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(noun) a long, narrow, usually arched member projecting from the surface of a structure, especially such a member separating the webs of a vault.
What is ribbing in architecture?
A rib vault or ribbed vault is an architectural feature for covering a wide space, such as a church nave, composed of a framework of crossed or diagonal arched ribs. Rib vaults are, like groin vaults, formed from two or three intersecting barrel vaults; the ribs conceal the junction of the vaults.
What defines Gothic art?
Gothic art was a style of medieval art that developed in Northern France out of Romanesque art in the 12th century AD, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. Primary media in the Gothic period included sculpture, panel painting, stained glass, fresco and illuminated manuscripts.
Why is Gothic art called Gothic?
The term Gothic was coined by classicizing Italian writers of the Renaissance, who attributed the invention (and what to them was the nonclassical ugliness) of medieval architecture to the barbarian Gothic tribes that had destroyed the Roman Empire and its classical culture in the 5th century ce.
What are rib vaults for?
The ribbed vault was used by Gothic architects to give the buildings flexibility in roof and wall engineering. These vaults were easier to construct when comparing them to the barrel vault, and they were also stronger and more flexible.
What is a church ceiling called?
In architecture, a vault (French voûte, from Italian volta) is a self-supporting arched form, usually of stone or brick, serving to cover a space with a ceiling or roof.
What makes a gargoyle a gargoyle?
In architecture, and specifically in Gothic architecture, a gargoyle (/ˈɡɑːrɡɔɪl/) is a carved or formed grotesque with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building, thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between.
What’s the flying buttress meaning?
flying buttress, masonry structure typically consisting of an inclined bar carried on a half arch that extends (“flies”) from the upper part of a wall to a pier some distance away and carries the thrust of a roof or vault.5 days ago.
Is Gothic and medieval the same?
Medieval – A highly religious art beginning in the 5th Century in Western Europe. Gothic – This style prevailed between the 12th century and the 16th century in Europe.
What are the three basic elements of the Gothic style?
The pointed arch, rib vault and flying buttress are three of the main features of Gothic architecture.
What is a pointed arch called?
A pointed arch, ogival arch, or Gothic arch is an arch with a pointed crown, whose two curving sides meet at a relatively sharp angle at the top of the arch. This architectural element was particularly important in Gothic architecture.
Why are Gothic cathedrals so tall?
Waging a constant battle against gravity, master masons, who both designed and built these cathedrals, wanted to create as much uninterrupted vertical space as possible in their stone structures. These soaring heights provided a dramatic interior which served to reinforce the power of the church.
What do you call this kind of common method of Greek painting?
The most common and respected form of art, according to authors like Pliny or Pausanias, were panel paintings, individual, portable paintings on wood boards. The techniques used were encaustic (wax) painting and tempera.
What are the lancet arches?
The lancet arch is a variety of pointed arch in which each of the arcs, or curves, of the arch have a radius longer than the width of the arch. It takes its name from being shaped like the tip of a lance. The lancet window is one of the typical features of the Early English (13th century) period in Gothic architecture.
What supports the ceiling in a Gothic cathedral?
rib vault, also called ribbed vault, in building construction, a skeleton of arches or ribs on which masonry can be laid to form a ceiling or roof. Rib vaults were frequently used in medieval buildings, most famously in Gothic cathedrals. A fan vault is composed of concave sections with ribs spreading out like a fan.
Why was groin vault created?
It provided the opportunity to build without massive supports and allow better illumination than the barrel vaults, thanks to the use of larger windows. During the gothic period, the groin vault was replaced by the more advanced rib vault.
What is the wall behind the altar called?
use. In altarpiece. The term reredos is used for an ornamental screen or partition that is not directly attached to the altar table but is affixed to the wall behind it. The term retable simply refers to any ornamental panel behind an altar.
What is the area behind the altar called?
The chancel is generally the area used by the clergy and choir during worship, while the congregation is in the nave. In churches with a retroquire area behind the altar, this may only be included in the broader definition of chancel.
What is the table on the altar called?
The Lord’s Table therefore plays a very important role in the celebration of Holy Communion, which is also known as the Eucharist or the Mass. The Lord’s Table (also known as the Altar or Communion Table) usually occupies a prominent place within a church, often being placed at the eastern end of the building.
Are gargoyles evil or good?
A gargoyle is usually chaotic evil. Gargoyles are sentient, cunning, and malevolent to the extreme.
Why do gargoyles look evil?
Experts aren’t sure why so many gargoyles were carved to look angry and fierce. But they do have a couple of ideas. Some think that the gargoyles’ angry faces were meant to scare away evil spirits and protect the building.
Why do old churches have gargoyles?
The precise purpose of gargoyles was to act as a spout to convey water from the upper part of a building or roof gutter and away from the side of walls or foundations, thereby helping to prevent water from causing damage to masonry and mortar.
Why is the Abbey Church of Saint Denis considered to be truly Gothic in style?
Why is the Abbey Church of Saint-Denis considered to be truly Gothic in style? The new choir, composed of exceptional stained glass windows and liturgical ornamentation.
What does a spire look like?
A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Small or short spires are known as spikes, spirelets, or flèches.
Why was the Salisbury Cathedral moved?
Abandonment. Dissatisfaction with the site and poor relations with the garrison in the castle caused the cathedral to be moved to its present site in Salisbury (New Sarum) in the 1220s, although royal approval for this move had been given much earlier, in 1194.
