In Germany the most important sculptures of this period were executed at Nuremberg. The Church of St. Laurence, that of St. Sebald, the Frauenkirche, or the Church of Our Lady, are all great monuments to the art of this city and the calm dignity and grace which marked the works of the Nuremberg sculptors.
At the close of the century, between 1385 and 1396, Master Heinrich den Balier erected the "Beautiful Fountain," which is still the pride of the city and a splendid monument of the time. In Nuremberg many of the dwelling-houses were decorated with sculptures, and it is now one of the most interesting places in all Germany to the student of ancient art.
We have not the space to speak in detail of the sculpture of the time; Augsburg, Prague, Stuttgart, Bamberg, Würzburg, Cologne, and many other German towns and cities have rich treasures of its work, but its character is everywhere much the same, and great activity, with a tendency toward decline, are its prominent features.
In Germany in this century ivory-carving was much practised and used for a great variety of purposes. In these smaller works the life and freshness, the grace and spirit of the manner of the time were very attractive (Fig. 78).
[Illustration: FIG. 78.--IVORY RELIEF. HUNTING SCENE.]
In France the fourteenth century was much less productive of works of art than the preceding one had been. The fact that so much had been done in the thirteenth century--so many new churches built and so many older ones remodelled--is one reason for this change. In this direction there was very little left to be done. Then, too, the country was so disturbed by wars with England that the arts of peace suffered neglect. However, there was still much to be done to complete the grand works already begun, and during the early part of this century a great deal was accomplished by way of interior decoration in edifices not yet completed, and in the making of monuments in memory of persons of rank and importance. Those in the Cathedral of St. Denis were much increased in number, and in all parts of France these works were multiplied.
During this century many artists from the Netherlands were employed in France; and in the city of Dijon, which was the residence of the dukes of Burgundy, the works of Flemish artists were very numerous.