* * * * *
Go along the Rue de Rivoli as far as the Square of the Tour St. Jacques.
Walk through the little garden. Notice, in passing, =*=the tower—all
that now remains of the church of St. Jacques-de-la-Boucherie—used at
present as a meteorological observatory. Turn down the Rue St. Martin to
the Pont Notre-Dame. In front, L, stands the Hôtel-Dieu; R, the Tribunal
de Commerce; centre, the Marché-aux-Fleurs; at its back, the Prefecture
de Police. Continue straight along the Rue de la Cité, passing, R, the
main _façade_ of the modern Palais de Justice (with a glimpse of the
Ste. Chapelle) till you come to the broad and open Place Notre-Dame
(generally known by its mediæval name of the Parvis). Take a seat under
the horse-chestnuts on the north side of the Place, opposite the
equestrian statue of Charlemagne, in order to examine the =façade= of
the cathedral.
The =**west front=, dating from the beginning of the 13th century (later
than the rest), consists of two stories, flanked by towers of four
stories. The _first_ story contains the three main portals: L, the door
of Our Lady; centre, of her Son; R, of her Mother. On the buttresses
between them stand four statues: extreme L, St. Stephen; extreme R, St.
Marcel, Bishop of Paris (a canonized holder of this very see); centre L,
the Church, triumphant; centre R, the Synagogue, dejected (representing
between them the Law and the Gospel). This first story is crowned and
terminated by the Galerie des Rois, containing figures of the kings of
Israel and Judah, ancestors of the Blessed Virgin (others say, kings of
France to the date of the building), destroyed in the great Revolution,
but since restored. On the parapet above it stand, R and L, Adam and
Eve; centre, Our Lady and Child with two adoring angels—the Fall and
the Redemption. The _second_ story contains the great rose window and
two side-arches with double windows. The _third_ story of the towers
consists of a graceful open-work screen, continued in front of the nave,
so as to hide its ugly gable (which is visible from further back in the
Place), thus giving the main front a fallacious appearance of having
three stories. The final or _fourth_ story of the towers is pierced on
each side by two gigantic windows, adding lightness to their otherwise
massive block. The contemplated spires have never been added. This
_façade_ has been copied with modifications in many other French
cathedrals.
Now approach the front, to examine in detail the =**great portals=,
deeply recessed, as is usual in French cathedrals, owing to the massive
masonry of the towers. The left or _northern_ doorway—that of =Our
Lady= (by which her church is usually entered) bears on its central pier
a statue of the Virgin and Child; beneath her feet are scenes from the
temptation of Eve, who brought into the world sin, and the first
murderer Cain, as contrasted with her descendant, the Blessed Virgin,
who brought into the world the Redeemer of mankind. Over Our Lady’s
head, a tabernacle, representing the relics preserved within. In the
tympanum, first tier, L, three patriarchs; R, three kings, typifying the
ancestors of the Blessed Virgin. Above, second tier, the Entombment of
the Virgin, placed in her sarcophagus by angels, and attended by the
apostles with their familiar symbols. Higher still, third tier, the
Coronation of the Virgin, in the presence of her Son, with adoring
angels. The whole thus represents the Glory of Our Lady. At the sides
below, life-size figures; extreme L, Constantine, first Christian
Emperor; extreme R, Pope Silvester, to whom he is supposed to have given
the patrimony of St. Peter—the two representing the union of Church and
State. Next to these the great local saints: L, St. Denis, bearing his
head, and guided by two angels; R, St. John Baptist, St. Stephen, and
Ste. Geneviève, with the devil endeavouring to extinguish her taper, and
a sympathizing angel. The figures on the arch represent spectators of
the Coronation of the Virgin. Minor subjects—signs of the Zodiac,
Months, etc.—I leave to the ingenuity and skill of the reader. The
=*=_centre_ doorway (commonly called the Porte du Jugement) is that of
the Redeemer, =Our Lady’s Son=; on its central pier, fine modern figure
of Christ blessing; above, in the tympanum, the usual Last Judgment.
First tier (modern) the General Resurrection, with angels of the last
trump, and kings, queens, bishops, knights, etc., rising from their
tombs; conspicuous among them is naturally St. Stephen. Second tier, St.
Michael the Archangel weighing souls, with devils and angels in waiting,
the devils cheating; R, the wicked (on Christ’s left) hauled in chains
to hell; L, the saints (on His right) ascending to glory. On the summit,
third tier, the New Jerusalem, with Christ enthroned, showing His wounds
in mercy, flanked by adoring angels holding the cross, spear, and nails;
L, the Blessed Virgin, patroness of this church; and R, Ste. Geneviève,
patroness of Paris, interceding for their votaries. (Last figure is
usually, but I think incorrectly, identified as St. John the Evangelist,
who has no function on a Parisian Cathedral.) This relief, closely
copied at the Ste. Chapelle, is itself imitated from one at St. Denis.
On the lintels the Wise (L) and Foolish (R) Virgins; L and R on jambs,
life-size figures of the Twelve Apostles, with their usual symbols.
Observe the beautiful ironwork of the hinges. The third or _southern_
portal, that of St. Anne—the =Mother of the Virgin=—contains older
work than the other two, replaced from the earlier church on the same
site. The style of the figures is therefore Romanesque, not Gothic; so
is the architecture represented in them. On the centre pier, St. Marcel,
Bishop of Paris. Above, tympanum, history of St. Anne; first tier,
centre, the meeting of Joachim and Anna at the Golden Gate; L, Marriage
of the Virgin; R, her Presentation by St. Anne in the Temple, etc.
Second tier, the Nativity, and the visit of the Magi to Herod; at the
summit, third tier, Madonna enthroned, with adoring angels, a king, and
a bishop—Church and State once more identified. The work on this
doorway much resembles that at St. Denis. Magnificent iron hinges,
brought from old St. Stephen’s.
Walk round the quay on the South side to examine =the body of the
church=. Notice the lofty Nave, and almost equally lofty Aisles, with
(later) side-chapels built out as far as the level of the Transept;
also, the flying buttresses. As in most French churches, the transepts
are short, and project but little from the aisles. The South Transept
has a good late _façade_ with two rose-windows. Its portal—ill
visible—is dedicated (in compensation) to the displaced St. Stephen,
and contains on the pier a figure of the saint, robed, as usual, as a
deacon; in the tympanum are reliefs of his preaching, martyrdom, death,
and glorification. Note, to the R, a small relief of St. Martin of Tours
dividing his cloak with the beggar.
Enter the little garden further east, which occupies the site of the
former archevêché, in order to observe the characteristic French form of
the =choir=—a lofty and narrow apse, with apsidal aisles and circular
chapels added below, the whole forming what is called a _chevet_. The
light flying buttresses which support the soaring and slender choir add
greatly to the beauty and picturesqueness of the building. Pretty modern
Gothic fountain. Quit the garden and continue round the Northern side of
the Cathedral. The first (small) door at which we arrive—the Porte
Rouge—admits the canons. It is a late addition, built in 1407 by Jean
sans Peur, Duke of Burgundy, in expiation of his murder of the Duke of
Orleans; the donor and his wife kneel on each side of the Coronation of
the Virgin in the tympanum. Notice here the gargoyles and the graceful
architecture of the supports to the buttresses. The second (larger)
door—the Portail du Cloître, so called from the cloisters long
demolished—in the North Transept contains a good statue of the Madonna
on the pier; above, in the tympanum, confused figures tell obscurely the
legend of the monk Theophilus, who sold his soul to the devil. Stand
opposite this door, on the far pavement, to observe the architecture of
the North Transept. The best point of view for the whole body of the
cathedral, as distinct from the _façade_, can be obtained from the Quai
de Montebello on the south side of the river.
To visit the =interior=, enter by the L, or northern door of the
_façade_—that of Our Lady. The lofty nave is flanked by double aisles,
all supported by powerful piers. Walk across the church and notice all
five vistas. Observe the height and the delicate arches of the
triforium, or pierced gallery of the second story, as well as the
windows of the clerestory above it—the part of the nave which rises
higher than the aisles, and opens freely to the exterior. Walk down the
outer R aisle. The side-chapels, each dedicated to a separate saint,
contain the altars and statues of their patrons. Notice the shortness of
the Transepts, with their great rose windows; observe also the vaulting
of the roof, especially at the intersection of the four main arms of the
building. The entrance to the =choir= and =ambulatory= is in the R or S
Transept. Close by, near the pillar, Notre-Dame de Paris, _the_
wonder-working mediæval statue of Our Lady. The double aisles are
continued round the choir, which is separated from them by a wall and
gateways. Approach the brass grills, in order to inspect the interior of
the choir, whose furniture was largely modernised and ruined by Louis
XIV, in accordance with a misguided vow of his father. Chapels surround
the ambulatory, many of them with good glass windows and tolerable
frescoes. The chapel at the end is that of Our Lady of the Seven
Sorrows.
By far the most interesting object in the interior, however, is the
series of =**high reliefs in stone=, gilt and painted (on the wall
between choir and ambulatory), executed early in the 14th century by
Jehan Ravy and his nephew, Jehan de Bouteillier, which, though inferior
in merit to those in the same position in Amiens cathedral, are
admirable examples of animated and vigorous French sculpture of their
period. The series begins on the N side of the choir, at the point most
remote from the grill which leads to the Transept. The remaining
subjects (for some, like the Annunciation, are destroyed) comprise the
Visitation; Adoration of the Shepherds; Nativity; Adoration of the Magi
(note the Three Kings, representing the three ages of man; the oldest,
as usual, has removed his crown, and is offering his gift); the Massacre
of the Innocents; the Flight into Egypt (where a grotesque little
temple, containing two odd small gods, quaintly represents the
prevalence of idolatry); the Presentation in the Temple; Christ among
the Doctors; the Baptism in Jordan (with attendant angel holding a
towel); the Miracle at Cana; the Entry into Jerusalem (with Zacchæus in
the tree, and the gate of the city); the Last Supper; the Washing of the
Apostles’ feet; and the Agony in the Garden. The tourist should
carefully examine all these subjects, the treatment of which strikes a
keynote. Similar scenes, almost identical in their figures, will be
found in abundance at Cluny and elsewhere. Note, for example, the
symbolical Jordan in the Baptism, with St. John pouring water from a
cup, and the attendant angel, all of which we shall often recognise
hereafter.
The series is continued on the other (S) side of the choir (a little
later in date, with names in Latin underneath; better modelled, but
neither so quaint nor so vigorous). The subjects begin by the grill of
the South Transept, with the “Noli me tangere” or Apparition to Mary
Magdalen (Christ as a gardener); the Apparition to the Marys; to Simon
Peter; to the Disciples at Emmaus (dressed as mediæval pilgrims); to the
Eleven Apostles; to the Ten and Thomas; to the Eleven by the sea of
Tiberias; to the Disciples in Galilee; and on the Mount of Olives. The
intervening and remaining subjects—Scourging, Crucifixion, Ascension,
etc.—were ruthlessly destroyed by Louis XIV, in order to carry out his
supposed improvements in accordance with the vow of his father, Louis
XIII. The woodwork of the choir-stalls, executed by his order, is
celebrated, and uninteresting. You may omit it. The Treasury contains
little of artistic value. The Crown of Thorns still figures in its
inventory.
Leave the Choir by the door by which you entered it, and seat yourself
for a while at the intersection of the Nave and Transepts, in order to
gain a good idea of the Apse, the Choir, and the general arrangement of
the shortly cruciform building. Observe the beautiful vaulting of the
roof, and the extent to which the church is born on its piers alone, the
intervening walls (pierced by windows and triforium-arches) being
intended merely for purposes of enclosure. Note also the fine ancient
glass of the rose windows. Quit the church by the North or Left Aisle,
and come back to it often.
Those who are not afraid of a spiral staircase, mostly well lighted,
should =ascend= the Left or =North Tower= (tickets fifty cents. each, at
the base of the tower). Stop near the top to inspect the gallery, with
the famous birds and demons. The view hence embraces from the front the
Tower of St. Jacques; behind it, the hill of Montmartre, with the white
turrets and cupolas of the church of the Sacré-Cœur; a little to the L,
St. Eustache; then the Tribunal de Commerce; St. Augustin; the Louvre;
the roof of the Ste. Chapelle; the Arc de Triomphe; the twin towers of
the Trocadéro; the Eiffel Tower; the gilded dome of the Invalides; St.
Sulpice, etc. The Île de la Cité is well seen hence as an island. Note
also the gigantic size of the open screen, which looked so small from
below. Ascend to the top. Good general panorama of the town and valley.
This is the best total view of Paris, far superior to that from the
Eiffel Tower, being so much more central.
Return by the Pont d’Arcole (whence you get a capital notion of the
bifurcation of the Seine around the Île St. Louis), and then pass the
modern Hôtel-de-Ville, with St. Gervais behind it, on your way home to
the Rue de Rivoli.
[Illustration: [Map of] HISTORIC PARIS]