GOTHIC

Saint Denis, near ParisNarthex and Chevet, 1140-44, commissioned by Abbot Suger, first minster to

Kings Louis VI and Louis VII

Saint Denis, plan

Saint Denis, interior

Diagram of Gothic construction showing the three essential features: ribbed vaults, pointed arches, and flying buttresses

diagram

Left: Saint-Sernin, Toulouse Right: Amiens Cathedral The heavy ribbed vault of the

Romanesque building are made possible by thick walls, heavy cruciform piers, and few windows. Ribbed vaults are structurally more efficient than a barrel vault that evenly distributes the weight and thrust along the wall. A ribbed vault directs thrust to specific points in the masonry--where the ribs

meet the wall at the clerestory level. These in turn are supported by the use of flying buttresses visible on the outside of the building.

NOTRE DAME DE PARIS (from 1163)

Notre Dame

Notre Dame

Notre Dame, portal carvings

Notre Dame, window

Notre Dame, interior

Romanesque vs. Gothic sections

Notre Dame, Paris

Notre Dame, plan

CHARTRES (from 1194)

Chartres

Chartres, interior

Chartres, windows

NEW SLIDE: Amiens, façade

AMIENS CATHEDRAL, France (from 1220)

Amiens, computer image

Amiens, plan

Amiens, nave

Amiens, computer image

Amiens

SAINTE CHAPELLE, Paris, 1243-8Built by King Louis IX to house the Crown of Thorns and fragment of the True

Cross he had bought from the Byzantine Emperor. An example of the Rayonnant or Court Style of French Gothic architecture.

Sainte Chapelle, interior

Sainte Chapelle, interior

Sainte Chapelle, plan

KINGS COLLEGE CHAPEL Cambridge, England (1440s - 1515)

Kings College Chapel

Kings College Chapel, interior

Milan Cathedral (white marble, over a brick core. One of the largest cathedrals in the world 14,000 sq yards it was

designed to accommodate 40,000 people. The forest of pinnacles, the tracery panels, and the rich embellishment

with statuary identifies it as Late Gothic.)

MILAN CATHEDREAL (Duomo) 1380-1900s? Italy's largest and most intricate example of Gothic architecture. (In the 1650's work was begun on the western facade but it was

not completed until the 19th century. This facade is more classical in detail than Gothic.)

Milan Cathedral, Italy 1380-

Milan Cathedral, flying buttresses

Milan Cathedral, interior

Doge’s Palace (AKA Palazzo Ducale) Venice, 1309-1424

Doge’s Palace, Canaletto painting

Doge’s Palace (Venice c. 1300-1400),

Doge, detail

Doge, detail

Byzantine Church

Doge, plan

Doge’s Palace, courtyard

Doge, courtyard