Abstract
Lets imagine five centuries earlier. Strasbourg. How many people had seen, really seen the cathedral? A few hundred thousand, who from the surrounding area, could see its steeple recisely cast into the air as a signal to be seen from as far away as possible. To these people, add those who knew it from engravings, drawings, colourings, coins perhaps sketches or maybe models-masterpieces, tabernacles, to stipulate a contour over talked about to all of Europe from Alsace, but so rarely seen. Contour social contour, cultural contour, techni-cal contour, etc...locally narrated, abundantly present in the chronicle, at the center of all discussions: oral designation of an object, real, but not really tangible.