Saint-Denis Cathedral

West facade with three portal system

West facade before the demolition of the damaged north tower in 1844/45

The Cathedral of Saint-Denis ( French Basilique de Saint-Denis ) is a former abbey church in the city of Saint-Denis north of Paris .

It does art history as one of the Gründungsbauten the Gothic , as in the 1140 under Abbot Suger started ambulatory first ogival ribbed vaults were executed.

The church is dedicated to St. Dionysius , the patron saint and first bishop of Paris . Since 564 it served the Frankish kings as a burial place . From the end of the 10th century until 1830, almost all French kings and many queens were buried there. In the course of the French Revolution , the royal tombs were plundered from 1793–1794 . The sculptures in the church were also badly damaged.

Since 1862, Saint-Denis has been classified as a Monument historique . It was elevated to the cathedral of the diocese of Saint-Denis in 1966 . Since 1996, the cathedral of Saint-Denis has been on France's list of proposed UNESCO World Heritage Sites .

history

Central nave

In the 4th century, a burial chapel was built over the grave of St. Dionysius of Paris. According to legend, Dionysius was beheaded in Montmartre around 249 during the persecution of Christians . He picked up his head and wandered to the location of today's church, where he fell over and was buried. There is evidence of a monastery around 625, to which the Merovingians devoted their full attention, in particular Chlothar I (king of the entire Franconian Empire from 558-561), who had his wife Arnegunde († around 565) buried there at great expense, Chlothar II (king of the Franks from 584–629) and Dagobert I (king from 629–638). The latter made so many gifts to the monastery - among other things, he had a valuable new shrine built for the relics - that he was viewed by the monks of later times as the founder of the monastery. Above all, however, he broke with tradition and did not choose the previous royal necropolis, the Abbey of Saint-Vincent-Sainte-Croix (future Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés ) as his burial site, but the Abbey of St-Denis. His widow Nanthild and his son Clovis II († 657) and also the caretaker Karl Martell († 741) did the same. The latter wanted to demonstrate his power.

The first Carolingian , Karl Martell's son Pippin the Younger (King from 751–768) began building a new sanctuary (around 750–775). This allowed the pilgrims to walk around the tombs of the saints. Thanks to the support of the influential Abbot Fulrad of St-Denis, who had campaigned for him in Rome, Pippin was able to be crowned king in the choir of the abbey church by Pope Stephen II . He was also buried at the church before the work he had started under Charlemagne was completed. Its new capital was Aachen , the abbey lost its influence and only Charles the Bald († 877) found his final resting place in St-Denis.

With the rise of power of the founder of the Capetian dynasty , Hugo Capet (King of France from 987-996), St-Denis finally consolidated its role as the burial place of the French kings, who - with the exception of Philip I , Louis VII , Louis XI . , Karl X. and Ludwig Philipp I. were all buried there.

During the French Revolution , the royal tombs were badly damaged. Following a corresponding decision by the National Convention , many graves were opened and looted during the First Coalition War . Among other things, this was done in order to obtain material for ammunition production from the lead coffins .

Building history

The architectural history of Saint-Denis can be divided into three main phases: the Carolingian construction, the construction of the early Gothic and the extensions of the Rayonnant style.

The current church rises on the site of several little-known previous buildings. A burial chapel was built over the grave of St. Dionysius of Paris as early as the 4th century. According to the testimony of Gregory of Tours (538-594), St. Genoveva had the burial chapel replaced by a larger church in 475, which from 564 AD served the Frankish kings as a burial place. A monastery that developed rapidly due to its favorable location in the fertile Parisian basin and on the old trade route from Paris to Rouen is documented around 625. King Pippin the Younger begins around 750-775 with the construction of a new sanctuary, which allows pilgrims to walk around the graves of the saints.

The church owes its current Gothic appearance to one of the most important personalities of the 12th century, Abbot Suger (1081–1151). Under his direction, the new construction of Saint-Denis begins with the laying of the foundation stone for the west facade on June 9, 1137. In 1140 the choir begins; it contains the first ogival cross-ribbed vaults. On June 9th of the same year the consecration of the western complex takes place.

From 1141 onwards, the abbey began building the nave and the upper choir floors. The architect is unknown, he is known as the Saint-Denis master. The early Gothic choir is completed after three years of construction and consecrated on June 11, 1144. The old nave remains as a building structure. After Sucker’s death in 1151, construction work came to a standstill, so that the nave was not built in the High Gothic style until 1231–1281. In 1219 the north tower of the westwork, modeled on St-Etienne in Caen , was built. However, this is struck by lightning strikes in 1837 and 1840 and then removed. From 1231 to 1245 the choir was also renewed: the pillars of the inner choir were replaced and tracery windows were installed in the upper storey. Furthermore, the triforium is cleared and the transept is expanded to five aisles. In addition, it receives a rose window each in the south and in the north (1236–1238).

In 1771 the garment figures were torn out in Saint-Denis. During the French Revolution in 1793, the graves were looted and other sculptures in the church were badly damaged. The windows of the church were also largely destroyed in 1793. Eugène Viollet-le-Duc restored some of them in 1848, fractions and full windows can be found in churches and collections across Europe. The restorations of 1839/40, which were carried out according to taste and knowledge of the time, distort the original appearance of the entire complex. Only the formal division of the areas is original.

The missing north tower is to be rebuilt.

architecture

The facade

St. Trinity, detail of the archivolts of the central portal, around 1150/1840

The foundation stone of the west facade was laid on June 9, 1137 under the direction of Abbot Suger and its consecration on June 9, 1140.

It is divided into three vertically by buttresses. The side portals are horizontally divided into four sections. At the very bottom are the portals, above a triforium, which is only broken in the middle by an arched window. This is followed by another higher blind triforium, which in turn has arched windows on the sides. At the top there are four figural reliefs. The conclusion is a crenellated wreath that extends over the entire facade.

Vestments on the west portals (destroyed), copper engraving from 1733

A two-story tower with two and three acoustic windows adjoins the southern side of the portal. The central portal is the highest portal on the facade. Above it, as in the side zones, there is a large blinded triforium with a round arched window in the middle and writing panels under the two side arches. Above it is a rose window with an integrated clock. Figure sculptures on the side portals show the kings of Israel. Their tympana were originally decorated with mosaics. Today they contain reliefs from 1840.

The tympanum of the central portal shows Jesus enthroned as Judge of the Last Judgment . In 1839/40 all heads, several angels, the devil's groups, inscriptions and instruments of suffering were renewed, as were the archivolts . The door posts of the side portals, with representations of the zodiac and the month, and the central portal with reliefs of the wise and foolish virgins are less well preserved .

The garment figures, the first known Gothic column figures, were torn out in 1771. They represented 20 kings and prophets of the Old Testament . Engravings by Montfaucon (1733) give an impression of the former existence. Further destruction took place during the French Revolution .

The first Gothic choir

The ambulatory

The choir windows

A floor plan of the St-Denis choir shows a crucial principle of the Gothic room, as it appeared here for the first time in 1140. The choir has a so-called ambulatory and a chapel wreath . The buttresses , which support the vault from the outside, stand between the chapels . Both the ambulatory and the chapel wreath are divided into individual compartments, each of which has an irregular ribbed vault . It is crucial that the vaults of the ambulatory and the chapel crown are connected to form a single space, which could not be made possible with the Romanesque vaults. This vault shape is therefore considered to be one of the main hallmarks of Gothic architecture.

In retrospect, it is quite difficult to understand which revolution this innovation of 1140 triggered in sacred architecture. Only through the invention and ingenious combination of new forms of construction and construction techniques, such as pointed arches, ribbed vaults, buttresses and buttresses, was it technically possible to achieve the desired transparency of the interior with the help of larger windows and the desire for higher walls, towers, etc. in practice realize. The pressure of the vault, the vault thrust, was no longer absorbed by the massive pillars and walls alone, but was diverted to the outside via the pillar system. At the same time, the weight of a vault could be significantly reduced by the skeleton construction of the pointed arch technique. The windows could be enlarged and widened almost as desired without damaging the load-bearing capacity and stability of the wall.

How the ribbed vault worked in detail is controversial in science or not plausibly clarified. The bomb damage of the Second World War often resulted in situations that cannot be brought about experimentally: In many churches it was possible to check how the vaults had survived the damage and, paradoxically, there were two different variants: There were cross-rib vaults in which the Ribs had fallen off, but they remained stable, as it were as groin vaults . On the other hand, there have been cases where only the ribs remained, but the vaulted cheeks fell off. In view of this, one could assume that these are two different vault shapes that have simply been combined.

According to current knowledge, it is assumed that the ribs do not objectively improve the load-bearing behavior of the cross vault. The question still remains whether the ribbed vaults in St-Denis in 1140 were primarily built for aesthetic reasons or to simplify the construction of the vaults, i.e. were only of structural interest.

One hypothesis is that in a ribbed vault the weight of the stone vault is concentrated on the ribs, which transfer the weight inside to the pillars - and outside to the buttresses, so that what arises as a whole is what art science calls a linear support system: a System in which the loading forces are diverted along lines - via the ribs on the pillars inside and outside.

It is crucial for the further development of Gothic architecture that two different principles are combined in the cross ribs : They have a specific function and they also express this clearly, underlined by a color design or emphasis on the lines of force.

Light entering through the triforium and the arc of light

Triforium

The high Gothic conversion and the illuminated triforium (1231–1281)

From 1231 the abbey undertook to rebuild the nave and the upper choir floors. The architect is unknown, he is known as the Saint-Denis master.

After the early Gothic choir was already revolutionary in terms of the incidence of light, there is another architectural innovation of great importance in the high Gothic new building in St-Denis: the so-called illuminated triforium . The development went as follows: The early Gothic choir was completed in only three years of construction and consecrated on June 11, 1144. In contrast, the old nave remained. After Sugar's death in 1151, construction came to a standstill, so that the nave was not started until a hundred years later. It was built from 1231–1281 and is now one of the most beautiful examples of High Gothic.

In the nave, too, intense light fills the almost 30 meter high room. In addition to the upper window zone, the illuminated triforium , which appears here for the first time in 1231 - together with Amiens - is of great importance for this impression . The term “triforium” comes from the old French and actually means “openwork work”. It serves as a walkway in the wall between the lower arcade floor and the upper Lichtgaden.

After a long development process, the High Gothic has developed a sophisticated idea. For a long time the triforium had no windows to the outside, only arched openings to the inside towards the main nave, because the roof of the aisle leaned on the outside. Now, around 1231, the idea of making a gable roof out of the traditional monopitch roof of the side aisle , the inside of which is lowered towards the main nave wall, thus also allowing light to pass through in this zone.

The lighting, which the master builders of the Gothic style mastered with virtuosity, was not primarily aimed at the brightness in the church, which always depends on the position of the sun and the weather; therefore unsuitable as a symbol for eternity. Rather, what mattered to them was the magical effect of the colored light, the unearthly appearance of an illuminated wall, an unearthly light as a symbol for the heavenly Jerusalem and paradise.

Furnishing

The burial place of the French kings

See also : Tombs of European Monarchs  and Looting of the Royal Tombs of Saint-Denis

Since the end of the 10th century, more precisely since Hugo Capet , St-Denis was the burial place of almost all French kings and also many queens. During the French Revolution , by decision of the National Assembly in 1793, the tombs were opened to get the lead coffins for warfare. The bones of the roughly 160 members of the French ruling house buried there were either stolen or buried outside the church in a mass grave. The sarcophagi were secured for the Musée des monuments français under the direction of the art historian and archaeologist Alexandre Lenoir . Under Napoleon Bonaparte , the renovation of part of the crypt as an imperial burial place began, but there were no burials. After the re-establishment of the Bourbons under Louis XVIII. the tombs were rebuilt as far as they could still be found, and the recovered bones were brought back to the church in 1817. However, it was no longer possible to determine from which people the bones were still present or to identify those that were present. So they were collected and buried in two brick ossaries in a side room of the crypt. Thus, all of the tombs visible in the church and in the crypt - with five exceptions - are empty: the tomb of Louis XVIII. herself and by four people who were transferred from elsewhere in 1817: Louis VII of Notre-Dame-de-Barbeau near Fontainebleau, Louise of Lorraine from the Convent des Capucines St-Honoré and Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette from the Madeleine Cemetery in Paris.

• 

  Tomb of Dagobert I, 13th century

• 

  Tomb of Ludwig XII. and Anne de Bretagne, painting from 1867

• 

  Tomb of Ludwig XII. and Anne de Bretagne

• 

  Tombs in Saint-Denis

• 

  Tomb of Bertrand du Guesclin

• 

  Double tomb of Louis XVI. and Marie-Antoinette

• 

  Gisants by Bertrand du Guesclin , Charles VI. , Isabelle of Bavaria , Louis de Sancerre , Charles V , Jeanne de Bourbon

• 

  La violation des caveaux des rois dans la basilique de Saint-Denis (painting by Hubert Robert , between 1793 and 1808)

Saint Louis refused Ingeborg of Denmark , the wife of Philip Augustus, a burial in Saint-Denis. Philip I (France) was, by his own will, not buried in Saint-Denis in 1108, but in the monastery of Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire . His grave is the only royal grave of a king of France that has been preserved in its original state today; the monastery was not looted during the French Revolution .

Other people buried in the basilica

• Bertrand du Guesclin († 1380)
• Louis de Sancerre († 1402)
• Arnault Guilhem de Barbazan († 1431)
• Gaspard IV. De Coligny († 1649), by order of the king
• Jean-François Paul de Gondi († 1679), abbot of St-Denis, tomb without inscription, by order of the king

organ

Cavaillé-Coll organ from 1841

According to reliable sources, the first organ already existed in 1506. The instrument was replaced in 1604 by a new one by the organ builder Jean Carlier (Laon). In the years 1690 to 1700 the instrument was then replaced by another new building with 50 stops on four manuals and a pedal . The instrument was lost in the turmoil of the French Revolution.

Today's organ on the west gallery was built between 1834 and 1840 by the organ builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll and inaugurated on September 21, 1841. Cavaillé-Coll emerged victorious from a competition against Érard, Dallery, Abbey and Callinet . It is his Opus 1 and the first organ on which he used a Barker machine . In Positif like the first find first double valve boxes, as well overblown registers in all the manuals. The pedal was expanded as a ravalement up to the F ₁ , until Charles Mutin eliminated this in 1901. The organ case was designed by the architect François Debret.

The organ is almost completely preserved in its original condition and is one of the most important instruments in France. From 1983 to 1987 the organ was restored by Gonzalez (mechanics) and Boisseaux / Cattiaux (pipework); Further work on the mechanics, barker machine of the pedal, bellows , tuning and disposition were carried out between 1988 and 1999 by Bernard Dargassies. The organ has 69 stops on three manuals and a pedal.

I positive C – f 3 Bourdon 16 ′ Montre 08th' (M) Bourdon 08th' Flûte harmonique 0 08th' Prestant 04 ′ Flute 04 ′ (B) Nasard 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Duplicate 02 ′ Octavine 02 ′ Tierce 01 3 ⁄ 5  ′ Fittings IV 01 1 ⁄ 3  ′ Cymbals IV 00 2 ⁄ 3 ′ Trumpets 08th' Cor-Hautbois 08th' Cromorne 08th' Clairon 04 ′

II Grand Orgue C – f 3 Montre (from c 0 ) 32 ′ Montre 16 ′ Bourdon 16 ′ Montre 08th' Bourdon 08th' Flûte traversière (from c 1 )0 08th' Flûte cônique (from c 1 ) 08th' (C) Viole 08th' Prestant 04 ′ Flûte octaviante 04 ′ Nasard 02 2 ⁄ 3  Duplicate 02 ′ Grande Fourniture III 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Petite Fittings III 01' Grande Cymbale III 00 1 ⁄ 3 ′ Petite Cymbals III 00 1 ⁄ 2 ′ 1 ère trumpet 08th' 2 ème trumpets 08th' (B) Cor anglais - Basson 08th' Clairon 04 ′ (M)

II. Bombarde C-f 3 Bourdon 16 ′ Bourdon 08th' Flute 08th' Flûte octaviante0 04 ′ Nasard 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ Duplicate 02 ′ Cornet V (from c 1 ) 08th' (M) Bombard 16 ′ 1 ère trumpet 08th' 2 ème trumpets 08th' 1 he Clairon 04 ′ 2 ème Clairon 04 ′

III. Récit expressif C – f 3 Bourdon 08th' (B) Flûte harmonique 0 08th' Flûte octaviante 04 ′ Nasard 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ (B) Octavine 02 ′ Trumpets 08th' Voix humaine 08th' (B) Clairon 04 ′ Tremblant

Pedale C – f 1 Flute 32 ′ (M) Flute 16 ′ Flute 08th' Violoncello 08th' (M) Flute 04 ′ Fifth 05 1 ⁄ 3  ′ (M) Grande Tierce 03 1 ⁄ 5  ′ (M) Contrebombarde 0 32 ′ (M) Bombard 16 ′ (M) Trumpets 08th' (M) Basson 08th' (M) Clairon 04 ′ (M)

• Coupling : Tirasse Grand-Orgue, Copula Positif / II, Copula Récit / II.
• Playing aids : Anches Pédale, Anches Positif, Appel Grand-Orgue / II, Appel Bombarde / II. Bucket step sill for III. Manual.
• Remarks

(C) = Register from Cavaillé-Coll, 1857

(M) = Registry of Mutin, 1902-1903.

(B) = Register from Boisseau / Cattiaux, 1983–1987.

1. ↑ In the swell box.
2. ↑ Pipework up to c ¹ .
3. ↑ Whistling CF from Mutin.

Titular organists of the basilica:

from to Surname 1840 1866 Prosper-Charles Simon 1866 1870 Delahaye 1870 1896 vacant 1896 1937 H. Libert

from to Surname 1937 1977 H. Heurtel 1977 1987 vacant 1987 2018 Pierre Pincemaille 2018 Quentin guerrillot

Abbots of Saint-Denis

reception

Saint-Denis as the first Gothic building

St-Denis is traditionally considered to be a Gothic foundation. Here, for the first time, the visible part of the outer wall recedes behind the decorations in front, but these tendencies were also evident in the late Romanesque period. This is why some of these structural components of the cathedral are not yet considered Gothic in research. It is also controversial with which church the Gothic began. Possible options would be St-Denis, St-Martin-des-Champs and St-Etienne in Sens .

The light

The new Gothic support system also resulted in large windows at floor level. The inner columns of the choir are arranged in such a way that they allow the light to flow in as unhindered as possible and align themselves with the center of the choir, where the altar is located. This was the center of the Christian liturgy and this is where the incoming light, a symbol of the expected return of Christ, was concentrated . In the theology of that time, light was regarded as the immediate appearance of the divine - hence the extensive use of refractive gemstones in liturgical implements. In Gothic architecture, light becomes the essential construction principle of the entire cathedral. It is not added later, it determines the design of the building from the start. The Gothic window replaces the Romanesque window and at the same time the Romanesque wall.

Technical inventions also play a role: In the 10th century, the technique of holding glass parts in lead bars was invented. As a result, the weight was reduced, the thin lead rods could be bent as desired and allowed the glass windows to be designed more freely.

The numerical proportions

Numerical ratios represent the divine order. The nave is divided into a uniform sequence of yokes, each with a ribbed vault. To each central aisle field belong a southern and a northern aisle field. The unit of measurement for the entire building is the crossing square with an aspect ratio of 1: 1. Two central nave yokes form a crossing square, each central nave yoke is twice as large as a side nave yoke, so both are in a ratio of 1: 2. Such simple geometric relationships can also be demonstrated in the wall structure. The square with its perfect numerical ratio of 1: 1 was the geometric image of the deity in the 12th century.

Such geometrical proportions were generally viewed as such images of the kingdom of God on earth , as it was then imagined. It was not for nothing that in the early Middle Ages the builders were mostly theologians who were not very well educated in building technology. That only changed from around 1250, when trained professionals took over the construction management.

In the Bauhüttenbuch by the Picard architect Villard de Honnecourt from 1225-1235, geometric proportions are laid down as the basis for the construction of Gothic cathedrals. The divine creation was imagined according to the proportions of geometry and the medieval architect submitted to this principle of his supposed divine teacher.

In Villard's sample book, not only are the geometrical rules of Gothic architecture set out, but also the aesthetics of the 'musical' relationships that correspond to the intervals of the perfect chords.

“The relationship between the length of the church and the transept is like the fifth (2: 3). The octave (1: 2) determines the ratio between the main and side aisles, length and width of the transept and the elevation. The ratio of 3: 4 in the choir brings out the fourth , the ratio of 4: 5 of the nave and side aisles combined corresponds to the third , while the crossing, aesthetically the center of the church, is based on the ratio of harmony, 1: 1, the most perfect the chords. "

The numerical ratios of 1: 1, the octave 1: 2, the fifth 2: 3 and the fourth 3: 4 determined the structure of the cathedral inside and outside and were also the basis of the music of the time. In such conditions one saw the orderly divine world realized. The St. Augustine put music and architecture as "sisters of the number" together over the other arts.

Diaphane structure of the cathedral

In 1927, Hans Jantzen coined the term “diaphanous structure”, which has become known in art history, for this phenomenon. He pointed out that in the Gothic lighting and also in the construction of the wall it was important to put two layers behind one another, as it were: a very sculptural, meaningful front layer and an optical space shell behind it, which looked like a base in front of which the front layer stands out. And the ever-growing windows also corresponded to this principle. With them, what was “translucent” was already given by the light, with the wall this effect first had to be created by the shell behind it.

Jantzen sees “the relationship between the body-sculpted wall and the parts of the room behind it as the relationship between the body and the ground. That means: the wall as the delimitation of the entire interior of the nave cannot be grasped without the floor of the room [...] The floor of the room itself appears as an optical zone, which is, as it were, laid behind the wall. The term 'deposit' expresses the character of the relationship between the wall body and the floor of the room. The concept of the diaphanous structure means that different parts of the room that lie behind the wall structure (as the boundary of the nave) intervene in their function as a pure optical appearance in the style of the nave wall. "

According to his theory, the entire height of the central nave is surrounded by a space shell with different depths, with a basilical cross-section different on each floor, but the principle of two-shell construction is respected.

It was not just about brightness, but about making a designed surface translucent. And, according to Jantzen, the triforium and gallery also serve exactly this function. Both ensure that a two-shell system develops in the Gothic wall. A front wall is made transparent like a slide on the background of a rear shell. The principle of this “diaphane” can be interpreted from the core of the cultic process itself, which takes place in the cathedral during the service. In a paradox, space becomes a symbol of a spaceless, mental state.

With the illuminated triforium, almost the entire outer wall of the room could finally be dissolved into light and color. The result was an expressive, expressive, illuminated screen - because between the upper window story and the lower arcade story, which let light flow in from the side aisle walls, was now the last, third element, the illuminated triforium. The Gothic tendency to dissolve the wall and its transformation into a light carrier have reached their first climax here. The windows of the church were largely destroyed in 1793. Some of these were restored by Viollet-le-Duc in 1848 , and fractional and full windows can be found in churches and collections across Europe.

The sluggish Romanesque walls have been livened up, the tension in the space increased and the entire building transformed into a system of intense visual worlds.

Interpretations of the facade

The portal resembles a large entrance gate. This is interpreted as a symbolic entrance into the heavenly Jerusalem , which the cathedral is supposed to represent. The gate character of the portal is supported by the motif of the Last Judgment in the tympanum of the central portal. "The portals of large churches were in the Middle Ages as a court of justice, so the arc fields were often decorated with representations of the Judgment [...] However, the interpretation of the Church in the image of the heavenly Jerusalem requires walking through the divine judgment." For this reason, should also Figurative sculptures on the portal sides depict the kings of Israel.

literature

• Abbot Suger of Saint-Denis: Selected writings. (Ordinatio, De consecratione, De administratione). Edited by Andreas Speer and Günther Binding with the collaboration of Gabriele Annas, Susanne Linscheid-Burdich and Martin Pickavé. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 2000, ISBN 3-534-11320-9 .
• Günther Binding: What is Gothic? An analysis of the Gothic churches in France, England and Germany 1140–1350. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 2000, ISBN 3-534-14076-1 .
• Julian Blunk: The tactics with the dead. The French royal tombs in the early modern period (= studies of art. Volume 22). Böhlau, Cologne a. a. 2011, ISBN 978-3-412-20626-0 (also: Dresden, Technical University, dissertation, 2008).
• Sumner McK. Crosby: The Plan of the Western Bays of Suger's New Church at St. Denis. In: Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol. 27, No. 1, March 1968, pp. 39-43
• Alain Erlande-Brandenburg : The Abbey Church of Saint-Denis. Vol. 1: History and visit . Editions de la Tourelle, Paris 1986, ISBN 2-86861-009-9 .
• Alain Erlande-Brandenburg: The Abbey Church of Saint-Denis. Vol. 2: The royal tombs . Editions de la Tourelle, Paris 1986, ISBN 2-86861-010-2 .
• Gudrun Gersmann : Saint-Denis and the cult of the dead of the Restoration. About the recapture of a royal place of memory. In: Eva Dewes, Sandra Duhem (ed.): Cultural memory and intercultural reception in a European context (= Vice Versa. Volume 1). Akademie Verlag, Berlin 2006, ISBN 3-05-004132-3 , pp. 139–158.
• Louis Grodecki : Les Vitraux de Saint-Denis. Étude sur le vitrail au XIIe siècle… Arts et métiers graphiques. Paris 1976, ISBN 2-222-01941-9 .
• Rolf Große : Saint-Denis between nobility and king. The time before Suger (1053–1122) (= supplements to Francia. No. 57). Thorbecke, Stuttgart 2002, ISBN 3-7995-7451-4 (also: Heidelberg, University, habilitation paper, 2001), online .
• Paula Lieber Gerson: The West Facade of Saint-Denis: An Iconographic Study. (Dissertation, Columbia University, 1970)
• Émile Mâle : The Gothic. The French cathedral as a total work of art. 2nd Edition. Special edition. Belser, Stuttgart a. a. 1994, ISBN 3-7630-2308-9 .
• Jan van der Meulen, Andreas Speer: The Franconian Royal Abbey of Saint Denis. Eastern layout and cult history. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1988, ISBN 3-534-03029-X .
• Anne Prache (Ed.): Saint-Denis la basilique et le trésor (= Dossiers d'Archéologie. No. 261, ISSN  0184-7538 ). Editions Faton, Dijon 2001.
• Andreas Speer: Abbot Sugers writings on the Franconian royal abbey of Saint-Denis. In: Abbot Suger of Saint-Denis: Selected writings. (Ordinatio, De consecratione, De administratione). Edited by Andreas Speer and Günther Binding with the collaboration of Gabriele Annas, Susanne Linscheid-Burdich and Martin Pickavé. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 2000, ISBN 3-534-11320-9 , pp. 13-66.
• Ruth Wessel: The Sainte-Chapelle in France. Genesis, function and change of a sacred space type. Düsseldorf 2003 (Düsseldorf, Heinrich Heine University, dissertation, 2003).
• Dethard von Winterfeld : Thoughts on Sugar's building in Saint-Denis. In: Dethard von Winterfeld: Masterpieces of medieval architecture. Contributions and biography of a building researcher. Ceremony for Dethard von Winterfeld on his 65th birthday. Edited by Ute Engel, Kai Kappel and Claudia Annette Meier. Schnell + Steiner, Regensburg 2003, ISBN 3-7954-1531-4 .

Web links

Commons : Basilica of Saint-Denis  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Information on the cathedral on the tourism side of the department of Seine-Saint-Denis (English)
• West portal of Saint-Denis; Original inventory and restorations
• L'Internaute Magazine: Diaporama (French)
• Photographs of the Cathedral of Saint Denis
• Information, photographs of the Cathedral of Saint Denis (French)
• Information about the cathedral on a website of the French Ministry of Culture (English)
• Simulation of the second tower (reconstruction project) of the Saint-Denis cathedral (French)
• TV documentary: From darkness to light - the invention of the Gothic . zdf 2020. (accessed August 15, 2020)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Cathédrale de Saint-Denis. UNESCO World Heritage Center, September 20, 1996, accessed January 15, 2018 (French). 
2. ↑ Please build as slowly as possible
3. ↑ This name comes from Robert Branner: St. Louis and the Court Style in Gothic architecture (= Studies in Architecture. Volume 7). Zwemmer, London 1965. Various proposals have been made to identify the master with well-known architects, including Jean de Chelles , the architect of the north transept facade of Notre-Dame in Paris. Michel Bouttier argues for this: La reconstruction de l'abbatiale de Saint-Denis au XIIIe siècle. In: Bulletin Monumental. Volume 145, 1987, ISSN  0007-473X , pp. 357-386, here p. 382; also Heinz Gaiser: The master question: Who is the ingenious creator of the new building of the St. Denis Abbey near Paris? ( Online publication by the Karlsruhe University Library ). Robert Suckale opposes this identification : New literature on the abbey church of Saint-Denis. In: Art Chronicle . Volume 43, 1990, ISSN  0023-5474 , pp. 62-80, here p. 76.
4. ↑ Otto von Simson: The Gothic cathedral. Contributions to their creation and importance. 3rd, compared to the 2nd unchanged edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1979, ISBN 3-534-04306-5 , p. 132: only since 1260.
5. ↑ Otto von Simson: The Gothic cathedral. Contributions to their creation and importance. 3rd, compared to the 2nd unchanged edition. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1979, ISBN 3-534-04306-5 , p. 14.
6. ↑ Audio guide in the cathedral
7. ^ L'opus 1 d'Aristide Cavaille-Coll (in French) . http://pierrepincemaille.fr./ Accessed February 6, 2018.
8. ↑ Description of the organ (English and French, accessed on November 17, 2018)
9. ↑ Detailed history and description of the organs in St. Denis, with dispositions (French, accessed on November 26, 2018).
10. ↑ cf. the information on the replacement (French)
11. ↑ Otto von Simson : The Gothic cathedral. Contributions to their creation and importance. 3rd, compared to the 2nd unchanged edition. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1979, ISBN 3-534-04306-5 , p. 77.
12. ↑ Otto von Simson: The Gothic cathedral. Contributions to their creation and importance. 3rd, compared to the 2nd unchanged edition. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1979, ISBN 3-534-04306-5 , pp. 276-279.
13. ↑ Christopher Brooke: The Cathedral in Medieval Society. In: Wim Swaan: The great cathedrals. DuMont, Cologne 1969, p. 51.
14. ↑ Hans Jantzen: About the Gothic church interior and other articles. Mann, Berlin 1951, pp. 7-20.
15. ↑ Lawrence Lee, George Seddon, Francis Stephens: The world of glass windows. Twelve centuries of occidental glass painting in over 500 color pictures. Color photos by Sonia Halliday and Laura Lushington. Herder, Freiburg (Breisgau) a. a. 1977, p. 68.
16. ↑ Nikolaus Pevsner : European architecture from the beginning to the present. 3rd edition of the study edition. Prestel, Munich 1973, ISBN 3-7913-0137-3 , p. 145.
17. ^ Günther Binding: Architectural Forms. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1980, ISBN 3-534-07861-6 , p. 101. That is why they were also decorated with elevating structural elements such as columns, gables and portal lions.

Coordinates: 48 ° 56 '7.6 "  N , 2 ° 21' 34.8"  E