CHAPTER IV (pp. 63-72.)

"On the Church of Lanfranc."

After noticing that "Archbishop Lanfranc erected it complete and new from the foundations, in seven years, and furnished it with the necessary ornaments ... and that at the suggestion and with the assistance of his successor, Anselm, the Priors and Monks of the Monastery took down the east end, or choir, within the twenty years after its completion, and erected it on an increased scale;" [art. XVII, and XXII, Cap. i,] -the Professor proceeds:

"It will presently appear that the area of this church* was nearly doubled by the alteration." (p. 63.)

"The extent of Lanfranc's choir can only be surmised from other examples and analogies. The plan, fig. 3, (p. 38), shows the church immediately before the fire, in accordance with Gervase's description and existing remains.

The

breadth of Lanfranc's choir being thus supposed to be the same as that of the nave, the length and number of its pier arches may be surmised from contemporary examples." (p. 66.)

From those examples which he cites, the Professor assumes that Lanfranc's choir had only two pier arches.

"The shaded parts in a light tint, marked V, in fig. 3, are the conjectural outline of Lanfranc's eastern end, in accordance with the above views. If this be a correct plan,

however, it will follow that no part of the present crypt can belong to Lanfranc's church, unless indeed some of its columns may have been used, but in that case they do not stand in their old positions." (p. 68.)+

"It is not impossible that the whole of these shafts may have been taken from the older crypt. However, I have not been able to discover any difference in style or workmanship "between these shafts and capitals, or their mouldings, and the work of Ernulf above. But as the interval of time between the two works was small, and they are both of the same school, perhaps no great difference was to be expected. The capitals of the columns of the crypt are either plain blocks, or sculptured with Norman enrichments." (p. 69.)

"The word choir is liable to ambiguity, for it is employed

*We deny this. The area of the choir only was enlarged, but that of the church was not affected by the new works, which were confined to the choir.

† It is unnecessary to repeat that we dispute the whole of this hypothesis.

in two senses. The primary and proper sense is for the place appropriated to the singers, and hence it is called "The Choir of the Singers," or, "The Choir of the Monks." But, on the other hand, the word is also employed for the eastern arm of the cross in the church, although the Choir of the Singers is by no means confined to this part, but often extends into the space under the tower, and even occupies some part of the nave, as we have already seen in the Saxon church. Gervase uses the word in both these senses. . . . In attempting to discover the extent of Lanfranc's choir above, I have employed the word in its second sense. "But his proper Choir of the Monks' with so short an eastern portion, probably extended not only under the tower, as at Hereford, and of old, at Rochester, but even into one or more compartments of the nave, as now at Norwich, Gloucester, Winchester, Chichester, and St. Albans, and formerly at Ely, Worcester, and Peterborough, while the crypt was confined to the presbytery, for the crypts never extended under the central towers." (pp. 70, 71.)

"As I have just shown that the choir occupied the tower space." (p. 71.)

We take leave to say that the learned Professor has shown no such thing, it is mere conjecture, though necessary to the existence of his favorite hypothesis. But we shall presently show that it is entirely without foundation.

The learned Professor proceeds: "Edmer has told us (chap. i, art. xx) that Lanfranc placed the coffins of Bregwin and the other Saxon Archbishops upon a vault in the north part of the church, where there was also an altar. . . But after the

enlargement of the church it was thought necessary to adopt a more secure method of depositing these relics, and they were entombed in the places indicated by the figures in plan No. 3, and our author's history of this removal is confirmed by the fact that all the Saxon Archbishops are buried in Ernulf's part of the church, with the exception of Fleogild, Chelnoth, Adhelm, Wolfelm, and Egelnoth." (pp. 71, 72.)

We shall presently have occasion to show that the part of the church here attributed to Ernulf, was part of Lanfranc's original church, and was not the work, as here suggested, of his successor, Anselm, and his Priors.

CHAPTER V (pp. 72, 96.) "On the Works of Ernulf and the

two Williams."

In this part of the work the genius, skill, and indefatigable research of the learned Professor shine forth in all their lustre. It is impossible to follow him in his course, to trace with him the progress of the works, and to compare the interesting descriptions of the monkish historian with the existing building without, in some measure, partaking of the enthusiasm and delight which appear to animate the learned Professor.

We shall not, however, here attempt to follow this interesting course, because, as we have before observed, to do full justice to it would require us to transcribe the whole, as well as the plans by which it is illustrated. We therefore

repeat our earnest recommendation to the reader to peruse the work itself, whilst we confine our observations to a few remarks which have occurred to us in the course of our investigation.

In page 73, the learned Professor says, "The crypt of the western end of the choir being thus certainly an untouched part of Ernulf's work." Here we are completely at issue. We shall, hereafter, explain our reasons for attributing this crypt to Lanfranc, although it may have undergone some alterations, in consequence of the enlargement by Ernulf of the choir

above it.

The reader will find a most interesting account of the architectural distinction between the styles of Ernulf and William of Sens. After describing the bases of Ernulf's pillars and those of William, (which can only be understood by reference to fig. 17), the Professor proceeds: "The masonry of the vaulting shafts is also of two kinds, as shown in fig. 18. One kind, B. which always starts from the Ernulf base, is built of small stones, two or three in each course of the cylinder. The other kind, A, is generally of higher stones than the former, and always had one stone only in each course of the cylinder." (p. 74.)

"The same test of the bases combined with the style of decoration proves that the arcade at the base of this wall and the piers of the windows are also the work of Ernulf.” (p. 78.)

We shall presently explain our reasons for thinking that the

"arcade" here alluded to is part of Lanfranc's original structure. This will apply also to similar statements in pp. 82, 83, 84, 87, 96, in which what we conceive to be the works of Lanfranc are attributed to Ernulf.

CHAPTER VI (pp. 97-117.) "The History of the Choir from the Twelfth Century.

These

Prior Henry de Estria was elected A.D. 1285, and died A.D. 1331. He decorated the choir of the church with most beautitul stone-work, delicately carved. . . Anno 1304-5. Reparations of the whole choir, with three new doors, a new screen, or rood-loft (pulpitum), and the reparation of the chapter-house, with two new gables, £839 78. 8d. entries must refer to the beautiful stone inclosure of the choir, the greatest part of which still remains. The three doors are the central, or western one, and the north and south doors. The present elaborate western screen, or organ screen, as it is now called, is of a much later period." (p. 97.)

"The lateral portions of this wall of inclosure are in excellent order. The north doorway remains perfect . . . the present south doorway, which is in a much later style, is manifestly a subsequent insertion." (p. 98.)

"The old altar table and screen are entirely taken away; a new reredos, imitated from the screen-work of the Lady Chapel in the crypt, has been erected in the place of the old screen of separation between the pillars xi (fig. 5), and the table set against it, near the old site of the patriarchal chair, which is removed into the corona. Also, the wainscoting which concealed the stone tracery of De Estria has been removed from the sides of the choir, and Archbishop Tenison's throne replaced by a lofty canopy of tabernacle work in stone." (p. 107.)

"The organ has also had its changes of position. In the choir of Conrad (Lanfranc ?) it stood upon the vault of the south transept, afterwards, it appears to have rested upon a large corbel of stone, over the arch of St. Michael's Chapel in the same transept. . . . In Dart's view, the organ is placed on the north side of the choir, between the pillars 3 and 4. It was afterwards removed to the more common position over

the west door of the choir. Lastly, it has been ingeniously deposited out of sight in the triforium of the south side [aisle ?] of the choir." (p. 107.)

"The disposition of the screens and steps of the tower, which are so minutely described by Gervase, although they occupy part of the space of Lanfranc's building, yet must be held to belong to the works of Ernulf and Conrad, for the increased space eastward must have affected all the arrangement of the Choir of the Monks." (p. 109.)

This is another gratuitous assumption of the learned Professor, founded upon his fanciful "Eastern Termination of Lanfranc's Church."

"The Crypt."

Gervase says, "that the whole crypt of Ernulf [Lanfranc ?] was dedicated to the Virgin Mary; there were two chapels in the crypt especially dedicated to her, namely, the central one under the high altar, and the south transept which was fitted up for a chantry founded by the Black Prince, A.D. 1363. . . . The Chapel of the Virgin in the middle of the crypt is inclosed with screen-work, the date of which is lost. The vault of the crypt of the corona retains the initials J. and M., so that on the whole it seems that the crypt was to the last dedicated to the Virgin Mary." (pp. 114-15.)

"The Window of Anselm's Chapel."

"In Anselm's Chapel, the original window of the south wall has been taken out and replaced by a very large and elaborate decorated window." (p. 115.) This was erected A.D. 1336, and the sum of £42. 17s. 2d. was expended thereon. "The sum of £8. 138. 4d. was given by certain friends for the said window, and the remainder of the money was furnished by the Prior."

"This Prior (adds the learned Professor) was Henry de Estria, and the peculiar management of the heads of the lights with their pendent bosses, may be compared with the similar bosses of his choir door, figs. 44, 45." (pp. 115-16.)

The learned Professor has before told us that Prior Henry de Estria died A.D. 1331; and that this window was not erected till A.D. 1336, (five years after that Prior's death.) Yet with the most imperturbable gravity he assures us that it