Page:A History of Art in Chaldæa & Assyria Vol 1.djvu/161

THE GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF FORM. 141 own. The Chaldsean sculptor might indeed import a few blocks of diorite or basalt, either from Arabia, Egypt, or the valleys of Mount Zagros, for use in statues which would justify such ex- pense ; but the architect must have been restricted to the use of material close at hand. In Assyria limestone was always within reach, arid yet the Assyrians never succeeded in freeing them- selves from traditional methods sufficiently to make the column play a part similar to that assigned to it by the peoples of Egypt and Greece. Their habits, and especially the habit of respect for the practices and traditions of Chaldsea, were too strong for them. Their use of the column, though often tasteful and happy, is never without a certain timidity. One is inclined to think they had an inkling of the possibilities latent in it, but that they lacked FIG. 40. House in Kurdistan ; from Layard. the courage necessary to give it full play in the interiors and upon the facades of their large palaces and towers. In the bas-reliefs we find columns used in the kiosques built upon the river banks (Fig. 41), and in the pavilions or chapels studded over the royal gardens (Fig. 42). The excavations, moreover, have yielded pedestals and capitals which, rare as they are, have a double claim to our regard. The situations in which they have been discovered seem to show that columns were sometimes used in front of doorways, to support porches or covered ways extending to the full limits of die esplanade ; secondly, their forms them- selves are interesting. Close study will convince us that, when copied by neighbouring peoples who made frequent and general use of stone supports, they might well have exercised an influence