CAROLINGIAN PALACES AND CHURCHES

colonnades of evidently Roman Eastern derivation (fig. 6). To
visualise these palaces we have to rely on excavations and descrip-
tion. Only in one case a substantial piece of one of Charlemagne's
palaces still stands: the Chapel Palatine of Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle),

6. INGELHEIM: CHARLEMAGNE'S PALACE, EARLY 911* CENTURY.

one of the emperor's principal residences. It was originally connected
with the Great Hall (not now traceable beyond parts of the founda-
tion walls) by colonnades nearly 400 feet long (pL v). An equestrian
statue of Theodoric, believed to be Constantine, looted from Rome,
was significantly placed in this colonnaded forecourt, and columns of
the chapel also came from Italy. So did undoubtedly its ground
plan. There can be little doubt that the architect took his inspiration
from S. Vitale. But he could see no sense in the curved-out niches, so
he flattened them out, thus re-establishing the straightforward
division between central octagon and ambulatory. He also elimi-