The Cathedral

To step inside a Gothic cathedral is to step inside the visual essence of the Christian faith. Since the Christianization of Europe in the 4th century, cathedrals have served as centers of ecclesiastical authority; marvels of architectural genius and innovation; places to instruct communities about cherished Christian values and lessons, and sites of political, cultural, intellectual, and economic importance. Bring these captivating buildings right into your own home in this course, taught by noted medieval historian and award-winning Professor William R. Cook of SUNY Geneseo. These 24 lavishly illustrated lectures make use of high-definition 3-D modeling and imagery to not just show you the world's great Gothic cathedrals, but to take you around and inside them, revealing new perspectives you can't enjoy anywhere else. Yet as dynamic as the visuals are, every single lecture is rooted in the detailed scholarship and fascinating insights of Professor Cook himself. A lifelong scholar of cathedrals, he's traveled the world to learn about these magnificent structures. And every lecture is a way for him to share, with the characteristic passion and engagement that have made him one of our most popular professors, his comprehensive knowledge of cathedrals: how they're built, how they've evolved, and what they mean to people both in the past and today.