Present state of the ornament from St. Lô (that John Ruskin drew)

[Victorian Web Home —> Gothic —> Cathedral of St. Lô —> John Ruskin —> Ruskin's drawings —> Next]

Present state of the ornament that Ruskin drew

Cathedral of St. Lô (now l'église de Notre-Dame)

Plate II (The Seven Lamps of Architecture in Works, 8.81)

According to the "Index to the Plates" (8.xvi), this plate refers a finial of the pediment given in Plate II, from the Cathedral of St. Lô beside it, a natural group of thistle-leaves. (p. 122)

Scanned image and text by George P. Landow

[You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and (2) link your document to this URL]

Finial of the pediment gven in Plate II, from the Cathedral of St. Lô beside it, a natural group of thistle-leaves

In the lower part of Plate I. is the finial of the pediment given in Plate II., from the cathedral of St. Lô. It is exactly similar in feeling to the Byzantine capital, being rounded under the abacus by four branches 8 of thistle-leaves, whose stems, springing from the angles, bend outwards and fall back to the head, throwing their jaggy spines down upon the full light, forming two sharp quatrefoils. I could not get near enough to this finial to see with what degree of delicacy the spines were cut ; but I have sketched a natural group of thistle-leaves beside it, that the reader may compare the types, and see with what mastery they are subjected to the broad form of the whole. [p. 122]

Bibliography

Ruskin, John. Works, "The Library Edition." eds. E. T. Cook and Alexander Wedderburn. 39 vols. London: George Allen, 1903-1912.

Ruskin, John. The Seven Lamps of Architecture in Works, vol. 8. Hathi Trust Digital Library. Web. 6 June 2010.

Last modified 6 June 2010