# Development and Character of Gothic Architecture/Contents

CHAPTER I
Definition of Gothic
Incorrect ideas respecting Gothic architecture—Aversion to the pointed style first arose in Italy—This style naturally unsuited to Italian tastes and traditions—Gothic art an outgrowth—The genius of the north modified by that of the south—The abandonment of Gothic architecture coincident with the growth of artificial conditions of society—The architecture of the Renaissance not a popular architecture—Awakening of an antiquarian interest in the pointed styles—Growth of a spirit of investigation English and continental misconceptions of Gothic—Architectural styles distinguished primarily by structural characteristics—The Gothic an organic system—Its evolution out of the Romanesque—The Roman constructive system Early Romanesque developments—The constructive advantages of the pointed arch—The flying buttress—Summary of the structural characteristics of Gothic—The system developed in three-aisled buildings—Rudeness not a characteristic of Gothic art—Painting and stained glass—Living character of Gothic sculpture—Antique elements of Gothic ornamentation—Conventional character of Gothic ornament—Organic treatment of constituent elements in Gothic ornament—Architectural fitness of Gothic sculpture Gothic art of short duration—The cathedral edifice the central object of popular interest—The monastic activities in building—The Gothic style developed by the laity—Gothic architecture mainly an architecture of churches—Sources of inspiration Gothic art native to France Pages 1-31
CHAPTER II
Gothic Construction in France
CHAPTER III
Pointed Construction in England
Rare occurrence of the pointed arch and of groin ribs in England before the last quarter of the twelfth century—Approach to Gothic principles in the vaults of Malmesbury Abbey—Little approach to Gothic in the buildings immediately following Malmesbury—Structural system of Fountains Abbey—Structural system of Kirkstall Abbey—No important advance takes place in England till after the building of the choir of Canterbury—Structural system of Canterbury—Structural system of Chichester—Structural system of the choir of Lincoln—St. Mary's, New Shoreham—Byland and Whitby—The choir of Ripon—Lack of unity of principle in the early pointed architecture of England—Lack of Gothic principles in the later pointed buildings of England—Multiplication of ribs in later English vaulting—Buttress system and clerestory of Lincoln—Structural system of Salisbury—Structural system of Wells—Structural system of the Abbaye-aux-Dames—The Presbytery of Lincoln—The Cathedral of Lichfield—Modes of enclosure—Characteristics of the east end—Characteristics of transept ends—Characteristics of the west front—Towers and spires—Structural features of the chapter-house—Vaulting of rare occurrence in the smaller churches of England 124-169
CHAPTER IV
Pointed Construction in Germany, Italy, and Spain
CHAPTER V
Gothic Profiles in France
Functional development governed by artistic feeling in Gothic profiles—The mechanical function of the capital not consistently recognised by the Roman and Romanesque builders—In France, after the eleventh century, the adjustment of the capital to its load was constant—The thickness of the shaft determined largely by the nature of the material used—The thickness of the abacus varies in proportion to the spread of the capital—Abacus and astragal of one piece with the bell in Gothic capitals—The French abacus usually square in plan—The abacus profile—Finest types of capitals belong to the early period of the Gothic style—Changes in the form of the capital consequent upon changes in the arch section—The Gothic base a modification of the ancient Attic base—Its plinth more developed than in the ancient type—The angle spur—The spread of the base usually increased as the diameter of the shaft is diminished—Diminution of the plinth and change of its form in the later Gothic style—String profiles—Evolution of the drip-moulding—Internal strings—The corbel table not a Gothic feature—Arch mouldings—Change in the arrangement of grouped abaci consequent on change in arch profiles—Evolution of mullion profiles 200-223
CHAPTER VI
Profiles of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries in England and other Countries
CHAPTER VII
Gothic Sculpture in France
Development of mediæval sculpture in France antecedent to that of other countries—Sources of instruction open to the sculptors of Western Europe—New life displayed in the art of the schools of Cluny—Exceptional conditions for the growth of art in the Ile-de-France—The early sculptures of St. Denis—The sculptures of St. Trophime at Arles—Refined qualities of the early sculptures of Chartres—The human figure not employed as a caryatid in Gothic architecture—Statues not placed in niches in this architecture—Relationship of sculpture to structural elements in Gothic art—Early reliefs of St. Denis and Paris manifest a new spirit—Qualities of design, execution, and sentiment in the sculptures of the lintel of Senlis—Natural elements common alike to Greek and mediæval sculpture—Superior freedom of the sculpture of the early thirteenth century—Sculptures of the west front of the Cathedral of Paris—Likeness to Greek art noticeable in these sculptures—Points of similarity in the Greek and mediæval genius—The statue of the Virgin in the south portal of Amiens—The statue of the Virgin in the portal of the north transept of Paris—Gothic sculpture the first in which expression predominates over form—Bodily beauty not ignored by the Gothic carvers—Significance of the grotesque element in Gothic art—The artists of the Ile-de-France the first to emancipate foliate sculpture from old conventions—Expression of nature in early foliate carvings—Early motives for ornament derived from the leafage of springtime—Delicacy of hand manifest in Gothic sculpture—Monumental fitness always regarded by the early carvers—Excessive naturalism of the later Gothic carvings—The quality of breadth in Gothic art—The colouring of Gothic sculpture 247-283
CHAPTER VIII
Sculpture of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries in England and other Countries
CHAPTER IX
Gothic Painting and Stained Glass in France
Figure painting not much employed in Gothic architecture—The characteristics of the figure painting of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries illustrated in the manuscripts of the time—Little progress in the art of painting was made by the Gothic artists—Chromatic design in Gothic art developed chiefly in the department of stained glass—The inherent limitations of this art—This art not capable of development beyond the conditions that were reached in the Middle Ages—Examples of stained glass in St. Denis, Chartres, and other churches 298-304
CHAPTER X
Painting and Stained Glass in England and other Countries
Nothing different from the painting of France was produced during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries in the other countries of Europe—Earliest development of painting in Italy posterior to the epoch of Gothic art—Technical characteristics of early Italian painting—Its monumental qualities—Its union of pictorial and decorative elements—Its expressional purpose—No peculiar styles of design in stained glass were produced in England, Germany, Italy, or Spain 305-309
CHAPTER XI
Conclusion
The witness of the monuments to the origin of Gothic principles in France borne out by historical considerations—The different and less favourable conditions for the growth of art of England in the Middle Ages—Effects on art of the Norman Conquest—Reaction of the native genius—Slowness of the Germans to modify their Romanesque style—German pointed architecture mainly copied from France—No native development of Gothic in Italy—Lack of constructive character in Italian building—Social and political conditions in Spain unfavourable to development of the arts Pages 310-315
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
* fig.page
* 1.Monolithic Arch and Lintel6
* 2.Offset Arch6
* 3.Section of a Part of the Flavian Amphitheatre10
* 4.Plan of one Bay of the Basilica of Constantine11
* 5.Romanesque Pilaster Strip11
* 6.Romanesque Buttress12
* 7.Section of the Abbaye-aux-Hommes13
* 8.Section of the Abbaye-aux-Dames14
* 9.Diagram of Round-arched Vault16
* 10.Diagram of Pointed-arched Vault17
* 11.Diagram of Apsidal Vault of Morienval34
* 12.Perspective View of Apsidal Vault of Morienval35
* 13.Plan of Apsidal Vault of St. Denis37
* 14.Plan of one Bay of S. Michele of Pavia40
* 15.Elevation of one Bay of S. Michele of Pavia41
* 16.Elevation of one Double Bay of the Abbaye-aux-Hommes42
* 17.Section of Main Pier of Senlis44
* 18.Elevation of one Double Bay of Senlis45
* 19.Section of one Bay of Senlis46
* 20.Perspective View of one Double Bay of Senlis47
* 21.Section of Pier, Choir of Noyon49
* 22.Vaulting System of the Choir of Paris56
* 23.Section of Vaulting Shafts of the Nave of Paris56
* 24.Vaulting System of the Nave of Paris57
* 25.Vaulting System of Laon58
* 26.Impost Section of the Choir of Paris61
* 27.Impost Section of the Nave of Paris62
* 28.Impost Section of the Sixth Pier of the Nave of Paris63
* 29.Section of the Sixth Pier of the Nave of Paris63
* 30.Section of the Seventh Pier of the Nave of Paris64
* 31.Impost Section of the Seventh Pier of the Nave of Paris64
* 32.Perspective View of the Seventh Pier of the Nave of Paris65
* 33.Section of Pier with Grouped Shafts of Laon66
* 34.Imposts of the Choir of Soissons and the Sixth Pier of Paris respectively67
* 35.Perspective View of one Bay of the Clerestory of St. Leu d'Esserent70
* 36.Section of Vaulting Conoid of St. Leu d'Esserent71
* 37.Perspective View of one Bay of the Clerestory of Chartres73
* 38.Perspective View of one Bay of the Clerestory of Amiens75
* 39.Section of Pier of the Nave of St. Denis76
* 40.Flying Buttress of St. Martin of Laon77
* 41.Flying Buttress of the Apse of St. Leu d'Esserent79
* 42.Flying Buttress of the Nave of St. Leu d'Esserent80
* 43.Flying Buttress of the Nave of Noyon81
* 44.Flying Buttress of the Nave of Amiens82
* 45.Flying Buttress of the Apse of Reims83
* 46.Two Bays of the Clerestory of the Nave of Paris85
* 46bis. Clerestory Opening, Nave of Paris, showing Alterations in the Arch86
* 47.Clerestory Opening of the Nave of St. Leu d'Esserent87
* 48.Aperture of the Apse of Reims89
* 49.Plan of the Vault of the Apse of Noyon93
* 50.Plan of the Vault of the Apse of Paris94
* 51.Plan of the Vault of the Apse of Chartres96
* 52.Plan of the Vault of the Apse of Amiens97
* 53.Portion of the Interior of the Apse of St. Remi of Reims98
* 54.Portion of the Exterior of the Apse of St. Remi of Reims99
* 55.Plan of Vaulting of the Apsidal Aisles of Paris100
* 56.Interior View of the Apsidal Aisle of St. Leu d'Esserent101
* 57.View of the Church of Vaux-sous-Laon104
* 58.Façade of the Abbaye-aux-Hommes105
* 59.Façade of the Cathedral of Senlis107
* 60.Façade of the Cathedral of Paris109
* 61.Façade of the Cathedral of Amiens111
* 62.Tower of Morienval113
* 63.Tower and Spire of Chamant114
* 64.Spire of Chartres115
* 65.Spire of Senlis116
* 66.General View of St. Leu d'Esserent118
* 67.General View of the Cathedral of Reims120
* 68.Diagram of Aisle Vault of Malmesbury Abbey124
* 69.Perspective View of one Bay of Malmesbury Abbey126
* 70.Aisle Vault of Fountains Abbey128
* 71.Portion of the Interior of the Choir of Canterbury129
* 72.One Bay of the Cathedral of Chichester132
* 73.Section of Pier, Chichester Cathedral133
* 74.Plan of the Original East End of Lincoln Cathedral135
* 75.Plan of Vault, Choir of Lincoln Cathedral136
* 76.Section of the Choir of Lincoln Cathedral137
* 77.Piers at Crossing of Lincoln and Canterbury respectively138
* 78.Clerestories of the Abbaye-aux- Dames and the Choir of Lincoln respectively140
* 79.Plan of Vault, Nave of Lincoln144
* 80.Vaulting Conoid, Nave of Lincoln145
* 81.Pier Sections, Nave of Lincoln145
* 82.Flying Buttress and Clerestory, Nave of Lincoln146
* 83.Vaulting Conoid, Salisbury Cathedral147
* 84.Elevation of Clerestory, Salisbury Cathedral148
* 85.Interior System of Wells Cathedral151
* 86.Interior System of the Abbaye-aux-Dames152
* 87.Interior of Clerestory, Presbytery of Lincoln155
* 88.Flying Buttress and Clerestory, Presbytery of Lincoln156
* 89.Exterior View of the East End of Ely Cathedral159
* 90.Exterior View of the East End of Lincoln161
* 91.West Façade of Lincoln163
* 92.Central Tower of Lincoln166
* 93.Elevation of one Bay of the Cathedral of Speyer171
* 94.Elevation of one Bay of the Cathedral of Bamberg172
* 95.Elevation of one Bay of Limburg on Lahn174
* 96.Elevation of one Bay of the Kreuzkirche at Breslau175
* 96bis. Plan of one Bay of the Kreuzkirche at Breslau176
* 97.Cross Section of St. Elizabeth at Marburg177
* 98.Cross Section of the Cathedral of Poitiers178
* 99.Tower and Spire of Breslau180
* 100.Tower and Spire of St. Elizabeth at Marburg180
* 101.Section through one Bay of Sta. Maria Novella183
* 102.Internal System of Sta. Maria Novella184
* 103.Section of Pier, Cathedral of Florence187
* 104.Internal Pier, Cathedral of Florence188
* 105.Façade of the Cathedral of Siena190
* 106.Tower and Spire of Sta. Maria Novella192
* 107.Tower of the Scaligeri, Verona193
* 108.Aisle Windows of Sta. Croce194
* 109.Flying Buttress and Clerestory of Burgos Cathedral197
* 110.Capital of the Palace of Diocletian201
* 111.Capital of the Gallery of Sta. Agnese at Rome202
* 112.Capital of the Sanctuary of Senlis203
* 113.Capital of the Triforium, Choir of Paris204
* 114.Capital of the Triforium, Nave of Paris205
* 115.Capital of the Triforium of Laon206
* 116.Capital of St. Aignan at Senlis207
* 117.Profiles of Early French Mouldings207
* 118.Profiles of Abaci208
* 119.Capital of Chapel in the Choir of Amiens209
* 120.Profile of Base, Nave of Senlis210
* 121.Perspective and Profile of Base, Choir of Paris211
* 122.Profile of Base, Triforium of Nave of Paris212
* 123.Perspective of Base, Triforium of Nave of Paris212
* 124.Small Base, Choir of Soissons213
* 125.Perspective of Base of West Pier, Nave of Paris213
* 126.String Profiles, Nogens-les-Vierges214
* 127.String Profiles, St. Evremont, Creil, and Senlis214
* 128.Profile of Cornice, Cathedral of Paris215
* 129.Profile of Triforium String, Nave of Paris216
* 130.Profile of Flat-topped String216
* 131.Profiles of Triforium String, Nave of Amiens217
* 132.Profiles of Arch Mouldings, Poissy, Morienval, and St. Martin des Champs218
* 133.Profiles of Arch Mouldings, St. Denis and Laon218
* 134.Profiles of Arch Mouldings, Morienval, St. Denis, Senlis, and Laon219
* 135.Profile of Transverse Rib, A psidal Chapel of Senlis220
* 136.Rib Sections, Amiens, Beauvais, and Villeneuve220
* 137.Plan of Impost, Triforium of Senlis221
* 138.Plan of Impost, Nave of Amiens221
* 139.Mullion Sections, St. Leu d'Esserent, Reims, and Amiens222
* 140.Capital of East Transept, Lincoln225
* 141.Capital of Arcade, South Aisle of Choir, Lincoln226
* 142.Capital of Arcade, West Transept of Lincoln227
* 143.Wreathed Capital, West Transept of Lincoln229
* 144.Capital of Arcade, North Choir Screen, Lincoln230
* 145.Capital of South Transept, Wells Cathedral231
* 146.Moulded Capital, Triforium of Beverley232
* 147.Profiles of Abaci, Lincoln, Glastonbury, and Wells232
* 148.Profiles of Bases, Lincoln233
* 149.Profiles of Bases, Ely, Lincoln, Hexham, and Whitby233
* 150.Profiles of Bases, Lincoln and Temple Church234
* 151.Base with Angle Spur, Porch of Wells234
* 152.String Profiles, Lincoln, Glastonbury, and Wells235
* 153.Perspective View of Round Impost, Southwell236
* 154.Arch Section, Malmesbury Abbey237
* 155.Arch Section, Choir of Lincoln237
* 156.Section of Vault Rib, Choir of Lincoln238
* 157.Capitals, Cathedral of Magdeburg240
* 158.Base, Cathedral of Magdeburg241
* 159.Capital of Triforium of Choir, Cologne241
* 160.Profile of Base, Cologne Cathedral242
* 161.Profile of Arch Moulding, Cologne Cathedral242
* 162.Capital of Nave, Sta. Maria Novella243
* 163.Profiles of Bases, Sta. Maria Novella, Cathedral of Florence, and Sta. Croce244
* 164.Profile of Vault Rib, Cathedral of Florence246
* 165.Figures from Greek MS., National Library of Paris248
* 166.Figure from Greek MS., National Library of Paris248
* 167.Sculpture of Notre-Dame du Port, Clermont-Ferrand250
* 168.Statue of St. Trophime, Aries251
* 169.Statue of Transept, St. Denis252
* 170.Statue of West Front, Chartres253
* 171.Sculpture of Lintel, Senlis256
* 172.Sculpture of Tympanum, Portal of the Virgin, Paris260
* 173.Statue of North Transept, Paris263
* 174.Sculpture of the Portal of the Virgin, Paris267
* 175.Capital of Sanctuary, Noyon Cathedral268
* 176.Capital of the Abbaye-aux-Dames269
* 177.Acanthoid Leafage270
* 178.Capital of Triforium of Nave, Senlis271
* 179.Crockets of Triforium of Nave, Paris272
* 180.Capital of the Chapel of the Catechists, Paris275
* 181.Sculpture of Archivolt, Paris276
* 182.Sculpture of Triforium String, Amiens277
* 182bis. Sculpture of Cornice, Amiens278
* 183.Sculpture of String-Course, Noyon279
* 184.Sculpture of Archivolt, Porte Rouge, Paris280
* 185.Sculpture of West Front, Lincoln285
* 186.Statue of West Front, Wells286
* 187.Sculpture on Lintel, Transept of Southwell288
* 188.Sculpture of Leaf Forms, Lincoln290
* 189.Capital of Triforium of Nave, Lincoln291
* 190.Design from MS. Life of St. Denis300
* 191.Figure from the Jesse Window, Chartres303