Medieval Architecture. . - Reviews - book review

Contemporary Review, July, 2002

Medieval Architecture. Nicola Cold-stream. Oxford University Press. [pounds sterling]11.99 p.b. 256 pages. ISBN 0-19-284276-5. This latest volume in the Oxford History of Art argues that the 'mediaeval' period in architecture kept its strength well into the sixteenth century and extended throughout what is now called Europe and beyond.

The book is divided into two parts. The first looks at the practical aspects of late mediaeval buildings: how structures were erected, how they were designed and how these designs changed. The second part examines the reasons why buildings were put up in the first placed, what various symbols meant, how space was used, what were the priorities and what were the beliefs that inspired architects and patrons. In all periods, architecture reflects the beliefs of the age and for the mediaeval period, as the author rightly says, 'the building process was as much metaphysical as material'. Mediaeval architecture was imaginative, innovative and sometimes revolutionary. With an enthusia sm for her subject, and with the help of plentiful illustrations, the author gives us a beautifully written survey of a long period which does not flag. (F.C.)