Description

This beautiful architectural pen and ink drawing with ink wash is attributed to the Norwegian artist Johan H. van Kervel Barth.  Its title refers to the crypt under the ancient Mont Saint Michel Abbey in Lower Normandy, France.  The abbey was declared an historic monument in 1874, so by the time Barth knew of it, its history as an abbey (and later a prison) was old history.

This drawing is immediately recognizable as the Romanesque pillars in the Gothic Crypt under the choir of the Abbey church.

A prior owner of this work dated it to 1840; that date, of course, is incorrect because Barth lived 1877 to 1939.

Works by Barth are scarce.