ry and Martha. The figures are long and stiff, and there is
a certain quality in the treatment of draperies not unlike that
in the figures at Chartres.

Then follows the very early Gothic, like the delightful
little spandrils in the chapter house at Salisbury, and at Westminster,
familiar to all travellers. They are full of life, partly through the
unanatomic contortions by means of which they are made to express
their emotions. Often one sees elbows bent the wrong way to emphasize
the gesture of denunciation, or a foot stepping quite across the
instep of its mate in order to suggest speed of motion. Early Gothic
work in England is usually bas-relief; one does not find the statue
as early as in France. In 1176 William of Sens went over to England,
to work on Canterbury Cathedral, and after that French influence
was felt in most of the best English work in that century. Before
the year 1200 there was little more than ornamented spaces, enriched
by carving; after that time, figure sculpture began in earnest,
and, in statues and in effigies, became a large part of the
craftsmanship of the thirteenth century.

The transition was gradual. First small separate heads began to
obtain, as corbels, and were bracketed at the junctures of the
arch-mouldings in the arcade and triforium of churches. Then on
the capitals little figures began to emerge from the clusters of
foliage. In many cases the figures are very inferior to the faces,
as if more time and study had been given to expressing emotions
than to displaying form. The grotesque became very general. Satire
and caricature had no other vehicle in the Middle Ages than the
carvings in and out of the buildings, for the cartoon had not yet
become possible, and painting offered but a limited scope to the
wit, especially in the North; in Italy this outlet for humour was
added to that of the sculptor.

Of the special examples of great figure sculpture in England the
facade at Wells is usually considered the most significant. The
angel choir at Lincoln, too, has great interest; there is real
power in some of the figures, especially the angel with the flaming
sword driving Adam and Eve from Eden, and the one holding aloft a
small figure,--probably typical of the Creation. At Salisbury, too,
there is much splendid figure sculpture; it is cause for regret
that the names of so few of the craftsmen have survived.

Wells Cathedral is one of the most interesting spots in which to
study