The Cathedral

An introduction to great Gothic cathedrals; the important role the buildings play in both spirituality and society; how their origins lie in the first century A.D. with the emergence of the office of the bishop, whose throne is known as a cathedra.

The fourth century A.D., when Christians first began to erect large buildings for public worship; the dawn of the 11th century; important examples of surviving ecclesiastical buildings from the period; Santa Maria Maggiore and the Hagia Sophia.

Why many churches in western Europe by 1100 were built using a range of local styles; hearkening back to classical Roman forms; exploring the development of the Romanesque style; surveying examples of Romanesque cathedrals.

The best way to build a church's ceiling; the evolution of church roofs, from flat wood ceilings and stone barrel vaults to ribbed vaulting; discovering that there could have been no Gothic cathedrals without these developments.

Sainte Foy in Conques; Saint Mary Magdalene in Vezelay; Saint-Lazare at Autun; definitive examples of Romanesque style and decoration; investigating how sculptural masterpieces rendered biblical stories into simple and eye-catching messages.

Agreement among scholars that the first Gothic building in history is the Abbey Church of Saint-Denis; the building's role in French history; touring the structure's facade and interior; noting the ribbed and pointed vaults.