Laon cathedral sits on a high,
steep hump of limestone in the midst of the rolling, northern plain of
the French wheat belt. It is a beautiful cathedral, in a beautiful position;
and badly neglected like so many French public monuments, being damaged
by the ravages of pollution. The two images above show this clearly. The
nearest bullock has now lost its head, the other animals and floral carvings
are badly decayed, while the top balustrade is cased in planking, fixed
with bolts, to prevent it falling further apart.[It is possible that the
decay had already started at the time of the earlier ppicture, the top
of the balustrade looks as if it may be secured by a plank.]
Laon is one of the earliest
gothic cathedrals, and as such it is transitional in its design. It
does not have all of the recognised attributes of the fully-flowered gothic
cathedrals. At Laon, the buttresses are not fully exposed, as may be seen
at their considerable exuberance in Le Mans and Bourges. Laon cathedral
has an upper tribune gallery that helps constrain the high nave walls
from bulging outwards.
Cross-section of Laon cathedral nave, showing
the unusual four-tier construction
There are various suggestions why sixteen bullocks are included on the
twin west towers of the cathedral exterior. Twelfth century legend has
it that, when the earlier church was being built, a haulage team taking
equipment to the foot of the cathedral building works just could not climb
up the hill. Suddenly, they saw their team had been reinforced by a bullock
who, once the providential mission was completed, disappeared as mysteriously
as it had appeared. It is said that the famous bullocks were added to
the towers in memory of this miraculous intervention. However, this legend
apparently relates to the restoration works of the previous church, burnt
down in 1112. More prosaic is that the bullocks glorify the enormous labour
done by these sturdy helpers of the thirteenth century architect when
building the current cathedral.[1]
After the Revolution [1789 on] the bishopric of Laon was removed, so
the cathedral became merely the local parish church. Nowadays, there is
no hesitation in calling this building a cathedral.
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Being an early Gothic cathedral, Laon has
less glass compared to later buildings. The glass is mostly original thirteenth
century stained glass (with some 19th century ‘restorations’).
There are four rose windows - east, west, north, south. The east facade,
above the main altar, has a large rose window,
together with three large lancets below. The west
rose window matches the east one in its structure. The rose
window in the north transept is filled with medallions.
The south window is more interesting for its structure than for its glass.
On the East facade [1], the
three lancets, still with their original
glass, illustrate:
- Right lancet
- 24 yoked medallions representing the life of
Mary and the childhood of Jesus, sometimes on two neighbouring medallions
[part of a Biblia Pauperum]
1 the Annunciation
2 The Visitation
3 & 4 The Nativity
5 & 6 The annunciation to the shepherds
7 & 8 The adoration of the Wise Men
9 & 10 The presentation to the Temple and the purification of
Mary
11 The fleece of Gedeon
12 The burning bush
13 & 14 The flight into Egypt
15 & 16 The return of the Wise Men
17 & 18 Daniel prophesying the fall of the idols [‘concordant’
item from the Old Testament]
19 The sacrifice of Abel and of Cain [‘concordant’ item
from the Old Testament]
20 The presentation of Mary to the Temple
21 & 22 The massacre of the innocents
- Central lancet
- This follows the life of Jesus from his entrance into Jerusalem until
the Ascension.
There are a series of five four-lobed medallions that alternate with
five circular medallions.
Some have several scenes
1 The triumphal entrance into Jerusalem
2 The Last Supper
3 The washing of feet
4 Jesus in the Garden of Olives
5 The kiss of Judas
6 Jesus before Caïphe
7 The flogging of Jesus
8 Carrying the cross
9 The crucifixion
10 Putting the body of Jesus in the tomb
11 The ‘holy’ women at the tomb
12 Peter and John at the tomb
13 the disciples of Emmaüs
15 The ascension
- Left lancet
- Twenty-six yoked medallions containing scenes
of martyrdom and the legend of Saint Theophile.
The first six represent the life and martyrdom of saint Etienne [Stephen]
1 Etienne is made deacon by two apostles
2 Etienne proclaims the new religion in the presence of a doctor and
a high priest who are
sitting on a stepladder and wearing Jewish caps.
3 Etienne standing between two guards, having been summoned to the Sanhédrin
[3] before the
high priest, who condemns him
4 Jews grab Etienne by the hair and drag him to the place of execution
5 & 6 Etienne is stoned by his accusers, who have heaped their clothes
at Saul’s feet, who is sitting.
On the other medallions is shown the miracle of Theophile:
1 Theophile, vidame [2] of the bishop of Adana, in
Sicily, talking to his master
2 Disgrace of Theophile, who is removed from his functions; a third
person, sitting at the feet
of the prelate, has already replaced him
3 Theophile (whose name is at the base of the medallion) goes away,
drawn by the spirit of evil.
Devils appear to him, one holding a turncoat’s
[renégat] parchment to sign, the other a step
ladder to take Theophile when he is called by Satan
4 Theophile negotiates with a witch who promises to help him call up
Satan
5 Theophile in the presence of Satan, whose appearance terrifies Theophile.
Theophile has on
his knees the book of magic with which he called up Satan
6 He renounces God and signs a parchment in blood, and presents Satan
this pact
concluded with him
7 Theophile, again a vidame because of the pact, distributes gold. He
has a devil beside him who encourages him
8 Theophile, vidame, receives a fish as rent from vassals of the bishop
9 He oversees the building of a church
10 Theophile goes into this church
11 He kneels before a statue of Mary
12 Mary appears to him and, on her entreaties, he renounces Satan
13 Mary expels Satan, hitting him with the shaft of a cross
14 She returns to Theophile the pact he had signed with Satan
15 Theophile hands over the document to his bishop
16 The bishop absolved Theophile of his crime, lowering his pastoral
staff over him, who is
kneeling and groveling
17 From the pulpit, with two acolytes holding the crozier
and cross, the bishop tells his
congregation about Theophile’s miracle
18 & 19 Death of Theophile. His body, covered in a habit, is placed
in a shroud helped by two
people. The bishop sprinkled blessed water,
accompanied by a clerk carrying the cross
of his profession.
The east rose was dedicated
to the glorification of Mary, who is shown in the centre crowned and sitting
on a throne, carrying baby Jesus and holding in her right hand the mystical
rose, a flaming scarlet flower. To her sides, are two prostrated angels,
their hands joined/reaching, while higher up, two other angels sing praises/spread
incense. Above her are shown: to the right, the prophet Isaiah (his name
is on a scroll) who announced that Jesus would be born from a virgin;
to the left, John the Baptist carrying the holy lamb.
The twelve medallions in the first circle represent the apostles, sitting
on rainbows, barefoot and with haloes. Their names are written on the
banner that each is holding in the right hand, they carry a book in the
left. The twenty-four medallions of the second circle feature the Elders
of the Revelations/Apocalypse, also sitting on rainbows, with crowned
heads. They carry a phial, symbolising the prayers of the saints, and
in the other hand a musical instrument: viol, rote***, harp, tambourine,
psalterion***.
The north rose contains scenes
representing the sciences as understood and practiced in the thirteenth
century - the trivium
and the quadrivium - the sciences and the liberal arts. Only Geometry,
Arithmetic, Dialectic and Astronomy are original glass. The others were
remade in 1865 [some say 1856], copying statues from the west facade.
The young women sit on benches: Philosophy in the centre, then going clockwise
from twelve o’clock - Rhetoric writing on a tablet on her knees;
Grammar, with the rods with which she threatens the little children seated
at her feet; Dialectic; Astronomy, holding a bushel [8 gal, 36.4 ltr]
for observing the stars by reflection when filled with water, or simply
to recall that, at that time, this science fixed the dates for sowing;
Medicine; Geometry and Music.[It is uncertain whether the window is as
it was originally, because Philosophy, Rhetoric, Medicine and Music were
missing before the 19th century restoration.]
- The current cathedral building was completed in 1230, replacing the
previous church destroyed by fire. There are a few carved pieces apparently
from the original building in the local Laon town museum.
end notes
- Freely translated from La cathedrale de Laon
by Lucien Broche, 1926.
- Vidame: Officer appointed by bishops to handle their
temporal interests, both judicial and military, from which activities
bishops were forbidden. In due course, the appointment became hereditary
and sometimes the title transmuted in to viscompte.
Occurring mostly in the 11th and 12th centuries,
by the 13th century, the post was near defunct, as French
kings curtailed their powers. The vidame’s duties included managing
and protecting the estates of the bishopric, administering the episcopal
jurisdiction in the bishop’s name, to representing the bishop
different courts, leading the bishop’s troops in battle.
- Sanhedrin: ancient Jewish court system, the Jewish
‘Supreme Court’.
- Yoked medallions are two medallions partially
joined together.
- Lancet: pointed, as seen in the arches and windows
with a pointed head introduced in the Gothic period of architecture.
[From the point of a lance, or spear.]
- A crozier is the large shepherd’s stick
carried by a bishop, or carried for him. The crozier is generally very
lavish, gilded in gold and topped by an ornate hook. Shepherds use a
long stick with a big hook at one end to catch individual sheep. In
christianism there is a notion that the priest are like shepherds, caring
for their flock or in this case their congregation, of which the crozier
is the symbol.
- In stained glass, a medallion refers to circular
or oval space, generally one of many within the overall window design,
that contains a figure of figures.
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