finial

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The finial refers to an ornament in the architecture of earlier centuries, which flourished in the Gothic of the 12th century and in the later Neo-Gothic. A finial is usually located on the gables or towers of ceremonial buildings such as churches or castles and has in the plan view the shape of a uniform or Christian cross, viewed from above, the shape of the finial is square. It represents a particularly filigree work of former stonemasons, who beat leaves and flowers in the mentioned building areas and thus provided a natural and aesthetic sight even without real floral decoration. The knocking out of the finest decorative elements made of stone carries the high risk that they will lose their shape over decades due to adverse weather conditions and in the worst case be completely washed out of the stone work. For this reason, it was common for many sumptuous buildings to refresh already existing finials or after complete weathering these hit new in the earthenware. Although in other eras of the traditional architecture with floral elements worked and these were attached as for example in the Art Nouveau to adornment to buildings, the finial is a characteristic of the Gothic eras dar. Among the most famous finials in the Federal Republic include the Cologne Cathedral, which serve as a rounding off of the two towering towers of the world-famous Gothic building.