DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.25500#0139
EARLY CHRISTIAN IN ROME AND ITALY. 8/
and the apse was usually domed and lined with mosaic (Nos.
44, 45, 46).
E. Columns are the most interesting feature of what we
may call the Basilica style; they were mostly fragments of
earlier Roman buildings which had either fallen into ruins
or were destroyed for the purpose. For this reason on visit-
ing an interior you will often find them of different design,
size, and treatment (No. 47). It was natural that the early
Christian builders, not being good craftsmen themselves,
should use in their buildings the materials and ornaments
which were ready to hand, and which had been left by the
pagan Roman. The rich and grandiose effect which is the
character of these buildings was thus easily obtained, but
often at the expense of fitness in the details of the design.
f. Mouldings are coarse variations of Roman types,
and the carving is of the rudest kind, though rich in general
effect. Technique, or the power of handling tools, had been
gradually declining since the time of the Greeks, and the
progressive decay continued.
Enrichments were in low relief, and incised upon mould-
ings, and the acanthus leaf, although copied still from the
antique, became more conventional in form.
o. Decoration.—The introduction of much colour into
interiors is a feature of the period.
The apse, as has been mentioned, was domed and lined
with mosaic, the subject generally being Christ surrounded
by angels and saints (No. 44).
The arch of triumph preceding the apse is occupied with
appropriate subjects, and long friezes of figures line the
wall above the nave arcades. The wall spaces between the
clerestory windows have subjects drawn from Christian
history or doctrine (Nos. 44, 45, 46).
The figures are treated in strong colours on a gold back-
ground. The design is bold and simple, both in form and
draperies, and an earnest and solemn expression, fitting well
the position they occupy, characterizes the groups. The
method of execution is coarse and large, and no attempt is
made at neatness of joint or regularity of bedding. The
interiors, while bright and free from gloom, are, by the aid
of these mosaics, full of solemnity.
and the apse was usually domed and lined with mosaic (Nos.
44, 45, 46).
E. Columns are the most interesting feature of what we
may call the Basilica style; they were mostly fragments of
earlier Roman buildings which had either fallen into ruins
or were destroyed for the purpose. For this reason on visit-
ing an interior you will often find them of different design,
size, and treatment (No. 47). It was natural that the early
Christian builders, not being good craftsmen themselves,
should use in their buildings the materials and ornaments
which were ready to hand, and which had been left by the
pagan Roman. The rich and grandiose effect which is the
character of these buildings was thus easily obtained, but
often at the expense of fitness in the details of the design.
f. Mouldings are coarse variations of Roman types,
and the carving is of the rudest kind, though rich in general
effect. Technique, or the power of handling tools, had been
gradually declining since the time of the Greeks, and the
progressive decay continued.
Enrichments were in low relief, and incised upon mould-
ings, and the acanthus leaf, although copied still from the
antique, became more conventional in form.
o. Decoration.—The introduction of much colour into
interiors is a feature of the period.
The apse, as has been mentioned, was domed and lined
with mosaic, the subject generally being Christ surrounded
by angels and saints (No. 44).
The arch of triumph preceding the apse is occupied with
appropriate subjects, and long friezes of figures line the
wall above the nave arcades. The wall spaces between the
clerestory windows have subjects drawn from Christian
history or doctrine (Nos. 44, 45, 46).
The figures are treated in strong colours on a gold back-
ground. The design is bold and simple, both in form and
draperies, and an earnest and solemn expression, fitting well
the position they occupy, characterizes the groups. The
method of execution is coarse and large, and no attempt is
made at neatness of joint or regularity of bedding. The
interiors, while bright and free from gloom, are, by the aid
of these mosaics, full of solemnity.