pair ofStone gothic columns - France 13th century

This charming pair of colonnettes carved in soft limestone is a 13th century production. The capitals are decorated with flat water leaves and hooks: a typical early Gothic decoration. The tailloir (the upper part of the capital) is square. At the base, the protruding tori surround the three columns.
In his Dictionnaire raisonné de l'architecture française, Viollet-le-Duc explains that around 1230, a change in the construction of the capitals of the first Gothic appeared: "A hook is placed under each of the angles of the tailloir; as many protruding angles, as many hooks, or, to say it better, supports; this was logical." He also points out that the square-shaped tailloirs, which ultimately added nothing to the structure, were changed to circular tailloirs around 1235. Thanks to this we can date our pair as being from the first third of the 13th century. The decoration indicates a probably Norman realization: the water leaves and the hooks are common in this region rich in architecture.
Beautiful example of early gothic architecture: massive in form but pure in lines; these columns of great modernity will echo the most contemporary design.