35 – Frieze…

Inside the abbey iv

Besides the appealing polychrome wooden statuary, there are a number of friezes of polychrome decorated stone to be seen displayed within the abbey. These depict well known scenes from the Bible, such as this example of the banishment of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. Notice the depiction of Satan within the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. It was Satan, symbolised by the dragon that was defeated by St Michel. Each of the displayed stone panels depicts a scene of punishment and retribution. I did not manage to get detailed information of these reliefs.  They are evidently not in their original location (they appear to have once been a continuous sequential panel) which would indicate that they belonged to an earlier abbey church or were brought from some other place of Christian worship. I’m not a serious art historian, but from the style and the colours used I would imagine they are medieval – probably around the 13^th century. I found them fascinating and strangely moving.

34 – St Michel…

Inside the abbey iii

QVIS VT DEVS, is the inscription beneath this polychrome statue – the one overlooking the altar in the transept crossing of the abbey. Accepting that it is probably from mediaeval times and that the inscription would be Latin we then get it as Quis Ut Deus – "who is like God". There is no doubt then that this is a depiction of St Michel. The name Michel or Michael can be broken down into its Hebrew components Mich El – which literally translates again as “who like God” – further identity confirmation if needed.

Two coincidences immediately came to my mind. The first is that I recognised this Latin phrase as the motto of the South African Midlands college school Michaelhouse. That in turn led me to discovering that the school was originally known as St Michael’s Diocesan College – a saintly association I had not made before. It’s probably not important, the school is not my personal alma mater, but I recently moved to live in this area of the country.

The second coincidence (of sorts) – my second (and family used) name is Michael. I started to understand better the unfathomably deep feelings of belonging I had felt during my visit to the Mont (and probably the hopes my mother had had for me at birth).

The motto is also frequently depicted on St Michel’s shield in artworks of his dragon slaying adventure, referenced in an earlier post. You will see too in the carving the scales and lance in hand – symbols of his exalted position in the hierarchy of angels – the scales being his to use during the judgement of souls, the lance his symbol of defender - the dragon's heart lies at his feet. Quis Ut Deus?

33 – Madonna and Child…

Inside the Abbey ii

Mont Saint-Michel remains in the custody of the Roman Catholic Church. Although not of that faith myself I do know enough about it to know that Mary, mother of Jesus is adored and revered more than in others of the Christian faith. This is so much the case that somewhat grand statues and effigies of Mary dominate the naves or apses of many a Roman Catholic Church or cathedral I have visited. I was therefore a little surprised that this is not so in the abbey church of Mont Saint Michel. But, then again I have already said that despite the towering grandeur of the Marvel’s structure, I found most things (especially so where decorative arts are concerned) on the Mont to be somewhat understated. Pleasantly so, I may add.

That is not to say that representations of Mary are not there, as this wooden polychrome Madonna and Child will attest. I have admired many examples of wooden polychrome decorated carvings, especially in Germany where the art form continues as a traditional craft especially in the Black Forest region. But the rustic naivety of the examples of the style found inside the abbey show that even since the Middle Ages it was an art form that found widespread appreciation throughout Europe. Surprisingly, you can today find fairly old examples at auction and even on eBay at remarkably affordable prices.

The silent penetrating stare of the statuettes added to the feeling that Saints still dwell within the abbey, watching over the many who make this pilgrimage.

32 – The subtlety of leadlight…

Inside the abbey

We first saw this style of window art above the abbey church doorway. It appears colourless, especially as I mentioned, when compared the rich hues and pictorial style of the work in Chartres Cathedral, Notre Dame and St Chapelle – the latter two in Paris. In effect most Gothic churches have windows that will be memorable for their detail and depth of colour. The work in the church and chapels of Mont St Michel has a different kind of beauty. 

If you haven’t yet worked it out, clicking on images on this site will display a larger version than the version shown on each blog entry. I suggest you examine this one especially, in larger format to gain a better appreciation of the subtlety of the light colouring and pattern detail. 

The monastic simplicity and elaborate patterning of the lead work here is what makes me recall these magnificent windows as easily as I can visualise those in the aforementioned places. They also help with that unity of the Gothic and Romanesque architectural styles we have looked at and discussed in the two earlier posts.

31 – Romanesque and Gothic

Side by side

Looking across the transept crossing and nave from the north transept, one gets a good appreciation of the differing but complementary architectural styles of Romanesque and Gothic. Let’s spend a little more time looking at what differentiates these two architectural periods.

Romanesque (in the style of the Romans) was prevalent from the 9^th through to the 12^th centuries and followed the earlier Byzantine style – typified by much smaller buildings than were now to be constructed. Arches were barrelled - as found in many classical Roman buildings - and buildings tended to have a heaviness from the thick walls to the heavy vaulted roofs, resulting in small and often few windows which tended to weaken construction. These larger buildings with blunted towers and often fortress like appearance, are something we have seen much of on the Mont so far, and will encounter again. The term Romanesque was introduced into the architect’s lexicon in the 1800’s

Gothic style (forget about today’s eyelined Goths) superceded Romanesque in the 12^th century and was introduced in church design with the intention of making them appear like heaven (or man’s idea of the place – colourful, spacious and light).  The use of complex external supporting structures, towers and buttresses along with internal ribbed arches displaced roof pressure outwards allowing increased heights, thinner walls and most notably increased use of glazed windows. Pointed arches, vaulted roofs, tall spires and lead-light or stained-glass panels typify the style. It is one that comes into its own in the Marvel.

A good descriptive comparison of the two styles can be seen here. Use your back arrow to return to this site, and you’ll see many of these features contrasted in today’s image – the transept with its Romanesque origins, and the nave, crossing and chancel - pure Gothic.

From the relative quiet of the transept I did feel somehow closer to heaven; it was probably here that I first mentally applied a single word to the abbey.

Celestial.

The place truly is celestial.

30 – The Architecture…

History

Mont St Michel is frequently described as an example of Romanesque architecture, yet as we have already seen the most recently built parts of the abbey apse and chancel (if one may call the sixteenth century recent) are decidedly Gothic. So too, as we will shortly see, are other parts of the Marvel. For a construction that has evolved over many centuries the entirety of the mount forms a surprisingly cohesive whole. The differing styles of architecture are as I have mentioned before sympathetically blended, as is the restoration work which continues to this day.  It retains a most attractive profile from almost any angle. Although there are records of an earlier pre-Romanesque church, the earliest known records of the Mont’s grand design date from around 1020 – the time of Abbot Hildebert. This early construction was only completed in 1135. The original three storied Marvel built above the existing church was begun in the early thirteenth century and completed in around 1230. Much damage was caused by a fire in 1204. The Marvel comprised of a number of halls, refectory, cloisters and the abbey towers. It is believed that one tower collapsed in 1300 followed by the collapse of the nave in 1421. Reconstruction began in 1450 and was completed in 1521. In 1618 this façade too began to collapse and was removed in the mid eighteenth century – all barring four arches. Further fire damage occurred in 1856, and restoration was begun in 1874 under Napoleon III who declared the site a national monument, and the government of France took responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of the Mont.

As seen here, the nave of the abbey church displays a distinctly Romanesque style of construction.

29 – Gazing…

Higher

The almost colourless windows of the glass cage that forms the apse add to the simplicity of the abbey. It is a form of leadlight work that I find particularly appealing, and in fact had used in my own home at the time. The prismatic effect of some of the cut glass creates small iridescent rainbow spots of light that dance and move upon the stones constantly as the light outside changes and hides behind passing clouds. 

The use of polychromatic decorative carvings inside the church (such as that of Saint Michel seen yesterday behind the main altar) benefit greatly from this pure light – again a strong contrast when compared to the deep rich colours used in glazing the windows of Chartres Cathedral. We’ll take a closer look at some of these polychrome works later. 

Take time to appreciate the stone lace and lattice work, so typical of French Gothic, and yet unlike anything I have seen elsewhere. The placement of the external supporting structures and buttresses is incredible for its lack of shadow interference with the lighting. The strength of those internal supports is almost unimaginable. That this is the third tier of the Marvel stretches belief - for we were yet to see how this feat was achieved.