Cathedrals: Romanesque Versus Gothic Style

Today we discussed the differences between Romanesque and Gothic architecture.

Here's a Romanesque church

The students pointed out that Romanesque churches tend to be short, with thick walls and few windows. The arches are rounded, and the inside space tends to be confined and a bit dark.

Another Romanesque church. This one has a rose window, but it's fairly close to the ground.

Gothic architecture, on the other hand, emphasizes height and light. The arches are pointed, and tall spires soar toward the sky. Flying buttresses enabled architects to build much larger windows, many of which were fitted with stained glass.

Notice the spires reaching upwards...

Now that's a serious wall of glass!

Finally, here's the link for the Stone Arch Building Challenge (if you are able to build a nine stone arch that remains stable for 5+ seconds, please visit me before school tomorrow):

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/arch-physics.html