THE pointed arch is not known in existing remains of
architecture (outside of Assyrian vaulted drains and ruins
of the upper Nile) before the time of the Arab buildings
( Figs. 112 - 116 ). There is no doubt that it was through
contact with these that its form became familiar to the
crusaders as well as to architects of Spain and Southern
Italy. The pointed arch is found in occasional use in the
later Romanesque, and we find here another instance of
the transitions by which the new style was reached, but as
it appears in these cases it was used without any distinct
system of Gothic development. In the case of the Gothic
style it is clear that its adoption was not due to imitation
of Saracenic art or to any decorative preference. A
decorative preference might appear to be indicated by its
constant decorative use, for the round arch is not found in
the Gothic period, excepting in Italy, but the original
explanation is to be sought in the weight of the vaulted
ceilings. The decorative use followed the construction.

The view of the ruin of Melrose Abbey ( Fig. 137 ) is the
best illustration on this head, because its peculiar and un-
usual exhibition of a section of the actual construction shows
the weight of masonry which presses on the arch. The
weight is greater here than was usually the case, but the
illustration serves its purpose. This will consequently lead
us to consider the difficulties and problems which beset the
constructors of the round-arch Romanesque vaultings. We

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