itx A R C H I T 
All tbe floor of the church and choir, to tire altar, is 
paved with marble ; the altar is paved with porphyry, po- 
liflied, and laid in feveral geometrical figures. The vault¬ 
ing of the roof is hemifpherical, confiding of twenty-tour 
cupolas, cut off femicircular, with fegments to join to the 
great arches one way, and the other way they are cut acrofs 
with elliptical cylinders, to let in the upper lights of the 
nave ; but in the ailes, the letter cupolas are cut both ways 
in femicircular fections, and altogether produce a graceful 
geometrical effect, dirtinguiffied with circular wreaths, 
which is the horizontal fefction of the cupola. The arches 
and wreaths are of (lone, carved; the Spandrels between 
are of found brick, inverted with Stucco oi cockle-tliell 
lime, which becomes as hard as Portland-rtone ; and which, 
having large planes between the rtone-ribs, are capable oi 
further ornaments of painting, if required. Bertdes thefe 
twenty-four cupolas, there is a half-cupola at the baft, 
and the great cupola of 10S feet diameter in the middle ot 
the eroding of the great ailes ; it is extant out of the wall, 
and is illumined by the windows of the upper order, which 
rtrike down the light through the great colonnade that en¬ 
circles the dome without, and ferves for the hutment of 
the dome, which is brick, of two bricks thick ; but, as it 
riles every way five feet high, it has a cpurleof excellent 
brick of eighteen inches long, bending through the whole 
thicknefs; and, to make it dill more fecure, it is lurround- 
ed with a vail chain of iron, rtrongly linked together at 
every ten feet: this chain is let into a channel cut into the 
bandage of Portland done, and defended from the weather 
by filling the groove with lead. Over the firrt cupola is 
railed another ftrudture of a cone of bricks, fo built as to 
fupport a done lantern of an elegant figure, and ending in 
ornaments of copper, gilt; the whole church above the 
vaulting being covered with a fubrtantial oaken roof and 
lead, fo this cone is covered and hid out of fight by ano¬ 
ther cupola of timber and lead ; between which and the 
com t are eafy rtairs, which afeend to the lantern. The 
contrivance here is adonilhing. The light to thefe rtairs 
is from the lantern above. 
The inlide of the dome is painted and richly decorated, 
by that eminent Englilh artirt Sir James Thornhill, who, 
in eight compartments, has reprefented the principal paf- 
fages in the hi dory of St. Paul’s life; namely, his conver- 
fion; his punifhing Elynias the forcerer with blindnefs; 
his preaching at Athens; his curing the poor cripple at 
Lyrtra, and the reverence there paid him by the prietts of 
Jupiter as a god; his converdon of the gaoler ; his preach¬ 
ing at Ephefus, and the burning the magic books in con- 
fequence of the miracles lie there wrought; his trial be¬ 
fore Agrippa ; his diipwreck on the irtand of Melita, or 
Malta, and his miracle of the viper. 
The highert or lad done, on the top of the lantern, was 
laid by the hands of Chriltopher Wren, the furveyor’s fon, 
in the year 1710. Thus was this mighty fabric, lofty 
enough to be difeerned at fea eadward, at Windfor wed- 
ward, in the fpaee of thirty-five years, begun and finirtied 
by one architect, and under one bidiop of London, Dr. 
Henry Compton. Whereas St. Peter’s at Rome, the only 
edifice that can come in competition with it, continued in 
building 145 years, under twelve fuccefiive architects, af- 
frfted by the police and intereds of the Roman fee; attend¬ 
ed by the bed artirts of the world in fculpture, datuary, 
painting, and niofaic work, and facilitated by the ready 
acquilition of marble from the neighbouring quarries of 
Tivoli. 
This grand cathedral, thus finifhed, as an excellent au¬ 
thor obfervgs, “ is undoubtedly one of the mod magnifi¬ 
cent modern buildings in Europe; all the parts of which 
it is compofed are fuperlatively beautiful and noble. The 
north and fouth fronts in particular are very perfect pieces 
of architecture; neither ought the eaft to go without due 
npplaufe. The two fpires at the wed end are in a finirtied 
tade ; and the portico with the afeent, and the dome that 
rifes in the centre of the whole, afford a very auguft and 
furprifing proipect.” In Hiort, in furveyiug this ftnpen- 
E C T U R E. 
dous monument of our country’s genius, the imagination 
is filled with a lofty kind of admiration, which no build* 
ing of lefs majerty and grandeur could pollibly excite. 
The favourite defign of Sir Chridopher liimfelf, how¬ 
ever, though it was not adopted, would in many re Ip eels 
have excelled the prefent ftruchire. ILe had intended a 
very rich baldaquino for the altar, fimilur to that of St. 
Peter’s at Rome ; Dr. Compton had even fent for the mar¬ 
bles for its comport tion; but, as they were defective, Sir 
Chridopher would not ufe them, and the defign was given 
up. He vvidied the dome to have been painted in mofaie, 
on account of its durability ; and to have filled up the piers 
with done indead of rubble ; but this alfo was oppofed. 
The prelent liberal chapter of this cathedral having ad¬ 
mitted fculpture into it without fees, in the monuments of 
Dr. Johnfon and Mr. Howard, it is to be hoped that the 
iilurtrious architect of the fabric itfelf will yet partake of 
the honour of a datue in his own church; and that the 
fiacred building of St. Paul's will become the Britifh Tem¬ 
ple of Fame; particularly dnee Weftminrter-abbey is fo. 
crouded with monuments, that the late Sir Jofhua Rey¬ 
nolds could not find a proper place for the datue of his 
learned friend Dr. Johnfon. The fine effect of decorations 
on the interior of St. Paul’s, was (hewn in one of the de- 
dgns of Sir Chridopher; which, with all his other plans 
and elevations, are in the library of All Souls college, in 
Oxford, and condd of feveral volumes. Many of them 
are interedingj and deferve to be engraved. That learn¬ 
ed and wealthy fociety, perhaps, will feme day or other, 
with the liberality of gentlemen and of fcholars, give them 
in that form to the public. Though the perfpective of 
St. Paul’s hath undoubtedly a fine ert'edt from its principal 
entrance, yet to enlarge the profpedt, and give awe and 
harmony to the view, the immenfe organ that erodes the 
front of the choir diould be placed on one (ide, as is done 
at Wincbeder, and painted glafs ihould be introduced in¬ 
to the ead window, to over-fhadow the choir with the ma¬ 
jerty of that “ dim religious light,” which adds fe much 
to the felemnity of the cathedral fervice. 
Sir Chridopher ufed to tell his friends, w ith fingular 
pleafure and fatisfadtion, that jurt as he began the build¬ 
ing of St. Paul’s, lie ordered one of the workmen to bring 
him a done, for feme temporary purpofe ; the man acci¬ 
dentally took up the piece of an old grave-done, which he 
carried to him, and upon which was inferibed Resurkam, 
/frail rife again. This he conddered as a lucky omen, 
portending that he diould live to fee the edirtce comple¬ 
ted; and to this accident is attributed the Phoenix, with 
this motto, in the pediment over the fouth entrance. 
When Sir Chridopher built the church of St. Dunrtan’s 
in the Ead, the noblert monument of his geometrical (kill, 
he had mod certainly in his eye the High-church of Edin¬ 
burgh, and St. Nicholas’s church at Newcartle-upon-Tyne, 
His towers that adorn the front of Wedmindcr-abbey, 
were taken from thefe of Beverley minder in Yorkdiire. 
This great architect intended a fpire for the middle of the 
church, but lie gave it up, from an apprehendon that the 
drength of the fabric was not fufficient to bear its weight. 
Of AQUATIC BUILDINGS. 
Of all aquatic works, bridges are confeffedly the mod 
intereding and important, whether condrifeted of wood or 
done; but the laft, being evidently the dronged and mod 
durable, diould in all cafes be preferred, where the means 
of eredting them can be amply provided for and borne. 
Bridges are commonly very difficult to execute, on ac¬ 
count of the inconvenience of laying foundations and wall¬ 
ing under water. The earlied rules and indrudtions for 
building of bridges are given by Alberti, in his Arcliit. i. 8. 
Other rules were afterwards laid down by Palladio, Serlio, 
and Scamozzi, which are collected by Blondel, in his Cours 
d'Archit. p. 629. The bed of thefe rules were alfo given 
by Goldman, Baukhurft, and in Hawkefmoor’s Hirtory of 
London-bridge. M. Gautier has written exprefsly on 
bridges; fo alfo hath Riou, Emerfon, Muller, Labelye,&c. 
