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The nave (/ n eɪ v /) is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] When a church contains side aisles , as in a basilica -type building, the strict definition of the term "nave" is restricted to the central ...
"Nave" (Medieval Latin navis, "ship") was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting. [1] The nave of a church, whether Romanesque, Gothic or Classical, extends from the entry (which may have a separate vestibule, the narthex ) to the chancel and is flanked by lower aisles [ 2 ] separated from the nave by an arcade .
Construction of a long nave, with the tower now at one end. [6] Usually the extension would be to the east, producing a west tower. [7] However, this is only a hypothesis; [5] we have only one surviving Anglo-Saxon timber church, Greensted Church, a small number of written descriptions, and some archaeological evidence of ground plans. [8]
The earliest known churches show the familiar basilican layout. For example, the church of Debre Damo is organized around a nave of four bays separated by re-used monolithic columns; at the western end is a low-roofed narthex, while on the eastern is the maqdas, or Holy of Holies, separated by the only arch in the building. [18]
The nave is the main body of the church where most of the worshippers stand, and the sanctuary is the area around the altar, east of the nave. The sanctuary is usually one to three steps higher than the nave. The iconostasis does not sit directly on the edge of the sanctuary but is usually set a few feet back from the edge of the top step.
One of the most notable early examples is the tile floor surrounding the tomb of King Philip I of France, in Fleury Abbey in Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire [22] One of the most famous late examples is the Church of Saint-Pierre-sur-Dives in Calvados, Normandy (13th century). The floor of the nave has a circular design three meters in diameter, made of ...
A cathedral is symbolically a ship bearing the people of God through the storms of life. In addition, the high wooden roof of a large church is similarly constructed to the hull of a ship. [25] [better source needed] The nave is braced on either side by lower aisles, separated from the main space by a row of piers or columns.
Plan of a Western cathedral, with the narthex in the shaded area at the western end. Floorplan of the Chora Church, showing both inner and outer narthex.. The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or vestibule, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. [1]