cathedral
Diocesan seat church
A cathedral is a large, important church that serves as the official seat of a bishop.
The term comes from the bishop's chair (cathedra) that symbolizes ecclesiastical authority.
Cathedrals are typically grander than ordinary churches, often featuring elaborate architecture: Notre-Dame is Paris's most famous cathedral.
Figuratively, cathedral describes spaces with similar grandeur or reverence: a cathedral of trees, the cathedral hush of a library.
Church's main interior
- transeptChurch's lateral wing
- apseVaulted church recess
- buttressArchitectural wall reinforcement
- clerestoryElevated fenestrated church wall
vault · spire · flying buttress · stained glass · rose window · narthex · ambulatory · chancel
Sacred ritual table
- bishopDiocesan clergy head
- dioceseBishop's territorial jurisdiction
- congregationAssembled group of worshippers
- liturgyFormal worship structure
mass · ordination · clergy · sermon · sacrament · vespers · matins · choir
Spans peaking at apex
- flying buttressesExternal arched wall supports
- gargoylesDecorative architectural waterspouts
- traceryDecorative branching stonework
- rose windowCircular tracery-filled window
ogive · pinnacles · finials · stained glass · spires · grotesques · quatrefoil · trefoil
Prolonged reflected sound
- echoReflected sound wave
- resonanceAmplified oscillation at natural frequency
- choirOrganized group of singers
- organBody's working component
chanting · acoustics · sonority · plainsong · Gregorian · anthem · sacred music · carillon
Impressive supreme dignity
- splendorImpressive, striking beauty
- aweReverent fear and wonder
- toweringOf imposing height
- monumentalExceptionally large or significant
imposing · sublime · magnificent · resplendent · lofty · soaring · vastness · grandeur
Notable point of reference
- monumentStructure honoring someone remembered
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
- restorationReturning something to condition
- UNESCOCultural arm of UN
antiquity · pilgrimage · tourism · guided tour · visitor · history · medieval · Romanesque
Medieval Parisian Gothic cathedral
- ChartresCathedral town on Eure
- WestminsterLondon's political center
- CologneMajor German Rhine city
- Sagrada FamiliaGaudí's masterwork basilica
St. Paul's · Canterbury · Reims · Amiens · Seville · St. Peter's · Hagia Sophia · Milan
nave
Church's main interior
clerestory · vault · spire · flying buttress · stained glass · rose window · narthex · ambulatory · chancel · crypt
altar
Sacred ritual table
- bishopDiocesan clergy head
- dioceseBishop's territorial jurisdiction
- congregationAssembled group of worshippers
liturgy · mass · ordination · clergy · sermon · sacrament · vespers · matins · choir · incense
pointed arches
Spans peaking at apex
- flying buttressesExternal arched wall supports
- gargoylesDecorative architectural waterspouts
- traceryDecorative branching stonework
rose window · ogive · pinnacles · finials · stained glass · spires · grotesques · quatrefoil · trefoil · cusps
reverberation
Prolonged reflected sound
- echoReflected sound wave
- resonanceAmplified oscillation at natural frequency
- choirOrganized group of singers
organ · chanting · acoustics · sonority · plainsong · Gregorian · anthem · sacred music · carillon · bells
majesty
Impressive supreme dignity
monumental · imposing · sublime · magnificent · resplendent · lofty · soaring · vastness · grandeur · sacred
landmark
Notable point of reference
- monumentStructure honoring someone remembered
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
- restorationReturning something to condition
UNESCO · antiquity · pilgrimage · tourism · guided tour · visitor · history · medieval · Romanesque · Byzantine
Notre-Dame
Medieval Parisian Gothic cathedral
- ChartresCathedral town on Eure
- WestminsterLondon's political center
- CologneMajor German Rhine city
Sagrada Familia · St. Paul's · Canterbury · Reims · Amiens · Seville · St. Peter's · Hagia Sophia · Milan · Salisbury
- attractionszoo, museum, theme park, amusement park, water park
- tourist attractionstheme parks, amusement parks, museum, water parks, zoos
- architectureEiffel Tower, buildings, architects, design, thatching
- CatholicismVatican, cardinals, pope, Holy Communion, popes
- Medieval Europekings, queens, knights, castles, castle
- Medieval Historyfeudalism, Black Death, crusades, crusade, knight
cathedralvillage church
Small community's worship building
storefront church · house church · oratory · wayside shrine · parish church
cathedralsecular
Nonreligious, worldly
government office · commercial building · shopping mall · warehouse · factory
- St. Paul's CathedralLondon's principal Anglican church
- cathedral choirSingers in large church
- Canterbury CathedralHistoric English mother church
- European cathedralsGrand historic churches abroad
- Notre-Dame CathedralMedieval Parisian basilica
- medieval cathedralLarge historic Christian edifice