From Chartres to Sens... and more.
To change a Chartres labyrinth into a Sens labyrinth, and then another one .
Here I show a simple method to transform any existing Chartres labyrinth into a Sens labyrinth and also into another different Medieval-type labyrinth.
My research on canonical Medieval labyrinths has shown that labyrinths of the same family have the same general structure, which I call the template. They differ only at the main axis, that some call the throat, and that I call the key as in the key of a lock. The key determines the sequence in which the different elements forming the path will be visited. Therefore, by simply modifying the key of a labyrinth, we can increase the interest and variety of the experience of walking the same physical labyrinth.
The Chartres and Sens labyrinths being of the same family (the Chartres family), changing one into the other can be done following this simple method. So is it also for the third member of the family, which is not known to have existed historically but has the same general structure as the two others. It has its entry on the first lane.
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The historical Chartres labyrinth
(my canonical No 3) |
The historical Sens labyrinth
(my canonical No 1) |
A new canonical labyrinth
(my canonical No 2) |
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The modification is done by placing at the appropriate place along the key of the labyrinth a piece of cardboard, cloth or canvas of the appropriate shape and dimension, with a simple pattern drawn or painted on it. The patch and the pattern should be measured directly from the labyrinth to be modified, and made first in paper, so that everything fits when it is done in a more permanent material. The patches are shown here with a textured background. A different set of patches should be made for each of the modified labyrinths, because the angles are not the same.
Discovering the new paths with their very different sequences is indeed surprising, and will refresh anybody's labyrinth experience. Although known only by its use on the floor of the Sens cathedral, the Sens labyrinth is as valid historically and as sophisticated rhythmically as the Chartres labyrinth. The authentic Sens labyrinth is not the one published in Kern's book, but the one discovered in 1996 by Craig Wright.
Of course, this modification may be only temporary. One can even think of doing and/or undoing it while people are actually traveling the labyrinth, adding surprise and suspense to an otherwise quite predictable exercise. One can also think of using, generally or occasionnally, one of the modified versions instead of the Chartres labyrinth: this will be a matter of taste and preference.
If you use this idea, please be kind enough to refer to this site (labyreims.com).
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