The Cathedral of Chartres (also, Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady) (in French, Cathédrale de l'Assomption de Notre-Dame) is a cathedral church of Catholic worship dedicated to Saint Mary "Mary (mother of Jesus)") (Our Lady) in the city of Chartres, in the French department of Eure-et-Loir, about 80 kilometers southwest of Paris. It is also the seat of the diocese of Chartres, in the Archdiocese of Tours.
This cathedral, begun in 1194, marked a milestone and developed a phase of plenitude in the mastery of Gothic technique and style, and established a balance between the two. He is extremely influential in many later constructions that were based on his style and his numerous innovations, such as the cathedrals of Reims and Amiens, for which he served as a direct model. The medieval historian José Luis Corral has described it as "the most precise and precious example of Gothic architecture."[1].
In 1979, it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
History
Background
There is a legend that narrates the choice of the location of Our Lady of Chartres as being of divine and Marian origin, most likely forged in the century [Note 1] by the canons of the cathedral.[2].
Around 1420, the preacher Jean de Gerson perhaps based himself on this legend to evoke an ancient grotto occupied by Carnute druids (a people from which the city derives its name) one hundred years before the Christian era. According to him, this grotto would be dedicated to "the Virgin who must give birth", a statue of the Druidic mother goddess, and would have served as a sanctuary for the first Christians in Roman times (since the statue bore the inscription of "Virgini partituriae"[Note 2]). This myth about the druids begins to constitute a broader current that abandons the previous legend of the Trojan origin of the Frankish peoples, to return to a Gallic tradition.
Despite everything, the myth of the Druidic origin of the sanctuary has been progressively integrated into local religious historiography, until it seems like a historical truth.[5] The statue identified in the legend as "the Virgin who must give birth" is, however, a statue of the Virgin Mary of Romanesque origin (dating from the 16th century)[6] (it is from this century onwards that this devotion re-emerged in the Western Christian church).
Chartres Cathedral
Introduction
The Cathedral of Chartres (also, Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady) (in French, Cathédrale de l'Assomption de Notre-Dame) is a cathedral church of Catholic worship dedicated to Saint Mary "Mary (mother of Jesus)") (Our Lady) in the city of Chartres, in the French department of Eure-et-Loir, about 80 kilometers southwest of Paris. It is also the seat of the diocese of Chartres, in the Archdiocese of Tours.
This cathedral, begun in 1194, marked a milestone and developed a phase of plenitude in the mastery of Gothic technique and style, and established a balance between the two. He is extremely influential in many later constructions that were based on his style and his numerous innovations, such as the cathedrals of Reims and Amiens, for which he served as a direct model. The medieval historian José Luis Corral has described it as "the most precise and precious example of Gothic architecture."[1].
In 1979, it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
History
Background
There is a legend that narrates the choice of the location of Our Lady of Chartres as being of divine and Marian origin, most likely forged in the century [Note 1] by the canons of the cathedral.[2].
Around 1420, the preacher Jean de Gerson perhaps based himself on this legend to evoke an ancient grotto occupied by Carnute druids (a people from which the city derives its name) one hundred years before the Christian era. According to him, this grotto would be dedicated to "the Virgin who must give birth", a statue of the Druidic mother goddess, and would have served as a sanctuary for the first Christians in Roman times (since the statue bore the inscription of "Virgini partituriae"[Note 2]). This myth about the druids begins to constitute a broader current that abandons the previous legend of the Trojan origin of the Frankish peoples, to return to a Gallic tradition.
Despite everything, the myth of the Druidic origin of the sanctuary has been progressively integrated into local religious historiography, until it seems like a historical truth.[5] The statue identified in the legend as "the Virgin who must give birth" is, however, a statue of the Virgin Mary of Romanesque origin (dating from the 16th century)[6] (it is from this century onwards that this devotion re-emerged in the Western Christian church).
According to other late and legendary traditions that wanted to prove the priority of the Christianization of Chartres over that of Sens") and the priority of one episcopal see in relation to the other,[7] the construction of the first church would have taken place around the year 350. Called "Aventin Cathedral", after the name of the first bishop of the city, Aventin of Chartres") who would live around 350, it would have probably been built at the beginning of the century.[8] The original cathedral would not yet be linked to a Marian cult, but to that of some local martyrs (saints Piat, Cheron, Modesta and Potentianus) popularly known as the "Saints Forts". These martyrs would have been thrown into a well (the "Puits des Saints-Forts"). The well, probably from the Gallo-Roman period, was excavated inside the wall of the oppidum carnute of Autricum, and would later be integrated into the cathedral building (in the crypt).[9].
The first recorded church was built around the year 360. It disappeared in a fire around 740 or 750 during the sacking of the Visigoths by Hunald, Duke of Aquitaine. A second cathedral is destroyed by Norman pirates under the command of the leader Hastein on June 12, 858. Bishop Gislebert rebuilt and expanded this church. Of this remains a chapel that is part of the current crypt. At this time is when the cathedral receives the relic of the virgin, which increased the importance of the place.
The city of Chartres was a center of Marian worship and pilgrimage due to the presence in its cathedral of the so-called Sancta Camisia"), a relic brought from the Holy Land and given to the cathedral by King Charles the Bald in 876, and which is supposedly a garment of the Virgin Mary "Mary (mother of Jesus)") (formerly it was believed to be the tunic, but in reality it corresponded to the veil).[10] For this reason, it enjoyed a prosperous trade centered on the fairs that were celebrated on the four great Marian festivals of the year: the Purification (February 2), the Annunciation (March 25), the Assumption (August 15) and Christmas (December 25).
On August 5, 962, the church of Gislebert was destroyed again during the war between Richard I, Duke of Normandy, and Tybalt I of Blois, Count of Chartres. It is partially rebuilt. In 1020 another fire destroyed the cathedral, after which Bishop Fulbert of Chartres began the construction of the crypt of a new Romanesque cathedral.
This cathedral was built quickly due to an explosion of religious fervor that motivated hundreds of penitents to the construction, spontaneously carrying supplies and construction materials to the works. Fulbert died in April 1029, he was succeeded by Geoffroy de Lèves") who consecrated the cathedral two years later and in 1037 the works were completed.
The building built by Bishop Fulbert was a large cathedral in Romanesque style that had a huge crypt that housed the famous relic. It survived a fire in 1134.
Around the year 1150 the stained glass windows of the Blue Virgin window, the Jesse window and the Life of Christ window were installed.
Construction (1194-1220)
In 1194 another great fire devastated much of the city of Chartres, including almost all of the old Romanesque cathedral. From the fire on the night of June 10, 1194, caused by lightning, only the crypt and, on the western façade, the south tower and the base of the north one, the three portals and the windows above them were saved. At first the fire was seen as a divine punishment, but when the Virgin's garment appeared intact in the crypt, it was thought to be a sign for the cathedral to be rebuilt, giving it a new splendor. This was helped by the chance presence in the city of a cardinal sent by the Holy See who certified the fact of the salvation of the relic as miraculous. The reconstruction was generously financed by both the Capetians, a dynasty traditionally linked to Chartres, and by the local chapter and guilds.
In 1194 the reconstruction project began to replace the old cathedral with the innovative style in which it was built, and which would mean for many historians the beginning of the development and dissemination of classical Gothic. Reconstruction works were quickly undertaken. Around 1220 the main body was completed, in a period of only about 26 years, a remarkably short time for a work of these characteristics. Local stone from quarries located about 8 km away was used. It preserves the crypt and the west façade with the Royal Portico from the previous building. It was solemnly consecrated on October 24, 1260 in the presence of King Louis IX the Saint.
Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages the cathedral functioned as a school, since Charlemagne had ordered in the century that cathedrals and monasteries maintained schools. Chartres gained considerable fame for the study of logic, a subject in which for many it rivaled Paris. The English writer and philosopher John of Salisbury received part of his training at Chartres.
Contemporary Age
Unlike other French monuments the building was not damaged during the French Revolution; Although the revolutionary committee had decided to demolish it, the person in charge of carrying it out, a local architect, advised against it, claiming that the resulting debris would block the surrounding streets.
The successive restorations also respected its original design, thanks to which the building has reached our time in a state of conservation far superior to most French constructions of the time.
On June 4, 1836, a fire destroyed the Danish chestnut roof trusses. The architect Edouard Baron replaced it with a cast iron structure covered by copper sheets, imitating the technique used in the Mainz Cathedral.
During the Second World War (1939-1945) the stained glass windows were dismantled and hidden to avoid damage from German bombing. After the occupation, the Germans used the cathedral as a social club. On August 16, 1944, during the intervention of North American troops in Chartres, the cathedral was saved from destruction thanks to the American colonel Welborn Griffith (1901-1944), who questioned the order given to him to destroy the cathedral; This order was due to the fact that his superiors believed that there could be Germans inside, but he volunteered to go check if there were German soldiers inside, and accompanied by one of his men, he could see that the cathedral was empty, so he made the cathedral bells ring as a signal for the Americans not to shoot, the destruction order was rescinded. Notre-Dame de Chartres had been saved. Colonel Griffith was killed in combat action that same day near Chartres, in the town of Lèves. He was posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre avec Palme (1939-1945), the Legion of Honor and the National Order of Merit "National Order of Merit (France)") from the French government and the Distinguished Service Cross "Distinguished Service Cross (United States)") from the American government.[11][12].
Description
Contenido
El edificio es de planta cruciforme con el cuerpo principal de 28 metros, organizado en tres naves "Nave (arquitectura)"). La cabecera, situada al este tiene un deambulatorio radial con cinco capillas semicirculares. La bóveda central tiene 36 m de altura, la más alta hasta la fecha cuando fue construida. Esta es cuatripartita y está soportada por arbotantes en el exterior.
La organización en tres naves es sumamente original para la época, con la central mucho más alta que las laterales. Esta dificultad constructiva se solía solventar levantando sobre las naves laterales una amplia tribuna cuya cubierta compensaba el peso de la bóveda central reforzando la estructura, como sucede en las catedrales de Laon o París. En Chartres se suprime la tribuna quedando solamente tres niveles en el alzado de la nave; arcadas, triforio y ventanales.
El Triforio es una pequeña galería que se construía en ocasiones sobre la galería y bajo los ventanales para aprovechar el espacio del tejado sobre la tribuna. En este caso tiene cuatro arcos por sección y es un contrapunto de horizontalidad y oscuridad a las arcadas y ventanales. Estos constan de dos vanos y un rosetón que repite la estructura de la puerta principal y que alberga los famosos vitrales de la catedral de Chartres, uno de los mejores conjuntos de vidrieras medievales que se conservan.
La altura y amplitud de las naves se debe a dos novedades constructivas. La primera fue el abandono de la bóveda sexapartita cuadrangular, que se había usado frecuentemente en el siglo en catedrales como la de Laon, en favor de la cuatripartita rectangular. La bóveda sexapartita se basaba en cuatro puntos de apoyo fuertes y dos débiles, lo que provocaba a veces una alternancia en el grosor de los soportes como en Sens y Noyon, si bien en París y Laon estos son uniformes. Los ábacos "Ábaco (arquitectura)") de los capiteles sostenían los haces de fustes de las columnillas adosadas conectando así los pilares con los nervios, pero esto causaba una excesiva fragmentación que se solucionó en Chartres creando un pilar acantonado consistente en un núcleo cilíndrico central rodeado de cuatro elementos más pequeños que conectan tanto con las cubiertas como con las arcadas que las separan. De ellos el que da a la nave central no tiene capitel sino una cornisa sobre los demás capiteles y que actúa como zócalo del resto de elementos verticales que van a unirse a los arcos y nervios de la bóveda. Con esto se logró una unidad de los complejos soportes sin perjudicar la integridad de cada parte.
La otra novedad es el empleo de un tipo de arbotante totalmente desarrollado. Salvo los superiores, añadidos después de la construcción original, los inferiores son dobles unidos por columnillas radiales. Estos se unen a los contrafuertes externos, muy gruesos en la base y que se complementan con los contrafuertes internos, ocultos bajo el techo de las naves laterales.
The stained glass windows of Chartres
The medieval stained glass windows of Chartres are famous for the intense and beautiful blue color used. Especially famous is the so-called Window of the Blue Virgin (Notre Dame de la Belle Verrière), from the beginning of the century that represents the Virgin and Child. Of the 186 original stained glass windows, 152 are preserved (approximately 80 percent), since in 1753 some of them were replaced by the bishopric that intended to modernize the cathedral.
The western facade
The main façade is the result of various interventions over time. The south tower and the base of the north tower, the three portals and the windows above were saved from the fire.
The master of Chartres dismantled the surviving wall and moved it forward and added the great rose window and the gallery of the kings above it. As the height of the façade increased, the dimensions of the south tower in proportion to the rest of the façade changed noticeably, so when the north tower or Clocher Neuf was built, completed in 1513 to balance the composition imposed by the first tower, it was established with an asymmetry that creates a strong visual dynamism. This was done in the flamboyant (French flamboyant) style, while the south tower raises its magnificent arrow, in a single stroke, directly towards the sky.
The rose window shows in its stained glass Christ the judge at the Last Judgment surrounded by the four evangelists and angels. In the outer circles trumpeting angels and scenes of resurrection, Hell and Paradise.
The Royal Portico "Royal Portico (Chartres Cathedral)") predates the reconstruction of the building in the 19th century. One of the few elements that survive the great fire of 1194, it dates back to the years 1145-1150, built for the previous Romanesque cathedral. It is funnel-shaped, which would later be a common norm for Gothic cathedrals. The portico was integrated into the new cathedral built after the fire of 1194.
Having reached us almost intact, it forms part of the western facade, consisting of three richly decorated windows. This tripartite composition has a clear influence of a harmonic façade of Anglo-Norman descent.[14] With an innovative structure, this triple portal with lateral statues, with a tympanum, lintel and sculpted sculptures has an important architectural influence as it was repeated in numerous Gothic cathedrals (Le Mans, Angers, north and south porticos of Bourges, statues-columns of Rochester and Sangüesa).[15] Located as a hinge between Romanesque and Gothic art, it was probably made by the same sculptors as the portal of the Basilica of San Dionisio. It stands out for the great quality of its sculptures.
Open to the parvis (the wide square in front of the cathedral where markets were held), the two side doors would have been the first point of entry for most visitors to Chartres, as it is today. The central door is only opened for the entry of processions on the main festivities, of which the most important is the Adventus or installation of a new bishop.[16] The harmonious appearance of the façade is a result, in part, of the relative proportions of the central and side portals, whose width is in the proportion 10:7 – one of the most common medieval approximations to the square root of 2.
In addition to their basic function of providing an entrance to the interior, porticos are the primary location for sculpted images in a Gothic cathedral, and it is on this west façade at Chartres that this practice began to develop as a visual or encyclopedia of theological knowledge. Each of the three portals focuses on a different aspect of Christ's role; its earthly incarnation on the right, the second arrival on the left and its eternal aspect in the center.[17].
The transept
The transept is wide although it protrudes little from the main nave. The sculpture of the two transept portals, which are triple, were made in stages between 1200 and 1245, the oldest being the North façade (1200-1210). Its facades consist of two rose windows, the one on the north side describes the glorification of the Virgin and the one on the south side the glorification of Jesus Christ. These sit on rows of five windows on three porches, following the proportions of the main façade and increasing the effect of architectural unity. At first it was planned to open simple openings in them, but in the end they were equipped with three deep, richly sculpted porticos and two towers in each one that remained unfinished. The rose window pattern is copied directly from Laon but the triple porches are exclusive to Chartres.
The north façade
On the north side the central portico shows the Coronation of the Virgin Mary with figures of prophets and saints. The Virgin is represented as queen of Heaven to the right of Christ also crowned as celestial sovereigns, bowing his head, and blessing Mary. This Marian exaltation is highlighted by the trilobed canopy and the angels that surround it, carrying censers, offering prayer and surrounded by an archway that symbolizes the celestial palace. Both figures are of equal size and occupy places of equal importance. The Virgin here becomes a symbol of the Church linked to the monarchy, due to the financing of the Capets. This is the reason for the addition of references to the monarchy.
On the lintel there is the influence of the Cathedral of La Notre Dame de Senlis, which consists of two themes designed there: the Dormition, on the left, with apostles and Jesus himself, who come to receive the soul of Mary, which has the form of a child, and his Resurrection, on the opposite side, where it is clearly witnessed how a group of angels collect his body to unify it with his soul in the Kingdom of Heaven "Heaven (religion)"). The importance of Mary and the Marian cult lead her to praise her ancestors as well, as in the case of Saint Anne "Anne (mother of Mary)"), represented in the mullion.
Although there is no narration in the Gospels about the resurrection of the Virgin, there is a tradition that is frequently represented from the beginning of the Marian cult in the Middle Ages. Bishop Fulbert was a fervent believer in this tradition, which is why the event is frequently narrated in Chartres.
In the mullion there is a three-dimensional image of Saint Anne "Anne (mother of Mary)") with the Virgin girl in her arms, with a mantle of realistic and soft folds, and a three-dimensional head (currently damaged and headless). This figure was probably added as a result of the transfer to the cathedral of the relic of the head of Saint Anne, brought from Constantinople in 1204, approximately the date when the portico was begun, so a place of honor was reserved for this effigy. Below is an image of her husband, Saint Joachim "Joachim (father of Mary)") contemplating his flock of sheep while the archangel Saint Gabriel "Gabriel (archangel)") announces Ana's pregnancy to him. The story of Saint Anne and Saint Joachim is apocryphal but was widely disseminated since it was collected in the Golden Legend by Santiago de la Vorágine.
The second archivolt depicts figures believed to be Old Testament prophets, while the third and fourth show the ancestors of Mary's lineage. The last archivolt shows prophets with books and scrolls. In the reliefs around the arch the creation and fall of man are narrated.
On the jambs there are statues from the Old and New Testaments, which correspond to those of the twelve apostles on the south side. They show Old Testament prophets who bear witness to the commitment between Christ and his church: Melchizedek, Abraham, Moses, Samuel "Samuel (prophet)"), David, Isaiah "Isaiah (prophet)") Jeremiah "Jeremiah (prophet)"), Simeon&action=edit&redlink=1 "Simeon (prophet) (not yet written)"), Saint John the Baptist, and Saint Peter. The statues have oval faces and are more realistic than at the west entrance.
The south façade
The south porch is a gift from Count Pierre Mauclerc"), of the royal family. This porch introduces new iconography in the Chartres style. The central portal shows the Last Judgment with sculptures of the apostles on the jambs. On the lintel above the door is a frieze with a vision of the Apocalypse, with Heaven and Hell.
It is the first time in religious iconography that the Last Judgment and the Apocalypse are narrated together. Until then both topics had always been treated independently despite being closely related. Christ is represented on the tympanum with kind and human features in the final judgment, this figure is known as the Beau Dieu.
The scene is generally treated by the sculptor in a way that inspires divine compassion, very different from other previous representations in which an attempt is made to highlight suffering to inspire fear of God's wrath. Traditionally, the four apostles would have been represented in both the Last Judgment and the Apocalypse, but when both scenes were united, they were excluded from the reliefs, which is why they are represented in the doorjambs of the portal in larger statues.
This leaves a space available in the reliefs that is occupied by the Virgin, to the right of Christ, and by John the apostle who pray to Christ for the souls of the judged, increasing the feeling of compassion in the whole. Both figures are the same size as Jesus, which for some theologians of the time gave an overly humanized image of Christ. This comparison in size is believed to symbolize the power of intercession of the Virgin and Saint John, which had been established since the time of the first Byzantine church.
The left porch is dedicated to the martyrs of the Church, with the martyrdom of Saint Stephen "Stephen (martyr)") as the central scene in the tympanum. Famous in this portico are the figures of Saint George "George (saint)") and Saint Theodore&action=edit&redlink=1 "Teodoro (saint) (not yet written)"), in which the elderly and severe appearance of the first contrasts with the young and beautiful face of the second.
The right portal is known as the Portal of the Confessors. This is opposed to the left; While martyrs testify to God with their death, confessors do so with their lives. Both will be admitted to Paradise on the day of the Last Judgment that is narrated in the center.
The stained glass windows are from the same period as those on the north side and show the Glorification of Christ in the rose window with the evangelists and angels and in the outer circle the patriarchs of the Apocalypse and the arms of the donors of the stained glass window (it does not have spandrels). The windows show the four evangelists at the top of each side window (Luke, Matthew, John and Mark from left to right) above the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel (in the same order). In the central window there is the Virgin with the Child.
The header
The choir, located to the east, has five naves. The main problem that the architect faced was the harmonious union with the header since the distance that separates the pillars when surrounding the presbytery must necessarily be less, which produces a rhythmic discontinuity. To do this, the master chose to use simple windows, replacing the double ones with a rose window in the main nave, and reduce the intercolumnia by half.
The council's desire to take advantage of the Romanesque foundations complicated the design of the chevet, with three deep chapels being built on top of the Romanesque ones and another four interspersed and shallower ones. As on the façades of the transept, in the choir there are two unfinished towers, one on each side.
The choir "Choir (architecture)") is separated from the ambulatory by a wall decorated with a set of forty sculptural groups that total two hundred statues made by Jehan de Beauce") at the beginning of the century in Renaissance style and that narrate scenes from the life of Jesus and the Virgin.
The crypt
The crypt of Chartres is enormous, the largest in France and one of the largest in Christendom after Saint Peter's in Rome and Canterbury Cathedral. Here you can see the remains of previous constructions on which the current cathedral is based, which make up two concentric crypts. The remains of the church built in Carolingian times make up the base of the choir and the ambulatory. Excavations have been carried out that show remains dating back to Roman times.
The crypt preserves frescoes from the 19th century, as well as other pieces on display. A reproduction of an image of the Virgin destroyed during the Revolution is exhibited; Notre Dame Sous-Terre (Our Lady of the Underground), a black virgin, perhaps a pre-Christian figure attributed to the Virgin. In a chapel at the head is the Saints-Forts well, a name derived from the Latin locus fortis or strong place. According to tradition, in 858, during the sacking of the city by the Normans, the relics of Saint Altin and Saint Eodald, evangelizers of the city in the 19th century, were thrown into this well.
Various pieces are also exhibited in the crypt, such as the originals of some statues removed from the portals and which have been replaced by copies to guarantee their conservation.
Other elements
Although most of the original imagery has been lost (the crucifixion altarpiece was destroyed in the century), the western façade, called the Royal Portico, is especially important thanks to a series of sculptures from the middle of the century; The main doorway contains a magnificent relief of the glorified Jesus Christ; that of the southern transept (or transverse nave) (c. 1224-1250) is organized around some images from the New Testament, which narrate the Last Judgment; while the opposite porch, located on the north side, is dedicated to the Old Testament and the advent of Christ and stands out for the impressive quality of the sculptural group dedicated to Creation.
One of the most famous elements of the cathedral is the labyrinth drawn on the pavement that dates back to 1205. It is a circular tiling 13 meters in diameter located on the axis of the central nave in which black and white tiles form a narrow path with multiple convolutions that lead to the center. It seems that in this central circle there was a bronze or brass plaque with the figures of Theseus, Ariadne and the Minotaur. This was removed and melted down during the French Revolution to make cannons. In the Middle Ages there were numerous churches with labyrinths of this type that have disappeared in later times. The labyrinth path represented a symbolic pilgrimage that the pilgrim had to travel on foot or on his knees to the central rosette. The measurements and layout of this type of labyrinth have a deep and complex numerological and philosophical symbolism that apparently has its origin in esoteric knowledge originating in the East. The labyrinth has eleven concentric circles and has the particularity of having almost the same diameter as the west rose window and being almost the same length from the entrance threshold as its height, so if the façade extended over the interior floor, the rose window would coincide with the labyrinth, forming a symbol similar to a vesica.
• - Annex: Tallest churches in the world.
• - Annex: Highest churches in France.
• - Annex: Basilicas and cathedrals of France.
• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Chartres Cathedral.
• - Web'Chartres - Le site interactif de la ville Archived May 29, 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
[13] ↑ Algunas estatuas han sido retiradas por su estado de deterioro. El original se expone en una de las criptas.
[14] ↑ Brigitte Kurmann-Schwarz, Peter Kurmann, Claude Sauvageot (2001). Chartres, la cathédrale. Zodiaque. p. 76.
[15] ↑ Les portails de la cathédrale de Chartres. Chartres: J.-M. Garnier. 1994. p. 305. ISBN 2-908974-10-X.
[16] ↑ Margot Fassler, Adventus at Chartres: Ritual Models for Major Processions en Ceremonial Culture in Pre-Modern Europe, ed. Nicholas Howe, University of Indiana Press, 2007.
[17] ↑ Adolf Katzenellenbogen, The Sculptural Programs of Chartres Cathedral, Baltimore, 1959.
[19] ↑ Adelheid Heimann, The Capital Frieze and Pilasters of the Portail royal, Chartres en Journal of the Warburg and Courtland Institutes, Vol. 31, 1968, pp.73–102.
[20] ↑ 9 Y habiendo dicho estas cosas, viéndo lo ellos, fué alzado; y unaube le recibió y le quitó de sus ojos.
According to other late and legendary traditions that wanted to prove the priority of the Christianization of Chartres over that of Sens") and the priority of one episcopal see in relation to the other,[7] the construction of the first church would have taken place around the year 350. Called "Aventin Cathedral", after the name of the first bishop of the city, Aventin of Chartres") who would live around 350, it would have probably been built at the beginning of the century.[8] The original cathedral would not yet be linked to a Marian cult, but to that of some local martyrs (saints Piat, Cheron, Modesta and Potentianus) popularly known as the "Saints Forts". These martyrs would have been thrown into a well (the "Puits des Saints-Forts"). The well, probably from the Gallo-Roman period, was excavated inside the wall of the oppidum carnute of Autricum, and would later be integrated into the cathedral building (in the crypt).[9].
The first recorded church was built around the year 360. It disappeared in a fire around 740 or 750 during the sacking of the Visigoths by Hunald, Duke of Aquitaine. A second cathedral is destroyed by Norman pirates under the command of the leader Hastein on June 12, 858. Bishop Gislebert rebuilt and expanded this church. Of this remains a chapel that is part of the current crypt. At this time is when the cathedral receives the relic of the virgin, which increased the importance of the place.
The city of Chartres was a center of Marian worship and pilgrimage due to the presence in its cathedral of the so-called Sancta Camisia"), a relic brought from the Holy Land and given to the cathedral by King Charles the Bald in 876, and which is supposedly a garment of the Virgin Mary "Mary (mother of Jesus)") (formerly it was believed to be the tunic, but in reality it corresponded to the veil).[10] For this reason, it enjoyed a prosperous trade centered on the fairs that were celebrated on the four great Marian festivals of the year: the Purification (February 2), the Annunciation (March 25), the Assumption (August 15) and Christmas (December 25).
On August 5, 962, the church of Gislebert was destroyed again during the war between Richard I, Duke of Normandy, and Tybalt I of Blois, Count of Chartres. It is partially rebuilt. In 1020 another fire destroyed the cathedral, after which Bishop Fulbert of Chartres began the construction of the crypt of a new Romanesque cathedral.
This cathedral was built quickly due to an explosion of religious fervor that motivated hundreds of penitents to the construction, spontaneously carrying supplies and construction materials to the works. Fulbert died in April 1029, he was succeeded by Geoffroy de Lèves") who consecrated the cathedral two years later and in 1037 the works were completed.
The building built by Bishop Fulbert was a large cathedral in Romanesque style that had a huge crypt that housed the famous relic. It survived a fire in 1134.
Around the year 1150 the stained glass windows of the Blue Virgin window, the Jesse window and the Life of Christ window were installed.
Construction (1194-1220)
In 1194 another great fire devastated much of the city of Chartres, including almost all of the old Romanesque cathedral. From the fire on the night of June 10, 1194, caused by lightning, only the crypt and, on the western façade, the south tower and the base of the north one, the three portals and the windows above them were saved. At first the fire was seen as a divine punishment, but when the Virgin's garment appeared intact in the crypt, it was thought to be a sign for the cathedral to be rebuilt, giving it a new splendor. This was helped by the chance presence in the city of a cardinal sent by the Holy See who certified the fact of the salvation of the relic as miraculous. The reconstruction was generously financed by both the Capetians, a dynasty traditionally linked to Chartres, and by the local chapter and guilds.
In 1194 the reconstruction project began to replace the old cathedral with the innovative style in which it was built, and which would mean for many historians the beginning of the development and dissemination of classical Gothic. Reconstruction works were quickly undertaken. Around 1220 the main body was completed, in a period of only about 26 years, a remarkably short time for a work of these characteristics. Local stone from quarries located about 8 km away was used. It preserves the crypt and the west façade with the Royal Portico from the previous building. It was solemnly consecrated on October 24, 1260 in the presence of King Louis IX the Saint.
Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages the cathedral functioned as a school, since Charlemagne had ordered in the century that cathedrals and monasteries maintained schools. Chartres gained considerable fame for the study of logic, a subject in which for many it rivaled Paris. The English writer and philosopher John of Salisbury received part of his training at Chartres.
Contemporary Age
Unlike other French monuments the building was not damaged during the French Revolution; Although the revolutionary committee had decided to demolish it, the person in charge of carrying it out, a local architect, advised against it, claiming that the resulting debris would block the surrounding streets.
The successive restorations also respected its original design, thanks to which the building has reached our time in a state of conservation far superior to most French constructions of the time.
On June 4, 1836, a fire destroyed the Danish chestnut roof trusses. The architect Edouard Baron replaced it with a cast iron structure covered by copper sheets, imitating the technique used in the Mainz Cathedral.
During the Second World War (1939-1945) the stained glass windows were dismantled and hidden to avoid damage from German bombing. After the occupation, the Germans used the cathedral as a social club. On August 16, 1944, during the intervention of North American troops in Chartres, the cathedral was saved from destruction thanks to the American colonel Welborn Griffith (1901-1944), who questioned the order given to him to destroy the cathedral; This order was due to the fact that his superiors believed that there could be Germans inside, but he volunteered to go check if there were German soldiers inside, and accompanied by one of his men, he could see that the cathedral was empty, so he made the cathedral bells ring as a signal for the Americans not to shoot, the destruction order was rescinded. Notre-Dame de Chartres had been saved. Colonel Griffith was killed in combat action that same day near Chartres, in the town of Lèves. He was posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre avec Palme (1939-1945), the Legion of Honor and the National Order of Merit "National Order of Merit (France)") from the French government and the Distinguished Service Cross "Distinguished Service Cross (United States)") from the American government.[11][12].
Description
Contenido
El edificio es de planta cruciforme con el cuerpo principal de 28 metros, organizado en tres naves "Nave (arquitectura)"). La cabecera, situada al este tiene un deambulatorio radial con cinco capillas semicirculares. La bóveda central tiene 36 m de altura, la más alta hasta la fecha cuando fue construida. Esta es cuatripartita y está soportada por arbotantes en el exterior.
La organización en tres naves es sumamente original para la época, con la central mucho más alta que las laterales. Esta dificultad constructiva se solía solventar levantando sobre las naves laterales una amplia tribuna cuya cubierta compensaba el peso de la bóveda central reforzando la estructura, como sucede en las catedrales de Laon o París. En Chartres se suprime la tribuna quedando solamente tres niveles en el alzado de la nave; arcadas, triforio y ventanales.
El Triforio es una pequeña galería que se construía en ocasiones sobre la galería y bajo los ventanales para aprovechar el espacio del tejado sobre la tribuna. En este caso tiene cuatro arcos por sección y es un contrapunto de horizontalidad y oscuridad a las arcadas y ventanales. Estos constan de dos vanos y un rosetón que repite la estructura de la puerta principal y que alberga los famosos vitrales de la catedral de Chartres, uno de los mejores conjuntos de vidrieras medievales que se conservan.
La altura y amplitud de las naves se debe a dos novedades constructivas. La primera fue el abandono de la bóveda sexapartita cuadrangular, que se había usado frecuentemente en el siglo en catedrales como la de Laon, en favor de la cuatripartita rectangular. La bóveda sexapartita se basaba en cuatro puntos de apoyo fuertes y dos débiles, lo que provocaba a veces una alternancia en el grosor de los soportes como en Sens y Noyon, si bien en París y Laon estos son uniformes. Los ábacos "Ábaco (arquitectura)") de los capiteles sostenían los haces de fustes de las columnillas adosadas conectando así los pilares con los nervios, pero esto causaba una excesiva fragmentación que se solucionó en Chartres creando un pilar acantonado consistente en un núcleo cilíndrico central rodeado de cuatro elementos más pequeños que conectan tanto con las cubiertas como con las arcadas que las separan. De ellos el que da a la nave central no tiene capitel sino una cornisa sobre los demás capiteles y que actúa como zócalo del resto de elementos verticales que van a unirse a los arcos y nervios de la bóveda. Con esto se logró una unidad de los complejos soportes sin perjudicar la integridad de cada parte.
La otra novedad es el empleo de un tipo de arbotante totalmente desarrollado. Salvo los superiores, añadidos después de la construcción original, los inferiores son dobles unidos por columnillas radiales. Estos se unen a los contrafuertes externos, muy gruesos en la base y que se complementan con los contrafuertes internos, ocultos bajo el techo de las naves laterales.
The stained glass windows of Chartres
The medieval stained glass windows of Chartres are famous for the intense and beautiful blue color used. Especially famous is the so-called Window of the Blue Virgin (Notre Dame de la Belle Verrière), from the beginning of the century that represents the Virgin and Child. Of the 186 original stained glass windows, 152 are preserved (approximately 80 percent), since in 1753 some of them were replaced by the bishopric that intended to modernize the cathedral.
The western facade
The main façade is the result of various interventions over time. The south tower and the base of the north tower, the three portals and the windows above were saved from the fire.
The master of Chartres dismantled the surviving wall and moved it forward and added the great rose window and the gallery of the kings above it. As the height of the façade increased, the dimensions of the south tower in proportion to the rest of the façade changed noticeably, so when the north tower or Clocher Neuf was built, completed in 1513 to balance the composition imposed by the first tower, it was established with an asymmetry that creates a strong visual dynamism. This was done in the flamboyant (French flamboyant) style, while the south tower raises its magnificent arrow, in a single stroke, directly towards the sky.
The rose window shows in its stained glass Christ the judge at the Last Judgment surrounded by the four evangelists and angels. In the outer circles trumpeting angels and scenes of resurrection, Hell and Paradise.
The Royal Portico "Royal Portico (Chartres Cathedral)") predates the reconstruction of the building in the 19th century. One of the few elements that survive the great fire of 1194, it dates back to the years 1145-1150, built for the previous Romanesque cathedral. It is funnel-shaped, which would later be a common norm for Gothic cathedrals. The portico was integrated into the new cathedral built after the fire of 1194.
Having reached us almost intact, it forms part of the western facade, consisting of three richly decorated windows. This tripartite composition has a clear influence of a harmonic façade of Anglo-Norman descent.[14] With an innovative structure, this triple portal with lateral statues, with a tympanum, lintel and sculpted sculptures has an important architectural influence as it was repeated in numerous Gothic cathedrals (Le Mans, Angers, north and south porticos of Bourges, statues-columns of Rochester and Sangüesa).[15] Located as a hinge between Romanesque and Gothic art, it was probably made by the same sculptors as the portal of the Basilica of San Dionisio. It stands out for the great quality of its sculptures.
Open to the parvis (the wide square in front of the cathedral where markets were held), the two side doors would have been the first point of entry for most visitors to Chartres, as it is today. The central door is only opened for the entry of processions on the main festivities, of which the most important is the Adventus or installation of a new bishop.[16] The harmonious appearance of the façade is a result, in part, of the relative proportions of the central and side portals, whose width is in the proportion 10:7 – one of the most common medieval approximations to the square root of 2.
In addition to their basic function of providing an entrance to the interior, porticos are the primary location for sculpted images in a Gothic cathedral, and it is on this west façade at Chartres that this practice began to develop as a visual or encyclopedia of theological knowledge. Each of the three portals focuses on a different aspect of Christ's role; its earthly incarnation on the right, the second arrival on the left and its eternal aspect in the center.[17].
The transept
The transept is wide although it protrudes little from the main nave. The sculpture of the two transept portals, which are triple, were made in stages between 1200 and 1245, the oldest being the North façade (1200-1210). Its facades consist of two rose windows, the one on the north side describes the glorification of the Virgin and the one on the south side the glorification of Jesus Christ. These sit on rows of five windows on three porches, following the proportions of the main façade and increasing the effect of architectural unity. At first it was planned to open simple openings in them, but in the end they were equipped with three deep, richly sculpted porticos and two towers in each one that remained unfinished. The rose window pattern is copied directly from Laon but the triple porches are exclusive to Chartres.
The north façade
On the north side the central portico shows the Coronation of the Virgin Mary with figures of prophets and saints. The Virgin is represented as queen of Heaven to the right of Christ also crowned as celestial sovereigns, bowing his head, and blessing Mary. This Marian exaltation is highlighted by the trilobed canopy and the angels that surround it, carrying censers, offering prayer and surrounded by an archway that symbolizes the celestial palace. Both figures are of equal size and occupy places of equal importance. The Virgin here becomes a symbol of the Church linked to the monarchy, due to the financing of the Capets. This is the reason for the addition of references to the monarchy.
On the lintel there is the influence of the Cathedral of La Notre Dame de Senlis, which consists of two themes designed there: the Dormition, on the left, with apostles and Jesus himself, who come to receive the soul of Mary, which has the form of a child, and his Resurrection, on the opposite side, where it is clearly witnessed how a group of angels collect his body to unify it with his soul in the Kingdom of Heaven "Heaven (religion)"). The importance of Mary and the Marian cult lead her to praise her ancestors as well, as in the case of Saint Anne "Anne (mother of Mary)"), represented in the mullion.
Although there is no narration in the Gospels about the resurrection of the Virgin, there is a tradition that is frequently represented from the beginning of the Marian cult in the Middle Ages. Bishop Fulbert was a fervent believer in this tradition, which is why the event is frequently narrated in Chartres.
In the mullion there is a three-dimensional image of Saint Anne "Anne (mother of Mary)") with the Virgin girl in her arms, with a mantle of realistic and soft folds, and a three-dimensional head (currently damaged and headless). This figure was probably added as a result of the transfer to the cathedral of the relic of the head of Saint Anne, brought from Constantinople in 1204, approximately the date when the portico was begun, so a place of honor was reserved for this effigy. Below is an image of her husband, Saint Joachim "Joachim (father of Mary)") contemplating his flock of sheep while the archangel Saint Gabriel "Gabriel (archangel)") announces Ana's pregnancy to him. The story of Saint Anne and Saint Joachim is apocryphal but was widely disseminated since it was collected in the Golden Legend by Santiago de la Vorágine.
The second archivolt depicts figures believed to be Old Testament prophets, while the third and fourth show the ancestors of Mary's lineage. The last archivolt shows prophets with books and scrolls. In the reliefs around the arch the creation and fall of man are narrated.
On the jambs there are statues from the Old and New Testaments, which correspond to those of the twelve apostles on the south side. They show Old Testament prophets who bear witness to the commitment between Christ and his church: Melchizedek, Abraham, Moses, Samuel "Samuel (prophet)"), David, Isaiah "Isaiah (prophet)") Jeremiah "Jeremiah (prophet)"), Simeon&action=edit&redlink=1 "Simeon (prophet) (not yet written)"), Saint John the Baptist, and Saint Peter. The statues have oval faces and are more realistic than at the west entrance.
The south façade
The south porch is a gift from Count Pierre Mauclerc"), of the royal family. This porch introduces new iconography in the Chartres style. The central portal shows the Last Judgment with sculptures of the apostles on the jambs. On the lintel above the door is a frieze with a vision of the Apocalypse, with Heaven and Hell.
It is the first time in religious iconography that the Last Judgment and the Apocalypse are narrated together. Until then both topics had always been treated independently despite being closely related. Christ is represented on the tympanum with kind and human features in the final judgment, this figure is known as the Beau Dieu.
The scene is generally treated by the sculptor in a way that inspires divine compassion, very different from other previous representations in which an attempt is made to highlight suffering to inspire fear of God's wrath. Traditionally, the four apostles would have been represented in both the Last Judgment and the Apocalypse, but when both scenes were united, they were excluded from the reliefs, which is why they are represented in the doorjambs of the portal in larger statues.
This leaves a space available in the reliefs that is occupied by the Virgin, to the right of Christ, and by John the apostle who pray to Christ for the souls of the judged, increasing the feeling of compassion in the whole. Both figures are the same size as Jesus, which for some theologians of the time gave an overly humanized image of Christ. This comparison in size is believed to symbolize the power of intercession of the Virgin and Saint John, which had been established since the time of the first Byzantine church.
The left porch is dedicated to the martyrs of the Church, with the martyrdom of Saint Stephen "Stephen (martyr)") as the central scene in the tympanum. Famous in this portico are the figures of Saint George "George (saint)") and Saint Theodore&action=edit&redlink=1 "Teodoro (saint) (not yet written)"), in which the elderly and severe appearance of the first contrasts with the young and beautiful face of the second.
The right portal is known as the Portal of the Confessors. This is opposed to the left; While martyrs testify to God with their death, confessors do so with their lives. Both will be admitted to Paradise on the day of the Last Judgment that is narrated in the center.
The stained glass windows are from the same period as those on the north side and show the Glorification of Christ in the rose window with the evangelists and angels and in the outer circle the patriarchs of the Apocalypse and the arms of the donors of the stained glass window (it does not have spandrels). The windows show the four evangelists at the top of each side window (Luke, Matthew, John and Mark from left to right) above the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel (in the same order). In the central window there is the Virgin with the Child.
The header
The choir, located to the east, has five naves. The main problem that the architect faced was the harmonious union with the header since the distance that separates the pillars when surrounding the presbytery must necessarily be less, which produces a rhythmic discontinuity. To do this, the master chose to use simple windows, replacing the double ones with a rose window in the main nave, and reduce the intercolumnia by half.
The council's desire to take advantage of the Romanesque foundations complicated the design of the chevet, with three deep chapels being built on top of the Romanesque ones and another four interspersed and shallower ones. As on the façades of the transept, in the choir there are two unfinished towers, one on each side.
The choir "Choir (architecture)") is separated from the ambulatory by a wall decorated with a set of forty sculptural groups that total two hundred statues made by Jehan de Beauce") at the beginning of the century in Renaissance style and that narrate scenes from the life of Jesus and the Virgin.
The crypt
The crypt of Chartres is enormous, the largest in France and one of the largest in Christendom after Saint Peter's in Rome and Canterbury Cathedral. Here you can see the remains of previous constructions on which the current cathedral is based, which make up two concentric crypts. The remains of the church built in Carolingian times make up the base of the choir and the ambulatory. Excavations have been carried out that show remains dating back to Roman times.
The crypt preserves frescoes from the 19th century, as well as other pieces on display. A reproduction of an image of the Virgin destroyed during the Revolution is exhibited; Notre Dame Sous-Terre (Our Lady of the Underground), a black virgin, perhaps a pre-Christian figure attributed to the Virgin. In a chapel at the head is the Saints-Forts well, a name derived from the Latin locus fortis or strong place. According to tradition, in 858, during the sacking of the city by the Normans, the relics of Saint Altin and Saint Eodald, evangelizers of the city in the 19th century, were thrown into this well.
Various pieces are also exhibited in the crypt, such as the originals of some statues removed from the portals and which have been replaced by copies to guarantee their conservation.
Other elements
Although most of the original imagery has been lost (the crucifixion altarpiece was destroyed in the century), the western façade, called the Royal Portico, is especially important thanks to a series of sculptures from the middle of the century; The main doorway contains a magnificent relief of the glorified Jesus Christ; that of the southern transept (or transverse nave) (c. 1224-1250) is organized around some images from the New Testament, which narrate the Last Judgment; while the opposite porch, located on the north side, is dedicated to the Old Testament and the advent of Christ and stands out for the impressive quality of the sculptural group dedicated to Creation.
One of the most famous elements of the cathedral is the labyrinth drawn on the pavement that dates back to 1205. It is a circular tiling 13 meters in diameter located on the axis of the central nave in which black and white tiles form a narrow path with multiple convolutions that lead to the center. It seems that in this central circle there was a bronze or brass plaque with the figures of Theseus, Ariadne and the Minotaur. This was removed and melted down during the French Revolution to make cannons. In the Middle Ages there were numerous churches with labyrinths of this type that have disappeared in later times. The labyrinth path represented a symbolic pilgrimage that the pilgrim had to travel on foot or on his knees to the central rosette. The measurements and layout of this type of labyrinth have a deep and complex numerological and philosophical symbolism that apparently has its origin in esoteric knowledge originating in the East. The labyrinth has eleven concentric circles and has the particularity of having almost the same diameter as the west rose window and being almost the same length from the entrance threshold as its height, so if the façade extended over the interior floor, the rose window would coincide with the labyrinth, forming a symbol similar to a vesica.
• - Annex: Tallest churches in the world.
• - Annex: Highest churches in France.
• - Annex: Basilicas and cathedrals of France.
• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Chartres Cathedral.
• - Web'Chartres - Le site interactif de la ville Archived May 29, 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
[13] ↑ Algunas estatuas han sido retiradas por su estado de deterioro. El original se expone en una de las criptas.
[14] ↑ Brigitte Kurmann-Schwarz, Peter Kurmann, Claude Sauvageot (2001). Chartres, la cathédrale. Zodiaque. p. 76.
[15] ↑ Les portails de la cathédrale de Chartres. Chartres: J.-M. Garnier. 1994. p. 305. ISBN 2-908974-10-X.
[16] ↑ Margot Fassler, Adventus at Chartres: Ritual Models for Major Processions en Ceremonial Culture in Pre-Modern Europe, ed. Nicholas Howe, University of Indiana Press, 2007.
[17] ↑ Adolf Katzenellenbogen, The Sculptural Programs of Chartres Cathedral, Baltimore, 1959.
[19] ↑ Adelheid Heimann, The Capital Frieze and Pilasters of the Portail royal, Chartres en Journal of the Warburg and Courtland Institutes, Vol. 31, 1968, pp.73–102.
[20] ↑ 9 Y habiendo dicho estas cosas, viéndo lo ellos, fué alzado; y unaube le recibió y le quitó de sus ojos.
summa
The sculptures and reliefs are inspired by those on the west portico of the Basilica of Saint-Denis, which were destroyed during the renovation. Although the upper parts of the three portals are treated separately, two sculptural elements run horizontally along the façade, uniting its different parts. The most striking are the sculptures on the jambs"), which represent a narrative cycle about the life of Christ and fixed to the columns that flank the doors: tall, thin, of kings and queens from which the name Portail royal derives. They almost certainly represent the kings and queens of the Old Testament: another common iconographic feature of Gothic portals. The figures are basically symbolic. They show a serene expression, different from the usual severity in the preceding Romanesque. The royal figures are smaller in stature, but still almost the same as the biblical figures, symbolizing a kinship relationship between royalty and divinity.
The three windows show the Passion and Resurrection on the left, the Incarnation in the center and Jesse, father of David, on the right.
The three entrances are preceded by a flight of stairs with five steps and are unified by a long intricately carved frieze that, running along the façade from capital to capital between the statues-columns and the tympanum, tells the life of Christ with dozens of small figures distributed in thirty-six scenes.[18] This frieze is read from right to left going from the central portal to the new bell tower, then from left to right going from the central portal to the new bell tower. old bell tower. Carved on these capitals is a long narrative that tells the life of the Virgin and the life and passion of Christ.[19].
The iconographic program combines scenes from the Old and New Testaments, thus associating the precursors of Christianity – the Jewish people – with the fulfillment of the promise, formulated according to Christian dogma. The three tympanums proclaim the mysteries of the Faith. They represent respectively from left to right, according to the common interpretation: the Ascension, the Parousia and the Incarnation "Incarnation (Christianity)").
The central portal is a representation, more conventional than the lateral ones, of the Last Judgment as described in the fourth chapter of the Apocalypse. In the center of the tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") is Christ Pantocrator framed in a mandorla surrounded by the four symbols of the evangelists (the tetramorphs). The lintel frieze represents the twelve apostles, as well as two characters, perhaps the prophets Elijah and Enoch. The archivolts show a celestial company that glorifies Christ: the angels with astrolabes and the twenty-four patriarchs of the Apocalypse holding perfume pots and musical instruments in their hands. At the top, two angels hold a crown over Christ's head.
The column-statues supporting the tympanum represent David, Solomon, the Queen of Sheba, perhaps Isaiah or Ezekiel "Ezekiel (prophet)"). The decoration that surrounds the statues represents the last glimpses of the Romanesque style: it is composed of interlaces, small columns and acanthus leaves" that reflect southern influences.
The left porch is more enigmatic than the right, and art historians still disagree about the correct identification. It is dedicated to the ascension of Christ (or perhaps his second coming). The tympanum shows Christ on a cloud supported by two angels. If it is a representation of the ascension of Christ, the figures on the lower lintel, with books and scrolls, would represent the apostles as witnesses of this event. Those who see in this scene the parousia or second coming of Christ, these figures could either be the prophets who foresaw it or perhaps the "men of Galilee" mentioned in Acts, 1:9-11.[20] In the upper frieze, the one between Christ and the ten aforementioned figures, there are four singing angels whose presence, descending from a cloud and apparently shouting to those who remain below, would seem to support the second interpretation. The two archivolts show the symbols of the zodiac and tasks related to the twelve months"), common themes in French Romanesque, a standard reference to the cyclical nature that appears in many Gothic portals.
The right portico shows the same structure. Its theme is the purity of Mary "Mary (mother of Jesus)") and her dignity as mother of Christ. In the tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") there is the Virgin with the child enthroned between two angels, in the posture Sedes sapientiae. At the time of its construction this representation was a novelty since the central theme had always been dedicated to Christ. The upper archivolt shows the Presentation in the Temple, with the Virgin, Simeon "Simeon (son of Jacob)") and other figures. The lower archivolt narrates the Annunciation, Visitation, Nativity and Annunciation to the shepherds taking care of their flocks, something unusual; show common men among divine figures.
The archivolts are decorated with angels inside and out, as a reminder of the glorious days of the school of Chartres, with the seven liberal arts (and two zodiacal symbols that did not fit on the left side) combined with classical authors and philosophers most related to them.
The capitals of this door show scenes of the Passion, the entry into Jerusalem, the Last Supper, the Burial and the Women's Mourning. Today it is the usual entrance to the cathedral, on the western side.
The left portico is dedicated to the Nativity and the Annunciation, a theme that is also treated at the west entrance. The right portal is dedicated to the works of Job "Job (Bible)") on the tympanum, probably in reference to the difficulties that the Church had to go through in the 19th century. The archivolts represent Samson, Gideon, Esther "Esther (biblical character)") and Judith&action=edit&redlink=1 "Judit (biblical character) (not yet written)") defeating the enemies that symbolize the threats that weigh on the Church. Famous are the figure called Saint Modesta, a female image with a seductive smile and a figure representing a fat Solomon in the right portico.
The stained glass windows of the rose window show in its center the Glorification of Mary with angels and the Holy Spirit. In the outer circle are kings and prophets from the Old Testament. It was donated by Queen Blanca of Castile in 1230, which is why it shows the arms of France and Castile alternating in the spandrels below it. In the five windows, two figures are shown in each one: Melchizedek and Saul, David and Jeroboam, Saint Anne and the Virgin Girl on the arms of France, Solomon and Nebuchadnezzar and finally Aaron and the Pharaoh. The cover of the porticos is decorated with bas-reliefs with a quadrifoliate pattern in trifoliate arches.
This portal was completed around 1270 and has about 700 sculpted pieces. In this portal it is possible to appreciate the stylistic evolution between the sculpture of the century and that of the 20th century. Here the sculptures are more evolved than those on the western façade, with clothing that falls more naturally and the faces are more spontaneous and realistic. The heads of some figures are too large but the bodies are less rigid and more proportionate than in the main entrance.
It contains two towers around the main nave that mean that there are two bell towers for the beginning of the mass with a totally Gothic appearance with a Latin-type cross on the face of each one, maintaining the elements of medieval Gothic in the plan of 3 basilica naves, pointed arches that generate a sinewy ribbed vault.
In the transept "Cruise (architecture)") there is an octagonal drum covered with an ogival dome. On the façade it maintains a triangular tympanum, a rose window of colored cathedral glass and the doors and windows with pointed arches and descending archivolts.
summa
The sculptures and reliefs are inspired by those on the west portico of the Basilica of Saint-Denis, which were destroyed during the renovation. Although the upper parts of the three portals are treated separately, two sculptural elements run horizontally along the façade, uniting its different parts. The most striking are the sculptures on the jambs"), which represent a narrative cycle about the life of Christ and fixed to the columns that flank the doors: tall, thin, of kings and queens from which the name Portail royal derives. They almost certainly represent the kings and queens of the Old Testament: another common iconographic feature of Gothic portals. The figures are basically symbolic. They show a serene expression, different from the usual severity in the preceding Romanesque. The royal figures are smaller in stature, but still almost the same as the biblical figures, symbolizing a kinship relationship between royalty and divinity.
The three windows show the Passion and Resurrection on the left, the Incarnation in the center and Jesse, father of David, on the right.
The three entrances are preceded by a flight of stairs with five steps and are unified by a long intricately carved frieze that, running along the façade from capital to capital between the statues-columns and the tympanum, tells the life of Christ with dozens of small figures distributed in thirty-six scenes.[18] This frieze is read from right to left going from the central portal to the new bell tower, then from left to right going from the central portal to the new bell tower. old bell tower. Carved on these capitals is a long narrative that tells the life of the Virgin and the life and passion of Christ.[19].
The iconographic program combines scenes from the Old and New Testaments, thus associating the precursors of Christianity – the Jewish people – with the fulfillment of the promise, formulated according to Christian dogma. The three tympanums proclaim the mysteries of the Faith. They represent respectively from left to right, according to the common interpretation: the Ascension, the Parousia and the Incarnation "Incarnation (Christianity)").
The central portal is a representation, more conventional than the lateral ones, of the Last Judgment as described in the fourth chapter of the Apocalypse. In the center of the tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") is Christ Pantocrator framed in a mandorla surrounded by the four symbols of the evangelists (the tetramorphs). The lintel frieze represents the twelve apostles, as well as two characters, perhaps the prophets Elijah and Enoch. The archivolts show a celestial company that glorifies Christ: the angels with astrolabes and the twenty-four patriarchs of the Apocalypse holding perfume pots and musical instruments in their hands. At the top, two angels hold a crown over Christ's head.
The column-statues supporting the tympanum represent David, Solomon, the Queen of Sheba, perhaps Isaiah or Ezekiel "Ezekiel (prophet)"). The decoration that surrounds the statues represents the last glimpses of the Romanesque style: it is composed of interlaces, small columns and acanthus leaves" that reflect southern influences.
The left porch is more enigmatic than the right, and art historians still disagree about the correct identification. It is dedicated to the ascension of Christ (or perhaps his second coming). The tympanum shows Christ on a cloud supported by two angels. If it is a representation of the ascension of Christ, the figures on the lower lintel, with books and scrolls, would represent the apostles as witnesses of this event. Those who see in this scene the parousia or second coming of Christ, these figures could either be the prophets who foresaw it or perhaps the "men of Galilee" mentioned in Acts, 1:9-11.[20] In the upper frieze, the one between Christ and the ten aforementioned figures, there are four singing angels whose presence, descending from a cloud and apparently shouting to those who remain below, would seem to support the second interpretation. The two archivolts show the symbols of the zodiac and tasks related to the twelve months"), common themes in French Romanesque, a standard reference to the cyclical nature that appears in many Gothic portals.
The right portico shows the same structure. Its theme is the purity of Mary "Mary (mother of Jesus)") and her dignity as mother of Christ. In the tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") there is the Virgin with the child enthroned between two angels, in the posture Sedes sapientiae. At the time of its construction this representation was a novelty since the central theme had always been dedicated to Christ. The upper archivolt shows the Presentation in the Temple, with the Virgin, Simeon "Simeon (son of Jacob)") and other figures. The lower archivolt narrates the Annunciation, Visitation, Nativity and Annunciation to the shepherds taking care of their flocks, something unusual; show common men among divine figures.
The archivolts are decorated with angels inside and out, as a reminder of the glorious days of the school of Chartres, with the seven liberal arts (and two zodiacal symbols that did not fit on the left side) combined with classical authors and philosophers most related to them.
The capitals of this door show scenes of the Passion, the entry into Jerusalem, the Last Supper, the Burial and the Women's Mourning. Today it is the usual entrance to the cathedral, on the western side.
The left portico is dedicated to the Nativity and the Annunciation, a theme that is also treated at the west entrance. The right portal is dedicated to the works of Job "Job (Bible)") on the tympanum, probably in reference to the difficulties that the Church had to go through in the 19th century. The archivolts represent Samson, Gideon, Esther "Esther (biblical character)") and Judith&action=edit&redlink=1 "Judit (biblical character) (not yet written)") defeating the enemies that symbolize the threats that weigh on the Church. Famous are the figure called Saint Modesta, a female image with a seductive smile and a figure representing a fat Solomon in the right portico.
The stained glass windows of the rose window show in its center the Glorification of Mary with angels and the Holy Spirit. In the outer circle are kings and prophets from the Old Testament. It was donated by Queen Blanca of Castile in 1230, which is why it shows the arms of France and Castile alternating in the spandrels below it. In the five windows, two figures are shown in each one: Melchizedek and Saul, David and Jeroboam, Saint Anne and the Virgin Girl on the arms of France, Solomon and Nebuchadnezzar and finally Aaron and the Pharaoh. The cover of the porticos is decorated with bas-reliefs with a quadrifoliate pattern in trifoliate arches.
This portal was completed around 1270 and has about 700 sculpted pieces. In this portal it is possible to appreciate the stylistic evolution between the sculpture of the century and that of the 20th century. Here the sculptures are more evolved than those on the western façade, with clothing that falls more naturally and the faces are more spontaneous and realistic. The heads of some figures are too large but the bodies are less rigid and more proportionate than in the main entrance.
It contains two towers around the main nave that mean that there are two bell towers for the beginning of the mass with a totally Gothic appearance with a Latin-type cross on the face of each one, maintaining the elements of medieval Gothic in the plan of 3 basilica naves, pointed arches that generate a sinewy ribbed vault.
In the transept "Cruise (architecture)") there is an octagonal drum covered with an ogival dome. On the façade it maintains a triangular tympanum, a rose window of colored cathedral glass and the doors and windows with pointed arches and descending archivolts.