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What are similarities between the Romanesque and Gothic styles
What are similarities between the Romanesque and Gothic styles
Compare Romanesque and Gothic architecture
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The Medieval period, which occurred in the years 401 until 1500, is a time in European history that fostered the development and widespread use of various architectural styles. Many structures built during this time still survive to this day, including St. Michael’s Church in Germany and Chartres Cathedral in France. Two of the most common and famous types of architecture during this period were the Romanesque and Gothic styles. Romanesque architecture borrows many of the same innovative engineering techniques the Romans used to build the structures of their vast and powerful empire, such as the rounded arch. Jackson writes, “In the eyes and judgment of the great masters of the Renaissance in the 15th and 16th centuries Roman architecture was …show more content…
This style was one of the first to utilize almost entirely stone for its construction. The Gothic style followed, originating in France during the 12th century. It was widely used across Europe until the end of the 16th century. These architectural concepts differ in three fundamental areas: arch construction, buttress style, and type of vaulting. Structures built under the Romanesque category are generally dark and solemn, with little decoration on their exteriors. Gothic architecture incorporates brightly lit, welcoming interior spaces, as well as ornate decorations on the outside. Numerous cathedrals, castles and towers were constructed all across Europe using these two styles of architecture. Romanesque architecture refers to a style of building that closely resembles the construction styles and designs of the …show more content…
Their purpose is to redirect weight from the roof of a building to the ground. In Romanesque architecture, regular buttresses consisted of exceptionally thick walls that sat parallel to the structure, in direct contact. Structures built using this type of architecture were modest in size because of the limitations of the rounded arch, and due to the fact that thick, cumbersome buttresses could not be continuously built on top of one another. Another innovation of the Gothic period was the development of the flying buttress. This style of buttress is favourable to that of the standard buttress because it allows for structures to be built much higher than previously possible. Flying buttresses do not have direct contact with the walls, rather they incorporate arches leading away from the building. This made it possible for the walls to be constructed much thinner and lighter, since they no longer bore the responsibility of supporting the roof of the structure. Additionally, the walls could contain massive openings where windows could be inserted, flooding the building with immaculate light. In Gothic Cathedrals, stained glass was used expansively to welcome and celebrate this new architectural achievement. The immense amount of light that enters these spaces was a new development that truly brought places of prayer together in an exciting new way.
It’s the tenth of June in the year 1194. In a few hours’ time, the people of Chartres, France will awaken to the sound of crackling flames and the smell of thick, black smoke. This is the night that much of Chartres will burn to the ground, but the devastation will also include the destruction of the Notre-Dame de Chartres church. While some parts of the church have survived even to the present day, much of the original structure was consumed or severely damaged (Harriss). In this paper, I will be showing the key differences between the Romanesque and Gothic styles respectively, and how the existing Romanesque churches were converted to the new style.
Another inspirational architect in this time was William Kent. His designs using ogee pointed arches with a classical cornice inspired Batty Langley to produce a study in which he analyzed Gothic in terms of classical orders. A comparison with true mediaeval and Gothic architecture at this time shows that at this time all Gothic architecture was a decorative style to be applied as ornament to regular structures and s...
The term “gothic” comes from the name of the Germanic tribes “the Goths”, who were seen as barbarians, uncivilized, savage human beings. Later, the term was used to describe an architectural style that appeared in the Twelfth Century in Western Europe , and also to illustrate a new type of novel issued in Romanticism, in the second part of the Eighteenth Century.
This work is typical for this era because the architectural style Gothic is known for its height being tall and made from stone and tall flying buttress...
The term “Gothic” was coined by Italian Renaissance writers who blamed what they considered to be the non-classical ugliness of the art and architecture of the time, to the northern tribes of Germanic barbarians known as Goths. Baron Wolfgang van Schreck’s ancestors had invaded the Roman Empire and destroyed what was considered to be the “true” art of the time; walls that were much too high and thick, arches that were too steeply pointed. The Gothic school of architecture, which included flying buttresses, rib vaulting, pointed arches and the presence of gargoyles on the inside and outside of the building. At the end of the 18th century the term Gothic switched meanings, from “medieval” to “macabre”, through the intervention of a man named Horace Walpole (1717-1797). He was the son of the famous politician Sir Robert Walpole, Horace was a well-known writer and dilettante who gradually transformed his villa, Strawberry Hill, into the most famous Gothic building of age. With this the now cliché image of a Gothic castle is now an accurate representation of the non-classical ugliness of the time period itself.
[Jansen, History of Art, p. 407]. The effect is to add structural strength and solidity to the building. The visual appearance of changes from the Early and Later or High Gothic are clear, as each cathedral became increasingly narrower and taller. For instance, compare the nave elevations of Notre-Dame to Amiens [Text, fig. 442, p. 333], the pointed arches of Amiens are significantly taller and narrower than the much earlier Notre Dame. The mastery of the flying buttress allowed medieval builders to construct taller and more elegant looking buildings with more complex ground plans.
There was a greater intensity occurring in piety and literature. The Gothic style embodies this new urban society. Romanesque and Gothic shared similar characteristics, but Gothic architecture was a greater departure from its previous predecessor. The Romanesque architecture style, which occurred during the late 11th century to the middle 12th century, literally means “roman-like” architecture. The Romans, who were inspired by the Etruscans, used barreled and groined vaulting.
I chose two cathedrals for my post, the Durham Cathedral and the Chartres Cathedral. The Durham Cathedral, my example of Romanesque architecture, was built from local sandstone in 1087-1133 CE (the east wing was replaced in 1242) and is currently located in Nothern England. The Gothic style structure, the Chartres Cathedral (also known as the Cathedral of Notre-Dame), was mostly constructed between 1194 and 1220 CE due to a fire causing it to be rebuilt. Assembled utilizing limestone, this colossal structure is currently located in France and is known for it’s strikingly beautiful stained-glass windows. These structures share a few similarities, like their ribbed groin vaults (the crossing segments on the ceiling of the hallways), the high-placed windows as well as their huge circular window that were added to provide light and a
Both St. John the Baptist Cathedral and Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Chartres are constructed in French Gothic style which means that architecturally they have many similarities. However, the 700 year gap between their construction
The cathedral of Notre-Dame at Chartres must be one of the most beautiful and famous architectural specimens in the world today. The cathedral owns an exquisite silhouette against the sky of La Beauce. Two towers rise uncontested, to take watch over miles and miles of French countryside. Up close, the two towers, along with their spires, seem mismatched or unrelated. Yet, the two together provide for one of the most interesting juxtapositions in architecture. €Chartres cathedral has had a tumultuous history with both tragedies and triumphs. Charpentier notes that the site of the cathedral has also served various other purposes. The Romans had used the higher ground for a military camp, part of which still exists on the eastern side of the cathedral by the transition of apse to choir. In addition to the camp site, there was also the existance of a Gallo-Roman temple on the same site as Chartres cathedral. This temple is believed to have the same orientation as the cathedral and the cathedral's round apse uses the foundation of a Gallo-Roman defensive tower. This use of the Gallo-Roman defensive tower is also present at Bourges cathedral. The lower parts of the defensive tower formed a crypt which was incorporated into the ninth century Church of Gislebert, also known as Saint Lubin's chapel. On the night of September seventh 1020, the Church was completely razed by fire. €After the destruction of the church in Chartres, the bishop of Chartres, Saint Fulbert, spearheaded the campaign to build a church in Chartres. Only the crypt remained from the earlier Caroligian church and Fulbert built his Romanesque church around the enduring crypt. Fulbert's church lasted 200 years, but in 1134 the front faœade was damaged by another fire. It was at this time that a effort to update and restore the church was put into motion. The religious powers, along with the Crusaders longed for a greater monument. Thus, Chartres decided to begin a separate tower.€This adding on to Romanesque churches was not unusual for the day. The abbey-church at Cluny, outside Italy, was given a new magnificent five-bay narthex and two bell-towers. A similar renovation was attempted at La CharitŒ, but funds ran short and the upgrades could not be completed. €Hence, in 1134 the tower forming the north-west corner of the present-day cathedral, (the left tower of the west faœade elevation), underwent construction.
The term ‘Gothic’ is highly amorphous and open to diverse interpretations; it is suggestive of an uncanny atmosphere of wilderness gloom and horror based on the supernatural. The weird and eerie atmosphere of the Gothic fiction was derived from the Gothic architecture: castles, cathedrals, forts and monasteries with labyrinths of dark corridors, cellars and tunnels which evoked the feelings of horror, wildness, suspense and gloom.
Another difference separating the two were that Romanesque style buildings had limited light whereas Gothic cathedrals were flooded with natural light. The architectural reason for this was due to the walls being made primarily out of stained glass. This was now achievable with the Gothic design because of the flying buttresses that supported the walls from the outside of the building. Thus making the three most defining characteristics of the Gothic style, that differ it from Romanesque to be the ribbed vault, the flying buttress and the pointed arch.
There were two main types of architecture during the middle ages, the Romanesque style and the Gothic style. The Romanesque period took place approximately between 1096 and 1270 (the eleventh and twelfth centuries) and the Gothic period took place approximately between 1150 and 1450 (the thirteenth through the fifteenth centuries) (Bersson 383). Evidence of both styles of architecture emerged throughout Europe. The political landscape had changed and the Christian church provided a measure of unity throughout the centuries of this medieval era (Stalley 13).
The origin of Gothic cathedrals and architecture was started by the abby church of Saint Denis, which was a vision of Abbot Suger. Suger wanted to create a physical representation of the Heavenly Jerusalem, a building with a high degree of linearity that was filled with beautiful light and color (Gregory, 2014). The most recognizable trademark for cathedrals is the beautifully large stained glass windows on almost every wall of the building. The stained glass windows are meant to depict scripture and daily life. Other infamous and recognizable characteristics of Gothic cathedrals are the stone exterior of the entire building.
Gothic architecture, though also used in secular buildings, is most associated with the great cathedrals of Europe. The Basilica of Saint Denis is a large medieval abbey church on the outskirts of Paris, France. The building is of significant importance historically and architecturally because it is considered to be the first Gothic church ever built. The building of gothic cathedrals grew as design techniques progressed. Over time, as new techniques combined with new materials, cathedral architecture increased in complexity and sophistication into a recognizable gothic style.