V.6.4
PROCEDURES FOLLOWED IN
RECONSTRUCTION
In what follows, then, we are entering upon the task of
reconstructing the guest and service buildings of the Plan
of St. Gall, structure by structure. All buildings are drawn
to scale. But certain liberties of interpretation are inevitable
when the constructional elements of a house whose
vertical elements are rendered in simple line projection have
to be converted into three-dimensional entities. All vertical
values will by necessity remain a matter of speculation. In
calculating our elevations we have followed the same method
that we used in our reconstruction of the Church,
assigning to each component space in the house the comfortable
minimum proportions required by its function. We
have assumed that the roof slopes follow, in general, an
angle of 45 degrees. This is a reasonable, yet by no means
compelling, assumption.
The working out of the constructional details of some
forty-odd buildings is not only an arduous, but also a very
costly task—so costly and complex, indeed, that we might
never have accomplished it had the Council of Europe
exhibition Charlemagne (held in Aachen in the summer of
1965) not afforded us the unique opportunity of testing our
views in the construction of a three-dimensional model of
the monastic buildings shown on the Plan of St. Gall.
Although in the majority of cases this model called for
exterior views only, it was obvious enough that even this
objective could not be attained unless the internal constructional
problems of each house were settled. This required
for each individual building a complete set of work-drawings,
sufficiently detailed and comprehensive so as to allow,
if need be, for reconstruction of the houses in their actual
size.[225]
It is on these drawings that the reconstructions in
the present study are based.
We cannot dare to claim that our interpretations are the
last word on this challenging subject, but we believe them
to be based on sound historical assumption. We are certain
that they are sound in all of their constructional implications.
Before turning to the discussion of the individual
structures, however, an important detail remains to be
settled, i.e., the question of the heating, lighting, and ventilation
devices of the guest and service buildings.
