Michael's Church, Oxford. The arch thus shaped is not, however,
peculiar to the Anglo-Saxon style, but may occasionally be traced in most
if not all of the subsequent styles, but not of such rude or plain
construction.
[Illustration: Recess in the Tower of Barnack Church.]
Q. Were the Anglo-Saxon architects accustomed to construct crypts beneath
their churches?
A. There are some subterranean vaults, not easily accessible, the presumed
remains of Bishop Wilfrid's work, at Ripon and Hexham, of the latter part
of the seventh century; but the crypt beneath the chancel of Repton
Church, Derbyshire, the walls of which are constructed of _hewn_ stone, is
perhaps the most perfect specimen existing of a crypt in the Anglo-Saxon
style, and of a stone vaulted roof sustained by piers, which are of
singular character; the vaulting is without diagonal groins, and bears a
greater similarity to Roman than to Norman vaulting.
[Illustration: Crypt, Repton Church, Derbyshire.]
Q. Are mouldings, or is any kind of sculptured ornament, to be met with in
Anglo-Saxon work?
A. Although the remains of this style are for the most part plain and
devoid of ornamental detail, we occasionally meet with mouldings of a
semicylindrical or roll-like form, on the face or under the soffit of an
arch, and these are sometimes continued down the sides of the jambs or
piers.
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