Element of « rayonnant » Gothic architecture - France - 14th century

This important element of stone architecture was certainly part of a filling, in other words, a carved stone openwork network forming a decoration, of the radiant Gothic style. It is a real testimony to the virtuosity of the craftsman's stonework and his ability to create an alternation of voids and solids, characteristic of the Gothic period.

Indeed, Gothic architecture has a strong interest in light and its presence within religious buildings. Indeed, the reforms undertaken by Father Suger at Saint-Denis Basilica during the 12th century brought about a new scholastic movement, the theology of light, of which Gothic architecture is the materialization. Based on the statement of the Pseudo-Denis the Areopagite: "God is light", this doctrine puts in place technical means to flood churches with light suggesting the divine incarnation through it. Our architectural element is entirely part of this school of thought, which has been extended into an aesthetic school.