Architectural Glossary

Abacus
In architecture, an abacus (from the Greek abax, slab; or French abaque, tailloir; plural abacuses or abaci) is a flat slab forming the uppermost member or division of the capital of a column, above the bell. Its chief function is to provide a large supporting surface, tending to be wider than the capital, as an abutment to receive the weight of the arch or the architrave above.

Ashlar
Ashlar is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that was worked until squared or the structure built from it. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruvius as opus isodomum, or less frequently trapezoidal. Precisely cut "on all faces adjacent to those of other stones", ashlar is capable of very thin joints between blocks. Ashlar is in contrast to rubble masonry, which employs irregularly shaped stones, sometimes minimally worked or selected for similar size, or both. In classical architecture, ashlar wall surfaces were often contrasted with rustication.

Atlas
In European architectural sculpture, an atlas (also known as an atlant, or atlante or atlantid; plural atlantes) is a support sculpted in the form of a generally human figure, which may take the place of a column, a pier or a pilaster. The body of many Atlantes turns into a rectangular pillar or other architectural feature around the waist level.

Barge Board


A board attached to the gables of a building to protect the exposed ends of the timber roof structure e.g. purlins and rafters, particularly the "Barge Rafter". Bargeboards were often decorated, frequently by carving them into a tracery. A good early example can be seet at 26 Eastgate Street an 1858 construction from Penson and one of the earliest of the forerunners of the Vernacular Revival in Chester.

Bond
The pattern in which bricks or stone are laid so that the joints are staggered providing greater strength. The long face of a brick is known as a stretcher and the short face as the header. The "Stretcher Bond" is the most commonly used bond in the UK, a pattern is made only using stretchers, with the joins on each course centred above and below by half a brick. This type of bonding is not particularly strong. The "Eglish Bond" is a pattern formed by laying alternate courses of stretchers and headers. The joins between the stretchers are centred on the headers in the course below. This is one of the strongest bonds but requires more facing bricks than other bonds. "English Garden Wall" is similar to the English bond but with one course of headers for every three courses of stretcher. The headers are centred on the headers in course below. This gives quick lateral spread of load and uses fewer facings than an English bond. "English Cross Bond" alternates courses of stretchers and headers, with the alternating stretcher course being offset by half a brick. The stretchers are centred on the joins between the stretchers below them, so that the alternating stretcher courses are aligned. Staggering stretchers enables patterns to be picked out in different texture or coloured bricks. "Flemish Bond" is formed by laying headers and stretchers alternately in each course. The headers of each course are centred on the stretchers of the course below. This bond is strong and often used for walls which are two-bricks thick.

Bressummer
A horizontal load-bearing beam in a timber framed building. The use and definition of the term varies but generally a bressummer is a jetty sill set forward from the lower part of a building to support a jettied wall. These beams may bear a motto, such as at "God's Providence House" in Watergate Street.

Cartouche
An oval or oblong design with a slightly convex surface, typically edged with ornamental scrollwork. It is used to hold a painted or low-relief design or may be empty.

Corinthian
The Corinthian order (Greek Κορινθιακός ρυθμός Latin Ordo Corinthius) is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order which was the earliest, followed by the Ionic order. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon: the Tuscan order and the Composite order. The Corinthian, with its offshoot the Composite, is the most ornate of the orders. This architectural style is characterized by slender, almost always fluted columns and elaborate capitals decorated with acanthus leaves and scrolls. Typical examples in Chester are seen at 33 Eastgate Street (the "Old Bank") designed by George Williams and built in 1859-60.

Crocket
A crocket is a decoration seen in Gothic architecture, consisting of buds, curled leaves or flowers. They are frequently found on pinnacles, and very often on church buildings.

Diapering
"Diaper" is any of a wide range of decorative patterns used in a variety of works of art, such as stained glass, heraldic shields, architecture, and silverwork. Its chief use is in the enlivening of plain surfaces. In architecture diaper is applied as a decorative treatment of a surface with a repeat pattern of squares (chequers), rectangles, or lozenges. In Chester, and nearby, many brick buildings constructed for the Grosvenors were decorated with a characteristic blue lozenge diapering which became a logo that the building was somehow associated with that family. Later, the style was used by other architects for buildings which had nothing to do with the Grosvenors.

Doric
Doric columns can be recognised by their often (but not always) fluted grooves, the simple capital at the top of the columns which is a curving piece of stone (echinus) with a square block (abacus) supporting the structure above. They also have no plinth at the base of the column. Above a plain architrave, the complexity comes in the frieze, where the two features originally unique to the Doric, the triglyph and guttae, are skeuomorphic memories of the beams and retaining pegs of the wooden constructions that preceded stone Doric temples. The propylaeum (pillared entrance) gateway to Chester Castle has this type of column.

Dutch Gable
Used to describe a shaped gable made up of curves, sometimes completed with a pediment. The Dutch gable was a notable feature of the Renaissance architecture, which spread to northern Europe from the Low Countries, arriving in Britain during the latter part of the 16th century. Later Dutch gables with flowing curves became absorbed into Baroque architecture.

Gothic
An architectural style that flourished in Europe during the High and Late Middle Ages. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture. The defining element of Gothic architecture is the pointed or ogival arch. It is the primary engineering innovation and the characteristic design component. The use of the pointed arch in turn led to the development of the pointed rib vault and flying buttresses, combined with elaborate tracery and stained glass windows. The term "Gothic architecture" originated as a pejorative description. Giorgio Vasari used the term "barbarous German style" in his Lives of the Artists to describe what is now considered the Gothic style.

Half-Timber
Half-timbering is a way of constructing wood frame structures with the structural timbers exposed. This medieval method of construction is called timber framing. The familiar "half-timbered" was used informally to mean timber-framed construction in the Middle Ages. For economy, cylindrical logs were cut in half, so one log could be used for two (or more) posts. The shaved side was traditionally on the exterior and everyone knew it to be "half the timber". Many wooden members were added without structural necessity. These were often crisscrossed under windows, and in England, where more timberwork was traditionally exposed, they were assembled in cusped shapes or chevrons to create the striking patterns still seen. A perimeter footing of an impervious material like stone or brick was built first, then a sill beam laid on the footing. Upright beams were mortised into the sill beam and tenoned at the top into another horizontal member. Unlike modern framed buildings where the walls are installed outside and inside the frame, in half-timbered buildings, the walls are filled in between the structural timbers. Most commonly this infill was wattle-and-daub, laths and plaster, or bricks. The blackening of timbers was a natural ageing effect. They were not treated or painted when built.

Hoppers
Cast Iron rainwater heads and hoppers had their heyday in the 19th century when a huge variety of decorative designs were produced. During the Victorian and Edwardian times they were commonly used to put a stamp on a property by displaying either a date, coat of arms, an emblem or initials in imitation of the lead hopper heads that proceeded them, as well as providing an effective way of collecting rainwater.

Ionic
The Ionic capital is characterized by the use of volutes, a spiral, scroll-like ornament. The Ionic columns normally stand on a base which separates the shaft of the column from the stylobate or platform while the cap is usually enriched with egg-and-dart.

Jetty
Describes where the upper storey of a timber frame building is cantilevered (projects) out over the street below. Jettying (jetty, jutty, getee (obsolete) from Old French getee, jette) is a building technique used in medieval timber-frame buildings in which an upper floor projects beyond the dimensions of the floor below. This has the advantage of increasing the available space in the building without obstructing the street, possibly minimising taxes based to ground footprint and protecting the walls and window frames of lower stories from rainfall. The Rows in Chester can be seen as an extreme example of this type of structure. A jetty depends on a cantilever system in which a horizontal beam, the jetty bressummer, supports the wall above and projects forward beyond the floor below (a technique also called oversailing). The bressummer (or breastsummer) itself rests on the ends of a row of jetty beams or joists which are supported by jetty plates. Jetty joists in their turn were slotted sideways into the horizontal, diagonal dragon beams at angle of 45° by means of mortise and tenon joints. The etymology of dragon is unclear. The term may be descended from German träger (a carrier), Danish dragere (bearing beam, joist, girder) or Dutch draagbalk (beam). Sometimes the post below the dragon beam is called a dragon post.

Leaded Lights


Type of window construction where lead is used to retain the pieces of glass or panes. The latticework of the lead bars on medieval and early modern windows contained the smaller pieces of glass that were of the size that could be produced at the time. "Crown glass" was an early type of window glass. In this process, glass was blown into a "crown" or hollow globe. This was then transferred from the blowpipe to a "punty" (an iron rod) and then flattened by reheating and spinning out the bowl-shaped piece of glass (bullion) into a flat disk by centrifugal force, up to 5 or 6 feet (1.5 to 1.8 metres) in diameter. The glass was then cut to the size required. The process frequently led to glass containing entrapped bubbles of air. Because of the formation from a collapsed sphere surviving glass is often "crazed" with cracks which do not penetrate through the full thickness - a good example of which can be seen at Leche House. The thinnest glass was in a band at the edge of the disk, with the glass becoming thicker and more opaque toward the center. Known as a bullseye, the thicker center area around the pontil mark was used for less expensive windows. The lead can be used to create different patterns. By the 19th century production techniques had been improved so that large panes of glass could be formed without the need for glazing bars (see: sash windows, below). Leaded lights were also used in Victorian times in neo-gothic buildings.

Modillion
A decorated bracket that forms a support for a cornice.

Mullion
A vertical dividing post that separates the panes or lights of a window.

Opus Quadratum
Opus quadratum is an ancient Roman construction technique, in which squared blocks of stone of the same height were set in parallel courses, most often without the use of mortar. This technique was used by the Romans from about the 6th century BC, and over time the precision and accuracy of the block cutting improved. The technique continued to be used throughout the age of the Roman Empire, even after the introduction of mortar, and was often used in addition to other techniques.

Oriel Window
Essentially a bay window that projects out from the upper storeys of a building and supported on brackets or pillars etc, and does not reach the ground. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the term oriel is derived from Anglo-Norman oriell and post-classical Latin oriolum, both meaning "gallery" or "porch", perhaps from classical Latin aulaeum ("curtain").



Pargeting
Pargeting (or sometimes pargetting) is a decorative or waterproofing plastering applied to building walls. Pargeting derives from the word 'parget', a Middle English term that is probably derived from the Old French pargeter or parjeter, to throw about, or porgeter, to roughcast a wall. However, the term is more usually applied only to the decoration in relief of the plastering between the studwork on the outside of half-timber houses, or sometimes covering the whole wall.

Pineapple
The history of embellishing architecture with pineapple ornamentation is largely unknown, but many have speculated the significance of the pineapple in European architecture. While some argue the pineapple is a symbol of hospitality, others have linked the fruit as a symbol of Christianity (as a single pineapple plant will give it's life for that of a single fruit - although the early harvesting of the main fruit can encourage the development of a second crop of smaller fruits). There is a good example of a Tudor-revival pineapple on the Old Rectory at the head of St Mary's Hill. The introduction of the pineapple to Europe in the 17th century made it a significant cultural icon of luxury. In the 18th century, people could rent pineapples out for the night if they were having a dinner party, using them as a centrepiece to demonstrate their wealth. The alternative was to buy one, which would have cost the equivalent of over £5,000 today. The pineapple fascinated Europeans as a fruit of colonialism but it could not be successfully cultivated in Europe for several centuries until Pieter de la Court developed a greenhouse horticulture near Leyden from about 1658. Pineapple plants were distributed from the Netherlands to English gardeners in 1719 and French ones in 1730. By the second half of the 18th century, the production of the fruit on British estates had become the subject of great rivalry between wealthy aristocrats. Tatton park had a restored "Pinery", originally from 1774, where pineapples were grown on tanner’s bark, a waste product from the tanning industry.

Romanesque
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe characterized by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 11th century, this later date being the most commonly held. Combining features of ancient Roman and Byzantine buildings and other local traditions, Romanesque architecture is known by its massive quality, thick walls, round arches, sturdy pillars, barrel vaults, large towers and decorative arcading. The best examples of it in Chester are found at St Johns. Romanesque architecture was the first distinctive style to spread across Europe since the Roman Empire. With the decline of Rome, Roman building methods survived to an extent in Western Europe, although the round arch continued in use, the engineering skills required to vault large spaces and build large domes were lost.

Rustication
A range of masonry techniques used in classical architecture giving visible surfaces a finish texture that contrasts with smooth, squared-block masonry called ashlar. The visible face of each individual block is cut back around the edges ("channel-jointed") to make its size and placing very clear and emphasise the joints. In addition the central part of the face of each block may be given a deliberately rough or patterned surface. During the 18th century, following the Palladian revival, rustication was widely used on the ground floors of large buildings, as its contrived appearance of simplicity and solidity contrasted well to the carved ornamental stonework and columns of the floors above: "Rustication became almost obligatory in all 18th- and 19th-century public buildings in Europe and the USA".

Sash Windows
In the 16th century throughout Europe wooden sliding shutters developed into glazed horizontal sliding windows and during the following century the vertical sliding sash window began to take its place. The oldest known existing vertical sliding sash windows in Britain date from the late 17th century. It is unclear where the sliding sash originated but the word "sash" derives from the old French word "chassis" meaning a frame, which suggests that it was introduced into Britain from France. Due to the high cost and the difficulty of manufacturing and transporting large panes of glass safely, the earliest sash windows had many small panes, and due to the large section of the glazing bars were very heavy. The technique of counterbalancing was incorporated to facilitate the easy opening and closing of the sashes. Cast iron or lead weights hidden in the hollowed out frame were used to counterbalance the sashes. These were hung on cords running over brass or hardwood pulley wheels mounted in the frame. During the 18th century the classic Georgian style of two rows of three panes in each sash evolved and the thickness of the glazing bars was reduced to give an elegance typical of the era. At this time, rather than being made from hollowed out solid members the pulley stiles and linings of frame were constructed as a box to contain the sash-weights and brass or cast iron axle-pulleys were introduced. The abolition of the tax on glass in 1845 slashed the price of glass and windows with only two panes per sash became common. Victorians would display their wealth by having windows with only one large pane in each sash. Horns (joggles) were added to the top of the bottom sash and to the bottom of the top sash to increase the strength of the sashes as the size of panes increased and the number of glazing bars diminished. Changes in architectural styles around the beginning of the 20th century and the inherent draughtiness of sash windows reduced their popularity.

Ship Timber
Where there’s an old wooden beam, there’s often a rumour that it originated on an old ship - such a legend is attached to a fireplace mantle-beam at Stanley Palace. Unless a building is incredibly close to a coastline or river where wooden ships were dismantled or routinely wrecked and washed up in pieces, the chances of a building containing anything remotely connected with a historic ship are just about zero, despite many "urban legends" to the contrary. Timber was felled as close to the wood yard as possible and generally converted for use in construction within a year or two of being felled, this practise is well documented. Carpenters would also be very reluctant to use their precious tools on hardened ship oak that was likely to contain grit or other debris that could take the edge of their tools. Working with ‘green’ oak is relatively easy, especially along the grain, working oak that’s dried out can be very hard work. A carpenter working in the C17 would have to have a very good reason to select a steel-hard seasoned beam over a freshly cut one. Just because a wooden beam is bent does not mean that it was once part of a ship: few trees that were used for building materials before the mass production of pine grew straight. This does not mean that timbert was not re-used, as wood was valuable, especially where it had already been cut and jointed. The timbers from the former east span of the roof of The Falcon are now reused in the cellar ceiling, and date from c1180.



Squint
"Squints" are normally found in Churches, but have been known from various manor houses where they typically comprise a "spyhole" looking into the banqueting hall. Perhaps the intention here would be to "eavesdrop" on conversations and gain an advantage in business transactions. Priest holes and squints are rare in Cheshire, but there is a good example at Leche House.

Stained Glass
As a material stained glass is glass that has been coloured by adding metallic salts during its manufacture, and usually then further decorating it in various ways. The coloured glass is crafted into stained glass windows in which small pieces of glass are arranged to form patterns or pictures, held together (traditionally) by strips of lead and supported by a rigid frame. Painted details and yellow stain (notably silver nitrate) are often used to enhance the design. The term stained glass is also applied to windows in enamelled glass in which the colours have been painted onto the glass and then fused to the glass in a kiln; very often this technique is only applied to parts of a window.

Transom
In architecture, a transom is a transverse horizontal structural beam or bar, or a crosspiece separating a door from a window above it. This contrasts with a mullion, a vertical structural member.

Tudor
"Tudor" has become a designation for half-timbered buildings, although the truth is there are cruck and frame houses with half timbering that predate 1485 by quite a bit and the style bleeds early into the Jacobean era. The low Tudor arch was a defining feature of this style rather than simply the use of half-timbering. There is a good example of a Tudor-revival arch in the Old Rectory at the head of St Mary's Hill. During this period, the arrival of the chimney stack and enclosed hearths resulted in the decline of the great hall based around an open hearth that was typical of earlier Medieval architecture. Instead, fireplaces could now be placed upstairs and it became possible to have a second story that ran the whole length of the house. Tudor chimney-pieces were made large and elaborate to draw attention to the owner's adoption of this new technology. The jetty appeared, as a way to show off the modernity of having a complete, full-length upper floor. Early chimneys were often elaborate to again indicate the wealth of the owner.

Tuscan
The Tuscan order (Latin Ordo Tuscanicus or Ordo Tuscanus, with the meaning of Etruscan order) is one of the two classical orders developed by the Romans. In its simplicity, the Tuscan order is seen as similar to the Doric order, and yet in its overall proportions, intercolumniation and simpler entablature, it follows the ratios of the Ionic. Many "Tuscan" columns are found along The Rows, if only because they are the easiest style to make in cast-iron.

Wattle and Daub
A composite building method used for making walls and buildings, in which a woven lattice of wooden strips called wattle is daubed with a sticky material usually made of some combination of wet soil, clay, sand, animal dung and straw. Wattle and daub has been used for at least 6,000 years and is still an important construction method in many parts of the world. The wattle is made by weaving thin branches (either whole, or more usually split) or slats between upright stakes. The wattle may be made as loose panels, slotted between timber framing to make infill panels, or made in place to form the whole of a wall.

Related Pages

 * The Rows:
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