This document provides an overview of Gothic architecture and cathedrals. It discusses how Gothic style began in France in the 12th century under Abbot Suger and was characterized by pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and flying buttresses. Gothic cathedrals featured large stained glass windows and were constructed out of stone, wood, iron, and stained glass. Famous Gothic cathedrals included Notre Dame, Chartres, Reims, and Westminster Abbey. The document also examines the religious, cultural, and historical context of the Gothic period in medieval Europe.

2. OBJECTIVES
• TO KNOW HOW GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE STARTED
• TO KNOW THE DIFFERENT GOTHIC CATHEDRALS
• TO BE ABLE TO DIFFERENTIATE GOTHIC AND ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
• TO KNOW THE CIVILIZATION/CULTURE/RELIGION/MATERIALS USED

3. FORGET THE ASSOCIATION OF THE WORD "GOTHIC" TO DARK, HAUNTED HOUSES, WUTHERING HEIGHTS, OR GHOSTLY
PALE PEOPLE WEARING BLACK NAIL POLISH AND RIPPED FISHNETS. THE ORIGINAL GOTHIC STYLE WAS ACTUALLY
DEVELOPED TO BRING SUNSHINE INTO PEOPLE'S LIVES, AND ESPECIALLYINTO THEIR CHURCHES.

4. MUSIC IN ARCHITECTURE
•WHEN MUSIC AND ARCHITECTURE
USE SUCH NATURAL AND
CONVENTIONAL MEANINGS IN SO
SIMPLIFIED A FORM THEY RAISE
EMOTIONS TO A HIGH PITCH. THE
GOTHIC CATHEDRAL PROVES THE
POINT, ESPECIALLY WHILE MUSIC IS
BEING PERFORMED ON THE INSIDE.
Notre Dame nave, the canonic view experienced as a whole.
Its spatial proportions of width to height - 1/2.7 - enhance its
spiritual meaning. Music is experienced over time, whereas
architecture is grasped as a spatial whole

5. Notre Dame interior, bay rhythm and its three superimposed
levels. Each of these horizontal areas can be seen as a different
choral voice. At the time, 1240, the composer Pérotin was
superimposing one plainsong chant on top of another: musical
and architectural harmony developed in parallel through notation
systems. The notebooks of Villard de Honnecourt, circa 1240,
show the nave elevation of Reims cathedral, and reveal that he
appreciated its rhythmical subtleties
MUSIC IN ARCHITECTURE

6. HISTORY
•THE HISTORY OF GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE DATES BACK TO THE 12TH CENTURY AND LASTING
THROUGH INTO 16TH. THIS WAS AN EXCITING TIME IN MEDIEVAL EUROPEAN HISTORY
•A NEW, GOTHIC STYLE OF ARCHITECTURE AND DECORATION EMERGED IN FRANCE
• GREW THROUGHOUT THE HIGH AND LATE MIDDLE AGES PERIOD
•IT IS A STYLE OF ARCHITECTURE DEVELOPED BETWEEN THE ROMANESQUE AND THE
RENAISSANCE STYLES OF ARCHITECTURE

7. HISTORY
•BACK IN THE 1100S-1200S, BUILDING SKILLSWERE EXTREMELY
LIMITED. STONE CASTLES WERE RUDIMENTARY - DARK, COLD, AND
DAMP. DUE TO THIS, THEY MADE GOTHIC ACHITECURE, THE
ARCHITECT WHO LEAD THIS ON IS ABBOT SUGER
•FUNDAMENTALLY,GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE TRANSFORMED CASTLES,
CHURCHES, CATHEDRALSAND PRETTY MUCH THE WHOLE OF
EUROPE!

8. FUN FACT
GOTHIC STYLE WAS UNDERSTOOD
DURING THE PERIOD AS OPUS
FRANCIGENUM ("FRENCH WORKS")

9. SETTING AND CLIMATE
The climate in France during the 10th to 14th century is referred
as the “Medieval Warm Period” since the weather was milder
than the preceding and the following periods.

10. MAP OF FRANCE IN THE 12TH-16TH CENTURY

11. CIVILIZATION
•FAMOUS FOR HARASSING AND SACKING THE
CITY OF ROME IN A.D. 410.
•FOR THIS, THEY WERE ACTUALLY CONSIDERED THE ONES WHOM PRESERVED THE
CULTURE OF ROME.
•“ THEY ARE EITHER TRADITIONALLY BLAMED FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF
THE CIVILIZATION OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE THAT PLUNGED WESTERN CULTURE INTO A
"DARK AGE" OR AS HEROES WHO REFUSED TO BEAR THE YOKE OF ROME
SUBMISSIVELY.”

12. •“AT THAT TIME, THEY WERE DISTINGUISHED BY THEIR ROUND SHIELDS, SHORT
SWORDS AND OBEDIENCE TO THEIR KING.”
•THEY WORE WOLF AND OTHER ANIMAL SKINS
AND WERE CALLED WOLVES AMONG THE SHEEP
AS MORE AND MORE GOTHS JOINED
THE ROMAN EMPIRE THEY WERE QUESTIONED OF
THEIR LOYALTY.
CIVILIZATION

13. CIVILIZATION FUN FACT
•THE STATE OF ROME (ESPECIALLY THE
MISERABLE PEASANTS) ACTUALLY PRAYED
THAT THEY WOULD NEVER HAVE TO BE
UNDER THE ROMAN JURISDICTION
BECAUSE THE GOTHS DID NOT CLAIM TAXES
FROM THE PEOPLE AND HAD RATHER
FAVORABLE TREATMENT TO THE POOR.

14. CULTURE
• PRIMARILY A PUBLIC FORM OF CHRISTIAN ART, IT FLOURISHED INITIALLY IN
THE ILE DE FRANCE AND SURROUNDING REGION IN THE PERIOD 1150-1250,
AND THEN SPREAD THROUGHOUT NORTHERN EUROPE.
• GOTHIC DEVELOPED IN EUROPE DURING THE MIDDLE AGES. IT WAS MAINLY A
METHOD OF BUILDING: GOTHIC CHARACTERISTICS APPEARED FIRST IN
ARCHITECTURE.
• ITS MAIN FORM OF EXPRESSION WAS ARCHITECTURE
EX: GREAT GOTHIC CATHEDRALS

15. RELIGION
BEGINNING WITH CONSTANTINE IN 326, CHRISTIANITY
BECAME THE OFFICIAL RELIGION OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE

16. GOTHIC CATHEDRALS - “CATHEDRAL CAME FROM THE WORD “CATHEDRA” WHICH
MEANS THE CHAIR OR THE SEAT OF THE BISHOP OF THAT TOWN OR REGION.

17. LARGE WINDOWS DECORATED WITH STAINED GLASS:
THIS DEPICTS STORIES FROM THE BIBLE , FROM THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH AND THE COMMUNITY.

18. MANY GOTHIC CATHEDRALS HAD A FLOOR PLAN IN THE SHAPE OF A
CROSS WHICH WAS A REMINDER OF THE CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST

19. FAMOUS GOTHIC CATHEDRALS
LONDON’S WESTMINSTER ABBEY

20. NOTRE DAME IN FRANCE
FAMOUS GOTHIC CATHEDRALS

21. MATERIALS
STONE
- THE STONE NEEDS TO BE HARD
ENOUGH TO STAND UP, AND TO LAST A
THOUSAND OR TWO YEARS, AND EASY
ENOUGH FOR A MEDIEVAL CRAFTSMAN TO
WORK WITH RATHER PRIMITIVE TOOLS.

22. WOOD
- UNTIL VERY RECENT TIMES, THE
ROOFS OF THE GREAT CATHEDRALS WERE
FRAMED IN MASSIVE AND COMPLEX
STRUCTURES OF WOOD, OFTEN KNOWN AS
‘THE FOREST’.
the forest supportingSoissonscathedral roof
credit: Ministère de la Culture (France)

23. IRON
- IN THE DAYS WHEN THESE
CATHEDRALS WERE BUILT, IRON WAS A VERY
EXPENSIVE MATERIAL, PROBABLY IMPORTED
FROM SPAIN. A CATHEDRAL HAS SOME
RELATIONSHIP TO A PLAYING CARD
CONSTRUCTION, WITH VARIOUS PARTS OF THE
STRUCTURE LEANING AGAINST OTHER PARTS.

24. STAINED GLASS
- DURING THE GOTHIC PERIOD
AND THE RENAISSANCE (1100S–
1500S) STAINED GLASS WAS ONE OF
THE FOREMOST TECHNIQUES OF
PAINTING PRACTICED IN EUROPE.
The Virgin and Child, Master
of Klosterneuberg, Austrian,
active about 1335, pot-metal
and clear glass, black
vitreous paint, and silver
stain (J. Paul Getty Museum,
2003.32)
Saint John (from a
Crucifixion),
possibly South
German, c. 1420 (J.
Paul Getty Museum,
2003.35.2)

25. PITCHER- THE FIRST TOOL USED FOR
ROUGHING OUT A SHAPE FROM A STONE
SLAB...
PUNCH - FOR 'PUNCHINGDOWN' THE STONE
TO A DESIRED HEIGHT OR DIMENSION, THE
POINT,OR PUNCH WAS A QUICK WAY TO
ELIMINATEUNNECESSARY STONE.
CLAW CHISEL - THISTOOL WAS USED TO BRING
THE SURFACE DOWN TO THE DESIRED DEPTH,
BEFORE THE FINAL STEP...
STRAIGHT CHISEL - THE FINAL TOOL USED FOR
SMOOTHINGTHE SURFACE, WAS ALSO USED TO
ETCH MASON'S MARKS TO IDENTIFY
INDIVIDUALS SO THEY COULD BE PAID FOR
WORK COMPLETED.

26. LUMP HAMMER - WAS USED FOR THE INITIAL,
HEAVY WORK INVOLVED IN PITCHINGAND
PUNCHING.
MALLET - MADE OF HICKORY, BEECH, OR OTHER
HARDWOOD, WAS USED WITH A LIGHTER
TOUCH TO FINISHTHE STONE WITH A STRAIGHT
CHISEL.
COMPASS, OR DIVIDERS - MEDIEVAL ICONOGRAPHY SHOWS ONLY
ONE MATHEMATICALINSTRUMENT IN THE HANDS OF THE
STONECUTTER- A COMPASS - USED FOR CONFIGURINGARCS AND
INTRICATEMOLDINGS.
ADZE OR AXE - IN DEPICTIONSOF GOTHICCATHEDRAL
CONSTRUCTION,THE AXE IS SEEN WIELDED BY FRENCH MEDIEVAL
STONECUTTERSWITH THE BROAD SIDE DOWN, USED AS A
ROUGHING OUT TOOL, OR WITH POINTED SIDE DOWN FOR FINER
CUTS.

27. SET SQUARE - THE SIMPLETOOL THAT
ENSURED THAT THE WALLS OF GOTHIC
CATHEDRALS REMAINED SQUARE AND
TRUE AT 90 DEGREE ANGLES.
STRAIGHT EDGE - ON COMPLETION OF A FLAT STONE,SUCCESS OR
FAILURE MASON TECHNIQUE DEPENDED UPON THE STRAIGHT EDGE
LAYING PERFECTLY FLAT ACROSS THE FACE OF THE STONE. SO THE USE OF
THISTOOL WAS A LITMUSTEST OF THE STONECUTTER'S SKILL.IF
SPACES APPEARED BETWEEN THE STRAIGHT EDGE AND THE STONE,IT
WAS EVIDENT THE STONECUTTERHAD CUT TOO DEEP. IF THE STRAIGHT
EDGE 'SEE-SAWED,' MORE CUTTINGWAS REQUIRED.

28. ARCHITECTURE
•GOTHIC ARCHITECTURALSTYLE IS
CHARACTERIZED AND DRIVEN BY THREE
MAIN FEATURES WHICH WERE BASICALLY
STRUCTURAL IN NATURE: THE POINTED
ARCH, THE RIBBED VAULT AND THE FLYING
BUTTRESS.

29. POINTED ARCHES
The pointed arch distributed the vault's weight in a more
vertical direction rather than horizontal

30. STRESS LINES Pressure above
Distributes more horizontally Distributes more vertically

31. RIBBED VAULT
A web of strong arches of ribs. It
helps spread the
weight/force/pressure from the
ceiling. The arch also provided
the impression of height and
magnificence, giving the vaulted
ceiling a feeling of grandeur and
elegance.

32. RIBBED VAULT
CEILING PLAN
**The ribs of the vaults work as structural
members in transferring the loads, and the
spacesbetween them could be filled with
lighter, non-structural material, making the
overall structure lighter.

33. FLYING BUTTRESSES
SUPPORTS THE PIERS OF GOTHIC
CATHEDRALS FROM OUTSIDE OF THE
BUILDING RIGHT AT THE POINT
WHERE THE STRESS LINES PUSH OUT

34. GARGOYLES
• GARGOYLES ARE FRIGHTENING AND INTIMIDATING SCULPTURES - PERFECT FOR THE LIKES OF GREAT
LORDS WHO BUILT ELABORATE FORTRESSES AND CASTLES IN ORDER TO CRUSH AND INTIMIDATE THE
INDIGENOUS POPULATION. GARGOYLES PROVIDED A METHOD OF DRAINAGE WHICH PROTECTED THE
STONES AND THE MORTAR OF CHURCHES, CATHEDRALS AND CASTLES FROM EROSION
• THE SECOND PURPOSE OF GARGOYLES WAS AS 'GUARDIANS' OF THE BUILDINGS IN THE FORM OF
ABSTRACT SYMBOLS DESIGNED TO REPRESENT, AND TO WARD OFF EVIL.
• THE SECOND PURPOSE OF GARGOYLES WAS AS 'GUARDIANS' OF THE BUILDINGS IN THE FORM OF
ABSTRACT SYMBOLS DESIGNED TO REPRESENT, AND TO WARD OFF EVIL.
• IT IS THOUGHT THAT THEY WERE USED TO SCARE PEOPLE INTO COMING TO CHURCH, REMINDING THEM
THAT THE END OF DAYS IS NEAR. IT IS ALSO THOUGHT THAT THEIR PRESENCE ASSURED CONGREGANTS
THAT EVIL IS KEPT OUTSIDE OF THE CHURCH’S WALLS.

35. LARGE WINDOWS
• ARE A DISTINCTIVE CHARACTERISTIC
OF GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE AND
DEVELOPED FROM SIMPLE OPENINGS
TO IMMENSELY RICH AND
DECORATIVE STAINED GLASS
DESIGNS.

36. ARCHITECTURE (OTHER NOTES)
• THE GOTHIC STYLE EMPHASIZED VERTICALITY AND LIGHTNESS. THIS
WAS ACHIEVED BY A SKELETAL STRUCTURAL DESIGN
• THE VERTICALITY AND LOFTINESS SUGGESTED AN ASPIRATION TO
HEAVEN AND SYMBOLIZED THE GREAT GLORY OF GOD THEOLOGICALLY.
TOWERS AND SPIRES ARE CHARACTERISTIC OF GOTHIC CHURCHES.
• GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE IS CHARACTERIZED BY STAINED-GLASS
WINDOWS, FLYING BUTTRESSES, TALL SPIRES, THE GOTHIC ARCH OR
POINTED ARCH AND GOTHIC GARGOYLES.

37. EXAMPLES

38. • GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL
• CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF ST PETER AND
THE HOLY AND INDIVISIBLE TRINITY
• GLOUCESTER, ENGLAND

39. • LA SAINTE CHAPELLE
• THE HOLY CHAPEL
• IN THE HEART OF PARIS, FRANCE

40. • STRASBOURG CATHEDRAL (1015-1439)
• 142 METRES IN HEIGHT IT MADE THE CATHEDRAL
THE TALLEST BUILDING IN THE WORLD FROM 1647
TO 1874. IT IS ALSO FAMOUS FOR ITS PINK
COLOUR, WHICH COMES FROM THE PARTICULAR
TYPE OF VOSGES SANDSTONE USED IN ITS
CONSTRUCTION.HOWEVER, THE CATHEDRAL IS
BEST KNOWN FOR THE COLOURFUL HUE OF ITS
INTERIOR, CAUSED BY SUNLIGHT POURING
THROUGH ITSHUGE STAINED GLASS WINDOWS.

41. • BASILICA OF SAINT-DENIS (BEGUN 1135) (CATHEDRAL 1966)
• CONSIDERED TO BE THE FIRST GOTHIC CHURCH
• THE BASILICA BECAME THE BURIAL PLACE OF ALMOST EVERY
FRENCH KING FROM THE 10TH TO THE 18TH CENTURY

42. • LAON CATHEDRAL (1160-1235)
• ONE OF THE MOST OUTSTANDINGEXAMPLES OF
EARLY GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE OF THE 12TH AND
13THCENTURIES

43. • TOURS CATHEDRAL (1170-1547)
• SAINT GATIEN'S CATHEDRAL IN TOURS
EXEMPLIFIESTHE 15TH CENTURY
FLAMBOYANT STYLE OF GOTHIC
ARCHITECTURE, ALTHOUGHIT INCLUDES
ELEMENTS OF THREE SCHOOLS OF
ARCHITECTURE - GOTHIC,ROMANESQUE
AND RENAISSANCE.

44. •NOTRE-DAME CATHEDRAL, PARIS (1163-1345)
• ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS GOTHIC
CATHEDRALS
• NOTRE-DAME WAS ADDED TO THE UNESCO WORLD
HERITAGE LIST IN 1991.

45. QUESTIONS

46. WHO WAS THE ARCHITECT THAT STARTED
THE GOTHIC STYLE OF ARCHITECTURE?
ABBOT SUGER

47. WHAT DOES OPUS FRANCIGENUM
MEAN?
FRENCH WORKS

48. WHAT IS THEIR RELIGION?
CHRISTIAN

49. WHAT ARE THE 3 MAIN GOTHIC
ARCHITECTURAL STYLE?
POINTEDARCH,
RIBBEDVAULT,
FLYINGBUTTRESS

50. GIVE AT LEAST 2 EXAMPLE OF A GOTHIC
CATHEDRAL

51. SOURCES
• HTTP://WWW.VISUAL-ARTS-CORK.COM/ARCHITECTURE/GOTHIC-CATHEDRALS.HTM
• HTTP://WWW.MEDIEVAL-LIFE-AND-TIMES.INFO/MEDIEVAL-ART/GARGOYLES.HTM
• HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=01UNQFAKPC8
• HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=T8G1E-JLRHM
• HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=2BSHPWSH_U4
• HTTPS://WWW.KHANACADEMY.ORG/HUMANITIES/MEDIEVAL-WORLD/LATIN-WESTERN-EUROPE/GOTHIC1/A/GOTHIC-ARCHITECTURE-AN-INTRODUCTION
• HTTPS://EN.WIKIPEDIA.ORG/WIKI/GOTHIC_ARCHITECTURE
• HTTP://WWW.VISUAL-ARTS-CORK.COM/HISTORY-OF-ART/GOTHIC-ARCHITECTURE.HTM
• HTTP://WWW.MEDIEVAL-LIFE-AND-TIMES.INFO/MEDIEVAL-ART/HISTORY-OF-GOTHIC-ARCHITECTURE.HTM

52. • HTTP://WWW.EXPLORING-CASTLES.COM/CHARACTERISTICS_OF_GOTHIC_ARCHITECTURE_2.HTML
• HTTPS://WWW.GOOGLE.COM.PH/SEARCH?Q=HISTORY+OF+GOTHIC+ARCHITECTURE&ESPV=2&BIW=1366&BIH=659&SOURCE=LNMS&TBM=ISCH&SA=X&VED=0AHUKEWIG2FEOZRTKAHUSBY4KHZ
GYAEOQ_AUIBIGB#IMGRC=_
• HTTP://WWW.LIVESCIENCE.COM/45948-ANCIENT-GOTHS.HTML
• HTTP://WWW.ANCIENT.EU/GOTHS/
• HTTPS://EN.WIKIPEDIA.ORG/WIKI/GOTHIC_ARCHITECTURE
• HTTP://WWW.BRITANNICA.COM/TOPIC/GOTH
• HTTP://WWW.ABELARD.ORG/FRANCE/CATHEDRAL-CONSTRUCTION.PHP
• HTTP://WWW.NEWYORKCARVER.COM/MASONTOOL.HTM
• HTTPS://WWW.KHANACADEMY.ORG/HUMANITIES/MEDIEVAL-WORLD/LATIN-WESTERN-EUROPE/GOTHIC1/A/STAINED-GLASS-HISTORY-AND-TECHNIQUE
• HTTP://WWW.CATHEDRALQUEST.COM/GOTHIC_ARCHITECTURE.HTM
• HTTP://WWW.ARCHITECTURAL-REVIEW.COM/RETHINK/VIEWPOINTS/ARCHITECTURE-BECOMES-MUSIC/8647050.FULLARTICLE
• HTTPS://WWW.QUORA.COM/WHAT-SHOULD-EVERYONE-KNOW-ABOUT-GOTHIC-ARCHITECTURE

53. WATCH!
• HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=01UNQFAKPC8