Probably a great part at least of the present structure, may belong to the original building of Conrad, commenced in 1030, and which was dedicated by his grandson, Henry IV., thirty-one years afterwards.
Except the eastern apse, which is as usual flanked by two round towers, the whole of the exterior of Mayence has been so completely rebuilt that little can now be said about it. The plan presents nothing remarkable, except that it is evident, from its solidity and arrangement, that it was intended from the commencement to be a vaulted building; while of its details only one doorway remains
An image should appear at this position in the text.466. Plan of Cathedral of Worms (From Geier and Gorz.) Scale 100 ft. to 1. in which can with certainty be said to belong to the original foundation.[1] It is remarkable principally for the classicality of its details, which almost deserve the title of Romanesque; and if its age is correctly ascertained (the end of the 10th century), it would go far to confirm the date {{FIS|float=right|file=missing|caption=467. One Bay of Cathedral at Worms. (From Geier and G{{subst:o}}rz.) usually assigned to the portal at Lorsch, namely, the late Carlovingian period.[2]
At Worms, the only part now remaining of the edifice dedicated in 1110 is the eastern end. The western apse cannot be older than the year 1200, the intermediate parts having been erected between those dates. The original plan is probably nearly unchanged, and is a fine specimen of its class. The eastern apse is a curious compromise between the two modes of finishing that were in use at that period, being square externally, and circular in the interior. Internally the vaulting throughout is simple and judicious, without any straining after effects like those which puzzled the Norman architects in the same age (see ante, p. 516), and the alternate clustered piers and large size of the windows give to the whole a variety and lightness not usual in churches of that date. Nothing can well be simpler or nobler than the design externally. The four circular
- ↑ Möller, "Deutsch Baukunst," vol. i. plate vi.
- ↑ I have not been able to ascertain the dimensions of Mayence Cathedral with sufficient correctness to quote them. I possess four plans, all with great pretensions to accuracy, and with scales attached, but they differ so widely that I do not know which to follow.
