| LEGEND TO THE ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE PRINT BELOW Print Specifics:
Interior of a Medieval Manor House, 10-11th Century : The entrance is by means of a square door, whose archivolt is richly sculpted and painted, or sometimes consisting of only paintings; the arched windows as well as the door arches are supported by colonnettes. The friezes above the architrave are embellished with Romanesque figurative paintings. The pavement is of simple bricks. The capitals of the columns resemble the Corinthian order. The other elements of the ornamentation, like meanders, oves, checkerboards, pearls, leaves, foliated scrolls, interlocking foliage, palmettes, etc. are of the type found in the Byzantine architecture. An interesting feature of this interior, compared to the later period, is the lack of a chimney and fireplace. It was not known as a heating device; the heating was similar to that of a Roman house, that means, with the help of the hypocaustum; it was a series of pipes, established under the floors and in the mass of the supporting walls, receiving the heat to be distributed from a furnace placed in the basement. In our illustration, the part of the floor in the center is a perforated opening made of iron, that was painted to resemble a carpet; it serves as a grill to diffuse the head produced by the furnace. The furniture of this time, where the life concentrated on the outside, was quite modest. The bed, that, since about the 6th century, didn't serve anymore to consume meals (as in Rome or Greece), but was used solely for rest, it was not lavish as a Roman bed where metals, precious woods, ivory, etc. were used. These beds, an example of which comes from architect Viollet - Le - Duc, were a lot more elevated at the side of the headboard and sloped towards the feet, in such a way that the lying person was nearly in a sitting position. It is a shape that lasted until the XIIIth century. Larger number of cushions were placed at the headpiece which created a declivity. To sleep, one laid down naked, draped in the ample number of sheets thrown over the mattresses. It was an ancient habit that lasted a long time until the middle ages. In our illustration we also see a curtain screen. This was a typical piece of furniture used in large rooms of houses and castles. It was used when a person went to sleep to hide the bed. In this arrangement, however, it prevented free flow of air. Martin2001 Satisfaction Guaranteed Policy!
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