History
Romanesque Architecture
Romanesque architecture refers to the architectural style that emerged in Europe during the 11th and 12th centuries. It is characterized by thick walls, rounded arches, and sturdy pillars, often incorporating elements of Roman and Byzantine design. Romanesque buildings, such as churches and castles, typically feature small windows, barrel vaults, and decorative carvings, reflecting the religious and military functions of the structures.
Written by Perlego with AI-assistance
Related key terms
1 of 5
11 Key excerpts on "Romanesque Architecture"
eBook - PDFGardner's Art through the Ages
A Global History, Volume I
- Fred Kleiner(Author)
- 2015(Publication Date)
- Cengage Learning EMEA(Publisher)
They noted that certain architectural ele-ments of this period, principally barrel and groin vaults based on the round arch, resembled those of ancient Roman architecture. Thus the word distinguished most Romanesque buildings from ear-lier medieval timber-roofed structures, as well as from later Gothic churches with vaults resting on pointed arches (see “The Gothic Rib Vault,” page 378). Scholars in other fields quickly borrowed the term. Today, “Romanesque” broadly designates the history and cul-ture of western Europe between about 1050 and 1200. TOWNS AND CHURCHES In the early Middle Ages, the focus of life was the manor, or estate, of a landholding liege lord, who might grant rights to a portion of his land to vassals . In this social and economic system, called feudalism, the vassals swore allegiance to their liege and rendered him military service in return for use of the land and the promise of protection. But in the Romanesque period, a sharp increase in trade encouraged the growth of towns and cit-ies, which gradually displaced feudal estates as the backbone of late medieval European society. Feudal lords granted independence to the new towns in the form of charters, which enumerated the com-munities’ rights, privileges, immunities, and exemptions beyond the feudal obligations that the vassals owed the lords. Often located on navigable rivers, the new urban centers naturally became the nuclei of networks of maritime and overland commerce. Separated by design from the busy secular life of Romanesque towns were the monasteries (see “Medieval Monasteries,” page 327) and their churches, such as Saint-Pierre at Moissac (fig. 12-1). During the 11th and 12th centuries, thousands of Christian houses of worship were remodeled or newly constructed. This immense building enterprise was in part a natural by-product of the rise of independent cities and the prosperity they enjoyed.
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Learning Press(Publisher)
Western Europea n architecture in the Early Middle Ages may be divided into Early Christian and Pre-Romanesque, including Merovingian, Carolingian, Ottonian, and Asturian. While these terms are problematic, they nonetheless serve adequately as entries into the era. Considerations that enter into histories of each period include Trachtenberg's historicising and modernising elements, Italian versus northern, Spanish, and ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Byzantine elements, and especially the religious and political maneuverings between kings, popes, and various ecclesiastic officials. Romanesque Photo-textured laser scan image of the Cloister of St. Trophime. The north and east galleries are barrel-vaulted Romanesque, while the south and west galleries are early Gothic with pointed transverse arches. Romanesque, prevalent in medieval Europe during the 11th and 12th centuries, was the first pan-European style since Roman Imperial Architecture and examples are found in every part of the continent. The term was not contemporary with the art it describes, but rather, is an invention of modern scholarship based on its similarity to Roman Architecture in forms and materials. Romanesque is characterized by a use of round or slightly pointed arches, barrel vaults, and cruciform piers supporting vaults. Gothic The style originated at the 12th century abbey church of Saint-Denis in Saint-Denis, near Paris, where it exemplified the vision of Abbot Suger. Verticality is emphasized in Gothic architecture and features almost skeletal stone structures with great expanses of glass, pointed arches using the ogive shape, ribbed vaults, clustered columns, sharply pointed spires and flying buttresses. Windows contain beautiful stained glass, showing stories from the Bible and from lives of saints. Such advancements in design allowed
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- The English Press(Publisher)
________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Chapter-2 Romanesque Architecture The facade of the cathedral of Lisbon. ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ South transept of Tournai Cathedral, Belgium, 12th century. ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Facade of Angoulême Cathedral, France. Romanesque Architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe, characterized by semi-circular arches, and evolving into the Gothic style, characterised by pointed arches, beginning in the 12th century. Although there is no consensus for the beginning date of the style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th centuries, examples can be found across the continent, making Romanesque Architecture the first pan-European architectural style since Imperial Roman Architecture. The Romanesque style in England is more traditionally referred to as Norman architecture. ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Combining features of Western Roman and Byzantine buildings, Romanesque Architecture is known by its massive quality, its thick walls, round arches, sturdy piers, groin vaults, large towers and decorative arcading. Each building has clearly defined forms and they are frequently of very regular, symmetrical plan so that the overall appearance is one of simplicity when compared with the Gothic buildings that were to follow. The style can be identified right across Europe, despite regional characteristics and different materials. Many castles were built during this period, but they are greatly outnumbered by churches. The most significant are the great abbey churches, many of which are still standing, more or less complete and frequently in use. Definition According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word Romanesque, meaning descended from Roman, was first used in English to designate what are now called Romance languages (first cited 1715).
eBook - PDFGardner's Art Through the Ages
A Global History, Volume I
- Fred Kleiner(Author)
- 2019(Publication Date)
- Cengage Learning EMEA(Publisher)
In fact, in terms of art and archi- tecture, “Romanesque” is not one style of painting or sculpting or one way of constructing buildings but many regional styles and techniques with significant variations even within the artworks and buildings of a single region. To a certain extent, Romanesque art and architecture can be compared with the European Romance lan- guages, which vary regionally but have a common core in Latin, the language of the Romans. Towns and Churches. In the early Middle Ages, the focus of life was the manor, or estate, of a landholding liege lord, who might grant rights to a portion of his land to vassals. In this socioeco- nomic system, called feudalism, the vassals swore allegiance to their liege and rendered him military service in return for use of the land and the promise of protection. But in the Romanesque period, a sharp increase in trade encouraged the growth of towns and cit- ies, which gradually displaced feudal estates as the backbone of late medieval European society. Feudal lords granted independence to the new towns in the form of charters, which enumerated the com- munities’ rights, privileges, immunities, and exemptions beyond the feudal obligations that the vassals owed the lords. Often located on navigable rivers, the new urban centers naturally became the nuclei of networks of maritime and overland commerce. Separated by design from the busy secular life of Romanesque towns were the monasteries (see “Medieval Monasteries,” page 336) and their churches. During the 11th and 12th centuries, thousands of Christian houses of worship were remodeled or newly con- structed. This immense building enterprise was in part a natural by-product of the rise of independent cities and the prosperity they enjoyed. But it also was an expression of the widely felt relief and thanksgiving that the conclusion of the first Christian millennium in the year 1000 had not brought an end to the world, as many had feared.
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- College Publishing House(Publisher)
________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Chapter-6 Romanesque Architecture The facade of the cathedral of Lisbon. ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ South transept of Tournai Cathedral, Belgium, 12th century. ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Facade of Angoulême Cathedral, France. Romanesque Architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe, characterized by semi-circular arches, and evolving into the Gothic style, characterised by pointed arches, beginning in the 12th century. Although there is no consensus for the beginning date of the style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th centuries, examples can be found across the continent, making Romanesque Architecture the first pan-European architectural style since Imperial Roman Architecture. The Romanesque style in England is more traditionally referred to as Norman architecture. Combining features of Western Roman and Byzantine buildings, Romanesque Architecture is known by its massive quality, its thick walls, round arches, sturdy piers, groin vaults, large towers and decorative arcading. Each building has clearly defined ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ forms and they are frequently of very regular, symmetrical plan so that the overall appearance is one of simplicity when compared with the Gothic buildings that were to follow. The style can be identified right across Europe, despite regional characteristics and different materials. Many castles were built during this period, but they are greatly outnumbered by churches. The most significant are the great abbey churches, many of which are still standing, more or less complete and frequently in use. Definition According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word Romanesque, meaning descended from Roman, was first used in English to designate what are now called Romance languages (first cited 1715).
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- College Publishing House(Publisher)
________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Chapter- 8 Romanesque Architecture The façade of the cathedral of Lisbon ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ South transept of Tournai Cathedral, Belgium, 12th century ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Facade of Angoulême Cathedral, France Romanesque Architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe, characterized by semi-circular arches, and evolving into the Gothic style, characterised by pointed arches, beginning in the 12th century. Although there is no consensus for the beginning date of the style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th centuries, examples can be found across the continent, making Romanesque Architecture the first pan-European architectural style since Imperial Roman Architecture. The Romanesque style in England is more traditionally referred to as Norman architecture. Combining features of Western Roman and Byzantine buildings, Romanesque archi-tecture is known by its massive quality, its thick walls, round arches, sturdy piers, groin vaults, large towers and decorative arcading. Each building has clearly defined forms and ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ they are frequently of very regular, symmetrical plan so that the overall appearance is one of simplicity when compared with the Gothic buildings that were to follow. The style can be identified right across Europe, despite regional characteristics and different materials. Many castles were built during this period, but they are greatly outnumbered by churches. The most significant are the great abbey churches, many of which are still standing, more or less complete and frequently in use. Definition According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word Romanesque, meaning des-cended from Roman, was first used in English to designate what are now called Romance languages (first cited 1715).
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- University Publications(Publisher)
________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Chapter- 2 Romanesque Architecture The façade of the cathedral of Lisbon ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ South transept of Tournai Cathedral, Belgium, 12th century ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ Facade of Angoulême Cathedral, France Romanesque Architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe, characterized by semi-circular arches, and evolving into the Gothic style, characterised by pointed arches, beginning in the 12th century. Although there is no consensus for the beginning date of the style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th centuries, examples can be found across the continent, making Romanesque Architecture the first pan-European architectural style since Imperial Roman Architecture. The Romanesque style in England is more traditionally referred to as Norman architecture. Combining features of Western Roman and Byzantine buildings, Romanesque Architecture is known by its massive quality, its thick walls, round arches, sturdy piers, groin vaults, large towers and decorative arcading. Each building has clearly defined ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ forms and they are frequently of very regular, symmetrical plan so that the overall appearance is one of simplicity when compared with the Gothic buildings that were to follow. The style can be identified right across Europe, despite regional characteristics and different materials. Many castles were built during this period, but they are greatly outnumbered by churches. The most significant are the great abbey churches, many of which are still standing, more or less complete and frequently in use. Definition According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word Romanesque, meaning descended from Roman, was first used in English to designate what are now called Romance languages (first cited 1715).
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- The English Press(Publisher)
The most significant are the great abbey churches, many of which are still standing, more or less complete and frequently in use. Definition According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word Romanesque, meaning des-cended from Roman, was first used in English to designate what are now called Romance languages (first cited 1715). Architecturally, the term was first applied in French by the archaeologist Charles de Gerville or his associate Arcisse de Caumont, in the early 19th century, to describe Western European architecture from the 5th to the 13th centuries, at a time when the actual dates of many of the buildings so described had not been ascertained. The term is now used for the more restricted period from the late 10th to the 12th century. The word was used to describe the style which was identifiably Medieval and prefigured the Gothic, yet maintained the rounded Roman arch and thus appeared to be a continuation of the Roman tradition of building. The term Pre-romanesque is sometimes applied to architecture in Germany of the Carolingian and Ottonian periods and Visigothic, Mozarab and Asturian constructions between the 8th and the 10th centuries in the Iberian Peninsula while First Romanesque is applied to buildings in north of Italy and Spain and parts of France that have Romanesque features but pre-date the influence of the monastery of Cluny. ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ History Speyer Cathedral, an expression of imperial power and architectural innovation, presents the towered silhouette common to German Romanesque churches. Origins Romanesque Architecture was the first distinctive style to spread across Europe since the Roman Empire.
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Learning Press(Publisher)
The most significant are the great abbey churches, many of which are still standing, more or less complete and frequently in use. Definition According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word Romanesque, meaning descended from Roman, was first used in English to designate what are now called Romance languages (first cited 1715). Architecturally, the term was first applied in French by the archaeologist Charles de Gerville or his associate Arcisse de Caumont, in the early 19th century, to describe Western European architecture from the 5th to the 13th centuries, at a time when the actual dates of many of the buildings so described had not been ascertained. The term is now used for the more restricted period from the late 10th to the 12th century. The word was used to describe the style which was identifiably Medieval and prefigured the Gothic, yet maintained the rounded Roman arch and thus appeared to be a continuation of the Roman tradition of building. The term Pre-romanesque is sometimes applied to architecture in Germany of the Carolingian and Ottonian periods and Visigothic, Mozarab and Asturian constructions between the 8th and the 10th centuries in the Iberian Peninsula while First Romanesque is applied to buildings in north of Italy and Spain and parts of France that have Romanesque features but pre-date the influence of the monastery of Cluny. ________________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ________________________ History Speyer Cathedral, an expression of imperial power and architectural innovation, presents the towered silhouette common to German Romanesque churches. Origins Romanesque Architecture was the first distinctive style to spread across Europe since the Roman Empire.
eBook - ePubA Companion to Medieval Art
Romanesque and Gothic in Northern Europe
- Conrad Rudolph(Author)
- 2011(Publication Date)
- Wiley-Blackwell(Publisher)
14 Romanesque Architecture Eric FernieThere is something very odd about the Romanesque style as it is currently defined, namely how it is supposed to have begun. As originally used, in the eighteenth century, the word “Romanesque” referred to the Romance languages, those which had become what were considered corrupted versions of late Latin over the course of the first millennium. Thus when William Gunn in 1819 first applied the term “Romanesque” to architecture, he used it to cover all the masonry buildings of Western Europe between the Roman period and the Gothic. To underline the parallel with the languages, he cited the difference drawn in the Rome of his day between a Romano , someone who was unarguably a citizen, and a Romanesco , an inhabitant of dubious origins. Romanesque therefore meant not properly Roman, or literally Roman-ish.1 The current definition, introduced in France in the late nineteenth century, is very different in that it restricts the style to the last two or three centuries of the longer period. Whereas the old long period was a continuation of the Roman arising directly out of changes in Roman culture, the new short one, while retaining a strong link with the Roman past, has no obvious historical context or period of social change to help explain it. In addition, for some scholars it begins as late as the middle of the eleventh century and for others as early as the second quarter of the tenth, while proposed places of origin lie as far apart as Lombardy, the Loire Valley, and Saxony.Given these uncertainties it is worthwhile asking if the new style is a convincing historical phenomenon or merely the result of an academic exercise. It is supported by the clarity of its main characteristic, which is most often seen, in all the visual arts but especially in architecture, as the articulation of parts from smallest to largest, forming clear geometrical shapes which relate to one another in understandable ways.2
eBook - ePubHow France Built Her Cathedrals
A Study in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries
- Elizabeth Boyle O'Reilly(Author)
- 2012(Publication Date)
- Perlego(Publisher)
Since the starting point in the development of Gothic was the vaulting, and how to substitute a stone vault for a wooden roof was the germinal idea of the Romanesque builder, it is no digression to turn to the earlier school, the chrysalis of Gothic. The name “Romanesque” is an affair of yesterday, employed by a French archæologist about 1825. Various local designations had hitherto been used, such as Lombard, or Norman, or Romano-Byzantine, but the term Romanesque for this architecture is as suitable as the name Romance is for the popular languages which, in that same period, were forming out of the corruption of Latin. A definition given by M. Camille Enlart is excellent: “Romanesque art was a product of Rome, animated by a new spirit, and combined with a certain number of elements of barbarian or Oriental origin.”Rome gave the basilica plan to western Europe, which for centuries continued to build its churches as oblong halls with a small apse at one end. The hall, or nave, consisted of a central vessel with side aisles that were divided from it by piers. In the treatment of vaulting and the method of stone laying Romanesque Architecture also derived from Rome. Byzantine influences certainly were important, but they affected the decoration more than the plan or the structure; the use of the Byzantine cupola was merely occasional. The Romanesque masters copied the ivories and miniatures of the Eastern Greeks till, in time, they turned to nature for their models, and then their work took on new life and evolved into the glory which is Gothic sculpture.While some have laid stress on the Oriental influences, rather than those of Rome, in the formation of Romanesque art, others have overemphasized the personality and fantasy introduced into French architecture by the Barbarian invasions. No doubt the influx of new blood added new elements, but since knowledge of the invaders’ art is fragmentary, there can be no scientific base for the theory. Composite, certainly, were the causes for the new spirit which animated architecture after the Carolingian day, but it is safe to say that the influence of Rome predominated.In the course of the centuries the Roman basilica was modified by the Catholic liturgy. For catechumens, or penitents, was made the porch, or narthex, before the western end. Tribunes were built over the side aisles.[5] Increased church ceremonial brought about a development of the choir. The custom of burying the dead in crypts under the main altar originated the raised chancel. Between the choir and the nave the builders began to insert a transverse nave called a transept.[6] Such an enlargement enabled the congregation to approach closer to the altar ceremonies; only the bigger churches built transepts in the XI century. Then the liturgical writers saw in a transept the extended arms of the Cross, and it was in that spirit the XIII-century transepts were made—their symbolism was posterior. The first ambulatories were no doubt built in churches which possessed some revered relic, to facilitate the passage of the pilgrim crowd. (The term ambulatory will be used to designate the continuation of the choir aisle round the apse.) Before long that curving processional path, with radiating apsidal chapels opening from it, was taken to represent the crown of thorns about the Sacred Head. “All things as pertain to offices and matters ecclesiastical be full of divine signification and mysteries, and overflow with a celestial sweetness: if so be that a man be diligent in his study of them, and know how to draw honey from the rock and oil from the hardest stone.” So wrote William Durandus, the XIII-century French bishop whose Rationale, or treatise on church symbolism, was an inspiration for centuries and, next to the Bible, the most frequently printed book of the older times.[7]
Index pages curate the most relevant extracts from our library of academic textbooks. They’ve been created using an in-house natural language model (NLM), each adding context and meaning to key research topics.
