FAN-TRACERY VAULTING. A kind of late Gothic vaulting peculiar to the Perdendicu lar (q.v.) style in England. It is the logical out come of the English feeling that the ribs of Gothic vaulting were not strictly structural ele ments, as is the case in all pure Gothic, espe cially in France (see Vat-LT), but could be 'ised for decorating the surface of the vaults withont regard to functional use, as a form of surface tracery. The first step consisted in sup plementing the two diagonal ribs of the simple quadripartite vault by other ribs radiating, at equal distances, from the same point—namely, the spring of the vault, on the Ava 11 or over the capital of the pier. These gave four fan-like groups of ribs, called tiereerons, whose summits were intercepted at the ridge-level by other ribs, called liernes. This is the simple fan vaulting, as in the chapter-house at Wells (1292) and the choir of Exeter. When, during the fourteenth century, other ribs, parallel to the iiernc ridge ribs, were added, which were crossed by the tierccrons, a series of star-shaped groups were formed, and these were called Herne or star vaults, as in the nave of Tewkesbury and the chair of Gloucester. This was popular during
the Decorated style (q.v.). With the advent of the Perpendicular, the whole surface of the vault ing between the ribs was filled with a rich trac ery, similar to that used in windows, and consist ing of cusped arcades, circles, or polygons of bewildering delicacy. Thus the rurcry vaulting was finally created. its most wonder ful novelty was the construction of stone pen dants hanging from the vaulting surfaces and supported by an ingenious series of internal arches, while appearing to rest on air. Among the finest examples are Henry V11.'s chapel at Westminster, Saint George's at Windsor, and Ding's College Chapel at Cambridge. This vault ing was a! •a used in cloisters, as at Gloucester and Canterbury. Consult: awilt, Eneyelopredia of Architecture, revised by Papworth (London, 1867) ; Willis, "Construction of the Vaults of the Middle Age," in Transactions of the Royal Institute of Pritish Architects (London, 1842).