List of highest church naves explained

The nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church, in Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture. "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.

List of highest church naves
Cathedral/ChurchNave heightCityCountryNotes
1Beauvais Cathedral47m (154feet)[3] BeauvaisFranceThe "Parthenon of French Gothic", only one bay of the nave was built, but choir and transepts were completed to the same height.
2St. Peter's Basilica46m (151feet)[4]
45m (148feet)[5]
Vatican CityVatican City
3Florence Cathedral45m (148feet)FlorenceItaly
3Milan Cathedral45m (148feet)MilanItaly
3Santa Chiara~45m (148feet)
~33.5m (109.9feet)[6]
NaplesItaly
3Sagrada Família45m (148feet)[7] BarcelonaSpainStill under construction, although the interior of the church is complete. Vaults of the crossing and the apse reach 60 and 75 metres respectively.
7San Petronio Basilica44.24m (145.14feet)[8] BolognaItaly
8Palma Cathedral44m (144feet)[9] [10] PalmaSpainPillars sustaining vaults are the narrowest in the world: they measure 1/12 of vault width (at Reims, pillars are 1/6 of vault width)
8People's Salvation Cathedral44m (144feet)[11] BucharestRomaniaIt is the tallest and largest (by volume) Orthodox church building in the world.
8Basilica of Our Lady of Licheń44m (144feet)Licheń StaryPolandHighest nave in Poland, 77 m wide. The highest point inside the church (dome presbytery) is 85 meters high
11Cologne Cathedral43.35m (142.22feet)[12] CologneGermanyHighest height to width ratio of any nave
12Amiens Cathedral42.3m (138.8feet)[13] AmiensFrance
13Seville Cathedral42m (138feet)[14] SevilleSpainRanked as largest medieval Gothic church
14Metz Cathedral41.41m (135.86feet)MetzFranceLargest glass surface
15St Bartholomew's Church41.15m (135.01feet)[15] BrightonUnited KingdomHighest nave in the UK, not vaulted (wooden wagon roof).
16Ulm Münster41m (135feet)[16] UlmGermany
16Narbonne Cathedral41m (135feet)
40.1m (131.6feet)[17]
NarbonneFranceOnly the great choir of this French Gothic cathedral has been built.
18Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida40m (130feet)AparecidaBrazilThird biggest church in the world. Biggest place of worship in all the Americas.
19St. Mary's Church38.5m (126.3feet)LübeckGermanyHighest brick vault in the world.
20Reims Cathedral37.95m (124.51feet)ReimsFranceHolds the world record for statues: 2303 stone figurines are represented on it.
21Cathedral of St. John the Divine37.7m (123.7feet)[18] New York CityUnited States
22Cathedral of La Plata37.5m (123feet)La PlataArgentina
22Nantes Cathedral37.5m (123feet)NantesFrance
25Bourges Cathedral37m (121feet)BourgesFrance
25Chartres Cathedral37m (121feet)
36.55m (119.91feet)
ChartresFrance
25Basilica of St. Thérèse37m (121feet)LisieuxFrance
25St. Nicholas37m (121feet)WismarGermany
25Cathedral of Christ the Saviour37m (121feet)[19] MoscowRussia
30Liverpool Cathedral36.54m (119.88feet)LiverpoolUnited Kingdom
31Tournai Cathedral36m (118feet)TournaiBelgiumHighest nave in the Low Countries
32New Cathedral35.4m (116.1feet)SalamancaSpain
33Notre Dame35m (115feet)[20]
34m (112feet)[21] [22]
ParisFrance
33Málaga Cathedral35m (115feet)MálagaSpain
33St. George church35m (115feet)WismarGermany
36Granada Cathedral34.5m (113.2feet)[23] GranadaSpain
37Basilica of Saint-Quentin34m (112feet)Saint-QuentinFrance
37Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe34m (112feet)[24] Zamora de HidalgoMexicoTallest Neo-Gothic church in Mexico, 106 m. Still under construction. Known as the "Incomplete Cathedral" ("La Catedral Inconclusa").
37Girona Cathedral34m (112feet)GironaSpainWidest Gothic nave in the world, 22.98 m, and lower ratio high/wide in Gothic architecture
37Church of Our Lady of the Snows34m (112feet)[25] PragueCzech Republic39m (128feet) high nave destroyed during Hussite Wars
41Chiesa di San Nicolò33.35m (109.42feet)[26] TrevisoItaly
42Le Mans Cathedral33m (108feet)Le MansFrance
42Segovia Cathedral33m (108feet)[27] SegoviaSpain
42St. Vitus Cathedral33m (108feet)[28] PragueCzech Republic
42Speyer Cathedral33m (108feet)SpeyerGermanyHighest romanesque vault
46St. Mary's church32.95m (108.1feet)StralsundGermanyWorld's highest building from 1625 to 1647 (151 m). Today 104 m.
47St. Mary's Church32.5m (106.6feet)Stargard SzczecińskiPolandSecond highest nave in Poland
47Batalha Monastery32.5m (106.6feet)[29] BatalhaPortugal
49Aachen Cathedral32m (105feet)AachenGermanyHeight of the gothic choir.
49Bayeux cathedral32 m(105 ft)Bayeux
49Strasbourg Cathedral32m (105feet)StrasbourgFrance
49Ely Cathedral32m (105feet)ElyUnited Kingdom
49Glasgow Cathedral32m (105feet)GlasgowUnited Kingdom
49Magdeburg Cathedral32m (105feet)MagdeburgGermany
49Santa Maria del Mar32m (105feet)BarcelonaSpainGreatest separation between pillars in Gothic architecture (15 m)
49Engelbrekt Church32m (105feet)StockholmSwedenHighest nave in Scandinavia
56Regensburg Cathedral31.85m (104.49feet)[30] RegensburgGermany
57Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels31.7m (104feet)Los AngelesUnited States
58St. Martin's Cathedral31.5m (103.3feet)UtrechtNetherlandsThe nave collapsed during a storm in 1674.
58St. Mary's Church31.5m (103.3feet)RostockGermany
60St Bavo's Cathedral31.1m (102feet)[31] GhentBelgium
61Westminster Abbey31m (102feet)[32] LondonUnited Kingdom
61Munich Frauenkirche31m (102feet)MunichGermany
6131m (102feet)YorkUnited Kingdom
6131m (102feet)[33] TallinnEstonia
61Washington National Cathedral31m (102feet)Washington, D.C.United States
66Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception30.5 m (100 ft)Washington, D.C.United States
67Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran30m (100feet)RomeItaly
67Pavia Cathedral30m (100feet)PaviaItaly
67St. Peter's Church30m (100feet)RigaLatvia
69Saint Thomas Church29m (95feet)New York CityNew York
69St. John's Cathedral29m (95feet)'s-HertogenboschNetherlands
71St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna28m (92feet)ViennaAustriaHeight mentioned on the German Wikipedia article without source.
71St Paul's Cathedral28m (92feet)LondonUnited Kingdom
71Alexander Nevsky Cathedral28m (92feet)[34] of the central naveSofiaBulgaria
71Church of the Assumption of Our Lady and Saint John the Baptist28m (92feet)[35] Kutná HoraCzech Republic
71Cathedral of Our Lady (Antwerp)28m (92feet)[36] AntwerpBelgium
71St. Rumbold's Cathedral28m (92feet)MechelenBelgiumHeight mentioned on the Dutch Wikipedia article without source.
71Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia28m (92feet)[37] BarcelonaSpain
78Grace Cathedral27.7m (90.9feet)[38] San FranciscoUnited States
79Lancing College Chapel27.4m (89.9feet)[39] LancingUnited Kingdom
80Uppsala Cathedral27m (89feet)[40] UppsalaSweden
81Salisbury Cathedral25.5m (83.7feet)[41] SalisburyUnited Kingdom
82Lincoln Cathedral25m (82feet)[42] LincolnUnited KingdomA central spire from after 1311 until 1548 had a reputed height of 160m (530feet), which would have made the cathedral the tallest structure in the world during the spire's existence.
83Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist24.3m (79.7feet)SpokaneUnited States
84Canterbury Cathedral24m (79feet)CanterburyUnited KingdomNave is 80feet with a crossing height of 92feet, and a tower 169feet tall
85Grundtvigskirken22 m (72 ft)CopenhagenDenmark
86All Saints Cathedral19.5m (64feet)HalifaxCanada

Note: The lower part of the list probably has many missing cathedrals. For example, St Patrick's Cathedral Melbourne – 24.3 metres

See also

Notes

a.

b.

Notes and References

  1. Encyclopædia Britannica, s.v. "nave".
  2. http://www.answers.com/topic/nave Nave
  3. Web site: Architecture . MSN Encarta . https://web.archive.org/web/20091029171526/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761578082_6/Architecture.html . 2009-10-29 . dead .
  4. http://www.activItaly.it/inglese/monument/basilica_St_Peter_rome.htm "The Basilica of St. Peter"
  5. http://saintpetersbasilica.org/Interior/Nave/Nave.htm "The Nave"
  6. Bruzelius. Caroline. Giordano. Andrea. Basso. Andrea. Castagna. Elisa. Giles. Lucas. Repola. Leopoldo. De Feo. Emanuela. 2018. L'eco delle pietre: history, modeling, and GPR as tools in reconstructing the choir screen at Sta. Chiara in Naples. Archeologia e Calcolatori. Supplementi. 10. Progetti digitali per la storia dell’arte medievale - Digital Projects in Medieval Art History. 81–103. 10.19282/acs.10.2018.06. 2385-202X.
  7. Web site: Informe Del Comité Español Del Consejo Internacional De Monumentos Y Sitios (ICOMOS) Sobre El Posible Impacto Del Tren De Alta Velocidad (AVE) En El Templo Expiatorio De La Sagrada Familia De Barcelona . International Council on Monuments and Sites . 1 February 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070929021346/http://www.patrimonio-mundial.com/guell/sagradafamilia-icomosespana010207.pdf . 29 September 2007.
  8. Web site: Basilica di San Petronio: La Fabbriceria. Basilica di San Petronio [official website]. 10 April 2017. it-IT.
  9. http://www.gaudiclub.com/ingles/i_vida/mallorca.asp "Restoration of the Cathedral of Palma de Majorca"
  10. Web site: Roca . P. . Gonzalez . J. L. . Morphology, Structure and History – The Case of the Upper Flying Arches of Mallorca Cathedral . Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya . https://web.archive.org/web/20040115215344/http://www.unesco.org/archi2000/pdf/roca.pdf . 15 January 2004.
  11. Web site: INTERVIU: "Se vor face multe teze de doctorat" despre construcția Catedralei Mântuirii Neamului. www.digi24.ro. 7 October 2016 . ro. 2019-11-20.
  12. http://www.koelner-dom.de/index.php?id=55&L=1 "Measures and dates"
  13. Der Geschichtliche Weg Der grossen Kathedralen Frankreichs, France Monuments.
  14. http://www.spain.info/en_GB/conoce/monumentos/sevilla/catedral_de_sevilla.html "Seville Cathedral"
  15. http://www.visitbrighton.com/things-to-do/st-bartholomews-church-p349601 "St Bartholomews Church"
  16. http://www.uquebec.ca/musique/orgues/allemagne/ulmsm.html#English "St. Mary's Lutheran Cathedral"
  17. http://www.uquebec.ca/musique/orgues/france/narbonnec.html#English "Narbonne"
  18. Web site: Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine. 2010-11-07 . New York Architecture .
  19. http://www.xxc.ru/english/complex/xxc/index.htm "The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour"
  20. Web site: Façade - Notre Dame Cathedral . Buffalo Architecture and History . https://web.archive.org/web/20070322111719/http://freenet.buffalo.edu/bah/a/virtual/fr/nd/fac/index.html . 22 March 2007.
  21. http://ndparis.free.fr/notredamedeparis/menus/paris_notredame_chiffres_et_anecdotes.html "Notre Dame en long et en large chiffres et anecdotes"
  22. http://www.planetware.com/paris/notre-dame-interior-f-p-ndi.htm "Notre-Dame de Paris, Paris – Interior"
  23. http://catedraldegranada.com/la-catedral/arquitectura-decoracion-2/la-planta-catedralicia/ "Catedral de Granada [homepage]"
  24. http://www.santuarioguadalupano.org.mx/elproyecto.html "El proyecto"
  25. http://www.praguewelcome.cz/srv/www/en/objects/detail.x?id=42608 "Church of Our Lady of the Snows"
  26. Web site: Architettura del Tempio. 2020-10-20. www.sannicolotreviso.it. 30 June 2016. it-IT.
  27. ftp://clip.dia.fi.upm.es/pub/plilp-alp-94/www/events.html "Social events"
  28. Web site: Stavba . Katedrála sv. Víta . https://web.archive.org/web/20070525003049/http://www.katedralapraha.cz/?lang=cz&pageId=o-katedrale-stavba . 25 May 2007.
  29. Web site: Ely Cathedral - Facts and Figures.
  30. Book: Hubel, Achim . Regensburg: St Peter's Cathedral . Schnell & Steiner . Schnell, Art Guide . 4th . 2010 . Regensburg . 12 . 978-3-7954-6162-1 .
  31. http://www.tento.be/OKV-artikel/de-sint-baafskathedraal-gent-monument-en-heiligdom "OKV: De Sint-Baafskathedraal gent. Monument en heiligdom."
  32. http://www.europanas.com/londres-en.htm "Jewels of the Architecture: London"
  33. [St. Olaf's Church, Tallinn]
  34. Web site: Architecture .
  35. http://www.ceskatelevize.cz/porady/1035807523-santini/30024234405/826-ukazky-z-nekterych-santiniho-del/ "Santini"
  36. Web site: De Kathedraal - Facts and Figures. dekathedraal.be . 30 December 2015. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150923213341/http://dekathedraal.be/en/weetjes.htm. 2015-09-23.
  37. Web site: Dimensions.
  38. Web site: Architecture.
  39. Web site: Nimbus Hosting.
  40. http://www.linkopingsdomkyrka.se/default.asp?page=page&menuid=12&pageid=134 "Hur hög och hur lång?"
  41. http://www.salisburycathedral.org.uk/visitor.faqs.php "Frequently Asked Questions"
  42. http://boar.org.uk/ariwxo3RegDoc002.htm "Plan and Description of Lincoln Cathedral from an Anonymous guide booklet printed near the end of the Nineteenth Century"