Cathedrals had many figurines including humans, animals, and gargoyles. Gargoyles
were built to look like frightening creatures. These statues were installed on the
buttresses and connected to the roof's gutters by channels. This made it appear as though
the gargoyles were spitting water on the ground when it rained.
Inside the cathedral you see many things, from arches to statues to,
probably the most spectacular features, stained glass windows. To make the beautiful
glass used in these creations, sand was put in a furnace until it melted. To color
the glass, dye was added while the sand was in a liquid form. When it was thoroughly
melted, the glass makers took a hollow tube, stuck it inside the furnace, and, when there
was a good amount of melted sand on the end of the tube, blew into the tube until the
glass was in the shape of a ball. They then spun the ball until it was completely flat.
The flat sheet of glass was then removed from the furnace and cut into the desired
shape. The delicate features, such as a face, were then painted on the cut glass
before the pieces were soldered together. The process of creating a stained glass window
took almost a month or more, depending on the size.
Bibliography:
1. Maculay, David. Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction, Boston, Houghton
Mifflin Company, 1973
2. Perdrizet, Marie-Pierre, and Eddy Krahenbuhl. People of the Past: The Cathedral
Builders. Brookfield, The Millbrook Press, Inc. 1990
3. Watson, Percy. Building the Medival Cathedral, Minneapolis, Lerner Publications
Company, 1976
Photographs of the Washington National Cathedral are provided by Alex Lee and his father.
Cathedrals had many figurines including humans, animals, and gargoyles. Gargoyles
were built to look like frightening creatures. These statues were installed on the
buttresses and connected to the roof's gutters by channels. This made it appear as though
the gargoyles were spitting water on the ground when it rained.
Inside the cathedral you see many things, from arches to statues to,
probably the most spectacular features, stained glass windows. To make the beautiful
glass used in these creations, sand was put in a furnace until it melted. To color
the glass, dye was added while the sand was in a liquid form. When it was thoroughly
melted, the glass makers took a hollow tube, stuck it inside the furnace, and, when there
was a good amount of melted sand on the end of the tube, blew into the tube until the
glass was in the shape of a 
ball. They then spun the ball until it was completely flat.
The flat sheet of glass was then removed from the furnace and cut into the desired
shape. The delicate features, such as a face, were then painted on the cut glass
before the pieces were soldered together. The process of creating a stained glass window
took almost a month or more, depending on the size.