BASILICAS.
CONTENTS.
Churches at Bethlehem, Jerusalem, and Thessalonica—Rectangular Churches
in Syria and Asia Minor, with wooden roofs and stone vaults.
Basilicas may be subdivided into two classes—that in which the nave is
divided from the side-aisles by pillars, carrying either entablatures or
arches, as the most purely Romanesque—and that which has piers
supporting arches only, and is transitional between the first style and
the more original forms which were elaborated out of it.
[Illustration: 273. Church of the Nativity at Bethlehem. (From
Bernardino Amico.) Scale 100 ft. to 1 inch.]
Of the former class one of the most authentic and perfect is that
erected at Bethlehem by Helena, the mother of Constantine, in front of
the cave of the Nativity. The nave seems to be a nearly unaltered
example of this age, with the advantage over the contemporary churches
at Rome, that all its pillars and their capitals were made for the
places they occupy, whereby the whole possesses a completeness and
justness of proportion not found in the metropolis. Its dimensions,
though sufficient for effect, are not large, being internally 103 ft.
across, by 215 ft. east and west. The choir with its three apses does
not seem to be part of the original arrangement, but to have been added
by Justinian when he renovated—Eutychius says rebuilt—the church. My
impression is that a detached circular building, external to the
basilica, originally contained the entrance to the cave. The frescoes
were added apparently in the 11th or 12th century.[218]
One of the principal points of interest connected with this church is,
that it enables us to realise the description Eusebius gives us of the
basilica which Constantine erected at Jerusalem in honour of the
Resurrection. Like this church it was five-aisled, but had galleries;
the apse also was on a larger scale than could well have been possible
in the Bethlehem church, and adorned with twelve pillars, symbolical of
the Apostles.
Of this building nothing now remains, and the only portion which could
be claimed as part of Constantine’s work is the western wall of the
Rotunda, which to a height of 15 to 20 ft. was cut out of the solid rock
in order to isolate the Holy Sepulchre in the centre. The so-called
tombs of Absalom and Zachariah in the valley of Jehoshaphat were
detached in a similar way from the rock behind them.[219]
THESSALONICA.
[Illustration: 274. Eski Djuma, Thessalonica. (From Texier and Pullan.)
Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.]
As before mentioned, it is to Constantinople, or Alexandria, or Antioch,
that we should naturally look to supply us with examples of the style of
the early transition, but as these fail, it is to Thessalonica alone—in
so far as we now know—that we can turn. In that city there are two
ancient examples. One, now known as the Eski Djuma or old mosque
(Woodcut No. 274), may belong to the 5th century, though there are no
very exact data by which to fix its age. It consists of a nave,
measuring, exclusive of narthex and bema, 93 ft. across by 120 ft.—very
much the proportion of the Bethlehem church, but having only three
aisles, the centre one 48 ft. in width. The other church, that of St.
Demetrius, is larger, but less simple. It is five-aisled, has two
internal transepts, and various adjuncts. Altogether it seems a
considerable advance towards the more complicated form of a Christian
church. Both these churches have capacious galleries, running above the
side aisles, and probably devoted to the accommodation of the women. The
date of St. Demetrius is most probably among the first years of the
sixth century.[220] The general ordinance of the columns will be
understood from the woodcut (No. 276). Generally they are placed on
elevated square or octagonal bases, or pedestals, as in the tepidaria of
the Thermæ in Rome, and all have a block (known as the dosseret), placed
above the capital, which is supposed to represent the entablature of the
Roman example, but is probably an original feature inserted over the
capital to support the springing of the arch. In this form it is found
very generally in the 5th and 6th centuries, after which it fell into
disuse, an increased depth being given to the abacus of the capital to
take its place.
[Illustration: 275. St. Demetrius, Thessalonica. (From Texier and
Pullan.) Scale 100 ft. to 1 inch.]
[Illustration: 276. Arches in St. Demetrius at Thessalonica, A.D. 500 to
520.]
So far as we now know, there is only one church of this class at
Constantinople—that known as St. John Studius,—a three-aisled basilica,
125 ft. long by 85 in width externally. Its date appears to be tolerably
well ascertained as A.D. 463, and from this circumstance, as well as its
being in the metropolis, it shows less deviation from the classical type
than the provincial examples just quoted. The lower range of columns
supporting the gallery still retain the classical outline and support a
horizontal entablature (Woodcut No. 277); the upper supporting arches
have very little resemblance to the classical type, and are wanting in
the architrave block or dosseret, which in fact never seems to have been
admired in the capital.
SYRIA AND ASIA MINOR.
The country where—so far at least as we at present know—the Byzantine
Basilica was principally developed was Northern Syria. Already in De
Vogüé’s work on Central Syria some dozen churches are indicated having
the aisles divided from the naves by pillars supporting arches. One of
these only—that at Soueideh—has five aisles, all the rest three. Almost
all have plain semicircular apses, sometimes only seen internally, like
those mentioned further on (page 510), but sometimes also projecting, as
was afterwards universally the fashion. Two at least have square
terminations (Kefr Kileh and Behioh), but this seems exceptional. Most
of them are almost the size of our ordinary parish churches—100 ft. by
60 or thereabouts—and all belong to the three centuries—the 4th, 5th,
and 6th—of which this chapter especially treats.
[Illustration: 277. Pillar in Church of St. John, Constantinople.]
The church at Baquoza may serve as a type of the class both in plan and
section (Woodcuts Nos. 278, 279). Its dimensions externally are 60 ft.
by 105; and besides the narthex—not shown in the section—it has four
lateral porches. It has also two square chapels or vestries at the end
of the aisles—an arrangement almost universal in these churches.
The most remarkable of the group, however, is that of St. Simeon
Stylites, at Kalat Sema’n, about 20 miles east of Antioch. Its
dimensions are very considerable, being 330 ft. long, north and south,
and as nearly as may be, 300 ft. east and west, across what may be
called the transepts. The centre is occupied by a great octagon, 93 ft.
across, on a rock in the centre of which the pillar of that eccentric
saint originally stood. This apparently was never roofed over, but stood
always exposed to the air of heaven.[221]
[Illustration: 278. Plan of Church in Baquoza. Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.]
[Illustration: 279. Section of Church in Baquoza. (From De Vogüé.) Scale
50 ft. to 1 in.]
[Illustration: 280. Plan of Church and Part of Monastic Buildings at
Kalat Sema’n. (From De Vogüé.) Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.]
The greater part of the conventual buildings belonging to this church
still remain in a state of completeness,—a fact which will be startling
to those who are not aware how many of the great religious
establishments of Syria still stand entire, wanting only the roofs,
which were apparently the only parts constructed of wood.
The whole of the buildings at Kalat Sema’n seem to have been completed
within the limits of the 5th century, and not to have been touched or
altered since they were deserted, apparently in consequence of the
Mahomedan irruption in the 7th century. The most curious point is that
such a building should have remained so long in such a situation,
unknown to the Western world; for the notices hitherto published have
been meagre and unsatisfactory in the extreme, and De Vogüé is only able
to state that it was visited and described by the historian Evagrius in
the year 560 A.D.
[Illustration: 281. Plan of Church at Roueiha. Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.]
[Illustration: 282. Section of Church at Roueiha. (From De Vogüé.) Scale
50 ft. to 1 in.]
In the same province we find also the earliest examples of the use of
pier arches in a church to separate the nave from the aisles. These seem
to have been currently used in Northern Syria in the 6th century, though
not found in the West—at least not used in the same manner—for several
centuries later. Generally three such arches only were employed in the
length of the nave, and they consequently left the floor so open and
free, that it is very questionable if in churches of limited dimensions
the introduction of a much larger number by the Gothic architects was an
improvement. Taking it altogether, it is probable that such a church as
that at Roueiha (Woodcut No. 282) would, if literally reproduced, make a
better and cheaper church for an English parish than the Mediæval models
we are so fond of copying. A considerable amount of perspective effect
is obtained by throwing two transverse arches across the nave, dividing
it into three compartments, each including four windows in the
clerestory; and the whole design is simple and solid in a degree seldom
surpassed in buildings of its class. Its dimensions are 63 ft. by 150
over all externally.
In many of these churches the transverse arches of the nave are omitted;
and when, as at Qalb Louzeh (Woodcut No. 284), the clerestory is
accentuated by roofing shafts, the same effect of perspective is
obtained by other means, and perhaps as successfully. It is very
interesting, however, to find that as early as the 6th century the
architects were thoughtfully feeling their way towards those very
principles of design which many centuries afterwards enabled the Gothic
architects to produce their most successful effects. The introduction of
four windows over each great arch, and of a rooting-shaft between each
to support the beams of the roof, was a happy thought, and it is
wonderful it was so completely lost sight of afterwards.
[Illustration: 283. Plan of Church at Qalb Louzeh. Scale 100 ft. to 1
in.]
[Illustration: 284. Apse of Church at Qalb Louzeh. (From De Vogüé.)]
It is probable that the apse (Woodcut No. 284) was originally adorned
with paintings or mosaics, or at least that it was intended it should be
so ornamented; but even as it is, it is so well proportioned to the size
of the church, and to its position, and so appropriately ornamented,
that it is better than most of those found in Roman basilicas; and, for
a small church, is a more dignified receptacle for the altar than either
the French chevet or the English chancel.
Did our limits admit of it, it would be not only pleasant but
instructive to dwell longer on this subject; for few parts of our
inquiry can be more interesting than to find that, as early as the 6th
century, the Roman basilica had been converted into a Christian church,
complete in all its details, and—internally at least—in a style of
architecture as consistent and almost as far removed from its classical
prototype as the Mediæval Gothic itself.
[Illustration: 285. Chapel at Babouda. Scale 50 ft. to 1 in.]
Externally, too, the style was becoming independent of classical models,
though hardly in the same degree. The porches of the churches were
generally formed in two storeys, the lower having a large central arch
of admission, the upper consisting of a colonnade which partially hid,
while it supported, an open screen of windows that admitted a flood of
light into the nave just in the position where it was most effective.
Without glass or mullions such a range of windows must have appeared
weak, and would have admitted rain; but when sheltered by a screen of
pillars, it was both convenient and artistic.
[Illustration: 286. Elevation of Chapel at Babouda. (From De Vogüé.)]
This mode of lighting is better illustrated at Babouda, where it is
employed in its simplest form. No light is admitted to the chapel except
through one great semicircular window over the entrance, and this is
protected externally by a screen of columns. This mode of introducing
light, as we shall afterwards see, was common in India at this age, and
earlier, all the Chaitya caves being lighted in the same manner; and for
artistic effect it is equal, if not superior, to any other which has yet
been invented. The light is high, and behind the worshipper, and thrown
direct on the altar, or principal part of the church. In very large
buildings it could hardly be applied, but for smaller ones it is
singularly effective.
The external effect of these buildings though not so original as the
interior, is still very far removed from the classical type, and
presents a variety of outline and detail very different from the
simplicity of a Pagan temple. One of the most complete is that at
Tourmanin (Woodcut No. 287), though that at Qalb Louzeh is nearly as
perfect, but simpler in detail. For a church of the 6th century it is
wonderful how many elements of later buildings it suggests; even the
western towers seem to be indicated, and, except the four columns of the
gallery, there is very little to recall the style out of which it arose.
[Illustration: 287. Façade of Church at Tourmanin. (From De Vogüé.)]
There are considerable remains of a wooden-roofed basilica at Pergamus,
which may be even older than those just described; but having been built
in brick, and only faced with stone—the whole of which is gone—it is
difficult to feel sure of the character of its details and mouldings. It
had galleries on either side of the nave, but how these were supported
or framed is not clear. It may have been by wooden posts or marble
pillars, and these would have either decayed or been removed. The two
square calcidica or vestries, which in the Syrian churches terminate the
side-aisles, are here placed externally like transepts, and beyond them
are two circular buildings with domical roofs and square apses. What
their use was is, however, doubtful. In fact, we know so little of the
architecture of that age in Asia Minor that this building stands quite
exceptionally; and very little use can be made of it, either as throwing
light on other buildings, or as receiving illustration from their
peculiarities. But seeing how much has been effected in this direction
of late, we may fully hope that this state of isolation will not long
remain.
[Illustration: 288. Church at Pergamus. (From a Plan by Ed. Falkener,
Esq.) Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.]
One other church of the 4th century is known to exist—at Nisibin. It is
a triple church, the central compartment being the tomb of the founder,
the first Armenian bishop of the place. Though much ruined, it still
retains the mouldings of its doorways and windows as perfect as when
erected, the whole being of fine hard stone. These are identical in
style with the buildings of Diocletian at Spalato; and as their date is
well known, they will, when published, form a valuable contribution to
the information we now possess regarding the architecture of this
period.
CHURCHES WITH STONE ROOFS.
All the buildings above described—with the exception of the chapel at
Babouda—have wooden roofs, as was the case generally with the basilicas
and the temples of the classical age. The Romans, however, had built
temples with aisles and vaulted them as early as the age of Augustus, as
at Nîmes, for instance (Woodcut No. 189), and they had roofed their
largest basilicas and baths with intersecting vaults. We should not
therefore feel surprised if the Christians sometimes attempted the same
thing in their rectangular churches, more especially as the dome was
always a favourite mode of roofing circular buildings; and the problem
which the Byzantine architects of the day set themselves to solve was—as
we shall presently see—how to fit a circular dome of masonry to a
rectangular building.
One of the earliest examples of a stone-roofed church is that at Tafkha
in the Hauran. It is probably of the age of Constantine, though as
likely to be before his time as after it. Its date, however, is not of
very great importance, as its existence does not prove that the form was
adopted from choice by the Christians: the truth being that, in the
country where it is found, wood was never used as a building material.
All the buildings, both domestic and public, are composed wholly of
stone—the only available material for the purpose which the country
afforded. In consequence of this, when that tide of commercial
prosperity which rose under the Roman rule flowed across the country
from the Euphrates valley to the Mediterranean, the inhabitants had
recourse to a new mode of construction, which was practically a new
style of architecture. This consisted in the employment of arches
instead of beams. These were placed so near one another that flat stones
could be laid side by side from arch to arch. Over these a layer of
concrete was spread, and a roof was thus formed so indestructible that
whole towns remain perfect to the present day, as originally constructed
in the first centuries of the Christian era.[222]
[Illustration: 289. Section on A B, Tafkha. (From De Vogüé.) Scale 50
ft. to 1 in.]
[Illustration: 290. Plan, Tafkha. Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.]
[Illustration: 291. Section on C D, Tafkha.]
[Illustration: 292. Half Front Elevation, Tafkha. Scale 50 ft. to 1 in.]
One example must suffice to explain this curious mode of construction.
The church at Tafkha is 50 ft. square, exclusive of the apse. It is
spanned by four arches, 7 ft. 6 in. apart. On each side are galleries of
flat slabs resting on brackets, as shown in Woodcuts Nos. 289, 291,
which again are supported by smaller transverse arches. At one side is a
tower, but this is roofed wholly by bracketing, as if the architect
feared the thrust of the arch even at that height.
The defect of this arrangement as an architectural expedient is the
extreme frequency of the piers, 8 or 10 ft. being the greatest distance
practicable; but as a mechanical expedient it is singularly ingenious.
More internal space is obtained with a less expenditure of material and
danger from thrust than from any mode of construction—wholly of
stone—that we are acquainted with; and with a little practice it might
no doubt be much improved upon. The Indian architects, as we shall
presently see, attempted the same thing, but set about it in a
diametrically opposite way. They absolutely refused to employ the arch
under any circumstances, but bracketed forward till the space to be
covered was so limited that a single stone would reach across. By this
means they were enabled to roof spaces 20 or 25 ft. span without arches,
which is about the interval covered with their aid at Tafkha.[223]
[Illustration: 293. Great Church at Hierapolis. Scale 100 ft. to 1 in.
(E. Falkener del.)]
[Illustration: 294. Church at Hierapolis. Scale 100 ft. to 1 in. (E. F.
del.)]
Another circumstance which renders these Hauran examples interesting to
the architectural student is that they contain no trace or reminiscence
of wooden construction or adornment, so apparent in almost every other
style. In Lycia it is absurdly so. In Egypt, in Greece, in India, in
Persia—everywhere, in fact—we can trace back the principal form of
decoration to a wooden original; here alone all is lithic, and it is
probably the only example of the sort that the whole history of
architecture affords.
If there are any churches in the Byzantine province of the age of which
we are treating, whose naves are roofed by intersecting vaults, they
have not yet been described in any accessible work; but great
tunnel-vaults have been introduced into several with effect. One such is
found at Hierapolis, on the borders of Phrygia (Woodcut No. 293). It is
divided by a bold range of piers into three aisles, the centre one
having a clear width of 45 ft. 6 in. The internal dimensions of the
church are 177 ft. by 115. There are three great piers in the length,
which carry bold transverse ribs so as to break the monotony of the
vault, and have between them secondary arches, to carry the galleries.
[Illustration: 295. Section of Church at Hierapolis. Scale 50 ft. to 1
in. With monogram found on its walls. (From a Drawing by E. Falkener.)]
There is another church at the same place, the roof of which is of a
somewhat more complicated form. The internal length, 140 ft., is divided
into three by transverse arches; but its great peculiarity is that the
vault is cut into by semi-circular lunettes above the screen side-walls,
and through these the light is introduced. This arrangement will be
understood from the section (Woodcut No. 295). Taken altogether, there
is probably no other church of its age and class in which the vault is
so pleasingly and artistically arranged, and in which the mode of
introducing the light is so judicious and effective.
The age of these two last churches is not very well ascertained. They
probably belong to the 5th, and are certainly not later than the 6th,
century; but, before we can speak with certainty on the subject, more
examples must be brought to light and examined. From our present
knowledge it can hardly be doubted that a sufficient number do exist to
complete the chapter; and it is to be hoped they will be published,
since a history of vaults in the East, independent of domes, is still a
desideratum.