< Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 48.djvu
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

416*

THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY.

"Among them, however, are Tutilon, a monk of Saint Gall. . . Hugues, Abbot of Montier-en-Der; Austee, Abbot of St. Arnulph. . . . Morard, who, with the co-operation of King Robert, rebuilt, toward the end of the tenth century, the old church of St. Germain-des-Prés. at Paris; lastly, Guillaume, Abbot of St. Benignus, at Dijon, who. . . became chief of a school of art,"

And he further says:

"In the diocese of Metz Gontran and Adélard, celebrated Abbots of St. Trudon, covei'ed Hasbaye with new buildings. 'Adelard' says a chronicler 'superintended the construction of fourteen churches.'"

This association of functions continued long after. According to Viollet-le-Duc, the religious houses, and especially the abbey of Cluny, during the eleventh and twelfth centuries, furnished most of the architects of Western Europe, who executed not only religious but also civil and perhaps military buildings.

The differentiation of the architect from the priest is implied in the following further quotation from Lacroix:—

"It was, moreover, at this period [of transition from Norman to Gothic] that architecture, like all the other arts, left the monasteries to pass into the hands of lay architects organized into confraternities."

Similar is the statement of Viollet-le-Duc, who, observing that in the thirteenth century the architect appears as an individual, and as a layman, says that about the beginning of it "we see a bishop of Amiens. . . charging a lay architect, Robert le Luzarches, with the building of a great cathedral." A curious evidence of the transition may be added.

"Raphael, in one of his letters, states that the Pope (Leo X) had appointedan aged friar to assist him in conducting the building of St. Peter's; and intimates that he expected to learn some 'secrets' in architecture from his experienced colleague."

Passing to our own country we find Kemble, in The Saxons in England, remarking of the monks that

. . ."painting, sculpture, and architecture were made familiar through their efforts, and the best examples of these civilizing arts were furnished by their churches and monasteries."

In harmony with this statement is that of Eccleston.

"To Wilfrid of York and Benedict Biscop, Abbot of Wearmouth in the seventh century, the introduction of an improved style of architecture is due; and under their direction several churches and monasteries were built with unusual splendor."

And afterward, speaking of the buildings of the Normans and of their designers, he says of the latter—

"Among the foremost appeared the bishops and other ecclesiastics, whose architectural skill was generally not less effective than their well-bestowed riches."

How the transition from the clerical to the lay architect took place is not shown; but it is probable that, eventually, the clerical architect limited himself to the general character of the edi-

This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.