THE LATE GOTHIC STYLE IN SPAIN

the interstices. The room is somewhat bare, as the friars' churches of
Tuscany, but it has a great power, and it certainly is, with its sharp
contrast of one room in the west and a system of three spatial units
of staggered height and width in the east, the most convincing proof
of the change of style from High to Late Gothic.

But when did the one phase end and the other begin ? Our Spanish
and German examples were of the 15th century, our examples from

England of the early years of the
I4th. The nave of Gerona is plain
and solid, without mystery. So are
at least the exteriors of the Late
Gothic churches of Germany. Their
interiors on the other hand are full
of movement, unrestrained in feel-
ing, romantically rich and roman-
tically vague. They share these
qualities with Bristol and Ely.
Neither Bristol, however, nor Ely

1 f 37- GUILLERMO BOFFIY: GERONA

aims at the Contrast Ot square ex- CATHEDRAL. THE ARCHITECT ADDED

CHOIR WITH

terior volume and floating interior T0 A
& AMBULATORY A NAVE WITHOUT AISLES
Space. Nor did Britain, even at TO THE WIDTH OF CHOIR AND AMBU-
the late date of the Nuremberg LATORY* BEGUN I417*
choir of St. Lawrence's, go to such
extremes. Nevertheless British architectural style had changed sig-
nally between 1300 and 1450. The change is so obvious that, while
for the Continent the terms High and Late Gothic are sufficient to
indicate the chief stages, English tradition has for more than a hun-
dred years preferred a division into three Gothic phases: Early
65