every piece has its purpose

Transcription

1 every piece has its purpose s gothic architecture Washington National Cathedral may be one of the last great churches to use the labor-intensive building techniques of the Gothic style of architecture. Gothic architecture originated in twelfth-century Europe and incorporated dramatic innovations in building structure, techinique, and materials. Light and space became essential elements of the interior design. The key element of Gothic architecture is the pointed arch, which permitted the building of higher walls and wider aisles. Not only was the Cathedral built in the Gothic style, but it was also engineered and constructed in techniques keeping with the style. Using only solid masonry, no steel reinforces any part of the building, and nothing was mass-produced. The stability of the architecture is maintained by the force of gravity: the weight of the building, and the various elements of the building es, s, arches, vaulting push against each other to keep the building intact and upright. interior vaulting A major architectural feature was the vaulted ceiling, which transmitted the weight of the roof and walls across delicate ribs and down the heavy trunks of stone piers. The Cathedral displays a range of vault styles, from simple barrel and groin vaults in the crypt to elaborate fan vaulting in 14 cathedral age two s on the west towers twisted and shifted Children s Chapel. Such elements enabled Gothic cathedrals to be constructed to greater heights than ever before, with thinner walls and tall stained glass windows. flying es The flying is strongly associated with Gothic church architecture. The buttreses resist the force pushing a wall outward by redirecting it to the ground, resisting the outward push of the interior arches and vaulted ceiling. Flying es fly because the is not in contact with the wall all the way to the ground; the lateral forces are transmitted across an intervening space. Flying have two key parts: a massive vertical masonry block on the outside of the building and an arch bridging the gap between that and the wall. s A is an architectural ornament originally forming the cap or crown of a or small turret, but afterward used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The looks like a small spire. In addition to adding to the loftiness and verticality of the structure, the s are very heavy and enable the flying es to counteract the weight of the vaults and roof. By adding compressive stress (a result of the weight), the building s load is shifted downward rather than sideways. main image a pre-earthquake photo of the south side of the cathedral photo r. lautman; other photos j. alonso, m. mcnamara, c.a. seferlis, c. stapert, j. struhldreher

2 grand s s the 8 s of the central tower are twisted, shifted, and suffered damage to their ornametal carvings; a finial broken from an fell and pierced the north transept roof a stone falling from the transept decapitated this gargoyle gargoyle transept the flying es of the apse cracked flying es crockets and finials Finials are the topmost portion of a, often sculpted as a leaf-like ornament with an upright stem and a cluster of crockets. Crockets are projected pieces of carved stone that decorate the sloping ridges of s. The carved shapes of these elements help move rainwater down while keeping the water from the roof or walls. ornamental carvings Exterior ornamental carvings, including grotesques such as Darth Vader, gargoyles, and the angel on the cover, also help keep water off the vertical surfaces of the walls. Gargoyles are actually overflow rain gutters, with pipes running through their bodies and out their mouths. In the case of grotesque carvings, the rain runs along a projecting part such as a nose or wing and drips off and away from the wall. s along the nave, transepts, and the apse suffered similar damage; several lost their finials, shown here in a rain gutter special

3 fallen finial central tower 16 cathedral age grand crocket auxiliary top three multicrocket stones finial auxiliary The top four grand s of the central Gloria in Excelsis tower rotated in the quake. These are large stone structures (more than 40' tall, and weighing approximately 50 tons each) that rest atop the four corners of the central tower. Each is topped by a four-foot-tall grand finial that weighs about 500 pounds. Three of the four grand finials fell off from the grand s to the tower s roof and the top five layers (or courses) of multi-crocket stones were shaken badly and are either leaning or have broken open. A total of 45 of these immense stones must be immediately removed in order to stabilze the s. It can then be determined which stones can be salvaged and reused, which can be repaired, and which will have to be replaced. On the base of each of the grand s are four auxiliary s. These are the smallest of the central tower s, (about 8' tall) and broke free of the grand during the quake. They are now leaning and will have to be dismantled to replace the courses of stone that were cracked. There are also eight s that sit between the grand s on the balustrade. These rotated or shifted off their bases during the quake. Although most of the courses of stone are undamaged, they also have to be dismantled to gain access to the broken lower courses. right cathedral stone carver sean callahan inspects the earthquake damage, august 23, 2011 photo j. alonso inset damage to auxiliary s photo c.stapert

4 transepts A piece of stone dislodged from the southwest of the south transept struck this gargoyle and decapitated it. The head is currently held in place only by the drainpipe that runs through the gargoyle. Because of its location, the loose head cannot be retrieved. In the photo to the right, beyond the gargoyle, the top portion of a were dislodged by the earthquake and has slid several inches to the northwest. The southwest of the south transept rotated several inches, and there is significant cracking throughout. The entire southwest corner of the south transept will need to be scaffolded to encase the damaged to make the area safe. Then the can be examined to determine the full extent of the damage. The outer flying s of the transepts have had their top three courses, including the finials, shift off their bases several inches. These courses of stone need to be removed to keep them from falling. above the southwest of the south transept photo c.a. seferlis right damage to a gargoyle and transept photo c. stapert special

5 flying es The six freestanding flying es of the apse swayed or moved during the quake, causing the flying arches to stretch and move, resulting in cracking and separation of stones from one another where the lateral flyer meets the vertical. The es will have to be shored up before scaffolding can be built to further inspect the damage. There has also been rotation and movement along almost every exterior on the Cathedral resulting in hundreds of spalled corners, cracks, and fallen crockets and finials that will have to be re-carved and installed. The final tally is not yet in. left and above cracks in the apse flying es; photos washington post, c.a. seferlis 18 cathedral age