Искусства и ремесла Средневековья

234 Arts and Crafts in the l\1iddle Ages

fold of the dгapery is full of life and action ,Yithout being оvег realistic. There is mucl1 in comшon bet\\reen tl1is pleasing statue апd the Virgins of the Pisani in Italy. Pгofessoг Moore coпsideгs the statue of the ''il'gin on the Portal of t, he Yirgin at the \Yest end of Nоtге Dаше in Paгis as about tЬе best examplr of Gothic figuгe sculpture iп Fгance. Не says fuгtheг that the finest statнes iп portals of any age аге tlюse of the noгth рогсl1 at Paris. The Virgin 11еге is maгvelloнsly fiпe also. It comblпes the dignity and шош1шепtаl qualities of the fiгst of tЪе Virgiпs at Amiens, ,Yith the living buoy­ ancy of the \ Т irgin on the Gilded Poгtal. It is tЬе clear result of а study of nature grafted on Byzantine tra­ ditions. It dates f1·om 1250. ,v"Ъile sculptш-e ,vas practisecl cl1iefiy Ьу monastic :нtists, it гetaiпed the archaic and tгaditional elements. "\Vhen trained carvel's froш secнlar life began to take the cl1isel, tho spiгit of tЬе world enteгed in. For а time tliis ,vas а шarked improvement: later tl1e pendulum swung too fш·, and decadence set in. А favourite device on carved tympana above portals \\'as the Last Judgmeпt. MicЬael "·itl1 the scales, engaged in \Yeighing soнls, "·as the tall ceпtral figure, and tЬе t\\·o depressed sauceгs of the scales Ьеlр consideraЬly in filliпg the triangнlar space нsнally left оуег а Gothic doorway. At CЬart1·es, theгe is an ех�шрlе of tЬis subject, in ,vЬich Moгtal Sin, typified Ьу а deYi] and t\\ r o toads, аге being \Yeighed against tЬе soul of а de­ parted hего. As is customaгy in sucЪ compositions,