ARCH 170A - Test #1

mortise

a slot/hole cut into a material that is meant to be fitted with a matching piece (the tenon)

tenon

a protruding piece formed on the end of a material for insertion into a slot/hole of the same dimensions (the mortise)

nave (nef)

the central area of a church where the congregation sits or stands during services

apse (abside)

a semicircular or polygonal recess in a building, usually covered with a half-dome or vaulted ceiling, and most often found at the eastern end of a church or a semi-circular or vaulted recess

Salle de taureaux

Hall of the bulls

corbel

a structural or decorative bracket that projects outward from a wall to support weight from above

corbelled dome

an architectural structure made by stacking horizontal layers of stone or brick so that each upper layer steps inward slightly past the one below it until they meet at the top

tell

(in archeaology) an artificial topographical feature, a mound consisting of the accumulated and stratified debris of a succession of consecutive settlements at the same site, the refuse of generations of people who built and inhabited them, and natural sediment

natufian

permanent and semi-subterranean circular stone structures that mark the early shift toward a sedentary culture, as opposed to nomadic hunter gatherers, in the Levant (Israel/ Palestine) around 15,000 to 11,500 years ago

oblique

a design movement that replaces flat, horizontal floors and vertical walls with continuous, inclined planes. a specific type of parallel projection where the projection rays strike the drawing plane at an angle other than 90 degrees

projection

a systematic drawing method used to represent three-dimensional buildings and spaces on a flat, two-dimensional surface

Axonometric projection

a type of parallel three-dimensional drawing where parallel lines remain parallel and do not converge at a vanishing point// a type of parallel three-dimensional drawing that rotates a building or object so that its top, front, and side are all visible in a single image without lines converging toward a vanishing point or show 3D object in 2D at a skewed skewed angle so multiple sides are visible

cut-away

a technical or artistic drawing that removes an outer layer or wall of a building to show its interior and exterior at the same time

ziggurat

massive, tiered stepped pyramid structures built in ancient Mesopotamia and Iran between 4,000 and 500 BCE or stepped pyramid temples in Mesopotamia with shrine or small temple at its apex

photomontage

a digital or physical visualization technique that blends unbuilt design models, cutouts, or drawings into real-world photographic site contexts

Lamassu

a colossal winged human-headed bull in Assyrian art

Mastaba

ancient Egyptian tomb shaped like a flat-topped, rectangular bench with sloped sides or a flat-roofed rectangular structure containing or built over burial space in ancient Egypt with sloping sides

Stela

upright stone slab decorated with inscriptions or pictorial relief carvings

serdab

in ancient Egyptian architecture is a sealed, hidden chamber inside a tomb structure that housed a statue of the deceased

collonade

a long sequence of evenly spaced columns that support a horizontal roof, an entablature, or a series of arches

clerestory

a high section of wall containing windows placed above eye level to admit natural light and fresh air

sarcophagus

a carved, monumental stone or material coffin designed to act as an above-ground final home for an important decedent

cap stone

A stone fixed on top of something, like a wall or tomb.

vestibule

a small entryway within a building or a small transition room located between exterior door and main interior of building

post and lintel

a basic building system where two strong vertical supports (posts) hold up a single horizontal element (lintel) across the top

pylon

a monumental gateway to an ancient Egyptian temple, featuring two massive, tapering pyramidal towers joined by a lower central section

obelisk

a tall, four-sided, tapered stone monument that ends in a pyramid-like top

hypostyle halls

an interior space with a roof supported by rows of columns or pillars

soul houses

small clay or pottery models and offering trays from the First Intermediate Period and Middle Kingdom. Built as a symbolic dwelling and offering place for the ka (the soul or life force) of the deceased to receive food and water

Mycenaean

heavy hilltop citadels, massive defensive stone walls, and central royal halls called megarons

minoan

defined by massive, labyrinthine multi-story palace complexes built on Crete during the Bronze Age without military fortifications

Phrygian

an ancient Iron Age style from central and western Anatolia (modern-day Turkey), defined by the megaron building plan, intricate rock-cut monuments, and sophisticated woodwork and terracotta revetments

propylon (A)

a monumental gateway or entrance porch leading to a sacred enclosure, temple, or important public space in classical architecture or a monumental gateway marking the entrance to a sacred precinct, citadel, or royal palace

megaron (B)

a rectangular great hall used in ancient Aegean and Mycenaean architecture that served as a political, ritual, and domestic center. [1, 2] or (Greece, but later Rome): rectangular great hall with 3 parts: open air porch, vestibule, and main hall

temenos

blank

cella or naos

the main inner chamber of an ancient Greek or Roman temple or the inner most room of a classical temple. Typically a simple, windowless, rectangular room with a central doorway, highly restricted access to priesthood, housing cult statue

entablature

a horizontal, continuous lintel on a classical building supported by columns or a wall, comprising the architrave, frieze, and cornice or a horizontal superstructure of stacked beams and moldings that rests directly on column capitals. Consists of architrave, frieze, and cornice

echinus

the prominent, rounded, cushion-like convex molding located at the top of a column just below the square abacus or a cushion like circular capital of doric column

volute

a spiral, scroll-like ornamental design element most famously found on the capitals of classical Ionic columns

Miletus

defined by the pioneering grid-pattern city plan of Hippodamus and monumental structures spanning the Archaic, Hellenistic, and Roman periods

apadana

a grand, columned audience hall in ancient Persian palaces from the Achaemenid period, best known from the ruins at Persepolis and Susa.

frieze

ornamental band on a wall or wide horizontal middle band of entablature, often decorated, sitting between the architrave and cornice

axis mundi

serving as the symbolic center of a sacred space or a cross/meeting of main two axis of roman city (decmanus maximus and cardo maximus)

Anda or garbha

the innermost sanctuary and sanctum sanctorum of a Hindu, Jain, or Buddhist temple

yasi

central brick dome

medhi

the drum/terrace. an elevated, circular or square terrace or platform that serves as the base for the upper elements of the monument. It elevates the structure above ordinary ground level, separating the sacred space from the mundane world.

chattra

the top spire of a Buddhist Stupa or an Indo-Islamic Chhatri pavilion

vedika

a railing enclosing a sacred area, as a stupa

torana

gateway in the stone fence around a stupa, located at the cardinal points of the compass

stupa

Buddhist shrine that is shaped like a dome or mound

synoecism

from the Greek synoikismos, meaning "dwelling together in the same house") refers to the amalgamation of smaller, dispersed villages or towns into a single, unified city-state

pozzolana

a type of volcanic ash used for mortar or for cement that sets under water.

opus reticulatum

an ancient Roman construction technique where a concrete core is faced with small, diamond-shaped or pyramid-shaped blocks of tuff (a soft volcanic stone) arranged in a diagonal grid that resembles a fishing net

groin vault

a vault formed when two barrel vaults meet at right angles or a ceiling feature made by the intersection of two barrel vaults at right angles

oculus

the round central opening of a dome

hypocausts

gravity heating systems used by the Romans to heat public baths and private houses

agora

a central public open space in ancient Greek city-states that served as the heart of civic, political, social, and commercial life or a loosely shaped central open space framed by stoas in Greece. evolved from an informal open-air plaza into a highly sophisticated architectural complex, representing democratic participation. Without axial symmetry or ever closed off on all sides

pseudo-peripteral

a building—usually a classical temple—that has a freestanding porch with independent columns at the front, but uses half-columns or engaged columns (columns embedded or attached directly into the exterior walls) along the sides and rear or when columns along the perimeter of a building become engaged to the wall

hexastyle

a building facade or portico that features six columns in the front

drum

either the upright circular or polygonal wall that supports a dome, or one of the stacked cylindrical stone blocks that form a column shaft or a circular wall that supports a dome

templum

in ancient Roman architecture and religion is a sacred precinct or designated space marked out and consecrated by a priest, rather than a physical building itself

pomerium

splits its functionality into modular services that can run together in a monolithic setup or independently for scalable, high-availability deployments or powerful walls marking the sacred boundary that surrounded every Roman city

chthontic

refers to rock-cut or underground architecture that is deeply integrated into the native earth.

castrum

a standardized, rectangular Roman fortified camp or military base designed with a precise grid layout or Roman town, with an extremely inflexible, regular shape. Rectangular, almost square wall, gates on each side with two main street connecting the gates that cross at right angles at the center of the town. divided into insulae (housing blocks) by minor streets

cardo maximus

a north-south street in ancient Roman city planning and military camps or main road connecting north and south gates of the castrum

decumanus

the east-west street in a Roman town, intersecting the cardo at right angles

Centuriation

an ancient Roman method of land surveying and urban planning that used a precise, orthogonal square grid to divide and organize territory or roman division of land into rectangles/squares

Decumanus Maximus

the primary east-west-oriented street in ancient Roman cities, military camps (castra), and colonies or main raid connected east and west gates of the roman castrum

triumphal arch

a free-standing, monumental stone structure shaped with one or more arched gateways, built to honor a leader or celebrate a major military victory or free-standing, monumental masonry structure pierced by one or more arched passageways

exedra

a semicircular or rectangular architectural recess or platform, typically featuring built-in stone benches and often crowned by a semi-dome or an apse is a type of this term. a semicircular or rectangular architectural recess or platform, often featuring a raised stone bench and sometimes crowned by a semi-dome

rus in urbe

a Latin phrase meaning "country in the city" or "country in the town." In architecture and urban design, it refers to the deliberate integration of rural, natural, or agricultural elements into an urban setting to create a peaceful, green illusion or sanctuary

horizontal cut of a building

plan

drawing of vertical face of building

elevation

renders subject in optical perspective from a single POV

perspective elevation

renders each detail head on from its own level

pure elevation

vertical cut of a building

section

cut along longest/central axis

longtudinal section

cross section made perpendicular to longest axis

transverse section

prehistoric method of building structures and monuments using massive, unworked or lightly dressed stones

megalithic construction

large upright standing stone

Menhirs

single-chamber megalithic tomb usually consisting of two or more vertical stone uprights supporting a large, flat horizontal capstone

dolmen

burial chamber with long rectangular burial chamber that people would enter through without a separate hallway. can be covered in an earthen mound

gallery grave

ancient megalithic monument with one or more burial chambers connecting to a narrow stone lined passageway. can be covered in an earthen mound.

passage grave

massive independent monuments that evolved from pyramids of the old kingdom. Standard design included monumental gateways, or pylons

Mortuary temple

rock-cut tombs, can be carved into existing cliff sides, or there are artificially designed to look like natural caves.

grotto

underground burial structure w/ deep vertical well that leads to burial chamber. usually topped above ground with a burial mound (tumulus)

shaft tomb

a fortified settlement or village completely enclosed by a defensive wall built from tall, upright wooden posts or logs fixed firmly into the ground

stockade city

a small town that holds a regular public market on designated days, traditionally serving as an economic hub for surrounding rural areas

market city

in roman and greek temples, Elevated block/podium (mensa) set on a low base, accessed via front steps and located outside, often used to burn animal offerings and open to the public, with a frontal layout to be approached head on.

altar

curved triangular device that allows a dome to sit on top of a rectangular room. Four of these fill the upper corners of a square space, meeting at their top edges to form a continuous circular ring which allows space to support a circular dome

pendentive

small elements of which an arch is made of, the one at the apex at be thought of as the keystone

voussoirs

arch built over a lintel to deflect load from the lintel to the surrounding wall

relieving arch

a structural masonry element with a horizontal underside that spans an opening while operating in pure compression

flat arch

a continuous, tunnel-like ceiling or roof formed by placing a series of semicircular arches side-by-side, or stretching an arch in 3D through depth of space

barrel vault

ring-shaped arched ceiling or structure that curves in plan rather. A ring like structure of arches

annular vault

half spherical ceiling that spans large open space without needing interior support columns

dome

uses a gentle gravity slope to transport water from a distant source to cities. Often use of Multi-tiered stone/brick arches for moderate valleys.

aquaduct

tiered, bowl-shaped seating area for spectators in ancient Greek and Roman theaters

cavea

continuous porch/row of columns that enclose a garden, courtyard, or exterior of a building

peristyle

building surrounded by a single row of columns

peripteral