# Steeple > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Steeple > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Steeple.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steeple > Source revision: 1344292172 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{short description|Tall tower, usually on a church or public building}} {{other uses}} thumb|right|Typical steeple with components In [architecture](/source/architecture), a '''steeple''' is a tall tower on a building, topped by a [spire](/source/spire) and often incorporating a [belfry](/source/Belfry_(architecture)) and other components. Steeples are very common on [Christian](/source/Christianity) [church](/source/Church_(building))es and [cathedral](/source/cathedral)s and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure. They might be stand-alone structures, or incorporated into the entrance or center of the building. In Christianity, steeples serve as a clear marker of a Christian church and are "are an elaborate architectural metaphor—a symbol pointing to heaven", directing the minds of the faithful upward to God.{{cite web |last1=Nelson |first1=Peter |title=What Steeples Say |url=https://goshenbaptist.org/What-Steeples-Say-2 |publisher=Goshen Baptist Church |access-date=19 March 2026 |date=29 August 2024}} ==Architecture== [[File:Aleksanterin kirkko 14.JPG|thumb|The steeple of the [Alexander Church](/source/Alexander_Church) in [Tampere](/source/Tampere), [Finland](/source/Finland)]] Towers are a common element of religious architecture worldwide and are generally viewed as attempts to reach skyward toward heavens and the divine.{{Cite web |url=http://archives.stupidquestion.net/sq72999steeples.html |title="Is it true that church steeples are pagan in origin?" |author=John Ruch |year=1999 |access-date=2006-01-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061011032748/http://archives.stupidquestion.net/sq72999steeples.html |archive-date=2006-10-11 |url-status=dead }} Towers were not a part of Christian churches until about AD 600, when [bell tower](/source/bell_tower)s first came into use. At first they were fairly modest and entirely separate structures from churches. Over time, they were incorporated into the church building and capped with ever-more-elaborate roofs until the steeple resulted. ==Threats to steeples== Steeples can be vulnerable to earthquakes. A number of Romanian churches feature unusually slender steeples, and over half of these have been lost to earthquakes.{{cite web|last1=Sofronie|first1=R. A.|last2=Popa|first2=G.|last3=Nappi|first3=A.|title=Strengthening and Restoration of Eastern Churches|url=http://www.unesco.org/archi2000/pdf/sofronie.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040115010101/http://www.unesco.org/archi2000/pdf/sofronie.pdf|website=UNESCO|access-date=6 February 2017|url-status=dead|archive-date=15 January 2004}} Because of their height, steeples can also be vulnerable to [lightning](/source/lightning), which can start fires within steeples. An example of this is [Holy Trinity Catholic Church](/source/Holy_Trinity_Catholic_Church_(Luxemburg%2C_Iowa)) in [Luxemburg, Iowa](/source/Luxemburg%2C_Iowa), which lost its steeple in a fire believed to have been started by a lightning strike.{{Cite web | url = http://www.arch.pvt.k12.ia.us/Witness/PDFs/Luxemburgchurchsteepleburns.pdf | title = Luxemburg church steeple burns down | author = Morrissey, Amber | date = 2010-08-15 | work = The Witness | publisher = The Archdiocese of Dubuque }}{{Dead link|date=May 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }} Steeples are also at the mercy of strong winds and hurricanes. For example, the [Old North Church's](/source/Old_North_Church) steeple was toppled by a "great gale" in 1804, and again by [Hurricane Carol](/source/Hurricane_Carol) in 1954.{{cite web |title="Story of the Steeples" |url=https://www.oldnorth.com/story-of-the-steeples/}} ==See also== {{portal|Christianity}} *[Bell-gable](/source/Bell-gable) *[Bell tower](/source/Bell_tower) *[Flèche](/source/Fl%C3%A8che_(architecture)) *[Minaret](/source/Minaret) ==References== {{reflist}} 5. https://www.americansteeples.com/contact/blog/69-the-top-5-materials-for-church-steeples-durability-maintenance-and-cost ==External links== * {{commonscat-inline|Church towers}} {{Authority control}} Category:Church architecture Category:Timber framing [eo:Spajro](/source/eo%3ASpajro) [it:Guglia](/source/it%3AGuglia) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Steeple](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steeple) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steeple?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.