AR12-43

HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE – III

Ar. Ansha Thomas Asst: Professor Eranad Knowledge City College Of Architecture
AR12-43 HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE

Romanesque Architecture

Early Christian architecture- Constantine

•Design evolution
Byzantine architecture-Justinian
•Design principles and structural details of Romanesque architecture.
Carolingian Architecture- Charlemagne
•Types- Italian Romanesque architecture (Pisa Cathedral Complex),
Romanesque-----?
French Romanesque (Abbey-Aux-Hommes at Cane),
British Romanesque (Durham’s Cathedral).
ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
• a style of architecture developed between the Roman and the
Gothic styles after 1000 AD.

• is characterized by barrel and groin vaults based on round

arches and vaults and by the substitution of piers for columns.

• means “Rome like” and was first applied in the early 19th
century to describe European architecture of
• the 11th and 12th centuries.
Origin And Design Evolution ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

• 'BARBARIANS', men of the beard, managed to

dismember the central Roman power by the fourth
century

• developed individual kingdoms and city states

under their own rule.

• Justinian bravely tried to reunite the Roman

Empire, but after his reign the empire
disintegrated.

• Over the next few centuries leaders emerged

sporadically across Europe gaining control of
portions of the old empire.
Origin And Design Evolution ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
• These men fostered a partnership with the Christian Church and
established a new culture now known as Medieval Christendom.

• Once settled, he called artists and craftsmen from both the Western
and the Eastern Roman empires to provide adornment for his
churches and palaces.

• This is where the Romanesque was born.

• The style languished after Charlemagne's death.

• The predicted date was the year 1000 Romanesque was developed
as a true style.
Origin And Design Evolution ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

It is traditionally divided into three periods:

(1) Pre-Romanesque: Carolingian & Ottonian

architecture (c.800-1000).

(2) Early Romanesque (11th century).

(3) Mature Romanesque (c.1070-1170).

• The buildings of the early period, 1000 - 1150, are very heavy with largely local influences seen in the
detailing.

• By 1300 the trade routes established by Charlemagne and used by pilgrims helped to disseminate the style across
Europe.

• They were much like modern university complexes in that they provided education, medical care, and a vibrant
intellectual life while being largely self sufficient with their own agriculture, kitchens, shops, etc.
Origin And Design Evolution ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

• The earliest Romanesque architects were priests and monks whose ideas for communal Christian living were
carried out by skilled craftsmen.

• expansive building program led to the creation of three distinct structures of Romanesque architecture:
1. the cathedral
2. the monastery and
3. the castle

Cathedrals,-the principal church of a diocese, containing the bishop's throne, which evolved from the early Christian basilica
building, were constantly being renovated and enlarged throughout the Romanesque and flourished in an urban setting.

Monasteries is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces
of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits) first arrived in Europe from Byzantium in the 5th
century, and flourished as centers of rural administration in the age of Charlemagne. From humble beginnings, a number of
monasteries grew into elaborate abbey complexes.

The castle, is a type of fortified structure, developed later, in response to the political instability of the 10th and 11th centuries,
and became a major feature of the mature Romanesque, notably in Britain
Origin And Design Evolution ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

• Experiments with water wheels, land drainage, building

techniques and other engineering all took place at the
monastery.

• Workshops with carvers, masons and other decorative

arts were all attached to the abbey.

• The abbot was the spiritual leader of the community.

• All of the Roman aqueducts had ceased to function by the

eleventh century.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
Emphasis is on below features to articulate design features

1. Massing and general appearance

2. Architectural elements
3. Decorative elements

• Symmetrical compositions and ordered arrangements of building forms are common.

• Religious structures convey the best examples of design vocabulary.

So, Romanesque style is characterized by:

1.General Appearance: 2.Architectural Elements:

1. Dark, solemn spaces 1. Round arches
2. Exterior is simple, severe 2. Vaults
3. Modest Height a) Barrel Vaults
4. Horizontal lines b) Groin vaults
5. Multiple Units c) Ribbed Vaults
3. Piers supporting vaults
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

General Appearance:
1. Dark, solemn spaces
2. Exterior is simple, severe
3. Modest Height
4. Horizontal lines
5. Multiple Units

• weighty materials used

• windows had to be small in

order to maintain the
stability of the building as a
whole
• They were also dim and
smelly inside as there was
little ventilation and little
desire for more airy
buildings.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

General Appearance:
1. Dark, solemn spaces
2. Exterior is simple, severe
3. Modest Height
4. Horizontal lines
5. Multiple Units

Stone was the predominant material as it was

solid and easy to find.
The walls of Romanesque buildings are often of
massive thickness with few and comparatively
small openings.
They are often double shells, filled with rubble.
The building material differs greatly across

Europe, depending upon the local stone and

building traditions. In Italy, Poland, much of
Germany and parts of the Netherlands, brick is
generally used. Other areas saw extensive use
of limestone, granite and flint. The building
stone was often used in comparatively small
and irregular pieces, bedded in thick mortar.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

General Appearance:
1. Dark, solemn spaces
2. Exterior is simple, severe
3. Modest Height
4. Horizontal lines
5. Multiple Units

• are usually symmetrical,

• have a large central portal made significant by its mouldings or
porch, and
• an arrangement of arched-topped windows.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

General Appearance:
1. Dark, solemn spaces
2. Exterior is simple, severe
3. Modest Height
4. Horizontal lines
5. Multiple Units
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

General Appearance:
1. Dark, solemn spaces
2. Exterior is simple, severe
3. Modest Height
4. Horizontal lines
5. Multiple Units
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Architectural Elements:
1. Round arches
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
4. Ribbed Vaults
5. Piers supporting vaults

• Round arches are similar to those of the Romans.

• It is believed that in these cases there is a direct imitation of
Islamic architecture.
• While small windows might be surmounted by a solid stone
lintel, larger windows are nearly always arched.

• Doorways are also surmounted by a

semi-circular arch, except where the
door is set into a large arched
recess and surmounted by a semi-
circular "lunette" with decorative
carving.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Architectural Elements:
1. Round arches
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
4. Ribbed Vaults
5. Piers supporting vaults

• Also called Tunnel Vaults, Barrel Vaults replace the flat roofs commonly used in Roman
architecture.
• This is the simplest vault, created by combining a series of round or Roman arches.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Architectural Elements:
1. Round arches
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
4. Ribbed Vaults
5. Piers supporting vaults

• However, the barrel vault generally required the

support of solid walls, or walls in which the windows
were very small.

• The Barrel vault creates a higher ceiling, but needs

large supports under it, so columns are combined
with piers.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Architectural Elements:
1. Round arches
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
4. Ribbed Vaults
5. Piers supporting vaults

• The diagonal intersections are called groins.

• The advantage of the groin vault is that its weight and
thrusts are concentrated at the four corners.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Architectural Elements:
1. Round arches
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
4. Ribbed Vaults
5. Piers supporting vaults

• A Groin, or Cross
vault is a
combination of two
barrel vaults at
intersecting angles.

• It provided a more
aesthetically
pleasing
appearance for
intersecting vaults.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Architectural Elements:
1. Round arches
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
4. Ribbed Vaults
5. Piers supporting vaults

In ribbed vaults, not only are there ribs

spanning the vaulted area transversely,
but each vaulted bay have diagonal ribs.

In a ribbed vault, the ribs are the

structural members, and the spaces
between them can be filled with lighter,
none-structural material.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Architectural Elements:
1. Round arches
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
4. Ribbed Vaults
5. Piers supporting vaults

• The Pier (an upright support generally square or rectangular in

plan) is a better solution for heavy masonry walls than the
column.

• They were built of masonry and square or rectangular in section,

generally having a horizontal molding representing a capital at
the springing of the arch. Sometimes piers have vertical shafts
attached to them, and may also have horizontal moldings at the
level of base.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
• In the picture on the left, Piers
Architectural Elements:
interspaced with columns support a
1. Round arches
Barrel Vault.
2. Barrel Vaults
3. Groin vaults
• On the right, columns on the pier are
4. Ribbed Vaults
decorative, rather than main supports.
5. Piers supporting vaults
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Other common characteristics

include

• regularly repeated modules

(standardized units in plans and
facades),
• Towers
• Buttresses: Because of the
massive nature of Romanesque
walls, buttresses are not a highly
significant feature, as they are in
Gothic architecture. Romanesque
buttresses are generally of flat
square profile and do not project a
great deal beyond the wall. In the
case of aisled churches, barrel
vaults, or half-barrel vaults over
the aisles helped to buttress the
nave, if it was vaulted.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Other common characteristics include

• Ambulatories

• thick walls, and masonry building

materials.

• buildings were serviceable, durable,

defensive, and strong, but not very
creative

• All Romanesque architecture was

built to make a statement of power
and wealth, as well as being
defensive or offensive, and often
built near a source of water.

• projecting apse at the chancel end

Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Decorative elements

Motifs

• include the round arch, figures, corbel tables (projecting

walls composed of brackets connected by round arches),
animals, grotesques and fantastic figures, foliage, heraldic
devices, linenfold, zigzags, lozenges, and geometric forms.
Molding designs include the zigzag, star, billet (dentil-like),
and lozenge (diamond shaped).
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Decorative elements
Sculptural Decoration
One way in which Romanesque architects
jazzed up their exteriors was with
sculptural decoration, especially around
the main entrance of the church.

These round, highly decorated portals,

known as tympanum, became
increasingly popular in Romanesque
architecture. We also see the addition of
decorative statues and some incredibly
fancy columns. We'll cover these
developments in more depth in our lesson
on Romanesque art.

These were functional too though as they

helped to support the hefty weight of the
stone roof.
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Decorative elements
Stained Glass Windows
These stained glass windows were relatively small and
simple, with narrow frames and rounded tops.

Compare this to later Gothic windows, which tend to be

much larger and more complex and are generally either
circular or have a pointed top.
History of Romanesque Architecture Murals were also painted,
though most have been lost to time, weathering, and
destruction during the Reformation
As monumental sculpture and stained glass came to the
fore, murals and illuminations took a back seat
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Decorative elements
CAPITALS
Design Characteristics ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
TYPES IN ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
---------Italian Romanesque architecture (Pisa Cathedral Complex),
--------------French Romanesque (Abbey-Aux-Hommes at Cane),
-----------------British Romanesque (Durham’s Cathedral).
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Geographical variations in architecture are classified into three distinct zones :

1.Central Italy, still under the influence of Rome,
2.Northern Italy in contact with western Europe
3.Southern Italy, open to Eastern influences.

Much material was obtained from the ruins of classical buildings.

• Stone- abundant in Tuscanny.
• Marble - from Carera and the greek islands.
• Brick and volcanic tufa (soil) - from Rome & travertine from Tivoli.

• Central Italy has a sunny, mediterranean climate - demanded small windows and thick walls to keep off the heat
during day time.
• Northern Italy experiences snowfall in winter, since it is nearer to the Alps and hence buildings have larger
windows & pitched roofs to keep of the snow.
• Southern Italy has a subtropical climate and therefore flat roofs & open courtyards are common.
• The Popes, Bishops & other members of the clergy gained power and hence religious buildings like large
Cathedrals & Monasteries were constructed.
• The growth of trade & commerce led to the rise of powerful merchant families in Pisa, Venice and Genoa, who
developed architecture & allied fields such as painting and sculpture to a very high level.
• The people of the sea side cites had exposure to eastern art as result of the trading activities with other countries
and this Islamic influence can be seen in the interior treatment of many cathedrals, especially in central and
southern Italy.
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa cathedral complex

The Pisa Cathedral Complex,

-Cathedral Square (Piazza
del Duomo)

In addition to the cathedral

itself, the Pisa Cathedral
Complex includes
1. a church,
2. a baptistery,
3. a cemetery and one
very famous
4. campanile or bell
tower - better known
as the Leaning Tower
of Pisa.
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa cathedral complex

ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa Cathedral Church PLAN

Plan

The latin cross plan with the cupola or dome

above the intersection and the thick walls are
a continuation of the concept of early Christia
churches.
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa Cathedral Church EXTERIOR

Decoration- full of multi-coloured marble decorations, mosaics, including the most important one, that of the "
Apse Catino made by Cimabue, and many bronze objects.
The use of marble on the exterior of the building is characteristic of Italian Romanesque.
External Arches and columns - The arches recall the Muslim influences and southern Italy
many objects and decorations are the result of war spoils, as the immense granite Corinthian columns
between the nave and the apse, which come from the mosque of Palermo
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa Cathedral Church EXTERIOR

ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa Cathedral Church EXTERIOR

Along the south elevation we can see the bands of red

and white marble that make up the exterior finish. On
the right is the transept.

Within the blind arches are lozenge patterns. Clerestory

windows on the nave allow light into the building
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa Cathedral Church INTERIOR

The interior view of the nave

with the apsidal end shows the
pointed arch of islamic origin
and the roman semi circular
arcading.
• The clear storey slit windows
bringing light into the nave &
the coffered ceiling are typical
of early christian churches.
ITALIAN ROMANESQUE ROMANESQUE ARCHITECTURE

Pisa Cathedral Church

The interior view of the Apse shows the mosaic

of Christ on the semi dome, in
Byzantine style. The altar located in front of the
apse is lit by a slit window.
This detail of the interior of the dome shows the
coloured mosaic of Christ, st.Mary & st. John on
either side. Other paintings that adorn the apse
also can be observed.