Architectural drawing of the rose window of Strasbourg Cathedral, France. Strasbourg Cathedral or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg (Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-Strasbourg Liebfrauenmünster zu Straßburg is a Roman Catholic This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.

Exterior of the rose at Strasbourg Cathedral.

Interior of the rose at Strasbourg Cathedral.

Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. GlassWindowjpg|thumb|right|190px|A stained glass panel depicting Biblical scenes at a historic church in Scotland]] A window is an opening See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. The name “rose window” was not used before the 17th century and in all likelihood stems from the Old French word roué, meaning wheel, not from the English flower name, rose. A rose is a perennial flowering Shrub or vine of the Genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae, that contains over 100 species

The term “wheel window” is often applied to a window divided by simple spokes radiating from a central boss or opening, while the term “rose window” is reserved for those windows of more complex design which can be seen to bear similarity to a multi-petalled rose. A circular window without tracery, such as are found in many Italian churches, is referred to as an ocular window or oculus. This page is about the architectural term See also Eye. Oculus (plural oculi) is the Latin word for Eye, and the word remains

Rose windows are particularly characteristic of Gothic architecture and may be seen in all the major Gothic Cathedrals of Northern France. See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Their origins are much earlier and rose windows may be seen in various forms throughout the Medieval period. Their popularity was revived, with other medieval features, during the Gothic revival of the 19th century so that they are seen in Christian churches all over the world. The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement which began

History

The oculus of the Pantheon, Rome. The Pantheon ( Latin Pantheon, from Greek Πάνθειον Pantheon, meaning "Temple of all the gods" is a building in Rome

Torcello Cathedral, Venice. The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta ( Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta) is a basilica church on the island of Torcello, Venice, northern Venice ( Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venesia or Venexia) is a city in Northern Italy, the capital of the

Origin

The origin of the rose window may be found in the Roman oculus. The Architecture of Ancient Rome adopted the external Greek architecture for their own purposes which were so different from Greek buildings as to create a new This page is about the architectural term See also Eye. Oculus (plural oculi) is the Latin word for Eye, and the word remains These large circular openings let in both light and air, the best known being that at the top of the dome of the Pantheon. The Pantheon ( Latin Pantheon, from Greek Πάνθειον Pantheon, meaning "Temple of all the gods" is a building in Rome

In Early Christian and Byzantine architecture, there are examples of the use of circular oculi. Early Christian art and architecture is the art produced by Christians or under Christian patronage from about the year 100 to about the year 500. Byzantine architecture is the Architecture of the Byzantine Empire. They usually occur either around the drum of a dome, as at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem, or high in the end of a gable of low-pitched Classical pediment form, as at Sant'Agnese fuori le mura, Rome, and Torcello Cathedral. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Sanctum Sepulchrum also called the Church of the Resurrection, ( Greek: Ναός της Αναστάσεως Naos tis Anastaseos Jerusalem (יְרוּשָׁלַיִם, he-Latn Yerushaláyim; Arabic: ar القُدس, ar-Latn al-Quds) is the A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure ( Entablature) typically supported by Sant'Agnese fuori le mura ("Saint Agnes Outside the Walls" is a basilica church in Rome, in which Saint Agnes 's bones are reputed to rest Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta ( Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta) is a basilica church on the island of Torcello, Venice, northern ^[1]

A window of the 8th century, now located in Venice, and carved from a single slab, has alternating tracery-like components of two tiers of four lancets separated by three oculi. Venice ( Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venesia or Venexia) is a city in Northern Italy, the capital of the Many semi-circular windows with pierced tracery exist from the sixth to 8th century, and later in Greece. Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία ^[2]

Small circular windows such as that at S. Agnese and Torcello as well as unglazed decorative circular recesses continued to be used in churches in Italy, gaining increasing popularity in the later Romanesque period. Regional characteristics of Romanesque architecture|Romanesque art Romanesque architecture is the term that is used to describe the architecture of Middle Ages Europe which

Another factor may have come to bear on their popularity and development, as suggested by the German art historian Otto von Simson, who considered the origin of the rose window to lie in the six lobed rosettes and octagon window which adorned the external wall of the Umayyad palace Khirbat al-Mafjar built in Jordan between 740 and 750 CE. Hisham's Palace ( Arabic Khirbat al-Mafjar) is the archaeological remains of an Umayyad winter palace located five km north of Jericho The theory suggests that crusaders brought the design of this attractive window to Europe, introducing it to churches. The Crusades were a series of military campaigns of a religious character waged by much of Christian Europe against external and internal opponents

San Miguel de Lillo, Oviedo, Spain. Oviedo ( Asturian: Uviéu is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.

Aquileia Basilica, Italy. Aquileia (also called Aquilegia, Friulian Acuilee/Aquilee, Slovene Oglej) is an ancient Roman city in what is Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest

The windows of Oviedo

In the vicinity of Oviedo in Spain are several churches of the late 9th and early 10th century which display a remarkable array of widows containing the earliest examples of tracery outside the Byzantine Empire. Oviedo ( Asturian: Uviéu is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The designs closely resemble the motifs found on the Byzantine relief carvings of marble sarcophagi, pulpits and well heads and pierced decorations of screens and windows of Ravenna and Constantinople. A sarcophagus is a Funeral receptacle for a Corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone A pulpit (from Latin pulpitum "scaffold" "platform" "stage" is a small elevated platform where a member of the clergy stands Ravenna is a City and Comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Constantinople (Κωνσταντινούπολις Konstantinoúpolis, or gr ἡ Πόλις hē Polis, Latin: la CONSTANTINOPOLIS The church of San Pedro has a rectangular window with a pierced decoration of two overlapping circles, the upper containing a Greek Cross, the window being divided by the circles and the arms of the cross into numerous sections like tracery “lights”.

In another of these churches, San Miguel de Lillo, is the earliest known example of an axially-placed oculus with tracery. The church of San Miguel de Lillo is found in Asturias. It is a World Heritage Site. Several such windows of different sizes exist, and decoration of both Greek Cross and scalloped petal-like form occur, prefiguring both wheel and rose windows.

Romanesque circular windows

Circular windows and decorative circular recesses are a feature of many Romanesque churches and cathedrals, particularly in Germany and Italy where the style existed for a prolonged period, overlapping the development of Gothic in France and its arrival with French architects in England. Regional characteristics of Romanesque architecture|Romanesque art Romanesque architecture is the term that is used to describe the architecture of Middle Ages Europe which Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.

In Germany, Worms Cathedral, has wheel windows in the pedimental ends of its nave and gables, very similar to the Early Christian Basilica of S. Cathedral of St Peter (German Wormser Dom) is the principal church and chief building of Worms, Germany. The Latin word basilica (derived from Greek, Basiliké Stoà, Royal Stoa) was originally used to describe a Roman Agnese in Rome. The apsidal western end has a central wheel window with smaller oculi in each face. Speyer Cathedral has a wheel window set within a square in its façade. The Speyer Cathedral is a very large and imposing Basilica of red Sandstone in Speyer, Germany. The Church of the Apostles, Cologne has an array of both ocular and lobed windows forming decorative features in the gables and beneath the Rhenish Helm spire. A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building particularly a church Tower. The octagonal dome has a ring of oculi with two in each of the curved faces. A dome is a common structural element of Architecture that resembles the hollow upper half of a Sphere. ^[3]

San Pedro, Ávila, Spain. This article is about the Spanish city For other uses see Avila Ávila de los Caballeros ( Latin: Abila and Óbila Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.

In Trebic, Czech Republic, is the 12th and 13th century Romanesque style Basilica of St Procopius with apsidal windows similar to those at Worms, but in this case the openings are filled with tracery of a Gothic form, clearly marking the transition to a new style. Třebíč (ˈtr̝̊ɛbiːtʃ; Trebitsch is a city in the Moravian part of the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia,

In Italy, the use of circular motifs in various media was a feature of church facades, occurring on Early Christian, Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque churches, a well know example being those great circles in polychrome marble which complement the central circular window on Alberti’s Early Renaissance façade at Santa Maria Novella in Florence. Early Christian art and architecture is the art produced by Christians or under Christian patronage from about the year 100 to about the year 500. Regional characteristics of Romanesque architecture|Romanesque art Romanesque architecture is the term that is used to describe the architecture of Middle Ages Europe which See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe in which there was a Baroque architecture, starting in the early 17th century in Italy, took the humanist Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical For the character from the Oz series see Polychrome (fictional character. Santa Maria Novella is a church in Florence, Italy situated just across the main railway station which shares its name Florence ( Italian: Firenze Florentia and Fiorenza) is the Capital City of the Italian region of Tuscany ^[4] Oculi were also typically used in the drums supporting domes and as upper lights in octagonal baptisteries such as that at Cremona. Cremonese redirects here For the football team see US Cremonese Cremona is a City in northern Italy, situated

Romanesque facades with oculi include San Miniato al Monte, Florence, 11th century, San Michele, Pavia, c. The Basilica di San Miniato al Monte ( Basilica of St Minias on the Mountain stands atop one of the highest points in Florence, and has been described as the finest Florence ( Italian: Firenze Florentia and Fiorenza) is the Capital City of the Italian region of Tuscany Pavia (pronounced Pavìa,) the ancient Ticinum, is a town and Comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south 1117, and Pistoia Cathedral, 1150. Pistoia is a city in the Tuscany region of Italy, the capital of a province of the same name, located about 30 km west and north of Florence As the windows increased in size in the later Romanesque period, wheel windows became a standard feature of which there are fine examples at San Zeno Maggiore, Verona and Monza Cathedral. Verona is a city and provincial capital in Veneto, Northern Italy. Monza ( Munscia in Western Lombard) is a city on the river Lambro, a tributary of the Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy ^[5]

On the Romanesque façade of Spoleto Cathedral there is a profusion of recessed and traceried oculi surrounding the central features of a rose window set within a square beneath a large mosaic of 1207. For the festival in South Carolina see Spoleto Festival USA. Spoleto ( Latin Spoletium) is an ancient city in the

In England there exist five Romanesque wheel windows, notably those at Barfreston and Castle Hedingham parish churches. Barfrestone is a hamlet in East Kent, UK between Shepherdswell, Eythorne and Nonington and close to the pit villages of Elvington Castle Hedingham is a small village in north-east Essex, UK, located four miles west of Halstead and is situated in the valley of the River Colne on

St Denis, Chartres, Mantes, Laon and Paris

Chartres Cathedral

Notre Dame, Paris. NotreDameFlyingButtressjpg|right|thumb|250px|Notre Dame de Paris Flying Buttress]] Notre Dame de Paris is a Gothic Cathedral on the eastern half of the

The transition from the Romanesque style to the Gothic was not clear cut, even at the Abbey of St Denis, to the north of Paris, where, famously, the Abbot Suger, between 1130 and 1144, gathered the various newly-emerging features of Gothic into a single building, thereby “creating” the Gothic style. The Basilica of Saint Denis ( French: Basilique de Saint-Denis, or simply Basilique Saint-Denis) is the burial site of almost all the French Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city Suger (c 1081 &ndash 13 January 1151) was one of the last French abbot-statesmen a historian and the influential first patron of Gothic architecture See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. ^[6]

Suger’s original rose window in the prototype Gothic façade of St Denis probably pre-dates many of the remaining circular windows in Romanesque buildings such as those in England, at Trebic and Spoleto and that in the façade at Speyer.

Suger’s window was not distinctively Gothic in its appearance. It no longer has its original form, but a mid-19th century drawing by the restorer Viollet-le-Duc indicates that it had a very large ocular space at the centre, the glass supported by an iron hoop, and surrounded by simple semi-circular cusped lobes cut out of flat stone in a technique known as "plate tracery". Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc ( January 27 1814 &ndash September 17, 1879) was a French Architect and theorist famous for his "restorations" The window now has Gothic tracery in it, possibly added by Viollet-le-Duc who was very concerned about the lack of stability of the whole façade, and having restored the towers, was impelled to demolish the northern one when it suddenly subsided. Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc ( January 27 1814 &ndash September 17, 1879) was a French Architect and theorist famous for his "restorations"

Along with the simple wheel windows of the late Norman period in England, Germany and Italy, a large late 12th century window still exists at Chartres Cathedral. For other buildings in Normandy see Architecture of Normandy. This remarkable window combines a large rondel at the centre with the radiating spokes of a wheel window, surrounded by a ring of smaller “plate tracery” lights with scalloped borders. The window, depicting the Last Judgement, contains its original scheme of glazing and retains much of the original glass of 1215, despite suffering damage during World War II. In Christian eschatology, the Last Judgment or Day of the Lord is the judgment by God of every human who ever lived World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including ^[7]

Following the west window of Chartres, more daring Gothic windows were created at Mantes Cathedral and in the dynamically sculptural facade of Laon Cathedral. Mantes-la-Jolie (often informally called Mantes) is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. The cathedral of Notre-Dame of Laon is one of the most important examples of the Gothic architecture of the 12th and 13th centuries ranking with the cathedrals of Saint-Étienne These windows have large lights contained in tracery of a semi-circular form, like overlapping petals.

The window that is central to the well-known Gothic façade of Notre Dame, Paris, is of more distinctly Gothic appearance, with mullions in two bands radiating from a central rondel, each terminating in pointed arches. NotreDameFlyingButtressjpg|right|thumb|250px|Notre Dame de Paris Flying Buttress]] Notre Dame de Paris is a Gothic Cathedral on the eastern half of the It was this window, completed about 1225, that set the pattern for many other rose window including those of the transepts at St Denis and the gigantic and complex window in the south transept at Notre Dame. ^[8]

At Chartres, the transepts roses follow the style of the original 12th century rose, elaborating on the theme of contrasting forms. The south rose combines the wheel with circles and semi-circles, while the north rose introduces square lights which, rotating around the centre, are all set at different angles, creating a kaleidoscopic effect of great energy. A kaleidoscope is a tube of Mirrors containing loose colored Beads Pebbles or other small colored objects ^[9]

Reims Cathedral, France. Notre-Dame de Reims ( Our Lady of Rheims) is the Cathedral of Reims, where the kings of France were once crowned This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.

Further development

From the building of Chartres the dimensions of the rose window began to increase with the development of more elaborate window styles associated with Gothic architecture. See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. By the middle of the thirteenth century the rose had attained the greatest possible size - the entire width of the nave or transept, as seen in the transept roses at St Denis and Paris. In Romanesque and Gothic Christian Abbey, Cathedral Basilica and church Architecture, the nave is the

In the facades of St Denis, Chartres, Mantes, Laon and Paris, the rose was put under a circular arch. The next important development in its use for the Gothic style was to put it under a pointed arch, as was done in the Notre-Dame de Reims (1230), in the transepts as well as in the later roses of the facade. Notre-Dame de Reims ( Our Lady of Rheims) is the Cathedral of Reims, where the kings of France were once crowned Full descriptions of the elements of a Gothic floorplan are found at the entry Cathedral diagram. A facade or façade (fəˈsɑːd is generally one side of the exterior of a Building, especially the front but also sometimes the sides and rear This form probably stemmed from the now destroyed St Nicaise, also in Reims.

The rose window was often placed above a row of vertical lights as the apex of the composition, the small corner "spandrels" between the rose and lower tier being filled by smaller lights of rose form, as in the transepts of St Denis and Notre Dame.

The last step in evolution of the Gothic style was to set the rose into a tier of vertical lights, of staggered height and surmount it by a tapering pointed light so that it became the centre of a vast window composition, covering the whole end of the transepts, as in Rouen or Beauvais Cathedrals. Rouen Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Rouen is a Gothic Cathedral in Rouen, in northwestern France. This sort of elaborate composition can also be seen at the east end of Milan Cathedral. Milan Cathedral (Italian Duomo di Milano; Milanese: Domm de Milan) is the Cathedral

Rose windows were also set into square windows, the spandrels being pierced and filled with smaller lights as at Paris, 1257, or unpierced with sculpture, the form more common in Italy as at Spoleto and also seen in the north transept of Westminster Abbey and at Strasbourg Cathedral, (see pictured above). NotreDameFlyingButtressjpg|right|thumb|250px|Notre Dame de Paris Flying Buttress]] Notre Dame de Paris is a Gothic Cathedral on the eastern half of the For the festival in South Carolina see Spoleto Festival USA. Spoleto ( Latin Spoletium) is an ancient city in the The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, which is almost always referred to by its original name of Westminster Abbey, is a large mainly Gothic church Strasbourg Cathedral or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg (Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-Strasbourg Liebfrauenmünster zu Straßburg is a Roman Catholic

Style

Oculus, Siena Cathedral

Wheel- Beverley Minster

Plate- Appleton-le-Moors church

Rayonnant- Bristol Cathedral, England, nave. The Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity is the Anglican Cathedral in the city of Bristol, England, and is commonly known England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland

Flamboyant- Graça Church, Santarém

Baroque- Catania. ^{pic. G. Dall'Orto}

Oculi

These could be open or blind, could be glazed or filled with thin alabaster. Alabaster is a name applied to varieties of two distinct Minerals Gypsum (a hydrous sulfate of Calcium) and Calcite During the late Gothic period very large ocular windows were common in Italy, being used in preference to traceried windows and being filled with elaborate pictures in stained glass designed by the most accomplished Late Medieval and Early Renaissance designers including Duccio, Donatello, Uccello and Ghiberti. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest For the Blackford Oakes novel see Stained Glass (novel The term stained glass refers either to the material of coloured Glass or to the art Duccio di Buoninsegna (c 1255-1260 &ndash c 1318-1319 was one of the most influential Italian artists of his time Donatello ( Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi; c 1386 &ndash December 13, 1466) was a famous early Renaissance Italian Paolo Uccello (born Paolo di Dono, 1397 &ndash December 10 1475) was an Italian painter who was notable for his pioneering work on visual Lorenzo Ghiberti (born Lorenzo di Bartolo) (1378 &ndash December 1, 1455) was an Italian artist of the early Renaissance best known ^[10][11]

Wheel windows

These windows had a simple tracery of spokes radiating either from a central boss or from a central rondel. Popular during the Romanesque period and Gothic Italy, they are found across Europe but particularly Germany and Italy. ^[12] They are also occur in Romanesque Revival buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Plate tracery

Rose windows with pierced openings rather than tracery occur in the transition between Romanesque and Gothic, particularly in France and most notably at Chartres. The most notable example in England is the north transept window, known as the “Dean’s Eye” in Lincoln Cathedral. Lincoln Cathedral (in full The Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, or sometimes St These windows are occasionally found in 19th century Revival buildings. ^[13]

Early Gothic

Rose windows with tracery comprising overlapping arcs like flower petals, circular and square shapes. This form occurs in Northern France, notably at Laon Cathedral, Italy and England. The cathedral of Notre-Dame of Laon is one of the most important examples of the Gothic architecture of the 12th and 13th centuries ranking with the cathedrals of Saint-Étienne This style of window is popular in Gothic Revival architecture for the similarity that it has to a flower and is also utilised with specific reference to Our Lady of the Rosary. Our Lady of the Rosary (also Our Lady of the Holy Rosary or Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary) is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary in relation to the method

Rayonnant Gothic

The rose windows are divided by mullions radiating from a central rondel, overlapping in a complex design, each light terminating in a pointed arch and often interspersed with quatrefoils and other such shapes. Many of the largest rose windows in France are of this type, notable those at Paris and in the transepts of St Denis. A well-known example in England is that in the north transept of Westminster Abbey. The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, which is almost always referred to by its original name of Westminster Abbey, is a large mainly Gothic church This style occurs widely in Gothic churches and is also widely imitated in Gothic Revival buildings. ^[14]

Flamboyant Gothic

The style is marked by S-curves in the tracery causing each light to take on a flamelike or "flamboyant" shape. Many windows are composed of fairly regularly-shaped lights the richness of design dependent on the multiplicity of parts. Famous examples are at Beauvais Cathedral and Sainte-Chapelle, Paris. La Sainte-Chapelle (The Holy Chapel is a Gothic Chapel on the Île de la Cité in the heart of Paris, France. Some Late Gothic rose windows are of immense complexity of design, often using elements of the Gothic style in unexpected ways. A magnificent example is that of the façade of Amiens Cathedral. The Cathedral of Our Lady of Amiens (French Cathédrale Notre-Dame d'Amiens) or simply Amiens Cathedral, is the tallest complete Cathedral in Although the design usually radiates from a central point, it may not be symmetrical about each axis. This may be seen in the Flamboyant Decorated Gothic window called the “Bishop’s Eye” at Lincoln Cathedral in which the design takes the form of two ears of wheat. See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. Lincoln Cathedral (in full The Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, or sometimes St

Renaissance

The Renaissance made a break with the Gothic style, and a return to the Classical. Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe in which there was a Plain untraceried oculi were sometimes employed, either in Classical pediments^[15] or around domes as at the Pazzi Chapel, Florence. The Pazzi Chapel ( Italian: Cappella dei Pazzi) in Florence is considered to be one of the masterpieces of Renaissance architecture. ^[16]

Baroque

The Baroque style saw much greater use of ocular windows, which were not always circular, but frequently oval or of a more complex shape. Baroque architecture, starting in the early 17th century in Italy, took the humanist Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical They were untraceried or crossed by mullions of very simple form but were often surrounded by ornate carving. The purpose of such windows was the subtle illumination of interior spaces, without resorting to large windows offering external visibility. They rarely form a dominant visual element to either the façade or the interior as do the great Gothic windows. ^[17] However, there are some notable exceptions, in particular the glorious burst of light which pours through the oval alabaster window depicting the Holy Spirit in the Reredos behind the High Altar of St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome. In mainstream Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is one of the three entities of the Holy Trinity which make up the single substance The Basilica of Saint Peter (Basilica Sancti Petri officially known in Italian as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St ^[18]

Modern

Modern circular windows, which are most frequently of a simple ocular type, have an eclectic range of influences which includes Abstract art, ship's portholes and the unglazed circular openings of Oriental architecture. Abstract art uses a Visual language of form color and line to create a composition which exists independently of visual references to the world A porthole is a small generally circular Window used on the hull of Ships to admit light and air

Symbolism

The north rose of the Abbey of St Denis, Paris, showing God the Creator, surrounded by the Days of Creation, the Order of the Heavens represented by the Zodiac and the Order of Earth as represented by the Labours of the Months. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city Creation according to Genesis refers to the Hebrew narrative of the creation of the heavens and the earth as told in chapters 1 and 2 of Genesis Zodiac denotes an annual cycle of twelve stations along the Ecliptic, the apparent path of the sun across the heavens through the Constellations that divide the ecliptic The term Labours of the Months refers to cycles seen in Medieval and early Renaissance art depicting in twelve scenes the rural activities that commonly took place In the corners are the Fall of Mankind. Adam (אָדָם ʼĀḏām, "dust man mankind" آدم; Ge'ez: አዳ and Eve (חַוָּה Ḥawwā, "living

In Gothic cathedrals and churches, where a rose is often found above the West Door, the most common subject of the stained glass that it contains is the Last Judgement, which by a long tradition is depicted either in mural or glass on the western wall of the building. In Christian eschatology, the Last Judgment or Day of the Lord is the judgment by God of every human who ever lived ^[19] In such windows Christ is shown seated in the centre "light" and within the lights around him are the symbols of the four Gospel writers, Apostles, Prophets, Saints and Angels. Christ is the English term for the Greek ( Khristós) meaning "the anointed " This article is about the canonical books of the New Testament The Twelve Apostles (Greek apostolos, "someone sent out" e A saint (from the Latin sanctus) is a human being to whom has been attributed (and who has generally demonstrated a high level of Holiness and Sanctity An angel is a Spiritual Supernatural being found in many Religions Although the nature of angels and the tasks given to them vary from tradition to tradition Some windows show God's dominion over Heaven and Earth by including Zodiacal signs and Labours of the Months. Zodiac denotes an annual cycle of twelve stations along the Ecliptic, the apparent path of the sun across the heavens through the Constellations that divide the ecliptic The term Labours of the Months refers to cycles seen in Medieval and early Renaissance art depicting in twelve scenes the rural activities that commonly took place ^[20]

When rose windows are used in the transept ends, then one of those windows is frequently dedicated to Mary as the Mother of Jesus. In modern Catholic thought, the rose window is often associated with the Virgin Mary because one of her titles, referred to by St Bernard of Clairvaux, is the “Mystical Rose”. Bernard of Clairvaux, OCist ( 1090 - August 20, 1153) was a French abbot and the primary builder of the reforming Cistercian monastic order Our Lady of the Rosary (also Our Lady of the Holy Rosary or Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary) is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary in relation to the method However, the specific association of Mary with the rose window is unlikely during the Mediaeval period, because the term "rose window" was not coined until the 17th century, a time when few such windows were being constructed. However, in the 19th and 20th centuries, with the revival of the Gothic style much stained glass installed in rose windows, both in new churches and as restoration in old churches, was dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement which began ^[21]

Regional examples

Australia

A number of Australia’s cathedrals have significant Gothic Revival rose windows including three by William Wardell at St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney and another at St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne which form the upper part of a very large seven-light window in the west end. William Wilkinson Wardell ( 3 March 1824 – 19 November 1899) was an architect notable not only for his work in Australia, the St Mary’s Cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney currently Cardinal Archbishop George Pell. Patrick's Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne in Victoria Australia, and seat of its archbishop currently

England

In England, the use of the rose window was commonly confined to the transepts although roses of great span were constructed in the west front of Byland Abbey and in the east front of Old St. Paul's Cathedral in London and they have been used in this way too for local churches and chapels. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Byland Abbey is a ruined abbey and a small village in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England at. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom.

Medieval rose windows occur at the cathedrals of York, Lincoln, Canterbury, Durham and Oxford. York Minster is a Gothic Cathedral in York, England and is the second largest of its kind in Northern Europe (largest is the Lincoln Cathedral (in full The Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, or sometimes St Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a The Cathedral Church of Christ Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly referred to as Durham Cathedral, in the city of Durham, England Christ Church Cathedral is the Cathedral of the Diocese of Oxford, which includes the City of Oxford England, and the surrounding countryside as far

Mediaeval Beverley Minster has a fine example of an Early Gothic wheel window with ten spokes, each light terminating in a cusped trefoils and surrounded by decorative plate tracery. Beverley Minster, in Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire is a Parish church in the Church of England.

Later windows are to be seen at the nondenominational Abney Park Chapel in London designed in 1838-40 by William Hosking FSA; Holy Trinity Church, Barnes, London; St Nicholas, Richmond; and St Albans Cathedral by George Gilbert Scott. Abney Park Chapel, is a Grade II Listed Chapel, designed by William Hosking and built by John Jay that is situated in Europe's first wholly William Hosking FSA ( November 26, 1800 - August 2, 1861) was a writer lecturer and architect who had an important influence Barnes is an affluent riverside London suburb in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Richmond is a town and the principal settlement of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in England. St Albans Cathedral (formerly St Albans Abbey, officially The Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban) is an Anglican church at Sir George Gilbert Scott ( 13 July 1811 &ndash 27 March, 1878) was an English Architect of the Victorian Age

At Christ Church Appleton-le-Moors, Yorkshire, the 19th century architect J.L.Pearson appears to have taken as his inspiration the regional floral symbol of the white rose. Yorkshire is a historic county of Northern England and the largest in Great Britain. John Loughborough Pearson ( Brussels, 5 July 1817 - 11 December 1897) was a 19th-century Architect renowned for his work The House of York was a branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet, three of whom became English kings in the late 15th century This unusual plate-tracery window dating from the 1860s has been designed with five double sections like the two-part petals of a simple rose.

France

In France, a fine example of a rose window of the Rayonnant style is in the facade of the Cathedral of Strassburg. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Strasbourg (Strasbourg stʁazbuʁ Alsatian: Strossburi,; Straßburg) is the capital and principal City of the Alsace région

Italy

In Italy, the rose window was particularly used by the Lombard architects, as in San Zeno in Verona, and in the Cathedral of Modena, and in the Tuscan Gothic churches like the Cathedrals of Siena and Orvieto. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Lombardy (Lombardia Latin: Langobardia, Western Lombard: Lumbardìa, Eastern Lombard: Lombardia) is one of the An architect is a licensed individual who leads a design team in the Planning and Design of buildings and participates in oversight of Building Construction Verona is a city and provincial capital in Veneto, Northern Italy. Modena (ˈmɔːdena Mòdna in Modenese dialect is a city and a Comune ( Municipality) on the south side of the Po valley, in the Tuscany (Toscana is a region in Italy. It has an area of 22990 km² and a population of about 3 Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Siena. Orvieto is a city in southwestern Umbria, Italy situated on the flat summit of a large butte of An outstanding example of a rose window is the thirteen spoked centrepiece of the Minor Basilica in Larino, Molise (1312). The Latin word basilica (derived from Greek, Basiliké Stoà, Royal Stoa) was originally used to describe a Roman Larino ( Latin: Larinum, Campobassan dialect Larìn) is a town and commune of approximately 7000 inhabitants in the Italian Region of Molise Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions Another is that at the Basilica of St Francis of Assisi. The Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi in Assisi, Italy is the burial place of St Francis and the mother church of the Franciscan Order

United States

A Baroque oculus without tracery or stained glass, can be seen at San Jose Mission, San Antonio, Texas which was founded by the Franciscan Fathers and dates from 1718-31. This page is about the architectural term See also Eye. Oculus (plural oculi) is the Latin word for Eye, and the word remains

The largest rose window in the United States, is the The Great Rose Window, above the main doors of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City. It is in the Gothic Revival style and made from more than 10,000 pieces of stained glass. The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement which began For the Blackford Oakes novel see Stained Glass (novel The term stained glass refers either to the material of coloured Glass or to the art

Washington National Cathedral has three large rose windows of which the 20th century stained glass represents the Creation, Last Judgement and Glory of God. Washington National Cathedral, whose official name is the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul is a Cathedral of The Episcopal Church.

In 1954, the French artist Henri Matisse created the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Memorial Rose Window on the east wall of the Union Church of Pocantico Hills, New York. Year 1954 ( MCMLIV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1954 Gregorian calendar) This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Henri Matisse (31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954 was a French Artist, known for his use of Colour and his fluid brilliant and original draughtsmanship Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, ( October 26, 1874 &ndash April 5, 1948) was a prominent socialite and Philanthropist and the second-generation New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous

Gallery showing stained glass

France, Chartres Cathedral, ancient transept window under restoration. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.	France, Sens Cathedral, transept, showing Flamboyant window incorporated into a large composition. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.	France, Sainte-Chapelle, Paris, the Apocalypse in Flamboyant tracery. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.	England Lincoln Cathedral, the Bishop's Eye. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Fragments of ancient glass in a Flowing Gothic window.
Germany, Memorial Church (Gedaechtniskirche), Speyer. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe.	Sweden, Oscar Frediks Church. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation.	Catalonia, Santa Maria del Pi, Barcelona. Catalonia (Cataluña Catalunya Aranese: Catalonha) is an Autonomous Community in the northeast part of Spain. Barcelona ( Catalan bəɾsəˈlonə Spanish baɾθeˈlona is the capital and most populous city of the Autonomous Community of Catalonia	Peru, the Presidential Palace
England, St Nicholas, Richmond. Peru (Perú Piruw Piruw officially the Republic of Peru ( reˈpuβlika del peˈɾu is a country in western South America. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland architect G. Scott, glass William Wailes	Germany, the chancel window of Himmelsfahrskirche, Dresden. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe.	Mallorca, Palma, geometry and flowers in the Moorish style. Majorca ( Spanish and Mallorca is the largest island of Spain.	Australia, the Waratah window, St Bede's, Drummoyne, Sydney, by Alfred Handel. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Sydney (ˈsɪdniː is the most populous city in Australia, with a Metropolitan area population of approximately 4

References

• Otto von Simpson (1956), The Gothic cathedral, Origins of Gothic architecture and the Medieval Concept of Order, 3rd ed. 1988, Princeton University Press, USA.
• Painton Cowen, The Rose Window, London and New York, 2005 (offers the most complete overview of the evolution and meaning of the form, accompanied by hundreds of colour illustrations. )
• Elizabeth Morris, Stained and Decorative Glass, Doubleday, ISBN 0-86824-324-8
• Sarah Brown, Stained Glass- an Illustrated History, Bracken Books, ISBN 1-858-91157-5
• Lawrence Lee, George Seddon, Francis Stephens, Stained Glass, Spring Books, ISBN 0-600-56281-6
• Robert Eberhard, Church Stained Glass Windows, [2]
• Henry Adams, Mont-Saint-Michel and Chartres, Paul Hamlyn, ISBN 0-7296-0204-0
• John Harvey, English Cathedrals, 1963, Batsford, ISBN
• Wim Swaan, The Gothic Cathedral, Omega, ISBN 0-907853-48-X
• Sir Banister Fletcher, A History of Architecture on the Comparative Method, first published 1896, current edition 2001, Elsevier Science & Technology ISBN 0750622679
• Giovanni Fanelli, Brunelleschi, 1980, Becocci editore Firenze. Sir Banister Flight Fletcher ( February 15, 1866, London &mdash August 17, 1953, London was an English Architect ISBN unknown
• Helen Gardner, Art through the Ages, 5th edition, Harcourt, Brace and World, inc. Professor Dame Helen Louise Gardner DBE (13 February 1908 - 4 June 1986 was an English literary critic and academic whose work mainly concerned the poets T ,ISBN 07679933
• Anne Mueller von der Haegen, Ruth Strasser, Art and Architecture of Tuscany, 2000, Konemann, ISBN 3829026528
• Nikolaus Pevsner, An Outline of European Architecture, Pelican, 1964, ISBN unknown
• Joseph Rykwert, Leonis Baptiste Alberti, Architectural Design, Vol 49 No 5-6, Holland St, London
• John Summerson, Architecture in Britain 1530-1830, 1977 ed. Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, ( January 30, 1902 &ndash August 18, 1983) was a German-born British scholar of , Pelican, ISBN 0140560033

Footnotes

See also

• Mandala
• Kaleidoscope

External links

• therosewindow.com Painton Cowen's website, with many good images of rose windows
• Tips & Tricks to Gothic Geometry How to design a rose window
• Chartres Rose Window Geometry
• Wagon Wheel Rose Windows of the Medieval Norman Cathedrals of Puglia - Photos
•   "Rose Window". Mandala ( Sanskrit maṇḍala मंड "essence" + ल "having" or "containing" A kaleidoscope is a tube of Mirrors containing loose colored Beads Pebbles or other small colored objects Catholic Encyclopedia. The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to today as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language Encyclopedia published by The Encyclopedia (1913). New York: Robert Appleton Company.