Искусства и ремесла Средневековья

312 A11s and Crafts in the �Iiddle Ages

of surfасе on ,vhicl1 the sun's 1·ays ,voнld glint in а tгyiпg manncr, it ,vas usual to lay the gold cubcs i11 а sligl1tly irregulai· manne1·, so that each facet, as it ,Уе1·е, should reflcct at а diffeгent aпgle, and thc tcxture, especially in tЬе gold groнnds, never became monotoпous. One does not rcalize the impoгtance of this custom нntil опе sees а cheap modern шosaic laid absolutely flat, and then it is cvident how necessary this broken surface is to good effect. Апу onc who has tгied to analyze the reasoп fог the superiority of old Fгench stained glass over апу other, ,vill Ье suгpгised, if Ье goes close to the ,vall, undcr one of the maгvellous wiпdo,vs of Chartгes, for instancc, and looks нр, to see that tЬе whole fabгic is ,Yarped апd Ьепt at а tlюusand angles, - it is not only the quality of the ancient glass, nог its соlош, that gives this unattainaЫe expгession to these ,vindo,vs, but the accidental warping and ,vсаг of ceпtuгies Ьаvс laid each Ьit of glass at а diffcгent aпgle, so that the refraction of the light is qнite diffeгent frош any possiЫe reflection on the smooth sшface of а mоdегп windo,v. The dangeгs of а сlеаг gold gгонпd ,vcre felt тоге fully Ьу the ,vorkeгs at Ravenna and Rome, than in Venice. Architectuгal scl1emes wеге introduced to break up the surface: clouds and backgгotшds, fields of flowers, and trees, and such deviccs, ,vere used to pгevent the monotony of the unbrokeп glint. Внt in Venice the decorators were brave; their faith in thei1· шater�al was unbounded, and they not only frankly laid gold in enoгmous masses on flat ,vall and cupola, but thcy even