دانلود کتاب Wells cathedral west front

Wells Cathedral west front forms the
most important gallery of
thirteenth-century carving in
northern Europe outside France. One of the
earliest Gothic buildings in Britain, it is
renowned throughout Europe, the USA and
Canada. This major work provides a uniquely
detailed look at the construction and sculpture of
the Cathedral, and its restoration from earliest
times to the present day, thus enabling the
modern visitor not only to appreciate, as never
before, how the west front must originally have
appeared in the mid-thirteenth century, but to
gain an understanding of the spiritual reality
which it conveyed, and to learn how it was
designed and used.
The conservation programme, carried out
between 1974 and 1986, pioneered techniques
for the preservation of the almost 300 medieval
sculptures of the west front. It also provided an
unparalleled opportunity to record and analyse
the sculpture and architecture within which it
stands. Jerry Sampson worked alongside the
conservators and masons preparing record
drawings and reports on the sculptures,
photographing and recording the discoveries
which were made in the course of the
conservation. Out of this has emerged a clear
picture of how the facade was constructed and
how it looked when the medieval paint was still
fresh — a great screen covered with tabernacled
saints, the whole glowing with its rich painted
and gilded decoration — and how and when
repairs were made over its 700-year history.
This book examines the phases of
construction of the Cathedral; the design of the
west front, and its importance as a dramatic
backdrop to the great Palm Sunday procession;
the formation, activities, tools and methods used
by the medieval stone-carvers’ workshops; the
form of the original sculptural and painted
decoration and the methods used in their
creation; the iconography of the sculpture and
the liturgical function of the west front; the
processes of alteration, decay and damage over
the past 700 years; and the innovative methods
emploved in conservation, which are now being
used as a model for work on projects elsewhere.
The sculpture catalogue describes each carving
and its method of construction, identifies those
represented, where possible, and interprets its
meaning in the context of the overall scheme.
Containing nearly 150 illustrations in colour
and black and white, this book will be invaluable
for architects and archaeologists serving in the
conservation field and for those who care for
historic buildings, while Wells’ seminal place in
architectural history makes it essential for those
who study Gothic art and architecture. With its
detailed examination of the west front’s
iconography, giving a unique insight into the
spiritual life of the medieval world, the book will
also be of interest to medieval historians
worldwide. Wells Cathedral West Front is a
milestone in architectural and conservation
history and is likely to be the standard work on
Wells.