Saint-Denis, Noyon and the early gothic choir

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Examination of Suger's well documented choir at St-Denis, considered the spontaneously conceived prototype for the classic Gothic choir, shows that its most striking Gothic qualities result from compromises forced on its builders by the retention of pre-Gothic structures in the crypt. Investigation of the documentation and style of the choir of Noyon, one of many that St-Denis supposedly influenced, reveals that Noyon could and should predate St-Denis. This possibility complicates the history of Early Gothic architecture; instead of being an archetype, St-Denis may be an anomaly, devoid of immediate progeny.