Visit the homepage for more information. In 1194 a fire destroyed Chartres' earlier Cathedral. Of the twelfth-century windows that survived, only this figure of Mary and the large windows at the west ...

A cathedral of some kind has stood on this site since Roman times, and it became a pilgrimage site in 876 A.D., when it acquired a sacred relic, believed to be a shard of the Virgin Mary's Veil.

Rooted in medieval architecture and later expanded into literature, fashion and art, it stands as a symbol of mystery and the sublime. The origins of the Gothic aesthetic trace back to 12th-century ...