Thomas de Cormont

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Thomas de Cormont (born towards the end of the twelfth century) was a French Gothic Era master-mason and architect who worked on the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Amiens following the death of its chief architect, Robert de Luzarches. [1] There is speculation that Thomas may have been Robert's disciple. [2] In addition to the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Amiens, he is also believed to have worked contributed to both the Saint-Germain-en-Laye and the Sainte-Chapelle. [3] According to analysis and evidence, Thomas de Cormont was responsible for the completion of the upper nave, chevet aisle vaults and windows, and ambulatory sometime in the 1230s. His son, Renaud de Cormont, continued his work on Notre-Dame of Amiens in the 1240s. [4]

Gothic art Style of Medieval art developed in Northern France

Gothic art was a style of medieval art that developed in Northern France out of Romanesque art in the 12th century AD, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, and much of Southern and Central Europe, never quite effacing more classical styles in Italy. In the late 14th century, the sophisticated court style of International Gothic developed, which continued to evolve until the late 15th century. In many areas, especially Germany, Late Gothic art continued well into the 16th century, before being subsumed into Renaissance art. Primary media in the Gothic period included sculpture, panel painting, stained glass, fresco and illuminated manuscripts. The easily recognizable shifts in architecture from Romanesque to Gothic, and Gothic to Renaissance styles, are typically used to define the periods in art in all media, although in many ways figurative art developed at a different pace.

Stonemasonry The craft of creating buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone

The craft of stonemasonry involves creating buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone from the earth, and is one of the oldest trades in human history. These materials have been used to construct many of the long-lasting, ancient monuments, artifacts, cathedrals, and cities in a wide variety of cultures. Famous works of stonemasonry include the Egyptian Pyramids, the Taj Mahal, Cusco's Incan Wall, Easter Island's statues, Angkor Wat, Borobudur, Tihuanaco, Tenochtitlan, Persepolis, the Parthenon, Stonehenge, Great Wall of China, Chartres Cathedral, and Pumapunku.

Amiens Cathedral Church in Amiens, France

The Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Amiens, or simply Amiens Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic church. The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Amiens. It is situated on a slight ridge overlooking the River Somme in Amiens, the administrative capital of the Picardy region of France, some 120 kilometres north of Paris.

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Sainte-Chapelle chapel located in Paris, in France

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Robert of Luzarches was a 13th-century French architect who worked on the cathedral of Notre Dame in Amiens.

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Pierre de Montreuil French architect

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Renaud de Cormont was a French Gothic Era master-mason and architect who worked on the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Amiens after his father, Thomas de Cormont, who is believed to have been a disciple of Robert de Luzarches. There is speculation that Thomas may have been Robert's disciple. Renaud de Cormont, continued his fathers work on Notre-Dame of Amiens in the 1240s, believed to bring a form of architectural revolution to upper transept and upper choir of Amiens Cathedral through his introduction of a glazed triforium, openwork flyers, and new decorative forms. Renaud altered the eastern wall of the transept and upper levels of the choir into an ornate glass box held by extremely thin flyers. This failed monumentally: the triforium had to be replaced, the tracery panels on the flyers crumbled and the transept roses failed. Of more concern was the fact that the entire eastern half of the building needed to be held up using wooden beams, iron chain, masonry spines and an additional rank of flyers. Because of this, art historians have likened him to an Icarus whose defective work on the upper transept and choir led to a near disaster, likely a play on the fact that the center of Amines Cathedral contains a labyrinth designed on the floor and his father, or Daedalus in this case, had worked on the cathedral before him.

References

  1. Murray, Stephen (1990). "Looking for Robert de Luzarches: The Early Work at Amiens Cathedral". Gesta. 29 (1): 111. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  2. Coldstream, Nicola (November 1999). "Reviewed Work: Notre-Dame Cathedral of Amiens. The Power of Change in Gothic by Stephen Murray". The Burlington Magazine. 141 (1160): 684. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  3. Fernie, E.C. (2000). "Robert Branner's Treatment of Architectural Sources and Precedents". Gesta. 39 (2): 158. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  4. Murray, Stephen (1990). "Looking for Robert de Luzarches: The Early Work at Amiens Cathedral". Gesta. 29 (1): 127. Retrieved 13 March 2015.

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The Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church, also referred to as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia and the Original Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language encyclopedia published in the United States and designed to serve the Roman Catholic Church. The first volume appeared in March 1907 and the last three volumes appeared in 1912, followed by a master index volume in 1914 and later supplementary volumes. It was designed "to give its readers full and authoritative information on the entire cycle of Catholic interests, action and doctrine".