The Industrial Arts in Spain Part 25

Ferrara, Andres, Zaragoza, 16th century.

Picado, Jeronimo, Calatayud, 1722.

Nieva, Luis, Calatayud, 17th century.

Munester, Andres, Calatayud, 18th century.

FURNITURE.

It is difficult to give an account of the furniture used in Spain from the earliest times, owing to the absence of specimens belonging to the Roman or Visigothic period. We are safe, however, in affirming that, during the domination of the Romans, the same models were used in Spain as in Rome itself, the similarity between objects of other kinds which exists, and the continual habit of the Romans of imposing their culture on the countries which they conquered, is sufficient to justify this idea. During the first period of the Christian era until about the 11th century, other objects which have reached us as gold and silversmiths'

work, seem to prove that all industrial art work, including furniture must have been Cla.s.sic, Byzantine, or Oriental in form, according to the period in which these styles predominated. The Roman or Cla.s.sical style must have lasted for a considerable time, if we judge by the texts given by San Isidoro, in his "Etymologies," lib. xx., cap. xi. and xii. San Isidoro lived in the 7th century of our era. We find he mentions the words, _de lectis et sellis_, _de vehiculis_, which refer to furniture of the Roman period; but we do not meet with any distinctive terms which can be applied to the time in which he lived, on the contrary he comments on phrases and alludes to the forms of objects in the same manner as Rufus, Varrus, and other cla.s.sical writers.

At the invasion of the Arabs in the beginning of the 8th century the Byzantine element increased in its application to furniture. During the reign of the caliphs, contemporary authors tell us that luxury of decoration of every kind was carried to a great extent. The description of the pulpit or _minbar_ of the mosque of Cordova will give an idea of its richness. Al Makkari, in his "History of Mohammedan Dynasties in Spain," says, "the length of the Mihrab was 8 cubits; its breadth, 7 cubits; the height of its dome, 13 cubits. There stood on one side a pulpit, constructed by Alhahem, equalled by none other in the world for workmanship and materials. It was made of ivory and exquisite woods, such as ebony, sandal, Indian plantain, citron wood, aloe, and so forth, at the expense of 3,575 dinars: the steps by which it was ascended were nine in number. Another writer says it was formed of 36,000 pieces of wood fastened together by gold and silver nails, occasionally encrusted with precious stones, and its construction lasted for seven years; eight artists being daily employed on it," vol. i. p. 222.

Edrisi, who lived at Cordova at the beginning of the 12th century, describes this pulpit in the same manner. It was to be seen in the cathedral of Cordova as late as the 16th century, when it was destroyed, and its materials employed in the construction of an altar. An Arab _minbar_ is in the South Kensington Museum, which came from Cairo, and although belonging to the last centuries of the Middle Ages, it will give an idea of this structure and its elaborate workmanship.

The oldest specimen of furniture which exists in Spain, belonging to Christian art, is the shrine of San Millan de la Cogulla, in the province of La Rioja, described in _Ivories_, p. 134. This casket or shrine was made by the orders of King Sancho el Mayor, in 1033, in order to preserve the relics of San Millan. It is of wood, covered with 22 compartments of highly interesting ivory plaques, representing episodes from the life of the Saint. The names of the artists, _Apparitio_ and _Rodolpho_, appear on it. In 1808 the French stripped the shrine of its gold and silver ornaments, but, most fortunately, left the casket and its ivory carvings behind.

Another interesting object, which is useful for ill.u.s.trating furniture in Spain in the 12th century, is the Bishop's throne in the cathedral of Gerona. It is of white marble of one piece, covered with a simple ornamentation in excellent taste, in a similar style, and for the same purpose, as the throne of San Clemente in Rome. It is raised at the back of the altar, and is ascended by thirteen steps. The Bishop sits on this throne after the first purification, and continues there until the Offertory, when he descends and finishes the ma.s.s at the altar; owing to the existence of this chair, one of the most ancient rites of Catholicism has been preserved at Gerona.

Mention must also be made of the shrine in which the remains of Queen Urraca are kept in the cathedral of Palencia, and the Cofre del Cid in the cathedral of Burgos, although they are more interesting for their antiquity than their artistic merit.

During the 13th century furniture in Spain must have been similar to that used in other countries, it was influenced by French and Italian forms; from which, as was the case in architecture, these models were constantly copied. Some idea of this is given in the triptych known by the name of the Tablas Alfonsinas, which is fully described in Gold and Silver Work. (See woodcut on p. 17.)

The princ.i.p.al novelty which we find in Spain in this industry consists in the combination of the Christian and Moorish styles applied to furniture. A very remarkable specimen exists at the Academia de la Historia, consisting of a reliquary, triptych or armoire of very large dimensions, formerly in the church of the Monasterio of Piedra in Aragon. It is 13 feet wide and 8 feet high. When the two doors are closed six compartments appear on each, surrounded by a border headed by a wide cornice. This cornice is divided in sixteen s.p.a.ces formed by arches adorned with stalact.i.te ornamentation in the Moorish style; inside each span is painted the figure of a saint. In the twelve compartments which form the doors there are subjects from the life of Our Lord, beginning with the Annunciation, and ending with the Descent from the Cross painted in excellent taste. The border which surrounds these doors is formed of a beautiful geometrical ornamentation, in the purest Oriental style; in the upper and lower part appears the following inscription in Gothic characters, which gives us the date in which this object was made.

Tabernaculum hoc vocabitur aula Dei quia vere Dominis est in loco isto.

Fuit autem constructum ad honorem et reverentiam sacratissimi corporis Domini nostri Ihu Xpi et pasionis ejusdem nec non ad honorem == et reverentiam sanctissime genitricis ejusdem et totius celestis curie et sanctorum ... at fuit ... depictum anno MCCCXC. anima ordinatoris requiescat ... sinu salvatoris. Amen.

When this triptych is opened several compartments appear, formed by cusped Gothic arches, placed within others, in the form of a mitre divided by pinnacles. The ornamentation which fills the vacant s.p.a.ce between the arches, and the seven banderoles in the lower part are in pure Gothic style, without a reminiscence of Moorish art. In the central banderole appears the name of _Dopnus Martinus Poncii Abbas_, the abbot of the monastery where this reliquary was made, and the person by whom the expense was probably borne. The inside of the doors is divided into two horizontal zones, which include half the total size. The upper zone is covered with geometrical tracery, similar to the outer borders. The lower one is divided into four compartments for each leaf of the door, eight within two, which are formed by cusped Gothic arches; within these s.p.a.ces are painted standing figures of angels holding musical instruments in their hands and nimbi round their heads. The details and forms of the instruments and delicate ornamentation of the costumes and carpets, const.i.tute one of the most beautiful details of this triptych.

These details and several of the architectural lines of the Gothic part of this ornamentation denote an Italian influence, probably Sicilian, for this province belonged then to the crown of Aragon. This triptych is richly gilt, and painted inside and out, and is one of the finest and most remarkable specimens of the kind which exist in any country. A plate may be seen in "Mus. Esp. de Antiguedades," vol. vi., p. 307.

A very interesting specimen of this combination of styles is a recess or cupboard of the 14th century, which is at the Kensington Museum, No.

1764, 71, [see woodcut]. It is 5 feet 4 inches high, by 8 feet wide; and is composed of an outer arch, with the tympani ornamented with fine arabesques in relief, made of stucco,--representing vine tendrils, leaves, and flowers, similar to those which appear in the Cosa de Mesa and other Moorish houses at Toledo. The arch is surrounded by two Latin inscriptions in Gothic characters, of which only the following words are legible + Autem transies per medium ilorum.... mente +. The first of these is from St. Luke, iv., v. 30, a pa.s.sage often quoted by alchemists.

This arch serves as a portal to the cupboard, which is about a foot deep, and is divided into two compartments with two rows of shelves.

Each of these is supported by a series of Moorish arches, the tympani of which are ornamented with tracery, or an ornamentation of leaves in a geometrical and Oriental manner. On the rim of the upper part is repeated the following inscription in African characters:

[Ill.u.s.tration: Arabic]

"Felicity and Fortune."

On the lower shelf are the following words in Spanish in Gothic characters: + Dios: te: salve: estrella: de: la: mannana: medicina: de: los: peccadores: reina + "Hail! morning star; medicine of sinners; queen."

[Ill.u.s.tration: "BOTICA DE LOS TEMPLARIOS." FROM TOLEDO. SOUTH KENSINGTON MUSEUM.]

This "Alhacena," or cupboard, existed formerly in the court of an old house at Toledo, known by the name of "Casa de la Parra," and is constantly called "Botica de los Templarios," the Templars' dispensary, probably because the Templars occupied the parish of St. Michael, in which the house stands, and because the word "medicine" is mentioned in the inscription.

In order to increase the list of these objects, which are unfortunately so rare, it is necessary to mention the organ case, decorated with fine Moorish tracery, in the chapel founded by Diego de Anaya, Archbishop of Seville in 1374, in the cloister of the cathedral of Salamanca.

Another specimen of furniture of interest of the 14th century is the shrine or casket containing the remains of San Isidoro, existing in the parish church of San Andres at Madrid. This casket is 7 feet 5 inches long; the cover is formed of two plain surfaces, forming a roof, which leaves a triangular pediment at each end. The shrine is made of wood, covered outside with a coat of painting in distemper, and is decorated with a series of painted compartments simulating pointed tricuspid arches let into others which are mitre-shaped; in the interior s.p.a.ces are painted a series of representations of the life of the saint. This object is extremely interesting: it is evidently of Spanish workmanship, although it has great resemblance with the Italian _ca.s.soni_ of the same period. See vol. iv. "Mus. Esp." p. 593, and "Monumentos Arquitectonicos"--livraison 67.

The most important period of artistic furniture in Spain must be looked for in the 15th and 16th centuries: we find in this time works decorated with sculptured figures and most delicate and exquisite ornamentation.

Nothing gives a better idea of this than the choir seats of Spanish cathedrals. The cathedrals in Spain are different to those of France and the north of Europe owing to the circ.u.mstance that the choir, or _coro_, is placed in the middle of the central nave, in the traditional form of the primitive basilicas, such as San Clemente at Rome, with the difference however, that towards the last centuries of the Middle Ages the _pluteus_ or walls that surround it, which are elevated about one yard from the floor, were turned into an enclosure or wall four or five yards in height. A s.p.a.ce is therefore set apart in the middle of the church, which, although spoiling the general effect of the nave, becomes, as is the case in most Spanish cathedrals, a museum of artistic objects of all kinds. The side facing the presbytery or high altar is enclosed by a _reja_. [See Iron and Bronze work.] In the three remaining sides stalls are placed against the wall, forming two rows, one near the floor, and the other raised about a yard from the lower ones. The general system adopted is a row of stalls separated from each other by the arms; the backs of the lower ones serving as stands for the books which are used by those who sit in the upper range. The subsellae are prolonged and form canopies, pinnacles, crest-work, and other varied ornamentation resting on columns. They are usually made of walnut wood, and there is not a single vacant s.p.a.ce which is left uncovered with figures or ornamentation in relief: the effect produced by the whole is admirable. The number of seats varies according to the size of the choir, or importance of the church.

It is probable that the earliest wood carvers who worked in Spain came from Flanders or Holland, if we judge by the decided Germanic character of the figures and ornamentation, and frequent mention made of foreign masters; but this industry very soon took root in Spain, and Spanish artists soon equalled or excelled their masters. The most important choir stalls carved in the Gothic style in Spain belong only to the last years of the 15th and beginning of the 16th century; those in the Renaissance style come immediately afterwards, and include the whole 16th century.

One of the finest is that of Leon, it is in the purest German-Gothic style, and may be considered as a masterpiece in its way: the large figures are as delicately carved as the small ones. The representations of the "Last Judgment" and "Tree of Jesse" are as beautiful as can be imagined. The choir at Zamora is also in the German style; the large figures which ornament it are splendid in effect. These stalls are fully described in "The Ecclesiologist," in the following manner: "The stalls, though not remarkably early, are very fine. The bishops, as usual, at the centre of the west nave; then three dignitaries on each side; then at each extremity of the west end a door into the nave; then on the north and south sides respectively twenty stalls with subsellae, which also are returned. All the panelling is very fine: but that at the back of the subsellae I will give at full, because the types of, and legends concerning Our Lord are so remarkably well chosen, that they may be useful as giving ideas to our own church builders, and might be introduced with great advantage in stained gla.s.s." "Ecclesiologist,"

vol. xiv., p. 363.

The stalls at the cathedral and church of Sto. Tomas of Avila, and cathedral of Burgos are also very fine. The _coro_ at Barcelona is extremely picturesque; at the backs of the stalls are placed the coats of arms of the knights of the Golden Fleece, in a similar manner to those of St. George's Chapel at Windsor; among these we find the arms of Henry the VIIIth. In 1519 the Emperor Charles V. held at Barcelona a chapter of this Order, the only one which has ever been held in Spain.

It would take too much s.p.a.ce to enumerate the choir seats in Spain worthy of notice; those at Toledo rank as the most important, as including the last period of the Gothic and best Renaissance styles.

This _coro_ contains 45 stalls in the lower, and 71 in the upper part.

Mr. Street fully describes the lower part in his "Gothic Architecture in Spain," p. 252, and says: "The lower range of stalls, fifty in number, are the work of Maestro Rodrigo, circa A.D. 1495; and the upper range were executed, half by Berruguete and half by Felipe de Borgona, A.D.

1543. The old stall ends are picturesque in outline, very large, and covered with tracery, panels and carvings with monkeys and other animals sitting on them. The upper range of stalls is raised by four steps, so that between the elbows of the lower stalls and the desk above them, are s.p.a.ces filled in with a magnificent series of bas reliefs, ill.u.s.trating the various incidents of the conquest of Granada. They were executed whilst the subjects depicted were fresh in the minds of the people, and are full of picturesque vigour and character. The names of the fortresses are inscribed on the walls; in some we have the siege, in others the surrender of the keys; in others the Catholic monarchs, accompanied by Cardinal Ximenes riding in triumph through the gates."

The upper stalls, although considered by Mr. Street "heavy dull Paganism," are among the most important artistic works existing in Spain. Their sculptures and ornamentation reproduce the Renaissance Italian style in its finest period. Columns of red jasper are combined with the walnut-wood carvings, and the termination of the upper part which rests on the wall is of white marble carved by the same artists.

Choir stalls, sharing the fate of other architectural works, followed the general path of decay after the 16th century. Those stalls at the cathedral of Malaga, which were carved in the 17th century by Jose Michael, Pedro de Mena, and Luis Ortiz, are worthy of mention: the figures in high relief at the back are very fine. This falling off of artistic feeling is particularly observable at the cathedral of Cordova; the stalls there, which were carved by Pedro Duque Cornejo in the 18th century, are admirable in richness of ornamentation, but the whole decoration is in the worst possible taste. The fine lecterns which are placed in the centres of the choirs are often good examples of carving.

An admirable model of this style exists at the cathedral of Zamora.

In treating of furniture of other kinds, the silver chair or throne of D^{n.} Martin de Aragon must figure in the first instance. It is described in "Gold and Silver Work," p. 19. In these and other objects which are not Oriental in style, constant reminiscences are observable of the similarity of ideas and forms with Italian or French objects. The large chests or _ca.s.soni_ of different sizes which are constantly met with in museums, or in private collections, are similar to objects of the same kind which abound in Italy. Some are covered with fine Gothic or Renaissance carvings in the same taste as the choir stalls, and are ornamented also with good iron-work. Some of them were made in the province of Cataluna of inlaid ivory, imitating in a coa.r.s.e manner Florentine and Milanese work. These objects were of the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th century. An excellent example exists at the cathedral of Toledo, near the Puerta de los Leones, consisting of an iron coffer covered with carved and repousse work.

A fine cupboard of walnut wood may be seen at the same cathedral which is unrivalled for its beauty. It is composed of an architectural order with six pilasters, forming five vacant s.p.a.ces completely covered with medallions, groups of children, flowers, and a mult.i.tude of subjects of ornamentation in reliefs, terminating with a frieze crowned with candelabra and salient points. This piece of furniture was made in 1549-1551, by the sculptor, Pedro Pardo, for holding vestments of the clergy. In 1780 a reproduction was made by Gregorio Lopez Durango: the original and the copy face each other in the room which is pa.s.sed on entering the Sala Capitular. As Spanish carved wood work of the beginning of the 16th century may be mentioned the specimens at the Kensington Museum, Nos. 245 and 246-64, of two panels with armorial shields.

During the 16th, but more especially the 17th, century it became very fashionable in Europe to use secretaires or cabinets to a great extent, which, if we calculate by those that still are found in private houses in Spain, have never been so numerous in any other country. A great variety of every description may be seen at the South Kensington Museum.

In looking through old inventories at Madrid, the number of these escritoires which decorated the rooms of the Palace is almost incredible. Many of them came from Italy, Flanders, or Germany. In a memorial drawn up by Pedro Gutierrez and presented to the King, begging for protection for this industry, he says: "The cabinets and escritoires, _contadores y bufetes_, which were worth 500, 600, and 700 reales when brought from Germany, are now made in Spain for 250 and 300 reales each." (Acad. de la Hist., N. 6, vol. iv. 371.) The quant.i.ty and importance of those brought from Germany is to be inferred from an edict promulgated by Philip III., in Valladolid in 1603, in which "cabinets of every kind coming from Nuremberg are not allowed to enter the country,"

ib. 518.

These cabinets were made in a great variety of ways. Some were, as we have seen, copied in Spain from foreign models, but the greater number const.i.tuted a characteristic industry of the Peninsula. Some were covered with wood carvings in a similar style to the large armoires in the Sala Capitular at Toledo. Others were known by the name of _Varguenos_, because the great centre of their manufacture is supposed to have existed at the village of Vargas in the province of Toledo.

These cabinets are effective; their geometrical ornamentation is a reminiscence of the Oriental style, and the iron work outside is very striking. A good specimen may be seen at the Kensington Museum, No.

1073, '71; a woodcut of the upper portion is given on the next page.

We also meet with cabinets and armoires with gla.s.s doors covered with tortoise-sh.e.l.l and gilt bronze. A splendid series of inlaid work of tortoise-sh.e.l.l, ebony, mother-of-pearl and ivory is preserved at the Sacristy of the Cartuja at Granada, made by a friar of the same convent, Manuel Vazquez, at the beginning of the last century. Cabinets of ebony, inlaid and covered with repousse silver work, must have been very generally made in Spain; silver was used to so great an extent after the conquest of America, that a law was issued in 1574 prohibiting with the utmost rigour the making and selling of this kind of merchandise, in order not to increase the scarcity of silver. "No cabinets, desks, coffers, braziers, etc., shall be manufactured of silver."

[Ill.u.s.tration: VARGUEnO CABINET. SPANISH. 16TH CENTURY. SOUTH KENSINGTON MUSEUM.]

Cabinets of inlaid ivory or different coloured woods which were originally imported from Italy and Germany were constantly reproduced in Spain, as will appear by the following dialogue:-- "How much has your worship paid for this cabinet? It is worth more than 40 ducats. What wood is it made of? The red one is made of mahogany from the Habana, and the black one is made of ebony, and the white one of ivory. You will find the workmanship excellent. Here you will find a finer cabinet.

Where was it made? It was brought with these chairs from Salamanca."

("Dialogos Familiares," by J. de Luna, Paris, 1669, p. 111.) Among cabinets inlaid with bone or ivory there is a peculiar style in which furniture brought from the Portuguese possessions in the East was imitated in a rough way. Some also have reached us in which the drawers are covered with embroidery in silks of different colours, exquisitely worked. In the 17th century furniture of different kinds was covered with embroidered silks. At the Kensington Museum there is an interesting coffer, which came from the Convent of Loeches, and was originally the gift of Count Duke de Olivares, Philip the IVth's minister.

The cabinets decorated with _pietre duri_, which are frequently met with in Spain were of foreign make. Madame d'Aunoy, in describing the house of a grandee of Spain in her "Voyage d'Espagne," p. 56, vol. ii., Lyon, 1643, says, "et de grands cabinets de pieces de rapport enrichis de pierreries, lesquels ne sont pas faits en Espagne: des tables d'argent d'entre eux, et des miroirs admirables tant pour leur grandeur que pour leurs riches bordures, dont les moins belles sont d'argent. Ce que j'ai trouve de plus beau sont des _escaparates_; une espece de pet.i.t cabinet ferme d'une seule glace et rempli de tout ce qu'on se peut figurer de plus rare." Cabinets ornamented with paintings on gla.s.s, or copper, or enamels came from Flanders, and some rare specimens of damasquine work were most probably Milanese manufacture.

In Cean Bermudez "Dicc Historico de los Profesores de Bellas Artes"