Page:History of Architecture in All Countries Vol 1.djvu/633

 Be. hi. Ch. II. BELFRIES— MUNICIPAL HALLS. 601 The belfry at Ghent was commenced in 1183, but the stone-work was only completed in 1337. . In 1376 a wooden spire was placed upon it, making up the height to 237 ft. This has been recently taken down in order to complete the tower according to the original design, which, like that of most of the unfinished buildings of Belgium, has been carefully preserved. When finished it will be about 300 ft. in height, and one of the finest bel- fries in the country. The Woodcut No. 447 is a re- duction of the original drawing, which, though not so perfect as some others, gives a fair idea of what it is intended to be. The belfry of Brussels was one of the finest in the country, but after various misfortunes it fell in 1714, and is only known now by a model still pre- sei'ved in the city. At Ypres and Bruges the belfries form part of the great halls of the city. Those at Lierre, Nieuport, Alost, Furnes, and other cities, have been all more or less destroyed by alterations, and are more in- teresting to the antiquary than to the architect 5 moreover, like the cities themselves, they never could have been of the first class, or remarkable for any extraordinary magnificence. 447 Belfry at Ghent. (From the original drawing.) The great municij^al halls, which are found in all the i:)rincipal cities of Belgium, are of three classes : — 1. Town-halls — the municipal senate-houses and courts of justice. 2. Trade-halls or market-houses, the principal of which were cloth-halls, cloth having been the great staple manufacture of Belgium during the Middle Ages. And lastly Guildhalls, or the separate places of assembly of the different guilds or associated trades of the cities. As far as existing examples go, it would appear that the trade- halls were the first erected. The cloth-hall at Ypres is by far the most magnificent and beautiful of these, as also the earliest. The foundation-stone was laid in 1200 by Baldwin of Constantinople, but it was not finished till 104 years afterwards. The facade is 440 ft. in length, and of the simplest possible design, being perfectly straight and unbroken from end to end. The windows of each story, all of one design, are repeated, not only along the whole front, but at each end. Its height is varied by the noble belfry which rises from its centre, and by a bold and beautiful pinnacle at each end. The whole is of the pure architecture of the 13th century, and is one of the most