MODERN ARCHITECTURE.
1400 A.D. TO THE PRESENT TIME.
All Architecture since the time of the Renaissance is called Modern
Architecture; this term, therefore, embraces all edifices erected
during nearly four centuries.
When I first spoke of Architecture I said that it was a constructive
art, and not imitative like Painting and Sculpture. In its earlier
history this was true, but the time came when it also became an
imitative art and had no true or original style. The Gothic order was
the last distinct order which arose, and since its decline, at the
beginning of the Renaissance, all architecture has been an imitation
because it is a reproduction of what existed before; at times some one
of the older orders has been in favor and closely imitated, and again,
parts of several orders are combined in one edifice. Since the time of
the Reformation it has been true, almost without exception, that every
building of any importance has been copied from something belonging to
a country and a people foreign to the land in which it was erected.
When the revival of Classic Literature began, Rome was the first to
feel its influence. It was welcomed there with open arms, just as we
might receive the early history and literature of our country if it had
all been lost and was found again; for this was precisely what it meant
to the Romans, when, after the Dark Ages, the works of Livy, Tacitus,
and Cæsar were in their hands, and they read of the history, art, and
literature of their past. They were enthusiastic, and their feeling
soon spread over all Italy.
France was the next to adopt the newly-revived ideas, for that country
looked to Rome as the source of true religion, and a model in all
things. Spain was then in an unsettled state, and welcomed the revival
of classic art as heartily as it had already embraced the Church of
Rome.
In Germany the love of the classics was enthusiastic, but that nation
was more taken up with literature and slower in adopting the revival
of the arts than were the more southern peoples, and the fifteenth
and sixteenth centuries are a barren period in the history of German
architecture.
In England, too, the Renaissance made slow progress. It was not until
the time of Charles I. that any influence was felt in Great Britain
from the revival of classic taste which was so well established on the
Continent.
As it is true that no new order of Architecture has arisen since the
time of those of which I have already told you, I shall try to make
you understand something of Modern Architecture by speaking of certain
important edifices in one country and another, with no attempt at any
more detailed explanation of it.
ITALY.
We cannot say that the art of the Renaissance originated in one
city or another, because the movement in the revival of art was so
general throughout Italy; but Florence has a strong claim to our first
consideration from the fact that Filippo Brunelleschi was a Florentine
and did his greatest work in his native city, and on account of it has
been called "the father of the Art of the Renaissance." He was born in
1377, and from his early boyhood was inclined to be an architect. The
cathedral of Florence (Fig. 102), which is also called the church of
Sta. Maria del Fiore, had been built long before, but had never been
finished by a roof or dome.
[Illustration: FIG. 102.--THE CATHEDRAL OF FLORENCE AND GIOTTO'S
CAMPANILE.]
Brunelleschi was possessed with but one desire, which was to complete
this cathedral. He went to Rome and diligently studied the remains
of classic art which he found there, and especially the dome of the
Pantheon. Returning to Florence he took measures to bring his plans
before the superintendents of the cathedral works; he was ridiculed and
discouraged on every hand, but he never gave up his hopes nor lessened
his study of the ways and means by which the dome could be built. Thus
many weary years passed by; Brunelleschi made drawings in secret, and
from these he constructed models in order to convince himself of what
he could do.
At last those who had authority in the matter were ready to act, and a
convention was called, before which the architects of different nations
appeared and were requested to explain their theories of what could be
done to cover the cathedral. Many artists were assembled and various
plans were shown, but after all had been examined the work was given to
Brunelleschi, and he was happy in finding that the years he had devoted
to the study of the dome had not been spent in vain.
It was on this occasion that Brunelleschi refused to show his models,
and when the other architects blamed him for this he asked that some
eggs should be brought, and proposed that he who could make an egg
stand upright on a smooth piece of marble should be the builder of the
dome. The others tried to do this and failed; at last Brunelleschi
brought his egg down on the marble with a sharp tap and left it
standing erect. Then all exclaimed, "Oh, we could have done that if we
had known that was the way," to which Brunelleschi replied, "So you
could have built a dome if I had shown you my models."
This story is often told of Columbus, but as Brunelleschi was much
older than Columbus, and the fact is related by Florentine writers
of his time, it is probable that Columbus had heard of it from the
geographer Toscanelli, who was a great admirer of Brunelleschi and a
friend of Columbus also. In building the dome, Brunelleschi encountered
great difficulties, but he lived to be assured of his success, for at
his death, in 1444, it lacked but little of completion, and all the
parts essential to its perfection and durability were finished.
This is the largest dome in the world, for though the cross on the top
of St. Peter's is farther from the ground than that of Florence, the
dome itself above the church is not as large as the dome of Sta. Maria
del Fiore.
This work made Brunelleschi's greatest fame, but he was the architect
of many other fine churches and of secular buildings also; among the
last the Pitti Palace, in which is the famous Pitti Gallery, is one of
the most important. When you go to Florence you will see a statue of
Filippo Brunelleschi, which is very interesting, on account of the way
in which it is represented and the position in which it is placed. It
is on one side of the Piazza of the cathedral; he is calmly sitting
there with a plan of the church spread before him on his lap, while he
lifts his head to look at the great dome as it stands out against the
sky, the realization of all his thought and labor during so many years.
[Illustration: FIG. 103.--VIEW OF ST. PETER'S. _Rome._]
The church of St. Peter's at Rome, which is the largest and most
magnificent of all Christian temples, was begun about 1450, and was
not brought into its present form until about 1661, or more than two
centuries later (Fig. 103).
The history of its building is largely a story of contentions and
troubles between popes, architects, and artists of different kinds.
As it now stands it is as much the work of Michael Angelo as of any
one man, but several other architects left their imprint upon it, both
before and after his time; and all who aided in its construction were
eminent men, in their way. Michael Angelo was in his seventy-second
year when he took up the task of completing St. Peter's. Bramante,
Raphael, and Peruzzi had preceded him as architects of the church;
Michael Angelo designed the dome, and when he was ninety it was nearly
finished; the models for its completion which he made were not followed
after his death; his plan would have made the church more harmonious
with the dome, in size, than it now is. Money was sent in large sums,
from all Europe, to carry on this work; the finest materials were
used in building it, and the most gifted artists were employed in its
decoration; it is now the vast home of multitudes of treasures. "I
have hung the Pantheon in the air!" Michael Angelo is said to have
exclaimed, while looking at the splendid dome of St. Peter's; and no
dome in the world has a more imposing effect, although its harmony with
the rest of the building is injured by the change of the plan from that
of a Greek cross which was made after his death.[A]
[A] The interior diameter of the dome of St. Peter's is one
hundred and thirty-nine feet; that of St. Sophia, one
hundred and fifteen feet, and that of Sta. Maria del Fiore,
at Florence, one hundred and thirty-eight feet, six inches.
In spite of all this the critics of architecture are never weary of
pointing out the defects of St. Peter's; but to those who cannot apply
to it the test of strictly scientific rules, its interior is sublime in
its effect, and has few rivals--perhaps but one--in the world, and that
is the great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak, of which we spoke when writing
of Egyptian architecture. But even here the difference is almost too
great to admit of comparison; the spirit of the two is so unlike--St.
Peter's is complete and Karnak is a ruin--so, after all, it must be
admitted that the interior of St. Peter's is superior to all other
edifices of which we know (Fig. 104).
[Illustration: FIG. 104.--SECTION OF ST. PETER'S.]
From the time of the beginning of the Renaissance, about 1420, to
about 1630, the architecture of Venice was going through a change, and
finally reached such perfection that during the next half century the
most magnificent style of architecture prevailed which has ever been
known there. We mean to say that the whole effect was the grandest,
for, while it is true that the edifices of that time are stately and
striking in their appearance, it is equally true that their form and
ornamentation are not as much in keeping with their use as they had
been in older edifices.
Sansovino, who lived from 1479 to 1570, was an important architect and
had great influence upon modern Venetian architecture. His masterpiece
was the Library of St. Mark, of which the preceding cut gives one
end (Fig. 105). It is a very beautiful structure, and is made more
interesting from the fact that it stands directly opposite to the
Doge's Palace, and in the midst of all the interest which centres about
the Piazza of St. Mark.
[Illustration: FIG. 105.--EAST ELEVATION OF LIBRARY OF ST. MARK.
_Venice._]
The Ducal Palace at Venice is called by John Ruskin, the great English
critic, "the central edifice of the world." It is divided into three
stories, of which the uppermost occupies rather more than half the
height of the building. The two lower stories are arcades of low,
pointed arches, supported on pillars, the one beneath being bolder and
heavier in character than the second. The capitals of the columns are
greatly varied, no two in the upper arcade being exactly alike. Above
the arches of the middle story was a row of open-work spaces, of the
form called quatrefoil; while the third story is faced with alternating
blocks of rose-colored and white marble, and is pierced with a few
large pointed windows. The whole front, or façade, is crowned by an
open parapet made up of blocks of stone carved into lily-like forms
alternating with lance-shaped leaves. The whole effect is one of great
richness and beauty, especially since time has mellowed its color, and
softened without destroying the whiteness of its marbles (Fig. 106).
[Illustration: FIG. 106.--THE DOGE'S PALACE. _Venice._]
During the time of the Renaissance there were churches, palaces,
museums, hospitals, and other large buildings erected in all the
important cities of Italy. There are but few of these which have such
special features as entitle them to be selected for description here.
The reason for this has been given already--viz.: there was nothing new
in them; they were all repetitions of what has been described in one
form or another. Perhaps the next cut gives as good an example of
secular architecture in this age as any that could be selected (Fig.
107).
[Illustration: FIG. 107.--GREAT COURT OF THE HOSPITAL OF MILAN.]
Indeed, it is one of the most remarkable buildings of its class in any
age. It was commenced by Francesco Sforza and his wife, Bianca, in
1456. They died long before its completion, and one part and another
have been changed from time to time, but its great court, which was
designed by Bramante, still remains, the finest thing of its kind in
all Italy.
I shall now leave Italy with saying that the early days of the
Renaissance were the best days of Italian Architecture, and, indeed, of
Italian Art. The period made sacred by the genius and works of Michael
Angelo, Bramante, Sangallo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Raphael was a
golden era, and still sheds its lustre over the land of their nativity.
These artists followed the highest ideal of Art, and their errors were
superior to the so-called successes of less gifted men.
The Italian Art of the fifteenth century was individual and grand; in
the sixteenth century it became formal and elegant; in the seventeenth
century it was bizarre, over-ornamented, and uncertain in its aim and
execution; since then it has been comparatively unimportant, and its
architecture scarcely merits censure, and certainly cannot be praised.
SPAIN.
From the time of the fall of Granada, in 1492 to 1558, Spain was the
leading nation of Europe. The whole country had been united under
Ferdinand and Isabella, and their reign was a glorious period for their
country. The importance of the nation was increased by the discovery
of the New World, and so many great men were in her councils that her
eminence was sure, and almost undisputed. Thus it followed that during
the first half of the sixteenth century the Architecture of Spain gave
expression to the spirit by which the nation was then animated.
This did not long continue, however, for the iron, practical rule
of Philip II. crushed out enthusiasm and was fatal to artistic
inspiration. This sovereign desired only to extend his kingdom; the
priests, who acquired almost limitless power under his reign, aimed
only to strengthen their authority, while the people were wildly
pursuing riches in the New World which opened up to them a vast and
attractive field. Thus no place or time was left to the cultivation
of Art, and the only noteworthy period of Spanish Architecture since
the beginning of the Renaissance was the sixty years which we have
mentioned.
The Modern Architecture of Spain has been divided into three eras, each
of which was distinguished by its own style. The first extends from
the beginning of the Renaissance down to that of the abdication of the
great Emperor Charles V. in 1555; the manner of this period is called
Platerisco, or the silversmith's style, on account of the vast amount
of fine, filigree ornament which was used. The second period is from
the above date to about 1650, and its art is called the Græco-Roman
style because it is an attempt to revive the Classic Art of the
ancient Greeks and Romans. The third period comes from 1650 to about a
century later, and the Spaniards call its manner the Churrigueresque,
which difficult name they take from that of Josef de Churriguera, the
architect who invented this style. Since 1750 we may almost say that no
such thing as Spanish Architecture has existed.
The cathedrals of Granada, Jaen, and Valladolid, and the churches
of Malaga and Segovia, with many other ecclesiastical edifices, are
among the chief monuments of Spanish Renaissance Architecture, but
we shall pass on to a little later period and speak of but one great
achievement, the famous Escurial, which is of much historic interest.
This combination of basilica, palace, monastery, and college was begun
in 1563 by Philip II., in accordance with a vow which he made to St.
Lawrence at the battle of St. Quentin. This battle was fought in 1557
under the walls of the French town of St. Quentin, by the French and
the Spaniards, and the latter were completely victorious.
This cut gives an idea of how grand and impressive this collection
of walls, towers, courts, and edifices must be, all crowned with the
dome of the basilica. It is almost like a city by itself, and all who
visit it agree that it is a gloomy and depressing place in spite of its
grandeur (Fig. 108).
[Illustration: FIG. 108.--THE ESCURIAL. _Near Madrid._]
The front has three imposing entrances, with towers at the corner
angles. Within the inclosure are a college, monastery, palace with
state apartments, the church, numerous courts, gardens, and fountains.
The front is injured by the great number of small windows, which divide
it into such numberless sections as to become very tiresome to the
eye, while they take away the noble elegance of larger spaces and the
air of repose which such spaces give. The angle towers are not as rich
in effect as they should be, and the side walls have been compared
to those of a Manchester cotton-mill; thus the exterior, which is
effective from its size and general air, has not the beauty of detail
which satisfies a close observer.
The effect of the interior, as one goes in by the central entrance,
is all that can be desired. The court leads directly to the square
before the church; as one passes to it he has the college on one side,
the monastery on the other, farther on the palace, with the whole
culminating in the grand state apartments and the basilica. The various
courts are striking in their arrangement, and the church with its dome
and towers gives a supreme glory to the whole. Gardens, fountains, and
many other fine objects add their effect to the richness and beauty
of the whole; but all are insignificant beside the basilica, which
merits a place in the foremost rank of the churches of the Renaissance.
Indeed, the Escurial is a marvellous place, and is often called "the
eighth wonder of the world." The richest marbles, splendid pictures,
and many magnificent objects help to make it one of the grandest works
of modern architecture.
It is also true that it is one of the gloomiest places visited by
travellers, and I shall quote a few lines from De Amicis to show the
depressing effect which it has upon those who go there.
"The first feeling is that of sadness; the whole building is of
dirt-colored stone, and striped with white between the stones; the
roofs are covered with strips of lead. It looks like an edifice built
of earth. The walls are very high and bare, and contain a great number
of loopholes. One would call it a prison rather than a convent....
The locality, the forms, the colors, everything, in fact, seems to
have been chosen by him who founded the edifice with the intention of
offering to the eyes of men a sad and solemn spectacle. Before entering
you have lost all your gayety; you no longer smile, but think. You
stop at the doors of the Escurial with a sort of trepidation, as at
the gates of a deserted city; it seems to you that, if the terrors of
the Inquisition reigned in some corner of the world, they ought to
reign among those walls. You would say that therein one might still
see the last traces of it and hear its last echo.... The royal palace
is superb, and it is better to see it before entering the convent and
church, in order not to confuse the separate impressions produced by
each. This palace occupies the northeast corner of the edifice. Several
rooms are full of pictures, others are covered from floor to ceiling
with tapestries, representing bull-fights, public balls, games, fêtes,
and Spanish costumes, designed by Goya; others are regally furnished
and adorned; the floor, the doors, and the windows are covered with
marvellous inlaid work and stupendous gilding. But among all the rooms
the most noteworthy is that of Philip II.; it is rather a cell than a
room, is bare and squalid, with an alcove which answers to the royal
oratory of the church, so that, from the bed, by keeping the doors
open, one can see the priest who is saying mass. Philip II. slept in
that cell, had his last illness there, and there he died. One still
sees some chairs used by him, two little stools upon which he rested
the leg tormented with gout, and a writing-desk. The walls are white,
the ceiling flat and without any ornament, and the floor of brick....
In the court-yard of the kings you can form a first idea of the immense
frame-work of the edifice. The court is inclosed by walls; on the side
opposite the doors is the façade of the church. On a spacious flight
of steps there are six enormous Doric columns, each of which upholds
a large pedestal, and every pedestal a statue. There are six colossal
statues, by Battiste Monegro, representing Jehoshaphat, Ezekiel, David,
Solomon, Joshua, and Manasseh. The court-yard is paved, scattered
with bunches of damp turf. The walls look like rocks cut in points;
everything is rigid, massive, and heavy, and presents the fantastic
appearance of a Titanic edifice, hewn out of solid stone, and ready to
defy the shocks of earth and the lightnings of heaven. There one begins
to understand what the Escurial really is.
"One ascends the steps and enters the church. The interior is sad and
bare.... Beside the high altar, sculptured and gilded in the Spanish
style, in the inter-columns of the two royal oratories, one sees two
groups of bronze statues kneeling, with their hands clasped toward the
altar. On the right Charles V. and the Empress Isabella, and several
princesses; on the left, Philip II. with his wives.... In a corner,
near a secret door, is the chair which Philip II. occupied. He received
through that door letters and important messages, without being seen
by the priests who were chanting in the choir. This church, which, in
comparison with the entire building, seems very small, is nevertheless
one of the largest in Spain, and although it appears so free from
ornamentation, contains immense treasures of marble, gold, relics,
and pictures, which the darkness in part conceals, and from which the
sad appearance of the edifice distracts one's attention.... But every
feeling sinks into that of sadness. The color of the stone, the gloomy
light, and the profound silence which surrounds you, recall your mind
incessantly to the vastitude, unknown recesses, and solitude of the
building, and leave no room for the pleasure of admiration. The aspect
of the church awakens in you an inexplicable feeling of inquietude. You
would divine, were you not otherwise aware of it, that those walls are
surrounded, for a great distance, by nothing but granite, darkness,
and silence; without seeing the enormous edifice, you feel it; you
feel that you are in the midst of an uninhabited city; you would fain
quicken your pace in order to see it rapidly, to free yourself from the
weight of that mystery, and to seek, if they exist anywhere, bright
light, noise, and life.... One goes to the convent, and here human
imagination loses itself; ... you pass through a long subterranean
corridor, so narrow that you can touch the walls with your elbows,
low enough almost to hit the ceiling with your head, and as damp as
a submarine grotto; you reach the end, turn, and you are in another
corridor. You go on, come to doors, look, and other corridors stretch
away before you as far as the eye can reach. At the end of some you see
a ray of light, at the end of others an open door, through which you
catch a glimpse of a suite of rooms.... You look through a door and
start back alarmed; at the end of that long corridor, into which you
have glanced, you have seen a man as motionless as a spectre, who was
looking at you. You proceed, and emerge on a narrow court, inclosed
by high walls, which is gloomy, overgrown with weeds, and illumined
by a faint light which seems to fall from an unknown sun, like the
court of the witches described to us when we were children.... You
pass through other corridors, staircases, suites of empty rooms, and
narrow courts, and everywhere there is granite, a pale light, and the
silence of a tomb. For a short time you think you would be able to
retrace your steps; then your memory becomes confused, and you remember
nothing more; you seem to have walked ten miles, to have been in that
labyrinth for a month, and not to be able to get out of it. You come to
a court and say, 'I have seen it already!' but you are mistaken; it is
another.... You seem to be dreaming; catch glimpses of long frescoed
walls ornamented with pictures, crucifixes, and inscriptions; you see
and forget; and ask yourself, 'Where am I?'... On you go from corridor
to corridor, court to court; you look ahead with suspicion; almost
expect to see suddenly, at the turning of a corner, a row of skeleton
monks, with their hoods drawn over their eyes and their arms folded;
you think of Philip II., and seem to hear his retreating step through
dark hallways; you remember all that you have read of him, of his
treasures, the Inquisition, and all becomes clear to your mind's eye;
you understand everything for the first time; the Escurial _is_ Philip
II., he is still there, alive and frightful, and with him the image
of his terrible God.... The Escurial surrounds, holds, and overwhelms
you; the cold of its stones penetrates to your marrow; the sadness of
its sepulchral labyrinths invades your soul; if you are with a friend
you say, 'Let us leave;' if you were alone you would take to flight. At
last you mount a staircase, enter a room, go to the window, and salute
with a burst of gratitude the mountains, sun, freedom, and the great
and beneficent God who loves and pardons. What a long breath one draws
at that window!
"An illustrious traveller said that after having passed a day in the
convent of the Escurial, one ought to feel happy throughout one's life,
in simply thinking that one might still be among those walls, but is
no longer there. This is almost true. Even at the present day, after
so great a lapse of time, on rainy days, when I am sad, I think of the
Escurial, then look at the walls of my room, and rejoice!"
During the sixteenth century there were many palaces erected in Spain,
but nothing can be added to the impressions you will get from the
descriptions we have quoted of the cheerful, gay Alhambra, and the
gloomy, sad Escurial.
The domestic architecture of Spain is unattractive. There are no
fine _châteaux_, as in France, or elegant parks, as in England. Ford
compares the front of the residence of the Duke of Medina to "ten
Baker-street houses put together," and this is true of many so-called
palaces. This state of modern Spanish architecture is fully accounted
for by the following quotation from Fergusson, the learned writer on
architecture:
"On the whole, perhaps, we should not be far wrong in assuming that the
Spaniards are among the least artistic people in Europe. Great things
have been done in their country by foreigners, and they themselves have
done creditable things in periods of great excitement, and under the
pressure of foreign example; but in themselves they seem to have no
innate love of Art, no real appreciation for its beauties, and, when
left to themselves, they care little for the expression of beauty in
any of the forms in which Art has learned to embody itself. In Painting
they have done some things that are worthy of praise; in Sculpture they
have done very little; and in Architectural Art they certainly have not
achieved success. Notwithstanding that they have a climate inviting
to architectural display in every form; though they have the best of
materials in infinite abundance; though they had wealth and learning,
and were stimulated by the example of what had been done in their own
country, and was doing by other nations--in spite of all this, they
have fallen far short of what was effected either in Italy or France,
and now seem to be utterly incapable of appreciating the excellencies
of Architectural Art, or of caring to enjoy them."
FRANCE.
After the reigns of Charles VIII. and Louis XII. the French people
became somewhat familiar with Italian Art, and at length, during the
reign of Francis I., from 1515 to 1546, everything Italian was the
fashion in France. Francis invited such artists as Leonardo da Vinci,
Benvenuto Cellini, Primaticcio, and Andrea del Sarto to come to France
and aid him in his works at Fontainebleau and elsewhere.
It was not long before the Gothic architecture which had been so much
used and improved in France was thought to be inferior in beauty to
the Italian architecture as it existed in the sixteenth century, and
very soon the latter style was adopted and considered as the only one
worthy of admiration. But the French architects had been so trained
to the Gothic order that it was not easy for them to change their
habits of design, and the result was that new edifices were largely
of the Gothic form, but were finished and ornamented like the Italian
buildings; by this means the effect of the whole, when completed, was
such as is seen in this picture of the church of St. Michael at Dijon
(Fig. 109). In these days no one approves of this union of Gothic
design and Italian decoration, but when it was the fashion it was
thought to be very beautiful by French architects.
[Illustration: FIG. 109.--FAÇADE OF THE CHURCH OF ST. MICHAEL. _Dijon._]
Francis I., who was so anxious to introduce Italian art into France,
erected edifices of a very different sort from those which he attempted
to imitate. In Italy, the principal buildings of the Renaissance were
churches or convents, or such as were in some way for religious uses.
Francis I. built palaces like that of Fontainebleau, and splendid
châteaux like those of Chambord, or Chenonceaux, and the Italian style
of architecture could not be readily adapted to the lighter uses of the
French kings. The splendid massive Pitti Palace, built after the design
of the great Brunelleschi, would scarcely have harmonized with the
river banks and the lovely undulating meadows around a country villa
or château. So it gradually happened that French Architecture was more
graceful, light, and elegant than the architecture of the churches,
monasteries, and other religious edifices of Italy, and at the same
time the Italian feeling and influence can easily be traced in the
French buildings of the time of which we speak.
In Italy the Pope and the Church governed in Art, and considered it
only as a religious means of glorifying the Church and impressing its
doctrines upon the whole people. In France the sovereigns held the
leading place, and in the midst of their ambitions and their gayeties
they found little time to consider the matter of church architecture.
Though the church of St. Eustache was erected at Paris, and other
churches were restored, it was not until 1629, when Cardinal Richelieu
ordered the building of the church of the Sarbonne, that an example
was given of the full effects upon French church architecture of the
change from the Gothic, or Mediæval style, to that of the Renaissance,
or the Classic style.
Perhaps the church of the Invalides is the most remarkable building of
the seventeenth century in France. It was designed and superintended
by Jules Hardouin Mansard, a skilful architect, who was born in 1647,
and died in 1708. The erection of the dome of the Invalides occupied
him from 1680 to 1706. It is a fashion to criticise this as well as all
famous buildings, but if it is remembered that the dome was intended to
be _the feature_ of the edifice, and that it was therefore necessary to
sacrifice something to it, in the construction of the whole, we must
admit that what its admirers claim for it is true--namely, that it is
one of the finest domical edifices in Europe, and a most satisfactory
example of the architecture of its class (Fig. 110).
[Illustration: FIG. 110.--FAÇADE OF THE DOME OF THE INVALIDES. _Paris._]
Directly underneath this dome is the crypt in which is the sarcophagus
which contains the remains of Napoleon Bonaparte. On the door which
leads to the crypt are inscribed the following words, taken from the
will of the exile at St. Helena: "I desire that my ashes may rest on
the banks of the Seine, in the midst of the French people whom I have
loved so well."
This tomb is said to have cost nearly two millions of dollars, and
though it is beautiful, and in good taste in its details, yet one can
but regret that all this expense should not have erected a splendid
mausoleum, such as would have dignified the monumental art of France.
The church of St. Genevieve, or the Pantheon, as it is usually called,
is a very important architectural work. It was twenty-six years in
building, and was not completed until after the death of its architect,
Soufflot, which occurred in 1781 (Fig. 111).
[Illustration: FIG. 111.--THE PANTHEON. _Paris._]
It is said that this church was begun as the fulfilment of a vow made
by King Louis XV. when he was ill, but as the French Revolution was
in progress when it was completed, it was dedicated to the "_Grands
Hommes_," or the great men of France, and not to God or the sweet St.
Genevieve, who was one of the patron saints of Paris.
The dome of the Pantheon is elegant and chaste, but not great in design
or effect, and the whole appearance of the church is weakened by the
extreme width of the spaces between the front columns; this makes the
entablature appear weak, and is altogether a serious defect. Another
striking fault is the way in which a second column is placed outside
at each end of the portico; one cannot imagine a reason for this, and
it is confusing and unmeaning in the extreme. The interior of the
Pantheon is superior to the exterior, and many authorities name it as
the most satisfactory of all modern, classical church interiors; when
it was built it was believed to be as perfect an imitation of antique
classical architecture as could be made, and all the world may be
grateful that it escaped the fate prepared for it by the Communists.
This was averted by the discovery and cutting of the fuse which they
had prepared for its destruction on May 24th, 1871; the fuse led to the
crypts beneath the church, where these reckless men had placed large
quantities of powder.
In the beginning of the present century French architects believed it
best to reproduce exactly ancient temples which had been destroyed.
According to this view the church of the Madeleine was begun in 1804,
after the designs of Vignon. Outwardly it is a temple of the Corinthian
order, and is very beautiful, though its position greatly lessens
its effect. If it were on a height, or standing in a large square by
itself, it would be far more imposing (Fig. 112).
[Illustration: FIG. 112.--THE MADELEINE. _Paris._]
The church of the Trinity and that of the Augustines, at Paris, are
important church edifices of the present day, but though much thought
and time have been lavished on them, they are not as attractive as
we could wish the works of our own time to be; and they seem almost
unworthy of attention when we remember that in the same city there are
so many examples of architecture that have far more artistic beauty,
as well as the additional charms of age and the interest of historical
associations.
We have already spoken of the sort of building in which Francis I.
delighted. Of all his undertakings the rebuilding of the Louvre was the
most successful. Its whole design was fine and the ornaments beautiful;
many of these decorations were made after the drawings of Jean Goujon,
who was an eminent master in such sculptures. The court of the Louvre
has never been excelled in any country of Europe; it is a wonderful
work for the time in which it was built, and satisfies the taste of
the most critical observers (Fig. 113).
[Illustration: FIG. 113.--PAVILION DE L'HORLOGE AND PART OF THE COURT
OF THE LOUVRE.]
We cannot give space to descriptions of the châteaux built by Francis
I., but this picture of that of Chambord affords a good example of what
these buildings were (Fig. 114).
[Illustration: FIG. 114.--CHÂTEAU OF CHAMBORD.]
From the time of the reign of Charles IX. (1560) to the close of the
reign of Louis XIII., the style of architecture which was used in
France was called the "style of Henry IV.;" this last-named king ruled
before Louis XIII., and during his time architecture sank to a very low
plane--there was nothing in it to admire or imitate. Under Louis XIII.
it began to improve, and in the days of Louis XIV., who is called the
"_Grand Monarque_," all the arts made great progress and received much
patronage from the king, and all the people of the court, for whom
the king was a model. Louis XIV. began a revival of Roman classical
architecture, and there is no doubt that he believed that he equalled,
or perhaps excelled, Julius Cæsar and all other Roman emperors as a
patron of the Fine Arts.
But we know that this great monarch was deceived by his self-love and
by the flatteries of those who surrounded him and wished to obtain
favors from him. His architectural works had so many faults that it is
very tiresome to read what is written about them, and in any case it
is pleasanter to speak of virtues than of faults. The works of Louis
XIV. were certainly herculean, and when we think of the building of the
palace of Versailles, the completion of the Louvre, and the numberless
hôtels, châteaux, and palaces which belong to his reign, we feel sure
that if only the vastness of the architectural works of his time is
considered, he well merits the title of the Great Monarch. But these
important edifices require more time and space if spoken of in detail
than we can give, and I pass to some consideration of the works of our
own time.
The architecture of the reign of Napoleon III. requires the space
of a volume, at least, were it to be clearly described, for during
that reign there was scarcely a city of France that did not add some
important building to its public edifices. First, the city of Paris was
remodelled and rebuilt to a marvellous extent, and as in other matters
Paris is the leader, so its example was followed in architecture. The
new Bourse in Lyons, the Custom House at Rouen, and the Exchange at
Marseilles are good specimens of what was done in this way outside the
great metropolis.
During the reign of Louis Philippe, and a little later, French domestic
architecture was vastly improved, and since then much more attention
has been given by Frenchmen to the houses in which they live. The
appearance of the new Boulevards and streets of Paris is picturesque,
while the houses are rich and elegant. Many portions of this city are
more beautiful than any other city of Europe; and yet it is true that
the architecture of forty years or so ago was more satisfactory than
that of the present time.
[Illustration: FIG. 115.--PORTE ST. DENIS. _Paris._]
The French are an enthusiastic people, and have been very fond of
erecting monuments in public places which would remind them continually
of the glories of their nation, the conquests of their armies, and
the achievements of their great men. Triumphal Arches and Columns of
Victory are almost numberless in France; many of them are impressive,
and some are really very fine in their architecture. Since the Porte
St. Denis was (Fig. 115) erected, in 1672, almost every possible
design has been used for these monuments, in one portion of France or
another, until, finally, the Arc de l'Étoile (Fig. 116) was built at
the upper end of the Champs Elysées, at Paris. This is the noblest
of all modern triumphal arches, as well as one of the most splendid
ornaments in a city which is richly decorated with architectural works
of various styles and periods--from that of the fine Renaissance
example seen in the west front of the Louvre, built in 1541, down
to the Arc de l'Étoile, the Fontaine St. Michel, and the Palais du
Trocadéro of our own time.
[Illustration: FIG. 116.--ARC DE L'ÉTOILE. _Paris._]
The French architecture of the present century is in truth a classic
revival; its style has been called the _néo-Grec_, or revived Greek,
and the principal buildings of the reign of Napoleon III. all show that
a study of Greek art had influenced those who designed these edifices.
ENGLAND.
We may say that England has never had an architecture of its own, since
it has always imitated and reproduced the orders which have originated
in other countries. The Gothic order is more than any other the order
of England, and, in truth, of Great Britain. All English cathedrals,
save one, and a very large proportion of the churches, in city and
country, are built in this style of architecture.
It is also true that during the Middle Ages, when the Roman Catholics
were in power in England and made use of Gothic architecture, they
built so many churches, that, during several later centuries, it might
be truly said that England had no church architecture, because so few
new churches were required or built.
It is so difficult to trace the origin and progress of the Classical
or Renaissance feeling in English architecture that I shall leave it
altogether, and passing the transition style and period, speak directly
of the first great architect of the Renaissance in England, Inigo
Jones, who was born in 1572 and died in 1653. He studied in Italy
and brought back to his native country a fondness for the Italian
architecture of that day. He became the favorite court architect,
and there are many important edifices in England which were built
from his designs. His most notable work was the palace of Whitehall,
though his design was never fully carried out in it; had it been, this
palace would have excelled all others in Europe, either of earlier or
later date. Among the churches designed by Inigo Jones that of St.
Paul's, Covent Garden, is interesting because it is probably the first
important Protestant church erected in England which still exists. It
is small and simple, being almost an exact reproduction of the early
Greek temples called _distyle in antis_, such as I described when
speaking of Greek architecture (Fig. 117).
[Illustration: FIG. 117.--EAST ELEVATION OF ST. PAUL'S. _Covent
Garden._]
Inigo Jones made many designs for villas and private residences, and
perhaps he is more famous for these works than for any others. Among
them are Chiswick and Wilton House, and many others of less importance.
After Jones came Sir Christopher Wren, who was the architect of some of
the finest buildings in London. He was born in 1632 and died in 1723.
The great fire, in 1666, when he was thirty-four years old, gave him a
splendid opportunity to show his talents. Only three days after this
fire he presented to the king a plan for rebuilding the city, which
would have made it one of the most convenient as well as one of the
most beautiful cities of the world.
Sir Christopher Wren is most frequently mentioned as the architect
of St. Paul's Cathedral. This was commenced nine years after the
great fire, and was thirty-five years in building. St. Paul's is the
largest and finest Protestant cathedral in the world, and among all
the churches of Europe that have been erected since the revival of
Classical architecture, St. Peter's, at Rome, alone excels it (Fig.
118).
[Illustration: FIG. 118.--ST. PAUL'S, LONDON. _From the West._]
Although so many years were consumed in the building of St. Paul's,
Sir Christopher Wren lived to superintend it all, and had the
gratification of placing the topmost stone in the lantern of this
splendid monument to his genius.
The western towers of Westminster Abbey are said to have been built
after a design by Wren, but of this there is a doubt. Among his other
works in church architecture are the steeple of Bow Church, London; the
church of St. Stephen's, Walbrook; St. Bride's, Fleet Street, and St.
James's, Piccadilly.
The royal palaces of Winchester and Hampton were designed by Wren, and
many other well-known edifices, among which is Greenwich Hospital.
He made some signal failures, but it is great praise to say, what is
undoubtedly true, that, though he was a pioneer in the Renaissance
architecture of England, and died a century and a half ago, no one of
his countrymen has surpassed him, and we may well question whether any
other English architect has equalled him.
[Illustration: FIG. 119.--ST. GEORGE'S HALL. _Liverpool._]
Churches, palaces, university buildings, and fine examples of municipal
and domestic architecture are so numerous in England and other
portions of Great Britain that we cannot speak of them in detail. The
culmination of the taste for the imitation of Classical architecture
was reached about the beginning of the present century, and among
the most notable edifices in that manner are the British Museum,
Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, and St. George's Hall, Liverpool (Fig.
119).
A revival of Gothic Architecture has taken place in England in our
own time. The three most prominent secular buildings in this style
are Windsor Castle, the Houses of Parliament, and the New Museum,
at Oxford. Of course, in the case of Windsor Castle, the work was a
remodelling, but the reparations were so extensive as to almost equal
a rebuilding. Sir Jeffry Wyatville had the superintendence of it,
and succeeded in making it appear like an ancient building refitted
in the nineteenth century--that is to say, it combines modern luxury
and convenience in its interior with the exterior appearance of the
castellated fortresses of a more barbarous age (Fig. 120).
[Illustration: FIG. 120.--WINDSOR CASTLE.]
In the Houses of Parliament there was an attempt to carry out, even to
the minutest detail, the Gothic style as it existed in the Tudor age,
when there was an excess of ornament, most elaborate doorways, and the
fan-tracery vaultings were decorated with pendent ornaments which look
like clusters of stalactites. Sir Charles Barry was its architect. The
present school of artists in England are never weary of abusing it;
they call it a horror and declare its style to be obsolete. In fact,
it is not the success at which Barry aimed; but it excels the other
efforts to revive the Gothic in this day, not only in England, but
in all Europe, and has many points to be admired in its plan and its
detail, while the beauty of its sky-line must be admitted by all (Fig.
121).
[Illustration: FIG. 121.--THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT. _London._]
In the New Museum of Oxford, the Gothic is that of Lombardy, rather
than the Early English. It is an example of the result of the
teaching of Mr. Ruskin. It does not realize the expectations of
those who advocated this manner of building, and has proved a great
disappointment to the advanced theorists of a quarter of a century ago.
English architecture of the present day may be concisely described by
saying that it is Gothic for churches, parsonage-houses, school-houses,
and all edifices in which the clergy are interested or of which they
have the oversight. On the other hand, palaces, town-halls, municipal
buildings, club-houses, and such structures as come within the care of
the laity, are almost without exception in the Classic style.
Neither of these orders seems to be exactly suited to the climate of
England or to the wants of its people; therefore, neither would satisfy
the demands of the ancients, who taught that the architecture of a
nation should be precisely adapted to its climate and to the purposes
for which the edifices are intended. In fact, the ancients carried
their ideas of fitness so far that one could tell at a glance the
object for which a structure had been designed; we know that it is not
possible to comply with this law in this day, although it is doubtless
in accord with the true ideal of what perfect architecture should be.
At the present day there is little doubt that the edifices of the
Church and clergy are far more praiseworthy and true architecturally
than are those for secular and domestic uses.
GERMANY.
I shall not speak of the period of the Renaissance in Germany, but
shall go forward to the time of the Revival of Classic Architecture,
which dated about 1825. During the eighteenth century the discoveries
which were made in Greece were of great interest to all the world, and
the drawings which were made of the temples and monuments, as well
as of the lesser objects of art which existed there, were sent all
over Europe, and had such an effect upon the different nations, that
with one accord they began to adopt the Greek style of architecture,
whenever any important work was to be done. This effect was very
marked in Germany, and the German architects tried to copy every detail
of Greek architecture with great exactness.
When we begin to speak of modern German architecture at this point, we
do not omit anything important, for the struggles of the Reformation,
and the results of the Thirty Years' War were such, that no great
architectural advances were attempted for a long time. Again,
the division of Germany into many small principalities, and the
establishment of many little courts so divided the wealth of the German
people into small portions, that no one was rich enough to undertake
large buildings. There was no one great central city as in France and
England, and no one sovereign was rich enough to adorn his capital with
splendid edifices or to be a magnificent patron of art and artists
after the fashion of the "_Grand Monarque_" in France.
Before taking up the Revival, however, I wish, for two reasons, to give
a picture of the Brandenburg Gate, at Berlin. This gate was erected
between 1784 and 1792. It is important because such monuments are
more rare in Germany than in other European countries, especially of
the time in which this was built, and because it is one of the best
imitations of Greek art that exists in any nation (Fig. 122).
[Illustration: FIG. 122.--THE BRANDENBURG GATE. _Berlin._]
It is interesting to remember that when Napoleon entered Berlin as a
conqueror, after the Battle of Jena, he sent the Car of Victory, which
surmounts this gate, to Paris, as a trophy of his prowess. After his
abdication it was returned to its original position.
The effect of the German revival of Greek art is more plainly seen in
Munich than in any other city. It is the capital of Bavaria, and one of
its kings, Louis I., while he was young and had not yet become king,
resided at Rome; he was a passionate lover of art, and he resolved
that when he came to the throne he would make his capital famous for
beautiful things. Above all, he desired to imitate all that he had
most admired in the countries he had visited, and also the art of the
ancients as he knew it from models and pictures. For this reason it
happens that Munich is a collection of copies of buildings which have
existed in other countries and in past ages, and as these buildings,
which were first made in marble and stone, are mostly copied in plaster
in Munich, much of their beauty is lost; and since these copied
buildings are not used for the same purposes for which the ancient ones
were intended, the whole effect of them is very far from pleasing or
satisfactory. In fact, the result is just such as must always follow
the imitation of a beautiful object, when no proper regard is paid to
the use to be made of it. If, for example, a fine copy of a light and
airy Swiss châlet should be made in the United States of America,
and placed on some business street in one of our cities, and used for
a bank building, we could not deny that it was an exact copy of a
building which is good in its way; but it would be so unsuited to its
position and its uses, that the man who built it there would be counted
as insane or foolish. And this is the effect of the modern architecture
of Munich; it seems as if King Louis must have been a madman to expend
so much time and money in this absurd kind of imitative architecture,
and yet it is very interesting to visit this city and see these
edifices.
Of the Munich churches erected under Louis I. that of St. Ludwig is in
the Byzantine order; the Aue-Kirche is in the pointed German Gothic,
and the Basilica is like a Roman basilica of the fifth century. It
resembles that of St. Paul's-without-the-Walls; it was begun in 1835
and completed in 1850. In a vault beneath this basilica Louis and his
Queen, Theresa, are buried. The picture given here shows its extreme
simplicity; its whole effect is solemn and satisfactory; still one must
regret that since it is so fine up to a certain point, it should not
have been made still finer (Fig. 123).
[Illustration: FIG. 123.--THE BASILICA AT MUNICH.]
The Ruhmeshalle, or Hall of Fame, at Munich, is an interesting and
somewhat unique edifice. It is a portico of marble with forty-eight
Doric columns, each twenty-six feet high. Against the walls are
brackets holding busts of celebrated Germans who have lived since
1400. In front of the portico stands the colossal bronze statue of
Bavaria. She is represented as a protectress with a lion by her side;
in the right hand she holds a sword, and a chaplet in the left; it is
sixty-one and a half feet high, and the pedestal raises it twenty-eight
and a half feet more; inside, a staircase leads up into the head, where
there are seats for eight persons. The view from the top of this statue
is fine, and so extensive that in a favorable atmosphere the heights
of the Alps can be discerned. The hill upon which the Ruhmeshalle is
built is to the south of Munich, and is called the Theresienhöhe.
The grand statue is intended to be the principal object of interest
here, and the portico is made so low as to throw the figure out and
show it off to advantage; altogether it is one of the most successful
architectural works in Munich (Fig. 124).
[Illustration: FIG. 124.--THE RUHMESHALLE. _Near Munich._]
The Glyptothek, or Sculpture Gallery, the Pinakothek, or Picture
Gallery, the Royal Palace, the Public Library, the War Office, the
University, Blind School, other palaces and secular buildings, all
belong to the time of the Revival in Germany. The Ludwig Strasse, which
King Louis fondly hoped to make one of the most beautiful avenues in
the world, is--with its Roman arch at one end, and a weak copy of the
Loggia dei Lanzi at the other--a tiresome, meaningless, architectural
failure.
[Illustration: FIG. 125.--THE MUSEUM. _Berlin._]
The Museum of Berlin is a striking result of the same Revival of
Classic architecture, and is far more splendid than anything in Munich
(Fig. 125).
In Dresden the most important works in this style are the New Theatre
and Picture Gallery. The last is almost an exact reproduction of the
Pinakothek of Munich. All over Germany the effects of this Revival are
more or less prominent, but I shall speak of but one other edifice, the
Walhalla (Fig. 126).
[Illustration: FIG. 126.--THE WALHALLA.]
This is also a Temple of Fame, and is situated about six miles from
Ratisbon. It overlooks the River Danube from a height of more than
three hundred feet. It was begun in 1830, and was twelve years in
building, costing eight millions of florins. It is of white marble,
and on the exterior is an exact reproduction of the Parthenon at
Athens. The interior is divided into two parts by an entablature,
which supports fourteen caryatides, made from colored marbles. These
figures in turn support a second entablature, on which is a frieze in
eight compartments, on which is sculptured scenes representing the
history of Germany from its early days to the time of the introduction
of Christianity. Along the lower wall there are one hundred busts of
illustrious Germans who had lived from the earliest days of Germany
down to those of the poet Goethe.
The grounds about the Walhalla are laid out in walks, and from them
there are fine, extensive views. Taken by itself there is much to
admire in the Walhalla. The sculptures arouse an enthusiasm about
Germany, her history, and the men who have helped to make it, in spite
of the strange unfitness with which the artists have mingled Grecian
myths and German sagas. But aside from this sort of interest the
whole thing seems incongruous and strangely unsuited to its position;
one writer goes so far as to say of it that "Minerva, descending in
Cheapside to separate two quarrelling cabmen, could hardly be more out
of place." And yet it is true that the Walhalla is the only worthy
rival to St. George's Hall, Liverpool, as an example of the possible
adaptability of Greek or Roman Architecture to the needs and uses of
our own days.
THEATRES AND MUSIC HALLS.
In speaking of theatres I will first give a list of the most important
ones in Europe, as they are given by Fergusson in his "History of
Modern Architecture."
----------------------------+----------------------+----------
| Depth from Curtain | Depth of
| to back of Boxes. | Stage.
----------------------------+----------------------+----------
| feet. | feet.
La Scala, Milan | 105 | 77
San Carlo, Naples | 100 | 74
Carlo Felice, Genoa | 95 | 80
New Opera House, Paris | 95 | 98
Opera House, London (old) | 95 | 45
Turin Opera House | 90 | 110
Covent Garden, London | 89 | 89
St. Petersburg, Opera | 87 | 100
Académie de Musique, Paris | 85 | 82
Parma, Opera | 82 | 76
Fenice, Venice | 82 | 48
Munich Theatre | 80 | 87
Madrid Theatre | 79 | 55
----------------------------+----------------------+----------
The Opera House of La Scala, at Milan, is generally said to be the
finest of all for seeing and hearing what goes on upon the stage: it
was begun in 1776 and finished two years later. San Carlo, Naples,
holds the second place, and was first erected in 1737, but was almost
destroyed by fire in 1816, and was afterward thoroughly rebuilt.
The new Opera House of Paris is interesting to us because it has been
built so recently and so much written and said of it that we are
familiar with it. Any description that would do it justice would occupy
more space than we can afford for it, but this cut (Fig. 127) gives an
excellent idea of its size and exterior appearance. It is distinguished
by great richness of material and profusion of ornament, its interior
decorations being especially splendid. It has been criticised as
lacking repose and dignity, but its elegance and magnificence compel
admiration.
[Illustration: FIG. 127.--THE NEW OPERA HOUSE. _Paris._]
Music halls are only another sort of theatre, and have come into great
favor in recent days, especially in England. The Albert Hall, South
Kensington, is the finest music hall that has been erected. It seats
eight thousand people, besides accommodating an orchestra of two
hundred and a chorus of one thousand singers; it is one hundred and
thirty-six feet from the floor to the highest part of the ceiling. This
hall has some defects, but is so far successful as to prove that a
theatre or music hall could be so constructed as to seat ten thousand
persons and permit them to hear the music as distinctly as it is heard
in many halls where only two or three thousand can be comfortable.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
When we remember that we have been able to give some account of
architecture as it existed thousands of years before Christ, and to
speak of the temples and tombs of the grand old nations who laid the
foundation of the arts and civilization of the world--and then, when
we remember the little time that has passed since the first roof was
raised in our own land, we may well be proud of our country as it
is--and at the same time we know that its architecture may in truth be
said to be a thing of the future.
It is but a few years, not more than seventy, since any building
existed here that could be termed architectural in any degree. To be
sure, there were many comfortable, generous-sized homes scattered up
and down the land, but they made no claim to architectural design, and
were not such edifices as one considers when speaking or writing of
architecture.
The first buildings to which much attention was given in the United
States were the Capitols, both State and National, and until recently
they were in what may be called a Classic style, because they had
porticoes with columns and certain other features of ancient orders;
but when the cella, as is the case in America, is divided into
two or more stories, with rows of prosaic windows all around, and
chimneys, and perhaps attics also added, the term Classic Architecture
immediately becomes questionable, and it is difficult to find a name
exactly suited to the needs of the case; for it is still true that from
a distance, and in answer to a general glance, they are nearer to the
Classic orders than to anything else.
[Illustration: FIG. 128.--THE UNITED STATES CAPITOL. _Washington._]
The National Capitol at Washington, which is the principal edifice in
the United States, was begun in 1793, when General Washington laid the
foundation-stone; the main portion was completed in 1830; two wings and
the dome have since been added, and its present size is greater than
that of any other legislative building in the world, except the British
Houses of Parliament (Fig. 128).
The dome, and the splendid porticoes, with the magnificent flights of
steps leading up to them, are the fine features of the Capitol. The
dome compares well with those that are famous in the world, and taken
all in all the Washington Capitol is more stately than the Houses of
Parliament, and is open to as little criticism as buildings of its
class in other lands.
Several of the State Capitols illustrate the manner of building which
I described above. This cut of the Capitol of Ohio is an excellent
example of it (Fig. 129).
[Illustration: FIG. 129--STATE CAPITOL. _Columbus, Ohio._]
In domestic architecture, while there has been no style so original and
absolutely defined as to be definitely called American, we may roughly
classify three periods--the Colonial, the Middle, and the Modern.
These terms have no close application, and you must understand that I
use them rather for convenience than because they accurately, or even
approximately, indicate particular styles. The mansions of the Colonial
period are, perhaps, most easily recognized, and in some respects were
the frankest and most independent class of houses ever built in this
country. The early settlers took whatever suited them from all styles,
and instead of imitating the English, the Dutch, or the French manner
of building, mingled parts of all, with especial reference to the needs
of their climate and surroundings.
[Illustration: FIG. 130.--SIR WILLIAM PEPPERELL'S HOUSE. _Kittery
Point, Maine._]
This fine old house (Fig. 130) shows the plain, homely, yet quaint
style of many of the mansions of the Colonial period. It was built
near the beginning of the last century, and occupied by Sir William
Pepperell until his death. Its interior, with heavy wainscoting of
solid mahogany, was more imposing by far than the exterior. The Van
Rensselaer homestead at Albany is an excellent example of a more
stately house, possessing much dignity and impressiveness.
The Middle period was a time when domestic architecture, still without
any originality and losing much of the independence of the Colonial,
copied more closely from foreign models. Some fine old mansions belong
to this period, which covered the last years of the last century and
the first half of this. The celebrated Cragie House at Cambridge,
occupied by the poet Longfellow; "Elmwood," the home of James Russell
Lowell; "Bedford House," in Westchester County, New York, the home of
the Hon. John Jay, are to be referred to this period; and so is the
imposing "Old Morrisania," at Morrisania, New York, the old Morris
mansion (Fig. 131).
[Illustration: FIG. 131.--"OLD MORRISANIA." _Morrisania, New York._]
It is modelled after a French château, and was erected by General
Morris after his return from France in 1800. It is one of the most
striking among the mansions of its time, and both its interior and
exterior are highly interesting.
These views serve to illustrate the want of anything like a regular
style, of which I spoke above; but they show how many different forces
were at work to influence building in the Modern period. This division
is meant to extend to and include the present time, and so great is the
diversity of styles now employed that in a work like this it would be
idle to attempt anything like an enumeration of them, and still less
to try and determine their origin and importance. I can only give you
one example of the handsome and costly homes which are being built
to-day, and leave you to observe others as you now see them everywhere
about the country (Fig. 132). A modern writer on American architecture
claims that in private dwellings an American order is gradually being
developed by the changes made to adapt foreign forms to our climate,
and especially to the brilliancy of the sunlight here. All this is so
difficult to define, however, that it would be impossible to show it
clearly in the limits of a book like this, even if it exists.
[Illustration: FIG. 132.--RESIDENCE AT IRVINGTON, NEW YORK.]
What is called the "Queen Anne" style, modelled upon the English
fashion of the time of that monarch, is very widely used in country
houses at the present time, sometimes in conjunction with the Colonial,
which also exists as an independent style. The tendency of domestic
architecture is to make everything quaint and picturesque, though this
is not so far carried to extremes as was the case a few years since.
In public buildings many splendid edifices have been erected of late
years. The imitation of classic forms which was formerly the fashion,
and which is so strikingly exhibited by Girard College, Philadelphia,
is now almost entirely laid aside. A lighter, less constrained style,
which may be called eclectic--which means selecting--because it
takes freely from any and all styles whatever suits its purpose,
is arising; and as this selecting is being every year more and more
intelligently done, and as original ideas are constantly being
incorporated with those chosen, the prospects for architecture are more
promising than ever before in this country. The Casino, at Newport,
is a fine example of a modern building; and the still more recent
Casino in New York shows a fine example of the adapting of ideas from
Saracenic architecture to American uses. The Capitol at Albany has many
fine features, but it is the work of several designers who did not
harmonize. Memorial Hall, at Cambridge, is one of the more striking of
modern American buildings, but its sky-line--that is, its outline as
seen against the sky--lacks simplicity and repose.
The churches in this country exhibit the widest variety of style.
Trinity Church in New York was the first Gothic church erected in
America, and Trinity Church in Boston, one of the latest churches of
importance, is also Gothic, though of the variety called Norman Gothic,
and considerably varied. The Roman Catholic Cathedral of New York, and
many others of less magnitude, might be cited as a proof that American
architecture is advancing, and that we may speak hopefully of its
future.
Railroad depots and school-houses of certain types are among the
most distinctive and characteristic American edifices. The first,
especially, are being constructed more nearly in accordance with the
ancient principle of suiting the structure to its uses than are any
other buildings that are worthy to be considered architecturally.
Art museums and public libraries, too, now form an important feature
in both town and country, and, in short, the beginning of American
architecture, for that is all that can be claimed for what as yet
exists, is such as would be the natural outcome of a nation such as
ours--varied, restless, bold, ugly, original, and progressive. All
these terms can be applied to American art, but in and through it all
there is a promise of something more. As greater age will bring
repose and dignity of bearing to our people, so our Fine Arts will
take on the best of our characteristics; as we outgrow our national
crudities the change will be shown in our architecture, and we may well
anticipate that in the future we shall command the consideration and
assume the same importance in these regards that our excellence in the
Useful Arts has already won for us in all the world.
[Illustration]
GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS.
_Abacus._--The uppermost portion of the capital of a column, upon which
rested the weight above.
_Aisle._--The lateral divisions of a church; more properly, the side
subdivisions.
_Amphitheatre._--A round or oval theatre.
_Apse._--The semi-circular or polygonal termination to the choir or
aisles of a church.
_Arcade._--A series of arches supported on piers or columns.
_Arch._--A construction of wedge-shaped blocks of stone or of bricks,
of curved outline, spanning an open space.
_Architrave._--(1) The lowest division of the entablature, in Classic
architecture resting on the abacus. (2) The moulding used to ornament
the margin of an opening.
_Base._--The foot of a column or wall.
_Basilica._--Originally a Roman hall of justice; afterward an early
Christian church.
_Buttress._--A projection built from a wall for strength.
_Byzantine._--The Christian architecture of the Eastern church,
sometimes called the round arched; named from Byzantium
(Constantinople).
_Capital._--The head of a column or pilaster.
_Caryatid._--A statue of a woman used as a column.
_Cathedral._--A church containing the seat of a bishop.
_Cella._--That part of the temple within the walls.
_Chamfer._--A slope or bevel formed by cutting off the edge of an angle.
_Column._--A pillar or post, round or polygonal; the term includes the
base, shaft, and capital.
_Composite Order._--See _Order_.
_Corinthian Order._--See _Order_.
_Cornice._--The horizontal projection crowning a building or some
portion of a building. Each classic order had its peculiar cornice.
_Crypt._--A vault beneath a building.
_Dome._--A cupola or spherical convex roof.
_Doric Order._--See _Order_.
_Entablature._--In classic styles all the structure above the columns
except the gable. The entablature had three members, the architrave or
epistyle, the frieze, and the cornice.
_Entasis._--The swelling of a column near the middle to counteract the
appearance of concavity caused by an optical delusion.
_Epistyle._--See _Architrave_.
_Façade._--The exterior face of a building.
_Frieze._--The middle member of an entablature.
_Gable._--The triangular-shaped wall supporting the end of a roof.
_Gargoyle._--A projecting water-spout carved in stone or metal.
_Hexastyle._--A portico having six columns in front.
_Intercolumniation._--The clear space between two columns.
_Ionic Order._--See _Order_.
_Metope._--The space between the triglyphs in the frieze of the Doric
Order.
_Minaret._--A slender tower with balconies from which Mohammedan hours
of prayer are called.
_Mosaic._--Ornamental work made by cementing together small pieces of
glass, stone, or metal in given designs.
_Nave._--The central aisle of a church; the western part of the church
occupied by the congregation.
_Obelisk._--A quadrangular monolith terminating in a pyramid.
_Order._--An entire column with its appropriate entablature. There are
usually said to be five orders: Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, and
Composite; the first and last are, however, only varieties of the Doric
and Corinthian developed by the Romans. The peculiarities of the orders
have been described in the body of the book. When more than one order
was used in a building, the heavier and plainer, the Doric and Tuscan,
are placed beneath the others.
_Pediment._--In classic architecture what the gable (which see) was in
later styles.
_Peristyle._--A court surrounded by a row of columns; also the
colonnade itself surrounding such a space.
_Pier._--A solid wall built to support a weight.
_Pilaster._--A square column, generally attached to the wall.
_Pillar._--See _Column_.
_Plinth._--A square member forming the lower division of the base of a
column.
_Polychrome._--Many-colored; applied to the staining of walls or
architectural ornaments.
_Quatrefoil._--A four-leaved ornament or opening.
_Shaft._--The middle portion of a column, between base and capital.
_Story._--The portion of a building between one floor and the next.
_Triglyph._--An ornament upon the Doric frieze consisting of three
vertical, angular channels separated by narrow, flat spaces.
[Illustration]
INDEX.
Abacus, 52
Abd-er-Rahman, Caliph, 126
Acropolis, 61, 62
Adan, the, 126
Age of Legend (Greece), 46
Agrippa, 76
Albert Hall, South Kensington, 181
Alexander the Great; 17;
and Thais, 34
Alexandria, obelisks at, 15
Alhambra; 129;
described by De Amicis, 129, 130
American architecture;
youth of, 181;
domestic, 183, 184;
periods of, 184;
modern writer on, 186;
promise of, 188, 190 (and _see_ United States)
Amytis, 30
Ancient or heathen art, 2
Ancient architecture; 87;
change from, to Gothic, 79;
adapted to climate and use, 172
Andrea del Sarto, 153
Angers, church at, 103
Antæ. _See_ pilasters
Arabs, 128
Arcades;
combined from Greek and Etruscan art, 76;
of Ducal Palace, Venice, 142
Arc de l'Étoile (Paris), 165
Arch;
knowledge of principle of, 73;
found in Etruscan ruins, 73;
oldest in Europe (of Cloaca Maxima), 74;
the Roman triumphal, 81;
of Titus, 82;
of Septimius Severus, 82;
of Beneventum, 82, 83;
Roman, 83;
(Gothic) unending use of, 95;
French use of pointed, 96;
early use of pointed, 123;
examples of, in Court of the Lions, 130;
examples of, in Ducal Palace, 142;
triumphal, in France, 164
Architecture _in general_, 1
Architrave, 52, 56
Art;
as effected by Athenian influence, 67;
(Gothic) religious use of, 103;
(Gothic) revival of, 104;
(Gothic) applied to civic edifices, 104;
of Renaissance, and Filippo Brunelleschi, 134-138;
(Italian) 145;
(Italian) as a means of religion, 154
Artaxerxes Ochus, palace of, 38
Artemisia, 68, 69
Assouan. _See_ Syene
Assyria;
ruins of, 21;
cuneiform inscriptions found in, 21;
religious influence in, 22;
bas-reliefs of, 22;
palaces of, described, 23-26;
Hercules of, 24;
excelling in
architects and designers, 28;
obelisk of, 28, 29
Assyrian pillars, shaft of, 12
Assyrians, Persians taught by, 34
Astronomy, and Birs-i-Nimrud, 32
Athena;
Parthenos, 62;
Polias;
statue of, 62, 64;
Promachos, 62 (and _see_ Minerva)
Athens;
Choragic Monument of Lysicrates at, 57;
Erechtheium at, 59;
Acropolis of, 61;
municipal buildings of, 67
Attic base, 55
Attic-Ionic style, the Erechtheium an example of, 65
Aue-Kirche (Munich), 175
Augustines, church of the (Paris), 160
Augustus (Emperor), boast of, 80
Autharis, 90
Avenue of Sphinxes, 13
Babylon;
inscriptions of, 21;
hanging gardens of, 29;
temples of, 30;
temple of Belus at, 31;
prophecies concerning, 33
Babylonians;
knowledge of, as builders, 30;
Persians taught by, 34
Bacchus, monument of Lysicrates dedicated to, 68
Baptistery at Florence, 90
Barry, Sir Charles, 171
Base;
Grecian Doric, 11;
decorations on, at Persepolis, 41;
Attic, 55;
Ionic, 55;
Tuscan order of, 76;
Composite, 76
Basilica;
of St. Paul's (Rome), 88;
of the Escurial, 146, 148;
near St. Mark's, 114;
at Munich, 175
Basilicas;
of Rome, 78;
of Trajan and Maxentius, 79;
columns of, 79;
given up to Christians, 87
Bas-reliefs, of Assyria, 22
Baths;
of Agrippa, 76;
of Diocletian, 80;
of Caracalla, 80
Battiste Monegro, statues of Escurial by, 149
Bavaria, bronze statue of, 176
Bedford House, 184
Belus, temple of (Babylon), 31
Belzoni, and tomb of Seti I., 7
Beneventum, arch of, 82, 83
Beni-Hassan, tombs at, 5
Benvenuto Cellini, 153
Bergamo, porch at, 112
Berlin;
Brandenburg Gate at, 173;
New Museum at, 177
Bianca, wife of Francesco Sforza, 144
Birs-i-Nimrud, 32
Bishop of Paris, St. Germain, 173
Boodroom, name of Halicarnassus changed to, 70
Boulevards (Paris), 164
Bourse (Lyons), 162
Bow Church (London), steeple of, 168
Bramante; 140;
great court (Milan), designed by, 144
Brandenburg Gate (Berlin), 173
British Museum, 169
Broletto at Como, 112
Brunelleschi, Filippo; 134;
and story of Columbus and the egg, 138;
statue of (Florence), 138;
architect of Pitti Palace, 138, 154
Byzantine order, the;
geographical boundaries of, 93;
in Southern Italy, 111, 115;
and Constantinople, 117;
the dome the chief characteristic of, 117;
and the Greek Church, 117;
decline of, 117;
exterior and interior of, 119
Byzantine-Romanesque, 115, 122
Cæsar, works of, 134
Cairo;
mosque at, 123;
mosque near, 125
Caliph Abd-er-Rahman, 126
Callimachus (sculptor), and Corinthian capital, 58, 59
Cambridge, Fitzwilliam College at, 169
Campaniles, 112, 114 (and _see_ Clock-tower).
Canterbury Cathedral, and pointed arches, 124
Capital;
definition of, 11;
varieties of in Great Hall of Karnak, 40;
Grecian, 52;
Ionic, 55;
of Corinthian order, 57, 58;
of Roman Composite order, 75;
variety of in mosque of Cordova, 128;
in Ducal Palace, 142
Capitol;
State and National, 181;
at Washington, 182, 183;
of Ohio, 183;
at Albany, 188
Car of Victory, and Napoleon, 173
Cardinal Richelieu, 154
Caria, King of, 69
Caryatides; 59;
of the Walhalla, 178
Casino;
at Newport, 188;
at New York, 188
Castle of Wartburg, 109, 110
Cathedral;
at Aix-la-Chapelle, 123;
at Florence, 136, 138;
at Jaen, 146;
at Valladolid, 146;
of St. Paul's London, 167;
at New York, 188
Cecilia Metella, tomb of, 84
Cella, 51
Central Park, New York, obelisk in, 16
Chambord, château of, 154, 161
Champs Elysées, Arc de l'Étoile in (Paris), 165
Charlemagne, 123
Charles I. of England and classic art, 134
Charles V. of Spain, abdication of, 146
Charles IX. of France, 161
Chehl Minar, 38 (and _see_ Great Hall of Audience)
Chenonceaux, châteaux of, 154
Cheops. _See_ Pyramids
Chiswick House, Inigo Jones designer of, 167
Choragic Monument of Lysicrates (Athens), 57
Choragus, 67
Christians;
art of, in Sicily, 116;
under Constantine, 87;
rise and progress of architecture of, 87;
influence of belief of, 93
Church;
of San Miniato, 115;
of Mother of God (Constantinople), 123;
of St. Vitale (Ravenna), 123;
of the Escurial, 155;
of the Sarbonne, 156;
of St. Genevieve, 158 (and _see_ Pantheon);
of the Invalides (Paris), 156-158;
of the Trinity (Paris), 160;
of the Madeleine (Paris), 160;
of the Augustines (Paris), 160;
of St. Paul's (Covent Garden), 166;
of St. Stephen's (Walbrook), 168;
of St. Ludwig (Munich), 175
Churches;
early forms of, in Italy, 89;
(Gothic) interiors of, 98,
rood-screens of, 107;
of Burgos, 105;
of Toledo, 105;
of Malaga and Segovia, 146
Churriguera, Josef de, 146
Churrigueresque style, 146
Civic order, Broletto at Como, 112
Classic style, revival of, in Germany, 172
Classic literature of Rome, influence of, 153
Cleopatra's Needles, 15
Cloaca Maxima (Rome), 74
Clock-tower; near St. Mark's (Venice), 114 (and _see_ Campanile)
Cologne, great cathedral of, 10
Colonial period (America), 184
Colosseum, 80
Colossi, 13 (and _see_ Rameses the Great)
Columbaria, 84, 85
Columns; 11;
of Hypostyle Hall (Karnak), 11;
Assyrian knowledge of, 28;
of Great Hall of Audience, 39, 40;
Persian development of, 42;
Grecian, 52;
Ionic, 56;
of temple of Diana (Ephesus), 60;
of green jasper at St. Sophia, 61;
Tuscan order of, 76;
of basilicas, 79; of St. Paul's (Rome), 89;
of St. Sophia, 120;
of mosque of Cordova, 127, 128;
of the Alhambra, 129, 130;
in court-yard of the Escurial, 149;
of the Pantheon, 158;
of Victory, in France, 164;
of portico of Ruhmeshalle, 176 (and _see_ "Groves of Pillars" and
Pillars)
Composite order, 75
Constantine, Emperor; 2;
Egypt in time of, 19;
arch of, 81;
Christians under, 87, 117
Constantinople;
St. Sophia at, 61;
and Byzantine order, 117
Convent of Escurial, 150, 151
Cordova, mosque at, 126
Corinthian capital, 58, 59
Corinthian order; 52; 57;
capital of, 57, 58;
shown in the Madeleine (Paris), 160
Cornice, 53, 76
Count of Thuringia, 110
Court of the Lions, 129, 130
Cragie House (Cambridge), 184
Crown, iron, of Theodolinda, 92
Crypt of the Invalides, 158
Custom House at Rouen, 162
Cyrus, tomb of, 42, 43
Darius;
palace of, 38;
tomb of, 43
Dark Ages, 134
De Amicis;
quoted concerning the mosque of Cordova, 126;
quoted concerning the Escurial, 148-152
Diana, 60
Diocletian, palace of (Spalatro), 86
Distyle in Antis, 51
Doge's Palace (Venice), 114 (and _see_ Ducal Palace)
Dome;
chief characteristic of Byzantine architecture, 117; 119;
of the cathedral of Florence, 138;
of St. Peter's (Rome), 138;
of the Invalides, 157;
of the Pantheon (Paris), 158;
of the Capitol (Washington), 183
Domes of St. Mark's (Venice), 114
Domestic architecture;
Egyptian study of, 16;
of Greece, 70;
of Rome, 85;
Gothic, 109;
of Spain, 152;
of France, 162;
examples of, in Great Britain, 169;
of America, 183, 184
Doric order;
imitated old Egyptian tombs, 7;
characteristics of, 52-54;
traced back, 54;
and Ionic order, compared, 57;
Propylæa and Parthenon as examples of, 64
Dresden, new theatre and picture gallery of, 177
Ducal Palace (Venice), and John Ruskin, 142 (and _see_ Doge's Palace)
"Easterns," the, 123 (and _see_ Saracens)
Ebed, the, 126
Ecbatana, palace of, 34
Echinus, 52
Eclectic style, 188
Edfou, temple of, 17
'Early Spanish' architecture, 106
Egypt, tombs and ruins of, 2-20;
religion of, influencing art, 8;
pillars of, 11;
hieroglyphics on pillars of, 12;
irregular plans of palaces and temples of, 13;
obelisks of, removed, 15;
ancient houses of, 16;
domestic architecture of, 16;
under the Ptolemies, 17;
decline of arts of, in later days, 19;
in time of Constantine (Emperor), 19;
present knowledge of history of, 20
Elmwood, 184
England;
imitation of other styles of architecture in, 166;
Gothic order in, 166;
examples of various architectural styles in, 169;
art of, at the present time, 172;
revival of Gothic art in, 170
Entablature;
definition of, 54;
of Walhalla, 178
Entasis, 67
Ephesus;
temple of Diana at, 60;
desolation at, 61
Epistyle, 7
Erechtheium (Athens); 59;
and Athena Polias, 62;
burial-place of Erechtheus, 64;
founded by Erechtheus, 64;
example of Attic-Ionic style, 65
Erechtheus, founder of the Erechtheium, 65
Escurial (near Madrid), 146-152;
combination forming, 146;
dome of basilica of, 146;
palace of, 147;
De Amicis's description of, 148-152;
statues of, by Battiste Monegro, 149;
room of Philip II. in, 149;
basilica of, 149;
church of, 149;
courtyard of the kings of, 149;
convent of, 150, 151
Etruscans; 71;
theatres and amphitheatres of, 72
Euphrates, 29
Exchange at Marseilles, 162
Façade of Ducal Palace, 142
"Farnese Bull," 81
"Farnese Hercules," 81
Ferdinand and Isabella, reign of, 145
Fergusson and Gothic architecture, 93
Filippo Brunelleschi and art of Renaissance, 134-138
Fine Art Gallery, near baths of Caracalla, 81
Fitzwilliam College (Cambridge), 169
Flavian Amphitheatre, 80
Florence, cathedral of, 134
Fontaine St. Michel, 165
Fontainebleau, palace of, 154
Fortress, the Acropolis as a, 62
Fortresses of ancient Greece, 48
Forum Boarium, 82
France;
and revival of classic art, 134;
and Gothic architecture, 153;
sovereigns of, as influencing architecture, 154;
change in style in, from Gothic to Renaissance, 156;
style of Henry IV. in, 161;
time of classic revival, 162;
domestic architecture of, 162;
_Neo-Grec_ style in, 165, 166;
modern, 165, 166
Francesco Sforza, 144
Francis I., of France;
and introduction of Italian art, 154;
Louvre rebuilt by, 160
Frieze;
definition of, 53;
of Ionic order, 56;
of Tuscan order, 76;
of Walhalla, 178
Gargoyle, 98
Garibald, King of Bavaria, 90
Gateway Huldah of temple at Jerusalem, 44
Gateways;
in walls of Nineveh, 21;
in walls of Babylon, 29;
golden, iron, and brazen, of palace of Diocletian, 86
Germany;
and revival of classic art, 134;
imitation of details of Greek architecture in, 173;
modern architecture of, 173
Ghizeh, pyramids of, 3
Gibbon (historian) and St. Sophia, 122
Giotto's campanile, 112
Girard College (Philadelphia), 186
Glaber, Rodulphe, 93
Glyptothek at Munich, 177
Gothic order;
Fergusson's location of, 93;
extension and origin of, 93;
invention of interior aisles in, 98;
design of, in ornament, 99;
painted glass applied to, 100;
Spanish variation of, 105;
modification of in Northern Italy, 111;
combined with Eastern decoration in Venetian architecture, 114;
last distinct order, 133;
in France, 153;
union of, with Italian design in France, 154;
in England, 166;
in the Tudor age, 170;
and Houses of Parliament, 171
Goths, temple of Diana burned by, 61
Goujon, Jean, and the Louvre, 160
Goya, 149
Græco-Roman style, 146
Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar, 110
"_Grand Monarque._" _See_ Louis XIV.
"_Grands Hommes_," Pantheon dedicated to, 158
Great Hall of Audience;
plan of, 41;
theories concerning, 42
Great Hall of Baths of Diocletian, 80
Great Palace near Persepolis, 36-38
Grecian Doric order;
shaft of, 12;
domestic architecture of, 70
Greece;
art of, as compared with that of Egypt, 20;
prehistoric days of, 47;
origin of architecture of, 48;
coloring of marbles in, 65;
skill in deceiving the eye, in architecture of, 67;
theatres of, 68;
origin of drama in, 68;
effect in Germany of discoveries in, 173
Greenwich Hospital, 169
Gregory I. (Pope), 92
"Groves of Pillars," 44
Hadrian; 77;
tomb of (castle of St. Angelo), 84
Halicarnassus;
mausoleum at, 68;
in possession of Knights of St. John, 70;
name of, changed to Boodroom, 70;
sculptures of, in British Museum, 70
Hall of Fame, 176 (and _see_ Ruhmeshalle)
Hall of One Hundred Columns, 38
Hall of Xerxes, 38-41 (and _see_ Great Hall of Audience)
Hampton, palace of (designed by Wren), 169
Hanging Gardens of Babylon; 29;
interior structure of, 29, 30;
and Semiramis, 30;
and Nebuchadnezzar, 30
Henry of Ofterdingen, 110
"Hercules of Assyria," 24
Hermann, Count of Thuringia, 110
Herodotus, "Father of History," 47
Herostratus, 60
Heshâm, 126
Hexastyle, 52
Homer, "Iliad" and "Odyssey" of, 47
"House of the Virgin," 62 (and _see_ Parthenon)
Houses of Parliament (London); 170;
and Gothic revision, 171
Hypostyle Hall (Karnak); 11;
compared with St. Peter's (Rome), 140
Ibn-touloun, mosque built by, 123
"Iliad," knowledge of Grecian history from, 47
Inigo Jones. _See_ Jones, Inigo
Inscriptions, Arabic, 130
Invalides, church of the, 156-158
Ionic capital, 55, 56
Ionic order; 52-54;
traced back, 55;
capital of, 55, 56;
architrave of, 56;
columns of, 56;
compared with Doric order, 57;
combined with Doric in interior of the Parthenon, 64
Isabella and Ferdinand, reign of, 145
Isis, temple of, 18
Ismail Pasha, Khedive of Egypt, 16
Italy;
architecture of; 87;
Byzantine order in southern part of, 111;
best days of architecture in, 144
Jaen (Granada);
cathedral of, 146
Jay, Hon. John, home of, 184
Jerusalem, temple of;
Gateway Huldah of, 44;
design of, proving Roman influence, 45
Jones, Inigo (architect); 166;
designer of Chiswick House, 167;
designer of Wilton House, 167
Jordan, ruins beyond, 44
Josef de Churriguera, 146
Josephus, proving time of building temple of Jerusalem, 45
Judea;
art-history of, 44;
ruins of, at Jerusalem, Baalbec, Palmyra, and Petra, 44
Justinian (Emperor), and St. Sophia, 119
Kaitbey, mosque at, 125
Karnak, palace-temple of; 8-12;
Hypostyle Hall in, 10
Khedive of Egypt, Ismail Pasha, 16
Khorsabad, palace of, 26
La Scala, Milan, 180
Lateran, palace of, 81
Leonardo da Vinci, 153
Library of St. Mark's (Venice), 142
Liverpool, St. George's Hall at, 169
Livy, works of, 134
Longfellow, home of, 184
Louis I. (Bavaria), and revival of Greek art, 173, 175
Louis XIII. (France), and classic architecture, 161
Louis XIV. (France), and revival of classic architecture, 162
Louis XV. (France), 158
Louis Philippe, 162
Louvre (Paris), 160
Lowell, James Russell, home of, 184
Ludwig Strasse (Munich), architectural failure, 177
Luther and castle of Wartburg, 111
Lyons, new Bourse in, 162
Lysicrates, monument of, 67
Madeleine, church of the, 160
Malaga, churches of, 146
Mans, monastery at, 103
Mansard, Jules Hardouin, 156
Marburg, 110
Marcus Scaurus, 80
Marseilles, exchange at, 162
Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, 68
Mausolus, 69, 70
Maxentius, basilica of, 79
Mecca, 123
Medinet Habou, house at, 16
Mehemet Ali, 15
Memorial Hall (Cambridge), 188
Memphis, ruins of, used in new buildings, 7
Metope, 53
Michael Angelo, and church of S. Maria Degli Angeli, 80;
and St. Peter's (Rome), 138-140
Middle Ages;
Italian towers of, 111;
prosperity of architecture of (Venice), 114
Middle period in America, 184
Milan, La Scala of, 180
Minarets of mosques, 125
Minerva. _See_ Athena
Modern architecture;
imitative, 133;
since Renaissance, 133;
in Italy, 134;
three eras of, in Spain, 146;
in Germany, 173;
diversity of style of, in United States, 186
Mohammed, 123
Mokattam Mountains, 4
Monks of Middle Ages, 102
Monolith of the Gateway Holdah, 44
Monuments in France, 164
Monza, cathedral of, 92
Moresco or Moorish order, 106, 123
Morris, General, and "Old Morrisania," 184
Morrisania, 184
Mosaics of St. Sophia, 120
Mosque;
at Cairo, 123;
minarets of same, 125;
near Cairo, 125
Mosque of Cordova, 126;
De Amicis, concerning, 126;
naves of, 127;
marbles of, 127;
columns of, 127, 128
Mosque of Kaitboy, 125
Mother of God, church of (Constantinople), 123
Muezzin, the call of, 125, 126
Munich;
modern architecture of, 173, 174;
church of St. Ludwig at, 175;
Ruhmeshalle at, 176;
glyptothek of, 177
Museum;
of Berlin, 177;
at Oxford, 170, 171
Music halls, 180
Mutules, 65
Mycenæ, 48
Mythology, 47
Napoleon I.;
and pyramids, 3;
tomb of, 158;
inscription from will of, 158;
Car of Victory, trophy of, 173
Napoleon III., 162, 166
Nebuchadnezzar;
and "Hanging Gardens," 30;
and Birs-i-Nimrud, 32
Neo-Byzantine order, 117
Neo-Grec order, 166
Nero (Emperor), temple of Diana robbed by, 61
New museum at Oxford, 170, 171
New theatre, Dresden, 177
Newton, discoverer of sculptures at Halicarnassus, 70
New World, discovery of, 145
New York, Trinity Church in, 188
Nile, near Thebes, 14
Nineveh;
walls of, 21;
gateways of, 21;
ornamentation of gateways of, 23;
palaces of, 27
Norman Conquest, 116
Northern Spain, Arabs of, 128
Obelisk;
now in Paris, 13;
at Alexandria, 15;
Cleopatra's Needles, 15;
expressing worship, 16;
in Central Park, New York, 16;
the Assyrian, 28, 29
"Odyssey," knowledge of Grecian history from, 47
"Old Morrisania," 184
Opera House (Paris), 180
Order. _See_ Gothic, Moresco or Moorish, Civil, Neo-Byzantine,
_Neo-Grec_, Romanesque, Byzantine, Saracenic
Order of the Garter, symbol of, 89
Oriental art;
characteristics of, 59;
and the caryatid, 59
Oxford, new museum at, 170
Painted glass and Gothic architecture, 100
Palace;
of Khorsabad, 27;
of Ecbatana, 34;
of Susa, 34;
of Artaxerxes Ochus, 38;
of Darius, 38;
of Xerxes, 38;
of Diocletian at Spalatro, 86;
of the Escurial, 147, 149;
of Versailles, 162;
of Whitehall, 166;
of Hampton, 169;
of Winchester, 169
Palaces;
of Assyria, 23-26;
of Nineveh, 27
Palace-temples, Egyptian, 8
Palais du Trocadéro, 165
Pantheon (Rome); 76-78;
rotunda and porch of, 76;
preservation of, 77;
inscription on portico of, 77;
burial-place of Raphael and Annibale Caracci, 78
Pantheon (Paris), 158;
and _see_ church of St. Genevieve
Parapet of Ducal Palace, Venice, 142
Paris;
rebuilt, 162;
the boulevards of, 164;
new opera house of, 180
Parthenon (Athens); 53, 54;
built of Pentelic marble, 64;
of Doric order of architecture, 64;
erected under care of Phidias, 64;
sculptures of, 64
Paul Silentiarius and description of St. Sophia, 120
Pediment, 54
Pepperell, Sir William, 184
Pericles at Athens, 61
Peristyle, 52
Persepolis;
great palace near, 36-38;
spring residence of Persian kings, 42
Persia;
inscriptions found in, 21;
palaces of, 34;
taught by Assyria and Babylonia, 34;
platforms of, 36;
regularity of architecture of, 43;
faults of architecture of, 44
Peruzzi, 140
Pharaoh, and tombs at Beni-Hassan, 6
Phidias;
and Athena Promachos, 62;
Parthenon erected under care of, 64;
sculptures executed by, 64
Philæ;
temple on island of, 18;
buildings at, 19
Philip II. of Spain;
and decline of Spanish art, 145;
and the Escurial, 146;
cell of, in the Escurial, 149;
chair of, 150
Piazza of St. Mark (Venice), 142
Picture Gallery, Dresden, 177
Piers, Egyptian, 11
Pilasters, 52; 127; (and _see_ Antæ)
Pillar of the Gateway Huldah, 44
Pillars;
of Great Hall of Audience, 38-41;
of Doric order, 52;
of San Miniato, 116;
of Ducal Palace, 142;
(and _see_ Columns)
Pinacotica, near Baths of Caracalla, 81
Pinakothek (Dresden), 177
Pitti Palace, gallery of, 138, 154
Platerisco, 146
Platforms, Persian, 36
Pope, the, and Italian art, 154
Porches of Northern Italy, 112
Porte St. Denis (Paris), 164
Portico;
of basilica of St. Mark's, 115;
of the Court of Lions, 130;
the Ruhmeshalle, 176;
of Capitol at Washington, 183
Praxiteles and temple of Diana, 60, 61
Priene, temple of Athena at, 55
Priests, patrons of art during Middle Ages, 102
Primaticcio, 153
Prince Louis of Thuringia, 110
Promachos (_see_ Athena), 62
Propylæa;
Assyrian, 24;
of Acropolis, 62, 64
Proto-Doric order, 7
Ptolemies, 17
Public Library of Munich, 177
Pyramids of Cheops; 2;
size of, 3;
interior of, 4
Pyramids of Ghizeh; 3;
tombs near, 5
Quatrefoil, 142
"Queen Anne style" in America, 186
Rameses the Great. _See_ Colossi.
Raphael, 140
Ratisbon, the Walhalla near, 178
Reformation, the, 133
Religion;
influencing Egyptian art, 8;
a factor in national architecture, 9
Renaissance; 104; 134;
buildings erected in Italy during, 142;
and Leonardo da Vinci, 145;
and Michael Angelo, 145;
and Raphael, 145;
in England, 166
Richelieu (cardinal), 154
"Ritter George," 111
Roman theatre, first, 80
Romanesque order, 87
Romanesque and Byzantine orders mingled, 122
Rome;
ruled by Etruscans, 71;
acqueducts and bridges of, 74;
earliest works of, directed by Etruscans, 74;
growth of Composite order in, 75;
temples of, 76;
interior architecture of, 76;
Pantheon of, 76-78;
basilicas of, 78;
decline of art in, 80;
theatres of, 80;
triumphal arches of, 81;
tombs of, 83-86;
domestic architecture of, 85;
influence of classic literature in, 133;
St. Peter's at, 138-140
Rood-screens, 107
Rose windows, 102
Rouen, custom house at, 162
Royal Palace at Munich, 177
Ruhmeshalle (Munich);
columns of, 176;
statue in front of, 176
Ruins;
Assyrian, 21;
Judean, 44;
of temple of Diana, at Ephesus, 60
Ruskin, John;
and Ducal Palace (Venice), 142;
teaching of, 171
St. Bride's (Fleet Street), 168
St. Elizabeth of Hungary, 110
St. Eustache, church of (Paris), 154
St. Genevieve, church of (Paris), 158
St. George's Hall, Liverpool, 169
St. Germain; 103, 173
St. James's (Piccadilly), church of, 168
St. John Lateran, 89
St. Ludwig, church of (Munich), 175
St. Mark's (Venice), 114;
piazza of, 114;
portico of, 115
St. Mark's, Library of (Venice), 114
St. Paul's, cathedral of (London), 167
St. Paul's, Covent Garden, 166, 167
St. Paul's without the Walls; 88;
bronze gates of, 89;
columns of, 89
St. Peter's (Rome);
as compared with palace-temple, 8;
dome and cross of, 138;
and Michael Angelo, 138-140;
begun and finished, 138-140;
criticised, 140
St. Quentin, battle of, 146
St. Sophia, church of (Constantinople);
green jasper columns of, 61; 117;
and Justinian, 119;
Gibbon's description of, 119;
Paul Silentiarius's description of, 120
St. Vitale, church of (Ravenna), 123
San Carlo, opera house of (Naples), 180
San Miniato, church of (Florence), 115, 116
San Paolo fuori della Mura. _See_ St. Paul's without the Walls
Sansovino, 142
Sta. Maria del Fiore. _See_ cathedral of Florence
Sta. Maria Degli Angeli, church of, and Michael Angelo, 80
Saraceni. _See_ "the Easterns"
Saracenic architecture, 123, 124;
principal homes of, 126;
study of, 132
Sargon, 26
Scaurus, Marcus, 80
Schliemann, 48
Sculpture Gallery of Munich, 177
Sculptures;
executed by Phidias, 64;
Gothic use of, in decoration, 107
Segovia, churches of, 146
Semiramis (Queen), and "Hanging Gardens," 30
Sennacherib, 26
Septimius Severus;
and Pantheon, 77;
arch of, 82;
wife of, 82
Sepulchres, 85 (and _see_ Tombs)
Seti I., tomb of, 7
Sforza, Francesco, 144
Shaft of Tuscan column, 76
Shrines of Babylon, riches of, 31, 32
Shushan, 42
Sicilian architecture, remarkable style of, 116
Sicily, Christian art of, 116
Soufflot (architect), 158
Spain;
and Gothic art, 104, 105;
and Moorish architecture, 123;
and classic art, 134;
from time of fall of Granada, 145;
modern architecture of, 146;
domestic architecture of, 152;
people of, as artists, and Fergusson, 152, 153
Sphinx, 13
Spires, 98
Staircase of temple of Diana (Ephesus), 60
Staircases of Persepolis, 36
Statue of Bavaria, 176
Statues of the Escurial, 149, 150
Street of the Tripods, 68
Suphis. _See_ Cheops
Susa, palace of, 34
Sutri, 72
Syene, granite of, in pyramids, 4
Symbol of Order of the Garter, 89
Symbolism of Gothic ornament, 107, 108
Tacitus, 134
Tapestries of Escurial, 149
Temple;
of Karnak, 13;
of Luxor, 13;
of Denderah, 17;
of Philæ, 17;
influenced by Egypt, in building, 17;
of Birs-i-Nimrud, 32;
of Jerusalem, 44, 45;
earliest style of, in Greece, 48;
of Athena at Priene, 55;
of Diana at Ephesus, 60,
and Praxiteles, 60, 61,
and Theodosius I. (Emperor), 61,
burned by Goths, 61,
robbed by Nero, 61;
the Erechtheium as a, 65;
of Vesta, 89
Temple Court of palace of Khorsabad, 27
Temples;
of Babylon, 30;
of Rome, 76;
in the Court of the Lions, 130
Tenia, 52
Thais, 34
Theatres;
of Rome, 80;
list of most important, 179
Thebes;
"Tombs of the Kings" near, 7;
grandeur of ruins of, 7,8
Theodolinda; 90;
iron crown of, 92
Theodosius I., and temple of Diana,
61;
and St. Paul's without the Walls, 88
Theresa, Queen of Louis I. of Bavaria, 176
Theresienhöhe, 177
Thermæ, 80
Titus, arch of, 82
Tomb;
of Seti I., 7;
of Cyrus, 42, 43;
of Darius, 43;
of Mausolus, 69, 70;
of Hadrian, 84
Tombs;
at Beni-Hassan, 5; near Pyramids, 5;
"of the kings," near Thebes, 7;
Persian, 42;
exploration of Persian, 43;
Etruscan, 73;
of Rome, 83-86
Toscanelli, 138
Tower;
of Birs-i-Nimrud, 32;
of Giotto, 112
Towers;
of Babylonish temples, 31;
in Gothic architecture, 98;
of Italy, in Middle Ages, 111;
of Westminster Abbey, 168 (and _see_ Campanile)
Trajan;
basilica of, 79;
and arch of Beneventum, 82
Triglyphs, 53
Trinity Church;
Paris, 160;
Boston, 188;
New York, 188
Tripod, 68
Trojan war, 47
Troy, Schliemann's discoveries at, 48
Tudor age, Gothic style in, 170
Tumuli, 73
Tuscan order, 75, 76
Ula, the, 126
United States;
capitols of, 181;
first buildings of, 181;
classic architecture and, 182;
cella divided in, 182;
characteristic types of edifices in, 188
University of Munich, 177
Valentinian II., 88
Valladolid, cathedral of, 146
Van Rensselaer homestead, 184
Vatican compared with palace-temple, 8
Venice, architecture of, 114
Versailles, palace of, 162
Vesta, temple of, 89
Vignon, 160
Villa Borghese, palace of, 81
Walhalla, 178, 179
Walls;
of Nineveh, 21;
of Babylon, 29
War office (Munich), 177
Wartburg, castle on, 109
Washington (U. S.), national capitol at, 182
Washington, George, and national capital, 182
Wren, Sir Christopher, 167, 168, 169
Wyatville, Sir Jeffrey, 170
Xerxes, 37, 38
Zahra, 129
Transcriber's Notes:
Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant
preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed.
Simple typographical errors were corrected.
Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained.
Mid-paragraph illustrations have been moved between paragraphs and some
illustrations have been moved closer to the text that references them.
Uncaptioned illustrations are decorative Headpieces or the publisher's
logo on the Title page.
Most Index entries that did not match the referenced text have been
changed when the differences were hyphenation or accent marks. However,
the Index entries for "Neo-Grec" have not been changed to "Néo-Grec".
Index entries were not checked for accuracy.