You will see from the Norman church of S. John's at Chester that the churches were built in the form of a cross with four great semicircular arches to support a central tower. Similar arches on massive circular columns separate the nave from the two aisles. An examination of these columns reveals the fact that the building of the nave was commenced from both ends at once in order to make more rapid progress with the work, for the mouldings of the capitals of the outer columns is the same, but differ from those of the inner ones. Moreover, the masonry of the latter is more finely jointed than that of the earlier end columns. This shows that the Normans improved in the quality of their work as they went on. In the north transept of Chester Cathedral, which is part of the first Norman church, the stones in the lower parts have wider joints and are less carefully fitted than those above them. The choir and aisles generally ended in a semicircular 'apse'. A semicircle of dark blue stones set in the floor of the north aisle in the Cathedral of Chester marks the apse of an aisle of Earl Hugh's church. The village churches were of course not built on the same scale of grandeur as the churches of S. John and S. Werburgh. Nearly everywhere the Norman 'lords of the manor' rebuilt the rude and humble churches of wood and stone that had served the needs of the Saxons before them. But little remains in Cheshire of these Norman churches, save here and there a doorway or a window or a capital, that has escaped destruction or the ravages of time. The Norman architects and builders were few in number, and must have employed many Saxon workmen in the task of rebuilding. The latter, as you have already learned, were no mean masons and sculptors, and the carving of the mouldings and capitals of the doorways of the village churches was doubtless in many cases done by them. The 'chevron' or zigzag moulding, and the spirals carved on the face of capitals could easily be cut with an axe, for the Saxons were not yet acquainted with the use of the Norman chisel. At Shotwick and Shocklach you may see doorways, which, from the simplicity of their mouldings, are probably the work of Saxons, performed under the eye of their Norman masters. [Illustration: NORMAN ARCHES, S. JOHN'S. CHESTER] Towards the end of the eleventh century the clever Norman masons, who loved to invent new patterns and vary their work, introduced other forms of ornamentation such as the 'billet' and 'lozenge' and 'scollop' in their mouldings, and adorned the capitals and even the pillars with rich carving. Carved pillars may be seen in the Norman arcade in the cloisters at Chester. [Illustration: CLOISTERS, CHESTER: PORTION OF FIRST NORMAN ABBEY OF S. WERBURGH]