPO, above the head of Lazarus (Westwood, Gatal, No. 176). The earliest example of the subject in this country is in a miniature of the Gospels, of the seventh century, in the library of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge/ and is inscribed — • lis LAZARVM STSCITAVIT MARIE ET MARTHA ROGABANT DNM- It also occurs in the series of the Life of Christ in an English twelfth century Psalter in the British Museum (Nero C. iv), and after this time is treated historically rather than symbolically. The Eaising of Lazarus is not found on the Irish crosses or MSS., but Dr. J. Anderson recognises the subject on a pre- Norman cross-shaft at St. Andrew's in Fifeshire.^ The sculp- tured slabs at Chichester Cathedral consist of two separate scenes, the first sho-v^ing Martha going out to meet Jesus, and the second the Eaising of Lazarus. The slabs, when originally dis- covered, were broken into a great number of small pieces, and these have, unfortunately, not been correctly put together, there being in consequence two figures of Lazarus.* The Gospel of St. John (ch. xi, 20) tells us that Martha only went out to meet Jesus, whilst Mary remained in the house; and further on (ch. xi, 28), that Mary having been told by her sister that " the Master is come and calleth for thee", went to Jesus and fell at His feet (ch. xi, 32). 1 Garrucci, Storia del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, pis. 438, 448, 456, and 458. 2 PalsBog. Soc. Publ., pis. 34 and 44 ; and Cambridge Antiquarian Soc. Publ., 187. 3 Scotland in Early Christian Times, 2nd Series, p. 155. < W. de Gray Birch, in Joui'. Brit. Archceol. Assoc, vol. xlii, p. 255. 300 NOKMAN SCULPTUEB IN THE On the slab at Chichester, according to a practice we have before noticed, the two events are made to take place simul- taneously, and we see Mary and Martha kneeling together at the feet of the Saviour, who is followed by four disciples. The two sisters are placed in the doorway of an elaborate building in the Byzantine style, and the drapery and conventional treatment of the hair are deserving of notice. In the second scene Lazarus is shown erect in a grave, with swathed bands round the body, and the Saviour standing, with the right hand giving the bene- diction, and holding a book in the left. At each end of the grave is an attendant with a pointed cap on the head, and hold- ing long staves, probably for taking away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. Behind the Saviour are three disciples, and in front another, with Martha and Mary, who have their hands raised to the face in the attitude of weeping.^ Another figure, with the hands lifted in prayer, has been mis- placed. It ought probably to be the upper part of the body of Lazarus. On the font at Lenton^ Lazarus is lying down in a stone coffin swathed in bands, or, as the Gospel account lias it, "bound hand and foot with grave clothes ; and his face bound about with a napkin" (John xi, 44). At each end is an attendant with a skull-cap, lifting the lid of the coffin or " cave with a stone laid upon it" (John xi, 38). The Bible account does not tell us who removed the stone, merely saying they took it away (John xi, 41). The Greek Painter's Guide from Mount Athos says, " the stone is lifted by a man." Above is Christ, with the right hand giving the benediction and holding a book in the left. The nimbus is peculiar, being in the form of a cross without a surrounding circle, a peculiarity which may also be noticed on the font at Kirk burn in Yorkshire. The only other figures are those of Martha and Mary, who stand close to the Saviour. The meaning of the symbolism of the Eaising of Lazarus, as a type of the Eesurrection of our Lord, is fully explained in the 1 A female figure in the same position, to express distress, occurs on the capitals of the columns of the tower arch at Oaistor, Northamptonshire. 2 The representation at Lenton should be compared with the one on the thirteenth century windows at Bourges Cathedral, given in Cahier's Monographic de la Cathedrale de Bourges, Part II, p. 245. AECHITECTUEAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 301 Gospel of St. John (ch. xi, 23 to 27). On an ivory plaque of the twelfth century, at Salerno Cathedral (S. K. Mus. Cast, 1874, 107), an attendant is unswathing the body of Lazarus, in accord- ance with the words of Jesus, " Loose him and let him go" (John xi, 44) ; and the same thing occurs in the Corpus Christi Gospels. The Entry into Jerusalem. — Our Lord's triumphal entry into Jerusalem has for obvious reasons been always chosen as a favourite symbol by which to foreshadow the Ascension, or the entry of Christ into the Heavenly Jerusalem, and the Church still commemorates the event on Palm Sunday. Although this subject does not occur in the paintings in the Catacombs, there are six examples to be found out of the fifty-five sculptured sarcophagi in the Lateran Museum at Eome, and it is also to be seen on the carved wooden panels from Sitt Miriam, Cairo, in the British Museum, of the eighth century ; on the great sixth century ivory book at Paris and Milan ; on an ivory plaque of the eleventh century, belonging to A. Pountaine, Esq. (West- wood's Gatal.,'Sos. 95, 109, and 327), and on an ivory plaqueof the twelfth century at Salerno Cathedral (S. K. Mus. Cast, 1874, 106). The earliest instance of the subject in England is in a miniature of the seventh century Gospels at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, previously mentioned, which is inscribed — OSANNA FILIO DAVID, BENEDICTVS QVI VENIT. Our Lord holds a whip in His hand, which is most unusual. Later representations of the eleventh century may be noticed in the Saxon Psalter in the British Museum (Tib. C. vi), in the Saxon Benedictional of ^thelwold ; and of the twelfth century in the English Psalter in the same collection (Nero C. iv) ; and there is also an interesting one in Otfrid's Paraphrase of the Four Gospels, in the Vienna Library, of the ninth century .i In most cases the Scripture account is followed accurately : the Saviour rides^ on an ass^ (sometimes with a foal running along 1 Westwood's Palceographia. 2 In some of the early examples, as on the eleventh century doors of St. Paul's extra Muros, and on the twelfth century ivory plaque at Salerno Cathedral, our Lord rides sideways, with both feet facing the spectator ; sometimes the trappings are omitted, and He rides bareback. 3 See interesting account of the Feast of the Ass, in Hone's Ancunt Mysteries, p. 160. 302 NORMAN SCCJLPTUEE. beside its mother), His right hand raised, giving the benediction, and the left holding the reins^; in front the city of Jerusalem, with elaborate architectural details, and the people spreading their garments,^ and strewing branches in the way, or going forth to mfeet Christ with palm-branches (according to St. John's Gospel) ; Zaccheus is seen up in the sycamore-tree cutting down branches. Some of the figures on horseback on the Celtic and Saxon crosses may be intended to symbolise the Entry into Jerusalem. The scene is sculptured on the late Norman font at West Haddon, Northamptonshire, and on the tympanum at Aston Eyre, Herefordshire. The Last Supper. — According to the Greek Painters Ghdde from Mount Athos, the series of the Passion of Our Lord com- mences with Judas Iscarioc's covenant with the Jews to betray his Master.** The second scene is Christ washing the disci- ples' feet, and the third is the Last Supper. In the paintings of the Catacombs at Eome a great number of pictures of feasts are to be seen, which are thought by some to be intended for the Last Supper,- or for the celebration of the Eucharist. Those who are interested in the question should read the chapter on Eucharistic symbolism in the Eev. E. St. John Tyrwhitt's Art Teaehing of the Primitive Church, and the article " Eucharistie", in Martigny's Dictionnaire des Ant. Ohret. If it is doubtful whether any of the Catacomb paintings refer to the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, we can have little hesitation in tracing Eucharistic symbolism in the mosaics of the sixth century at St. Vitalis, Eavenna, representing the Sacrifices of Abel and Melchisedec. The earliest example of the Last Supper with which I am acquainted is in the seventh century Gospels of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, where the miniature is in- ' In the twelfth century Psalter in the British Museum (Tib. C. iv) Our Lord holds a book ; on the tympanum at Aston Eyre, and on the thirteenth century painted glass at Bom-ges Cathedral, He holds a palm- branch. 2 The tunics strewn in the way are quaintly depicted in the ivory plaque belonging to A. Fountains, Esq. (Westwood, C'atal., No. 327). The garments cast upon the colt are often represented also. 3 The Passion Plays which were introduced in the thirteenth century, and still survive at Ober Amergau in the Bavarian Highlands, begin with the Entry into Jerusalem, and finish with the Descent of the Holy Ghost. 304 NORMAN SCULPTURE IN THE scribed " cena dni".i The table is of horseshoe shape, with a chalice and six circular loaves upon it ; Christ, holding a loaf in the left hand and giving the benediction with the right, is seated in the centre, with three Apostles on one side and five on the other ; at one corner is a bell. The subject is also to be found on the carved wooden panels in the Church of Abu Sargah, Old Cairo, Egypt,^ supposed to be as old as the eighth century, where Christ and the twelve Apostles are seated round a horseshoe table, on which is placed a fish and twelve circular loaves. In the twelfth century the scene was treated some- what differently. Our Lord is seated in the centre of a long, straight table extending across the whole picture, with the cruciferous nimbus round the head, and giving the benediction with the right hand ; on each side are six Apostles, either hold- ing books and knives, as on the font at North Grimston, York- shire ; or with one hand raised, the palm outwards, as on the font at St. Nicholas, Brighton. The table is usually covered with dishes containing fish and circular loaves, marked with a cross or four arcs of circles. Judas is shown holding a. bag, as in the twelfth century Psalter in the British Museum (Fero C. iv), or receiving the sop, as in the thirteenth century Psalters in the same collection (Koy. MS. 1 D. X., and Arund. 157). Besides the fonts at North Grimston and Brighton, the Last Supper occurs in Norman sculpture at Southwell Minster. Early examples of this subject are not by any means common, the following being some of the most interesting : — In MSS., see woodcut in Professor Westwood's Falseographia Victoria Sacra, taken from a twelfth century Lombardie copy of Lessons from the Gospels, in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, and illustration in Giuseppe Lais' Ccnni Storici dclla Biblioteca Vallicelliana (Eoma, 18 75) ; in twelfth century sculpture on a bas-relief fixed in the wall to the left of the entrance of the Duomo at Lodi dated 1163 ; on the lintel of the doorway of the Church of St. Gilles, Departement du Gard, in France ; in twelfth century ivories on a diptych in the collection of Eohde Hawkins, Esq. 1 Palesog. Soo. Publ., pi. 34. 2 Butler's Coptic Churches of Egijpt, vol.i, p. 191. Here Christ is seated at one end of the table instead of in the middle, and is taking up the fish with the right hand ; the concave side of the table faces the spectator. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 305 (Westwood's Gatal, No. 350) ; and on a plaque of a casket at Salerno Cathedral, Italy (S. K. Mus. Cast, 1874, 103). Mrs. Jameson, in her Sacred and Legendary Art, offers some valuable remarks as to the difficalty of dealing with the Last Supper from an artistic point of view, in consequence of the " number of figures, and the monotonous and commonplace cha- racter, materially speaking, of their occupation". The difficulty of arranging a long row of figures in a satisfactory manner was obviated in the earlier examples by employing a semicircular table, round which the Apostles might be grouped in a more natural way than was possible with the long, straight table ex- tending across the picture.^ On the font at St. Nicholas, Brighton, the number of Apostles is reduced to six, so as to avoid the un- necessary repetition of similar figures. In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the attitudes of the Apostles are more varied, and the incidents of St. John lying on Jesus's breast, and our Lord giving the sop to Judas Iscariot, are introduced. Judas is usually placed in front of the table, on the opposite side to all the others. In the early representations Christ is sometimes seated at the end of the table on the left, but in the later ones He occupies a central position. The breaking of bread or the giving the cup to the disciples is not usually shown, but the moment chosen by the artist is when our Lord raises His hand in the act of giving the benediction. It is interesting to observe how the ancient traditional features were preserved down to a late period in the pictures of the great Italian masters. Thus, the Cenacolo of Giotto in the Convent of Santa Croce at Florence, differs but little from the miniatures in the thirteenth century Lives of Christ, and even in Giotti's masterpiece in the Florence Academy the long table is still pre- served, but its horizontal lines are relieved by the raking lines of the perspective of the room; and the grouping and various attitudes of the disciples form a marked contrast to the stiff, conventional figures which characterise the mediaeval conceptions of the scene. The representations of the Last Supper must not be con- ' The table in Mr. Rohde Hawkins's diptych is in the shape of a quadrant, and the figures fitted into a square space by making our Lord of great size, and the disciples very small. X 306 NOBMAN sculpI'uke in the founded with Christ's appearance to the disciples at Emmaus, or the feast on the shores of the Sea of Tiberias. It will be found, however, that these subjects are of rare occurrence, as it was a well-recognised rule in Christian art that when two scenes were sufficiently like each other to create confusion in the mind of the spectator, the most important one was chosen, and the other omitted. The Supper at Emmaus occurs on an ivory plaque of the tenth century in the Kunst Kammer at Berlin (Westwood's Catal., No. 186), and in the twelfth century Psalter in the British Museum (Nero C. iv), but it may easily be distinguished from the Last Supper, as there are only two disciples, Cleopas and another, traditionally supposed to be St. Peter, instead of twelve, and it is also associated with the Incredulity of St. Thomas, instead of the Washing of the Disciples' Feet. Christ Washing the Disciples' Feet. — Although the Last Supper is not amongst the cycle of subjects chosen for represen- tation in early Christian art, the companion scene of the Wash- ing of the Disciples' Feet occurs on one of the sculptured sarco- phagi at Arles.^ The group consists of three figures, Christ stand- ing with a vessel of water at His feet, St. Peter in front on a raised dais, lifting up one foot, and with his hands held out deprecat- ingly, and in the background another disciple. It is very possible that the ceremony was one in common use amongst the Jews, and that our Lord only conformed to the Eastern custom of washing the feet of an honoured guest ; but some writers contend that the practice was a new one, instituted by Christ as a symbol of humility. However this may be, the washing of feet has been practised as a rite of the Christian Church from time immemo- rial, and the Eoman Church still preserves the usage in the washing of the feet of twelve poor men by the Pope on Maun- day Thursday. In the seventh century Gospels of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, our Lord is seen bending over and actually engaged in washing St. Peter's feet in a basin ; nine other disciples are in the background, and in the centre is a candlestick with four branches ; the picture is inscribed " ms LAVIT PEDES discipvlorvm". Another remarkable miniature is 1 Martigny's Diet., art. "Ablutions", p. 4; and Mrs. Jameson's Hist, of Our Lord, vol. ii, p. 13. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILf? OF CHURCHES. 307 in the eleventh century Psalter in the British Museum (Tib. C. vi), where an angel holds the towel. As far as I am aware, the subject does not occur either on Norman fonts or tympana, but there is a curious early sculpture of it, perhaps of the Saxon period, on the slab built into the walls of Wirksworth Church, Derbyshire (see fig. 31). St. Peter is here standing in the basin, and our Lord bending over and grasping him round the knees. The Washing of the Disciples' Feet is sculptured on the twelfth century doorway at St. Gilles Church (Gard),i already men- tioned ; on Mr. Attenborough's ivory situla, inscribed " disipvlis NAM SPONTE LATIT VESTIGIA cvNCTis" (Westwood's Oatal., No. 762), on the Quedlinburg Casket, both of the eleventh century (Westwood's Catal., No. 633) ; on the diptych at San Am- broglio, Milan, of the tenth century (Westwood's Catal., No. 120) ; and on the plaque at Salerno Cathedral, representing the Last Supper, already mentioned (S. K. Mus. Cast, 1874, 103). A miniature of it also occurs in the twelfth century Psalter in the British Museum (Nero C. iv). The account of the scene given in the Gospel of St. John, says that our Lord laid aside His garments, and took a towel and girded himself (John xiii, 4), before commencing to wash the disciples' feet ; but He is repre- sented in art as fully clothed. On the ivory plaque at Salerno Cathedral, although clothed, the Saviour has a napkin girded round the waist, and there is another lying on the ground behind Him. The napkin round the waist is also shown on the diptych at San Ambrogho, Milan. There is a tradition that Judas's feet were washed first, founded partly on the words, " then cometh he to Simon Peter" (John xiii, 6), and "ye are clean, but not all" (xiii, 10). On the Salerno plaque we see six disciples, whose feet have already been washed, putting on sandals. The Descent from the Cross.— The early Crucifixions have been fully described in a previous lecture, and the rarity of the occurrence of the subject in Norman sculpture^ may, perhaps, 1 Illustrated in H. Revoil's L' Architecture du Midi de la France. 2 There is a very curious Crucifixion, with the two thieves, on the font at Lenton, Notts ; the soul of the good thief is seen going up to heaven, and that of the evil one is plunging headlong into the jaws of hell, treated after the usual conventional manner, as the mouth of a gigantic beast. X2 308 NORMAN SCULPTURE IN THE be because the proper place for the rood was over the screen across the chancel-arch, or above the altar, and that wooden crucifixes were used in these positions. The Descent from the Cross, which immediately follows the Crucifixion (unless Joseph asking Pilate for the body of Christ is represented as a separate scene), is not found in early Christian art, but belongs to the later period, when our Lord's sufferings were morbidly dwelt upon, to the exclusion of the lessons to be learnt from His death, TH j;\jY3T.S«' Fig. 112.— Oruolflxion with two Thieves, on font at Lnnton, Notts. and the subjects were treated historically rather than symboli- cally. One of the best Irish or Saxon examples is on an ivory plaque in the South Kensington Museum (1872-3). Joseph of Arimathea is seen on the top of a tall stool, grasping the bent figure of Christ round the waist, and handing it down to the On the font at Coleshill, Warwickshire, is a Crucifixion with St. Mary and St. John. Other instances exist on the tympanum at Bolsover, Derby- shire ; built into the wall at Romsey Abbey, Hants ; and on the shaft of the jamb of the Norman doorway at Duddingstone, near Edinburgh, with the sponge and spear-bearers, and a bird. ABCHITECTUEAL DETAILS OP CHURCHES. 309 Virgin Mary, who receives it. Another female figure stands beside the Virgin, and Nicodemns is removing the nail from one foot with a pair of pincers, whilst the other still remains fixed. On each side of the top arm of the cross is an angel with a napkin ; on the ends of the horizontal arms of the cross are the letters Alpha and Omega, and at the foot a skull. Other ivories of the eleventh or twelfth centuries, with the Descent from the Cross, of which there ^are casts in the South Kensing- ton Museum, exist at Hildesheim Cathedral, the Eoyal Library, Munich (Westwood's Catal, Nos. 179 and 216). The subject Fig. 113.— Descent from tlie Croas, on font at North Grimston, Yorkshire. also occurs in the Saxon MSS. of the eleventh century of the great Psalter at Boulogne, and the Missal of Archbishop Eobert at Eouen, and in the twelfth century Psalter (Tib. C. vi) in the British Museum, and on a colossal bas-relief near Horn in Westphaha,i of the eleventh century. In Norman sculpture we have instances on the font at North Grimston, Yorkshire, and on one of the capitals of the columns of the chancel-arch at Adel, in the same county. In both cases the limbs of our Lord are still fixed to the cross, with the exception of the right hand, which is held from falling by one of the figures below. At Adel the scene includes Joseph, who holds 1 Mrs. Jameson's LAfe of Our Lord, vol. ii, p. 219. 310 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE Christ's right arm ; Nicodemus, who is removing a nail from the feet with a pair of pincers, the Virgin, and another of the women ; and the sun in the sky, treated conventionally as a face.^ At North Grimston Joseph grasps the Saviour round the waist, whilst Nicodemus holds up His right arm by the 1 This feature also occurs on the bas-relief at Horn. AROHITEOTUEAL DETAILS OF CHUECHES. 311 elbow, there being no other accessories. In both the examples described the figures stand on the ground, without ladders to mount the cross, as is almost always the case in later times. The chief actors in the scene of the Descent from the Cross, as described in the Gospels, are Joseph of Arimathea and Nico- demus ; the presence of the Virgin, St. John, and other specta- tors, being only inferred from their having witnessed the Cruci- fixion. All four of the Evangelists tell us of Joseph, and that it was he who took down the body ; but St. John, who alone mentions Nicodemus, does not say what part he played in the deposition. The Greek Painter's Guide from Mount Athos, however, apportions to him the office of removing the nails. A very full account of the treatment of the subject in later Chris- tian art will be found in Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord. It may be remarked that not only are many of the details exceedingly revolting on account of their realism, but some are physically impossible, such as the balancing of figures on the top of tall ladders, quite irrespective of the laws of gravity. The Three Maries at the Sepulchre. — The actual scene of the Kesurrection of Christ is not described in the Gospels, and does not appear in Christian art until about the thirteenth century.^ In place of it we have the visit of the women to the sepulchre, where they were told by the angel, " Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified : He is risen : He is not here" (Mark xvi, 6). The accounts given by the four Evangelists differ as to the number of women present. St. Matthew mentions Mary Mag- dalene and the other Mary ; St. Mark, Mary Magdalene, and Mary, the mother of James and Salome ; St. Luke, the women who came with him from Galilee, Mary Magdalene and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James. The number as represented in art varies accordingly, but the most common is three, i.e., (1) Mary Magdalene; (2) Mary, wife of Cleophas, sister of the Virgin Mary, and mother of James the Less and Joses ; (3) Mary, the mother of Zebedee's children, or Salome. Some of the earliest and most interesting examples of the ' Our Lord is then depicted rising out of an open tomb, bearing the cross and banner of the Kesurrection, whilst the soldiers fall with their faces to the ground. 312 NORMAN SCULPTURE IN THE Maries at the Sepulchre are to be found on the holy-oil vessels of the seventh century at Monza Cathedral/ already described. The subject seems, however, to be most common on the Carlo- vingian ivories (see Westwood's Catal), and in the Saxon MSS. of the eleven til century, such as the Benediction als of ^thelwold and ^thelgar, and the Missal of Archbishop Eobert of Canter- bury at Eouen, the Great Psalter at Boulogne, the Psalter in the British Museum (Tib. C. vi), and the Gospels of Wadham Col- lege, Oxford (see Westwood's Miniatures). The traditional features of the scene were preserved with but slight changes until Byzantine art was superseded by the Gothic style. The sepulchre is represented as a domed structure, like the tomb of Lazarus, but on a larger scale ; in front is seated the angel, holding a sceptre and addressing the three Maries, who advance, carrying censers and boxes of spices and ointment for embalming the body.^ Sometimes the soldiers guarding the sepulchre are introduced ; and on an ivory plaque of the tenth century in the Soiith Kensington Museum (1871, 380) the "linen clothes laid by themselves" (Luke xxiv, 12), which St. Peter saw, are shown within the open door of the tomb. An illustration of a very beautiful ivory of the tenth century, in the National Museum at Munich, where the Three Maries at the Sepulchre and Ascension are combined in one scene, is given in Mrs. Jameson's Life of Our Lord? The former subject is not common in Norman sculpture, but there is a good example on the font at Lenton, Notts (see fig. 110). Christ giving the Keys to St. Peter. — St. John's Gospel alone relates that, after the supper by the shores of the Sea of Tibe- rias, our Lord asked St. Peter three times, " Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me ?" to which the Apostle replied, " Lord, thou knowest that I love thee", and then received the com- mand, " Feed my sheep". The title given to this incident is the Charge to Peter, and the difficulty of dramatising it so as to make the meaning intelligible is probably the reason why the subject is altogether omitted in early Christian art. The Greek ' Garrncci, Storm del Arte Cristiana, vol. vi, pis. 433 to 435 ; two Maries only are shown, and in some cases the subject is inscribed. ^ Hence called by the Greek Church " Les Trois Myrrhophorea"- 3 Vol. ii, p. 263 ; Cast in S. K. Mus. (Westwood's Catal., No. 964). AKCHITECTUKAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 313 Painter's Guide from Mount Athos gets over the difficulty clumsily enough by placing scrolls in the hands of our Lord and St. Peter, inscribed with the question and answer. In the Western Church the difficulty was solved by treating the scene symbolically, and representing Christ giving the Keys to St. Peter, as described by St. Matthew (ch. xvi, 19). The only examples of the Charge to Peter in Norman sculpture with which I am acquainted are on the font at Kirkburn, Yorkshire (see fig. 108), where Christ has the cruciferous nimbus, and is hold- ing one key whilst St. Peter receives another, the two being attached to a single ring at the top ; and on the tympanum at St. Peter's Siddington, Gloucestershire. It also occurs in a German MS. of the twelfth century in the British Museum (Eg. 809). Christ giving the Keys to St. Peter appears first in Christian art on the sculptured sarcophagi and on mosaics of the fifth century at Home (see Martigny's Diet., art. " Clefs de St. Pierre"). In addition to the scenes from the Life of Christ already de- scribed, there are others included in the series found in the illuminated MSS. of which no examples are known to exist, either on Celtic stonework or on Norman sculpture. Amongst these are the Temptation of Christ in the Wilderness,^ and the Descent of the Holy Spirit.^ The chief difference between the ' Miniature in Book of Kells, with Devil painted black, copied appar- ently from a Byzantine original, such as the marginal drawing in the Greek Psalter (a.d. 1066) in the British Museum (Add. 19,352), where the Devil is similarly treated. There is also a very curious picture of this subject in the Saxon MS. of the eleventh century iu the British Museum (Tib. C. vi), where Christ is striking the Devil with the Cross ; and the " Kingdoms of the world and the glory of them" (Matt, iv, 8), are repre- sented by golden rings, crowns, swords, etc. ; as also in the twelfth cen- tury Psalter (Nero C. iv) in the same collection ; Christ " set on a pinnacle of the Temple", is most quaintly drawn, seated on a domed building, in the thirteenth century Psalter (Ar. 157). The Temptation of Christ also occurs in the Great Boulogne Psalter of the eleventh century. 2 There is an interesting early example of the eighth century on the carved wooden door-panels from the Church of Sitt-Miriam, Old Cairo, Egypt, now in the British Museum. Eleventh century miniatures occur in the following Saxon MSS. : Benedictional of iEthelwold, belongmg to the Duke of Devonshire; Great Boulogne Psalter; Benedictional of ^thelgar at Eouen ; British Museum (Tib. C. vi, and Cal. A. xiv) ; 314 NOEMAN SCULPTUEE IN THE symbolism of the paintings in the Catacombs and that of the art of the twelfth century is that, with the exception of the Pall of Adam and Eve, all the Old Testament types of faith disappear, or become merely historical illustrations, and that in place of the miracles of healing in the New Testament, scenes from the early Life and Passion of our Lord become more common, and subjects from the Apocalypse occupy a prominent . position. Fig. 115.— St. Petor "witli Key, on doorway at Hoveringham, Notts. The Apostles. — The arcading which so frequently surrounds the cylindrical fonts of the Norman period is admirably adapted, as we have already pointed out, for a series of figures, one placed twelfth century miniatures in British Museum (Nero C. iv, and Lans. 383). The scene in most cases follows closely the description given in the Acts (ii, 1 to 4), the Holy Ghost at the top represented as a dove, with tongues of fire issuing from its mouth, and descending on the twelve Apostles and the Virgin Mary, who are below. The Eastern Church introduces a figure of an old man with a crown, to personify the "World", over which the Apostles should be dispersed to teach the Gospel (see Greek Painter s Guide from Mount Athos). AKOHITECTURAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 315 under each arch. It is not unusual to find the Twelve Apostles thus arranged, and a good example, with the names inscribed, is to be found oh the font at Stoneleigh in Warwickshire. On leaden fonts of the twelfth century we find the same subject as at Dorchester^ Oxfordshire. With the exception of thb Key of St. Peter and the Sword of St. Paul, none of the Apostles are provided with emblems by which they can be distinguished, as was the case in later times ; hut they usually hold books, and have the nimbus round the head. Probably the earliest series of the Twelve Apostles, in which St. Peter bears the attribute Fig. 116.- Apostles, on sculptured slabs at St. Nicholas, Ipswich. of the Key, is on the mosaics of the domed roof of the Arian baptistery (S. Maria in Cosmedin) at Eavenna, surrounding the Baptism of Christ. St. Peter alone, with Key, occurs frequently in Norman sculpture.^ The most ancient representations of the Apostles in England are on the maniple made by Queen rifled (a.d. 916), which was found in St. Cuthbert's tomb at Durham (see Eaine's St. Cuthhert), and on an inscribed slab built into the walls of St. Nicholas Church, Ipswich, perhaps of Saxon date. For further information on the attributes of the 1 As at Daglingworth, Gloucestershire ; St. Peter, at Gowts, Lincoln ; Brayton and Riccal, Yorkshire ; Elstow, Bedfordshire. 316 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE Apostles! see Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, and Twining's Christian Symbols and Umblems. Saints. — Figures of saints which can be identified are of the ut- most rarity in Norman sculpture, perhaps the only example being at Bobbing in Kent, inscribed " S. Marcialis Pius Patronus". Scenes from the legendary lives of saints, although common in the thirteenth century, hardly ever occur in the twelfth. On the fonts at Win- chester Cathedral and St. Nicholas Church, Brighton, are sculptures supposed to represent events in the life of St. Nicholas, as related in the Golden Legend, but the scenes do not correspond with the well- known ways of treating the s\ib- jects, as seen on the twelfth cen- tury windows at Bourges Cathe- dral.^ There is a twelfth century font with sculptures very similar to those at Winchester and Brighton at Zedelghem, near Bruges in Bel- gium.^ In all three cases a ship on the sea, and a saint with a mitre and crozier, are the principal features of the scene. St. Nicholas was the patron saint of sailors, and he is portrayed on the seal of Pevensey 1 Sometimes the Creed is divided into twelve parts, each of which is assigned to one of the Apostles. On an ivory reliquary in the Munich Museum (Westwood's Catal., p. 461), and in an Irish MS. at Basle in Switzerland, the Twelve Apostles are associated with the twelve signs of the Zodiac. 2 Oahier and Martin, Monographie de la Cathedrale de Bourges. 3 De Caumont, Abecedaire d'ArcMologie, vol. ii, p. 313. ARCHITECTTJEAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 317 in Sussex/ in the same manner as on the fonts mentioned. The legend of St. Margaret biirsting through the side of the dragon occurs on the font at Gotham in Yorkshire,^ together with the martyrdoms of St. Laurence on the gridiron, and St. Andrew on the cross saltire. The martyrdom of St. Peter, crucified head downwards, is sculptured on the side of the shaft of the cross at Aycliffe, co. Durham,^ being the only instance of a legendary Fig. 118.— St. Margaret and the Dragon, on font at Gotham, Yorkshire. (From a rulUng by the Eev, Q. F, Browne,) scene, with which I am acquainted, on a pre-Norman monu- ment. Much information on this subject will be found in Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art, the Golden Legend, Parker's Calendar of the Prayer Book, and L. Frati on the Bunic Calendar 1 Reliquary, vol. xxvi, pi. 3. 2 Also on the capital of one of the columns of the arches in the nave of Bretforton Church, Worcestershire. 3 Stuart's Sculptured Slmies of Scotland, vol. ii, pi. 90. 318 NORMAN SCULPTURE IN THE at Bologna, which contains most curious drawings illustrating the Saints' Days. Ecdesiastics.—?ig\\T:&s of bishops with a mitre on the head, giving the benediction with one hand and holding a pastoral crook'in the other, are frequently sculptured on Norman fonts. Fig. 119.— Martyrdom of St. Laurence, on font at Gotham, Yorkshire. (From a rubbing by the Uev. G. F. Browne.) the details of the vestments, which are clearly shown in many cases, being of great interest. The meaning of these figures is not always apparent, and there are no inscriptions to help us. Perhaps the patron saint is represented, or the bishop is intended to symbolise the Church. On the font at Avebury, Wilts, a figure with a nimbus round the head, and holding a book, is shown overcoming the dragon with a pastoral staff. On the AROHITECTUKAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 319 font at Kirkby, near Liverpool (see fig. 98), the bishop holds the pastoral staff with the volute downwards. On a slab built into the wall of St. Nicholas Church, Ipswich (see fig. 116), we have the tau-headed crozier, and on the capital of the columns of the doorway at Bishop Wilton, York- shire, the archbishop's crozier with the cross-head is repre- sented. On the sculpture over the doorway at Hoveringham, Notts, St. Peter is dressed as a bishop, and holds a pastoral staff rig. 120.— Ecclesiastic, on doorway at HoTeringham, Notts. in one hand and a key in the other. The best examples of Norman sculpture showing the vestments are at the following places :— Mitre, on fonts at Winchester Cathedral and St. Nicholas, Brighton; stole, on fonts at North Grimston and Cowlam in Yorkshire; maniple, on slab at St. Nicholas, Ipswich; chasuble, at Dunkeswell, Devon. Bishops with croziers also occur on Norman tympana at Hognaston, Derby- shire, and Stony Stanton, Leicestershire, associated with animals; also at South Ferriby, Lincolnshire; Tetsworth, 320 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE Oxfordshire ; and Little Langford, "Wilts. Figures of ecclesias- tics are shown on the font at Belton, Lincolnshire. Seasons, Months, and Signs of the Zodiac— The four seasons and the twelve months, symbolised by the agricultural opera- tions which take place at different times of the year, are very frequently represented on Norman fonts, and the sculptures so closely resemble the illustrations in the calendars at the begin- ning of the MS. Psalters of the period, that there can be little doubt that one was copied from the other. The seasons belonged originally to classic art, but we find the early Christians adapt- ing to their own purposes the pagan pictures, with which they must have been familiar. There is a most beautiful painting of this subject in the cemetery of Prsetextatus, attributed to the second century ; and we have the testimony of TertuUian that " the whole revolving order of the seasons was looked upon by Christians as a perpetual witness of the Eesurrection from the Dead".i St. Paul also says, "But of the times and seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you, for yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night" (1 Thess. v, 1). The connection between the doctrines of Christianity and the various agricultural opera- tions may be explained by the comparisons made in our Lord's teaching between a sower scattering his seed, and the disciples spreading abroad the Word of God ; between the harvest and the gathering in of souls at the end of the world ; and between the disciples and the labourers in a vineyard. The rapid lapse of time also points to the short span of human life, which " fleeth as a shadow"^ (Job xiv, 2, and Psalm cix, 23), and warns men to prepare for that other life which has no end. The use of the calendar for marking the different parts of the ecclesiastical year, and for indicating the Saints' Days, accounts for the survival of this symbolism down to a late period. The 1 Northcote and Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, vol. i, p. 139. ^ The inscriptions on seventeenth and eighteenth century sundials are full of moralisations on this subject (see Mrs. Gatty's Book of the Sun- dial), as also are the emblem-books of the same period. Job compares the rapidity with which time passes to the swiftness of a weaver's shuttle (oh. vii, 6). AECHITECTUEAL DETAILS OP CHUECHES. 321 months are usually associated, both in the MS. calendars^ and in Norman sculpture, with the signs of the Zodiac. The most interesting Norman font with a series of the Months and signs of the Zodiac is made of lead, and is in Brookland Church, Kent, being very similar to the one at St. Evroult de Montfort (Orne) in France.^ Each figure is placed under an arch, with the sign of the Zodiac under a second arch above, and round each of the arches are inscriptions in Norman-French, and Latin. The following is a list of the subjects and inscrip- tions. Aqvaeivs — Janviee. Janus-headed figure, feasting. Pisces — Feveiee. Hooded figure warming himself at the fire. Abies — Maes. Hooded figure pruning tree with hook. Tavevs — AvEiL. Female figure holding flower in each hand. Gemini — Mai. Figure on horseback with hawk. Cancee — Jvm. Figure with scythe mowing hay. Leo — JuiLLET. Figure with rake. ViEGO — AovT. Figure binding corn. LiBEA — Septembee. Figure threshing corn. ScOEPio — Octobee. Figure pressing wine. Sagittaeivs — Novembee. Hooded figure feeding pigs. Capeicoenvs — ^Decembee. Figure with uplifted axe, killing pig.3 The Four Seasons are sculptured on the Norman font at Thorpe Salvin, Yorkshire, as follows : (1) Man reaping corn (Autumn). (2) Man on horseback (Summer). (3) Man sowing corn (Spring). (4) Man warming himself at the fire (Winter). 1 The sign of the Zodiac is usually enclosed within a circular medal- lion at the top of the page, and the miniatures of the agricultural opera- tion of the month occupies the bottom part, whilst the rest is filled up with the notes as to the festivals of the church. The best Saxon Calen- dars are in the British Museum (Tib. B. v, and Julius A. vi). (See Strutt's Horda, and Shaw's Dresses and Decorations of the Middle Ages.) 2 De Caumont, AUc&daire d'Archeologie, vol. ii, p. 309. 3 See Archwologia Cantiana, vol. ir, p. 87 ; and Jour. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. vi, p. 159. Y KORMAN SCULPTURE. 323 I do not know of any instance of the Months being repre- sented on the tympanum of any Norman doorway in England, but there is a very beautiful inscribed example of the twelfth century, bearing the artist's name, giraldvs, belonging to the Church of St. Ursin at Bourges. Other inscribed foreign exam- ples of the same period exist, of the Seasons on the sculptured capitals of the Abbey of Cluny in France,i and of the Months round the arch of the doorway of the Abbey of St. Mary the Great at Jerusalem," on the mosaic pavements at Aosta^ and Piancenza.* The Months occur on the font at Burnham Deepdale, Norfolk ; and Zodiacs exist round the arches of Norman doorways at Iffley, Oxfordshire, St. Margaret's Walmgate, York, and Brinsop, Herefordshire. Signs of the Zodiac are not uncommon on . medieeval tiles ; a specimen of one, inscribed " Sol in Ariete", is to be seen in the British Museum.^ There is a very curious Irish Zodiac in the MS. of Liber S. Isidori Hispalensis de Natura Rerum, in the Public Library at Basle in Switzerland, illustrated in the Ulster Journal of Archseology. The subject of Months, Seasons, and Zodiacs has been very fully treated of in the Archceologia, by the Eev. S. Pegge (vol. X, p. 177), Mr. James Fowler (vol. xliv, p. 137), and Mr. R Brown (vol. xlvii, p. 337), and in the Yorkshire Archmological Journal (vol. ix, p. 441). The Bell Singer. — Eepresentations of a man ringing a pair of bells by means of ropes occur on the fonts at Hutton Crans- wiek, Yorkshire (now in the York Museum), and Belton, Lin- colnshire. There is also a man ringing a single bell with a rope sculptured on the column of the chancel-arch on the south side at Stoke Dry Church, Eutlandshire. The following passage from Alexander Neckham's De Naturis Eerum^ may perhaps 1 Didron's Annales Archeologiques, vol. xxxii, p. 380. ^ Vogue's Eglises de la Terre Sainte, pi. 18. ^ Didron, vol. xvii, p. 275. * Arehceologia, vol. xliv, pi. 171. ^ Jour. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. ii, p. 89. « Edited by Thos. Wright, London, 1863, p. 69. Neckham was born at St. Alban's, a.d. 1157, was made Abbot of Cirencester in 1213, and died at Kempsley, Worcestershire, in 1217 ; his book was written at the end of the twelfth century. y2 324 NOEMAN SCULPTURE IN THE throw some light on the subject : — " Cap. xxii. Be Gampana, The bell represents the office of the preacher. Hence in certain places a bell is baptised, to show that no one is allowed to preach unless he has been baptised. If from any cause, indeed by- accident, a bell should fall on a man and kill him, it is filled inside with thorns as a sign of penitence. After seven years have passed, it is again put to its former use, in order that it may be struck. The largest bell, if it is struck when however fine a thread has been tied round it, will break to pieces. TH CUVOTSe* Fig. 122.— Bell-ringer, on font from Huttou Cranawick, now in the York Museum. " From this we receive instruction how the least thing can hinder the preacher ; for if he is in the least taken up with worldly affairs, straightway the thing pertaining to knowledge vanishes away from his thoughts. So, also, as a bell hangs up in the air high above the earth, ought the preacher to be removed far from terrestrial things. Also, as the wood is fastened to the bell, so ought preachers to be strengthened by faith. The rope ought, moreover, to be firmly connected with the wood, in order AEOHITECTUEAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 325 that the bell may be struck. For of what use is the learning of the teacher unless he can communicate it to others ? The reason why the bell tied round with a very fine thread breaks when it is struck is this. The bell, although of a solid substance, is porous, and when the interior is set in motion, the air which ought to escape in order to make the sound audible dashes against the sides, and meeting with an obstacle, is absorbed by Fig. 123.-B6U-ringer, on column of chancel-arch at Stoke Dry, Butland. the pores, and breaks the bell with its clashing. When a bell has a round hole in the top it sounds better, as the air can escape. If, however, a bell is cracked it will not sound, because the air collects in cracks and is thrown into disorder. The sound . of a bell is more clearly heard if it is suspended over a stream 326 NOKMAN SCULPTURE IN THE of water. Thus a discourse is more commendable which is founded on the waters of grace." We get here a curious insight into the working of the mediaeval mind, and it affords an instance of one of those moral- isations founded on natural science very much akin to that founded on zoology, which we shall discuss in the next lecture. In the Abbey Church of Cluny in France are a remarkable series of figures playing on bells and musical instruments, with AECHITEOTURAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 327 inscriptions showing that they are intended to symbolise the eight tones of Gregorian music.i David playing on hand-bells is generally represented on the initial letter of the 80th Psalm, beginning " Exultate Deo", in the MS. Psalters of the thirteenth century. Sculptures of figures ringing hand-bells exist on capitals of columns at St. George's, Boscherville,^ and Autun Cathedral in France.^* Bells were supposed to have the power of driving away evil spirits, and this may, perhaps, account for the bell-ringer being Fig. 125.— Celtic Bell, on Cross at Kiloullen, co. Kildare. carved on fonts, to symbolise the Devil driven out at baptism. The Devil, in the shape of a dragon, occurs on the fonts at Belton and at Hutton Cranswick in association with the bell- ringer. Special sanctity was attached to the bells of saints by the Celtic Church, and they were placed in shrines of costly work- ^ Didron, Annales ArcMologiques, vol. xvii, p. 128, and vol. xxviii, p. 32. ^ Willemin, Monuments InSdits, vol. i. ^ Jour. Brit. Archceol. Inst., vol. xxvii, p. 254. 328 NOKMAN SCULPTURE IN THE manship, being used for taking oaths upon, and for effecting miraculous cures. Quadrangular bells of the Celtic type are to be seen on the crosses at Winwick, Lancashire, and KilcuUen, CO. Wicklow ; also on the lintel of a doorway at Glendalough, CO. Wicklow. (See Ellacombe's Church Bells of Devon) The Dancing Woman. — Amongst the many quaint figures seen in Norman sculpture none is more curious than that of a dancing, or rather a tumbling woman, who is always represented in the same attitude, standing with the body bent round, so ihat the hands and head touch the ground. Often the woman is dancing to the music of a harp or other instrument, as on the font at St. Mary Church, Torquay, and on the arch-moulding of the doorway at Barfreston Church, Kent.^ Pairs of dancing women are sculptured on the arch-moulding of the doorway at Healaugh, Yorkshire, and a single one is to be seen amongst the figures within medallions on the jambs of the doorway at Ely Cathedral. The daughter of Herodias is represented in the same attitude as the figures just described when dancing before Herod,^ as in the thirteenth century Psalter in the British Museum (Ar. 157). It is possible that some of the dancing figures are in illustration of the verse in the Psalms (cxlix, 3), "Let them praise His name in the dance ; let them sing praises unto Him with the timbrel and harp." The extravagance of the attitude, however, suggests that dancing is intended to be symbolic of those worldly pleasures and vices against which the Church has always pro- tested. The Latin word in the "Vulgate is " Saltasset", in the passage about the daughter of Herodias, which seems to have been taken to mean " tumbled" or " turned a somersault". The figure may have been of Eastern origin, as it occurs frequently on Persian engraved brass-work. Reversed Figures. — Figures placed head downwards occur on 1 Foreign examples occur on the capitals of the columns at St. George's, Boscherville, France (see Willemin, Monuments Inedits, vol. i); at Zurich Cathedral, Switzerland (see Mittheilmigen der Antiquarischen Gessehchaft in Zurich, vol. i, pt. vi) ; and at Amboise, France (Nouveaux Melange.'! d'Archeologie—Curiosites Mysterietises, p. 217), seen in front instead of sideways ; which peculiarity occurs also on the doorway at Healauu-h Yorkshire. ■' See Thos. Wright's Hist, of Domestic Mcmners and Sentiments. ARCHITECTUKAL DETAILS OF CHUKCHES. 329 Celtic crosses^ and in Norman sculpture, but the meaning attached to such representations is not always apparent. In the minia- ture of David and Goliath in the Irish Psalter at St. John's College, Cambridge, the giant is shown upside down, either as indicating the prostrate figure in perspective, or to symbolise defeat. There are two instances of reversed figures on Norman fonts Fig, 126.— Keversed figure, on Cross at Winwick, Lancafihire. — at Michel Dean, Gloucestershire, where the figures are human, and Melbury Bubb, Dorsetshire, where the figures are those of animals. On the impost of the chancel-arch at St. Peter's, Eowlston, Herefordshire, angels holding crosses are shown head downwards, although in this case it is just possible the stone was placed accidentally wrong side up. 1 At Kirk Michael, Isle of Man ; Monasterboice, Kells, and Arboe, Ireland ; Gosforth and Ayclifie, England ; and St. Vigeans and Hamilton, Scotland. 330 noeman sculpture in the Miscellaneous Norman Sculpture. Under the heading of miscellaneous Norman sculpture are included all such details of churches as present examples of figure-subjects, with the exception of the tympana and fonts, which have been already described. Details of Doorways. — When the tympanum over a Norman doorway is sculptured with a symbolic subject, most of the other details are of a purely architectural or ornamental character/ but when there is no tympanum we often find the arch-mouldings covered with a profusion of figure-sculpture. The finest examples of this class of doorway are in Yorkshire, at Bishop Wilton, Bar- ton-le-Street, Brayton, Healaugh, Alne, Eiccall, Stillingfleet, Fish- lake, Birkin, and St. Margaret's Walmgate, York. Other good specimens exist at Dalmeny, near Edinburgh ; Bradbourne, Derbyshire ; Shobdon, Herefordshire ; and Iffley, Oxfordshire. The figures are either enclosed within medallions placed on the face of the arch, or carved, like the beak-head ornament, upon the moulding, without any surrounding frame. The figures are necessarily much smaller in size than those either on the tym- pana or the fonts, and the subjects vary accordingly, the most common being the Agnus Dei,^ St. Michael and the Dragon,' the symbols of the Four Evangelists,* ecclesiastics,^ the signs of the Zodiac,* warriors on horseback,^ men and beasts play- ing musical instruments,* animals,^ and fabulous creatures.^" Sometimes the capitals of the columns at each side of the doorway have figures upon them, but the surface presented for decoration is so small that the number of subjects derived from 1 The doorway at Barfreston, Kent, is an exception to the rule, as the arch-mouldings are sculptured with figure-subjects as well as the tympanum. ^ At Dalmeny, Alne, Brayton, Bishop WUton, Shobdon. 3 Eiccall, Barton-le- Street. * Iffley. ^ Barton-le-Street, Bishop Wilton, Eiccall. ' Iffley, Barton-le-Street, Bishop Wilton, St. Margaret, Walmgate, York. ' Brayton. " Eiccall, Bishop Wilton, Barton-le-Street. ' Dalmeny, Bradbourne. i« Bishop Wilton. A.RCHITECTUEAL DETAILS OP CHUECHES. 331 this source is quite insignificant.^ In rare instances the jambs^ of the doorways or the shafts of the columns^ are ornamented with figures. At Adel Church, Yorkshire, and St. Margaret at Cliffe, Kent, there is no tympanum to the doorway, but the symbolic sculp- ture is placed within a pediment above. At the former place we have the Agnus Dei at the top, with the sun and moon at each side, and Christ enthroned, with the symbols of the Four Evangelists below ; at the latter, little figures of saints under arches. Sometimes, instead of there being a tympanum, the doorway opening is spanned by a lintel-stone, deeper in the centre than at the sides, as at Pen Selwood, Somersetshire, sculptured with the Agnus Dei, and a beast on each side ; at St. Bees, Cumberland, having St. Michael and the Dragon upon it ; and at Glendalough, co. Wicklow, with three ecclesiastics. In many churches of the Norman period there is a niche over the doorway containing a figure, generally that of the Saviour, as at North Newbald, Yorkshire; Eouse Lench and Leigh, Worcester- shire ; LuUington, Somersetshire ; and Elstow, Bedfordshire, where Christ is placed between St. Peter and St. Paul (?). At Hadiscoe, Norfolk, the figure is that of a bishop. At Prestbury, Cheshire, there is a row of figures above the doorway, represent- ing Christ with three Apostles on each side. Details of Chancel Arches. — The capitals of the columns of the chancel-arch being larger than those of the doorways, afford more scope for the display of the sculptor's skill, and fine examples exist at the following places : — Adel, Yorkshire (see figs. 106 and 114) : the Baptism of Christ, the Descent from the Cross, Sagittarius, and a warrior on horseback ; Caistor, Northamp- tonshire : Samson and the lion, hunting scene, man gathering fruit, battle scene, serpent with knotted tail ; Liverton in Cleve- land, Yorkshire : Temptation of Adam and Eve, hunting scene, and animals; Steetly Chapel, Derbyshire: St. George or St. 1 St. Peter with the Key occurs at Shobdon, Riccall, and Brayton ; Centaurs, at Iffley, Tutbury, Staffordshire ; LuUington, Somerset ; and St. Lawrence, Walmgate, York ; the Agnus Dei and the Dragon, at St. Lawrence, Walmgate, York. 2 As at Barton-le-Street, Ely Cathedral. 3 The Crucifixion at Duddington, near Edinburgh ; and an archer, etc., at Lincoln Cathedral. 332 NOBMAN SCULPTURE IN THE Michael and the Dragon ; St. Peter's Rowlston, Herefordshire : angels and saints with crosses. The arch-mouldings,^ shafts of columns,^ and jambs^ of the chancel-arch are very seldom ornamented with figure- sculpture. Capitals of Columns in Nave, Chancel, and Grypt. — The capi- tals of the engaged shafts supporting the vaulting of the chancel- roof at Stanley Leonard, Gloucestershire, are sculptured on the north side with Mary Magdalene wiping with her hair the feet of Christ, and on the south with a figure lying in bed, and an angel drawing back the curtain on each side. The capitals of the vaulting shafts of the apse of Steetly Chapel, Derbyshire, have the Temptation of Adam and Eve and birds upon them.* Figure- sculpture occurs on the capitals of the columns of the nave arcades at St. Peter's, Northampton, and Coningsburgh, York- shire ; also on the capitals of the columns of the crypt at Canter- bury Cathedral. Slabs huilt into Walls. — A great many slabs of early sculpture have been preserved by being built into the walls of new churches during their reconstruction. The most important examples are those at Chichester Cathedral, of the Eaising of Lazarus, already referred to, and the series on the west front of Lincoln Cathedral, which have been fully described and illustrated by Bishop Trollope in the Journal of the British Archaeological Institute.^ The subjects are as follows : (1) The Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise. (2) Adam and Cain tilling the ground. (3) Noah building the Ark. (4) The effects of the Flood (?). (5) Noah and his family in the Ark, and God addressing Noah after leaving the Ark. (6) Woman suckling an infant. • At Ault Huoknall, Derbyshire, there are figures holding crosses and pastoral staves round the arch, and at Lower Swell, Gloucestershire there are animals. 2 At Stoke Dry, Rutlandshire, the shafts are covered with beasts, and a man ringing a bell. 3 At Beokford, Grlouoestershire, a Centaur and a spear are carved on the jambs. * The boss of the vaulting bears the Agnus Dei. ° Vol. XXV, p. 1 ; and Assoc. Arch. Soc. Sep., vol. viii, p. 279. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS OF CHURCHES. 333 (7) Daniel in the Lions' Den. (8) Christ addressing a disciple. (9) The Supper at Emmaus. (10) The souls of the damned going down to hell. (11) The souls of the righteous being taken up by St. Michael to heaven. (12) The tortures of the damned, and the Harrowing of Hell. The early slabs built into the walls at Bristol Cathedral, Wirksworth, Derbyshire (see fig, 31), and St. Nicholas, Ipswich (see fig. 116), have been already referred to when describing the subjects which occur upon them. Sepulchral Monuments. — Sepulchral slabs of the twelfth century, with figure-sculpture, exist at the following places : — Bishopstone, Sussex, with the Agnus Deij and two doves drinking from a vase ; Bridlington Priory, Yorkshire: .^isop's Fable of the Fox and the Stork, two winged dragons, a Byzantine building, and a beast ; Coningsburgh, York- shire (see fig. 94) : St. George or St. Michael and the Dragon, a bishop with pastoral staff, and the Temp- tation of Adam and Eve ; Ely Cathedral (see fig. 95) : St. Michael taking a soul up to heaven in the folds of his garments, inscribed scs michael oreg p(eo) me ; Lincoln Cathedral : Christ enthroned, and other figures. Fig. 127- Sepulchral slab at Bishopstone, Sussex. LECTURE VI. THE MEDIiEVAL BESTIAEIES. In the present lecture, which conchides the series, an endeavour will be made to explain the apparently incongruous association of all kinds of animal forms with the most sacred symbols of the Christian faith, upon the pre-E"orman sculptured stones, and the details of churches of the twelfth century, and to show that these zoomorphic features are not mere grotesques, or freaks of fancy on the part of the designer, but were intended to convey a deep spiritual lesson to the minds of those familiar with their hidden meaning. The line of inquiry to be pursued was sug- gested in a previous course of Ehind Lectures,^ by Dr. J. Anderson, and my knowledge of the subject is due, in the first instance, to having had the privilege of hearing these masterly discourses delivered. Dr. Anderson has the honour of being the first to call attention to the subject in this country, and to point out that the explanation of much of the obscure symbolism of the sculptured stones of Scotland was to be found in the mediaeval works on natural history, known as " Bestiaries", or Books of Beasts. No one who has examined the early crosses of the East of Scotland, or the details of Norman church architecture, can have failed to notice how largely animal forms of all kinds enter into the scheme of their decoration. Now we must assume that these zoomorphic features are either merely grotesque ornaments due to the extravagant fancy of the mediaeval artist, or that some deep meaning having reference to ' Scotland in Early Christian Times, 2nd Series, p. 1 68. THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. 335 the doctrines of Christianity is attached. The questions, there- fore, to be considered in the present lecture are — (1) whether there is any evidence in contemporary literature that a system of symbolism, founded upon the characteristics of the animal world, existed during the middle ages ; and (2) whether it can be proved that such a system was applied to the decoration of Christian monuments and buildings. The first question is easily answered, for there is hardly any large collection of ancient MSS. which does not contain one or more copies of the different versions of the bestiary, or book of beasts, a treatise on the natural history of animals with spiritual meanings attached. Various titles are given to works of this class, such as the Bestiarium, the Liher de Animalihus, the Physiologus, the Livre des GrSatures, Dialogus Creaturum, and so on. It is not known who wrote the original bestiary, of which all subsequent versions are only variants. The earliest MS. copies are in Latin, and do not date back beyond the eighth century, and by far the greater proportion of the illustrated editions belong to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The bestiary differs fundamentally from all modern treatises on natural history, and is really more like a children's picture-book of animals. The zoologist of the present day dissects all his specimens, and classifies them according to species, as revealed by minute investigations as to the structure of the body. The mediaeval naturalist was a theologian first, and a man of science after. His theories were founded partly on texts of Scripture, rightly or wrongly interpreted, partly on the writings of Pliny, and partly on the supposed derivations of the names, mixed up with all kinds of marvellous stories such as are found in the folk-lore of all nations.^ The texts from the Bible are quoted verbatim in the bestiaries, being chiefly taken from the list of unclean beasts given by Moses (Levit. xi, and Deut. xiv), which is elaborated and explained in the apocryphal Epistle of Bar- nabas^ (ch. ix), and from the poetical allusions to animals in the Psalms and the Song of Solomon. The classical authori- 1 Many of the Eastern stories may be traced to the works of Ctesias, a Greek writer of the fifth century B.C. 2 Hone's edition. 336 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. ties mentioned in the bestiary of Philippe de Thaun are Pliny, Macrobius, Ovid, and Pythagoras, as well as the unknown writers, Nebrot, Turkil, and Cingius the Philosopher. Traces are also shown of a belief in the arts of magic, as in the story of the Woodpecker, who knows of a herb that can unlock all things closed with iron or wood, and is able to unloose all things that are bound.^ — recalling the legend in the Spemlum Sande Marie Virginis, of the worm whose blood has power to break glass and allow the young ostrich to escape from the vessel in which it was imprisoned by Solomon.^ The history of the whale in the bestiary is related in the story of Sindbad the Sailor in the Arabian Nights, and also occurs in the legend- ary Life of St. Brendan.^ The narratives of the Syren, the Centaur, Argus the Cowherd,* with his hundred eyes, in the bestiary are of purely classical origin, adapted subsequently to Christian purposes. So much for the sources whence the writers of the bestiary drew their inspiration, now as to the book itself. The number of beasts, including birds, fish, insects, and fabulous creatures, varies from 24 to 40 in the different versions, but they are in all cases treated in a similar fashion : first, there is a miniature of the animal, then a description of its appearance, habits, stories con- nected with it, and lastly, a moral,^ pointing out the spiritual significance and its application to the Christian life. It must be admitted that this eternal moralising becomes extremely tedious, and the writers of the bestiaries evidently found it so them- selves, as they are continually telling their readers to pay atten- tion, and not to allow their thoughts to wander from the subject, and are never tired of insisting on the importance of the good to be derived from the concluding moral. The merit of the different stories and their application varies ' Cahier and Martin, Melanges d'Archeologie, vol. ii, p. 160. ' Mrs. Jameson's Hist, of Our Lord, vol. i, p. 219 ; and Didron's Chris- tian Iconography, edited by Miss M. Stokes, vol. ii, p. 215. Traces of this story are to be found in the description of the Vulture and the Worm in the bestiary (see Melanges d'Archeologie, vol. iv, p 80). ^ M. L. A. Jubinal, La Legende Latine de S. Brandaines. Paris, 1836. * Melanges d'ArcMologie, vol. ii, p. 181. ^ The idea of the stories with a moral at the end may perhaps have been suggested by .lEsop's Fables. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 337 greatly, some being extremely forcible, such as that of the whale, whose sudden plunge into the depths of the ocean is dramatic to a degree, and sends a thrill of horror through the mind. Some are very poetic and beautiful, such as the eagle flying up towards the sun ; some are revolting and indecent ; others far- fetched or absurd, as when one learns that the pretty little hedgehog, knocking down grapes off the vine and carrying them away on its spines, is the Devil robbing men of their souls. An interesting summary of what is known about the bestiary will be found in Prof. J. P. N. Land's article, " Physiologus", in the ninth edition of the Encydopsedia Britannica. The origin of the bestiary is hidden in obscurity, but its existence at an early period is proved by the censure passed at a synod of Pope Gelasius, held in 496, upon the "Liber Physiologus, qui ab hasre- ticis conscriptus est et B. Ambrosii nomine signatus, apocryphus." The story of the phoenix, which is incorporated in the bestiary, is one of the first which occurs in art, being found on the mosaics of Italian churches of the sixth century (see Lecture I, p. 42). The composition of the bestiary resulted from two causes — (1) the necessity which arose for commenting on texts in the Bible mentioning animals; and (2) the love of moralising, after the fashion of ^sop in his Fables. At a very early period in the history of the Church, theologians wrote treatises on the six days of the Creation, known under the title of The Hexameron, those of Basil, Eustathius, and Ambrosius being the most cele- brated. The tendency to moralise soon arose from a desire to distract the thoughts from the things of this world, and concen- trate the mind only on such matters as might bring it nearer to spiritual perfection. To anyone holding the view that this life is chiefly a preparation for a better one to come, modern science, which seeks to classify and arrange objects according to their physical properties, must seem little better than elaborate trifling, unless some spiritual advantage is to be gained thereby. The bestiary contains many mistakes, due — (1) to mistrans- lation, the result of sheer ignorance, or confounding together words of similar sound ; (2) confusing one animal with another from want of zoological knowledge ; and (3) to a wish to identify I 338 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. certain animals mentioned in the Bible with fabulous creatures of classical origin, such as centaurs, syrens, dragons, etc. It will be noticed that in many cases the names of the animals given in the Vulgate version of the Scriptures are entirely different from those found in the English translation. Prof Land, in his article on the Physiologus, already referred to, gives as an instance of a mistake in translation in the text from the Psalms (xcii, 12), " The righteous shall flourish as a palm tree". The word palm is rendered Phcenix in the bestiary. The other sources of error will be referred to subsequently in describing the Centaur and the Syren. The older Latin bestiaries are generally more simple in form than the later versions, additions from various sources having been made from time to time. It must not be supposed that the bestiaries contain all the stories that were current in the middle ages concerning animals, but they are the best text-books that have come down to us, embodying at all events the more impor- tant views which were held on the subject. There can be no doubt that the bestiaries were very widely read,^ from the num- bers of copies still in existence, and from the continual recur- rence of stories taken from them in the Eomances^ and Specula^ of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Even after the Eenaissance, when symbolism became moral instead of doctrinal, and the love of the marvellous had died out, the classical por- tions are still preserved in the Emblem-books.* Although most of the bestiary stories have become obsolete, a few, such as that of the Phoenix and of the Pelican, still survive. However, tracing the bestiary through its different stages belongs rather to the history of literature than to the present branch of inquiry.^ The following is a list of the MSS. and published texts of the different versions of the bestiary. Gi-eek. — Two MSS. of fourteenth century in the Paris Library, 1 The clergy were particularly advised to read the bestiary (Bebelius, Opuscula Varia, and Ed. du M^ril, PoSsies populaires latines au moyen-age, p. 25). 2 Romance of Alexander (see Berger de Xivrey, Traditions Tetua- logiques, Paris, 1836). ' Speculum Naturals at Vincent de Beauvais. * H. Green, Shakespeare and the Emblem Writers. ^ Paul Laoroix, Science and Literature in the Middle Ages. THE MEDIiEVAL BESTIARIES. 339 Nos. 390 and 929. Text given in E. Legrand's Le Physiologus, Paris, 1869. See also Mai's Classicorum Auctorum, vol. vii, p. 589, for text of Vatican MS. Latin. — Two MSS. in the Public Library at Berne in Switzer- land (see Sinner's Catalogue of the Berne Library). One (No. 223) of the eighth century, entitled Liter Fisiologi Theohaldi, expositio de natura animalium vel avium sen hestiarium ; the other (No. 318) of the ninth century, entitled Physiologus. A MS. (No. 10,074) of the tenth century, with illustrations, in the Eoyal Library at Brussels. MSS. of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, generally illustrated, are common in all the great libraries in this country and abroad. Text of Berne and Brussels MSS. given in Cahier et Martin's Mdanges d'ArcMologie, vols, ii to iv, with illustra- tions. Saxon. — MS. of the eleventh century in the Cathedral Library of Exeter, known as the Oodex Uxoniensis, presented to the Cathedral by Leofric, bishop (a.d. 1046), containing the fragment of a bestiary with the stories of the Panther and of the Whale. Text published for the Society of Antiquaries, London, 1842, by Benjamin Thorpe. See also C. W. M. Grein's Biblio- thec der Angelsachischen Poesie. Old English. — MS. of thirteenth centuryin the BritishMuseum (Arund. No. 292). Text again in E. Morris's An Old English Miscellany, published by the Early English Text Society ; also given in E. Maetzner's Altenglische Sprachproben, vol. i, p. 55, Berlin, 1867. Anglo-Norman. — Metrical translation from the Latin by Philippe de Thaun, called Livre des Crdatures, dedicated to Adelaide of Louvain, Queen of Henry I of England (married a.d. 1121). Three MSS. in the British Museum (Nero A. v), from Hulm Cultram Abbey in Cumberland, and (Arund. 230), both of twelfth century, and (Slo. 1580) of thirteenth century. One MS. of twelfth century in the Cathedral Library at Lin- coln (D. 48). Three MSS. in the Vatican Library at Eome, and one at Petau. Text given in Thomas Wright's Popular Treatises on Science during the Middle Ages. French.— Metrical translation by William, a priest of Picardy (circa a.d. 1208). At least seven MSS. in the Paris Library, z 2 340 THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. one dated a.d. 1267, and one of the fourteenth century, illus- trated. Two MSS. in the British Museum (Eoy. 16, E. viii), and (Vesp. A. vii). One MS. in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. Text given in M. C. Hippeau's Bestiaire Divin, Caen, 1852, re- printed from the Mimoires de la SociiU des Antiquaries de la Normandie, vol. xix (1851), and in Cahier et Martin's Melanges d' Arch6ologie. Romance Dialect. — Translated into French prose by Peter, a priest of Picardy, by the command of Philip de Dreux, Bishop of Beauvais (a.d. 1175-1217). Illustrated MS. of fourteenth century in the Arsenal Library at Paris. Two MSS. of four- teenth and fifteenth centuries in the National Library at Paris. Text and illustrations of the Arsenal MS. given in Cahier et Martin's Mdanges d' ArcMologie, vols, ii to iv. Provengale Dialect. — MS. in the Paris Library. Text given in Karl Bartsch's Grestomathie Provengale, Eberfeld, 1868. German. — Old High German prose translations made before A.D. 1000, the metrical versions being more recent. Text by Von der Hagen. Icelandic. — MS. of thirteenth century in the Copenhagen Library. Text given in Th. Mobius, Analecta Norrsena, Leipzig, 1877. Syriac. — MSS. of twelfth century in the Vatican Library at Eome, and at Leyden. Texts given in 0. G. Tychsen's Physio- logus Syrus, and in Prof. J. P. N. Land's Anecdota Syriaca, vol. iv. ^thiopic. — Text given in F. Hommel's Die cethiopische Uber- setzung des Physiologus, Leipzig, 1877. Armenian.- — MS. of thirteenth century in the Paris Library. Text given in J. B. Pitra's Spicilegium Solesmense. Arabic. — MS. at Paris. Text given by J. P. N. Land. With regard to the illustrations in the bestiaries, the earliest ones that have been published are taken from the tenth cen- tury MS. in the Pioyal Library at Brussels^; but when atten- tion is called to the matter, it is to be hoped that search will be made for older copies, which may be the means of explaining many of the curious figures of beasts on the pre-Norman sculp- tured stones of Scotland. Cahier and Martin have given in the 1 MUanges d' ArcMologie, vol. ii, pis. 23 and 24. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. 341 plates of their Melanges d'ArcMologie a complete series of drawings, from a MS. of the thirteenth century, of the French prose version of Peter of Picardy, in the Library of the Arsenal at Paris^ ; another complete series, with religious pictures cor- responding to each beast, from a MS. of the fourteenth century in the Imperial Library at Paris (S. F. 632^*)^ ; selections from the illustrations of a MS. of the fourteenth century of the French rhyming version of William of Normandy, in the Imperial Library, Paris (7534)^ ; and fourteen woodcuts amongst the text taken from other MSS. In the British Museum there are nine illustrated MSS. of the bestiary (see W. de Gray Birch's Catalogue}, several others in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, and three in the University Library at Cambridge (see H. R. Luard's Index of Caf.al. of MSS.). One or two woodcuts copied from the MSS. are given in Thomas Wright's Archceological Album. Having shown that a system of mystic zoology existed in the middle ages, we have to inquire whether there is any proof that the spiritualised bestiaries were applied to the decoration of Christian, monuments and buildings. The time when animal symbolism attained its highest development in the illuminated MSS. was during the thirteenth century, so that it is at this period we are most likely to find traces of it in the ornamental features of churches. The first example we will take is on one of the painted glass windows of the thirteenth century in Bourges Cathedral.* The central subject represented is the Eesurrection of Our Lord, treated in the usual way ; and surrounding it are four types of the Eesurrection, two taken from the Bible — the Raising of Jairus's Daughter and Jonah's Deliverance from the Whale — and two taken from the bestiary — the Pelican and the Lion. The former is shown with wings outspread, pecking at its breast, thus causing the blood to flow and fall upon its four young birds below. The word " Pelican" is inscribed at the bottom. Above is King David, seated on a throne, holding a > Vol. ii, pis. 19 to 23. ^ Vol. ii, pis. 26 to 31. 3 Vol. ii, pi. 25. ' * Cahier and Martin, MonograpUe de la Cu,th$drale de Bourges, vol. ii ; Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pi. 22. 342 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIABIES. scroll, inscribed " david eex". He is introduced because he is the author of the text about the pelican in the Psalms (cii, 6), which is quoted in the bestiary. The following is the account given in the MSS. explaining the symbolism. The Pelican^ (Latin pellicanus, nodicoracos^ ; French pel- lican). — David says, " I am like a pelican in the wilderness" (Ps. cii, 6). Physiologus says that the pelican is very fond of its young, but when they begin to grow up they strike their parents in the face with their beaks, and their parents strike them back again and kill them. The parents are then smitten with grief, and weep for three days over the young birds that they have slain, but on the third day the father comes, and striking his side with his beak, causes the blood to flow, which falls upon the dead birds and brings them to life again. The pelican is a type of Christ, who cherished us, and whom we struck. When He was upon the cross He opened His side and allowed blood and water to flow out. The water is that of Bap- tism, and the blood that of the cup of the New Testament, by which we have eternal life.^ The other scene on the window at Bourges represents a lioness seated on its haunches, and a lion breathing into the face of its cub, which lies prostrate on the ground. The inscription below is " leo eoem". Eeferring to the bestiary, we find the following description : — The Zion^ (Latin leo ; French lion). — The lion is the king of beasts. He has a frightful face and a great hairy neck ; his shape behind is slender, and he has a large tail. The lion ] as three natures. (1) He inhabits the mountains, and when he perceives the 1 Melanges d'Areheologie, vol. ii, p. 136 ; Hippeau, Le Besiiaire Divin, p. 92 ; Wright's Popular Treatises on Science during the Middle Ages, p. 115. 2 Probably meant for the owl (see Psalm cii, 6). ^ The pelican has been retained as a symbol of the Resurrection down to a late period. It is carved on one of the misereres in the parish church at Wakefield, Yorkshire, and is sometimes used as a heraldic device — for instance, on the arms of Corpus Ohristi College at Cambridge, with the in- scription, " Signat avis Christum qui sanguine pascit alunmos, lilia virgo parens iutemerata refert." ■* Melanges d! Arch^ologie, vol. ii p. 106 ; Hippeau, Le Bestiaire Divin, p. 74 ; Wright's Popular Treatises on Science during the Middle Ages, p. 75, THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAKIES. 343 smell of the hunters pursuing him, he effaces with his tail all trace of the marks of his feet, so that they cannot find his lair to take him. Thus Christ, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, works in a hidden manner, and His deity and His ways are unintelligible to the ignorant, who cannot find Him. (2) The second nature of the lion is, that when he is asleep his eyes are on the watch, for they are open, as in the Song of Solomon (ch. v, 2) the spouse testifies, saying, " I sleep, but my heart waketh." Thus whilst Christ was on the cross and when He was buried His body slept, but his Godhead was awake ; for the Psalmist saith (Ps. cxxi, 4), " Behold he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.'' (3) The third nature of the lion is, that when the lioness brings forth a cub it is dead.^ and in this state she guards it until upon the third day the father comes and brings it to life by breathing in its face. Thus the Almighty Father on the third day brought to life His Son, " who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature" (Colossians i, 15) ; thus Jacob said well, " He couched as a lion, and as an old lion^ ; who shall raise him up V (Genesis xlix, 9). Philippe de Thaun gives many other particulars about the lion, not found in the earlier Latin bestiaries. He tells us that the lion is afraid of the white cock, which signifies the man of holy life, for the cock chaunts in honour of St. Peter the hours of the night and day, and tells us in the same manner the prime, tierce, and midday. The lion when angry hangs himself with his feet, and he trembles when he first sees man. An analogy is also made out between the outward appear- ance of the lion and Christ, his strength in front being typical of the Godhead of our Lord, and his weakness behind, typical of our Lord's manhood ; his tail over his back signifies justice which is placed over us, and his claws mean vengeance upon the Jews. It seems that subjects from the bestiary were not by any means uncommon on the painted glass windows of the thir- " The Picardy bestiary says that the lioness brings forth a piece of flesh resembling a lion through her mouth. 2 The Latin bestiary says, " as a lion's cub'', in place of " as an old Hon" 344 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. teenth century in France, as three other instances besides the one at Bourges are given in the magnificent monograph of MM. Cahier et Martin, already referred to. On one of the lancet-windows in the Lady Chapel of Tours Cathedral are four circular medallions, each containing a central scene, surrounded by four others. Amongst these are the Crucifixion, with the Pelican, Moses and the Brazen Serpent, Moses striking the Eock, and Elijah raising the "Widow's Son ; also Christ carry- ing the Cross, with Ephraim preferred to Manasseh, the Murder of Abel, and the Lion breathing into the face of its Cub. On one of the lancet-windows in the Lady Chapel of Le Mans Cathedral is the Crucifixion, surrounded by the Lion breathing into the face of its Cub, the Pelican and its Young, Moses and the Brazen Serpent; and Moses striking the Eock. On one of the lancet-windows in the apse of Lyons Cathedral are the Caladrius, Jonah and the Whale, the Sacrifice of Isaac, Moses and the Burning Bush, the Eagle and her Young, the Lion and its Cub, Moses and the Brazen Serpent, Gideon and the Fleece (?), and the Virgin with the Unicorn. The class of symbolism under consideration was not confined to painted glass windows only, for there still exists at Strasbourg Cathedral a sculptured frieze, executed in the fourteenth century, of subjects partly Scriptural and partly taken from the bestiary.^ The first scene is the Sacrifice of Isaac ; then comes the Eagle, standing in front of its nest and holding up one of the young birds in its claw to gaze at the sun, which is treated conven- tionally as a human face with rays issuing from it. Another young bird is in the nest. The one held up by its mother turns its head away from the light. The bestiary gives us the follow- ing particulars about the eagle : — The Eagle^ (Lat. aquila ; Fr. aigle, or igle). — The eagle is the king of birds. It can look at the sun when it is brightest, without blinking, and from albft can gaze into the depths of the ocean, and see the fish swimming below, which it seizes and drags ashore to ekt. When the young birds in the nest are very small, the eagle takes them in its claws, and bear- ' Cahier and Martin, Nouveaux Mekm/jes d'ArcMologie — Curiosite's jMi/sierieuses, p. 153. *'' Cahier and Martin, vol. ii, p. 164 ; Hippeau, p. 100 ; Wright, p. 109. THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. 345 ing them upwards, compels them to gaze upon the sun at its brightest. The ones which can look straight at the light with- out flinching, it cherishes as being its own offspring, but the others which cannot do so it refuses to bring up any longer. When the eagle gets old, and feels its wings heavy and its sight failing, it mounts high in the air and scorches its wings in the heat of the sun, after which the bird dips itself three times in a fountain of clear water and becomes young again. The eagle signifies Christ, who is far-seeing, and dwells on high. The sea is the world, and the fish are the people in it. God came into this world to obtain possession of our souls, and He draws us towards Him by right, as the eagle catches the fish. Christ can gaze upon God, without being blinded, as the eagle can look at the sun ; and as the eagle bears its offspring aloft, so will an angel carry our souls to present them before God, who will receive the good and reject the evil. The restoration of the youth of the eagle, by dipping itself in the water, signifies the baptism of this mortal life. The above allegory is founded on two texts of Scripture (Dent, xxxii, 2, and Ps. ciii, 5) — " so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's", quoted in the bestiary : — The next scene on the Strasbourg sculptures is a man fight- ing with a unicorn ; then a man killing a lion with a club ; another man killing one of the cubs ; and lastly, the lion breath- ing into the nostrils of its young, as on the window of Bourges Cathedral. After this comes the unicorn, pursued by the hunter and taking refuge in the lap of a virgin. The story is thus related ia the bestiary : — The Unicorn} (Lat. monoceros, unicornis; Fr. unicorne). — The unicorn is a beautiful animal, with the body of a horse, the head of a stag, and the feet of an elephant, having on its fore- head a straight sharp horn, four feet long. In the Psalms (Ps. cii, 10) it says, " My horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn." The unicorn is so fierce that the elephant hates it, but the claws on the feet of the unicorn are so sharp that it pierces the elephant's body with them and kills it. The horn of the unicorn is so powerful that the hunter dares not go near it, but the animal can be caught by stratagem in the 1 Melanges,Yo\. ii, p. 220 ; Hippeau, p. 126 ; "Wright, p. 81. 346 THE MEDIiEVAL BESTIAEIES. following manner. A pure virgin of great beauty is sent on alone in front of the hunters into the wood where the unicorn dwells, and as soon as it sees her immediately it runs towards her and kneels down and lays its head on her lap quite simply. Whilst the unicorn sleeps there the hunters seize it and hasten off with it to the royal palace. Christ is the spiritual unicorn, who became man by being born of the Virgin Mary, and was taken by the Jews, led before Pilate, presented to Herod, and then crucified. We have next two scenes from Scripture, the Deliverance of Jonah from the Whale, and Moses and the Brazen Serpent in the Wilderness. Beyond these comes the pelican, as on the window at Bourges Cathedral, and the phoenix enveloped in flames, of which the bestiary gives the following account : — The Phoenix^ (Lat. fenix ; Pr. finis). — The phoenix is a beautiful bird, crested like a peacock, with a red breast shining like fine gold, and body of azure blue. It comes from India, and when it has lived for five hundred years and would die in the course of nature, it flies to Mount Lebanon, where it builds a nest in the top of a high tree, and fills it with spices and aro- matic woods. The phoenix then soars up towards the sun, and brings down fire, which sets its nest in a flame and burns the bird, but on the third day it arises again with renewed life. The Latin bestiary says that this takes place in the month of March or April, and that the phoenix, after having filled its body with aromatic perfumes,, burns itself upon the altar of the priests of Heliopolis. The day after, the priests come to the altar and find a worm, from which issues an exceedingly sweet smell ; on the second day it becomes a bird ; and on the third the phoenix, restored to its original condition. The phoenix signifies Christ, who died and came to life on the third day. " I have power to lay down my life, and I have power to take it again" (John x, 18). The sweet odour means the Old and the New Testament. " I am not come to destroy (the law), but to fulfil (it)" (Matt. ch. v, 17). The phoenix is one of the earliest symbols of the Resurrection, being found on ' Melanges cT ArcMologie, vol. 11, p. 182 ; Hippeau, Le Bestiaire Divin, p. 104 ; Wright's Popular Treatises on Science during the Middle Ages, p. 113 ; Codex Exoniensis, p. 197. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAKIES. 347 mosaics of the sixth century, as has already been pointed out. It is possible that the birds placed upon the head of Christ on the Irish crosses may be intended for the phoenix. The remaining sculptures at Strasbourg Cathedral consist of semi-human monsters, fighting, and playing on musical instru- ments, which do not correspond with the illustrations or text of the bestiaries, and therefore need not at present occupy our attention. No doubt many other instances of subjects from the bestiary in the sculptured details of churches abroad might be found if looked for diligently. There is not much difficulty in recog- nising such scenes on sculptures of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, because they generally correspond exactly with the illustrations in the MSS. of the same period.^ The further back we go, however, the harder the task becomes, both on account of the scarcity of early MSS. containing miniatures, and because of the many fanciful details introduced into the sculptures of the twelfth and preceding centuries. We have now proved the truth of the proposition with which we started, as regards foreign countries and the thirteenth cen- tury, but it is possible to go further, and show that similar examples existed in England in the twelfth century. The south doorway of the church at Alne in Yorkshire is a fine specimen of Norman architecture, but its chief interest lies in the sym- bolic sculptures with which it is decorated. The doorway is round-headed, the arch being composed of two orders of mould- ings, ornamented on the face with a series of medallions, con- taining the Agnus Dei and several animals. The outer arch consists of nineteen voussoirs, seven of which have been replaced in the last century, and three entirely defaced, leaving a residue of nine stones in good preservation. Each voussoir has an animal or other figure carved upon it, with an arch over the top, bearing an inscription in Latin capitals neatly cut in the middle, 1 In the church of St. Pierre at Caen in Normandy, there is a sculpture of the thirteenth century representing David or Samson rending the lion's jaw, with the phoanix on one side and the pelican on the other (see Twining's Christian Symbols and Emblems, pi. 21). The fox and other subjects from the bestiary occur on the doorway of St. Pietro, at Soleto (see Gaily Knight's Italy, vol. ii). 348 THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIAEIES. and a pellet ornament at each side. The following are the in- scriptions and subjects. (1) VULPIS. The fox lying on his back, with his paws up in the air, pretending to be dead, whilst two unsuspecting birds approach, one placing its head within the fox's jaws. (2) Panthera.' The panther, with a winged dragon in front, only the upper part of the body of the latter being shown. (3) A(qui)la. The eagle with outspread wings, looking back over its shoulder. ' (4) HiENA. The hyena, having a tail terminating in a leaf, and holding an object like a Jleur-de-lys in its mouth. (5) Caladrius. The caladrius, a bird perched on the bed of a sick man, and gazing into his face. (6) Inscription wanting. An animal plucking a conventional flower or plant. (7) Inscription illegible. A winged dragon with looped tail. (8) Terobolem. The terobolem, or two stones which produce fire, represented by a male and female figure enveloped in flames. (9) AspiDO. The whale ; only a ship containing two men being shown, and the whale omitted from want of room. The following descriptions are given in the bestiary. The Fox^ (Lat. vulpis ; Fr. goupil or golpis). — Vulpis is the name of a beast which we call a fox. When it wants to catch its prey the fox lies down on the ground and covers itself over with red earth to look like blood, with mouth open and its tongue hanging out, pretending to be dead. The bird which happens to see the fox thinks that it is mortally wounded, and wishing to devour its flesh, begins by pecking at it, and even dares to put its head and beak between the animal's open jaws, but the fox catches the bird with a sudden spring and eats it. The fox signifies the Devil, who to those living in the flesh appears to be dead, but when they have entered into evil and are caught in his mouth, he takes them with a spring and devours them. The fox does harm to the earth by the holes he makes in it, which is typical of man ensnared by sin. The texts from Scripture quoted in the bestiaries, upon which the symbolism is founded, are (Ps. Ixiii, 9), " Those who seek my 1 Cahier and Martin, vol. 11, p. 207 ; Hippeau, p. 122 ; Wright, p. 105. FOX PANTHER HYENA CALADRIUS TURROBOLEN WHALE ILLUSTRATIONS FROM BESTIARY MS. IN THE ARSENAL LIBRARY, PARIS. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 349 scRil to destroy it ... . shall be a portion for foxes"; (Cant, ii, 15), " Take us the little foxes that spoil the vines"; (Matt, viii, 20), " The foxes have holes", etc.; and the comparison of Herod to a fox (Luke iii, .31). The Panther^ (Lat. panthera ; Fr. panUre, or pantMre). — The story of the panther is to be found in the Exeter Book, translated, probably from the Latin, into Saxon rhyme, of the same character as Csedmon's metrical Paraphrase of the Scriptures. It is much to be regretted that this and the poems upon the whale and the phoenix are all that remain of the only bestiary in the English language, but there is enough at all events to show that Chiistian symbolism, founded on the habits of animals, was known in this country before the Norman Con- quest. Philippe de Thaun tells us that the panther's name is derived from the Greek word irav, all. Hence it has many characteris- tics and many colours ; or in the words of the Saxon poet : — " That is a curious beast, wonderously beautiful, of every hue such men tell, persons of holy spirit, that Joseph's tunic was of every tinge in colours varying, of which each more bright, each more exquisite than other shone to the sons of men. Thus this beast's hue, pale, of every change, brighter and fairer wonderously shines ; so that more curious than every other yet more unique and fairer it exquisitely glistens ever more excellent." ' Cahier and Martin, vol. iii, p. 235 ; Hippeau, p. 145 ; Wright, p. 82 ; Codex Exoniends, p. 355. 350 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. Philippe de Thaun goes on to say that the panther is of a mild and good disposition, being rightly loved by all animals, except the dragon. This little animal eats divers meats, and when satisfied enters into its den and sleeps for three days. Then the Saxon poet says : — " When the bold animal rises up gloriously endowed on the third day suddenly from sleep a sound comes of voices sweetest, through the wild beast's mouth ; after the voice an odour comes out from the plain a steam more grateful, sweeter and stronger than every perfume, than blooms of plants and forest leaves, nobler than all earth's ornaments." When the animals hear the cry of the panther, whether thtfy be near or far, they will assemble and follow the smell that issues from its mouth. The dragon alone, who hates him, will be seized with great fear and ily from the smell, laying himself down on the ground dead, torn and disfigured, as if he were killed. The panther signifies Christ, who is loved by all except the dragon, which means the Devil. The various colours of his coat are the qualities of the wisdom of God, — clearness, holiness, subtlety, etc. God is one in His deity, all {'rrav) in His humanity. As the panther sleeps in its den for three days and wakes up upon the third, so Christ descended into Hades and rose again. The animals which are near signify the Jews under the Law, and those afar off, the Gentiles without the Law. When the fame of the Eesurrection of our Lord spreads throughout the earth and the voice of the Gospel reaches all peoples, they are filled with the sweet odour of His commands, and cry out with the Psalmist, " How sweet are thy words unto my taste ! yea. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 351 sweeter than honey to my mouth" (Ps. cxix, 103). The Devil alone is afraid of Christ ; " that is the ancient fiend whom he bound in the abyss of torments, and fettered with fiery shackles, o'erwhelmed with dire constraints." On the sculpture at Alne the panther is shown facing a winged dragon. In the MS. of the Picardy bestiary, in the Library of the Arsenal at Paris, a row of animals, including a stag, are seen following the panther, whilst the dragon is flying away up in the air above his head.^ In the oldest Latin bestia- ries, the text from Hosea (v, 14), " I will be unto Ephraim as a lion, and as a young lion to the house of Judah", is quoted thus : "Factus sum sicut leo domni Juda, et sicut pantera domni Ephraim." The Hyena'' (Lat. hyena ; Fr. Menne, hytne, and yenne). — The descriptions of the appearance of the hyena vary. The French prose bestiary says that it is like a bear, but of a different colour, and has the neck of a fox. Philippe de Thaun calls it the stao- wolf which stinks, and is very fierce. The hyena is male and female, and therefore a filthy beast. In this respect it resembles the covetous and luxurious person, who ought to possess the firm- ness and strength of purpose of a man instead of the weak vacil- lation of a woman ; or like the Jews, who in the beginning wor- shipped God in a manly spirit, but afterwards gave themselves up to effeminate luxury and the worship of idols.* In the bestiaries the text from Jeremiah (xii, 9), " Mine heritage is unto 1 Cahier and Martin, vol. ii, pi. 22, fig. b. a. 2 Ihid., vol. iii, p. 303 ; Hippeau, p. 131 ; Wright, p. 94. 5 This is evidently taken from the list of unclean animals given by Moses (Levit. xi), and elaborated in the apocryphal Epistle of Barnabas (ix, 8), " Neither shalt thou eat of the hyena, that is again be not an adulterer, nor a corrupter of others ; neither be like to such. And wherefore so ? Because that creature every year changes its kind, and is sometimes male and sometimes female." The view that the hyena is an hermaphrodite was held by Pliny (Bk. VIII, ch. xxx), and adopted by Eustathius in the Hemmeron, and by Terttillian {De PalUo, ch. iii). 352 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. me as a speckled (or taloned) bird", is quoted thus : " Spelunca hyaense hereditas mea facta est." The hyena inhabits the tombs and devours dead bodies, being generally shown in the illustrations of the MSS. dragging a corpse out of a grave and gnawing it.^ There are two other stories told about the hyena— (1) that he has in his eye a stone, which, if placed under the tongue, confers the gift of prophecy ; (2) that he can imitate the human voice, and thus entices shep- herds from their houses at night to devour them by calling their names. On the sculpture at Alne the hyena is represented with a floriated tail and an object in its mouth, but it does not resemble the drawings in the MSS. very closely. However, the inscription leaves no doubt as to the intention of the artist. The Galadrius'- (Lat. calatrius, kaladrius, charadrius, and kalandria ; Fr. caladre^). — Galadrius is the name of a bird found in the country of Jerusalem. It is perfectly white, is shaped like a thrush, and has two upright horns on the top of its head. Moses forbids the caladrius to be eaten (Deut. xiv, 18). This bird is found in the courts of kings,* and when anyone is ill it can tell whether he will live or die. If the disease is dangerous the caladrius will tnrn away its head and the man will die ; but if it is not fatal the bird looks towards the sick man, thus draw- ing the disease to itself, and the patient will live. The caladrius flies up in the air towards the sun, and all his infirmity dis- appears. The bird has a great bone in its thigh, the marrow of which, if used as an ointment, will restore sight to the blind. The caladrius signifies Christ, who is free from all blemish of sin, and in the whiteness of whose purity the Devil can discover no dark spot. The Lord came down from heaven to save the Jews, but He averted His face from them on account of their unbelief, and turned towards the Gentiles, taking our infirmities upon Him, and bearing our transgressions. As the caladrius 1 Cahier and Martin, vol. ii, pi. 21, figs. a. r. ; Brit. Mus. (Harl. 4751, fol 10). This characteristic is referred to by St. Jerome, and seems to be founded on the text in Isaiah (Ixv, 4), '" which remain among the graves and lodge in the monuments." 2 Cahier and Martin, vol. ii, p. 129 ; Hippeau, p. 89 ; Wright, p. 112. 2 Calandre in modern French is equivalent to the English " lark". * Perhaps suggested by Dan. i, 4, in reference to the knowledge of the caladrius. THE MEDIiEVAL BESTIARIES. 353 flies up in the air, so Christ, when He ascended on high, led cap- tivity captive (Ephes. iv, 8). The curative property of the marrow of the bird's thigh-bone is typical of the anointing of the chrism, by which the spiritual eyes of the Christian are opened. The allegory of the caladrius is probably founded partly on the texts in the Bible speaking of God showing His displeasure by turning away His face (Ezek. vii, 22), and the verse in the Psalms (Ixxx, 7), " Turn us again, God, and cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved." The illustrations in the MSS. generally correspond exactly with the text, and show a bird perched on the end of the sick man's bed, either looking towards him or away from him. The sick man often wears a crown, in reference to the passage in the bestiary, which says that the caladrius is found in the courts of kings. In the Paris Arsenal MS.^ the caladrius with two horns on its head is seen flying away towards heaven to get rid of the disease. Upon the sculpture at Alne the bird is looking into the face of the sick man, who is therefore destined to recover. The Terrebolen, or two Stones vjhich emit Fire^ (Lat. lapides igniferi, turoholem, terrebolen, terrehuli, and cserololim ; Fr. Us deux pierres qui rendent feii). — Philippe de Thaun tells us that " turrobolen"* are stones of such a nature that when near together they will emit fire, but when far apart they will not do so. These stones are found in the East, upon a mountain, and one has naturally the semblance of a man, and the other takes the form of a very beautiful woman. The two stones which emit fire typify the love between the opposite sexes, which is kindled by close contact, and those who wish to lead a life of chastity should avoid the society of women, and thus escape the temptations that assailed Adam, Solomon, David, and Samson. In the illustrated bestiaries* the lapides igniferi are always represented, as at Alne, in the shape of a man and woman en- veloped in flames, which consume the whole mountain where they are found. The miniature in the tehth century MS. at ' Cahier and Martin, vol. ii, pi. 19, fig. F. 2 Ihid., vol. ii, p. 125 ; Hippean, p. 84 ; Wright, p. 124. ' Perhaps TrvpofiaXoi \l9oi, or fire stones. * Cahier and Martin, vol. ii, pi- 19, fig- E- A A 354 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. Brussels! differs in the treatment of the subject from that found in the later MSS. It shows a woman holding the two stones in her hand, one being ring-shaped, and the other a round ball bursting out into flame. In front stands a man extending his hand towards the stones, and behind is an angel of darkness. The Whale^ (Lat. cetus magnus aspido helunes, aspis chelone, aspedocalme, aspido testudo ; Fr. lacovie ; Sax. fastitocalon). — The whale is a great monster called " fasticalon", that dwells in the ocean. It covers its back with sea-sand, and raising itself out of the water, remains motionless, so that the sailors mistake it for an island. " And they fasten the high prowed ships to that false land with anchor ropes settle their seahorses at the sea's end, and then on to that island mount bold of spirit ; the vessels stand fast by the shore by the stream encircled then encamp weary in mind, the sea farers (they of peril dream not) on that island, they waken flame a high fire kindle." Then the whale, feeling the heat and the weight of the ship with its freight, makes a sudden phrnge, and — "into the salt wave with the bark down goes, the ocean's guest seeks the abyss, and then, in the hall of death to the flood commits ship with men.'' 1 Cahier and Martin, vol. ii, pi. 24, fig. b, y. 2 Ibid., vol. iii, p. 251 ; Hippeau, p. 151 ; Wright, p. 108 1; Codex Exoniensis, p. .360. THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. 355 The whale signifies the Devil ; the sands are the riches of this world ; the ship is the body that should be guided by the soul, acting as steersman ; and the sea is the world. When we put our trust most in the pleasures of this life, and think we are quite safe, suddenly, without any warning, the Devil drags us down to hell. The whale has another property ; when he is hungry and — " lusts after food then oceanward his mouth opens his wide lips, a pleasant odour comes from his inside, so that thereby other kinds of sea fishes are deceived ; eager they swim to where the sweet odour Cometh out ; they there enter in heedless shoal, till the wide jaw is filled ; then suddenly around they prey together crash the grim gums." The whale is the Devil, and the sweet smell which issues from his mouth signifies the seductive nature of the snares of the Tempter, who having caught his victim — " then he his grim gums dashes after the death-pang fast together, Hell's latticed doors have not return or escape, outlet ever, for those who enter any more than the fishes, sporting in the ocean from the whale's gripe can turn.'' The illustrations in the MSS. show a huge sea-monster, sup- aa2 356 THE MEDTjEVAL bbstiaeies. porting a ship on its back, together with a lighted fire, over which a cooking-pot is boiling ; trees are also growing out of its body. A shoal of small fishes are rushing into the whale's open jaws.^ Upon the sculpture at Alne the ship only is seen, the whale and other accessories being omitted, probably from want of room. The Dragon. — The inscription round one of the medallions at Alne has been obliterated, although the blank space in the orna- ment for it still remains. The animal represented is a winged dragon, the appearance of which we are familiar with from its frequent occurrence in the contest with St. Michael and St. George, and in the curious legend of St. Margaret. We do not lind the dragon described by itself like the other animals in the bestiary, but it is noticed incidentally as flying away from the pan- ther,2 as attacking the young elephants,^ and as being afraid of the doves upon the Tree of Life, or Arhor peredixion.^ In all cases the dragon is the personification of evil, the symbolism being founded on the text in the Eevelations (xx, 2), speaking of " the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan." In Norman sculpture the dragon is represented with a scaly body ending in a serpent's tail, either looped or knotted. It has two wings, and two forefeet armed with formidable claws. The head is that of a ferocious beast with ears, and its power of doing harm is shown by the sharp teeth and barbed sting. Dragons^ are frequently referred to in the Old Testament — (1) as inliabiting desert places, the resort of doleful creatures, owls, satyrs, and wild beasts, and thus signifying utter desolation (Isaiah xiii, 22 ; Jeremiah ix, 11 ; Job xxx, 29 ; Micah i, 8 ; Psalm xliv, 19) ; (2) as sea monsters, in connection with the passage of the Red Sea (Psalm Ixxiv, 13 ; Isaiah li, 9 ; Ezekiel xxix, 3) ; (3) as venomous reptiles (Deut. xxxii, 33 ; Psalm xci, 13). ' Cahier and Martin, vol. iii, p. 251, and vol. ii, pi. 22, fig. b. c. 2 Ibid., vol. iii, p. 235. 3 Ibid., vol. iv, p. 55. ' Ibid., vol. iii, p. 284. ' Two distinct Hebrew words, Tan and Tamnin, are translated dragons in our version of the Bible (see Tristram's Nat. History of the Bible, p. 26). THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 3o7 We have now succeeded in showing that the system of mystic zoology contained in the mediaeval bestiaries was not only recog- nised by the Church as a means of conveying religious instruction as far back as the eighth century, but also that animal symbolism, corresponding exactly with that of the MSS., was used for the decoration of ecclesiastical buildings of the twelfth century, side by side with scenes from Scripture and such sacred devices as the Agnus Dei. It must, however, be clearly understood that the bestiaries only explain part of the symboHsm found on early sculptures, and that there is much which is still very obscure. We shall endeavour, first, to see what further light can be thrown on the art of the twelfth century by means of the bestiaries, and then to find out whether there are any connecting links between the decorative features of the Norman churches and the subjects on the Celtic crosses. The only method of in- vestigation which holds out any prospect of success is to start from the known and gradually work backwards to the unknown. Thus, with regard to the examples already considered, we stand on firm ground, as the subjects have been identified either by inscrip- tions, or by their exact correspondence with the illustrations and descriptions found in contemporary MSS. One great difficulty which meets us at the outset is, that the artists who carved the animals were often quite ignorant of the outward appearance of those belonging to foreign countries, and consequently they had either to draw on their imagination, or follow the written descrip- tions as best they could. Even supposing them to have illuminated MSS. to copy from, the miniatures are often wholly unlike the real animals. Thus, a tiger is described as a kind of serpent, and is actually drawn as a dragon with wings. A crocodile is repre- sented as a four-legged beast like a bear. The sculptures at Alne do not in the least resemble the subjects specified in the inscriptions. Then, again, the names of the beasts in Hebrew are differently rendered in the Vulgate and in our version of the Bible. Some of the animals may be identified by comparison with those occurring in scenes from Scripture and on the signs of the Zodiac, as follows : — Ass — Nativity ; Flight into Egypt ; Entry into Jerusalem. Basilisk — Christ treading on. Bear — and children who mocked Elisha ; slain by David. 358 THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIAEIES. Beasts — named by Adam ; going into the Ark. Bull — symbol of St. Luke ; sign of Zodiac. w^r.1 Fig. 128.— Irish Zodiac, with names of the twelve Apostles and twelve Tribea of Judah, from the Liher S. Isidori, in the library at Bale, in Switzerland. Calf — of gold in the wilderness ; symbol of St. Liike. Camel — Eebekah at the Well ; Joseph sold to the Ishmaelites. Fig. 129.— The Lion of St. Mark and the Calf of St. Luke, from the Gospels of Durrow. Cock — St. Peter denying Christ. Dove — leaving the Ark, THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAKIES. 359 Dragon— St. Michael and; Christ treading on ; of the Apoca- lypse. Eagle — symbol of St. John. ■ Fish— Miracle of Loaves and Fishes ; sign of Zodiac ; miracu- lous draught of. Goat — sign of Zodiac. Horse— Passage of Red Sea ; Ascent of Elijah ; of the Apoca- lypse. Lamb — Agnus Dei. Fig. 130.— Lion (?) on Cross at Papil, Isle of Burra, Shetland. Lion — Samson and ; David and ; Daniel and ; symbol of St. Mark ; sign of Zodiac ; Christ treading on ; of the Tribe of Judah, opening the Book with the Seven Seals in the Apocalypse. Ox — Nativity. Eam — Sacrifice of Isaac ; sign of Zodiac. Eaven — Cleaving the Ark ; bringing food to Elijah. Serpent — Temptation of Adam and Eve ; Christ treading on. Sheep — Shepherds and flocks, and the Nativity ; David and his flock. Swine — Miracle of Healing the Demoniac. Turtle-doves — Presentation in the Temple. 360 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. The two fabulous creatures which occur most frequently in Norman sculpture, and also on Celtic crosses, are the Syren and the Centaur. We are familiar with the appearance of both, from their having been copied from classical originals. The Centaur is mentioned in the bestiary in connection with the Syren, and also as Sagittarius fighting with the savage man. The following are the descriptions given. The Syren and Centaur'^ (Lat. serena et unoceniaurtcs, syrena, Jionocentar ; Fr. seraine, uncor). — Isaiah the Prophet says (ch. xiii, 21) of Babylon, " Their houses shall be full of doleful creatures ; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs^ shall dance there" ; which is quoted thus in the bestiaries : Fig. 131.— Syren on tympanum of doorway at Stow Longa, Huntingdonshire. " Syrens and demons shall dance there, and ' herenacii' and centaurs shall dwell in their houses." The Picardy bestiary tells us that there are three kinds of syrens, two of which are half woman and half fish, and the other half woman and half bird. The older Latin bestiaries only mention the latter kind ; and Philippe de Thaun describes the syren as being a woman down to the waist, with the feet of a falcon and the tail of a fish. The syren is death-bearing, and sings at the approach of the storm, but weeps in fine weather. 1 Melanges d'Archeologie, vol. ii, p. 172 ; Hippean, Le Besiiaire Divin, p. 114 ; Wright's Popular Treatises on Science during the Middle Ages pp. 93 and 98. ' ^ Hebrew sa^ir, or he-goat, translated " devils'' in Lev. xvii 7 and 2 Cbron. xi, 15 ; see Tristram's Nat. Hist, of the Bible, p. 131. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. 361 The Picardy bestiary says that the three kinds of syrens each produce a different sort of music, one playing on a horn, another on a harp, whilst the third sings. When the sailors hear the delicious strains of music wafted over the deep, they are drawn towards the place whence the sound proceeds, and the soft modulations of the syren's voice fall sweetly on their ears, charming their senses, and lulling the seafarers to sleep. As soon as the syrens see that the sailors are wrapped in deep slumber, Fig. 132.— Sagittarius and the Savage Man, on font at West Bounton, Yorkshire. they seize them and tear their flesh to pieces. Thus the Devil deceives those who listen to his seductive voice, luring them on to destruction, and when he has rendered their souls insensible by the pleasures of the world, he falls upon them and kills them. The ono-centaur (which is called Sagittarius^) has the front part like a man, and the hind-quarters and legs of an ass. The ono-centaur may be compared to double-hearted and double- tongued men, who appear in front to be good but are evil behind. 1 Picardy bestiary. 362 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEJES. Sagittarius and the Savage Mav} (Fr. sagetaire, salvage home). — In the deserts of India there are savages who have one horn in the middle of the forehead. They inhabit high trees, on account of the vi^ild beasts, such as serpents, dragons, griflBns, bears, and lions, which are very plentiful in those parts. These savages are all naked, except when one of them has fought with a lion and killed it, and then he uses the skin as a gar- ment. The savages make war on the Sagittarii and the Sagit- tarii on them. Fig. 133. — Sagittarius Bliooting a monster, on tympanum of doorway at Keucott, OxfordBhire. The war between the savages and the Sagittarii signifies the contest between the soul and the flesh. The savages living in trees for fear of the wild beasts, signifies the soul which is peace- able and dislikes war, loving his Creator. The savage fightino- with the lion is like the soul which battles with the flesh and overcomes it. Sagittarius is represented in the illustrations of the bestiary, as on the signs of the Zodiac, half horse, half man, shooting with a bow and arrow at a savage clothed in a lion's skin, having a horn on the top of his head.^ He is thus seen on the west front of Melanges, vol. iv, p. 76. Cahier and Martin. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. 363 Chartres Cathedral,^ on a Norman font at West Eounton iu Yorkshire, and on the arch of the doorway at Bishop Wilton, Yorkshire. In other cases Sagittarius is contending with a 1 Cahier and Martin, Nouveaux Melanges cV ArcUologie-Cunosites Mysterieuses, p. 191. 364 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. lion.i or a dragon,^ or suckling its young. ^ The centaur is some- times represented, as on the maps of the stars, holding up a hare which it is transfixing with a spear* ; or as Chiron, with a herb or branch in its hand. In the latter form we find it in an eleventh century Saxon herbal of Apuleius in the British Museum, both as the frontis- piece of the volume and in illustration of the mugwort, or artemisia, the curative properties of which are supposed to have been revealed to Chiron by Artemis.^ On the tympanum of the west doorway of Ault Hucknall Church in Derbyshire, is a very remarkable figure of a centaur ZA Fig. 135. — Centaur and Lion, on tympanum of doorway at Salford, Oxfordshire. with a nimbus round the head, holding a branch in its right hand and the cross in the left. Facing the centaur is a hu"e beast followed by a small animal. On the cross at Meigle in 1 Tympana at Stoke-sub-Hamdon, Somerset (inscribed); Kencott Oxon- Cormac's Chapel, Book of Cashel, Ireland ; capital of column Adel Yorkshire ; also on the eleventh century bronze doors of Augsburg Cathedral, Germany. 2 Fonts at Darenth, Kent ; Hook Norton, Oxon (inscribed) • and on capital of column of west doorway of Tutbury Church Stafford. Sagittarius shooting at a stag is represented on the tympanum at D'Urville in Normandy (Proc. Soc. Ant. de la Normandie— Atlas), and on the capitals of the columns of the crypt at Parize le Ohatel Nievre France (De Caumont, AMcedaire d'ArchSologie,p. 272). ' Capital of column of south door of Iffley Church, Oxon • also in Catacombs (D'Agincourt, vol. v, pi. 6). * Brussels bestiary; Cahier and Martin, vol. ii. ' Harl. 1795; Cockayne's Anglo-Saxon Leechdoms, p. 103. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 3f;5 Perthshire, is a centaur with a branch and an axe in each hand ; on the cross at Glamis Manse in Forfarshire there is a similar figure, but without the branch ; on the cross at Aberlemno in Forfarshire the centaur holds a branch and a club. Centaurs are also sculptured on the bases of the crosses at Monasterboice and Kells (Street) in Ireland (see figs. 78 and 81). lOioioiaaaonaozioioD ooioiaoiaaoioiaoioj Fig. 136.— SagittariuB, etc., on font at Hook Norton, Oxfordshire, Occasionally centaurs are seen without the bow and arrow, or any other object held in the hand. Thus, on the font at Bridekirk, Cumberland, one of these creatures is represented strangling two dragons ; and on'the jambs of the chancel -arch at Beckford, Gloucestershire, we have a bea.st half man, half 366 THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIAEIBS. horse, holding up one hand, and with a spear upright in front. On one of the medallions on the arch of the doorway of St. Margaret's Walmgate, York, is a fight between a centaur and a serpent. There is a curious incident related in St. Jerome's Life of St. Paul, of how St. Anthony met a satyr, and was directed by a centaur! to the cave of St. Paul in the desert. This story is 1 Migne, Patrologim Cursus Completus, vol. xxiii ; Hieronymi, Vita S. Pcmli Eremitce. THE MEPl^VAL BESTIABIES. 367 also incorporated in the Greek bestiary ,i and is intended to show that the beasts acknowledge Christ, although man denies Him, and that man tries to preserve the divine character which heaven has impressed upon him. The story of Ulysses and the Syrens was adapted to Christian purposes as early as the third century, being referred to by the author of the Philosophumena,^ and by St. Clement of Alex- andria.* The scene is represented on a sculptured sarcophagus Fig. 138. — Centaur with pair of axea, on Cross at Qlamis Manse. from the crypt of Lucina at Eome,* the syrens being shown with human bodies, and the wings and feet of a bird. In the 1 Emile Legrand, Le P/is/sio^ws, fourteenth century Greek MS. in the Paris Library. 2 Vii, 1, Ante-Moene Lib., p. 267. ' Exhort, ad Gentes, c. xii. * Northoote and Brownlow, Roma Sotterranea, vol. ii, p. 240. 368 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. tenth century bestiary at Brussels the syrens are of similar shape, but in later times the half-woman, half-fish form was preferred. A very interesting article on this subject, by Miss Jane E. Harrison, appeared in The Magazine of Art for February 1887, in which illustrations of the different shapes of syrens are given from Greek vases, and from the twelfth century MS. of Herrade's Eortibs Beliciarum, formerly existing at Strasbourg. On the "West Highland cross at Campbeltown in Argyleshire we have both shapes together. The mermaid is a favourite subject in Norman sculpture, and is generally shown holding out tresses of hair on each side of the body.^ In the illuminated MSS. she holds a looking-glass and a comb, or a fish, or is playing on a musical instrument. Mermaids are often carved on the misereres of the stalls in cathedrals and churches.^ There are extremely curious sculptures of syrens suckling their young^ on the capi- tals of columns at B^le and Fribourg en Brisgau Cathedrals in Switzerland,^ recalling the centaurs at Iffley, previously re- ferred to. The syren is often portrayed with a double tail, the ends of which are held up by the hands at each side," but examples of this class seem to be more common abroad^ than in this country. Sometimes the syren carries a fish in each hand, as on the curious sculptured capital of a column at Cunhault-sur-Loire in France, 1 On the tympanum of the doorway of the chancel of Stow Longa Church, Huntingdonshire, the syren is holding up both hands ; other examples occur on the details of doorways at Bishop Wilton, Barton-le- Street, and Alne in Yorkshire. A syren with a knotted tail is sculptured on the tympanum of the west doorway of Long Marton Church, West- moreland. 2 Exeter, Winchester, Chichester, and Bristol Cathedrals, and Boston Church, Lincolnshire (see Reliquary, vol. xix, p. 200). ' See Lamentations (iv, 3), "Even the sea monsters draw out the breast, they give suck to their young ones." * Nouveaux Melanges d'Archiologie — Curiosites Mysterieuses, p. 142. * The font at St. Peter's, Cambridge, has figures of this kind at the four corners. 8 As on the capitals at Puc6, Gironde, and Parize le Chatel, Ni^vre France; Zurich Cathedral, Switzerland. (See Baring Gould's Curious Myths of the Middle Ages, article " Melusina" ; De Caumont, A bScedaire d'Arche'o- logie, and Mittheilungen der antiquarischen Gesellschaft in Zurich, vol. ii.) THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 369 illustrated in Cahier and Martin's Muveaitx Mdanges d'ArcMo- logie. In connection with the subject of marine monsters, the tym- pana of the west and south doorways at Long Marton in West- moreland present some curious features. The winged dragon with its knotted tail occurs on both tympana, in one case associ- ated with the figure of a male syren or merman, and in the other side by side with a huge beast with outstretched wings, possibly intended for the Serra, which is thus described in the bestiary. The Serra} (Lat. serra ; Fr. serre). — The serra is a sea mon- ster, with the head of a lion and the tail of a fish. It has immense wings, which it spreads out in order to catch all the wind, and then follows ships, trying to overtake them. But after having gone thirty or forty stadia, and found its efforts to overtake the ship unavailing, it folds its wings and disappears beneath the waves. The ship is the good man who keeps steadily on his way, " persevering to the end" (Matt, xxiv, 13), and thus passes safely through the tempests of this world with- out shipwreck. The serra is theman of good intentions, who begins by pursuing the path of virtue, but is gradually led away by the pleasures and temptations of this world, till at last he is overwhelmed by the waters of destruction. There are many passages in the Old Testament^ referring to monsters of the deep, the most striking being that in Isaiah (xxvii, 1), " In that day the Lord with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent, and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea." I am not aware that there is any direct evidence con- necting these texts with the Norman sculptures, but they are sufficient to show that it is not necessary to go beyond the Scrip- tures for an explanation of the dragons with knotted and twisted tails, which are of such frequent occurrence on the decorative features of buildings of the twelfth century. On the font at Lincoln Cathedral we have a fabulous creature represented with wings and the beak of a bird, but the body 1 Melanges, vol. ii, p. 121 ; Hippean, p. 86 ; Wright, p. 103. 2 Psalms Ixxiv, 13 ; Ezekiel xxix, 3, and xxxii, 2 ; Isaiah li, 9, in con- nection with Pharaoh and the Passage of the Red Sea, as displaying the power of God. B B 370 THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIAEIES. and feet of a large beast like the lion. This corresponds with the illustrations of the grif&n in the bestiaries, of which the fol- lowing description is given. The Chriffi.'n} (Fr. gripons). — The griffin is a kind of bird which inhabits the deserts of India, where it can find nothing to eat. This bird is so strong that it can fly away with a live cow and carry it to feed its young with. The griffin signifies the Devil, who carries off the soul of the wicked man to the deserts of hell. Fig. 139. — Oriffin and other beasts, on fonts at Lincoln Catliedral and St. Peter's, Ipswich. The above story may perhaps explain the winged beast seizing a horse or other animal by the back of the neck, preparatory to flying away with it, on an early sculptured slab at St. Andrew's, Fifeshire.^ The most important Christian types to be found in the bestiary are the ones which symbolise the Eesurrection of our Lord. These may be divided into two classes — (1) where the younw of. some animal (like the lion) or bird (like the pelican) are brought ' Melanges, vol. ii, p. 226. ^ Stuart's Sculptured Stones of Scotland, vol. i, pi. 61. Griffins are the creatures which are supposed to have carried Alexander up to heaven (see p. 285). THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 371 to life after being dead three days ; and (2) where a man or beast IS disgorged by a monster, or breaks through his body. To the latter class belong the stories of Jonah and the Whale, St. Margaret and the Dragon, and the Crocodile and the Hydra, which latter is as follows. The Crocodile and the Hydra)- (Lat. crocodilus, crocodrillus, corchodriUus, ydris, hildris ; Pr. cocodrille, coqiudrix, crocodile, hydre, ydres).~T\iQ crocodile is a reptile dwelling in marshes, and the hydra is a long, thin serpent. Both live on the banks of the Nile, and there is a deadly hatred between them. When the hydra sees the crocodile asleep with its mouth open on the banks of the river, it rolls itself in the mud, so that it can the more easily insert itself stealthily between the crocodile's jaws, Fig. 140.— Grffln (?) on tympanum of doorway at CoTington, HuntingdonBbire. who then swallows the hydra unawares. As soon as the hydra gets into the inside of the crocodile it bursts the entrails of the beast asunder and comes forth alive. Thus, Christ having taken our human nature upon Him, descended into hell, and bursting its bonds, led forth those He wished to save alive, as the Evan- gelist testifies (Matt, xxvii, 52), " The graves were opened, and many bodies of the saints which slept arose." Eepresentations of monsters swallowing or disgorging human beings are to be found both on Celtic crosses^ and in Norman sculpture.^ 1 MSlanges, vol. iii, p. 212 ; Hippeau, p. 134 ; Wright, p. 85. ' Dunf allandy and Gask, Perthshire, Woodwray, Forfarshire (now at Abbotsford). See curious text in Isaiah (li, 44) in reference to this subject. ' Bradbourne, Derbyshire. BB 2 372 THE WEDIJEVAL BESTIARIES. In the Greek Painters Guide from Mount Athos^ it is specified that in the scene of the Last Judgment, "the sea giving up the dead" (Rev. xx, 13) shall be shown ; and in the twelfth century MS. of the Hortus Deliciarum, formerly at Strasbourg, the following inscription is placed under the picture of this sub- ject:— "Corpora et membra hominum a bestiis, et volucribus et Fig. 141. — Monster disgorging or swallowing man, on Cross at Abbotsford, formerly at Woodwray, Forfarshire. piscibus olim devorata nutu Dei, reprsesantur, ut ex integra humana massa resurgant incorrupta corpora sanctorum quse non tantum per bestias, ut depictum est, afferentur, sed nutu Dei prse- sentabuntur." On the fonts at Ham in Staffordshire, and Tissington in 1 Didron, p. 266. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAKIES. 37S Derbyshire, and on the tympanum at Barton Seagrave in North- amptonshire, beasts are sculptured having a human head in their mouths, which may belong to the class of disgorging monsters. On some of the Celtic crosses^ and in Norman sculpture^ a Fig. 142.— Beast with human head in its mouth, on font at Ham, in Staffordshire. human head is placed between two beasts,' but the meaning is not very clear,— unless, perhaps, it is a reduction of Daniel in 1 Kirk Braddon, Isle of Man ; Bressay, Shetland ; Dunfallandy, Perthshire. ' Glendalough, Ireland. 3 Perhaps this and the preceding may be explained by the texts in the Psalms, xxii, 20, and 2 Timothy iv, 17. 374 THE MEDIiETAL BESTIARIES. the Lions' Den to its simplest elements. In the last lecture reference was made to the frequent occurrence of a man between two beasts on Norman tympana. The best groups of animals with which I am acquainted are on the tympana at Hognaston and Parwich, Derbyshire, and on the font at Melbury Bubb, Dorsetshire. On the two latter the stagi and the serpent are represented, of which we get the fol- lowing explanation in the bestiary. The Stag^ (Lat. cermis ; Fr. chers, cerf). — It is said in the Fig. 143.— Humaij head betwoen two beasts, on wheel Cross at Kirk Braddan, Isle of Man. Psahns (xlii, 1), "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, God."^ The stag is the enemy of the serpent. When the stag sees the serpent it runs to the brook and fills its stomach with water, which it blows down the 1 The stag does not appear very often in Norman sculpture, although there are instances at Durham Castle, Elkstone, Gloucestershire, and Shobdon, Herefordshire. 2 Melanges, vol. iii, p. 266 ; Hippeau, p. 171 ; Wright, p. 86. 3 This text is inscribed in Latin on the eleventh century font at Potterne. Wilts. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 375 serpent's hole. The serpent is thus driven out, and the stag kills it with his feet. The stag is the Lord Jesus Christ, who followed the dragon into the lower places of the earth, and by pouring forth blood and water from His side, drove away the Devil with the water of regeneration. David says (Ps. civ, 18), "The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats" (quoted " stags" in the bestiary). The Fig. 144.— Human head between two beasts, on Cross at Papil, Isle of Burra, Shetland. mountains are the Apostles and Prophets. " I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help" (Ps. cxxi, 1). The stag is of very frequent occurrence on Celtic crosses, gene- rally being hunted by men on horseback followed by hounds. In Norman sculpture hunting scenes^ are less common, and the 1 As on the tympanum at Little Langford, Wilts ; on the font at St. Mary Cliurch, Torquay ; and on the capitals of the chancel-arches at Caistor, Northamptonshire, and Liverton in Cleveland, Yorkshire. 376 THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIAEIES. wild boar takes the place of the stag. We occasionally see serpents and men together on the details of twelfth century- buildings, in connection with which the following description from the bestiary may prove interesting. 2 S a ft, e L — J- The Serpent^ (Lat. Serpens, and the same story is told of an animal whose name in French is woutre). — The third nature of ' Melanges d'ArcMologie, vol. ii, p. 144. ' '' r. — 2:^ -^Z:^ ^ Fig. 146.- stag-hunt, wild-boar, goat, etc., on Cross of Arinbiorg, atKirlJ Andreas, Isle of Man. 378 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIABIES. the serpent is, that if it sees a naked man it is afraid of him, but if it sees him clothed it makes a spring at him. We imderstand this spiritually to mean that when the first man Adam was naked in Paradise the serpent could not harm him, but when he put on garments, that is to say, this mortal body, the serpent had then power over him. So, also, the Devil assaults the covetous man who is clothed in riches and vice, but he fears the man who is devoid of sin. It is a curious fact that the elephant,^ which is so common a subject in the later medieval MSS., does not appear to be represented in Norman sculpture, the earliest example in con- nection with an ecclesiastical building being on one of the carved misereres of the thirteenth century at Exeter Cathe- dral.^ The description of this animal given in the bestiary is as follows. TJie Elephant and the Mandragora^ (Lat. eliphans, mandra- gora ; Fr. oliphant, oliphans, mandragloire, mandegloire). — The elephant is a large beast, and so strong that it can easily carry a wooden tower full of armed men, once it is firmly fixed on his back, being thus made use of in battle by the Indians and Persians. The elephant lives 300 years, and the female re- quires two years to bring forth her young. When the time comes for the elephants to pair, the male takes the female to the river of Paradise in the East, where the mandragora grows. The female gives the herb to her mate to eat. When the mother is about to b^ing forth, she goes into'the water unto, it comes up to her breasts. The father guards the mother whilst the young are being born, because of the dragon, who is the 1 The elephant is not mentioned in our version of the Bible, except in the Apocrypha, although its existence may be inferred from the occur- rence of the word ivory (1 Kings x, 22 ; and Ezek. xxvii, 17). Behemoth, which has been supposed to refer to the elephant, is simply the Hebrew word for a great beast (see Canon Tristram's Natural History of the Bible). 2 See Building News, Feb. 12, 1886. Many of the other misereres at Exeter seem to be taken from the bestiary, such as the syren holding up a fish, a male and female centaur, the basilisk with the head of a cock, the Tree of Life, with a head in ihe middle of the branches the bird which lays its eggs in the sea, the lion, etc. 3 Melanges, vol. iv, p. 55 ; Hippeau, p. 81 ; Wright, p. 99. THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. 379 elephant's enemy.i If the elephant discovers the dragon, he kills him by stamping on him with his feet. The male and female elephant are like Adam and Eve, who received the knowledge of good and evil by eating of the fruit of the tree in the midst of the Garden of Eden, and after they had been driven out of Paradise " Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bare Cain" (Genesis iv, 1). The world outside Paradise is full of deep waters, like those in which the elephant brings forth her young ; for as David says (Ps. Ixix, 1), "Save me, O God, for the waters are come into my soul." As soon as Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden the Serpent overthrew them, but afterwards our Saviour came and lifted them up. The Mandrake.'^ — " This wort, which is named fiavSpaj6pa<;, is mickle illustrious of aspect, and it is beneficial. Thou shalt in this way take it when thou comest to it, then thou understandest it by this that it shineth at night altogether like a lamp. When first thou seest its head then inscribe thou it instantly with iron, lest it fly from thee ; its virtue is so mickle and so famous that it will immediately flee from an unclean man when he cometh to it, hence, as we before said, do thou inscribe it with iron, and so shalt thou delve about it as that thou touch it not with the iron, but thou shalt earnestly with an ivory staff delve the earth. And when thou seest its hands and feet then tie thou it up. Then take the other end and tie it to a dog's neck, so that the hound be hungry ; next cast meat before him, so that he may not reach it except he jerk it up with him. Of this wort it is said that it hath so mickle might that what thing soever tuggeth it up it shall soon in the same manner be deceived. Therefore as soon as thou see that it be jerked up take it imme- ■ diately in hand." In the illustrations of the bestiaries the elephant is drawn with a castle full of armed men on his back ; and the dog is shown chained to a plant formed like a human being, which is 1 The enmity between the elephant and the dragon is mentioned by Pliny. 2 Cockayne's Saxon Leechdoms, vol. i, p. 245, from the Saxon Herbal of Apuleius. 380 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. intended for the mandragora. The goat, which sometimes occurs in Norman sculpture/ is thus described in the bestiary. The Goat^ (Lat. capra, cm-con; Ft. chi&vre, porcon). — The goat loves the high mountains, and is so far-seeing an animal that it can tell whether the men it spies walking in the distance are wayfarers or hunters. Thus Christ loves the high mountains, that is, the Prophets, the Apostles, and the Patriarchs. Thus, in the Song of Solomon (ch. ii, 8), it says, " Behold my beloved Cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills. My beloved is like a roe or a young hart." As the goat can dis- cern its enemies from afar, so Christ foresaw the deceit of the Devil, and His betrayal by Judas. The difficulty of recognising the various animals from their appearance, unaided by inscriptions, has been already referred to. It is possible that some of the beasts found in twelfth century art may be intended for the tiger. At all events, the story about this animal is sufficiently interesting to be inserted liere. The Tiget^ (Fr. tigre). — The tiger is a kind of serpent,* which is so fierce that no living man dare go near it. When the tigress has cubs the hunters find out where they are and carry them off in the following manner. They wait until she leaves her den, and then place mirrors in the ti'ack by which she will return. When the tigress sees the beauty of her appearance in the glass she is so delighted that she forgets all about her cubs, and remains fixed to the spot as if she were caught. The hunters are thus able to rob her of her cubs in safety. We are the tigers and the cubs are our souls, for if we are put off our guard by the illu- sions of this world, such as fine clothes, horses, and beautiful women, the Devil will take advantage of our preoccupation to obtain possession of our souls. The illustrations show the tigress looking at herself in a mirror hung against a tree, whilst the hunters carry off her young ones. In the bestiary the stories about the various animals do not ' At Thames Ditton, Surrey ; Adel, Yorkshire ; and Ely Cathedral. ^ Melanges, vol. iii, p. 218 ; Wright, p. 84. '^ Melanges d'ArcJiiologie, vol. ii, p. 140. * He is shown in the miniatures of the MSS. as an animal with wings. THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. 381 seem to be arranged on any definite plan as regards the order in which they come. It is probable that the original work, from which the later MSS. were copied, contained descriptions of only a few animals, and that the number was increased from time to time. If, however, we wish to be able to interpret the meaning of the system of Christian symbolism, suggested by the habits of animals and the properties of the vegetable and mineral world, it will be necessary to classify the different representations under some such headings as the following. I. Eepresentations, more or less conventionalised, of crea- tures which really exist, under the subdivision of — (a) beasts ; (5) birds ; (c) fish ; (d) reptiles ; («) insects. II. Fabulous creatures and sea monsters, chiefly derived from classical sources. III. Mystical creatures from the visions of Daniel, Ezekiel, and St. John. I. JBeasfs. In order to identify the various beasts found on Celtic crosses and in Norman sculpture, it will be necessary to examine their peculiarities very minutely. There is not much difficulty with regard to the animals which inhabit the British Islands, as they are generally accurately portrayed ; but the case is different when we come to deal with foreign animals, whose appearance was unfamiliar to the artist. In connection with the subject now under consideration, the reader is recommended to study Canon Tristram's admirable little book on the Natural History of the Bibhwhere all the passages in Scripture relating to zoology are quoted. Some of the animals described in the bestiary are not mentioned in our version of the Bible under the same names. Thus, the hyena of the bestiary is translated " a speckled bird" (Isaiah xii, 9), and the panther a young lion (Hosea v, 14), or leopard (Hosea xiii, 7). The place of honour in the bestiary is given to the lion, which comes first in the series. The lion of the tribe of Judah (Gen. xlix, 9, and Hosea v, 14), which prevailed to open the book with the Seven Seals in the Eevelations (v, 5), is a type of Christ, and also is one of the mystical beasts f. o a THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. 383 which symbolise the Four Evangelists (Eev. iv, 7). It is not surprising, therefore, that it should occur more frequently in early Christian art in this country than any other foreign animal. There are several examples of the lion being repre- sented in Celtic MSS.^ and on pre-Norman sculptured stones.^ The two chief peculiarities which enable the lion to be distin- guished are its flowing mane and long tail, with a tuft of hair at the end. In the scene of David and the Lion on the pre- Norman stones at St. Andrew's* and Drainie.^the mane and the tuft at the end of the tail are clearly shown, the tail being bent between the legs. In the scene of Daniel in the Lions' Den, however, on the cross at Meigle,^ the tails terminate in a spiral, and are bent over the back, which appears to be the older method of treatment, for in the twelfth century the tail is generally bent between the legs, and ends in a conventional leaf. In Norman sculpture we have an inscribed example of the Hon on the tympanum at Stoke-sub-Hamdon, Somerset, which shows the way of representing the animal in the twelfth century. At this period the mane of the lion is very highly convention- alised, being drawn with a large number of small tufts curled up at the end.® The lion is usually represented standing on his four feet, and with the head in profile, but there are instances, as on the tympanum at Cormac's Chapel, Eock of Cashel, Ireland, where the face of the beast is turned fully towards the spectator, giving it a semi -human appearance.^ In a few cases an animal, which may be intended for a lion, is shown ram- pant.^ With the exception of the lion we are unable to distinguish 1 The lion of St. Mark, in the Gospels of Burrow ; Leo, in the Irish Zodiac, in the Liher S. Isidori at Basle in Switzerland ; David and the Lion in Irish Psalters at St. John's College, Cambridge, Boulogne, and British Museum (Vesp. A. i). 2 See Daniel in Lions' Den, and David or Samson and the Lion. 3 Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. i, pi. 61. 4 Ibid., vol. i, pi. 130. 6 Ibid., vol. i, pi. 74. ^ As on font at Lincoln Cathedral. ' Also on tympanum at Salford, Oxon, and font at Lincoln Cathedral. 8 Ason fontsat Darenth, Kent; Bel ton, Lincolnshire ; Button Crans- wick, Yorkshire. Fig. 148.^Wild toar, etc., on CrosB of Drosten, at St. Vigeans, Forfarshire. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIARIES. 385 any of the foreign animals mentioned in the Bible or the bestiaries by their outward appearance. On the doorway at Alne in York- shire there are sculptures of the hyena^ and the panther, but if it were not for the explanatory inscriptions, we should not be able to recognise them. The camel is found in the Saxon Heptateuch of MMxic in the British Museum (Claud. B. iv); but the scenes from Genesis, in which it occurs, are not those usually used for purposes of symbolism. The so-called elephant-symbol on the Scotch stones is probably nothing of the kind, as we have before observed that this animal belongs to a much later Fig. 149. — Wild boar on tympanutu of doorway of St. Nicholas Church, Ipswich. period of Christian art in Great Britain, although there are early examples abroad on mosaic pavements at Aosta^ and at Sour.^ Monkeys are seen in the decorative features of churches of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries,* but not earlier. 1 The hyena here has an object like a flower in its mouth, and a some- what similar feature occurs on the font at Walton-on-the-Hill, near Liverpool. On some of the Scotch pre-Norman stones, as at Meigle, Perthshire, Inchinnan, Renfrewshire, and on the round tower at Brechin, Forfarshire, is a beast with what looks like a human leg in its mouth (Stuart's Sculptured Stones, vol. ii, pis. 1 and 76). ^ Didron's Annates ArcMologiques, vol. xvii, p. 389. 5 Ibid., vol. xxiv, p. 264. * On one of the capitals of St. Mary's, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, is a monkey playing a harp, and there are also gargoyles on the exterior in the shape of monkeys. C C 386 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAKIES. The animals belonging to this country, which can be identified on sculpture previous to the year 1200, are the ass, bear, boar, bull, cow, dog, fox, goat, horse, ram, sheep, stag. The ass occurs in the scene of the Entry into Jerusalem on the tympanum at Aston Eyre, Shropshire, and in the scene of the Nativity on the font at Fincham, Norfolk ; the muzzled bear on coped tomb- stones at Brompton, Yorkshire, and on corbels of Norman churches ; the horse, dog, wild-boar, and stag, in hunting scenes already mentioned; sheep and ram on Scotch crosses, generally in Fig. ISO. -Beast with its tail in its mouth, oq tympanum of doorway at PeumOQ Priory, Anglesey, connection with David ;^ the fox on Norman doorway at Alne, Yorkshire, with inscription ; the goat, with horns and beard, on capitals of columns of chancel-arch at Adel, and on jambs of doorway at Ely Cathedral ; cattle chiefly on Scotch crosses,^ and but rarely in Norman sculpture,^ except the ox at the Nativity. 1 At Mortlaoh, Shandwiok, Nigg, St. Andrew's, and Aldbar (see Stuart's Sculptured Stones). 2 Shandwiok, St. Vigeans, Meigle, Eassie, Abbotsford (see Stuart). 3 On doorway at Shobdon, Herefordshire ; font at Fincham, Nor- folk. THE MEDIAEVAL BBSTIAEIE8. 387 Birds. Birds appear frequently in early sculpture, but it is difficult to distinguish one species from another. Where a bird occurs in a hunting scene^ it may be presumed that a hawk is meant. The dove may be identified when it represents the Holy Spirit, or Noah's dove,^ or pairs of doves, drinking from a vase or peck- ing at grapes, as on the fonts at Winchester Cathedral and East Meon, Hants. On the Norman doorway at Alne, Yorkshire, we have an inscribed example of the eagle, and other representa- tions may be found amongst the symbols of the Four Evangel- ists. Birds in trees are sculptured on Norman tympana at Fig. 151. —Tree witti wild boaf on one side and a lion (?) on the other, on the tympanum at Aahford in Derbyshire. Stoke-sub-Hamdon, Somerset, at Lower Swell, Gloucestershire, and Little Langford, Wilts, on which the following descriptions from the bestiary may throw some light. The Tree which produces Birds that fall off tvhen they are ripe^ (Fr. I'arhre dont li oisel naisent foi's et chient jus quant it sont meur). — There is a tree growing by the sea-coast which brings 1 St. Andrews (Stuart, Sculptured Stones^ vol. i, pi. 61). 2 The raven leaving the Ark is not often represented in art ; a curious example will be found in .^Ifric's JBeptateUch in the British Museum (Claud. B. iv), where the raven is pecking out the eye of the head of a dead man, stuck upon the prow of the Ark. " Melanges, vol. ii, p. 216. cc2 388 THE MEDIiEVAL BESTIARIES. forth birds. When the birds grow they hang by their beaks until they are ripe and then fall off. Those which fall into the water live, but those which fall on the earth die. This signifies that those who are baptised with water will receive spiritual life, but those who do not will perish. The Tree of Life^ (Lat. perindex, peredexion ; Fr. arhre de Judie). — The tree called " peredexion" is found in India, and its fruit is very sweet. Doves live in its branches, and delight in eating the fruit. The dragon is the enemy of the doves, and is afraid of both the tree and its shadow, not daring to go near either. If the shadow falls from the west the dragon flees to the east, and vice versd. If the dove is found beyond the limits of the tree it is killed by the dragon. The tree is the Father Almighty ; the shadow is the Son. As Gabriel said to Mary (Luke i, 35), " The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee.'' The dove is the Holy Spirit ; the fruit of the tree, wisdom. As the Evangelist says (Matt, x, 16), " Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves"; harmless that you do no evil, wise that you be not caught by the dragon (i.e., the Devil) whilst straying beyond the Holy Church. Fish. The symbolism of the fish has been referred to in a previous lecture. The smaller inhabitants of the deep are not divided into species in the Bible, but merely referred to as fish ; the larger marine creatures are called in our version whales (Gen. i, 21); sea monsters (Lam. iv, 3) ; leviathans (Isaiah xvii, 1) ; and dragons (Ezekiel xxix, 3). I propose to class dragons amongst the fabulous creatures, since they are associated with imaginary animals in the bestiary, and the descriptions do not apply to any real kind of fish. Heptiles. All forms of reptiles are used to symbolise the power of evil. We have already referred to the serpent, and the followino- de- scription of the basilisk explains its representation with the ' Melanges, vol. iii, p. 283 ; Hippean, p. 177. THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. 389 head of a cock in the scene of Christ treading on the Asp and the Basilisk. The Basilisk^ (Fr. hasile coc).— The basilisk is hatched from the egg of a cock. When the cock has lived seven years an egg grows in its inside, and it suffers the greatest agony. It then Fig. 152.— Pair of fish reptiles, on sepuleliral stone at Meigle, Perthsliire. scratches a hole with its feet in which to lay the egg. The toad is of such a nature that it can tell by the scent the poison which the cock carries in its inside. The toad watches the cock, so that it cannot enter its nest without the toad seeing it, and when the cock goes to lay its egg the toad follows to find 1 Melanges, vol. ii, p. 213. 390 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. out whether the laying has taken place, because it is of such a nature that it takes the egg and hatches it. The animal which comes out of the egg has the head, neck, and breast of a cock, and the remainder of its body behind is like a serpent. As soon as this beast can it seeks out some secluded spot in an old cis- tern and hides itself so that no one can see it, for it is of such a nature that if a man sees it before it sees the man, then it will die, but if it sees the man first, then the man will die. Its poison proceeds from its eyes, and its gazeisso venomous that it kills birds who fly past it. This animal is king over all the other serpents, in the same way that the lion is king over all the other beasts. If it touches a tree it will lose its virtue and never bear fruit. If anyone wishes to kill the basilisk he must take a transparent crystal vase, and when the animal lifts its head its gaze is arrested by the crystal, and the venom thrown back, which causes its death. The basilisk signifies the Devil, that same Satan who deceived Adam and Eve in Paradise, and being expelled, was cast down into hell. Thus, for 4,000 years all who came from Adam were poisoned by him, and -would fall into the pit with the basilisk, that is, into hell with the Devil. The son of a king then was grieved that the beast was so venomous, and that it would kill everybody, so he determined that it should live no longer or do harm. Therefore the king placed his son in a vessel of the purest crystal, that is to say, that the Son of God entered the body of Our Lady, the Virgin Mary. When the basilisk looked on the vessel which contained the Son of God, his poison was arrested, and he became powerless to harm. When the son of the king, Jesus Christ, was laid in the sepulchre, he entered into the pit and took hence His friends whom the basilisk had fasci- nated and killed with his poison, that is to say, that God de- spoiled hell of those who love Him. II. — Fabulous Ceeatukes. The association of fabulous creatures with marine monsters has been explained by the text in Isaiah (xiii, 21), descriptive of the desolation of Babylon, which is quoted in the bestiary. The fabulous creatures found in early Christian art were copied THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAKIES. 391 from classical originals, and are composite beings, formed partly out of men and partly out of animals. Thus, the centaur is half a horse and half a man, the syren half a fish and half a man, or sometimes half a bird and half a woman. The chimera, a fire-breathing monster compounded from a lion, a goat, and a dragon, has also been utilised for purposes of Christian symbol- ism on the mosaic pavement at Aosta,^ and on the twelfth cen- tury sculptures at Geneva Cathedral,^ in both cases with an explanatory inscription. Another class of impossible beings which may be called mon- strous are made by the reduplication of limbs or bodies. Thus, on the font at Eownton, Yorkshire, and on the capitals of the columns of the chancel-arch at Steetly, Derbyshire, we see a beast with one head and two bodies.^ Sometimes, as on the fonts at Lincoln Cathedral and Hook Norton, Oxon, the tail of a beast is made to terminate in a serpent's head (see figs 136 and 139). In a bestiary MS. of the thirteenth century in the British Museum (Add., No. 11,283, fol. 8), a fabulous creature called the " Manticora" is illustrated, having the body of a beast and the head of a man. The manticora is first mentioned by the Greek writer, Ctesias* (b.c. 416) ; and Pliny^ gives the following description of it, taken from the earlier source. " Ctesias informs us that amongst the Ethiopians there is an animal found which he calls the mantichora; it has a triple row of teeth which fit into each other like those of a comb, and the face and ears of a man, and azure eyes ; is the colour of blood, has the body of a lion, and a tail ending in a sting like that of a scorpion, . . . and is particularly fond of human flesh." According to Ctesias, fiaprixopa is equivalent to avdpa3iro4>dyo<;, or man-eater, and Prof. Tychsen derives it from the Persian mardikhora, meaning the same thing.« An inscribed ' Didron, Annates ArcMologiques, vol. xvii, p. 389. 2 J. D. Blavignac's Hist, of Sacred Architecture, in the Bishoprics of Lausanne and Sion. 3 On the base of the Moone Abbey cross, co. Kildare, described in a previous lecture, there is a beast with one body and several heads. * See Ed. Charton, Voyageurs Amiens et Modernes, vol. i, p. 157. 5 Nat. Hist., book viii, chap.xxx ; Bohn's Classical Series, vol. ii, p. 280. 6 A. H. L. Heeren's Historical Researches into the Intercourse and Trade of the Principal Nations of Antiquity, vol. ii, p. 377. 392 THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. example of the manticora occurs ou the remarkable sculptured twelfth century bestiary at Souvigny in France, illustrated by De Caumont in his AlMdaire d' Archiologie, p. 273. Here the manticora wears a Phrygian cap, like the Magi and Three Children in the Fiery Furnace, in all cases to show their Eastern origin. The manticora is also to be seen on the Map of the World in Hereford Cathedral.^ Beasts with human heads are to be found on pre-Norman crosses in Scotland, at Gask, Dun- fallandy, and Rossie Priory in Perthshire,^ showing the full face ; and the most curious of all on the end of a sepulchral stone at Meigle^ in Perthshire, where the face is seen in profile with a Fig. 163. -Beast with human face, called the manticora, purBuing a man, on end of sepulchral stone at Meigle, Perthshire. long nose, and the beast is pursuing a naked man, thus corre- sponding exactly with the man-eating propensities of the manti- cora. The tail ending in a serpent's head will be noticed on the beast swallowing a man, on the cross from Woodwray* in Forfarshire, now at Abbotsford (see iig. 141). Other instances of this peculiarity have been already referred to on the font at Hook Norton and elsewhere. ' Reproduction in British Museum. '^ Stuart's Sculptured Stones of Scotland, vol. i, pis. 47 and 103 ; vol. ii, pi. 99. ' Proc. Soe. Ant. Scot., vol. xii, pi. 26. * Stuart, vol. i, pi. 99 ; also see cross at Forteviot, Perthshire, vol. i pi. 119. THE MEDIAEVAL BESTIARIES. 393 III.— Mystical Creatures. The following mystical creatures are mentioned in the Bible, and representations of most of them occur in Christian art. The four living creatures in the Vision of Ezekiel— the lion, bull, man, eagle. The four beasts in the First Vision of Daniel— the lion with eagle's wings ; the bear with three ribs in his mouth ; the leopard with four wings of a fowl, and four heads ; the beast with iron teeth and ten horns. The two beasts in the Second Vision of Daniel— the ram with two horns, one higher than the other ; the goat with a notable horn between the eyes (see fig. 90). The four beasts of the Apocalypse— the Hon, the calf, the man, and the eagle. The lamb with seven horns and seven eyes, that with the lion of the tribe of Judah opened the book with the seven seals in the Apocalypse. The beast of the Apocalypse, with seven heads and ten horns bearing crowns, like a leopard, with the feet of a bear and the mouth of a lion. On the fonts at Lincoln Cathedral, St. Michael's, Southampton, and St. Peter's, Ipswich, are friezes of animals, some of which appear to be intended for mystical creatures. At Southampton they are associated with the symbols of the Four Evangelists, and at Lincoln two of the beasts are resting on books. Conclusion. Looking back, now that our task is ended, upon the various outward manifestations of Christianity in material forms, the tievelopment of which we have traced from the dawn of religious life in Great Britain until our national art attained its highest perfection in the thirteenth century, what a vast and almost in- exhaustible field of archaeological research is opened out before our view ! We see a long series of Christian monuments, in- ferior to those of no other country, either as regards the quality of the art they exhibit or their value in supplementing and con- firming our knowledge of the progress of religion and culture. 394 THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAKIES. as derived from documents or printed books, yet at the present moment we are under the indelible disgrace of having made no attempt either to preserve these monuments for posterity, or to make use of them ourselves for scientific purposes. It seems to be generally supposed that the study of Archaeology is a dead thing with which we have no concern, but the present is so bound up in the past that it is impossible to understand either history or science if we neglect to learn the lesson taught us by the monuments. Archeology has therefore a very practical bearing on our material welfare and prosperity ; for although we, as one of the countries of the Old "World, stand at a great disad- vantage in many respects when competing with those of the New, there is at least one thing that enables us to outstep our rivals in producing objects of art (which I need hardly point out have a high commercial value), namely, the accumulated stores of knowledge in our libraries and museums. The special subject witli which we have been dealing is wholly ignored by those who are answerable for the management of our great public institutions. For instance, anyone whose sources of information were confined to the South Kensington Museum would conclude that Christian art was first introduced into this country at the time that the Gosforth cross' was erected in the ninth century, and that after that we lapsed into paganism until quite recently, when Mr. George Tinworth's bas-reliefs again popularised the religion which had so long fallen into decay. Perhaps when the craze for Japanese pots and spindle-legged furniture dies a natural death at South Kensington, the authori- ties of that establishment may condescend to turn their atten- tion to Christian art in Great Britain. 1 This is the only oast of a pre-Norman sculptured stone in the Museum. Note. — Since the above was written, two more oasts have been added • one of the cross at Irton in Cumberland, and the other of the cross at Kirk Braddan in the Isle of Man. These casts arc placed in one corner of a large room, filled with the most miscellaneous collection of objects it has ever been my lot to see brought together in a public museum. A clean sweep has been made of all the curios to be purchased in Persia in order to enrich South Kensington, and if other nations were to act on the same principle, the Shah would cart ofE all our Celtic crosses to Teheran, THE MEDIEVAL BESTIAEIES. 395 As a remedy for the present very deplorable state of things, I would suggest that a separate Museum of Christian Archisology should without delay be established, either at one of the Uni- versities or in some large city ; and I venture to think that the name of the founder of such an institution would be handed down to posterity amongst those of the most honoured of his fellow-countrymen. Fig. 154. Note on the Font at Castle Froonw, Herefordshire. — On p. 290 it is stated that, in the scene of the Baptism of Christ on the font at Castle Froome, the First and Second Persons only of the Trinity are represented. Since this was written I have had an opportunity of examining the sculpture on the font in question, and I find that the Three Persons of the Blessed Trinity are shown, the First as the Hand or Dextera Dei giving the benediction, the Second as our Lord being baptised in the River Jordan, and the Third as the Dove. St. John the Baptist has a maniple on his right arm, and there are four fish swimming in the water, both features of very exceptional occurrence. GENERAL INDEX. Abacus, 251 Acrostic, 121 Aidan, St., 80 Aldhelm, St., 244 Alfrid, 210 Anderson, Dr. J., 334 Aroosolia, 12 Art, styles of, 10, 19, 40 Ass, feast of, 221, 301 Augustine, St., landing of, 71 Bede, Venerable, 71, 185 Belt-clasps, Burgundian, 56 Berechtuire, St., 84 Bestiaries, 334 ; origin of, 335 ; mistakes in, 335 ; MSS. and texts of, 338 ; illustrations of, 340 ; subjects from, at Bourges, 341 ; at Tours, Le Mans, and Lyons, 344 ; at Alue, 347 ; ani- mals identified by Zodiac and scenes from Scripture, 357 ; subjects on Celtic crosses and Norman sculp- ture, 360 ; beasts, 381 ; birds, 387 ; fish, 388 ; reptiles, 388 ; fabulous creatures, 390 ; monstrous creatures, 391 ; mystical creatures, 393 Bihlia Pauperunif 151 Biscop, Benedict, 185, 209 Book-covers, ivory, 62 Brendan, St., 336 Browne, Rev. Q. F., rubbings by, 193, 194, 197, 317, 318 Cadoc, St., 81 Canute, King, 59, 242 Casket, ivory, 63 ; Franks, 198 Catacombs, 11 ; origin of name and position of, 11 ; e.xtent and construc- tion of, 12 ; excavators of, 13 ; cease to be private property, 13 ; evidence as to age of, 14; history of, 14; crypts of the Vatican and St. Paul's extra Muros, 15 ; Cemeteries of Domi- tilla, the Ostrianum, St. Hermes, Maximus, the Jordani, Pretextatus, and Callistus, 15 ; removal of the relics from, 17 ; rediscovery of, 17; symbolism of paintings in, 20 ; sub- jects of paintings, 20 ; arrangement of subjects, 24 ; books on, 26 Celtic, monuments, 77 ; church, tonsure and keeping of Easter, 78 Ceolfrid, 209, 242 Chairs, episcopal, 65 Charles the Bald, psalter of, 58 Christianity, first introduced into Great Britain, 71 ; into Ireland, 79 ; into Scotland, 80 ; into Northumbria, 80 ; into Wales, 81 Chrysostom, St., 71 Ciaran, St., 106 Cingius, 336 Colman, 108 Columba, St., 80 ; cross of, 227 ; psalter of, 227 Columban, 108 Combs, ivory, 64 Crosses, pre-Norman, characteristic of, 83, 101 ; dated examples of, 84 ; formulae of inscriptions on, 102 ; in Ireland, 130 ; called high crosses or crosses of the Scriptures, 133 ; use terminal, dedicatory, or memorial, 133 ; at Monasterboice, 134 ; subjects on heads of, 135 ; scheme of decora- tion of, 185 ; subjects on shafts of, at Moore Abbey, 216 ; at Kells, 227 ; subjects on bases of, 229 Cross of Mayence, 210 Crucifixes, ivory, 65 Ctesias, 391 Cuniguuda, casket of, 59 Cybi, St., 81 Damasus, Pope, 15 Daniel, 112 David, St., 81 ; at Llandewi Brefi, 105 Dedication stones, 93, 243 Didron, M. A. N., 182 Diptychs, ivory, 60 Donfrid, 123 Doors, of churches, 66 Doorways, Norman, 251 Dubricius, St., 80 INDEX. 397 Easterwine, 209 Edward the Confessor, 236 Egfrid, King, 94 Fiaoraich, St., 84, 112 Fire-dogs, in S. K. Mus., 213 Flabella, ivory, 64 Fland, King, cross of, 136 Fonts, Norman, 286 FuriuB Dionysius, almanack of, 14 Galla Placidia, chapel of, 35 ; coins of, 73 Germanus, St., of Auxerre, 79 Gildas, 71, 81 Gilded glass vessels from the catacombs, construction of, 27 ; inscriptions on, 28 ; arrangement of subjects on, 29 ; subjects on, 30 ; Podgoritza plate, 31 ; books on, 32 Gislebert, tympanum of, at Autun, 176 Gistubar, 207 Glaber, Kanulphus, 242 Gnostics, 188 Godiva, 242 Golden Legend, 279 Gospels, see MSS. Gundulph, Bishop, 248 Gunhilda, cross of, 59 Gregory, St., 51 Headstones, Saxon, 124 Herbal, Saxon, see MSS. Hercules, 207 Herebert, St., comb of, 64 Hermes Kriophorus, 20 Hexameron, The, 337 Hilary, St., 79 Howel ap Rhys, cross of, 84 Iltutus, St., 81 Itineraries, for pilgrims to the catacombs, 14 Ivories, objects made of, 57 ; Anglo- Saxon, Irish, and Scandinavian, 59 ; diptychs, 60 ; triptychs, 62 ; book- covers, 62 ; caskets, 63 ; pyxes, 63 situlse, 64; combs, 64 ; flabella, 64 pastoral staves, 64 ; paxes, 64 episcopal chairs, 65 ; images, 65 crucifixes, 65 ; collections of, 65 books on, 65 ; casts of, at South Kensington, 148 ; situla belonging to Mr. Attenborough, 307 Jerome, St., 71 Junius Bassus, see sarcophagi Lamps, with Christian subjects, 50 Land, Prof. J. P. N., 337 Lanfranc, 237 ' Leofric, 242 Liher Pontificalis, 1 4 Lintel, 251 Lupus, St., comb of, 64, 79 Macrobius, 336 Maniple of Frithestan, 165 Manuscripts, 68 Gospels, Syriac at Florence, 141 ; Irish, at St. Gall, 142, 171 ; at Wurtz- burg, 142 ; at Stockholm, 175 ; at Treves, 175, 267 ; of Armagh, 118, 268 ; of Durrow, 383 ; of Kells, 170, 202, 268, 313 ; of St. Chad, 169, 175; of MacDurnan, 175 ; of Lindisfarne, 168, 175 ; of Durham, 146 ; Saxon, at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, 299, 301, 302, 306; Otfrid's Para- phrase of the Gospels at Vienna, 301 ; Lombardic lessons from the Gospels in the Bodleian, 304 Apocalypse : Spanish, B. M. (Add. 11,695), 234 ; in Bodleian, 259 Psalters : Irish, at St. John's Col- lege, Cambridge, 142, 206, 384 ; in B. M. (Vit. F.xi), 150, 152 ; Saxon in University Library at Cambridge, 150, 384 ; at Boulogne, 157, 296, 309, 312, 313, 383 ; at Utrecht, 165, 206 ; in B. M. (Galba, A. xviii), 173; (Tib. D. xxvii), 157 ; (Tib. C. vi), 150, 153, 167, 206, 228, 273, 280, 294,301, 307, 309, 312; (Vesp. A. i), 175, 206, 383; (Harl. 2,904), 159; (Arund. 60), 141, 160; English twelfth cent., B. M. (Nero, C. iv), 153, 279, 280, 291, 301, 304, 306, 314 ; thirteenth cent. (Arund. 83) 168 ; (Arund. 157), 168, 294, 304 ; (1 D. x), 304 ; Greek, a.d. 1066 (Add. 19,352), 152, 206, 313 ; Saxon ComTnentary on the Psalms, by Cassiodorus, at Durham, 175, 206 Old Testament : jElfrio's Saxon Heptateuch, B. M. (Claud. B. iv), 166, 186, 191, 194, 200, 233, 296,385, 387; Ciedmon's Saxon Paraphrase of the Scriptures, in the Bodleian, 186, 195, 200, 280 Benedictionals, Saxon : of .(Ethel- wold, 167, 175, 196, 246, 296, 301, 313 ; of ^thelgar, 313 Missal, Saxon : of Archbishop Robert at Rouen, 196, 309, 312 Calendars, Saxon, B. M. (Julius A. vi), 295, 321 (Tib. B. v), 295, 321 Aratus, Saxon, B. M. (Tib. B. v), 157 Prudentius, Saxon, B. M. (Add. 24,199), 210; (Tit. D. xvi), 210; 277 Donation of Edgar, Saxon, B. M. (Vesp. A. viii), 246 Herbal, Saxon, of Apuleius, B. M. (Harl. 1795), 379 398 INDEX. LOxr S. Isidori, Irish, at Baale, 383 Hortus Bdiciarum, twelfth cent., formerly at Strasbourg, 267, 368 Martin, St., 80 Martyrologies, 14 Maximianus, ohSir of, 65 Medard, St., 69 Mehsenda, 63 Mosaics, 39 ; list of examples and sub- jects, 40 ; position of, in churches, 46 ; symbolism of, 47 ; arrangement of subjects, 48 ; books on, 49 Muiredach, cross of, 135 Mystery plays, 279 Naiton, King of the Picts, 242 Nebrot, 336 Neckham, Alexander, 323 Ninian, St., 80 Oil-vessels, holy, use of, 51 ; at Monza, 51 ; inscriptions on, 52 ; arrangement of subjects on, 52 ; subjects on, 53 Oswald, St., 80 Ovid, 336 Fainter' s Guide from Mount Atkos, 183 Pastoral staff, ivory, 64 Patrick, St., 79 ; cross of, 227 Paulinus, St., 81 Pavements, Roman, 74) 76 Paxes, ivory, 64 Peg-tankard, at Oxford, 213 Pelagius, St., 71 Peter, St., monuments dedicated to, 90, 103 Piers Ploughman, 279 Pliny, doves of, 40 ; Nat. Hist., 21, 286 Powder horns, Scandinavian, 213 Psalter, Qallican, 79 Purgatory, 279 Pyxes, ivory, 63 Rabula, Gospels of ; See MSS. Rambona, diptych of, 62 Richard of Hexham, 243 Samson, St., of Dol, 81 Samson, cross of, 84 Sarcophagi, sculptured: — Egyptian, 32 ; method of manufacture of, 33 ; arrangement of subjects on, 34 ; sar- cophagus of Junius BasBus, 35 ; localities where sarcophagi exist, 35 ; subjects on, 37 ; relative frequency of occurrence of subjects on, 37 ; in- scriptions on, 39 ; books on, 39; Roman sarcophagus at Westminster, 72 ; Celtic sarcophagus at Govan, 129 Sculpture, Norman, 236 ; on details of Celtic churches, 237 ; on details of Saxon churches, 240 ; on details of churches of eleventh cent., 247 ; on details of churches of twelfth cent., 249 ; on Norman tympana, 253 ; on Norman fonts, 286 ; on Norman door- ways, 330 ; chancel arches, 331 ; caps, of columns, 332 ; slabs built into walls, 232 ; sepulchral slabs, 333 Sepulchral monuments, Celtic classifica- tion of, 82 : geographical distribution of, 83 ; inscriptions on, 84 Sepulchral slabs at Clonmacnois, 106 ; dated examples, 107 ; earliest inscrip- tion, 108 ; forms of crosses on, 108 Sepulchral hog- backed recumbent monu- ments, 125 Shrine, of the Stowe Missal, 151 ; of St. Moedog, 151, 171 Speculum Humance SalvationiB, 151 Suibine, 84, 109 Sun-dial, Saxon, 246, 320 Symbolism, definition of, 1 ; classifica- tion of subjects available for purposes of, 2; survival of archaic forms of, 192, 212 Symbols, Christian, survival and extinc- tion of, 4 ; methods of deciphering meaning of, 5 ; cannot be interpreted with reference to modern ideas, 6 ; explanation to be sought in contem- porary MSS. and literature, 7; classifi- cation of structures and objects on which symbols occur, 8 ; reasons for symbols being applied to different objects, structures and monuments at different periods, 9 Teilo, St., 80 Theodolinda, 51 Tombstones, eighteenth cent., at Logierait, 192, 212 Triptyohs, ivory, 62 Tympana, 252 ; Norman, 258 Valerius Amaudinus, sarcophagus of, 72 "Villa, Roman, 77 Wall-paintings, 148, 176, 179 Water-vessels, holy, inscriptions on, 54 ; from Tunis, 54 ; Miannay, 55 ; Long Whittenham, 55 ; subjects on, 55 ; books on, 55 Wilfrid, St., 241 INDEX. 399 INDEX OF SUBJECTS OCCUEPJNG IN CHRISTIAN AET. Note.— Tim numbers marked with an asterisk show the page on which the subject is specially described in detail. Abbreviations, see Christ, 113 Abel, offering of, 37, 42, 43; murder of, 344 Abraham, and Melchiaedeo, 42, 43, 302; entertaining the three men in the plains of Mamre, 43 ; sacrificing Isaac, 20, 29, 30, 87, 43, 208,* 218, 228, 284, 344; Isaac carrying wood, 209 ; chop- ping wood, 210 Acrostic, see Fish, symbol, 121 Adam and Eve, creation of, 37 ; tempta- tion of, 20, 29, 31, 32, 37, 55, 69, 185,* 217, 228, 231, 284, 286, 331, 332, 333; expulsion from Paradise, 193, 228, 286, 332 ; condemned to work, 37, 286, 332 ; at the last judgment, 179; at the harrowing of hell, 280 ; com- pared to the elephant, 379 ^sop's fables, 333 Agatha, St., 45 Agnes, St., 30, 44 Agniferus, 257 Agnus Dei, with shepherd's crook and milk pail, 258 ; on Mount Zion with the four rivers of Paradise, 30, 35, 37, 42, 45, 54; with the nimbus, 42 ; en- throned, with cross, 41, 45; with cross or Chi-Rho monogram on forehead, 139 ; carrying cross, 139 ; placed on cross, 139 ; crucifixion developed out of, 139 ; associated with beasts, 254*; variations of, 258 ; as a ram, 259 ; with seven horns and seven eyes, 261; performing miracles, 36 ; on Irish crosses, 228 ; in Norman sculpture, 330, 333 ; on pastoral staves, 64, 259 Ahab, 230 Alexander, ascent of, 285 Alpha and Omega, 23, 42, 65, 77, 116* 148, 166, 263, 309 Altar, see Sacrifice of Isaac Amphora, 23 Ananias and Sapphira, 163 Anaatasis, see harrowing of hell Anchor, 22 Angels, supporting aureole, 49, 173, 246; at crucifixion, 144, 308 ; of victory, 144 ; blowing trumpets, 173 ; at last judgment, 177 Anne, St., 30 Anthony, St., the hermit, breaking bread in the desert, 224 ; meeting a cen- taur, 366 Apocalypse, scenes from, see Agnus Dei, symbols of the four evangelists. Alpha and Omega, Christ in glory, Christ's second advent, last judg- ment, St. Michael and the dragon, St. Michael weighing souls, heavenly Jerusalem, the Devil bound, etc. Apocryphal subjects, see Susanna and the elders, Tobit and the fish, Daniel and the dragon, Habakkuk, harrow- ing of hell, fall of the idols, etc. ApoUinaris, St., 42 Apostles, 29, 30, 42, 43, 45, 52, 173, 185, 218, 304, 314,* 331 Archangel, see St. Michael Archbishop's croziers, 319 Ark, see Noah Asaph, see David Asp, see Christ Aspido-chelone, 354'" Abs, 357, 386 Aureole, earliest instance of, 174 ; circu- lar, enclosing cross, 43, or bust of Christ, 63; oval, enclosing full length figure of Christ, 53 ; vesica-shaped, enclosing figure of Christ, 262, or the devil, 174 Axe, man with, 322, 327 ; centaur with, 367; beasts with, 376 Babylon, destruction of, 231 ; desolation of, 390 Balance, 180 Banner, 259, 271 Baptism, rite of, 292 Basilisk, 357, 389* Bear, 357, 386, 393 Beasts, 381 ; swallowing or disgorging man, 178, 372 ; holding human head in its mouth, 373 ; one on each side of man, 285 ; with human bodies and animals' heads on each side of man, 221 ; with tail ending in serpent's head, 392 ; with one head and two bodies, 391 ; with one body and many 400 INDEX. heads, 391 ; with human face and body of an animal, 391 Bell-ringer, 323* Bethlehem and Jerusalem, with sheep issuing from gates of, 30, 41 to 45 Birds, 144, 308, 387 ; holding circular disc or loaf between two ecclesiastics, 224 Bishop, 319, 333 Blacksmith, 200 Boar, wild, 386 Books of Gospels, 267 Bull, 228, 358, 386, 393 Cain, see Abel Caladriua, 344, 352* Calf, 358 CaUistus, St., 30 Camel, 358, 385 Candlesticks of Jews, 31 ; of the Apoca- lypse, 41 Caps, Phrygian, 53, 197, 216, 392 ; painted in scene of raising of Lazarus, 300 Caricature, blasphemous, of Christ, 139 Cart, see Chariot Cave, see Nativity Cecilia, St., 45 Centaur, 234 ; with spear, 332, 360,* 391 Chariot, 229* Chase, see Hunting scenes Chasuble, 319 Cherubim, 277 Children, three, in fiery furnace, 21, 29, 37, 213,* 228 Chimera, 391 Chiron, 364 Chi-Rho monogram, 23, 55, 75,* 77, 86; various forms of, 91 ; earliest instance of, 91 ; over doorways, 238, 276 Choirs, of martyrs, etc., 173 Christ, as Orpheus, 20 ; as the Good Shepherd, 25, 37, 61, 54 ; as a man, 29, 30, 42, 43, 45, 53 ; see also Agnus Dei ; Chi-Rho monogram and cross ; in Glory, 44, 45, 168,* 227, 246, 262*; at the last judgment, 176 ; second advent of, 173 ; showing His wounds, 59, 297 ; treading on the asp and basi- lisk, 51, 274* ; treading on the serpent, 55, 275 ; bruising the serpent's head, 276*; overcoming the dragon with a crozier, 318 ; IHO, xps, and xpi abbre- viations of name of, 113*; dns, dm, DNO abbreviations of title of, 104 ; seated on globe, 42 scenes from the life of; — nativity, 38, 52, 295* ; with washing after birth, 296; adoration of the Magi, 21, 38, 43, 52, 53, 59, 195*, 198, 295, 296*; angel and shepherds, 53; Herod and the Magi, 21 ; presentation in the Temple, 41 ; flight into Egypt, 220,* 295; massacre of the Innocents,38,296, 296* ; baptism of, 38, 43, 52, 55, 231, 286*; temptation of, 70, 312* ; giving keys to St. Peter, 38, 284, 295, 312*; and woman of Samaria, 21, 38; trans- figuration of, 43, 168*; anointed by Mary Magdalene, 332 ; entry into Jerusalem, 38, 284, 301 ■ Miracles of, 44 ; Cana, 21, 30, 38, 55 ; healing paralytic, 21, 29, 31, 38 ; demoniac, 359; hsmorissa, 38 ; blind, 21, 38 ; raising Lazarus, 21, 24, 29, 31, 32, 38, 298,* 332 ; Jairus's daughter, 38, 241 ; calming the wind and sea, 21; draught of fishes, 122; loaves and fishes, 21, 24, 31, 38, 225,* 228 Parable of : — wise and foolish vir- gins, 21 Scenes from the passion of : — covenant of Judas with the Jews, 302; washing disciples' feet, 38, 302, 306*; last supper, 295, 302* ; agony in Gethsemane, 161 ; betrayal, 38; seized by the Jews, 200* ; led away to Caia- phaa, 70 ; denial of St. Peter, 38 ; apprehension of St. Peter, 38 ; before Pilate, 38 ; crowned with thorns, 38 ; carrying cross, 38, 344 Crucifixion, 52, 53, 138* ; in Byzan- tine art, 141 ; Celtic art, 142 ; Irish type of, 144 ; Scotch type of, 149 ; Welsh type of, 155 ; Cornish type of, 148 ; details of, 156 ; in Nor- man sculpture, 284, 295, 344 ; de- scent from the Cross, 307*; soldiers watching sepulchre, 38, 216 ; harrow- ing of hell, 278,* 333 ; resurrection, 52 ; Maries at the sepulchre, 52, 63, 296, 311*; supper at Emmaus, 306, 333; incredulity of St. Thomas, 306; feast on the shores of the lake of Tiberias, 306 ; charge to St. Peter, 312 ; Ascension, 52, 168*; descent of the Holy Ghost, 312 Church, as a woman, 23 ; personified as Ecclesia, 277 ; model of, held by patron saint, 41, 44, 45 ; and synagogue, see Bethlehem and Jerusalem ; as a beast with heads, 267 ; as a building, 282 Ciprianus, St., 30 Classis, city of, 43 Cock, 343, 358 Cosmas, St., 41 Cow, 386 Creation, see Adam and Eve Creatures, fabulous, 390 ; monstrous, 391 ; mystical, 393 Crocodile, 371* Cross, 37; onmosaics, 42, 44; ouRomau sarcophagus, 73 ; on Roman pave- INDEX. 401 ments, 76 ; developed out of Chi-Rho monogram, 94 ; on inscribed pillar stones, 98 ; on uninscribed pillar stones, 100; on pillar stones with minuscule inscriptions, 105 ; on Celtic sepulchral slabs, 109; over Celtic door- ways, 238 ; over Norman doorways, 253*; of the Resurrection, 258 , Damianus, St., 41 Damned, tortures of, 177, 333 Dancing woman, 328* Daniel, feeding the dragon, 31, 37, 219; in the lion's den, 21, 31, 32, 37, 55, 66, 58, 218,* 228, 284, 333 ; Habak- kuk bringing food to, 37, 55, 56; with Habakkuk lifted up by the hair of his head, 55 ; and Darius, 220 David, King, 62, 241 ; scenes from life of, 69 ; anointed by Samuel, 63, 152, 207 ; slaying the lion, 63, 203,* 274, 284, 331 ; killing GoUath, 21, 63, 207; playing the harp, 63, 160,* 228 Dead, resurrection of, 177 Death, personified, 279 Deer, see Stag DevU, 177 ; bound, 281 Dextera Dei, 23, 37, 160* ; scenes in which it occurs, 161 Digging, see Adam and Eve -Disc, circular, see Birds Dog, 386 Dolphin, 22, 39 Doves, 22 ; pair of, drinking from vase, 35, 333, 358, 387 ; in tree of life, 387 Dragon, 366,* 359; and elephant, 378 ; and tree of life, 387 ; and panther, 350, see also Daniel, St. Michael, St. George, St. Margaret, and Alexander Eagle, 344,* 359, 393; holding fish, 268 Ecclesiastics, 284, 318,* 330 ; with cro- ziers, 254 Ecclesius, 42 Elders,four-and-twenty of Apocalypse,45 Elephant, 378,* 386 Elijah, fed by the raven, 230 ; raising the widow's son, 344 ; ascent of, 230 Elizabeth, see Mary, salutation Ephraim preferred to Manasseh, 344 Ethan, see David Evangelists, four, as men with symbols, 42 ; as rivers of paradise, 30; as sym- boUc beasts, 41, 43 to 45, 255, 264,* 330, 393 Eve, see Adam Eucharistic symbols, 302 Feasts, 28 Felicianus, St., 44 Felix, Pope, 41 Fiery Furnace, see Children Fish, 22, 30, 120,* 234; at Last Supper, 304, 359, 388 Fossor, 23 Fountain, mystic, 69 Fowl, 393 Fox, 348,* 386 Gabriel, see Mary, annunciation Gentiles, see Jews George, St., and dragon, 269* ; and Pagans, 270 Gervasius, St., 42 Gideon, 344 Goat, 359, 380,* 386, 393 God the Father, as a Man, 37 ; as the Dextera Dei, 160 ; as Christ, 168 Goliath, see David Good and Evil, contest between, 269* Grapes, carried by spies, 31, 38, 61, 291; doves pecking at, 387 ; on mosaics, 40 Gregory, St., 62 Griffin, 285, 370* Habakkuk, see Daniel Hand symbol, see Dextera Dei Harp, see David Hatchet, see Axe Hawk, 387 Heaven, gates of, 178 Heavens, personified, 36 Hedgehog, 337 Hell, harrowing of, 278 ; mouth of, 178, 280, 307 Heman, see David Hermits, 177 Herod, see Christ, massacre of inno- cents Herodias' daughter, 328 Hippolytus, St., 30, 42 Holy Ghost, see Christ, descent of Holy Ghost Honorius, Pope, 44 Horn, 152 Horse, 359, 386 Hunting scenes, 31, 284, 331, 387 Hy^na, 361,* 384 Hydra, 371 Idols, fall of, 221 _ Implements, used in trades, 24 Isaac, see Abraham Isaiah, prophet, 29, 42 James, St., 46 Jeduthun, see David Jeremiah, prophet, 42 Jerusalem, destruction of, 59 ; flight of Jews from, 198 ; see also Bethlehem Jesus, see Christ D D 402 INDEX. Jews, 30, 42 ; candlesticks of, 30 ; fly- ing from Jerusalem, 198 John, St., see Evangelists John, St., Baptist, decapitation of, 54 ; see Christ, baptism Jonah, story of, 21, 24, 31, 32, 37, 51, 58, 341, 344 Jordan, river, 30, 287 Joseph, story of, 58 Joseph, St., see Christ, nativity Joseph of Arimathfea, see Christ, de- scent from Cross Judas, 30, see Christ Judgment, last, 168 Key, see Peter Labarum, of Constantine, 75 Lamb, see Agnus Dei Laurence, St., 30, 42 ; martyrdom of, 317 Law, tables of, see Moses ; rolls of, 31 Lazarus, see Christ Leviathan, 388 Libernica, St., 30 Limbus, 207 Lion, 242,* 255, 344, 359, 381, 393 Loke, 280 Longinus, 141 Luke, St., 30, 170 Luna, see Sol Magi, see Christ Mandragora, 379* Manger, see Christ, nativity Maniple, 319 Manna, fall of, 38 Manticora, 391 Marcellinus, St., 28, 30 Marcial, St., 317 Margaret, St., 317 Maries, three, see Christ Mark, St., see Evangelists Marriage, rite of, 31 Martyrdoms, 317 Mary, St., the Blessed Virgin, 23, 29, 44, 173, 185 ; and Child, 21, 45, 46, 70, 283* ; annunciation, 41, 52, 55 ; salutation, 52 ; coronaiaon of, 282* Mary Magdalen, see Christ Matthew, see Evangelists Medallion, circular, see Aureole, 42 Melchisedec, see Abraham Mennas, St., 53, 63 Mercy, acts of, 63 Mermaid, see Syren Michael, St., weighing souls, 179* ; and dragon, 271,* 330 ; carrying a soul to heaven, 272, 333 ' Miracles, see Christ Mirror, see Syren, and Tiger Mitre, 319 Monkey, 384 Monogram, of Maxinlian, 43 ; of Pope Paschal, 45 ; see Chi-Rho Monsters, sea, 388 Months, 320 Mora, game of, see Crucifixion Moses, at burning bush, 20, 37, 42, 191, 344 ; receiving the law, 37 ; striking rock, 20, 24, 29, 30, 37, 344 ; and brazen serpent, 29, 30, 344 ; as St, Peter striking rook, 30, 32 ; and Elias at transfiguration, 175 Mount Zion, see Agnus Dei Myrrhophores, see Christ Nicholas, St., 316 Nicodemus, see Christ, descent from Cross, 309 Nimbus, cruciferous, 53 ; absence of, on Irish crosses, 174 ; with small crosses, 269 ; in shape of cross, without circle, 300 Noah, building the ark, 832 ; in the ark, 20, 24, 37, 231* Offerings, see Cain, and Melchisedec Olive branch, 22 Onocentaur, see Centaur Oranti, 23, 29, 54, 57, 127* Orpheus, see Christ Ostrich, imprisoned in vase by Solomon, 279 Ox, 359 Palm, branch, 33, 54 ; tree, 45 Panther, 349,* 384 Parable, see Christ Paradise, see Adam, Agnus Dei, and Elephant Parents, first, 177 Paschal, Pope, 45 Pastoral Staff, see Crozier Paul, St., Apostle, 28, 30, 37, 41, 42, 44, 331 , Hermit, 224, 366 Peacocks, 22 ; pair of, drinking from vase, 54 Pelagius, St., 42 Pelican, 341, 344* Personifications, see Church, Rivers, etc. Peter, St., 21, 30, 37, 41, 42, 44, 173, see Moses strildng rock ; raising Tabitha, 38 ; with key, 246, 284, 314, 319, 331 ; martyrdom of, 317 Pharaoh, see Red Sea Phoenix, 30, 42, 46, 144, 337, 346* Pilate, see Christ Pincers, pair of, 154, 309, 310 Prayer, ancient attitude of, see Oranti Primus, St., 42 Protasius, St., 44 INDEX. 403 Quails, fall of, 88 Rainbow, 264 Ram, 359, 386, 393 Raven, 359, 387 Ravenna, city of, 44 Rebuses, 24 Red Sea, passage of, 37, 230 Reparatus, Archbishop, 43 Reptiles, 388 Resurrection, see Christ Reversed figures, 328* Rings, 313 Rivers, of Paradise, see Agnus Dei ; personifications of, 287 Rod, of power, 31, 299 Romulus and Remus, 198 Sacrament, see Eucharist Sacrifice, see Isaac, Cain, etc. Sagittarius, 255, 362* Saints, 28, 30, 44, 316* Samson and lion, see David Samuel, see David Sandals, 307 Satan, see Devil Saul, see David Scales, see Balances Sceptre, floriated 170 Sea monsters, see Monsters Seasons, 320* Sepulchre, see Christ Serpent, 255, 275, 331, 375* Serra, 369* Sheep, 22, 359, 386 Shepherds, see Christ Ship, 24 Shrine, 126, 135 Simon, St., 30 Sixtus, St., 30 Skull, at foot of Cross, 148 Sling, see David Smith, see Blacksmith Snake, see Serpent Sol and Luna, 53, 156,* 280, 310 Soldiers, see Warriors Solomon, see Ostrich Soul, 272, 307, 333 Spade, 194 Spies, carrying bunch of grapes, 31, 38, 51, 291 Spinning, 194 Staff, see Crozier Stag, 54, 129, 234, 374,* 386 Star, see Christ, adoration of Magi Stephaton, 148 Stole, 319 Stephen, St., 42 ; martyrdom of, 38, 163 Susanna and the elders, 22, 32 Swastica, 96 Swine, 359 Symmachus, 44 Synagogue, see Church Syren, 360,* 391 Tabitha, see Peter Tau Cross, 97, 248 ; headed staff, 319 Temple, see Christ, temptation Terrebolem, 353* Tetramorph, 267 Theodora, Empress, 42 Theodore, St., 41 Thieves, see Christ, crucifixion Throne, 43, 217, 222* Tiger, 380* Timoihy, St., 30 Titus and the Jews, 198 Tobit, 30 Tree, 284 ; of knowledge, 190 ; with beasts on each side, 387 ; which pro- duces birds, 387 ; of life, 356, 388* Trinity, 290 Trumpet, 173, 177 Tubal Cain, 200 Tunic of Christ, 141, 291 ; strewn on ground, 302 Turtle-doves, 359 Unicorn, 344* Vase, 54 Venantius, St., 44 Vincent, St., 30 Vine, 54 Vintage scenes, 54 Viper, see Serpent Virtues and vices, 277* Vitalis, St., 42 Warrior, 234, 330 Weland, 200 Well, 23 ; see also Christ and woman of Samaria Whale, 354,* 388 Wheel, 265 Whip, 301 Wine-jar, see Amphora Wolf, 22 World, personified, 314 Zaocheus, see Christ, entry into Jeru- salem Zion, Mount, see Agnus Dei Zodiac, 320, 330 ; Irish, 358 404 INDEX. INDEX OF PLACES. Abbotsford, see Woodwray Adel, 124, 250, 259, 262, 289, 309, 310, 331,363, 380,386 Aghadoe, 64 AgUsh, 95 Aldborough, 242 Aldhar, 151, 223, 385 Alexandria, 53 Alne, 256, 330, 368, 386, 387 Alnmouth, 156 Amalfi, 66 Amboise, 328 Ammergau, Ober, 302 Andrews, St., 205, 299, 386, 387 Angouleme, 273 Antiooh, 270 Antrim, 238 Aosta, 60, 323, 385, 391 Apamea, 233 Ardboe, 134, 186, 210 Ardoileau, 238 Aries, 35, 53, 71, 230 Armagh, 134 Arnex, 56 AsMord, 285 Aston, 254, 259 Aston Eyre, 302, 386 Athos, Mt., 173, 186 Augsburg, 66, 162, 364 Ault-Hucknall, 274, 285, 366 Austerfield, 285 Autun, 54, 156, 323 Auzon, 198 Avebury, 275, 318 Aycliffe, 156, 317 Bakewell, 162, 268 Bale, 258, 285, 323, 368 Ballinahunt, 97 Ballintaggart, 98 Ballintarmon, 98 Ballymorereagh, 97 Balme, 57 Barfreston, 250, 328, 330 Bari, 67 Barnack, 241 Barton-le-Street, 256, 274, 330, 331 368 Barton Seagrave, 249 Battersea, 77 Bayeux, 165, 237 Beauvais, 221 Beckford, 253, 261, 280, ^32, 365. Bees, St., 274, 331 BeltoD, 320, 323, 384 Benoit-sur- Loire, 162, 211 Benvenuto, 67 BerUn, 64, 148, 299, 306 Bewcastle, 85, 261 Billing, Little, 252 Billingham, 118 Bishop Auckland, 164 Bishops Teignton, 285 Bishopston, 333 Bishop Wflton, 319, 330, 363, 368 Blye, 56 Bofflens, 56 Bologna, 318 Bolsover, 284, 308 Boscherville, 327, 328 Boston, 368 Bourges, 209, 300, 316, 341, 323 Bradbourue, 330, 156 Bradford-on Avon, 243, 245 Bramber, 248 Brandon, Mt., 97 Brayton, 256, 315, 330, 331 Brechin, 119, 148, 238, 385 Brescia, 58, 219, 298 Bressay, 373 Bretforton, 316 Bridekirk, 287, 365 Bridell, 98 Bridge, 284 Bridlington, 333 Brighton, 289, 304, 305, 316, 319 Brinsop, 269, 323 Bristol, 247, 368 Britford, 243 Brixworth, 241 Brompton, 126, 386 Brookland, 321 Brunswick, 60 Brussels, 59 Burnham, Deepdale, 323 Cairo, 67, 271, 287, 296, 301, 304 Caistor, 249, 331, 375 Calcuth, 243 Caldy Island, 97 Calf of Man, 143 Cambridge, 59, 124, 142,247, 368 Cammin, 59 Camuston, 149 Canterbury, 79 Castle Dermot, 134, 151, 186, 210, 224, 225, 228 Castle Froome, 268, 290, 395 Caton, 284 Catterick Bridge, 77 INDEX. 405 Chaldon, 176, 179, 281 Charney, 285 Chartres, 257, 287 Chauvigny, 181 Chedworth, 77 Chichester, 247, 299, 368 Cividale, 64, 196, 265 Clifee, St. Margaret at, 331 Clonard, 297 Clones, 134 Clonmaonois, 84, 134, 136, 151 Cluny, 323 Coleshill, 308 CoUingham, 85 Cologne, 27, 64, 67 Colossa, 271 Coningsburgh, 270, 274, 332 Constantinople, 46, 54, 139, 268 Copenhagen, 59 Corbridge, 77 Cormao's Chapel, 249, 285, 364, 383 Cotham, 190, 194, 286, 317 Cortona, 273 Coventry, 242 Covington, 371 Cowlam, 190, 193, 196, 286, 295, 296 Craigen target, 96 Crail, 223 ' Cross Canonby, 124 Daglingworth, 157, 245, 315 Dalmeuy, 250, 256, 330 Darenth, 286, 292, 364, 384 Deerhurst, 241, 242, 252 Dinton, 273, 284, 285 Doclea, see Podgoritza Dol, 81 Donoghmore, 148, 238 Dorchester, 315 Down, St. Mary, 285 Drumcliff, 134, 186 Drumconwell, 97 Drumkeare, 98 Dublin, 26, 144 Duddiugston, 308, 331 Dugoed, 95 Dunfallandy, 154, 223, 371, 373, 392 Dunkeld, Little, 192 Duukeswell, 319 Dupplin Castle, 151 Durham, 146, 165, 260, 315, 374 Durrow, 134, 228, 358 Echallens, 57 Edinburgh, 26 Edrens, St., 116 Edstastou, 250 Egleton, 253, 285 Eilean-na-Naimh, 99 Elkstone, 162, 262, 265, 374 Elstow, 315, 331 Ely, 262, 272, 328, 333, 380, 386 Essendiue, 262, 263, 286 Everton, 285 Exeter, 368, 378 Eyam, 152 Falkirk, 192 Farnell, 186, 191 Fergen HUl, 198 Ferriby, South, 319 Fmcham, 295, 386 Findern, 253 Fishlake, 277 Florence, 27, 53, 61 Fordington, 270 Fore, 238 Forteriot, 239, 392 Forth, Firth of, 257 Powey, 97 Fownhope, 283 Frampton, 74 Fribourg, 285, 367 Fritwell, 285 Fuerty, 120 Gabriel, St., 219 Gall, St., 142 Gallerus' Oratory, 105 Gask, 392 Geneva, 391 Genoels Elderen, 59 Gaies, St., 304, 307 Glamis, 365 Glendalough, 117, 160, 328, 331, 373 Gosforth, 158, 280, 394 Govan, 126, 129 Gowran, 98 Graigue-na-Managh, 160 Greenstead, 241 Grimston, North, 295, 303, 309, 319 Groppoh, 296 Hackness, 85 Hackthorne, 124 Haddon, West, 291, 294, 295 Hadiscoe, 331 Hallaton, 273 Halton, 154, 223, 268 Hamilton, 329 Harpole, 76 Hartlepool, 118 Hastings, 274 Haverfordwest, 285 Headbourne Worthy, 247 Healaugh, 328 Helen's, St., 86 Helpringham, 260 Hereford, 392 Hexham, 241 Heysham, 126 Hilary, St., 79 Hildesheim, 67, 309 Hognaston, 255, 319, 374 406 INDEX. Hook Norton, 194, 286, 364, 365, 391, 392 Horkstow, 76 Horn, 309 Horsham, 213 Houghton-le-Spring, 285 Hoveringham, 163, 255, 259, 273, 274, 319 Hutton Cranswick, 383 Iffley, 250, 323, 330, 364 Ham, 256, 259, 373 Ilkley, 268 lUats, 181 luchagoile, 105 InoMnnan, 385 Ingleton, 200, 295, 296 Innisvicillane, 97 lona, 151, 189, 192, 262 Ipswich, 273, 315, 319, 333, 370, 385, 393 Irton, 394 Jarrow, 93, 209, 241 Jerusalem, 53, 323 Jevington, 276 Just, St., 86 Kedleaton, 285 Keelogran, 97 Keils, 151 Kells, 145, 164, 169, 186, 188, 204, 210, 214, 224, 226, 227, 228, 231, 287,291 Kempaley, 323 Kencot, 285, 362, 364 Kenelms, St., 262 Kieran, St., 134, 204 KflcuUen, 134, 323 Kildare, 180 Kilfountain, 104 Kilklispeen, 134, 229 Killamery, 134 Killeenadreenagh, 97 Kilmalkedar, 104 Kilmartin, 100 Kilnasaggart, 102 Kinnaird, East, 98 Kirk Andreas, 275, 280, 376 Kirk Braddan, 373 Kirkburn, 256, 262, 289, 293, 295, 300, 313 liirkburton, 148 Kirkby, 275, 276, 286 Kirkby, Stephen, 280 Kirkdale, 242 Kirkholm, 149 Kirk Madrine, 88 Kirk Michael, 151, 329 Kirriemuir, 224, 268 Knookourane, 97 Knock, 285 Laggangan, 99 Langford, Little, 284, 285, 320, 375, 387 Langridge, 283 Lathbury, 285 Lausanne, 57 Leckhampstead, 285 Leigh,- 331 Lenten, 63, 159, 289, 295, 298, 300, 307 Leonard, St. John, 192 Leonard, Stanley, 332 Leuchars, 250 Lincoln, 233, 281, 249, 315, 333, 369, 391,393- Liverpool, 26, 55, 60 Liverton, 331, 375 Llanbadarn Vawr, 285 Llanbleddian, 79 Llancarvan, 81 Llandewi Brefi, 81, 105 Llanfihangel-ar-Arth, 100 Llanfrynaoh, 128 Llangan, 152 Llanhamllech, 128 Llantwit Major, 81 Llanwinio, 97 Llanwnnws, 115 Lo,St., 181 Lodi, 304 Logierait, 192, 210 London, 26, 27, 53, 60, 72, 248, 301 LuUington, 285, 331 Lyons, 344 Macon, 56 Madrid, 139 Malmesbury, 244 Malton, 275 Mans, Le, 344 Margam, 119 Marnens, 57 Marown, 99 Marseilles, 35 Marton, Long, 285, 369 Mary Church, 328, 375 Maughold, 223 Maumenorigh, 95 Mayence, 139, 210 Meigle, 223, 365, 382, 385, 392 Melbury Bubb, 329, 374, 376 Meou, East, 190, 194, 286, 387 Miannay, 55, 219 Michel, Mont St., 271 Michel Dean, 328 Milan, 35, 55, 287, 298, 299, 307 Monasterboice, 134, 135, 186, 203, 224, 229 Mongifl, 56 Monifieth, 149 Monkwearmputh, 241, 243 Monreale, 67 INDEX. 407 Montdidier, 56 Monte Gargano, 57 Montfort, 231 Montivilliers, 181 Monza, 14, 51, 62 Moone Abbey, 134, 186, 210, 216, 391 Moreton Valence, 269, 273 Mortlach, 385 Munich, 59, 309, 312 Murano, 54 Mynydd Margam, 97 Nanteglos, 97 Naples, 27 Nether Avon, 248 Newbald, North, 331 Newcastle, 26, 77 Newport, 248 Newton, 96 Nicholas, St., 97 Nifevre, 368 Nigg, 151, 224, 386 Northampton, 332 Novgorod, 67 Oilean-Tsenaig, 238 PapO, 359, 375 Paris, 27, 53 Parize-le-Chatel, 368 Parwich, 254, 259, 374 Pavia, 273 Paxton, Little, 253 Pedniore, 262, 264 Pen Arthur, 113 Penmachno, 88 Penmon, 203, 386 Pen Selwood, 254, 259, 331 Peterborough, 127 Pevensey, 316 Phillack, 86 Piancenza, 323 Pisa, 35, 67, 287 Pitsford, 269 Podgoritza, 31 Pont-a-MousBon, 291 Porchester, 249 Portskewett, 253 Postling, 242 Potterne, 252, 374 Prestbury, 262 Puc^, 368 Quedlingburg, 307 Quenington, 266, 278 Ravello, 67 Ravenna, 35, 41, 58, 298, 302, 315 Reask, 134 Remi-la-Varenne, St., 148 R^verien, St., 181 Ribbesford, 268, 285 Riccall, 274, 315, 330 Ridlington, 285 Ripon, 241 Rochester, 211, 262 Rome, 11, 19, 33, 40, 67, 68 Romsey, 164, 308 Rossie, 200, 392 Rounton, West, 361, 391 Rouse Lench, 331 Rowlston, 262, 329 Ruardean, 269 Rufford, 54 Ruthwell, 85, 225, 261 Salerno, 222, 233, 301, 307 SaUord, 253, 285, 364, 383 Salisbury, 26 Sandbach, 54, 156, 203 Sculthorpe,196, 295, 296 Seaford, 274 Sempringham, 67 Sens, 64 Shalfieet, 284 Shandwick, 386 Sheffield, 26 Sherborne, 244 Shobdon, 262, 280, 330, 374, 386 Siddington, 284, 313 Silian, 95 Sinai, Mt., 40 Siponte, 271 Skellig Michel, 238 Sour, 385 Sourigny, 392 Southampton, 268, 393 Southwell, 273, 304 Stanton Lacy, 239 Staplehurst, 67 Staynton, 98 Steetly, 250, 274, 331, 391 Stewkley, 249, 285 Stillingfleet, 67 Stoke Dry, 323 Stoke-sub-Hamdou, 255, 285, 364, 383, 387 Stoneleigh, 285, 315 Stony Stanton, 284, 319 Stow, 242 Stow Longa, 285, 360, 368 Strasbourg, 344 Swarkestone, 285 Swayfield, 213 Swell, Lower, 387 Sydenham, 54 Syston, 285 Termonfeckin, 134 Tetsworth, 254, 284, 319 Thames Ditton, 380 Thorpe Arnold, 274 Thorpe Salvin, 292, 321 Thurleigh, 284 408 INDEX. Thurnby, 124 Tissingtou, 256, 273 Torcello, 279 ToBcanella, 222 Tours, 344 Towyn, 105 Trallong, 96, 97 Trawsfynydd, 93 Trawsmawr, 97 Tuam, 160 TuUylease, 84, 114 Turin, 53 Tutbnry, 285, 364 Tynan, 134, 186 Ullard, 151, 210 Uphall, 192 Urville, 364 Venice, 285 Verona, 67, 296 Versas, 67 Verulam, 79 Vienna, 68 Vigeans, St., 85, 171, 386 223, 224, 384, Villecheveux, 57 Villecin, 56 Walton-on-the-Hill, 283, 284, 286, 295, 386 Wansford. 289 Water Stratford, 262 Wensley, 123 Westminster, 72 Whitby, 78 Whitchurch, 125 Whithorne, 79, 80, 90, 241 Whittenham, Long, 65 Winchester, 316, 319, 387 Winwick, 329 Wirksworth, 139, 260, 264, 307 Wold Newton, 253 Woodwray, 371, 386, 392 Wordwell, 286 Wiirtzburg, 142 York, 26, 77, 241, 242, 256, 259, 274, 283, 323, 330, 366 Zagby, 141 Zedelghem, 319 Zurich, 328, 368 LONDON: WHITIKO AJTD CO., 30 AND 32, SARDINIA STMET, MNCMN'S INN HUMS.