The term Gothic, that now calls up a vision of ethereal beauty, was,
strange to say, first given to the style that grew out of the Romanesque
by the artists of the Renaissance as an expression of their contempt for
what they looked upon as outworn methods of building, similar to those
of the Gothic barbarians in warfare. It very soon, however, lost all
association with this most inappropriate comparison, becoming synonymous
with all that is most beautiful in the architecture of the period to
which it is applied.

The most important characteristics of Gothic buildings are the
introduction, wherever possible, of vertical or very sharply pointed
details, such as highly pitched roofs and gables, spires and pinnacles,
pointed arches and pointed vaulting, flying buttresses, that grew ever
slenderer and more decorative, leading downwards from the roof, and
counteracting the tremendous thrust of the suspended vault of stone, all
of true structural value. To these must be added the minor peculiarities
of slenderer columns than those of Romanesque buildings, several being
often clustered together, mouldings cut into the stone of the capitals
of the columns, arcading &c., instead of projecting beyond the surface,
the grouping of several windows under the arch, and the increase in the
beauty of their tracery. The so-called lancet or long narrow window with
stilted head, pointed like an arch, is specially distinctive of Early
Gothic, and was later supplemented by the more elaborate rose window,
the stained glass in them, and in the more complex groups, adding
greatly to the aesthetic effect of the whole building, the many coloured
light from them relieving the monotony of the stone work.

[Illustration: Gothic Vaulting]

The general appearance of the interior of a Gothic cathedral, with its
long perspective of nave, aisles, and choir, its finely proportioned
triforia and clerestories, and, above all, its graceful arches leading
up to their points of union in the soaring roof, may justly be called a
poem in stone, whilst its exterior is equally remarkable for the close
correlation of all its parts, producing an impression of consistent
unity of design. An added charm is given alike to the interior and
exterior by the combined richness and quaintness of the decorative
sculpture, in which is clearly illustrated the delight in symbolism of
the mediaeval craftsmen, who, working in close accord with architect and
builder, supplemented