Journal article
The Geometry of Bourges Cathedral
Architectural histories, Vol.2(1), pp.np-np
01/01/2014
DOI: 10.5334/ah.bz
Abstract
This article presents a geometrical analysis of Bourges Cathedral, based on the application of computer-aided design (CAD) techniques to the results of a recent and highly precise laser survey. This analysis reveals that the cathedral's original designer developed a tightly interlocking and strikingly unified design, in which the five-fold subdivision of the chevet ground plan set proportions that would be vertically extruded into an elevation that can be inscribed both within a square and within a series of progessively smaller equilaterial triangles. These results contribute to an ongoing debate about the use of 'ad quadratum' and 'ad triangulum' geometries in Gothic architecture, and they provide new evidence for the geometrical coherence of Gothic cathedral design. In methodological terms, meanwhile, this discussion demonstrates the potential of CAD-based geometrical analysis for the study of precisely surveyed medieval buildings.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- The Geometry of Bourges Cathedral
- Creators
- Robert Bork - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Architectural histories, Vol.2(1), pp.np-np
- DOI
- 10.5334/ah.bz
- ISSN
- 2050-5833
- eISSN
- 2050-5833
- Publisher
- Ubiquity Press Ltd
- Number of pages
- 4
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 01/01/2014
- Academic Unit
- School of Art, Art History, and Design
- Record Identifier
- 9984398182402771
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