Beautiful Beasts and Beings at Sainte-Chapelle...

On a bright Spring day, light flooded into Sainte-Chapelle through the blindingly beautiful stained-glass windows in a myriad of dazzling colour. Although not my first visit, I had not yet seen the chapel in its full glory with the effects of sunlight illuminating the glass bays, like a vast scattering of millefiori... However, I will save that for another post.

This time, it was the strange sculpted beasts that lurked across the architectural structure of the chapel that fascinated me the most, with their incredible detail that could easily be overlooked since frequently placed in inaccessible places that lead the visitors to contort the body as much as the beasts portrayed high above them! Many of these beastly beings were set as part of the Last Judgment scenes that play out around the entrance of the upper chapel.

The twisted, grotesque yet humourous expressions and positions of the diabolic figures from Hell are offset by the calm simplicity of the bas-reliefs below, depicting elements from the Old Testament, all treated with the same intricate detail. I love the sheepish look of the dragon in the scene below...

And the following trio of moles, chewing on a worm whilst another docile dragon carries on with its business, regardless...

Meanwhile the animals mount two by two into Noah's ark in this magical representation. A nonchalant monkey looks on, scratching itself whilst observing the other creatures, which either reluctantly climb the ramp (the foxes) or diligently make their way up (the tortoises) or obediently follow the others (the donkeys)...

I initially thought all these sculpted pieces were remarkably well-preserved original work, dating back to the 13th century when Louis IX required a private chapel to house his sacred relics, but in fact they were created some 5OO years later to replace the sculpture destroyed during the Revolution years.

This was the work of the sculptor-restorer, Adolphe-Victor Geoffroy-Dechaume (1816-1892), who used the remaining traces of the original pieces of Sainte-Chapelle, along with copies from cathedral sculpture of the same period - notably Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rouen. The devotion of this great man to safeguard the traces of Medieval art is incredible, along with the efforts of Prosper Mérimée (1803-1870) - better known as being the author of Carmen) - and Hugues Krafft (1853-1935). Thank goodness for their insight, without which so much precious art would be lost...