An essay on the history of English church architecture prior to the separation of England from the Roman obedience . ary, was undoubtedly, in earlytimes, the great altar of the church. In the plan ofSt. Gall we see similar indications. The westernapse has seats returned round it, as in all the basi-licas, and it has before it a small choir such as wesee at St. Clement and at Torcello. The easternapse is elongated in a manner quite unlike the apseof a basilica. It has no seats for the clergy, but infront of it extends a very spacious choir, not at allbasilican in its planning or proportions. It
An essay on the history of English church architecture prior to the separation of England from the Roman obedience . ary, was undoubtedly, in earlytimes, the great altar of the church. In the plan ofSt. Gall we see similar indications. The westernapse has seats returned round it, as in all the basi-licas, and it has before it a small choir such as wesee at St. Clement and at Torcello. The easternapse is elongated in a manner quite unlike the apseof a basilica. It has no seats for the clergy, but infront of it extends a very spacious choir, not at allbasilican in its planning or proportions. It is tobe remarked that both at Canterbury and in theplan of St. Gall the crypt, or confessionary for thereception of relics, is in the eastern or more recentapse. The position of the towers described by Eadmer isso peculiar that I am inclined to think that theybelong to the early roman building and stoodat its eastern end, flanking possibly a portico oratrium. If this be so, Professor Willis, in his plan,has placed the towers somewhat too far towards thewest. Eadmer merely states that the towers stood PLATE THE CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF PLAN PREVIOUS TO THE FIRE OF I067. THE HISTORY OF ENGLISH CHURCH ARCHITECTURE. 39 about the middle of the length of the nave {subtnedio longitudinis aulce ipsiiis). I suppose therefore that what Augustine foundwas an aisled basilica, without transepts, with itsapse toward the west in the usual manner, and witha portico flanked by towers at the east end. Wemay imagine him to have wished both to enlarge thechurch wliile restoring it, and also to provide amore ample choir: the old church, like many of theearly basilicas, possessing, possibly, none. Thishe effected by removing the eastern entrance; and,extending the church in that direction, he addedan apse with an altar for the monks, which, as timewent on, became at last the high-altar of the archiepiscopal throne continued to stand, orwas then re-erected, in
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectchurcharchitecture
