MEDIEVAL ART
NAME _____________________________
SECTION ______
The following questions relate to the art of the Middle Ages. The questions and websites are
presented in historical order, representing the evolution of the Christian Church.
The websites will include:
The catacombs
The Byzantine Church and the Basilica Plan Church
The Romanesque Church
The Gothic Cathedral
Questions 1Refer to link 1, the catacombs
Go to “Origins of the catacombs”
1. What is a catacomb?
Burial areas for the Christians
2. What was the dual purpose of the catacomb?
To bury their dead and evade persecution
3. When were the catacombs built?
First half of the second century
4. Where were the catacombs located? (primary city)
Rome
5. Why were the catacombs located outside of the city walls?
So that the people wouldn’t smell dead people
6. Why were the catacombs built underground?
So that Christians could bury their dead underground and evade persecution
Go to “the catacombs of St. Callixtus”
7. The catacombs of St. Callixtus was the burial place for?
10 martyrs and sixteen pontiffs and many Christians were buried there
Go to “the Crypt of the Popes”
8. Name the five popes buried there.
Pontianus, Antherus, Fabian, Lucius and Eutichian.
Go to “the Crypt of St. Cecilia”
9. St. Cecilia is the patron saint of?
Music
Basilica Plan Architecture
The following Questions relate to Link#2
Characteristics of the Basilica Plan Church
1. Broad Nave - the central part of the church where the congregation gathers.
2. Apse-Large semi-circle at the choir end of the church usually containing the altar.
3. Collonaded side aisles
4. Clerestory- Second floor composed primarily of windows
5. Flat roof
Basilica of S. Appollinare Nuovo
Click on the Church- view exterior
Click on Mosaics- view mosaics
Click on virtual tour- Check off all characteristics that apply to The Basilica of S. Appollinare
Nuovo.
 Nave*
 collonaded side aisles*
 apse*
 clerestory*
 flat roof*
Go to Basilica di San Vitale
Nave*
collonaded side aisle*
apse*
clerestory
flat roof
Go to S. Apollinare Classe
Nave*
collonaded side aisle
apse*
clerestory*
flat roof*
Romanesque Architecture
Romanesque Architecture- Style in vogue between 1050 and 1200, consisting of semi-circular
arches, relatively massive walls supported by buttresses, and consequently smaller openings for
natural light.
The following questions pertain to Romanesque Architecture
Link#3
Go to: Autun, Lazarus
1. Church built in honor of?
relics of Lazarus, close friend of Jesus and brother of Martha and Mary of the
Gospels
2. Define buttress
massive square pillar supporting the exterior wall of a building. It carries the
weight of the vault.
3. Define pier
vertical mass of stone which receives, via the flying the buttress, the thrust of the
vault.
Go to B.1. Sculpture, Autun, Lazarus
4. Define tympanum
Space between the lintel of a doorway and its archivolt. Romanesque and Gothic
tympana are decorated with great Biblical themes, notably those concerning
Christian eschatology. The tympanum over the central portal is typically
concerned with the Last Judgment, while the right and left portals of the west
facade are often devoted to the Virgin Mary. The north transept portrays scenes
from the Old Testament while the south transept is devoted to the prophets and
the New Testament.
5. Who was the sculptor, how do we know?
Its creator, Gislebertus, shows his style in all of the cathedral's sculpture. Experts
detect in his work the mark of the workshops at Vezelay and perhaps Cluny,
where he could have trained
Go to Vezelay, St. Madeline
Click on basilica
Click on narthex Stop and look around!
6. Define Narthex
Vestibule of a church, contiguous with the nave and situated within the main
entrance. Often surmounted by a gallery.
7. Define vaulting
arched ceiling made of masonry. the barrel vault is a longitudinal half circle often
reinforced with transverse arches; the groined vault is formed by the intersection,
at right angles, of two barrel vaults. The groin vault lies at the origin of the bay
system; the oven vault is a half dome, vertically transected, which covers the apse
of a church.
8. Define portal
monumental doorway permitting access to a church, fortress or courtyard.
Romanesque and Gothic churches contain three portals in the west facade, one in
the north transept, and one in the south transept.
Click on nave
Transept
Vault
Choir
Crypt
9. What famous relic is housed in the crypt?
Mary Magdalen
Gothic Architecture
Gothic Architecture- Style which spread throughout Europe between 1150 and 1500. Its
principal features are the pointed arch, the intersecting ribbed vault, and the flying buttress.
Go to Notre Dame de Paris
1. When was the Cathedral built?
from 1160 to 1196
2. Define transept
Transverse space cutting across the nave at right angles. The transept separates
nave from chancel and gives the church its characteristic cross shape.
3. Define rose window
great circular window in the facade and/or transepts of a church.
4. Define buttresses
massive square pillar supporting the exterior wall of a building. It carries the
weight of the vault.
5. What is the prized relic of Notre Dame?
A piece of the true cross
Go to façade, side view, tower
6. Who/What is Emmanuel?
The south tower
Go to Aerial View
7. Define Spire
polygonal or cone-shaped cap of a tower or belfrey.
Go to nave
8. What are the dimensions of the Nave?
polygonal or cone-shaped cap of a tower or belfrey.
9. How many people can gather in its space?
6,500
Go to triforium
10. Define triforium
gallery above the aisles which, due to a series of arcades, looks out over the nave.
Go to clerestory/ nave vaulting/transept/choir
11. Define ambulatory
corridor encircling the chancel, permitting access to the absidial chapels by
pilgrims.
Click on St. Chappelle
Enjoy the images in the Stained Glass
12. What images are in the stained glass?
A masterpiece of 13th century glass making, the windows are in effect a Bible in
illustration. The 1,134 scenes begin with the book of Genesis and continue into
Christian times up to the discovery of the true cross by St. Helen in the early 4th
century. The windows are read from left to right and from bottom to top.
Continue to follow the sequence presented…