Vasco Zara

The contribution of human sciences to the interpretation of the use of acoustic pots in France and in bordering countries from the 12th to the 17th century

In occidental Europe, the technique of inserting acoustic pots in churches’ walls spread from the 12th to the 17th century. Acousticians consider this technique as a pre-scientific anticipation of Helmholtz Resonator. This point of view has been questioned by numerous authors, especially in the domain of historical sciences with solid arguments. Based on one of the largest enquiries on French churches with pots achieved these last 15 years by a multidisciplinary team, we propose a scheme of interpretation of this technique taking into account the point of view of archaeologists, musicologists, and linguists and involving experimentation with singers. We show that voice was the target of this technique, by analyzing the frequency of the pots and their positioning in churches in connexion to liturgy. Their symbolic meaning will also be presented in relation to the medieval conception of sciences and music. In the end, the controversial question of a deliberate action on the acoustic of the churches will als...