The Sun.
London, England, 1854-04-17 00:00:00

THE CRYSTAL PALACE.

THE NATIONAL ART COURTS.

Among the various fine arts courts at the Crystal
Palace, there is none which, we apprehend, will be ex-
amined with greater interest than one termed the "Na-
tional Art," or medimval court. It will not attract at-
tention on account of anything like unity in its plan ; it
is not a restored Gothic edifice, nor a miniature mediaeval
structure, but it contains, not indiscriminately scattered
but judiciously arranged, many of those historic monu-
ments which should be treasured by us a people as
sacred heirlooms of a past time, replete with
stirring incidents and important events. True it is
that the austere beauty of the Athenian portico, the
glittering tesselation of the Alhambra, and the gorgeous
system of the Byzantine age, were not imitated by
mediaeval artists. But in that glorious system of Gothic
architecture, with its awe-inspiring grandeur, there is
even more to enchain and rivet the attention than in the
works of other ages. This Gothic element displayed
itself in the gloomy sublimity of its arcades and
cloisters ; its lofty towers piercing the clouds with
their delicate traceries ; its richly groined roofs—mira-
cles of mechanical art—suspended in mid-air or calmly
reposing in long avenues on slender clustering pillars ;
its highly ornamented altars and transparent screens, its
deep retiring door-ways and shady recesses ; its rose,
lancet, and oriel windows, through which a stream of
golden light poured upon the richly sculptured materials
of the pile, revealing the proposed decorations of
living artists, and the productions of an exuberent
fancy, full of deep mystery or joyous loveliness. An
intense love of nature is everywhere visible in those
wondrous piles of sculptured materials ; and as the eye
rests upon the beautiful figures in these courts—choice
flowers, culled from the real garden of mediaeval ages
—the mind is involuntarily led back to the times when
mitred abbot and holy monk formed their solemn pro-
cessions down the long drawn cathedral aisles, and
when those wondrous piles resounded, and "spoke like
God, from the clouds, from their lofty towers, or al-
ternately sorrowed and rejoiced, like men, in the
deep tones of their swelling organ." True, these
Gothic stone sculptures have not the elegance of
the Parisian marbles, nor the elaborated finish
of the Parthenon friezes ; but if we would learn
well and duly the lessons which are intended to be taught
by Mr. Digby Wyatt and Mr. Owen Jones, we must
follow the sound advice of Mr. Ruskin and watch
man with reverence "as he sits side by side the
burning gems that. are to reflect a ceaseless sun-
shine and rise into a cloudless sky ; but not with
less reverence stand by him when, with rough
strength and hurried stroke, he smite; an un-
couth animation out of the rocks which he has torn from
among the moss of the moorland, and heaves into the
darkened air the pile of iron buttress and rugged wall ;
instiact with work of an imagination as wild and way-
ward as the northern sea, creations of ungainly shape
and rigid limb, but full of wolfish life, fierce as the winds
that beat, and changeful as the clouds that shade them.
The facade of the Gothic courts is formed of architec-
tural features taken from Tintern, Netley, and Guis-
borough Abbeys, and an adjoining vestibule and cloister
is made up of the triforium of Lincoln Cathedral. At
one end of the cloister is placed a copy of the interesting
old doorway of Prior West's Chapel at Ely, one of the
finest specimens of metal ornamentation which exists in
this country. Mr. Digby Wyatt, in his admirable book
on "metal work and its artistic design," thus speaks of
this chapel and door :—" There is scarcely a single chapel
in the whole of England which offers more attractions
than the one under consideration. The delicacy of the
stone-carving is almost marvellous, while the iron-work,
though, not so minute as we generally find it, is still ad-
mirable.' The iron work, as well as the stone work,
exhibits traces of German design. In examining the orna-
mental portions of the metal work, we shall find that those
parts which imitate foliage are most deserving of attention.
The roses are formed of several pieces of thin iron cut
out arid then turned up at the edges, while the nail
which-passes through and holds them together has its
head worked into the form of the petals of the flower."
At the opposite end is the entrance to the beautiful
monument of Prince Arthur in Worcester Cathedral.
Above the tomb a small open space will be filled with
exquisitely stained glass by Hardman.
Among the monuments intended to be placed in the
court are the royal tombs from Westminster Abbey, in-
cluding those of Henry 111. and his Queen Eleanor,
Edward 111., Richard 1., Anne of Bohemia, and John
of Eltham ; the tomb of Edward 11., from Gloucester
Cathedral, and of Edward the Black Prince, from Can-
terbury. There will be also the tombs of Bishop Pore
and William Longesp4e, from Salisbury, and William
of Wykeham, the architect Bishop of Winchester. It
was intended to have had a cast from the famous
Percy shrine from Beverley Minster, but owing to the
obstinate narrow-mindedness of the churchwarden, Mr.
Wyatt was not able to obtain a copy. The corres-
pondence which took place on this subject, and which
we may one day lay before ourireaders, is a curiosity in
its way; it illustrates how vast are the powers of a
churchwarden, and how sadly deficient such a personage
may be in a desire to promote education or a love of
the arts. This shrine is undoubtedly one of the finest
remains of meclival art in England ; but notwithstand-
ing all the efforts made by the Archbishop of York, the
Duke of Northumberland—the representative of the
Percy family—Sir C. Barry, Archdeacon Wilberforce,
Mr. Scott, and many other persons, the zealous and ob-
stinate Dogberry refused to permit either a sketch or a
cast to be taken from the monument. There will, how-
ever, be in the court a cast from the famous Canteloupe
shrine from Hereford, and of the Lady Abbess of Win-
chester, the latter figure being that of which Flaxman
declared that he should have been content if he could
have regarded any of his own works with equal satisfac-
tion. This beautiful monument has been restored by M.
Phyffers, a gentleman whose labours upon the new stalls
of Antwerp Cathedral are so well known and appreciated
by all who have had an opportunity of inspecting them.
The walls of the court are covered with a large collec-
tion of specimens, the majority of which have been care-
fully restored so as to convey as much as possible the
appearance which these monumental works exhibited in
the freshness of their colour and their youth. Many
objections might perhaps, be made to dealing with the
original monuments in this manner ; but these are
merely casts, and the originals remain untouched, the
restorations are not, of course open to objections which
might arise on the score of destroying the character of
the original monuments. One of the most successful of
the restorations is the doorway of the chapter-house of
Rochester Cathedral, which is richly illuminated in gold
and colours. The lower part of central panel on each
aide of the doorway is a quatrefoil of small lion's heads
and gold rosettes. Above these, on the right side is an
allegorical figure of the Mosaic representation, the figure
being represented with the eyes blindfold, and holding
the two tables of the law in the right hand ; on the
opposite side is a corresponding figure of St. Augus-
tine, the first preacher of Christianity in Britain. These
figures are each supported by a grinning corbel.
Above these emblematical representations of Chris-
tian and Mosaic dispensations are four monastic figures
engaged in devotion and study, and above them are four
angels occupied in praying and singing. At the top of
the doorway is a small naked figure, which represents
the human soul, the object of the devout care and atten-
tion of monks and angels, enjoying the pleasures of a
beatific state. The small panels between the mouldings
are full of enriched heads, many of them of most amus-
ing and grotesque features, and all painted natural colour.
A smaller panel on the outside is formed on the one side
by vine leaves running through small loop-holes, and
upon the other by a small diapered column, in red and
white, which supports the springing of the arches of the
doorway. The spandrils of the arch and the stiles are
richly ornamented with gold rosettes, The colours are
of the most brilliant description, and the manner in
which the work has been performed reflects the highest
credit upon Mr. T. L. Coulton, who has most success-
fully carried out the design of the restoration as sug-
gested by Mr. Cottingham.
Around the upper part of the court is placed a series
of angels from the beautiful angel choir of Lincoln
Cathedral, which, many of our readers may remember,
were so ably illustrated by Professor Cockerell, at the
meeting of the Archaeological Institute, a few years
since. In the niches at the various angles are placed a
series of the finest figures from the west front of Wells
Cathedral, which have been also recently illustrated by
the talented professor. The restoration of these figures
is placed under the superintendence of Mr. Richardson,
whose work upon monumental remains is so well known,
and whose labours in the Temple Church and numerous
other localities have shown with howmuch safety the
delicate operation of restoration may be confided to his
superintendence.
Conspicuous among the specimens around the walls of
the court is the beautiful window of John of Gaunt, i
the castle yard at Lincoln, but which has been latelyn
carefully removed from its original site and restored
by Lord Brownlow. Near this is a fine canopied
niche, reaching the whole height of the court, taken
from Bishop Alcock's chapel at Ely, certainly one of the
richest specimens of its kind to be met with in the
country. On the principal side of the court is arranged
a fine series of "bosses " from Tewkesbury Abbey, re-
presenting the firmament of heaven. The splendid
ss Easter " or " resurrection " sepulchre from Horton
Church, in Lincolnshire, is also in this court, and no
person can look upon this beautiful work of art without
feeling that although the men who carved such works
neither read nor wrote poetry, yet they "lived poetry,"
and their buildings were epics slowly written. On this
is represented, in three divisions, Christ bear-
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his cross and the weeping Magdalen gracefully
kneeling at his feet, below are the armed men who kept
the tomb, and above are seen merely the feet of the
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the window of John of Gaunt is-placed or
e of the Oppositewestern
entrance doors of Lichfield Cathedral, the rro
iron work
upon which is the most elaborated of any .
existing in
this country. The work on this door is similar in style
to the iron railing which protects the tomb of Queen
Eleanor in Westminster Abbey, and was rescued from
the state of neglect in which it had lain for many years,
and most admirably restored, by Dean Buckland. The
tomb of Humphrey de Bohun, from Hereford Cathedral,
one of the most graceful of the monuments of the 15th
century, occupies a position near to this door.
At the back of the court is placed a charming re-
storation of the beautiful Walsingham font. It was to
the shrine of Our Lady at Walsingham that thousands
of pilgrims wended their way from all parts of the
country and of Europe, guided thither by the miracu-
lous light ; and it was to lay his offerings on this shrine
that the monarch Henry VIII., walked barefoot and
bareheaded for a distance of three miles from the adjoin-
ing village, and it was this same shrine that the same
Hoary, the "Defender of the Faith," did, to the horror