A Day's Antiquarian Explorations at Ventimiglia. BY WM. JACKSON, F.S.A. PART II-MEDIEVAL REMAINS. (Continued from vol. iv. p. 301.) EAVING these interesting Roman remains (if Roman they be), I returned towards Ventimiglia, and, ascending the hill on which it is situated, came to the plateau whereon the cathedral stands. It presents some very interesting features, though the desecrating hand of the restorer has been very successful in so mixing up the new with the old, that in many cases it is difficult to decide what is really original and what imitation. The central portal of the west front, triply recessed with marble jambs, the capitals of which are plain, the impost being supported by rude figures and surmounted by a pointed arch of twelfth-century date, is remarkably fine. The gable moulding immediately under the roof, a sort of zigzag facing, is very characteristic of twelfth and thirteenth century work in Liguria, for it occurs in San Matteo, San Stefano, San Agostino, and other early churches in Genoa. Entering the cathedral, a marble tablet inserted in the south wall opposite the first bay is observable. The first line of the inscription is "Junoni Reginæ Sacr." It is a stone raised by Publius Virginius Rhodion to the memory of his wife and children; and there is not wanting other evidence to show that this "church of the Assumption" occupies the site of an ancient temple of Juno. The nave of the cathedral has six arches, with side aisles, an octagonal cupola, and a semi-circular apse. A fine campanile adjoins the fourth bay on the north side; and at a later period chapels have been erected on the same side, opposite the first, second, and third bays, to range with the front westwards, and the tower northwards. A baptistery of singular interest stands to the north of the apse and part of the cupola, and somewhat at an angle to those parts of the edifice. Between it and the tower is a large domed structure, of the same age as the chapels to the west, forming a sort of vestibule to the upper part of the baptistery, which has been divided horizontally into two stories, the higher portion nearly on a level with the cathedral, the lower part forming a sort of crypt, the ground outside sloping away eastwards; it is approached at a lower level. Entering by the external door from the lane, this building is seen to be octagonal, with recessed arches in the outer wall for the windows; the one through which is the entrance door, and the opposite recess, are 9 ft. 9 in. across, and the six others 8 ft. 7 in. In a central position, but by no means in the middle, for the casing walls are 8 ft. 4 in. from the face of the recess on the one side, and 12 ft. 4 in. from that of the opposite recess, and farther from the door than from the opposite side, stands the baptismal structure or font, also an octagon, the sides of which are quite at variance with those of the containing building. It is approached by three steps of about 8 in. high; the enclosing slabs rise to a height of about 3 ft. from the inside of the highest step; the width, including that of the slabs, which are about 6 in. in diameter, varies from a fraction over 8 ft. to a little over 7. The bottom of the enclosure is reached by three steps, and is about 6 ft. deep. Opposite each other, and in place of two of the flat sides of the octagon, are two semi-circular recesses, partly projecting inside and partly outside of the font: one of these was occupied by the officiating priest, and the other by the godfather. It is a curious fact that the only regularity in the details is their irregularity. It is needless to say that such a structure as I have attempted to describe implies that it was used for baptism by immersion. Preserved in this building are many ancient remnants which have been removed from the cathedral; an interesting font of an elliptical form, certainly not more modern than the twelfth century, which of itself stamps the baptismal structure as belonging to an earlier age; and also several fragments of interlaced work, but no runes nor any traces of dragon forms. The architect would find more to interest him in this remarkable building; but I have contented myself with attempting to describe the more salient points. Leaving the cathedral and passing along the main street, I observed on the marble impost of a doorway on the left hand a curious piece of sculpture, the subject being a knight on horseback, bearing on his left arm a shield, on which is St. George's Cross within a bordure; with his right hand he thrusts his spear down the throat of a dragon, which his horse treads under foot. A maiden, with her hair drawn backwards-perhaps she is bound by it behind -stands before him, her hands folded across her bosom; behind him is a turret projecting from a wall, and from its window (divided by a mullion and transom, perhaps not without reference to the Cross of St. George) two warriors, probably prisoners, gaze in suspense at the combat. This sculpture is, I think, of greater age than any of the frequent repetitions of the same subject found on the lintels of numerous palaces in Genoa, some of them remarkable for their artistic beauty and spirit. Saint George was, as the inscription round the cupola of his church in that city states, the "Patronus of Genoa" and the "Protector of Liguria," and after Giovanni Baptista that of Giorgio ranks amongst the most popular Christian names in Genoa. Passing onwards, I notice that some of the houses are apparently of considerable antiquity, and that there are other sculptured lintels, perhaps of equal interest though less distinct. The next attraction of any importance is the very ancient Priory Church of Saint Michael, an offshoot of the celebrated Abbey of Saint Honorat, situated on the Island of Lerins, opposite Cannes, one of the most interesting monastic foundations in Europe, dating from the sixth century. It was to Provence what Iona was to the west of Scotland, and it has undergone even a worse fate, for few traces are left of its ancient importance. One event in its history reminds us of the great massacre of the monks of a kindred institution, Bangor, by the Saxons. During the period when this coast was harassed, and, indeed, for a time partly occupied, by the Saracens, they took the Abbey of Lerins, and slaughtered 500 of the monks. The Priory Church of Saint Michael stands outside of the ancient, but just within the more modern, wall of Ventimiglia, and presents many points of peculiar interest. The western front is plain, and covered, as it is, with plaster, has a very mean appearance; the ground slopes away eastwards. The apse is the most ancient part; like most of the structure, it is built of the conglomerate of the district upon which it stands, and this conglomerate is so agglutinated together that it forms an excellent building stone, and resists disintegration with a tenacity not excelled by a perfectly homogeneous rock. The apse is a perfect hemicycle, with a round-headed window of plain construction and without any splay in the centre opening out of the church, and an arrowslit, or meurtrière as the French happily call it, in the lower part out of the crypt. The details of construction are remarkably good; the joints are singularly close. The apse is crowned under the eaves by a series of round-headed intersecting arches, not merely an ornamental facing, but actual constructive arches, subsequently filled in with masonry, which is, I think, an exceptional feature; at any rate, they are worthy of careful study. The tower, a plain square campanile of about twice the height of the church, with round arches in the belfry, stands partly on the south side of the apse and partly south of the choir, and is in good preservation, but the whole of the north aisle is roofless and ruined, as is the south, west of the tower. There have not been any original windows in either aisle. Entering the church, we observe that it is even more internally than externally a structure of a most exceptional character. It consists of a nave, with three arches, side aisles, and a choir. The vaulting is plain and pointed; the roof is supported on piers, faced towards the nave with plain semi-circular columns; the arches, which communicated with the side aisles, are built up, and the piers on that side are plain to roughness. There is, as I have said, a window in the apse, and at present one exists, and probably always did, in the west gable; the only other mode of admitting light was through two openings, circular internally, but externally ordinary round-headed windows, pierced in the vaulting over the spandrils of each arch of the nave on the south side only. The choir is reached by seven steps on each side of the nave; between these ascending steps are those descending to the crypt, under the choir and the apse. The crypt would be nearly dark were it not that a round-headed window, the archibolt of which is tile, has been broken through the apse on the south-eastern face. It is triple vaulted, plain, and supported by eight columns, three of the pillars being Roman miliary stones, one having "Antoninus DXC" still legible upon it; there is also another standing apart, on which may be read the name of the same Emperor. These stones are from the "Via Aurelia," which ran through Ventimiglia. The rest of the columns are of marble, except one of tufa; these latter have been removed from some other building. The capitals and bases in all instances are very rude. It may be stated that the stoup on the right-hand side on entering the church is also a miliary stone, with a basin excavated in the top. It is very evident that the apse, though in better condition, is much more ancient than the rest of the church, which is said to occupy the site of a temple to Castor and Pollux, though there is no tablet, as in the case of the cathedral, to support the popular belief. If it be true, the apse may be part of that structure. Having finished my survey of this most interesting building, which first attracted my attention from the railway, whence it forms a most picturesque object, I left it with reluctance to complete my day's programme by climbing to the Castle of Appio, which stands on the same ridge as the modern Italian frontier forts, but far above the highest of them, and not less, I should think, than a thousand feet above the sea. As I plodded up the steep mule path I was reminded, as the huge pile now and again presented itself to my view, of Goethe's lines : "There stands an ancient castle on yonder mountain height, Where, fenced with bridge and portal, once tarried steed and knight; But, alas! no, for after a toilsome ascent I found that all breaches in the walls had been repaired, and entrance was impossible, for there was no custodian. The structure is entirely composed of the conglomerate rock; the towers, of which there are two, are polygonal, and built of large hewn blocks; the curtain walls are less carefully constructed, but very strong and massive. In size it about equals one of our largest second-class baronial castles. Except a few courses of flat bricks in the upper part of one of the towers I observed nothing to indicate that it is a Roman structure, as some authorities state; but such evidence as that cannot in this country be accepted as an unfailing indication of Roman origin. On two sides it is protected by precipices, and on the others it is so strongly fortified that before the age of gunpowder it must have been impregnable. I have said I was disappointed because I could not gain admission, but I was more than rewarded in another way. I stood on a ridge commanding two valleys-looking westwards over the promontory of Martola with the Lombardic tower of its church, capped by glazed tiles, glittering in the sunlight; beyond that, stretching out into the azure sea, was the promontory of Saint Martin, on which may still be traced the ruins of yet another offshoot of the Abbey of Lerins; again another strip of sea and Monaco, with the Cap du Chien far overhead, like a couchant lion, guarded the coast; again, further, and the headland of the Hospice was conspicuous; over that the long low promontory of Antibes, surmounted by the plutonic heights of the Estrelle; and, crowning and bounding this marvellous view, the granitic outlines of the mountains of the Moors. Turning eastwards, and looking over the Valley of the Roya far below, a huge torrent bed of almost half a mile wide, with at that time a mere thread of water meandering through its enormous gravel flats, the prospect was limited by the point of Bordighera, conspicuous by its palms, on which the sun seems ever to shine. Descending, and in doing so carefully skirting the precipices, I reached the road, and pursued my way Mentonwards; and the shades of evening were falling fast" as I attained the summit of that 66 |