The choir
In 1144, the new choir was dedicated in the presence of King Louis VII, Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, members of the royal court, and numerous distinguished clergy. The choir, conforming in shape to the older crypt below, is generally considered to be the birthplace of Gothic architecture because of the innovative rib vaults resting on pointed arches in both the ambulatory and the chapels. Springing from slender columns in the ambulatory and from thin masonry walls framing the chapels, these light vaults allow for the elimination of the walls between the chapels as well as lessening the need for such weight-bearing outer walls so that they can now be filled with stained glass.