M. Maissen: Late Gothic Vaulting in the Canton of Grisons

Dissertation project by Manuel Maissen on the subject "Late Gothic Vaulting in the Canton of Grisons"

Enlarged view: St. Florinus, Ramosch — Vaults in the chancel of the St. Florinus Church, Ramosch. (Photo: Manuel Maissen, 2019)

Late Gothic Vaulting in the Canton of Grisons

The long 15^th century was a time of progress and new beginnings for the territory of the present-day Canton of Grisons: new transit routes were established, the regional economy flourished and the population rose rapidly as a result. However, the 15^th century also established a sense of autonomy among the general population, which led on a political and administrative level to the unification of the judicial communities in the Free State of the Three Leagues. Dissatisfaction also spread on the ecclesial level, which first manifested itself in the founding of new congregations and ultimately resulted in about two thirds of the parishes joining the Protestant Reformation.

Not only the political, ecclesiastical and social structures changed, but also the building landscape, which had previously been slumbering in a state of deep sleep for two centuries. The young parishes now needed their own churches, in which the pride and ambitions of the respective community were reflected, although the actual need was often far exceeded. When around the middle of the 15^th century the Late Gothic architectural style and with it the knowledge of building techniques was brought to Grisons by skilful master builders and stonemasons, they found fertile ground and ideal conditions. The enthusiasm for the Late Gothic architectural forms and the need for new church buildings led to a peak in the construction industry within a few years, with over 130 building projects in 118 individual objects being completed by the time of the Reformation.

The study deals with this period of intensive building activity with regard to the development of vaulting constructions from planning to the execution in the building. On the basis of selected case studies of representative churches a depiction of the Late Gothic building industry from the involved stonemasons and responsible masters up to the used building materials and the constructional aspects shall be given. The focus thereby lies also on building in existing structures, as the Late Gothic church scheme was not only applied to new buildings but also to already existing churches, which were subsequently vaulted in by the hands of skilled masters and stonemasons.

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Gewölbebau der Spätgotik in Graubünden (Diss., 2020)

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Maissen, M.: Early Iron Bridges in Switzerland 1850-1875: A Primer. In: Campbell, J., et al. (Eds.): Timber and Construction. Proceedings of the Ninth Conference of the Construction History. Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2022, 329–341. (Reserach Collection)
Maissen, M.: Late Gothic Vaulting in the Canton of Grisons, Switzerland. In: Campbell, J., et al. (Eds.): The History of Building Trades and Professionalism. Proceedings of the Seventh Conference of the Construction History Society. Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2021, 133–145. (Research Collection)
Maissen, M.: Vaults on the Water: A systematic analysis of the vault construction in the Wasserkirche Zurich. In: Mascarenhas-Mateus, J., et. al. (Eds): History of Construction Cultures: Proceedings of the 7th International Congress on Construction History, 2021, Lisbon, Portugal. London: CRC Press, 2021, Vol. II, 349–355. (Reserach Collection)
Maissen, M.: Spätgotischer Baubetrieb in Graubünden: Die Gewölbe der Churer Pfarrkirchen St. Martin und St. Regula. In: Gesellschaft für Bautechnikgeschichte (Eds): Reparieren – Ertüchtigen – Erhalten. Ansätze und Strategien seit der Antike. Fourth Annual Conference of the Gesellschaft für Bautechnikgeschichte, 9 to 11 May 2019, Hanover. Michael Imhof: Petersberg, 2021, 177–194. (Research Collection)
Maissen, M. Gewölbebau der Spätgotik in Graubünden. Diss, ETH Zürich, 2020. (Research Collection)
Maissen, M.: On the Subsequent Vaulting of Churches in the Late Gothic Period: The Collegiate Church of San Vittore Mauro in Poschiavo, Switzerland. In: Campbell, J., et al. (Eds.): Iron, Steel and Building: Studies in the History of Construction. Proceedings of the Seventh Conference of the Construction History Society. Cambridge: Construction History Society, 2020, 249–260. (Research Collection / external page PDF)
Maissen, M.; Gramegna, F.; Holzer, S. M.: Pioniergeist und Optimismus: Die Hetzer-Dachkonstruktion der Reithalle von St. Moritz. In: Bündner Monatsblatt 4/2019, 355–375. (Research Collection / external page PDF)
Maissen, M.: Von Haspelsternen und Prinzipalbögen: Spätgotischer Gewölbebau österreichischer Baumeister im Bistum Chur. In: INSITU Zeitschrift für Architekturgeschichte 1/2019, 65–80. (Research Collection / external page PDF)
Maissen, M.; Gantner, M.; Holzer, S. M.: Late Gothic Constructions in Müstair and Meran. In: Wouters, I., et al. (Eds.): Building Knowledge, Constructing Histories: Proceedings of the 6th International Congress on Construction History, 2018, Brussels, Belgium. London: CRC Press, 2018, Vol. II, 887–893. (Research Collection / external page PDF)
Maissen, M.: Im Schatten der Burg: Die Kirche Santa Maria del Castello in Mesocco. In: Bündner Monatsblatt 1/2018, 96–115. (Research Collection)
Maissen, M.: Im Schatten der Burg: Die Kirche Santa Maria del Castello in Mesocco. Bau- und Ausstattungsgeschichte. Masterarbeit, Universität Zürich, 2016.

Book reviews:

Maissen, M.: Buchbesprechung: Carola Jäggi / Andrea Rumo / Sabine Sommerer (Hrsg.), Platz da! Genese und Materialität des öffentlichen Platzes in der mittelalterlichen Stadt, 2021. In: Zeitschrift für schweizerische Archäologie und Kunstgeschichte 79, 2/2022, S. 82–83. (Research Collection)

Zur Planung und Konstruktion der Seitenschiffgewölbe in der Stadtkirche St. Johann in Schaffhausen (52. Koldewey-Conference, Strasbourg, 28.05.2022)
Gewölbebau der Spätgotik in Graubünden (Historical Society Grisons, Rhätisches Museum Chur, 12.04.2022)
Early Iron Bridges in Switzerland (Ninth Conference of the Construction History Society, Queens' College Cambridge, 2.04.2022)Late
Gothic Vaulting in the Canton of Grisons, Switzerland (EighthConference of the Construction History Society, Queens' College Cambridge, Online, 27.08.2021)
Visualising complex Vault Geometries through 3D printing: The Wasserkirche in Zurich, Switzerland. (Tracing the Past, Modelling Medieval Vaults Second Symposium, University of Liverpool, Online, 20.08.2021)
Vaults on the Water: A systematic analysis of the vault construction in the Wasserkirche Zurich. (7th International Congress on Construction History; Online, 14.07.2021)
On the Subsequent Vaulting of Churches in the Late Gothic Period: The Collegiate Church of San Vittore Mauro in Poschiavo, Switzerland. (Seventh Conference of the Construction History Society, Queens' College Cambridge, external page Online)
Ranken, Rauten, Rätien: Spätgotischer Gewölbebau in Graubünden zwischen 1450 und 1525. (Forschungskolloquium des Lehrstuhls für Kunstgeschichte des Mittelalters, Archäologie der frühchristlichen, hoch- und spätmittelalterlichen Zeit von Prof. Dr. Carola Jäggi; Universität Zürich, 12.11.2019)
Spielarten eines Baubooms: Spätgotische Gewölbekonstruktionen im Bistum Chur. (Kolloquium des Graduiertenkollegs auf Einladung von Prof. Dr.-Ing. David Wendland; B-TU Cottbus, 29.05.2019.
Spätgotischer Baubetrieb in Graubünden: Die Pfarrkirchen St. Martin und St. Regula in Chur. (4. Jahrestagung der Gesellschaft für Bautechnigeschichte, Hannover, 10.05.2019)
Late-Gothic Constructions in Müstair and Meran. (Sixth International Congress on Construction History; Brüssel, 12.07.2018)
Im Schatten der Burg: Die Kirche Santa Maria del Castello in Mesocco. (Forschungskolloquium des Lehrstuhls für Kunstgeschichte des Mittelalters, Archäologie der frühchristlichen, hoch- und spätmittelalterlichen Zeit von Prof. Dr. Carola Jäggi; Universität Zürich, 29.11.2016)