Rosae

“Rosae”, Cathedral of Strasbourg, 2011.

The rose window of the Strasbourg cathedral is, with its 13.60m diameter, one of the largest of the medieval world and a perfect illustration of the Rayonnant Gothic. It sits in the centre of the Westwerk and has been constructed around 1330 by Meister Johannes, the nephew of Meister Erwin.

Its stained glass shows a pattern of ears of wheat, something highly uncommon in rose windows. This pattern is original from the XIVth century, though the glass itself isn’t: the window has been heavily damaged by a storm in the XVIIIth century and during the bombing of the city by the Prussians in 1870. Those events have required extensive restoration and only a few part of the glass is still medieval.

In the attic of the cathedral, there is a shutter which nearly face the rose, and it’s always a magic moment when you open it and are directly confronted to this masterpiece.

I choose not to take a picture of the rose as a whole, but to show details enhancing its geometry instead.


Tools and exifs:

  • Canon EOS 450D + Canon 55-250mm IS
  • 74mm
  • 1/8 s.
  • f/6.3
  • ISO 400

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