Bourges Cathedral Historical Facts and Pictures

Dedicated to St. Stephen, the Bourges Cathedral is located in Bourges, France. This Roman Catholic Church is also the throne of the Archbishop of Bourges. The current structure is a replacement of an earlier mid eleventh century structure, whose traces could be found in the crypt. Although its construction date is unknown, it has been suggested, based on its expenditures, that the construction started roughly simultaneous with Chartres Cathedral.

Bourges Cathedral

Bourges Cathedral Pictures

Architecture and Style

Exemplifying a supreme form Gothic art, this architectural masterpiece highly appreciated for its masterful management of proportions and unity of design. The architectural style occupies flying buttresses to help the building’s structure without the usage of plastic and transepts, displaying great modernity at that time.  The double-aisled design of Bourges Cathedral resembles St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome and Notre Dame Cathedral in France.

Bourges Cathedral Sainte Chapelle Interior

Bourges Cathedral Stained Glass Pictures

The grand scale façade of the Bourges Cathedral consists of 5 carved portals with the central portal occupying sculpted scenes depicting the Last Judgment.

Bourges Cathedral at Night

Bourges Cathedral Photos

Art and Decorations

The cathedral is filled with astonishing stained glass windows. These remarkable windows and the axial chapel are among the original structures of the cathedral. The extraordinary jewel-toned stained glass windows in the ambulatory exemplify majestic artwork. The cathedral also contains the nave with surrounding chapels along with the astronomical clock. The sublime polychrome sculptures of the great 14^th century artistic patron of Bourges, Jean de Berry and his wife, exhibit magnificent artistic delight.

Bourges Cathedral Facade

Bourges Cathedral Inside

Bourges Cathedral Sainte Chapelle Basse

Inside of Bourges Cathedral

Apart from its architectural excellence, the Bourges Cathedral is also a symbol of Christian supremacy in medieval France.

Bourges Cathedral Images

Bourges Cathedral Stained Glass