New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-07-26
NEW PUBLICATIONS.

SOME BOOKS ON ARCHITECTURE.
THE CHURCH OF sANcTA SOPHIA b GoMsTA y,
hasy s aSS aarSd
pp viii. N7. London and New-York: Macmillan
FRANCE. By Walter Cranston Larned Illus
traed octave. PIP. VIII 2as. Charles scribners
THREE PERIODS OF ENGLISH ARCHITECT-
IRE. BY Thomas Harris r: l. g. a., r
San l. Octave. PIP x no Charies ocr'o"e'
RATIONAL BUILDING. Being Translation Of
.Raissonnt de fXrchitecture Francase of b. Eu-
gene-Emmanuel vioet-le- Due BY George Mar Mar
i0 hu' Mae 2Sns0 g' Co s'' '' '''"'' ~
ARCHITECT. OWNER AND BUILDER BEFORE
lish Decisions on the Principal Questions Re is'
ing to Building and the EnpoymSehpt 81
BY T NJ Clark Fellow OF the American lnsti-
tute Of Architects octave PIP; XXI %" Lo"uo"
The book on S. Sophia by Mr.. Lethaby and Mr..
Swanson celebrates one Of the great architectu-
raj treasures OF the world. end Is worthy OF Its
theme True to one sublime ideal of organic con-
struction, the builders art more than any other
proves nevertheless. the unity OF all the arts;
and in S. Sophia there is found more regaly SET
forth than anywhere else the conception OF archi-
lecture as a vehicle for the expression Of an emo
tjonal as we'll as an intellectual ideal. an ideal
strengthened by all the resources Of the designer
The ardor of the original builders OF the great
Byzantine monument may have been only par
TALLY informed by spiritual enthusiasm: but THIS
much We know that as the splendid fabric has
been evolved through the ages II has preserved
intact one superb element Of beauty, the element
of passionately sensuous feeling controlled by
strict regard for law. The authors OF this volume
emphasize the structural beauty OF their church,
but from their erudite and zeaousy exact pages
ho doriv Cd &c
OF blazing pomp and picturesque majesty OF
building which is also a pageant. Considered In
that light II is unique in the East and it is scarce
~ paralleled in the West.
In Venice alone is the gorgeousness Of the Con-
stantinople relic rivaed. and even San Marco
must Weld 10 II in grandeur. The magnihcence
of the Venetian structure is the magnifcence Of
Jewel casket. That of S. Sophia is the magnifi-
cence Of some imperial and heroic treasury. loom
ing sublimely above the ruins Of a greatness
which Rome alone could equal, which that power
in some ways could never surpass. To find any
thing that approaches the peculiar dignity and
beauty of S. Sophia it Is necessary 10 go to RAJ
VIENNA. where the lonely and solemn basilicas
have in their decay something of the simple dig
nifty which belongs to their prototype by the
Golden Horn. But to turn to Ravenna or to Ven
ice is after ALL only to turn more convincing
in the presence o. the church itself all COMPARE
sons are forgotten for they are strictly speaking.
impossible The Byzantine church is as unique
as the Parthenon, and to an ina ginaton there Is
quite as potent a witchery upon the Acropolis OF
the Propontis upon that OF the Aegean Gulf
1t might perhaps. be wished that the authors
Of the volume under consideration had responded
more continuously to this witchery than they
have But that would be TO confess an UNI
reasonable fondnesa for poetry and scant APP
probation of their prose. The sterling value OF
their work springs from their having mingled
both prose and poetry from their having given
just the right weight to the description left by
Paul the S!lentiary an official poet of Justnian,
and to their researches in the building ana
through the various authorities in historical
literature. There is a fine agreement among
those authorities the structural significance
Of S Sophia, which engages the admiration Of
the present writer's 1t is impossible TO give here
a descriptive abstract OF their conclusions,
miniature Of the plan which they have analysed
through the changes of successive centuries but
at least may point out the changeess logic
OF that plan and the structural integrity which
has resisted the onslaughts Of time as we'll as
the whims of individual builders. The truth is
that whims. imperial or ecclesiastical. by
which 5. Sophia affected ever resulted in
bad building Bishop or emperor. whoever built
was eager 10 build well. They built well and with
eager care for they were jealous OF their charge,
As the poem to which we have alluded shows
There few panegyrics in architectural MIS-
tory at all comparable to that in which we can
read Justinians pride in the temple built at the
gateway Of his state.
II Is still a mighty church. though time has done
its best to overthrow it Every bic disturb
hos cd all nd demolished horizons
Of its gigantic frame, but still the essential inspr-
alton OF s. Sophia is left intact and the authors
Of the book before us end they begin. with
profound respect for the builders Of old ByZan-
tium. That respect must include the decorative
expedients Of these builders. They worked IN
massy forms. using great spaces OF color with
the same jealous preservation OF an organic
symmetry In their effect that the best designers
of architectural decoration have sought in the
handling Of conventional arabesques and pat
termed ornament They achieved in consequence
grandiose harmony, rich. sonorous tone which
YOU feel was blocked out in Titanic chords, in
keeping with the scale of the building.
AS we have indicated. Mr.. Lethaby and Mr.
Swanson have thrown the weight of their
preference In far they have shown any
preference at all. upon the structural ideas IL
Illustrated in S. Sophia. 1t Is the other way with
Mr.. Larned. in his attractive DOCK on Inc
Churches and Castles Of Mediaeval France
His imaginative temperament has centred his
attention upon the romantic associations OF his
buildings and he has endeavored most TO trans
fer to his pages the atmosphere which sur
rounds Care assonne. Argues Mortes. Chenon-
ceaux or Caen. He is not to be severely criti-
cised for this. since II has made his book in
teresting. and companionabe study for the
traveller exploring the regions he has traversed.
But II is greatly to be regretted that Mr.. Larned
was so engrossed with the beauty which most
appealed to him that he could glide into mis-
leading and utterly untenable hypothesis. He
adrnlres Gothic architecture beyond measure
and wins sympathy for his admiration. But he