This document reproduces in its entirety a long article on the crypts of Chartres Cathedral, and has no scientific value. It serves as an introduction to a work on the enhancement of the lower parts, and thus helps to identify the specific features of such a space.
Numerous lighted openings were provided from the outset. Today, the crypt walls are semi-buried. The immediate perception of the site is that of a long corridor, whose processional function the academics tend to confirm.
The lower space was conceived as a place to welcome pilgrims, inviting them on a journey of prayer and song, as opposed to the upper vessel, dedicated to the celebration of the Eucharist. The galleries more than m long make Chartres the longest crypt in the world β if not the largest. The idea for the crypt was the brainchild of Bishop Fulbert, whose spiritual and intellectual stature was once again highlighted in , the millennium of his accession to the episcopate.
A focus on archaeology and art history In this crypt, a well can be seen, which has been dated to between the 2nd century BC and the 2nd century AD. Research β by a number of controversial authors β has yet to establish a completely satisfactory solution for understanding the structures in place for buildings dating from before the year The consensus is that Gallo-Roman and Carolingian remains can be found in one excavation corridor.
It is therefore an extraordinary testimony to a model of architecture pre-Romanesque that is under-represented in France. The argument goes as follows: even before the year 0, Celtic priests were miraculously warned that a virgin in a distant land would soon give birth to the Savior.
