Final Terms

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Basilica

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A large rectangular building. Often Built with a clerestory, side aisles separated from the center nave by colomnades, and an apse at one or both ends. Originally Roman centers for administration, later adapted to Christian church use.

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Rotunda

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Any building (or part thereof) constructed in a circular (or sometimes polygonal) shape, usually producing a large open space crowned by a dome.

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Oculus

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In architecture, a circular opening. Usually found either as windows or at the apex of a dome. When at the top of a dome, an oculus is either open to the sky or covered by a decorative exterior lantern.

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Tesserae

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A small piece of stone, glass, or other object that is pieced together with many others to create a mosaic.

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Apse

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A large semicircular or polygonal (and usually vaulted) recess on an end wall of a building. In a Christian church, it often contains the alter. "Apsidal" is the adjective describing the condition of having such a space.

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Coffer(ed)

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A recessed decorative panel used to decorate ceilings or vaults. The use of coffers is called coffering.

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Buddha

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founded Buddhism

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Nirvana

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a transcendent state in which there is neither suffering, desire, nor sense of self, and the subject is released from the effects of karma and the cycle of death and rebirth. It represents the final goal of Buddhism.

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Jataka

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In Buddhism, stories associated with the previous lives of Shakyamuni, the historical Buddha.

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Bodhisattva

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In Buddhism, a being who has attained enlightenment but chooses to remain in this world in order to help others advance spiritually. Also defined as a potential Buddha.

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Yaksha

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The male nature spirit that acts as an agent of the Hindu gods. Their sculpted images are often found on Hindu temples and other sacred places, particularly at the entrances.

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Yakshi

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The female nature spirit that acts as an agent of the Hindu gods.

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Mudra

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A symbolic hand gesture in Buddhist art that denotes certain behaviors, actions, or feelings.

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Stupa

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In Buddhist architecture, a bell-shaped or pyramidal religious monument, made of piled earth or stone, and containing sacred relics.

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Chaitya Hall

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A type of Buddhist temple found in India. Built in the form of a hall or basilica, a chaitya hall is highly decorated with sculpture and usually is carved from a cave or natural rock location. It houses a sacred shrine or stupa for worship.

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Orant

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Of a standing figure represented praying with outstretched and upraised arms.

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Pendentive

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The concave triangular section of a vault that forms the transition between a square or polygonal space and the circular base of a dome.

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Nave

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The central space of a church, two or three stories high and usually flanked by aisles.

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Lunette

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A semicircular wall area, framed by an arch over a door or window. Can be either plain or decorated.

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Clerestory

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In a basilica, the topmost zone of a wall with windows, extending above the aisle roofs. Provides direct light into the nave.

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Icon

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An image representing a sacred figure or event in the Byzantine (later the Orthodox) Church. Icons are venerated by the faithful, who believe their prayers are transmitted through them to God.

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Iconoclasm

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The banning and/or destruction of images, especially icons and religious art. Iconoclasm in eighth and ninth century Byzantium and sixteenth and seventeenth century Protestant territories arose from differing beliefs about the power, meaning, function, and purpose of imagery in religion.

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Mandorla

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Light encircling, or emanating from, the entire figure of a sacred person

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Hieratic

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Highly stylized, severe, and detached, often in relation to a strict religious tradition.

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Aniconic

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symbolic or suggestive, rather than literally representational: not made or designed as a likeness

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Mosque

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A building used for communal Islamic worship

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Qibla

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The mosque wall oriented toward Mecca; indicated by the mihrab

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Mihrab

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A recess or niche that distinguishes the wall oriented toward Mecca (qibla) in a mosque

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Minaret

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A tower on or near a mosque from which Muslims are called to prayer five times a day

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Horseshoe Arch

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an arch of more than a half-circle; typical of western Islamic architecture

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Muqarna

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In Islamic architecture, one of the nichelike components, often stacked in tiers to mark the transition between flat and rounded surfaces and often found on the vault of a dome

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Cloisonné

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An enameling technique in which artists affix wires of strips to a metal surface to delineate designs and created compartments that they subsequently fill with enamel

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Choir

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The part of a church reserved for the clergy, monks, or nuns, either between the transept crossing and the apse or extending farther into the nave; separated from the rest of the church by screens or walls and fitted with stalls (seats).

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Transept

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The arm of a cruciform church perpendicular to the nave. The point where the nave and transept intersect is called the crossing. Beyond the crossing lies the sanctuary, whether apse, choir, or chevet.

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Cloister

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An enclosed space, open to the sky, especially within a monastery, surrounded by an arcaded walkway, often having a fountain and garden. Since the most important monastic buildings open off the cloister, it represents the center of the monastic world.

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Buttress

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A projecting support built against an external wall, usually to counteract the lateral thrust of a vault or arch within. In Gothic church architecture, a flying buttress is an arched bridge above the aisle roof that extends from the upper nave wall, where the lateral thrust of the main vault is greatest, down to a solid pier.

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Compound Pier

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a cluster pier to perform certain definite structural objects, such as carry arches

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Tympanum

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In medieval and later architecture, the area over a door enclosed by an arch and a lintel, often decorated with sculpture or mosaic.

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Archivolts

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A band of molding framing an arch, or a series of stone blocks that form an arch resting directly on flanking columns or piers.

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Campanile

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An Italian bell tower, especially a free standing one.

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Trumeau

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A column, pier, or post found at the center of a large portal or doorway, supporting the lintel.

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Stringcourse

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A continuous horizontal band such as a molding, decorating the face of a wall