New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1873-11-06
Grand Building

The grandest building In Vienna is st.
Stephens church, situated in the center of
the old city. 1t does not impress the cngi-
mon traveller as strongly as il ought to, partly
because II lies crainpod IN among other build
in9s, .o that ii Is Impossible from any point
to get a clear and full view OF it, outlines,
partly because il does not occupy command
ing position in the general plan of the CITY.
The church of Notre Dame III Paris, when
seen from Montmartro, IN at once discovered
as the church of tha city; and when strolling
about in the streets of Paris, it bursts upon
one every now and then, towering high in
the air and commanding respect and reyor-
ence. But st. Stephens church, when seen
from the kahlenberg, is only one among the
many cEugchos, and the traveller in wander
ing the streets of Vienna will not discover
it until he almost falls over it. But to the
architect It tells whole chapter OF the his
tory of his art; aud TO every ono whose mind
is not altogether without asthclical educa-
ton, ii soon becomes an OBJ ect ri exceeding
interest. 1t is a mighty pile, , II feet lon.
80 feet broad, and lifting its stecplc ~
feet high. 1t was built in the ri:,ld!u o! the
thirteenth century, aud IL ~ tolerably well
kept. That, however, which makes it one
VI the most interesting specimens, OF Gothic
church architecture, is the wonderful har-
mOny between its exterior aud iuturinr. We
are nowadays quite familiar with tho foims
aui n,uaineuts of Gothic style. \ century
ago, when Goethe wrote his famous paper on
the cathedral Of Strasburg, people began to
look at these forms, and by looking at them
they became interested III them. Half Il
century passed by. The form, wcru *
planned. aud when people began t. under
stand them the interest grew into enthusiasm.
1 "a tr1n >
were introduced into actual life, and when
people began to use them the enthusiasm
settled down into fashion. This is COM
mon cOurse-tO be born as an enthusiasm
and TO cud as II fashion. Indeed, fashion is
nothing more than the sediment Of great
cnthusiasnn, and nowadays Gothic forms are
so fashionable that stylish people even 90 to
bed in them. But in spite Of their popular
ity, do not think that they are as express
siyc OF the spirit of the nineteenth century as
they were OF the spirit Of the thirteenth. At
least our efforts in the Gothic style are some
what apt to show a discrepancy between
interior aud exterior. 1t happens sometimes
that IA modern church presents, behind a
screen Of pnnpous Gothic forms, a roOmy
airy, we'll heated, well ventilated, and com
Portable hall, but nothing more, 80 that the
visitor cannot help feeling that the church
shows ii mask 10 the street. The hands are
Jacobs, but the voice is E-au's. In 81.
Stephen church, on the contrary, the inte-
tor beains tsrpr.h the exterior as a strong
soul through happy face. You feel that
living sliut ha, iitc.i these vaults and raised
these walls; AMI many time, when re aiding
a ballad, IA tale az even a mai leT-Of-iaCt mar
ratiyc from the middle ages, It. stephens
church will 10 Tn up in your remembrance,
explanatory Of id-a-, passion7, and charac-
ter, from those timrs.-TH, Gaioxy.