ARCH 412 Final Exam (Monuments and Vocab)

Torhalle: Carolingian

• Built at gatehouse of imperial monastery, foundation of Lorsch Abbey

• Charlemagne visited and elevated it to an imperial monastery

• He tied it into his program of church reform and education

• The torhalle constructed as monumental entrance to Lorsch Abbey, symbolizing imperial authority

• The design inspired by romanesque architecture (arches, pilasters, friezes)

• An example of the Carolingian synthesis of Roman heritage and Christian imperial ideology

• Resembles a Triumphal Arch(like Arch of Constantine)

Palatine Chapel at Aachen: Carolingian

• Centerpiece of Charlemagne palace complex

• Combination of Roman and Byzantine styles

• Served as Charlemagne’s palace chapel, a private place of worship.

• Charlemagne’s throne was placed in the upper gallery, opposite the altar, visually linking imperial power with divine authority

• Also became Charlemagne burial site, making it a site of pilgrimage and memory

• Central space is octagonal surrounded by a sixteen sided ambulatory (draws inspiration from San Vitale)

• Use of westwork (monumental western façade) and integration of imperial throne gallery pioneering features of medieval architecture

Plan of an Ideal Monastery, St. Gall: Carolingian

• Detailed vision of an “ideal” Benedictine monastery, not an actual blueprint for a physical construction

• Organization of the plan according to the Rule of Saint Benedict

• The plan depicts a self sufficient monastic city, with key features being:

• Central Church and Cloister

• Dormitory Spaces

• Economic and Productive Areas

• Healthcare and Charity

• Gardens and Cemetery

• The gridlike organization reflects Carolingian ideals of rationality and divine order

Skellig Michael: Carolingian

• The site is a remote rocky island off County Kerry, Ireland

• Monks lived in extreme isolation, practiced asceticism

• The island later became a pilgrimage site

• The Clochan huts on the island built of dry stone corbelling without use of mortar.

• Oratories were small stone chapels for prayer

• The extreme remoteness of the site embodied early Irish Christian pursuit of solitude and closeness to god

Fontenay Abbey: Cistercian Romanesque

• Established by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, leading figure of the Cistercian reform movement, sought to return to strict observance of Rule of St Benedict

• The abbey reflects cistercian rejection of ornate Cluniac tradition, emphasizing poverty, manual labor, and simplicity

• Fontenay was self-sufficient, had facilities for agriculture, metalworking, and crafts

• The abbey church is a three aisle basilica, with its simplicity reflecting Cistercian ideals

• The abbey itself is within a secluded valley, reflecting Cistercian preference for remote sites with a natural setting for contemplation

• Fontenay included a medieval ironworks, revealing Cistercian technological skill and economic independence

Cluny Monastery Phase III: Cluniac Romanesque

• Largest church in Christendom at its time

• Established as a benedictine monastery directly subject to the pope

• The first church, Cluny I, was modelst, Cluny II expanded it, later the order’s wealth and prestige demanded construction of  monumental new church (Cluny III)

• Cluny III reflected the orders’ ambitions to reform liturgy and promote elaborate worship

• Cluny III over 187 meters long, with five aisles, double transepts, and multiple towers

• The double transepts created a cruciform plan

• Use of barrel vaults reflected romanesque architecture

• The space had sculpture, capitals, and liturgical furnishing which reflected Cluny’s embrace of grandeur in worship

Notre Dame (Paray-le-Monial): Cluniac Romanesque

• Current church built at the height of the Cluniac reform movement

• Embodied the liturgical and architectural ideals of the Cluniac order, use of Romanesque design

• Built in the Burgundian Romanesque tradition, rounded arches, massive walls, and harmonious proportions

• Church has a basilica plan with three aisles, a transepts, and a choir with an ambulatory and radiating chapels (closely modeled on Cluny III)

• Barrel vaults in nave and groin vaults in aisles, advanced romanesque engineering

• Nave emphasizes verticality and rhythm, alternating piers and columns. The choir’s ambulatory allowed for liturgical processions and veneration of relics

San Marco: Venetian Romanesque

• Built to house the relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist, stolen from Alexandria.

• modeled on the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople

• Byzantine-inspired architecture

• Served as both the Doge’s private chapel and the city’s most important religious monument

• Renowned for its golden mosaics, domed structure, and fusion of Eastern and Western styles

• Used a Cross plan with five domes, each supported by pendentives, reflecting Byzantine influence

• Over 8,000 square meters of mosaics, many in glittering gold tesserae, narrating biblical stories and Venetian triumphs

St. Etienne (Abbaye-aux-Hommes): Norman Romanesque

• Founded by William the Conqueror

• Served both as a Benedictine monastery and William’s burial place

• Architecture marks a turning point between Romanesque and Gothic styles

• original design featured a three-aisled basilica with a long nave, massive piers, and rounded arches

• Later, ribbed vaults were introduced, making Saint-Etienne a forerunner of Gothic architecture

• The Romanesque apse was replaced with a Gothic chevet, complete with flying buttresses and rosette windows

• The abbey embodied Norman ducal power, linking William’s conquest of England with his spiritual legacy

Cathedral of St. Lazare: Cluniac Romanesque and its *Tympanum showing the LastJudgment

• Constructed to house the relics of Saint Lazarus

• A major stop on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela

• Church consecrated during height of the Cluniac reform movement

• Cathedral drew pilgrims from across Europe, boosting Autun's prestige and economy

• cathedral is a classic Romanesque basilica

• nave is covered by barrel vaults, while aisles use groin vaults, advanced Romanesque engineering

• Tympanum of the Last Judgment: Carved by Gislebertus, depicts Christ enthroned, angels, demons, and souls weighed in judgment

• Narrative capitals throughout the nave and choir illustrate biblical stories

• Sculptures taught biblical lessons to largely illiterate pilgrims

Sainte Foy: Cluniac Romanesque

• abbey became famous after acquiring relics of Sainte Foy (Saint Faith), a young Christian martyr executed under Roman persecution

• Sainte-Foy major stop on the Way of St. James (Camino de Santiago), the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

• cult of Sainte Foy was associated with miraculous healings and the liberation of captives

• example of Romanesque architecture, massive stone walls, rounded arches, barrel vaults

• cross layout with a long nave, transept, and radiating chapels

Santiago (Saint James) de Compostela: Romanesque & Pilgrimage

• rose to prominence when the tomb of Saint James was believed to be discovered.

• became the end of the Camino de Santiago, attracting pilgrims from across Europe

• city was destroyed by Muslim forces, rebuilt later, symbolizing Christian resilience during the Reconquista

• Architectural Evolution:

• Romanesque Core with thick granite walls, round arches, and a barrel-vaulted nave

• Gothic Additions: Chapels and structural refinements introduced pointed arches and ribbed vaults.

• Romanesque foundations meet Gothic, Baroque, and later Neoclassical layers

St. Sernin: Romanesque & Pilgrimage

• honors Saint Saturninus (Sernin), the city’s first bishop and martyr

• small shrine existed first, but the monumental basilica was begun later to accommodate growing pilgrim traffic

• Saint-Sernin was a major stop for pilgrims en route to Santiago de Compostela

• Romanesque Features: Built primarily of brick and stone, cross plan with a long nave, wide transept, and radiating chapels around the apse

• octagonal bell tower

• Barrel-vaulted nave with transverse arches

• considered the largest Romanesque basilica in Europe

Dover Castle: Anglo-Norman Romanesque

• William the Conqueror fortified Dover after his invasion to secure the Channel crossing

• The massive stone keep and concentric defenses were built under Henry II, establishing Dover as a model of medieval military architecture

• Keep Built by Henry II, rising four stories, with massive walls and ceremonial apartments

• Served both defensive and symbolic purposes, emphasized royal authority

• Early example of concentric castle design in Europe

• Position on the White Cliffs of Dover, overlooking the narrowest point of the English Channel, made it the first line of defense against invaders

Saint Denis: Early Gothic

• Built on the tomb of Saint Denis, the first bishop of Paris who was Martyred

• Became the favored burial site of French kings, crucial role as a symbol of monarchy

• Suger rebuilt the choir and facade, introducing innovations that transformed medieval architecture

• Nave and transept were completed later, further developing Gothic style

• Widely considered the first fully Gothic building

• Features: Pointed arches, Ribbed vaults, Stained glass windows

• emphasized light as a manifestation of God through the stained glass windows

Notre Dame: Early-High Gothic

• commissioned by Bishop Maurice de Sully

• begun in mid 1100s and completed in mid 1300s

• Combines Pointed arches, ribbed vaults, flying buttresses, and stained glass

• Built on the ruins of earlier churches and a Roman temple to Jupiter

• Rose windows

• Portals depict biblical narratives. Gargoyles and chimeras serve both symbolic and practical (rainwater drainage) functions

• extensive use of flying buttresses stabilize walls and enable large stained glass opening

• Dedicated to the Virgin Mary

• Extra Fun Fact: After the 2019 fire, reconstruction efforts allowed for reopening on December 2024

Chartres Cathedral: High Gothic

• church dedicated to the Virgin Mary existed at Chartres by the 4th century

• Romanesque cathedral was built in the 11th century but later destroyed by a fire

• current Gothic cathedral rose rapidly after the fire, funded by donations from across France due to importance as a Marian shrine

• housed the Sancta Camisia, a relic believed to be tunic worn by the Virgin Mary at Christ’s birth, making it a major pilgrimage destination

• cross plan, with a long nave, wide transept, and deep choir

• Flying buttresses support high walls, allowing vast stained glass windows

• Sculptures of kings, queens, prophets, and Christ in Majesty, links Old Testament and New Testament

• Famous Blue of Chartres color in Marian windows

Reims Cathedral: High Gothic

• A church existed at Reims first, where Clovis, the first king of the Franks, was baptized

• After a fire destroyed the earlier Romanesque church, Archbishop Aubry de Humbert initiated the new Gothic cathedral

• Reims became the traditional site of French royal coronations

• Cross plan with a long nave, wide transept, and deep choir

• Vaults emphasize verticality and light

• Use of flying buttresses to support tall walls and large stained glass windows

• Over 2,300 statues, making it one of most sculpturally rich cathedrals in Europe

• Portals depict biblical narratives, saints, and coronation imagery

The Sainte-Chapelle: Late Gothic (aka Rayonnant style)

• Commissioned by Louis IX as part of the royal palace

• Built to house Crown of Thorns, fragments of the True Cross, and other relics acquired from Constantinople

• Served as both reliquary and a symbol of Capetian monarchy divine legitimacy

• Characterized by extreme emphasis on light and verticality

• Two Levels: 

• Lower Chapel: For palace staff, decorated with painted vaults and polychrome columns

• Upper Chapel: Reserved for king and relics, dominated by immense stained glass walls

• Stained glass windows depicting biblical history from Genesis to Christ’s Passion

• Delicate stonework frame creates a “cage of light.”

King's College Chapel: Perpendicular Gothic

• Founded by King Henry VI, who envisioned a chapel of cathedral-like scale for the new college

• Each Tudor monarch contributed, making the chapel a project reflecting the power and prestige of the crown

• Perpendicular Gothic Style: vertical lines, large windows, and elaborate vaulting

• fan-vaulted ceiling

• Large windows depict biblical narratives from Creation to the Resurrection

• Chapel embodied Henry VI’s vision of a college dedicated to religion and learning, later monarchs used it to project Tudor authority

Santa Croce: Tuscan Gothic

• Franciscan friars arrived in Florence, settling in a marshy area outside the city walls

• basilica was begun late 1200s, possibly designed by Arnolfo di Cambio, and consecrated in mid 1400s

• Santa Croce was financed by Florentine citizens, reflecting its role as the “people’s church”

• Wide nave with side aisles

• Giotto’s frescoes narrate the lives of St. Francis and St. John the Evangelist

• Church’s simplicity and spaciousness reflect Franciscan values of poverty and preaching

Strasbourg Cathedral: Late Gothic

• A Romanesque cathedral existed previously at the site

• After a fire, the cathedral was rebuilt in Gothic style

• Served as the seat of the Bishop of Strasbourg

• Later became a Protestant church during the Reformation

• Returned to Catholicism when Louis XIV annexed Strasbourg

• The west front contains thousands of figures illustrating biblical narratives

• Rose Windows

• Spire was tallest structure in the world for over two centuries

• Cathedral symbolized Strasbourg’s prosperity as a free imperial city

• Sculptures and stained glass emphasize salvation, cosmic order, and civic pride

trompe l'oeil

a painting or design intended to create the illusion of a three-dimensional object

Westwerk

monumental western entry block with two towers at either side of a center portion

Cloister

a quadrilateral, portico-lined courtyard at the center of a monastery

Bay

a repeated unit of structure (comprised of four vertical supports and their vault/roof)

Eremitic monasticism

solitary monasticism, as a hermit (or anchoress)

Cenobitic monasticism

monasticism in which monks live together as a community, often at adistance from other, secular communities

Order

a monastic practice that follows a particular set of rules and regulations. All orders were part of the western European, Latin church and owed allegiance to the Pope, but each orders' particular regulations might differ somewhat

Benedictine monasticism

follows the Regula, or Rule, of St. Benedict, of the 5th century: guide, in 73 short chapters, for communal monastic life based on an equal balance of the "active life" and the "contemplative life": equal parts work and prayer/meditation. Most common order of medieval monasticism; it is still practiced today

Mother house/daughter house

relationship between a founding monastic church and its newer off-shoot

Abbot/Abbess

leader of a male/female communal monastic community

Opus Dei

communal worship (for all of the members of the monastery); divided into seven hours ('offices') of prayer throughout the day and night

Claustrum or Cloister

Enclosed four-sided space at the center of a monastery, composed of a subdivided garden or courtyard and surrounding porticoes; can also mean the monastery as a whole, as a separated and closed space of religious life

Chapter House or Capitulum

place of meeting of the whole monastic community; usually a rectangular or square vaulted space with benches around the perimeter of the room for seating

Cluniac

the order affiliated with Cluny Monastery; a reform branch of the Benedictine Order; believes in prayer as labor (they hired lay brothers - workers - to do manual labor)

Cistercian

a later reform order founded in 1098 at Cïteaux (Latin medieval name: Cistercium).They followed a strict interpretation of the Benedictine Rule, reintroducing manual labor andmaking asceticism a key aspect of their monastic practice. Bernard of Clairvaux was one of their main intellectual leaders, under whose guidance the order grew exponentially in numbers and power

Translation

the ritual movement/rehousing of the relics of a saint from one church location to another

Compound pier

vertical supports made of a core pier or column with attached colonnettes around it

Crossing (tower)

the area where the nave and the transept meet and its vaulting

Springing

the point at which an arch begins (where it begins to curve away from its vertical support)

Groin vault

a masonry vault of two intersecting, perpendicular barrel vaults; this creates joints (or "groins" at the points of intersection

Ribbed barrel vault

a barrel vault with a supplementary support band at each bay

Radiating chapel (aka 'apsidiol')

small apse-like projection off an ambulatory or transept

Tympanum

the space enclosed by a lintel and an arch over a doorway

Maestas Domini

Latin, "Christ in Majesty". Iconography of Christ seated on a throne, usually centered in the architectural frame and larger than other figures (hierarchical scale)

Last Judgment

the judgment of souls at the end of the world, part of Christian/New Testament belief

Camino de Santiago

"the Way of St. James," is a network of pilgrims' routes leading to the shrine of the apostle Saint James the Great in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain

Relic

a body part of a saint or holy object (usually a tiny fragment of such); secondary relics are those that were in contact with a holy body (such as the Shroud of Turin)

Reliquary

the container for a holy relic, often very highly decorated with gold and gemstones;can take a human form (often related to the body part the relic came from) or a more functionalobject, like a casket/box or a cross form

Motte-and-bailey

A defensive system comprising the motte, a mound of earth, with a wooden tower on top, placed within the bailey, a walled courtyard (also called the ward)

Keep

A freestanding defense tower in a castle complex (after the twelfth century, often enclosed by fortifications/walls, becoming the strongest element within the castle; later yet, keeps are mostly residential and could be fairly luxurious).

Enceinte

French term for inner protective line, consisting of towers/bastions and curtain walls, surrounding a keep (often there are two lines of defensive fortifications in twelfth century and later castles)

Rib vault

structural bands of masonry that form the "skeleton"/frame of the building

Pointed arch

transfers force and thrust more efficiently through the center of the arch's voussoirs (individual stones), creating a stronger arch

Flying buttress

transfers lateral thrust (sideways) from the clerestory springing point to the external buttress pier of a Gothic cathedral

Gothic Architecture Development over Time

1) Overall, the cathedrals get taller over time

2) the interior nave wall switches from earlier four-part elevation to a later three-part elevation (the gallery is excised); this streamlines the wall, emphasizing its verticality

3) the proportions of the interior nave wall become more equalized between the ground arcade and the upper-level clerestory

Chevet

rounded, hemispherical east end of a Gothic church (includes the ambulatory (with any radiating chapels, apse and choir)

Pseudo-Dionysius

an ancient Greek philosopher who believed that radiant light was a physical manifestation of God. Through centuries, this Pseudo-Dionysius Dionysius is the Greek version of 'Denis') became conflated with the martyrial saint of the monastery of St. Denis, and thus Suger believed that he was adapting the patron saint's idea of divine luminosity in the building of his new church.

Anagogy

interpretation of a word, passage, or text (as of Scripture or poetry) that leads beyond the literal, allegorical, and moral senses to a spiritual or mystical sense

Triforium

small zone above the gallery (or sometimes replacing it) in a Gothic elevation. Often has blind arcades, or an open arcade screening a small passageway.

Webbing

the "skin" of a ribbed vault; the solid covering of the vault above the structural ribs

Six-part/Four-part vault

vaults broken into six or four compartments by the transverse anddiagonal supporting ribs. Six-part vaults are earlier, four-part vault were the result of greater experimentation and confidence in the Gothic vaulting structural system.

Jamb statues/figures

statues that are carved into the columns of the door jambs (verticals connected to the facets of the archivolt)

Rose window

circular window with mullions or tracery radiating in a form suggestive of aflower/rose

Mullion

individual, vertical dividers between glass plates in a window (still used today); canbe stone, wood, aluminum, etc.

Lancet

tall, narrow window with an acutely pointed head

Tracery

stone dividers (as a whole) in windows, often in elaborate patterns

Plate tracery

window forms are punched into the stone wall, retaining the majority thickness of the wall

Bar tracery

thinner bar mullions between the stained-glass pieces allowing for greater areas of glass within the rose window

English Perpendicular

perpendicular Gothic period (or simply Perpendicular) characterized by an emphasis on rectilinear lines with strong points of crossing; begins c. 1350 (and goes until the mid-sixteenth century) and grows out of the English Decorated style

Ridge Rib

long, longitudinal rib running the length of several bays (if not the whole church) along the apex of the vault line

Tierceron

rib projections that extend from the side arches to some point along the ridge rib, not necessarily joining the rib from the side arch opposite

Lierne

small ribs connecting tiercerons or ridge ribs (these make up the bulk of the net-like patterns of English Gothic vaulting

Fan Vaulting

type of vault consisting of a set of concave ribs spreading out from a central point like the ribs of an opened umbrella, used especially in the English Perpendicular style

Hammer-beam roof

Short, horizontal beams projecting inward into the top of interior walls, attached to the foot of principal rafters in a roof and generally supporting arched roof braces

Mendicant Orders

monastic orders that engaged with teaching and outreach to the secular population; usually located within town centers for this outreach. Franciscans and Dominicans are part of the Mendicant Orders.

Three Combined Structural elements creating "Gothic" architecture

Rib vault

Pointed arch

Flying buttress

Historiated capital

Capital with narrative carved on its faces (they tell a story)

Diagram of the Romanesque portal: Archivolt, Voussoir, Lintel, Jamb, Trumeau

Archivolt

Voussoir

Lintel

Jamb

Trumeau

1. Noyon (Romanesque-Early Gothic)

2. Laon (Early Gothic)

3. Notre Dame (Early-High Gothic)

4. Chartres (High Gothic)

5. Reims (High Gothic)

6. Amiens (Rayonnant High Gothic)

Gothic cathedrals…
1. Get taller over time

2. Go from four to three part elevation

3. More equalized proportions between ground arcade and upper clerestory