Chapter MCCCXX: Le DIX Septiesme Jour De Jun (1)

PRIES POUR LAME DELLE Q. DEU BONNE MERCI LI FACE, AMEN.

When Isabelle d'Aragon died at Cosenza, in Calabria, her husband, Philippe le Hardi, wrote to the abbot and religious of S. Denis to commend her soul to their prayers, for her life _était aimable à Dieu et aux hommes_. Her epitaph begins:

DYSABEL. LAME. AIT. PARADYS, _etc._

Louis XI. was not buried at S. Denis; he desired to be laid in the church of Our Lady of Cléry, "for which the Heretics (meaning the Huguenots and Calvinists) had not the same respect which they inviolably entertained for the holy and royal tombs of S. Denis.[49] But inspired by the Devil, with an abominable and hellish spirit of rage and profanation, they tore the king's remains from the tomb, and, together with the queen's, burnt them and scattered their ashes to the winds. Thus he who would not let his body rest under the protection of the Holy Martyers found no rest in the grave."[50]

This monument was of bronze, but another was erected in 1622 by an Orléans sculptor, Michel Bourdin. La Fontaine described the latter as follows, in a letter to his wife, dated 1633: "Nous nous arrêtâmes à Cléry. J'allai aussitôt visiter l'église; c'est une collégiale assez bien rentée pour un bourg. Louis XI. y est enterré. On le voit à genoux sur son tombeau, quatre enfants aux coins; ce seraient quatre anges, si on ne leur avait pas arraché les ailes. Le bon apôtre du roi fait là le saint homme, et il est bien mieux pris que lorsque le Bourguignon le mena à Liége.

Je lui trouvai la mine d'un matois:
Ainsi l'étoit ce prince dont la vie
Doit rarement servir d'exemple aux rois,
Mais pourroit être en quelques points suivie.

"À ses genoux sont ses heures et son chapelet, la main de justice, son sceptre, son chapeau et sa Notre-Dame. Je ne sais comment le statuaire n'y a pas mis le prévôt Tristan; le tout est en marbre blanc et m'a paru d'assez bonne main."

This monument suffered some mutilations during the Revolution, the head being chopped into three pieces[51]; but in 1817 it was repaired. It is, in style, very similar to the descriptions of the bronze monument of Charles VIII.

The tomb of the house of Orléans was erected by Louis XII. in the centre of the magnificent chapel of the family, in the church of the Célestins. It contained besides, the statue of Philippe de Chabot, by Jean Cousin; Germain Pilon's Three Graces; the columns of Anne de Montmorency, of François II., and of Timoléon de Brissac; the obelisk of the Longuevilles; the tombs of Rénée d'Orléans, and of the duc de Rohan, by Michel Anguier. The destruction of this chapel and the dispersal of its contents was one of the greatest acts of vandalism of modern times; although a good deal has been preserved, the loss of the rest cannot but be bewailed.

Charles, duc d'Orléans, was a lettered man and given to verse writing; he was made prisoner at the battle of Agincourt, and passed more than twenty years of his life in England. The little porcupine at the king's feet (upon the tomb) symbolized the order of chivalry which he founded, and which adopted that animal as its emblem.

The beautiful marble monument of Rénée d'Orléans recalls those of Santa Croce, and other Italian churches, and it is a magnificent example of French Renaissance sculpture.

The epitaph to Marguerite de Valois, first wife of Henri IV., attributed to the queen's authorship, is taken from a manuscript in the Bibliothèque:

Ceste brillante fleur de l'arbre des Valoys
En qui mourust le nom de tant de puissans Roys,
Marguerite, pour qui tant de lauriers fleurirent,
Pour qui tant de bouquets chez les Muses se firent.
A vu fleurs et lauriers, sur sa tête sécher,
Et par un coup fatal, les lys s'en détacher.
Las! le cercle Royal dont l'avoit couronnée
En tumulte et sans ordre un trop prompt himénée,
Rompu du même coup devant ses pieds tombant
La laissa comme un tronc dégradé par les vents.
Epouse sans espoux, et Royne sans royaume,
Vaine ombre du passé, grand et noble fantosme
Elle traisna depuis les restes de son sort,
Et vist jusqu'a son nom mourir avant sa mort.

The epitaph upon Henri's second wife, Marie de' Medici, is in a very different style. Marie, after having built the splendid Luxembourg palace, and filled it with Rubens' sparkling magnificences of colour, died in exile at Köln:

Le Louvre de Paris vit éclater ma gloire;
Le nom de mon époux, d'immortelle mémoire,
Est placé dans le ciel comme un astre nouveau.
Pour gendres j'eus deux rois, pour fils ce clair flambeau,
Qui par mille rayons brillera dans l'histoire.
Parmi tant de grandeur (le pourra-t-on bien croire?)
Je suis morte en exil; Cologne est mon tombeau!
Cologne, oeil des cités de la terre Allemande,
Si jamais un passant curieux te demande
Le funeste récit des maux que j'ai soufferts,
Dis: ce triste cercueil chétivement enserre
La reine dont le sang coule en tout l'univers,
Qui n'eut pas en mourant un seul pouce de terre.[52]

Louis XIII., or rather, part of him, was buried at the Jesuits' church; and Anne d'Autriche erected therein a fine monument sculptured by Jacques Sarrazin. Two colossal angels in bronze and silver supported a silver-gilt heart; but its magnificence only made it of greater use to the mint for coinage.

This good king, the thirteenth of his name, was a great devotee of S. Denis. He had instituted reform in the abbey by introducing the congregation of S. Maur; and we are told that he acquired "strength and spirits in his last illness, as he lay languishing upon his bed, as often as he thought of S. Denis. At such times he would remark to his attendants, with a smile of pious serenity, how much he felt himself reconciled to his near approaching dissolution, and fortified against all the usual desires of life or dread of death; in a sweet anticipation of the happiness he should enjoy by reposing near the tombs of the Holy Martyrs, in whom he placed the most sacred and unbounded confidence."

There is one more exquisite work of art which ought to be mentioned, the beautiful urn from the abbey of Haute-Bruyère, which contained the heart of that magnificent profligate, François I^er. It is of white marble, of perfect form, with the most delicious little Genii sitting on the top. The bas reliefs represent the Arts and Sciences, Faith, and the Church. It is the work of Pierre Bontems.

Some of the kings were crowned at S. Denis after having been anointed and consecrated at Reims; some, like Philippe Auguste, were re-invested at the abbey. Philippe le Hardi, Charles VIII., Louis XII., François I^{er.}, and Louis XIII., were all anointed at Reims and crowned at S. Denis. An account in an old book of the coronation of Louis XIII. is so quaint, and gives so graphic a picture of some of the manners and customs of the period, that it is, I think, worth quoting in full.[53]

The description of the magnificent ceremony was extracted from a chronicle of the reign of Louis XIII., and translated into English a hundred and fifty years ago:--

"The royall ornaments, which are kept in the _Abbey of_ Saint
Denis, being caryed to Rheims, on the 14th October, 1610, the King
made his entrie into the towne, where his Maiestie was received
with greate pompe and magnificence; the particularities whereof I
am forced, for brevities sake, to omit. The day before the
ceremonie, the King went vnto the Cathedrall, to assist at
Euensong, and to heare a sermon made by Father Coton, vpon the
_diuine_ institution of the _unction of the Kings of France_, and
of confirmation, which he received from the hands of the Cardinall
of Joyeuse, to whom he was presented by Queen Marguerite and the
Prince of Condé.

"On Sunday, the 17th of October, the King sent foure Barons vnto
the Abbey of Saint Remy, to fetch the _holie oyle_. They parted
earlie in the morning, with their Esquires and Gentlemen; either of
them having a banner, with his armes, caried before him, causing a
_white hackney_ to be led, for the Prior of Saint Remy, who was to
carry the said _holie oyle_.

"The Cardinal of Joyeuse, who was to represent the Archbishop of
Rheims, and to doe the office, at the ceremonie, came soone after
into the church, with eight Bishops to assist him, where, attending
the comming of the Peeres, he sat him downe in his pontificall
robes. Two of these Bishops were attired like Deacons, with mitres;
two like Sub-Deacons, with mitres; and foure with copes and mitres.
Soon after arrived the ecclesiasticall Peeres, in their pontificall
robes.... At the same instant there came, from the King's lodging,
the Princes of Condé and Conty ... who were deputed by the King to
hold the places of ... attyred in their robes and coronets,
according to their qualities. Having done their devotions, and
saluted one another, they sent the bishops of Laon and Beauuais to
fetch the King, in their pontificall habits (_having certaine
reliques of the holie Saintes hanging about their neckes_),
conducted by the Master of the Ceremonies; all the Prebendes of
oure Ladies church marching in goodlie procession before them.
Being come to the King's chamber, and finding it shut, the Bishop
of Laon knocked three several times, to either of which the greate
Chamberlaine demanded, '_What would ye?_' The Bishop answered,
'_Lewis the Thirteenth, son to Henrie the Greate_'; whereunto the
Chamberlaine replied, '_He sleepeth_'; then knocking againe, he had
the like answere. But at the third time the Bishop answered,
'_Lewis the Thirteenth, which God hath given us for King_'; then
the door was opened, and the Bishops entered with the cheife
chaunter of Rheims, &c., where they found the King laid on his bed,
_having his shirt slit before and behind_, to receive the holie
Vnction, and uppon it a waistecoat of crimson sattin, _slitted in
like maner_, and thereon a long robe of cloth-of-_siluer_. The
Bishop of Laon having finished a prayer, kissing their hands, they
lifted the King from his bed, with all _shewes of honour_, and then
led him, _singing_, to the church doore. Before him, there marched,
first the greate Prouost, with his archeres; then the Clergie which
had accompanied the two Prelates; the hundrede tall Swissers of his
guard: the drummes, haultbois, and herauldes; the nobilitie; the
great Master of the Ceremonies; the Knights of the Holie Ghoste,
with their great order hong about their neckes, in the middest of
two hundred Gentlemen of the King's house; and _the Scottish
Guards, in their own proper_ habiliments. Before his Maiestie went
the Mareschall la Chastre, _representinge the Constable_, carying a
naked sworde, &c. &c. After some ceremonies at the church doore,
the King approacheth neare untoe the high altar, where he was
presented, by the Bishops of Laon and Chalons, untoe the Cardinal
Joyeuse, who said many prayers, whilest the King was at his
deuotions. After this he was led untoe his seate, with his Noblemen
and officers about him. In the meane tyme, all the religious men of
Saint Remy came solemnlie in procession, being accompanied by the
cheife of the towne, caryinge torches of virgines waxe in their
hands: Their Prior was mounted upon the _white hackney_, having a
foote-cloath of cloath-of-silver, carying the _violl of holie oyle,
in a pixe_, hanginge about his necke, being under a canopie of
cloath-of-silver, borne by foure Monkes. The Cardinall being
advertised of the arrivall of _the said oyle_, hee went, in his
pontificalibus, to meet it, with the eight Bishops which assisted
him, and all the singinge men and quiristeres. But before they
would deliver it unto the Cardinall, they made him (according to
the custome) binde himself to restore it untoe them againe. After
saying a praier, hee shewed the _holie oyle_ untoe the people; and
then set it down vpon the high altar, _with all the Godlie
reuerence_. (The coronation oath and some ceremonies are here
omitted for brevity). The King having taken the oathes, with
inuocation of the name of God, laying his handes vpon the Gospel,
which he kist with greate reuerence. The King's ornaments ... were
layd upon the altar; and on the left hande side, neere vnto them,
stoode the _Prior of Saint Denis_, who hath the keeping of them;
and on the right side stoode the Prior of Saint Remy, _looking
sharplie to the holie oyle_.[54] The Bishops of Laon and Beauvais,
hauing conducted him vnto the altar, Mons. de Belgarde tooke off
his roabe of cloath-of-silver. Being in his waistecoate of sattin,
when the Cardinall had made certaine prayers and blessings, the
Duke of Esguillon put on his buskins, and the Prince of Condé put
on his spurres (in the place of the Duke of Bourgundie) and
presentlie took them off againe. After this, the Cardinall blessed
the royale sworde, it being in the scabberd, and girt the King
therewith, and presentlie ungirted him againe. Then he drew it out
of the scabberd, and kissed it, saying manie praiers, whilest that
the Quier sang certaine anthems. The King kist the sworde also; and
layd it upon the altar, in testimonie of his zeale and affection to
the defence of the holie church. The Cardinall delivered it into
his hande againe; which his Maiestie tooke reuerentlie vpon his
knee, and gave it to the _Mareschall la Chastre_. The Cardinall
returning to the altar, to prepare the sacred vnction, after this
manner: '_Hee drewe out of the forenamed holie violl, with a
needell of gold, a small quantitie of liquor, of the bignesse of a
pease, and mingled it, with his finger, with the holie creme
prepared in the couer of the chalice_.

"This vnction being thus ordered, the tyinges of the King's
garments _were let loose both before and behinde_, by the Cardinall
and the two Bishops; after which his Maiestie kneeled down in his
oratorie, and the Cardinall with him, to crave the assistance of
God for the preseruation of France. The Lettanie being sung, the
Cardinall stoode up, to saye certaine praiers ouer the King, who
was yet kneelinge. Then the Cardinall sett him downe, as in the
consecration of a Bishop, and holding in his hand _the patenne_
whereon the _heavenlie oyle_ was layd, he beganne, with his right
_thumbe_, to anoynte the King, in divers places, _viz._, on the
crowne of the head, on the stomacke, betwixte his shouldere blades,
on bothe shoulderes, and on the bendinges of his armes. The
consecration praiers being ended, the Cardinall, with the two
Bishops, closed vp his shirte, waistecoate, and other garmentes, in
reverence of the sacred Vnction. Then the high Chamberlaine
presented the three habitts accustomed to be worne, in the lyke
ceremonies, viz., a long jackett, representinge a Sub-Deacon, a
surplis for a Deacon, and a _royall cloake_, insteade of a coape,
representinge a Prieste; which ended, the Cardinall _anoynted the
palmes of his handes_, and then put him on _thin_ gloues, lest,
peradventure, hee should touche anie thinge with his bare handes,
for reverence of the vnction, which gloues he blest, and sprinkled
with holie water; the royall ringe being alsoe blest by the
Cardinall (a symbole of loue, whereby the King was wedded untoe his
realme), he put it on the fourthe fingere of his Maiesties right
hande, with all the accustomed ceremonie. This done, hee tooke the
sceptere from the altar, and put it intoe his right hande, for a
mark of the Soueraigne power: then he tooke the hande of Justice,
which hee put into his lefte hande, it being a wande, hauing, on
the top thereof, a hande of mylke white iuorie.

"Then the Chancelloure of France came vp, with his face towarde the
King, and, with a stoute voyce, did call vp the Peeres, according
to their dignities, to assist at the coronation. When as, this
ceremonie being ended, the Cardinall took _the great crowne_ from
the altar, and lifting it with bothe his handes, did poise it over
the King's heade; the Peeres did then come to support them, and the
Cardinall blest it; and then he alone sett the crowne upon the
King's heade, whereuntoe all the Peeres did incontinentlie put
their handes. The Cardinall then said manie praiers, and blest the
King; the which being ended, _hee took him bie the right sleeve_,
and conducted him to his royall throne, the which was builded on
high at the bottome of the quier, forasmuch as that he might be
seene of all the people, holdinge still in his handes the royall
sceptere and rod of Justice. The Queen Regent, the whilst she
beheld all these ceremonies, was sorely disquieted, not being able
to endure, with patience, to see his Maiestie _bare headed_, vnder
the crowne, havinge his capp taken from him; which shewes that
crownes and greatness have their discomodities, as well as the most
ordinarie thinges, and the poorest cottages. The King being come to
his royall throwne, attended bie the Princes, Peeres, and Officers,
according to their degrees, the Cardinall, holding him by the
hande, caused him to sit downe, and praied untoe God to confirme
him in his throne, and to make him invincible and inexpugnable
against his enemies. After which, having sayd a praier, being
bare-headed, he made a low obeysance untoe the King, and kissed
him, saying thrice, with a loude voyce, '_God save the King_'; and
at the laste, he added, '_God save the King eternallie_.' All the
Peeres did the lyke obeysance, one after the other, and _kist_ him,
with the lyke acclamation, and then returned untoe the seates that
were prepared for them on either hand."

The treasury of S. Denis was one of the richest in Europe. Commenced by the religious enthusiasts of the time of Charlemagne, it increased year by year, through the donations of the grateful patients who had been cured, or whose sufferings had been relieved, by the intercession of S. Denis and his companions. For every wax arm or leg, which we see hanging up in bunches at the side of a shrine in these days, the ages of Faith could have produced a valuable plaque, gem, cross, reliquary, or altar vessel. Thankfulness was then more costly in its expression. Doubtless poor offerings were also made, but the richness of the churches and their contents, as compared with the difficulty of obtaining a few thousands at the present day, shows that gratitude was more practical than in modern times. Charles le Chauve was a great donor to the monastery. It was he who gave the magnificent _ante-pendium_, besides some jewelled Gospels and altar-vessels. Philippe-Auguste bequeathed all his jewels to the abbey, including a cross of gold valued at 400 livres, this benefaction being for the maintenance of twenty additional monks; but his son, Louis, repurchased some of the valuables at the estimated price of 11,600 _livres_, a little business transaction which was not unprofitable to the convent. Louis le Gros established the custom of leaving the royal ornaments to the abbey at the decease of the kings. Matthieu de Vendôme, one of the regular abbots, gave the marvellous _chef_ of S. Denis, a gold reliquary in the form of a head, with a jewelled mitre, and silver-gilt supporting Angels, and a young Child-angel holding another reliquary containing a portion of the Saint's shoulder-blade. Gilles de Pontoise, another abbot, presented a beautiful reliquary, containing the under-jaw of S. Louis--a marvel of goldsmithy in the form of statuettes of gold, jewelled and enamelled. The great Suger gave a number of magnificent objects of all kinds; the huge gold cross, six feet in height, placed over the altar, and another which stood upon the _grille_ dividing the choir from the nave. These probably were made at S. Denis, as Suger set up a great school for the fashioning of gold and silver, as well as for writing and painting; and so famous did it become, that brethren from other monasteries flocked to the monks of S. Denis to perfect themselves in these arts.

There is a representation of Charles le Chauve's _ante-pendium_ in the picture formerly in the Dudley collection, and now in the possession of Mr. Edward Steinkopff, and generally known as the "Mass of S. Giles." The altar stands as at present; on the right we see a portion of the tomb of Dagobert; and behind are the windows of the apsidal clerestory. The only difference in the sculptures, as represented in the picture, and the actual monument, is that the head of Nantilde is bent in the modern statue, but is erect in the old one; and the feet of Dagobert seem to have nothing to rest upon. A priest is before the altar; on his left is a king; behind are some assistants, one holding a tall candle; and above is an Angel bearing a paper, alluding to the legend, that as S. Giles was once saying mass before a king with some hidden sin he dare not confess, an Angel descended with a written pardon. The question is, Who is the king? May it not be Charles le Chauve, the donor of the retable? Charles was abbot of S. Denis; and his devotion to the Saint was so great that he attended the offices of the church on all solemn days, and passed the rest of the time in pious conversation with the monks. The crown the king wears is of the time of Charles V., but it has upon it the Imperial circle, which seems to point to Charles the Bald; and the later style of the crown may be accounted for, as it has evidently been copied from one in the treasury of S. Denis (see Félibien). Moreover, it very much resembles the one worn by Charles le Chauve in a miniature of a Latin Bible in the Bibliothèque; on the other hand, the king wears a moustache in the latter, whereas in the picture he is bearded.

Another question is this, Does the picture represent a mass? It probably has gained its title as much from being the companion _volet_ to Lord Northbrook's S. Giles as to the incident of the scroll-bearing Angel. But there is not the slightest resemblance between the hunting personage in Lord Northbrook's picture and the king in the "Mass." In the former, the kneeling hunter appears in a cap, and has no beard; may not this be Charles Martel? We are told in the legend of S. Giles that the king of France was one day hunting in the South, near Nismes, when, in the pursuit of a hind, the hunters came upon S. Giles living hermit-wise in a cave. Charles Martel was never actually sovereign, although governing the kingdom; therefore a cap would be an appropriate head covering for the Maire du Palais. And the dates correspond. S. Giles died in 725; Charles Martel in 741. Is there any evidence that the S. Denis picture represents the S. Giles legend? There is no reason why each _volet_ of a triptich should be decorated with incidents in the life of the same saint. Again, does the picture represent a mass? There are no lights upon the altar, which is contrary to the almost invariable custom of the church from all time. Two lights were used from the earliest period; whereas a single light, either taper, torch, or lantern, borne by an assistant kneeling behind the celebrant, generally denotes a communion of the faithful, after, or out of, mass. It is true there is a picture by van der Weyden in the National Gallery of the "Mass of S. Hubert," with no lights, and there is no doubt about the subject, as the vessels requisite for a mass are visible upon the altar; but in the "Mass of S. Giles" there are no evidences of the celebration of mass, except that the priest is elevating the Host while facing the altar, and reading from a book placed thereon; whereas at a communion the celebrant turns his back to the altar when elevating the consecrated wafer. Now may not the picture represent either the communion of Charles le Chauve, or his induction as abbot, or his presentation of the retable? I have not lost sight of the difficulty of the Angel. But if it be really the sin-forgiven scroll which he holds, there is no reason why this particular king should not have had a hidden sin, pious man though he may have been; indeed, that would be a reason for his thinking ill of himself. And must the subject be necessarily that incident, when we know that in Mediæval times Angels were constantly in the habit of flying about with all kinds of objects of celestial manufacture--stoles, girdles, chalices, crowns, palms, &c. (In van der Weyden's picture, mentioned above, an Angel is descending with a stole).

These are merely suggestions of a theory, which others, more qualified than myself, may be able to solve. Suger is said to have added to the _ante-pendium_ given by Charles le Chauve, and placed it over the altar as a retable;[55] therefore there would be nothing extraordinary in the 15th-century artist placing Charles kneeling as the original donor, and Suger celebrating, as the founder of the new altar, or reredos. Has the abbot Giles de Pontoise, who died in 1325, caused any confusion in naming this picture? There is another curious resemblance in the crowns borne by the Angels upon the retable, and the crowns of Guarrazar in the Hôtel Cluny. The latter are supposed to be of Byzantine workmanship, the largest bearing the name of Reccesvinthus, king of the Visigoths, who reigned from 649 to 672. Charles le Chauve died in 823; but, according to Grégoire de Tours, when Childebert returned from a campaign against the Visigoths in Spain, he brought away divers gold and silver treasures, including a gold cross from Toledo; therefore there must have been an extensive school of goldsmithy in Spain at that time, and Toledo is the very spot near which the Guarrazar spoils were discovered. Were they made there some 100 years or so after Childebert's death? Grégoire de Tours also speaks of the king setting up workshops in the Parvis Notre-Dame, doubtless in imitation of the Spanish school; and in his _Notice de l'Orfévrerie_, M. Alfred Darcel points out a similarity between the Merovingian and the Spanish style of work. "Ce qui ressort de la plupart des passages que nous venons de citer, c'est que l'orfévrerie mérovingienne a pour principal caractère l'alliance des pierreries aux métaux précieux. Ce caractère se retrouve dans l'ornamentation des couronnes de Guarrazar ... et dans l'orfévrerie Byzantine." Is it possible, then, that the _ante-pendium_ presented by Charles le Chauve to S. Denis was made at the workshops set up by Childebert in the Parvis Notre-Dame, in imitation of those he had seen at Toledo; and that the workmanship was also an imitation of the Spanish goldsmithy of a hundred years earlier?

But of all this beauty, of all this wealth, what have we now? Marvellously little; still, considering the robbers, royal and plebeian, the fires, the wars, and the undisciplined mobs, we ought to be thankful that so much has been preserved. That even the great churchmen were not above suspicion we see by the account of the coronation of Louis XIII.; the cardinal being obliged "to binde himself" to restore the "holy oyle" before the monks would let him take it into his hands; and the Prior of S. Remy, who had the custody of it, standing by and "looking sharplie to the holie oyle."

Of the few things which remain from the wreck, the following will be found in the Louvre and the Bibliothèque Nationale, commencing with the former.[56]

The beautiful Egyptian Amphora of porphyry transformed by Abbot Suger[57] into an eagle for service as an altar vessel. It is silver-gilt, and bears an inscription round the bird's neck: _Includi Gemmis lapis ista meretur et auro--marmor erat sed in his marmore carior est._[58] Suger himself thus describes it: "Un vase de porphyre, chef-d'oeuvre de taille et de sculpture; depuis longues années il était sans emploi dans l'écrin; d'amphore qu'il était, nous l'avons transformé en un aigle, au moyen de l'or et de l'argent, nous l'avons adapté au service de l'autel, et sur ce vase nous avons fait inscrire les vers qui suivent."

Another antique sardonyx[59] set by Suger, with a mounting of silver-gilt filagree and precious stones ornamenting it. Suger's account of this vase is as follows: "Nous avons acheté, pour le service du même autel, un calice précieux de sardonyx; nous y avons joint, en guise d'amphore, un autre vase de la même matière, mais de forme différente, sur lequel sont ces vers: _Dum libare Deo gemmis debemus et auro--Hoc ego Sugerius offero vas Domino._".... "Il était de ce sentiment que l'on doit employer à la décoration des autels tout ce que l'on a de plus précieux; il disait que si les juifs se sont servis dans l'ancienne loi de vases et de fioles d'or, pour ramasser le sang des animaux, à plus forte raison doit-on moins épargner, dans la nouvelle, l'or et les pierreries pour tout ce qui a rapport au saint sacrifice du corps et du sang de Jésus Christ." Twenty-four _plaques_ which decorated a book of the Gospels, in _cloisonné_ enamel, are of the 9th century. Some of them are ornamented with foliage, others with the four Evangelists. They belonged to the gold book-cover bearing the legend: _Beatrix me in honore Dei omnipotentis et omnium sanctorum eius fieri precepit_; which probably refers to Beatrix, grand-daughter of Hugues Capet and sister of Robert, king of France, wife of Ebles I., count of Reims.

A 13th century reliquary in _champlevé_ enamel.

The psalter of Charles le Chauve.

The beautiful antique rock-crystal vase, bearing the name of Aliénor d'Aquitaine. It was given by her to Louis VII., who presented it to Suger, who, in his turn, offered it to the Saints, as saith the inscription upon the foot: "_This vase was given by Aliénor to Louis, her husband. Mitadol gave it to her grandfather, and the King to me, Suger; and I, Suger, to SS. Rusticus and Eleutherius._"

The paten belonging to Suger's lost chalice. It is a serpentine disc incrusted with golden fishes.

A rectangular plaque of gold, _repoussée_ and gilt, bearing inscriptions in Greek.

A statuette of the Blessed Virgin, in silver, _repoussée_, chased, and parcel gilt and enamelled. The Virgin holds a _fleur-de-lys_, enriched with precious stones, in her right hand. It was given to the abbey by Jehanne d'Evreux, in 1334.

A sceptre with a statuette of Charlemagne upon a lily, of the reign of Charles V.

Another statuette of the Blessed Virgin in silver _repoussée_ and parcel gilt; with a little rock-crystal reliquary enclosing a piece of the swaddling clothes.

In the Bibliothèque:

A cameo (sardonyx) head of Augustus, formerly one of the gems of the reliquary containing the skull of S. Hilary. The reliquary was in the form of a mitred head, after the manner of that of S. Denis. The shoulders were vested in a cope, and this cameo set in the centre of the orphrey. The reliquary was made during the administration of Jérôme de Chambellan, grand prior from 1583 to 1606, but part of the mounting holding the pearls and stones seems to be of earlier date. There are three sapphires and three imitation rubies, separated by six bouquets composed of three pearls.[60]

A little chalcedony bust of Annius Verus as Bacchus, inscribed: _Verinus consulis probat tempora._ The bust bears a striking likeness to some medals and coins of the little son of Marcus Aurelius. It was the custom of the Roman consuls to send presents upon their appointments; thus, in sending this bust to a friend, some consul engraved the inscription, which signifies: _The little Verus will remind you of my consulate._ In the list by Dom Félibien of the treasury at S. Denis, this is called: _Tête d'un enfant faite d'une agate orientale._

One of the most precious of the treasures was the Bacchic cantharus, called the Cup of the Ptolomies. It is a sardonyx cup upon a pedestal, with handles of vine stalks, and covered with bas-reliefs. It is supposed to have gained its name from having belonged to Ptolomy XI., the husband of Cleopatra, who bore the surname of Dionysos or Bacchus. From the subjects of the bas-reliefs, it was undoubtedly consecrated to Bacchus. It has also been called the Cup of Mithridates, as having perhaps belonged to the celebrated collection of vases formed by the famous King. Singular though it may appear, this cup dedicated to Bacchus was given to S. Denis by one of the Carlovingian Kings; was it some blundering over the names, Dionysos and Dionysius? The gold foot was added to give it the form of a chalice, says Tristran de Saint-Amant, and the "grossier distique latin," placed upon this foot, "était profondément gravé sur l'or et la gravure remplie d'émail de couleur d'acier braze." The following inscription is easily read in the engraving in Félibien's history, but not the date: _Hoc vas Christe tibi mente dicavit tertius in Francos regmine Karlus._[61]

It has been thought that it was Charles the Simple who made the donation, but Félibien remarks that Charles le Gros as well as Charles le Chauve were also designated Charles III. In any case, it is known to have been in the treasury as early as the 9th century. In 1790, it was placed in the Cabinet de Médailles, but some years after it was stolen with the great cameo and other valuables. The thieves were arrested in Holland, and the cup and the cameo restored to the Bibliothèque; but the mounting of the latter and the foot of the cup had been melted up. According to a tradition referred to by Marion de Mersan, the queens of France drank consecrated wine from this cup upon their coronation day. Another tradition asserts that Henri III., in direful need of money, borrowed the cup, and pawned it to the Jews of Metz for a million of _livres tournois_.

A beautiful aqua-marine bust is the authentic portrait of the daughter of Titus, wife of Flavius Sabinus. It is signed Evodus, the name of a Greek artist known by two other signed gems. It formed part of the reliquary known as _escrain_ or _oratoire de Charlemagne_. Félibien speaks of it thus: "Ce reliquaire n'est qu'or, perles et pierreries. Sur le haut est répresentée une princesse que quelques uns estiment être ou Cléopâtre, ou Julie, fille de l'empereur Titus." Some of the stones are gone, but one of the remaining sapphires is an antique intaglio representing upon one side a dauphin, and upon the other a monogram surmounted by a cross of the 5th or 6th century. The letters of the monogram are [Greek: MATHY], possibly the initials of the owner, or the designation of the Virgin: [Greek: MARIA MÊTÊR THEOU] (_Marie, mère de Dieu_).

The Coupe de Chrosroës I., King of Persia, of the dynasty of the Sassanides (531-579) is of transparent rock-crystal, engraved with a representation of the King sitting upon his throne. In the history of the abbey, published in 1625, by F. I. Doublet, we find this cup mentioned as having been in the treasury, under the name of Solomon's cup, for more than ten centuries, "et donnée par l'Empereur et Roy de France Charles le Chauve." How it got into the hands of the King is not known. Chrosroës was defeated by Justinian, general of Tiberius Constantine, Emperor of the East; so that possibly the cup found its way to Constantinople after the battle. Félibien's description of it is: "Espèce de sous-couppe d'or ornée de crystaux de différentes sortes de couleurs. Au milieu l'on y voit un Roy assis dans son trône."

Such are a few of the treasures formerly at S. Denis. The church is lovely now, garnished only with its tombs and glass; what it must have been upon a great festival a couple of hundred years ago, or still farther back, imagination must be left to picture to itself. Even now, upon the fête of the Saint (October 9th), the effect of the procession, as it winds up and down the aisles and steps, is very fine, and quaint, too; for the Suisses wear black hats and feathers, cloaks, breeches, and stockings, after the style of Lawrence's "Kemble as Hamlet"; indeed, they seem to be the Dane, according to the courtly painter, personified. The costume of the boys, also, is different to that of the other churches. They wear violet cassocks, white cottas, scarlet capes with yellow edges, and red skull caps. The whole affair, the old canons bearing the relics, the boys in their quaint attire, the old-world vergers and beadles, the lights few and far between in the great dim church, the vistas of arched aisles ending in darkness, and the sparse congregation, give the impression of some period long before the end of this prosaic 19th century. The _châsses_ are in their old places upon the raised apse behind the altar; but they are of no artistic value. The setting of the jewels is there, but the jewels are gone. The church remains one of the grandest of its date, but its contents have been mended, patched, and re-made. Still, it is an exquisitely beautiful relic, left us by the ages of Faith.

S. Denis still goes barefoot, but not for love. Stern necessity keeps it so, or thrusts its cold feet into wooden shoes. It carries its red flag also, and waves it menacingly at all who love peace and quiet. Likewise, it perambulates in processions; but its relics are rags and hungry children. From a haven of rest, raised up with perhaps some grains of foolish superstition; from an artistic centre of all that was beautiful; from the trysting place of enthusiasts, diluted probably with a certain amount of bigotry, S. Denis has become faithless, hopeless, and restless; bigoted in its excessive Communism, unjust in its perversion of true Socialism, flaunting its Anarchic _oriflamme_ in the face of law and order. It is a strange contrast; but perhaps the cause and effect are nearer allied than is generally supposed.

SAINTE-ELIZABETH.

Situated in the Rue du Temple, the church dedicated to the great Hungarian princess formerly faced the entrance to the grim fortress of the Templars, where the poor little Dauphin sighed out his infant life. The church was built for the nuns of the third order of S. Francis, of which S. Elizabeth was a member; and the first stone was laid in 1628 by a very different sort of Queen, Marie de' Medici. The exterior, with its Doric pilastered doorway, and the interior, with its poor glass and indifferent sculptures, are alike utterly uninteresting; but the white marble font, bearing the date of 1654, and the woodwork which ornaments the aisle of the sanctuary, are worth a visit. The latter consists of a series of little panels representing scenes from the Old and New Testament in bas-relief, of the end of the 16th century, and are said to have been originally in a church at Arras. There is nothing in the building worthy of its patron, that most perfect of saints, whether we think of her as woman, as queen, or as mother.

"AVE GEMMA SPECIOSA!
MULIERUM SYDUS, ROSA!
EX REGALI STIRPE NATA,
MUNDO LICET VIRO DATA
NUNC IN COELIS CORONATA;
CHRISTO TAMEN DESPONSATA.
UTRIUSQUE SPONSALIA,
SIMUL SERVANS ILLIBATA;
SARAM SEQUENS FIDE PIA,
ET REBECCAM PRUDENTIA,
O DILECTA! O BEATA!
NOSTRA ESTO ADVOCATA,
ELIZABETH EGREGIA![62]

SAINT-ÉTIENNE DU MONT.

Upon the summit of the hill which rises up from the Seine, opposite and on the south side of Notre-Dame, is the church of S. Étienne du Mont. Some few years ago this "mountain" was an interesting hunting ground to the archæological explorer and the collector of _bric-à-brac_; but it has been so cut through by new streets and boulevards that it has almost been improved out of existence. At the foot of it, in a little street turning on from the Quai de la Tourelle, is all that remains of the famous college of the Bernardins, now used by the _sapeurs-pompiers_. The college was founded by an Englishman, Stephen of Lexington, Abbot of Clairvaux, in 1244, upon some ground belonging to the rich abbey of S. Victor; Alphonse, the brother of S. Louis, being the titular founder and protector of the establishment. The great church, begun in 1338 by Pope Benedict XII. and Cardinal Curti, to replace the one built by Stephen Lexington, was never finished, but was considered, in the 14th century, to be of great beauty. (Pope Benedict, as Jacques Fournier, was professor of theology in the college.) But more fortunate than the church, the refectory has remained intact in all its beauty until our own time, though unfortunately, in 1845, it was sadly mutilated in order to adapt it for use as a barrack. A portion of the cloister may still be seen in the Rue de Poissy, a pointed arch built into the modern wall of a house with square windows in between. It is time the municipality of Paris or the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Buildings bestirred itself to restore the few fragments of old Paris which yet remain. The Revolution did much damage, but often it only put the conventual buildings to secular uses without destroying them, leaving for later governments, and those moreover professedly religious, to utterly demolish the mutilated monasteries and churches, in order to make straight streets and spacious boulevards, which, beautiful as they are, do not prevent us from regretting the past.

The convent of S. Geneviève was founded by Clovis, and so extensive were its lands and dependencies that ere long it drew to it a large population of workmen and labourers for the cultivation of its land. A priest, one of the monks of the abbey, was appointed to take spiritual charge of these people; and from this commencement grew the parish of S. Étienne. Originally the congregation met and worshipped in the crypt of the abbey church, which was dedicated to Our Lady; then the chapel was placed under the protection of S. John the Evangelist, and called St. Jean-du-Mont. But at the beginning of the 13th century the congregation outgrew its chapel, and in 1224 the Bishop of Paris authorised the building of a church by the side of the abbey, to be consecrated to the memory of S. Étienne, the proto-martyr. This first church, in fact, was only a part of the abbey; having had no separate entrance of its own, it could only be entered by a doorway from the choir of S. Geneviève. The reason for changing its name for the third time was probably the demolition of a church dedicated to S. Stephen to make space for Notre-Dame. The memory of the first of martyrs being dear to the citizens, nothing would be more appropriate than the naming of a new church to take the place of the old one, although upon a different site. The first mention of S. Étienne is in the History of Guillaume le Breton, in the year 1221.

This first church lasted three hundred years, and then again, the population having increased enormously, S. Étienne was found to be too small for its congregation, and another and finer church was projected. In 1491 it was deemed better to rebuild than to patch up and enlarge the church; but many years passed in projects and delays, and it was only in 1517 that the work was actually commenced. Abbot Philippe Lebel finished the choir in 1537, and in 1541 the Bishop of Mégare consecrated the altars in the name of the Bishop of Paris; but that the church was not finished in 1552, or even in 1563, the diocesan permission to apply the Lenten offerings to the work is sufficient proof. The _jubé_ was commenced in 1600, the porches nine years later, and the chapel of the Virgin (rebuilt) was only finished in 1661. It was Queen Marguerite de Valois, the lady who so strangely prances about Paris upon a white palfrey at dead of night in the much-admired controversial opera, who laid the first stone of the great portal in 1610; and, moreover, she gave a sum of three thousand _livres_ to aid the work; but what was this when so much was wanted? All was not complete until 1626, and meanwhile the alms during Lent were appropriated to the building fund. However, a glance at a slab of black marble on the north wall of the nave will tell us that on the 25th February, 1626, the Sunday called Sexagesime, under the pontificate of Urban VIII., and in the reign of Louis XIII. of gracious memory, the church and the high altar were dedicated to the glory of God and of the Virgin Mary by the "_révérendissime messire Jean-François de Gondi_," archbishop of Paris. Another inscription informs the reader of a wonderful accident which took place on this occasion:--

"Et pendant les cérimonies de la dédicace, devs filles de la
paroisse tombèrent dv hauvlt des galleries du coevr, avec l'appvy
et devx des ballvstres, qui fvrent miraculeusement préservées,
comme les assistants; ne s'étant rencontré personne sovbs les
rvines, vev l'affluence dv pevple qvi assistaient avs dites
cérimonies."

Before the Revolution the _curé_ was always one of the regular canons of S. Geneviève. At the end of the 16th century he was assisted in his duties by a community consisting of twenty-four priests. In 1791, when the parishes of the city were reorganized, it was determined to remove the relics, the ornaments, and the monuments of the abbey church to S. Étienne, and to re-name the latter after the maid of Nanterre; but the decree was never carried out. Reforms and resolutions followed each other so rapidly that there was no time to put them into execution.

S. Étienne is a cruciform building, very much leaning to the right (as is so common in old churches), with a nave, two aisles, and nineteen chapels. The transepts scarcely project beyond the nave. The exterior is a mass of elegant ornamentation, and on the north side, under the windows, is a passage which connects the porch of the second bay with the _charnier_, a sort of cloister, built at the end of the Lady Chapel, exterior to the church. The enclosure within this cloister was formerly the little burial ground; the great cemetery being situated in the square which fronts the church.

There is something extremely coquettish and fascinating about the building, with its high-pitched roof, springing from a Renaissance façade, and its 15th century tower surmounted by a pepper-box lantern.

The old church of the abbey, which completely joined S. Étienne, has been entirely swept away to make room for the Rue Clovis; but the refectory and the tower still form a part of the Lycée Henri IV., a little turret at the easternmost angle of S. Étienne indicating the extremity of the monastery's domains.

Above the great doorway is a bas-relief of the stoning of S. Stephen and the legend: _Lapis templum Domini destruit, lapis astruit_. Right and left are statues of S. Étienne and S. Geneviève, the two patrons; above are Angels bearing torches. Upon the pediment is the Resurrection, and under the lintel we read: _Stephano archimartyro sacrum_. Two Angels above the great rose window bear the arms of Marguerite de Valois, and at the summit are the statues of S. Hilary and S. Benedict, patrons of two churches in the parish, now demolished.

The interior of S. Étienne is no less singular than the exterior. The side aisles are nearly as high as the nave, and have enormous windows. The shafts which support the vault of the nave are of great height, and the bays are of the same elevation as the side aisles. Above these bays is a clerestory, the windows of which are as broad as they are high, with depressed pointed arches. In order to diminish the enormous height of the bays, the architect conceived a curious device. At about one-third of the height of the shafts he has thrown a depressed arch from pillar to pillar, which forms an elevated passage round the church. It is arrested at the transepts, but taken up again round the choir. The passage encircling each pillar is just wide enough to enable a person to walk. These _tournées_, as the old records call the gallery, and the splendid _jubé_ form a distinctive feature of the church. On the side of the nave the _tournée_ has an open pilaster balustrade, and at the entrance of the choir it joins the _jubé_. On each side of this is a spiral staircase leading up first to the _jubé_ and then, a second flight to the choir gallery, the former being formed of a single flying-arch supported by two pilasters. The whole screen is ornamented with rich carving; an Angel with palm leaves is in each spandrel, and above all is a huge crucifix, completing this beautiful and original specimen of French Renaissance, the only _jubé_ which has survived the 17th century restorations. It was the work of a celebrated sculptor named Biart (_père_). Upon each side of it is a doorway, surmounted by a sitting figure, listening to the chanting of the Gospel. _Ascende qui evangelizas Sion. Audiam quid loquatur Dominus meus_, are the words upon the right. At the left: _Quam dulcia faucibus meis eloquia tua. Levavi manus meas ad mandata tua._

The pendant bosses of the nave and crossing are exceedingly rich in ornament--garlands of flowers, Angels' heads, the Symbols of the Evangelists, rosettes, and armorial bearings. The central boss of the transept falls 18ft., and has for ornament Angels playing instruments, the emblems of the Four Evangelists, and a Lamb encircled with thorns and bearing a crown.

The pulpit was designed by Laurent de la Hire, the painter, and sculptured by Claude Lestocard. It is a mass of rich carving. A huge Samson supports the lower part, while upon the canopy are little Angels of the winged-Cupid tribe, and at the summit a draped Angel with a trumpet. Samson is sitting upon the lion he tamed with the jawbone of an ass, and holds the strange weapon in his hand. Sauval remarked that _il la porte bien_ (the pulpit), and certainly he appears to be doing so without much effort. The medallions upon the staircase and round the pulpit represent Evangelists and Doctors, among them Augustin and Jerome, and scenes from the life of S. Stephen, in which he figures as a preacher. The Cardinal Virtues go hand in hand in a becoming fashion with the Theological Ladies: Prudence bearing her mirror, which reflects the wisdom of the serpent hard by; Justice has her sword; Faith a heart as well as her cross; Hope leans upon her anchor; Temperance pours out water from an _amphora_; Courage holds a dangerous weapon of the mallet order; Charity is surrounded by the most charming of children. All these statuettes are exquisitely carved. Behind the preacher the Word of God, bearing the world, blesses those who preach the Gospel in His name; upon His head the Holy Spirit spreads His wings. Upon the edge of the canopy little Angels are playing with the crowns destined for the elect; and at the summit is a larger Angel bearing a trumpet to awake them from their long sleep. The organ is also a mass of fine carving: S. Stephen stoned; S. Geneviève and her sheep; the Elders of the Apocalypse; the "Jewish ladies of the Bible," as a German kindly interpreted, and the Passage of the Red Sea; above all, our Blessed Lord ascending to Heaven.

When the Abbey of Port-Royal was destroyed in 1710, the body of Racine was transferred to S. Étienne and placed in the crypt of the Lady Chapel by the side of Pascal; and in 1808 a Latin epitaph, composed by Boileau, which was discovered in the pavement of the church of Magny-les-Hameaux, was also transferred. Ten years later, on April 21st, 1818, a great function was held in honour of the poet and the author of those much-loved _Pensées_; the Academy sent a deputation, and one of their members, the Abbé Sicard, officiated.

EPITAPH ON PASCAL.

PRO COLUMNA SUPERIORI,
SUB TUMULO MARMOREO.

JACET BLASIUS PASCAL CLAROMONTA-
NUS STEPHANI PASCAL IN SUPREMA APUD
AVERNOS SUBSIDIORUM CURIA PRAESI-
DIS[63] FILIUS, POST ALIQUOT ANNOS IN SEVE-
RIORI SECESSU ET DIVINAE LEGIS MEDI-
TATIONE TRANSACTOS, FAELICITER ET
RELIGIOSE IN PACE CHRISTI VITA FUNC-
TUS, ANNO 1662, AETATIS 39º, DIE 19ª
AUGUSTI, OPTASSET ILLE QUIDEM
PRAE PAUPERTATIS ET HUMILITATIS
STUDIO ETIAM HIS SEPULCHRI HONO-
RIBUS CARERE, MORTUUSQUE ETIAM-
NUM LATERE QUI VIVUS SEMPER LATERE
VOLUERAT. VERUM EJUS IN HAC PARTE
VOTIS CUM CEDERE NON POSSET
FLORINUS PERIER IN EADEM SUBSIDIO-
RUM CURIA CONSILIARIUS, GILBERTAE
PASCAL BLASII PASCAL SORORIS CONJUX
AMANTISSIMUS, HANC TABULAM POSUIT
QUA ET SUAM IN ILLUM PIETATEM
SIGNIFICARET, ET CHRISTIANOS AD
CHRISTIANA PRECUM OFFICIA SIBI AC
DEFUNCTO PROFUTURA COHORTARETUR.