Those cathedrals which were originally monastic, and those monastic churches which had parochial naves.—In these (and it will be seen later, more especially in the Cistercian foundations), there were two solid stone screens, of which one was at the east end of the nave, with an altar, the Jesus altar, or Holy Cross altar, or parish altar, in the midst of its western front, and a door on either side. This was the rood-screen, and would have the rood with its belongings on its loft or on a transverse beam a little above it. (Mention will be made presently of the parish rood-screen and loft which was still further westwards.) Between the two screens was an interval, generally of one bay, which, among the Cistercians, was allotted to the inmates of the infirmary, the sick, old, and infirm. At Norwich Cathedral this interspace is the Chapel of Our Lady of Pity; the same was probably the case at Peterborough, where an altar is named, “of Our Ladies Lamentation,” and at Durham.
Passing through the interval we should come to the second screen, also of stone, and with a loft. On this would be the organ, and there would be a projecting feature eastwards from which the Gospels, Epistles, and Lessons might be read, or portions of the service chanted. A brief extract from The Rites of Durham,[100] followed by a citation of examples, some of which are destroyed and some fortunately extant, will make this arrangement, I hope, quite clear. After speaking of “the pair of organs over the quire dore” in the eastern screen, the writer says:—
“There” (i.e. in the same loft) “was also a Lanterne of wood, like unto a Pulpit, standing and adjoyning to the Wood Organs over the Quire door, where they had wont to sing the nine Lessons in the old time on principal dayes, standinge with their faces towards the high Altar” (pp. 27-28).
Then, with regard to the western screen, his account runs as follows:—
“In the Body of the Church, betwixt two of the highest Pillars supporting, and holding up the West side of the Lantern, over against the Quire door, there was an Altar, called Jesus-Altar,” &c. “And on the backside of that saide Altar there was a fair high stone Wall: and at either end of the Wall there was a door, which was lock’d every night, called the two Rood-doors, for the Procession to go and come in at; and betwixt those two doors was Jesus-Altar placed, as is aforesaid” (p. 54).
This altar was protected by a screen “of wainscot,” and had a “table” or triptych over it:—
“There was also, in the height of the said Wall, from pillar to pillar, the whole story and Passion of our Lord wrought in stone, most curiously and most finely gilt. And also above the said Story and Passion, was all the whole story and the Pictures of the twelve Apostles,” &c. “And on the height above all the foresaid story from Pillar to Pillar, was set up a border very artificially wrought in stone with mervellous fine colours, very curiously and excellent finely gilt, with branches and flowers,” &c. “And also above the height of all, upon the Wall, did stand the goodliest and most famous Rood that was in all this land, with the Picture of Mary on the one side of our Saviour and the Picture of John on the other, with two splendent and glistering Arch-angels, one on the one side of Mary and the other on the other side of John,” &c. “Also on the backside of the said Rood before the quire door there was a loft,” &c. (pp. 56-57).
This arrangement is scarcely mentioned by writers on foreign rood-screens, though Pugin gives a hint of it in his description of the Domkirche—the Cathedral—of Lübeck, which has a central altar and side doors, whereof he has given a plate, and two bays to the westward of this screen there is a rood-beam supporting the rood. There is an iron screen also, with central altar and side doors, in Freiburg, Switzerland.
In England this double screen seems to have been most characteristic of Cistercian churches. Thus, at Louth Park Abbey there was a stone screen, called the pulpitum, at the west end of the choir, extending across the nave, whereon stood the organs, &c. In the middle of the screen was the choir door or lower entrance (inferior introitus). The bay west of the pulpitum (which was sometimes of considerable thickness, with an altar on either side the quire door, as at Jervaulx) was open, and formed the retro-quire, where those who were extra-chorum for a time (e.g. the minuti, i.e. those who had been let blood), and such of the infirm as could attend, might hear the services.