the Hospital on another, and the Bishop's palace on a third, this fine
church occupies the vantage ground of Orvieto. In the Vatican, one of
Raphael's well-known frescoes illustrates the miracle of Bolsena. It
was to commemorate this that Pope Urban IV. founded the cathedral. The
magnificent façade has three porches. The centre one has round arches,
and the other two are pointed. Four flat panels are at the bases of the
shafts that divide the façade. These shafts end in crocketed pinnacles
surrounding the Gothic turrets, which soar upwards beyond the three
gables at the top of the façade. The gables themselves rise above the
roofs of the nave and aisles. The only fault one can find with this
beautiful building, and it is one common to most Italian Gothic
churches, is that the façade is "stuck on," and does not really form
part of the architectural composition of the building. A glance at the
illustration will explain what is meant.
The four panels are justly placed among the masterpieces of Italian
sculpture of the thirteenth century. Vasari attributes the designs to
Niccolò Pisano. This may be, but it is known that Giovanni Pisano and
others were the artists who executed them. The first in order begins at
the lowest left-hand corner of the north panel, and records the Creation
of the World and all beasts and birds. Then follow the histories of Adam
and Eve, Cain and Abel, Jubal--making bells, and Tubal-Cain measuring on
a scroll with a compass.
[Illustration: THE FAÇADE OF THE CATHEDRAL, ORVIETO]
This completes the first and best panel of the four. Each incident is
enclosed by a very beautifully cut and intricate pattern of the vine.
The second panel depicts scenes from the Old Testament; the third, the
Tree of Jesse, the Nativity and Life of Christ, with classic foliage
intervening. The fourth is very good and represents the Resurrection;
here figures of a very Greek type rise from Greek sarcophagi. Saints,
Virgins, and the Saviour in Glory surrounded by Apostles also find
places on this panel. It finishes in the lowest right-hand corner with a
most realistic scene in Hell. Raphael, it is said, came to Orvieto to
study these wonderful works.
Immediately above and at the bases of the four shafts are the huge
bronze symbols of the four Evangelists. They rest on the _abaci_ of the
pilasters which form a sort of drip-course right along the façade. Over
the centre porch is a bronze tent, the curtains of which Angels draw
aside revealing the Virgin and Child seated. The lights, forming the
tympanums of the porches, are thin sheets of alabaster. The columns are
spiral and twisted, octagonal and quadrangular. Each is set against a
different coloured background of black lava, red, white, or grey marble;
and each is covered with geometrical mosaic. The wheel window of the
façade is beautified with exceptionally good tracing. It is framed by
quatrefoils in panels, with the head of a saint in each. On two sides of
these, in recessed rectangular niches, are statues of the Twelve
Apostles.
At the top of the frame are canopied niches with a row of saints. The
whole of this wonderful front is covered by modern mosaics which do not
quite fit in with the severe lines of the architecture. Neither does the
scheme of colour in which they are executed take its place with the
warmth of the marble as well as it might.
The whole of the main building is constructed in bands of black lava and
white marble. Semicircular chapels in the aisles break the monotony of
the lower portion of the exterior; while the upper is rendered less
severe by the pointed clerestory windows, a dripstone and string-course,
and a good cornice.
The interior is one of the best in Italy. It was greatly improved when
the colossal statues which stood at the bases of the piers were removed,
and the side chapels cleared of their altars and rather meretricious
adornments. The massive columns of the nave, eight of which are round,
four clustered, and two engaged, have capitals that partake of a style
far more classic than Gothic. Above the round arches they support runs a
triforium gallery. This is open in the nave, and covered at the west
end, where it follows the slope upwards of the gables of the aisles. At
the east end it is carried over the window, being also covered in here.
The windows of the aisles are all filled, or partly filled, with thin
slabs of alabaster. The effect of light produced through this thick but
comparatively translucent medium is extremely mellow and beautiful.
The short transepts are raised three steps above the nave, and the choir
five. A fine red marble balustrade separates the latter from the rest of
the church. The open stalls in the choir have some extremely good
_intarsia_ work. The wooden screen that shuts them off from the nave is
a carved mass of most intricate geometrical design. Under the east
window is the bishop's throne, backed and surrounded with more good
_intarsia_, in which saints and sainted bishops with their symbols most
effectively figure. The walls above and around are covered with
fourteenth-century frescoes by Pietro di Puccio and Ugolino, both native
artists. In their present faded state they harmonise beautifully with
their surroundings, to which the colour of the well-worn red marble
floor of the cathedral adds a pleasant note.
The work of Luca Signorelli can be better studied in the Cappella della
Madonna di S. Brizio than anywhere else in Italy. This chapel
practically forms the shallow south transept. In the magnificent
frescoes which adorn its walls one can trace the possible influence of
this great painter on the works of Michael Angelo. Two panels of the
ceiling came from the brush of Fra Angelico. The north transept is
almost entirely occupied by the Cappella del S.S. Corporale. The
reliquary containing the "Corporal," or linen cloth of the Miracle of
Bolsena, is kept over the altar. This reliquary is a fine piece of
silver-gilt work, with two dozen beautiful panels of blue enamel. It was
on to this linen cloth that the Blood dropped from the broken Host, and
convinced the officiating priest of the Real Presence. Pope Urban IV.
had it brought from Bolsena, and commenced to build this magnificent
cathedral as a great shrine in which the sacred relic should rest for
ever.
Behind the cathedral, that is to the east, Orvieto, not many years ago,
was a ruined, broken-down mass of insanitary buildings. Gardens now take
the place of what was a plague-spot, and the houses of the city as we
find it now occupy barely one-half of the area contained within the
walls. In this respect modern ideas have decidedly improved Orvieto.
What is left of the old streets is well looked after from the sanitary
point of view; and from the artistic, there are not many places in Italy
where subjects are to be found in such plenty. The massive Torre del
Moro is close to the Piazza del Popolo, where stands the ruined church
of S. Domenico. This fine Romanesque structure is entered by a flight of
steps at the west end; it is built over a massively constructed crypt,
now used as a granary. The mighty arches of this crypt sustain part of
the church, but it does not extend beneath the whole of the fabric. One
of the numerous arched gateways which are to be found throughout the
city intervenes between it and the little buttressed dwelling underneath
the east end. From this rises the solid _campanile_. An arcade runs
round the whole church. This good feature is composed of round arches,
containing small round-headed lights. The outer member of each arch is
finished by a broad, flat, square billet, the inner has a cable pattern.
Above is a dripstone and string-course.
Saturday sees the piazza crowded with country folk, and it then presents
a busy scene. All the rest of the week it is silent and deserted. I was
there with my sketch-book one afternoon. A thunderstorm was rolling
about in the hills. The air was charged with disturbing electricity.
Swifts flew screaming round the ruined church. A kestrel up in the
battered old tower cried to her young. The storm crept nearer. Grand
cumuli clouds piled themselves higher and higher above the
lightning-riven mass of rain-sodden blackness below. A beautiful
swallow-tail butterfly, brilliant against the deep purple background,
came gracefully sailing across the square into the sunshine. It hovered,
now here, now there, like a spirit from another world seeking rest but
finding none. Little puffs of wind stirred odd bits of straw and paper
about the piazza. Dust began to eddy round and round. A drop of rain
fell on to the open leaves of my sketch-book. It was the writing on the
wall; so I closed the book and hurried home. For half an hour the
heavens emptied themselves on Orvieto. To me a stage-play of some scene
in her past was re-enacted in the sky; the passing storm seemed so
appropriate to the rugged old city.
ROME
With pen in hand one approaches the subject of the Eternal City with
great diffidence. The more one's acquaintance with her has ripened, the
more does the attempt to write a chapter seem a hopeless task. There are
so many Romes--Republican Rome, Imperial Rome, Rome of the Papal
supremacy, Christian Rome, Pagan Rome; and then Modern Rome, with a
municipality that is fast changing the face of everything. Catering for
the tourist in these days of cheap transit does much to alter things. In
the end it will defeat its own object, and history will be contained in
libraries and museums only. Rome, like London, is fast becoming
cosmopolitan. The _perícolo giallo_, or "yellow peril," as the motor
post 'bus is facetiously called, rushes through streets where not so
long ago solemn processions of the Mother Church wended their way.
Building is going on at present with feverish haste. The "boom" of 1880,
which ruined many of the wealthy families who speculated in it, does not
seem to have acted as a deterrent to others. The great boulevard
projected by the powers that be, slowly grows in length. Despite the
outcry against such vandalism, an area that might disclose and yield up
unknown archæological treasures if properly excavated is being levelled
in the sacred names of sanitation and opportunism! The picturesque
dwellings that lined the banks of Rome's famous river have disappeared,
and the yellow waters of the historic Tiber rush along between massive
walls of stone.
Is it possible amid all these rapid changes to realise what Rome has
been and is still? No, not on any of her seven hills, not in her
streets, nor on her river embankments, not even in her churches, can
this now be done. No: to realise the power and majesty of Ancient Rome
one must go out into the Campagna, that desolate plain in which she
lies. There, where the stupendous ruins of her great aqueducts stretch
away in utter loneliness to the distant hills; there, where once a
prosperous people dwelt in plenty, and where the only living things
likely to be seen now are a statuesque goatherd and his nibbling
flock--there, one may gather an idea of the might of ancient Rome. By
Hadrian's Wall, which cuts the Borderland of England, one may do the
same; and there are none of her ruined outposts, east or west, where her
majesty is not more apparent than in the Eternal City herself.
[Illustration: ON THE PALATINE, ROME]
Up on the Palatine, close to the trees that are seen in the sketch of
the Clovis Victoriæ, the Etruscan wall of the first Rome is now in
course of excavation. Up there, too, are the remains of the first wall
of the Roman city built by Servius Tullius. In the Via Merulana part of
a great earthwork with a moat outside can still be seen. Long after
Carthage had been practically obliterated by her rival, Rome had
extended so far, and attacks from outside became of so great a danger to
the inhabitants, that Aurelian found it necessary to build a line of
defence which the present walls might be said to occupy. From that time
onwards the city grew steadily to a magnificence and power which has
never been equalled. She ruled the known world. But it was not until
Constantine the Great transferred himself and the seat of empire to
Byzantium that the turning-point in her fortunes was reached. Well has
the great emperor earned that proud title! From Milan he issued the
decree which gave to the much persecuted Christians equal rights with
other religions; and even went further, embracing the faith he had
befriended.
Many churches lay claim to be the oldest foundation in Rome. S.
Pudenziana is said to be the church S. Paul founded in the house of his
Senator friend Pudens. Recent excavations under S. Clemente have brought
to light early-Christian masonry beneath the Republican and Imperial
remains, over which the present edifice stands. S. Prisca is another
ancient church; and tradition attributes S. Giovanni in Laterano, S.
Pietro, S. Paolo, S. Lorenzo, S. Croce in Gerusalemene, S. Agnese, and
SS. Pietro e Marcellino to Constantine's era. The first four of these,
with S. Maria Maggiore, were afterwards known as the Patriarchal
Churches over which the Pope presided. With S. Croce and S. Sebastiano,
they became the seven churches of Rome. In them the Pontiff celebrated
High Mass; and they were the principal churches which drew pilgrims from
throughout Christendom. In these seven the high altar presents its back
to the congregation, for His Holiness celebrates Mass with his face to
the worshippers. The Papal supremacy really owed its foundation to
Gregory the Great. But it was not until two hundred years after his
decease, when on Christmas Day of the year 800, Charlemagne was crowned
by Leo III., that the "Holy Roman Empire" became an accomplished fact.
Unfortunately for Ancient Rome the Carlovingian period was one of
demolition and plunder. Christian zeal cared nought for the beauty of
pagan buildings, and many an one was pulled down and a church erected
with the material. It was later on however, in the time of the
Renaissance, that columns and marble of every sort were used for the
adornment of the numerous sacred edifices which sprang up. What was not
wanted in construction was ground down to make lime. Banding iron,
clamps, bronzes, and every description of metal that was found were
thrown into furnaces and melted down. Nothing that could be made use of
for building material was spared. The Church could never forget the
persecution she had undergone, nor the thousands of martyrs who had died
for the Faith. Is it a matter for surprise then--a surprise one must add
mingled with great regret--that the glorious buildings of ancient Rome
have almost disappeared?
Whichever of all Rome's churches was founded first, there is no
disputing the fact that the huge fabric which occupies one side of the
Piazza di S. Pietro is the most famous Christian edifice in the world.
Bernini's best work, the grand colonnades on two sides of the square
lead up in splendid curves to the great façade of S. Peter's. But, so
great is the size of the building, so far set back the dome, that it is
impossible to realise the immensity of either from any point of view in
the piazza. The first church was founded in the year 90 at the place
where so many martyrs had suffered death during the time of the tyrant
Nero. The Emperor Constantine commenced afterwards the erection of a
basilica on this spot, the façade of which Raphael has handed down in
his fresco of the Incendio del Borgo. When Julian della Rovere became
Pope Julius II., he wantonly ordered the destruction of the church as it
then stood. This was done to make way for a greater with which his own
name would be for ever connected; and he employed Bramante to design the
new cathedral. Hands once more were laid on the buildings of ancient
Rome and the construction was begun from its ruins. Except for some of
the columns, the whole of the marble work of S. Peter's was, up to the
commencement of last century, abstracted from the same source.
Bramante's designs were never carried out. The many alterations to which
they were subjected after his death led to great dissatisfaction, and in
the end Michael Angelo was consulted. All he could do was to reserve as
much as possible of the great architect's ground plan, and this is,
except for the lengthening of the nave and the addition of the façade,
as the great cathedral stands to-day.
The immense _travertine_ columns of the façade form part of a portico
which is over two hundred feet in length. Above the columns runs an
inscription recording that it was put up by the Borghese Pontiff, Paul
V. A balustrade, broken by pedestals, surmounts the _cymatium_; on the
pedestals are extra-colossal figures of the Saviour (in the centre) and
the Twelve Apostles. At either end are groups of _barroque_ angels
surrounding a circle over which is the Papal Mitre. In one of these
circles there is a timepiece. The ceiling of the portico is a fine
example of stucco work.
There are five doors which open into the building. The central is of
bronze and one of the few things spared by the destroyer Julius when he
demolished the old basilica. The doors next to this are those by which
one enters the church. In March 1910 the old and very unhygienic leather
flaps were removed, and glazed swing-doors have taken their place. The
Porta Santa, or door at the north end of the portico, is walled up. It
was only opened for the purpose of celebrating a Jubilee, and has been
closed since 1825.
Many and repeated visits are necessary to S. Peter's before the size of
the vast interior can be in any way grasped. It is only when one is
accustomed to the scale of the little human figures walking about and
their insignificance in proportion to the whole, that the immense height
of even the Corinthian pilasters of the piers becomes apparent. The roof
is vaulted, coffered and gilded. It is supported by four piers on each
side of the nave. The floor is of coloured marble, and has the
measurements of the great churches of Christendom let in with brass at
the spot where each would end if measured from the east. Just inside the
central bronze door is a slab of porphyry upon which the emperors were
crowned. At the base of each pier, as well as in other parts of the
church, the colossal statues of the founders of different religious
Orders find a place. The last pier on the right has a bronze figure of
S. Peter seated, one foot of which is partially worn away by the lips of
devotees.
The dome grows upwards from four massive buttresses. Niches above their
bases contain figures of SS. Longinus, Andrew, Helena, and Veronica, who
holds the napkin with the impress of the Saviour's Face. Under the dome
is the _Confessio_ of S. Peter, to reach which a double flight of steps
leads down. Eighty-nine lamps for ever burn on the balustrade which
encloses the well of the entrance; and doors of gilded bronze shut off
the niche in which the sarcophagus of the Apostle rests. Soaring high up
on four bronze columns ninety-four feet from the floor, the great
_baldacchino_ rises above all. But so immense is the space under the
dome that one has no idea of the height it attains. It was designed by
Bernini, and is made partly of the bronze which covered the roof of the
Pantheon.
Nothing at all can be said in praise of Bernini's design. The high
altar, at which only the Pope celebrates mass, is above the _Confessio_
and directly under the cross which forms the apex of this somewhat
unsightly mass of metal. The interior decoration of the dome is not in
any way striking. Above the four statues of the already enumerated
saints are the _loggie_, containing the sacred relics of the lance which
pierced the crucified Saviour's side, the head of S. Andrew, a portion
of the Cross, and the "Volto-Santo"--the napkin or handkerchief of S.
Veronica, which wiped the Lord's brow on the way to Calvary. Four
mosaics of the Evangelists are beneath the frieze which carries the drum
of the dome; and a series of four each are between the sixteen gilded
ribs of the vaulting. In the tribune at the east end of the cathedral is
the ancient wooden episcopal chair of S. Peter.
Amongst other celebrated things which S. Peter's contains is the Pietà
of Michael Angelo in the Capella della Pietà. The great sculptor has
inscribed his name on the girdle of the Virgin--the only occasion on
which he has done so. Opening out from this chapel is another, in which
is a column, said to be that against which Christ leaned when preaching
in the Temple at Jerusalem. Adjacent to this is the tomb of the great
Countess Matilda by Bernini. The tombs and monuments of many Popes are
to be found in other chapels, but none of them possess any real artistic
merit. The best is that of Alessandro Farnese, Pope Paul III. It is by
Guglielmo della Porta, and was one of the most expensive to erect. In
the crypt, which is divided into two parts, the Grotte Vecchie, and the
Grotto Nuovo, are the sarcophagi and fragments of sarcophagi of many
other Popes, among them being that of Nicholas Breakspeare, the only
Englishman who ever attained the dignity. The sarcophagus of S. Peter,
already mentioned, is in the _Confessio_, or shrine of SS. Peter and
Paul, which is richly ornamented with gold and studded with jewels.
In the Stanza Capitolare, which is part of the sacristy, are some
remnants from the brush of Giotto that at one time adorned the walls of
the old _Confessio_. The treasury contains a wonderful collection of
jewelled crucifixes and candelabra. Among the latter is to be found the
work of Cellini and Michael Angelo. The famous sacerdotal robe known as
the Dalmatica di Papa San Leone, and said to be that used at the
coronation of Charlemagne, is also kept here. Apart from its sacred
interest, the great cathedral of S. Peter's cannot be said to raise any
feelings other than wonderment at its size and admiration for its grand
proportions. The exterior is disappointing, and many and many a visit
must be paid to the interior before wonderment reaches admiration. Just
as it is possible to gain the best impression of the power of ancient
Rome outside Rome itself, so does one grasp the size of the mighty
fabric only when some miles away in the country beyond the walls. Climb
the lower slopes of the hills near Tivoli or Frascati, and what does one
see? Apparently a level plain, out of which rises far away a marvellous
dome. From Tivoli, especially, one sees nothing of the city on the Seven
Hills. The line of fir-trees beyond Monte Mario is visible, and maybe,
the afternoon sun shining on the distant Mediterranean. But save for the
great dome there is nothing to indicate to the eye that the Eternal City
lies well within the range of vision. Yet in Rome itself, though it is
paradoxical to say so, the dome of S. Peter's in no way dominates
anything, albeit that it rises above everything else. The enormous
monument in course of erection on the Capitoline appears bigger. Each of
the seven hills seems to be of greater altitude. But the former is not
so large, and the latter do not reach the same height. Thus, the great
church holds her own--but, physically as well as spiritually, one must
go outside Rome to realise this.
To return to ancient times, we find an absorbingly interesting link with
pre-Christian days sculptured on one of the panels which decorate the
interior of the Arch of Titus. The Via Sacra passed under this arch,
which was erected to commemorate the taking of Jerusalem. The panel in
question has figured on it in bas-relief a procession bearing the
seven-branched candlestick and tabernacle which were spoils from the
Jewish Temple. This is the only known material proof existing of the
former object, and may therefore be justly said to be of surpassing
ecclesiastical interest. Through the archway one sees the half-ruined
walls of the Colosseum, the greatest amphitheatre in the world. This,
too, is of intense religious interest. In the arena hundreds of
Christian martyrs were torn to pieces by wild beasts, or butchered to
fill the passing hours with amusement for the Roman populace. Pope
Benedict XIV. consecrated the interior after erecting gates outside to
preserve it from the demolition which up to his day had been going on
for centuries. Small chapels were also formed amongst the lower
structural arches, and services held where once the walls resounded to
the shouts of bloodthirsty spectators. Close by the Colosseum is another
fine archway, the Arch of Constantine. This likewise, has an interest
apart from its design. It was put up when the great emperor declared
himself in favour of the Christian faith. The devout may ponder over the
fact that these two arches, so closely connected with Christianity, are
still standing, while nearly every other has long since been razed to
the ground.
[Illustration: THE ARCH OF TITUS, ROME]