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MONREALE (contraction of monte-reale,...

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Originally appearing in Volume V18, Page 736 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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MONREALE (contraction of monte-reale, so called from a palace built here by Roger I.)

MONREALE (contraction of See also:
MONTE
monte-reale, so called from a See also:
PALACE (Lat. Palatium, the name given by Augustus to his residence on the Palatine Hill)
palace built here by See also:
ROGER (d. 1139)
ROGER (d. 1181)
Roger I.) , a See also:

TOWN

town of See also:

SICILY (Ital. Sicilia)

Sicily, in the See also:

province of See also:

PALERMO (Greek, Havopuos; Latin, Panhormus, Panormus)

Palermo, 5 m. inland (W.S.W.) from it, on the slope of Monte Caputo, overlooking the beautiful and very fertile valley called " La Collect d'oro" (the See also:

GOLDEN

Golden See also:

Shell), famed for its See also:

orange, See also:

OLIVE (Olea europaea)

olive and See also:

ALMOND (from the O. Fr. almande or alemande, late Lat. amandola, derived through a form amingdola from the Gr. l uybian, an almond; the al- for a- is probably due to a confusion with the Arabic article al, the word having first dropped the a- as in the It

almond trees, the produce of which is exported in large quantities. Pop. (1901), 17,399 (town); 23,556 (See also:

commune). The town, which for See also:

long was a See also:

mere See also:

VILLAGE

village, owed its origin to the See also:

FOUNDING (from Lat. fundere, to pour)

founding of a large See also:

BENEDICTINE

Benedictine monastery, with its See also:

church, the seat of the See also:

METROPOLITAN (Lat. metropolitanus, Gr. µnrpoiroXtrns)

metropolitan See also:

ARCHBISHOP (Lat. archiepiscopus, from Gr. apxceatorcoros)

archbishop of Sicily) This, the greatest of all the monuments of the See also:

WEALTH

wealth and See also:

ARTISTIC

artistic See also:

TASTE (from Lat. taxare, to touch sharply; tangere, to touch)

taste of the See also:

Norman See also:

KINGS, FIRST AND SECOND BOOKS OF

kings in See also:

NORTHERN

northern Sicily, was begun about 117o by See also:

William II., and in 1182 the church, dedicated to the See also:

ASSUMPTION, FEAST OF

Assumption of the Virgin See also:

Mary, was, by a See also:

bull of See also:

Pope See also:

LUCIUS

Lucius III., elevated to the See also:

RANK (O.Fr. rant or rent, mod. rang, generally connected with the O.E. and O.H.G. bring, a ring)

rank of a metropolitan See also:

CATHEDRAL

cathedral. The archiepiscopal palace and monastic buildings on the See also:

south See also:

side were of See also:

GREAT

great See also:

SIZE

size and magnificence, and were surrounded by a massive See also:

PRECINCT (from Lat. praecingere, to encircle, enclose, surround, prae and cingere, to gird)

precinct See also:

wall, crowned at intervals by twelve towers. This has been mostly rebuilt, and but little now remains except ruins of some of the towers, a great See also:

PART

part of the monks' See also:

DORMITORY (Lat. dormitorium, a sleeping place)

dormitory and See also:

FRATER, FRATER HOUSE

frater, and the splendid See also:

CLOISTER (Lat. claustrum; Fr. cloitre; Ital. chiostro; Span. claustro; Ger. Kloster)

cloister, completed about 12oo. This last is well preserved, and is one of the finest cloisters both for size and beauty of detail now extant. It is about 17o ft. square, with pointed See also:

ARCHES, COURT OF

arches decorated with See also:

DIAPER (derived through the Fr. from the Gr. &&, through, and a rirpos, white; the derivation from the town of Ypres, " d'Ypres," in Belgium is unhistorical, as diapers were known for centuries before its existence)

diaper See also:

WORK

work, supported on pairs of columns in See also:

white See also:

MARBLE (from Lat. marmor, Gr. pApµapos, shining stone)

marble, 216 in all, which were alternately See also:

PLAIN (O. Fr. plain, from Lat. plenum)

plain and decorated by bands of patterns in See also:

gold and See also:

COLOURS, MILITARY

colours, made of See also:

glass tesserae, arranged either spirally or vertically from end to end of each See also:

shaft. The marble caps are each richly carved with figures and foliage executed with great skill and wonderful fertility of invention—no two being alike. At one See also:

ANGLE (from the Lat. angulus, a corner, a diminutive, of which the primitive form, angus, does not occur in Latin; cognate are the Lat. angere, to compress into a bend or to strangle, and the Gr. ayKOS, a bend; both connected with the Aryan root ank-, to

angle, a square pillared See also:

PROJECTION

projection contains the marble See also:

FOUNTAIN (Late Lat. fontana, from ions, a spring)

fountain or monks' lavatory, evidently the work of Moslem sculptors. The church is fortunately well preserved. In See also:

plan it is a curious mixture of Eastern and Western arrangement.

The See also:

NAVE

nave is like an See also:

ITALIAN

Italian See also:

BASILICA

basilica, while the large triple-apsed See also:

CHOIR (0. Fr. cuer from Lat. chorus; pronounced quire, and until the end of the 17th century so spelt, the spelling being altered to agree with the Fr. chceur)

choir is like one of the See also:

early three-apsed churches, of which so many examples still exist in See also:

SYRIA

Syria and other eastern countries. It is, in fact, like two quite different churches put together endwise. The basilican nave is wide, with narrow. aisles. Monolithic columns of See also:

grey See also:

ORIENTAL

oriental See also:

GRANITE (adapted from the Ital. granite, grained; Lat. granum, grain)

granite (except one, which is of cipollino), evidently the spoils of older buildings, on each side support eight pointed arches much See also:

STILTED

stilted. The capitals of these (mainly Corinthian) are also of the classical See also:

period. There is no See also:

TRIFORIUM

triforium, but a high See also:

CLERESTORY, or CLEARSTORY (Ital. chiaro piano, Fr. clairevoie, claire etage, Ger. Lichtgaden)

clerestory with wide two-See also:

LIGHT

light windows, with See also:

SIMPLE

simple See also:

TRACERY

tracery like those in the nave-aisles and throughout the church, which give sufficient (if anything too much) light. The other See also:

HALF

half, Eastern in two senses, is both wider and higher than the nave. It also is divided into a central space with two aisles, each of the divisions ending at the See also:

east with an See also:

apse. The See also:

ROOFS

roofs throughout are of open woodwork very See also:

low in See also:

pitch, constructionally plain, but richly decorated with See also:

COLOUR (Lat. color, connected with celare, to hide, the root meaning, therefore, being that of a covering)

colour, now mostly restored. At the See also:

west end of the nave are two projecting towers, with a See also:

NARTHEX (Gr. vapOr7E, the name of the plant giant=fennel, in Lat. ferula)

narthex-entrance between them. A large open See also:

ATRIUM (either from ater, black, referring to the blackening of the walls from the smoke of the hearth, or from the Greek aiOpeov, open to the sky, or from an Etruscan town, Atria, where the style of building is supposed to have originated)

atrium, which once existed at the west, is now completely destroyed, having been replaced by a See also:

RENAISSANCE, THE

Renaissance See also:

PORTICO (Ital. for " porch," Lat. porticus)

portico. The outside of the church is plain, except the See also:

AISLE (from Lat. ala, a wing)

aisle walls and three eastern apses, which are decorated with intersecting pointed arches and other ornaments inlaid in marble.

The outsides of the See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal doorways and their pointed arches are magnificently enriched with See also:

CARVING

carving and coloured inlay, a curious See also:

COMBINATION (Lat. combinare, to combine)

combination of three styles—Norman-See also:

French, See also:

BYZANTINE

Byzantine and Arab. It is, however, the enormous extent (70,400 sq. ft.) and glittering splendour of the glass mosaics covering the interior which make this church so splendid. With the exception of a high See also:

DODO (from the PortugueseDhudo, a simpleton)

dodo, itself very beautiful, made of marble slabs with bands of See also:

MOSAIC (corresponding to Lat. opus musivum, from Gr. µovoeiov, an artificial grotto often decorated with mosaics; the word is only found in the sense of mosaic in late Greek, which generally uses k oXI yrlµa)

mosaic between them, the whole interior See also:

SURFACE

surface of the walls, including soffits and jambs of all the arches, is covered with See also:

minute mosaic-pictures in brilliant colours on a gold ground. The mosaic pictures are arranged in tiers, divided by See also:

HORIZONTAL

horizontal and See also:

VERTICAL (from Lat. vertex, highest point)

vertical bands. In parts of the choir there are five of these tiers of subjects or single figures one above another. The half See also:

DOME (Lat domus, house; Ital. duomo, cathedral)

dome of the central apse has a See also:

COLOSSAL

colossal half-length figure of See also:

Christ, with a seated Virgin and See also:

Child below; the other apses have full-length colossal figures of St See also:

Peter and St See also:

Paul. See also:

INSCRIPTIONS (from Lat. inscribere, to write upon)

Inscriptions on each picture explain the subject or See also:

SAINT (lat. sanctus, " holy ")

saint represented; these are in Latin, except some few which are in See also:

Greek. The subjects in the nave begin with scenes from the See also:

BOOK

Book of See also:

Genesis, illustrating the Old Testament types of Christ and His See also:

SCHEME (Lat. schema, Gr. oxfjya, figure, form, from the root axe, seen in exeiv, to have, hold, to be of such shape, form, &c.)

scheme of redemption, with figures of those who prophesied and prepared for His coming. Towards the east are subjects from the New' Testament, An earlier church appears to have existed at Monreale since the 6th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century, but no traces of it now remain.chiefly representing Christ's miracles and suffering, with apostles, evangelists and other See also:

SAINTS, BATTLE OF THE

saints. The See also:

DESIGN (Fr. desiin, drawing; Lat. designare, to mark out)

design, See also:

EXECUTION (from Lat. ex-sequor, exsecutus, follow or carry out)

execution and choice of subjects all appear to be of Byzantine origin, the subjects being selected from the Menologium See also:

DRAWN

drawn up by the See also:

EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

emperor Basilius Porphyrogenitus in the loth century. In the central apse at Monreale, behind the high See also:

ALTAR (Lat. altare, from alias, high; some ancient etymological guesses are recorded by St Isidore of Seville in Etymologiae xv. 4)

altar, is a See also:

FINE

fine marble See also:

THRONE

throne for the archbishop. This position of the throne is a survival of the early basilican arrangement, when the apse and altar were at the west end.

In that See also:

case the celebrant stood behind the altar at See also:

mass, and looked over it eastwards towards the See also:

PEOPLE

people. On the See also:

north side, in front of the high altar, is another somewhat similar throne for the use of the See also:

king. The See also:

TOMB (Gr. Tuµ/3a, Tuµ(3os, probably allied to Lat. tumulus, literally a swelling, tumere, to swell)

tomb of William I., the founder's See also:

FATHER

father—a magnificent See also:

PORPHYRY (IlopcPisptos) (A.D. 233-c. 304)

porphyry See also:

SARCOPHAGUS (Gr. vapsorg yos, literally " flesh-eating," from vapt, flesh, ¢ayeiv, to eat)

sarcophagus contemporary with the church, under a marble pillared See also:

CANOPY (through Fr. canape, from Med. Lat. canapeum, classical conopeum, a mosquito curtain, Gr. K6v(.4, a gnat)

canopy—and the founder William II.'s tomb, erected in 1595, were both shattered by a See also:

FIRE (in O. Eng. f j'r; the word is common to West German languages, cf. Dutch vuur, Ger. Feuer; the pre-Teutonic form is seen in Sanskrit pu, pavaka, and Gr. irup; the ultimate origin is usually taken to be a root meaning to purify, cf. Lat. purus)

fire, which in 1811 See also:

broke out in the choir, injuring some of the mosaics, and destroying all the fine See also:

WALNUT (Juglans)

walnut choir-fittings, the See also:

ORGANS

organs, and most of the choir roof. The tombs were rebuilt, and the whole of the injured part of the church restored, mostly very clumsily, a few years after the fire. On the north of the choir are the tombs of See also:

Margaret, wife of William I., and her two sons Roger and See also:

Henry, together with an See also:

URN (Lat. urna, either from root of urere, to burn, being made of burnt clay, or connected with urceus, Gr. I5pxa, jar)

urn containing the viscera of St See also:

Louis of See also:

France,: who died in 1270. The See also:

PAVEMENT (Lat. pavimentu;n, a floor beaten or rammed hard, from pavire, to beat)

pavement of the triple choir, though much restored, is a very magnificent specimen of marble and porphyry mosaic in See also:

OPUS ('O7rois)

opus alexandrinum, with signs of Arab See also:

INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence in its See also:

main lines. The pavement of the nave, on the other See also:

hand, is of the 16th century. Two See also:

BAROQUE

baroque chapels were added in the 17th and 18th centuries, which are fortunately shut off from the See also:

REST (O. Eng. rest, reste, bed, cognate with other Teutonic forms, e.g. Ger. Rast, Riiste, rest, and probably Gothic Rasta, league, i.e. resting or stopping place)

rest, of the church. Two See also:

BRONZE

bronze doors, those on the north and west of the church, are of great See also:

INTEREST

interest in the See also:

HISTORY

history of See also:

art. They are both divided into a number of square panels with subjects and single figures, chiefly from See also:

Bible history, See also:

CAST (from the verb meaning " to throw "; the word is Scand. in origin, cf. Dan. kaste, and Swed. kasta; " cast " in Middle Eng. took the place of the A.S. weor pan, cf. Ger. werf en)

cast in See also:

RELIEF

relief. That on the north is by Barisanus of See also:

TRANI

Trani in See also:

SOUTHERN

southern See also:

Italy, an artist probably of Greek origin. It is inscribed BARISANUS TRAN.

ME FECIT. The cathedrals at Trani and See also:

RAVELLO

Ravello also have bronze doors by the same sculptor. The western See also:

DOOR (corresponding to the Gr. Bbpa,. Lat. fores or valvae; the English word, with other forms common in allied languages, comes from the same Indo-European stem as the Gr. Obpa and Lat. fares)

door at Monreale, inferior to the northern one both in richness of design and in workmanship, is by Bonannus of See also:

Pisa, for the cathedral of which See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place he cast the still existing bronze door on the south, opposite the leaning See also:

TOWER (Lat. turris; Fr. tour, clocker; Ital. torre; Ger. Thurm)

tower. The one at Monreale is inscribed A.D. MCLXXX VI IND. III. BONANNUS CIVIS PISANVS ME FECIT. It is See also:

SUPERIOR

superior in execution to the See also:

PISAN, CHRISTINE DE (1364-c. 1430)

Pisan one. The door by Barisanus is probably of about the same See also:

time, as other examples of his work with inscribed See also:

DATES

dates show that he was a contemporary of Bonannus. The effect of the See also:

FACADE

facade is not improved by the Renaissance portico that has been added to it. The monastic library contains some valuable See also:

MSS., especially a number of bilingual documents in Greek and Arabic, the earliest being dated 1144. The archbishop now occupies the eastern part of the monastic buildings, the See also:

ORIGINAL

original palace being destroyed..

See D. B. See also:

Gravina, Il Duomo di Monreale (Palermo, 1859-1865). (J. H. M.; T.

End of Article: MONREALE (contraction of monte-reale, so called from a palace built here by Roger I.)

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