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Stephanie has taught studio art and art history classes to audiences of all ages. She holds a master's degree in Art History.
If you've ever visited a cathedral, you might have noticed a dramatic circular stained glass window dominating one of the walls. This type of window is called a rose window or a wheel window. Both names refer to the fact that it's made of a series of smaller windows radiating out from the center like wheel spokes or flower petals. Rose windows are usually found in two locations in a church, at the west end of the nave (or the main body of the church) and at the ends of the transepts, the shorter sections of a church's floor plan that give it the shape of a shallow cross.
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The rose window developed out of the oculus, a small round window found in Ancient Roman architecture, but it was during the mid-twelfth century with the development of Gothic architecture in France that rose windows came into prominence. Later they spread to many places in Europe, notably Spain and England.
During the Gothic period, the emphasis in church architecture was on soaring height and a greater sense of light. Taller window-filled churches were made possible by advances in building techniques such as the development of tracery, supporting stonework in the form of bars or ribs between glass sections. Tracery allowed windows to become larger and more open. It could also be very decorative and elaborate.
Every element of a Gothic cathedral had meaning. Even the effect of light pouring through the stained glass was not simply decorative but meant to convey and heighten a sense of the divine pouring in from above.
The same is true for rose windows. Their symbolism lies in geometry and the sense that many parts make a whole. When you study them, you begin to realize that rose windows are made of geometric shapes. They have a specific number of radiating forms, subdivisions of smaller forms, and sometimes more division in the number of arches and other forms. Every element has a degree of meaning. Whatever the style of window, all of the elements come together in a single cohesive design, the real and symbolic whole. Think about the importance of specific numbers represented in the Bible. For example, sometimes windows have twelve sections or spokes, which might relate to the twelve apostles. In terms of a symbolic whole, think of the Trinity, or the concept of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit as three in one. The rose window was a way to make ideas such as these concrete.
As Gothic architecture developed, so did many different designs for rose windows. Shifting designs often reflected changes in tracery. One of the earliest types of rose windows was done with plate tracery, where simple shapes were enclosed in a round space. These windows featured thick stone tracery that was often more prominent in the design than the glass itself. As the name implies, they look like simple shapes have been punched out of a circular plate.
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Many rose windows had patterns that resembled wheels. In these designs, the centermost window segment held an important figure like the Virgin Mary or Christ. The radiating spokes of the wheel then held lesser figures. Some windows had more elaborate outer edges than others, while other windows looked like they were interlaced with a series of smaller connected spokes forming a wheel within a wheel. Other rose windows incorporated trefoil arches, or three-lobed arches at the tip of each radiating spoke, into their designs.
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The most dramatic change to rose window style came during the later Gothic with flamboyant tracery. Windows in this style have elaborate interconnected shapes circling outward, and the shapes look like wavy tongues of flame.
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These are just a few of the most common rose window designs, because design variations are numerous. As Gothic architecture spread to other parts of Europe, regional variations developed and branched off from some of the common designs.
So, the next time you enter a cathedral, look up. Does it have a rose window? Can you tell what design it uses?
Rose windows are the large circular stained glass windows found in Gothic churches. They originated with the oculus, a small, round window in Ancient Roman architecture. During the Gothic period, the development of tracery (decorative supporting stonework) allowed such large windows to be created. The symbolism of rose windows lies in their geometry, with specific divisions of shapes that all come together to create a cohesive whole.
Designs for rose windows changed through time, sometimes influenced by the developing complexity of tracery. Early windows were done with plate tracery, which looked like a plate punched with holes. Later rose windows resembled wheels with radiating spokes. Sometimes they included layers of shapes that resembled interlaced wheels, one within another. Other rose windows used trefoil arches and flamboyant tracery. Designs changed over time and variations of common designs developed throughout Europe.
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Architectural Design & History11 chapters | 131 lessons
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