History of Clerestory
– Clerestory technology originated in ancient Egypt.
– Minoan palaces in Crete used lightwells and clerestories.
– King Solomon’s Hebrew temple featured clerestory windows.
– Hellenistic architecture in ancient Greece used clerestories.
– Romans applied clerestories to basilicas, bath-houses, and palaces.
Early Christian and Byzantine Basilicas
– Early Christian and some Byzantine churches were based on Roman basilicas.
– Naves and aisles were separated by columns and pierced by clerestory windows.
– Malmesbury Abbey in England has a nave wall divided into three stages: clerestory, triforium, and arcade.
– Triforium galleries became a standard feature in later Romanesque and Gothic churches.
– Augsburg Cathedral in Germany has the oldest glass clerestory windows from the late eleventh century.
Romanesque Period
– Many Romanesque churches had wooden roofs with clerestories.
– Groin and ribbed vaults allowed for the insertion of clerestory windows.
– Naves of large Romanesque churches had two levels: arcade and clerestory.
– A gallery called the triforium was inserted between the arcade and clerestory levels.
– Some late Romanesque and early Gothic buildings in France had an additional gallery above the triforium.
Gothic Period
– Gothic architecture allowed for larger clerestory fenestration.
– Clerestories in Gothic masterpieces were divided into bays by vaulting shafts.
– Clerestory levels became taller and windows larger in relation to wall surface.
– Amiens Cathedral and Westminster Abbey have clerestories that account for nearly a third of the interior height.
– In smaller Gothic churches, clerestory windows may be trefoils or quatrefoils.
Modern Clerestory Windows for Energy-Efficient Buildings
– Modern clerestories are vertical windows located on high walls.
– They allow light and breezes into a space without compromising privacy.
– Clerestories can be part of passive solar strategies in energy-efficient buildings.
– They are used in conjunction with high-mass walls and floors to store solar heat gains.
– Properly located and protected clerestories prevent overheating during the cooling season. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clerestory
In architecture, a clerestory (/ˈklɪərstɔːri/ KLEER-stor-ee; lit. 'clear storey', also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey; from Old French cler estor) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye-level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both.
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Historically, a clerestory formed an upper level of a Roman basilica or of the nave of a Romanesque or Gothic church, the walls of which rise above the rooflines of the lower aisles and which are pierced with windows.
Similar structures have been used in transportation vehicles to provide additional lighting, ventilation, or headroom.
