lib- HISTORY OF AUCEHTECTURE.

I5oOK I.
and stylo, tlio aicliit(,'ct of it was a very skilful mechanic. One
of his epitaphs, at I'isa, we
<iil)ji)in, in ])roof of what we have stated.
Qund vix mille boum possent jiiKa juiicta moverc.
Et quod vix potuit per marc fcrre ratis,
Biischetti nisu, quod erat mirabile vitu,
Delia pucllaruin turba levavit onus.
287. In Gerinany, the 10th and 11th centuries alFord some edifices very important in the
history of the art. Such arc the cathedrals of Sjjire, Worms, iMaycnce, and others, still in
existence to testify their extraordinary solidity and magnificence. In that country, as Rliiller
remarks, there was a great disparity between its several provinces, as respected their degr(?es
of civilisation. On the banks of the Rhine, and in the south, cities were established when
those parts became subject to the Romans, and there the arts of peace and the Christian
religion took root, and flourished
;
whilst, in the north and east, paganism was still in existence.
Christianity, indeed, and civilisation gradually and generally extended from the southern
and western parts. The clergy, we know from history, themselves directed the building of
churches and convents. The buildings, therefore, of these ])arts are of great imjjortance in
the history of architecture. The leading forms of these churches, as well as of those that
were built about the same period in France and England, are founded tipon the ancient
basilica?; that is, tliey were long parallelograms with side aisles, and transejits which represent
the arms ol the cross, over whose intersection with the nave there is frequently a lovvri:
The choir and chancel terminate semicircnlarly on the plan. The semicircle prevails in
tiie vaultings and over openings. The nave is lofty, fre(]uently covered with groined vaidting,
sometimes with flat timber covering; the gables are of small inclination. In the u])per
parts small short columns are frequently introduced. The yirevailing feature in the ex-
terior is horizontality, by which it is distinguished from the style which came into use in the
l.Sth century. The profiles of the mouldings are, almost without exccjition, of Roman
origin
;
the impost mouldings under the arches are, in this respect, peculiarly striking
; and
among the parts the Attic base constantly appears. The Roman basilicae were always
covered with flat horizontal ceilings ; those of the churches we are speaking of are mostly
vaulted. Hence the necessity of substituting pillars or piers for the insulated columns,
which had only to carry wooden roofs. There are, however, a few churches remaining,
n-hich preserve the ancient type, as a church at Ratisbon, and the conventual churches ot
Paulinzell and Schwarzach. Fig. 148. shows the plan, sinAjig. 149. a sketch of one bay in a
ji
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;'
w
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a ;
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CATHEDRAL AT
FiK lis.
I,
longitudinal section of the north side of the nave of the cathedral
1
at Worms, which was commenced in tlie year 99R, and conse-
i
crated in 1016. It is one of the most
ancient of the German
I
churches, and one of the most instructive.
On our examination
'^
of it, recently, we were astonished at its state of preservation.
The plan, it will be seen, is strongly distinguished
by the cross
;
the square piers are alternately decorated with half columns
;
ami
the chancel, at the east end, terminates with a semicircle. I'lie
western end of the church, which is octagonal,
seems to be more
modern than the rest, inasmuch as the jjointed arch appears in it.
Fig. 150. is a view of tlie eiiilice.
288. Parts of the cathedral at Mentz are more ancient than
j
any part of that at Worms
;
hence it may be studied witii advan-
I
tage, as containing a view of tlie styles of several centuries.
'J'iie
I
south-eastern gate of the cathedral is given by Mollerin his work
'
(J"(ate VI.).
I 289.
Whittington, a highly talented author,
of whom the world
;
was deprived at a very early age (^Historical
Survey
of
t/ie Ecc/e-
siastical Antiquities
of
France, 4to. Lond.
1S09), observes, that
the buildmgs in France of the 9th and lotli centuries
were imi-