Praxiteles
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St. Patrick’s in St. John’s, Newfoundland
The cornerstone of St. Patrick’s Church was laid on September 17, 1855, by Bishop John T. Mullock and other distinguished clergy from Canada and the United States. American financier, Cyrus Field, contributed £1,000 to help with construction costs. The church was designed in the late Gothic Revival, also termed Neo-Gothic, style by J.J. McCarthy, a prominent Irish architect, and was built by T. O’Brien, local architect and mason.
In 1864 nine years after the cornerstone was laid, work officially began on the structure with the construction the foundation from stone taken from the Southside Hills in St. John’s. Further problems prevented work on the project from advancing beyond the 1864 stage for a decade. Additional stone was donated in 1875 and construction began once more. Construction continued as funds and materials permitted and the church was completed in 1881. After more than two-and-a-half decades, St. Patrick’s Church was consecrated on August 28, 1881.
And in France, the charge of maintaining historic monuments falls to teh Architects des Batiments de France:
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architecte_des_b%C3%A2timents_de_France
And here are the architects who carry out this responsibility throughout France:
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Architecte_en_chef_des_monuments_historiques
and a more complete list:
http://www.mediatheque-patrimoine.culture.gouv.fr/fr/biographies/index_acmh.html
And here a link to teh Fabbrica di San Pietro in Rome whose origings begin in the reign of Julius II and whose formal erection took place under Clement VII in 1526.
http://www.vaticanstate.va/IT/Monumenti/Basilica_di_S_Pietro/Fabbrica_di_San_Pietro.htm
And here is a link to the Fabbrica of the Cathedral of Florence. This institution has been running sine 1296.
http://www.fabbricerieitaliane.it/smaria.htm
Anyone interested in art history will immediately recognise many of the names of of the members of the institutions shown here because of the scientific writings and research. Clearly, we are dealing with a very competent group of people who know and appreciate what they vareabout …unlike other places where the guardians can hardly read or write.
Here ois the link to the English version of teh Fabbrica’s webpage:
And, of course, one of the most important institutions for the maintenance and restoration of a important cathedral in Italy is the Procuratoria di San Marco in Venice.
The Procuratoria of St. Mark’s Basilica
The ancient name of Procuratoria of St. Mark was given to the vestry-board of St. Mark’s cathedral basilica with a Royal Decree dated July 9, 1931. Its duties are the protection, maintenance and repairs of the basilica, bell tower and their pertinences. Indeed, the Procurators of St. Mark constituted one of the most important magistracies of the state up until the fall of the Republic of Venice (1797).The Procurators of St. Mark de supra dealt with the administration of the assets owned by St. Mark’s church and the protection of the church.
The present Procuratoria council is made up of seven Procurators, from among whom the chairman is chosen, called the prime Procurator.
The Procurators choose an engineer or architect, called the foreman of St. Mark, to whom management of the technical services is entrusted. He has specific duties relating to the respectful preservation of the buildings and their single parts through use of the most suitable means that engineering makes available, in conformity with the religion’s needs and the provisions of the ecclesiastic authorities.
The foreman is assisted by other professionals for all the tasks and activities of the office: an engineer, two architects and a building surveyor.
The Mosaic Office reports to technical services management. It is in charge of the preservation and repairs of the mosaic surface while keeping the old tradition typical of St. Mark’s alive. Also under technical services management is a team of restorers who work on maintaining St. Mark’s buildings and their movables. The Procuratoria keeps a 19th-20th century archive of documents and photographs, and also has a library specifically pertaining to St. Mark’s Basilica.
All administrative personnel, caretakers and security guards are employed by the Procuratoria.Members of the current Procuratoria Council are: Giorgio Orsoni (prime Procurator), Antonio Meneguolo, Antonio Niero, Irene Favaretto, Giovanni Candiani, Giovanni Mazzacurati and Dino Sesani.
St. Mark’s Proto (foreman): Ettore Vio.And here are all the essential details of the Veneranda Fabbrica of Milanwhich is an ecclesiastical entity, in the ownership of the state, which consists of seven members, elected for three years. Tow are nominated by the Archbishop of Milan and teh remaining by the state having consulted with the Archbishop. The purpose of the Fabbrica is to maintain the fabric and patrimony (including the choir) of the Cathedral of Milan.
And here we have an interview with the Maestro himself on the conclusion of the restoration of the facade which took 6 years and began in 2003.
And here are some words of wisdom on the need for continuous monitoring a d
building such as Cobh Cathedral:«Ma è naturale: per conservare in modo dignitoso un monumento delle dimensioni e della complessità del Duomo i lavori devono essere a ciclo continuo. Tanto che adesso ne partiranno subito altri, che non riguarderanno la facciata».
Some wonderful pictures of the Veneranda Fabbrica and its workshops and craftsmen can be found at this site:
And here is the institution charged with the maintenance of the Cathedral of Milan. The Veneranda Fabbrica has been on the go since 1387:
http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veneranda_fabbrica_del_Duomo_di_Milano
And here is another person who could usefully be asked about maintaining roofs, drains and stone-work in Gothic Cathedrals – the chief architect of the Veneranda Fabbrica of the Cathedral of Milan, Benigno Moerlin Visconti Castiglione
The stone for the Cathedral of Milan comes from a quarry at Candoglia given to the Cathedral in 1387 by the Duke of Milan, Giangaleazzo Visconti. Here is a picture of the Cava Madre which is where most of the present Cathedral comes from.
Here is the link to the Dombauhutte in Cologne. It employs about 60 stonemasons, glass workers, carpenters, scaffolding builders etc.
http://www.dombau-koeln.de/index.php?id=27&ssl=0
The present Cathedral Architect is: Barbara Schock-Werner (appointed 1999).
Indeed, a couple of words with her and Praxiteles is sure that she would have a good idea as to how to treat the decaying fabric in Cobh.
And for the water ingress problem in Cobh, here are some wise words from teh Dombauhutte in Cologne:
Wichtig für den Erhalt des Bauwerkes Kölner Dom ist vor allem aber auch die ordnungsgemäße Ableitung des Regenwassers. Die hierzu entwickelten Wasserableitsysteme sind seit dem Mittelalter integraler Bestandteil der Architektur und eine wahre Ingenieurleistung. Allerdings bedürfen die Tausende Meter an Rinnen und Rohren ständiger Wartung und gelegentlich auch grundlegender Instandsetzung. Auch hierfür sind die Dachdecker der Dombauhütte verantwortlich.
Gunter:
This is exactly my point about Cobh Cathedral and the livinbg building tradition that continues in the form of Dombauhutte (not Dombauverein as CologneMike rightly points out) in Cologne. Another interesting point about this institution is August Reichensperger who brought the Cathedral of Cologne to completion. A polymath, his interests in architecture and art provided much of the tehoretical basis needed to promote the neo-Gothic revival in Germany. Again, he was a close associate of A.W.N. Pugin and of A.N. Didron in Paris. All three attended the consecration of Pugin’s masterpiece at Cheadle in 1846.
What is institutionally lacking in Cobh to secure the maintenanc eof the building is exactly what has survived from the Middle Ages in Cologne and should serve a model to follow and a source of experience and wisdom from which todraw. Milan Cathedral also has a long surviving Fabbrica to look after the building as does St. Peter’s in Rome where many of the craftsmen employed are direc descendents of those whoc build the new basilica in the 16th century. These craftsmen knw every nook and cranny of the buildings they live and work with.
Gunter!
“In the past, the repair and conservation of buildings of the scale of Cobh Cathedral was entrusted to the hands of a dedicated workshop, a small band of craftsmen with masonry, carpentry and roofing skills, who were based on-site and who were permanently employed on a building that they each knew intimately”.
This is exactly the approach used for the conservation of Cologne Cathedral. Effectively, the Dombauverein is the modern successor of the the Dombauhutte that built the Cathedral 800 years ago. This organisation employs (in the usual OTT German manner) 5 architects to maintain the fabric, and a small army of masons, carpenters and other craftsmen – many of them succeeding their forefathers in these tasks. And, it has to be said, the system works.
It is becoming more and more obvious that the 1990s “restoration” of Cobh Cathedral was an unmitigated disastre.
@samuel j wrote:
Something we all knew, glad that at last this is being recommended officially.:)
As to the muppets who did not complete the last job, should they not be sued and try to get some compensation to go towards the work that now has to be re-done.:mad:Samuelj!
Saying that this is officially recommended is perhaps un peu de trop. The recommendation is made by TKB consultants in their Conservation Management Report which was commissioned, it would seem, largely for the formal purposes of obtaining further monies from the Heritage Council. In that respect, the objective was fully met in that the Heritage Council sees no difficulty at all in dishing out public monies to an incompetent outfit such as Cobh Cathedral Restoration Committee without any degree of follow up to ensure that public monies have been well spent. his time around, the Heritage Council gave Euro 40k to pay for TKB’s Conservation Management Report. In 2002, it gave further monies for a Conservation Report – the Carrig Report (sections of which are incorporated into the CMR without reference or mention in the bibliography). In addition, the Heritage Council hs just given a further Euro 40k for works to seal the exteriro envelope of the Cathedral. Although consitions -including for inspection- have been placed on the grant it remains to be seen if they are intended for real or are just typographical decoration.
The Heritage Council should, however, be mindful taht a grant of something in the region of Euro 250K made to the last “restoration” work on the Cathedral was expended on works which have in some cases accelerated the decay of the building rather than its conservation while in other cases has actually caused further decay to the faric of the building. Is it unreasonable to enquire if the Heritage Council satisfied itself in 1997 that the grant aid from public funds was correctly applied through useful and positive works?
St. Colman’s Cathedral, Cobh, Co. Cork
Looking again at the famous Conservation management Plan for Cobh Cathedral, it is interesting to note that one of the recommendations for the future security of the building is teh constitution of an professional body with responsibility for its general and exceptional maintenance. It is also recommended that the members of this body should be conservation specialists and that the overall supervision fo the fabric be entrusted to a professional surveyor.
Two things abut this: it illustrates the complete collapse of any clerical ability properly to administer a building such as Cobh cathedral – indeed a steep decline from the days of Bishop Robert Browne who knew exactly what he was about when he finished the building process.
Secondly, it is rather peculiar that the Heritage Council spent Euro 40,000 on a report destined to tell a few incompetent clerics to clean their rainwater goods and entrust the maintenance of the fabric to a professional body when they could have learned as much from reading this thread over the past two years. Amazing ….
To answer your question Gunter, I am inclined to think that Medieval architecture, whether civil or secular (for whetever sense that disticntion makes in the Medieval context) cannot be understood (or perhaps better, apreciated) outside of its historical or social context. In the case of the Middle Ages, we are talking of the age of belief.
Of course, by understanding a building I mean more than than the technical skills needed to put stone on stone or brick or brick. Were we to look at matters only in that way, then clerly it would make little difference were we considering a church, cathedral, castle or clothiers’ hall.
St. Colman’s Cathedral, Cobh Co. Cork.
Prxiteles fears that the story of the so called “conservation” and ” restortaion” of Cobh cathedral just get worse by the minute. It was an almight bags up of a job from top to bottom.
In the latest documentation which has come to praxiteles we leard that the services of a bulding consult were obtained in ERngland to ascertain where the water ingress on th sout arcade might be coming from. It was conducted by a firm called IBIS. The findings make for depressing reading.
Not only have we the problem of incompetent pointing and laziness leading to blocked gutters, it also looks as though the entire slating used in the new roof must be called into question.
It transpired that the dust falling from the walls of the south arcade was discovered to contain significant traces of sopper as well as salt. The question is: where could the copper have come from as there is little or none of it on the high levels of the Cathedral – except for the nails used to fix the new slates specially imported from Vermont. It appears that all of those nails hols have been expanding and are leaving in water. It appears that the type of slate material, its size and rough texture facilitate movement and deterioration around the nail holes which in turn leave in water which flows down inside the ceiling boards leaving them a nice green colour, and from there down onto the Bath stone cladding of the south arcade. Incerdibly, aftyer less than 20 years there is also significant slate loss on the roof as well.
Just what were these idiots up to?
The Pope delivered this highly unusual address at yesterday’s General Audience:
On Europe’s Cathedrals
“Beauty Is a Privileged … Way to Approach the Mystery of God”
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 18, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of Benedict XVI’s address today during the general audience, which was held in Paul VI Hall.
* * *
Dear brothers and sisters,
In the catecheses of recent weeks I have presented some aspects of Medieval theology. However Christian faith, profoundly rooted in the men and women of those centuries, did not only give origin to masterpieces of theological literature, of thought and of faith. It also inspired one of the loftiest artistic creations of universal civilization: the cathedrals, true glory of the Christian Middle Ages. In fact, for almost three centuries, beginning in the 11th century, Europe witnessed an extraordinary artistic fervor. An ancient chronicler describes thus the enthusiasm and industry of that time: “It happened that the whole world, but especially in Italy and in Gaul, churches began to be reconstructed, although many, being in good conditions, had no need of this restoration. It was as though one village and another competed; it was as if the world, shaking off its old rags, wished to be clothed everywhere in the white garment of new churches. In sum, almost all the cathedral churches, a great number of monastic churches, and even village chapels, were then restored by the faithful” (Rodolfo el Glabro, Historiarum 3,4).
Several factors contributed to this rebirth of religious architecture. First of all, more favorable historical conditions, such as greater political security, accompanied by a constant increase in the population and the progressive development of cities, of exchanges and of wealth. Moreover, architects found increasingly elaborate technical solutions to increase the dimension of buildings, ensuring at the same time their firmness and majesty. However, it was thanks primarily to the spiritual ardor and zeal of monasticism then in full expansion that abbey churches were erected, where the liturgy could be celebrated with dignity and solemnity, and the faithful could remain in prayer, attracted by the veneration of the relics of the saints, object of countless pilgrimages. Thus the Romanesque churches and cathedrals were born, characterized by their longitudinal development along the naves to house numerous faithful; very solid churches, with thick walls, stone vaults and simple and essential lines.
A novelty is represented by the introduction of sculptures. As Romanesque churches were the place of monastic prayer and the faithful’s worship, the sculptors, rather than being concerned with technical perfection, took care above all of the educational end. It was necessary to arouse in souls strong impressions, feelings that could incite them to flee from vice and evil and practice virtue, goodness — the recurrent theme was the representation of Christ as Universal Judge, surrounded by the personages of revelation. In general it is Romanesque facades that offer this representation, to underline that Christ is the door that leads to heaven. The faithful, crossing the threshold of the sacred building, entered a time and space that were different from those of ordinary life. Beyond the main door of the church, believers in the sovereign, just and merciful Christ could — the artists hoped — anticipate eternal happiness in the celebration of the liturgy and in acts of piety carried out inside the sacred building.
In the 12th and 13th centuries, beginning in the north of France, another type of architecture spread in the construction of sacred buildings: the Gothic. This style had two new characteristics as compared to the Romanesque: the vertical thrust and luminosity. Gothic cathedrals showed a synthesis of faith and art expressed harmoniously through the universal and fascinating language of beauty, which still today awakens wonder. Thanks to the introduction of pointed vaults, which were supported by robust pillars, it was possible to notably raise the height [of these churches]. The thrust to the sublime was an invitation to prayer and at the same time was a prayer. The Gothic cathedral thus wished to translate in its architectural lines souls longing for God. Moreover, with the new technical solutions, the perimeter walls could be penetrated and embellished by colorful stained glass windows. In other words, the windows were transformed into great luminous figures, very adapted to instructing the people in the faith. In them — scene by scene — were narrated the life of a saint, a parable or other biblical events. From the painted windows a cascade of light was shed on the faithful to narrate to them the history of salvation and to involve them in this history.
Another merit of the Gothic cathedrals was the fact that, in their construction and decoration, the Christian and civil community participated in a different but coordinated way; the poor and the powerful, the illiterate and the learned participated, because in this common house all believers were instructed in the faith. Gothic sculpture made of cathedrals a “Bible of stone,” representing the episodes of the Gospel and illustrating the contents of the Liturgical Year, from Christmas to the Lord’s glorification. Spreading ever more in those centuries, moreover, was the perception of the Lord’s humanity, and the sufferings of his Passion were represented in a realistic way: The suffering Christ (Christus patiens) became an image loved by all, and able to inspire piety and repentance for sins. Not lacking were the personages of the Old Testament, whose history became familiar to the faithful in such a way that they frequented the cathedrals as part of the one, common history of salvation. With their faces full of beauty, tenderness, intelligence, Gothic sculpture of the 13th century reveals a happy and serene piety, which is pleased to emanate a heartfelt and filial devotion to the Mother of God, seen at times as a young, smiling and maternal woman, and represented primarily as the sovereign of heaven and earth, powerful and merciful.
The faithful who filled the Gothic cathedrals wanted to find in them artistic expressions that recalled the saints, models of Christian life and intercessors before God. And there was no lack of “lay” manifestations of existence; hence there appeared here and there representations of work in the fields, in the sciences and in the arts. Everything was oriented and offered to God in the place where the liturgy was celebrated. We can understand better the meaning that was attributed to a Gothic cathedral, considering the text of an inscription on the main door of St. Denis in Paris: “Passer-by, you who want to praise the beauty of these doors, do not be dazzled either by the gold or the magnificence, but by the laborious work. Here shines a famous work, but may the heavens allow that this famous work which shines make spirits shine, so that with luminous truths they will walk toward the true light, where Christ is the true door.”
Dear brothers and sisters, I now wish to underline two elements of Romanesque and Gothic art, which are also useful for us.
The first: the works of art born in Europe in past centuries are incomprehensible if one does not take into account the religious soul that inspired them. Marc Chagall, an artist who has always given testimony of the encounter between aesthetics and faith, wrote that “for centuries painters have dyed their brush in that colored alphabet that is the Bible.” When faith, celebrated in a particular way in the liturgy, encounters art, a profound synchrony is created, because both can and want to praise God, making the Invisible visible. I would like to share this in the meeting with artists on Nov. 21, renewing that proposal of friendship between Christian spirituality and art, desired by my venerated predecessors, in particular by the Servants of God Paul VI and John Paul II.
The second element: the force of the Romanesque style and the splendor of the Gothic cathedrals remind us that the via pilchritudinis, the way of beauty, is a privileged and fascinating way to approach the Mystery of God. What is beauty, which writers, poets, musicians, and artists contemplate and translate into their language, if not the reflection of the splendor of the Eternal Word made flesh? St. Augustine states: “Ask the beauty of the earth, ask the beauty of the sea, ask the beauty of the ample and diffused air. Ask the beauty of heaven, ask the order of the stars, ask the sun, which with its splendor brightens the day; ask the moon, which with its clarity moderates the darkness of night. Ask the beasts that move in the water, that walk on the earth, that fly in the air: souls that hide, bodies that show themselves; the visible that lets itself be guided, the invisible that guides. Ask them! All will answer you: Look at us, we are beautiful! Their beauty makes them known. This mutable beauty, who has created it if not Immutable Beauty?” (Sermo CCXLI, 2: PL 38, 1134).
Dear brothers and sisters, may the Lord help us to rediscover the way of beauty as one of the ways, perhaps the most attractive and fascinating, to be able to find and love God.
St. Colman’s Cathedral, Cobh, Co. Cork
The Conservation maintenance Plan for Cobh Cathedral consists of some 12 phases. In general, this is a welcome development – teh FOSCC have for long been deploring the fact that the maintenance of this important building has had no structural organisation and no specific on-going maintenhjance checks.
The first 4 phases -designed for the most part to stop water ingress will cost Euro 714,052.00. And that is only for starters.
More worrying however, is phase 12. Here we are back to liturgical requirements again. Certainly, no financial support can be given to the current Cathedral Restoration Project until we have a bit up-front honesty and transparency this time about what the next round of “liturgical requirements” is destined to bring.
St. Colman’s Cathedral Cobh, Co. Cork
PS: Despite gushing affirmations that the Cathedral authorities have undertaken extensive public consultation information on the Cathedral situation before applying to the Heritage Council for money, it has to be pointed out that none of the information which has come to hand has ever been publicly mentioned to anyone in Cobh – let alone the diocese of Cloyne.
