L'utilisation du fer dans l'architecture gothique : l'exemple de la cathédrale de Bourges

Abstract

This study, devoted to the use of iron in the cathedral of Bourges (1195-1255), was condueted under the direction Jean- Louis Taupin, chief architect for the Monuments Historiques, and within the framework of the Centre d'Études Supérieures d'Histoire et de Conservation des Monuments Anciens. The research in situ, carried out in part with a métal detector, brought to light the use of iron at various stages of the construction in the form of chains, tie-beams, hooks, etc. Because the lime-based mortar dried slowly, iron was used for provisional consolidation, as in the case of the chain and tie-beams in the upper triforium. In order to increase the résistance of the masonry to the parasitic thrust of the timberwork and the flying buttresses in the absence of vaults, métal chains were placed in the thickness of the masonry of the wall carrying the gutter, to the right of the springing of the arches of the upper bays at the leveling course. The cathedral of Bourges will surely remain an exceptional case because of the daring and almost exclusive use of métal in the élaboration of its structures.