Church Architecture (I)

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I overview

Architecture of cathedrals and great churches
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ar ... _and_great_churches

Quote:

introduction: "Cathedrals, collegiate churches, and monastic churches like those of abbeys and priories, often have certain complex structural forms that are found less often in parish churches.

section 1 1 Function: " * * * The categories below are not exclusive. A church can be an abbey church [found in section 1.3        Monastic churches] and serve as a cathedral. * * * Among the Roman Catholic churches, many have been raised [by various popes] to the status of 'basilica' since the 18th century.
   section 1.1 Cathedral: "A cathedral has a specific ecclesiastical role and administrative purpose as the seat of a bishop [this is the definition of cathedral]. * * * Cathedrals are not always large buildings. It might be as small as Newport Cathedral [located at Newport, Wales], a late medieval parish church declared [by Church in Wales, a province of the Anglican Communion] a cathedral in 1949. Frequently, [though] the cathedral, along with some of the abbey churches, was the largest building in any region.
    * * *
   section 1.4 Basilica: " * * * A building that is designated as a basilica might be a cathedral, a collegiate or monastic church, a parish church, or a shrine. * * *

section 2 Origins and development of the church building
    * * *
   section 2.2 Atrium: " * * * the [Latin noun neuter] atrium, or courtyard with a colonnade surrounding it. * * *
   section 2.3 Basilica: "Early church architecture did not draw its form from Roman temples, as the latter did not have large internal spaces where worshipping [sic; the double p is British English] congregations could meet. It was the Roman basilica, used for meetings, markets and courts of law that provided a model for the large Christian church and that gave its name to the Christian basilica. Both Roman basilicas and Roman bath houses had at their core a large vaulted building with a high roof * * * An important feature of the Roman basilica was that at either end [of the rectangular building]  it had a projecting exedra, or apse, a semicircular [semicircular in terms of floor plan] space roofed with a half-dome. This was where the magistrates sat to hold court. It passed into the church architecture of the Roman world and was adapted in different ways as a feature of cathedral architecture.
    * * *
   section 2.6 Latin Cross and Greek Cross: "A square plan in which the nave, chancel and transept arms are [all] of equal length forming a Greek cross, the crossing generally surmounted by a dome became the common form in the Orthodox Church, with many churches throughout Eastern Europe and Russia being built in this way. * * * In churches of Western European tradition, the plan is usually longitudinal, in the form of the so-called Latin Cross with a long nave crossed by a transept. The transept may be as strongly projecting as at York Minster or not project beyond the aisles as at Amiens Cathedral."

section 3 Architecture
   section 3.1 Architectural forms common to many cathedrals and great churches:

       "Axis[:] As described above, the majority of cathedrals and great churches are cruciform in shape with the church having a defined axis. The axis is generally east/west with external emphasis upon the west front, normally the main entrance, and internal emphasis upon the eastern end so that the congregation faces the direction of the coming of Christ. As it is also in the direction of the rising sun, the architectural features of the east end often focus on enhancing interior illumination by the sun. Not every church or cathedral maintains a strict east–west axis, but even in those that do not, the terms East End and West Front are used. Many churches of Rome, notably St Peter's Basilica, face the opposite direction.

       "Vertical emphasis[:] There is generally a prominent external feature that rises upwards. It may be a dome, a central tower, two western towers [two towers on the west or by the church entrance] or towers at both ends as at Speyer Cathedral.

       "Façade[:] The façade or 'west front' is the most ornate part of the exterior * * *

section 4 Architectural style: (listed chronologically)
   section 4.6 Baroque: "By the time that St Peter's [in Vatican] was completed, a style of architecture was developed by architects who knew all the rules that had been so carefully recovered, and chose to break them. The effect was a dynamic style of architecture in which the forms seem to take on life of their own, moving, swaying and undulating. The name Baroque means 'mis-shapen pearl.'

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Note:
(a)
(i) What's the Difference Between a Basilica, a Cathedral, and a Shrine?  Alexandria, VA: The Basilica of Saint Mary, undated
https://stmaryoldtown.org/basilica-cathedral-shrine/

Quote:

"Basilica[:] * * * The designation of Minor Basilica is the highest permanent designation for a church building, and once a church is named a basilica, it cannot lose its basilica status. The three signs that a church has been named a basilica are the Ombrellino (umbrella), Tintinnabulum (Bells), and the Papal Cross Keys.

"Shrine[:] A shrine is a church or other sacred place where either a relic is preserved or where an apparition or historical event of faith has taken place. * * *

(ii) Basilicas in the Catholic Church
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilicas_in_the_Catholic_Church
("basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular building with a central nave flanked by two or more longitudinal aisles). Basilicas are either major basilicas – of which there are four, all in the Diocese of Rome – or minor basilicas, of which there were 1,810 worldwide as of 2019.   Numerous basilicas are notable shrines, often even receiving significant pilgrimages * * * Churches designated as papal basilicas, in particular, possess a papal throne and a papal high altar * * * The earliest document that records the use of the term 'major basilica' dates from 1727")

photo caption: "Tintinnabulum [Latin noun neuter for bell] and conopaeum [or conopeum: Latin noun neuter for canopy (in fact, canopy descended from this Latin word) -- or umbrella in (a)(i)], one of the privileges granted to a basilica
(iii) Italian-English dictionary:
* ombrellino (noun masculine; from [noun masculine] ombrello [umbrella] +‎ -ino): "small umbrella"
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ombrellino
(iv) For "Papal Cross Keys" mentioned in (a)(i), see
papal regalia and insignia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_regalia_and_insignia
(A) the top scheme's caption: " * * * Pictured above is the seal of the Vatican City. The [tiny] gold cross on a [tiny] monde (globe) surmounting [ie, at the very top of] the tiara symbolizes the sovereignty of Jesus.
(B) section 5 Insignia discusses the keys.


(b) "An important feature of the Roman basilica was that at either end it had a projecting exedra, or apse, a semicircular space roofed with a half-dome."
(i) There is a Wiki page for Roman basilica, which shows only one (Roman) basilica fitted the description (not Roman basilicas built before or after this):
Basilica Ulpia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_Ulpia
("It was named after Roman emperor Trajan [who constructed it, and dedicated it in 112] whose full name was Marcus Ulpius Traianus. * * * Unlike later Christian basilicas, it had no known religious function; it was dedicated to the administration of justice, commerce and the presence of the emperor. It was the largest in Rome measuring 117 by 55 meters (385 x 182 ft).  The Basilica Ulpia was composed of a great central nave with four side aisles, two on each side of the nave. The short sides [widths] of the structure formed apses, while the main entrance was via three doorways on the long east front [facade] overlooking the Forum of Trajan [an Imperial forum is a 'public square': en.wikipedia.org for Imperial forum], which was one meter below the level of the Basilica.
(ii) English dictionary:
* basilica https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/basilica
(Did You Know: "From their noun [Ancient Greek noun masculine] basileus, meaning 'king,' the Greeks derived the adjective basilikos meaning 'royal.' In ancient Athens there was a public building called 'Basilike stoa,' or Royal portico, and it may have been the prototype of later Roman basilicas. The first of these was built in 184 BCE, and by the time of Augustus, there were five basilicas in the vicinity of the forum. They were used for public assembly, transacting business, and judicial proceedings. When the first Christian churches were built, they were often modeled after the civil basilicas")

(c) section 2.6 Latin Cross and Greek Cross: "A square plan in which the nave, chancel and transept arms are of equal length forming a Greek cross"
(i) It is hard to understand "A square plan in which the nave, chancel and transept arms are of equal length." The following is easy.

Greek-Cross Plan; architecture. Encyclopaedia Britannica, undated
https://www.britannica.com/technology/Greek-cross-plan
("Greek-cross plan, church plan in the form of a Greek cross, with a square central mass and four arms of equal length. The Greek-cross plan was widely used in Byzantine architecture and in Western churches inspired by Byzantine examples. See church (architecture)")
(ii) Church; architecture. Encyclopaedia Britannica, undated
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Hagia-Sophia/Architecture
("During a later period, a transept (q.v.) was added to the basilican plan in the form of a wing aligned perpendicular to the nave on a north-south axis and projecting from the boundaries of the nave to form the cruciform, or Latin cross, plan (eg, Durham or Peterborough cathedrals)" )

In other words early Catholic churches were rectangular ("basilican plan"); transepts were later added to present (Greek or Latin) cross formation.


(d) section 3.1 talks about "direction of the coming of Christ."

Matthew 24: 27, KJV (King James Version): "For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."


(e) What does section 4.6 mean?

Baroque
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baroque

Quote:

"Origin of the word[:] The English word baroque comes directly from the French. Some scholars state that the French word originated from the Portuguese term barroco ('a flawed pearl') * * *

"Architecture: origins and characteristics[:] The Baroque style of architecture was a result of doctrines adopted by the Catholic Church at the Council of Trent in 1545–63, in response to the Protestant Reformation. The first phase [before 1545] of the Counter-Reformation had imposed a severe, academic style on religious architecture, which had appealed to intellectuals but not the mass of churchgoers. The Council of Trent decided instead to appeal to a more popular audience, and declared that the arts should communicate religious themes with direct and emotional involvement.