1.—The GREAT CRUCIFIX and ROOD, with its attendant images, stood always
in the centre of the loft.
The cross was usually framed of timber, richly carved, painted, and
gilt; at its extremities the four Evangelists were depicted, and
frequently on the reverse the four doctors of the church. The
Evangelists were sometimes represented as sitting figures in the act of
writing, but more frequently under the form of the apocalyptical
symbols. The extremities of the cross usually terminated in
fleur-de-lys, and its sides were foliated or crocketed.
The Blessed Virgin and St. John were the almost invariable
accompaniments of the crucifix, but cherubim were occasionally added. As
these Roods were of great weight, their support was assisted by
wrought-iron chains, depending from the great stone arch on the entrance
to the choir and chancel, and the staples for these chains are
frequently to be seen in churches from which the Roods have been removed.
2.—LECTERNS for the Epistle, Gospel, and Lessons. These lecterns were
either moveable brass stands, like those in choirs, or marble desks,
forming part of the masonry of the design: these are still left in many
churches on the continent. Those at the Frairi at Venice are most
beautiful, and, to come nearer home, in a rood loft at Tatershall Church
is a curiously-moulded stone desk for the reader of the lessons.
3.—CORONELS and STANDARDS for LIGHTS.
Coronels of silver or other metal were suspended on all the great rood
lofts, and filled with lighted tapers, on solemn feasts. The maintenance
of the rood lights was a frequent and somewhat heavy item in the old
churchwardens' accounts, as will be seen by extracts published in this
work.
At Bourges there were twenty-four brass basins, with prickets for
tapers, which the bishops used to supply at their own cost.
The Blessed Sacrament was usually exposed from the rood loft. The
exposition on the high altar of Lyons Cathedral was mentioned as
occurring for the first time in the year 1701. All the solemn
expositions at Rouen took place from one of the altars under the rood
loft, and there is every reason to believe that the Blessed Sacrament
was usually exposed either on the rood lofts or the altars attached to
them; but these expositions were only at considerable intervals of time,
and only permitted on some great and urgent occasion, and they were then
conducted with the greatest possible solemnity, as may be seen in the
account given by De Moleon of the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament at
the Cathedral, Rouen. Branches of trees were commonly set up in these
rood lofts at Christmas and Whitsuntide, and they were also occasionally
decorated with flowers.
The principal use of these lofts was for the solemn singing of the
Epistle and Gospel; but, as I have said before, the lessons and the
great antiphons, &c., were also chanted from them. In the Greek Church,
the deacon read the diptychs from the rood loft, and formerly warned the
catechumens and the penitents to depart before the mass, crying out
Sancta Sanctis! The fronts of the old rood lofts were frequently most
richly decorated with paintings or sculptures of sacred history, divided
into panels or niches, surmounted by a rich bratishing of open
tracery-work and foliage.
THE ROOD BEAM.—In the generality of wooden screens, the breastsumer of
the screen forms the beam on which the rood is fixed and tennanted; but
there are instances where the beam is fixed at some height above the
top, as at Little Malvern, the intervening space being filled in with
some tracery, or enrichment. The position of this beam gave rise to a
very ludicrous mistake on the part of one of the recent screen
opponents, who cited this church as an example of a mere beam to sustain
a rood without a screen; but unfortunately for his argument, the screen
itself is still standing beneath, in its original position. In Italy, at
Milan, Sienna, Ovieto, and several of the larger churches, there is only
a beam sustaining the rood, with images of the Blessed Virgin and St.
John. Some of them are ornamental in design, but I do not think any of
them older than the sixteenth century. There are several examples in
France, but all comparatively modern; but in the Domkirche, at Lubeck,
there is a most remarkable example of a rood beam, that merits a
particular description. The beam itself is composed of a great many
pieces of timber, deeply moulded and carved, and enriched with pendent
tracery and crocketed braces. It stretches across the nave in the
westernmost arch, on a line with transept, the rood screen being across
the easternmost one.
The cross is covered with open tracery, and crocketed; each crocket is
an expanding flower, from which the bust of a prophet issues, bearing a
scroll with a prophecy relative to our Lord's passion. The same images
are carved at the extremities of the four great quatrefoils, containing
the emblems of the Evangelists. The images of the Blessed Virgin, St.
John, St. Mary Magdalen, and the bishop at whose cost the work was set
up, are placed on the beam: the two latter are kneeling. Between these,
the dead are seen arising from their graves; and in either angle, on a
corbel, an angel of justice and mercy. Beyond these, on the piers of the
church, are two images of Adam and Eve; and a host of smaller angels and
images complete the personages of this most extraordinary work. Some of
the images are rather barbarous, but the foliage and details are
exquisitely wrought, and the whole design is most striking and original.
There are rood beams at Nuremberg, but the originality of that in St.
Lawrence's Church is rather doubtful,—though the antiquity of the rood
itself is certain. Each arm of the cross ramifies into three branches,
at the extremities of which are angels, with chalices, and on the top
branch a pelican.
Gervase, the monk of Canterbury, in his description of that cathedral,
makes the following statement: Under the great tower was erected the
altar of the holy cross, and a screen which separated the tower from the
nave: a _beam_ was laid across, and upon the middle of this beam a great
cross, with images of the Blessed Virgin and St. John, and two cherubim.
There is a rood beam of some antiquity at the church of Séran, near
Gisors. It is placed across the westernmost arch of the central tower.
And the same may be remarked in several of the Normandy churches; but in
some cases they stand considerably above the top of the screen; while in
others the screens have been removed at a very recent period, probably
that of the great revolution.
_From the Instructiones Fabricæ of S. Charles Borromeo._
Under the vaulted arch of the chancel in every church, especially
parochial churches, let a cross, having thereon the image of Christ,
devoutly and becomingly made of wood, or any other material, be exposed,
and conveniently placed.
But if, on account of the great depression of the arch or vaulting, it
cannot be placed so well there, then let it be put up against the wall,
over the arch, under the ceiling; or let it be placed over the chancel
door.
[5] The custom of using brass for the material of choir screens is to be
traced to a very late period, as at St. Gatier, at Tours; Cathedral,
Rouen; and in many of the Flemish cathedrals.
[6] The only instance I have found in England of circular staircases to
a rood loft, inside the church, is at Ely, before the old alterations of
the choir.