RONOLOGICAL SKETCH.

An early, middle, and late period can be distinguished in dealing with
Spanish Gothic. The first period reaches to the first quarter of the
thirteenth century, the second occupies the remainder of the
thirteenth and the fourteenth centuries, the third completes the
fifteenth and runs on into part of the sixteenth.

The early style is one of much purity and dignity, and is developed
directly from the Romanesque of the country. The cathedral of St. Iago
di Compostella, a fine cruciform church of round-arched Gothic, with a
magnificent western portal,[28] recalling the great lateral porches at
Chartres, is an early and fine example. Like other churches of the
type in Spain, it is far plainer inside than out, but it is vaulted
throughout.

The cathedral of Zamora, and those of Tarragona and Salamanca must
also be referred to. In each of these, the most thoroughly Spanish
feature is a dome, occupying the crossing of the nave and transepts,
and apparently better developed than those in early German churches or
in Italian ones. It is called in Spanish the _cimborio_. This feature
was constructed so as to consist of an inner dome, decorated by ribs
thrown over the central space, and carried by pendentives; having
above it a separate outer dome somewhat higher and often richly
decorated. This feature unfortunately disappeared when the French
designs of the thirteenth century began to be the rage. A peculiarity
of plan, however, which was retained throughout the whole Gothic
period in Spain, is to be found in the early churches; it consists of
an inclosure for the choir quite in the body of the church, and often
west of the transepts,--in such a position, in fact, as the choir at
Westminster Abbey occupies. A third peculiarity is the addition of an
outer aisle, not unlike the arcade of a cloister, to the side walls of
the churches, possibly with a view of protecting them from heat.

With the thirteenth century a strong passion for churches, closely
resembling those being erected in France at the same time, set in, as
has just been remarked. Accordingly the cathedrals of Toledo, Burgos,
and Leon, approach very closely to French types. Toledo is very large,
five aisled, and with a vast chevet. Its exterior is unfinished, but
the dignity of its fine interior may be well understood from the
illustration (Fig. 58) here given. Burgos is not so ambitious in size
as Toledo, but has a florid exterior of late archi