Gothic Echoes Of Saint Denis
by Iryna Goodall
Title
Gothic Echoes Of Saint Denis
Artist
Iryna Goodall
Medium
Photograph
Description
The interior of the Basilica of Saint-Denis in Paris, a masterpiece of gothic art and final resting place of the kings of France from the 12th to the 16th century.
Forty two kings, thirty two queens, sixty three princes and princesses, ten nobles of the kingdom are laid to rest here.
The abbey-church was designated a "basilica" in Merovingian times. This qualifier was applied from the 4th century to churches whose floor plans were the same as those of Roman civic buildings with three naves, used for trade and the administration of justice. They were often erected outside towns and over the tomb of a saint. They were the site of a major pilgrimage and often the cause for the development of a neighborhood or borough, like the town of Saint-Denis.
The church was built upon a Gallo-Roman cemetery, the burial site of Saint-Denis martyrized around 250. In addition to the Carolingian crypt, remnants of the building consecrated under Charlemagne in 775, the basilica has managed to preserve two buildings: Suger’s apse (1144) with a new phase of gothic art, rebuilt portions of the abbey, at the request of Saint Louis, and a transept of exceptional size to house the royal tombs. The hundred years’ war, religious wars, political unrest all contributed to the decline of the abbey church of Saint-Denis well before the Revolution precipitated its downfall.
In 1793, revolutionaries attacked the symbols of the monarchy but the basilica was saved from total destruction. In 1806, Napoleon ordered the building to be restored. Then, Louis XVIII restored the function of necropolis to the abbey.
Uploaded
December 1st, 2021
Statistics
Viewed 120 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/22/2024 at 11:42 PM
Embed
Share
Sales Sheet