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Culture Documents
▪ Apse, sanctuary.
▪ Atrium, forecourt
▪ Choir, enclosed by a
cancelli
▪ Ambo, pulpit
1 apse 15 northern aisle, gospel side,
2 cathedra, bishop’s throne women’s side
3 synthronos, synthronon 16 southern aisle, epistle side,
(podium or benches) men’s side
5 bema, altar platform 17 side chapel
6 solea (raised floor, used by 18 sacristy, vestry, revestry,
the clergy) vestiary
7 choir screen 20 exonarthex
8 apsidiole (secondary apse) 21 belltower
10 choir, schola cantorum 22 cloister
11 cancelli 23 atrium, atrium paradisus,
12 gospel ambo paradise
13 epistle ambo 24 prothyron (space in front of the
14 nave entrance)
Dosseret. A thickened abacus or supplementary capital set above a column capital to receive the thrust of an
arch; also called a pulvin, impost block or supercapital.
Byzantine capitals.
Basilica di San
Vitale
Ravenna, Italy.
Hagia Sophia (prior to addition of minarets), Constantinople (now Istanbul), Turkey, 532–537 AD, architect
Anthemios of Tralles & Isidorus of Miletus.
St. Basil’s Cathedral, Moscow, Russia. Designed by Postnik Yakovlev and Ivan Barma. (Most distinct features are
the bulbous-shaped domes and unusual details.)
Romanesque
Architecture
Romanesque (800-1180)
▪ "Roman-like”
▪ Heavy articulated masonry construction with narrow
openings, round arches, barrel vaults, and sparse
ornament.
▪ Churches gradually changed to cross-shaped plans
formed by wings called transepts and the choir.
▪ Towers at the west and east ends and the crossing of
nave and transepts.
▪ known in England as Norman architecture.
Piazza del Duomo, (presently Piazza dei Miracoli) Pisa; Tuscany, Italy.
The cathedral complex of Pisa
▪ Cathedral
▪ Baptistery
▪ Campanile
▪ Camposanto
A cemetery surrounded by a
colonnade.
Plan, Piazza del Duomo.
CENTRAL EUROPE. Worms Cathedral. Castle-like; claimed to be the representative cathedral of the period.
SOUTH FRANCE. Notre Dame du Port. Characterized by the use of inlaid decoration formed of different colored
lavas. (UNESCO)
SPAIN. Santiago de Compostela. Romanesque and Baroque. Religious pilgrimage site housing the relics of St.
James and the Pórtico de la Gloria. (UNESCO)
SPAIN. Loarre Castle. Representative example of defensive architecture in the Romanesque style. (UNESCO)
ENGLAND. Durham Cathedral. The largest and finest example of Norman architecture in England. (UNESCO)
ENGLAND. Worcester Cathedral. It has two transepts crossing the nave (as with Salisbury and Lincoln).
ENGLAND. Canterbury Cathedral. Romanesque and Perpendicular Gothic elements combined. (UNESCO)
Canterbury Cathedral; England. (Partial section and interior vaulting.)
Other building types
ENGLAND. Fountains Abbey; monastery. Largest and best preserved medieval ruins in the UK. (UNESCO)
ENGLAND. Windsor Castle. A royal residence combining the features of a fortification, palace, and a small town.
Gothic
Architecture
Gothic (1050-1530)
▪ “Style Ogivale”
▪ Progressive lightening and heightening of structure
(made possible by the flying buttress)
▪ Use of the pointed arch and ribbed vault.
▪ Richly decorated fenestration.
Cathedral
A large and principal church of a diocese (district
under the pastoral care of a bishop), cathedra, the
seat of a bishop.
Parts and Features
Amiens Cathedral
Amiens, France.
1 arcade
3 triforium
3b triforium, blind arcade
4 clerestory, clearstory
6 flying buttress
7 finial, pinnacle
8 gargoyle, water spout
9 buttress, pier
10 aisle
11 nave
Cathedral of Notre Dame, Amiens, France, c.1220–69, Robert of Luzarches, Thomas and Renault of Cormont
(prior to addition of chapels in 16th century)
9 buttress, pier
21 choir stalls
10 aisle
22 chapel, radiating chapel
11 nave
23 high altar
12 west end
24 chancel aisle, apse aisle,
13 body
ambulatory, deambulatory
14 transept
25 parclose, perclose (a
15 chancel
screen in a church to
16 chevet, radiating chapels
seclude a chapel from the
17 arm, projecting transept
main space)
18 porch
26 Lady Chapel (chapel
19 crossing
dedicated to the Virgin
20 choir screen, rood
Mary)
screen
Cathedral of Notre Dame, Amiens, France, c.1220–69, Robert of Luzarches, Thomas and Renault of Cormont
(prior to addition of chapels in 16th century)
Gothic compound pier
Colonettes facing the nave continue upward to
reach all the way to the vault, whereas the
colonettes on the inside become part of the
ribs of the vaults in the side aisles.
Rib or Ribbed vault
A vault constructed of structural arched stone
members or ribs with an infill of masonry.
A bay
B haunch, hanche, rib
C cell, web, severy
D groin
E transverse rib
F wall rib, forcement
G diagonal rib, groin rib, ogive
H tierceron, secondary rib
K lierne, tertiary rib
L transverse ridge-rib
M longitudinal ridge-rib, ridge
rib
N boss, pendant
O compound pier
▪ Boss (N)
An ornamental, knob-like projection at the
intersection of ogives.
Parts of a Rib Vault
▪ Lierne (K)
A tertiary rib in a vault often for decorative rather
than structural purposes.
▪ Tierceron (H)
A subsidiary rib which connects a point on the
ridge rib or central boss with one of the main
springers or supports.
ENGLISH FRENCH
GOTHIC GOTHIC
1. Early English 1. A lancettes
2. Decorated Style 2. Rayonant
3. Perpendicular 3. Flamboyant
English Gothic
Early English
▪ Also known as Lancet, First Pointed or Early
Plantagenet.
▪ Use of lancet-shaped arches and plate tracery
(tracery using masonry into which shapes has been
cut).
Worcester Cathedral. (Early English)
Decorated Style
▪ Also Geometrical and Curvilinear, Middle Pointed,
Edwardian, or Later Plantagenet.
▪ Rich tracery, elaborate ornamental vaulting, and
refined stone-cutting techniques.
Westminster Abbey. (Decorated)
Perpendicular
▪ Also Rectilinear, Late Pointed, or Lancastrian.
▪ Perpendicular tracery (use of a lacework of vertical
glazing bars), fine intricate stonework, and elaborate
fan vaults.
Gloucester Cathedral, Gloucester, England. (Perpendicular Gothic)
Bath Abbey; Somerset, England; King's College Chapel; Cambridge, England. (Fan vaults)
French Gothic
Three Phases of French Gothic
▪ Primarie: a lancettes, pointed arches and geometric
traceried windows.
▪ Secondaire: rayonnant, circular windows, wheel
tracery.
▪ Tertiaire: flamboyant, flowing and flamelike tracery.
Three Phases of French Gothic: A lancette, rayonnant, and flamboyant.
Notable Structures
England
Salisbury Cathedral. (Double transepts)
Wells Cathedral.
Windsor Castle.
France
Notre Dame Cathedral
Rheims Cathedral. (Figures of Mary were visible in every part of the church; houses the relic of the tunic that had
allegedly belonged to the Virgin Mary.
Chartres Cathedral. (Epitome of the new cathedral design where the nave on the outside is almost completely
obscured behind an intimate tangle of buttresses.
Germany
Ulm Cathedral (Regarded as the tallest cathedral in the world.)
Cologne Cathedral
Spain
Seville Cathedral (Tallest cathedral in Spain.)
Burgos Cathedral
Barcelona Cathedral
Italy
Siena Cathedral. (Use of striped marbles.)
Milan Cathedral
Other Building Types
CASTLES. Chateau D’Amboise, France. (Built on mounds above rivers, with thick walls and small windows.)
PALAIS DE JUSTICE. Palais de Justice de Rouen, France.
MANOR HOUSE. Ightham Mote, England. (A moated merchant’s house)
Renaissance
Architecture
Renaissance (1420-1550)
▪ Developed during the rebirth of classical art and
learning in Europe.
▪ Initially characterized by the use of the classical
orders, round arches, and symmetrical proportions.
▪ Pure Renaissance architecture was based on regular
order, symmetry, and a central axis with grandiose
plans and impressive facades.
▪ Personality of the architect has increased in
importance.
Renaissance (1420-1550)
▪ Silhouettes were clean and simple, with flat roofs.
▪ Walls of large dressed masonry blocks (rusticated
masonry) gave buildings an imposing sense of dignity
and strength.
▪ Emphasis on horizontality.
▪ Ornamentation was based on pagan or classical
mythological subjects.
▪ Sgraffito, scratched and colored plaster.
Phases
Early, High, and Late Renaissance
Early Renaissance
Adoption of Classical detail and ornamentation.
Brunelleschi
Riccardi Palace.