392 



MURAL PAINTING OP^ St. CHRISTOPHER ix St. KEVERNE 

 CHURCH. 



In the last volume of this journal is a description of this 

 interesting picture, and a hope is there expressed that an illus- 

 tration would be given in this present volume. The wall surface 

 is so broken, the picture itself so injured, and the superimposed 

 1 7th century decoration so mixed up with the painting itself that 

 photography, though more than once attempted, has proved 

 unsuccessful. Fortunately Mr. W. A. EoUason, of the Truro 

 School of Art, came to our aid, and we here reproduce the 

 large drawing made by him on the spot in September, 1905. 

 The plate does not do justice to the original drawing, which is 

 coloured, but the funds of the institution have not admitted of a 

 facsimile reproduction. 



The drawing (which is preserved in our library) has the 

 great merit of absolute fidelity— nowhere is a line or form intro- 

 duced that did not exist when the artist made his coj)y, and the 

 broken portions of the plasterwork, on which the wall-painting 

 was originally executed, have been entirely omitted. Unfortu- 

 nately, the picture itself is less perfect than when the paper on 

 "Mural Paintings in Cornish Churches" (volume xv) was 

 compiled, and is still going worse ; the plaster has lost its 

 " nature " and is daily flaking off. This has prevented further 

 clearing of the top ornamentation, part of which (e.g. the arch 

 carrying the words " Prais yee the Lord") is so conspicuous. 

 This arch is coloured slate gray, as is all of the superimposed 

 painting. It is especially conspicuous in the trellis work hiding- 

 Christopher's right shoulder in the centre panel, in the arch 

 behind him, in the trellis work behind the arch (red) of the 

 hermit's cell, and in the bands that cross the second panel on the 

 left. The top left-hand panel has been slightly uncovered, and 

 probably represents the arrival of Christojjher at Dagon's court 

 in Samos, when he planted his iron staff in the ground, and it 

 forthwith put forth leaf and bloom. The other panels on this 

 side and the three lower panels on the right are corre(;tly 



