by those daring invaders: its church, one of the first
objects that presents itself to the English traveller, on his
entering France in the direction of Caen, is well calculated to impress
him with a forcible idea of the magnificence of the Norman lords of the
duchy. That it was built in the time of their sway, is a fact which
cannot be doubted; but, in an architectural point of view, it is so full
of anomalies, that opinions would be likely to vary considerably with
regard to the actual date of its erection. And here, unfortunately, no
records remain to guide the judgment. In the western front, indeed!
(_the subject of the plate_) the whole is of the semi-circular style,
and uniform. The upper tier of arches will find a parallel in the towers
of the abbey of Jumieges, built during the reign of the Conqueror; and
most of the other members and decorations are of frequent occurrence in
erections of the same aera. A peculiarity is alone observable in the
smaller arches of the second row, in which the artist has indulged
himself in what may be termed an architectural conceit, lengthening, to
a very disproportionate degree, and almost in the moorish fashion, the
part above the capital, in order that the whole might range in a line
with the larger arch in the centre. The truncated appearance of the wall
on either side, leads to the obvious inference, that either this front
had originally towers, like the church of St. Nicholas, at Caen, or that
it was intended there should have been such. A central tower now alone
remains, of square form, with massive buttresses of unusual size,
projecting towards the south. This tower, as well as the portion of the
church to the east of it, exhibits the Norman and Gothic architecture
mixed in a very uncommon manner. Of three rows of arches, the lowest and
highest belong to the latter style; the central one only to the former.
In the nave, all is Norman, excepting only two lancet windows of the
upper tier, placed near the west end, on the south side, and excepting
also the flying buttresses that extend from between the windows of the
clerestory to the projecting aisles below. Within the choir, the
trefoil-headed arch takes, in some instances, the place of the pointed
in the lower row, which is wholly blank; and the capitals of the
pillars, according to Mr. Cotman, shew an extraordinary playfulness of
design. The arches above them are pierced for windows. Both the
semi-circular ones of the seco