500 FRENCH ARCHITECTURE. Part II. In the nave of tliis church all the arches are circular ; in the choir, which dates early in the 11th century, if not before,and which is perhaps older than the nave, the great transverse arches are slightly pointed, and support at the in- tersection a dome, which forms the most beautiful fea- ture in the church. The pride of Burgundy was the great abbey church of Cluny, which, Avith its narthex or ante-church, meas- ured 580 ft. in length, or consider- ably more than any other church erected in Fi-ance in any age. Its nave was throughout 37 ft. 6 in. in width, and it had double side- aisles, making the total internal M'idth 120 ft,, while the Avhole area covered by it was upwards of 70,000 ft. But colossal as these di^ mensions are, they convey no adequate idea of its magni- ficence. The style throughout Avas sol- id and grand, and it must have pos- sessed a decree of massive magnifi- cence which we so 367. Plan of Abbey Church at Clunv. fFrom Lorain's " His- toire de I'Abbaye.") Scale 200 ft. to 1 in.)
