Gothic's Second Life

The nineteenth-century Gothic Revival showed that medieval aesthetics could serve modern purposes. Britain's Houses of Parliament, rebuilt after an 1834 fire, adopted Gothic style as a statement of national identity — ancient forms housing democratic institutions.

The influence reached far beyond churches. American universities built Gothic dormitories with central heating and electric lights behind pointed arches and tracery windows. Train stations, department stores, even skyscrapers borrowed Gothic ornament, stretching the style well past its religious roots.