Why is Notre-Dame de Paris a Gothic cathedral?
Why is Notre-Dame de Paris a Gothic cathedral? Its cruciform plan, elevated nave, transept and tower were borrowed from 11th-century Romanesque architecture, but its pointed arches and rib vaulting were strictly Gothic. Indeed, it was one of the first Gothic cathedrals to have arched exterior supports known as flying buttresses.
Is Notre-Dame Paris early Gothic?
Notable examples of early Gothic architecture in France include the ambulatory and facade of Saint-Denis Basilica; Sens Cathedral (1140); Laon Cathedral; Senlis Cathedral; (1160) and most famously Notre-Dame de Paris (begun 1160).