Main entry:

Icher, François.

Title & Author:

Building the Great Cathedrals / François Icher ; translated from the French by Anthony Zielonka.

Publication:

New York : Harry N. Abrams, ©1998.

Description:

200 pages : color illustrations ; 32 cm

Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (page 196) and index.
[Table of Contents] -- INTRODUCTION -- CHAPTER I: The Age of the Cathedrals -- From the Ecclesia to the Cathedralis -- The First Cathedral Complexes -- The Gothic Age -- The End of the Great Construction-Sites -- From the Cathedral Complex to the Cathedral -- CHAPTER II: Patronage, Financing, and the Workshop Committee -- Different Patrons in Different Countries -- The Question of Financing -- Chapters and Workshops -- CHAPTER III: The Architect -- Obtaining the Commission -- A Man of Many Skills -- The Architect and His Workers -- CHAPTER IV: Before Reaching the Cathedral Construction-Site -- The Quarry -- The Forest -- From the Forge to the Workshop -- CHAPTER V: The Cathedral Construction-Site -- The Stonecutters' Lodge -- The Tracing House -- The Stonecutters, Masons, and Mortar Mixers -- Sculptors and Modelmakers -- Carpenters and the Wood Crafts -- Plasterers, Roofers, and Plumbers -- Blacksmiths and Locksmiths -- Glass Artists and Glassworkers -- Other Crafts Associated with the Cathedral Construction-Site -- CHAPTER VI: The Memory of the Builders -- Memory and History -- The Book of Drawings of Villard de Honnecourt -- The Museum of the Oeuvre Notre-Dame de Strasbourg -- The Companions of the Tour of France -- Freemasonry -- The Texts -- The Regius Manuscript -- The Statutes of Ratisbon -- Regulations Concerning the Companions -- Regulations Concerning the Apprentices -- The Statutes of Saint Michael -- CONCLUSION -- LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS -- BIBLIOGRAPHY -- INDEX -- PHOTOGRAPH CREDITS.

Summary:

"This volume is a study of the people who commissioned, designed, and built the great cathedrals of Europe, from the eleventh through the sixteenth centuries. Historian François Icher has written a lively, detailed account of the process by which these masterpieces of world architecture came to be - from their commissioning by a bishop or wealthy patron, to the hiring of an architect and mastercraftsmen, to the daily labor on the construction site. Icher explains how architects and masterbuilders were selected; how teams of craftsmen were assembled and brought in, often from far away; and he discusses the conditions and terms under which the work was undertaken. Daily schedules are described, as well as contracts, the apprentice system, and the type of work done by stonecutters, masons, sculptors, roofers, and makers of stained glass. He investigates the complex economic issues surrounding the funding of these massive projects, such as how money was raised, and what happened when it ran out and cathedrals or their towers were left unfinished. In addition, Icher draws on the social history of the era, examining such phenomena as the growth of cities in Europe and the expansion and organization of the guilds. Supplementing the author's highly readable narrative are many stories and anecdotes about particular cathedrals and their construction; an appendix of archival documents that furnish additional details about the construction process at various sites; and a bibliography. Building the Great Cathedrals is extensively illustrated with current photographs of many of the structures, with architectural drawings, and with art works such as mosaics and illuminated manuscript pages that depict scenes on the construction site, including craftsmen at work, individual tools and instruments, and symbols and emblems of the guilds and orders." -- Dust Jacket.

ISBN:

0810940175 (hardcover)
9780810940178 (hardcover)
0810982161
9780810982161

Subject:

Cathedrals History.
Cathédrales Histoire.
Cathedrals
Kirchenbau

Form/genre:

History

Holdings:

Location: Library main 211060
Call No.: NA4830.I2 1998
Status: Available