decoration of Cluniac Romanesque churches in Burgundy and monuments in Vienne. By
the end of the 12th century, the vaults of the chapels and the clerestory of the choir were
completed; the vaults of the choir were finished in the 13th century. The choir is three
stories—arcade, triforium, and clerestory—and is considerably lower than the nave.
Work progressed slowly through the 13th century on the transepts, the crossing, and
the four-bay nave with sixpart vaults. Unusual for the 13th century is the alternating
articulation of piers relating to the six-part, ribbed vaults, which is reminiscent of Sens
cathedral, which was begun in 1140 and mostly completed by 1200. However, treatment
of the clerestory windows is similar to that of monuments in the Île-de-France of the 13th
century. Flying buttresses animate the exterior of the nave. The transept arms became
towers flanking the crossing.
The 14th-century façade with its two towers is Rayonnant in style, with steep gables
filled with stone mullions. The ornamental surfaces recall the Rayonnant transepts of
Notre-Dame in Paris.
The church of Saint-Bonaventure, dedicated to the saint who died at the Second
Council of Lyon (1274), has preserved its primitive Franciscan plan, with its simple
architecture and large central area open to preaching.
Whitney S.Stoddard
Aubert, Marcel. “Lyon Cathedral.” Congrèsarchéologique(Lyon et Mâcon) 98(1935):54–90.
Bégule, Lucien. La cathédrale de Lyon. Paris: Laurens, n.d.
Histoire de Lyon, des origines a nos jours. 2 vols. Le Coteau: Horvath, 1990, Vol. 1, Antiquité et
Moyen Âge, ed. André Pelletier and Jacques Rossiaud.
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