French Gothic 467LAON CATHEDRAL Both Chartres Cathedral and the abbey
church of Saint-Denis had long construction histories, and only
small portions of the structures date to the Early Gothic period.
Laon Cathedral (FIGS. 18-8and 18-9), however, completed shortly
after 1200, provides a comprehensive picture of French church ar-
chitecture of the second half of the 12th century. Although the Laon
builders retained many Romanesque features in their design, they
combined them with the rib vault resting on pointed arches, the es-
sential element of Early Gothic architecture.
Among the Laon plan’s Romanesque features are the nave bays
with their large sexpartite rib vaults, flanked by two small groin-
vaulted squares in each aisle. The vaulting system (except for the
pointed arches), as well as the vaulted gallery above the aisles, de-
rived from Norman Romanesque churches such as Saint-Étienne
(FIG. 17-31) at Caen. The Laon architect also employed the Ro-
manesque alternate-support system of compound and simple piers
in the nave arcade. Above, alternating bundles of three and five
shafts frame the aisle bays. A new feature found in the Laon interior,
however, is the triforium,the band of arcades below the clerestory
18-7Old Testament kings and queen, jamb statues, central doorway
of Royal Portal, Chartres Cathedral, Chartres, France, ca. 1145–1155.
The biblical kings and queens of the Royal Portal are the royal ancestors
of Christ. These Early Gothic statue-columns display the first signs of a
new naturalism in European sculpture.
18-8West facade of Laon Cathedral, Laon, France, begun ca. 1190.
The huge central rose window, the deep porches in front of the door-
ways, and the open structure of the towers distinguish Laon’s Early
Gothic facade from Romanesque church facades.18-9Interior of Laon Cathedral (looking northeast), Laon, France,
begun ca. 1190.
The insertion of a triforium at Laon broke up the nave wall and
produced the characteristic four-story Early Gothic interior elevation:
nave arcade, vaulted gallery, triforium, and clerestory.