Main content
Medieval Europe + Byzantine
Course: Medieval Europe + Byzantine > Unit 10
Lesson 3: Gothic art in France- Birth of the Gothic: Abbot Suger and the ambulatory at St. Denis
- St. Denis Ambulatory (quiz)
- Chartres Cathedral
- Cathedral of Notre Dame de Chartres (quiz)
- The Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Paris (before the fire)
- Reims Cathedral
- Reims Cathedral and World War I
- Amiens Cathedral
- Amiens cathedral
- Sainte-Chapelle, Paris
- Bible moralisée (moralized bibles)
- Saint Louis Bible (moralized bible)
- Humanizing Mary: the Virgin of Jeanne d’Evreux
- Jean le Noir, Bourgot (?), and workshop, Miniature of Christ’s Side Wound and Instruments of the Passion from the Prayer Book of Bonne of Luxembourg
- Ivory casket with scenes from medieval romances
© 2023 Khan AcademyTerms of usePrivacy PolicyCookie Notice
Birth of the Gothic: Abbot Suger and the ambulatory at St. Denis
Ambulatory, Basilica of Saint Denis, Paris, 1140-44. Speakers: Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker. Created by Beth Harris and Steven Zucker.
Want to join the conversation?
- what exactly is "Gothic" ?(11 votes)
- In this context Gothic is used to describe a style of architecture that achieved prominence in the high and late middle ages. It has no actual connection with the Visigoths or Ostrogoths- the original use of ther term Gothic was meant to be pejorative, such as one might use the term "Cretan" insultingly. Gothic archetecture is marked by pointed arches, flying buttresses, and ribbed vaultings all of which allowed for greater height and stability.(29 votes)
- At, who was the 6th Century philosopher that Dr. Zucker is referring to? 3:55(4 votes)
- Thanks for asking. I was referring to a fellow known as Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite. His is a complicated story which is why we only make passing reference in the video. If you want to learn more look here:
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pseudo-dionysius-areopagite/
or here:
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05013a.htm
or at Wikipedia here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudo-Dionysius_the_Areopagite(13 votes)
- Does the word "Gothic" have anything to do with the modern idea of a "Goth"?(5 votes)
- Sort of, but indirectly. As a term outside of architecture, I believe "Gothic" was first used to describe literature, as in Gothic novels (for example, Dracula). These novels were so named because they often took place in Gothic (architecture) buildings. Gothic literature combined elements of horror and romance. In the 1970's, we began seeing Gothic music, which seems to me to be named after Gothic literature, given its dark themes and feelings, and from there the Gothic subculture (especially the form of dress), which was based on these Gothic musicians.
But can we see the influence of Gothic architecture directly in the modern Goth subculture? You could make a case for it: Gothic buildings are stone—cold to the touch and very dark. Sure, they are notable for their stained glass, but really what makes the stained glass pop are the dark corners... the contrast. Perhaps there's some element of this in Goth fashion, but it's subject to discussion.(8 votes)
- how does the Gothic artwork influence the world?(3 votes)
- Gothic art was and is incredibly influential. "American Gothic" by Grant Wood was inspired by the Dibble House built in the Carpenter Gothic style (carpenter because the forms were translated from stone into wood for affordability) and this style was popularized in America in the mid-1800s because in that century Gothic styles became fashionable again all over the Western world. This change in taste was inspired by the Romantic movement, which wanted to revive a time before the ugliness of the Industrial Revolution. The Romantics revived quite a few different styles, but Gothic had the most staying power.(6 votes)
- Does anyone know the exact date of the Abbott Suger quote about the effect of light on a dull mind? (atin the video) Thanks in advance. 4:26(4 votes)
- The quote is probably from around 1144-1148. According to this site (http://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/source/sugar.html),
"The Book of Suger Abbot of St. Denis on What Was Done During his Administration, one of two works by Suger concerning the abbey church of St. Denis. It was probably begun shortly after the consecration of the choir in 1144 and finished no earlier than the end of 1148. All of the work that has survived is reproduced here."(3 votes)
- Why was the Royal Family buried in this Church?(2 votes)
- A hallmark of medieval (and even modern!) European civilization is royal burial in churches., and we see this in all the former European kingdoms. For a listing, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Burials_at_churches
There are many reasons for this practice. To name a few: (a) to honor the dead by burying them in grand places and allowing the public to visit (and pray over) their graves, (b) to assert the importance of Christianity in the kingdom by burying them in a church (though these people ruled over other people in their lives, ultimately God rules over all), (c) to protect the corpses from robbery, as medieval churches doubled as strongholds, (d) as a thank-you for either contributing to or allowing the construction of the church. There are certainly others.
If you think about it, this really parallels the common people's practice of burying their dead in graveyards outside churches. Every burial plot costs money, and the most expensive ones are inside the church. That's why, in many churches, you'll find not only royalty, but all sorts of wealthy people buried inside.(5 votes)
- how can you telll it is gothic or at least what is it?(1 vote)
- Why is the west façade of a cathedral usually the principal entrance?(2 votes)
- In the case of a basilica plan, a west front allows for the altar to sit at the east end thus aligning the host, the body of Christ, with the rising sun. I do not know for certain that this was the original idea, but it is the one most often given in my experience. Its important to note that many churches do not follow this orientation.(3 votes)
- Does Gothic art only apply to architecture of the time rather than paintings and or sculptors?(2 votes)
- At, why did the Kings of France only control the L'Ile de France? What happened to the Carolingian Empire? 0:59(0 votes)
Video transcript
DR. BETH HARRIS: Here we are
at the Basilica of Saint Denis. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: The
birthplace of the Gothic. DR. BETH HARRIS:
Thanks to Suger, who was the abbot in the first
half of the 12th century. This church is
incredibly important because it's the burial
place of the royal family. since Suger himself was also
a advisor to the royal family. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: We're
standing in the choir. And light is pouring
in the windows. DR. BETH HARRIS: So
the choir is the space behind the altar of the church. And the ambulatory
is the aisle that would take one behind the altar. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER:
Actually, it's taking us around
behind the altar. DR. BETH HARRIS: Now, Suger
completed the ambulatory and also the facade
of the church. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: And none
of this was new construction. There had been a
ninth-century church here. And Suger felt that it was
inadequate as the burial place of the kings. At this historical moment,
the kings of France only really controlled
the Isle de France, that is, the area
immediately around Paris. But this was a time when the
king's power was expanding. And Suger really wanted to
create an architectural style that would express the
growing power of the monarch. Now, in the history of
Western church architecture, the way that this
would generally work is you would have an ambulatory
that would move around the back of the altar. And that would allow
pilgrims to stop at each of these small,
radiating chapels, that is, these small rooms
that would contain relics. DR. BETH HARRIS: In the past
during the Romanesque period, these chapels would be
literally separate rooms with walls around them. And Suger's idea was
instead to open up the space and to allow light to flood in. And that's exactly
how this looks. And it must have
looked so different than anything anyone
had seen before. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER:
Instead of this looking like a set of
walls that are pierced by windows-- and in the
Romanesque, relatively small windows-- instead,
he's figured out how to engineer this
structure in stone. So that the walls can basically
disappear and be replaced by glass-- colored
glass-- that lets this brilliant, luminous
color into the space. So let's talk about
two things-- how he did this, and second
of all, why he did this. DR. BETH HARRIS: Which
one should we do first? DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: Well, let's
talk about how he did it. If you look above us,
there's this complex web of interlocking
pointed vaulting. DR. BETH HARRIS: Pointed
arches are really key here, because for one
thing, you can cover spaces of different
shapes and sizes. Perhaps most importantly,
a pointed arch doesn't push so much
out as it does it down. And because of
that, the architect didn't need to
build thick walls. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: A
traditional Roman arch generally has to be placed on
quite heavy walls, because it really
does push outward. It splays. What the pointed
arch does is it tends to take the weight
of the vaulting and push it more straight down,
so that the weight doesn't have to be buttressed
from the side. DR. BETH HARRIS: Looking
up at those ribs, we have a sense of a
pull toward the vertical. And all of these
ribs in this vaulting rests on these thin columns. So there's a real sense
of elegance and openness to this space. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: And
it's so radically different from the Romanesque that came
before, which felt so solid and where your eye was always
drawn around that rounded arch back down. And you felt the
sense of gravity. You felt a sort of rootedness
with the Romanesque. And it is so different here. You have to remember the church
itself, any consecrated church, is an expression of
the holy Jerusalem. It is Heaven on Earth. And so the idea is how
can one transport us to a more heavenly place,
to a more spiritual place. Abbot Suger believed
that light could do this. DR. BETH HARRIS:
Suger thought he was reading the
writing of Saint Denis, of the patron saint
of this church. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: Instead,
he was reading a philosopher from the sixth century. But the important
part is he took this notion of the divinity
of light from that writing and made that practical
and applicable within an architectural setting. DR. BETH HARRIS: Right. That writing that he
thought was by Saint Denis talked about how light was
connected to the divine. So what Suger wanted was
to open up those walls and allow in the light that
would allow a type of thinking on the part of the visitors
where they would move from the contemplation
of the light to God. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER: This was
a radical and new notion and actually flew in the face
of other theological theories of the time. And if you think
about the ideas that are being established by Saint
Bernard of Clairvaux, who's saying, we have to get
rid of all the decorative. We have to get rid of everything
that will distract us. Suger is moving in the
other direction and saying, no, in fact. We can transport people. DR. BETH HARRIS: That the
visual is not a distraction but a way of transporting
us to the divine. DR. STEVEN ZUCKER:
I have to say that I think Suger was
incredibly successful. This is startlingly beautiful. And I feel transported.