174							164
                                                                      
                                                                      	            VIENNE CATHEDRAL
                                                                      
                                                                      	the niches throughout a grotesque of Jonah in the whale’s
                                                                      jaws, the whale head nearly as big as the niche itself, is
                                                                      conspicuous in Northern character.
                                                                      The first western three or four nave arches, and the
                                                                      triforium arches all along, which have no capitals, are of
                                                                      the flamboyant period;  But the rest of the church of the
                                                                      most marvellous Romanesque Gothic I ever saw.
                                                                      The nave arches are tall, though not so tall in propor-
                                                                      tion, as Valence and pointed.  Fig 1 p 80 N  book is a
                                                                      rude section of one of their piers, a towards nave, b
                                                                      to aisle - I shall take them from base to top.
                                                                      The section P.P. and P.Pq on angles at p 81 N. book be-
                                                                      longs to a pillar in the wall side of Northern aisle, but
                                                                      substituting fig 1 for the upper part of it, it is that
                                                                      of base of nave piers:  the portion above x  being a com-
                                                                      plete base, with square plinth and two spurs is given to
                                                                      the thrree semishafts only and pilaster a only;  while the
                                                                      remaining part of the base below x is a high pedestal
                                                                      which follows the entire contour of the outer line in fig 
                                                                      1. p 80.
                                                                      Bases.	We have thus two vast steps inadvance of Valence;  the
                                                                      spur added, and the  treating of the base as a band are
                                                                      essential part of all the shafts:  while at Valence it is
                                                                      merely an awkward pedestal to the semicircular shaft.
                                                                      Once this great step nade the transition to the entirely
                                                                      organised Gothic base is easy, I think

[Version 0.05: May 2008]