legally mandated

Basilica Plan

A longitudinal church floor plan, consisting of a nave, two to four aisles, and a semicircular apse 

Ambulatory

A covered walkway that allows continuous movement through a building

Pendentive

Triangular vault section that supports a dome by channeling weight into piers  

Mandorla

A frame, often almond-shaped, that surrounds the figure of Christ

Icon

Literally means “image” or “representation” and, in the Byzantine empire, referred to devotional images of holy figures (Christ, the Virgin Mary, or the saints); the word also took on the meaning of portable devotional images, which could be made in any medium

Encaustic

A painting technique, in which colored pigments are mixed into heated wax

Tesserae

Small blocks of glass, stone, or tile that form the individual components of a mosaic

Cloisonne

A metalworking technique that consists of fashioning metal compartments, filled with another, often contrasting material (glass, gems, etc.)

Interlace

A design formed by interweaving elements

Eucharist

A ritual of the Christian liturgy in which bread and wine are believed to become the body and blood of Christ, and are symbolically consumed to remember Christ’s sacrifice 

Evangelist

A writer of one of the four Gospels of the bible, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. They are often represented by their symbols: Matthew as a winged man, Mark as a winged lion, Luke as a winged ox, and John as an eagle

Gospel Book

A book containing the Gospels, the sections of the Christian New Testament written by the Evangelists 

Parchment

Animal skin used as a writing material

Fibula

Brooch or pin for fastening garments 

Crozier

A staff that is hooked at one end and carried by a bishop

Marble Revetment

Panels of marble inlaid as wall decoration

Maqsura

Private enclosure near the mihrab intended for a ruler

Polylobed Arch

An arch ornamented with multiple lobes

Ewer

A vase-shaped pitcher with a handle

Muqarnas

Three-dimensional decorative device often used to create a transition between different architectural zones 

Saint

A person who has achieved a high degree of holiness and is worshiped after death by Christians 

Martyrdom

Dying for one’s religion

Pilgrimage

A journey to a shrine or holy place

Relic

A part of a saint’s body or something that has come into contact with a saint

Reliquary

A container for relics

Romanesque

An artistic and architectural style named for its similarities to Roman art

Radiating Chapels

Chapels that project outwards allowing for circumambulation around the east end of a church 

Last Judgment

Moment at the end of time at which the dead are resurrected and judged, resulting in salvation for some and damnation for others 

Ooni

Ruler of the Ife Kingdom

Asa

Energy present in all things

Greek-Cross Plan

A church plan type characterized by a square central mass and four arms of equal length 

Stringcourse

A decorative horizontal band on the exterior of a building

Book of Hours

A prayer book made for lay people that includes prayers for specific times of day and a calendar; it became the most popular type of book in the late Middle Ages

Illuminations

Painted decoration in a manuscript

Grisaille

A painting method that uses entirely gret tones

Mullion

A vertical element that divides the panes of a window; mullions can be either decorative or functional 

Woodblock Printing

A technique in which an image is excavated from a block of wood (leaving the parts to be printed projecting) and then the wood is inked and used to print copies onto another medium, like paper 

Office of the Dead

Prayers to be read when someone is dying and after their death