Download or read book CHURCHES AND CATHEDRALS 1700 Years of the Most Beautiful Architecture written by and published by Parragon Pubishing India. This book was released on 2010 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For 1700 years, cathedrals have embodied the glory of God while serving as a physical representation of the power of the church and its leaders. The image of these utterly magnificent buildings with their high quality furnishings and works of art has proved so enduring that expressions such as a "sports cathedral" to describe a stadium or "cathedral of money" for a stock exchange are freely used today. By definition, a cathedral is the seat of a bishop, literally his kathedra, or throne. And as such it is worthy of the very best that the combination of design, décor and fine materials can produce. The big European cathedrals set the standard for all that came after them. The Episcopal churches of northern France gave birth to Gothic architecture, just as the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela had served as a model for the Romanesque style, and Florence Cathedral brought the Renaissance to the very threshold of the modern age. Additional important churches are included along with this panorama of cathedral architecture to provide a more comprehensive overview of sacred architecture. In total 240 magnificent buildings are represented here in outstanding photographs and detailed text, providing a impressive survey of the history of sacred Christian architecture from the medieval period to modern times.