Normandie romane: l’Abbaye aux Dames
For someone like me, who has set himself the task to visit and document photographically as many as possible of those wonderful Romanesque churches and monasteries, a trip to Normandy is both cause for despair and for enchanted amazement. Despair, because the Norman architect, at the time of the Romanesque which coincided with the conquest of Britain by Duke William in 1066 and the tremendous influx of power and riches that ensued, that architect is above all focused on efficiency and the projection of power and majesty. For that architect, the absolute must, the beginning and the end of church building, is the wall. Sculpture doesn’t matter. When it exists at all, it is often relegated to simple modillions under the cornice that supports the roof. The bare wall, perfectly aligned and appareled, reigns as the undisputed king of Norman Romanesque. He who likes to smile and wonder at the ingenuity and inventiveness of Mediæval sculptors, is most of the time sorely disappointed by the utter lack of adornment of those great and tall Norman churches, next to which the barest Cistercian sanctuaries look positively alive and overflowing under the comparatively unbridled abundance of rinceaux, human figures and assorted creatures.
No sculpture to speak of, then, is the norm in Normandy. But on the other hand, the masterfulness of the architects and masons turns the job of putting one stone on top of another into a veritable art: it is here, in Normandy, that was first experimented the very innovation that would bring about the end of the Romanesque: the voûte d’ogives, the rib vaulting from which the whole world of Gothic derives. It is in Normandy that it was first imagined and implemented, even as the 11th century hadn’t yet come to a close. We will see where, and how.
Dedicated to the Holy Trinity, the Abbaye aux Dames stands not very far from the Abbaye aux Hommes in the city of Caen. Founded in 1060 by Duchess Mathilda, William’s wife, it was only completed in 1130.
Slightly shorter than the Mens’ Abbey, the Ladies’ church is much more decorated. Do not be fooled by the façade, however: it did take up the exact same concept of façade harmonique, and the sculpted tympanum you see above the main portal is an ugly 19th century “opus” that never existed in the Middle Ages, and sparked controversy even in the 1860s!
You will notice that the engaged pillars on the façade are ever so slightly tapered: the two middle ones are so shaped on both side, while the two on the sides are only tapered on the inside. It is a very clever trick that fools the eye. Let me underline once again that the camera was perfectly level before the photos of the façade were taken...
The abbey church was listed as a Historic Landmark on the very first list of 1840.
(More on the history of Duke William the Conqueror, his wife Mathilda and the two abbeys of Caen can be found in the captions under the photos of the Men’s Abbey, which I uploaded just before those of the Ladies’ Abbey.)
The architectural envelope is vast and very pure in this church. It exemplifies very well the “art of the wall” that was, as I explain above, the alpha and omega of the Norman Romanesque. An impression of unparalleled mastery and majesty emanates from the nave and transept proportions.
As you can see, the main altar is installed at the crossing of the transept. This is, of course, a consequence of the Vatican II Council. This photograph was taken on Pentecost Monday. There was a Mass going on, and you can see the small congregation was assembled beyond the main altar, in the choir, in front of a secondary altar installed in the apse.
Also notice that above the choir is still groin vaulting, and not the early rib vaulting that will be used in the rest of the church. This is interesting because for once, you can clearly see, in the same church, how the transition actually took place while construction was in progress.
Normandie romane: l’Abbaye aux Dames
For someone like me, who has set himself the task to visit and document photographically as many as possible of those wonderful Romanesque churches and monasteries, a trip to Normandy is both cause for despair and for enchanted amazement. Despair, because the Norman architect, at the time of the Romanesque which coincided with the conquest of Britain by Duke William in 1066 and the tremendous influx of power and riches that ensued, that architect is above all focused on efficiency and the projection of power and majesty. For that architect, the absolute must, the beginning and the end of church building, is the wall. Sculpture doesn’t matter. When it exists at all, it is often relegated to simple modillions under the cornice that supports the roof. The bare wall, perfectly aligned and appareled, reigns as the undisputed king of Norman Romanesque. He who likes to smile and wonder at the ingenuity and inventiveness of Mediæval sculptors, is most of the time sorely disappointed by the utter lack of adornment of those great and tall Norman churches, next to which the barest Cistercian sanctuaries look positively alive and overflowing under the comparatively unbridled abundance of rinceaux, human figures and assorted creatures.
No sculpture to speak of, then, is the norm in Normandy. But on the other hand, the masterfulness of the architects and masons turns the job of putting one stone on top of another into a veritable art: it is here, in Normandy, that was first experimented the very innovation that would bring about the end of the Romanesque: the voûte d’ogives, the rib vaulting from which the whole world of Gothic derives. It is in Normandy that it was first imagined and implemented, even as the 11th century hadn’t yet come to a close. We will see where, and how.
Dedicated to the Holy Trinity, the Abbaye aux Dames stands not very far from the Abbaye aux Hommes in the city of Caen. Founded in 1060 by Duchess Mathilda, William’s wife, it was only completed in 1130.
Slightly shorter than the Mens’ Abbey, the Ladies’ church is much more decorated. Do not be fooled by the façade, however: it did take up the exact same concept of façade harmonique, and the sculpted tympanum you see above the main portal is an ugly 19th century “opus” that never existed in the Middle Ages, and sparked controversy even in the 1860s!
You will notice that the engaged pillars on the façade are ever so slightly tapered: the two middle ones are so shaped on both side, while the two on the sides are only tapered on the inside. It is a very clever trick that fools the eye. Let me underline once again that the camera was perfectly level before the photos of the façade were taken...
The abbey church was listed as a Historic Landmark on the very first list of 1840.
(More on the history of Duke William the Conqueror, his wife Mathilda and the two abbeys of Caen can be found in the captions under the photos of the Men’s Abbey, which I uploaded just before those of the Ladies’ Abbey.)
The architectural envelope is vast and very pure in this church. It exemplifies very well the “art of the wall” that was, as I explain above, the alpha and omega of the Norman Romanesque. An impression of unparalleled mastery and majesty emanates from the nave and transept proportions.
As you can see, the main altar is installed at the crossing of the transept. This is, of course, a consequence of the Vatican II Council. This photograph was taken on Pentecost Monday. There was a Mass going on, and you can see the small congregation was assembled beyond the main altar, in the choir, in front of a secondary altar installed in the apse.
Also notice that above the choir is still groin vaulting, and not the early rib vaulting that will be used in the rest of the church. This is interesting because for once, you can clearly see, in the same church, how the transition actually took place while construction was in progress.