THE road to S. Zeno leads straight past the Castel Vecchio; and away from the noise and bustle of the town we approach one of the finest examples of a Romanesque church to be found in the whole of Northern Italy. A quiet dignity and simplicity may be said to be the characteristics of this glorious basilica both within and without; while the blending of pagan antiquity and Christian feeling has brought about a harmony in expression and construction that is very impressive. Tradition has it that King Pepin, Charlemagne’s son, was the founder, but no document exists to prove this, though the belief that it was begun about the year 900, and that its erection was gone on with for two succeeding centuries, has much to support it. It is certain that the Emperor Otho I. of Germany on his way to Rome through Verona sojourned for a while at the monastery of S. Zeno, and left a large sum of money with the Bishop Rathold towards the fund for the completion of the church. There is not a corner of S. Zeno that is not of interest, and this begins with the west front, with the portals, and with the doors, each one claiming in turn its meed of praise and admiration. The church has been enlarged and restored, but nevertheless it retains its noble proportions intact, and modern works have done little to injure the plan and construction of the building. The faÇade is embellished with bas-reliefs, carved in the yellow stone of the country, and taken from legendary and sacred subjects. In the right hand corner the legend of King Theodoric is represented, for it is supposed that he is the warrior here at the chase, pursuing the stag which cannot be caught, and in whose pursuit the hunter rides on till he reaches the gates of hell. The sculptures are rough and uncouth, but full of life and movement, and were executed in the year 1139 by Wiligelmus and Nicolaus, this latter being the same artist whose work has already been noticed at the Duomo. The round window above the portal stands for the wheel of fortune, with figures in different attitudes to express the moods of the changeable goddess. On the outer circle is engraved in leonine lines:—

which may be loosely rendered—

On the inner circle is written:—

The portal below is borne on two columns resting on lions of red marble placed on each side of the door like couchant sentinels, and above is seen the divine hand held up in blessing with the words “Dextra Dei gentes benedicit sacra petentes” (God’s right hand blesses those who sacred sites do haunt). On the portal are also scenes from the Bible and from the life of S. Zeno, the one in the centre being supposed to

S. ZENO MAGGIORE. CHOIR SCREEN AND ENTRANCE TO THE CRYPT
S. ZENO MAGGIORE. CHOIR SCREEN AND ENTRANCE TO THE CRYPT

represent the deputation sent to him by the Emperor Gallienus. The doors are covered with panels of carved bronze reliefs (perhaps the oldest specimens of that form of metal decoration to be found in the country), and are said to belong to the ninth century. The scenes they represent are forty-eight in number, and are taken from the Old and New Testament. They are quaint and archaic to a degree, but the work is that of a bold and cunning craftsman, and the grotesque yet forcible attitudes of some of the personages (as, for example, Salome dancing before Herod) show the skill and humour that worked and lived in these men of old, hundreds of years ago. Within the doors a flight of steps leads down into the church, and one’s impulse on entering is to stand at the head of those steps and gaze in silent admiration and reverence at the scene before one. It is so grand, so calm, so severe, so solid, and yet so graceful in the perfect proportion of lines, arches, columns, shafts. The nave extends between two side aisles in a line of faultless symmetry till it reaches in the centre to a double flight of stairs, the one flight leading down to the crypt, the upper and smaller one leading to the high altar and choir. To the right on entering is the baptismal font, formed from a single piece of marble, and designed by Brioletto, who was also the author of the window known as the Wheel of Fortune. On the other side is the famous “Coppa,” or cup of S. Zeno, with the following legend attached to it: S. Zeno had freed a daughter of the Emperor Gallienus from an evil spirit which possessed her. The grateful father thereupon wished to present the saint with a crown of gold, but S. Zeno refused this and asked instead for a porphyry vase, which the demon, exorcised from the maiden, was ordered to carry from Rome to Verona. Crossing the Tiber the demon dropped the pedestal and arrived at Verona with the vase only. “Hie back,” said S. Zeno, when the demon appeared with only half his burden, “and bring hither the other part as well.” The order was obeyed, and that, too, in one moment of time, and only the crack in the vase bears witness to the small mishap which befel the precious cup in its transit from Rome to the place where it now stands.

The columns in the nave are of different sizes and styles, and the capitals, most of them of pure Corinthian, are nearly all varied. The richness of originality and design shows to great advantage amidst the simplicity which exists on every side, and the freedom from an abundance of side-altars and—on the whole—from tawdriness of ornaments and paper flowers adds to the effect and dignity of the scene in a most grateful manner. A fine side-altar is to be noticed on the right going up the church, with four columns of reddish-brown marble all carved out of a single block, and resting on a lion and an ox, and dating from the fourteenth century. The walls are all of brick and of that picturesque stone known as “tufo” which we have had occasion to remark in nearly all the principal buildings in Verona. This “tufo” must be cut from the quarries in summer, when it hardens into such solidarity as to make it well-nigh everlasting. Should it be cut in winter its porous qualities remain and assert themselves, and it perishes and crumbles away in a short while. There can be little doubt that at one time the walls were all covered with frescoes, and even now many a one remains to testify to the piety and art that marked the twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Layard points this out in his valuable work so often referred to in these pages. He says:[63] “Like other Italian cities, Verona possessed, from a

CHURCH OF S. ZENO, VERONA
CHURCH OF S. ZENO, VERONA

very early period, and before the revival of the arts in the thirteenth century, artists who decorated churches and public buildings with rude wall-paintings. Such early works are still to be seen in the ancient church of S. Zeno. They have no particular character or style to distinguish them from other productions of a similar kind.” The balustrade that divides the nave from the choir and that stands above the arches over the crypt has on it a fine row of figures of our Lord and the twelve Apostles, a work that probably belongs to the end of the thirteenth century, or to even earlier days.

The archways leading into the crypt are formed of perfect semicircles (of Roman as opposed to Byzantine shape) and contribute largely to the effect by which this low-lying and generally concealed portion of the church is brought into prominence. The pillars and columns in the crypt support a vaulted roof, through which some of them pierce into the choir above and carry on here the work begun on the lower floor. Some of these columns are very graceful, and would almost seem like feathers rising from the blocks of solid stone and masonry which are placed at limited intervals about the crypt. The capitals of these columns differ one from another; here and there they are quaint, not to say grotesque; others again are plain and classical, while one and all are in keeping with their surroundings, and bear witness to the love and skill that planned and placed them there. There are frescoes too upon the walls and about the columns, some very Byzantine in feeling and execution, some approaching again to the Giottesque period. Several saints and bishops are buried here—a solemn burial-place, and fitting for those who were the first to toil in the vineyard of souls at Verona, and whose earthly remains now rest from their labours in the beautiful crypt of S. Zeno. The sense of religion and devotion is enhanced by hanging lamps which cast an uncertain flickering light on the scene, and intensify the effect of shadow and shade that is thrown by the “shafts of shapely stone” clustering on every side. In the middle of the crypt stands the tomb of S. Zeno. The body lies in a bronze coffin, a fine piece of modern work by the brothers Spazzi (1889), guarded by seated figures of Faith, Hope, Charity and Religion. The whole is enclosed in the same kind of beautiful iron work such as has already been noticed round the tombs of the Scaligers, which was erected by order of Mastino II. della Scala.

Coming up from the crypt to the choir, the great picture by Andrea Mantegna hanging behind the high altar claims a careful study. The painting is on wood, in a lovely Renaissance frame which harmonises well with the decorative architectural detail in the picture. It was originally in six compartments, three above and three below, but was carried off to Paris by Napoleon, whence it was returned without the predella, which remained in the Salon carrÉ of the Louvre (the present one at S. Zeno is a copy). The Blessed Virgin sits enthroned in the centre, holding the Child in the tender reverential manner to be found in the Bellini school, and supported by angels and cherubs. A lovely festoon of fruit and foliage is carried through the upper three compartments, caught up with red tassels, while the accessories of carpet, drapery, and hangings are extremely rich and glowing. St Peter, St Roch, St Paul, St John, and St Augustine are on the left of the picture; on the right are St John the Baptist, St Gregory, St Lawrence, and St Benedict; all the figures possessed of dignity and individuality, and expressing by their action or their attitude the characteristic peculiar to each one of them. “The Virgin is in a classic portico,” says Mr Selwyn Brinton, “adorned with bas-reliefs, with festoons of fruit and coral. Eight robed child-angels of wonderful beauty play lutes, and sing beneath and beside her throne. She looks up, holding the beautiful Christ-child poised upright on her left hand; her expression and attitude seem full of quiet dignity. A masterpiece of his (Mantegna’s) earlier style.”[64]

The picture unfortunately is hung so high it is not easy to see, but a good view can be gained by clambering up the steps at the back of the altar where one is more on a level with it.

In the choir are some old carved walnut seats of the fourteenth century, and in an apse is a fresco of S. Zeno with his right hand raised in blessing. He is dressed in full episcopal robes, with a gorgeous dress of red, edged with gold, and lined with green, and with medallions of a particularly pretty shape studded about it. On the right hand of the choir is a quaint Giottesque fresco of St George, with his spear through the dragon’s head, while the Princess stands by with a look which seems to imply that she would fain escape from knight and dragon alike did she but know how. St George’s mantle flies in the breeze and reveals a beautiful lining of ermine; on his shield the Cross stands boldly out on a field of red, in harmonious keeping with the ermine-lined red cloak. The steed stands quietly by, and shows no apparent concern at the way in which his hind legs are encircled with coils of the dragon’s body. Another fresco close by represents the raising of Lazarus, where most of the spectators hold their noses, remembering evidently Martha’s caution as to the four days that her brother had spent beneath the sod! This fresco which is Byzantine in character is supposed to date from the eleventh century. Of the same, or maybe even an earlier date is a statue of S. Zeno, where his face is painted black (to remind us of his Eastern origin) and having a fish attached to his pastoral rod, a token of his profession as a fisher of souls.

Opening out from the church on the left hand side are the cloisters, of striking and original beauty. They were built in the twelfth century, and consist of twisted columns of red Verona marble, cut from a single block, and ingeniously held above and below by

CLOISTERS, S. ZENO MAGGIORE
CLOISTERS, S. ZENO MAGGIORE

short pieces of marble. These were not added for the purpose but cut, together with the columns, out of the one solid bit of marble which served to form the whole. On the further side from the church the arches open out into a square form of arcading, the pillars here being larger than those of the actual cloisters. They were supposed to have stood round a sort of lavatory used probably by the monks either for themselves or for the vessels they required for their service.

Some fine tombs are placed here in the cloisters, resting on brackets on the wall, and belonging to the great families of Verona. There is a quaint saying as to some of these families that lie buried here, and that declares that they were: “Bevilacqua, che mai la bevero; Conti VeritÀ, che mai la dissero; Conti Giusti che mai lo furono.” (Bevilacqua—or Drink-water—who never drank it; Counts Verita—or Truth—who never said it; Counts Giusti—or Just—who never were it.) This saying certainly speaks better for the wit of the Veronese (which be it observed is known to be pithy and cutting) than for the manners of the gentry.

Here too is the tomb of Giuseppe, illegitimate son of Alberto della Scala, whom his father made Abbot of S. Zeno, and of whose appointment to that post notice has already been made.[65] Lana in his Commentary on the Divina Commedia speaking of the allusion made by Dante in the Purgatorio[66] to this transaction says: “Messer Alberto della Scala, who was aged had committed a great sin, in that he had made his son Abbot of S. Zeno, who was unworthy of such an episcopate; firstly, because he was infirm in the body; secondly, that he was defective in mind as in body; thirdly, that he was a natural son; so that he had these three great defects.”[67]

Before leaving the church, and its pleasant well-informed custodian, one Lodovico Marchiori, whose family have carried on that office for one hundred and eighty-seven years, some attention must be given to the campanile of S. Zeno, which is one of the finest in Verona, if not in Italy. It was begun in 1045, and finished in 1178, and is a grand square tower surmounted with a spire which has four corner turrets set on a double row of arches. A quaint Latin inscription on the north side of the belfry, and dating from the beginning of the fifteenth century tells how there rests here one Henry of Tearen,[68] whose only claim to celebrity seems to have been that he was the husband of Gertrude! Who Gertrude was does not transpire, but the evidence that even in those days a man could be no more than the husband of his wife would seem to imply that the “new woman” was not so much a creation of these days as a continuation of a state of things recognised centuries ago and worthy to be recorded for all time.

To the left side of the faÇade of S. Zeno rises a square brick tower with forked battlements. This is all that remains of the actual monastery that belonged to the church, and within whose walls kings and emperors had found hospitality when in days of old they sojourned for a while in the fair city of Verona la Degna.