The Anglo-Saxon Tradition in Post-Conquest Architecture and Sculpture *

The extent to which features associated with Anglo-Saxon architecture and sculpture continued after the Conquest, or were specifically revived in the later eleventh and twelfth centuries, is a much-debated topic. ¹ For the most part, architecture and sculpture have been studied separately, even though most post-Conquest sculpture is ‘architectural’; in other words, the sculpture is an integral part of the building it adorns. In this chapter I endeavour to integrate the examination of architecture and architectural sculpture, and, in the case of Ely cathedral, incorporate investigation of the contemporary painted decoration. Formal analysis will provide the basis for determination of Norman versus Anglo-Saxon elements in the designs, and, for the latter, architectural representations in illuminated manuscripts are explored. In stone sculpture, examples which have been published as both Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Norman are examined. Works are studied in association with the patronage and historical traditions connected with particular sites and monuments in an effort to understand reasons for the choices, although, as we shall see, clear separation of Anglo-Saxon versus Norman aspects will not always be absolute.