ARCHITECTURAL SCULPTURE. 
751 
for instance, will readily and naturally apply) a fictitious scale may be 
given. In such a case harmony of scale in the component parts is 
more than usually necessar} r , otherwise the effect of the whole will be 
destroyed, and the aim for additional nobility and size not only frus- 
trated but also exposed. Then, again, care must be taken that the 
size and intensity of the sculptured masses accord with the scale of 
masonry used, for otherwise the sculpture, as a whole, is likely to 
appear too light or too heavy for the building. 
Known examples of bad scale are common enough. In Nelson’s 
Monument, and Sansovino’s Giants, Ducal Palace, Venice, the sculp- 
ture is too large. In the facade of Certosa de Pavia (Pig. 20, Plate 4), 
and in the Montawk Club the sculpture is too small. 
Examples of good scale are also easy enough to name in all 
periods, from the Greek through Gothic and Renaissance, represented 
by Sansovino’s Library (Parade), to the Chartered Accountant’s 
Building (Fig. 14) of to-day. 
Close observation of pleasing and unpleasing examples and 
individual taste are the only guides on this question of scale. One 
point, however, seems certain, and that is : It is better to keep 
figures on ordinary buildings well under life size. In this connection 
the following figures may be of service and interest : — 
24 feet from ground, 3 feet 9 inches bass-relief looks propor- 
tionate — Pistoja Hospital. 
30 to 35 feet from ground, 4 feet 6 inches to 4 feet 8 inches 
bass-relief — St. Mark’s Library and Chartered Agents; 
wdiikt 2 feet looks very small on Montawk Club. 
55 to 60 feet from ground, 6 feet looks all right, 7 feet looks big. 
72 to 80 feet from ground, 7 feet 6 inches looks all right. 
101 feet from ground, 12 feet a shade big — about 14 inches. 
150 feet from ground, 18 feet 6 inches looks too big by 3 feet. 
Thus you see that position regulates scale in the various parts, 
and it also regulates the amount and distribution of finish. 
The position from which sculpture will be seen also exercises a 
powerful influence in its design, largely determining the finish and 
foreshortening. Take, for instance, a piece of sculpture at a height 
of 30 feet which will be seen from a position almost vertically below 
it. Here the lower portions must be set back so as not to cover the 
upper. The lower faces should be better finished than the rest, and 
the limbs, if figures are used, must appear correct from the point of 
sight, though not necessarily anatomatically correct. 
The central figure (Pig. 25) illustrates this point with its fore- 
shortened thighs at an obtuse angle with its body and legs, giving the 
idea of a sitting posture, whereas had the figure been seated correctly 
the knees at that height would have hidden the rest of the body, and 
so represented the figure as a deformity from our standpoint. 
The position of the several figures of a composition is also a 
point for seriou^ consideration, the centre, of course, being the place 
of honour and interest. 
These guiding principles, though I have spoken of them separately, 
are all intimately connected, so much so that I have found myself 
speaking of harmony under scale, of restraint under repose, and scale 
in masonic treatment and materials, whilst others may have been passed 
