CHAPTER XII.
CRYPTS.
The crypts so generally found beneath our cathedrals and abbeys, and so frequently under our churches, rarely extend beyond the choir or chancel and its aisles, and are sometimes of very small dimensions. They are often coeval with the upper parts of the building, and although not so elaborate in ornamentation as the fabric they support, they are almost without exception well constructed and well finished pieces of building. In some cases the crypt is of much older date than any portion of the superstructure, as is the case at York, Worcester and Rochester cathedrals. During the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the roofs were often richly groined, and upheld by cylindrical columns or clustered piers, and furnished with handsome bases and decorated capitals. There is abundant evidence that crypts were at one time furnished with altars, piscinas, and the various fittings requisite for the celebration of the mass, and they were used as sepulchres, wherein the shrines of relics and martyrs were carefully preserved. Some authorities claim a purely Saxon origin for the crypts at Ripon Cathedral, Hexham Abbey, and Repton Church, Derbyshire. The Ripon example is a plain barrel-vaulted chamber, about 11 ft. long and 8 ft. wide, with no pillars or ornament of any kind. It is popularly known as S. Wilfrid's Needle, but the exact origin of the name is lost in obscurity. The Hexham crypt is very similar in character, but is somewhat longer, being more than 13 ft. long and 8 ft. wide. As at Ripon, there are hollows or shallow niches in the walls in which lamps may possibly have been placed. The third reputed Saxon crypt is that at Repton, but it has little in common with the other two, its superficial area being nearly twice as great and the roof is supported on four columns, with plain square capitals rudely carved, and bearing much similarity to early Norman work.
The position of the crypt varies. At Beverley Minster it is on the south side of the south-west tower; in Hereford Cathedral it is under a side chapel, while at Lastingham, in Yorkshire, the crypt extends under the whole of the church, including the apse. At Wells the crypt is beneath the chapter-house, and Durham Cathedral has three crypts, one under what was the dormitory, another beneath the refectory, and the third under the prior's chapel. Of crypts of Norman date we have many examples, of which, perhaps, our best are those at Gloucester, Worcester, Canterbury and Winchester Cathedrals, while Canterbury is probably the largest of them all. Good crypts are also found at Wimborne Minster, Christchurch Priory, and in our smaller churches at Repton and S. Peter's-in-the-East, Oxford.
The Wimborne crypt is lighted by four windows. The vaulting is supported by two pairs of pillars which form three aisles, each of three bays. Mr. Perkins, in his book on Wimborne Minster, says, "On each side of the place where the altar stood there are two openings into the choir aisles. The exteriors of these are of the same form and size as the crypt windows, but they are deeply splayed inside, and probably were used as hagioscopes or squints, to allow those kneeling in the choir aisles to see the priest celebrating mass at the crypt altar." The crypt at Christchurch is of Norman date, and now serves as a vault for the Malmesbury family. The crypt of Canterbury Cathedral is claimed and justly claimed, perhaps, as the largest and most beautiful in England. It is thought to contain fragments of Roman and Saxon work, and much of it dates from the days of S. Anselm (1096-1100). It was here that the remains of S. Thomas à Becket lay from 1170 to 1220, and "here that Henry II., fasting and discrowned, with naked feet, bared back, and streaming tears, performed on July 12th, 1174, the memorable penance for his share in the murder of the great Archbishop."
It was here too, in later times that the Walloons were granted, by Queen Elizabeth, the privilege of carrying on their silk-weaving, and it was also reserved as a place of worship for French Protestants.
CHAPTER XIII.
HOW TO DESCRIBE AN OLD CHURCH.
Having carefully read the foregoing chapters, it should be possible for anyone interested in the subject to be able to write a fairly accurate description of any old church. The record should, if possible, be amplified with sketches or photographs.