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Cri . cln S a particular, to a general, effect; for this cornice,CTe< ^ 88 S rand termination to the body of therati * n °’ re< l u ' red to be treated in a bold and striking style,ide “ e 7 lmn that delicacy appropriate to the order. Thea t *‘‘ s tnay probably have been taken from the uppera a,ur e of the Coliseum at Rome , where the same motivesgeneral effect have prevailed.

not 16 ornaments °f the front are well executed; and though. *marka ble for elegance, are placed with judicious fru-j? * ^’ 80 as to enrich without overloading or confusing theP . • -A- very large composition, in basso-relievo, repre-

ing the conversion of St. Paul, occupies the tympan ofp e Pediment. This is said to be the best work of the artist,j^ anci . s dlird. At the apex of the pediment is placed aand** 1 /'* 5 Statue °P t * le patron saint, while St. Peter, St. James,left h d° Ur ■k‘ van f= e ^ sts ' 0CCU Py situations at his right and

, . T* 18 r est of the building is a vast fabric of a wall decoratedint ” cou P^ e d pilasters, arranged at regular distances ; theto fi rVa 8 below being occupied with large windows, servingD .'ol' 1 the side aisles, and those above with niches ; in theto eS 7 S w bich are singularly inserted windows, belonginggalleries and rooms over the side aisles.n the whole surface of the walling, the joints of thea . es are marked by horizontal and perpendicular channels;sio ni P e decoration, which, while it gives a vigorous expres-°P strength and stability, has the advantage of defi-latur an< ^ ren dering conspicuous the pilasters and entab-

cir^^ 6 trance-doors of the transepts are adorned by semi-de a F P ort l cos ; objects equally beautiful, whether consi-bu'U- Se P aratel y or in connection with the total mass of thecur Qln ^’ which they adorn and diversify, by the contrast ofcs and straight lines, and of insulated columns, with6n Jged pilasters.

t ran 1 t be centre, formed by the crossing of the nave andC(! 88 P*-> rises an ample cupola, which is the most magnifi-flie f atuie °P *-be building. The basement of this part ofan at) ric is an octagonal wall, pierced through each side byare aiCa de ; the two, which are in the direction of the nave,file °/ >en t0 tbe top, as are also the two in the direction oftyL - ran sept: the other four have an intermediate arch,abo ^ 8u PP orts the continuation of the dado or panelling••cal 6 8nta blature. The spandrels of the arches are splie-°f an d form a complete circle at the level of the summit°orh n arc b es - Upon the archivolt of the arches is placed aform! corn *ce °d considerable projection, the upper sideof t |, n ® U ! e door of the whispering-gallery : from the floorthe p 6 "’bispering-gallery rises a cylindrical wall, called bye X p re ^ e . n<; b, tour du dome, for which we have no technicals 0 r| , Sl0n . This is surrounded by a Corinthian peristyle,and t! CeC * 38 t0 conce; d the projecting buttresses of the cupola;qnj s it' US ’ by a happy combination of profound skill and ex-abl e a construction adapted to oppose, with insuper-

and ti y> the enormous pressure of the dome, the cone,S r and 6 antern > > s converted into a decoration of the mosttnent beautiful character. The idea of this arrange-

at j^ 0 a8 ’ doubtless, taken from the interior of the PantheonOn^f’ t0 w b'°b it bears a striking resemblance.ti° n j * e exterior side of the building, the general disposi-With t " ll ^ e d *nto eight parts by piers, containing staircases,bet\v eea ° < j 0 ^ umns attached to the angles of each. The spacesc°] Umris 1 le piers form eight recesses, having in each twobe insu^ w b‘ch, at a distance, to a hasty observer, appear toby Wall 6< * ’ •^ Ut ^bey are in fact joined to the dome-towerhowever' S ® rv ’ n g as counterforts. All these buttresses are,’ P‘erced with arcades, so as to leave a free commu-

nication round this part of the cupola. The columns beingof a large proportion, and placed at regular intervals, arecrowned with a complete entablature, which, continuing ,without a single break, forms an entire circle, and thus con- ! 1nects all the parts into one grand and harmonious whole, iAbove the colonnade, but not resting upon it, rises an attic-story, with pilasters and windows, from which springs theexterior dome, of a bold contour, well adapted to the risingform of the lofty and elegant lantern by which it is crowned.

It has been said, with some justice, that the columns of thecupola are too high in proportion to the body of the building,as they are indeed little less than those of the lower order,but higher than the columns of the upper order. This incon-gruity would not have existed, had circumstances allowed the !architect to construct the main edifice of a single order, ex-tending the whole height of the building ; but being baffledin this his original intention, it would have been too great asacrifice to relinquish the peristyle, the noblest feature of thebuilding, or to materially diminish the cupola.

Comparing the cupolas of St. Peter’s and St. Paul’s, weshall find that, though the latter has, in a great degree, beenthe model of the former, there is a material difference in thedecorative part, though the general idea of the constructionis the same. In St. Peter’s, the buttresses of the dome-tower, though decorated each with two engaged columns andpilasters projecting from the cylindric wall, destroy the con-tinuity, and render the effect disagreeable. The dome is like-wise pierced with three ranges of little dormer-windows, jwhich are suffered to spot and break the surface for the pal- ’try consideration of lighting the interior staircases. The idea, !originated in St. Paul’s, has been prosecuted in the church of iSt. Genevieve, at Paris , where the appearance of a peripteral itemple is completely obtained, as the columns surrounding !the tambour are all insulated ; but, it is to be lamented, that ■the dome itself should be so deficient in grandeur of dimen- isions, and grace of proportions, as to destroy the effect of this 'beautiful decoration.

Beginning the examination of the interior of St. Paul’s atthe west end, we find the body of the building, as to thegeneral form, entirely upon the plan of the ancient cathe-drals ; an edifice of three aisles, divided by piers and arches,and covered with vaulting.

Sir Christopher Wren has not only adopted the form ofbuilding practised by the architects of the middle ages, buthe has imitated their mode of construction ; for the loftyvault of the middle aisle is supported by flying-buttressesconcealed by an enormous screen wall. The architecturaldetail is in the Roman style, simple and regular.

“ The Romans,’’ says Sir Christopher , “ though they some-times used a hemisphere, as in the exhedrse of the baths, ofthe tribunes, of the temples, and basilic®, yet, generally, theyused a plain cylindrical vaulting where the walls wereparallel, or cross-vaulting where the two cylinders intersectedin diagonals, as in the Temple of Peace, and in all the thea-tres, in the passages under the steps. The moderns, whosearches are not circular, use commonly another sort, wherethe spandrels, resting upon the pillars, spring every wayround as their arch rises in sections of circles, parallel to thehorizon ; that is, in four quadrants described from the anglesof a square, and terminated by its sides ; and, at the summit,these quadrants come in contact in the middle of the sides,the four curves forming a quadrilateral, each side being con-vex towards the centre ; and the space thus included is filledwith tracery-work, which gives them great opportunity ofdivers variations, which I need not insist on. Another way,(which I cannot find used by the ancients, but in the latterEastern empire, as appears at St. Sophia, and by the exam- j