5. THE ROOF
Particular care must be taken in constructing the roof, which must protect the entire building, since if it is poorly planned or poorly made, the wood decays, the walls weaken and gradually the entire structure will fall into ruin.{1} Therefore particular zeal and attention is required of the architect in roofing the church which, with its sacred images, pious ornaments and religious apparatus, should be built to last forever. Whatever form the architect may have chosen for the roof according to the characteristics of the building, whether it is gabled, vaulted, or coffered, he must see to it above all that the wooden material, that is the beams, rafters, struts, planks, and all the rest of which the roof is formed, and their joints are solid.
Regarding the covering of the roof, which differs according to the customs of the regions and the shape of the building, the architect himself will see what type is most suitable.
In churches of distinguished structure and with considerable funds, it is best to use bronze tiles to cover the roof, as was once done, or at least lead tiles.{2}
Both the tradition of some of the Roman basilicas {3} and the meaning attributed to the mystery lead one to build coffered ceilings in the churches, {4} but it will not be inappropriate to build them with vaults, according to the customs of the places, to make the structures more fireproof. Such vaulted roofs can be seen in distinguished and ancient basilicas in the city and province of Milan. Care however must be taken to eliminate dripping on the lower part of the wall by giving the roof a proper slope. The architect will be responsible for seeing that it is done in the best and most appropriate way, adequately designing the structure of the parts.
So that the walls will not be damaged by the continuous dripping from the eaves, the foundations, as soon as they rise above the level of the ground, must be covered with closely set flagstone paving, a good deal wider than the eaves. The earth taken from those places must be permanently removed.
Moreover so that the eaves will not be subject to infiltration of rain water, if the tiles or flat tiles are not waterproof, at the summit, a structure or brick parapet with projecting tops resting on the beams of the roof, which will also help the slope thereof, will be employed.
NOTES
Chapter V, pp.
- Even a cursory search through any of the 1565-184 catalogues in the Archivi Curia di Milano will not fail to bring to light some documents relating to church repairs that were ordered by either Borromeo or his delegates. Many necessary reparations were the result of poor or worn roofing. One quaint entry, no date, specified that the pastor had sixty days (and then if not complied with, deprivation of his office until so done) to rid the church attic of merli (blackbirds)! Almost all of the entries concerning roofs are relatively simple and brief.
On 7 September 1576, Borromeo sent a pastoral visitor to Luino to report about damages that might have resulted from a mountain flash flood. A minute description written by Bishop Gerolamo Politi follows one of the early outlines designed by Borromeo to bring uniformity to these reports. The roof that Politi described was the type made of fairly large, flat, overlaying slate-like slabs of stone that were supported by a wooden frame. He wrote that the entire church of S. Pietro in Luino left much to be desired, was missing its ceiling, and that the vault over the main chapel had been roughly plastered but not whitewashed. Two years later another official visitor, using the same outline, updated the prior information, adding that “Que est longitudinis a capella 15, latitudinis 6; cooperta plidis subtus cuticulus…” This confirms that the roof was made of slate shingles resting on a filleting, which was a type of mortar at the joining of the sloping roof and walls. The mortar was extended up the side of the wall and over one or two courses of slate shingles with the next course overlapping it. This system, frequently used in towns of the rural north, was prone to leaks as a result of loose slates and settlement. At S. Pietro, this is exactly what happened, as is reported by Borromeo’s delegate. “Parietes, cum foraminbus, ab utraque parte picti; egentes tamen ab utraque parte incrustations. Ex quibus paries a destra parte in ingrediendo minat ruinam.” The roof had not been kept in prime condition and the wall to the right was nearly ruined.(a)
- Another curious entry in the archives pertaining to roofs is in reference to a prelate of S. Ambrogio who was brought to trial because he had sold some of the lead from the roofs of the basilica complex.(b)
- Borromeo’s second titular church was S. Martino ai Monti, and he assumed the title on 4 November 1560. Under his direction and with his financial assistance, the church was thoroughly cleaned and a new ceiling commissioned. The same ceiling survives today at S. Martino ai Monti, showing a decorative alternation between the Borromeo crest and the word “humilitas”(c) (Figs. 5.1, 5.2).
- In reference to symbolical meaning, Durandus states that “in the temple of God, … the roof is charity which covers a multitude of sins,…the roof tiles which drive the rain from the house are as the soldiers who protect the church from pagans and from enemies.” He writes that the beams are similar to preachers who give spiritual strength; and that the vaulting or ceiling likewise represent preachers who reach upward.(d)
(a) Archivi Curia Milano, section X (Pastoral visits), vol. 7, no. 14.
(b) Visite Pastorali di Milan, S. Ambrogio, vol. xx:42, no. 14, herafter cited as VPM.
(c) Cod. Vat. Lat. 706l, fol. 186v., also O. Panciroli, I tesori nascosti nell’alma citta Roma (Rome, 1600), p. 621.
(d) Durandus, I, 16, 36, 31.