History of Architecture 2: Renaissance Architecture and Baroque

Vocabulary flashcards covering key Renaissance and Baroque architecture terms, figures, and concepts from the notes.

Rinascita (Renaissance)

Rebirth of classical learning and wisdom that marks the Renaissance in art, architecture, and literature.

Vitruvius’ Ten Books of Architecture

Ancient treatise whose revival influenced Renaissance principles of proportion, symmetry, and building practice.

Orders of Architecture

Classical Roman system of architectural orders (Doric, Ionic, Corinthian) revived in Renaissance designs.

Antiquarian

Early Renaissance phase (approximately 1750–1830 in notes) focused on accurately reproducing Roman elements; also called Antiquarian.

Early Renaissance

Period devoted to learning and transcription of Roman Classical architecture; often termed Antiquarian in the notes.

High Renaissance

Period when Renaissance develops as its own style; includes debates between Purists (Palladian) and Proto-Baroque influences.

Purist / Palladian

Architects who favored strict adherence to Roman classical tradition; associated with Andrea Palladio.

Proto-Baroque

Renaissance phase where the architectural vocabulary becomes freer and more expressive, foreshadowing Baroque.

Mannerism

Transitional style with decorative, non‑antique elements and illogical use of form; precedes Baroque.

Baroque Architecture

Dramatic, grand, unified style integrating architecture, painting, and sculpture; emphasizes movement and ornament.

Rococo Architecture

French late Baroque style: light, playful, pastel colors, intricate ornamentation, intimate spaces.

St. Peter’s Basilica

Major Rome church built across Renaissance and Baroque periods; features dome on drum and large-scale plan.

Bramante

Architect who proposed the Greek-cross plan for St. Peter’s and a large central dome.

Raphael Santi

Architect who moved St. Peter’s plan to a Latin-cross form and expanded crossing with ambulatories.

Michelangelo Buonarroti

Contributed to St. Peter’s with a revised Greek-cross nucleus and a dominant dome on a drum.

Carlo Maderno

Lengthened the nave to a Latin-cross plan and designed the façade with a giant order.

Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Architect-artist who enhanced interiors, designed the Baldacchin o, and created St. Peter’s Square colonnades.

Baldachin (Baldacchino)

Bronze canopy over St. Peter’s tomb, designed by Bernini.

Latin-cross Plan

Church plan with a longer nave forming a cross shape.

Greek-cross Plan

Church plan with arms of equal length; Bramante’s original concept for St. Peter’s.

Ambulatories

Walkways around the ends of the cross arms in church designs.

Cortile

Interior courtyard in palatial architecture.

Piano nobile

Principal floor in a Renaissance palazzo containing the main reception areas.

Rustication

Rusticated masonry: rough, bold blocks typically on the ground floor for fortress-like effect.

Quoins

Corner stones that project slightly, emphasizing the buildingʼs edges.

Plateresque

Spanish Renaissance style with elaborate surface decoration reminiscent of silversmith work.

Manueline

Portuguese early Renaissance style named after King Manuel I; decorative and maritime-inspired.

Churrigueresque

Spanish Baroque style with exuberant, highly decorative ornament.

Escorial

Austerely monumental monastery-palace near Madrid; emblematic of Spanish Baroque/early modern architecture.

Trompe L’Œil

Illusionistic painting technique used to blend painting and architecture.

Double-shell Dome

Dome composed of two shell layers, a feature of grand Baroque domes like St. Peter’s.

Dome on Drum

Dome set on a cylindrical supporting base (drum), creating a tall, dramatic profile.

Giant Order

A column or pilaster that spans more than one story, a hallmark of Renaissance/Baroque architecture.