History of Architecture Terms: Definitions Flashcards
Definitions of the vocabulary words in AH 118: History of Architecture and the Built Environment taken from the textbook Buildings across Time (49 cards)
Oriel Window
A corbeled bay window in English medieval architecture
Spandrel
A wall surface, ornamented or non-ornamented, between major architectural elements such as windows or arches
Rustication
Rough stonework with exposed joints
Pilaster
A rectangular column, engaged in a wall, which is sometimes articulated as an order
Cornice
The uppermost element of an entablature, which projects beyond the plane of the exterior wall; more generally, the overhanging molding atop any building
Tablero
The vertical, often ornamented, plane in Pre-Columbian pyramid construction, comparable to the frieze in ancient Greek architecture
Talud
The inclined plane in Pre-Columbian pyramid construction
Ha-Ha
A ditched used to control the movement of livestock, which is not visible in a planned landscape
Stupa
In Buddhist architecture, the mound of earth and stones erected over relics of the Buddha, or, by extension, over the remains of a holy person
Shikhara
A tall, curving roof, often with a parabolic profile, that rises like an artificial mountain over the garbhagriha in a Hindu temple
Garbhagriha
The “womb chamber” or shrine room at the heart of a Hindu temple
Abbott Suger
Patron of Gothic architecture; rebuilt the Church of Saint-Denis
Polychromy
The decorative use of colored stone, seen primarily in medieval architecture
Groin Vault
The vault formed by two intersecting barrel vaults (also known as a cross vault)
Clerestory Windows
Windows placed high in a wall, generally above lower roof elements
Martyrium
A building associated with a Christian martyr
Sahn
An open courtyard in a mosque
Pendentive
A spherical triangle that transforms a square bay into a circle for the springing of a dome
Mihrabs
A niche in the qibla wall indicating the direction of Mecca
Qibla
The direction of Mecca, indicated in a mosque by the mihrab; by extension, the wall in which the mihrab is placed
Pagoda
A tapering tower with multiple roof levels, built by Buddhists particularly in China and Japan. The word derives from the Sanskrit dagoba, meaning stupa
Tatami Mats
Mats woven of rice straw, approximately three by six feet, that establish the module for room dimensions in traditional Japanese houses
Opus Reticulatum
A Roman wall formed of pyramidal stones, their points set inward and their square heads set to form a diagonal grid
Basilica
Literally, “king’s hall.” In Roman architecture, a hall used for public administration. The term generally refers to a rectangular building that has a central section with a higher roof (the nave of a church) flanked by lower aisles on both long sides. A semicircular projection, the apse, was often set at one or both of the shorter ends. Early Christians adapted the forms as a basis for church design, replacing one apse with the main entrance and establishing a processional axis the length of the building. The altar was placed in the apse at the end.
