In the early days of the sky-scraper, which coincided with the period of more or less imitative reproduction of old models, the architect found himself confronted with an entirely new problem in design. His classical studies had familiarised him with buildings comparatively low and characteristically horizontal in design. His experience of Italian Renaissance had involved buildings, still inconsiderable in height though they included several stories, and had led him to be pre-occupied with details of design, especially with the effectiveness of a cornice. On the other hand, the characteristic of the new problem was vertical instead of horizontal, and on a scale that gave predominance to mass over detail; while the specific detail of the crowning cornice could only be fully adopted in the case of structures that did not abut on adjoining property.
Height—the Principle of the Design.—But, for a time, the architect failed to grasp the newness of his problem. He was confronted with height, but did not start with it as a principle of design. Instead, he tried to accommodate the old principles to the new conditions; experimenting with various methods of embellishment near the ground and at the top, and treating the main, intermediate part as merely a repetition of floors.
Gradually, however, he realised the fact that the new buildings actually presented a new problem which could only be solved by taking the vertical principle as the basis of the design. So he bethought himself of a precedent in the column. It is the vertical member in the Classic design, and comprises three subdivisions: base, shaft and capital. The base might be emulated in the treatment of the lower part of the façade, which generally encloses a bank or some feature of special importance, surmounted by a mezzanine floor. The counterpart of the column’s shaft was the repetition of stories, while the effect of the capital could be reproduced in some emphatic crowning treatment. And those architects who most logically adopted the precedent of the column, recognising that the beauty of a tall building must be evolved from its special characteristic of height and that the beauty would be enhanced by a suggestion of height growing up in its own strength, abandoned the mere repetition of stories for a vertical treatment that would emphasise the suggestion of upward growth.
In some cases they applied to the masonry between the windows continuous bands of vertical ornament, projecting in the nature of shafting or piers, which by their effect of light and shade carry the eye upward, giving to the whole structure a suggestion of soaring. Or, in other cases, they so proportioned the width of the windows to the width of the masonry that the latter, especially at the angles of the building, gave the suggestion of soaring piers. Meanwhile there still continued to be architects who ignored these devices, treating the windows and masonry solely as recurring horizontal features, with the result that their repetition contradicts both the vertical feeling and that of upward growth.
By degrees, however, as the principles of verticality and growth came to be generally accepted, it was recognised that the analogy of a tall building to a Classic column was fallacious, since the building should involve a complete design, while the column is only a constituent member of a structure and one, too, that is designed to support a horizontal member. Possibly the realisation of this was assisted by the difficulty of treating the top of the building. For the most frequent conditions permitted the projection of a cornice only on one side, that of the front side of the building, where it sticks out like a prodigious mantelshelf. That architects should have persisted so long in reproducing this futile expedient seems only to be explained by a habit of seeing a design on the drawing board as an elevation to be viewed from one fixed point, instead of as a structural composition, occupying space and to be seen from a variety of directions. Moreover, it is a fact that, as one walks along a street, it is the side of a building that is chiefly and longest visible, while, by the time one is opposite the front, the narrowness of the street and the height of the building make it difficult to view the façade as a whole.
Gothic Influence.—Accordingly, in time, as the logic of the problem of the tall building came to be more resolutely grasped, it was realised that, if a precedent was to be adopted, it might be found in the Gothic style. This is essentially the style of vertical design and upward growth, and its characteristic profile has a tendency to set back from the ground line instead of projecting over it. Furthermore, if you choose to consider it, it was the style of the Northern nations as contrasted with the horizontal styles of the Mediterranean nations; the style of the races most represented in our population, evolved by them as an expression of their adventurous and daring spirit. Even in relation to inherited racial genius, as well as to fitness of design and practicability of conditions of site, the Gothic is full of suggestion.
Its influence at first appeared in the character of detail of some of the later sky-scrapers; but gradually more fundamentally, as the architect began to give fuller attention to the masses of his composition. Up to the present, the noblest example of this new movement is the Woolworth Building, which is not only the tallest of the tall buildings but a monument of arresting and persuasive dignity. The repetition of ornamental detail may be somewhat dry and mechanical; but from a short distance off this melts into the mass, which vies with mediæval towers and spires in its splendid assertion of organic upward growth.
Such a building supplies an uplift to the spirit, whereas the exteriors of many sky-scrapers, conveying no suggestion of organic growth, being only monstrous piles of masonry, produce instead an oppression of the spirit. Nor is such an impression imaginary; it is a physical result of the sunless, airless canyons into which these cliff-like walls have transformed the narrow streets. Architects, in fact, realise that the problem they present is one not only of construction and design but also of relation to the general city plan. Various proposals have been made to confine them to certain areas; to restrict their height on the street line, while setting back the higher portions, which would rise like towers above the rest of the building; to limit the number of such towers in a given space, and so forth. Some such restrictions are enforced in certain cities; but in New York, where the problem is greatest and most urgent, the consideration of the question has not made much headway against the general indifference to matters of large public concern. Here, as in so many other instances, the welfare of the community, as a collective whole, is not properly adjusted to individualistic interests.
Architect and Engineer.—This and other matters of “city planning”—a subject that is more and more engaging the attention of progressive communities—demands the co-operation of the architect and engineer. Indeed, the co-operation of their functions in all important works, especially those of a public character, is one of the urgent needs of the age. There is scarcely an architectural scheme that does not involve problems of engineering; and many an engineering achievement would have been of greater public utility if beauty of design had been considered. For it is only a narrow view of utility that overlooks the utility of beauty. It is in the power of an engineer to improve or mar the appearance of a locality, and hence to add to or detract from the happiness of the human lives which inhabit it.
Nor is the union of the functions of engineer and architect a new thing. The only difference between the past and the present is, that in Classic, Gothic, and Renaissance periods the functions were united in one person, whereas with the advent of the age of iron, followed by that of steel, they have been specialised in separate individuals. Accordingly, to-day there is one school of Architecture, and another school of Engineering; and the separation has caused each to disregard the points at which their respective arts can and should unite. The desirability, however, of some affiliation is being recognised and certain schools of engineering now include a course in the principles of architectonic design.
Any termination of a book on Architecture is but an abrupt stop in the telling of a story that is perpetually continuous. It will go on as long as man applies his creative ability to the solution of new problems of construction as they arise, and persists in stamping the work of his hands with the evidence of his desire of beauty. This little book, however imperfect, will add its mite to human progress if it has awakened or stimulated in the reader a realisation of the rich and varied humanness of the art of Architecture in its intimate relation to the lives of individuals and the progress and welfare of the community.
GLOSSARY
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, Z
Abacus: the block that forms the uppermost member of the capital of a column. Usually a square block; but in Roman Ionic and Corinthian, the sides are concave, while in Gothic the block may also be circular, octagonal or clustered.
Abutment: a member of solid masonry to sustain a lateral strain or thrust; e.g., that of an arch.
Acanthus: a plant of the warmer regions of Europe, distinguished by large, handsome leaves, with indented and sharply pointed edges. Conventionalised as a decorative motive in Classic architecture: specially in the Corinthian capital.
Acropolis: a hill within a city, converted into a citadel; often containing, as at Athens, the temples of the tutelary or guardian divinities.
Acroteria: plinths or blocks, placed on the apex and ends of a Pediment (which see), for the support of a carved ornament.
Æsthetic: of or pertaining to beauty. That quality in anything, especially a work of art, that stimulates the senses, emotions or imagination to an appreciation and love of the beautiful.
Aisles (lit. “wings”): the lateral divisions of a church or cathedral, parallel to the nave and separated from it by columns.
Alcove: a covered recess, opening from a room or corridor.
Ambo: plural Ambones: raised pulpits from which the Epistles and Gospels, respectively, were read.
Ambulatory: a space, usually covered, for walking in.
Amphi-prostyle: used to designate a temple-plan that has a rear as well as a front portico. Compare Prostyle.
Anta: plural Antæ (lit. opposite): specially in Classic architecture, the pilaster attached to the side of a temple, opposite a column. Generally, any pilaster opposite a column. For In Antis see Portico.
Antefixæ: ornamental blocks placed along the lower edge of the roof of a temple, to cover the joints of the tiles.
Anthemion: a decorative device, also called Honeysuckle or Palmette ornament, composed of flower forms or fronds, radiating from a single point. Used especially on the cyma recta moulding, round the necks of columns and on stele-heads and antefixæ.
Annula or Annulet: a small fillet or flat band, encircling a Doric column below the Echinus (which see).
Apse: originally, the semi-circular projection at one end of a basilica hall; later, the semi-circular or polygonal termination of a choir in a Continental Gothic cathedral, as contrasted with the square-ended choir of English Gothic.
Apsidal: having the form of an Apse.
Apteral (Gk. “without wings”): applied to a temple that has no colonnade on the sides.
Arabesque: a fanciful, painted, modelled, or carved ornamentation, composed of plant forms, often combined with human, animal, and grotesque forms. Used by the Romans and revived by the Renaissance decorators. Also used by the Arabs—hence the name—for a flatly modelled and coloured ornament of intricate design, without human or, generally, animal forms.
Arcade: a system or range of arches, supported on columns, e.g., the range of arches and columns on each side of the nave of a cathedral or church. When used as an embellishment of exterior or interior walls, it is distinguished as Open or Blind Arcade, according as it is detached from or attached to the plane of the wall.
Arch: generally, a structure supported at the sides or ends and composed of pieces, no one of which spans the whole interval. Specifically, a structure, involving one or more curves, supported at the sides, spanning an opening and capable of supporting weight. Distinguished according to the nature of the curve as, segmental, semi-circular, ogee, pointed, horseshoe, four-centred, trefoil, cinquefoil, and multifoil. Arches, involving straight lines as well as curved, are known as “shouldered.”
Architect (pr. ar-ki-tect): lit. the master-builder.
Architectonic: possessing an architectural, or organically constructive, character. See Organic.
Architecture: the science and art of designing and constructing buildings, with a view to Utility and Beauty. See Beauty.
Architrave (lit. “principal beam”): the lowest member of an Entablature (which see); hence applied to any beam that rests on columns and carries a superstructure; also to the moulded frame which bounds the sides as well as the head of a door or window opening.
Archivolt: the mouldings around the face of an arch.
Arris: the sharp edge at which meet two flutings of a Doric Column.
Ashlar: applied to masonry of which the stones are squared and dressed with hammer or chisel.
Astragal: a convex moulding with a profile semi-circular, like that of the Torus, only smaller in width. Often decorated with Bead and Spool ornament.
Astylar: used of a façade, not treated with columns.
Asymmetries: deviations from geometrical symmetry and precision; such as substituting a slight curve for horizontal and vertical straight lines; varying slightly the spaces between columns, setting columns on a curving instead of a straight line, and so forth. Refinements which Hellenic, Byzantine, and Gothic architects introduced to give flexibility and rhythm to their structures. See Refinements.
Atlantes: See Caryatid.
Atrium: in Roman houses an entrance court open to the sky, but surrounded by a covered ambulatory. In Early Christian architecture, a similar entrance court in front of churches.
Attic: the upper story of a building, above the cornice.
Axis: an imaginary line, about which an architect arranges the symmetry of his design. The main axis usually runs through the longest direction of the building and may be intersected at right angles by a second axis. See Crossing.
Baldachino: or Baldachin: a canopy supported on uprights; used especially to surmount an altar.
Baluster: a small ornamental pillar supporting a rail or coping; the whole structure being called a Balustrade.
Balustrade: See Baluster.
Baroque: fantastic, grotesque, applied to some of the heavily decorated architecture of the eighteenth century.
Barrel-vault: also called Semi-circular or Wagon-headed vault: a continuous arched roof over an oblong space, resting on the side walls.
Barrow: an artificial mound of earth, forming a prehistoric sepulchral monument.
Bar Tracery: See Tracery.
Base: the lower member of any structure; compare Plinth.
Basilica: originally a building erected for business or legal procedure; specifically the large hall of such a building; later, in Christian times, a church that more or less retains the plan of such a hall.
Batter: the upward, inward slope of a wall, affording greater resistance to Thrust (which see).
Battlement: the termination of a Parapet (which see) in a series of indentations, called embrasures, while the intervening solid parts are called merlons.
Bay: each of the principal compartments into which the vaulting of a roof is divided; also used of the space between any two columns of an Arcade (which see) of a Gothic church.
Bay-window: a window of angular plan, that projects from the wall and reaches to the ground. Distinguished from an Oriel window that is supported on a bracket or Corbel (which see) and from a Bow-window which is curved in plan.
Bead: a small convex moulding; often decorated with Bead and Spool ornament.
Bead and Spool: an ornamental device of small halved spheres, alternating with halved spools; used on small convex mouldings.
Beauty: as applied to Architecture, those qualities in a building that stimulate and gratify the æsthetic sense. They result from the architect having created an Organic structure according to the principles of Fitness, Unity, Proportion, Harmony, and Rhythm (see these terms).
Bel Étage: French term for the principal story of a building. Compare Italian, Piano Nobile.
Belfry: specifically, the part of a tower in which the bells are hung; hence, sometimes, the whole tower.
Bema: a raised platform, reserved for the clergy in Early Christian churches.
Blind Arcades: See Arcade.
Bond: the method of laying bricks or stones to bind the masonry. In English Bond, the courses are composed alternately of Headers and Stretchers (which see); in Flemish Bond the Headers and Stretchers are laid alternately in each Course (which see).
Boss: ornamental projection at the intersection of the ribs of vaults and ceilings.
Bow-window: See Bay-window.
Branch Tracery: See Tracery.
Broken Entablature: one that projects over each column or pilaster instead of maintaining a single straight plane.
Broken Pediment: where the triangular or curved form is broken into in the centre; an ornamental device adopted in the Renaissance.
Buttress: a mass of masonry, projecting from the face of the wall to resist the thrust of an arch or vault. When the mass is separated from the wall and connected with it by an arch, the arch and mass form a Flying Buttress.
Byzantine: the style evolved in Byzantium (Constantinople) in the fifth century, A.D.
Cairn: an artificial heap of stones, sometimes piled about a corpse-chamber, which served as a prehistoric sepulchre and monument.
Campanile (cam-pah-neé-la): Italian term for bell-tower.
Canopy: specifically, the carved ornamentation that surmounts a niche, altar or tomb.
Capella Major: the space in a Spanish cathedral, enclosed with screens or Rejas (which see) and containing the High Altar.
Capital: the upper member of a column, pier, pillar or pilaster.
Carillon: a set of stationary bells, played upon by a mechanical contrivance, regulated from a keyboard.
Caryatid: plural Caryatides: sculptured female figures, used instead of columns or pilasters to support an entablature or cornice. Said to be so called after the women of Caria, who aided the Persians and were made slaves. Male figures, so used, are called Atlantes.
Caulicoli: the eight stalks of the acanthus ornament, supporting the volutes of a Corinthian capital.
Cavetto: a simple concave moulding.
Cavetto Cornice: the hollow member that crowns a wall or door in Egyptian architecture.
Cella: the portion of a temple enclosed by walls.
Cerce: a mechanical supporting device used in the construction of vault ribs and light arches. Shaped like a bow, in sections that work telescopically, so that it can be adjusted to the width of the span.
Chamfer: the edge produced by chamfering; that is to say cutting a square edge or corner to a flattened or grooved surface.
Chancel (Lat. cancellus, a screen): See Choir.
Chapter-house: originally the assembly place of the Chapter or fraternity of abbot and monks of a monastery, for the transaction of business. Now attached to English cathedrals for the transactions of the Chapter of bishop and canons.
Chevêt (pr. shev-ay): term applied to the east end of a Romanesque or Gothic church, when it takes the form of a circular or polygonal apse, surrounded by an aisle which opens into chapels.
Chevron: a decorative device, like a V, repeated either vertically or horizontally; forming in the latter case a zig-zag.
Chryselephantine (Gk. “gold-ivory”): applied to a sculptured figure of wood, when the nude parts are covered with gold and the draperies with ivory.
Choir or Chancel: the portion of the church or cathedral east of the nave, screened off for the use of the choir. See Coro.
Cimborio: See Lantern.
Cinquecento: Italian term for the period called in English the sixteenth century.
Cinque-foil: See Foil.
Clerestory or Clearstory (Fr. clair = light): the highest story of a nave immediately above the Triforium (which see), containing windows overlooking the roof of the aisles.
Cloison: a partition; specifically, the metal bands dividing the pattern in cloisonné enamel.
Cloisters (lit. enclosed space): the covered ambulatory around the open court of a monastery; still retained as an adjunct of many English and Spanish cathedrals.
Close: the precinct of an English cathedral; survival of the “Garth” or grassy enclosure of a monastery.
Coffer: one of the sunken panels of geometrical design, used in the ornamentation of a ceiling, vault or dome.
Colonnade: a system or range of columns, surmounted by an entablature. When it entirely surrounds a temple or court it is called a Peristyle. When it is attached to the front of a building it is known as a Portico (which see).
Column: a vertical member, consisting of a Shaft, surmounted by a Capital and resting, usually, on a Base. Its function is to support, in Classic architecture, an entablature, and in Gothic, an arch.
Composite: a Roman Order in which the capital is composed of the upper part of an Ionian Capital and the lower part of a Corinthian.
Concave: curving, like the segment of a circle, inward, forming a hollow to the eye of the spectator.
Concentric: having a common centre.
Console: a supporting block, projecting from a wall, generally decorated; specifically the supports of the cornice over a door or window. See Modillion.
Conventionalisation: the representing of something in a formal way, generally prescribed by custom. For example, it was neither ignorance nor lack of skill, but a custom, prescribed by the priesthood, that caused Egyptian artists to represent the human figure with head and legs in profile and trunk full front. In decorative design, based on natural objects, the best usage avoids naturalistic representation, and translates the form into a convention, which, however, reproduces and even emphasises the salient features of structure and of growth or movement. Thus, the Greek acanthus ornament actually suggests more energy of growth and more expressiveness of form than the natural plant.
Convex: curving, like a segment of a circle, outward or toward the spectator.
Corbel: a block of stone, often elaborately carved, which projects from a wall to sustain a weight, especially that of roof-beams, or vaulting shafts. See Console.
Corinthian: latest order of Hellenic architecture, commenced by the Hellenic architects and fully developed by the Romans.
Cornice: specifically, in Classic architecture, the crowning or uppermost member of an entablature; generally, the crowning feature of any wall construction, or doors and windows.
Coro: the space screened off for the use of the choir in a Spanish cathedral, situated in the nave, west of the Crossing.
Corridor: a wide gallery or passage within a building, usually with rooms opening into it.
Cortile: Italian term for interior court, open to the sky and surrounded by arcades.
Course: a continuous horizontal layer of stones or bricks. See Bond.
Cove: specifically, the concave surface that may occur between the top of an interior wall and the flat of the ceiling.
Crenellated: fortified with battlements.
Cromlech: a prehistoric memorial, composed of stones of huge size, disposed in one or more circles; e.g., Stonehenge.
Cross: adopted by the Church in the fourth century as the symbol of Christianity. The separation of the Eastern or Greek Church from the Western or Latin Church, was reflected in the shape of the Cross; the Greek having all its four members equal, while the lower member of the Latin is lengthened.
Crossing: the space about the intersection of the two Axes (which see) of a church or cathedral, on which the nave, transepts, and chancel abut. Often surmounted by a dome or tower.
Cruciform: used of the plan of a church that is based on the form of a cross. Where a Greek cross is followed the nave, choir, and transepts are of about equal length; while if the Roman is the model, the nave is lengthened. See Cross.
Crypt: vaulted chambers beneath a building, especially beneath the chancel of a church, in which case often used for burial.
Cupola: See Dome.
Cusps (lit. points): one of the points forming the feathering or foliation of Gothic Tracery. Frequently ornamented with a carved termination.
Custodia: See Tabernacle.
Cyclopean: of colossal size; derived from Cyclops, a giant of Greek myth.
Cyma (pr. Si-mah) (lit. “wave”): the rising and falling curve; a moulding, perfected by the Hellenic sculptors, whose profile combines a convex and a concave curve. When the curve begins in convex and flows into concave, it is known as Cyma Recta (Hogarth’s “Line of Beauty”). When the concave precedes the convex, the profile is called Cyma Reversa. The latter is also called Ogee.
Cymatium: the crowning member of a Classic cornice, so called because its profile is a Cyma Recta (which see).
Dado: the surface of an interior wall, between the base moulding and an upper moulding, placed some distance from the ceiling.
Decastyle: See Portico.
Decorated: used to distinguish the second period of English Gothic (fourteenth century), owing to increased richness of window traceries and other ornamentation. Compare Rayonnant.
Dentil: one of a series of square, so-called tooth-like, blocks that ornament the cornice in the Ionic and Corinthian Orders.
Diagonal: specifically applied to the arches or ribs of a vaulting that are diagonal to the main axis. Compare Longitudinal, Transverse.
Dipteral (lit. “double-winged”): designating a temple that has a double range of columns on each side of the cella. Compare Pseudo-dipteral.
Dolmen: a prehistoric megalithic monument, composed of single stones set on end or on edge and crowned with a single slab; forming a sepulchral chamber, often embedded in a mound. See Mastaba.
Dome: a spherical roof, over a circular, square or polygonal space rising like an inverted cup. Hence, when the structure is small, called a Cupola.
Doric: the earliest and simplest Order (which see) of architecture developed on the mainland of Hellas.
Dormer (lit. “sleeping”): a window in a roof, usually of a bedroom, often projecting with a gable end.
Drum: specifically a cylindrical wall, supporting a dome; used also of a section of the shaft of a column.
Early English: first period of English Gothic, evolved during the thirteenth century.
Eaves: the edge of a roof projecting beyond the wall.
Eclecticism: the practice of combining various elements of style, derived from various sources.
Echinus: the cushion-shaped member of the Doric capital, just beneath the Abacus (which see). It has an ovolo or egg-shaped profile. Also used of the Egg and Dart moulding (which see).
Egg and Dart: an ornamental device, composed of an alternate repetition of an egg-shaped form, halved vertically, and a spear head. Used especially on mouldings that have an ovolo or egg-shaped profile.
Embrasure: the sloping or bevelling of an opening in a wall, so as to enlarge its interior profile. See also Battlements.
Enamel: a material composed of pigment and glass, fused and applied in melted state to surfaces of metal, porcelain or pottery, for decorative purposes. See Mosaics.
Encaustic: a process of painting in which the pigments are dissolved in melted bees-wax and applied hot.
Engaged Column: a column that does not stand clear of the wall at the back of it.
Entablature: the horizontal member of a classic or columnar order. It rests upon the Abacus of the column and consists of a lower, middle, and upper member—the Architrave, Frieze, and Cornice.
Entasis (Gk. “Stretching”): a curved deviation from the straight line; specifically, the swell in the profile of the shaft of a Classic column.
Epinaos: See Naos.
Exhedra: a curved recess, usually containing a seat; hence a curved seat of marble or stone.
Façade: the outside view or elevation of a building that faces the spectator.
Fan Vaulting: See Rib.
Fascia: one of the flat, vertical faces into which the Architrave of an Ionic or Corinthian Entablature is divided.
Fenestration (lat. fenestra, window): the distribution of windows and openings in an architectural composition.
Fillet: a small flat band, used especially to separate one moulding from another.
Finial: the finishing part or top, frequently decorated, of a spire, pinnacle or bench-end. See Pinnacle.
Fitness: a principle of beauty; that the design of a work of art shall conform to the necessary requirements of its purpose, material and method of making.
Flamboyant (“flaming”): used to distinguish the third period of French Gothic (fifteenth century), from the encreased elaboration of the window traceries.
Fleche: specifically, a wooden spire surmounting a roof.
Fluting: the vertical grooving, used to enrich the shaft of a column or pilaster.
Flying Buttress: See Buttress.
Foil: a leaf-like division in carved ornamentation; especially in the tracery of a Gothic window or the panelling of walls and bench-ends. According to the number of foils included, the design is distinguished as trefoil, quatrefoil, cinquefoil, etc.
Formeret: See Rib.
Fresco (lit. fresh or damp): see Secco and Tempera; terms used in Mural Painting (which see). After the wall had thoroughly dried out, a portion, such as the artist could cover in one day was spread with a thin layer of fine, quick-drying plaster. While the latter was still fresh or damp, the artist, having prepared his drawing or “cartoon,” laid it in place and went over the lines with a blunt instrument, which left the design grooved in the plaster. Then he applied the tempera colours, finishing as he proceeded, for the colour sank into the plaster and rapidly dried with it, so that subsequent touchings up or alterations could only be applied by painting in Secco. As long as the surface of the wall remains intact, the colours are imperishable and retain their vivacity and transparence. They have, too, the appearance of being part of the actual fabric of the wall, as the bloom of colour upon fruit. Thus Fresco is the fittest and most beautiful process of mural painted decoration.
Frieze: specifically, the middle division of an Entablature, between the Architrave and the Cornice (which see). Also the continuous band of painted or sculptured decoration that crowns an exterior or interior wall.
Gable: the upper part of the wall of a building, above the eaves; triangular in shape, conforming to the slope of the roof. Compare the Classic Pediment. If the edge of the gable rises in tiers it is distinguished as Stepped.
Gaine (lit. a sheath): a sculptured decoration of a half-figure, terminating below in a sheath-like pedestal.
Galilee: a porch or chapel, sometimes attached to an English Gothic cathedral, usually at the west end. For the use perhaps of penitents. Compare Narthex.
Gambrel: applied to a roof, the slope of which is bent into an obtuse angle.
Gesso-work: a decorative design in Relief (which see) executed in fine, hard plaster.
Gothic (lit. of, or pertaining to the Goths): a term applied to Mediæval architecture by the Italians of the Renaissance to mark their contempt for what was non-Classic. The term without reproach has been continued to designate the architectural style between the Romanesque and Renaissance, during the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The French have tried to substitute the term, Ogival. See Ogee.
Grille: a wrought metal screen of openwork design.
Grisaille: a style of painting in greyish tones, in imitation of bas-relief.
Groin: the angle or edge at which the surfaces of a cross or groined vault meet. See Vault.
Groined Vault: See Vault.
Guilloche (pr. Gil-losh): an ornament composed of the repeated intertwining of two or more bands; frequently used to decorate a Torus (which see).
Gutta (lit. “drop”): one of the small truncated cones, attached to the underside of a Regula (which see) and the Mutules (which see) of a Doric Entablature.
Half-Timbered: when the construction has a timbered frame, the interstices of which are filled in with masonry or concrete.
Hammer-beam roof: late form of timber roof construction, without continuous Tie Beams (which see).
Harmony: a principle of Beauty, that governs the variety in unity of a work of art, relating all the parts in an accord of feeling.
Header: in masonry, a brick or stone, laid across the thickness of the wall. See Bond, Stretcher.
Heart-leaf and Dart: an ornament composed of a heart-or leaf-shaped form and a dart or tongue. Used specifically on Cyma Reversa mouldings.
Hexastyle: See Portico.
Hip-roof: a roof that rises from all the wall-plates and, accordingly, has no gable.
Honeysuckle: ornament. See Anthemion.
Hypæthral: completely or partially open to the sky.
Hypostyle: having the roof beams supported on columns.
Impluvium: the cistern sunk in the Atrium (which see) of a Roman house to receive the rain water.
Impost: the member above the capital of a column, on which the arch rests, usually composed of mouldings.
In Antis: See Portico.
Ionic: the order of architecture, developed by the Hellenes of Asia Minor and adjoining islands, and borrowed and modified by the mainland Hellenes.
Insula: Roman term for a residential building, housing many families.
Intercolumniation: specifically in Classic architecture, the space between any two columns, or between a column and the wall of the Cella.
Interlace: in decoration, an ornament composed of interwoven bands or lines.
Jambs: the side members of the openings of doors and windows.
Kaaba: the cube-like shrine in the Mosque of Mecca.
Keystone: the central stone of an arch.
King-Post: in timber roof-construction; a central post, resting on one of the Tie-beams (which see) to support the ridge. See Queen-Post.
Lady-Chapel: a chapel in an English cathedral, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, usually situated at the back of the altar.
Lancet: applied to an arch or window that has a sharply pointed, lance-shaped opening.
Lantern: a superstructure that rises above the roof level, open below and admitting light through its sides. Called in Spanish a Cimborio.
Lierne-rib: See Rib.
Lintel: the horizontal beam, supported on two uprights or posts, covering an opening and supporting weight, e.g., the top member of the frame of a doorway or window.
Loggia: a covered gallery, open to the air on one or more sides.
Longitudinal: parallel to the direction of the main axis. Specifically applied to the arches and ribs of the vaulting of a nave or aisle in the direction East or West. Compare Diagonal and Transverse.
Louver: a lantern-like cupola on the roof of a mediæval building, originally the flue for smoke from the fire in the centre of the hall.
Lunette: a space somewhat resembling a half-moon, with the curve uppermost. Especially the wall-space, enclosed by the ends of a barrel-vault; or by the wall-arch of a groined or rib vault.
Lych-Gate (lit. “corpse-gate”): covered gateway at entrance to a churchyard, where the coffin rests during the first portion of the burial service.
Machicolation: the opening between a wall and a parapet, when the latter is built out on Corbels (which see). Through it missiles or burning liquids could be showered upon assailants.
Mansard or Mansart: applied to roofs which have a hip or angle—instead of a continuous slope—on all four sides. Named after the French architect who popularised, though he did not invent, it.
Mastaba: an Egyptian tomb, so-called from its construction resembling the ordinary Egyptian bench, which is composed of a horizontal board, supported upon boards that slope inward toward the seat.
Mausoleum (mō-so-lée-um): tomb of more than ordinary size and architectural pretensions. So called from the tomb erected at Halicarnassus in 325 B.C., in memory of Mausolus, King of Caria, by his widow, Artemisia.
Megalith (lit. huge stone): Megalithic, composed of such. See Cyclopean.
Megaron: Homeric word for palace or large hall.
Member (lit. limb): any component part of a structural design that has a specific function to perform.
Menhir: a prehistoric monument, consisting of a single rough or rudely shaped stone, usually of large size (megalithic); perhaps originally connected with fetish worship, to ward off evil spirits; then as a memorial of a dead chieftain or a victory. The prototype of the Obelisk.
Merlons: See Battlements.
Metope: the space between any two of the Triglyphs (which see) of a Doric Frieze. Originally left open, later filled and often with sculptured relief.
Mezzanine: a low story situated between two higher ones.
Mihrab: a niche in the wall of a mosque that marks the “Kibleh,” or direction toward the Kaaba (which see) at Mecca.
Minaret: the tall slender tower, attached to a Mosque, from a balcony of which the muezzin summons the people to prayer.
Modillions: the decorated blocks ranged under the Cornice of a Corinthian or Composite Entablature.
Monolith (lit. single stone): usually of large size. Monolithic, composed of such.
Mosaic (lit. belonging to the muses, the goddesses of the arts): decorative designs composed of particles, usually cube-shaped, of marble, stone, glass or enamel, used to enrich the surfaces of vaults, walls and floors. See Opus.
Motive: in decoration, the form on which the ornament is based; e.g., the acanthus motive.
Mullion: one of the vertical stone bars dividing a Gothic window into two or more “lights.” Also one of the bars of a Rose-Window (which see). The horizontal bars are called Transoms.
Mural: of or pertaining to a wall; e.g., a mural decoration. See Secco, Fresco.
Mutule: one of a series of rectangular blocks under the Cornice of a Doric Entablature, studded on the underside with Guttæ (which see).
Naos: the principal chamber of an Hellenic temple, containing the statue of the deity. Entered from the front through an unwalled vestibule, called the Pronaos and from the rear by a corresponding vestibule, called Epinaos or Opisthodomos.
Narthex: the arcaded porch of a Christian basilica, where penitents, barred from full communion, worshipped. See Galilee.
Nave (from Naos, which see): central division of a church or cathedral; usually west of the choir.
Necking: the hollowed surface between the Astragal (which see) of the shaft and the commencement of the capital; specifically of a Roman Doric column.
Necropolis: city of the dead: an assemblage of graves or tombs.
Newel Post: the shaft around which a spiral staircase is constructed; also the principal post supporting the handrail of a staircase.
Norman: the style in England, preceding Early English: corresponding to Romanesque on the Continent.
Nymphæum (consecrated to the nymphs): a building containing ornamental water, plants and statuary.
Octastyle: See Portico.
Ogee (pr. O-jée): another term for the Cyma Reversa. See Cyma.
Ogival: term applied to the Pointed Arch, because it is composed of two contrasted curves. Owing to this arch being characteristic of the Gothic style, the French have proposed to call the latter Ogival.
Open Arcades: See Arcades.
Opisthodomos (Gk. “room behind”): same as Epinaos. See Naos.
Opus reticulatum (lit. “net work”): a veneering composed of equal square slabs, arranged so that their joints are diagonal and form a net-like mesh.
Opus Sectile (lit. “Cut-work”): a mosaic ornament, composed of glass or marble, cut into various shapes to form a pattern. The richest variety of it is known as Opus Alexandrinum.
Opus Spicatum: pavement composed of bricks laid in “herring-bone” fashion.
Opus tesselatum: a mosaic ornament composed of tesseræ or square blocks of glass or marble.
Order: specifically, in Classic architecture, the combination of Column and Entablature.
Organic: primarily used of the structures of animals and plants; secondarily, of any organised, whole, composed of parts that perform definite functions; always in this book with an implication that the relation between the whole and its parts partakes of the nature of a living, as opposed to a mechanical, structure.
Oriel-window: See Bay-window.
Orientation: the construction of a temple or church on a main axis, regulated to the position of the sun or a star on some particular day or night; or to the points of the compass, usually an east and west axis.
Ovolo (lit. “egg-like”): a Classic convex moulding—a quarter-round in Roman architecture; in Hellenic, the curve of conic section known as hyperbolic.
Palmette: See Anthemion.
Papier-maché: a tough plastic substance, formed of paper-pulp, mixed with glue, or of layers of paper, glued together; and modelled into ornamental forms.
Parapet: specifically, the portion of the wall of a building above the eaves of the roof. Generally, a retaining wall, or enclosing wall, e.g., the walls of a bridge, above the roadway.
Patio: the open, inner court of a Spanish or Spanish-American house.
Pavilion: specifically, a section of a building that projects from the plane of the main façade and has a distinct roof treatment.
Pediment: specifically, the triangular member surmounting the Portico of a Classic temple. It rests on the Entablature and terminates on each side in a raking Cornice, paralleling the slope of the roof. In Renaissance and later times, a triangular surface, framed by a horizontal and two sloping cornices, e.g., the embellishment surmounting windows and doors. The triangular space within the horizontal and raking cornices is called a Tympanum and is frequently decorated with sculptured figures or ornament. Tympanum is also used for the surface between a lintel and the curved cornice over it.
Pendentive: one of the four triangular, concave members that convert a square space into a circle for the support of a dome. Their apexes rest on the four piers at the angles of the square, and, as the triangles arch inward, their bases unite in a circle.
Peripteral (lit. “winged-around”): designating a temple, when the cella is surrounded by a single range of columns. Compare Pseudo-peripteral.
Peristyle: a system or range of Columns, specifically surrounding a temple or court. See Colonnade.
Piano nobile: Italian term for the principal story of a building. Compare French Bel Étage.
Pier: a vertical supporting member, other than a column or pillar.
Pilaster: a square column, projecting about one-sixth of its width from the wall, and of the same proportions as the Order with which it is used.
Pinnacle: a small turret-like termination; especially at the top of buttresses to increase their weight and capacity of lateral resistance.
Plate Tracery: See Tracery.
Plinth: specifically, a block, usually square, which forms the lowest member of the base of a column. Generally, the block on which a column, pedestal or statue rests.
Podium: a wall supporting a row of columns; specifically, in Roman architecture, the temple platform that does not project beyond the line of the columns as does a Stylobate (which see).
Polygonal: a figure composed of more than four angles, of equal size.
Porte-cochère (pr. port´-co-share´): a covered entrance, under which a carriage can be driven.
Portico: an open space or ambulatory covered by a roof, supported on columns, forming a porch. In Classic temples the front of the portico consists of Columns, Entablature, and Pediment, covered by the extension of the roof of the Cella. According as the Portico has four, six, eight or ten columns in front the temple is distinguished as Tetrastyle, Hexastyle, Octostyle or Decastyle. When the Portico is enclosed on the left and right by an extension of the sides of the Cella it is distinguished as “In Antis.”
Post: an upright supporting member, as of a door. An element in the principle of construction known as Post and Beam.
Post and Beam: generic term for the constructive principle of a horizontal member, supported upon vertical ones.
Posticum (Latin for Epinaos): See Naos.
Pot Metal: glass fused in a crucible.
Pozzolana: a clean, sandy earth, of volcanic origin, used by the Romans in combination with lime to form concrete.
Profile: specifically, the outer edge of the section of a moulding.
Projection: a general term for any member that extends beyond the main planes of a structure, especially used of mouldings.
Pronaos: See Naos.
Proportion: a principle of Beauty, that regulates the quantity and quality of the parts of a work of art according to their functional importance in the organic unity of the whole.
Propylæa: the entrance gate or vestibule to a group of buildings.
Proscenium (lit. “before the scene” [skene]): in the Classic theatre a structure, occupying the open end of the horse-shoe plan, to screen from view the “skene” or actor’s dressing-place. It formed the background to the Drama.
Prostyle (lit. “having columns in front”): used to describe a temple plan that has a Portico at only one of its ends. Compare Amphi-prostyle.
Prototype: the primitive, rude, original form, out of which finer and more efficient types have been developed.
Pseudo-dipteral (lit. “false-double-winged”): when the temple appears to have a double row of columns on the sides, but the inner range is omitted and the space between the columns and wall of the Cella is thereby double the usual Intercolumniation (which see).
Pseudo-peripteral (lit. “false-winged-around”); when the columns on the sides of a temple, instead of standing free, are Engaged (which see) in the wall of the Cella.
Pteroma (pr. ter-ō´-ma): pl. pteromata: term applied to the side walls of a Cella; hence, sometimes to the space between the latter and the columns of the Peristyle.
Pylon: a doorway, flanked by two Truncated Pyramids with oblong bases. See Pyramid.
Pyramid: a structure of masonry, generally with a square base, with triangular sides meeting at an apex. When the sides mount in steps it is distinguished as a Stepped Pyramid. When the sides end abruptly, before reaching the apex, it is called a Truncated Pyramid.
Quadriga: a four horse chariot.
Quatrefoil: See Foil.
Quatrocento: Italian term for the period called in English the fifteenth century.
Queen-Post: in timbered roof construction, one of the two posts resting on one of the Tie-beams, at equal distance from the centre, to reinforce the rafters. See King-Post.
Quoin: specifically, one of the large, square stones at the angle (coign) of a building.
Ramp: an inclined approach to a terrace or platform, usually parallel to the sustaining wall of the latter.
Rayonnant: (“radiating”): used to distinguish the second period of French Gothic (Fourteenth Century); from the characteristic radiating or “wheel” tracery of the rose-windows. Compare “Decorated.”
Refinements: a term applied to the instances in Hellenic, Byzantine, and Gothic architecture of deviations from geometrical symmetry, to secure a more flowing, rhythmic beauty. See Asymmetries.
Regula: one of a series of short, flat fillets placed under the Tenia (which see) of a Doric Architrave, above each of the Triglyphs (which see); usually having six Guttæ (which see) on the under side.
Reja (pr. rā-hah): Spanish term for an elaborate grille or screen of hammered and chiselled iron, characteristic of which were repoussé figures set into or attached to the vertical bars.
Relief: a design of ornament or figures raised upon a surface that forms the background; distinguished, according to the extent of projection, as High or Low; in both cases distinguished from modelling or carving “in the round” where the design, is detached from the background; and from Intaglio, where the design is sunk below the surface.
Renaissance: the period of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in which the Classic culture and the Classic forms were revived in Europe.
Reredos (pr. rir´-dos): a screen behind an altar, usually of marble, decorated with sculptured ornament and figures. Called Retablo in Spain, where examples reach prodigious size and great elaboration.
Retablo: Spanish for Reredos (which see).
Retrochoir: the space, other than that of the Lady Chapel behind the altar.
Rhythm: primarily used to describe the harmonious recurrence of certain sound-relations in musical and poetic compositions; a movement of sound characterised by recurrence of stress and accent. It is based on time, but eludes the measured repetition of the bar and metre. Hence a relation of lines and masses, characterised by harmonious recurrence of stress or accent. Not a repetition of measured intervals and identical parts, but of general similarities, involving variety, uniting in closest relationship the parts of an organic design to one another and to the whole. Rhythm is the subtlest element of artistic harmony and yet is nearest to the free growth and articulations of nature.
Rib: a projecting band or moulding on a ceiling. Specifically, the projecting members of Gothic vaulting. These were first constructed—probably with the support of a Cerce (which see) as light arches, which then formed the support of the intervening masonry surfaces. The Ribs which parallel the axis of the nave are called Longitudinal, those which cross it from column to column at right angles are called Transverse, while those crossing the axis diagonally are called Diagonal. Sometimes, especially in English Gothic, to strengthen the vault, extra ribs, known as Tiercerons, were inserted between the main ribs. They spring from the Impost (which see) and abut on an extra ridge, projecting along the axial line, known as the Ridge-Rib. The vaulting, thus formed by the tiercerons radiating from the Impost is called Fan Vaulting. Sometimes, for additional strength and to increase the decorativeness, short intermediate ribs were introduced, which are known as Liernes, their distinction being that they do not connect with the Impost. When the geometrical pattern, made by the Liernes, resembles a star the vaulting is distinguished as Stellar Vaulting. Sometimes a vertical rib, known as a Formeret, was applied to the wall to separate one vault compartment from another.
Rib Vault: See Vault.
Ridge: the highest point or line of a roof.
Ridge Rib: See Rib.
Rococo: style of decoration, distinguished by rock-work, shells, scrolls, etc., which originated in France during the period of the Regency and Louis XV.
Rood-loft: a gallery over the entrance to the chancel, in which stood a cross or rood. Used for reading portions of the service and also in the performance of miracle plays.
Rose-window or Wheel-window: a circular window, whose Mullions (which see) converge toward the centre.
Rostral Column: a column decorated with imitations of the prows (rostra) of vessels; used by the Romans to commemorate a naval victory.
Rubble: Rubblework: masonry composed of irregularly shaped or broken stone, whether mixed or not with cement; also the fragments of stone, mixed with cement, used to fill in the thickness of a wall, between the two faces of dressed stone.
Rustication: treatment of masonry with deeply recessed joints, grooved or beveled; the surface of the stone is sometimes made rough.
Scotia: a concave moulding, frequently used in the base of Classic columns.
Screen: a partition of wood, metal, marble, or stone, separating the choir from the nave. Latin cancellus; hence by corruption the English term, Chancel.
Secco (lit. “dry”): as contrasted with Fresco (which see), “fresh or wet.” Terms used in connection with Tempera painting (which see) according as the surface of plaster be dry or freshly spread at the time the colour is applied.
Section: a drawing showing a building or part of a building, as it would appear if it were cut through vertically, and the part between the plane of section and the spectator’s eye were removed.
Serdab: the cell within an Egyptian tomb, in which images of the deceased were placed.
Sexpartite: applied to vaults, divided into six compartments. In Romanesque churches, owing to the short intercolumniation, the bays were oblong. Hence for convenience of construction two were treated together as a square. Sometimes from the intermediate columns a transverse shafting was constructed, which together with the diagonals divided the square into six divisions.
Shaft: the main member of a Column between the Capital and (where there is one) the Base.
Soffit: the under side of an entablature, lintel, cornice, or arch.
Solar: a private upper chamber for the use of the family, in a Mediæval Castle.
Spandril or Spandrel: the triangular space on each side of an arch that is enclosed in a rectangle.
Sphinx: a winged monster, combining human and animal forms.
Spire: the pointed termination to a tower. See Steeple.
Squinch: a small arch, set diagonally across the angle of a square space to transform the latter into an octagon.
Stalls: the fixed seats in a chancel for the clergy and choir.
Stanza: Italian for Chamber.
Steeple: the combination of tower and Spire. See Spire.
Stele: Stela: an upright tablet of stone or marble, often sculptured and engraved; serving as a tombstone, or boundary mark or milestone, etc.
Stellar Vaulting: See Rib.
Stepped: See Gable; Pyramid.
Stilted: applied to an arch when its curve begins some distance above the impost and is connected to the latter by vertical sections of moulding.
Strap Ornament: geometrical patterns formed of bands, that suggest straps of leather kept in place with studs.
Stretcher: in masonry, a brick or stone, laid lengthwise of the course. See Bond, Header.
Stucco: specifically, a plaster made of gypsum, powdered marble or fine sand, mixed with water; used for wall surfaces and raised ornament; generally, any plaster or cement used for external coating.
Stylobate (lit. “column-stand”): in Classic Architecture, a continuous base supporting columns; specifically, the platform on which a Greek temple is raised. Compare Podium.
Tabernacle: a structure to contain the “Host” or consecrated Bread; resembling a tower or spire and elaborately embellished with windows, mouldings, pinnacles, etc., often rising to a great height—90 feet in the Cathedral of Ulm. A feature of German decorative art. Appears in Spanish Gothic under the name of Custodia.
Temenos: the sacred enclosure or precinct of a Greek temple or group of temples.
Tempera painting or painting in distemper: the process of painting on a ground, usually prepared with a coat of fine plaster, with pigments that are mixed with yolk of egg or some other glutinous medium and are soluble in water. The method employed for all paintings before the development of the oil medium in the fifteenth century; and continued in use by the Italian mural decorators. See Fresco, Secco.
Tenia or Tænia: the flat fillet or band, forming the upper member of a Doric Architrave (which see).
Terminal: applied to posts, originally used to mark boundaries. Made of marble, with a head and bust or half figure, surmounting the pedestal, it is used as a garden ornament.
Terrace: a raised level space or platform, sustained by walls or sloping banks, usually approached from below by a flight of steps or Ramp (which see).
Terra-cotta: a species of hard clay, moulded and baked: especially used in ornamentation.
Tessera: a cube of glass or marble used in Mosaic decoration (which see).
Tetrastyle: See Portico.
Tholos: a building of the beehive type, circular in plan, with a domed roof.
Thrust: a strain that tends to push the downward pressure toward the sides; as in the case of an arch.
Tie-Beam: in timber roof construction, the transverse beam that ties together the lower part of opposite rafters.
Tierceron-rib: See Rib.
Tile: a thin piece of terra-cotta, stone, or marble for the external covering of roofs.
Torus: a large convex (usually semi-circular) moulding used especially in bases of columns. See Astragal.
Trabeated: having a horizontal Beam or Entablature.
Tracery: the pattern of stonework that fills the upper part of a Gothic window. Distinguished as Plate Tracery, where the tracery looks as if it were pierced in a single plate or slab of stone; Bar Tracery, when composed in an arrangement of geometric designs. The German imitation of branches is known as Branch Tracery.
Transepts: the parts of a church or cathedral that project at right angles to the nave and choir, forming the arms of the Cross in a Cruciform (which see) plan.
Transom: See Mullion.
Transverse: at right angles to the main axis. Specifically applied to the arches and ribs of the vaulting of a nave or aisle that are in the directions of north and south. Compare Longitudinal and Diagonal.
Travertine: a hard limestone found in Tivoli.
Trefoil: See Foil.
Triclinium: dining room of a Roman house.
Triforium: the arcaded passage above the arches of the nave of a Gothic cathedral, opening into the space between the vaulting and roof of the aisle.
Truncated: finishing abruptly instead of in a point. See Pyramid.
Tufa: a volcanic substance of which the hills of Rome are largely composed.
Tumulus: a prehistoric artificial mound, serving as a sepulchral monument.
Tympanum: See Pediment.
Unity: a principle of Beauty, that the work of art shall present an organic oneness and completeness.
Vault: an arched covering of stone, brick or concrete over any space. Barrel vault: a continuous semicircular arched covering over an oblong space, supported on the side walls. Groined vault: a vault formed by the intersection of two barrel vaults, at right angles to each other, supported on four corner columns or piers. Rib vault: a development of the groin vault, the groins being replaced by ribs or profiled bands of masonry, which are erected first, the vaulting spaces being filled in subsequently.
Vestibule: the walled space before the entrance to a Roman house; later an enclosed or partially enclosed entrance space beneath the roof of an early Christian church; generally, the entrance space of any building, especially, if used for public assemblage.
Volute: the scroll or spiral feature occurring in a capital of the Ionic and Corinthian Orders.
Voussoir: one of the wedge-shaped stones, composing the curve of an arch.
Wainscot: the lining or panelling of an interior wall, skirting the floor and carried up to only a part of the height of the wall.
Wheel window: See Rose-window.
Ziggurat: (a “holy mountain”): the platform usually Stepped or rising in receding tiers, on which the Chaldæans erected a temple; they were also used for astronomical observations.
INDEX
(For the Compilation of which the author is indebted to Caroline Caffin)
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Z