CHAPTER III
POINTED CONSTRUCTION IN ENGLAND
Few instances of the constructive use of the pointed arch, or of the employment of groin ribs in vaulting, occur in England prior to the rebuilding of Canterbury Cathedral by a French architect, which was begun in 1175. One instance, however,
FIG. 68.
occurs at an early date in Malmesbury Abbey, a building which is nearly contemporaneous with St. Denis in France. Here in the vaults of the aisles we have a distinct approach to Gothic construction. These vaults, though simple in form and ponderous in their parts, are yet certainly advanced
