Gothic architecture and religious iconography in Westminster Abbey

Work of Architecture

Title of work: Westminster Abbey

Artist, date, and medium: The Abbey is the result of the labor of a number of architects. Its construction took centuries, including significant periods of rebuilding. Its most current form dates back to the 13th century.

Location of artwork: Banks of the Thames

Image of work:

Image source: http://static.westminster-abbey.org/assets/thumbnail/0011/39197/Abbey-north-side-72-Westminster-Abbey-copyright.jpg

Iconography

The primary iconography of Westminster Abbey is religious in nature, including depictions of Christ, St. Thomas, and St. Christopher together; St. Faith, and images from the book of Revelation of St. John the Divine. There are also images from the royal family and renditions of "aristocratic and wealthy relatives and benefactors to the building" on the wall ("Art," Westminster Abbey, 2012). A number of famous people are interred in the Abbey, most notably some of England's greatest poets and writers ("Westminster Abbey," Sacred Destinations, 2010).

Medium and technique

Westminster Abbey is primarily a work of masonry. The stonework is also adorned with vermilion and gold. Ruby and sapphire stained glass were used to add color ("Architecture," Westminster Abbey, 2012).

Context

The original site of the Abbey was identified as 'sacred' when a fisherman on the River Thames saw a vision of Saint Peter in 616. "The first phase of the rebuilding was organised by Henry III, in Gothic style, as a shrine to honor Edward the Confessor and as a suitably regal setting for Henry's own tomb, under the highest Gothic nave in England" ("Westminster Abbey," Sacred Destinations, 2010). The presence of the remains and images of famous politicians, artists, and other figures of note in this symbolically significant religious structure of the Church of England reflects the Abbey's embodiment of both the patriotic and religious spirits of the land.