Steeple (architecture)

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Christianity Portal

This article is about the architectural term. For other uses, see Steeple.

A steeple, in architecture, is a tall tower on a building, often topped by a spire. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure. They may be stand-alone structures, or incorporated into the entrance or center of the building.

Steeples generally serve as bell or clock towers. Towers were not a part of Christian churches until about AD 600, when they were adapted from military watchtowers. At first they were fairly modest and entirely separate structures from churches. Over time, they were incorporated into the church building and capped with ever-more elaborate roofs until the steeple resulted. Another possibility is that the steeple was originally a pagan structure adopted by the early Catholic church and then borrowed by the other denominations.^{[citation needed]} Steeples may also have phallic resonances; while the range of typical height-to-diameter ratios of steeples and erect human phallues are roughly similar, there is generally little further similarity and no evidence of anatomical imitation.^{[citation needed]}

Towers are a common element of religious architecture worldwide and are generally viewed as attempts to reach skyward toward Heavens and the Divine. Some wooden steeples like the one in Kingston, New York pictured below are built with large wooden structural members arranged like tent poles and braced diagonally inside both with wood and steel. The steeple is then clad with wooden boards and finished with slate tiles nailed to the boards using copper over gaps on corners where the slate would not cover.

The Cathedral of San Agustin in Laredo, Texas	The steeple of the Emmanuel Church of Boston.	The steeple of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, Singapore, designed by Charles Alexander Dyce.	The steeple of Celebration Church in Kingston, New York lit from inside	The steeple of Celebration Church in Kingston, New York before completion in July of 2004 during the day
A historic church steeple in Peru, Illinois	Norwich Cathedral in Norfolk, England	Cavan Cathedral of Saints Patrick and Felim, Ireland	Mainz Cathedral in Germany	Arlington Street Church in Boston, Massachusetts