Heritage with Related Tags
Notre-Dame Cathedral in Tournai
Notre-Dame de Tournai was built in the first half of the 12th century. It features a huge Romanesque nave, numerous sculptures on the capitals and transepts topped with five towers, all of which are precursors to the Gothic style. The choir was rebuilt in the 13th century in a pure Gothic style.
Mudejar Architecture of Aragon
The development of Aragonese Mudéjar art in the 12th century was the result of the particular political, social and cultural conditions of post-Reconquista Spain. This art was influenced by Islamic traditions and also reflected various contemporary European styles, especially Gothic. This art, which lasted until the beginning of the 17th century, is characterized by an extremely refined and creative use of bricks and glazed tiles in architecture, especially in bell towers.
Maulbronn Monastery Complex
Founded in 1147, the Cistercian Abbey of Maulbronn is considered the most complete and best-preserved medieval monastic complex north of the Alps. The main buildings of the abbey were built between the 12th and 16th centuries and are surrounded by defensive walls. The abbey's church is mainly in the Transitional Gothic style and had a major influence on the spread of Gothic architecture throughout much of Northern and Central Europe. Maulbronn's water management system with its complex network of drainage systems, irrigation canals and reservoirs is very remarkable.
Episcopal City of Albi
Located on the Tarn River in southwestern France, the old city of Albi is a culmination of medieval architecture and urban integrity. Today, the Pont-Vieux, the Saint-Salve quarter and its church bear witness to the city's early development (10th-11th centuries). After the Albigensian Crusade against the Cathar pagans (13th century), the city became a powerful episcopal city. The towering fortified cathedral (late 13th century), built of local bricks in a distinctive southern French Gothic style with typical red and orange colours, is the city's commanding point and demonstrates the power regained by the Roman Catholic clergy. Next to the cathedral is the huge episcopal palace, overlooking the river, surrounded by residential areas dating back to the Middle Ages. The episcopal city of Albi forms a coherent and homogeneous group of monuments and neighbourhoods that have remained largely unchanged over the centuries.
Old City of Dubrovnik
The "Pearl of the Adriatic" on the Dalmatian coast has been an important maritime power in the Mediterranean since the 13th century. Despite being severely damaged by an earthquake in 1667, Dubrovnik has managed to preserve its beautiful Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque churches, monasteries, palaces and fountains. Armed conflict again took its toll on Dubrovnik in the 1990s, and it is now the focus of a major restoration program coordinated by UNESCO.
Historic Centre of Siena
Siena is a classic example of a medieval city. The inhabitants of Siena competed with Florence in the area of urban planning. For centuries, they preserved the city's Gothic appearance, which was developed between the 12th and 15th centuries. During this period, the work of Duccio, the Lorenzetti brothers and Simone Martini influenced the development of art in Italy and throughout Europe. The entire city of Siena is built around Piazza del Campo and is designed like a work of art that blends in with the surrounding landscape.
Amiens Cathedral
Located in the heart of Picardy, Amiens Cathedral is one of the largest "classical" Gothic churches of the 13th century. It is noted for the coherence of its plan, the beauty of its three-story interior facade, and the particularly fine display of sculpture on the main facade and in the south transept.
Mir Castle Complex
The castle was originally built at the end of the 15th century in Gothic style. It was later expanded and rebuilt, first in Renaissance style and then in Baroque style. After being abandoned for nearly a century and suffering serious damage during the Napoleonic period, the castle was restored at the end of the 19th century, with the addition of many other elements and the transformation of the surrounding area into a park. Its current form bears vivid witness to its turbulent history.
Historic Centre of Český Krumlov
Located on the Vltava River, the town was built around a 13th-century castle and combines Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque elements. It is an outstanding example of a medieval town in Central Europe, and its architectural heritage has remained intact thanks to more than five centuries of peaceful development.
Old City of Salamanca
This ancient university city northwest of Madrid was first conquered by the Carthaginians in the 3rd century BC, then became a Roman settlement before coming under Moorish rule in the 11th century. The university is one of the oldest in Europe and reached its peak in the 18th century. Salamanca's Golden Age. The city's historic centre features important Romanesque, Gothic, Moorish, Renaissance and Baroque monuments. The main square with its galleries and arcades is particularly impressive.
Naumburg Cathedral
Located in the eastern Thuringian Basin, Naumburg Cathedral was founded in 1028 and is an outstanding testimony to medieval art and architecture. Its Romanesque structure is flanked by two Gothic choirs, demonstrating the stylistic shift from late Romanesque to early Gothic. The west choir dates from the first half of the 13th century and reflects changes in religious practices and the emergence of science and nature in figurative art. The choir and the life-size statues of the cathedral's founders are masterpieces of the workshop known as the "Naumburg Masters".
Roskilde Cathedral
Built in the 12th-13th centuries, the church was the first brick Gothic church in Scandinavia and helped spread the style throughout northern Europe. It has served as a mausoleum for the Danish royal family since the 15th century. The porch and side aisles were added to the church only in the late 19th century. It thus provides a clear overview of the development of religious architecture in Europe.
Burgos Cathedral
The Church of Our Lady of Burgos was begun in the 13th century, at the same time as the Ile-de-France Cathedral, and completed in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its superb architecture and unique collection of works of art (including paintings, choir stalls, altarpieces, tombs and stained glass windows) epitomize the entire history of Gothic art.
Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Former Abbey of Saint-Rémi and Palace of Tau, Reims
The brilliant use of new building techniques in the 13th century and the perfect combination of sculptural decoration and architecture make Notre-Dame de Reims one of the masterpieces of Gothic art. This former monastery still retains the beautiful 9th-century nave, which houses the remains of Archbishop Saint-Rémi (440-533), who performed the holy anointings for the Kings of France. The former Archbishop's Palace, known as the Palais de Tau, played an important role in religious ceremonies and was almost completely rebuilt in the 17th century.
Bourges Cathedral
Built between the late 12th and 13th centuries, the Cathedral of Saint-Étienne in Bourges is one of the great masterpieces of Gothic art, admired for its proportions and unity of design. The cathedral's tympanum, sculptures and stained glass windows are particularly noteworthy. In addition to its architectural beauty, it is a testament to the influence of Christianity in medieval France.
Monastery of Alcobaça
The Monastery of Santa María de Alcobaça, located in the north of Lisbon, was built in the 12th century by King Afonso I. The monastery's large size, authentic architecture, fine materials and meticulous construction make it a masterpiece of Cistercian Gothic art.
Historic Centre of the City of Salzburg
Salzburg has preserved an extremely rich urban structure that developed between the Middle Ages and the 19th century when it was a city-state ruled by a prince-archbishop. Its flamboyant Gothic art attracted many craftsmen and artists, and the city later became even more famous for the work of Italian architects Vincenzo Scamozzi and Santini Solari, to whom the Baroque style of Salzburg's city center is largely attributed. This meeting point of northern and southern Europe perhaps inspired the talent of Salzburg's most famous son, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose name has been associated with the city ever since.
Chartres Cathedral
Partially begun in 1145 and rebuilt over 26 years after a fire in 1194, Chartres Cathedral is the pinnacle of French Gothic art. Its spacious nave, true to the apex style, its porches decorated with exquisite sculptures from the mid-12th century, and its magnificent stained-glass windows from the 12th and 13th centuries, make it a masterpiece.
Old Town of Cáceres
The city's architectural style is a mix of Roman, Islamic, Northern Gothic and Italian Renaissance styles, reflecting the history of wars between Moors and Christians. Of the 30 towers built during the Muslim period, the Bujako Tower is the most famous.
Kutná Hora: Historical Town Centre with the Church of St Barbara and the Cathedral of Our Lady at Sedlec
Kutná Hora developed as a result of silver mining. In the 14th century, it became a royal city with monuments that symbolize its prosperity. The Church of St. Barbara is a jewel of the late Gothic period, and the Cathedral of Our Lady of Sedlec has been restored in the early 18th century Baroque style, which influenced the architecture of Central Europe. These masterpieces now form part of a well-preserved medieval urban fabric, among which there are some particularly fine private residences.