Global History of Architecture: 3500 BCE to 1600 CE

A collection of vocabulary flashcards based on key terms and definitions related to global architecture from 3500 BCE to 1600 CE.

Mosque

A Muslim building or place of public worship.

Hypostyle Hall

Pertaining to a hall having many rows of columns carrying the roof or ceiling.

Qibla

The wall in a mosque in which the mihrab is set, oriented to Mecca.

Mihrab

A niche or decorative panel in a mosque designating the qibla.

Minbar

A pulpit in a mosque, recalling the three steps from which Mohammed addressed his followers.

Minaret

A lofty, slender tower attached to a mosque with stairs leading up to one or more projecting balconies for the call to prayer.

Muqarnas

A system of decoration in Islamic architecture created by the intricate corbeling of brackets, squinches, and inverted pyramids.

Squinch

An arch or corbelling built across the upper inside corner of a square tower to support an octagonal structure.

Kiva

A round structure, partially underground, used for gathering and ceremonial purposes.

Chinampa

Small, raised fields on shallow lake beds for intensive agriculture, commonly found in ancient Mesoamerica.

Linear Perspective

A system for creating an illusion of depth on a parallel surface where parallel lines converge at the same vanishing point.

Vanishing Point

The point on a line where parallel lines converge to create three-dimensional depth.

Pietra Serena

A type of gray stone used in architectural projects.

Palazzo

A style in Renaissance structures characterized by a symmetric facade with common architectural elements.

Cortile

An open-air courtyard typically enclosed by the walls of a building or buildings.

Rustication

Ashlar masonry with seen stone faces contrasted with horizontal and vertical joints.

Piano Nobile

The principal story of a large building, usually one flight above the ground floor.

Bay

Any number of principal compartments or divisions of a wall, roof, or other part of a building.

Pilaster

A shallow rectangular feature projecting from a wall, treated architecturally as a column.

Cornice

The uppermost member of a classical entablature.

Thermal Window

A window style derived from the Baths of Diocletian in ancient Rome.

Serliana

A three-part composition with a tall central arch, flanked by two shorter openings.