Metalwork in the Service of the Church

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From the earliest days theChurch has employed utensils and vessels of metal in itsliturgical ceremonies. This practice increased during theMiddle Ages. The history of the metalwork of theChurch in theMiddle Ages is in fact the history of the art of metalworking in general, and this is not only because theChurch was the foremost patron of such works and because almost all the works that have been preserved from theMiddle Ages areecclesiastical in character, but also because until the twelfth century the works of the goldsmith were also almost exclusively manufactured bymonks andclerics. But in the period of theRenaissance also the manufacture of church metalwork formed a very important branch of the goldsmith's art, and even in our own day these works are counted among those in the production of which that art can be most profitably developed; but not only the goldsmith's art, that is the artistic treatment of the precious metal, had its growth and development in the service of theChurch, the base metals also, especially iron, bronze, and brass, have been largely used. As we are dealing, however, with the historical development of the metalwork in the service of theChurch, we shall confine ourselves more particularly to works in the precious metals, without however entirely excluding those in the inferior metals from our consideration.

Antiquity

Beginning with antiquity, we must first prove that theChurch did in fact make use of valuable works of metal in the most ancient times.Honorius of Autun (d. 1145) makes the remark that theApostles and their followers had employed woodenchalices in the celebration of theholy Mass, but thatPope Zephyrinus had ordered the use of glass andPope Urban I of silver and gold vessels (Gemma animae, P.L., CLXXII, 573). This opinion seems to have been widely disseminated during theMiddle Ages; it is nevertheless untenable. Recourse tochalices made of wood or some other cheap material was undoubtedly often madenecessary in antiquity as the result of a lack of the more valuable materials or during the stormy times of the persecutions, but this custom cannot have been general. If the earliestChristians believed in thereal presence of Christ in the Eucharist, and of this there can be nodoubt, they assuredly also made offering of their most precious vessels in order that theSacred Mysteries might be worthily celebrated.

The earliest positive notices of the use of metalwork in the service of theChurch date from the third and fourth centuries. It is especially the"Liber pontificalis", which is now accessible in the critical editions of Duchesne and Mommsen from which we derive the most interesting information concerning the subject under discussion. Here we first meet with the statement thatPope Urban had thesacred vessels made of silver, which does not by any means imply that before that time they were all made of glass. Of greater importance are the accounts of the magnificent donations of valuable works in metal made byEmperor Constantine to the Romanbasilicas. It would take up too much space to enumerate them all, and we shall content ourselves with mentioning a few examples.

Though not to the same extent, the other churches also were in possession of valuable metalwork for theliturgical service. TheChurch of Carthage, according to the testimony of Optatus, possessed so many valuables of gold and silver, that it was no easy matter to remove or hide them at the time of the persecutions (Contra Parmen., I, xviii). Ibas,Bishop ofEdessa, was accused at theCouncil of Chalcedon (451) of having purloined a valuablechalice set with precious stones, which apious man had presented to the church.

As to the various kinds of metalwork used in theChurch, the"Liber pontificalis" mentions the following in addition tochalice andpaten as in use in the lifetime of Pope Sylvester:

With this enumeration the number of metallic utensils employed inChristian antiquity is by no means complete. The centre ofChristian worship is thesacrifice and the altar, for this reason it was early made of valuable material or at least covered with it. Metal plates were furthermore used to adorn theconfession and the immediate surroundings of the altar. Great wealth of the precious metals was spent upon the superstructure of the altar, orciborium, which was decorated with metalstatues, withchalices and votive crowns. WhenLeo III had theciborium, presented by theEmperor Constantine, restored, he employed for that purpose 2704 1/2 pounds of silver. A large amount of metal was also used for theiconostasis, a screen connecting from two to six columns; thusLeo III had the iconostasis in the church ofSt. Paul recovered at an expenditure of 1452 pounds of silver.

A large amount of metalwork is also required for the illumination of the basilica. Constantine alone presented to the Lateran church 174 separate articles of the greatest variety intended for this purpose. It is sufficient here to make mention merely of the chandeliers or lustres (coronae), the candelabra and lamps; they were made of bronze, silver, or gold. The Lateran church received among the rest a chandelier with fifty lamps of the purest gold, weighing 120 pounds, and a candelabrum of the same material, with eighty lamps. Even the vessels for storing the oil were sometimes made of precious metal. TheLateran basilica was the owner of three such vessels of silver, weighing 900 pounds. Practically nothing however of all these treasures has come down to us only a few small chandeliers of bronze, dating from the fifth to the eighth centuries, have been found, most of them inEgypt. There remains one more article of metal that was much used in the service of theChurch from the earliest centuries, thecenser. According to the"Liber pontificalis" thebaptistery of St. John at the Lateran had acenser of gold weighing fifteen pounds, which was ornamented with green precious stones. If we take account then of all these articles, the conclusion naturally follows that the use of articles of metal in the service of theChurch had attained extraordinary proportions inChristian antiquity.

More difficult than the enumeration of the works in metal is the description of their decoration and the technical processes employed in their manufacture, because on this point our literary sources are almost wholly silent, while of the oldChristian works, which might enlighten us, but very few are extant. We must therefore, in this case also, confine ourselves particularly to the statements of the"Liber pontificalis". Here we find numerous references to images (imagines) ofChrist, the Blessed Virgin, theAngels, and Apostles; in most cases it is impossible to determine whether the works were carved or cast, certain it is that both methods were employed. Thestatues of Christ and the Apostles on theciborium presented by Constantine to the Lateran church were undoubtedly carved. In some cases the core of thestatue was of wood which was overlaid or covered with silver or gold. Painted images also were sometimes decorated with reliefs of silver or gold.Gregory III, for example, employed five pounds of pure gold and precious stones in the decoration of astatue of the Madonna in S. Maria Maggiore. Precious stones in particular were a favourite form of decoration for articles made of metal goldenstatues were at times completely covered with them. WhenSixtus I provided the confession of the Vatican basilica with costlier furnishings, Valentinian presented a tablet in relief with the images of Christ and the Apostles which was studded with precious stones. Thebaptistery too beside the Lateran church possessed acenser which was adorned with precious stones. The works in bronze were often inlaid with silver decorations. Thus thechapels of St. John received doors with silver ornamentation. This was probably a kind ofniello. To obtain colour effects enamel andverroterie cloisonee were likewise employed; of these a more detailed account will be given later. We shall call attention here only to the best-known specimen that has been preserved, the pentaptych in the treasury ofMilancathedral the central division of this is ornamented by this process with thepaschal lamb and the cross.

Finally, as to the workshops from which theChurch derived its metalwork, there can be nodoubt that they existed in all the larger cities of the civilized countries of ancientChristendom; but the cities of the Eastern Roman Empire, and especially Byzantium, seem to have been pre-eminent. There is a tendency even at the present day to consider almost all of the larger works that have been preserved as products of Eastern art. In fact a large number of works in metal were brought from the Orient to the Western countries. We mention here only areliquary cross in St. Peter's atRome, a present of the Byzantine emperor Justin II.

Middle ages

Byzantine metalwork

We begin theMiddle Ages with the Byzantine metalwork, in order to remove at the outset the impression that the termByzantine is used to express a definite period oftime; it is used rather to denote a definite geographical circle of art and culture, that is to say, Byzantium with its immediate and more distant surroundings. There were two factors that exerted a powerful influence upon the Byzantine work: first, the almost boundless extravagance which prevailed at the imperial Court, and which, as a result of the intimate relations existing between State and Church, made itself felt also in the latter; second, the close contact with the art of the inland provinces, particularly with Persian art. The Persian, or, to use a more general term, the Oriental, influence gave rise to an extravagant seeking after colour effects in the art of metalworking accompanied by a suppression of the main object, namely the production of plastic works. To understand the latter change, we must briefly explain a few technical terms.

To give artistic form to the shapeless mass of metal the processes employed are casting and hammering or chiselling. In the former process the metal is brought to a liquid state and poured into a hollow form, which has previously been prepared by pressing a solid model into a yielding mass. Although casting must be regarded as the original mode of treating metals, nevertheless, so far as giving artistic form to gold and silver is concerned, hammering was of greater importance. By means of hammers the sheet of metal is hollowed out and in this way given plastic form. Very closely connected with hammering is the art of engraving this consists in directing the blow of the hammer not directly upon the metal but transmitting it by means of small steel chisels. It is these two latter processes that we have chiefly in mind when we speak of the goldsmith's art. By means of these the ancient art of the Occident produced its most beautiful works in metal. A different state of affairs existed in the Orient, and particularly in the home of the Mesopotamio-Persian and Syrian art, where, so to say, the hand had less plastic training than the eye a gift for colour. The glittering gold here received additional decoration by means of coloured enamels. This preference for coloured representation instead of the plastic was transmitted to Byzantium also. But it will always remain to the credit of the Byzantine goldsmith's art that it produced magnificent works in metal for the service of theChurch. The process employed in the Orient and Byzantium is known as cloisonne enamel (émail cloisonné); it consists in soldering very thin strips of gold on the gold baseplate so as to form cells into which the coloured enamel paste is pressed and fused in place, the enamel combining with the metal during fusion.

In Byzantium cloisonné enamel forced the art of hammering and chiselling into a very subordinate position; enamel was used to decorate secular articles, such as bowls and swords, but especially the metalwork of theChurch. The ornamentation consisted partly of decorative designs partly of figurative representations. Among the works that have come down to us there are many of a miniature- like purity, which in spite of their small size are truly monumental in conception. Of the larger works only a very small number have been preserved, the most famous is the golden altar-front (Pala d'oro) of St. Mark's atVenice. The remaining pieces are for the most partrelic-cases which were suspendedfrom the neck or placed upon the altar (examples atVelletri andCosenza), crosses and book covers (a magnificent specimen in the royal jewel-room atMunich). From the period in which this art reached its highest perfection, the tenth and eleventh centuries, we have the so-calledstaurotheca (areliquary tablet) in thecathedral atLimburg on the Lahn thereliquary of Nicephorus Phocas (963-969) in theconvent of Lavra (Athos), and the lower band of the so-called crown of St. Stephen in the crown treasures at Budapest (1076-77). The terrible pillaging of the capital by the westerncrusaders, 1204, dealt the deathblow to this flourishing art.

Although the examples of Byzantine metalwork decorated with enamel are by far the most numerous, specimens of hammered work are not entirely lacking. In the first place we may mention twoarchitecturalrelic-cases which are in the form of a central structure surmounted by adome (atAachen andVenice). Thereliquary tablets with carved reliefs are either in the form of a small folding-altar or of a cross, which often bears the portraits of the emperor, Constantine, and his mother on the obverse, and on the reverse, the crucifixion. A distinct type of the Greek goldsmith's art are the icons; one of the most valuable is in the Swenigorodskoi collection (St. Petersburg). A rare specimen with excellent chasing, a gilded silverpyx with the crucifixion ofChrist, is in thecathedral at Halberstadt (eleventh century). At only one place in the West is it possible at the present day to get anidea of the magnificence and costliness of the Byzantine metalwork, in the treasures andlibrary of St. Mark's atVenice, which still possesses a portion of the booty of the year 1204.

Barbarian metalwork

Though the manufacture of artistic metalwork for theChurch was accompanied by no difficulties in the countries of the older civilization conditions were much more unfavourable among the barbarian nations which embracedChristianity. Nevertheless weknow that among them articles of metal were much used in the service of theChurch.Gregory of Tours in one place speaks of sixtychalices fifteenpatens, twentyencolpia of pure gold, which King Childebert took as booty in the year 531 in a campaign against theVisigoths. WhenSt. Patrick came toIreland, he had in his retinue, among others, three workers in metal namely Mac Cecht, Laebhan, and Fortchern. There are still in existence fifty-three small bells, tubular and box-shaped, which belong to thisIrish art of metalworking; among theFranksSaint Eligius of Noyon (588-659), a goldsmith, was evenconsecratedbishop.

Here the interesting question arises, how these "barbarians" succeeded in producing artistic work in metal. The works themselves that have been preserved alone can answer this question. There are, it istrue, but few of these the most important to be considered here are achalice and apaten which were found near Gourdon (Burgundy) and are now preserved in the National Library ofParis, arelic-case alsoBurgundian, in St Maurice (Switzerland), the famousvotive-crowns of the Visigothic kings from Guarrazar, especially those of Recesvinth and Svintila (631), a Gospel-cover of Queen Theodolinda in Monza, areliquary in purse form fromHereford (now in Berlin), a Gospel-cover from Lindau (later purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan) and theTassilo chalice in Kremsmünster (Austria); there may further be assigned to this period, because of their style theSt. Cuthbert cross in thecathedral atDurham, thechalice ofArdagh, the shrines of several oldIrish bells, and a number of croziers and crosses in the collection of the Royal Irish Academy,Dublin, and in the British Museum, London. When we consider that these works extend over a period of more than four centuries and are the products of several races it is at once apparent that we can give but a faint intimation of the character and decoration of the metalwork of theChurch among barbarian nations.

The material used in the manufacture of these works is almost exclusively gold, while their artistic decoration consists for the most part of the so-calledverroterie cloisonnée, a glassmosaic. The process employed in this decoration is akin to that of cloisonne enamel; the setting of the semiprecious stones or paste gems is done in one of two ways: they are either bedded between thin bands of metal like cloisonne enamel, or set in openings which are cut into the gold plate itself. At times the gold plate is completely covered with the stones. Chased ornamentation on the other hand is of rarer occurrence it is found in a crude fashion on theHerefordreliquary. Thatniello was not unknown to the "barbarian" nations isproved by thechalice in Kremsmünster, a present of Tassilo, Duke ofBavaria (about 780). InIrish art filigree also found a very delicate development one of the most valuable examples, one that displays a concentration of all the processes with which the native masters were conversant, is thechalice of Ardagh.

Carolingian and Othonian metalwork

The second period embraces the age of theCarolingian andOthonian emperors, i.e., in round numbers a period of 200 years. While it can hardly be said that this period added anything essentially new to the metalwork of the previous centuries, it is neverthelesstrue that it gave new forms and a further development to many of the articles already in use. We now also more frequently meet with works cast in bronze, whereas in the so-called "style of the period of migrations" of the preceding age it was notnecessary even to mention them. With the increase in the wealth of theChurch, there arose also the necessity for an increased amount of valuable metalwork, this was especially the case in the largemonasteries which counted among their own members metalworkers of great artistic skill. The manufacture of the metalwork for theChurch during the tenth and eleventh centuries was in fact so largely in the hands of themonks that this entire period has been designated as the period of monastic art. WhileFrance had led in the development during the ninth century, from the tenth century it gradually fell behindGermany. One of the causes that helped to bring about this result was the lively interest which several of the prominentecclesiastical princes took in the art of metalworking as developed within theChurch, the most deserving of mention in this connection is ArchbishopEgbert of Trier and after him BishopsMeinwerk of Paderborn and Bernward ofHildesheim. InFrance the art of metalworking flourished especially inReims, but also in Corbie Tours, andMetz. InGermany the centres of the goldsmith's art of theChurch were, besidesTrier, especially themonasteries atRatisbon,Reichenau, Essen,Hildesheim, and Helmershausen.

The characteristic feature of the art of the period of migrations, theverroterie cloisonnée, gradually disappears and yields precedence to the Byzantinecloisonné enamel which flourished especially atTrier andReichenau. The revival of the plastic tendency in metalworking was of greater importance. We have from the period under discussion even at this day several altar-decorations and book-covers with figural representations, which reveal a truly amazing skill in metal-hammering; such is the valuable antipendium of Henry II from Basle. The primitive method of covering a wooden core with thin sheets of metal was also still practiced. A Madonna in the collegiate church at Essen (Rheinland) and an image of St. Fides (Foy) at Conques,France, are the two best known examples of this art. InItaly the most important work of this period is the decoration of thehigh altar in thechurch of St. Ambrose inMilan the work of Wolvinus, executed under Archbishop Angelbert II (824-66). Prominent examples of the French metal work are theportable altar, shaped like aciborium, and the binding of a copy of the Gospels in the royal jewel-room atMunich, which were probably made atReims and were brought toGermany as early as the reign of King Arnulf (d. 899).Germany possesses, as evidence of a more advanced art of metalworking, four crosses in the collegiate church at Essen which reveal the powerful influence of the Byzantine art. Closely connected with Essen are theschool of themonastery at Helmershausen, where themonk Rogerus wrote the first handbook of the industrial arts, "Schedula diversarum artium", and theschool ofHildesheim, which through the activity of Bishop Bernward became the centre of the metalworker art in NorthernGermany; the folding-doors of thecathedral with crude reliefs, a column, which is patterned after Trajan's Column inRome, and two candle-sticks belong to this period. InFrance scarcely a single work of any size has been preserved; inItaly several bronze doors, for instance, those of thebasilica of St. Paul atRome (1070) and Monte Gargano (1070), are noteworthy, because they were procured from Byzantium and show the influence of the Byzantine art.

Romanesque metalwork

The golden age of the metalwork of theChurch is theRomanesque period (1050-1250). We have already, it istrue, mentioned above several works belonging to this age, because the various styles of art often overlap, and sharp distinctions can be drawn only by force. The characteristic which at once distinguishes the metalworks of the Romanesque period from the older works is their large size; this distinction is most noticeable in thereliquaries. For, while the receptacles forrelics had up to that time been uniformly of small dimensions, they grew in the Romanesque period into large shrines, for the transport of which three or four men werenecessary. Several new varieties of metalwork also were added to the old, especially theaquamanile, i.e., a vessel in the form of an animal, used for washing the hands, and the metal structures placed upon the altar; other articles assumed new forms. These changes are in part due to the evolution of the liturgy. Almost to the close of the tenth century, for instance, neither cross nor candlestick was permitted upon the altar, only smallreliquary caskets being tolerated; the altar itself up to this time had preserved the shape of a table or sarcophagus. As soon as these regulations were broken and candlestick, cross, and superfrontal found a place upon the altar. this change necessarily exerted a strong influence upon the manufacture and decoration of the articles mentioned.

The material employed in the manufacture of the metalwork of theChurch also experienced a change, as copper took the place of gold. Furthermore thecloisonné enamel was supplanted by thechamplevé. The champleve enamel differs from thecloisonné by the small cells intended to receive the enamel not being made in the Byzantine fashion by means of strips of flat gold wire soldered to the gold plate, but by being dug out of the plate with a burin. A peculiarity of the workshops ofLimoges (France) was the affixing of the heads ofpersons or even of the entire figure in high relief. The design in the figures themselves was for the most part filled out with coloured enamel. A second difference consists in the more frequent occurrence of plastic ornamentations in silver. Of course plastic decorations, as we have already seen, were not lacking in the earlier periods, but the Romanesque period gave a mighty impulse to this branch of the metal worker's art and can show many extraordinary productions, for instance on the shrine of the Three Kings at Cologne. Lastly, a third difference is apparent in the ornamentation, in that secular types of decoration are now more and more used on articles intended for theChurch. On areliquary at Siegburg (near Cologne), for example, apes, deer, dogs, and naked men are represented; the well-known fabulous creatures of the Romanesque art also win a place for themselves in the art of metalworking.

The evolution in style may be briefly characterized as follows: the monastic art of the previous period with its Byzantine tendencies is subdued but not entirely supplanted by the popular tendency; the two rather enter into a close union which we designate as Romanesque art. Monuments of the Romanesque art in metals still exist in large numbers, but these are almost exclusively works ofecclesiastical origin. This is due not merely to the fact that the churches, which have been correctly called the oldest museums, have guarded their treasures more carefully than the worldly owners; it is rather to be ascribed to the fact that at that time the metalwork for secular purposes was a practically negligible factor. We must not infer from this, however, that in the Romanesque period, as in the preceding, it wasmonks andclerics who were the principal manufacturers of the metalwork for theChurch. During this period the art of metalworking, as well as the plastic arts in general, gradually passed into the hands of thelaity. A number ofBenedictinemonasteries, it istrue, still clung to the old traditions of the order, and remained centres of artistic pursuits

By far the largest amount ofecclesiastical metalwork of the Romanesque period is to be found inGermany, where the art of metalworking created magnificent works in the districts bordering on the Rhine and the Meuse. On the Rhine theBenedictinemonks Eilbert (1130) and Friedericus (1180) of theBenedictinemonastery ofSt. Pantaleon produced severalreliquaries andportable altars which they decorated for the most part with enamel. They were far surpassed by thelaymen Godefroi de Claire and Nicholas ofVerdun, who combined plastic ornamentation and enamelling with amazing perfection. They are the creators of the two most beautifulreliquaries of this whole period; Godefroi wrought the shrine ofSt. Heribert at Deutz (1185), and Nicholas the shrine of the Three Kings at Cologne. InFrance likewise the art of enamelling waszealously cultivated, especially inLimoges, where small articles of metal for church use were manufactured in large quantities and exported in all directions.

The art of casting also can show several famous names such as Reiner of Huy, who cast the well-knownbaptismal font atLiège, and Riquinus ofMagdeburg in whose workshop the gate of thecathedral at Novgorod was probably manufactured (1150). All these works are surpassed by the beautifulbaptismal font atHildesheim, the work of an unknown master.Italy has almost nothing to show from this period, except a few bronze doors, which enlighten us to the position of casting in bronze; such are thedoors of Barifano ofTrani in Ravello (1179), and the doors ofMonreale (1189) and of Bonano atPisa (1180).

Gothic metalwork

TheGothic epoch (1250-1500) brought numerous changes and new requirements, also in church metal vessels. In this period the feast ofCorpus Christi was first introduced (1312), and thereby a new metal vessel, themonstrance or ostensory, madenecessary. For this purpose a vessel was employed like those which up to that time had been in general use for exhibitingrelics. Another vessel, which came into use at this time and upon whose manufacture great stress was laid, is the "pax", or "osculatorium" (instrumentum pacis). The growing veneration ofsaints andrelics required an increase ofreliquaries. One of the results of this was that these were no longer made as large and costly as in the Romanesque epoch. Combined with this was the striving for constantly new forms ofreliquaries, among which busts in particular now became very popular. The early Gothic altars with double folds or wings became in fact small galleries of busts of thesaints. The number of caststatues of thesaints and of the Blessed Virgin also increases very considerably from the fourteenth century. The material as well as the technique and decoration of the works of the goldsmith again experience a change. Copper, which has been almost a necessity for the bulky Romanesquereliquaries, now gives way to silver; this is employed especially for the figures in relief which were then much used, and which served more frequently than in the Romanesque period as statuettes for the decoration of shrines.

Very intimately connected with this change of material was an alternation in the mode of ornamentation. Thechamplevé enamel had lost its power of attraction, and indeed it could not very well be used upon the thin sheets of silver translucent enamel therefore took its place; this was applied by cutting the relief-like representation in the silver ground and pouring a transparent enamel over the relief, so that the different parts according as they are higher or lower produce the effect of light and shade in their various gradations.Siena has long been regarded as the starting point of this new mode of ornamentation, because achalice in Assisi made by theSienese Guccio Manaja about 1290 is the oldest example of this process. FromItaly it early spread toGermany, where it flourished especially on the Upper Rhine, and toFrance.

The features of the religious metalwork of this age that more than any other distinguish it from the earlier productions are the superstructure and construction; the same difference prevails as between a Romanesque and aGothicchurch. The ponderous Romanesque style is replaced by a pleasing lightness and mobility of form. However in the art of metalworking as in the other arts we must carefully distinguish within this period between the early Gothic work and the late Gothic. Only the early Gothic work may be described as possessing so to say, an aristocratic character, a certain ideal striving after the sublime; like the fairest period ofchivalry, however, this striving lasts but a short time; it soon gives way to the homely and real actuality. The late Gothic metalwork throughout lacks theidealism of the early Gothic. This likewise is connected with the cultural development. The common people, who had grown in power, tookpride, as the nobility had done before, in securing for themselves a lasting memorial by means of religious foundations and presents to churches. To dedicate magnificent, artistically executed works, however, their means were in many cases insufficient, thus giving rise to many works in metal of poor workmanship, especiallychalices,monstrances, andreliquaries. So far as lightness of the structure in particular is concerned, this peculiarity is again best recognized in thereliquary and also in themonstrance. Very frequently since the fourteenth century the form chosen is that of twoangels kneeling upon a base-plate and supporting thereliquary, sometimes holding it in a horizontal position as a casket, sometimes vertically as a tower. InGermany there are two excellent examples of this inverted position, tworeliquaries in thecathedral treasures ofAachen which are constructed in the form ofchapels with towers abounding in openwork, and are borne bysaints. Reliquaries in general assumed the form of churches in miniature; gabled hood-mouldings, pinnacles, finials, crockets, rampant arches andbuttresses, in short the wholearchitectural scaffolding of the early Gothiccathedral are found in the shrines, of which the most important is thereliquary of St. Gertrude in Nivelles, the work of Nicholas inDouai and Jacquemon de Nivelles (1295). The same istrue of the remaining works in metal.

Thearchitectural ornaments forced themselves also upon articles on which we would not expect them; thus the knob (nodus) of thechalice often became a smallchapel with many sharp corners and edges making the handling of thechalice more difficult. Likewise, the popular plastic figures were placed upon articles of use that require a heavy formation, such as book-covers. A beautiful silver book-cover from theBenedictineconvent of St. Blasien in the Black Forest is studded in this way with numerous figures ofsaints; they are found even upon the smaller articles of use, as upon a cloak-clasp in thecathedral ofAachen. The manufacture of the religious works is taken more and more out of the hands of themonks andclerics, who now furnish only theideas, and gradually passes altogether into the hands of the lay goldsmiths. By this statement of course we do not wish to imply that there were not individual artists still active in theconvents, for that remainstrue even to the present day, but for the development of an entire period they are of no moment.

Among the few works ofFrance, that have been preserved, the so-called "golden horse of Altötting" attained great fame; it is a half-worldly, half-religious ornament representing the veneration of the Madonna by King Charles VI, whose horse in the lower part of the picture is held by a squire (1404). InGermany we can find no evidence of such exactly definedschools of art as in the Romanesque age; the works still in existence are exceedingly numerous, especially busts ofsaints andchalices. In contrast with the preceding epochsItaly now took a pronounced lead in the execution of artistic metalwork for theChurch; the Italian works are compact, they favour a strong substructure, which permits the application of the favourite translucent enamel; there is evident also a tendency to excessive ornamentation, whereby the fixed forms are almost suffocated. Among theschools ofItalySiena was at first pre-eminent; from this city the goldsmith Boninsegna was called toVenice in 1345 to make repairs there to the Pala d'Oro of St. Mark's.Sienese masters also began in 1287 the silver altar in thecathedral at Pistoia, which was finally completed in 1399 by Florentine goldsmiths and is the largest piece of work of this kind. The masterpiece of the Florentineschool, the silver altar of thebaptistery, was begun in 1366 by Leonardo di Ser Giovanna and Berto di Geri; this too was not completed until one hundred years later, when theRenaissance had already fully entered into Italian art.

Bronze casting also continued to produce numerous works for the service of theChurch. NorthGermany and theNetherlands (Dinant) were most prominently active in this field. Here we must mention first of all the numerousbaptismal fonts of bronze, which are decorated on their outer sheathing with representations in relief andarchitectural ornament, next the seven-armed candelabra, door-knobs, water-vessels (aquamanile), lecterns, especially the beautiful eagle-lecterns. InGermany the names of many of the masters have been handed down; inWittenberg, Wilkin (1342), in Elbing, Bernhuser, and in Lubeck and Kiel, Hans Apengeter. Lastly mention should be made of the bells which were also cast in bronze. WhileGermany distinguished itself by its religious works cast in bronze, it was surpassed byFrance in another branch of the metalworker's art. Here in the beginning of the thirteenth century the art of the smith passed through its first period of full vigour. At that time, thanks to the highly developed technical processes,France produced metalwork for the doors of churches such as has never been produced since.Germany,England, and theNetherlands felt the favourable influence of the French art, which produced its magnificent works on thecathedrals atRouen,Sens, Noyon and especially on thecathedral atParis. Here every wing of the folding doors has three iron bands, that serve also as hinges, divided into a thousand branches and decorated with birds of every kind and fantastic creatures. In addition to the metalwork of the doors the blacksmith furnished theChurch with artistic chandeliers, railings, pedestals for theEaster candle, lamps, and lecterns. The first place in the manufacture of artistic railings undoubtedly belongs toItaly, where the high perfection attained by the art of the Italian blacksmiths may best be seen in Florence (Sta Croce),Verona, andSiena.

Renaissance

While the religious metalwork in theGothic style had increased in quantity often at the expense of quality, a decided retrogression in respect to quantity is noticeable during theRenaissance. This is especiallytrue ofGermany. The distressing religious agitations, the defection of many of the faithful from the old religion and the increasing indifference to religiousfaith had the effect of reducing the production of articles for church use to very small proportions. InItaly, it istrue, weknow the names of numerous artist goldsmiths — there are about 1000 of them — but there also the number of religious works of theRenaissance is very small. At the head of the new movement in metalwork for theChurch we find the most distinguishedsculptors, in fact the leading masters of theRenaissance preferred to execute their work in metal (bronze); we need mention here only the names ofGhiberti andDonatello, the former the creator of the famous bronze doors of thebaptistery atFlorence, the latter the maker of thehigh altar in bronze in II Santo at Padua as these works however belong to the domain ofsculpture we must leave them out of consideration here.

The changes in style follow the course of the general evolution in art. The vertical forms of theGothic style give way to the horizontal tendency, the forms become more vigorous and compact, the vessels acquire a more flexible silhouette. However, the earlyRenaissance left the forms of the commonest vessels, thechalices and crosses, almost untouched, inasmuch as the tradition of a thousand years made them appear sacred; we have numerouschalices of theRenaissance the base of which shows theMoorish and Gothic foils and the knob, the Gothic rotuli. Not until the lateRenaissance were the circular forms and volutes generally employed. In other respects the customaryRenaissance ornaments, which are by no means the least charm of this style, are employed inecclesiastical and worldly articles indifferently. Putti, hermae, caryatides, garlands, grotesques,acanthus leaves, furthermore the elements taken from architecture, such as columns, pillars, capitals,entablatures, balusters form an inexhaustible source of constant change.

Silver during theRenaissance no longer maintains the position it won for itself during the Gothic period. Several distinguished religious works in silver have been preserved, but they are far surpassed both numerically and artistically by the works in bronze; the latter are often covered with silver or gold. The artistic ornamentation of bothecclesiastical and secular metalwork consists especially of delicately executed representations in relief, which at first appear in moderation at the more important points, but later presumptuously cover the entire surface. At the same time enamel is very frequently employed, sometimes the previously mentioned translucent enamel, which completely covers the portions in relief with a coloured surface, sometimes also theVenetian enamel, which flourished from about 1500-1550. It was used to coat jugs and bowls, candlesticks, candelabra, and ciboria. Another favourite form of decoration consisted in the combination of metals and crystals this type of decoration occurs during theMiddle Ages, but was more systematically and artistically carried out in theRenaissance. The art of gem engraving likewise was again practiced after ancient models upon cameos and gems. Theecclesiastical works of theRenaissance therefore often represent an enormous value. We need mention here only the value of a fewpapal tiaras. Atiara, whichSixtus IV had made by theVenetian goldsmith Bartolomeo di Tomaso, was valued at 110,000 ducats.Julius II confided to theMilanese jeweller Caradossa the making of atiara valued at 200,000 ducats (nearly 200,000 dollars). Hardly any works of really marked importance, if we except the previously mentioned altars inFlorence and Pistoia, the completion of which falls in this period, have been preserved from theRenaissance. We may again mention a fewreliquaries atSiena, which reveal a pronounced change compared with the monumental shrines of the Romanesque and Gothic periods. They are silver caskets with sides in openwork, permitting a view of therelics. The use of crystals is exemplified in a beautiful pax fromMonte Cassino (now in Berlin).

Elsewhere the influence of theRenaissance upon church metalwork was early apparent. In the beginning only the non-essentials were borrowed from theItalianRenaissance; it was the ornament that was copied; the fundamental forms long remained Gothic. To the above-mentioned types theGermans added especially the scroll work, which was by preference combined with the Moresque and then served as a pattern for the surface; it is not unknown inItaly, but inGermany it held almost undisputed sway for about thirty or forty years. InGermany during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the cities ofAugsburg andNuremberg gained extraordinary fame by the manufacture of artistic metalwork; their products were eagerly sought after throughout the entire world. The Augsburg goldsmith, George Seld, in 1492 furnished one of the firstRenaissance works inGermany, a silver altar in the Reichen Kapelle atMunich; here we find nude putti, flowers growing out ofacanthus calyces, friezes, and panels which breathe wholly the spirit of theItalianRenaissance. A goldsmith of Nuremburg, Melchior Bayo, in 1538, by order of King Sigismund I ofPoland, made an altar of chased silver which is in thechapel of the Jagellons in thecathedral atKrakow. Besides these there are no religious works of any importance from this period. As isproved by the "Book of Holy Objects" of Cardinal Albrecht of Mayence, a fewprelates indeed were intent on increasing the treasures of their churches in the new style, but as a rule the exigencies of the times did not permit the manufacture of larger works in metal. So far as the smaller utensils are concerned, these, even as late as the middle of the sixteenth century, still show Gothic forms as, for instance, achalice of the well-known Gebhard von Mansfeld,Archbishop ofCologne, in the "grünen Gewölbe" atDresden (about 1560). All the works of this period are surpassed by the productions which the goldsmith Anton Eisenhoit made about the year 1590 for Theodor am Fürstenberg, Prince-Bishop ofPaderborn; these are achalice, crucifix, book-cover and a vessel forholy water. The articles are most exquisitely ornamented with nobleRenaissance forms done in flat chasing. The most beautiful works of theRenaissance in SouthernGermany,reliquaries,chalices,monstrances, etc., are in the Reichen Kapelle atMunich.France, likeItaly, has a large amount of documentary evidence of the manufacture of metalwork for theChurch, but the endlesswars ofLouis XIV and theRevolution consigned them almost without exception to the melting-pot. Achalice in the church of St-Jean du Doigt (about 1540), which has a stout knob transformed into achapel, and the cup and base being covered with clumsy tendrils, is the only work which we are able to name here.

Besides the works of the goldsmith's art, the productions in base metal must not remain entirely unnoticed. These came not rarely from the workshops of the goldsmiths. The most important foundries were inFlorence and Padua. It is not always easy to distinguish between the works ofsculpture and those of the industrial arts. Certainly a large number of magnificent bronze railings belong to the latter — the most beautiful is in thecathedral atPrato, the work of Bruno di Ser Lapo Mazzei (1444) — as do also the candelabra, which, because of their elegance of form and delicate ornamentation, are very effective. The best known specimen is the excessively ornamented candelabrum in Il Santo atPadua, the masterpiece of Riccio (1516). From bronze there were also manufactured for the service of theChurch Sanctus bells, candlesticks, vessels forholy water, hanging lamps, about the details of which we need not here concern ourselves. We merely add that the works in iron are confined more particularly to the railings in the side-chapels of the larger churches; they are of no interest, however, from the standpoint of the history of art.

The last periods of church metalwork can be concisely described. Like the whole of the baroque art, the metalwork of theChurch of this epoch, when compared with the delicately balanced regularity of theRenaissance, also shows a certain clumsiness and unrest, which in therococo develops onesidedly into absolute irregularity, to be changed in the Classicism which followed, into the exact opposite, a pedantic, inflexible rigidity. These peculiarities of the new styles do not, of course, find expression in the goldsmith's art to the same extent as in the plastic arts. Nevertheless this evolution is not wholly lacking even in the smaller church utensils it may, for instance, be clearly observed in thechalice, which in thebaroque style is overloaded with broad, clumsy ornaments; in therococo the forms become more delicate, all the parts assumed wavy lines,false and genuine gems and porcelainpaintings formed the decoration; Classicism discarded these baubles and producedchalices of the severest forms and with straight lines.

InFrance, which during this epoch set the fashion inEurope, the Court and a number of prominentindividuals devoted enormous sums to provide valuable church furniture, at times in such a way thattrue art was lost in splendid display. In a completely equipped "chapel", whichCardinal Richelieu presented to the crown in 1636, there was a cross, ornamented with 2516 diamonds of various kinds, achalice and apaten with 2113 diamonds, a madonna with 1253 diamonds, altogether 9000 diamonds and 224 rubies were employed in furnishing thechapel. The Sainte-Chapelle atParis was presented by the "Chambres de comptes" with areliquary one metre in length, for which they paid 13,060livres. New metalwork was at that time produced in larger quantities inGermany, which in this art especially maintained its pre-eminence. Indeed it is the time of the so-calledCounter-Reformation, which in SouthernGermany andAustria beheld the erection of so many magnificent churches. The new houses ofGod, however, required new metal furniture. To the present day the treasure rooms of many acathedral — andconvent — church are filled with the crosses, candlesticks, and antipendia that were made at that time; they are remarkable, however, for their size rather than their artistic qualities; the material is mostly silver. But works of art of great excellence are not entirely lacking. The Abbey of St. Blasien formerly owned an antipendium portraying the passage of the imperial army through the Black Forest in the year 1678, a most beautiful piece of work (now inVienna). Other examples of thezeal employed in the manufacture of precious metalwork are thereliquary shrine of St. Engelbert inCologne, dating from 1633, which shows thesaint lying prostrate on the cover, andstatues ofbishops on the sides, but otherwise onlyarchitectural forms; also the shrine ofSt. Fridolin at Säckingen (Baden), characterized by the complete mobility of its lines, and furthermore the valuablemonstrance in Klosterneuburg nearVienna, which is in the form of an elder-tree (1720).

Probably at no time was so little money expended upon religious furniture as during the period of Classicism; it is the age of barrenRationalism, which was practically devastating in its effect upon the liturgy andreligious life. To devote large sums to the acquisition of precious furniture was not in consonance with the spirit of this age. For this reason candlesticks and evenmonstrances were not infrequently made of tin or wood, but to preserve appearances, often coated with silver or gold. We do not desire, however to leave this period with this gloomy picture. In the baroque period the art of the blacksmith reached its second climax inGermany andFrance. Under the hammer of the smith the inert mass began to sprout and blossom. The superb choir-railings, lanterns, candle-stands, and chandeliers show to the present day that the art of the blacksmith in the service of theChurch was at that time spurred on to the highest endeavours. The revival of the styles of theMiddle Ages during the nineteenth centuryproved beneficial to the religious metalwork also. At the present day candlesticks,chalices,monstrances are manufactured, which in costliness and purity of style are not inferior to the best works of ancient art. Moreover the tendency toward the creation of a new style is noticeable also in the art of metalworking. Whether this is to becrowned with lasting success, is a question for the future to decide.

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