Architectural elements

decorative element in shape of a Russian kokoshnik headdress

thumb|The dikka in the Mosque-Madrasa of Sultan Hassan|Mosque of Sultan Hasan in [[Cairo]] thumb|The müezzin mahfili in the Selimiye Mosque, Edirne|Selimiye Mosque of [[Edirne, Turkey]] A dikka or dakka (), also known in Turkish as a müezzin mahfili, is a raised platform or tribune in a mosque from which the Quran is recited and where the muezzin chants or repeats in response to the imam's prayers. It is also used by the muezzin to chant the second call to prayer (iqama), which indicates to worshippers that the prayer is about to begin. On special occasions or evenings, such as during the mont

thumb|Squint in wall of north aisle chapel, St Nicholas's Church, Walcot, Lincolnshire|Walcot, Lincolnshire, looking towards south-east, with a view of the high altar in the chancel beyond. To its right is a [[piscina supported by a carving of a man's head on the jamb of the wall.]] thumb|The squint at the Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Compton Pauncefoot, Somerset

forms primarily as components of architecture

physical separator between the conditioned and unconditioned environment of a building

thumb|Prothyrum of Lodi Cathedral A prothyrum (Romanization of Greek próthyron 'in front of the door'), in classical and medieval architecture, is a small porch, vestibule, or covered space immediately in front of the main doorway of a building. In architecture of the Greco-Roman world it was the transitional, often columned, space before the entrance proper. In the Late Antique and Byzantine periods, it could be a forecourt or portico preceding the narthex of a church or the main gateway of a monastic or palatial ensemble.

thumb|Driveway to a farm thumb|Concrete driveways under construction

temporary structural element used during construction

a circular opening in a garden wall and a traditional architectural element in Chinese gardens

Balconet or balconette is an architectural term to describe a false balcony, or railing at the outer plane of a window-opening reaching to the floor, and having, when the window is open, the appearance of a balcony. They are common in France, Portugal, Spain, and Italy. They are often referred to as Juliet balconies after the scene from Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. The wall-opening appearing alongside a balconette is referred to as a French window.

architectural feature

religious image, usually in some sort of small shelter, placed by a road or pathway

design elements surrounding a door

thumb|right|Modern architecture: apartment building Narkomfin in Moscow, Moisei Ginzburg (1930). thumb|The Engel House in the White City of Tel Aviv. Architect: [[Zeev Rechter, 1933. A residential building that has become one of the symbols of Modernist architecture. The first building in Tel Aviv to be built on pilotis.]] thumb|right|Erasmus building at Queens' College, Cambridge (1959). Designed by [[Basil Spence and directly inspired by Le Corbusier.]] thumb|right|University of Florida (1979). There is space for lush vegetation under the building. Visible concrete pilotis. thumb|right|Paul

thumb|right|250px|Convent/nunnery of the Kalocsa School sisters named after Our Lady, Hungary. Built in 1860. Quadrifora is a type of four-light window. It appears in towers and belfries on top floors, where it is necessary to lighten the structure with wider openings. The quadrifora can also be a group closely set windows.

form of decoration dominated by spiralling scrolls

enclosed space below a structure that is too short to stand erect in

in architecture, a plain horizontal frieze or band

load-bearing member in timber construction

thumb|Jharokha balcony in Jodhpur (Mehrangarh) Jharokha thumb|upright|A jharokha in Maheshwar Fort, Madhya Pradesh

thumb|Part of St. Peter's Square in Rome, the parvis of [[St. Peter's Basilica]] thumb|Colonnade of St. Peter's Square

small staircase and platform on an entrance

thumb|400px|Labeled image of the Doric order entablature Geison ( – often interchangeable with somewhat broader term cornice) is an architectural term of relevance particularly to ancient Greek and Roman buildings, as well as archaeological publications of the same. The geison is the part of the entablature that projects outward from the top of the frieze in the Doric order and from the top of the frieze course (or sometimes architrave) of the Ionic and Corinthian orders; it forms the outer edge of the roof on the sides of a structure with a sloped roof. The upper edge of the exterior often ha

A hemicycle is a semicircular, or horseshoe-shaped, legislative debating chamber where members sit to discuss and vote on their business. Although originally of Ancient Greek roots, the term and modern design derive from French politics and practice.

thumb|right|A barnstar

two-dimensional transverse rigid frame (or similar structures such as three-hinged arches)

window rotated 45° from vertical, found primarily on 19th century famhouses in Vermont, US

stained-glass windows made by Azerbaijani masters

Lithuanian wooden shrine

thumb|upright|Roman marble puteal with Cult of Dionysus|Bacchic procession, late 1st-century CE A puteal (Latin: from puteus ("well") – : putealia) is a classical wellhead built around a water well's access opening.

thumb|upright=1.35|The tools used to plaster walls Plasterwork is construction or ornamentation done with plaster, such as a layer of plaster on an interior or exterior wall structure, or plaster decorative moldings on ceilings or walls. This is also sometimes called pargeting. The process of creating plasterwork, called plastering or rendering, has been used in building construction for centuries. For the art history of three-dimensional plaster, see stucco.

general term for the members installed between the superstructure and substructure of a bridge

thumb|upright=1.2|right|Asphalt and sandbag revetment with a geotextile filter

hallway of columns in some styles of Greek temple

thumb|right|Quoining on the corners of Palazzo Aragona Gonzaga, Rome thumb|Alternate horizontal quoining on a wall in East Ayrshire thumb|right|Porch quoins, Palazzo Giusti, Verona Quoins ( or ) are masonry blocks at the corner of a wall. Some are structural, providing strength for a wall made with inferior stone or rubble, while others merely add aesthetic detail to a corner. According to one 19th-century encyclopedia, these imply strength, permanence, and expense, all reinforcing the onlooker's sense of a structure's presence.

thumb|upright|A reconstruction of the templon of St. Paul's and Peter's basilica in Jerash (ancient Gerasa) A templon (from Greek τέμπλον meaning "temple", plural templa) is a feature of Byzantine churches consisting of a barrier separating the nave from the sanctuary near the altar.

small holes in buildings to hold scaffolding

thumb|Spherical awning of a Bandstand|bandshell An awning or overhang is a secondary covering attached to the exterior wall of a building. It is typically composed of canvas woven of acrylic, cotton or polyester yarn, or vinyl laminated to polyester fabric that is stretched tightly over a light structure of aluminium, iron or steel, possibly wood or transparent material (used to cover solar thermal panels in the summer, but that must allow as much light as possible in the winter). The configuration of this structure is something of a truss, space frame or planar frame. Awnings are also often c

area of a building where goods vehicles are loaded and unloaded

artificial puddle or small shallow pond where birds bathe

step-like recession in a wall

Victorian-era architectural style

thumb|right|400px|Simplified schema of a Kalinga architecture temple Deula is an architectural element in a Hindu temple in the Kalinga architecture style of the Odishan temples in Eastern India. Sometimes the whole temple is also referred to as Deula. The word "deula" in Odia language means a building structure built with a particular style that is seen in most of the temples from Odisha. Deul is also used in English, though the deul temples are also of a different form in the Manbhum region of Western Bengal.

thumb|Cathedral of Saint Demetrius, [[Vladimir, Russia]]

thumb|alt=a covered entryway at the entrance of a stone building|An ornate 19th-century porte-cochère, at Waddesdon Manor thumb|alt=a parking lot and driveway with covered entry area outside a modern-style building|A modern example at a hospital A porte-cochère (; ; ; ) is a doorway to a building or courtyard, "often very grand," through which vehicles can enter from the street or a covered porch-like structure at a main or secondary entrance to a building through which originally a horse and carriage and today a motor vehicle can pass to provide arriving and departing occupants protection fro

thumb|(L) Anathyrosis on a restored stone (below) and an ancient stone (above) in the Erechtheion in [[Athens, Greece]] Anathyrosis is the technical word for the ancient method of dressing the joints of stone blocks in dry stone construction, i. e., masonry without mortar, which was then commonly used. Because the stone blocks are set in immediate contact with each other without gaps, their joints must be exactly dressed. In order to reduce the time required to sculpt such joints, the faces of the stones to be joined were finished and smoothed only in narrower margins on the sides and top of t

floral ornament in architecture

thumb|Diagonal muntins separating diamond-shaped panes of glass in a casement window. thumb|Muntins divide each window into six panes of glass. Rounded mullions separate the three casement windows. [[Nový Bor, the Czech Republic.]]

varied types of glass developed at the Tiffany Studios in New York

shop selling goods through a small hole in a wall

islamic architectural feature

architectural element

central vertical post used in architectural or bridge designs

special name given to a type of ancient Greek or Roman temple

Euthynteria is the ancient Greek term for the uppermost course of a building's foundations, partly emerging from groundline. The superstructure of the building (stylobate, columns, walls, and entablature) were set on the euthynteria. Archaeologists and architects use the term in discussion of Classical architecture.

type of shallow foundation

thumb|right|Formal interior with timber pelmets from which the curtains and swags are hung thumb|right|External decorative pelmets fitted within a brick and stone window opening thumb|right|A pelmet in Toulouse A pelmet (also called a "cornice board") is a framework placed above a window, used to conceal curtain fixtures. These can be used decoratively (to hide the curtain rod) and help insulate the window by preventing convection currents. It is similar in appearance to a valance, which performs the same function but is made of fabric. A pelmet can be made of plywood, and may be painted, or f

continuous row or layer of stones or brick set in a wall

thumb|A window with a fortochka (in the upper left corner) A fortochka () is a small ventilation window generally not greater than 35x45 cm. It usually spans the frame of one window pane and opens on hinges independently of the whole window. Fortochkas are in common use in Russia, other post-Soviet states (, ), and Finland ().

item of ironmongery used to scrape mud off boots