# Exterior view [View the canonical artwork record]() ## Artwork - Artist: [ARCHITECT, French]() - Date: 1201-1250 - Technique: Photo ## Commentary The cathedral of Saint-Julien in Le Mans combines a Romanesque nave and a High Gothic choir. It is notable for its rich collection of stained glass and the spectacular bifurcating flying buttresses at its eastern end. The cathedral was originally built in the late 11th century with a flat roof. It had burnt down several times, the last time being in 1137, when it was decided to vault the nave in stone. In the course of this work the whole clerestory of the nave was rebuilt. The city of Le Mans had fallen into the hands of the French monarchy in 1204, along with the rest of the English king's French possessions. In 1217, King Philippe-Auguste allowed the cathedral chapter to pull down the city wall in the place where it wanted to build a particularly large new choir. Because the ground sloped away at that point, some costly foundation work was needed at first, but the choir was nevertheless complete in 1254. The photo shows the exterior seen fron the place des Jacobins. ## Related artworks - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Aerial view]() - [Bird's eye view]() - [Burial lantern]() - [Castle]() ## Attribution [Web Gallery of Art]()