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Rouen, It's History and Monuments - A Guide to Strangers by Théodore Licquet
page 24 of 114 (21%)
coffins carried off. On the lower part of the monument, are six
beautiful little statues, in niches separated by pilasters, representing
faith, charity, prudence, power, justice and temperance. All these
statues are of white marble. On the tomb, which is of black marble, the
two cardinals George d'Amboise uncle and nephew are placed. They are
kneeling on cushions; their heads uncovered and their hands joined. The
expression of prayer and piety is perfect in the two figures, especially
in that of George d'Amboise Ist. At their feet and on the front of the
cenotaph, we find the following inscription, in a single line, which
only concerns the cardinal-minister:

_Pastor eram cleri, populi pater, avrea sese
Lilia subdebant quercus[8] et ipsa michi.
Mortoos en iaceo, morte extingovinior honores;
At virtus, morte nescia, morte viret._

On the ground of the monument is a bas-relief representing the patron of
the two prelates (saint George) overcoming the dragon; On the sides,
are eight different figures, amongst which we discover the virgin,
several saints and more particularly Saint-Romain, archbishop of Rouen
during the first half of the VIIth century. A _voussure_ ornamented
with sculptures, as remarkable for their good taste as for the richness
of their ornaments, supports an attic, where we find the statues of the
twelve apostles, two and two, in elegant niches separated by pilasters.

These two monuments are not only remarkable by their magnificence and by
the recollections they awaken, they have another attraction, as an
history of the art at the time when the gothic style was giving place to
that of the renaissance.

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