The fundamental principle behind toichology is observation. We can look for consistency in order to determine which portions of a building were constructed at the same time, or we can look for anomalies in order to find breaks in construction and changes in design concept. Usually, common sense will allow us to determine which portions of a building came before or after others, and this in turn allows us to develop a relative chronology. Further study of details and carving styles allows us to narrow the dating of those portions, and in the end we should be able to arrive at a convincing chronology of construction for any given building. On this page we present initial observations and speculate about the likely implications for chronology.

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Project H - North Transept Alignments of North Wall The laser scan shows that the two sides of the north wall are not in the same alignment. Implications The line of the west half of the wall (magenta) is rotated 1.5 degrees from the alignment of the nave (blue). The line of the east half of the wall (green) is rotated another 1.5 degrees. The different alignments suggest that the two halves of the north wall were set out at different times, and that the connection of the north transept to the north building was not fully worked out.

Project H - North Transept Rubble Construction in Northeast The two walls in the northeast corner of the north transept, below the windows, have rubble construction on the interior, consistent with the north choir and inconsistent with the ashlar walls in the west half of the north transept. Implications We suggest these walls are the earliest in the north transept, being extensions of the scheme of the north choir and establishing a desire to connect the new building to the north building. This also supports a conclusion that a double transept was not yet intended.

Project H - North Transept Connection to the North Building The uppermost parts of the north building abut the buttresses of the north wall of the north transept. Implications The buttresses in question serve no purpose as far as structural support for the north transept, and yet they are coursed with the north wall of that transept. They extend up to the bottoms of the roses, but are not aligned with them. They taper at their bottoms, well above ground level. Their position in perfect alignment with the east and west walls of the north building indicates that they were intended to provide added support for that building and not the new transept. The provision of these supports as part of the construction of the transept suggests that the idea and execution of the vaulting of the north building occurred at this time, and these buttresses were deemed necessary to support the new loads.

Project H - North Transept Connection to the North Choir The wall of the choir has been adjusted to accommodate a window in the east wall of the north transept. Implications It appears that this adaptation was not one-directional. The reasonable immediate conclusion would be to assume the window in the north transept was there first, and the wall of the north choir was modified to avoid it. But the coursing suggests that the two walls were constructed together. This leads one to believe that the masons wanted the window to match the others in the transept, even though the space available did not permit it. The minor adjustment to the wall seemed a small price to pay for consistency on the interior.

Project H - North Transept Vertical Joint in East Wall There is a keyed vertical joint between the east window of the north transept and the arch leading into the north choir, up to the level of the capitals. Implications The exterior joint in this area was discussed above. On the inside it appears the window was set in place, but no decision had been made about how the north choir and north transept would connect. Eventually, the shafting supporting the arch between transept and choir was added. Because of the difference in height between the choir and taller transept, the capitals and their imposts were slightly lower than the capitals and impost of the window, making for an uneasy joint.

Project H - North Transept Framing Arch Above Sacristy Door There is a framing arch above the eastern door of the sacristy. Implications The desire to integrate the north building with the new church has been discussed above. The south wall of the north building may have had two small entrances and two small oculi above. Because the plan for integrating the old rubble building involved facing the south wall on the interior of the church, a framing arch was provided to allow continued access to both the doorway and the oculus on the east side. The original rubble exterior wall of the north building was likely plastered over to dress it up.

Project H - North Transept Added Articulation Covers Framing Arch The shafts in the middle of the north wall partially cover the framing arch over the east doorway into the sacristy. Implications It seems clear that the shafting in the center of the north wall of the north transept was added after the facing with the framing arch had been placed, because these shafts overlap the opening slightly. The articulation scheme of the north transept had not yet been determined.

Project H - North Transept Consistency at Window Level The ashlar and window designs around the west, north and east walls of the north transept are consistent. Implications There is a consistency between all five of the main windows of the north transept indicates that they were all part of a single phase of construction. Even the capitals framing these windows have a familial resemblance. They also have a resemblance to the main windows of the north wall of the north choir, although the framing of those windows is more sophisticated in design.

Project H - North Transept Interior of West Portal The interior arch of the portal in the west wall of the north transept intrudes into the sill of the window above. Implications The height of the sills of the windows and the string course immediately below them had been established on the east side of the transept. It seems that the west side of the lower walls of the north transept was set out last, and there was a decision to include a portal, probably serving the houses of the canons which were northwest of the church. This portal needed to be somewhat monumental, and its height was bound to exceed the height of the bottoms of the sills. Rather than raise the sill and shorten the window, making it inconsistent with the other windows, the masons simply adapted the sill.

Project H - North Transept Doorway to Stair Vise The doorway to the stair vise in the northwest corner of the north transept is coursed with the shafting in the corner. Implications The small doorway in the northwest corner of the north transept is interesting. It serves a stair vise that goes up to the roof level of the transept, but seems to serve no other purpose, although it might have been a handy lookout post in times of trouble. More important is that the frame of this door is coursed with the shafting in the corner, and therefore is likely contemporary. While the shafting in the center of the north wall of the transept was placed in front of existing masonry, the shafting on the west side is integrated with the walls. This all suggests that the west wall was the last to be established.

Project H - North Transept Exterior Joint with Nave Aisle The relationship between the buttress of the north transept and the exterior wall of the north aisle is interesting. Implications This exterior buttress establishes the southernmost extent of the new construction of the west wall of the transept. From the photo, one might conclude that the buttress was there before the rubble wall (lower right) was constructed against it. But this defies logic. Because this rubble wall may have terminated near this point, and because it was the aisle wall of the nave and therefore insufficiently tall to provide adequate support for the much taller and vaulted north transept, it needed to be reinforced. We suggest that the rubble wall was cut back toward the west in order to provide space for a proper and adequate ashlar buttress, and that once this buttress reached the height of the aisle wall, the joint between the rubble and the ashlar was tidied up. Because this happened so long ago, there is no visual evidence of this patching. This serves as a reminder that although some joints seem obvious as to which came first, one must always think through the full implications before drawing a conclusion.

Project H - North Transept Interior Joint with Nave Aisle The indecision that surrounded the connection between the nave and the north transept is reflected in a jumbled assortment of details. Implications On the interior, there are some details in the connection between the north transept and the existing nave that are difficult to explain. On this pier the shafts are interrupted partway up and the capitals of the transept are higher than the earlier ones adjacent.

Project H - North Transept Modified Arch and Shaft The arch between the new north transept and the north aisle has been modified, and the shaft beneath it has been relocated. Implications The opening has been narrowed to accommodate the new shafting for the north transept, which has been appended to the northeast side of the pier. One suspects that the original arch (yellow arrow) sat on capitals just like those further west in the aisle. Either these new shafts would be orphans, floating in space, or a new shaft could be provided for the arch across the aisle, (blue arrow) that arch could be modified, (white arrow) and the new shafts would have the logical backing. The choice was obvious. If should be noted that the capital of this new shaft for the arch of the aisle is unlike any others in the nave, and is in fact most like capitals found in the south transept. This suggests that this adaptation was some of the last work on the north, after which the carver of this capital worked primarily in the south transept.

Project H - North Transept Joint with the Choir The pier opposite reflects similar indecision, with a jumbled assortment of details. Implications The interruption of the shafts on both piers occurs at the same height, just below the level of the string course representing the top of the arcade. If a third arch for the nave had been constructed and was still in place, it would have been just south of this. This interruption in the new shafting seems related to such a situation. At some point a decision was made to remove the arch and open up the nave to the transept, and then the shafting was continued above. None of this indecision exists on the south side of the building, indicating that the north was under construction when these decisions were being made, and once made, there was no need for trial-and-error on the south - the problems had already been worked out.

Project H - North Transept Assorted Capitals While the sets of capitals at the tops of each of the piers of the north transept are consistent, the exception is the central pier, where several different hands are discernible. Implications The capitals around the perimeter of the north transept all seem to be by the same hand. Those in the central pier, however, appear to be from several hands. The sharp, leafy capitals on the axial sides (left and right in the photo) are consistent with the rest of the transept. The three smaller capitals in the middle have details more similar to the carver who worked in the south choir and its chapels, especially the one on the right. The other two central capitals seem rather plain, and the one on the left appears unfinished. We propose that this pier was the last one put in place in the north transept, while work was already underway in the south.

Project H - North Transept Mismatched Base The bottom courses of all of the piers of the north choir and transept are of a darker stone. Most are a mix of golden and brown, but the central pier of the north transept (foreground right) is clearly more gray. This base also has detailing that is similar to those in the south choir and south transept. Implications This suggests that the central pier of the north transept was one of the last put in place on the north. If our reconstruction of the original plan for the nave is somewhat accurate, and there was in fact a third bay to the nave and its aisles, as we have reconstructed, then it may be that this easternmost north aisle bay was still an impediment until the final scheme for the north transept had been firmly established in the perimeter walls. Despite being in the middle of a construction zone, it still could have functioned as a part of the nave.

Project H - North Transept Bases Similar to the South The bases of the central pier of the north transept, and the pier directly to its south, have detailing that is similar to the bases of the south choir and south transept. Implications The two pier bases (the central one is shown in the photo, top) are unlike the others in the north, and more like those in the south (photo bottom). This is just more evidence that work was already going on in the south as the work was being completed in the north.

Project H - North Transept Closure Above the Aisle The wall above the strut wall of the north aisle is ashlar on the interior and rubble on the exterior. Implications The detailing on the interior of the small window in this wall is consistent with its neighbor to the north. On the exterior, the walling is rubblework, and inconsistent with its neighbor to the north, but consistent with the adjacent clerestory of the nave to the southwest. There is no reason to suspect that this walling is contemporary with the nave, and in fact, it is clear that the new wall is built against an existing buttress (arrow in the photo). The choice of rubblework in this wall may simply have been an attempt to tie the new work to the old, visually. The same strategy was later employed over the south aisle. It is worth noting the simplicity of the design of the exterior framing of the windows. Were they intended to match the original upper windows of the nave, which were later enlarged?