The Craftsman, Vol. 2 April, 1902 (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from The Craftsman, Vol. 2: April, 1902 Oftentimes, even the beasts and reptiles which symbolized the powers of evil and darkness, form an integral part of the design; the bodies winding through the strands, and the heads making terminal ornaments. Occasionally, too, the human ii re is frankly apparent in the design, as is the case in the1 Gospel of Mac Regol at Oxford; or else, in singular modification, it may be traced by the in itiated eye, as on the shaft of a noted wayside cross near Ashbourne, En land. Here, by the repetition of the units of an interlace geometrical desi a human trunk is simulated; the head is suggestedgtby an elongated oval terminal loop; the legs by se rated strands pendent from the interlaced pattern; and e feet by the frayed ends of the strands turned at right angles to their length. These and other equally fanciful conceits originated in a very remote past, and arose from the desire of man to put him self in relation with the forces of nature, and to express that desire in visible form. Then, slowly, as the aesthetic faculty was developed in these Northern pe les by ad vancing civilization, the symbolism was lost, caving be hind it that element of the grotesque which carries their restricted art to so high a place in the histo of ment. Indeed, to examine in a critical sense lthese illuminated manuscripts is to agree with the saying of William Morris, that the only work of art which sur passes a complete mediaeval book is a complete mediaeval building. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.