Comparing Westminster Abbey with Beverley Minster

In contrast to yesterday's photos of the West Front of Beverley Minster, here are three pictures of the West Front of Westminster Abbey in London taken during our trip to Paris & London in March and April 2011.  The first is a close-up of the West Door of the Abbey (unlike Beverley you can never get a picture of Westminster without a crowd in front):

West Door of Westminster Abbey, 4/2011, Blomme/McClure

You'll note that the doorway arch is a simple pointed Gothic arch set fairly deeply into a square surround, rather than the more elaborate, but less deep-set ogee arch at Beverley which seems almost flamboyant in contrast.   There is a single row of statues above the Westminster door, rather than the double row at Beverley.  These are modern statues of 20th century martyrs (including Martin Luther King) rather than the statues of biblical kings, prophets and saints at Beverley which are probably the early 15th century originals. 

Central Section of West Front of Westminster Abbey, April, 2011, Blomme/McClure

As we move back at The Abbey, the resemblance to Beverley's composition becomes more apparent.  The large, single window in a pointed arch is almost identical to the west window at Beverley and it is flanked by two narrower panels which accentuate the perpendicular aspect of the composition.

West Front of Westminster Abbey, April, 2011, Blomme/McClure

The full facade of the Abbey's west front shows all of the parallel vertical lines that are the primary feature of Perpendicular English Gothic architecture.  The twin towers are much less bulky than the ones at Beverley, perhaps due to better design and engineering at the Abbey -- where they were added in only 1720 to 1745 (designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor).  The west towers at Beverley were completed over 300 years earlier, about 1420. 

Note how insignificant the west door is in the overall composition -- even though it's the 'royal' door used by kings and queens going to and from their coronations, weddings, baptisms, etc.