36 by 20 feet and 10 feet in height. This crypt has been commonly attributed to Grymboldt in the 9th century ; but it is really not very early Norman. Under the church of St Mary-le-Bow in London there is an interesting Norman crypt not very dissimilar in character to that last described. Of a later date is the remarkably fine Early English crypt groined in stone, beneath the chancel of Hythe in Kent, containing a remarkable collection of skulls and bones, the history of which is quite uncertain. There is also a Decorated crypt beneath the chancel at Wirnborne Minster, and one of the same date beneath the southern chancel
aisle at Grantham.Among the more remarkable French crypts may be mentioned those of the cathedrals of Auxerre, said to date from the original foundation in 1085 ; of Bayeux, attributed to Odo ; bishop of that see, uterine brother of William the Conqueror, where twelve columns with ruie capitals support a vaulted roof ; of Chartres, running under the choir and its aisles, frequently assigned to Bishop Fulbert in 1029, but more probably coeval with the superstructure ; and of Bourges, where the crypt is in the Pointed style, extending beneath the choir. The church of the Holy Trinity attached to Queen Matilda s foundation the " Abbaye aux Dames " at Caen has a Norman crypt where the thirty-four pillars are as closely set as those at Worcester. The church of St Eutropius at Saintes has also a crypt of tho llth century, of very large dimensions, which deserves special notice ; the capitals of the columns exhibit very curious carvings. Earlier than any already mentioned is that of St Gervase of Rouen, considered by Mr E. A. Freeman " the oldest ecclesiastical work to be seen north of the Alps." It is apsidal, and in its walls are layers of Roman brick. It is said to contain the remains of two of the earliest apostles of Gaul St Mellon and St Avitianus.
Space forbids our particularizing the numerous crypts of Germany. One at Go ttingen may be mentioned, where cylindrical shafts with capitals of singular design support " vaulting of great elegance and lightness " (Fergusson), the curves being those of a horseshoe arch. The crypts of the cathedrals or churches at Halberstadt, Hildersheim, and Naumburg, also deserve to be noticed ; that of Lubeck may be rather called a lower choir. It is 20 feet high and vaulted.
The Italian crypts, when found, as a rule reproduce the " confessio " of the primitive churches. That beneath the chancel of St Michele at Pavia is an excellent typical example, probably dating from the 10th century. It is apsidal and vaulted, and is seven bays in length. That at St Zeno at Verona (c. 1138) is still more remarkable ; its vaulted roof is upborne by forty columns, with curiously carved capitals. It; is approached from the west by a double flight of steps, and contains many ancient monu ments. St Miniatoat Florence, begun in 1013, has a very spacious crypt at the east end, forming virtually a second choir. It is seven bays in length and vaulted. The most remarkable crypt in Italy, however, is perhaps that of St Mark s, Venice. The plan of this is almost a Greek cross. Four rows of nine columns each run from end to end, and two rows of three each occupy the arms of the cross, supporting low stunted arches on which rests the pavement of the church above. This also constitutes a lower church, containing a chorus cantorum formed by a low stone screen, not unlike that of Sfc Clement at Rome (see Basilica, vol. iii. p. 417), inclosing a massive stone altar with four low columns. This crypt is reasonably supposed to belong to the church founded by the doge P. Orseolo in 977. There are also crypts deserving notice at the cathedrals of Brescia, Fiesole, and Modena, and the churches of St Ambrogio and St Eustorgio at Milan. The former was unfortunately modernized by St Charles Borromeo. The crypt at Assisi is really a second church at a lower level, and being built on the steep side of a hill is well lighted. The whole fabric is a beautiful specimen of Italian Gothic, and both the lower and upper churches are covered with rich frescoes. The crypts at Rome have been already mentioned.
Domestic crypts are of frequent occurrence. Mediseval houses had as a rule their chief rooms raised above the level of the ground upon vaulted substructures, which were used as cellars and storerooms. These were sometimes partially underground, sometimes entirely above it. The underground vaults often remain when all the superstruc ture has been swept away, and from their Gothic character are frequently mistaken for ecclesiastical buildings. All our older towns are full of crypts of this character, now used as cellars. They occur in Oxford and Rochester, are very abundant in the older parts of Bristol, and, according to Mr Parker, " nearly the whole city of Chester is built upon a series of them with the Rows or passages made on the top of the vaults" (Domestic Architecture, iii. p. 91). The crypt ci Gerard s Hall in London, destroyed in the construction of New Cannon Street, figured by Mr Parker (Dom. Arch., ii. 185), was a very beautiful example of the lower story of the residence of a wealthy merchant of the time of Edward I. It was divided down the middle by a row of four slender cylindrical columns supporting a very graceful vault. The finest example of a secular crypt now remaining in England is that beneath the Guildhall of London. Th_ date of this is early in the 15th century, 1411. It is a large and lofty apartment, divided into four alleys by two rows of clustered shafts supporting a rich lierne vault with ribs of considerable intricacy. There ia a fine vaulted crypt of the same date and of similar character beneath St Mary s Hall, the Guildhall of the city of Coventry.
(e. v.)
CRYPTOGRAPHY (from [ Greek text ], to hide), or writing in cipher (from Arabic cij r, empty, void), called also steganography (from o-rtydvr), a covering), is the art of writing messages, &c., in such a way as to be understood by those only who possess the key to the characters employed. The unravelling of the writing is called deciphering. Cryptography having become a distinct art, Bacon classed it (under the name cijjhers) as a part of gram mar. Secret modes of communication have been in use from the earliest times. The Lacedemonians, according to Plutarch, had a method which has been called the scytah , from the staff (cr/armA??) employed in constructing and deciphering the message. When the Spartan ephors wished to forward their orders to their commanders abroad, they wound slantwise a narrow strip of parchment upon the a-KvrdXrj so that the edges met close together, and the message was then added in such a way that the centre of the line of writing was on the edges of the parchment. When unwound the scroll consisted of broken letters; and in that condition it was despatched to its destination, the general to whose hands it came deciphering it by means of a a-nvToXf] exactly corresponding to that used by the ephors. Polybius has enumerated other methods of cryptography.
The art was in use also amongst the Romans. Upon the revival of letters methods of secret correspondence were in troduced into private business, diplomacy, plots, &c. ; and as the study of this art has always presented attractions to the ingenious, a curious body of literature has been the result.
important writer on cryptography. His Poligraplna, published in 1500, has passed through many editions, and has supplied the basis upon which subsequent writers have
worked. It was begun at the desire of the duke of Bavaria;