Principles of Gothic architecture, the enigma of the esplanade & modern surprises
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 - Catherdral and town toward 1450
Notre-Dame dominated the town. It was a site of pilgrimages for the worship of relics and of celebrations that very large numbers of people attended (notably at Easter). It was not a local parish (we may visit the two lovely examples that remain).
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Parisians could not finance another such space, so the cathedral was used forprofane purposes too. It sheltering a horse-market until the 17th century...
Christianity included life in all its aspects...
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- We begin with keys to deciphering Gothic churches as a whole...
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 - Light always shines through.
A key to the architecture: "Gothic", that is, "barbarian", was a term of contempt. which dates from a change of taste in the 16th century. We should say "pointed-arch architecture"...
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A key to decode its symbolism: All walls have openings, because with God there is always hope.
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- ...and continue with what makes Notre-Dame unique
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 - Notre-Dame seen from the Left Bank, 1485 (Priests are exorcising devils.)
One difference: The towers are not symetrical.
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To understand what comes next, notice that the medieval houses crowd up close to the façade.
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- Then we point put an oddity: Why build a huge esplanade (in the 1860's), which
makes the cathedral seem less imposing?
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 - Modern view
The houses that occupied the space in front of the church were torn down. Resist the call to view the cathedral from its far end – Notre-Dame will then seem relatvely small.
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 - Medieval view
Go right up to the façade, as the houses obliged medieval people to do. Peer up, and the colossal edifice will remind you of eternity – as the builders intended.
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- Clue – the esplanade is linked to the subject of this painting
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 - One of the revolutions that began in Paris and shook the Continent (here, in 1848)
Another clue: Streets of the Latin Quarter, which lie just across the bridge, harbored a poverty-stricken population. Its streets were extremely narrow (we see one that measures about a yard an a half...). |
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- Built at the same time as the esplanade, buildings of authority (please CLICK) ...
cluster next to the cathedral. Most visitors (and most Parisians) never think of entering them. We do, because of their importance and because they harbor surprises. One is a view. Another is a garden. A third is a chance to peep in at a trial.
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- We bring copies of works of art...
To show what you cannot see from the street or has disappeared. Some of these appear on this page.
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Credits: drawing, medieval Paris / in V. Hugo, "The Hunchback of Notre-Dame", 1854 edition; painting, Notre-Dame seen from Left Bank / Jean Fouquet ; painting, combat / schoolbook; photos / Claude Abron
