The Geometric Construction of Hexagonal Apses in Mediaeval Hungary

Abstract

Geometric construction in Gothic architecture has been a popular subject of research for centuries. The use and extent of quadrature and triangulation grids has long been debated, as the few architectural drawings that survived from the era do not indicate the construction process. Modern surveying methods, however, allow us to inspect the exact geometry of a building with all its irregularities – in the case of this article we use 3D point clouds created by laser scanning, from which accurate measurements can be taken.In our study we analyse four churches from mediaeval Hungary: the Franciscan church of Szeged-Alsóváros, the fortified church of Cincu (RO, Nagysink/Großschenk), the Franciscan church of GyöngyösAlsóváros and the fortified church of Mediaș (RO, Medgyes/Mediasch). Each of these are built with elon-gated choirs and approximately hexagonal apses. We explore the possible construction systems of these buildings and compare them to each other. We aim to present the similarities and differences between them and to offer likely explanations of their irregularities. Moreover, we propose the significance of construction circles used for creating a triangulation grid.