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本帖最后由 ngsunyu 于 2020-10-8 14:44 编辑
中央大厅是国会大厦的核心。 它位于下议院和上议院之间。
Central Lobby is at the heart of the Houses of Parliament. It sits between the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
Central Lobby was designed by Charles Barry as a meeting place for Members of both Houses, and where MPs can meet their constituents. It is a lofty stone octagon with an intricately tiled floor, and a rich mosaic-covered vault. The very distinctive Central Tower is built over the Central Lobby, which forms the crossroads of the Palace: the spot where corridors from the Lords, Commons, and Westminster Hall meet.
The arches surrounding the high windows of the Lobby are decorated with statues of kings and queens of England and Scotland from Edward I. Over each of the four exits from the Lobby are four large mosaic panels, depicting in turn the patron saint of each of the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom: St George for England, St David for Wales, St Andrew for Scotland and St Patrick for Northern Ireland. There was a long drawn-out controversy over the panels, mainly on grounds of expense. St George was installed in 1870 and St David in 1898, but it was not until the early 1920s that the quartet was completed.
Arch on the right shows mosaic of St Andrew for Scotland, as does the postcard. St Andrew the Fisherman stands with his net over his arm, and his staff in his right hand. On one side is the figure of St Margaret, Queen of Scotland. In her hands - the black cross known as the Holy Rood of Scotland, which has at its centre a fragment of the True Cross, given to her ancestor by Charlemagne. On the other side stands St Mungo, also called St Kentigern, who founded the diocese of Glasgow. The salmon at his feet with a ring in its mouth refers to a legend in which the saint miraculously saved an unfaithful wife from the anger of her royal husband. Behind is the X-shaped cross on which St Andrew was said to have been martyred. Andrew was one of the Christian Apostles, the brother of Simon Peter: but his later history is obscure.
Unfortunate experiences with frescoes at the Palace of Westminster led the Fine Arts Commissioners to change their original plan, and commission mosaics for the four patron saints in the Central Lobby. Interest in mosaics in the 19th Century had been growing, fuelled by the enthusiasm of Dr Salviati, the man responsible for restoring the mosaics at St Mark's in Venice. Dr Salviati's firm was then commissioned by the Fine Arts Commission to undertake the implementation of mosaics in Central Lobby - from the designs of Sir Edward Poynter (1836-1919). Saint George and Saint David were installed in 1869.
However, by the 1920s the decoration of the Central Lobby had fallen into abeyance, and Dr Salviati had died. So the commission for the remaining two Patron Saints was awarded to Robert Anning Bell (1863-1933), who was also responsible for two large mosaics in St Stephen's Hall. Bell worked on the spot, rather than in the studio, and the mosaics of Saint Andrew and Saint Patrick were finally unveiled in 1923.
Middle arch shows mosaic of St David for Wales. Left arch shows mosaic of St Patrick for Northern Ireland.
Central Lobby is also a testament to the struggle for women's suffrage in the 20th century. (parliament.uk) |
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