medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Christopher Crockett wrote:
> From: Jim Bugslag <[log in to unmask]>
>
>> As for triforia, anyone who has ever tried to struggle through one knows
>> what an awkward and, often, dirty business that is. It is difficult to
>> imagine that they were used liturgically, and just how they were used, or
>> why they were there in the first place, remains, I believe, a mystery.
>> They certainly look nice from the floor of the church, though.
>
> as John says in another post, there seems to be a strong argument to
> be made for purely utilitarian uses, everything from maintenance, to
> hanging tapestries, to allowing circulation around the building from
> adjoining buildings (remember those curious exterior doors to be
> found quite high up at Chartres).
I should have added that they played an important role during the
construction phase. You need proper access to the upper levels while
building the clerestory and vaults. Until someone thought of putting a
walkway at clerestory level, you needed to use the triforium to sling a
ladder to access the the clerestory windows for glazing (and re-glazing).
John Briggs
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