So it was that early in the middle ages, a small town banded together and created one of the greatest Christian sanctuaries the world has ever known. In many ways, it would set the standard for all other gothic cathedrals: It is the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres.
Chartres Cathedral stands on a hill above the river Eure, in the town of Chartres. Its spires rise like beacons on the horizon, and can bee seen miles away. Today, its majestic carved towers and facades project a mediaeval splendor in what has become an increasingly modern town. One can still come to worship and to celebrate the works of long-dead masters and trace the history of this remarkable cathedral. But it was eleven hundred years ago that the city received its most holy …show more content…
There is nothing quite like it anywhere else. But who built this masterpiece? Who brought Gothic construction to Chartres? The amazing thing about Chartres Cathedral, is that no one knows who built it, that it is unknown how many masters were involved. This is very unusual, compared to any other majestic building in all of France. Not one name has survived from miles of building material and scores of craftsmen that had to have been employed to build the structure. There is not a single signature in the cathedral’s one hundred and seventy-six stained glass windows, or on any of the four thousand exterior sculptures. The building is completely anonymous. But the legacy of these anonymous builders …show more content…
It is the world’s largest collection of stained glass, and they offer a unique record of life and faith in the Middle Ages. Most of the glass is early fourteenth century, but of the one hundred and seventy-six windows, the most famous is the window that portrays the Blue Virgin of Chartres. It is renowned for the light blue that was used in its making, and she is a seated Mary, with child upon her knee, typical of the period of the middle twelfth century. It survived the fire of 1194 and was incorporated into a new, early thirteenth century window. Samples of this Chartres blue glass can be seen throughout the church, and how this rich, clear glass was created has long been a trade
Chartres Cathedral stands on a hill above the river Eure, in the town of Chartres. Its spires rise like beacons on the horizon, and can bee seen miles away. Today, its majestic carved towers and facades project a mediaeval splendor in what has become an increasingly modern town. One can still come to worship and to celebrate the works of long-dead masters and trace the history of this remarkable cathedral. But it was eleven hundred years ago that the city received its most holy …show more content…
There is nothing quite like it anywhere else. But who built this masterpiece? Who brought Gothic construction to Chartres? The amazing thing about Chartres Cathedral, is that no one knows who built it, that it is unknown how many masters were involved. This is very unusual, compared to any other majestic building in all of France. Not one name has survived from miles of building material and scores of craftsmen that had to have been employed to build the structure. There is not a single signature in the cathedral’s one hundred and seventy-six stained glass windows, or on any of the four thousand exterior sculptures. The building is completely anonymous. But the legacy of these anonymous builders …show more content…
It is the world’s largest collection of stained glass, and they offer a unique record of life and faith in the Middle Ages. Most of the glass is early fourteenth century, but of the one hundred and seventy-six windows, the most famous is the window that portrays the Blue Virgin of Chartres. It is renowned for the light blue that was used in its making, and she is a seated Mary, with child upon her knee, typical of the period of the middle twelfth century. It survived the fire of 1194 and was incorporated into a new, early thirteenth century window. Samples of this Chartres blue glass can be seen throughout the church, and how this rich, clear glass was created has long been a trade