Organizing the past 49visual trigger for the historian, it would these days be treated
with a healthy dollop of scepticism, and, when deployed,
viewed as a ‘soft’ rule, recognizing exceptions as being more
than failed attempts to fulfi l a perfect model. The relatively
recent appearance of the stylistic term ‘Renaissance Gothic’
is a good example of historians recognizing the inadequacy
of monolithic stylistic–periodic terms to describe historical
examples.^22
On this point we ought to turn briefl y to one application
of stylistic divisions in architectural historiography, namely,
the process of arguing the representative character of a build-
ing in legal cases concerning architectural heritage, especially
6 Renaissance Gothic: Stephan Weyrer the Elder, Church of St
George, Nördlingen, nave and choir vaults, c.1500.