Part 12

The cathedral is a church with central nave and side aisles, terminated with three apses. The central one is semi-circular in the interior, but is enclosed in a square envelope on the exterior. The latter is an addition made at a period subsequent to the original construction, and may have been in connection with defence; an arrangement of which we shall find similar examples at Fréjus and elsewhere. The central nave is roofed with a pointed wagon vault, and the side aisles with truncated wagon vaults, having a long curve towards the outer wall, and a short one towards the nave, and thus acting as flying buttresses against the latter. The cloister and tower, or campanile, are noteworthy; and a very rare feature is here found in the original bishop’s throne, which is preserved in the centre of the apse, as at Torcello and other primitive churches. From historical data, it seems most probable that this cathedral existed in its present state before the destruction of the town in 1160; and as the square envelope of the apse and the vaulting are probably a restoration of a still earlier structure, it seems likely that the oldest portions belong to the previous century.

After the destruction of the Gallo-Roman town, the bishop built himself a castle on the summit of the hill on which the new town was erected. The chapel of the castle served as his cathedral till the fifteenth century, when the existing church of the new town was constructed in lieu of the chapel, which was found too small for the growing population.

The excursion to CARPENTRAS may be made by rail, and from that point the ancient architectural remains at Pernes and Venasque may be easily reached. At Carpentras, besides the Roman arch already described, the church of St Siffrein and the Gothic gateways of the town are well worth visiting.

VENASQUE contains a very ancient baptistery covered with a dome, and ornamented with marble columns and classic capitals. The whole structure is believed to belong to the Roman period.

At PERNES there is a church partly Romanesque and partly Gothic, with a cupola over the choir supported on pendentives, and a crypt of the eleventh century.

LE THOR, a small village about 12 miles east from Avignon on the road to Aix, contains, in the church of Ste-Marie-au-lac, a most interesting example of the mixture of Roman and Romanesque features in Provençal architecture. The nave consists of a single hall roofed with a tunnel vault, strengthened with transverse ribs, except the bay next the apse, which is covered with an octagonal dome, formerly surmounted by a belfry. The west façade and porch are very fine, and bear a striking resemblance in style to Notre Dame des Doms and St Gabriel.

CAVAILLON, besides its Roman remains, contains an interesting early church. It consists of a single nave finished with an apse, which is semi-circular within and hexagonal externally.

The original side aisles have been converted into chapels, and the pointed tunnel vault is carried on great piers, with twisted or fluted shafts in the angles towards the top (as at Aix and Arles).

Amidst the marshes, about half way between Cavaillon and St Remy, is found the small church of Molléges, formerly the chapel of a Cistertian monastery. The belfry of this church (Fig. 62) is cited by Viollet-le-Duc as a striking example of the influence of Roman monuments, such as that at St Remy, on the design of some of the Provençal steeples. It is certainly remarkable that this telling illustration should occur so near the original (see p. 49).

In approaching TARASCON, we again observe the opposite banks of the Rhone occupied by two castles representing the dominating powers on either side. The massive rock on the right bank, crowned with high crenellated walls and lofty keep, is the royal castle of Beaucaire; and the lower but more solid looking pile close to the left bank of the Rhone is the castle said to have been finished and occupied by King René of Provence.

The history of Tarascon is similar to that of the other towns on the Rhone. Originally a market, established by the Greek colonists of Marseilles, it was converted into a Roman settlement, and retained some of its municipal institutions and liberties under the suzerainty of the Counts of Provence, till they were gradually lost under the feudal system. The church of St Martha, originally built in the twelfth century, on the ruins of a Roman temple, was

reconstructed in the fourteenth century, and is of the usual Southern plan with Gothic details.

The south porch of the twelfth century church however still exists, and is a very beautiful example of the Provençal style (Fig. 63). In general character it corresponds with the finer instances we shall meet with at Arles and St Gilles, although on a reduced scale. The round and octagonal nook shafts have caps partly copied from the Corinthian, and partly carved with Romanesque figures. The numerous fine mouldings of the arch contain a curious mixture of Roman and Mediæval ornaments, in the classic egg combined with the Gothic dog-tooth enrichments. The small arcade above, with alternate fluted pilasters and round shafts, all finished with enriched caps resting on a cornice supported on carved heads, have an advanced Romanesque character.

This church is dedicated to Martha, the sister of Mary, who along with Lazarus and other primitive saints, are traditionally supposed to have converted the south of Gaul to Christianity. Martha is said to have endeared herself to the people of Tarascon, by delivering the town from the power of a hideous dragon, which feat is celebrated annually by an extraordinary procession, in which the _Tarasque_ (a pantomimic dragon) makes a great figure, followed by representatives of all the members of the holy family, and attended by multitudes of people.

The Castle of Tarascon (Fig. 64) stands on a rock which rises but little above the level of the river. Begun by Louis II. of Provence in the fourteenth century, it was finished by King René in the fifteenth. It is now a prison, so that the interior is not easily accessible.

There is here a curious mixture of the Southern square tower with the Northern round form, while the smaller details are all of the Northern Gothic style. The general

effect is fine, although somewhat heavy, and the details of the entrance gateway, with its separate drawbridges for carriages and foot passengers, and its ornamental parapet and corbels are particularly noteworthy.

Tarascon has some good bits of architecture in its narrow but somewhat picturesque streets,--the winding stair and projecting turret being very effectively treated in one instance (Fig. 65). The gateway of the town (Fig. 66) on the east is also simple but good, and quite Northern in style, having two round towers flanking the entrance archway.

BEAUCAIRE.--Crossing the bridge of boats from the castle of King René, the bare limestone rock surmounted by the Castle of Beaucaire meets the view (Fig. 68). This castle was anciently a possession of the Counts of Toulouse. During the Albigensian crusade it was besieged by Simon de Montfort, and an interesting account of the siege operations _by himself_ still exists. While engaged in the siege he was attacked and defeated by Raymond VII. (1216). Although now a complete ruin internally, the walls exist all round and shew the great extent of the fortress (Fig. 67). The outer enceinte, and its long approach by wide flights of stairs from the west, can still be traced, as also the outline of the outer and inner bailey. The gateway of the latter, in a fragmentary state, still survives. The immense strength of the fortalice is distinctly apparent, owing to the height and steepness of the naked rock on which it stands (Fig. 69).

Almost the only defensive building in fair preservation

is the remarkable donjon which rises high above the walls. This tower (Fig. 70) is of the very unusual form of a triangle in plan; that shape having probably been adopted in order to fit a projecting spur of the rock. The basement floor (not accessible) was doubtless entered from a trap door in the floor above. It has no openings to the outside. The stair

to the first floor is straight and is carried up in the thickness of the wall. The first floor forms a triangular hall with groined vault of peculiar form, has a fireplace in one angle, and is lighted with small loops. From this floor the staircase is carried up as a wheel in the south angle of the walls. The top floor has a segmental vault which carries the flat stone roof. This is formed of stone flags all overlapped and laid in regular courses, each slightly higher than the others as they rise towards the centre.

The staircase turret stands independently upon this platform, and has a sloping stone roof. The parapet is very perfect, and is, as usual, projected on bold corbels (Fig. 71). Owing to the sharp angles of the plan, the inclination of the corbels near the angles towards one another (in order to keep the arches over them as equal as possible) is much greater than usual--more marked than that, for instance, of the corbels at Avignon (above

referred to, p. 150). The corbels at the angles which are right angles have the usual additional courses in the height. A bold ovolo moulding runs round beneath the corbel-course, the object of which is to keep the inner face of the machicolation well clear of the front of the wall, so that stone balls or other missiles thrown down would run no risk of being diverted from their course by striking any of the projections of the rough-faced masonry with which the tower is built. The parapet is provided with large embrasures, and the merlons or spaces between are pierced with loops of the crossed shape adopted in the fourteenth century.

The parapet wall partly carried on corbels is seen winding round the summit of the wall of enceinte (_see_ Fig. 71), with steps where the heights vary; and in the south-east angle of the inner courtyard adjoining the ruined gateway from the outer to the inner courtyard, there still stands the very interesting twelfth century chapel of the castle.

This oratory is generally similar in design to the one within the castle at Villeneuve (_ante_, Fig. 52). The doorway at the west end is round-arched, and contains details which are remarkably characteristic of Provence, the purely Roman egg and leaf enrichments being mixed with dogtooth and other ornaments of Romanesque design. The small square tower which crowns the west gable is peculiar, being more in the style of the belfries further North and East, than those of the South.

From Tarascon a branch railway runs to St Remy (the Roman ruins at which have already been described), and from that point the strange old town of Les Baux may be reached.

LES BAUX.--This ancient but decayed fortress is one of the most picturesque and remarkable objects in the district. It is situated on the top of a rocky height (Fig. 72), not far from where the Alpines begin to rise from the plain of the Rhone, over which it has a commanding and extensive prospect. Formerly a considerable fortified town, it is now deserted, save by a few wanderers and beggars, and presents the melancholy appearance of an abandoned city, of which the empty houses are fast falling into ruin. This, however, as we shall hereafter notice, is by no means a solitary example of a Southern town overtaken by a similar fate. But Les Baux has this striking peculiarity to distinguish it, that it is a city _not built_, but excavated out of the rock. It is not uncommon to find houses cut in the rock in several parts of France, where a dry and soft formation renders such an operation suitable, and, as is well known, rock-hewn temples, tombs, and other buildings abound in Egypt, Syria, and the East. Possibly some of the great chiefs of the family of Les Baux (who were distinguished Crusaders) may have adopted the idea from examples they saw in the Holy Land.

The town is now almost a heap of ruins, although some façades of good Renaissance design still adorn the silent streets.

The castle, which covered a large part of the site, had walls composed of solid rock, the superfluous material being cut away both on the inside and outside. In some cases the rock, which is a soft limestone, and decays by exposure, has given way quicker on one side than another, with the result that large masses of “wall” have fallen either flat on the ground, or in solid blocks down the cliffs. In other instances towers have toppled against towers, like trees cut at the foot, producing a most confused and overturned appearance, as if the result of siege or earthquake.

With respect to the architecture, says Mérimée, “The exceptional situation of the town of Les Baux has given rise to a style which scarcely furnishes any indications of the ancient epochs of its history; however, I have seen nothing which appeared to be older than the twelfth century. A church in fair condition seems to be of the epoch of transition. In the right aisle are seen a cornice and transverse arch enriched with dog-tooth and zig-zag ornaments. The rest of the church has been repaired in the fifteenth century, and several very elegant chapels have been added to it.” This church is illustrated by Révoil.

On the south side of the town a bas-relief of three large figures and part of a Latin inscription, carved to a great scale on the face of the rock, have given rise to some extraordinary theories. The figures are called Les Trois Maries or Tremaié. Many observers regard them as Roman, and suppose that they represent Marius (the conqueror of this district, about 100 B.C.), his wife Julia, and a Syrian prophetess or sorceress called Martha, who accompanied the great leader and foretold his victories. But M. Lenthéric, in his interesting work on the _Villes Mortes de la Méditerranée_, already referred to, takes an entirely different view. He contends that these figures represent Lazarus and the two Marys; and considers the existence of the church dedicated to the “Saintes Maries” (which we shall reach by and bye), together with the above figures and inscription, and the traditions of the country, sufficient proof that the family of Lazarus and their companions were really the first missionaries of Christianity in Southern Gaul.

There is another large inscription and two more figures on another rock, but they are too much decayed to be accurately interpreted.

There seems to be no doubt that a town has existed here from the time of the Romans, although no Roman architecture can now be detected. In mediæval times it was the home of the famous family of Les Baux, whose history (written by Jules Canonge) comprises much of that of Provence from the tenth to the fifteenth century.

In the tenth century Les Baux was already one of the largest towns of the country, and was for long the seat of a famous Court of Love. In the thirteenth century the “Seigneurs des Baux” possessed seventy-nine free burghs. They were amongst the most powerful and boldest barons of the land, and acquired great titles and possessions, being in turn the Princes of Orange, the Counts of Provence, Kings of Arles and Vienne, and Emperors of Constantinople. They commanded fleets and armies, and became podestàs of the free towns. They also distinguished themselves as Crusaders, and joined Charles of Anjou in his conquest of Naples. In following the history of this distinguished race one gets a more lively and impressive idea of the life and manners of those stirring mediæval times in Provence than can easily be found elsewhere.

But the family lost their prestige when Barral des Baux, podestà of the free town of Arles, betrayed the republic to Charles of Anjou. Les Baux from this time declined, and the castle was finally dismantled by the Duke of Guise; the town was abandoned and the fine mansions fell into decay, a process which is still in progress, both by the action of nature and at the hands of the peasantry of the neighbourhood. Les Baux may be got at either from Fontvieille (famous for its quarries of “Arles stone”), to which there is a railway from Arles, or from Tarascon, in either case driving to Paradou (six kilometres from Fontvieille, and sixteen from Tarascon), or from St Remy.

A few miles from Tarascon, on the road to Arles, the ancient church of ST GABRIEL rises amidst the ruins of the still more ancient Roman city of Ernaginum. A large number of tombs, similar to those we shall presently meet with at the Alyscamps near Arles, but of the plainest form, are here found along with fragments of inscriptions, statues, and other antique relics. The church of St Gabriel, like so many others in Provence, comprises in its design a mixture of classic and Romanesque features. The west front (Fig. 73) is one of the finest of its kind. The entrance doorway, with its fluted column, its imitated Corinthian capitals, and high pitched pediment full of classic enrichments, might easily pass for a structure of the Lower Empire. The bas-reliefs represent the creation and the visit of the angel Gabriel to the Virgin,--the personages being identified by their names inscribed beside them. The upper part of the front exhibits a great archivolt springing from imposts on each side of the portal, above which is a straight cornice supporting a second pointed archivolt. The latter contains a small circular window richly ornamented with classic leaves and other enrichments, and having the symbols of the four evangelists placed around it. The church has a single nave, covered with a pointed tunnel vault. The buttresses are more pronounced than usual, which may indicate a transition towards the later Provençal style, and seem to point to the date of the building being late in the twelfth century, notwithstanding its very classic features.

A short journey now brings us to ARLES, the ancient capital of the province, and one of the chief architectural centres of our district, both as regards classic and mediæval art.

The principal mediæval edifice of Arles is the church of St Trophime, the patron saint. It is a large and important structure, containing specimens of all the peculiarities of Provençal architecture on a complete and extensive scale. The nave of the church was erected in the twelfth century, and is quite distinct in character from the beautiful western porch and the splendid cloisters which belong to the older and more ornate period of Provençal architecture. The choir and apse were rebuilt in 1430 in the Northern style. The nave (Fig. 74), like that of all the Southern churches of the same age is very simple internally. This is the first fine example we have met with of the second period of Provençal architecture--in which the plain and rigid Cistertian style superseded the earlier and richer architecture of which we have observed so many remarkable specimens. Thus the piers (Fig. 74) are merely square blocks of masonry, with flat projections or pilasters on each face, carried up to receive the small mouldings or imposts from which spring the wall arches on each side of the nave (between it and the side aisles), and the transverse arches, which strengthen the pointed barrel vault of the central nave. The latter consist of two rings, the inner arch springing from the main pier, and the side orders from fluted classic-looking columns introduced in the angles of the main piers to receive them. The side aisles are very narrow and lofty, and are roofed with one half of a pointed vault thrown as an abutment against the upper part of the nave wall. The nave windows are flanked by twisted columns with Romanesque caps. The pointed arches, resting on four strong piers, which carry the central tower, are seen at the crossing of the church, with a lofty plain wall forming the lower part of the tower, resting upon them. This partially cuts off the view of the choir from the nave, and indicates that the vault of the original church was much lower than that of the existing nave, the roof of which is nearly twice the height of the arches of the crossing. The latter, forming the support of the tower, could not be removed when the nave was rebuilt and enlarged. The tower (Fig. 11) rises high above the roof

of the church. It extends to three full storys and an attic crowned with a pointed roof having a very flat slope. The two lower storys have the arcaded Romanesque ornament so common in Lombardy and Germany, while the upper story shews three Corinthian pilasters on each side. The tower is heavy, but recalls the general effect of the Italian campanile, and corresponds in style with the earlier work of the portal and cloisters.

The elaborate and beautiful western portal (Fig. 75) is fortunately well preserved. It has the appearance of having been added in front of the plainer wall of the nave, and is thus generally stated to be of more recent construction than the nave, but we believe that the portal is much more likely to be part of an older building, which has been preserved in the re-construction of the nave. Portals being generally highly ornamental features, were frequently so preserved. We have met with good examples of this at Notre Dame des Doms and at Tarascon, and others will occur as we proceed. The central arch is almost insensibly pointed; but whether intentionally or accidentally it is difficult to say,--most likely the latter, from its being so indistinct. This porch is probably an imitation on a small scale of the much grander one of St Gilles (to be referred to immediately). The engaged pillars, with their carved caps and bases so strongly akin both to classic and Romanesque work, stand on a high stylobate approached by a wide flight of steps. The space between the pillars is formed into a series of niches, bordered on each side with an enriched pilaster and filled with the figure of an apostle or an early saint. The sculpture of these figures, although Roman in general character, shews a leaning towards Byzantine design, especially in the rich carving of the jewels and ornaments on the dresses. The tympanum over the central doorway, which is divided into two openings with a central shaft, contains the figure of Christ in glory surrounded with the emblems of the four evangelists, and in the soffit of the arch are two tiers of half length adoring angels. On the lintel are sculptured the twelve apostles seated; while the frieze on the right hand of Christ contains the just, clothed and received by Abraham, and that on the left the unjust, represented as naked and being dragged by a demon with a chain backwards through flames. The leaf, egg, and other enrichments are quite classic, while the modillions supporting the cornice of the gablet over the porch have the usual Romanesque character. This porch strikes one at a glance as being of a totally different style from the body of the church. The latter belongs, as already mentioned, to the reformed Cistertian style of the twelfth century, while the former is in the older and more florid Provençal style of Romanesque, although probably earlier in the same century.