A dwarf gallery is an architectural ornament in

Romanesque architecture Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe that was predominant in the 11th and 12th centuries. The style eventually developed into the Gothic style with the shape of the arches providing a simple distinction: the Ro ...

. It is a natural development of the blind arcade and consists of an arcaded gallery, usually just below the roof, recessed into the thickness of the walls. Usually dwarf galleries can be found at church towers or

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

s but they frequently appear at other parts of buildings as well, or even go around the entire building. Although principally meant as a decorative element, some dwarf galleries can be used. During the septennial Pilgrimage of the Relics in

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; ; ; ) is a city and a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital city, capital and largest city of the province of Limburg (Netherlands), Limburg. Maastricht is loca ...

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

were shown daily from the dwarf gallery of St Servatius' to pilgrims gathered in front of the church in

Vrijthof Vrijthof is a large Town square, urban square in the centre of Maastricht, Netherlands. The square developed from an Roman Empire, ancient Roman and Franks, Frankish cemetery into a semi-private space that belonged to the Basilica of Saint Serva ...

. Dwarf galleries mainly appear at Romanesque churches in Germany and Italy. A few examples can be found in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

(see

Mosan art Mosan art is a regional style of art from the valley of the Meuse in present-day Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany. Although in a broader sense the term applies to art from this region from all periods, it generally refers to Romanesque ar ...

). Remarkably, in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

no dwarf galleries were built. The oldest church in Germany with a dwarf gallery is

Trier Cathedral The High Cathedral of Saint Peter in Trier (), or Trier Cathedral (), is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the oldest cathedral in Germany and the largest religious structure in Trier, notable for its long l ...

. The apsis with dwarf gallery at

Speyer Cathedral Speyer Cathedral, officially ''the Imperial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption and St Stephen'', in Latin: Domus sanctae Mariae Spirae (German: ''Dom zu Unserer lieben Frau in Speyer'') in Speyer, Germany, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bish ...

, described as “one of the most memorable pieces of Romanesque design”,Stalley, Roger: Early Medieval Architecture, Oxford University Press, Oxford, Great Britain, 1999, , p. 197-198 was copied in many other places in the German Rhineland. Several of Cologne's twelve Romanesque churches feature dwarf galleries, as well as important Rhineland churches like

Mainz Cathedral Mainz Cathedral or St. Martin's Cathedral ( or, officially, ') is located near the historical center and pedestrianized market square of the city of Mainz, Germany. This 1000-year-old Roman Catholic cathedral is the site of the episcopal see of th ...

Worms Cathedral St Peter's Cathedral (German: ''Wormser Dom'') is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic church and former cathedral in Worms, Germany, Worms, southern Germany. The cathedral is located on the highest point of the inner city of Worms and is the mos ...

and

Bonn Minster Bonn Minster () is a Catholic church in Bonn. It is one of Germany's oldest churches, having been built between the 11th and 13th centuries. At one point the church served as the de facto cathedral for the Archbishopric of Cologne, because it is t ...

. In Italy, dwarf galleries appear at churches in the central and northern regions of the country. Examples are ''Santa Maria della Pieve'' in

Arezzo Arezzo ( , ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the Province of Arezzo, province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of Above mean sea level, above sea level. As of 2 ...

, Modena Cathedral,

Pistoia Cathedral Pistoia Cathedral, or Cathedral of Saint Zeno ( or ''Cattedrale di San Zeno'') is the main religious building of Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy, located in the ''Piazza del Duomo'' in the centre of the city. It is the seat of the Bishop of Pist ...

, San Donato in

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

and

Pisa Cathedral Pisa Cathedral (), officially the Primatial Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary (), is a medieval Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, in the Piazza dei Miracoli in Pisa, Italy, the oldest of the three s ...

. The famous

Leaning Tower of Pisa The Leaning Tower of Pisa ( ), or simply the Tower of Pisa (), is the , or freestanding bell tower, of Pisa Cathedral. It is known for its nearly four-degree lean, the result of an unstable Foundation (engineering), foundation. The tower is on ...

could be described as having six rings of dwarf galleries. In France, simple dwarf galleries are rare. But there was a luxurious development. In some façades, sculptures were placed between the columns. Most famous are the Galleries of Kings (Galeries des Rois) on

Notre-Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Medieval architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissemen ...

and the Cathedral of Amiens. Dwarf galleries incidentally feature in

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

architecture, notably in Germany, but also in other parts of the world. Visión posterior de la Catedral de Pisa, Italia.JPG,

SpeyererDom Zwerggalerie.jpg,

Roermond church.jpg,

Roermond Roermond (; or ) is a city, municipality, and diocese in the Limburg (Netherlands), Limburg province of the Netherlands. Roermond is a historically important town on the lower Roer on the east bank of the river Meuse. It received City rights i ...

, Minster Laon Cathedral West Front, Picardy, France - Diliff.jpg,

Laon Cathedral Laon Cathedral () is a Roman Catholic church located in Laon, Aisne, Hauts-de-France, France. Built in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, it is one of the most important and stylistically unified examples of early Gothic architecture. The c ...

Galerie des rois of Notre-Dame de Paris 5 October 2010.jpg, Gallery of Kings on

Gare windsor exterieur.JPG,

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Windsor station

References

{{reflist Romanesque architecture Architectural elements