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The double triforium one higher than the other in the clerestory produces a most favourable impression; this is heightened by the wealth of light, which, entering by two rows of windows and by the cimborio, falls upon the rich decoration of friezes and capitals.
The superior body is formed by two concentric and slightly ogival arches embedded in the wall. The greatest attraction, and that which above all gives a warlike aspect to the whole building, is the cimborio, or lantern of the croisée.
The more modern tower, which backs the cimborio, lends, it is true, a certain elegance to the edifice that the early builders were not willing to impart. The ensemble is, nevertheless, peculiarly Byzantine, and, with the mother-church in Zamora, which it resembles without copying, it stands almost unique in the history of art.
Besides, the high walls of the aisles, as compared with the stunted growth of the cimborio, and with the compact and slightly angular form of the entire building, lend an unrivalled aspect of solidity, strength, and resistance to the twelfth-century cathedral church, so intrinsically different from that of Santiago.
Again, what a difference between this solid and simple cimborio and the marvellous lantern of the cathedral at Burgos! Two ages, two generations, even two ideals, are represented in both; the earlier, the stronger, in Zamora; the later, the more aerial and elaborate, in Burgos. Another Romanesque characteristic is the approximate height of nave and aisles.
Gazing skyward from the centre of the transept into the high cimborio, and admiring the harmony of its details, the wealth of decorative elements, and the no less original structure of the dome, whose vault is formed by an immense star, one can understand the epithet applied to this majestic piece of work, a marvel of its kind.
Above and between these latter, the cone-shaped roof of the cimborio, properly speaking, is sloping and triangular in its cross-section. This body, less Oriental in appearance than the one in Zamora, impresses one with a feeling of greater awe, thanks to the great diameter as compared with the foreshortened height.
The nave, exceedingly high, is decorated by a blind triforium of ogival arches; the aisles are sombre and lower than the nave. On the other hand, the transept, broad and simple, is similar to the nave and as long as the width of the church, including the lateral chapels. The croisée is surmounted by a cimborio, insignificant in comparison to those of Salamanca, Zamora, and Toro.
This transept is situated immediately in front of the apse; the croisée is surmounted by the handsome cimborio, larger than that at Zamora, pierced by twice as many round-topped windows, but lacking a cupola, as do also the flanking towers, which are flat-topped.
The best view of the city is obtained from the southern shore of the Duero; on a low hill opposite the spectator, the city walls run east and west; behind them, to the left, the castle towers loom up, square and Byzantine in appearance; immediately to the right the cathedral nave forms a horizontal line to where the cimborio practically terminates the church.
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