sculptors celebrated for their works. Among these was Otho, the sculptor of the tomb of William the Conqueror, in 1087, and other monuments of a similar kind; Azo, builder of the cathedral of Sens, and of several others. The masons and sculptors of Normandy formed at this epoch an important corporation.
At the beginning of the eleventh century, when the Normans became securely established in their conquests, they displayed the utmost activity in the erection of magnificent buildings, both in England and Normandy. According to William of Malmesbury,[1] churches rose up in every village,and monasteries in the towns and cities, built in a style unknown before. "You might behold ancient buildings restored upon their sites throughout the country, so that each wealthy man considered that day as lost to him, on which he neglected to perform some magnificent action."
The Anglo-Norman barons who engaged in these works obtained from their own country and from France the assistance of the best architects and sculptors. Guillaume of Sens, one of these artists, reconstructed the cathedral of Canterbury in 1176; and other foreign artists were employed to restore the abbeys of Croyland, of York, of Wearmouth, and others. The character of the Norman architecture will be treated of hereafter.
While it is evident that results highly favourable to the progress of literature and the arts in this country were produced by the Norman conquest, there is also every reason to believe that the tendency to sensuality, which was so strong among the Saxon people, experienced a salutary check from the introduction of Norman manners. The foreign invasion entailed immediate sufferings upon the conquered race, but its results were favourable to the progress of civilisation, and tended in no small degree to the advance of the nation in power and greatness.
The Normans are understood to have introduced into England many elegancies and refinements in the habits of common life and the customs of the table. It has been already stated that the Saxons were a people of gross appetite, who were accustomed to spend many hours of the day at feasts. The Normans, on the other hand, appear, on their arrival in England, to have distinguished themselves by the moderation and refinement of their mode of living. Among the dainties held in the highest esteem by the Normans were the peacock and the crane. The boar's head was considered a regal dish, and it was brought in at great feasts in a kind of procession, preceded by musicians.
It would appear that the improvements thus introduced were rather moral than material, as we find no mention made of new articles of furniture or other conveniences as having appeared at the time of the Conquest. Our information on this subject is, however, scanty, and it is probable that the improvement of taste and increased wealth were soon manifested in the application of the useful and decorative arts to the conveniences of domestic life.
A most faithful and valuable record of costumes and manners at the time of the Conquest is to be found in the remarkable work known as the Bayeux Tapestry. It has been already stated that in the days of the Conqueror the Anglo-Saxon ladies were remarkable for their skill in ornamental needlework, and the embroidery of their manufacture was celebrated throughout Europe under the name of English work.
The Saxon nobles who accompanied William to the Continent after the battle of Hastings, are supposed to have taken with them their wives and daughters. It is probable that at this time Matilda, the wife of the Conqueror, assisted by English ladies as well as those of her own country, constructed the tapestry which has been preserved for ages in the town of Bayeux. Some degree of doubt must always rest upon the precise date and origin of the work, but the balance of opinion, among the best authorities, is in favour of the popular tradition which has always ascribed it to the wife of the Conqueror.
The Bayeux tapestry is a chronicle of the conquest of England by the Normans, opening with the mission of Harold to Duke William, and terminating with the battle of Hastings. The designs, which were probably the work of an Italian artist, are represented in worsted work, the colours of which, notwithstanding the great age of the tapestry, are still bright and distinct. The tapestry was placed at an early period in a side chapel of the cathedral of Bayeux, where it was regarded with veneration by the people. During the consulate of Napoleon, the ancient relic was removed from Bayeux to Paris, where it remained for several months, and was visited by the First Consul himself. At the present time the tapestry is preserved in the library of the town of Bayeux, and is exposed to view in glass cases.
This remarkable monument of skill and industry originally formed one piece; and, according to a recent writer,[2]measures two hundred and twenty-seven feet in length, by about twenty inches in breadth. The groundwork of it is a strip of rather fine linen cloth, which, through age, has assumed the tinge of brown holland. The stitches consist of lines of coloured worsted laid side by side, and bound down at intervals by cross fastenings. The colours chiefly used by the fair artists are, dark and light blue, red, pink, yellow, buff, and dark and light green.
The central portion of the tapestry is occupied with the delineation of the narrative, and there is also an ornamental border at the top and bottom of the field, which contains figures of birds and beasts. Many of these are of fantastic shapes, and are, probably, meant to represent the dragons, griffins, and other fabulous creatures which are so often referred to in the romances of that period.
The two upper lines of the engraving of the tapestry (opposite page) are consecutive. They have been chosen for illustration as affording a favourable view of the character of the design. The story is taken up at the part where Harold, after swearing fealty to William of Normandy on the relics of the saints, returns to England, and presents himself to King Edward. The first words which occur over the figures at the top of the page are, "Anglican, terram." The complete sentence, the former part of which is omitted in the engraving, reads thus:—"Hie Harold dux reversus est Anglicam terram" (Here the lord Harold returned to England). The horsemen of Harold's train are represented on their way to the court; "Et venit ad Edwardum regem" (And came to Edward the king). Farther on we see Edward seated on his throne,
