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82-435: The nave ( / n eɪ v / ) is the central part of a church , stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts , or in a church without transepts, to the chancel . When a church contains side aisles , as in a basilica -type building, the strict definition of the term "nave" is restricted to the central aisle. In a broader, more colloquial sense, the nave includes all areas available for

164-541: A barn. The church is often built of the most durable material available, often dressed stone or brick. The requirements of liturgy have generally demanded that the church should extend beyond a single meeting room to two main spaces, one for the congregation and one in which the priest performs the rituals of the Mass. To the two-room structure is often added aisles, a tower, chapels , and vestries and sometimes transepts and mortuary chapels. The additional chambers may be part of

246-484: A cathedral, might acquire transepts . These were effectively arms of the cross which now made up the ground plan of the building. The buildings became more clearly symbolic of what they were intended for. Sometimes this crossing, now the central focus of the church, would be surmounted by its own tower, in addition to the west end towers, or instead of them. (Such precarious structures were known to collapse – as at Ely – and had to be rebuilt.) Sanctuaries, now providing for

328-473: A cruciform groundplan . 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 . Many of the earliest churches of Byzantium have a longitudinal plan. At Hagia Sophia , Istanbul, there

410-479: A definite axis towards the apsidal chancel which generally extended further than the other apses. This projection allowed for the erection of an iconostasis , a screen on which icons are hung and which conceals the altar from the worshippers except at those points in the liturgy when its doors are opened. The architecture of Constantinople (Istanbul) in the 6th century produced churches that effectively combined centralized and basilica plans, having semi-domes forming

492-543: A distance by the congregation through the arch between the rooms (from late mediaeval times closed by a wooden partition, the Rood screen ), and the elevation of the host, the bread of the communion, became the focus of the celebration: it was not at that time generally partaken of by the congregation. Given that the liturgy was said in Latin, the people contented themselves with their own private devotions until this point. Because of

574-462: A geographically extensive rural parish) or mission church . Often the parish church will be the only one to have a full-time minister , who will also serve any smaller churches within the parish. (For example, St. Peter's Church in St. George's Parish, Bermuda, is located on St. George's Island ; hence, a chapel-of-ease, named simply Chapel-of-Ease , was erected on neighbouring St. David's Island so that

656-399: A mausoleum. These buildings copied pagan tombs and were square, cruciform with shallow projecting arms or polygonal. They were roofed by domes which came to symbolize heaven. The projecting arms were sometimes roofed with domes or semi-domes that were lower and abutted the central block of the building. Byzantine churches , although centrally planned around a domed space, generally maintained

738-511: A model ship is commonly found hanging in the nave of a church, and in some languages the same word means both 'nave' and 'ship', as for instance Danish skib , Swedish skepp , Dutch schip or Spanish nave . The earliest churches were built when builders were familiar with the form of the Roman basilica , a public building for business transactions. It had a wide central area, with aisles separated by columns, and with windows near

820-533: A multitude of church designs in Norway. In Ukraine, wood church constructions originate from the introduction of Christianity and continued to be widespread, particularly in rural areas, when masonry churches dominated in cities and in Western Europe. Church architecture varies depending on both the sect of the faith, as well as the geographical location and the influences acting upon it. Variances from

902-429: A particular rite, language, nationality, or community. Each parish has its own central church called the parish church, where religious services take place. The parish church is the center of most Catholics' spiritual life since it is there that they receive the sacraments . On Sundays and perhaps also daily, Mass is celebrated by a priest resident in the parish. Confession is made available and perhaps Vespers in

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984-533: A single meeting space, built of locally available material and using the same skills of construction as the local domestic buildings. Such churches are generally rectangular, but in African countries where circular dwellings are the norm, vernacular churches may be circular as well. A simple church may be built of mud brick, wattle and daub , split logs or rubble. It may be roofed with thatch, shingles, corrugated iron or banana leaves. However, church congregations, from

1066-451: A single-ended basilica with one apsidal end and a courtyard, or atrium , at the other end. As Christian liturgy developed, processions became part of the proceedings. The processional door was that which led from the furthest end of the building, while the door most used by the public might be that central to one side of the building, as in a basilica of law. This is the case in many cathedrals and churches. As numbers of clergy increased,

1148-400: Is a central dome, the frame on one axis by two high semi-domes and on the other by low rectangular transept arms, the overall plan being square. This large church was to influence the building of many later churches, even into the 21st century. A square plan in which the nave, chancel and transept arms are of equal length forming a Greek cross , the crossing generally surmounted by a dome became

1230-401: Is complicated by the fact that buildings put up for one purpose may have been re-used for another, that new building techniques may permit changes in style and size, that changes in liturgical practice may result in the alteration of existing buildings and that a building built by one religious group may be used by a successor group with different purposes. The simplest church building comprises

1312-517: Is the current St Paul's Cathedral in London. There are many other notable churches that have each had their own influence on the ever-changing style in England, such as Truro , Westminster Cathedral , Liverpool and Guildford . Between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the style of church architecture could be called 'Early English' and 'Decorated'. This time is considered to be when England

1394-623: The Basilica of San Clemente in Rome, are built directly over the houses where early Christians worshipped. Other early Roman churches are built on the sites of Christian martyrdom or at the entrance to catacombs where Christians were buried. With the victory of the Roman emperor Constantine at the Battle of Milvian Bridge in 312 AD, Christianity became a lawful and then the privileged religion of

1476-577: The Early Christianity to the present, the most significant objects of transformation for Christian architecture and design were the great churches of Byzantium , the Romanesque abbey churches , Gothic cathedrals and Renaissance basilicas with its emphasis on harmony. These large, often ornate and architecturally prestigious buildings were dominant features of the towns and countryside in which they stood. However, far more numerous were

1558-540: The Roman Empire . The faith, already spread around the Mediterranean, now expressed itself in buildings. Christian architecture was made to correspond to civic and imperial forms, and so the Basilica , a large rectangular meeting hall became general in east and west, as the model for churches, with a nave and aisles and sometimes galleries and clerestories . While civic basilicas had apses at either end,

1640-739: The Temple Church , London were built during the Crusades in imitation of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as isolated examples in England, France, and Spain. In Denmark such churches in the Romanesque style are much more numerous. In parts of Eastern Europe, there are also round tower-like churches of the Romanesque period but they are generally vernacular architecture and of small scale. Others, like St Martin's Rotunda at Visegrad, in

1722-412: The bishop licenses another building for worship, and may designate it as a parish centre of worship . This building is not consecrated, but is dedicated, and for most legal purposes it is deemed to be a parish church. In areas of increasing secularisation or shifts in religious belief, centres of worship are becoming more common, and many larger churches have been sold due to their upkeep costs. Instead

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1804-402: The lay worshippers, including the side-aisles and transepts. Either way, the nave is distinct from the area reserved for the choir and clergy . The nave extends from the entry—which may have a separate vestibule (the narthex )—to the chancel and may be flanked by lower side-aisles separated from the nave by an arcade . If the aisles are high and of a width comparable to the central nave,

1886-491: The parish churches in Christendom , the focus of Christian devotion in every town and village. While a few are counted as sublime works of architecture to equal the great cathedrals and churches , the majority developed along simpler lines, showing great regional diversity and often demonstrating local vernacular technology and decoration. Buildings were at first from those originally intended for other purposes but, with

1968-402: The parish priest (US ' pastor ') for celebrating those sacraments elsewhere. One sign of that is the parish church being the only one to have a baptismal font . Some larger parishes or parishes that have been combined under one parish priest, may have two or more such churches, or the parish may be responsible for chapels (or chapels of ease) located at some distance from the mother church for

2050-497: The 14th to the mid-16th century. Medieval naves were divided into bays, the repetition of form giving an effect of great length; and the vertical element of the nave was emphasized. During the Renaissance, in place of dramatic effects there were more balanced proportions. By the 1300s, the maintenance and decoration of the nave of parish churches was the responsibility of the parishioners; the clergy were responsible for keeping

2132-414: The 4th century onwards, have sought to construct church buildings that were both permanent and aesthetically pleasing. This had led to a tradition in which congregations and local leaders have invested time, money and personal prestige into the building and decoration of churches. Within any parish, the local church is often the oldest building and is larger than any pre-19th-century structure except perhaps

2214-651: The Christian basilica usually had a single apse where the bishop and presbyters sat in a dais behind the altar. While pagan basilicas had as their focus a statue of the emperor, Christian basilicas focused on the Eucharist as the symbol of the eternal, loving and forgiving God. The first very large Christian churches, notably Santa Maria Maggiore , San Giovanni in Laterano , and Santa Costanza , were built in Rome in

2296-495: The Czech Republic, are finely detailed. The circular or polygonal form lent itself to those buildings within church complexes that perform a function in which it is desirable for people to stand, or sit around, with a centralized focus, rather than an axial one. In Italy, the circular or polygonal form was used throughout the medieval period for baptisteries , while in England it was adapted for chapter houses . In France,

2378-586: The Domneasca both have Greek-inspired plans, but the Domneasca is far more developed than the Nicopolis church. Alongside these are also traces of Serbian, Georgian, and Armenian influences that found their way to Wallachia through Serbia. The split between Eastern and Western Church Architecture extended its influence into the churches we see in America today as well. America's churches are an amalgamation of

2460-534: The Middle Ages all wooden churches in Norway (about 1000 in total) were constructed in the stave church technique, but only 271 masonry constructions. After the Protestant reformation when the construction of new (or replacement of old) churches was resumed, wood was still the dominant material but the log technique became dominant. The log construction gave a lower more sturdy style of building compared to

2542-548: The Roman Empire in the fourth century AD, resulted in Christian ritual evolving in distinctly different ways in the eastern and western parts of the empire. The final break was the Great Schism of 1054. Eastern Christianity and Western Christianity began to diverge from each other from an early date. Whereas the basilica was the most common form in the west, a more compact centralized style became predominant in

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2624-516: The aisled polygonal plan was adopted as the eastern terminal and in Spain, the same form is often used as a chapel. Other than Santa Costanza and San Stefano, there was another significant place of worship in Rome that was also circular, the vast Ancient Roman Pantheon , with its numerous statue-filled niches. This too was to become a Christian church and lend its style to the development of Cathedral architecture. Most cathedrals and great churches have

2706-555: The architecture of all buildings, not just churches. In the early Romanian territory of Wallachia, there were three major influences that can be seen. The first are the western influences of Gothic and Romanesque styles, before later falling to the greater influence of the Byzantine styles. The early western influences can be seen in two places, the first is a church in Câmpulung , that showcases distinctly Romanesque styles, and

2788-712: The axis, and arcaded galleries on either side. The church of Hagia Sophia (now a mosque) was the most significant example and had an enormous influence on both later Christian and Islamic architecture , such as the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and the Umayyad Great Mosque in Damascus. Many later Eastern Orthodox churches, particularly large ones, combine a centrally planned, domed eastern end with an aisled nave at

2870-555: The ceiling. Old St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is an early church which had this form. It was built in the 4th century on the orders of Roman emperor Constantine I , and replaced in the 16th century. The nave, the main body of the building, is the section set apart for the laity, while the chancel is reserved for the clergy. In medieval churches the nave was separated from the chancel by the rood screen ; these, being elaborately decorated, were notable features in European churches from

2952-469: The chancel in repair. Church architecture Church architecture refers to the architecture of Christian buildings, such as churches , chapels, convents , seminaries , etc. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion , partly by innovation and partly by borrowing other architectural styles as well as responding to changing beliefs, practices and local traditions. From

3034-438: The church contained relics of a saint or other holy objects that were likely to draw pilgrimage. Collegiate churches and abbey churches, even those serving small religious communities, generally demonstrate a greater complexity of form than parochial churches in the same area and of a similar date. Churches that have been built under the patronage of a bishop have generally employed a competent church architect and demonstrate in

3116-463: The church may use community centres or the facilities of a local church of another denomination. While villages and small towns may have a single parish church, larger towns may have a parish church and other smaller churches in various districts. These other churches do not have the legal or religious status of a parish church, and may be described by a variety of terms, such as chapel of ease (this term more often refers to an additional church in

3198-501: The city might he burnt; for there were many and large buildings that surrounded the church. Then the Pretorian Guards came in battle array, with axes and other iron instruments, and having been let loose everywhere, they in a few hours leveled that very lofty edifice with the ground. From the first to the early fourth centuries most Christian communities worshipped in private homes, often secretly. Some Roman churches, such as

3280-631: The common form in the Eastern Orthodox Church , with many churches throughout Eastern Europe and Russia being built in this way. Churches of the Greek Cross form often have a narthex or vestibule which stretches across the front of the church. This type of plan was also to later play a part in the development of church architecture in Western Europe, most notably in Bramante 's plan for St. Peter's Basilica . The division of

3362-469: The convenience of distant parishioners. In England and many British Overseas Territories as well as former British territories, the Church of England parish church is the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches. Parishes cover almost the whole area of England. In addition to ecclesiastic parishes , with which this article is concerned, there is also a system of civil parishes , which represent

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3444-664: The design refinement of style unlike that of the parochial builder. Many parochial churches have had the patronage of wealthy local families. The degree to which this has an effect on the architecture can differ greatly. It may entail the design and construction of the entire building having been financed and influenced by a particular patron. On the other hand, the evidence of patronage may be apparent only in accretion of chantry chapels, tombs, memorials, fittings, stained glass, and other decorations. Churches that contain famous relics or objects of veneration and have thus become pilgrimage churches are often very large and have been elevated to

3526-434: The difficulty of sight lines, some churches had holes, 'squints', cut strategically in walls and screens, through which the elevation could be seen from the nave. Again, from the twin principles that every priest must say his mass every day and that an altar could only be used once, in religious communities a number of altars were required for which space had to be found, at least within monastic churches. Apart from changes in

3608-457: The earliest of adapted residences is at Dura Europos church , built shortly after 200 AD, where two rooms were made into one, by removing a wall, and a dais was set up. To the right of the entrance a small room was made into a baptistry . Some church buildings were specifically built as church assemblies, such as that opposite the emperor Diocletian 's palace in Nicomedia. Its destruction

3690-498: The early 4th century. The church building as we know it grew out of a number of features of the Ancient Roman period: When early Christian communities began to build churches they drew on one particular feature of the houses that preceded them, the atrium , or courtyard with a colonnade surrounding it. Most of these atriums have disappeared. A fine example remains at the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome and another

3772-539: The east. These churches were in origin martyria , constructed as mausoleums housing the tombs of the saints who had died during the persecutions which only fully ended with the conversion of Emperor Constantine. An important surviving example is the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia in Ravenna, which has retained its mosaic decorations. Dating from the 5th century, it may have been briefly used as an oratory before it became

3854-401: The flames; the utensils and furniture of the church were abandoned to pillage: all was rapine, confusion, tumult. That church, situated on rising ground, was within view of the palace; and Diocletian and Galerius stood as if on a watchtower, disputing long whether it ought to be set on fire. The sentiment of Diocletian prevailed, who dreaded lest, so great a fire being once kindled, some part of

3936-481: The island's residents need not cross St. George's Harbour .) In cities without an Anglican cathedral , the parish church may have administrative functions similar to that of a cathedral. However, the diocese will still have a cathedral. The Church of Scotland , the established Presbyterian church also uses a system of parish churches, covering the whole of Scotland . In Massachusetts , towns elected publicly funded parish churches from 1780 until 1834, under

4018-466: The larger or more progressive parishes. There are also laity-led activities and social events in accordance with local culture and circumstances. Roman Catholics are not obliged to worship only at the parish church to which they belong, but they may for convenience or taste, attend services at any Roman Catholic church. However, their parish church is the one, where members of the parish must go to, for baptisms and weddings , unless they are permitted by

4100-689: The largest churches in Venice , built by the Dominican Friars in competition to the Franciscans who were building the Frari Church at the same time. The much smaller church that contained the body of Saint Lucy , a martyr venerated by Catholics and Protestants across the world and the titular saint of numerous locations, was demolished in the late 19th century to make way for Venice's railway station. The first truly baroque façade

4182-467: The last war, there was a movement towards a new style of architecture, one that was more functional than embellished. There was an increased use of steel and concrete and a rebellion against the romantic nature of the traditional style. This resulted in a 'battle of the styles' in which one side was leaning towards the modernist, functional way of design, and the other was following traditional Romanesque , Gothic , and Renaissance styles, as reflected in

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4264-470: The light and often tall stave churches. Log construction became structurally unstable for long and tall walls, particularly if cut through by tall windows. Adding transepts improved the stability of the log technique and is one reason why the cruciform floor plan was widely used during 1600 and 1700s. For instance the Old Olden Church (1759) replaced a building damaged by hurricane, the 1759 church

4346-476: The liturgy, the other major influence on church architecture was in the use of new materials and the development of new techniques. In northern Europe, early churches were often built of wood, for which reason almost none survive. With the wider use of stone by the Benedictine monks, in the tenth and eleventh centuries, larger structures were erected. The two-room church, particularly if it were an abbey or

4428-412: The main meeting hall, forming two arms so that the building took on the shape of a T with a projecting apse. From this beginning, the plan of the church developed into the so-called Latin Cross which is the shape of most Western Cathedrals and large churches. The arms of the cross are called the transept . One of the influences on church architecture was the mausoleum . The mausoleum of a noble Roman

4510-631: The many styles and cultures that collided here, examples being St. Constantine, a Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Minneapolis, Polish Cathedral style churches, and Russian Orthodox churches, found all across the country. There are remnants of the Byzantine inspired architecture in many of the churches, such as the large domed ceilings, extensive stonework, and a maximizing of space to be used for religious iconography on walls and such. Churches classified as Ukrainian or Catholic also seem to follow

4592-501: The original plan, but in the case of a great many old churches, the building has been extended piecemeal, its various parts testifying to its long architectural history. In the first three centuries of the Early Livia Christian Church , the practice of Christianity was illegal and few churches were constructed. In the beginning, Christians worshipped along with Jews in synagogues and in private houses. After

4674-452: The porch church, began to decline as the church became increasingly clericalized; with the rise of the monasteries church buildings changed as well. The 'two-room' church' became, in Europe, the norm. The first 'room', the nave, was used by the congregation; the second 'room', the sanctuary, was the preserve of the clergy and was where the Mass was celebrated. This could then only be seen from

4756-416: The prevalent style was Gothic for around 300 years but the style was clearly present for many years before that as well. In these late Gothic times, there was a specific way in which the foundations for the churches were built. First, a stone skeleton would be built, then the spaces between the vertical supports filled with large glass windows, then those windows supported by their own transoms and mullions. On

4838-419: The pulpit and altar was obstructed by interior corners for seats in the transept. The octagonal floor plan offers good visibility as well as a rigid structure allowing a relatively wide nave to be constructed – Håkon Christie believes that this is a reason why the octagonal church design became popular during the 1700s. Vreim believes that the introduction of log technique after the reformation resulted in

4920-418: The rise of distinctively ecclesiastical architecture, church buildings came to influence secular ones which have often imitated religious architecture . In the 20th century, the use of new materials, such as steel and concrete , has had an effect upon the design of churches. The history of church architecture divides itself into periods, and into countries or regions and by religious affiliation. The matter

5002-413: The same region and within the same historic period. Among the factors that determined how a church was designed and built are the nature of the local community, the location in city, town or village, whether the church was an abbey church, whether the church was a collegiate church, whether the church had the patronage of a bishop, whether the church had the ongoing patronage of a wealthy family and whether

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5084-777: The second are the remnants of a church in Drobeta-Turnu Severin , which has features of the Gothic style. There are not many remaining examples of those two styles, but the Byzantine influence is much more prominent. A few prime examples of the direct Byzantine influence are the St. Nicoara and Domneasca in Curtea de Arges , and church at Nicopolis in Bulgaria . These all show the characteristic features such as sanctuaries, rectangular naves, circular interiors with non-circular exteriors, and small chapels. The Nicopolis church and

5166-560: The separation of Jews and Christians, the latter continued to worship in people's houses, known as house churches . These were often the homes of the wealthier members of the faith. Saint Paul , in his first letter to the Corinthians writes: "The churches of Asia send greetings. Aquila and Prisca , together with the church in their house, greet you warmly in the Lord." Some domestic buildings were adapted to function as churches. One of

5248-404: The singing of the offices by monks or canons , grew longer and became chancels , separated from the nave by a screen. Practical function and symbolism were both at work in the process of development. Across Europe, the process by which church architecture developed and individual churches were designed and built was different in different regions, and sometimes differed from church to church in

5330-499: The small apse which contained the altar, or table upon which the sacramental bread and wine were offered in the rite of Holy Communion , was not sufficient to accommodate them. A raised dais called a bema , a concept taken from synagogue architecture, formed part of many large basilican churches. In the case of St. Peter's Basilica and San Paolo Fuori le Mura (St Paul's outside the Walls) in Rome, this bema extended laterally beyond

5412-470: The smallest tier of administrative units. However since the 19th century these have not shared the same boundaries, or often the same names. (In other territories arrangements may differ, e.g. in Bermuda civil and church parishes still share the same boundaries, see Anglican Church of Bermuda ). Most ecclesiastical parishes have an Anglican parish church , which is consecrated . If there is no parish church,

5494-510: The status of basilica . However, many other churches enshrine the bodies or are associated with the lives of particular saints without having attracted continuing pilgrimage and the financial benefit that it brought. The popularity of saints, the veneration of their relics, and the size and importance of the church built to honor them are without consistency and can be dependent upon entirely different factors. Two virtually unknown warrior saints, San Giovanni and San Paolo , are honoured by one of

5576-531: The structure is sometimes said to have three naves. It provides the central approach to the high altar . The term nave is from navis , the Latin word for ship , an early Christian symbol of the Church as a whole, with a possible connection to the " Ship of St. Peter " or the Ark of Noah . The term may also have been suggested by the keel shape of the vaulting of a church. In many Nordic and Baltic countries

5658-403: The topic of church windows, the windows are somewhat controversial as some argue that the church should be flooded with light and some argue that they should be dim for an ideal praying environment. Most church plans in England have their roots in one of two styles, Basilican and Celtic and then we see the later emergence of a 'two-cell' plan, consisting of nave and sanctuary. In the time before

5740-424: The trend of being overall much more elaborately decorated and accentuated than their Protestant counterparts, in which decoration is simple. Parish church Each diocese (administrative unit, headed by a bishop) is divided into parishes. Normally, a parish consists of all Catholics living within its geographically defined area. Within a diocese, there can also be overlapping parishes for Catholics belonging to

5822-523: The typical church architecture as well as unique characteristics can be seen in many areas around the globe. The style of churches in England has gone through many changes under the influence of geographical, geological, climatic, religious, social and historical factors. One of the earliest style changes is shown in Westminster Abbey , which was built in a foreign style and was a cause for concern for many as it heralded change. A second example

5904-590: The west. A variant form of the centralized church was developed in Russia and came to prominence in the sixteenth century. Here the dome was replaced by a much thinner and taller hipped or conical roof which perhaps originated from the need to prevent snow from remaining on roofs. One of the finest examples of these tented churches is St. Basil's in Red Square in Moscow. Participation in worship, which gave rise to

5986-434: Was a square or circular domed structure which housed a sarcophagus . The Emperor Constantine built for his daughter Costanza a mausoleum which has a circular central space surrounded by a lower ambulatory or passageway separated by a colonnade. Santa Costanza 's burial place became a place of worship as well as a tomb. It is one of the earliest church buildings that was central, rather than longitudinally planned. Constantine

6068-475: Was also responsible for the building of the circular, mausoleum-like Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem , which in turn influenced the plan of a number of buildings, including that constructed in Rome to house the remains of the proto-martyr Stephen , San Stefano Rotondo and the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. Ancient circular or polygonal churches are comparatively rare. A small number, such as

6150-871: Was built in Rome between 1568 and 1584 for the Church of the Gesù , the mother church of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). It introduced the baroque style into architecture. Corresponding with the Society's theological task as the spearhead of the Counter-Reformation , the new style soon became a triumphant feature in Catholic church architecture. After the second world war, modern materials and techniques such as concrete and metal panels were introduced in Norwegian church construction. Bodø Cathedral for instance

6232-527: Was built in reinforced concrete allowing a wide basilica to be built. During the 1960s there was a more pronounced break from tradition as in the Arctic Cathedral built in lightweight concrete and covered in aluminum sidings. In Norway , church architecture has been affected by wood as the preferred material, particularly in sparsely populated areas. Churches built until the second world war are about 90% wooden except medieval constructions. During

6314-679: Was built in the Romanesque period at Sant'Ambrogio, Milan . The descendants of these atria may be seen in the large square cloisters that can be found beside many cathedrals, and in the huge colonnaded squares or piazza at the Basilicas of St Peter's in Rome and St Mark's in Venice and the Camposanto (Holy Field) at the Cathedral of Pisa. Early church architecture did not draw its form from Roman temples, as they did not have large internal spaces where worshipping congregations could meet. It

6396-792: Was in its prime in the category of a church building. It was after the Black Death that the style went through another change, the 'perpendicular style', where ornamentation became more extravagant. An architectural element that appeared soon after the Black Death style change and is observed extensively in Medieval English styles is fan vaulting, seen in the Chapel of Henry VII and the King's College Chapel in Cambridge. After this,

6478-553: Was recorded thus: When that day dawned, in the eighth consulship of Diocletian and seventh of Maximian , suddenly, while it was yet hardly light, the prefect, together with chief commanders, tribunes, and officers of the treasury, came to the church in Nicomedia, and the gates having been forced open, they searched everywhere for an idol of the Divinity. The books of the Holy Scriptures were found, and they were committed to

6560-400: Was that at either end it had a projecting exedra , or apse , a semicircular 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 . The earliest large churches, such as the Cathedral of San Giovanni in Laterano in Rome, consisted of

6642-406: 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, braced on either side by a series of lower chambers or a wide arcaded passage. An important feature of the Roman basilica

6724-412: Was then constructed in cruciform shape to make it withstand the strongest winds. The length of trees (logs) also determined the length of walls according to Sæther. In Samnanger church for instance, outside corners have been cut to avoid splicing logs, the result is an octagonal floor plan rather than rectangular. The cruciform constructions provided a more rigid structure and larger churches, but view to

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