They go over the edge to drain the water as far as possible from the cathedral walls. Indeed Viollet-le-Duc’s addition of completely new components which never existed in the Middle Ages made sensation. They consist of more than, On the King’s stall sat Louis XII, Francis I, Henri IV, then. From 1508 to 1519, 120 magnificent choir stalls were installed, of which 110 remain today. The mayor of Amiens ordered its design in the style of the time. This house of worship is enormous. Amiens Cathedral has played an important role in the development of gothic architecture. Some blog posts and pages may contain affiliate or sponsored links. France see also: Architecture in France AMIENS CATHEDRAL. Gallery of Kings, Amiens Cathedral by Mattana. The building was largely spared during both World Wars. Unfortunately, history shows that where there is religion, war is never far away. while two are in the front of the central buttresses of the façade. The cathedral suffered from the First World War under the German troops’ fire. Amiens Cathedral and its famous 13th Century West Facade. Under the high patronage of Mr Emmanuel MACRON President of the French Republic. The lightness and airiness of the interior is increased by the 66-foot (20-metre) height of the flanking aisles and the open arcades and large windows of the triforium and clerestory. Harris, Beth, and Steven Zucker. Gargoyles and Chimeras, Amiens Cathedral © Vassil. The tower had been built on a slope. The cathedral’s elaborately decorated exterior has its fullest expression in the double-towered west facade, which is dominated by three deep-set arched portals and a richly carved gallery below the immense rose window (diameter 43 feet [13 metres]). Accessed March 29, 2018. https://frenchmoments.eu/amiens-cathedral/. A relic consisting of a small, As for the entire skull, it is on display in the, These stalls of Flamboyant Gothic style were built with blond oak over 11 years, from 1508 to 1519. Often they are very high and are real pieces of statuary. Bibliography and further reading about Amiens cathedral: Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction, by David Macaulay (1981). On the western façade, the mayor of Amiens had the rose window that hangs 42m above the square remodelled in 16th century-Flamboyant Gothic style. Chimeras, in contrast to gargoyles, do not have a purely decorative function. However they miraculously spared the cathedral. Amiens Cathedral has been fully listed as a Historic Monument since 1862. There are 22 statues in the Gallery of Kings. Unlike those of the Rouen and Chartres façades, the small size of the towers at Amiens Cathedral does not contribute to the upward thrust of the building. It feature a lavish decoration of archways and small columns. In 2020 the cathedral celebrates its 800th anniversary since the laying of its first stone. Amiens is a typically stunning French town, with historical ties to Australia, my home country. All you have to do is click the link and any booking you make is automatically tracked. Parts of Amiens' cathedral also belonged to the evolving Rayonnant and the later Flamboyant styles, as basic architectural forms became more ornate. Liked it? The new statuary was to be a Bible in stone that would teach the Christian people Bible stories. This destruction only reignited the passion of builders and benefactors for the project. With opened mouths, gargoyles often take the form of mythical animals that are frightening and fierce. Amiens Cathedral is no exception. The latter takes the shape of a mythic animal with a human face. Vooral bijzonder is de mooie uitstalling van beelden op de hoofdfaçade en in het zuidelijke dwarsschip. Criterion (i): Amiens Cathedral, mainly built between 1220 to 1288, is a masterpiece of Gothic architecture for the beauty of its interior elevation, its prodigious sculpted decoration and its stained glass. Today, in Australia and New Zealand, is ANZAC day. You can notice on the right like on the left two remarkable gargoyles positioned at the base of these gables. On that latter year a fire tore through the apse chapels. Recumbent figure of Geoffroy d’Eu in Amiens Cathedral © Photo: Vassil. Thanks for visiting! source: UNESCO/ERI Crossing Vaults, Amiens Cathedral © Guillaume Piolle, licence [CC-BY-SA-3.0], from Wikimedia Commons. They contain the famous “. In addition, the cathedral surely dazzled Charles the Bold, the Duke of Burgundy who, in 1470 forbade his artillery to fire on the building. It is possible to climb the towers at Amiens Cathedral. Indeed this enormous edifice covers 7,700 m2. This was a work by Jean Veyren, on a design by Michel-Ange Slodtz. Construction of the nave began in 1220 under the direction of the architect Robert de Luzarches. This book has been for me a great resource that helped me better understand the Gothic movement in art from the 12th century to the Renaissance. The elevation of the transept has three levels, like the nave and the choir: A large stained glass window with a rose window lit each transept arm: St John the Baptist Relic © Amanda Slater, licence [CC-BY-SA-3.0], from Wikimedia Commons.