Foliate ornament

The calathos of the capital is articulated by two broad foliate registers, with a clear demarcation between them. The lower register consists of scrolled tendrils defining heart-shaped medallions in which palmettes are placed, while an upside-down palmette is placed in ist parting. The upper register is articulated with a row of vertical stems bundled together in pairs terminating in upside-down palmettes with little leaves similar to those in the lower register. This horizontal row is further enriched with a series of identical palmettes, which form the upper termination of the foliations. The console block is decorated with a vertical stem, its tendrils twisting symmetrically to either side and with little palmettes sprouting from their terminations.
The motif of the twisted palmettes derives from a variation of the ancient acanthus leaf, as first developed for the great building and decorative project of Saint-Sernin; it is found for instance in the small central apse of the ambulatory of the choir.
Small parallel vertical grooves recur once again between the arms of the volutes and the foliate ornamentation, as in W03MS59, W06MS62, W08MS64 and W11MS67.
Four bands with vertical incisions run around the impost block. The bevelled impost frieze below is ornamented with a virtuoso interlace of serpents and tendrils, which end in small curling terminations, closely resembling those on the foliations of the capital below. Here too it can be assumed that both the capital itself and the impost were sculpted by the same master.

foliation leaf Toulouse palmette Saint-Sernin