Alexander the Mason, sometimes called Alexander the Mason III, was a

master mason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

who designed the nave and crossing of

Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, also called Lincoln Minster, and formally the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, is a Church of England cathedral in Lincoln, England, Lincoln, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Lincoln and is the Mo ...

in the mid 13th century. Following Geoffrey de Noiers as designer, Alexander designed the star-patterned vaulting of the nave, adding

tierceron In Gothic architecture, a lierne is a tertiary rib connecting one rib to another, as opposed to connecting to a springer, or to the central boss. The resulting construction is called a lierne vault or stellar vault (named after the star shape ge ...

ribs to decorate the vaulting, which had heretofore been relatively plain. The crossing vault, dating to 1238, was extensively elaborated, using eight spring points in the tower. Alexander designed the cathedral's screen front,

chapter house A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room that is part of a cathedral, monastery or collegiate church in which meetings are held. When attached to a cathedral, the cathedral chapter meets there. In monasteries, the whole communi ...

and Galilee porch. The chapter house at Worcester Cathedral is also attributed to Alexander, and he may have worked in France at

Le Mans Cathedral Le Mans Cathedral ( French: ''Cathédrale St-Julien du Mans'') is a Catholic church situated in Le Mans, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Julian of Le Mans, the city's first bishop, who established Christianity in the area around the b ...

. Other churches in England attributed to Alexander are St Wulfram's Church, Grantham and St. Mary Magdalene, Newark-on-Trent.

References

{{authority control 13th-century English architects Lincoln Cathedral Architects from Lincolnshire