The great cathedrals of medieval Europe were among the most ambitious structures ever attempted by hand. Beginning in the twelfth century, builders in France developed the pointed arch, the ribbed vault, and the flying buttress, which together carried the weight of the roof outward and allowed walls to be opened up with enormous windows of stained glass. Masons, carpenters, glaziers, and sculptors labored on a single building for decades and sometimes for centuries, and many never saw the work completed. Quarries were opened, forests were felled, and entire towns organized their economies around the construction. The results soared to heights that would not be surpassed until the age of steel.
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