Two- and three-dimensional geometry in Tierceron vaults: A case study of Exeter cathedral



Buchanan, Alexandrina C ORCID: 0000-0001-9433-9651 and Webb, Nicholas J ORCID: 0000-0002-5998-1961
(2018) Two- and three-dimensional geometry in Tierceron vaults: A case study of Exeter cathedral. In: Sixth International Congress on Construction History, 2018-7-9 - 2018-7-13, Brussels, Belgium.

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Abstract

This paper presents recent findings from the ‘Tracing the Past’ project, which uses digital methods to investigate English thirteenth and fourteenth-century vaults. Our paper presents initial analysis of the vaults of Exeter Cathedral, based on a laser scan survey undertaken in April 2016. We suggest that all the high vaults were laid out in two dimensions using a geometrical figure called the ‘starcut’, allowing the same proportions to be maintained throughout, despite different bay dimensions. The three-dimensional geometry of the vaults, however, presents significant variation between bays. These appear to correspond with the construction sequences proposed by previous scholarship. Nevertheless, the nature of the variations does not correspond fully with previous interpretations. We propose that two-centred arcs were found at Exeter earlier than generally recognised and in a different pattern of distribution than previously suggested.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Unspecified)
Uncontrolled Keywords: Vaults (medieval), Structural forms (Britain), From Design to Building (Cathedrals), Modelling and Simulation, Digital Analysis
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 17 Jul 2018 07:39
Last Modified: 14 Mar 2024 18:38
DOI: 10.1201/9780429506208-53
Related URLs:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3023834