The south wall of the nave extends considerably westwards beyond the present west end, and contains the remains of a vaulting shaft in the position it would naturally have occupied in the spacing of the bays. This seems to show that the cathedral was originally of greater length than it now is by at least 34 feet, while it may have extended westwards an unknown number of bays, each of which would measure 16 feet in width. The south side of this wall (which is partly built against with modern erections) shows traces of early arcading. The north wall of the nave also projects westwards from the present west end for a distance of about 7 feet. When the original west wall fell, it may have destroyed a few of the western bays, and this possibly induced Bishop Wishart, when he rebuilt the west end, to omit these bays, and shorten the cathedral by so much.
Fig. 449. St. Andrews Cathedral.
Cap of Angle Shafts of
Buttresses
and Corbel of Cornice.
There is a very puzzling feature in connection with this west front ([Fig. 450]) which has never been satisfactorily explained. On each side of the doorway there rises a vaulting shaft, a few feet higher than the level of the capitals of the doorway. A similar shaft will be observed at the angle of the west front and the south wall. Rising from these shafts are incomplete ragglets, indicating the form of vaults against the west façade, thus suggesting that there was a western porch. But such a feature is quite incompatible with the design of the west end, for had there been such a porch, it would have cut the arcade above the doorway in two, which is a most unlikely idea. The vaulting shafts and arches springing from them are a part of the original design and construction. The arcade also seems at first sight to be so, hence the difficulty of reconciling these features with the existence of a western porch. The marks of the arch rise to the apex in the south aisle, and the arch head might have been completed without interfering with the arcade. Over the central door the marks of the arch are carried up only as far as the string course beneath the first arcade. This fact, together with the later character of the upper part of the building, would seem to indicate that there has been a change in the design, and that the original intention of having a wide porch extending along the whole of the west end has been departed from after the first story was built up to the level of the above string course, all above that point being of later design and execution. The style of the architecture confirms this view. It may be mentioned that the arcade over the west door is very similar to that over the “Pends” (see [Fig. 456]), which is, undoubtedly, a late structure. The lower story of the west end, which is in the first pointed style, would thus appear to be all that remains of the façade erected by Bishop Wishart; while the upper portion above the first string course was rebuilt at a later date, as will be explained further on.
Fig. 450.—St. Andrews Cathedral. West Front.