the columns supporting which are statues of the twelve apostles. The
richly-tesselated pavement resembles the Norman-Byzantine work of
Sicily, and was not uncommon in Spain prior to the thirteenth century.
A bell tower, in which at one time hung "Wamba," the great bell of the
church cast in 1219, stands partly on the roof and at the south-east
corner of the Cámara Santa. It was erected by Alfonso VI., and to judge
by its present state will not long survive, most decidedly "Wamba" could
not swing there now.
The Cathedral possesses three remarkable crosses, La Cruz de los
Angeles, Maltese in shape, is studded with uncut gems. It dates from
808, and like the cross at Santiago is 1200 years old. La Cruz de la
Victoria, the cross of Pelayo, is encased in beautiful filigree work,
and is the identical one borne aloft before Pelayo at his glorious
victory over the Moor at the Cave of Covadonga. The third is a crucifix
on an ivory diptych, absolutely identical with the Cristo de las
Batallas of the Cid at Salamanca. Many other relics of great
archæological interest belong to the Cathedral, and make it well worth
the journey to see. This journey from Leon is long and trying, but the
line, which climbs to an altitude of 4110 feet, is one of the finest
pieces of engineering skill in Spain.
[Illustration: OVIEDO. THE CLOISTERS]
The dark entry of the south door leads not only into the Cathedral and
up to the Cámara Santa, but also through a side door opens on to the
fourteenth-century cloisters. They are well kept and the little garden
court a paradise in comparison with some of those I know. The capitals
of the columns are well carved with prophets and saints under canopies,
angels and angels' heads, grotesques and good floral cutting; while into
the walls beneath them and round the arcades are let many tombs and
gravestones brought here from different ruined or desecrated churches.
I went off one morning to see the earliest Christian church in the
country. Braving the rain I tramped through mud ankle-deep for an hour
up the hill slopes westward. It was a case of two steps forward and one
back, but the spirit of the tourist was on me. I could not leave Oviedo
and acknowledge I had not been to Naranco. I was desperate and I got
there. What a charming out-of-the-way spot it is! Hidden behind a grove
of ancient chestnut trees, under the brow of the mountain, stands Santa
Maria.
A triple arched porch at the top of a dozen steps gives entrance on the
north side to this minute and primitive place of worship. I entered and
found myself in a barrel-vaulted parallelogram, with a curious arcade
running round the walls. The west end is raised three steps above the
nave, from which it is cut off by three arches ten feet high at the
centre. The east end also has this feature, but the floor is level with
the nave. All the columns in the church are of twisted cable design
with shield capitals containing figures in low relief. The arcades,
which are walled up, have depending from the plain groining bands slabs
of cut stone with plaques below, something like a ribbon and medal in
the way they hang. The interior is but thirty-five feet in length and
fifteen feet across.
Beneath the church is a semicircular stone crypt, similar to that
beneath the Cámara Santa; it is entered from the cottage in which at one
time lived the officiating priest. The caretaker inhabits this cottage,
which is built on to the church, and I had come at her dinner hour.
Alas! she could not leave me in peace, and I must own to a defeat. I was
practically driven away, for the meal was spoiling and required her
undivided attention, but I had seen Santa Maria de Naranco; I had
grasped how in the early days, when the Infidel was overrunning the
land, this little building on the lone hillside was a centre of the
Faith, and how from the surrounding mountain fastnesses worshippers had
gathered here and gone away strengthened by prayer, and how from this
little seed of the Church sown on the forest-clad hill Spain's
mightiness had grown.
VALLADOLID
For nearly one hundred and fifty years, from the reign of Juan II.,
1454, to Philip II., 1598, Valladolid was a royal city and the capital
of Castile. It lies on the plain through which the river Pisuerga
meanders, just touching the outskirts of the city on the western side.
In the Moorish days Valladolid was known as Belad al Wali, "The Town of
the Governor," and flourished as a great agricultural centre. It is
still the focus of the corn trade of Old Castile. It was here that
Prince Ferdinand, despite attempts on the part of his father Juan II. to
frustrate it, was introduced to Isabella the reigning Queen of Castile
and Leon. Many suitors had proposed themselves and paid their addresses
to this paragon among women, but possessing a will of her own she made
her choice and selected the Prince whom she married on October 19, 1469.
Valladolid suffered more severely at the hands of the French than any
other city of Spain. They demolished most of the good houses and
despoiled the churches; among those that are left, however, I found
plenty to interest me and to make a stay, after I had discovered them,
well worth the while.
I made a sketch of Santa Maria la Antigua, which is the most interesting
edifice in the place. The fine Romanesque tower is surmounted by a tiled
steeple which recalls Lombardy, and although many additions have been
made to the original fabric the whole building piles up very well, the
early Gothic east end being particularly beautiful. This church dates
from the twelfth century, but the greater part of it is pure Gothic. The
roof is richly groined; there are three parallel apses, and the _coro_
is at the west end--an always welcome place to find it. The _retablo_ by
Juan de Juni, whose work is scattered throughout the churches of
Valladolid, is fine though over-elaborate.
Another good church is San Pablo, partly rebuilt by the great Cardinal
Torquemada, whose name will for ever be associated with the terrors of
the Inquisition. I found another subject for my brush in its very
intricate late Gothic west façade. The upper part of this contains the
arms of the Catholic Kings, below which on either side are those of the
Duque de Lerma. The niches are luckily all filled with their original
figures, and the wonderful tracery of the round window is also in good
preservation. The grey finials are weather-worn and contrast well with
the rich yellow and pink of the rest of the front, a façade which is
absolutely crammed with intricate design. Two hideous towers of later
date and of the same stone as that with which the Cathedral is built,
flank this and detract unfortunately from one of the best examples of
late Gothic work in the country.
[Illustration: VALLADOLID. SANTA MARIA LA ANTIGUA]
Hard by, up the street pictured in my sketch, stands the Colegiata de
San Gregorio, with an equally fine façade, though being an earlier
Gothic it is more severe in type. The doorway of this is surmounted by a
genealogical tree and the arms of Ferdinand and Isabella. Some of the
figures of rough hairy men with cudgels are very primitive. San Gregorio
was a foundation of Cardinal Ximenes, it is now used as municipal
offices. Passing through the doorway I entered a beautiful little court,
rather dark, but with sufficient light to enable me to appreciate the
good artesonade ceiling of its cloisters. The second court is a blaze of
light. Spiral fluted columns form the cloister, the ceiling of which is
picked out in a cerulean blue and white; they support a recently
restored gallery, a mixture of Moorish, Romanesque and plateresque work,
into which the sheaves and yoke of the Catholic Kings is introduced as
at Granada and Santiago, making a very effective whole. A fine old stone
stairway leads from this court up to what in the old collegiate days was
a library.
Of the Cathedral I fear I can write but little. It is a huge gloomy
edifice without a single redeeming feature, and of all those I saw the
most incomplete and disappointing. The exterior north and south walls
are still unfinished, the stone work is not even faced! The east are
built of brick, and the west façade, altered by Chirriguera himself from
the original plan of Herrara, is extremely bald and ugly.
This enormous building is four hundred feet in length and over two
hundred wide, yet these proportions give it no grandeur. The interior is
absolutely devoid of ornament, and if it were not for the _silleria_ in
the _coro_, which were originally intended for San Pablo and are good,
there would be nothing to warrant a visit to this cold and depressing
church. By the way, the sacristy contains a silver _custodia_ in the
shape of an open temple, a good example of the work of Juan de Arfe.
There is a third-rate French air about Valladolid, at least so it struck
me, and it was only after a visit to the old Colegio de Santa Cruz,
wherein is the museum, that my first disappointment wore off and I felt
that I was still in Spain.
[Illustration: VALLADOLID. SAN PABLO]
The contents of the museum are mostly objects which the French plundered
from the churches and monasteries of Castile, and were recovered after
their disastrous defeat at Vitoria. The styles of Berruguete, Hernandez
and Juan de Juni can be examined here at leisure. Some of the life-size
carved wooden figures of the last named, formerly used on the
processional cars which parade the streets at certain festivals, are
remarkable more from the extravagant attitudes of the figures than from
their artistic merit. The custodian who accompanied me was a pleasant
fellow, and evinced surprise that a _pintor_ could not see the beauties
he pointed out. I fear he thought little of my artistic discrimination;
especially when in the Sala de Juntas he invited me to ascend a pulpit
over which hung a large crucifix, and with fervour solicited my
admiration of the face of Christ, on which was a most agonised look,
"cheap" and quite according to academic rules. "No, no, it is bad."
"But, señor, He suffers." I could not make him understand that acute
suffering need not be so painfully apparent.
In this Sala are placed the whole of the _silleria de coro_ from the
church of San Benito. Arranged on either side of the room they give it a
superb effect. At the far end are the red velvet-covered chairs of
Spanish Chippendale used by the Council of the Academy of Arts at their
meetings. Beyond them, on a raised platform, are the two bronze-gilt
kneeling figures of the Duke and Duchess de Lerma. A few pictures hang
on the walls and other treasures and relics help to make this fine Sala
an ideal council chamber for the academicians.
Of the hundreds of carved figures in other rooms those by Berruguete,
very Greek in type, flat brow and straight nose, are artistically by far
the best, though the "Death of our Lord," a life-size composition by
Hernandez, follows not far behind. Just as Madrid contains the finest
armoury in the world, I doubt if any other museum can compete with
Valladolid's for figures and compositions of carved wood.
The University holds at present a high rank, most of its professors
being progressive. The building itself is a chirrigueresque concern of
the seventeenth century with a very extravagant façade. It possesses a
good library which is get-at-able, and not like others belonging to the
church which are very difficult of access. À propos of this one of the
professors here told me the following hardly credible experience of a
friend of his, whom I will call A.
There is a movement at present in Spain to catalogue some at least of
the many thousands of priceless historical Arabic documents and MSS.
which, hidden away in Cathedral and other libraries, would throw
invaluable light on the history of early times if they could be
examined. A. is engaged in trying to compile this catalogue, and,
hearing that in a certain Cathedral city--not Valladolid--the Cathedral
library contained some treasures of Arabic lore, procured an
introduction to the bishop, and requested permission to search the
archives of the diocese.
Explaining that he was unable to help in the matter, the bishop sent A.
to the chapter authorities. The basis of their refusal was that any MS.
if taken down from its shelf might be injured, and if once taken down
might not be replaced in the same position! "Yes, they certainly
possessed many supposed Arabic documents, but as none had been disturbed
in living memory, why take the trouble to make a catalogue? Surely this
would be superfluous, the books were there no doubt, A. could see them
in their shelves, the librarian would be happy to show them, but no,
they could not be taken down."
In the library of the Escorial the books are all placed with their
titles against the wall and their edges turned towards the spectator, so
that no vulgar touch could defame them by reading. Small wonder that the
Progressists of Spain shrug their shoulders sometimes at the many petty
obstacles encountered in their attempts to better their country, and
regard it as an almost hopeless task.
Two foreign colleges are situated in Valladolid, the Scotch and the
English. The first named was founded by Colonel Semple in Madrid and
removed hither in 1771, the second by Sir Francis Englefield, who came
to Spain after the execution of Mary Queen of Scots. They are both
seminaries for the education of young priests and with the Irish College
in Salamanca complete the trio.
The focus of the city's life is in the Plaza Mayor, a fine square where
the first _auto da fé_, which Philip II. and his court witnessed, took
place in October 1559. It was here also that Alvaro de Luna was
executed, after faithfully serving his King, Juan II., for thirty years.
Spain thereby lost the strong will and the arm which enforced it, and
which out of chaos had brought the country into a semblance of order by
quelling the turbulent nobles. Such has been in the past the fickleness
of Spain's rulers that not one of the great men who have served their
country, with perhaps the exception of General Prim, and he died a
disappointed man, has ever ended his life in peace and quiet. They have
nearly all died at the stake, on the scaffold, or been foully murdered.
The much dilapidated house in a narrow street where Columbus died is
fast falling into ruin, but that in the Calle de Rastro, where Cervantes
lived and wrote the first part of Don Quixote, is in better condition.
BURGOS
Unlike most folk who enter the country from the north, I left Burgos for
the end of my last visit to Spain, and found it in a way not unlike
Cadiz, the first place I arrived at. They are both clean cities--for
Spain; the streets in both are narrow, and the houses tall with
double-glazed balconies. There is but little traffic in either, the
squares in both are numerous, but the resemblance stops at this. The
streets of Burgos run east and west in lines more or less parallel with
the river Arlanzón. They are draughty and cold. The city stands 2785
feet above sea level and the winds sweep down from the distant sierra in
bitter blasts. The life of Burgos is eminently ecclesiastical with a
large sprinkling of the military element, for here all three branches of
the service are quartered. It is a quiet place and I worked in peace
unmolested.
What a pity the builders of the great Cathedral could not find another
site whereon to erect their wonderful church. How much better it would
have looked if placed on the flat ground near the river than on the
spot where a summer palace of Gonzalez once stood. However, one cannot
move mountains and I was perforce obliged to plant my easel on the slope
of the hill and paint the stock view from in front of the west façade.
In 1075 Alfonso VI. moved the Archiepiscopal See from Oca to Burgos and
gave the site of the royal palace for its erection. The present edifice
was founded in 1221 by Ferdinand el Santo on the occasion of his
marriage with Beatrice of Swabia, who in her train brought the
Englishman, Bishop Maurice. Employing a French architect, Maurice was
more or less responsible for the present building, though another
foreigner, John of Cologne, added the beautiful open work spires with
their parapets to the towers of the west end. It is curious that this,
the most richly ornate Cathedral in the country, should be the outcome
of patronage of the foreigner, though at the same time it is the most
Spanish of the three "foreign" Cathedrals. So rich is this magnificent
Church in every style of architectural decoration that it would take a
lifetime to know it thoroughly.
John of Cologne's beautiful spires are better than those at Leon and
Oviedo, and rise with the towers that support them to a height close on
300 ft. The gorgeous central lantern, with its twelve traceried
pinnacles, the grace of those that surmount the Constable's Chapel, the
many, many others that break the skyline and adorn this glorious fabric,
all go to make it a building that, despite the different styles
employed, will be a wonder and a joy as long as man's handiwork lasts.
The lower portion of the west front was renewed in 1790. The Puerta
Principal in the centre is flanked by two small doors, with reliefs of
the Conception and Crowning of the Virgin, while the chief door has four
statues of Ferdinand el Santo, Alfonso VI., and Bishops Oca and Maurice.
Large Gothic windows occupy the third stage of the front, their bases
being filled with statues. The central stage, which has a single arch,
contains a splendid rose window. The upper portion of the two towers is
occupied by very beautiful perforated double windows in which crochet
decoration is profusely used. It is altogether a wonderful façade which
I greatly wished could be seen from the level.
The chief entrance on the north is closed. It is on the street, and
through it the descent into the north transept is by the well-known
Escalada Dorada. The early Gothic portal--Puerta alta--is adorned by
statues and with the whole of this façade is one of the earliest
portions of the Cathedral. The door, which on this side leads into the
Cathedral, is the Puerta de la Pellejeria and opens on to the
north-east angle of the transept below the Golden Staircase.
On the south the Puerta del Sarmental is approached from the street by
three tiers of steps, it is also part of the original Gothic and is
decorated with statues and coats-of-arms. Above it rises a similar
façade to that of the north transept. The arcading in both these façades
is most beautiful and from some points, where the roof-line can be seen
cutting the sky, they look like two towers surmounted by an elegant
balustrade. Very probably the pitch of the roofs was intended to be
higher, and the building of the central lantern has interfered with the
original design.
The nave of pure early Gothic is lofty but sadly spoilt by the height of
the _coro_. The aisles are low, but very beautiful. The _cimborio_ runs
up in double stages with windows in each and balustrades, it is a
perfect maze of intricate design and fine carving. The walls are covered
with the royal arms of Charles V. and the City of Burgos; there are
figures of patriarchs and prophets standing in the niches, seraphim and
angels occupy the recesses of the spandrils, and the beautiful groining
of this superb octagon is quite unmatched anywhere in Spain. It all
looks as if just finished, the stone is white and in perfect
preservation. How my neck used to ache when looking aloft, unweaving the
intricacies of that splendid interior! To strengthen the Cathedral and
support the weight of this addition, the original piers were altered at
the crossing, and the huge cylindrical columns, which are richly chased
with Renaissance decoration, substituted. One can hardly say that Juan
de Vallejo has spoilt the church by this octagon, for his work here
would grace any building, but all the same I think the Gothic of the
interior has suffered by the introduction of his designs, and I would
sooner have seen the crossing in its original state.
[Illustration: BURGOS. THE CAPILLA MAYOR]
The triforium is composed of wide bays with an uneven number of closed
lights in each. A single arch, the mouldings of which are surmounted by
carved heads, spans each group.
The clerestory contains a little modern glass, most of the old having
been destroyed by a powder explosion in the fort on the hill above.
In the _coro_ the _silleria_ are exquisitely carved; the main panels
represent subjects from the New Testament, the lower, which are divided
by pilasters with arabesques, represent scenes of martyrdom. Philip
Vigarni, who was responsible for this fine _coro_, surpassed himself in
some of its decoration, which adds one more item to all that ought to be
thoroughly studied in the great Cathedral.
On the north side of the High Altar, in front or which hangs a
magnificent silver lamp, are the tombs of three of the Infantes of
Castile. Behind this, the _trassagrario_ is covered with well-executed
reliefs in white stone, some of this is very soft and has crumbled away
a good deal. Every morning a deposit of dust is swept up and it will
soon be necessary to thoroughly restore these fine panels or the designs
will be lost for ever. They represent the Agony in the Garden, our Lord
bearing the Cross, the Crucifixion, the Descent, the Resurrection and
the Ascension. The three centre are by Vigarni, and the others by
Alfonso de los Rios.
Nearly all the chapels are replete with interest, be it architecture,
tombs, pictures or relics, but of them all the Capilla del Condestable
is the grandest. Built in 1487 by John of Cologne for the Hereditary
Constable of Castile, Don Pedro Fernandez de Velasco, it is the private
property of the Duque de Frias. The _reja_, the masterpiece of Cristobal
Andino, bears date MDXXIII. and is certainly the finest in the
Cathedral. It is a worthy entrance to this magnificent octagon, which,
viewed from outside, rises detached from the main building with eight
elaborate pinnacles pointing heavenwards. The tracery of the pierced
ceiling of the Lantern with its gilded bosses, vies in intricacy with
that of the Cathedral itself. There is a double clerestory with
sculptured knights at the bases of the columns holding coloured metal
banners. The undercutting of the mouldings in the arches is very
marvellous, the lowest course is formed of detached figures hanging
downwards and from a little distance off looks like a piece of lacework.
In front of the _retablo_ and High Altar are the superbly sculptured
tombs of the Constable and his wife. He is in full armour, she lies by
his side on a richly embroidered cushion with her little lap-dog
nestling comfortably in the folds of her robe near her feet. The chapel
teems with interest; the wealth of red marble from the quarries of
Atapuerca and the very effective chequer arrangement of black and white
steps leading to the High Altar give it just the note of colour its
whiteness otherwise would lack.
Attached to the chapel is a small vestry entered through a diminutive
plateresque doorway of exquisite design. Amongst other priceless relics
the vestry contains a fine gold chalice studded with precious stones and
a good Madonna by Luini.
Another fine picture, a _Virgin and Child_ by Sebastian del Piombo,
hangs over the altar in the Capilla de La Presentacion. In the Capilla
del Santissimo Cristo is a very ancient crucifix of life-sized
proportions. Tradition and the vergers say that it came from the East
and was carved by Nicodemus. The figure is flexible and very
attenuated, it is covered with a buff-coloured leather to represent
dried flesh and is very gruesome. In San Juan de Sahagun are six panels
of the fifteenth century; good specimens of the early Spanish school,
they represent the Nativity, Adoration and four scenes from the Passion.
The great Bishop Alfonso de Cartagena lies interred in the Capilla de
San Enrique, and his tomb is remarkably fine. Others in this chapel and
in the cloisters are cut in slate and have been worked with great
cleverness considering the way in which a blow splinters this material
so easily.