Basilica of St. Denis--page 3 (of ten pages): nave interior
1231-81
The Rayonnant nave
The three-story nave elevation has a narrow triforium between the arcade and clerestory. While the nave is not as high as many Gothic cathedrals, the effect of light is striking since the triforium is also glazed with stained glass. The bar tracery, seen also in the rose windows below, provides a slender, linear effect. Simple quadripartite vaulting is used rather than the more common Gothic sexpartite vaults.
The nave toward the entrance, toward the choir, and the cruciform pier