Module 3 Architecture Review Guide: Rome, Mesoamerica, Early Christian, and Byzantium

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering architectural terms, concepts, monuments, and key sites from Roman, Ancient Mexican, Early Christian, Byzantine, and Maya architecture.

Arch

Curved structure that carries weight over an opening.

Concrete

Roman building mixture used for walls, vaults and domes.

Barrel vault

A continuous arch forming a tunnel-shaped ceiling.

Groin vault

Two barrel vaults crossing at right angles.

Castrum

Roman military camp with an ordered plan.

Forum

Roman public square and civic center.

Basilica

Large Roman hall for public, legal or administrative activity.

Aqueduct

Structure that carries water to a city.

Circus

Long arena for races.

Amphitheater

Oval or round venue with seating around an arena.

Hypocaust

Roman underfloor heating system.

Domus

Roman house organized around internal courts; a private Roman house.

Insula

Multistory urban apartment building; apartment block.

Villa

Country estate or residence.

Triumphal arch

Monument celebrating a military or political victory.

Coffer

Recessed panel in a ceiling or dome.

Timgad

Roman military-style grid city in modern Algeria, founded around 100.

Pompeii Forum

Civic center for public and political life in Pompeii.

Roman Forum and Imperial Fora

Monumental civic spaces in Rome expressing state power.

Circus Maximus

Long racing venue in Rome designed for chariots.

Theater of Marcellus

Roman theater characterized by an arcaded exterior.

Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheater)

Oval arena in Rome built between 72 and 80 for public spectacles.

Baths of Diocletian

Large public bath complex in Rome dating to 298-306, designed with vaulted rooms.

Caesar’s Forum / Augustus’ Forum

Formal, axial Roman public spaces.

Domus Aurea

Nero’s palace in Rome featuring innovative vaulted rooms.

Trajan’s Forum and Markets

Civic plaza and multilevel commercial complex in Rome.

Basilica Ulpia

Large civic meeting and administrative hall in Rome designed by Apollodorus, dating to 98-117.

Hadrian’s Villa

Expansive landscaped imperial estate dating to 125 in Tivoli, Italy.

Typical Etruscan Temple / Temple of Fortuna Virilis / Maison Carrée

Examples of frontal temple design demonstrating Greek and Etruscan cultural influence adapted for Roman use.

Pantheon

Roman temple built between 125 and 128 in Rome with a massive concrete dome and oculus.

Temple of Venus, Baalbek

Roman temple characterized by unusual curved forms.

Olmec

Early Mesoamerican civilization whose planning and ceremonial traditions influenced later cultures.

Axis mundi

Sacred center connecting the earthly and cosmic worlds.

Axial

Organized along a main line or axis.

Orthogonal

Arranged with right-angle relationships; using right angles in the organization of a building or plan.

Talud-tablero

Stepped wall arrangement using a sloping face (talud) and a projecting panel (tablero).

Talud

Sloped lower wall surface in a talud-tablero stepped wall arrangement.

Tablero

Vertical framed panel projecting above a talud.

Ball court

Space or specialized court used for the Mesoamerican ritual ball game.

La Venta

Olmec ceremonial center dating to 400 BCE, organized around an axis.

Monte Albán

Elevated monumental plaza and temples dating to 300 BCE in ancient Mexico.

Teotihuacán

Large, planned orthogonal ceremonial city in ancient Mexico.

Avenue of the Dead

Long main ceremonial axis at Teotihuacán.

Teotihuacán apartment compounds

Courtyard-based residential complexes located in Teotihuacán.

Citadel and Temple of the Feathered Serpent

Major ritual enclosure and decorated pyramid at Teotihuacán dating to 100 CE.

Pyramid of the Sun

Great stepped pyramid at Teotihuacán dating to 100 CE.

Pyramid of the Moon

Monumental pyramid situated at the end of the city axis at Teotihuacán, dating to 200-400 CE.

Church

Building designated for Christian worship.

Cathedral

Church containing the seat of a bishop.

Basilica plan

Longitudinal church plan featuring a central nave and side aisles.

Nave

Main central space of a church.

Aisle

Side passage flanking the nave of a church.

Apse

Usually semicircular end of a church, often containing the altar.

Ambulatory

Passage allowing movement around a central space or apse.

Narthex

Entrance hall or vestibule of a church.

Crossing

Area where the nave and transept intersect in a church plan.

Transept

Crosswise arm of a church plan.

Choir

Area associated with clergy or singers near the sanctuary.

Baptistry

Building or space dedicated for the rite of baptism.

Central plan

Building organized around a central point rather than a long axis.

Early Christian House-Church, Dura-Europos

An adapted domestic house in Syria used for early Christian worship, dating to c. 230-232.

Constantine’s Basilica, Trier

Roman imperial hall in Trier illustrating the architectural form of the basilica.

Basilica of Maxentius

Massive Roman vaulted civic basilica.

Arch of Constantine

Triumphal arch constructed using reused Roman sculptural elements.

St. John in the Lateran

Early Christian basilica church established in Rome.

Old St. Peter’s Basilica

Large Christian basilica in Rome begun in 326, focused on the tomb of Peter.

Santa Sabina

Early Christian church in Rome with a clear, representative basilica interior.

Santa Maria Maggiore

Early Christian basilica in Rome featuring classical columns.

Santo Stefano Rotondo

Round central-plan church located in Rome.

Greek cross plan

Cross-shaped architectural plan with arms of equal length.

Quincunx

Five-part arrangement, commonly composed of a central dome surrounded by four smaller domes around it.

Martyrium

Shrine or memorial building associated with a martyr or sacred burial.

Squinch

A small arch or a series of gradually wider and increasingly projecting concentric arches across the interior corners of a square or polygonal room, forming a transition from the room shape to a circular dome or drum above.

Pendentive

A curving triangular surface or spandrel that makes the transition from the corners of a square or polygonal room to a circular dome or its drum.

Dome

Rounded vault covering an interior space.

Mosaic

Picture or decorative design formed from many small pieces.

Clerestory

Upper-level wall pierced with windows that bring light into an interior space.

Santa Costanza

Central-plan mausoleum and church dating to c. 350 in Rome, Italy, designed with an ambulatory.

Hagia Sophia

Great domed church built under Justinian by architects Anthemios and Isidoros between 532 and 552 in Constantinople, Turkey.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Major sacred church complex at Jerusalem begun in 325 C.E.

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

Small Greek-cross-plan monument decorated with interior mosaics, dating to 430 in Ravenna, Italy.

Sant’Apollinare in Classe

Longitudinal early Christian basilica in Ravenna, Italy, begun in 526.

San Vitale

Octagonal central-plan church constructed between 526 and 540 in Ravenna, Italy.

Roofcomb

Tall decorative wall rising above a Maya temple roof.

Corbelled vault

Vault formed by overlapping horizontal masonry courses projecting inward toward the center.

Sak beh (white way)

Raised, paved Maya roadway connecting plazas and centers.

Acropolis

Elevated group of ceremonial buildings in Maya architecture.

Pyramid

Large stepped monumental base supporting a temple, symbolizing a sacred mountain.

Reservoir

Artificial place constructed for collecting and storing water.

Tikal

Maya ceremonial city located in Guatemala, dating to ca. 600-800.

North Acropolis, Tikal

Cluster of temple platforms and royal structures located at Tikal.

Temples I and II, Tikal

Tall stepped temples flanking the Great Plaza at Tikal.

Palenque

Maya ceremonial city in Mexico noted for its palaces and funerary temples.

Palace, Palenque

Maya palace complex dating to 680, featuring internal galleries and an observation tower.

Temple of the Inscriptions, Palenque

Stepped funerary temple dating to 680 in Palenque, Mexico.

Uxmal

Maya ceremonial center located in Yucatán.

Pyramid of the Magician, Uxmal

Steep pyramid with rounded massing dating to ca. 740 at Uxmal.

Nunnery Quadrangle, Uxmal

Complex of four buildings arranged around a quadrangle courtyard at Uxmal.

Governor’s Palace, Uxmal

Long decorated palace building dating to ca. 750 at Uxmal.

Chichén Itzá

Major Maya ceremonial city located in the Yucatán peninsula.