E-text prepared by Juliet Sutherland, Suzan Flanagan, and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team (https://www.pgdp.net) Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this file which includes the original illustrations. See 22990-h.htm or 22990-h.zip: (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/2/9/9/22990/22990-h/22990-h.htm) o9 (https://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/2/9/1/22990/22990-h.zip) Transcriber's notes: This booklet appears to end abruptly, but there is no evidence of any missing pages in the original copy. The "oe" and "OE" ligatures are represented as "[oe]" and "[OE]" respectively. Superscripted text is not displayed as such in the text version. Superscripts are displayed in the HTML version. On page 20, a cross symbol, which indicates year of death, is represented as {+}. A list of corrections will be found at the end of the e-text. The Cathedral of Strasburg [Illustration] Strasburg A. Vix & Cie Publishers [Illustration: Death of the Virgin Maria.] HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE CATHEDRAL OF STRASBURG Twenty fourth Edition Strasburg Published by A. Vix & Cie 31, Place de la Cathedrale 1922. [Illustration: The interior of the Cathedral.] [Illustration] I. HISTORY Among the wonderful monuments to which the religious art of the middle ages has given rise and which will for ever excite the admiration of men, the church of _Notre-Dame_ or Cathedral of Strasburg occupies one of the first ranks. By its dimensions, the richness of the ornaments and figures that adorn its exterior, by the majesty of its nave, and by its light steeple, which towers towards Heaven with as much grace as boldness, this house of God proclaims afar its destination and leaves a deep and indelible impression on the soul of any one who gazes on it. Exhibiting in all its different parts models of every epoch of christian architecture, this Cathedral is for the artist a subject of serious study and for the inhabitant of Strasburg a venerable monument, which recalls to his mind the principal events of the ancient history of our city. According to some old traditions, the Cathedral is built on a spot, which, from the remotest times, had been devoted to worship. Originally this spot formed a hill sloping westward into a cavity, which was filled up many centuries ago. Around it, the Celts, the first inhabitants of our country, built their huts: its summit was covered by the sacred wood, in the midst of which rose the druidical _dolmen_. It was there that those barbarians offered sacrifices to Esus, their God of war, sacrifices which, in times of public calamity, were human victims.