The Architecture of the Scottish Medieval Church, 1100–1560

Having spent most of his career as a monuments inspector and historian, Fawcett (art history, Univ. of St. Andrews, Scotland) is a well-informed and able guide to Scottish Romanesque, Gothic, late medieval, and reformation period ecclesiastical architecture. Superb descriptions of abbeys, priories, towers, parish and collegiate churches, and cathedrals are accompanied by 400 illustrations, including many full-page color photos. Of note is the longest section, on the 15th-century Scottish synthesis of continental European influences and sources, identified through comparing and interpreting architectural details and stylistic similarities in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany. About 400 structures are examined, many of which survive only as fragmentary doorways, arcades, and partial walls. Fawcett also notes transformations and demolitions through the centuries and ends by urging scholars to take active steps to preserve the most important monuments.