Saint-Gilles-du-Gard (Gard), west
façade. Photograph courtesy of
Whitney S.Stoddard.
end this heretical movement; St. Bernard spent summers preaching against it in the
1140s.
Much evidence in the construction of the portal leadsto the conclusion that the design
changed as work progressed. Blocks of limestone were inserted under the small marble
columns flanking the side portals and under the monumental figures across the entire
façade, resulting in the raising of all three portals. Five sculptors were responsible for
most of the façade sculpture: Brunus (Matthew [signed Brunus], Bartholomew, James
Major, and Paul); Thomas Master (Thomas, James the Less, Peter, and bases of central
portal); Soft Master (two Apostles and left-portal Virgin and Child of tympanum,
Preparation and Entry into Jerusalem); Hard Master (two Apostles, right portal,
Crucifixion, and lintel); Michael Master (Angel Michael, Archangel, and parts of left and
right portal). Soft Master, Hard Master, and Michael Master divided up the carving of the
upper frieze of the central portal.
The four Apostles by Brunus exhibit a massiveness and an anatomical articulation of
the body that result from the influence of Roman and early Christian sculpture. In spite of
this classical impact, the Apostles are placed either between pilasters or under friezes so
that they remain part of the wall (Romanesque), not added to the wall (Roman).
There is no agreement about the dating of the façade: dates from the late 11th century
to the early 13th have been proposed. Based on historical, architectural, iconographical,
and stylistic evidence, as well as relationships between Saint-Gilles and dated monuments
outside Provence, the accumulated evidence seems to point to the 1140s as the most
logical date.
The 16th century witnessed the destruction of the superstructure of Saint-Gilles. The
large Cluniac choir with ambulatory and radiating chapels exists only as a fragment. The
nave capitals, bases, and sections of the northern part of the choir have preserved their
12th-century sculpture.
Medieval france: an encyclopedia 1588