The Industrial Arts in SpainRiaño, Juan F. (Juan Facundo)
History
The Industrial Arts in Spain
Riaño, Juan F. (Juan Facundo)
Decorative arts -- Spain -- History; Pottery -- Spain -- History
"It is 8 yards and a half high, and the triangular upper part is 3 yards
wide: it is surmounted by fifteen statues which represent Our Saviour,
the Apostles and two other disciples or evangelists. In the vacant space
of the triangle there is a circle ornamented with foliage, in the centre
of which is a figure in high relief of the Blessed Virgin, underneath is
a medallion bust of a king. This centre is of bronzed wood, and is
supported by four small bronze columns, below which are four caryatides,
resting on a nobly designed border ornamented with lions and other
animals in the renaissance style." See woodcut on next page.
[Illustration: THE TENEBRARIUM IN THE CATHEDRAL OF SEVILLE.]
Villalpando distinguished himself at the cathedral of Toledo in the same
way as Morel at Seville. The splendid _reja_ at the Capilla Mayor with
the fine gilt bronze pulpits, the bas-reliefs of the doors of Lions,
1564, the font, and railing surrounding the altar of the Virgin in the
coro were all made by him. The pulpits, made as it is asserted out of
the bronze sepulchre of Dn. Alvaro de Luna are octagonal, six of their
sides are admirably decorated with bas-reliefs of exquisite work
divided by pilasters and terminated by a finely designed frieze. The
door of Lions is covered in a similar manner with bronze plates
ornamented in the finest renaissance style; the knockers are models in
their way. In the opposite door del Reloj, these reliefs have been
copied in 1713 by the silversmiths Zurreño y Dominguez.
Notwithstanding the great merit of these works, the stands for the choir
books are even finer and more exquisite in detail. They are made of gilt
bronze and represent subjects from the life of St. Ildefonso, the
Prophet David and the Apocalypse. They were modelled and designed by
Juan Navarro in 1562, and carved by Nicolas de Vergara and his son some
years afterwards.
Two artists, natives of Aragon, were very famous during the same century
for their bronze work. One of these, Celma, made the pulpits of the
cathedral of Santiago, which are finely ornamented with busts between
the columns, and bas-reliefs representing subjects of the lives of the
saints, and a fine design of leaves and flowers. In one of the
inscriptions may be read: "_Joannes Baptista Celma, Aragonentis patria
pingendi artifex salutis anno 1563. Compostellæ faciebat._" The other
artist was Cela, the author of the fine reja del coro of the church of
the Pilar at Saragossa, dated 1574-79.
Two gilt metal Monstrances of Spanish work of the 16th century are in
the South Kensington Museum. No. 4310, 57, represents an architectural
shrine, decorated with strap and cartouche-work, columns, and arcades in
the renaissance style; it is dated 1537. See woodcut on next page. The
other, No. 190, 66, has an ornamented stem, with knob, on which stands a
triangular shrine with kneeling angels; above is a smaller shrine
surmounted by a crucifix.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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