The Macmillan Encyclop,edia of

Architecture and
Technological Change
The Macmillan Encyclopedia of
Architecture and
Technological Chang e
Pedro Gued es

M
 © 1979 Reference International
Publishers Ltd.
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1979

This book was created, designed, and produced by

Reference International, 21 Soho Square, London WI.
The managing editor for this book was Sandra Shaw.
Advisory editor (Building Types)- Peter Allison.
Picture researcher- Andrew Higgott. Special
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This book was set in 9 on 10 Times.

All rights reserved. No part of this

publication may be reproduced or
transmitted, in any form or by any
means, without permission.
First published in Great Britain
1979 by
THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD
London and Basingstoke
Associated companies in Delhi,
Dublin, Hong Kong, Johannesburg,
Lagos, Melbourne, New York,
Singapore and Tokyo

British Library Cataloguing in

Publication Data

Guedes, Pedro
The Macmillan encyclopedia of
architecture and technological
change.
1. Architecture 2. Building
I. Title II. Encyclopedia of
arch and technological change
720 NA200

ISBN 978-0-333-26766-0 ISBN 978-1-349-04697-3 (eBook)

DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-04697-3

This book is sold subject to the

standard conditions of the Net Book
Agreement.
Contributors
Introduction by Adolf K. Placzek

Paul Ahm Susan Jellicoe

Alan J. Berman Dr. Ronald B. Lew cock
Michael Brawne Dr. Rowland J. Mainstone
Theo Crosby Edward D. Mills
Ian Davis Andrew Rabeneck
Jolyon V .P. Drury Timothy Ronalds
Kit Evans Ivor Samuels
Robin Evans Dennis Sharp
Clare Frankl William J. R. Smyth
Gontran Goulden Peter Stone
Pedro Guedes John Weeks
Roderick Ham Dr. Trevor I. Williams
Cecil C. Handisyde John Winter
Dr. Dean Hawkes John Worthington
Kenneth Hudson Anthony J. Wylson

The editor would like to acknowledge the

contribution of the late Duccio A. Turin,
Professor of Building at University
College, London, who saw the need for a
book of this kind and guided the early stages
of its development.
Contents
Introduction 8
SECTION I SECTION2 SECTION3
Stylistic Periods and Geographical Built Forms and Building Types Structures -Ideas, Elements,
Adaptations Structural Systems, and the
Processes of Erecting Buildings
Architecture Adapted to LANDSCAPES
Climate 12 Private Gardens and Parks 56 STRUCTURAL DESIGN
Primitive Architecture 14 Urban Open Space 59 AND ITS BASES
Mesopotamian and Iranian Specialized Landscapes 62 Structural Theory 166
Architecture 21 TRANSPORTATION Statics and Dynamics 166
Egyptian Architecture 23 Bridges 64 Deformation and Strength 167
Pre-Columbian Architecture 24 Railroad Stations 68 Design Criteria 168
Ancient Greek Architecture 26 Airports 70 Structural Design 169
Roman Architecture 28 RESIDENTIAL STRUCTURAL
Early Christian and Houses 76 ELEMENTS
Byzantine Architecture 30 Apartments 86 Arches 171
Romanesque Architecture 32 Palaces 88 Beams and Slabs 172
Gothic Architecture 34 Hotels 91 Columns, Piers, and Walls 173
Renaissance Architecture 35 INDUSTRIAL Domes and Related
Baroque Architecture 37 Factories 94 Elements 174
Rococo Architecture 38 Warehouses 100 Floor Systems 175
Neo-Classical Architecture 39 COMMERCIAL AND Foundations 176
Romantic Architecture 40 ADMINISTRATIVE Rigid Frames 177
Islamic Architecture 41 Offices 106 Shells 177
Japanese Architecture 43 Skyscrapers 109 Trusses and Space Frames 178
Chinese Architecture 44 Shops, Stores, and Suspension Elements,
Indian Architecture 45 Shopping Centers 111 Tensile Membranes, and
Modem Isms 46 Banks 114 Cable Nets 180
Exhibition Buildings 116 Vaults 180
GOVERNMENT STRUCTURAL SYSTEMS
Civic Buildings 120 Early Forms 182
EDUCATIONAL AND Later Wide-Span Buildings:
RESEARCH Timber-, Concrete-, and
Schools 124 Masonry-Roofed Systems 184
Universities 126 Iron-, Steel-, and Reinforced-
Museums 129 Concrete-Roofed
Laboratories 132 Systems 186
ENTERTAINMENT Later Multistorey
AND RECREATION Buildings:
Theaters 136 Bearing-Wall Systems 188
Movie Theaters 138 Hybrid Systems with
Sports Buildings 141 Partial Timber or Iron
INSTITUTIONAL Framing 189
Hospitals 146 Fully Framed Systems of
Prisons 150 Iron, Steel, and
DEFENSE, EMERGENCY, Reinforced Concrete 190
AND PORTABLE Recent Hybrid Systems
BUILDINGS for Tall Buildings 191
Fortifications 154 Protection Against Fire,
Emergency Buildings 161 Earthquake, and Other
Hazards 192
MEANS OF BUILDING
AND CONSTRUCTION
PROCESSES
Construction Plant 193
Measuring Equipment 194
Scaffolding, Centering,
and Formwork 194
Construction Processes:
Problems Associated
with the Incompleteness
of the Structure during
Construction 196
Prestressing 197
From Prefabrication to
Industrialization and
Systems Building 197
SECTION4 SECTIONS SECTION6
Services, Mechanical and Building Materials Tools, Techniques, and Fixings
Environmental Systems
Timber 228 TOOLS 290
BEFORE THE INDUSTRIAL Plywood and other Carpentry 290
REVOLUTION Wood-Based Sheet Material 234 The Hammer 291
(Minimal Servicing- The 200 Stone 236 Axes and Adzes 291
Age of Wood and Water) Earth in various forms The Plane 292
THE 19th CENTURY 202 (cob, pise, adobe, wattle The Saw 293
(The Age of Steam and Gas) and daub) 241 The Drill 293
Assembly Buildings 202 Brickwork 143 Masonry 294
Hospitals 204 Terra-cotta 246 Glazing and Sealing 295
Offices 206 Roofing Materials and 247 Finishing and Ancillary
Schools 208 Tiles Trades 295
Domestic Buildings 209 Plaster 251 Plastering 295
THE 20th CENTURY 212 Mortar and Cement 252 Painting 295
(The Electric Age) Concrete 253 The Blacksmith 296
Assembly Buildings 213 Asbestos 263 Powered Tools 296
Hospitals 215 Iron 263 Surveying Instruments 297
Offices 217 Steel 272 TECHNIQUES 298
Schools 220 Copper 277 Casting and Molding 299
Domestic Buildings 222 Brass 278 Extrusion 300
THE RESPONSIBLE Zinc 279 Carving 301
AGE 224 Bronze 279 Cutting 301
Lead 280 Drilling 302
Aluminum 281 Grinding 302
Glass 282 Milling 303
Paint 285 Turning 303
Bitumen and Asphalt 286 Rolling 304
Plastics 286 Forging 305
Bending 305
Stamping 305
JOINTS AND FIXINGS 306
Lashings 306
Homogeneous Joints for
Wood 306
Masonry Joints 307
Nails 308
Screws and Bolts 309
Riveting and Welding 309
Adhesives and Sealing
Compounds 312
Miscellaneous Fixings and
Fastenings 313

Index 314
Introduction
Architecture-not a survey of styles, but of they combine the practical, even the techni-
its living, material reality-is the subject of cal, with the conceptual and historical. They
this book: architecture as it is now, and how it look at architecture as a whole, with all its
has become what it is now. Architectural ramifications, causes, and effects. It is in the
technology, architectural sociology, and intellectual tradition of these great works that
architectural development are the subject. this book aims to continue.
Enormous forces have changed the face of It is, however, very much written for our
the earth and its man-made structures. Mass time: Post-Victorian, Post-Ruskinian. It will
production, electric power, population explo- have no use for John Ruskin's famous-and
sion, wealth, sophisticated machinery-all for a while pernicious-distinction, in his
this is ushering in a new architecture the total Seven Lamps of Architecture, between build-
power of which we have barely begun to ing and architecture, for building is architec-
understand. The eternal question of what ture. And when Ruskin, in an often omitted
comes first arises again. Is it the need for a footnote to his first chapter-"The Lamp of
mass architecture which comes first and the Sacrifice"-speaks of the "mental arche"
vast technology which follows? Or is it the which separates architecture from "a wasp's
new technology which produces this architec- nest, a rat hole, or a railroad station," the
ture? Or is it the great increase in human answer of this book will be: railroad stations
numbers which brings about both the technol- are architecture, some of the most exciting
ogy and its built results? Does form really and expressive architecture built; architecture
follow function, or does it make the function is factories, hotels, banks-all the gathering
possible? A form that is made possible by new places of life. Wasps' nests are not architec-
matter? And so, is not architecture the result ture, not because of a lack of structural
of a complex and profound reciprocal effect subtlety or form, but because they are not
between needs and manifold powers? designed by humans for human use. It is
The following pages will again, for our time, human design and human use on which the
try to answer these fundamental questions. definition of architecture must be based.
Encyclopedic surveys of architecture are Ruskin speaks-in the same passage-of
nothing new; it seems that every age wants its architecture as sight; no, it is design, it is use.
own. In this sense we all go back to Vit- This book is basically a story of change:
ruvius, that practical and practicing Roman architecture in change, architecture of change.
architect of the 1st century BC who wrote the Materials, methods, and structure have been
encompassing great survey of architecture-at thoroughly treated in engineering and techni-
least the first such survey preserved in its cal literature. Here they are pulled together
entirety. The Greeks produced theirs before into the orbit of an architectural encyclopedia.
him, but we have only Vitruvius' word for it; Obviously, such a work has to be organized
the books are lost. It is, however, clear that as an encyclopedia rather than as a dictionary;
the great buildings of Greece were not built it is dealing with conceptual areas, not with
without books initiating or interpreting them. individual technical terms or isolated details,
From Vitruvius onward, many architects and definitions, or entries. It is to be more than a
their works can be mentioned. There is a big handbook, a textbook-although it can of
jump to Leone Battista Alberti's treatise in course be put to such use, just as Vitruvius'
the 15th century, a straight line from this to was. The book is arranged in a topical
the works of Sebastiano Serlio and Andrea sequence of subject matter. But the perspec-
Palladio in the 16th century, then on to tive is a unified one, because this is one book,
Jacques Fram;:ois Blondel's in the 18th cen- not a collection of individual articles.
tury, to Julien Guadet's Elements et theorie The text begins with a stylistic survey. It is
de l' architecture in the 19th century, and not a new architectural history; rather a
then, in the U.S., to Talbot Hamlin's Forms concise and clear overview of architectural
and functions of 20th-century architecture. development presented with a global view;
All these works have one thing in common; from the earliest architecture through Egypt,
 Greece, Rome, India, China, Japan, and answers are historic, or rather, genetic in
pre-Columbian America, the development is presentation: before and after the Industrial
traced-both geographically and sty- Revolution, from wood and water to steam
listically-through Byzantine, Romanes- and gas in the 19th century, and on to the
que, Gothic, Islamic architecture on to the electrical revolution and into the future.
Modern. Special aspects-primitive architec- The guided tour (if we may call it that) then
ture, architecture adapted to climate-are turns to the material basis of architecture-
given consideration in separate entries. bricks, earth, mortar, timber-and on to our
An extensive survey of building types fol- present reinforced concrete, glass, iron, and
lows. The development, forms, and uses of steel· and the fabulous new crop of plastics,
buildings have been a primary interest of laminates, and other revolutionary products.
architects and architectural writers from the Tools, techniques, and fastenings complete
very beginning of architectural literature. the survey: the mason's, the carpenter's, the
What is offered here-anew and with a very metalworker's tools; the joints and fixings,
conscious aim at updating and inclu- bolts, screws, nails, rivets; how these tools
siveness-is .both the great variety and are used and, of course, have been used to
the incredible range of contemporary building erect buildings and to make them last through
types. Where Vitruvius spoke of forum and the centuries and into the future.
basilica, treasury, senate house, theater, While a picture is not in every case worth
farmhouse, and bath and harbor, this book the thousand words given to it by the Chinese
will speak of bridges, railroad stations, air- saying, certainly architectural illustrations
ports, factories, skyscrapers, schools, hos- are worth a great many words. Here we
pitals, movie theaters, and laboratories, etc. have over 800 carefully selected illust-
The emphasis, again, is on technology and rations to enhance the wide and complex
use: how such divergent building types subject matter. Many of them come from the
evolved, what technical innovations, social unique slide library of the Architectural
needs, and new materials shaped them and Association in London and will, in them-
indeed made them possible; how changing selves, form an original contribution. Engrav-
organizations and new requirements have ings from ancient sources have in many
affected them and affect them now. How, for instances been used. Architect, art historian,
instance, does air conditioning relate to and engineer alike should profit from this fine
architectural design? How will photocopying collaborative effort, not only in information,
machines alter the lay-out in office buildings? but also in inspiration. But it is also very
Turning to structure, an important section much intended for the same interested, curi-
of this book, the reader will find a four-step ous, and concerned layman for whom Vit-
arrangement: from structural design and its ruvius and Alberti wrote their treatises. The
bases, through structural elements (arches, text has been kept as non-technical as a
beams, floor systems, roof trusses, columns, thorough presentation of technical matter in a
space frames, cable nets etc.-again, the most condensed form will allow. The book will be
ancient elements standing next to the most read as well as used, read for the inex-
recent) and the structural systems which haustible and fundamental pleasure of looking
combine them-the multistorey building, the at and understanding architecture, man's orig-
wide-span, the load-bearing-and finally, to inal and most powerful tool in changing his
the construction means and processes that planet and his existence; and used for a new
make them possible-centering, scaffolding, perspective, a stock-taking and an anticipation
formwork, and mass production itself (se- of future progress.
quence control, rationalization, etc.).
The mechanical and environmental services
within a wide range of building types are then Adolf K. Placzek
discussed: how do steam, gas, electricity A very Librarian
affect architectural forms and systems? The Columbia University
Section 1
12 Architecture adapted to climate

Stylistic periods and geographical adaptations

Architecture adapted to climate found other means to restrict solar radiation.
The buildings of the Arabian deserts used
In many regions of the world in which the galleries or verandas around three or four
natural outdoor climate is severe, methods of sides of the courtyards to shade the walls and
adapting architecture simply and economically the floor surfaces outside windows and doors.
to provide the necessary comfort standards These were supplemented with reed awnings
internally have been introduced into indi- hanging from the walls. The houses of the
genous building techniques. These adaptive central desert region of Persia and the sur-
measures vary depending on the problems rounding areas used deep recesses in the walls
presented by the particular local climate. of the courtyards (called iwans or liwans)
which were covered with masonry vaults. The
Hot, dry, tropical conditions great depth of the iwans ensured that very
Such conditions can be found in any part of little radiant energy from the penetration ot
the world within 15° latitude of the equator. the sun into the courtyard could reach the rear
This climatic type presents the highest temp- of these shaded living areas. Persian houses,
eratures, with hot, dry air and dry ground in common with those of the Gulf and parts of
Middle Kingdom Egyptian house
conditions, producing dust storms. There is the Indian subcontinent, also used rooftop with wind catchers and screened
little or no rain and little vegetation. The wind catchers which faced in the direction of window openings.
sunlight at midday is strong, and one of the the prevailing wind and led the breeze down
main problems in building is not so much ducts in the rear walls of the main living
dealing with the air temperature as with the rooms on the sides opposite the courtyard.
surface temperature reached by the buildings Another variation used these wind towers for
because of solar radiation. Another problem is extract, in which case they faced away from
that the nights are cool, and the clear sky the direction of the prevailing winds. A third
allows rapid radiation of heat from the build- type incorporated both intake and extract
ings and the ground so that temperatures can ducts in a single tower, with a vertical wall
drop to as low as freezing point at certain separating the two shafts. A final type of wind
times of the year. catcher was built halfway up the height of
The natural means of dealing with this walls of rooms at second-floor level; this led
climate is to provide a thick, well-insulated moving air down only a short distance, releas-
enclosure for living, with only small openings. ing it just above floor level inside the roof
The walls and roofs are thick and are built of room, which was used for entertaining guests. House with wind catchers, in Sind,
masonry and plaster or, if of timber framing, In an endeavor to provide cool spaces Pakistan.
are packed with either thick thatching of grass during the midday heat of the hottest months
and leaves or with clay stones, to provide of the year, Persian architects traditionally
adequate insulation. It is normal in such constructed underground rooms on the shaded
architecture to provide high windows rela- side of the courtyard into which cool air could
tively small in area to avoid glare from the be led from wind catchers on rooftops above.
reflecting sunlight; as humidity is low, cross Sometimes this air was further cooled by
ventilation is not necessary. In order to being passed over underground streams or
reduce the intense radiation to a minimum, canals before being released into the under-
such buildings, if they have courtyards at all, ground rooms known as serdabs. Water was
have them of very small dimensions so that likewise used in the courtyards of houses and
the sunlight cannot reach the pavement. For public buildings, either in the form of still
similar reasons, buildings are placed close pools or as fountains, to provide cool air and
together with only narrow alleyways between relieve extreme dryness. A final refinement
them. Such a type of construction provides was the planting of shrubs or trees around the Farmhouse in Morocco with thick
considerable thermal storage capacity; the pools which both shaded the courtyard and external walls and roof, and a small
walls and roof take some hours to heat up. In aided in the provision of cool air. Many of courtyard providing a shaded area
a well-constructed building the time delay these devices are also known to have been which reduces solar radiation
entering the house.
may be as much as 8 to 10 hours, with the used in ancient architectures in Mesopotamia
result that the building is reradiating heat into and Egypt.
the interior during the cool nights; by sunrise Modern techniques of dealing with hot dry
the building will have cooled down and the climates include the provision of a double
interior will then preserve its coolness for a roof-an upper roof usually made of a non-
large part of the following day. waterproof material shading the permanent
A fine example of this kind of traditional roof-and a double wall in which the outer
solution can be seen in the houses of Benin in wall is merely a shading screen, the real
Nigeria. Each of these has as many as six tiny support and enclosure being provided by the
courtyards, but otherwise presents no open- inner wall. A variant on the double roof is the
ings to the outside. They are built of mud provision of a ventilated roofspace in which
brick, with a thick layer of mud over the convection naturally removes the heat
timber beams of the roof construction. through openings at the top of the roof pitch,
Other traditional architectures in hot, dry thus reducing the need for substantial thermal
climates utilize larger courtyards but have insulation in the ceiling below. Finally, the
 Architecture adapted to climate 13

provision of sun-breaker, or brise-soleil ele- so low that sky radiation IS effectively pre-
ments as shading devices, has become part of vented from entering.
the vocabulary of modern architecture. Sun
visors, either fixed or movable, can be Composite climates
arranged so that their geometric configuration
excludes direct sunlight while allowing rela- Many climates present serious problems
tively large areas of glazing behind them. because they combine at different times of the
These devices are used in a wide variety of year the characteristics of hot, dry climates
forms in many climates when direct sunlight with warm, humid climates.
and solar heat-gain are a problem. Monsoon climates. Normally hot and dry , this
climate changes some two to six weeks before
the arrival of the monsoon rains and during
Warm, humid conditions this period it becomes warm and humid. Two
These conditions occur in tropical countries in compromise solutions are possible. The first Open veranda in a Dyak "long
areas which border oceans and inland seas. is designed for the hot, dry condition with the house", Sarawak, Malaysia,
producing a well-shaded and
Here, the most difficult architectural problem acceptance of the discomfort of the night ventilated living area.
is that of dealing with the high humidity for humidity. The more practical compromise is
this can only be alleviated by providing the construction of buildings in two parts,
substantial air movement across the skin of each of which provides an area suitable for
the inhabitants who will thus obtain relief use during one of the two periods. An
from the evaporation of perspiration. In order example of the latter is a building with a first
to achieve this, traditional architects raised floor with walls and ceilings of heavy con-
the living rooms high in the air and opened the struction (and with small window openings)
whole height and width of walls with latticed which provides insulation during the long dry
screens to allow the free passage of air. Only periods, and another storey of light materials
in situations in which there were no sur- with pierced or louvered walls that provides
rounding buildings was it normally possible to cross ventilation and little retention of heat
achieve this degree of forced ventilation on during the short, warm, and humid rainy
ground level. Hence in urban conditions build- periods. Alternatively, these two blocks can
ings tended to rise vertically and to be faced be arranged on either side of the courtyard. In
in the upper storeys with latticed wooden either case, the family has to move from one
House in Jaipur, India, with
screens which often cantilevered out over the part of the building to another as the climate protected openings and screened
streets like balconies. The rooftops of such changes. However, this type is characteristic open-roof area.
buildings were likewise surrounded by latticed of certain latitudes in the Indian Ocean,
screens of masonry or wood which provided Muscat and Oman, southern Asia, and Iraq,
air movement to sleeping spaces on the roofs, and, although they not normally monsoonals,
used on the most humid evenings. During the the West Indies and parts of South America.
heat of the day, however, substantial thick- Small-island climates. Small islands do not
ness of the roof was necessary to prevent the retain cloud cover and so nights are cooler
absorption of the heat from the sun. But and not so humid. The problems of coping
rooms below such roofs would have been with humidity are reduced and therefore cross
intolerable at night as the reradiation would ventilation is not as important. On the other
raise the temperature even higher: hence the hand, island~ are frequently exposed to sud-
need to provide sleeping space in the open air den storms and cyclones, necessitating effec-
on the roofs. Traditional architecture of this tive shuttering of all pierced and louvered
type was characteristic of Cairo, the cities openings to prevent the entry of wind and
bordering the Red Sea, Turkey, Morocco, rain.
and other parts of the Mediterranean, as well Maritime desert climates. These climates are
as parts of India and the Persian Gulf. normally hot and dry but are subject to
Wind catchers were also used to encourage sudden changes when winds from the ocean
the movement of air in hot, humid climates, bring humidity across the area. Buildings need
notably in the Persian Gulf, northwest India, to have both thick walls and roofs and also
and in Pakistan. In particular, the provision of pierced walls to allow air movement. As
a row of mid-wall wind catchers to direct air breezes blow inland from the sea with some
just above the floor level across the full width regularity at night, it is normal to provide
of a room was utilized in Bahrain in reception pierced openings facing in that direction .
rooms which were characteristically built on Savanna, or interior continental climates.
the roofs of houses. These are characterized by dry winters , which
Screened verandas around buildings pro- can be relatively hot, followed by long rainy
vide flexible living space with the maximum seasons which are warm and humid. The
possibility of the movement of air; they are same type of solution is usually provided here
thus often favored in hot humid climates. as for monsoon climates, with the con-
Sometimes, as in Sri Lanka, the veranda roof struction of two types of buildings juxtaposed Thatched buildings in a dispersed
is extended forward to create a double ver- so that comfortable conditions for living may village near Rusape, Zimbabwe; a
anda, the outer height of the eaves then being be found through flexibility of use. In the region with a savanna climate.
 14 Primitive architecture

Cameroons and part of West Mrica, for

example, buildings include both light,
thatched, round shelters with open sides, and
square or round clay structures with thick,
mud roofs.
In savanna climates where there is a wide
daily and seasonal fluctuation of temperature,
thick heavy walls are useful in the house
interior. Their high thermal capacity effect is
then exploited to store heat and reradiate it
during cold evenings. The outside walls can
remain as thin screens to allow cross ven-
tilation during warm humid periods.
Tropical upland climates. Although the tropics
are usually associated with heat and humidity,
a number of high mountain masses occur within
the tropical latitudes. Here, inhabitants experi-
ence extremes of temperature from day to night
due to the clear skies which prevail for a large
part of the year. There is strong solar radi-
ation, even when the air temperatures are
low. There is low humidity and constant air
movement. On the other hand, there are fireplace or stove and the chimney in the Traditional wooden house near Lac
distinct rainy seasons, during which the center of the structure away from the outside Neuchatel in Switzerland.
humidity may rise. Such climate demands an walls. This ensures that no heat is lost except
architectural solution providing thick walls to warm the surrounding rooms. Walls facing
accompanied by shading, and adequate cross the direction of the prevailing winds are
ventilation which is closable with shutters at usually windowless unless the winds come
night. The towerhouses of southern Arabia, from the south.
the southern High Atlas in Morocco, and
parts of India and Pakistan, are good exam-
ples of the application of this solution.
Primitive architecture

The term primitive has a number of different

Alpine and Arctic climates meanings, and confusion between them is a
frequent cause of misunderstanding.
Insulation is of major importance, so walls are First, within the context of any culture, art
of thick masonry or wooden logs carefully historians have used the term "primitive" of
interlocked at the comers to avoid air gaps. early phases in the historical development of
The buildings are raised on stilts or platforms architecture, in the belief, now thought to be
to lift the floors above the snow level. debatable, that the early builders would have
Traditionally, any interstices in the walls or erected buildings differently had their know-
around windows or doors were filled with ledge of technology been more advanced.
moss as a wind and waterproofing seal. The Second, "primitive" is a late 19th-century
roofs are normally made of thick wooden term applied to cultures which were not part
planks or tiles to ensure insulation, and on top of the "evolutionary" development of civil-
of these, especially at the level of the ridge, ization in any of the major centers. It was
Houses in the High Atlas region of
weights are placed to prevent the roofs from assumed that their social patterns closely Morocco, with thick walls and
blowing away. A traditional device used in paralleled early phases in a development of small closable openings.
Finland and northern Japan is to fix a ridge the great civilizations. In modem times it has
pole in the scissor joint between projecting become apparent that these cultures were not
rafters, which is then tied down firmly at the necessarily in a formative stage of develop-
ends to secure the roof against wind. In these ment but frequently represented mature sys-
countries it is also common to fix an outer tems of social organizations and technology in
frame across the roof which is weighted down their own right. There are no longer any
with stones suspended from it at the eaves. In implications of technical or social inferiority
some areas roofs are made with a steep pitch or suggestions that they belong to an earlier
to shed snow and reduce the possibility of stage of development which would necessarily
moisture penetration. In others, roofs are lead toward a great cultural maturity. Nor is
arranged in such a way that snow is there any implication that architecture in this
encouraged to settle on them to increase their context is merely a distant and imperfectly
thermal insulation. understood version of a more sophisticated
In such houses it is usual to keep the architecture elsewhere.
 Primitive architecture 15

Nevertheless, these two uses of the tenn

are here combined for convenience, since the
innovations produced in the early phases of
architecture in western Europe, and other
areas in which great civilizations developed,
frequently parallel in type and technology
those of modem primitive societies in the rest
of the world.

The Old Stone Age

The earliest evidence we have of the con-
struction of shelters dates from the Old Stone
Age. The simplest were crude stone walls
converting rock overhang shelters into caves.
Although evidence of what was built else-
where in open ground is scanty, traces of
surface structures have been claimed for two
or three sites in western Europe. Tent-shaped
structures have also been interpreted from the
dating of the Magdalenian culture on the walls
of the Font-de-Gaume cave, and elsewhere in
the Dordogne in France. It seems likely that
Old Stone Age man built crude artificial
shelters like the summer huts of spaced
saplings still built by the Paiute Indians of
Nevada, or those of the Alacaluf of Tierra del
Fuego.
More substantial evidence for Old Stone
Age dwellings of the most remote antiquity
comes from south Russia where, because
caves were lacking, small groups of hunters dwellings . One at Timonovka has six sub- Completing a roof on the bamboo
built themselves winter quarters . Archaeolog- terranean dwelling pits, 10-12 ft. (3-3.5 m) framework of a large ceremonial
house in a Wingel village in the
ical evidence shows them to have been wide and 38-40 ft. (11.5-12 m) long; two of Sepik area of New Guinea.
roughly oval dwellings, apparently built of them contained hearths, one with a conical
mammoth tusks covered with skins weighed chimney of clay-covered bark. It seems likely
down by slabs of stone. An important aspect that these dwellings were almost completely
of these houses , as of those of other Old sunken underground as the pits are between
Stone Age cultures and of many primitive 8.5 and 10 ft. (2.5 and 3 m) deep, with timber
dwellings to the present day , is that they were linings to their sides. The entrances were
partly excavated into the ground. This made apparently down narrow sloping ramps about
the construction of the roof simpler, and 3.5 ft . (l m) wide. It is reasonable to assume
ensured better insulation against cold, since in that the roofing was of logs laid horizontally
winter the ground retains wannth for a long and heaped over with earth, like the earth-
period. One difficulty in these pit dwellings houses of the semi-polar Eskimo in Siberia.
was to prevent the entry of rainwater or damp This group of houses was associated with
from melting snow. For this reason a trench ancillary storage pits, open-air hearths, and
was frequently excavated around the edge of working places for flint knappers. A sunken
the pit to serve as a drain. dwelling at Mezhirich in the Ukraine, exca-
Other semi-subterranean dwellings of the vated with great care, was lO ft. (3 m) wide
Early Stone Age have been found in southern and 25ft. (7.5 m) long, and was built from the
Russia. A rectangular hollow 13 ft . (4 m) wide skeletal remains of no less than 95 mammoths.
and 40 ft. (12 m) long at Pushkari had three The walls of this structure were made of
hearths in a row down its length and con- skulls and long bones and the roof was
tained mammoth bones. There were some 30 supported on a frame of mammoth tusks, and
holes in the floor which may have held thin probably of tree branches as well; it was
uprights. Even longer rectangular hollows covered with animal skins kept in place by the
have been found at other places, notably at weight of tusks and reindeer antlers , with
Kostenki. One measured 18 x 115ft. (5.5 x 34 mammoth shoulder blades holding down the
m) and contained nine hearths. It is possible edge of skins on the skull foundation walls.
that it was not a single dwelling but the site At the end of the Old Stone Age the
for a row of tents or for a multiple dwelling advanced reindeer hunters of the North Euro-
covered by a roof of leather or skin. pean Plain used portable tent structures sup-
Later Stone Age sites in Russia provide ported on wooden poles and held down by
evidence for similar dwellings or groups of glacial boulders. Again , they resemble the
16 Primitive architecture

tents of some of the modem Eskjmos. It is

likely that even when the hunters occupied
territory where caves and rock shelters were
available, they supplemented those drafty
shelters with artificial screens of skjns.

The Middle Stone Age

About 8000 BC the end of the last Ice Age
brought the evolution of a new culture-the
Middle Stone Age-which was marked by
enormous advances in man's hunting and
food-gathering techniques. Dwellings were
adapted to a seasonal mode of life.
Archaeological evidence suggests that in
summer only small temporary shelters
covered with skins, branches, and twigs were
used. To withstand the cold of the winters,
however, the small groups of hunters needed
stouter dwellings. In general, they built semi-
sunken houses, generally close to a river or
stream, although in some sites the floors were
now only slightly below the ground level. Low
walls were probably made of banked earth cultivation and animal domestication, houses Reconstruction of a house with a
taken from the original excavation, and evolved which were more substantial and structure of lashed and woven
saplings, Singleton Open Air
pitched roofs, covered with branches and commodious than any occupied by the earlier Museum, Sussex, England.
hunters and fishermen. Occurring first in the
possibly turfs, were brought down over these
old world of the Fertile Crescent, somewhere
low walls. There is no evidence in the form of
postholes to suggest that Middle Stone Agebetween 8000 and 6000 BC, and subsequently
people understood the principle of framed spreading west into Europe and east further
construction, although an occasional post into Asia, the husbandry of the New Stone
seems to have been erected to give head Age brought a concept of further special-
clearance at an entrance. ization of space, so that houses containing
Most of the Middle Stone Age houses several rooms were soon being built. The old
excavated in Europe have slightly sunken grouping of a few shelters clustered together
grew into a new social invention, the village: a
floors with a floor surface made of brushwood
cluster of houses within walkjng distance of
or bark. They have a framework .of branches,
field and pasture, but usually not built on
sometimes raised on posts of substantial size
(14 in. /350 mm thick), which were choppedarable ground.
through with crude stone adzes. A framework The earliest New Stone Age town that has
so far been excavated is that of Jericho, which
was made of close-set saplings (2-4 in./50-100
dates from the 8th millennium BC. It has
mm diameter) either brought together at the
top, or supporting a separate roof frame. The
mud-brick houses of circular or elongated oval
covering of walls and roofs was usually plan, some consisting of a single room and
thatch, made from reeds or grass. Wattle and
others of as many as three. The walls of these
daub construction was found to have been rooms were sunk below the level of the
used in houses excavated in Belgium, whileground and wooden steps led down into them.
one Middle Stone Age hut at Bockum, Walls and floors were plastered with mud; it is
Hanover, stood entirely above ground. Likethought that the form of the buildings was
domed in wattle and daub, with doorways
most of these houses, it contained a hearth
made of pebbles. Most of the Middle Stone lined with a wooden door frame. Burials took
Age sites in the Middle East seem to have place within the houses in graves about 3.5 ft.
been open encampments that already had (I m) under the floor. Some of the round
village characteristics. In Palestine, villages of
houses were built on stone foundations.
round wattle and daub huts, 23 ft. (7 m) in The earliest evidence of an effective village
diameter, with sunken floors, have been farming community is that excavated at Jarmo
found. Near them were circular storage pits
in Iraq, c. 7000 BC. Jarmo was a permanent
with white plastered sides. The pits may have
village of about 20 rectangular huts, each with
two or more rooms, with a population of more
been used for storing grain. The inhabitants of
these villages buried their dead within the
than 150 people. The walls were of layered
dwelling places. clay and there were clay floors covered by
reed mats. Each of the houses had an open
alley or a small court on two of its sides. A
The New Stone Age clay oven and a base for a silo were built into
With the transition from Middle Stone Age each house.
food collecting to New Stone Age plant Early New Stone Age villages seldom had a
 Primitive architecture 17

proved area of more than 1,650 x 1,650 ft. (500 tween the poles were split timbers set upright
x 500 m). Their population was rarely more in the ground; these lined one end and wattle
than about 500 people. The architecture and daub lined the other. The existence of
appears to have been entirely domestic in raised floors is partly argued because of the
nature, although certain archaeologists have lack of any evidence of hearths or ovens. On
proposed dubious interpretations of some the other hand there is evidence of numerous
buildings as "shrines." The almost bewil- small granaries raised on posts.
dering variety of regionalized and suc- Excavations at Trelleborg in Denmark
cessively varied decorative styles of pottery revealed two "long houses" each approx-
suggests that the houses were also quite likely imately 100 ft. (30 m) long; one end of each
to have been decorated by painting, although house was used communally by a number of
there is very little evidence since few houses families, the other as a stable for beast.s. The
have survived much above foundation level. gable roof, approximately 10 ft. (3 m) high , Reconstructed view of a lake
The development of agriculture brought sloped down to the ground on one side while village near Glastonbury, England.
increasing complexity into the picture of the other side rested on a wall approximately
housing types and styles as the principle of 6.5 ft. (2m) high. Other similar "long houses"
settled life based on husbandry spread into in Denmark are estimated to have held 5~
rt;:gions with differing climates and building families. They resemble the huge communal
materials. It is probably not very fruitful to houses of British Columbia, where a stone-
ask exactly where any particular building based culture survived until the 19th century.
element was "invented" or first discovered. A second type of European New Stone Age
Wherever timber was available, houses in house was the lake dwelling of the Alpine
wood planks hewn with stone adzes began to region. Houses of this type were either built
be erected during the New Stone Age. Even on piles driven into the water, or placed on a
in Egypt and Mesopotamia there is evidence framework of beams laid over soft marshy
for such buildings. In Egypt, predynastic ground on the edge of the lakes. They were
houses with walls of vertical wooden planks rectangular with gable roofs, and many had
lashed together with hide passed through slots two rooms: an anteroom and an inner
cut in the comers of the faces of the boards chamber. The walls were of split saplings and
were used. By removing some of the ties, the wattle and daub. There were open hearths in
sides could be opened to allow the free the anterooms, with drying frames before
circulation of air. Such a house had the them. The inner rooms also contained
advantage of being easily dismantled and hearths, and supports for raised couches or
reerected in the desert during the annual benches. It is thought that food was prepared
inundation. Elsewhere in Egypt and Meso- in the outer room, where there was normally a
potamia the development of elaborate reed clay oven for breadmaking. In these houses
huts, built on reed platforms, took place. the positions of clay hearths and baking ovens
Sometimes they were mud plastered, while in had evidently become standardized. In front
other cases, the reeds were left exposed. of each house there was a planked forecourt ,
In New Stone Age Europe, wood was the presumably as a place for working and sitting.
most abundant and convenient material. With The Late New Stone Age in Europe was a
rain or snow in winter, a sloping roof was period of change when houses became much
necessary, usually in a tent shape with a simpler. In the Third Danubian phase in
Model of a Pile dwelling typical of
central ridge pole supported on a line of posts. central Europe, huts were one roomed, and the late Stone Age and Bronze Age.
Other posts supported the walls, which were only 15 ft. (4.5 m) square with a large central From Riedsschachen,
made of wattle or split saplings, plastered with pit, apparently serving as a storage silo for Wurttemberg, West Germany.
dung or clay. In the forested Lower Danube
region, the substantial rectangular houses
were walled with split tree trunks filled in with
wattle and daub, and each had a central
hearth as well as a separate front entrance
porch attached to one end. In south Russia,
long timber houses had similar porches, and
there is evidence of roof finials with elaborate
spiral-shaped moldings of clay. In the Rhine-
land and further north in Scandinavia, "long
houses" up to 106 ft. (32 m) in length were
built. Their form, and the effort of erecting
them , suggests an organized community
cooperation derived from a close-knit clan or
tribal structure. The "long houses" were
divided into two parts; one apparently with a
raised floor. The plan is determined by posts
set at intervals in three parallel rows, the
central one supporting the ridge pole. Be-
18 Primitive architecture

grain, and an adjacent hearth in the sunken

floor. The walls were made of thin saplings,
which apparently were bent together to form a
ridge. Some of the timber houses had apse-
shaped ends partitioned off as separate rooms.
There is evidence that New Stone Age
houses in Europe were quite well furnished; in
the Orkney Islands, where there were no
trees, articles which elsewhere would have
been made in wood and have perished without
trace, had to be translated into durable stone.
We find here fixed beds, dressers of at least
two tiers of shelves, and various wall cup-
boards or niches for keeping objects. Near-
Eastern tombs contain model stools and
couches in clay which bear similar testimony
to the evolution of furniture in this period.
Light came from the central fireplace in each
room; there was unlikely to have been a
chimney, merely a hole in the roof or a gap
under the eaves.
Dating from the 1,000 years between the
middle of the 7th and 6th millennia BC, a
number of sites have been found which
indicate the growth of cities with populations of the Mediterranean. At Catal Huyuk in Remains of a group of stone
of up to 3,000 people. In Jericho, the walls Anatolia there was a large New Stone Age houses at Skara Brae, Orkney,
were built of long cone-shaped bricks on stone town of rectangular houses built in mud brick Scotland.
foundations. They were covered with fine on stone foundations without doors; the
gypsum plaster, stained with red ocher and houses were apparently entered down ladders
highly burnished. The houses consisted of through openings in the roofs. This con-
several rectangular rooms linked by wide, solidation of the early pit dwellings into an
open doorways with rounded jambs. The urban complex occurred also in the pueblo
houses communicated with each other cultures of North America, in northern China,
through courtyards and open spaces; there and in places along the northern fringe of the
were no narrow streets. One or two of the Sahara, where they survive to the present
buildings may have been used for cult pur- day.
poses. At the end of the New Stone Age, metals
At Khirokitia in Cyprus (c. 5500 BC), nearly came into use, mainly copper. At this period
1,000 round domed huts were grouped to form the growth of the Halaf culture in northern
a small city. The high conical hut was built of Mesopotamia witnesses a combinati.on in one Trulli houses in Puglia, Italy. These
mud brick covered with mud plaster. Entering building of the circular dome construction small circular houses built of dry
from the cobbled street through a wooden- with a rectangular antechamber covered by a stone have internal spaces covered
in corbeled domes. Similar forms
framed doorway, the visitor passed down a thatched pitched roof. are found in Sardinia, Malta,
short flight of plastered steps to the sunken France, Ireland, and elsewhere.
main floor, which was finished with beaten The Bronze Age
mud. In the center of the house was a hearth The production of bronze, based on the addi-
of baked clay. Part of the plan was covered by tion of tin alloy to the copper which had
an upper gallery raised on two square lime- already been in use for several millennia,
stone pillars, the floor of the gallery being began in about 3000 BC in the Middle East. It
constructed of wooden beams covered with was followed by a concentration of power and
brushwood and beaten mud. Wooden-framed wealth which produced vast, fortified, walled
niches or closets were set into the stone cities incorporating great civic buildings and
pillars. On the lower level a round stone table palaces. But the use of bronze spread into
served for eating. The gallery used for sleep- more primitive societies in Europe and Asia,
ing or storage was approached up a ladder-like where the Bronze Age witnessed architectural
flight of stairs. One or two small square developments which were not based on urban
openings in the dome served as windows, culture but which were, nevertheless, more
General view of the remains of
while a narrow central hole allowed smoke to sophisticated than earlier primitive architec- Catal Huyuk in Anatolia.
escape from the fire below. Adjoining flat- tures.
roofed shelters, open on one side, served as Evidence of Bronze Age carpentry tech-
living spaces in hot weather and for the niques can be seen in the use of mortised
stabling of animals. Modern descendants of beams found in submerged structures off the
this kind of construction are to be found in Essex coast in England, and in the invention
eastern Syria; variants in stone occur in of pile shoes. The latter were small transverse
southern Italy (the "trulli") and in other parts timbers under the uprights of the Swiss lake
 Primitive architecture 19

settlements, introduced to mm1m1ze sinking. ization at the eastern end of the Mediter-
The large funeral mounds or "barrows" of ranean and India into many surrounding
Britain contained wooden chambers with primitive societies. We know most about the
upright timbers along the sides, and hori- effect of the harder, sharper, iron tools on
zontally laid tree trunks to form the ceiling. primitive buildings from archaeological exca-
On the European continent there are similar vations in Europe. One development was a far
timber structures within barrows, some of greater variety in buildings than had hitherto
them with inverted V -shaped structures of existed. Communities became larger and
thick oak beams. Many of the barrows, both crafts more sophisticated. Construction was
in Britain and on the continent, were sur- still largely in timber, but it was now fre-
rounded by palisades and ditches lined with quently adzed to a rectangular shape and
poles. Frequently, entrance was possibly only jointed with great sophistication. The use of
through a gateway between two substantial grooving to join horizontal and vertical planks Part of the stone circle at
oak posts. for walling was introduced, as was floor Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England.
Two "woodhenge" ritual sites have been construction of planks on wooden beams.
found in Britain. At Arminghall, near Nor- In Iron Age Britain the circular patterns of
wich, eight greak oak uprights were set in a house plans continued to predominate. At
horseshoe plan surrounded by two concentric Little Woodbury, Wiltshire, a large circular
ditches. At Woodhenge in south Wiltshire, six house had timber walls contained within two
concentric and roughly circular rows of large rings of posts, with a projecting, solidly built
uprights may have formed the substructure of timber porch which appears to have had some
a circular roofed building; a similar interpre- ornamental superstructure. There were four
tation has been given to the concentric timber massive central uprights, apparently to take
and stone circles near A vebury. Alternatively · the ends of crossbeams from the other walls in
these buildings may have been open-air tem- order to carry a heavy thatched roof. The use
ples akin to Stonehenge, possibly associated of four central posts suggests an opening,
with astronomical observations. probably to allow the escape of smoke and to
The use of large trunks for uprights was permit natural lighting in the center of the
made possible by the availability of sharp plan. Another circular house at Woodbury
bronze-headed axes. Soon afterward we find included numerous pairs of postholes, prob-
Model reconstruction of an Irish
the introduction of true log houses. At first we ably for drying frames for corn and hay, Iron Age hut.
find foundation platforms laid on logs in comparable with those used by the Maori.
marsh settlements (for example in Yorkshire, Groups of four postholes, set in a square of a
England, in the late Bronze Age). In con- little more than 6 ft. (2 m) dimension, prob-
tinental Europe, and later Britain, large round ably supported small granaries similar to those
timber huts 20 ft. (6 m) and more across were used today in many parts of Asia and British
built with substantial uprights close together Columbia for storing food. There were also
and were covered with conical roofs. A deep pits, perhaps with wooden lids, for
typical farm group had a main circular hut, a storing roasted grains, shallower pits for water
second sub-rectangular, and a third smaller containers, and small domed ovens of plaster
shelter, possibly a kitchen, together with for roasting grain to prevent germination. The
several small structures raised on posts Woodbury group was surrounded by a
suggesting storage sheds. The walls of the palisade which at the entrance had a number
rectangular buildings were apparently con- of postholes suggesting a gate tower.
structed of horizontal logs. The whole group Fragments of timber construction from the
was enclosed in a low bank. Iron Age period in England have been exca-
The increase in prosperity in the late vated in many places and demonstrate the
Bronze Age is well attested in archaeology continuity between prehistoric and recent
from waterlogged sites in central Europe. At vernacular construction. Details of regular
Wasserburg Buchau there was an early occu- mortised holes in rectangular oak beams to
pation, (c. 1100 BC), of 38 small rectangular take wattle hurdles for plastering and grooved
one-roomed log cabins; a second occupation, oak planks resemble details used until
(c. 900 BC), contained evidence that bronze recently in rural England.
tools were plentiful and that there were nine In places where forests were distant, clay,
large farmhouses each built around three sides wattle and daub, and stone construction con-
of a yard and constructed in the log-cabin tinued to be used following practices which
method with interlocking timbers. The whole had been established earlier.
was enclosed with a palisade of pine stakes
with defensive platforms at several places. Summary
It can be seen that primitive architecture can
be loosely categorized into five types of
The Iron Age building: open wind breaks ; pole con-
During the 1st millennium sc the use of iron structions of spaced saplings filled in with a Reconstructed interior view of an
spread out from the great centers of civil- light open-work lattice of twigs, covered with Iron Age dwelling, Britain.
20 Primitive architecture

A house under construction in abundant, build houses of driftwood timbers

Dombo Shawa, Zimbabwe. and animal skins in the same domed shape
Saplings are bound with bark strips
to form a structural framework and with the same internal disposition of uses.
which is enclosed with a covering Frequently, completely different structural
of grass sheaves. systems for the same living patterns exist side
by side-as in the mud-walled houses and
thatched dwellings in northern Nigeria, the
western Sudan, and many other parts of
Africa.
Techniques of building and, of course,
social structures and cultural patterns, can
migrate with the movement of people from
one region to another. This explains both the
appearance of house forms in regions with
climates for which they are not strictly suit-
able, and the existence of quite different
structural techniques side by side. Once
established however, both construction
techniques and patterns of living tend to be
very resistant to change and may persist for
thousands of years . Certain areas of the world
have developed structural techniques or house
forms which generally predominate over all
others; e.g. the flat-roofed, plastered court-
yard buildings of the Mediterranean, Iraq,
Iran , and northern India; the gable-roofed
framed buildings in brick or stone of northern
Europe; and the raised thatched framed struc-
tures of southeast Asia and the Pacific.
grass or reeds; pole constructions of spaced During the last century , anthropologists
saplings, with a light open-work lattice and studying modern primitive societies have
covered with plaster, e.g. wattle and daub; added new dimensions to our understanding
frame constructions of close-set shaped posts, of architecture which have important con-
with an infilling of timber, wattle and daub, or sequences. Firstly, in revealing the existence
masonry; and solid constructions of logs, of many forms of social structure very dif-
planks, turf, mud, adobe, mud brick, baked ferent from those hitherto known , which are
brick, or stone. Other special types were reflected directly in their buildings and set-
necessitated by shortages of materials, or tlement patterns: examples are the "long
encouraged by particular qualities of flex- houses" of North America and parts of Africa
ibility and utility in easily available materials; and Asia; the pueblo cultures of Arizona and
the Eskimo house of snow and ice is an New Mexico; and the boat-structured
example of one, and Central African palm- societies of the Indonesian archipelag(). Sec-
thatched huts of the other. ondly , in leading to the realization that built
In general, houses are more substantial forms may not reflect the true concept of the
where the climate is rigorous, but the view architecture held by the people who built it;
that climate is the most important determinate i.e. that the shape of the living pattern can on
of building type , dominating other factors occasion be more complicated and even quite
such as inherited cultural and social patterns, distinct from the built form. Thirdly, in
is now no longer regarded as valid. The pointing to the conclusion that among settled
Indians of Nevada built an open shelter of primitive societies, dwellings are not thought
brushwood for use in sub-zero winters, and a of only as structures or bases in which to eat
similar phenomenon existed in northern cen- and sleep, but have values and even some-
tral Canada. Similarly the Chinese in the thing approaching a spirit of their own. The
Peking area built courtyard houses with orientation, the position of the hearth or door,
paper-thin walls in a climate with a long and a particular relationship of the parts may offer
freezing winter, so that adaptation to the religious or magical protection , express some
climate had to be accomplished at personal belief, or denote rank in society. A whole
level by wearing thick padded clothing. world of symbolism may parallel the
Another view-that the available building utilitarian world of material objects and build-
materials were generally more important as ings; the visual aspects of architecture denote
determinants of building form than living meanings to the primitive man which do not
patterns or social cultural traditions--can also lie very far below his consciousness and may
be disproved . Only Eskimos on the central even be part of a conscious rational system of
Arctic shore make igloos of snow; other delineating his own relationship to the real
Eskimos , east and west, where snow is just as world.
 Mesopotamian and Iranian architecture 21

Mesopotamian and Iranian

architecture
Sophisticated Mesopotamian architecture first
developed in a relatively small area in the
lower plain of the Euphrates-Tigris valley,
although a related culture, probably colonial
Mesopotamian, appeared soon afterward on
islands in the Persian Gulf. Under the Assy-
rians, Mesopotamian architecture covered a
large area extending northward to the sources
of the rivers and into Syria. The conquest of
Mesopotamia by the Persians, which encour-
aged the Persians themselves to erect fine
buildings, extended the region of developed
architecture far to the east into Afghanistan
and to the north into central Asia; their sway
extended down the Persian Gulf to Oman and
eventually into Asia Minor and Egypt. The
last great Persian empire was the Sassanian
which, for half a century, extended its realm
to encompass southern Arabia and Egypt.
The main creative phase of Mesopotamian this time some temples were beginning to be One oft he staircases leading up the
architecture was a period of about 400 years reduced to a single rectangular cella, entered ziggurat at Ur in Sumeria. Built c.
2350 BC. it led to a temple which no
(3100-2700 BC), which predates written his- through a door near the end of one of the long longer exists: the staircase's baked
tory. An ancient practice of erecting mud sides and approached to its site on the top of a brick is excellently preserved.
houses in clustered settlements had already high rectangular platform by a long straight
led to the formation of raised mounds or tells, flight of stairs.
created by the alternate destruction and The two centuries of Akkadian rule (c.
reconstruction of buildings. On such tells 2350-2150 BC) were characterized by changes
religious buildings began to be erected, the marking the steady infiltration of Semitic
platforms growing increasingly higher as with immigrants from the steppes. Large flat
successive generations earlier temples were bricks, approximately 6 in. (150 mm) square,
razed and new structures built on their ruins. replaced the smaller fired bricks of earlier
The temples were rectangular buildings times. At Tell Brak a palace was built over
diverging about 45o from the direction of the the sanctified grounds of an earlier temple, an
cardinal points, and containing T-shaped indication of the elevated status afforded to
courts (possibly covered with roofs). Entering themselves by the god-kings. The palace was
on one of the long sides, the worshiper had to nearly square, with walls 33 ft. (10 m) thick, a
turn at right angles to face the altar or hearth, huge cutting containing the entrance gates to
which often had a podium opposite it. Small the axially related main court behind. There
cells or rooms surrounded the court and were were three smaller court complexes sur-
entered from it. A characteristic feature of the rounded by relatively narrow, roofed rooms .
construction was the lining of the walls with Almost contemporary with it was the erec-
rows of niches , or alternatively with staggered tion of a great temple at U r in the 22nd
buttresses; these devices suggest that the century sc. This, the most splendid example
origin of the construction la y in half of Neo-Sumerian architecture, was built on a
timbering- however, by the period of the massive platform, the ziggurat, which was
earliest discovered monuments, all the con- approached up long ramped staircases. Little
struction was in baked brick or mud brick due is known of the temple building on the top, as
to a shortage of timber (except for short it did not survive, but there is evidence to
lengths of date palm trunk). Brick building suggest that it had a central sacred chamber,
techniques included the use of the arch, the with a raised platform where the ritual mar-
dome , and the vault (although the latter riage ceremony of a virgin to the Sumerian
appears to have been used at first only for god was performed.
underground burial chambers). Buildings at There were also Neo-Sumerian "low tem-
Waraka and Uruk of the late 4th millennium ples," without a raised platform or ziggurat,
sc (the Uruk period) have wall surfaces and with an axial approach to a broad cella and an
pillar columns decorated with a mosaic of red, equally large antecella. The focus of the axial
black, and brightly colored flat terra-cotta sequence was a throned niche at the back of
cones arranged in geometric patterns. the cella. Palaces followed closely similar
During the first period at Ur, painted and plans; it seems likely that two processes were
relief decorations were used not merely as at work, the humanization of the gods- E-Num Mah Temple at Ur (c. 3000
ornaments, but to emphasize structural forms access to them being regulated by court BC).
(temple of AI 'Ubaid near Ur, c. 2600 BC). By ceremonial - and the deification of the king,
 22 Mesopotamian and Iranian architecture

who was surrounded by semireligious cere-

monial in his relationship with his subjects.
Mesopotamia was then swept by a new
wave of western Semitic peoples who even-
tually came to power and produced a new
series of great rulers, culminating in Ham-
murabi of Babylon. By far the most important
architectural monument from this period of
the Western Dynasties is the palace at Mari,
which dates from the 19th and 18th centuries
BC and is extremely well preserved. This
colossal complex (560 x 383 ft./200 x 120 m),
orientated by its sides to the cardinal points,
contained more than 260 rooms focusing on
two large courtyards used for royal cere-
monial purposes. Around these courtyards
there were the main throne rooms and a large
number of smaller courtyards with rooms
grouped around them. The rooms had no
windows; light penetrated through the very
tall doorways. The walls were plastered and
richly adorned with paintings.
The Assyrians rose to power in the 13th glazed brick reliefs, such as those of the Reconstruction ofthe lshtar Gate
century BC. Their chief buildings were huge famed Ish tar gate. rebuilt by Nebuchadnezzar
(604-561 BC). The gate is decorated
palaces built in two linked complexes, one With the fall of Assyria and the extinction with animals in glazed brick relief.
grouped around the entrance court, from of the Chaldean Neo-Babylonian Empire by
which the throne room and administrative the Persians, the historically integrated, cul-
rooms were reached, and the other grouped tural, and artistic complex we normally call
around the residential court. Other smaller "Mesopotamian" came to an end. The
courtyards surrounded them in diminishing Archaemenid Empire, which succeeded the
stages. Arches, but not columns, were used in Neo-Babylonian Empire in its sway over
these buildings. The chief palaces were those Mesopotamia, had its center on the Iranian
at Ashur (13th century Be), Nimrod (9th plateau . A new religion came to the fore, that
century Be), Khorsabad (722-705 BC), and of fire worship, resulting in the building of the
Nineveh (7th century BC). The older palaces, first open-air altars, behind which small sa-
culminating in Khorsabad, were conceived as cred buildings containing the eternal fire were
symbols of the cosmos. Squares were favored located. The strongest evidence of their
in proportioning, particularly in the outlines of architecture lies in excavations of the great
buildings and as a shape for courtyards. The palaces, which are contemporary with the
basic planning unit contained a court and a archaic and classical period of G reek architec-
shallow transverse hall of the same width; this ture: the mainly ruined palaces of Cyrus at
Monumental winged bull guardian
would be placed on the south side in the Pasargadae, of Darius and Xerxes at Perse- figure from the entrance to the
hotter plains, and on the north side in the polis, and of Artaxerxes at Susa. The style of throne room in the Palace of
northern hill regions. The longitudinal room these buildings was clearly derived from the Sargon II, Khorsabad.
frequently had a high door in one long side architecture of the mountainous, timber-rich
and contained a hearth. The throne room, the regions, having flat roofs carried on timber
heart of the palace, was of this plan. The great beams. These beams were supported on tall
gates and doorways were flanked by giant slender stone columns with bracket capitals.
winged bulls and fantastic animals , calculated The latter were often carved to represent
to inspire awe in the beholder who passed pairs of winged griffins or sacred bulls. The
between them. The rooms were lined with walls and gateways were embellished with
monumental wall reliefs in stone, and deco- fine stone carvings in low relief. Tombs were
rated above with wall paintings and some- often constructed by hollowing out the living
times with glazed tile decorations. rock and providing full-scaled facades carved
In 1200 BC the Chaldeans settled and from the faces of cliffs.
ruled in Babylon, establishing a number of The heirs of Alexander did not hold Iran
other city states along the Euphrates; rivaling and southern Mesopotamia for very long; the
the Assyrians for control of Mesopotamia. Parthians (c. 250 Be) conquered them and
The Chaldean or Neo-Babylonian period was continued in power until they were replaced Capitals and bases similar to those
of the hypostyle Hall of Xerxes at
characterized by palaces containing a series of by the Sassanians in the 3rd century AD. Persepolis, from a rock-cut tomb.
parallel complexes, each focusing on a large Parthian architecture introduced remarkable
square courtyard, with a single or double innovations derived from a combination of the
transverse room on the southern (i.e. the axial symmetrical planning of the classical
shaded) side. The palaces, and even the city world, with the deep-shaded recessed spaces
walls and gates, were richly embellished with of the liwans, the origins of which are possibly
 Egyptian architecture 23

related to the nomad tent, which is also open royal palace at its center and a defensive wall
on one side. A characteristic plan, such as at the periphery; it is a type of plan which
that of the palace of Nysa, has four liwans owes something to a cosmological analogy,
surrounding a central courtyard. A number of and something to the practical problem of
great palaces in this style were built with defense in a fragmented, feudal , and often
superimposed colonnades or arcades flanking discordant society.
the central liwan, notably those at Hakra,
Ashur, and possibly Ctesiphon, wl;lich some Egyptian architecture
authorities ascribe to the Parthian period. The
succeeding Sassanian style continued these The earliest buildings were constructed of
traditions, evolving, however, a complicated reeds and rushes (often reinforced or finished
plan form for a palace in which a great with mud) and thick planks of wood. Brick
audience forecourt was followed by a huge was first used for important buildings in late
liwan with a central domed audience room predynastic times. In the 1st dynasty, mud-
behind it, fronting onto a spare courtyard brick buildings were occasionally finished
surrounded by residential accommodation. In with thin slabs of marble or stone, but only in
some plans, such as that at Firuzabad, vaulted the 3rd dynasty was stone employed for an
banqueting halls paralleled the main volumes entire building. Ordinary dwellings were
of the central axis. At its greatest extent the always built simply of timber, reeds, and
Sassanian Empire stretched from Syria to brick, and these materials were often used in
northwest India; its influence was felt far palace buildings. Most columns were designed
beyond these limits. Sassanian religious build- on the theme of plants and flowers; the shafts
ings focused on domed fire temples for the representing clusters of reeds, and the capitals
Zoroastrian religion, the dome frequently lotus buds or open lotus flowers; alter-
being supported on four piers with arches natively, capitals resembled papyrus or palms.
spanning between them, creating the effect of From the massive architecture of some early
an open pavilion, at the center of which stood funerary temples developed the use of the
the fire altar. square pier, which was afterward refined into
Parthian and Sassanian city planning is eight- and sixteen-sided pillars, occasionally
Reconstruction of the hypostyle
Hall of Xerxes atPersepolis (485 characterized by the development of a circular fluted.
BC). city plan (Merv, Habra, Firuzabad), with the The earliest temple so far discovered,
which was not a funerary temple, is a 5th-
dynasty sun temple with a court, bounded by
passages and containing in the center a huge
obelisk-a square tapered shaft crowned by a
pyramid top, which acted as a symbol of the
sun-god, and in which he could be invoked to
take up his residence. The earliest tombs were
pits covered with sand or rubble, and from
these evolved the mastaba tombs of the first
two dynasties. They were usually built of
brick and reproduced, in bas-reliefs and wall
paintings, all the amenities of life which the
departed needed to take with him for greater
happiness in the next world. From the mas-
taba evolved the step pyramid of the 3rd
dynasty, the earliest being constructed as the
focus of the funeral complex of King Zoser at
Saqqara, which is known to have been built
by the royal adviser and architect Imhotep (c.
2780-2680 BC). The vast step pyramid was
almost 200 ft. (60 m) high and had attached to
it a funeral temple, an audience hall , and
ancillary buildings to provide a suitable setting
for the life after death of the king and his
attendants, all enclosed by a niched limestone
wall. From the step pyramid there developed
the bent pyramid and eventually the true
pyramid; the sides of which were perfect
isosceles triangles. The largest of these were
built at Giza for the kings of the 4th dynasty
(c. 2600-2480 Be). They were constructed of
enormous blocks of stone faced on the outside
with a smooth limestone surface, which in
most cases has disappeared. There were
24 Pre-Columbian architecture

several false tomb chambers to disguise the

position of the real one, evidencing the danger
of tomb robbery which became a more serious
problem with each succeeding dynasty. By
the Middle Kingdom (2100-1650 BC) rock-cut
tombs were predominant, incorporating the
forms of mortuary temples with forecourt,
hall, chapel, vertical shaft, and burial
chamber. By the time of the New Kingdom
(1580-1075 Be) both royal and private tombs
were normally cut deeply into the rock, and
great care was taken to conceal their precise
location. To this end mortuary temples were
eventually erected separately, at a distance
from the tomb itself.
Most of the surviving temples date from the
time of the New Kingdom, although even
these were frequently modified by subsequent
additions (Great Temple of Ammon at Kar-
nak). Characteristically, a temple was aligned
at right angles to the river, its monumental
pylon facade being approached from a landing
stage down an avenue of ram-headed
Court of the Temple of Khons, sphinxes. The facade of the temple was
Karnak (1200 BC). embellished with bas-relief figures of the gods
and of god-kings, some giant-sized so that Pyramids of Giza. These vast
they could be appreciated at a distance, and structures, which contained the
others smaller to be read at close quarters. Set tombs of the pharaohs of the 4th
\
dy nasty w ere originally fa ced in
into the pylon were four or six masts, them- smooth limestone.
selves embodiments of the presence of gods ,
and, in front, one or two obelisks to invoke
the presence of the great sun-god. A gateway
gave passage through the pylon into a col-
onnaded courtyard which acted as an assem-
bly point for entry into a great transverse
columned hall (the hypostyle hall), in which
an elevated central passageway with the
largest columns supporting the roof allowed
clerestorey light to enter the ceremonial way ,
the sides of the hall being seen as a forest of
columns lost in gloom. Behind the first hypo-
style hall the worshiper often passed through
a second hall to the dark sanctuary with
surrounding treasure rooms and sacristies.
The floor level stepped up slowly as one
passed through the temple, while the ceiling
height diminished as the rooms became
darker, until the final confined mystery of the
sanctuary itself was reached.
A remarkably different monument was that Temple ofKhons, Karnak (1200 BC).
A succession of spaces lead from
of the Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatsheput the cou rt which is open to t he sky,
at Deir-el-Bahari (c. 1480 BC), which had a through the hypostyle hall lit by a
series of pillared colonnades on three sides of clerestory ttJ the sanctuary.
three superimposed terraces linked by gigantic
ramps. The terraces were planted with aroma- Pre-Columbian architecture
tic trees and looked across the city of Thebes
to the facade of the Temple of Ammon at There are two cultural areas in pre-Columbian
Karnak on the opposite bank. architecture. One is the Middle American,
Ancient Egyptian architecture was revived focused on Mexico , Honduras, and
under the Ptolemies, the successors of Alex- Guatemala, and the other is the Andean in
Egyptian column capitals from a ander the Great, who built numerous temples South America, focused on Colombia,
number oftemples. Stylized plant of traditional style of which the finest exam- Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru. Essentially the
forms appear in some of the ples that survive are the Temple of Horus at two are distinct cultures, with different social
capitals. The shafts were often
carved to represent clusters of Etfu and the temples on the island of Philae. structures and religious and architectural trad-
reeds. (See also HOUSE5-EGYPTIAN) itions.
 Pre-Columbian architecture 25

Middle American plans, and some had corbel-arched roofs,

Architecture in this area begins about 1000 BC executed in rubble and dressed stone. They
(the pre-Classic period), when the Olmecs often imitated, or carried representations of,
built the first large-scale ceremonial centers in pitched thatched hut roofs, which were pro-
their homeland along the coast of the Mexican totypes for the corbel-arched stone buildings.
Gulf. Such a ceremonial center, which The door lintels were of wood, which often
became characteristic of Middle American carried fine carvings. The grouping, pro-
architecture throughout its history, consisted portioning, and designs of facades of Mayan
mainly or entirely of religious and government buildings reached a high level of sophis-
buildings that were used only at the pre- tication.
scribed times when the populations of the The late Classic period (c. AD 600-900)
surrounding agricultural district congregated shows more flamboyance, aesthetic develop-
Temple of the Warriors, Chich en
to watch religious ceremonies. Although these ment, and growth of regional styles, par- ltza, Yucatan, Mexico (12th century
buildings had pyramidal shapes, the tops were ticularly those of northern Yucatan, where AD). The columns of the hypostyle
always truncated to allow a platform for the cities such as Chichen ltza and Uxmal hall precede the pyramid which
erection of a temple shrine, which for many gained especially fine buildings. Soon after was surmounted by a sanctuary.
centuries was patterned on a domestic house this period the great centers were abandoned
and made of wood and thatch. The pyramid for reasons which have never been fully
was therefore essentially an elevated platform understood. The post-Classic period (c. AD
conceived in the shape of a geometrically 900 to the Spanish Conquest in the 16th
ordered mountain or hill; the stairway to the century) saw the growth of the Toltec state in
temple led up the middle of one side. Sub- central Mexico, a militaristic society with a
sidiary structures included platforms and high degree of civic and social organization
courtyards, often spread out over immense focused on ceremonialism. One branch of the
areas. The greatest of the pre-Classic centers Toltecs spread to Yucatan, where they
was La Venta. revived the Mayan culture with a strongly
The Classic period began around AD 100 in Toltec architectural style. Here they built
Central Mexico and represented a develop- pyramid temples that had columns with a
ment from the pre-Classic period of the same feathered-serpent figuration and which were
kind of culture. In this period, pre-Columbian dedicated to the Feathered Serpent, the deity "EI Castillo," Chichen ltza, Yucatan,
Mexico (12th-13th century). The
architecture achieved its highest levels, espe- imported from central Mexico. A more pure long and steep staircase up the
cially in scientific learning and craftsmanship. Mayan renaissance took place at U xmal, center of the pyramid leads to a
Teotihuacan, a small farming community in where the most magnificent single building small and elevated temple.
the valley of Mexico, became a great urban was the Governor's Palace in which the upper
center with far-flung political and cultural wall surfaces were decorated with small
influence. The focal point of the community pieces of cut stone resembling those of
was a ceremonial complex that was laid out in geometrical textile patterns.
a regular grid pattern of temples, squares, In the central Mexican plateau the Aztecs
compounds, and houses, many of them deco- were the heirs of the Toltecs, and developed a
rated with polychrome frescoes. The most very well-built religious architecture, in which
important of the ceremonial buildings were an illusion of great height in the temple
built during the 2nd century AD. These pyramids was combined with a love of large,
included the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon open, ceremonial spaces.
and a number of shrines along the central
Avenue of the Dead, which ran from the
Citadel and the Temple of Quetzalcoatl to the Andean
Pyramid of the Sun. Teotihuacan was des- Culture in South America, once begun ,
troyed in about AD 750. developed independently of that in Central
The Maya culture in the Yucatan penin- America. Although, in the early centuries,
sular of Guatemala and in Honduras also there were separate civilizations in different
developed during the Classic period. The regions, by the time of the European conquest
oldest and largest city of the Mayas was in the 16th century the whole area of the
Tikal, began c. 200 BC and fully evolved by c. Andes was completely unified under a single
AD 300. Tikal had a ceremonial center which political-administrative organization, known
covered 1 sq. mi. (2.6 sq. km) and included as the Inca Empire.
the highest pyramid of the Mayas-about 57 The earliest architecture is that of the
ft. (17 m) high-together with government ceremonial center at Chavin, which was
buildings, the whole surrounded by habi- reconstructed several times , and consisted of
tations in the manner of suburban develop- various temple platforms containing a series
ments. This city, and the other city centers of of interlinked galleries and chambers on dif-
the Mayas, had identifiable differing styles for ferent levels. It is thought to have been built
the various types of architecture: public build- during the period 12~00 BC. Andean cul-
Inca sanctuary, Machu Picchu, Peru
ings, temples , sanctuaries, palaces, monas- ture rapidly developed between 400 BC and AD (12th-15th century). The accurately
teries, ball courts, observatories, and dance 400 and was characterized by a development shaped large blocks of granite are
platforms. Buildings had complex ground of technological skills in building and weav- fitted together without mortar.
26 Ancient Greek architecture

Ancient Greek architecture

Architecture developed to a high level of
sophistication in the Aegean Islands around
2000 BC, in the palaces of Knossos and
Phaestos in Crete. These and other palaces,
of which only fragmentary remains have been
found, were rebuilt a number of times after
damage by fire and earthquake. The last
restoration took place after the enormous
volcanic eruption of Thera (c. 1475 Be) which
destroyed and damaged many buildings and
cities in the islands.
Soon afterward (about 1400 BC) Mycenae,
previously a strong and prosperous fortified
base on the mainland, became powerful
enough to attack the palaces and cities of
Crete and emerged as the dominant power in
the Aegean, a position it retained until the
Dorians invaded Greece from the north in
about 1100-1000 BC. Although they have
many similarities, particularly in points of
stylistic detail , the buildings of Crete and
Mycenae nevertheless reveal important dif-
General view of remains of ing. Peruvian architecture reached its highest ferences of architectural character. The
buildings and terraces at Machu development from AD 400-1000. The con- palaces of Knossos and Phaestos had elabo-
Picchu, Peru.
struction of huge pyramids in stone, the rate clusters of rooms, ceremonial and
largest being the Huaca del Sol near Trujillo, utilitarian, around vertical light shafts. These
testifies to the high degree of organization of were connected by labyrinthine passages
the society. Houses and temples were built of (hence the legendary origin of the labyrinth in
large stone slabs, and the lintels were carved the Theseus legend). At the center of the
in high relief with catlike motifs. palaces was a single giant courtyard sur-
The Tiahuanaco style, which was prom- rounded by tiered, columned loggias. At the
inent c. AD 1000, is typified by the stepped level of the court, closely related to the thront"
pyramid of Acapala in Bolivia, which is faced room, was a temple sanctuary in which the
with dressed stone. At the same site a high priest or king was given a focal throne.
monolithic stone gateway has exceptionally The large size of the courtyard is believed to
fine stone jointing cut in basalt and sandstone, have been due to its function in some cere-
and fitted together without mortar. mony, presumably the bull leaping depicted in
The period AD 1000-1300 saw the develop- frescoes in the palaces. The only exception to
ment of circular and rectangular tower tombs the somewhat conglomerate and irregular
in finely dressed stonework. They are fun- character of the palaces was an axial cere-
damentally of two types, the kulpi or house- monial approach up a flight of stairs; this rose
tomb, and the chullpa or funerary monument. within the palace through a full storey to the
Both are usually crowned by an oversailing throne room. There were underground chan-
cap of stonework, and contain rudimentary nels providing excellent sewerage and drain-
corbeled domes and vaults finished to per- age throughout the buildings. Cretan architec-
fectly smooth shapes. ture is characterized by its use of inverted
The Inca Empire, founded in the period columns, which taper from a broad-capped
between AD 1000 and 1300 focused on Cuzco capital down to a narrower pad base; they
in Peru and was characterized by a grid-iron were of turned wood painted bright red. The
system of city planning with streets con- remainder of the construction consisted of
verging on a central plaza and secondary areas of stonework interspersed with timber
plazas distributed according to the contours of reinforcing frames , so that the structural
the sites. There were wide main avenues and system could be said to be essentially half-
narrower secondary streets. The major public timbered. The walls were plastered and deco-
Entrance to the Treasury of Atreus buildings were located in the central plaza or rated in bright colors, sometimes with fres-
at Mycenae (c. 1350 BC). The best on the main avenues; they included a city coes, which were occasionally modeled in low
preserved of the Mycenaean temple, a governor's residence, a large public relief.
"Tholos" tombs. The entrance
passage leads into an underground
granary, a public meeting hall , and an inn for On the Greek mainland , the fortified
chamber of corbeled stonework travelers and guests. On a neighboring hill palaces of Mycenae, Tiryns, and Pylos
circular in plan and covered there was usually a strongly walled fortress. exhibit the common characteristic of a cir-
externally by earth. Towns were connected by a system of roads cuitous defensive entrance through the castle
with bridges crossing streams and aqueducts walls leading to a formal colonnaded gateway.
to transport water. There follow one or two courtyards, more or
 Ancient Greek architecture 27

less axially arranged, before the facade of the above massive timber trusses with stone tiles.
main palace structure, the king's throne room This form of temple remained essentially
or megaron, was reached. This low-gabled, the same for hundreds of years, but was
colonnaded facade was constructed largely of continuously refined in form and proportions.
timber with infilling panels of brick or stone The Ionic style, developed in the 6th century
covered with plaster; at the center of the BC, was particularly favored east of the
building was the royal hearth flanked by four Aegean Sea, along the coast of Asia Minor,
columns which supported a gabled roof with while the Doric style was favored in mainland
clerestory lighting. The surface treatments Greece, and also in the Greek colonies of
included alabaster panels and even decorative Sicily and southern Italy, where many of the
pieces of lapis lazuli. The outside walls of the best early Doric temples may still be seen.
castles were built of huge blocks of cyclopean This early period was also notable for the
masonry, polygonal in shape with very fine construction of huge temples measuring as
jointing. Those of Mycenae contain the so- much as 195 x 345 ft. (60 x 110 m). The Ionic
called Lion Gate (c.l450 BC) which contained temples of Samos, Ephesus, and Didyma are
in the heraldic emblem above the lintel an all of this scale; the Doric temples at Selinus
early example of stone sculpture. Outside the and Agrigento in Sicily are also huge. There
walls of Mycenae was one of a number of are other fine early Doric temples at Corinth,
subterranean domed tombs approximately 50 Paestum, and Syracuse.
ft. (15 m) in diameter, popularly known as the The character of the temple went through
"Treasury of Atreus" (c.l350 Be); the cor- many changes as Greek concepts of religion,
beled dome is beehive in shape using finely society, and philosophy developed. While
shaped and coursed ashlar. conservatively retaining all the features
The Mycenaeans were conquered, and their derived from timber construction, the temples
buildings fell into ruin, after invasions from first evolved a noble balance and symmetry of
the north in the 12th century BC. There parts expressing strength and power, with Doric order. From the portico of the
followed a hiatus of five centuries before forms of refined grace (Temple of Zeus at Parthenon in Athens.
sophisticated architecture began to be revived Olympia, c. 470-457 ac). The growth of
about 700 ac. The newly emergent architec- importance of Apollo as the embodiment of
ture owed some important aspects to the perfect youth Jed to a lessening of the
Mycenaeans, particularly the use of the me- emphasis on power, and an increase in the
garon plan for their sacred buildings, the expression of vitality and perfect beauty. It
homes of the gods, and their positioning on an was probably as much a desire to express
acropolis, i.e. a naturally fortified outcrop of lifelike muscular vigor as a desire to achieve
rock, resembling those used by the ancient optically correct proportions that led the
Mycenaeans. The facade of the sacred build- Greeks of the Periclean age to give greater
ing was likewise developed from that of the importance to optical refinements, so that
megaron, as a gabled colonnaded portico. almost every line in the Propylaea and Par-
Unlike the megaron throne rooms, these thenon (447-438 BC) in Athens is curved. Par-
sacred buildings were freestanding and could ticularly important in adding a sense of an-
be approached from any side. In ack- thropomorphic life to these buildings was the
nowledgment of this, the portico was use of entasis on columns. A restrained use of
extended during the 7th century BC as a sculpture, carefully ordered into composite
colonnade of wooden posts surrounding the designs between the structural elements or
building (a peristyle). In an endeavor to make into friezes on the outer or inside walls, drew
the building permanent, the materials of its attention to the link between the shapes of the
construction were changed during the same human body and those of the architecture.
century to stone, always retaining, however, Much of the stonework was left in its natural
the details of its timber ancestors. Hence, in color, but certain areas of moldings and Ionic order. Athenian example
the Doric order the triglyphs represented the sculptures were painted, mainly in vermilion from the 5th century BC.
ends of the cross beams, the guttae the pegs red, indigo blue, and gold. Occasional touches
used for fastening them, and the metopes the of viridian green and silver were added. Each
spaces between them. A further development temple housed a single statue of a god or
was the concept of monolithic construction in goddess , usually executed in marble, ivory ,
which the joints were so fine that they were bronze, or gold.
indistinguishable-an expression of the desire It is noticeable that the interiors of the
for a unique, timeless quality in the houses of temples grow in importance and sophistication
the gods. At the same time, the simple Doric of architectural design during the period of the
order of fluted cylindrical shafts, now tapering Periclean age; the altar, however, and hence
up from a broad base, was developed. The the assemblage of the congregation, was out-
columns emerged without a base from the side the entrance on the eastern axis. The
floor of the building and had a simple "pad" temple was never approached axially, but
Schematic axonometric of part of
capital related to those of ancient Crete. The always at an angle so that its three- the Parthenon at Athens (447-438
floor was elevated on a few steps above the dimensional form could be observed. It was BC) designed by lctinus and
natural ground; the roof was constructed situated on a temenos, or sacred enclosure Calli crates.
28 Roman architecture

they had earlier. The palace at Pelae, and

houses which in Delos remain well preserved
up to upper storey level, had elegant internal
colonnaded peristyles around which the
rooms focused , with walls of paneled stone or
stucco imitating marble, and mosaic or pattern
floors in rich materials. The ceilings were
coffered , as the earlier temples had been.
Cities began to be planned on regular grids,
and axial approaches to public buildings were
introduced. It was an age in which architects
thought of designing groups rather than indi-
vidual buildings . Many cities had large council
halls with wide-spanning roofs (Miletus, 175
Be) and double-storeyed stoas (Stoa of
Attalus, Athens, c. 150 Be-recently
restored). Theaters began to be larger and
more impressive (Epidaurus , c. 300 BC, Per-
gamun, c. 220 Be). They were superbly
designed from the point of view of both
acoustics and theatrical effect.
Little is known of Greek architectural
theory, but there is considerable evidence to
Theater at Epidaurus (c. 350 BC), surrounded by walls, with the gateway, the suggest that it was closely allied to the work
the best preserved example of its propylaea, often given a form second in of the philosophers , showing an understanding
kind. Greek theaters were sited in
natural amphitheaters.
importance only to that of the temple itself; it of geometry and proportioning, and deriving
was usually some type of double colonnade the latter from the mathematical progressions;
open on both sides. Flanking the temenos arithmetical, geometrical, and harmonic.
were other ancillary buildings, notably one or The failure of modern research to produce
more stoas, simple colonnaded buildings open by analysis a single coherent system of design
to the temenos, which provided shelter from which convincingly fits the buildings of the
the sun in hot weather. Periclean age suggests a more complex and
Periclean buildings are also remarkable for flexible theoretical approach to design than
their combination of Doric and Ionic ele- the apparent simplicity of the buildings has
ments; in addition, several purely Ionic tem- hitherto led us to expect.
ples were built in Athens, the temple of At its greatest extent the Alexandrian
Athena Nike (c . 425 BC) and the Erechtheion Empire introduced Greek architecture in the
(c. 420-405 BC) . In the latter, anthro- late 4th century Be to all countries between
pomorphic columns, known as caryatids, Italy , North Africa, and Egypt in the west,
were used to carry a heavy stone entablature, and the Indus valley and Bactria in the east.
thus completing the fusion between architec-
tural elements and the human form. At the
temple of Apollo at Bassae (c. 430-400 BC), Roman architecture
designed by Ictinus, one of the architects of
the Parthenon, the Doric order is used on the Although relatively little is known of Repub-
exterior while Ionic and Corinthian columns lican architecture, it seems to have evolved by
(the latter making its first known appearance) the 3rd century BC into an individual style,
on the interior. In the 4th century a number of part Etruscan, part derived from the late
highly refined and delicate late temples were styles of the Greek colonies in Italy. The
built (Tegea, Priene, and particularly Hellenizing tendencies grew stronger with the
Ephesus, c. 350 BC). conquests of Greece and Asia Minor and, by
The Hellenistic period (c. 323-331 BC), the time of Caesar and Augustus, Roman
following the conquests of Alexander and architecture was beginning to adopt some of
affected by the sudden growth of prosperity the oriental qualities of eastern Hellenism, in
and the new contact with oriental luxury, was particular an extensive use of vaults and
marked by a shift of emphasis toward secular domes. At first employed in the public baths,
building. Religious buildings continued to be themselves probably oriental in origin, these
erected (Didyma c. 300 BC onward, the structural features made possible the highly
Olympeion at Athens, 174 BC onward), but original complex buildings of Hadrian's time,
the essential problems had already been sol- such as the Pantheon in Rome (c. AD 100-125
ved, and development could only take the in its present form) with a dome of 141 ft. (43
direction of overrefinement or experimen- m) diameter. This essentially Roman architec-
Caryatid figure from the north
tation with the Corinthian style. City walls, ture flourished until it reached its apogee in
porch of the Erechtheum on the gates , castles, palaces and houses , and public the great public bath ensembles, such as the
Acropolis at Athens (42!h'393 BC). buildings now received more attention than Baths of Caracalla (c. AD 215) and the Baths
 Roman architecture 29

of Diocletian (c. AD 306). Thereafter, Roman

buildings of size and splendor continued to be
built but less frequently; the Empire was
converted to Christianity c. AD 323 (and after
this date the late Roman style is dealt with
under the heading BYZANTINE).
Early Republican architecture before c. 140
Be was limited to Italy. Following the con-
quests of the wars of Carthage it spread to
Sicily, Spain, North Mrica, and Greece, and
eventually embraced the Mediterranean basin,
extending north to Britain and Germany and
east to Mesopotamia. Under the Empire, the
Romanization of all regional architectures led
to a marked uniformity of style throughout
this huge territory. The impetus was largely
the essentially military organization of the
government, resulting in uniform policies and
attitudes and the regular transfer of personnel
from one region to another.
Roman architecture was always charac- Corinthian order, from the Temple
terized by the use of arcuated systems of of Castor and Pollux, Rome (AD 6).
construction, derived from the Etruscans and
subsequently the eastern Mediterranean,
clothed by colonnades of Hellenic type used
to articulate and lend scale. Buildings of
complex planning evolved and were of an
increasing size and majesty, made possible by
a developing technology and science of build-
ing. The imaginative variations and growth in
scale of the architecture were paralleled by
the increasing size of the metropoles through-
out the Augustan age, a trend which was only
clearly brought to an end with the difficulties
which preceded the early Byzantine period. ABOVE: Colosseum, Rome, (AD
The buildings were organized using a 70-80). The upper storey
was added in AD 222-24. The three
rational system of planning based on sym- tiers of regular arcading are framed
metrical distribution of parts on either side of by a series of three superimposed
axial vistas. The vistas were marked by orders; Tuscan on the lower storey,
gateways, columns, stairs, triumphal arches, followed by Ionic and Corinthian.
and obelisks, and flanked by pairs of BELOW: Pantheon, Rome, (AD
sculptures or fountains. Axes were related by 118-128). The large circular space
intersections at a visual feature, or at right with a diameter of 141 ft. (43 m) is
angles in an open space, and the proliferation covered with a hemispherical
dome and lit by a single round
of axes to cover the landscape could proceed Tuscan order, based on the Doric opening at its crown.
indefinitely. Within this ordered system var- order, with no flutings but
iety could be obtained by changing building incorporating a base.
forms, materials, and the scale and treatment
of openings.
Roman planning systems are well exem-
plified in the design of palaces: Nero's Domus
Aurea, the "Golden House" in Rome, was a
palace laid out on one axis in a straight line and
following in the center the shape of the
Oppian Hill, in the open plan of a colonnaded
villa. While most of the main rooms look out
across colonnades to views of the city, there Pont du Gard, Nimes, France (19
was a trapezoidal courtyard in the center BC). This well-preserved
which separated a wing arranged around a three-tiered aqueduct is
large rectangular court on the west from the constructed of masonry without
mortar.
east wing, which centered on an octagonal
domed hall from which radiated five enter-
taining rooms.
In the unsettled state of the later Empire an
imperial palace assumed a military character,
 30 Early Christian and Byzantine architecture

as for example the Palace of Diocletian at basilican churches were erected-mainly in

Split, Yugoslavia. On a square plan, dissected Rome-between c. 330 and 340, and very little
by two straight axes lined with arcades, the other building took place in the city. It is for that
palace complex was enclosed by a strong reason that the name Early Christian is given to
defensive wall which opened into arcaded the period in Italy from c. 330 to the estab-
galleries on the southern side facing the sea. lishment of the Lombard Kingdom in 568.
There were three main gates on the land side, Before c. 330, Christians had to worship in
on the north, east, and west at the ends of the secret for fear of persecution. Their meetings
main axes. From the wider north-south axis, were held either in private houses or in
which corresponded in the palace complex to catacombs outside cities. The basilican
the peristyle of a Roman house plan, access churches founded in and around Rome during
was obtained to the four major subdivisions of and shortly after Constantine's time include
Colosseum, Rome, (A070-80): the plan in the comers of its square shape, some of the most famous shrines of Western
interior view by G.B. Piranesi (c. and to the area along the sea which contained Christendom. Several have been entirely
1750).
the public and private rooms of the imperial rebuilt, such as the great original basilica of St
residence; the former included the military Peter's (330). Most of the others have been
barracks, the mausoleum of the emperor, a much altered; a typical example of Early
temple, and residences for officials and atten- Christian architecture in Rome is St Paul's-
dants. Many later palaces and castles fol- without-the-Walls, destroyed by fire in 1823 but
lowed models of this type. faithfully reconstructed in its original form.
The Romans often employed a system of Early churches usually had a high central
proportioning based on circles and squares, nave, together with a low flanking aisle on
semicircles and double squares, owing, either side, separated by rows of columns,
perhaps, to the widespread use of semicircular which were generally Corinthian and often
arches, vaults, and domes. For example, in rifled from older pagan buildings; there were
the Pantheon, the height of the walls is equal round-headed windows in the wall above them,
to the radius of the dome. In the same to light the interior; an apse at the east end; and
building the skillful use of a convex floor a narthex or vestibule at the west end. Thus,
Arch of Constantine, Rome (AD surface, which emphasizes the central vertical except for the general plan, the churches
315). Originally surmounted by a axis of the building, and its radiating surface present no new structural or architectural
quad.riga, this arch co~memorates pattern in circles and squares of alternating features; but the plan is important, for it was the
thevlct<;>ryofConstantmeover tones, testify to the subtlety of architectural ancestor of the great medieval churches of
d . .
the A ugustan age. Ltght
.
Maxent1us.
estgn m enters western Europe. Dating from the same period
through a single opening, a wide circular hole as these basilican churches, some round
in the center of the dome, which increases the churches were also erected, usually over the
feeling of enclosure within a huge globe- tombs of martyrs and hence called martyrions
shaped cavern, symbolic of the remote uni- but sometimes merely serving as baptisteries: in
verse of the gods. In contrast to the complete Rome, S. Costanza (330), the Baptistery of
integrity of this internal conception, the Constantine (430-440), S. Stefano Rotondo (c.
external facades are disappointing: the Greek 470); and, at Nocera, the Baptistery (350).
temple-type portico failing to achieve ade- Basilicas were also built as places of worship
quate preparation for the majesty of space by Constantine in his new capital at Byzantium
contained within. In this sense of an intro- (Constantinople). One of these was S. Sophia,
verted plastic architecture, Roman buildings destined to be rebuilt to an entirely different
repeatedly achieve qualities undreamed of by design two centuries later; also at this time the
the Greeks, while externally not surpassing Church of the Nativity at Bethlehem (330) was
their tactile and sculptural achievements. constructed. Circular churches were also
One Roman functional innovation, the erected; over the sepulcher of Christ in
public hall, in which courts of law were held, Jerusalem a famous martyrion was built, much
evolved from a Hellenistic structure of col- of which still survives; while it is clear that at
umns and lintels, with a trussed roof (the Bethlehem a polygonal east end was built to
ancestor of the Early Christian basilica), to surround the underground manger in which
the vast concrete vaulted structure of the Christ was born. A large basilica adjoined the
Basilica Nova of Maxentius (AD 310-313) in Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.
Rome, which served as an inspiration for later There are two interesting later basilicas
medieval and Renaissance churches. in Ravenna: S. Apollinare Nuovo (493-
525), and S. Apollinare in Classe (534-
Early Christian and Byzantine 539); both contain fine mosaics and were
Composite order. Invented by the
Romans, combining architecture erected by Theodoric, the Gothic King ofltaly.
characteristics of the Ionic and The art characteristic of the developed
Corinthian orders, it was often The transference of the capital from Rome to Byzantine Empire can be traced back to the
used in triumphal arches. Byzantium in AD 330 is usually taken to mark period just before the reign of Justinian, c. AD
the end of Roman architecture. Once Con- 500. The style had enormous influence on both
stantine had finally officially recognized Chris- the East and the West. Early Byzantine art may
tianity by the Edict of Milan in 313 a number of to some extent be regarded as Roman art
 Early Christian and Byzantine architecture 31

transformed under influences of the East. It

reached a high point in the 6th century, rose
again for a short time to new heights during the
11th and 12th centuries and still survives among
Greek Orthodox communities.
Byzantine art was a development of Roman
art influenced largely by Persian architecture
and Greek culture, all of which found a
common meeting ground in Constantinople.
The dominant Byzantine art form was architec-
ture. As in Early Christian times, the two chief
types of church were the basilican and the
circular or centralized. Of the latter type, the
chief examples are SS Sergius and Bacchus
(526, Constantinople), and San Vitale (526-547,
Ravenna). The outstanding example of a
building which combined the longitudinal qual-
ities of the basilica with the centralized volume
of the martyrion was the church of Holy
Wisdom (Hagia Sophia) at Constantinople,
which was built 532-537; it was designed by
Anthemius ofTralles and Isidorus ofMiletus. ABOVE: Reconstructed view of
Byzantine architecture in all its phases is the original basilica of
St. Peters, Rome (330).
characterized by the prominence given to the
dome in contrast to the simple sloping wooden
roof of the Early Christian basilica. At Hagia
Sophia, the great central dome is buttressed by
semidomes. The dome had been used in Roman
architecture on circular buildings; but Byzan-
tine domes generail y rise from square bases, the
transition from square to circle being effected
by means of' 'pendentives.'' The vast dome of
Hagia Sophia, 107ft. (33m) across, has its pier
supports largely hidden from view in the central
space by screened aisles and galleries so that it
appears to float effortlessly, an effect which is
enhanced by a ring of windows which pierce the
dome at its lower edge. The contrast of void and
solid, light and dark, produces an atmosphere of
mystery in this and other Byzantine buildings
which is wholly unclassical. The reflected light
shimmering from the myriad facets of the flat
surfaces of mosaic decoration heightens this
unique effect.
Brick was the main material used for the
construction of Byzantine churches; it was
covered externally with plaster, and internally
with thin marble dadoes and mosaics above.
Byzantine decoration was flat and incised, in
contrast to the bold modeling of Western ABOVE: Exterior apse ofS. Vitale,
surfaces. The Roman Corinthian capital was Ravenna, Italy (526-547). The domes,
modified into a convex shape, and the foliage built of interlocking earthenware pots,
carved on it was either "windblown" in are covered by tiled roofs.
character or was decorated with new forms of
ornament. Above it was placed a new feature, ABOVE : Byzantine capitals from
the "dosseret," a block from which rose Constantinople and Venice.
arches, which, as in Roman work, were always Capitals with deep dosseret blocks
semicircular. Columns, usually made of mar- were popular and provided useful
enlarged springing platforms for
ble, were strengthened against earthquakes by arcading.
bronze annulets .
Byzantine architecture of the period of Hagia
Sophia was markedly concerned with
RIGHT: Hagia Sophia,
mathematics and theory. The historian Pro- Constantinople (AD 532-537). The
copius wrote of the great church, " through the minarets were added when the
harmony of its measurements it is distinguished church became a mosque in 1453.
32 Romanesque architecture

by indescribable beauty!" Elsewhere, he France there are a few churches which could be
observed that the design of "a spherical shaped similarly classified; in Spain there was the
Tholos standing upon a circle makes it exceed- Visigothic style.
ingly beautiful!" The architect, Anthemius, From the ancient Roman tradition, the
was the outstanding mathematician of his day, pre-Romanesque architects adopted charac-
and is reported to have described architecture teristic features: the semicircular arch, the
as ''the application of geometry to solid groined cross vault, and a modified and
matter." simplified form of the Corinthian column with
By the 9th century, the Byzantine style was its capital of acanthus leaves. Occasionally, at
widespread throughout the countries of the an early period, they used carved fragments of
Near East and eastern Europe, where the Greek antique buildings. They made important
Orthodox religion was followed, and was advances upon Roman structural methods in
beginning to appear in Russia. Symbolism had balancing the thrust of heavy vaults and domes
now begun to dominate church architecture, by means of buttresses, and in substituting
each building being conceived as a microcosm thinner webs supported on the curved stone ribs
of all earth and sky, as a setting of Christ's lifefor the thick vaults used by the Romans.
on earth, and as a record in visual images of the The developed Romanesque style utilized
liturgical year. Even the colors used in the easily comprehensible plans, volumes, and
internal decoration assumed significance in this forms derived from the spanning of openings
triple symbolism. with semicircular arches , vaults, and, to a lesser
These Byzantine churches followed the plan extent, domes. Parts of the building were
of a Greek cross, that is, a central, domed space clearly demarcated from each other by
with four short square arms (evolved c. 7th articulating elements, such as moldings, string Cathedral Church ofVassili,
century). This form of church eventually courses, vertical shafts, and archivolts; these Moscow. The bulbous domes are
became almost universal, focusing in the were often emphasized by carved or painted derived from Tartar sources.
brilliantly lit central space, which dissolved decorations. A whole building could frequently
mystically into the dark screens and galleries in be seen to be composed of a series of structural
the arms of the cross. Examples are to be seen bays, each more or less self-contained, struc-
in the small Metropolitan Cathedral in Athens, turally and visually static, which could be
and at churches in Daphni, Mistra, Salonica, removed or added to the plan at will. This sense
and Stiris. of completeness and repose, Romanesque owes
to its classical ancestry. In other respects,
Romanesque architecture however, there is a striving for mystical and
dynamic effects, in the contrasts of light and
The generic term Romanesque is sometimes shade produced by rows of relatively small
applied to embrace all the styles of architecture openings in large interiors, and in the upward
which, in most European countries, followed thrust of the nave and aisles beyond classically
the Early Christian style and preceded the balanced proportions.
introduction of the Gothic style, c. 1200. It is The growth of saint worship in the medieval
often subdivided into pre-Romanesque, which church led to systems of staggered and radiating
includes the Lombardic, Carolingian, and apses at the east ends of religious buildings. The
Ottonian or Rhenish styles as well as Saxon and desire to educate illiterate people about the
Romanesque proper, which is taken to have Bible encouraged the spread of painted scenes
begun c. AD 1000. Romanesque architecture is from the Old and New Testaments across the
not identifiable with Romanized Europe, for wall surfaces, and into the glass of the windows,
one finds a few Romanesque buildings in creating a rich interior effect which must, at
Scandinavia and Poland, which were never times, have paralleled that of Byzantine
Roman colonies; whereas in southeast Europe, architecture.
which was once Roman, the Byzantine style The oldest buildings that can properly be
was followed (see EARLY CHRISTIAN AND called pre-Romanesque are found in Italy, such Ste. Madeleine, Vezelay (1100). The
BYZANTINE ARCHITECTURE) . Romanesque is asS. Pietro, Toscanella; S. Maria in Cosmedin nave employed some of the
the term used for architecture in the countries of and S. Giorgio in Velabro, both in Rome; parts earliest pointed cross vaults in
France.
Europe where the Roman Catholic Church of S . Ambrogio, Milan, and Torcello
prevailed, while Byzantine is adopted in coun- Cathedral. All these are of the 8th-9th centuries
tries where the Orthodox or Greek Church was and have been called Lombardic because
supreme. Lombard kings ruled Italy from 568 to 774, their
All Romanesque architecture is, to some capital being at Milan. Charlemagne became
extent, a natural development from ancient Holy Roman Emperor in 800, and his cathedral
Roman or classical architecture, but there was at Aachen in Germany (7~04) is the first
a period, commonly called the Dark Ages- important Carolingian building. This is usually
between the collapse of the Roman Empire in taken to be the beginning ofpre-Romanesque in
the 6th century and the reign of Charlemagne in northern Europe.
the 9th-when a reduced form of Roman The Romanesque period lasted two cen- Reconstructed cross section of the
architecture still persisted. In Italy, this is turies, and was the great age of European 3rd abbey church at Cluny,
called late Early Christian, in England and monasticism. The Benedictine Order was Burgundy, France (1088-c. 1121 ).
 Romanesque architecture 33

founded in Italy in the 6th century, but its chief RIGHT: Abbey church at Laach,
buildings were of later date and of Romanesque Germany (1093-1156).
character. During the period 900-1100, the
Benedictines were followed in due course by
the Cluniac, Cistercian, Augustinian, Pre-
Monstratensian, and Carthusian Orders. The
religious monastic orders were the chief vehi-
cles for the dissemination of new architectural
ideas during the Romanesque period. It is
estimated that, at their height, they controlled
half of the wealth of Europe, and almost all were
wholly international in distribution and orga-
nization.
The 11th and 12th centuries also saw great
activity in castle building, and the science of
military architecture developed rapidly as the
result of warlike contacts with Moslems during
the Crusades. The architectural work of the
Romanesque period therefore consists almost
exclusively of monasteries, cathedrals, parish
churches, and castles. Very few domestic
buildings have survived, for there was hardly
any middle class below the feudal lord in his
castle. In England, the so-called Jews' Houses
at Lincoln are a rare exception.
Romanesque churches generally followed
the basilican plan, with aisles and an apse; but
transepts were often added, and sometimes the
aisles were continued around the apse to form
ABOVE: Romanesque capitals. The
an ambulatory. Towers were now popular, the cubiform capital (lower figure) is
campanile having been invented centuries the basis of richly shaped capitals
earlier; Italy contains several graceful exam- ofthe later Romanesque period as
ples, while the churches of the Rhineland have shown (upper figure) from the
church of St. Sebald, Nuremberg,
gabled towers, and in England (e.g. Sompting in Germany.
Sussex, 11th century) there are small towers of
the same type. Numerous centralized
churches, too, were built during this period,
based upon the precedent of the Early Christian
baptistery, and thus ultimately derived from
ancient Roman temples and tombs. The
Knights Templars built four circular churches RIGHT: S. Ambrogio, Milan, Italy.
in England, taking as their model the Church of The plan dates from the 9th century
and was completed in 1140. It
the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, originally includes the only surviving
founded by Constantine. Arcading (rows of atrium among Lombard churches.
semicircular arches, sometimes interlacing)
was freely used as decoration on the towers , the
walls, and even the interiors of churches.
Windows were comparatively narrow and
round headed. Doors also had round arches
over them, the tympanum (the space between
the lintel of the doorway and the arch) being
usually carved. The jambs or sides of the
doorway were decorated with crude and even
grotesque carved moldings and small shafts
were recessed in them. The roofs of Roman-
esque churches were steep in northern Europe,
whether the building was vaulted or not, but of a
much lower pitch in Italy, where the simple
tiled roof of the Early Christian basilica was
followed. Stained glass was introduced toward
the end of the Romanesque period. Some of the
finest examples of the use of stained glass can Benedictine abbey church at Cloister of S. Paolo fuori le Mura,
be seen at Canterbury Cathedral, England, Jumieges, Normandy (1037-66); Rome, Italy (1241 ). The delicately
Poitiers Cathedral, France, and at Augsburg predating the use of vaulting in carved twisted twin columns
Cathedral , Germany. Norman France. are inlaid with glass mosaic.
34 Gothic architecture

Gothic architecture an enclosing arch, the remaining enclosed space

being pierced with small circular openings.
The architecture of the central Middle Ages Later the stonework between all the various
was termed Gothic during the Renaissance windows and openings in the group was
because of its association with the barbarian reduced to slender stone bars, and the whole
north. Having lost its derogatory overtones, the enclosed group of openings became a single
term is now used to describe the important window; the upper portion within the arch being
international style in most countries of Europe filled with tracery, consisting at first of
from the end of the Romanesque period in the geometric patterns, then of flowing patterns,
12th century to the advent of the Renaissance and finally of quasi-rectangular openings form-
movement in the 15th century in Italy; and in ing a grid. The effect of a grid (giving the name
the 16th century elsewhere. It was essentially Perpendicular to Late Gothic in England) was
Amiens Cathedral, France the style of the Catholic countries of Europe mainly due to the introduction of horizontal
(1220--88), by Robert de Luzarches. including Hungary and Poland; and it was also transoms in the larger windows. The increased
The flying buttresses, a carried to Cyprus, Malta, Syria, and Palestine glass areas became a field for magnificent
characteristic of French Gothic
architecture, are lightened by
by the Crusaders and their successors in the displays of stained glass which eventually
delicate tracery carving. Mediterranean. The forms that were developed dominated the interior character of the
within the style on a regional basis were often of churches, such as the cathedral at Chartres.
great beauty and complexity. They were used The Gothic style developed rapidly in the
for all secular buildings, as well as for cathe- region around Paris from the mid-12th to
drals, churches, and monasteries. mid-13th centuries. Many great cathedrals were
The inception of Gothic architecture dates to built or refashioned in the new style, of which
about 1140, when Abbot Suger initiated the Paris (begun 1163), Chartres (1194), Bourges
redesigning of the chevet of the Abbey of Saint (1190), Reims (1211), and Amiens (1220) were
Denis, outside Paris. It attained its highest the most significant. With the collapse of the
excellence in France and England. In Ger- tower (550 ft./168 m) and the choir vaulting
many, Belgium, Holland, Spain, and Swit- (157 ft./48 m) at Beauvais in 1284, the upward
zerland it was largely borrowed from one of striving of the continental cathedrals was
those two countries, especially from France. In brought to an end. Although Cologne (1248)and
Bourges Cathedral, France
Italy, because of the strength of the classical Ulm (1377) were intended to be bigger in
(1190-1275). The principal portal Roman tradition, it developed in a different, various ways, they had to wait until the 19th
has a double doorway surmounted and more restrained, direction; and, for the century for completion.
by a tympanum containing scenes same reason, it quickly succumbed to the Meanwhile, English Gothic had taken
from the Last Judgment.
Renaissance, which itself echoed that tradition. another direction, concentrating on developing
The characteristic feature of Gothic architec- Romanesque complexity of forms in relatively
ture at all its stages and in all the countries long, low, diffuse buildings with extremely rich
mentioned is the pointed arch. Up to com- patterning and decoration. English Gothic
paratively recent times, some scholars attri- came to an end with the final flowering of the
buted the origin of this feature to the shape Perpendicular style, seen at its best in King's
produced by interlacing of semicircular arches College Chapel, Cambridge (1444), the naves of
in an arcade; but now the invention of the Winchester (c. 1480), and Canterbury (c. 1400).
pointed arch is universally ascribed to the Flying buttresses, perhaps the most dramatic
Middle East, where it was used on a large scale features of French Gothic cathedrals, are only
in the great mosque of Samarra in Iraq (mid-9th occasionally found in England, e.g. at
century) and Ibn Tulun at Cairo (876...g79). The Westminster Abbey, which is the most French
idea may well have been brought to France and in character of the greater English Gothic
England by the Crusaders. churches. Fan vaulting, on the other hand, is a
The pointed arch is, however, more sig- distinctly English invention. Open timber roofs
nificant in Europe because its introduction are seen at their best in English Gothic
enabled Gothic builders to solve many prob- churches and secular halls, the enormous oak
lems, especially those surrounding the use of roof of Westminster Hall (1397-99) being the
ribbed vaulting (in Durham, I 109, and the finest example. This is a hammer-beam roof, a
abbeys of Caen, 1115-20), and thus to develop type peculiar to England. The so-called Tudor
the elaborate and highly rational system of arch is also distinctively English, though a
vaulting and buttressing which is the real basis similar form had been used in Islamic buildings.
of Gothic architecture, differentiating it from The development of Gothic in other Euro-
the heavier Romanesque. One result of the pean countries differed in many respects from
improved system of vaulting and, eventually, that in England. Thus France had no late
flying buttressing, was an increase of window Perpendicular phase, but produced a Flam-
area in the walls between buttresses, because boyant phase unknown in England, though it is
these walls no longer had to carry the main occasionally found in Scotland. Italian Gothic
weight of the roof; therefore they could be is again different from English and French,
Sens Cathedral, France, begun in thinner and pierced with ease. The pointed arch concentrating on great spans with simple arches
1143. View of nave looking toward was now used over windows, and these lancet on basilican plans, and some Italian cathedrals
the east end. windows were grouped in twos or threes under have striped exteriors of black and white
 Renaissance architecture 35

marble. Many great German churches were RIGHT: Diagrams of nave arcading
built of brick. from different periods of English
Stained glass had begun to be used during the Gothic architecture.
Romanesque period, but its full development
occurred in Gothic times, and all other
branches of craftsmanship made great
advances. Color was freely used in the interior
of the greater churches, not only in the form of
stained glass but also by painting moldings and
in wall paintings of religious subjects.
The theory of architecture during Gothic
times derived from Scholasticism, the great
medieval philosophical system which
attempted to resolve all comprehensible con-
flicts in the real world by its special technique of
"argument" then "counter-argument" (anti-
thesis), followed by " resolution." Art his-
torians have recently claimed (Panovsky) tha.t
this process of thinking could be applied to
determine the direction of architectural
development in the Gothic style, as well as to
solve detailed problems of design.

Renaissance architecture
Beginning in central and northern Italy, the
renaissance of the 15th century in architecture
spread in the early 16th century to northern
Europe, Spain, and Portugal, and soon after
to the European colonies in America, Africa,
and Asia.
The cultural center of Florence was the
birthplace of Renaissance architecture; Rome,
which contained many of the classical ruins
from which the Renaissance architects first
drew their inspiration, was a small city by
comparison.
Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446), a young
goldsmith of Florence, having been unsuc-
cessful in the competition for bronze doors to
the baptistery there in 1401, decided to tum to
architecture, and visited Rome in order to make
a firsthand study of the ancient buildings. His
designs for completing the unfinished cupola of
Florence cathedral were successful in 1420. He
later built the Pazzi Chapel adjoining S. Croce
in Florence; and this work may be regarded as
the first Renaissance church attempting to
wholly employ the principles of Roman
architecture.
The fundamental tenet of the new Renais-
sance theory of architecture was the ideal-
ization of architectural forms in accordance
with the concept of universals expounded in
Platonic philosophy. The essential tool to be
used to achieve this perfection was mathemat-
ics, which, in the shape of Euclidean geometry,
could be observed to be present in forms of
natural life and was, indeed, believed to ABOVE: Early English Gothic
underlie nature and the proportions of the capitals 119Q-1250.
human body. Brunelleschi himself discovered
RIGHT: Plan of Wells Cathedral,
that geometrical mathematics could be used to England, built in stages
establish the laws of visual perception in (118Q-1425). Only one-half of the
perspective. Architectural design therefore cloister is shown.
36 Renaissance architecture

became primarily concerned with the use of

pure geometric forms, with the effects of careful
visual proportioning, and with the mathemat-
ical relationship of objects in space.
During the next generation, Renaissance
architecture was confined to Florence and its
neighborhood, the main exponents being
Brunelleschi himself and Michelozzo. By the
middle of the 15th century, the movement had
spread owing to the influence of Leone Battista
Alberti (1402-72), a characteristic Renaissance
man who obtained a doctorate in law and was
talented as a poet and musician. Turning to
architecture in middle age, he designed his first
building in 1446; and wrote a book on architec-
ture, De Re Aedificatoria, published in 1485,
after his death. The subsequent importance of Palazzo Vendramini Calergi,
Ospedale degli Innocenti in
Florence: Italy (14191, by Filippo Alberti was partly due to the fact that he was the Venice, Italy (1481 I, by Pietro
Brunelleschi. The columnar arcade first architect since ancient Roman times to Lombardo. The facade, which faces
with semicircular arches became a write on the principles of architectural design, onto the Grand Canal, does not
return around the sides of the
popular Renaissance theme. and that he based these largely upon his building, and is composed to
observation of Roman architecture. In due accommodate the traditional
course, he was followed by other Italian writers Venetian fenestration.
who adopted the same procedure. They
included Sebastiano Serlio (1475-1554),
Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola (1507-73),
Andrea Palladio (1508-80), and Vicenzo
Scamozzi (1552-1616). All of them were able to
quote from the work on architecture written by
the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius, the
manuscript of which seems to have been
discovered in 1414 and was published in Rome
in 1486. Thus, architectural design in Italy, and
ultimately the rest of Europe, became to some
extent a matter of Roman and Greek precedent. S. Giorgio Maggiore, Venice, Italy
In Italy, the impatient genius of (15li51, by Andrea Palladia. The
composition is based on the idea of
Michelangelo (1475-1564), a sculptor-painter superimposing twotemplefacades
turned architect late in life, rebelled against so on one another-a tall narrow one
much pedantic dictation; and his deviations for the nave and a w ide low one to
Detail of the facade oft he Palazzo
Rucellai in Florence, Italy
from orthodoxy were partly responsible for the accommodate the church aisles.
(1445-501, by Leone Battista growth of Mannerism and led ultimately to the
Alberti. This was the first Baroque style. His masterpieces were the
Renaissance palace to use a series design of StPeter's in Rome (1546-64) and the
of superimposed pilasters and
entablatures.
Campidoglio (1539). Raphael (1483-1520)
similarly rejected narrow canons of architec-
ture, observing that the ancient Romans them-
selves had produced buildings rich in diversity.
His disciples, Giulio Romano (1492-1546) and
Baldassare Peruzzi (1481-1536), were among
the leaders of the subsequent Mannerist phase.
A generation later, Palladi0 led a return to
classicist design in a prolific career of villa,
palace, and church design focused on Vicenza
(Villa Rotunda, c. 1550)and Venice (S. Giorgio
Maggiore, 1566 and II Redentore, 1576).
The stages by which the new Renaissance
doctrines of architectural design gradually
overcame the prevailing Gothic tradition varied
from country to country. Traces of medieval
influence remained in the northern Renais-
Tempietto in the cloisters of S. sance, such as the sinuous outline of gables,
Pietro in Montorio, Rome, high-pitched roofs and, in many facades, the Bramshill House, Hampshire,
(1502-101, by Donato Bramante. England (1605-121. The design of
Based on Roman peripteral
predominance of openings over areas of solid
the Jacobean porch by Gerald
temples, it displays an early use of wall. The three channels through which the new Christmas is based on plates ofthe
the Doric order. gospel was communicated were: Italian crafts- Dutch engraver Dietterlin.
 Baroque architecture 37

men and architects working in other countries; Baroque architecture

Italian books on architecture, such as those
mentioned above; and visits of architects and Baroque was originally a term of abuse,
wealthy aristocrats to Italy in order to study the implying misshapen, given by later classical
Roman ruins. In the first category are crafts- critics to the architecture of the whole of the
men such as Pietro Torrigiano (1472-1528), 17th century, and including in some areas the
who executed the monument of Henry VII in early part of the 18th century. In fact , the
Westminster Abbey in London, England style was born as a result of the confluence of
(1512), and the group of Italians who worked in a number of tendencies in the architecture of
France at Fontainebleau, Amboise, etc, for the late Renaissance in the 16th century. At
Fran<;ois I (1515-47), among them the architect the beginning of the 17th century various
Sebastiano Serlio. Italian books on architecture works were executed in Rome which signaled
were translated and sold throughout Europe; the advent of the new style by displaying an
but other, less authentic works on the orders of interest in dramatic, almost melodramatic
architecture and on classical design began to effects, and favoring a giant scale, a rather
appear from the printing presses of Antwerp congested modeling of surface-with the plac-
and Amsterdam. Some of them were produced ing of moldings and columns close together-
by engravers with little knowledge of architec- and a new emphasis on the importance of
ture and resulted in mere caricatures of classical unity. All the elements were, in fact, sub-
buildings. Their effect on architectural design servient to this overriding idea of oneness.
was naturally unorthodox, which explains the Hitherto, in the Renaissance and Mannerist
often curious architecture of the late 16th and styles, individual parts of the building had
early 17th centuries in such buildings as the formed perfect compositions in themselves, so
chil.teaux of the Loire, Elizabethan and Jaco- that the whole was built up of balanced parts;
bean houses and colleges in Britain, and the the effect was static and measured. The
gabled . town halls of German, Dutch, and character of Baroque is a dynamic clustering
Flemish cities. Some French architects of the of forms, with the individual elements being
late 16th century-among them Philibert subordinated, to culminate in a vital and
Delorme (1500-70) and Jacques Androuet du invigorating whole. Baroque buildings cannot
Cerceau (c. 1515-c. 1590}-had studied ancient therefore be understood in terms of an intel- S. Carlino aile Ouattro Fontane.
Roman architecture firsthand in Italy, as had lectual system-instead they must be experi- Rome (1633), by Francesco
Borromini. The undulating wall
the English architect John Shute (d. 1563) who enced emotionally, the mind and feelings and a free use of the classical
published The ChiefGroundes ofArchitecture reacting to the orchestration of forms and vocabulary accentuate the
in 1563. In 1624, Sir Henry Wotton (1568-1639), spaces. presence of this small facade in a
narrow street.
a cultured diplomat, published The Elements of The idea that forms could be manipulated in
Architecture , a small book based almost defiance of classical canons goes back at least
entirely on Vitruvius, but reinforced by per- to Michelangelo (1475-1564). It was he who
sonal study in Italy. experimented with changes of scale, intro-
Inigo Jones (1573-1652), although a poor ducing, in his designs for the external facades
man, managed to spend years of study in Italy, of St Peter's and the Campidoglio in Rome ,
concentrating mainly on the works of Palladio; the use of the colossal order which runs
and, after returning to England, he was through two or three storeys; the scale is
commissioned to design the Queen's House at emphasized, as it had been in the ancient
Greenwich (1617-35) and the Banqueting Roman baths and palaces, by the jux-
House at Whitehall (1619-22). These two taposition with smaller columns related to
remarkable buildings introduced to England the sculpture at eye level. The clustering of
genuine Renaissance architecture of Italy. Sir columns and moldings to suggest lines of force
Christopher Wren (1632-1723) did not visit in buildings, often in conflict with one
Italy himself, and his architecture was never so a nother, had a lso been developed in
wholeheartedly I tal ian as that of Jones. He, and Michelangelo's earlier experimental designs,
still more some of his followers, Thomas such as the Laurentian Library in Florence.
Archer (1668-1743), Nicholas Hawksmoor Now these effects were further emphasized
(1661-1736), and Sir John Vanbrugh (1664- by the use of curves of contrasing shape.
1726), showed some sympathy with the Ba- From the volute there developed the idea of
roque. In the early 18th century, however, the concavo-convex line, which linked late
there was another swing of the pendulum in Renaissance gable facades, such as that of the
Englano back to the orthodox scholarship of Gesu in Rome with Leone Battista Alberti's
Palladio and his advocate Inigo Jones. Hence Santa Maria Novella in Florence (1456-70)
its practitioners were called the Palladian and hence with late Gothic gabled facades.
School of architects. They included such All these tendencies are best exemplified in Chapel of the Holy Shroud, Turin
famous names as Lord Burlington (1694- the work of two great Baroque architects in Cathedral, ltaly (1694), by Guarino
1753), James Gibbs (1682-1754), William Kent 17th-century Rome: Francesco Borromini Guarini. The dome has 16
intersecting binding arches
(1685-1748), and Colen Campbell (1673- (1599-1667) and Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini supporting a large lantern allowing
1729) (see N EO- CLASSICISM A ND ROMAN- (1598-1680) (Palazzo Barberini, 1628, S. Carlo light to flood through some of the
TICISM). aile Quattro Fontane, 1633, StPeter's Square, open panels of the structure.
 38 Rococo architecture

1656, the Scala Regia in the Vatican, 1633). tified as an expression of autocratic power,
The illusionist and theatrical aspects of Ba- and this was true to the extent that great
roque made possible the fusion of painting, expense was often incurred in erecting its
sculpture, and architecture in a way that had monumental grandeur. Nevertheless, Baroque
never previously been attained. In Bernini's architecture often achieved its effects by
Cornaro Chapel in Santa Maria della Vittoria economical illusionist means, which might
(1646), the visitation of an angel to St Teresa more justly be criticized for the rapidity with
is accomplished in a swirl of marble drapery which they decay if neglected. Plaster, gilt,
and fluttering wings which is given a shim- and imitation marble were common ingre-
mering other-wordly intensity by the natural dients. The aim was not so much to express
light flooding down from hidden windows autocratic control as to achieve a magnificent
behind the broken pediment of the architec- effect and for a time this aspect of the
tural frame; radiating gilded rays emphasize Baroque even found a role in northern Euro-
the direction of the light and add a dynamic pean countries such as England (Blenheim
drama to the scene. In a similar way, Pietro Palace, 1705).
da Cortona's (1596-1669) great ceiling mural By retaining the qualities of grandeur, large
in the vaulted salon of the Palazzo Barberini scale, and magnificence, but reducing those
transforms the shallow curving surface into an which introduced congestion and bizarreness,
extraordinary construction of colossal stone Baroque could also assume a Classicist guise.
shapes surmounted by giants and crowds of This form was especially popular in France
floating figures. Da Cortona's own works in and the Low Countries, (the east front of the
architecture are more subdued but are, Louvre, 1665, and the Royal Palace in
nevertheless, splendid examples of the early Amsterdam, 1648-55).
Baroque style (SS Martina e Luca, 1635).
Although Baroque facades are frequently Rococo architecture
independent compositions, distinct from the Rococo architecture is a natural development
architecture of the interior, both convey an from Baroque architecture. Like Baroque, the
Facade of the Cathedral of impression of compressed forms bulging and term originally began as one of derision,
Santiago de Compostela, Spain swaying with energy and force, and are implying decorative rockwork and shellwork
(1738), by Fernando Casas Novoa.
The mass of detail on the facade is
expressive of a powerful unity. such as was found in grottoes and gardens.
disciplined by the strong lines of its Baroque architects felt emboldened to Rococo, again like Baroque, was less an
form. experiment with unusual and somewhat intellectual, logical style, evolved from a
bizarre forms; the oval, the octagon, and star rational use of architectural elements, than a
shapes were used, often interpenetrating with purely visual style designed to create an
one another. Guarino Guarini (1624-83), one emotional response.
of the principal architects of the High Ba- In Rococo architecture the emphasis is very
roque, built a number of churches in Turin, much on interior effect, facades being rele-
Lisbon, and Paris. His Palazzo Carignano in gated to an almost utilitarian role, although
Turin further developed the original and retaining some of the lightness and delicacy
bizarre characteristics of the Baroque, while that was so highly prized in the interiors.
retaining a strict mathematical control, as Whereas lines and forms had been clearly
Borromini had done. His complex inter- articulated in the Baroque, following Renais-
penetrations of convex and concave forms, sance principles, the breaking up into separate
and his breaking through of vaults and domes distinct parts was abandoned in the Rococo,
with windows to provide unexpected shafts of and forms were now allowed to flow freely
light, had considerable influence on the Ba- into one another. An example can be seen in
roque styles of Austria, southern Germany, the transition from Baroque concavo-convex
eastern Europe, Spain, and Portugal. In all of curved moldings , clearly made up of arcs of
these countries, and in the new colonial world circles, into the continuous undulating curved
overseas, Baroque architecture flowered; in profiles of the Rococo, in which oval and
some areas it lasted another hundred years. parabolic forms abound. The chief charac-
The Baroque desire to impress led to teristics of Rococo expression are lightness ,
innovations such as the contrasting effects of gaiety, playfulness, and wit-the emphasis is
construction and release, produced by leading on delighting the eye. A spirit of freedom is
the spectator into a small antechamber from implied, in contrast with the majesty and
which he emerged into a vast reception hall or grandeur of the preceding Baroque.
cathedral nave, and to such effects as the Rococo was born when the nobility moved
infinite vista, made possible by continuing the away from Versailles and returned to Paris
Elaborate gilding and
architectural lines of a building into the with the rest of society on the death of Louis
embellishment were hallmarks of surrounding landscape, where they could be XIV in 1715. The new town houses were built
the Rococo style. Here, at the led off to the horizon. The most influential in a free graceful style without the columns
Amalienburg Pavilion in Munich, example of the latter concept was executed at and heavy moldings of the old palace. Suites
Germany (1734-39), the sequence
of rooms opening upon each other
Versailles, where the king could be "seen" to of rooms now opened freely into one another,
creates a marvelous sense of be visually dominating France (see PALACES). and french windows gave easy access to the
lightness. Baroque architecture is, therefore, often iden- surrounding gardens. High windows and
 Neo-Classical Architecture 39

doors allowed light to penetrate everywhere,

so that only the shallowest of moldings were
necessary to decorate the surfaces; the effect
of continuity of space and of brilliance of
lighting was enhanced by reflections from
countless mirrors. Comers were curved to
eliminate sharp angles, and delicate gilt stucco
work traced lines across the pastel walls to
unite all the elements into an overall pattern.
Where Baroque forms and lighting were vari-
able and dramatic, Rococo forms and lighting
were unified and restrained.
The period after 1730 saw the introduction
of asymmetrical decoration into Rococo.
This, again, seems to have begun in Paris and
was taken up and popularized by the decora-
tive schemes of the painter Fran<;:ois Boucher
(1703-70).
In their concern with the provision of an
impressive sequence of spaces in a palace,
Baroque architects had introduced the con-
cept of the grand stairway; this gradually
increased in size until it became the main "dematerialized." Yet any individual detail is Palace of the Belvedere, Vienna,
feature in many of the larger palaces in tangible and can be admired for the exquis- Austria (1721-23), by Lucas von
Hildebrandt. It demonstrates a
Germany and Austria. The removal of walls iteness of its shape and execution. playfulness typical of the 18th
dividing the stair hall from the entrance Rococo was eventually replaced as a style century in its white stucco and
permitted an unbroken movement from the by Neo-Classicism, following a reaction decorated end pavilions.
entrance to the main reception salon on the against it which began in the 1740s.
second floor which, in such palaces as
Briichsal (1730) and Wi.irzburg (c. 1735) in Neo-Classical architecture
Germany, was accompanied by exquisite
transitions of character from the lower to the This style spread through Europe in the
upper levels. At Wi.irzburg the columns sup- second half of the 18th century as a reaction
porting the oval vaults under the stairs, which from Rococo and the excesses of the late
bridge the carriage drive through the building, Baroque. The term "Classicist" is used for
seem to dissolve in multiple spatial and light any architecture or art which revives the
effects . This illusion is heightened by the principles of Greek and Roman art; Neo-
great ceiling painting by Giovanni Battista Classicist is specifically used for the revival
Tiepolo (1696-1770) spanning the upper stairs which occurred in the 18th century. Its par-
across a volume which seems to grow ever ticular quality is its faithfulness to the new
wider as one moves upward. Here the paint- science of archaeology which grew directly
ing finally releases the volume of the upper with the enthusiasm created by excavations at
stair into the infinite illusion of a painted blue Herculaneum, Paestum, and Pompeii (1736
sky. to 1756). A number of finely illustrated vol-
The greatest of all Rococo churches is that umes were published on the archaeological
of Vierzehnheiligen (1744) by Johann Balthasar finds, and the German archaeologist and art
Neumann (1687-1753) who started the build- historian Johann Joachim Winckelmann
ing on existing foundations. The relatively (1717--68) was the first to interpret the art of
geometric forms of the exterior are internally the classical world in terms of its qualities of
transformed by light curved screens of directness, balance, and correct proportion.
superimposed galleries into a series of five The theorists of Classical architecture, Abbe
interpenetrating oval vaults; these focus on a Laugier (1713--69) and Carlo Lodoli (1690-
delicate shrine in the center of the floor 1761), demanded that simplicity and ration-
representing a vision of 14 saints encircling ality, derived from first principles rather than
the infant Christ. Again, the integration of from mere imitation of Greek and Roman
sculpture, stucco work, wood carving, gilt, splendor, should dominate architectural
and illusionist paintings with the architectural design. The movement held strong ethical
forms and materials is so skillfully handled implications, rejecting the frivolity of Rococo
that the building seems more an illusion than social life and expressing a desire to restore
reality, an effect enhanced by the light stream- the "ancient Roman" virtues to public and
ing from numerous windows hidden behind private life. At the same time, the engravings Lansdown Crescent, Bath, England
screens and sculptures. No form or architec- of Giovanni Battista Piranesi ( 1720-78) (1792), by John Palmer. As befitted
a spa dating back to Roman times,
tural space is separate and comprehensible-- inspired a vision of Roman architecture which its streets and squares were
all are interwoven and interacting. Walls are emphasized its formal and spatial qualities. designed in an austere Classical
no longer wholly enclosing, they are At first the Neo-Classicist style was largely style.
 40 Romantic architecture

rievitch Zakharov (1761-1811) in Russia.

Decoration, including classical enrichments,
was restrained and sometimes dispensed with
altogether.
Although in the 18th century few architects
took Neo-Classical principles to their logical
conclusion, in the best work the orders were
used structurally rather than ornamentally,
columns supported real entablatures and were
not merely applied to the walls. The principle
of the Baroque and the Rococo, whereby
unity in a facade was achieved by subjugating
the various elements to the central focus, was
rejected in favor of a new clarity of parts
which was also reflected in the assembly of
the volumes of the buildings, which were
sometimes almost brutally juxtaposed.
The morality implicit in the Neo-Classicist
movement found an echo in late 18th-century
projects for visionary social schemes, such as
ideal cities and Ledoux's government Salt
Works. Although these ideas were bold in
conception, they always proved too expensive
or too impractical to be realized.

Romantic architecture
High above the Danube, the inspired by Roman buildings. Its chief expo-
Walhalla at Regensburg, Germany
(1830-42), by Von Klenze, appears
nent in England was Robert Adam (1728-92), Although Romanticism is often considered a
as a Greek temple transported to who had spent several years in Italy and movement in opposition to Classicism, in
northern Europe. Yugoslavia studying ancient Roman buildings architectural terms both Classicism and
and interior decoration. After 1758 Adam Romanticism in the 19th century incorporated
created a new style in domestic decoration ideals which were beyond the ordinary every-
based on Roman interior design; he rejected day world. Both embraced concepts of nobil-
the prevailing Palladian style, since it applied ity, grandeur, virtue, and superiority and
inside the house the heavy columns and looked to other ages for their inspiration.
cornices of Roman external facade architec- Classicism, like Gothic, claimed to be a
ture. He replaced it with a style in which all "natural" style on the grounds that it had
massive details were omitted, and walls and evolved as a direct response to materials and
ceilings were divided into geometric shapes by techniques in building-in fact, both styles
the lightest of moldings, delicately enriched were used poetically and romantically.
by classical Roman ornaments such as swags The roots of Romanticism go back far into
of wheat husks, fluted fans, and winged the 18th century. Its earliest manifestation is
sphinxes. This was all executed in molded usually taken to be the English landscape
Plate from Thomas Hope's plaster, painted in simple pastel shades. Deli- garden. Here, a deliberate reconstruction of
Household Furniture and Interior
Decoration (1807). The interior
cate classical motifs, with panels of bas-relief the chance effects of nature evoked the
decoration is inspired by an sculpture, were also incorporated in the Arcadian idyllic landscapes of Nicolas Pous-
interpretation of classical design of fireplaces and door frames. sin (1594-1665) and Claude Lorrain (16~2) .
mythology. Mter the publication in 1762 of James The introduction of a ruined temple or chapel
Stuart's and Nicholas Revett's The Anti- into a landscape garden gave it a literary
quities of Athens , the severity of Greek Doric connotation. A ruined temple had more poetic
architecture began to be influential. It was significance than a new one because it was
accompanied by a belief in the inherent more evocative of the passage of time and the
nobility of early architectural styles-a con- decay of human endeavors; the transfer of
viction that architecture and society had been attention from the perfection and rationality of
at their purest and best in their simplest and the complete building to the broken and
most primitive forms. The emphasis on sim- partial qualities of a ruin provokes meditation
plified and even severe elements culminated on its philosophical, spiritual, and emotional
in the creation of an architecture of pure qualities. The view that finds a ruined temple
geometric forms-the cube, pyramid, cylin- beautiful is a Romantic view, though the
der, and sphere-in the work of Etienne Louis temple may once have been classically per-
Boullee (1728-99) and Claude Nicolas Ledoux fect.
Cannon Foundry -an engraving (1736-1806) in France, Sir John Soane (1753- With the growth of the Industrial Revolu-
from C.N. Ledoux's collection of 1837) in England, Friedrich Gilly (1772-1800) tion, the expansion of the middle classes in
schemes for institutional and other
buildings for an ideal city (c. 1804). in Germany, Benjamin Henry Latrobe England and France together with the iso-
(1764-1820) in the U .S., and Adrian Omit- lation of educated and cultivated groups, led
 Islamic architecture 41

to a nostalgia for what was past in preference

to the new material values. Eventually the
Romantic attitude became an indirect protest
against the inadequacy of contemporary real-
ity, its social conditions, and its corrupt
political tenets. Taken up by the newly rich,
so that it finally became middle class in
attitude, the Romantic movement, neverthe-
less, permeated the whole of society.
The Gothic Revival began in the mid-18th
century with architectural conceits of the
literati, such as Horace Walpole's (1717-97)
Neo-Gothic villa of Strawberry Hill, near
Twickenham, England (c. 1755), and William
Beckford's Fonthill Abbey, also in England
(1796-1807). The latter was a large country
house in the form of a cathedral with an
immense central octagonal tower. In the early
19th century, Gothic came to be seriously
considered as the correct style for building
new churches; it became closely identified
with various religious revivals and was advo-
cated by architects like Augustus Welby
Pugin (1812-52) as the only suitable style ,
provided it was based on a correct under-
standing and careful imitation of the original
Gothic of the Middle Ages. By 1830 the style and sometimes town halls and law courts, and Royal Pavilion, Brighton, England.
most imitated was that of the 13th century, Classical Revival styles for houses, palaces, Designed by John Nash in 1815-21
but the architect Sir Charles Barry (1795- and commercial buildings. There were, how- in an Islamic Indian style, it is one of
the most theatrical of buildings,
1860), a Classicist by preference, used the ever, curious anomalies, such as the pre- creating an impression offantasy
English Perpendicular style when, with Pugin, ference for Gothic styles by many designers and opulence.
he executed the British Houses of Parliament. of railroad stations. In North America, the
Ruskin, however, in the mid-19th century, Greek Revival came closest to assuming the
advocated the richer Venetian Gothic. In the proportions of a national style. The style was
latter part of that century scholarly imitations also that most favored in Germany, Austria,
gave way to more original adaptations of and Russia. Under the various French
Gothic and Romanesque principles by British empires of the 19th century the Imperial
architects such as William Butterfield (1814- Roman styles were revived to give authority
1900) and George Edmund Street (1824-S1) to the new regimes; the same course was
and, in America, Frank Furness (1839-1912) followed in Italy.
and Henry Hobson Richardson (1838-S6). Eclecticism and the "battle of the styles"
Closely aligned to the Gothic revival was came to an end under the impact of indus-
the taste for the "picturesque." Also originat- trialization in building, the use of new mat-
ing in landscape architecture, but soon applied erials, and the eventual triumph of common
to rural building, the taste for the picturesque sense. The unsuitability of the Revival styles
led to the cultivation of asymmetry, irregular for many of the new building forms , such as
building outlines in both plan and elevation, the skyscraper, was eventually recognized-
and an excess of variety, ornament, and although one of the highest buildings, the
whimsy. 52-storeyed Woolworth Building, New York, All Saints, Margaret Street,
The Gothic style dominated 19th-century was executed in the Gothic style in the early London, England (1850-59), by
architecture in many countries, notably Eng- 20th century by Cass Gilbert (1859-1934). William Butterfield. The brick
structure ofthe building is richly
land and America, even for civic and com- patterned in black ana red-
mercial buildings. Under the influence of Islamic architecture " constructional polychromy."
Romanticism, severe Neo-Classical ideals
were abandoned in favor of styles richer in Islamic architecture focuses on a religious
decoration, more picturesque in composition, architecture deriving ultimately from the
and more literary in their allusions to the past. teaching of Muhammad, the prophet who
The Neo-Classical style was replaced by a lived in Arabia at the beginning of the 7th
form of Revivalism, either Greek Revival, century AD. It contains elements taken from
Roman Revival , or Renaissance Revival. the creative traditions of many conquered
Architects in the 19th century often resolved countries. One of the outstanding achieve-
the confusion of allegiances demanded by the ments of Islam was the successful fusion of St Pancras Station Hotel, London
exponents of these various Romantic styles many diverse cultures into a new whole, (1867) designed in the Gothic stylo
by Sir George Gilbert Scott, built a:
by resorting to a form of eclecticism, favoring which eventually asserted its universality an independent building in front c
Gothic for religious and educational buildings, throughout the Islamic world. the large single arch train shed.
42 Islamic architecture

The first surviving monuments are those of ancient flat brick of the Sassanians is used to
the Ommayad dynasty of caliphs, who trans- create architectural features and a wide var-
ferred the capital from Arabia to Damascus in iety of decorative patterns over the interior
Syria in AD 661. With this move the and exterior surfaces.
Romano-Byzantine character of Ommayad art The extent of Turkish power steadily
was firmly established. The Great Mosque in increased until by 1100 it embraced almost all
Damascus (706-715) was built within the of Asia Minor, which from then onward
walled precinct of a Roman temple, and its remained thoroughly Turkish. The earlier
Roman comer towers were used as platforms prohibition against the building of monu-
for the call to prayer. Both the mosque and mental mausoleums by Moslems was to a
the octagonal shrine, The Dome of the Rock, large extent broken, although the presence of
erected a few years earlier in Jersualem, used a tomb for a secular ruler could often be
a late Roman structural system and mosaic justified by including it in a teaching building,
decoration of Byzantine type. Other deco- amadrasah.
ration included window grilles in geometric In Persia a traditional royal audience hall,
patterns derived from late Roman floor and the open iwan, of the kind preserved from
ceiling patterns. Sassanian times at Ctesiphon, was incor-
A major function of the leading mosque in porated into the mosque. Like the royal
each city was, besides congregational prayer, audience hall, the iwan had behind it on the
its use for the delivery of the Friday sermon side nearest Mecca a domed chamber, which
by the caliph or his representative. The became in the mosque the domed space in
mosque plan was early crystallized to include front of the mihrab. The earliest mosques of
a columned or arcaded prayer hall, an open- this kind had probably only one iwan on the
air courtyard, and a high surrounding wall. qibla side. But by the time of the rebuilding of
The wall on the side nearest Mecca, the qibla, the Great Mosque in Isfahan in the 12th
indicated the direction of. prayer and some- century a large iwan faced into the court on
times included a niche or mihrab. The sermon each of the four sides, the additional ones
was delivered from a flight of steps, the apparently serving as madrasah platforms for
Courtyard view of the Great
Mosque in Damascus, Syria minbar. Sometimes one or more minarets the teaching and study of the Koran. From
(706-716). were built on the entrance side of the mosque then onward this Persian type of mosque
from which the call to prayer was made. became increasingly influential; not only was
In the mid-8th century the Ommayad it copied in mosques from Cairo to India, but
dynasty was replaced by the Abbasids, with it was the model for madrasahs , caravan-
their capital in Baghdad instead of Damascus. serais, and many other Islamic buildings. The
From then onward Persian and Asiatic influ- type reached its culmination in the Royal
ences began to figure strongly in Islamic Mosque built by Shah Abbas at the southern
architecture; brick was used more often as a end of his great Maidan in Isfahan (1612-30).
building material, and ornament of oriental The entrance to many medieval mosques
type appeared over the interior and exterior was accentuated by placing a pair of minarets
surfaces. over the gateway. In the Royal Mosque at
In Spain, where the last survivor of the Isfahan a twin pair flank the great iwan on the
Ommayad dynasty ruled after fleeing from qibla side. But the chief glory of the Royal
Syria, the Syrian tradition continued to flour- Mosque gateway is its "stalactite" vault. This
ish and develop. In the late 8th century the epitomized a particular Islamic tendency to
Great Mosque of Cordoba contained many transmute and develop structural features for
features in plan and decoration which derived decorative effect. For the stalactite vault
from the East, but it also contained inno- began as a series of superimposed squinch
vations from the Iberian Peninsula. One of arches bridging the corner between a dome
these was the introduction of two rows of and the square plan below it. Quite early it
superimposed arches above the columns to was realized that the squinch arches could be
increase the height without weakening the interlocked by placing the second row so that
structure. The result was an effect of com- it rose from the points of the first row, and so
plicated spatial geometry, with striped horse- on. By also projecting the center of each arch
shoe arcades stretching upward and outward, the upper row cantilevered over the
outward--an effect which inspired architects first, to create a sloping surface bridging the
in the next two centuries to add complicated corner. Experiments revealed that such vaults
superimposed scalloped arches, inter- could be evolved to fit perfect geometric
penetrating each other, in the richly decorated patterns in plan; by varying these, won-
Portal of The Royal Mosque, mihrab areas of the mosque. derfully complex and diverse effects could be
Isfahan, Iran (1612-30), built by The rise of the Turkish tribes to positions of produced in the vault. The final step was to
Shah Abbas.
power in the Islamic world saw the intro- achieve the quality of pendants, like stalac-
duction of new architectural forms and types tites, which seemed to drop down to provide a
of expression. One of these was the domed magical support for each tiny vault. Built in
mausoleum, such as the Mausoleum of Isma'il the time of Shah Abbas these exquisite vaults
the Samarid at Bukhara (c. 940). Here the are, like surfaces in his buildings, entirely
 Japanese architecture 43

clothed in ceramic tiles of breathtaking per-

fection in design and execution.
Turkish architecture was characterized by
its extensive use of domes, a tendency which
was reinforced by its contact with the
architecture of its great enemy, Byzantium. In
particular, a type of mosque was evolved with
a large central dome over what had formerly
been the courtyard; a development which
doubtless resulted from the vicissitudes of the
northern climate. After the conquest of Con-
stantinople in 1453, and the conversion of
Hagia Sophia into a Friday mosque , Turkish
architects became preoccupied with the
attempt to surpass this masterpiece of Byzan-
tine design. Eventually the great architect
Koca Sinan (1489-1578) did so, in the Sultan
Selim Mosque at Edirne, which not only had a
slightly larger dome (102ft. (31 m) in diame-
ter), but avoided the multitude of supports in
the earlier building by supporting the dome on
eight massive columns. The latter are placed
close to the walls, and the opening of the of the ancient shrines were always faithfully Kiyomizo Temple, Kyoto, Japan
interior through a number of large windows preserved. Shinto shrines were associated (1633). The timber structure is
constructed out of interlocking
created the effect of one large, airy, unen- with sacred elements in the landscape, and members without the use of nails.
cumbered space. The sense of unity is like- consequently were sometimes placed in
wise emphasized on the exterior by the remote sites necessitating and encouraging the
placing of four high minarets close to the careful relationship of buildings to landscape
rising mass of the central dome. In the 16th with a skillful use of stairways and ropes
century, after the Turkish conquest of Syria, linking one temple building to another
Egypt, and North Africa, Turkish taste pre- (Kurongdanji Temple, Kyoto).
dominated in much of the Islamic world. But Buddhism reached Japan by way of Korea
by the 19th century European influence was (c. 575), bringing with it the highly developed
making increasing inroads into the traditional architecture of China. Two types of Buddhist
architectural and decorative values of Islam. temple were built. The first, imported from
(See also HOUSES-ISLAMIC.) Korea, had all its elements arranged on a
central axis in a symmetrically disposed
enclosure. Entering through a gateway with
Japanese architecture columned porticoes front and back, the visitor
was confronted first with a high pagoda and North gate of the Imperial Palace,
Traditional Japanese buildings were all of then directly in line with it, and behind, a Kyoto, Japan.
timber-framed construction except for city transverse prayer hall (Kondo) in which the
walls and the outer walls of forts. The roof statues of Bodhisattvas were placed; finally in
span was achieved without trusses, so that the rear and on the same axis, another
spans were limited to the length of timber transverse hall (K odo) contained further trea-
available; quite large roofs were, however, sures and statues of Bodhisattvas. This type is
made possible by employing rows of internal exemplified in the Shitennoji Temple, Osaka.
columns. The second arrangement has the pagoda and
The earliest pre-Buddhist Shinto shrines, Kondo standing side by side to the right and
Ise and Naiku, are raised on piles and have left of the central axis, which continues
thatched roofs, showing in these and other through to the Kodo in the rear. This is the
ways an affinity with southeast Asian exam- classic arrangement seen at the early temple
ples. The forms of the shrines were originally of Horyuji, near Nara, begun in AD 607 and
similar to those of palaces and dwelling reconstructed in AD 670. The latter was built
houses, and when eminent people died, the by monks from China, and is the best evi-
early Japanese consecrated their relics as dence we have for the temple styles of the
Imperial Palace, Kyoto, Japan, last
objects of worship . As the building material great Tang period in China. The framed rebuilt 1855. Interior view,
was wood, with a frail thatched roof, the life constructions in Japanese cypress represent characteristic of the medieval form
of a Shinto shrine in its original materials was the oldest timber buildings still standing in the of Japanese palaces.
on an average about half a century; since any world. The pagoda is five storeys high, of
major alteration, such as reroofing, involved a square plan with separate roofs over each
new dedication of the building, the practice floor projecting far out on corbeled carved
grew of rebuilding Shinto shrines completely brackets of Chinese type. The pagoda is
on adjoining sites every 25 years or so. But in crowned with a tall finial of metal rings and
rebuilding these structures the original forms bells, marking the upper limit of a tall central
44 Chinese architecture

post; about 100 ft. (30 m) high, which runs

down to the ground in the center of the
structure. The essential features of Buddhist
temples remained the same throughout the
succeeding centuries, although with many
variations in size and layout. The simplicity of
the earliest buildings, with low-pitched roofs
exhibiting subtle curves, was later replaced by
steeper roofs with pronounced curving lines;
this was accompanied by greater enrichment
and sometimes heaviness of detailing.
The later Shinto shrines retained their links to move away from the central axis at right Diagram of Chinese roofframing
to the earliest shrines and therefore often had angles; alternatively, and more commonly, composed of posts and beams. The
triangulated truss was not part of
thatched roofs and natural wood rather than there were parallel minor axes on either side the Chinese structural vocabulary.
painted. structures. In the finest of these of the central axis .
buildings, proportion, simplicity, and the elo- Shang dynasty buildings (c. 1766-1122 BC)
quent use of natural materials are the domin- were always roofed in thatch, and the walls
ant characteristics. Later Shinto shrines between the timber columns made of wattle
exhibit influences from the Buddhist temples, and daub. In the capital An-yang a timber hall
and from later Chinese mainland styles. some 98ft. (30m) long has been uncovered.
(See also HOUSEs-JAPANESE.) During the Chou dynasty (1122-221 BC)
there is evidence of the common use of
lookout towers, one of which is described as
Chinese architecture being nine storeys high, apparently the pro-
totype of the later pagoda. Clay roof tiles
Very little Chinese architecture survives from were in use before 770 BC, and baked bricks
before the 6th century AD because it was built soon afterward as infilling materials for the
almost entirely of wood . Raised on a stone or spaces between the columns.
earth platform, a characteristic Chinese build- The Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) was a
ing had a framework composed of a number of period of great palace buildings. One is
heavy, tree-trunk columns carrying cross described as being 492ft. (150m) long and 328
members on which the posts supporting the ft. (100m) high. Such palaces were flanked by
sloping rafters were placed. The roofs were of tall timber towers and brick or stone towers.
thatch or of thick clay tiles, usually projecting Buddhism entered China at the end of the
beyond the line of the walls with a wide Han period, and in the subsequent centuries a
overhang carried on a system of interlocking great number of Buddhist temples and monas-
brackets. Owing to the weight of the roof, and teries were built. Each had a pagoda as a
the fact that the roof construction was not shrine or memorial, which signaled its pos-
trussed in wood but simply depended on the ition, as well as a series of transverse halls on Chih-hien-Tien (the Temple of
strength of the beams spanning between the a central axis following the pattern of the Heaven), Peking, was built in the
posts, the width of the building was strictly Taoist temples already described. The pagoda Ming Dynasty, work beginning in
1420. Set on a three-tier marble
limited, unless there were internal posts; on was the Chinese equivalent of the Indian terrace and approached along axial
the other hand, the length of the building Buddhist shrine, the stupa, which contained a paths.
could in theory be any number of bays. relic of a holy man to serve as a model for the
Such a system of construction lends itself to virtuous life. The Chinese pagodas served as
the "pavilion layout," in which each building relic houses in the same way, but took their
is conceived as a single rectangular unit, pattern from the earlier Chinese timber towers
arranged in relation to other similar buildings of which they were an enlargement and
which could be increased in number according refinement, now reaching up to a height of 12
to the scale of the accommodation; the pavi- storeys. Through the middle of each pagoda
lions were arranged around courtyards, or ran a mast which projected at the top and was
connected by open galleries. The most ringed with metal disks reminiscent of the
characteristic arrangement of pavilions was to sacred umbrellas which in India served to
place them transversely across a continuous mark the importance of the center of the
axis which passed through their centers; such stupa. More permanent pagodas were erected
a system was used for early Taoist temples, in in brick and stone, the multistorey character
which the visitor passed through first the of the timber pagodas being represented by
entrance pavilion, then a courtyard leading to projecting string courses with architectural
the reception pavilion, with behind it another features borrowed from timber work indicated
courtyard, then the main ceremonial pavilion. in relief. The earliest surviving pagoda is that
Palaces and large houses followed the same at Sung Shan, a 12-sided stone building of
plan, the number of courtyards and pavilions Indian shape and detailing (c. 520).
on the main axis proliferating with the increas- Chinese culture reached a high point under
ing importance of the building. Secondary the Tang dynasty (AD 618-907). Apart from a
axes sometimes allowed transverse buildings few masonry pagodas, however, very few
 Indian architecture 45

Tang buildings survive. We can obtain an Forbidden City was established on the site
impression of Tang wooden walls, such as which it still occupies today, though it has
were used for both temples and palaces, from been considerably enlarged and entirely
the surviving Chinese-influenced Kondo of a rebuilt. The Chih Hua-ssu Temple, however,
number of temples at Nara in Japan. The is a standard architectural group, completed in
earliest similar structure to survive in China 1444, which is still well preserved. The
itself is the relatively small main hall of the architecture of the Ming and the subsequent
Temple of Nan-Ch'an Ssu in northern Shansi Ching dynasties is simpler than that of the
province (782). Like this hall, almost all later earlier styles, except in the richness of its
Chinese buildings were of one storey, though decoration ; the interlocking brackets, for
a purely decorative attic might be added to instance, having degenerated into an intricate
increase the impression of size. During the frieze. Its attraction lies in the pleasant
Tang period the system of clustering corbeled grouping of halls and pavilions, and in the
brackets at the top of each column to reduce sweeping expanses of tiled roof which domi-
the span of the rafters and beams began to be nate and order the intricate and brightly
developed in an elaborate yet logical way. painted decoration.
The Sung style of architecture (AD 960- (See also HOUSE5--CHINESE.)
1279) saw the widespread adoption of the
distinctive curve of the roof, the line of eaves
now curving up at the corners and the ridge Indian architecture
having a sagging silhouette. The origin of this
curved roof is not fully understood; it is The Indian subcontinent was the focus of one of
relatively easy to achieve in the Chinese the world's major cultures, which extended its
system of construction, since longitudinal direct influence to the Indonesian archipelago
curves can be produced by varying the heights and Indochina in the east, and to East Africa in Vi-he-Yuan (the Summer Palace),
of the columns and transverse curves by the west. Peking (late 19th century). The
varying the lengths of the cross beams which The earliest civilization was that of the Indus richly decorated timber structures
are surmounted by the distinctively
are supported on the vertical posts above the Valley, which had an urban architecture that curved lines of tiled roofs .
main cross beam-there are no trusses, which was sophisticated and highly developed. The
would necessitate the straight lines of trian- baked brick cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-
gulation. It is now believed by most scholars Daro were laid in a regular grid plan; the houses
that this curvature of the roof and the ridge were on two or more levels surrounding paved
was borrowed, because of its attractive courtyards, containing drains and garbage
appearance, from southeast Asia and disposal chutes.
Indonesia, where curved roofs seem to be The Aryan architecture which succeeded
associated with boat symbolism. Accom- produced many large cities in the Ganges valley
panying these sweeping roofs, the bracket dating back before 600 Be. There have been
clusters of the Sung period become more limited archaeological excavations, but these
complex and varied. The projecting cantilever have revealed such buildings as the fine
arm (ang) which hitherto had been no more Mauryan palace at Pataliputra, erected by
than a kind of second rafter, anchored at the Chandraguptra. Built of brick, with super-
inner end to a cross beam, now becomes a structures of wood, its splendor is probably
free lever arm, balanced on the bracket reflected in the Buddhist friezes at Sanchi (2nd
cluster and supporting, at each of its ends , century BC).
main purlins which run longitudinally to sup- The Buddhist stupa is said to have been
port the roof. The resulting system has some- instituted by the Buddha himself, but the
thing of the dynamic balance of Gothic earliest datable examples are from the reign of
architecture. In the best examples the build- Asoka (3rd century BC). Its hemispherical form
ings using this principle achieved wide spans symbolized the universe; the incorporation,
without any cross beams . from the 2nd century BC onward, of four richly
Sung architecture is often considered to be decorated gates reflecting ancient solar cults
the high point of Chinese building design; may be seen at Sanchi and Badami.
architects of this period were much more The earliest Vedic temples were of wood and
adventurous in experimenting with inter- were thatched; only their foundation fragments
locking roofs and with buildings at different survive. Some indication of their circular,
levels than their successors in later centuries. square or cruciform character may be glimpsed
The interiors were also much more elaborate, from rock-cut caves of the 5th century BC. Early
employing a language derived from miniature Buddhist shrines were similar in form and
buildings, and crowning the whole with ceil- likewise mainly of wood with thatched roofs.
ings with rounded vaulted cornices, and even The temples of a later phase (Mahayana) were
cupolas executed in wood over the principal built by the Andhras for Buddhist communities
images. in the Deccan and were hewn out of rock,
Under the Ming dynasty (AD 1368-1644) imitating timber structures; a characteristic 19th-century drawing of a Chinese
China once more became a great power. In temple had three aisles, the central nave flanked pagoda- the porcelain tower of
1421 Peking was made the capital, and the by rows of stone pillars leading to an apse Nankin.
46 Modern Isms

containing the chaitya (shrine). Among the 1367). Persian influence introduced by the
finest examples of these sanctuaries are those at Moguls modified the austerity of the buildings
Karli, Ajanta, Ell ora, and Bhaja. Similarly, of the early sultans, bringing with it the bulbous
groups of monasteries (viharas) hewn out of dome , cupolas at comers over slender pillars,
natural rock cliffs were attached to these and lofty, vaulted gateways. The finest
temples in imitation of earlier freestanding architecture dates from the reigns of the
monasteries of which only foundations remain. Emperor Akbar (who built the royal city of
In them, a number of small cells are grouped Fatehpur Sikri and tombs for himself and his
around a central space representing the court- father, Humayun, as well as the Red Fort of
yard. Buddhist art reached a zenith in the late Agra) and his grandson Shah Jahan. The latter
Andhra period, in the Great Stupa at continued to embellish the palace-fort of Agra,
The Great Stupa at Sanchi (c. 150
Amaravati. and undertook the construction of a larger and
BC), a prominent example of The conquests of Alexander introduced more splendid palace in the Red Fort of Delhi.
ancient Bhuddist architecture in Western art and architecture to India. Foreign His other works include the Jami Masjid at
India. influence is apparent in Kushan art: Corinthian Delhi, the city of Shahjahanabad, and the tomb
capitals and Greek-style statues were found at for his queen, the Taj Mahal .
Gandhara. The Guptas, however, saw a golden The Portuguese discovered the possibility of
age in the middle of the 1st millennium AD , sea trading to India at the end of the 15th
when foreign influence subsided and Hinduism century. They conquered and reestablished
was revived, evidenced by the freestanding enormously rich merchant cities . Their colonial
Durga temple at Aihole. The Pataliputra and architecture reached its apogee in the great
Mathura monasteries and the Buddhist uni- churches and palaces ofCochin, Goa, Diu, and
versity of N alanda are among the last Buddhist Daman, on the west coast, and Sao Thome
buildings to have been built in India until south of Madras. It influenced the Dutch and
modem times. The towered sanctuary, or French, and subsequently the British, until the
sikhara, appeared for the first time at the Durga mid-18th century, producing a polyglot style
Hindu temple. The richness of its reliefs which reached its climax in the prolific building
contrasts with the surrounding unadorned activities of the Nawabs ofOudt (c. 1770-1856).
surfaces, which retain a simplicity of form. In the last 80 years of British rule, an Empire
In Hindu eyes, religious architecture is seen style predominated, culminating in the con-
as the production of magic replicas of sacred struction of New Delhi as the Imperial capital,
beings , the temple (vihama) being the house and designed in 1911 by Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-
body of the deity, the plan a square of smaller 1944) and Sir Herbert Baker (1862-1946).
squares dedicated to deities around the central After the partition of India, the influence of
Brahma, the Mandala. The shrine consists of a Le Corbusier was profound , deriving from his
perfect cube, the sikhara, being twice its height. design for the new capital of Punjab, Chan-
Building was based on the sastras , craftsmen's digarh (based on a fusion of ancient Indian
books. At Khajuraho (c. 12th-13th centuries) principles with his own theories), its gov-
the sikharas were parabolic rather than pyram- ernment buildings (1951-55), and various build-
idal, rising in a crescendo of curves. Many ings in Ahmadabad.
Indian temples in the ornate Gujerati style, In Pakistan, Louis Kahn (1901-74) was
covered in deep relief carvings, were sub- commissioned to design the new capital of
The Great Temple, Madura (1623). sequently destroyed by earthquakes and by Islamabad (c. 1%2).
One of the greatest of all Hindu
temples in the south, with massive
Mahmud of Ghazna. The style had reached its
culmination in the Jain temples of Mount Abu,
gate towers (gopura) appearing
beyond. such as the lOth-century Dilwara shrine and the Modernisms
13th-century Tejpal temple; built of white The chief characteristic of 20th-century ar-
marble, its delicate lacework ornamentation chitecture is its plurality. Some critics have
veils the architectural construction. On the erroneously suggested that there has been a
eastern side of the continent, elaborate single evolutionary Modem Movement in
sculptural ornamentation merged with the modem architecture as such. Indeed there
architecture in the Seven Pagodas, rock-cut have been many modem movements. The
temples of the Pallavas at Mahabalipuram, main revolution in architecture began with the
8th-9th century AD. The Shore Temple is new master problems that emerged as long
particularly fine; its door faces the sun rising ago as the 1780s when a vast amount of
from the sea, and it is the only survivor from a monumental symbolistic building began and
number of such temples. when new problems of a specifically public
The first Islamic mosques in India were built architectural character were met by the
using columns from destroyed Hindu and Jain architects of the period. For example , the
temples, such as the Quwwat al-l slam Mosque museum buildings of that period were con-
in Delhi (begun late 12th century), where the sidered as temples built to emphasize the
Qutb Minar, the largest of all minarets, was holiness of art, but the desire for monu-
erected c. 1232. The Bahmanis built the Great mentality which spread through new building
Taj Mahal, Agra. Approach view Mosque at Gulbarga, with an immense prayer types such as prisons, hospitals, and edu-
built by Shah Jehan in 1630. hall covered by a multitude of small domes (c. cational establishments, soon evolved into a
 Modern Isms 47

pluralism of styles. This became an obsession Swiss/German theorist Gottfried Semper

of the Revivalists of the 19th century. (1803-79). In their work there was a concern
It was not until the 1880s that a desire for a for constructional logic although in almost
truly modem style emerged and even then it every case the structure was hidden by an
was by no means articulate, although in some appropriate cloak of stylistic ornament.
ways it prefaced the whole of the work of the
early 20th century. By the tum of the century,
architects, sensible to the changes that were Structuralism
going on in society, science, technology, and Joseph Paxton (1803-1865), with his design
psychology, were struggling with the prob- for the Crystal Palace for the "Great Exhib-
lems of identification, of architectural ideals ition of the Industry of all Nations" held in
(ornamentation and structure), and the Hyde Park in London in 1851, began a new
increasingly important notion of providing an era in architecture. At the time his building Crane Memorial Library, Quincy,
architecture appropriate to its time. The Art was described as a "cruciform cathedral with Massachusetts (188<H'I3), by H.H.
Nouveau did not successfully produce the double aisles." It consisted of a nave 1,848 x Richardson.
necessary transition from the stylistic Revi- 72 x 64 ft. (563 1X 22 x 19.5 m) crossed by a
valism of the 19th century into the new world semicircular roofed transept of the same width
of the 20th. It did however provide a and having a total length of 408 ft. (124 m).
bridge-via Expressionism-between the Galleries above the aisles ran around the sides
individualism of the Art Nouveau designers of both nave and transept. It was constructed
and the collective work of the architects who entirely in prefabricated glass, iron, and wood
were associated with the International Mod- sections and was erected in less than 20
ernism movement of the late 1920s. weeks.
As early as 1925 Eliezer Lissitzky (1890- The Crystal Palace made a new kind of
1941) and Jean Arp (1887-1966) had despaired building design possible. John Ruskin (1819-
of the multiplicity of approaches to architec- 1900), the architectural profession's mentor,
ture and art and had set out in their little book deplored it, but it proved to stimulate Revi-
Die Kunstismen ("The Isms of Art") a valism. Even allowing for the growing interest
disparaging list of the various tendencies to be that had been seen in iron construction in
found at that time. They hated Expressionism Britain in the previous 40 years before its
and its many manifestations and they sought erection the architectural possibilities of com-
to define the new art in terms of the Con- bining the new material with large areas of
structivist aesthetic and abstractionism. The glass was left to Paxton. Numerous exhibition
art of the 20th century in their and many other halls, locomotive sheds, and other large-scale
people's definition was to be based on nonob- ''engineering'' types of structure followed.
jective ideas, on technical possibilities, and on
the symbolism of the machine. In the fol-
lowing analysis an attempt has been made to Monumentalism
isolate the major phases that architecture In architecture, one aspect of individualism
went through in the 20th century. stands out: the idea of building monuments. It
was to pervade 20th-century architecture and
is still with us today, being based on a general
Eclecticism notion that (to quote the Czech architect
This overworked term covers a multitude of Adolf Loos from 1908) "the form of an object
interpretations. It is usually applied to any should last'-' and that implicitly there are some
Swan House, Chelsea, London
building that incorporates a mixture of the forms which have eternal validity. Loos him- (1875), designed by Richard
historical styles. It has been argued by some self made this abundantly clear when in 1922 Norman Shaw.
critics that it refers to the whole output of he submitted an entry for the Chicago Tribune
European and American 19th-century Tower competition in the form of a huge
architects who were so adept at changing their Doric column.
stylistic stance in midstream; others insist it is It was, however, among the German
a label to describe stylistic illiteracy. Cor- pioneers of modem architecture that Monu-
rectly, the term means "discriminate bor- mentalism really took hold. With an enormous
rowing," and in the work of the best 19th- admiration for Karl Friedrich Schinkel
century architects it was an effective means of (1871-1941) they were able, on the one hand ,
design. to argue for the abolition of architectural
Among the best-known Eclectic architects eclecticism and, on the other, for design
of the 19th century and early 20th century structures which were patently derived from a
were Henry Richardson (1838-86) and Louis fondness fi.Jr Neo-Classic order. Examples
H. Sullivan (1856-1924) in the U.S., the include the work of Peter Behrens ( 1868-1940)
British architects Auguste Pugin (1812-52), for AEG (particularly the Turbine Shop,
Richard Shaw (1831-1912), Sir George Scott 1909), and of Hans Poelzig (1869-1936) in his
(1811-78), and Alfred Waterhouse (1830- designs for the Posen Tower (1910) and for
1905), the French architect-encyclopedist the Breslau Centennial Exhibition (1913). Turbine Shop, AEG Factory, Berlin
Eugene Viollet-le-Duc (1814-79), and the Mies van der Rohe (1886--1969) never gave up (1909), by Peter Behrens.
48 Modern Isms

his interest in monumental buildings ; Le Cor-

busier (1887-1966) rooted part of his own
theory of a "new architecture" upon it; and in
France, Tony Garnier (1869-1948) and
Auguste Perret (1874-1954) used a vocabulary
of Neo-Classicism.

National Romanticism
The National Romantic period in architecture
extended from the 1860s well into the 20th
century. Bolstered by ideas of national
South view of Hill House, aggrandizement , this self-emulating style fed
Helensburgh, Scotland (1902--{)3), on particular local historical motifs and
by C.R. Mackintosh. devices as well as the associative aspects of
the great historical periods in architecture so
beloved by the eclectics. In some cases it
parallels the work of those architects normally
referred to as Art Nouveau designers, but its
aspirations were much wider than those of the
international "proto modernists." For exam-
ple, the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh
(1868-1928) in Glasgow can be seen to be an
important part of the international Art
Nouveau, although it strove to evoke the
Celtic mysteries as well as Scottish baronial
architecture. In Finland, the work of Eliel House in the Avenue Foch, Nancy,
Saarinen (1873-1950) , Lindgren, Gesellius, France (1902), by Emile Andre.
Lars Sonck (1870-1956), and Gallen-Kallela
Helsinki Railroad Station entrance, (1865-1931) was a powerful vindication of
Finland (1906), by Eliel Saarinen.
nationalistic interests. In Britain, Richard
Norman Shaw (1831-1912), and later Charles
Voysey (1857-1941), were particularly
interested in creating a new English ver-
nacular style and the whole of the English
Garden City Movement , which began during
the last decade of the 19th century, was a
typical homegrown example of National
Romanticism .
The peculiarly idosyncratic work of the
Catalan architect Antoni Gaudf (1852-1926),
although individualistic to the extreme, is very
much related to the nationalistic tendencies of
the Catalonians at the end of the 19th century,
as is the work of Gaudf's contemporary
Domenech i Montaner. In Germany, the
railroad station at Stuttgart designed in the
1910s by Scholar and Paul Bonatz (1877-
1951), and influenced by the success of the Detail of porch, Hotel de StCyr,
Brussels, Belgium (1900), by
Casa Vicens, Barcelona, Spain
Helsinki terminal , is also a monument to a Gustave Strauven.
(1878~0), by Antoni Gaudi. specific strain of German nationalism-
echoed later in the hideous buildings of Albert
Speer (b. 1905) for the National Socialists .
The whole of this work is characterized by
buildings having a heavy appearance (with the
exception of the British houses) and a con-
structional basis in heavy masonry .

Fin de Sieclism (Art Nouveau)

Around the turn of the century the European Model factory pavilion, Machinery
art world was shocked into realizing the Hall, Werkbund Exhibition,
presence of the new art, or L' Art Nouveau as Cologne, Germany (1914), by
it is now generally called. This artistic move- Gropius and Meyer.
ment reached its height at the Paris Exhibition
 Modern Isms 49

of 1900 and it faded from popularity just types (or standards) which he presented in
before World War I. At first it was seen as an Cologne at the Werkbund Exhibition of 1914.
outrageous and decadent phase but the flashy, Individualists such as Henry van de Velde
twisting, undulating, naturalistic ornament of (1863-1957) saw typecasting as an offense to
the style led to a breakthrough in creative the artist's own freedom to create by will and
innovation. The then still prevalent 19th- intuition. The model factory at the Werkbund
century Eclecticism was an inspirational Exhibition designed by Walter Gropius
source, but the Art Nouveau, in its many (1883-1969) can be viewed as a typical exam-
national expressions, soon produced a form ple of a building erected to set a standard of
language of its own. It covers many separate good design and to be copied and applied
developments in art and architecture during universally. Later the effects of Muthesius'
the period 1880-1910. It attempted to define a and Gropius' views on type and stan-
progressive and modem style at a time when dardization (and by inference, prefabrication)
significant changes were occurring in society can be seen in the mass-housing schemes in
in modes and manners, and when new ideas Germany in the period after 1924 and, of
were apparent in science and technology, both course, in the work of the Bauhaus.
of which required new means of expression.
Essentially the new arts indicated the new-
found freedom of the individual. In addition Constructivism
there was a desire to comply with the The term Constructivism was first used by
requirements of a Neo-Classical or Gothicist Vladimir Tatlin (1885-1953) in 1914 when he
viewpoint. Many designers returned to nature was involved in the pre-revolutionary Cubo-
for inspiration and to an expression of naturalFuturist movement. The so-called Con-
forms through the use of wood (the designers structivist Movement in the USSR was how-
of the Nancy, Glasgow, Paris, and Viennese ever initiated by the two sculptor brothers
schools) and glass and the wonder of building Naum Gabo (b. 1890) and Antoine Pevsner Reconstruction of Vladimir Tatlin's
model for a monument to the Third
in iron (both wrought and cast). Architects (1886- 1962) soon after the 1917 Revolution. International of 1920.
such as the Belgian Victor Horta (1861-1947) The aims of the movement were compounded
explored the possibilities of spanning large in their Manifesto on Realism issued in 1920.
spaces (cf. the work of the earlier engineers) They, together with a group of artists closely
in decorative cast iron e.g. L'Innovation associated with them and dedicated to objec-
Store, Brussels (1900). In the work of Charles tivism in art-Kasimir Malevitch (1878-
Rennie Mackintosh (1868-1928) in Glasgow, 1935), the Suprematist painter, and the
and Joseph Maria Olbrich (1867-1908) and architects Vladimir Tatlin (b. 1885) and El
Josef Hoffmann (1870-1956) in Vienna, an Lissitzky (1890-1941) - acknowledged debts
equally inventive but much more restrained to the French Cubists, the German Expres-
interest in geometric forms was shown. sionists, and the Italian Futurists. The new
The Art Nouveau provided a breeding movement was vastly different from its pre-
ground for a new approach to individualism decessors although in terms of technique and
and design, and a timely synthesis of metal, preoccupation it followed many of the inno-
glass, and applied ornament and construction. vations of these slightly earlier groups . Gabo
later wrote, " We all called ourselves con-
structors ... instead of carving or molding a
Radicalism sculpture of one piece we built it up into
It was largely the individualists who space ... " Constructivism was, like the ele-
demanded a radical shift in emphasis from the mentalism of De Stijl, with which it became
buildings of the past to the design of those closely associated in the mid-1920s , a pas-
which met the demands of modern life. "There sionate pleading for ideas on form and space
must be," wrote the architect Hans Poelzig in in architecture as well as in the other arts.
1906, a "correct use of materials and con- The most significant early example of Con- Unbuilt project (1924) designed by
El Lissitzky and Mart Starn.
struction consciously adapted to give advan- structivist architecture was Tatlin's design for
tages over the old use of decorative embel- a "Monument to the Third International"
lishments withol.\t losing what can be learned made in 1920 and based on a spiral which
from the mastery of tectonic problems in the clearly had associations with engineering
past." structures going up in the USSR at that time,
Rusakov Club, Moscow (1927) by
In the ensuing years the Deutscher as well as buildings such as the Eiffel Tower. Konstantin Melnikov: general
Werkbund in Germany (founded in 1907) took Most of the earlier Constructivist architecture view.
on the role of radicalizing art, architecture, schemes remained as unbuilt projects, but as
and industry through "form." "Without late as 1957 Gabo built his enormous "Con-
form," Hermann Muthesius (1861-1927), the struction in Space" placed outside the Bijen-
Werkbund inspirator, wrote in 1911, "we korf store in Rotterdam. The Constructivist
should still be living in a crude and brutal influence on architecture can be seen in many
world." Form came to be seen as synony- projects of the so-called pioneers of the
mous with "good design"-freedom from Modern Movement, in particular projects by
visual pain! Muthesius elaborated a theory of Mart Starn and Marcel Breuer (b. 1902), and
 50 Modern Isms

even the work of James Stirling (b. 1926) painting and sculpture and theater.
indicates close affinities with the earlier work Short of an architectural futurist, Marinetti
in his use of glass and steel. co-opted Antonio Sant'Elia (1888-1916) into
the group, having seen his drawings for a
Expressionism multilevel concrete towered "New City" in a
There was no Expressionist school of student exhibition in Milan in 1914. Sant'Elia
architects as such, although a number of was killed in action in 1916. However,
architects and designers were closely associ- Marinetti had published the Futurist Architec-
Sketch for Einstein Tower, ated with the Expressionist movement in ture Manifesto in July 1914. It proclaimed
Potsdam (1920), designed by Erich Germany between 1910-23. The term, how- that Futurist (Marinetti added this word
Mendelsohn.
ever, was definitively applied to a group of where required although it had not been used
Dutch architects in the magazine W endingen by Sant'Elia) architecture "is the architecture
in 1918. Since that time it has become a of calculation, of audacity and simplicity; the
thoroughly accepted term used to describe the architecture of reinforced concrete, of iron, of
work of those architects who prefigured the glass ... and all those substitutes for wood,
International and Functionalist period of the stone, and brick which make possible max-
Modern Movement. Thus it covers indi- imum elasticity and lightness!" The document
vidualist German architects of the pre-World continued, in its highly rhetorical way: "Let us
War I period such as Hans Poelzig (1869- throw away monuments, sidewalks, arcades,
1936) and Bruno Taut (1880-1938), the Taut steps. Let us sink squares into the ground,
Brothers in their postwar phase, and such raise the level of the city.''
visionaries and utopians as Finsterlin, Erich The manifesto had a limited influence at the
Mendelsohn (1887-1953), Hans Scharoun (b. time (possibly because of the nullifying effects
1893), the Luckhart Brothers, Krayl, and for a of the war) but it was rediscovered and
short time Walter Gropius. reactivated as the inspirational source of
The postwar German phase of Expres- architect-planners in the 1950s.
sionism was dominated by the activities of the
"Glass Chain" group whose leader was Neoplasticism
Bruno Taut. His inspirational source was the In its precise meaning the term Neoplasticism
work of Expressionist poet and lexicographer relates to the theory of pure plastic art that
Paul Scheerbart. Although it is clear that the Dutch painter Piet Mondrian (1872-1944)
Mies van der Rohe (1886-1969) had no time for derived from Cubism. It consisted in the
the group's visionary and romantic work, he exclusive use of the right angle in a horizontal
did however design a number of projects in position, and the use of the three primary
the early 1920s in an Expressionist idiom colors contrasted with or incorporating in
including a skyscraper project sheathed in various canvases the three non-colors: white,
glass with reinforced-concrete cantilevered black, and gray. This theory, developed bet-
floors and a concrete parking lot. The theme of ween 1912-17 (the year of the foundation of
the Glass Chain group was architecture in the De Stijl group at Leyden in Holland), had
glass and concrete (colored as well as trans- a pronounced influence on Dutch architects.
parent) and this led to many novel designs . In The first fully integrated neoplastic house can
contrast, the work of the so-called Dutch still be seen today in Utrecht and was built to
Glass skyscraper project for Berlin Expressionists (or Phantasts) appeared trad- the design of Gerrit Rietveld (1888-1964) for
(1920) by Mies van der Rohe. itional. Their sources were to be found in Mrs Schroeder-Schradar. It consisted of a
vernacular forms and through their buildings number of vertical and horizontal planes built
they expressed their affection for warm mat- largely out of concrete and a series of three-
erials such as stone, brick, and thatch; unlike dimensional facades similar to the individual
the Germans they had no utopian programs. paintings of Piet Mondrian. The De Stijl
The strange concrete structures built in the sculptor Vanton Gerloo also produced a
1910s at Dornach, Switzerland, by the an- number of studies which can be seen as
throposophist Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), are essays in architectonics. The founder of the
also categorized as Expressionist in intent. De Stijl group, Theo van Doesburg (1883-
Futurism 1931) and Cor van Eesteren (b. 1897) pro-
duced projects both for individual buildings
The first of the anti-art (and later anti- and for planning schemes which incorporated
architecture) avant-garde groups was the Neoplasticist ideas.
Futurists. Filippo Marinetti (1876-1944), a The Neoplastic aesthetic was revived in the
poet, issued the first Futurist manifesto in postwar period by the artist-critic Baljeu and
Paris in 1909 in the pages of Le Figaro. displays a close affinity to some of the earlier
Although it was concerned specifically with constructivist ideas of the Russians and Ger-
Futurist poetry, it extolled the beauty of mans as well as to the De Stijl group's ideas.
speed and movement and condemned
academic art, libraries, and museums. Later,
the Futurist movement became concerned Bauhaus style
Project for an electric power station
(1913) by Antonio Sant'Eiia. with the expression of their ideas through The Bauhaus was a school of art and design
 Modern Isms 51

founded in 1919 by the architect Walter

Gropius (1883-1969) which was successively
housed at Dessau and finally, for a short
period in 1933, in Berlin. It commenced as a
school based on Expressionist principles and
its staff included the world-famous painters
Lyonel Feininger (1871-1956), Paul Klee
(1879-1940), Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944),
and Oskar Schlemmer (1888-1943). As a
design school it revolutionized industrial
design, graphics, theater, photography, and
film. In 1923, when Laszlo Moholy-Nagy
(1895-1946) joined the Bauhaus, the school
became obsessed with Constructivist design
and the geometry of primary forms and Schroder House, Utrecht, Holland
colors. By this time the Expressionist phase (1924), by Gerrit Rietveld.
was over. Although "building" was at the
center of the curriculum at the Bauhaus, an
active architecture department was not cre-
ated until 1927 when the Swiss architect
Hannes Meyer (1889-1954) took over from
Gropius as head of school. When he left, the
school was finally headed by the German
architect Mies van der Rohe.
The Bauhaus was the creative center of
artistic experiment during the 1920s and it
Study for buildings for a modern
metropolis (1914) by Mario became internationally known through its pub-
Chiattone. lications and exhibitions and also, most
importantly, through the work of its architect
heads who were in the front line of the
European avant-garde. The influence of the
Bauhaus design methods can be seen in Peterschule Project for Basel,
Switzerland (1926), by Hannes
numerous consumer products from bent metal Meyer and Hans Wittwer.
furniture and hanging globe lamps to the
black, block, lowercase lettering to be found
on exhibition posters the world over.
ClAM and International Modernism
The Congres Internationaux d'Architecture
Moderne (ClAM) was an organization set up
by Le Corbusier (1887-1966) and Sigfried
Giedion (1893-1968) at Helene Mandrot's
chateau at La Sarraz, Switzerland, in 1928. It
was the organization that consolidated the
common form among all those architects
concerned with the new architecture. It was
international in scope and eventually spawned
a worldwide series of conferences and splinter
groups. It devolved through a bitter dispute
with the younger generation of architects at
Voisin plan for Paris project (1923)
Otterlo, Holland, in 1959. by Le Corbusier.
ClAM was the major organization through
which the ideas of modem architecture and
urbanism became known to the world. Its
founder, leader, and champion Le Corbusier
was the vital force that held the organization
Architectural project (1923) by
Thea van Doesburg and Cor van together. His pronouncements took on almost
Eestern. biblical significance, the repercussions of
which are still felt today. By providing the
organization with an effective voice, Le Cor-
busier and his close associates influenced
housing policy of governments, local
authorities, and private individuals throughout Bauhaus Building, Dessau,
Europe. In 1929 the second ClAM Congres Germany (1926), by Walter
was held at Frankfurt under the auspices of Gropius.
 52 Modern Isms

the then city architect Ernst May (b. 1886), and returning soldiers. In Britain the
and out of this congress came the recom- utilitarian house par excellence was known as
mendations for existence minimum dwellings. the "prefab." Originally this was to have a
The ClAM style of architecture was charac- life of 15 years but in some cases examples
terized by cubic, white-surfaced, flat-roofed still remain 35 years later. These houses were
architecture, usually set in an arid landscape. prefabricated in factories and brought to the
In 1933 the ClAM 4 congress took as its theme sites ready-built for immediate assembly. The
"The Functional City" and issued the Athens effect of this eventually was to create an
Charter, a report which was to affect the atmosphere in which "system building" could
planning and reinstatement of cities through- take over the role of individually designed
out Europe (e.g. the MARS plan for London dwellings. In the 1950s in Britain a vast
in 1938). program of system-built housing was started,
the detrimental effect of which is to be seen in
Housing scheme for Frankfurt
Organicism many towns and on many estates. The Great-
(1925). by Ernst May.
er London Council (GLC) alone has had a
Organicism, or organic architecture, is repair bill of around 30 million pounds to put
another vague term that covers a number of this ill-advised housing program to rights.
interpretations. Its modern usage seems to Utility unfortunately was not a qualitative
stem from the American mid-19th century argument.
sculptor Horatio Greenough (1805-52), but its
more particular use as a description of
architecture that sympathizes with its envi- The New Brutalism
ronment comes from the early work of Frank Although the term ''The New Brutalism''
Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) and the Prairie now has a derogatory tone, it was originally
School. It is the very antithesis of the geomet- meant to indicate a certain type of architec-
rical organized facadism of those architects ture of the 1950s. It was introduced by the
who believe that architecture should intrude British architects Peter and Alison Smithson
Farm buildings, Gutes Garkau,
Germany (1923), by Hugo Haring.
on the environment in the Classic, Neo- (b. 1928 and 1923), although the Swede Erik
Classic, and Gothic sense. A whole line of Asplund (1885-1940) lays claim to an earlier
'\ architects and designers can be seen to relate version, "neo-Brutalism." At first it was
their work-however vaguely-to Wright's applied to describe the buildings of Mies van
ideas, and there is a stream of organic der Rohe (1886-1969) adherents in Europe,
architecture running through American , Engl- whose interest was predominantly in a display
ish, German, and Dutch design . Apart from of his precise technology of glass and steel. It
Frank Lloyd Wright, the principal apologists reflected a puritanical phase in which the
for American organic architecture are Claude servicing systems of a building were openly
Bragdon and Henry-Russell Hitchcock. In on display and not concealed in ducts or by
Germany, the two main figures concerned covers (e.g. Hunstanton school, Norfolk,
with "organic" ideas were Hugo Haring England, by A. and P. Smithson, 1954). Later
(1882-1958) and Hans Scharoun (1893-1972). it was applied to buildings which imitated the
Currently with a new interest in organic exposed concrete finishes (heron brut) in Le
architecture , the work of Bruce Goff (b. Corbusier's work and therefore more freely
1904) stands out for its inventiveness . applied to those architects (particularly Brit-
Paolo Soleri (b. 1920), and Herb Greene are ish, German, and Dutch) who associated with
seen to be part of the main stream of organic the so-called Team X (i.e., Aldo van Eyck (b .
Falling Water, Bear Run, architectural development. 1918), James Stirling (b . 1926), the Smithsons)
Pennsylvania (1936), by Frank as well as other designers such as Denys
Lloyd Wright.
Utilitarianism Lasdun (b. 1914) and Gottfried Bohm. The
South Bank Arts Buildings in London (not-
Secondary Modern School: The individual work of British housing ably Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Hayward
teaching block and gymnasium,
Hunstanton, Norfolk, England
architects after the building of Letchworth in Gallery) by Greater London Council (GLC)
(1950-54), by Alison and Peter 1903 has been described as a kind of utilitarian architects brought the term in disrepute:
Smithson. architecture. Numerous publications were engineers renamed it the "bunker" style. The
produced on low-cost housing, particularly whole phase, important though it was inside
publications aimed at the private buyer which the European cliques, is still vague: "The
set out economic solutions for low value sites New Brutalists," in the words of its chief
as well as alternative cheap forms of con- apologist Reyner Banham, were never sure
struction in timber, brick, and metal. How- whether what they championed was ethic or
ever, it was World War II that created a aesthetic.
desire for utility buildings in Britain, and it
was in the housing area that architects and
designers worked for economic, small-scale Metabolism
solutions. A number of organizations were set The term Metabolism was first applied to
up in the immediate postwar period in Britain architecture at the World Design Conference,
(and similarly in parts of the U.S.), to cope Tokyo , 1%0. It was introduced as a new
with the problem of the population explosion system of thinking about the problems of
 Modern Isms 53

cities such as Tokyo and included among its return (under the influence of Schumacher's
advocates the architects Kiyonori Kikutake, book Small is Beautiful) to the low-rise.
Fumihiko Maki , Masato Otaka, and Kisho high-density developments of the interwar
Kurokawa , as well as the graphic designer period. The design by Paolo Soleri (b. 1920)
Kiyoshi Awazo. Together they signed the first for a city on the mesa at Arcosanti; Lucien
declaration: " Metabolism 1960-a proposal Kroll's medical faculty at Woluwe, near Brus-
for a new urbanism." Kenzo Tange (b. 1913) sels, Belgium; the articulated designs of the
was an early and important convert to the so-called New York Five; and the books and
Metabolist cause which regarded "human works of the Venturis, are often cited as
society as a vital process, a continuous examples of this burgeoning new phase.
development from atom to nebula." The
group concentrated on the new order of
relationships between man and the envi-
ronment.
The early Metabolist terminology was
based on organic and cybernetic analogies.
However, as their ideas developed they soon
came to resemble earlier historical visionary
projects, and by the time they came to be built
the visionary element was lost in the face of
the need to build realistic, earthquake-proof,
concrete buildings. The best-known examples
in this genre are Tange's radio and press
center at Kofiu (1964-66) and Kurokawa's Annihilation House, Mutsuura,
Japan (1972) byTakefumi Aida and
Nagakin Capsule Tower, Tokyo (1972). Associates: front and side
elevations.
Post-Metabolism
This term was first used in a special issue of
the Japan Architect in 1977. Its use implies an
attempt to summarize some of the very
divergent currents that characterized the
Japanese architectural scene at that moment.
It was a reaction to the "meta-architecture"
of the earlier Metabolists. Although by no
means a group, the Post-Metabolists are
interested in exploring such things as the
nature of the house in the city , and are
concerned with intricate design on small sites
and polemical schemes. Mozuna Monta's
"anti-dwelling" in Hokkaido, Toyokazu; Nakagin Capsule Tower Building,
Watanabe's doctor's house in Ibaragu; and Tokyo, Japan (1972), by Kisho N.
Hiromi Fujii's Miyajame house are important Kurokawa and Associates. House for Mrs Robert Venturi ,
Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania
examples of one extreme end of the Post- (1962~). by Robert Venturi.
Metabolist approach. These schemes tend to
deal in terms of irony and negation of the
environment, while Hiroshi Hara's own
house, Group Zo's House for a Magician, and
Dam Dan's fantasy villa are at the other
extreme, and are celebratory. Isozaki is seen
to be the most successful exponent of Post-
Metabolism.

Post-Modernism
With the failure of ClAM-type Modernism a
new body of theories are emerging as alter-
natives to Modem Movement ideas. It is by
no means coherent. Alternatives suggested
range from revivals of pattern book principles
of the 19th century, a new interest in ver-
nacular forms adapted to modern needs, a
much more strict interpretation of the theat- Medical students'
rical element in Modern Movement architec- Municipal Art Museum, residences, University of Louvain,
ture proper, a distinctly confused revival of Kitakyushu, Japan (1972-74), by Brussels, Belgium (1974-75), by
Frank Lloyd Wright's organic views, and a Arata lsozaki. Lucten Kroll.
Section 2
 56 Landscape and external space

Landscape and external space

Private gardens and parks Islamic gardens were imbued with symbolism:
the square represented the world; the octagon,
All designed landscapes have their origins in the man's struggle toward spiritual regeneration;
domestic garden, which itself was originally and in religious gardens, the circle ofthe dome
inspired either by agricultural patterns or by stood for perfection and eternity. A specifically
natural scenery. Mogul development was the tomb garden,
The first garden was an idealization of combining Persian design with the Tartar
Sumerian irrigation networks in the Tigris- nobleman's tradition of building his tomb for
Euphrates basin c. 2000 Be. Then came the first use as a pleasure dome during his lifetime.
roof gardens-the legendary Hanging Gardens, In China, landscape design began with the
Babylon, which were made possible by bitumen hunting park, such as that laid out in 100 BC by a
covering and earth packed into the haunches of Han emperor. It contained towers for both
arches. The hunting park was a later invention contemplation and observation, and an artificial
of the Assyrians, who domesticated the horse. lake in which the mystic Islands of the Blest,
The basic form of the original Persian paradise dwelling place of the immortals, appeared and
garden (as it was called by the Greeksra disappeared in mist. Chinese Taoism regarded
square or rectangle enclosed against wind and all natural landscape as divine. Gardens,
Court ofthe Lions, the Alhambra, dust, and cooled by intersecting water channels however small, were an attempt to create in
Granada, Spain (1377). and groves of trees-has remained constant, microcosm the solitary landscape of the moun-
but transplantation to Spain (AD 750--1492) and tains. Site and layout were dictated by geo-
India (1526-1707) in the wake of the Moslem mancy; within the gardens the prime attributes
conquest brought local variations. In the Court of harmony and peace were achieved by careful
of the Lions at Granada, clusters of slender blending of the basic design elements. Rocks,
stone pillars and fan vaulting replaced groves of hills, and mountains represented the yang, or
trees. In India, the Mogul emperors made more active cosmic male force; and still water
spectacular use of water, particularly in represented the yin, or passive female force. In
Kashmir. Narrow irrigation channels for trees city gardens, boundaries were planted to
developed gradually into broad canals to cool exclude everything but the sky wherever
the air for humans, cascades became more possible. Such concepts owed much to the
elaborate, water channels flowed through painters and poets, who continued to be the
Villa Lante, Bagnaia, Italy (c. 1564) arches beneath buildings. main inspiration of landscape design through-
by Vignola. Gardens- were sometimes planned as se- out Chinese history.
quences of traditional squares, and many Early Japanese gardens were bare rectangles
 Landscape and external space 57

of raked sand or quartz for court ceremonies painted on the rear walls of the peri style
and Shinto rites, but growing appreciation of overlooking the garden court, and partly
the native landscape of volcanoes and island- through axial integration of open and enclosed
dotted seas soon led to the introduction of trees, spaces. Sculpture and small canals, as per-
rocks, hills, and ponds, arranged to simulate a manent elements, were supplemented by a
favorite landscape or as simple expressions of growing number of plants from other countries.
Shinto animism. They also represented the Medieval gardens were, for the most part ,
male and female cosmic forces. Respect for the reworkings of earlier themes, except for the
personality of each stone or plant has always bowling green: from the paradise to the cloister
been a key factor in Japanese garden design. garden or enclosed castle court was only a short
Chinese culture reached Japan c. AD 600 and step. The sense of protective enclosure that was
was a dominant influence for about 400 years. one of their chief functions declined in impor-
Large pleasure parks with lakes , islands, and tance as nature appeared less menacing and by
bridges were laid out, culminating in shinden- the 15th century the gardens of the Italian
zukuri, a formula combining Chinese architec- Renaissance began to project into the coun- Ryoan-ji, Kyoto, Japan : a garglen of
tural symmetry with free-flowing Japanese tryside, their geometric forms contrasting, and contemplation.
landscape. Buddhism was a yet more powerful yet in harmony, with the natural landscape.
and longer lasting invader (c. AD 552), under The Italian garden fell into two periods : the
whose influence three new garden types Renaissance until about 1550, thereafter Man-
emerged. These were: first , Buddhist paradise nerism and Baroque. The Renaissance was
gardens, which were mandalas of seemingly based on a revival of imperial Rome and
naturalistic lakes and symbolic pavilions culminated in Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola's
(c.1100-1550); second, Zen Buddhist gardens (1507-73) Villa Lante at Bagnaia, in which the
of contemplation-dry landscapes like Ryoan-ji garden divided up the house into two parts. Up
and Daisen-in in Kyoto (1488-1513), whose to that point all classical landscape was
rectangles of raked sand and arrangements of concerned with finite space; thereafter , the
rocks attempted to symbolize the universe; and search began for the infinite. Mannerism
third, tea gardens (c.1550), originally bare represented individuality. Its finest example is
except for stepping stones, in order to con- the Villa Gamberaia at Settignano where many
centrate attention on the ceremony, but later "moods" of the mind are embraced in one
enriched with trees, rocks , stone lanterns, and composition. The Baroque was , in principle .
water basins. The tea garden led to the secular collective and based on the theater of spectacl e.
stroll gardens of the 17th century, such as Among its optical innovations was play on
Katsura. illusion, for instance making distance s recede
In Western civilization, the principal basis of or come nearer by use of "false" perspective .
design until the 18th century was geometry, as The garden theater appeared with its green
in the highly cultivated enclosures of 8th- wings and footlight shades, as at Villa Marlia,
dynasty Egypt, with their arched vine pergolas near Lucca. Romantic conceits such as rocks , SentoGosho, Kyoto, Japan : a stroll
and symmetrically arranged rectangular pools grottoes , secret fountains, and giants joined the garden.
for boating and hunting fowl. In classical permanent elements inherited from Rome-
Greece, where there was little water, gardens, evergreens, stone, and water.
apart from the sacred groves of the temples, The Boboli Gardens in Florence, home of
were mainly utilitarian or simple paved courts. Marie de Medici (1573-1642), who .was to
The pots of short-lived plants grown for the become Queen of France, were the first
Festival of Adonis may have been the beginning instance of a great garden appearing to be
of gardening in pots. carved out of woodland. This was one of the
Unlike Eastern gardens, which were not three main sources of inspiration for the
necessarily associated with dwellings, the revolutionary designs of Andre Le Notre
Roman garden was essentially an extension of (1613-1700) at Versailles and elsewhere, the
the house . Beginning with the farmhouses others being the hunting forest with its straight
around Rome, the country villas of the wealthy intersecting rides, and the pseudo-romantic
had, by the 1st century AD , taken on all the water landscapes of Touraine where Richelieu
splendor and axial formality of Roman civic (built 1627-37) also presented an entirely new
planning, with terraces, vine-shaded walks, geometric concept of a city as part of a domestic
extensive allees for exercise, even arenas. layout. In Le Notre's designs, the garden
Clipped hedges, topiary, and sculpture were the ceased to be an extension of the house , which
chief adornments; with either a canal or became just one object in a grand composition
nymphaeum when water was available. Occa- of solids and voids axially arranged, the scale
sional attempts at romanticism, as at Nero's expanding as it receded from the hou se. He
Golden House (c. AD 64) and Hadrian's Villa at introduced into landscape the idea of three
Tivoli (AD 118-128) were only tentative. City radiating avenues (the patted' oie or goose foot) Courtyard garden of the House of
theVettii, Pompeii.
gardens at Pompeii (I st century AD and inspired that had first appeared in the Piazza del Popolo,
by Hellenism) were totally enclosed essays in Rome. Near the house, blocks of woodlands
the creation of imaginative space, partly (bosquets) concealing a variety of incidents
through the medium of landscape fantasies were outlined by hornbeam charmilles, a new
 58 Landscape and external space

type of clipped hedge about 10ft. (3 m) high, pheasant shooting and fox hunting (which had
above which projected free-growing tree taken the place of stag hunting, obviating the
branches. Features used to penetrate the need for long straight rides).
woodlands were: the grass tapis vert, another After 1750, the movement broke away from
novelty; contemplative canals, often of con- literary classicism and split in two. One camp
siderable length; and parterres de broderie, an was headed by Lancelot (Capability) Brown
earlier French invention (c. 1638), with box (1716-83), a professional landscape designer.
hedges and colored sands and flowers arranged He evolved a standard design formula based on
in patterns, inspired by the rich fabrics of rolling land, water, tree clumps, and woodland
contemporary costume. Le Notre's fountains belts to give seclusion. The house, without any
at Versailles were of an unprecedented scale, formal approach, stood directly on grassland.
involving an exceptionally elaborate pipe sys- His technique with water was to create artificial
tem for distributing water around the garden. rivers by damming streams and making lakes
Unlike Mogul or Italian gardens, which relied with sinuous curves whose ends were con-
on gravity from immediate natural sources, cealed by planting, land forms, or bridges, as at
water had to be brought at vast expense from Blenheim Palace near Oxford. Brown did away
outside the Versailles catchment area; a wheel with all formal planting and terraces, but this
at Marly to lift water from the Seine was a trend was later reversed by another pro-
failure. fessional, Humphry Repton (1752-1818), who
Garden theater in the Renaissance Garden designers throughout Europe were, esteemed utility and convenience above
garden ofthe Villa Marlia, laid out
c. 1696. for the most part, under the influence of beauty. Repton reinstated terraces with flower
Versailles, an exception being the glass-fronted gardens outside the house, partly as a result of
vine terraces of Frederick the Great (1712- pressure to accommodate the influx of new
86) at Potsdam, Berlin, which anticipated mod- plants from abroad.
ern functionalism. Two amateurs, Richard Payne Knight
French classical formality on a much smaller (1750-1824) and Sir Uvedale Price (1747-1829),
scale was also reflected in North American rejecting Brown's shaven lawns and pastoral
gardens for many years. Some original features scenes, started a rival movement, the Pic-
did, however, emerge in Virginia, where the turesque. Knight, taking the painter Salvator
isolation and extent oftobacco estates called for Rosa as his model, favored wild cascades and
layouts that included "dependencies"- savage rocks which would bring out nature's
schoolhouses, smokehouses, slave quarters , awesome aspect. Price sought beauty in every-
burial grounds, etc. Where houses were situ- day objects like gnarled trees and advocated
ated on bluffs overlooking rivers, for ease of that roughness and intricacy should be the basis
movement, grass terraces known as "falls" oflandscape design.
were carved from the sloping ground. Another element in the complex makeup of
In England, political fears of French domi- the School was chinoiserie, a theme which first
nation and a dislike of autocratic classicism in appeared c . 1687 as details of Chinese culture
an age of dawning liberalism gave the final percolated to Europe and reached its English
impetus to a new approach to landscape, known climax c . 1760 with the pagoda in Kew Gardens
as the English Landscape School. Having designed by Sir William Chambers (1723-96).
Grand Canal and tapis vert, begun as a literary movement, it was based, up Widening travel and the urge to escape into
Versailles (1667-88), laid out by
Andre le Nlltre.
to the middle of the 18th century, on interpre- romanticism resulted in eclectic gardens in
tations of Ovid, Virgil, and other Augustan many countries: the Pare Monceau in Paris
poets, and inspired by the heroic period of (then privately owned) contained Dutch, Chi-
painting, particularly Claude Lorrain (1600-82) nese, Turkish, Roman, Egyptian, and Tartar
and Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665). Stourhead, in artifacts . In the first half of the 19th century,
Wiltshire (1740-60), is an allegory of man's cultivation of imported plants from other
passage through the world, based on Virgil's continents greatly increased in scale, thanks to
Aeneid, and includes the hero's visit to the the large greenhouses made possible by the
underworld. The movement's leading prac- invention of cast iron. Jn England, the chief
titioner in the early stages was William Kent pioneer, at Chatsworth in Derbyshire, was Sir
(1685-1748). His chief contribution lay in Joseph Paxton (1803-65), architect of the
transposing the art of painting into landscape. Crystal Palace of 1851 (see EXHIBITION BUILD-
In his humanist landscapes, Palladian mansions INGS). At about the same time, genetic research
Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, stood in well-wooded scenery, often opened up by Gregor Mendel (1822-84) stimulated hybrid-
England. Landscape by Capability to give views of "eye-catchers" (arches, ization and breeding of new strains, enabling
Brown, early 18th century. columns, or temples) in the surrounding coun- hardier versions of exotic plants to be grown
tryside. With Charles Bridgeman (d. 1730), commercially for use outdoors . The new plant
Kent invented the "ha-ha," an invisible ditch vocabulary that became available was put to
which separated the inner park from the outer various uses. Most popular was carpet
and kept cattle at a distance without inter- bedding-close planting of brightly colored,
rupting the line of vision. He also initiated the half-hardy annual flowers in geometric pat-
planting of clumps of trees in parkland, possibly terns. Rock gardens were another product of
an aesthetic rationalization of the needs of the mania for plant collecting. Conifers like the
 Landscape and external space 59

wellingtonia brought variety of tone to park-

lands , but were later accepted as symbols of
Victorian gloom.
The Industrial Revolution had two con-
sequences affecting garden design. The first
was the rise of the middle class, whose desire to
emulate the upper class led John Claudius
Loudon (1783-1843) to create a new landscape
concept, the suburban villa garden. This
incorporated the features of an aristocratic
park, but on a reduced scale, in a style known as
the Gardenesque. Conservatories were popular
and so were croquet lawns after 1856. The
second result of the Industrial Revolution was
the gradual shrinkage of the labor force, offset
initially by Budding's mowing machine (1832),
and the advent of piped water.
In 1871 William Robinson (1838-1935)
launched a campaign rejecting flower beds,
fantastic topiary, and artificiality of any kind.
He advocated informal planting of indigenous
wild flowers and shrubs, partly on ecological
grounds, and a return to the tradition of the
English cottage garden. He found an ally in
Gertrude Jekyll (1843-1932); she accepted
Robinson's ecological approach but used her
painter's insight to turn plant relationships into
works of art. Her use of color and plant
arrangements established the herbaceous bor-
der as a major feature of any English garden,
and won worldwide acceptance. California was also the scene, in the 1940s, of Kronforth Garden, Theresiopolis,
a breakaway in the design of small gardens, led Rio de Janeiro, by Burle Marx.
Robinson's theories on the use of indigenous
plants (though not their arrangement) were by Thomas Church (b. 1902), Garrett Eckbo,
taken up in the 1930s in Brazil, where the and Lawrence Halprin (b. 1916). Designed for
painter-gardener Roberto Burle Marx open-air living in a warm climate, the new
(b. 1909), rejecting the outworn forms and gardens focused on the heated swimming pool,
unsuitable European plants of current Brazilian previously a random addition like the tennis
garden design, brought in from the jungle native court (which poses greater problems of integ-
plants which had, until then, been despised as ration within a design). Although each garden
weeds. The luxuriant forms of the larger species was tailored to the individual owner and site,
contrasted dramatically with the plain concrete Church's designs were homogeneous in their
of modern buildings. Small plants were used as blending of biological form, geometry, and
if they were paint to create abstract designs on natural scenery. His curved pool at Sonoma
the ground-almost a return to carpet bedding had worldwide influence, even in colder coun-
but on a permanent basis and without the tries. His materials-timber decks , sand, stone,
geometry. Some designs only made use of and concrete, combined with casual
different types of grass. Clarity of design was planting-also have the merit of being easily
preserved by thin metal or timber strips maintained, another reason for their popularity.
between plant groups just below ground level, Owing to the scarcity and cost of labor,
to inhibit root spread. maintenance has become a major factor in
The placing of buildings is still conditioned by garden layout. Designers make widespread use Garden at Sonoma, California, by
site and climate, but modern building tech- of groundcover plants to reduce weeding, and Thomas Church.
niques have made it possible to use sites which adjust their plans to take into account the
previously could not have been exploited. requirements of lawnmowers, pop-up irrig-
Nature and architecture are more closely ation , electric hedge clippers, and other aids
interwoven, as at Frank Lloyd Wright's "Fall- made available by mass production. Garden
ing Water" at Bear Run in Pennsylvania owners are no longer a small elite: their
(1937-39). Plate glass, night lighting, and numbers are so vast that large industries have
central heating (air conditioning in hot climates) been set up to cater to their needs.
have brought about an interflow of outside and
inside which earlier was rare for climatic
reasons. The Kaufmann house built by Richard Urban open space
Neutra (1892-1970) at San Jacinto, California
(c. 1942), is an outstanding example of this idea The first urban open spaces and public parks
inaction. evolved from the domestic garden or aris-
60 Landscape and external space

tocratic private park. Park (1846), in which small private gardens

Kubla Khan's Peking (1279-1367), built in a opened at the rear onto a strip of parkland wide
hunting park between two earlier cities, enough for forest trees.
retained the original fishing lakes and dominat- Under joint pressure from the sociologists,
ing tree-clad artificial hill, but superimposed a concerned with the urban conditions of the
pattern of rectangles, so that the final layout Industrial Revolution, and the businessmen,
was a balanced design of geometry and natural for whom better health meant better production
landscape-a blend of Confucianism and Tao- from employees, the first parks solely for public
ism. The Ming (c. 1409) added a second hill recreation began to be laid out in the 1830s.
(Coal Hill) on the central axis, made from Victoria Park in east London (1845) was soon
material excavated from the canals. Shah followed by the more adventurous Battersea
Abbas I of Persia's Isfahan (1598), on the other Park on the swamps south of the Thames. The
hand, was a sequence of traditional square principles of design were those of the aris-
gardens held together by the strong line of a tocratic park adapted to public use. There was
single long avenue, the (Chahar Bagh)-a no central focal point (the mansion, from which
layout that has largely dictated the shape of the all views had been planned) and crossviews
modern city. became paramount. Boundaries were densely
Cities have, on occasion, formed part of a planted to conceal ugly building developments
total landscape layout. Louis XIV's Versailles on the perimeter and to act as dust filters.
is the most famous example but the idea was Except for a wide open space where crowds
quickly copied in Germany where princelings could assemble to watch displays, the wood-
compensated for their lack of resources by land paths were designed to disperse people
eccentricities like the four-mile (6 km) avenue into small groups, separating them by ground
reaching from the center of Kassel to the most modeling, trees, and shrubs. Flower beds were
spectacular cascade in Europe on the far side of (and continue to be) a spectacular feature.
the palace grounds. Even more exaggerated are Unlike earlier English lakes, the Battersea lake
the 32 avenues radiating out from the Mar- reflects the influence of Japan, for the islands
grave's palace at Karlsruhe, nine of which are placed in such a way that the water turns in
compose the framework of the new town. on itself, adding mystery to boating.
Pierre L'Enfant's plan for Washington D.C. The three great innovators in 19th-century
(1791) was in a different category. Though urban park design were Joseph Paxton of
based on Versailles, the plan was for the whole England (1801-65), Jean Alphand of France,
city and was so well related to its natural setting and Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903) of the
beside the Potomac that it lost much of its U.S. Paxton's interests were economic as well
authoritarian rigidity. as scientific, sociological, and aesthetic. In
In England, the 18th-century landscape 1843, he designed Birkenhead Park in the
revolution led to the concept of an idealized northwest of England, financed by the rise in
countryside brought into the city. The pioneer land values around the perimeter of the park,
city was Bath, where the architect John Wood and the first to be wholly owned by the public
(1704-54) applied garden aesthetic techniques itself. For the 1851 Exhibition he evolved a new
to city planning. The Royal Crescent faces landscape aesthetic when he placed the Crystal
what appears to be unlimited parkland, only Palace next to the Serpentine and over existing
because trees arranged like a wood in the trees, showing that functional architecture
foreground conceal the city behind. The New could harmonize with romantic landscape.
Town in Edinburgh consists of a geometric When the exhibition buildings were sub-
layout, one side of which-Princes Street- sequently reerected in Sydenham, Paxton's
faces open parkland with the magnificent lavish ltalianate layout of the grounds was
backcloth of the medieval city and castle. Apart enriched by spectacular fountains fed by
from the royal parks, London was enriched gravity from water recirculated and pumped by
with countless open squares with hard surfaces steam engines into reservoirs at the top of the
for traffic; these were beginning to be enclosed glass towers at either end of the facade (these
for use by residents as shared but private also contained the flues); 11,788 jets used
romanticized property (Russell and Cadogan 120,000 gallons (545,520 liters) of water per
Squares designed by Humphrey Repton minute. Incorporated in the layout was an ultra
(1752-1835)). The climax was Regent's Park romantic pool of prehistoric monsters, which
(early 19th century), the northern end of a still exists.
monumental route from St James's Park to Alphand was appointed by Baron Georges
Marylebone Fields, designed by John Nash Haussmann (1809-91), in about 1853, to pro-
(1752-1835) and Humphrey Repton in col- vide a unified system of romantic parks for
laboration. The scene around three sides is a Paris, to counteract the geometry of his plan for
sequence of residential terraces that seem to be the central area. It was the first example of
palaces; the north was intended to be left open coordinated urban landscape planning on a
to the countryside. The idea of a shared but grand scale, but unlike the Ringstrasse in
private romantic park was continued on a Vienna, the Paris boulevard (the word is a
smaller scale in the Ladbroke estate, Holland corruption ofthe bulwark it replaced) was never
 Landscape and external space 61

completed as a greenbelt linking the parks.

Nevertheless, within the network, there was
full scope for the imagination. Perhaps the first
aesthetic reuse of industrial waste was at the
Pare des Buttes-Chaumont (c. 1863), laid out on
a disused quarry whose extraordinary shapes
were incorporated in an artificially romantic
concept. Alphand introduced cement garden
details like seats and balustrades that resembled
rough tree branches .
Frederick Law Olmsted studied both Paxton
and Alphand and brought park design into the
modern age, winning the Central Park com-
petition, New York, in 1857. Although techni-
cally not one of his best designs, it introduced
new ideas which finally disengaged public parks
from the ethos of the aristocratic park. The
rectangular park was framed by tall buildings
that towered above any boundary tree; hence
Olmsted designed for the whole area a small-
scale pattern that had been seen in embryo at
Battersea-the principle of breaking up crowds
and using foreground rather than middle dis-
tance as a screen to the outer environment. The
crossroads that sliced across European parks,
making them dangerous to pedestrians and
disruptive of space, were here partly under- roads, ground modeling, and trees indigenous Central Park, New York (1858-70),
ground. Subsequently, Olmsted's imaginative by Olmsted and Vaux.
to the countryside.
inventiveness transformed American thought. In contrast to the romantic English, Le
He made proposals for the first university Corbusier (1887-1966) evolved a revolutionary
campus (Berkeley, 1865) to be laid out on mathematical concept in his theoretical Ville
romantic rather than classical principles. Hous- Radieuse (1935) , in which city dwellers were to
ing estates like Riverside were laid out on live in widely spaced point blocks with unli-
sinuous curves "to imply leisure, con- mited sun, air, and communal gardens. At
templativeness, and happy tranquillity." In his Marseilles, he built a fragment of the idea,
landscape system for Boston, the parks were !'Unite d'Habitation (1947), a self-contained
physically linked. He proposed the first "neighborhood" raised on pi/otis, or stilts,
National Park to incorporate natural scenery leaving the land below the building free. Le
(where ingenious solutions to the problem of Corbusier's proposals , although magnificent
pedestrian access were subsequently evolved, architecturally, were considered inhuman and
such as the rise and fall walkways in the proved ecologically unsound owing to abnor-
Everglades, 1935). As the landscape architect mally increased wind pressures and down
for the famous 1893 Columbian Exposition, he drafts, lack of intimacy, and loss of space and
comprehended architecture in a unified land- amenity through parking lots. One of the few
scape design. city designs by Le Corbusier to be realized is
Modern ecological planning that seeks to Chandigarh, beautifully related to the
unite city dweller with the countryside was Himalayas. The ultimate mathematical city is
initiated by Cadbury Brothers at Bournville, Brasilia, shaped like an airplane poised on the
England, in 1898. It was later developed by Sir shores of its lake.
Ebenezer Howard (1850-1928) as a satellite After World War I, in sympathy with the
town in his Diagram for a Garden City (1898) expanding liberal society, public parks were
and was first realized at Letchworth in 1905. planned for active games rather than passive
The more mature Welwyn Garden City fol- contemplation. Bos Park, Amsterdam (con-
lowed in 1920. The first system of automobile/ ceived 1928, begun 1934), was designed by a
pedestrian segregation was invented at Rad- team of botanists, engineers, architects,
burn, U.S . (1927) by Clarence S. Stein (1882- sociologists , and city planners. It was made
1975) and Henry Wright. After World War from flat land below sea level and was
II, the first English new cities were conceived predominantly devoted to physical exercise: a
as cities within parks . Local neighborhoods (as long regatta canal and (from the excavations) a
at Harlow, 1948, Frederick Gibberd), set in massive hill with toboggan slide; areas for
open green landscape, revolved around the tennis, hockey, cricket, children's soccer, and
center. Later new cities were compacted until play; a stadium and an open-air theater. These
Milton Keynes (c. 1970), in contrast, proposed areas appear to be carved out of a forest in
a city of 250,000 persons segregated into which there were riding and nature trails, nature
independent, landscaped areas separated by reserves, and an experimental farm. No park
62 Landscape and external space

since has been so comprehensive, or so but also new landscapes. The Westchester Park
ecologically well balanced.Recently, the idea of system (1922, Gilmore D. Clarke) was unlike
a farm as part of an urban park has been taken the traditional boulevard in that it was a concept
up elsewhere. Bos Park is also the parent of the of a sequence of roads within a park. The U.S.
modem country park with its emphasis on and Germany both pioneered the landscaping
physical exercise among natural surroundings, of multilane, long-distance, divided highways
and on direct contact with local crafts. The to ensure that they fitted the existing coun-
interpenetration of country into existing cities tryside; the immediate new scenery had to be
in an overall landscape plan was first realized in related to fast-moving automobiles. In cities,
Stockholm (c. 1940). The plan allowed for the automobile has been creative on the roofs
"green fingers" to penetrate to the central area, above multistorey parking lots, notably in the
where streets and public open spaces were lakeland scene at the Kaiser Center, Oakland,
enriched (under the Director of Parks, Holger California (c. 1958, landscape architects
BJorn) with movable flower containers that Osmundsen and Staley). In the London
were to be copied throughout Europe, seats squares, skill has been shown in relating new
among flowers, wild flowers along the Malar- underground parking lots to the trees above.
strand, and climbing sculpture for children. The As if in escape from the mathematical
junk or adventure playground was invented by planning of cities like New York, modern
C. Th. S0rensen at Emdrup, Denmark, in 1943. machinery has been deployed in Florida (Cocoa
In the 1960s many urban squares became Isles 1957, Eugene Martini and Associates) and
pedestrianized. The sculptor Naum Gabo the Bahamas to create spectacular new sea-
(b. 1890) had issued a famous manifesto in 1920 scapes. Islands have been created by dredging
urging kinetic sculpture to be placed "in the the seabed to aid navigation and pumping the
squares and streets." This ideal was realized in excavated material inside barricades of piles.
1966 at Lovejoy Plaza, Oregon, U .S.; an Shoreline swamps have been converted into
abstract rock and water complex in which marinas. In a single operation, a walking
pedestrians participated. The designer, Law- dragline can excavate water channels on, for
rence Halprin (b. 1916), stated that it was example, its left side, swing across to the right
inspired by the High Sierra of California. Roof and dump the spoil to build up fingers of
gardens appeared as novel attractions to the building land, the dimensions being dictated by
public in crowded cities. In the 1930s, a walled the throw of the dragline, usually about 100ft.
flower garden complete with small trees and (30 m). The extraordinary animal patterns that
shrubs was constructed on the roof of Derry & have emerged are biological and can be
Toms' store in Kensington, London. The roof interpreted as corresponding to the same urge
garden above Harveys of Guildford (1953, toward nature that had created the Tennessee
G.A. Jellicoe) was designed as a sky garden of Valley Authority (1933) as an economic use of
planted islands set in water that reflected light. nature's recurring resources, and the sub-
The roof garden of the Place Bonaventure sequent ecological studies in the U.S. summed
Hotel, Montreal (1967, Sasaki, Dawson, up by Ian McHarg in his book Design with
Demay Associates), is a continuous romantic Nature (1971).
water landscape separating outer and inner
Bos Park, Amsterdam, Holland top-floor rooms. Specialized landscapes
(1934): aerial view. The automobile has created new problems
Universities
The traditional European universities were
introverted and based on the quadrangle
evolved from the monastic cloister, hence a
distant descendant of the original Persian
paradise garden. The U.S. took a more
extrovert approach and pioneered the way to
the modern university. At the University of
Virginia (c. 1817) Thomas Jefferson (1743-
1826) created a classical rectangular grass
campus with one end open to the countryside,
which was thus drawn into the university. Little
similar feeling for landscape developed until
Olmsted's design for Berkeley in 1865. Here he
grouped the buildings along a mall or tapis vert
sloping down the hill and "shooting at the
sunset beyond the Golden Gate. " The semi-
formal central group was set in a romantic
landscape that contained the residences, and
this has been the basis of many modern
campuses, such as Buffalo.
Apart from Berkeley, the American uni-
 Landscape and external space 63

versities developed as great architectural com- the dead, a treatment also adopted in cre-
positions deriving from the Ecole des Beaux matoriums (the first in England opened in 1874).
Arts in Paris. The first biologic, as opposed to Forest Lawn Memorial Park in California
geometric, university in the Western world was begun in 1917, with concert halls, movie
Aarhus in Denmark (1932-, architects Kay theater, and art gallery, represents the ultimate
Fisker, C. F. Moller, and P. Steegman), where in this genre.
the guiding spirit seems to have been the In Scandinavia, greater simplicity was
landscape architect C. Th. S0rensen. The sought. At the Woodland cemetery and cre-
buildings are brick, domestic in scale rather matorium, Stockholm (1915-50), designed by
than monumental, for the most part ivy Gunnar Asplund (1885-1940), a tall cross and
covered, and so arranged around the valley that the bare upward sweep of an artificial hill
the grouping seems subsidiary to landscape. convey spiritual qualities that are both Chris-
In England, the new universities in the 1960s tian and universal. Danish cemeteries, after
were a total break with tradition. They were World War II, imposed restrictions on the Lovejoy Plaza, Portland, Oregon:
water landscape by Lawrence
asymmetrical, their grouping dictated by the height and material of headstones, while one Halprin (1966).
site and tending to be severe in design and section of Mariebjerg crematorium, Gentofte,
unaccommodating to climate, an exception is reserved for graves marked by boulders.
being Stirling University in Scotland, beauti- Simplest of all are the mass graves of
fully sited in existing parkland (architects hundreds who perished in the siege of Lenin-
Robert Matthew, Johnson-Marshall & grad. At the Piskarevskoe cemetery, row after
Partners, begun 1%7). In Italy, a large modem row of plain grass mounds about 30 ft. (9 m)
residential college has been fitted into the long and 3 ft. (90 em) high, flat topped with
Urbino scenery without disruption to history sloping sides and only a low stone at each end to
(1970, architect Giancarlo de Carlo), while in indicate the year, bear witness to the city's
Vancouver, Simon Fraser University (1%3 , ordeal.
architect Arthur Erickson) is poised dramat-
ically on a mountain top, but is accessible from Industry
the city by automobile. Although there were many early attempts to Cocoa Islands, Florida (1957):
ameliorate the environmental effects of indus- scheme for a marina by Eugene
Cemeteries try, the first comprehensive landscape plan on a Martini and Associates.
The oldest surviving cemetery is probably that long-term scale was for the Hope Valley
at Giza in Egypt, laid out in the 3rd millennium Cement Works in the Peak District National
Be by Cheops in the shadow of his own pyramid Park, England (1943, landscape architect G . A.
tomb. Arranged in streets, the stone mastabas Jellicoe ). When the quarries are worked out, the
of the royal household, conforming to Egyptian area will be returned to recreation, enriched by
belief in life after death, housed not only the boating and fishing lakes, and wind-protected
preserved bodies of the dead but material camping sites. Because of this innovatory
provision for their well-being in the next world. concept all industrial waste is now planned for
Roman cemeteries, based on those of the alternative use. The soil from a road tunnel in
Greeks, with their slab and pillar memorials, north London, for example, was reused to
had columbaria for urns containing ashes when create the "Guinness hills" (c. 1959).
cremation became the normal method of Throughout congested England, waste areas of
disposal. all kinds are being reconstituted as amenity land
The early Christian burial ground of simple or for agriculture.
Woodland Crematorium,
grass mounds or inscribed stones evolved Appreciation of landscape as a business as Stockholm, Sweden (1940), by
almost unchanged into the 17th-century well as a sociological asset in industry is now Gunnar Asplund.
churchyard; its haphazard rows of graves almost universal in the Western world. The
dominated by the church. In the 1830s, soaring most spectacular example is probably General
populations led to the construction of large Motors in the U.S. (architect Eero Saarinen
nondenominational, commercially owned (1913-61)), but unique as an idea is the Angli
cemeteries around most big cities. Marble was a shirt factory at Heming, Denmark (1970,
favored material for monuments. In England, architect, C. F. Moller; landscape architect C.
winding drives and groups of cypress or yew Th. S0rensen), where two circles of
trees eventually made romantic settings for landscape--one the factory and one a sculpture
monuments that were increasingly grandiose garden-are encompassed within an abstract
and sentimental. Elsewhere in Europe layouts work of landscape art. Recognition of human
followed a grid pattern. Unlike the church, the values in landscape is seen in the modesty and
chapel was subsidiary to the landscape. restraint of the gigantic underwater generating
After World War I, the need to mechanize station in the historic region around the Rance
maintenance of innumerable rows of graves in estuary, Brittany. Psychologically, the art has
military cemeteries, plus a revulsion against now been medically recognized for its healing
Hope Valley Cement W orks in the
monuments to human waste and seas of white capacity, as at Glostrup Hospital, Denmark (c. Peak District National Park,
marble crosses, resulted in the lawn cemetery; 1970, landscape architect Sven Hansen), and England (1943) : model for 50-year
grass, trimmed by lawnmower, sweeps through such formal recognition is spreading throughout plan by G.A. Jellicoe.
glades of trees and shrubs planted in memory of the Western world.
64 Transportation

Transportation
Bridges
Bridges are technological artifacts and can be
classified in various ways: by the material of
which they are built, by their structural form,
or by their method of construction.
Until the 19th century, the most common
bridge materials were timber and stone, or
artificial stone. Cast iron appeared toward the
end of the 18th century, followed by wrought
iron, and then by steel in the middle of the
19th century, although the other materials
continued to be used for many years. Re-
inforced concrete appeared toward the end of
the 19th century, and prestressed concrete
toward the middle of the 20th century. The
principal materials now being used are re-
inforced concrete, prestressed concrete, and
structural steel; timber is used occasionally
and aluminum very rarely.
The structural form of a bridge depends on
whether its principal action is in compression
(typically arches), in tension (typically sus-
pension bridges), or in bending (typically
beams and cantilevers). The shape of the
structure is designed to resist those actions.
The structural form is, of course, related to
the material. Stone can be very strong in
compression, but it has little or no tensile weight than masonry arches. In prestressed Lord Mayor's procession of 1827
strength, therefore it is generally used only for concrete it is possible to provide compression passing under the unfinished
arches of "new" London Bridge
arch bridges or piers. Timber is strong in even without an arched form, and prestressed designed by Sir John Rennie. From
tension, compression, and bending in the concrete beams with spans greater than 650ft. an engraving of 1828.
direction of the grain, but it is only available (198m) have been constructed.
in pieces of limited length. It has therefore The material and the structural form are
found its greatest use in frameworks where a also related to the method of construction. In
structure can be built up from fairly small order to build a stone arch it is necessary to
pieces. Cast iron is strong in compression and build a centering for it which is virtually a
has some tensile strength, but it is unreliable bridge in itself, and similarly most reinforced
in tension. Cast-iron beams were used concrete bridges are cast in forms supported
through much of the 19th century, with by falsework. Where deep or fast water has to
tension flanges which were larger than their be crossed, it may be physically impossible or
compression flanges, but the arch is a form too expensive to provide support for a tem-
more suited to the material. Wrought iron is porary bridge. In that case, the bridge may be
strong in tension, but it was much more built by cantilevering out so that the partly
expensive than cast iron in the 19th century. built permanent structure carries the con-
One expedient which was used to counteract struction loads with perhaps the help of
its high cost was to combine cast and wrought temporary cables or props. Another method is
iron, with wrought iron used for the main by prefabrication of major elements or parts
tension members. of the structure before they are placed in their
Steel is an excellent structural material, final position. All these methods may be
strong in tension and compression, but it is combined in various ways.
expensive and was, at first, regarded with
suspicion. For this reason it did not displace Foundations
the other forms of iron as quickly as might The Romans, the technological ancestors of
have been expected. As higher strengths of modern bridge builders, already used quite
steel became available and new methods of sophisticated construction methods for the
jointing were devised, its structural pos- foundations and superstructures of their
sibilities expanded. Reinforced concrete can bridges. They used two kinds of bridge foun-
be made strong in tension, but it is heavier dation. One consisted of driven timber piles
than structural steel for the same job. For this and the other of spread footings of masonry or
reason, long-span beams in reinforced con- timber grillages. For the construction of river
crete are not feasible. However, reinforced piers they used timber cofferdams or boxes
concrete arches are feasible, and because of formed from driven piles from which the
the material's tensile possibilities, they can water could be pumped. As far as we know,
have much longer spans and are lighter in nothing more advanced than this was used
 Transportation 65

during the Middle Ages and river foundations

were fairly shallow; consequently, foundation
failures were frequent. A more advanced form
of cofferdam had appeared by the 17th cen-
tury, consisting of double walls with puddled
clay in between. Modem cofferdams are most
commonly made from steel sheet piling.
The open caisson, a prefabricated box open
at the top and bottom that sinks as excavation
proceeds, and which may or may not form
part of the permanent foundation, was first
used during the 17th century for building the
Pont Royal (1685) in Paris, designed by Jules
Hardouin Mansart (1646-1708).
The pneumatic caisson, a closed-top box
using compressed air inside to counterbalance
the water pressure, was suggested in the 17th
century, but it was first used for a bridge
foundation at Rochester, England , in 1850 by
Wright, and by lsambard K. Brunei (1806-59)
for the Wye Bridge at Chepstow, England ,
shortly afterward. It was first used in the U.S.
for an arch bridge built in 1869 over the
Mississippi at St Louis, by James Eads
(1820-87), and by John A. Roebling (1806-69)
for the Brooklyn Bridge, which was com-
pleted in 1870 by his son.
Another technique, used for piers in deep
water, is to construct an artificial island
through which the foundation can be dug.
This technique was first used in 1930 near San Roman bridges. A few bridges were built with The bridge over the Tagus at
Alcantara, Spain (c. AD 105); one of
Francisco. ribbed arches but developments in bridge the best preserved Roman bridges.
Modern bridge foundations still use all technology in the Middle Ages never paral- It was built without mortar.
these techniques. Piles may be of timber, leled the advances made by the church buil-
steel, reinforced concrete, or prestressed con- ders of the same period. Bridge technology
crete, and cofferdams and caissons are made showed few advances beyond those of the
from steel, concrete and, more rarely now, Romans until well into the Renaissance.
from timber. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the
stone arch bridge was refined with larger
spans, flatter arches, and thinner piers. Water-
Bridge superstructures loo Bridge over the Thames, finished in 1817,
Roman bridges were built from masonry or was designed by John Rennie (1761-1821).
timber. There are, of course, no surviving One of his innovations was the prefabrication
Roman timber bridges, but they were prob- of the arch centerings , which were con-
ably trestle bridges with raking struts. Many structed onshore then floated out and jacked
Roman stone arch bridges have survived up into position.
because they were built from carefully shaped The first all iron bridge, at lronbridge in
blocks which fitted together without mortar. Shropshire, England, was built in 1779 by Medieval masonry bridge at
Roman bridges had semicircular arches and Abraham Darby (1750-91). In America, Taggia nearS. Remo, Nervi a
Valley, Italy.
piers which were generally wide enough to Thomas Paine (1737-1809) designed a 400 ft.
take the thrust from an unbalanced arch. The (121 m) span in cast iron which was never
spans of a viaduct could therefore be con- built. The castings, which were made in
structed, one after another, with maximum England, were eventually used to construct an
reuse of the centering. arch bridge over the Wear at Sunderland,
During the early Middle Ages most bridges England, with a span of 236ft. (72 m) in 17%.
were timber trestles. From the 12th century The structural concepts upon which these
onward, stone arches were constructed with bridges were based were borrowed from
varying soffit profiles, many of them with timber and masonry building.
humpbacked roadways suitable only for British engineers learned how to use cast
pedestrians and pack animals. These differed iron as a material in its own right, and a
from the Roman bridges which were usually number of cast-iron arch bridges were built
fairly level. Lime mortar was used, and early in the 19th century. Thomas Telford
structures were generally made with a rubble (1757-1834) was responsible for a number,
core and an outer facing of ashlar, so that they and John Rennie (1761-1821) built several
were generally less sound and durable than including Southwark Bridge (1819), in Lon-
66 Transportation

was Eads Bridge (1847), consisting of

masonry piers carrying trussed arches of steel
with spans of 500ft. (152m). The arches were
built by cantilevering out from the piers using
temporary towers and stay cables. A truss is a
way of making large structures out of small
pieces, and it is particularly well suited to
cantilever construction. Eads Bridge was the
forerunner of many large trussed arch and
trussed beam bridges of steel.
The Forth Bridge, built between 1882 and
1890 by Sir John Fowler (1817- 98) and Sir
Benjamin Baker (1840-1907), was the first
long-span railroad bridge built of steel. It
consisted of trussed balanced cantilevers with
680ft. (207 m) arms connected by 350ft. (106
m) suspended spans. The main members were
enormous tubes made from pieces of plate
joined by rivets. A number of large-span
cantilever railroad bridges were built during
the following 50 years, some of them the most
ungainly bridges that have ever been built.
During the first half of the 20th century,
steel trusses in various forms were used for
most large bridges, and reinforced concrete
gradually replaced steel as the material for
Bayonne Bridge, New York (1931). don, with a central span of 240ft. (73 m). smaller spans.
by Othmar H. Amman. It is the The timber trestle bridge of the Middle The first reinforced-concrete bridges were
largest steel arch bridge in the
world, with a span of 1,675 ft. Ages developed into the truss. Andrea Pal- made in shapes more suited to stone, steel, or
(511 m). ladio (1508-80), in his Four Books of timber, and the first bridges which we rec-
Architecture (1570), gave examples of four ognize as modern , using reinforced concrete
types of timber truss bridges. Timber bridges in a way that makes structural use of its
which were a combination of truss and arch plastic properties, were the beautiful, three-
were built in Germany and Switzerland in the hinged arches built in Switzerland from 1905
18th century. The great development of onward by Robert Maillart (1872-1940).
trusses for bridges took place in America, and These led to the deck-stiffened arches which
many different truss configurations were he built after 1923, which separate the func-
invented there . Many American timber tions of arch action and bending action in a
bridges were covered, because timber lasts very elegant way.
longer when protected from the weather. The In recent times there have been a number of
Howe and Pratt trusses were originally of significant developments. In steel con-
timber with iron rods for their web tension struction, the use of friction grip bolts and the
members. Eventually, trusses made entirely development of welding have largely replaced
Concrete arch bridge: the Colorado of iron were used. riveting, and there is far greater use of plate
StViaduct in Pasadena, California During the 19th century, cast-iron beams girders and box girders as a result of these
(1938). were used for railroad bridges of fairly short technical advances. In concrete construction,
span, and trusses with various combinations prestressed concrete in a variety of forms is
of cast and wrought iron were also used. The more widely used.
first all-iron trusses in America were made Eugene Freysinnet (1879-1962) was the first
with true pinjointed connections, but well to use prestressed concrete for substantial
before the end of the century riveted con- bridges. He built five bridges across the
nections were universal. The use of wrought- Marne with spans of 240 ft. (73 m) in the
iron sections and plates built up by riveting 1940s. Subsequently, Dyckerhoff and Wid-
developed , and engineers like Robert mann in Germany developed the technique of
Stephenson (1803-59) and Isambard K. in situ cantilever construction in prestressed
Brunei applied techniques learned from ship- concrete using adjustable forms which moved
building and boilermaking. Robert Stephen- outward from the supports as the bridge was
son' s railroad bridges at Conway and Menai, constructed. Bendorf Bridge (1%2) has a main
in Wales, (c. 1850), were hollow box girders span of 690 ft. (210 m). The Pine Creek
of wrought iron with the trains running inside Valley Bridge in California is a more recent
them; they were fabricated on the ground and American example.
jacked up into position. The spans at Menai In F rance, the technique of cantilever con-
were 460ft. (140m). struction has been developed by Freyssinet's
The first large bridge built of steel, and successors using precast concrete segments
possibly the first to be built by cantilevering, stressed together with resin joints of negligible
 Transportation 67

thickness. The first bridge built like this was ft. (250 m) at Niagara Falls, completed in
completed in 1963 over the Seine at Choisy- 1855. The cables of the latter were spun from
le-Roi, the segments being handled by floating wrought-iron wires, and it had two decks with
cranes. The Oleron Bridge, on the west coast bracing between them . Roebling added cable
of France, was the first precast segmental stays to prevent dangerous oscillations .
bridge constructed with a specially built erec- Roebling's Brooklyn Bridge of 1883 had a
tion gantry. The technique has more recently span of 1,600 ft. (488 m), and was the first
been adopted in the Americas, where it was suspension bridge to have steel wire cables.
used for the approach spans of the Rio- All the early suspension bridges had masonry
Niteroi Bridge in Brazil, and for several towers, but most of those built in the 20th
bridges in the U.S. century have had steel towers.
The Rombas Bridge in France, built in The failure of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge ,
1974, used temporary towers and cable stays due to aerodynamic instability, led to the use Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol,
to enable the bridge to be built by can- of stiffening trusses instead of plate girders, England (1836-64), by lsambard
tilevering continuously over the supports and recently in the Severn Bridge, England, Kingdom Brunei. The clear span of
702ft. (214m) represented a major
rather than by balanced cantilevering. The (Freeman Fox, 1966) to an aerodynamically achievement in 19th-century
Byker Railway Viaduct at Newcastle, Eng- shaped, steel box-girder deck used in con- suspension bridge construction.
land , which is still under construction, is junction with inclined hanging cables. The
being built by a combination of continuous deck of the Severn Bridge was constructed as
cantilevering using temporary props, and bal- a number of slices which were floated out,
anced cantilevering, with simple lifting rigs hoisted up from the catenary cables, and
sitting on the ends of the cantilevers. welded together. The Humber Bridge in Eng-
Another recent technique, which is appli- land, which is still being built, uses the same
cable to long viaducts with moderate spans, is type of deck and suspension but the towers
segmental construction, where all the seg- are made of reinforced concrete and were
ments are cast at one end of the bridge and built by slipforming.
jacked forward, producing an extrusion. An A number of bridges using cable stays were
example of this technique is Olifant's River built in the 19th century, as well as bridges
Bridge in South Africa which is 3,363 ft. which used both cable stays and catenary
(1 ,025 m) long and has spans of 148ft. (45 m). cables; but the post-1945 cable-stayed bridges
In steel too, the cantilever construction have been constructed with decks made from Brooklyn Bridge, New York
technique is mostly used for substantial plate girders, from box girders in steel, in designed by John A. Roebling and
bridges in the form of welded plate girders or reinforced concrete, or in prestressed con- completed by his son in 1883. The
first suspension bridge to use
box girders constructed from prefabricated crete. A well-known, but not very typical steel-wire cables and one of the
segments. Where they are of moderate span example is the Maracaibo Bridge by Morandi first to use pneumatic caissons for
they normally have a reinforced-concrete in prestressed concrete. The Theodor Heuss foundations.
deck which acts together with the steelwork Bridge over the Rhine at Dusseldorf has a
to form a composite section, as on the Sapele conventional tower arrangement-a mast at
Bridges in Nigeria, built in 1968. Larger each side of each end of the main span of 745
spans, where weight is more critical, usually ft. (227 m), and three widely spaced, parallel
have a steel battledeck which also takes part cables. The Kniebriicke at Dusseldorf (main
in the main beam action as on the Zoo Bridge span 1,050 ft. (320 m)) has a single mast and
at Cologne, which has a main span of about four widely spaced, parallel cables between
745ft. (227m). the two carriageways. Both of these have
steel decks.
The tendency now is to use many cables at
Suspension bridges fairly close spacing. This enables the bridge to
The first suspension bridge with -a level deck be built without temporary cables (bridge over
hung below the cables was built by James the Rhine at Rees). The Brotonne Bridge in
Finley (c. 1762-1828) in Pennsylvania in 1801. France has a single mast at each end of the
Thomas Telford's suspension bridge across main span of 1,040 ft. (317m) and 21 cables
the Menai Straits of 1825, with a span of 570 close together. T:te deck is a box girder of
ft. (173 m) used chains made from wrought- prestressed concrete made from precast webs
iron 1-bars which were prefabricated and and flanges cast in situ. A bridge over the
lifted into position from a pontoon. None of Columbia River, Washington , has two masts
the early bridges had longitudinal stiffening connected by a portal beam each end of the
girders, and the Menai Bridge was later main span of 975 ft. (297 m), and closely
stiffened with substantial parapets. Wires spaced cables at each side of the deck. The
were also used for suspension cables, and in deck is constructed from precast concrete
France, in 1829, L. J. Vicat first used the segments 79ft. (24m) wide, transported to the
method of constructing a wire cable in place site on barges and lifted by a traveling rig .
by spinning out the wires. (See also: STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS-ARCHES , Verrazano-Narrows Bridge
John Roebling (1806-69) built a suspension FOUNDATIONS , TRUSSES; CONSTRUCTION (1959-64) :view from Staten Island.
aqueduct in Pennsylvania (c. 1850), and a PROCESSES; BUILDING MATERIALS-IRON Suspension bridge with stiffened
railroad suspension bridge with a span of 820 AND STEEL.) deck.
68 Transportation

Railroad stations technology, allowed station architecture to

join the battle of the styles without realizing
The basic planning requirements for railroad that stations were a fundamentally new build-
stations have not changed very much since ing type and should be approached from first
the opening of the first passenger railroads; principles. When critics spoke out it was not
there must be a forecourt where passengers against the planning concept of the building,
arrive, a ticket hall, covered waiting space, but the particular style which had been cho-
and, preferably, covered access to the trains. sen.
Since provision must be made for both arriv- In Germany, a type of Romanesque
ing and departing passengers, circulation, seg- architecture was favored and became a rec-
regation, and duplication of services have ognized railroad style, but in Britain there was
always been familiar problems to designers. something of everything, and small country
stations were usually designed in the ver-
Early designs 1830-50 nacular of the area rather than in any rec-
ognizable railroad style. In Britain, money
Railroads were developed in Europe and the was readily available, encouraging good qual-
U.S. at about the same time, but in very ity work, while the compactness of the coun-
different circumstances. Railroad systems as try helped quick and econGmical develop-
we know them started in 1830 with the almost ment. British stations set the pattern for the
simultaneous opening of the Liverpool and world.
Manchester Railway in England, and the In the U.S., things were very different.
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in the U.S. The Stations were far apart and most of the money
first railroad stations date from this time. had to be spent on tracks and equipment.
Liverpool's Crown Street Station had all the Station buildings were a secondary con-
elements of a modem station with a train shed sideration and, often, were inferior to those in
open at both ends. Mount Clare Station, Europe. As late as the 1880s American sta-
Baltimore, still survives-a small brick poly- tions were criticized for lacking the normal
gon resembling a tollhouse. amenities found overseas. Early stations were
Station buildings were placed on one or small and domestic in scale and appearance,
both sides of the tracks, across them, or in without covered platforms, except for the
combination in U or L form. The train shed overhanging eaves of the buildings. Timber
became the general form, adopted where it construction was employed almost exclu-
could be afforded. The layout of buildings and sively, and as a result fire was a common
shed (or sheds) often depended on the site and hazard. Every type of plan was tried in
on whether the station was at the end of the America, but station amenities developed
line or on a through line. For administrative very slowly, and while the Boston Station in
purposes it was more convenient to have all Kneeland Street (1847) was well equipped, the
the buildings on the same side of the tracks; new station of the Hudson River Railroad,
however, this meant that some passengers had opened in 1861, offered little except separate
to cross them, and that was considered entrances for ladies and gentlemen.
dangerous even when there was not much
traffic. In the double-sided station, passengers
departed from one side and arrived at the Innovations 1850--60
other so the accommodation had to be dup- By 1850, the experimental stage of railroad
licated. In aU-shaped station, the sides could station building was over in both Europe and
be connected, but in a through station this the U.S. Wood for fuel gave way to coal, and
could only be done if the cross buildings was improved headlamps made possible the oper-
raised over the tracks. In the mid-19th cen- ation of night trains. Passenger amenities
tury, the two-sided station was the most increased and the larger stations provided
common type, both in Europe and the U.S. shelter all the way from the street to the train.
London's original Euston Station (now New stations everywhere were built on a
demolished) was the first important station of larger scale, partly to leave room for future
this type. It was constructed between 1835- expansion and partly because they began to
39, and the architect was Philip Hardwick incorporate hotels and office buildings. One-
(1792-1870), with Robert Stephenson (1803- sided, two-sided, and U-type stations con-
59) as engineer. First- and second-class pas- tinued to be built. Of the three, the one-sided
sengers had separate entrances and accom- was the least flexible, but on a restricted site
modation. Its Greek Doric arch conformed to it was sometimes the only feasible solution, as
contemporary thinking that the railroad sta- at Newcastle, England (1845), where the
tion was a gateway to the city. building is tangential to the curving tracks.
At this time there was already a require· In their original form, both King's Cross
ment that railroad stations should look impor- Station (1851-52), designed by Lewis and
tant. The French Beaux-Arts-trained Joseph Cubitt, and Paddington Station
architects understood this better than the (1852-54), designed by Isambard K. Brunei
British, who, although excelling in railroad (1806-59), were two-sided stations. They
 Transportation 69

functioned adequately enough until more

tracks had to be laid to cope with increased
traffic; arrangements then had to be made for
passengers to cross from one platform to
another. The best answer was the U-type
station, which until then had featured only
rarely. The pacesetter here was the Gare de
l'Est in Paris (1847-52), designed by Fran~ois
Duquesney (1800-49), which was considered
for many years to be the finest station in the
world. Its plan owed much of its success to
the introduction of a "salle des pas perdus,"
or concourse, in the head building (an idea
first used in the Gare du Nord, Paris (1847)
by Leyonce Reynaud). This enabled pas-
sengers to move from one platform to another
without crossing the tracks. The sides of the
U-plan housed departure and arrival accom-
modation respectively and each had a large
court for waiting vehicles.
Up to this time train sheds had been mainly
of timber construction, with cast-iron stan-
cheons, and had, by 1839-40, reached spans
of 72ft. (23 m) at Bristol, Temple Meads. hy
Brunei. Iron, either in truss or arched form
then took over, and the Gare de I'Est set the
standard for the 1850s. The double arched The era of the great train sheds Facade of King's Cross Station,
London, England (1851-52), by
shed of King's Cross, spanning 105 ft. (32 m), 1860-1918 Lewis Cubitt.
was, however, originally made of timber. It
soon deteriorated under the attack of steam
and smoke and had to be replaced with iron The 1860s initiated the period of the great
arches in 1869. Triangular iron trusses were train sheds. St Pancras in London (1868-69),
sometimes used, for example in the second designed by W. H. Barlow and R. M. Ordish,
Gare du Nord in Paris (1861-65), designed by spans 240ft. (73 m) and springs from platform
Jakob Ignaz Hittorf (1792-1867), but they level in a great curve to meet at a ridge 100ft.
lacked both the grace and excitement of the (30 m) above the tracks; the shed is 689 ft.
arched form. (209 m) long. It was often imitated , par-
Iron train sheds were now the dominant ticularly in the U.S. In Grand Central Sta-
feature of stations, but they were visible, with tion, New York (1869-71), Isaac C. Buckhout
some exceptions, from the inside only. No- and John B. Shook produced a semicircular
table exceptions were King's Cross Station arched shed from imported metal. Although it
and the Gare de I'Est where the train shed was expressly intended to rival St Pancras,
was expressed by a great semicircular arch in for some reason it fell short in its main
the center of the main facade. Great arches dimensions; however, as the largest covered Monumental facade of the railroad
station at Strasbourg, France
became a prominent feature of railroad station space in the U.S., it was a great tourist (1878-83), by Jakobsthal.
facades, and their popularity was only attraction. The Pennsylvania Railroad, which
exceeded by that of the tower, which became specialized in vast train sheds, built the last of
the world symbol of railroad stations. For the great single-span sheds at Pittsburgh in
Chicago Grand Central, for example, S. Bea- 1898, with a span of 240 ft. (73 m). The ribs,
man de:,igned a tower 247ft. (75 m) high. fixed at one end, were mounted on rollers, so
In the U.S., the first important railroad they were free to move. Then, mainly because
station, Union Station, Providence, Rhode of high maintenance cost, giant single-span
Island, was designed in the German train sheds began to die out, but even so, the
Romanesque style in 1848 by Thomas Tefft. day of the impressive shed was not over yet.
Thirty years later it was considered to be one The popularity of the railroad hotel spread
of the 20 best buildings in the country. Wood from the U.S. to England. Built across the
was used in many of these structures as it was ends of the tracks and the train shed, it often
readily available and often much cheaper than became the building by which the station was
iron. Lattice trusses of various types were recognized. The grandest hotel of them all
introduced. Some, designed by Ithiel Town was built in High Gothic style at St Pancras
(1784-1844) and William M. Howe, spanning (1868-76), designed by Sir George Gilbert
150 ft. (46 m), were used in Phifadelphia. Scott (1811-78).
Howe later developed a lattice truss in metal The styles of American stations were nearly
to span 166 ft (51 m) at the Great Central as varied as those elsewhere. Henry Hobson
Station, Chicago (1855). Richardson (1838-86), a famous American
70 Transportation

architect of his time, used rough, massive system using moderate space with a height of
masonry, and fortress-like detailing in a only 16 ft. (5 m); smoke and fumes escaped
number of small stations for the Boston and through slotted vents. At first, the vaults were
Albany Railroad Company in the 1880s. Rail- carried on metal stancheons, but later these
road companies now set out to be impressive, were replaced by concrete, reducing main-
and concourses inside the buildings (as dis- tenance.
tinct from within the train shed) became
monumental. Union Station, St Louis (1891- Post-World War I developments.
94), is a typical example. Some stations were
very inconvenient. In the Illinois Central Great station building in the old and luxurious
Station in Chicago (1892-93), designed by tradition stopped with World War I, and
Bradford Gilbert, the great shedlike waiting concrete and glass replaced exposed metal,
room was placed on the first floor over the notably at Reims (1930-34), designed by Le
Concourse of Rome Terminal tracks. Railroad stations had become mag- Marec and Limousin, and at Le Havre
Station (1931-51) by E. Montuori nificent, trains were faster, safer, and more Maritime (1936), designed by Urbain Cassan.
and others.
comfortable; but passengers sometimes had to In Holland , where much of the track is raised
walk as much as 900 ft. (273 m) between the above ground level, a type of small station
street and the trains. was developed with services at ground level
Little was done to find new solutions to the and a light and airy steel and glass train shed
problems of station design although electric containing waiting rooms, restaurants, and
traction and lighting encouraged some impor- other accommodation at track level.
tant innovations. The Gare d'Orsay in Paris Britain had a brief but bright railroad station
(1897-1900), designed by Victor Laloux, had revival in and around London in 1932-38, due
everything under a huge glass roof with almost entirely to the work of two men: Frank
flanking arched windows; the entrance was at Pick, head of the London Passenger Trans-
street level, and various offices and services port Board, which controlled the subway
were grouped around open wells over the system, and the architect Charles Holden
platforms. In New York Central Station (1875-1960). Pick was interested in modern
(1903-13), designed by Reed and Stem, the design in all its forms and Holden designed
tracks were put underground on two levels; more than 30 surface stations for him. He
the train shed disappeared and in com- used concrete, brick, and glass in basic
pensation the concourse was 125 x 375 ft. (38 geometric shapes, and his stations were con-
x I 13 m), with a height of 120 ft. (36 m). In venient and easy to use.
spite of this exaggerated magnificence, the Generally speaking, European station con-
station is one of the most successful ever courses became more human in scale and
built. better planned and equipped. The most prom-
In Germany, the best examples of great inent among these is the Rome Terminal
train shed stations were Frankfurt am Main (1931-51), designed by E. Montuori and
(1879--88) by Eggert and Faust, with a vast others. Here a great open space is covered
eight-span shed, and Leipzig (1907-15) by with a curved and cranked concrete roof, with
Lossow and Kuhne, one of the largest and glass on three sides and a boldly cantilevered
most comprehensive main buildings ever canopy overhanging the vehicle arrival area.
built. Earlier, the station at Hamburg (1903- The design is generally regarded as the finest
06), designed by Reinhardt and Sossenguth, recent example of railroad architecture.
had a steel and glass shed with no masonry.
The station building flanked by twin towers Airports
bridged the through tracks with entrances and The term airport should properly include the
exits at its ends. In England, most of the big entire range of runways, taxiways, control
stations had already been built, but a national towers, cargo, maintenance, parking, and
romantic wave was passing through Europe, administrative buildings which, together with
producing Helsinki Central (1901-14) by Eliel one or more passenger terminals, make up the
Saarinen (1873-1950), a truly great building typical modern airport complex. This account
without a train shed, and Milan Central will deal primarily with the design develop-
(1913-30) by Ulisse Stacchini, where the ment of the passenger terminal building, only
single splendor of the five-arched steel sheds referring to airport infrastructure where this
contrasts with the extreme ugliness and has a specific effect on the design of the
inconvenience of the building. In New York's terminal itself.
Pennsylvania Station (1906-10) by McKim, In principle, the airport is no more than a
Meade, and White (recently demolished), the transportation interchange, the interface be-
waiting room and concourse were as big as tween different modes of travel. Up to 30 or
train sheds. Large multispan train sheds were 40 years ago, the most familiar example of
unpopular because of high maintenance costs. such an interchange was the railroad station,
This difficulty was overcome by the American where people traveling by public trans-
engineer Lincoln Bush (1860-1940) who portation, private vehicle, or even on foot,
invented the Bush shed in 1906--a concrete assembled to join another type of trans-
 Transportation 71

portation system consisting of regular train

services running on fixed routes, at com-
paratively high speeds, to specific des-
tinations. It is understandable that in com-
parison with the, by then, highly developed
railroad stations, the earliest airports were
very simple, consisting of little more than a
waiting room at the side of the grass landing
field. This was all that aircraft of the 1920s
required. Since aircraft capacities were small,
the number of travelers was insignificant in
comparison with other means of trans-
portation. Air travel was so much of an
adventure in itself that expectations, in terms
of amenities on the ground, were limited.
Only gradual improvement in the number and
standard of facilities available, in at least the
larger airports, took place during the years up
to the end of World War II; but with the swift
development of jet aircraft during the 1950s,
major changes had to take place.
Compared with the Douglas DC-3, a typ-
ical 1930s-designed twin-propeller aircraft still
flying on most world airlines at that time, the
first Boeing 707 in service flew 2.5 times as
fast and had eight times the range and payload
of the prewar machine. Ten years later, the
Boeing 747 and other wide-bodied jets could
carry nearly five times the payload of the 707 Passenger terminal functions T.W.A. Flight Center, Kennedy
Airport, New York (1960-62), by
and, if required, could travel twice as far. The Eero Saarinen. Its winged shape in
effects of this explosion in aircraft pro- Before considering design concepts in detail , sculptural concrete suggests the
ductivity on the design of airports were, and it is worth reviewing the various functions theme of flight.
still are, profound. that the passenger terminal has to perform.
The most obvious effect is one of scale. In Passengers departing by air arrive at the
1950, only 14 in every 100 people traveling by terminal by various modes of transportation
public transportation between cities in the and must proceed to one or more check-in
U.S. went by air. In 1970, this figure had zones, where their travel documents will be
risen to 77 in every 100, and the number of issued or checked and their hold baggage
passenger-miles flown had risen to 13 times received, weighed, and tagged. Baggage is at
the number flown in 1950. At the same time, this point transferred to a subsystem within
the number of air passengers flown by all the the terminal, which must be designed to
world's airlines, including the U .S., rose from ensure that baggage and passenger meet again
30 million to 385 million, and it has been at their destination. From check-in, pas-
predicted that this will rise to more than twice sengers move to the first general holding area
that number by 1980. Increases in passenger or concourse before proceeding to separate
numbers of this magnitude were inconceivable gates for individual aircraft. For international
to airport managers and designers during the flights, the move from check-in to concourse
1950s and 1960s, and even in the mid-1970s is by way of passport and immigration con-
there were many who felt that the energy trols; once past these controls, passengers
crisis might at last set a limit to the growth of have moved from the "landside" to the
air travel figures. "airside" of the terminal, through what is, in
Because growth in air travel has dramat- effect, an international frontier. This sep-
ically outstripped even informed prediction aration between the two parts of the terminal
during the last 30 years, it follows that few must extend through all parts of the building,
airports have been designed to handle effi- and throughout the airfield itself.
ciently the numbers of passengers and others The concourse contains most of the
who actually use them. Because of their size amenities required by travelers, such as
and complexity, most modem airports take shops, snack bars, and restaurants. At inter-
many years to build. All too often, by the time national airports, duty-free sales to travelers
they are finished they are found to be too are an important and increasing source of
small, inadequately equipped for the intensity revenue to the airport. A substantial area
of traffic actually encountered, and insuf- must therefore be allocated to this require-
ficiently flexible, either in design concept or in ment, with consequent security problems in
built form, to adapt to changed and constantly dealing with bonded goods and large sums of
changing circumstances. money. From the concourse, passengers may
72 Transportation

be directed straight to the gate leading to their

aircraft, or more frequently to some form of
holding area at which a final check on pas-
senger lists can take place. Events in recent
years have necessitated careful security
measures for all air passengers, and electronic
and hand-search procedures for people and
carry-on luggage generally take place at this
point. From here, passengers either enter the
aircraft directly, by way of an adjustable
bridge known as an air-jetty or "jetway," or
are transferred there by some kind of bus.
Passengers arriving by air follow a some-
what similar procedure in reverse, but with
different checks, controls, and priorities.
Entering the terminal on the airside, their first
wish will be to find their luggage, if any, and
then get away by means of public or private
transportation. For international passengers
there will be immigration and passport con-
trols to negotiate before they can proceed to
the baggage collection point, then customs
examination once they have located their
luggage.
Despite the broad similarity of departure
and arrival passenger flows, the vast number
of people involved in each case in an airport baggage is transferred by some form of Central well of Charles de Gaulle
of any size make it essential to separate these mechanical conveyor system to a point on the Airport, Roissy, Paris, completed
1974. Passengers reach the
flows almost completely. In the smaller and airside where it can be finally transported to terminal along a sunken road and
simpler types of terminal this can be done the aircraft hold by motorized carts. On the connect with the satellite buildings
laterally, with an arrivals section arranged larger aircraft, baggage is stowed in containers by moving sidewalks.
alongside the departures section, each usually before being put into the plane.
at ground level. In very large airports this For arriving passengers, baggage is taken
principle is sometimes adopted on a grander from the aircraft on the same system and
scale by having completely separate arrivals unloaded, either directly or via a short con-
and departures buildings. In most cases, veyor, to some form of "carousel" or " race-
however, separation is achieved vertically, track" which distributes bags to the waiting
with departing passengers entering the build- passengers standing around it. Once col-
ing at an upper level and, ideally, staying at lected, the baggage movement through the
that level until entering the plane, while rest of the terminal is the passenger's respon-
arriving passengers descend to ground level as sibility.
soon as possible after leaving the aircraft, and In a typical two-level terminal departure
stay on that level for all subsequent pro- baggage is conveyed to first-floor level as
cedures. While this approach is simple to soon as possible after it is received, and
establish in principle, it is frequently com- distributed at that level. Arrivals baggage
promised in practice by conflicts between the should remain at first-floor level from the
passenger circulation and other equally impor- aircraft hold right through to passenger col-
tant systems within the terminal. Of these, the lection from the continuous reclaim tracks.
baggage distribution system is usually the This is because passengers enter and leave the
most critical in its effect both on the design of aircraft at an upper level conditioned by the
the building and on the successful operation of height of aircraft floors above ground-over
the terminal as a whole. 17 ft. (5 m) in the case of a 747-whereas
baggage is stowed in the hold of the plane,
which is much nearer the ground, and con-
Baggage handling veyed to or from this by carts moving on the
To cope with the enormous increase in the ground. Various forms of conveyor-belt link
quantity of passenger baggage handled in between aircraft and terminal have been
airport terminals, various systems and attempted, particularly where there is a direct
approaches have been developed. It has passenger link between the two. These have
become a convention, for example, to sepa- rarely proved satisfactory because of the
rate the departing passenger from his heavy conflict between the conveyor and the need to
luggage as early as possible in the departure retain all-round access to the aircraft at
process, sometimes even at a drive-in check- ground level, so that all the other servicing
point before parking. Once it is weighed and operations can take place during its brief stay
tagged with flight number and destination, the at the terminal.
 Transportation 73

While these principles of baggage handling Terminal design

and movement are as simple to establish as A survey of the world's airports in the late
those for. passenger movement, there are a 1970s shows that most terminal designs belong
number of practical problems that limit their to one of four groups. These are: linear, pier,
effectiveness in use. Firstly, all mechanical satellite, and mobile; terms which summarize
systems are prone to occasional or eventual the essential characteristics of each type.
malfunction. And when breakdown does Many of the larger airports operate com-
occur the strain on both passengers and binations of two or more types.
airport staff becomes acute. Secondly, Linear This is the simplest terminal concept,
although they are mechanized, all these sys- and most of the airports founded in the early
tems depend on human beings to operate them days of air transportation began in this way.
effectively, and human beings also perform The terminal is arranged so that aircraft can
poorly on occasions. Thus, despite the checks park in a line against or around it, with as
built into the system, bags will sometimes be direct a link as possible between the parking
wrongly labeled, or wrongly routed despite curb, the building, and the plane. It is par-
having the right label. Once misdirected, for ticularly suited to small airports dealing with
whatever reason, recovery is difficult and internal flights, and is still typical of first-
time-wasting for both passengers and airline generation airports in small or emerging coun-
staff. This situation is complicated in many tries. Examples occur at most smaller U.S.
airports by division of responsibility between cities, while international versions can be seen
the airlines, who undertake the care of the at Helsinki and Iraklion in Crete.
passenger at check-in, and the airport man- The fundamental drawback of the linear
agement, who deal with baggage until it approach is that it must be limited in size, and
reaches the aircraft. therefore in the number of aircraft and pas-
Thirdly, baggage handling, particularly sengers that it can handle in peak conditions.
between the terminal building and the aircraft, This is because the safety mles governing the
which might be on a remote location a mile or movement of planes on the ground and the
more from the terminal, can be a uniquely large wingspans of modern passenger aircraft
unattractive job, with the personnel con- determine the distance that each must be
cerned exposed to extremes of weather, acute spaced from the other at the terminal airside.
noise from aircraft both flying and on the Consequently, a large number of planes would
ground, dust from jet blast, and constant require a very long terminal, and result in long
exposure to atmospheric pollution from air- passenger distances from check-in to aircraft.
craft exhaust and fuel. The volatile labor The logical solution to this problem would be
relations familiar in most docks of the world to multiply the number of check-ins, baggage
have, not surprisingly, been carried into the conveyors, and other facilities, but this has
baggage-handling crews of many major air- generally been ruled out for cost and staffing
ports. When a strike occurs, it tends to cripple reasons, particularly in international airports
the conventional baggage-handling system as where the complications of customs and
effectively as any mechanical breakdown. immigration have to be incorporated.
These problems are inherent in the system, It is significant, however, that the inherent
but there have been a number of attempts to simplicity and human scale of this con-
overcome or at least reduce them by mod- figuration has caused designers to seek ways
ifying the approach to the basic problem. of overcoming its disadvantages when applied
Generally, however, these have tended to very large airports. One solution that has
toward increased mechanization, as, for emerged in several forms is to take a number
example, at Charles de Gaulle Airport near of compact linear terminal units and arrange
Paris, where all baggage movement takes these in a larger linear complex along some
place below airfield level, with baggage inside form of circulation spine. In these cases, each
the main terminal having to descend to, or rise self-contained unit is linked to the others by
from, a huge basement serving seven "satel- some form of mechanical transportation sys-
lites" where the aircraft are located. Despite tem, and the whole complex is very depen-
the technical interest of the system, it has not dent on sophisticated mechanisms and con-
proved significantly superior to more con- trols. The most impressive current example of
ventional arrangements, nor has it apparently this approach is Dallas-Fort Worth where up
enabled the airport management to reduce the to 14 semicircular linear terminal units, each
number of baggage-handling staff, or to avoid accommodating up to 15 aircraft, will be
reliance on them in case of breakdown. dispersed along both sides of a transportation
In other airports, such as Seattle-Tacoma axis served by an automatic rapid-transit
and Zurich, conventional baggage-cart links system. A similar but smaller example occurs
between aircraft and terminal are retained, but at Hamburg-Kaltenkirchen in Germany, while
baggage circulation and sorting are guided and in France the proposed Terminal Two at
controlled by computer. This reduces the Charles de Gaulle Airport will consist of four
unskilled staff but places a great reliance on a pairs of linked curved linear terminals. In
small number of technically skilled staff. these, and similar cases like Toronto and
74 Transportation

Kansas City International Airports, distorting It is clear that the success in practice of any
the airside into a convex curve enables it to be such concept will depend on the effectiveness
wrapped around the smaller area containing of the link between the central terminal and its
all central facilities. A compact and well- satellites. Ideally, if satellites are to be suit-
organized rectangular example is the British ably remote, connections to the terminal must
Airways terminal at John F. Kennedy Inter- be underground to permit completely free
national Airport, New York. movement of aircraft around them. Charles de
Pier The enlargement of early types of linear Gaulle Terminal One is a dramatic example,
terminal led to the development of the pier where access to and from seven satellites
system. In its simplest form, a walkway or arranged around a circular central building is
pier, double-decked in the case of terminals gained by way of moving walkways which
with vertical passenger separation, is descend below ground to pass under the
extended from the original passenger building, aircraft taxiways and rise again inside the
long enough for several aircraft to be parked building. Elsewhere, the satellites are
against one or both sides. In many cases developed more as expanded nodes at the end
"gates" and holding lounges are added to the of long, surface-built transit piers linked back Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris,
pier so that passengers can be moved quickly to the central terminal. Tampa International is France (1974). The ring-shaped
central building is surrounded by
through the terminal to lessen the pressure on such a case, where transit is accomplished by seven satellites around which the
its central facilities. The concept is simple, automatically controlled electric trains travel- aircraft are parked.
and is only limited practically by the sur- ing at 1,000 ft./min. (300 m/min.). Seattle-
rounding airfield configuration and the travel Tacoma International is an example of a
distances considered tolerable for passengers. brand new airport incorporating all of the
Because so many early airports were concepts described so far, having a central
extended in this manner, in a piecemeal way linear terminal with two piers attached and, in
which showed little apparent concern for the addition, two remote linear satellites reached
convenience of passengers, the pier system by underground rail transit tunnel loops.
has become largely symbolic of the inade- Mobile Lounges Though inherently flexible as
quacy of most airport design. a concept, the physical constraints of the link
There are several examples of pier-type between central terminal and satellites-
airports designed from inception, of which expensive tunnels or overhead transit links-
O'Hare International, Chicago, is the most and the fixed location of the satellites them-
impressive. Still handling the largest annual selves out on the airfield, all serve to limit
throughput of passengers in the world, flexibility in practice. If the facilities provided
O'Hare consists of one international and two in the satellite could be linked to the terminal
domestic main terminals serving a total of 12 or aircraft transit system, then a new dimen-
piers. The complex has shown itself flexible in sion of flexibility could be achieved. This
adjusting to increasing aircraft sizes and pas- objective led to the development of the mobile
senger numbers per plane, but has achieved lounge or transporter concept, where the
this at the cost of extremely long walking passenger-holding lounges are actually
distances , exceeding a mile between the mobile, designed to drive between terminal
furthest gates, which might be considered and aircraft wherever the latter is parked on
unacceptable in an airport with so much the airfield. This involves acceptance of
interline activity. The Central Terminal of transit vehicles moving at surface level--only
Frankfurt/Main in Germany is a later example a completely suspended airfield would avoid
of a new pier design, where four main piers the need for this-but in practice this has not
serving 36 aircraft positions are liberally sup- proved a major problem in view of the high
plied with moving walkways to assist pas- standard of ground control now possible with
senger movement to and from curb and plane. radio and radar communication. The mobile
Satellite Awareness of the limitations of even lounge concept should not be confused with
well-designed pier system terminals led to the the familiar, and rarely satisfactory, practice
evolution of the satellite concept. In this, the of busing passengers between terminal and
central terminal with all its major passenger- aircraft, since this usually involves them being
processing facilities is supplemented by a exposed to the outside environment at each
number of remote buildings at which the end of the journey. The mobile lounge is
aircraft are parked. These buildings, the satel- actually a part of the terminal's passenger-
lites, contain passenger-holding amenities holding facility, but designed to move to and
which can be more economically concentrated from the plane, adjusting its height to any
than on extended piers. The satellites them- aircraft in service. The first and most fa mous
selves can be situated in the optimum airfield example of this idea is Dulles International
locations relative to the runways, whereas the Airport, Washington D.C.
central terminal can be located at the point Once again, despite the apparent adap-
most appropriate to site traffic access. Thus tability of the concept, it has not in practice
the requirements of land and air vehicles, so been found to resolve all the problems of
contradictory in many respects, can each be airport terminal design. It has not proved
met in the best way. economic to design really advanced mobile
 Transportation 75

lounges, which will provide all the facilities

usually expected by passengers in con-
ventional waiting areas. As a result, pas-
sengers tend to stay away from the mobile
lounges until the last moment before depar-
ture; this means these times are advanced to
prevent late aircraft departure, and therefore
result in a longer static waiting time, in
vehicle and aircraft, than for other systems.
Again, the mobile lounges require con-
siderable skill to operate efficiently, par·
ticularly when connecting to the aircraft, since
even minor damage caused during this man-
euver can have substantial financial con-
sequences in terms of delayed flights and
disrupted schedules. It is significant that no
other pure mobile-lounge serviced airport has
been built since Dulles. Despite the flexibility
of the principle, most subsequent designs
have seen the approach as a supplementary
solution of peak conditions of overload, to be
used alongside more conventional static so-
lutions of one of the other types described.
U sed in this way, the flexibility is retained ,
but the concept is reduced to just another
runway bus service.

Traffic management
This assessment of past and current airport
terminal types has concentrated almost exclu-
sively on the interface between airport airside
and landside-how passengers move between
aircraft and terminal processes. Equally remain-getting passengers in and out of the Dull es International Airport,
Washington D.C. The passenger
important to the functional success of the aircraft, and to and from the airport. Most terminal building, completed in
terminal is the efficiency with which very other radical approaches involve some degree 1963 by Eero Saarinen, is a vast
large numbers of people-inward- and of cooperation from aircraft designers. If, for rectangular concourse. Aircraft are
outward-bound passengers, airport and airline example, aircraft fuselages could be "con- reached by mobile lounges which
dock in at the terminal air side.
staff, and also the considerable quantities of tainerized," passengers could join the plane at
" meeters and greeters" generated by the a downtown terminal which is then driven
increasing number of air passengers--can be straight to the aircraft on the runway, with no
moved between the terminals and their sur- need for an intermediate passenger terminal at
rounding cities. Detailed considerations of the airfield .
high-volume traffic management, automobile Other more immediately realistic solutions
parking and its proximity to the terminal, require the development of vertical takeoff
and the disposition and flow of people within and landing (VTOL) passenger aircraft, simi-
the terminal-all these have a profound effect lar in principle to the Hawker Harrier
on its success or failure, both in broad fighter-bomber. These would deal with all
functional terms and as a personal experience short- and some medium-haul flights between
for each traveler passing through it. Empirical large cities, bringing this intense larger vol-
methods of calculating these factors and ume traffic nearer the city centers and less-
assessing their interaction have now given ening the load on conventional out-of-town
way to elaborate analysis by computer and the airports so that they can continue to deal with
formulation of "mathematical models" of the a growing international flight load. Such a
airport to be designed. proposal may clarify the terminal designer's
There have, of course, been many attempts objectives, but it will not obviate the need for
to devise radical alternatives to the con- some form of city center terminal, with most
ventional airport terminal. One solution popu- of the familiar problems to solve, plus a
lar with architectural students is to treat the massive extra environmental problem from
airport like a vast aircraft carrier with all VTOL aircraft noise and pollution. While
accommodation below ground, so that run- there will undoubtedly be some developments
ways and taxiways can be freely disposed. in this direction, it seems most probable that
This inevitably leads to very costly and airport design, in at least the immediate
technologically demanding systems for dealing future , will tend toward refinement and evolu-
with the fundamental problems which tion of already familiar types.
 76 Residential

Residential
Houses

The characteristic form of dwelling adopted

by a particular region is dependent upon a
number of primary determining factors-
climatic, sociological, or economic. In pre-
dominantly hot climates, rooms have tended
to be open or grouped around an open
courtyard, while in cold climates rooms were
often placed together in a compact block to
facilitate heating. Where security from attack
was a primary concern, or where the sec-
Thatched house on pilotis fronted
lusion of women was a major determinant,
by a shaded open area. Near there were no windows facing outward at
lquitos, Amazon region, Peru. ground level and the building might even rise
into a tower. Often, for economic or sociolog- Adobe-built village, Taos, New
ical reasons, a number of separate habitations Mexico.
might be joined together end to end, or one
above the other to produce a multiple unit
structure; where an extended family or a tribe
was concerned, a multiple unit structure might
share common facilities, and even provide one
continuous social space serving as a com-
munal focus to all the units, as in the Iroquois
"long house" of the northeastern U.S.
In traditional, stratified societies, great
importance was placed on distinctive forms of
expression for houses of the different ranks of
society. Nevertheless, the houses of the
richer strata were usually generated from the
same basic forms and living patterns as those
of the humblest buildings. It is important to
note however, the ambiguous relationship
which frequently existed in primitive societies Traditionallow-eaved timber
between the houses of the gods and those of chalet at Chateau d'Oex in the
Alpine region of Switzerland.
the rulers. The religious buildings were often
elevated forms of domestic architecture given were crude open shelters and temporary tents
a higher symbolic character. Subsequently, thatched with grass or rushes. During the
Reconstruction of a Roman atrium however, a reverse process might take place Neolithic period the tendency of human
house at Pompeii. The various and the ritualistic and symbolic aspect of the beings to engage in settled or semi-settled
spaces of the house face onto the
open courtyard.
temple might be transferred to the palace of agriculture or pastorialism led to the
the ruler as he assumed divine authority. development of relatively permanent con-
Royal long house in North Sumatra
Although practical considerations always structions. Bases of the earliest primitive huts
(c. 1770). An elaborately built, played a major role in domestic architecture, showed that they generally consisted of a
symbolically detailed and these seldom dominated over religious, social, single room which was submerged partly or
decorated structure. or status considerations, and a conception of wholly underground. A hole in the center of
the dwelling as part of a universal system of the room functioned as the hearth. At quite an
order-the observance of which protected the early period, small porches were introduced in
inhabitants from the wrath of the gods or of front of the main entrance and may have acted
fate--was as important as the due ack- both as windbreaks and as tunnels in which an
nowledgment of the rank and status of the attacker was put at a disadvantage. These
family in the social order. huts were the basic forms from which domes-
With the growth of belief in individual tic architecture developed. (see PRIMITIVE
freedom in late Gothic times, the house came ARCHITECTURE.)
to be thought of as a vehicle of self- Although early house constructions were
expression, and architects began to be com- made of frameworks of saplings or bones,
missioned to develop the facades and the main
covered with hides or grass thatch or leaves,
reception rooms, ultimately transforming thethere was an increasing tendency to build in
fundamental forms of the house from those more permanent materials, e.g. stone, layered
which followed traditional, social patterns to
clay, mud brick. Conical or dome-shaped huts
an almost endless variety of original concepts.
utilized circular or oval plans, and similar
shapes were possible in the more permanent
Prehistoric and primitive kind of materials providing they were roofed
The earliest forms of constructed dwellings with the same forms, i.e. domes or dome-
 Residential 77

shaped roofs. However, as soon as straight By the time of the Assyrian Kingdom, at
beams were introduced to cover the space, the beginning of the 2nd millennium sc,
whether it was constructed with a timber houses could be characterized as focusing on
framework or a masonry wall, rectangular two main courts, surrounded by single-storey
planning became more efficient. blocks, containing long, narrow rooms; one
The elementary form of the multi-room court, the "entrance court" (babanu) appar-
house was one in which a single room was ently contained the public reception and
subdivided into several sectors. This principle administrative rooms. The other, the "resi-
is used in the tents of the nomadic people of dential court" (bitanu) clearly had smaller
the Near East and North Africa, and was units for living purposes. There were other
found in many parts of the world in the houses subsidiary courts for more specialized
of the late Neolithic peoples. The early activities, which clustered around the larger
examples of the megaron on the Greek units. The great palaces of Nimrud, Khor- Wattle and thatch shelter
mainland, for example, had a rectangular hall sabad, and Nineveh, built during the great reconstruction at Singleton Open
with a semicircular apse at one end, which period of the Assyrian Empire in the 9th to 7th Air Museum, England.

was divided from an anteroom by a wall centuries sc, although of immense size and
containing a central door. scale, were all of this type.
The earliest forms of the northern European In Egypt the earliest remains of houses date
"long house" were of the bay type, the from the 3rd dynasty, and show the typical
largest individual houses having as many as 8 house to have been a small rectangular struc-
to 15 bays subdivided into several rooms. ture about 17 x 13ft. (5.5 x 4 m), divided into
The remarkable New Stone Age settlement of two zones by a longitudinal division, one zone
Khirokitia in Cyprus had round sleeping cum for reception and the other for private quar-
living spaces flanked by kitchens , workshops, ters. The 4th dynasty, however, introduced
and stores which were clearly defined as L-shaped rooms (presumably containing bed
separate spaces. recesses) and the provision of two entrances,
c•'he early Egyptian houses were built of one on a main processional street and the
wood or unbaked brick within a walled com- other on a service alley; inside the latter there
pound, and took the form of square or was a granary. Other Old Kingdom houses Samoan house with woven palm
rectangular buildings, each containing a cen- were known from tomb models. They gen- retracted screen.
tral room flanked by smaller rooms on either erally had a front courtyard surrounded by a
side. These buildings were usually roofed by a high enclosure wall entered through a central
terrace and later came to have a second storey gateway. There was a columned portico or an
reached by exterior stairways. awning on columns at the rear of the court-
yard, behind which was grouped a small
number of enclosed rooms. Larger houses
were of two storeys, with a columned portico
The "courtyard house" in antiquity on each floor and a stairway ascending to a
The formation of cities in many areas bor- roof terrace. Rooms were roofed with vaults
dering on the Fertile Crescent at the eastern and half vaults, or with timber beams. Half
end of the Mediterranean, in the period from cupolas protuded from the roof terrace, facing
the 9th to the 7th millennium sc, was north to catch the prevailing wind and direct it
accompanied by the development of houses down ventilating channels to the rooms
surrounded by high walls with no openings below. The courtyard served as a garden in
except for the entrance doors, which looked which vegetables, fruit , flowers, and some-
inward for light and ventilation to central times palms were grown; in the center there
A "black house" on Harris,
courtyards. The earliest firm evidence we was usually a rectangular pool containing fish Scotland. Built of stone with a turf
have of the evolution of such building types is and reeds. thatch roof.
in the excavation of temples, such as Tell Urban houses, on the other hand, were
Agrab in Mesopotamia, themselves believed entirely built over from one edge of the site to
to be derived from undiscovered domestic the other, with the exception of courtyards.
buildings. They were well evidenced at El-Mahun,
Houses from about 2600 sc have been where both large and small houses dating from
found in which the principle of grouping the Middle Kingdom (c. 2131-1785 sc) were
rooms around a court is highly developed. built on the edge of the desert. The largest
The house of the priest attached to the "oval type had only one entrance, giving access via
temple'' at Khafagae had rooms on all four a vestibule to twn parallel corridors which
sides of a court, with the main room running divided the eastern area from the remainder of
transversely across the southern side of the the plan on the west. The former contained
court. This principle of a transverse room three courts surrounded by offices with a set
relating to a court on its southern side (in of granaries at the rear. The other corridor led
predominantly cold climates) or on its north- to the back of the main reception court,
Borres House, Gordes, France (c.
em side (in predominantly warm climates) emerging in the colonnade in front of the 1660) built in dry stone with a
was developed in Mesopotamia throughout transverse reception room which faced the corbeled roof on a rectangular
the succeeding millennia. cool northern breezes. A central door in this plan.
 78 Residential

transverse room gave access to a square hall with an enclosing rectangular wall and a
with a raised roof supported on four columns central door, have been found in a tomb
so that clerestory light could enter. This model from the island of Melos. An alter-
room, the so-called "hypostyle hall" was the native, without a courtyard, was the apsidal
kernel of the house, the main living room. On thatched house with a vestibule.
the west of it was the master's bedroom with Our knowledge of Greek houses of Hellenic
a separate recessed sleeping bench. A door at period is limited to those very few small
the rear of the hypostyle hall led into a second houses which have been unearthed in exca-
living space surrounded by further bedrooms. vations. At Dystus in Euboea, houses of the
The service court, with its own portico facing 7th century Be were entered down a narrow
north, Jay behind this. A third longitudinal passage from an entrance door in the street
strip to the west contained the women's facade. On one side there was a small room,
Plan of Egyptian house: the house apartments with its own court in the center, which we know from Vitruvius' description of
ofVizierNekhtatEIAmarna. workmen's quarters on the south and ser- the classical Greek house to have probably
vants' quarters on the north. Animals were been a porter's room. In a few houses there is
kept in the house in stables which were evidence of other rooms off the entrance
reached from the entrance doorway. Roof passage; these were stables for animals. The
ventilators brought cooling air down over the visitor then emerged into a courtyard which,
sleeping alcoves; there was also a bathroom according to Vitruvius, should have been
near each bedroom. A large house of this kind given a portico on three sides , although the
could accommodate 40-60 people. examples at Dystus did not usually have this.
In the period of the Great Egyptian Empire The main living room (oecus) had some
during the New Kingdom (1580-1085 BC), resemblance to the megaron, at least in
houses of exactly the same basic forms con- having a portico of columns between flanking
tinued to be built. The best evidence comes walls in front of it. To the right and left of the
from Akhnaten's capital of Amarna, where a portico thus formed were two bedrooms
standardized house unit in the artisans' village (thalamus and ante-thalamus), while around
had a front courtyard in the west, a central the courtyard were dining rooms and other
hypostyle hall with a masonry bench built rooms for common use, bedrooms, and ser-
onto its walls, and a bedroom and a kitchen at vice rooms. The portico in front of the family
Typical Greek house: a restoration the rear. The staircase rose from the kitchen room faced south for light and warmth in
drawing of a house at Priene. to the roof terrace, which was probably winter, while one of the flanking colonnades
provided with an awning. The orientation of faced north and provided cool shade in
the courtyard to the west ensured bright summer. The women's apartments were
sunlight at the end of the day while a covered behind the main living room , or on an upper
area on the southern side caught the northern floor around the courtyard, approached up a
breeze. staircase in one corner of the court.
Ancient Cretan houses may have owed Over 100 houses of the first half of the 4th
something in their original planning arrange- century BC have been found at Olynthus near
ment to Egyptian houses. Their nucleus Salonika. The houses had a standard 16 ft.
seems to have been a central living hall with a (4.5 m) frontage on a street running east and
reception space in front of it, opening through west. Parallel service alleys behind the houses
a loggia to a courtyard or to the outside world. carried the drains. The houses were all of two
The domestic quarters were situated at the storeys; on the first floor the entrance doors,
rear, behind the central hall. The facades of recessed under a portico, Jed directly into a
city houses were represented on faience pla- courtyard, on the opposite side of which a
ques which have been found in excavations wooden-pillared colonnade in front of a long
(c. 1700 Be) . It has been deduced that these corridor (pastas) gave access to a number of
houses had lower walls of rubble masonry, rooms which included-a kitchen with a sunken
with a timber-framed upper structure resting hearth for a fireplace , a bathroom, lavatory,
on these, filled with sun-dried mud brick, and stores. A granary and possibly a stable
which was plastered and decorated with col- might also be entered from the courtyard. The
ored paints. There was one entrance from the most important room, however, was the din-
street at ground level, presumably into the ing room on the north side, placed on a corner
vestibule with the main living space behind it, so that it could have windows for cross
and there were frequently two storeys above ventilation on at least two sides.
ground level ; it is assumed that these con- Houses of the second half of the 4th
tained the private living spaces of the family. century BC are well evidenced from exca-
Many of the houses are represented as having vations of the model planned city of Priene. It
a roof room. is particularly noticeable that, in the main
On the Greek mainland the house seems to reception room with its portico of two col-
have developed from the prehistoric circular umns between flanking walls axially related to
hut of" bent saplings and thatch. A group of the courtyard, the old megaron type of plan,
seven circular mud-walled houses with conical first seen in its developed form in the Myce-
thatched roofs, arranged around a courtyard naen palaces, still persists. All the main
 Residential 79

rooms are on ground level, and only the surrounded by a peristyle that Jay beyond.
women's· retiring rooms, and possibly a pri- The rooms, or alae, at the sides of the
vate living room, were on an upper floor. tablinum led from the atrium into the col-
Hellenistic domestic architecture is best onnades of the peristyle living courtyard, off
represented in a number of fine villas and which there were dining rooms (tricliniums ),
houses, preserved in some cases up to reception rooms, and deep open rooms (exed-
second-storey level, on the island of Delos in ras). Dining rooms had permanent masonry
the Aegean. A characteristic town house couches around three sides of the serving
focused on a small central court with a slightly tables . In larger houses both indoor and
sunken, mosaic-lined pool in the center, sur- outdoor dining rooms were provided, and
rounded on all sides by symmetrical, double- there was a main reception room (the oecus),
storeyed colonnades with balustrades on the at the end of the long axis running from the Reconstruction ofthe House of the
upper level. All the rooms opened into this tablinum through the peristyle court. It was Tragic Poet at Pompeii. The
courtyard, which was entered down a narrow used for celebrations, and in the grandest impluvium can be seen in the
passageway from the street door. The deco- houses might be lined internally with a col- foreground with a view through the
ration was monumental in style, with inlaid onnade. tablinum of the peristyle beyond.
marble or molded plaster representing rich By the period of the consolidation of the
dados, cornice moldings, sculptured friezes Empire under Augustus, only the wealthiest
containing scenes from mythology and, in the citizens could afford private houses. In Rome
upper part of the walls, exterior-type, and its port, Ostia, concentrations of popu-
fielded-ashlar stonework containing niches for lation meant increasingly high ground values
lamps. Doors and ceilings were of paneled, and rents, and multiple dwellings rising ver-
hand-carved woodwork. tically began to replace the horizontally
In the Western Mediterranean, the earliest spreading courtyard houses. These tenement
civilization, the Etruscan, had unicellular and houses, the so-called insulae, were no longer
bicellular dwellings (as evidenced by the designed around courtyards but were, on the
copies of them in tombs at Veii), but the most whole, opened toward the outside with groups
common dwelling had a number of cells of rooms in a row which were approached
placed symmetrically on two or three sides of along access balconies. Rudimentary col-
a larger central room, the center of which was lective sanitary facilities were grouped around Perspective view of a typical
Roman courtyard house: House oft
open to the sky in the largest examples the stairwells. Vettii, Pompeii.
(copied in tombs at Vulci, Perugia, Poggio There is no evidence of kitchens , chimneys,
Gaiella, near Chiusi, and Tarquinia). or heating in the insulae. Cooking 'apparently
Evidence of developments in the Etruscan took place over braziers. The houses were
dwelling after the 5th century BC is found built of brick and concrete, with wooden
mainly from literary sources. An entrance floors , and frequently rose to great heights. In
corridor without a roof led to a rectangular Rome, after a great fire destroyed a section of
central area, now called an atrium, which had these tenement houses during Nero's reign ,
a symmetrical roof sloping downward toward building regulations were introduced for
the concluvium (opening in the roof) that stricter control of the height limit of 70 ft.
directed rainwater into a shallow basin below, (24.5 m) which had been introduced under
an impluvium. Opposite the atrium, which Augustus; during the reign of Trajan it was
was flanked by family rooms, was a large lowered again to 60 ft. (18 m). Six- and
reception room (tablinum) covered by a seven-storey buildings were common at an
pitched roof, which was in turn flanked by even earlier period in the Mediterranean
two or more rooms or recesses (alae), which world , as is evidenced from the descriptions Reconstructed section and plan of
isolated the tab/inurn from the rooms at the of the destruction of Carthage in 146 Be. The the House of Pansa, Pompeii.
sides of the atrium. There was often a garden exterior appearance of such buildings seems
at the rear of the house. This plan seems to to have depended on their fine brickwork,
combine the Etruscan tradition with the highlighted with string courses, columns , and
Greek concept of the reception room, which pillars of stone, with vermilion paint outlining
had reached the center of Italy from the doors and windows.
Greek colonies in southern Italy and Sicily. During the Late Empire, in the 3rd and 4th
Multistoreyed tenements containing several centuries AD , the pressure of population
distinct dwellings were also built in Etruscan began to drop and individual houses reap-
times. peared at Ostia and other cities in Italy.
The Roman domus is well known from Unlike the tenements, with their large win-
extensive literary and archaeological sources. dows for light and atr, these houses tended to
In its town-house form it may be charac- look inward to courtyards, and had central
terized as having a vestibule, often flanked by heating with wall flues. Their simple plan
shops , beyond which one entered the atrium grouped a series of small rooms in a row
with its impluvium. Opposite the entrance facing across a wide loggia or arcade to an
vestibule and on the long axis of the atrium, internal court with a decorated wall opposite
was the tab/inurn which now opened both into the loggia, possibly containing fountains. It is
the atrium and into a larger planted courtyard simpler and less formal than the Republican
80 Residential

or Early Empire plan, and speaks of graci- western Germany. While these houses relate
ousness, charm, and comfort, with a certain in building technique and living patterns more
air of elegance that is found in the last to the Mediterranean than to northern Euro-
flowering of Roman architecture. pean traditions, they are nearly always
Roman country villas were characterized by associated with barn dwellings of indigenous
the articulation of functionally differentiated northern type. As the villas passed from the
building nuclei. The atrium was replaced by a hands of private farmers into those of large
courtyard in the form of a peristyle, which land magnates or the Imperial government, it
also served as a farmyard. Around it were the was the barn dwellings which survived as the
owner's quarters, quarters for the servants focus of life after the old villa had been
and farm manager, rooms for equipment and converted to mundane farm uses. This kind of
facilities, shelters for the animals, and barns house persisted throughout the succeeding
and storerooms, and each of these nuclei centuries, as is evidenced by archaeological
Wooden house, Trelleborg, might have its own subsidiary courtyards. In remains dating back to the 7th and 8th
Denmark (c. AD 1000), from a
reconstruction of a Viking
many cases, the country villa was surrounded centuries, which have been found in many
settlement. by strong defensive walls. Later, the concept parts of Europe.
of the villa was a center for elegant life and The desire to emulate the Romans by
entertainment was emphasized, although it erecting habitations in more durable material
always retained its role as the controlling unit than timber and plaster is evident from the
of an efficient farm. remains of a number of 8th- and 9th-century
palaces. But the generally unsettled nature of
the times Jed to a new emphasis on defense,
The Northern European house resulting in the double-storeyed dwelling. The
The Northern European house owes its essen- hall or common living room was on the first
tial character to its origins in the post- floor and was entered by an outside staircase.
and-beam architecture of prehistoric times. In The ground floor or undercroft was used only
the Roman Empire north of the Alps, build- for storage. There is ample evidence that such
ings were frequently half-timbered, and a houses were built in England before the
characteristic form of basilican shed was used Norman Conquest in 1066, and they are
for farm buildings, barracks, and for the known elsewhere in Europe. In some cases
House of half-timbered homes of laborers on the large estates. This the upper room was supported on an open
construction in Denmark.
barn-like type of structure had a high, central, arcading of stone or of brick. They are closely
hipped roof supported on two rows of col- related to houses of the lOth century onward
umns, surrounded by a lower lean-to roof on which were built over a basement wholly or
all four sides. It doubtless owed its origin as partly below ground level.
much to building traditions in the north, such The advantages of such a house were not
as those of the " long house," as to its exclusively defensive; in towns and villages a
antecedents in the Mediterranean. The latter storage basement was particularly useful for
influence would have introduced clerestory merchants , while on farms it could be utilized
lighting between the central and outer roofs; for the storage of valuable crops and food. In
the former would probably have encouraged type they persisted through the Middle Ages
the fusion of the outer and central roofs into in many urban contexts and also in manor
one great hipped roof spreading over the houses. The undercroft, at least, was of
whole plan-the predominant form of later masonry and in England and some parts of
medieval Europe. From pictorial rep- Europe the whole house was of stone with
resentations such as those on Trajan's Col- dressed ashlar facings around the openings
umn under the Romans, we know that both and at the corners; roofs were tiled or shing-
types existed. Archaeological excavation has led. Internally, there was a fire in the center
shown that the northern Roman laborers' of the early halls, later it was moved into a
dwelling was sometimes partitioned, pre- fireplace on one side. Smoke escaped through
sumably so that in one house both animals an opening in the roof and many accounts tell
and laborers could be housed, a tradition that of sudden fires when the flames rose too high
persisted in some rural communities until from the hearth.
modem times. By the lith century it was common for
The main house of the Roman villa in English houses of this type to have either an
northern Europe usually developed from a upper sleeping chamber within the roof space
simple form of the "colonnaded villa" into a at one end or ancillary accommodation bey-
"courtyard house," with the courtyard serv- ond the great hall with sleeping space. Garrets
ing as the farmyard, which was therefore above the ancillary wings were used as sleep-
considerably larger than the urban courtyards ing spaces for children and servants. Such
of the Mediterranean. This courtyard house buildings were common in the 12th century
was often entered through a great arched and continued in use throughout the 13th
gateway-the ancestor of a type of farm century, although by this time the great halls
which has survived to the present day in were beginning to descend once more to
northern France, the Low Countries, and ground level. A striking feature of the new
 Residential 81

c1t1es founded in the 13th century, both in

England and France, is that the market places
were commonly surrounded by elevated tall
houses built over open arcading. There was
no glass in such houses, only wooden shutters
which were closed at night. From the 12th
century onward large houses for the nobility
began to have separate kitchens.
An important later development was the
concern to construct a large hall without the
use of columns or piers to provide inter-
mediate support for the rafters. This gave rise
to the development of the "king post" roof in
the lith century, and in the 14th century to
the "queen post" roof. Another solution
which first appeared c. 1350, was the use of
the hammer-beam truss (as in Tiptoft's Manor
in Essex, England). In the north and west of
England large hall dwellings were constructed
by using large, curved tree trunks, "crucks,"
which were placed on the line of the outer
walls and met at the ridge to support the ridge
beam onto which the ends of the rafters
rested .
The medieval town house was generally
conceived as a single building with the upper
parts overhanging the street. At ground level misunderstood-led to the organization of the The form of the medieval town
were the shop and the kitchen, the former Florentine house as a symmetrical com- house, w ith its timber-framed
structure projecting forward over
with a basement underneath reached down a position around a large arcaded courtyard; the street, is used in this
straight flight of stairs. A passageway led to a this contained corridors on all three floors 17th-century house in Oxford,
courtyard at the rear where there was usually giving access to rooms which were orientated England.
a well and sometimes a second building which outward. A central doorway in the facade led
contained straw and firewood, a laundry, and through an imposing vestibule to the court-
servants' rooms . Sometimes baths and hot yard; there, a broad staircase of straight
rooms were provided near the kitchen or flights led up from a corner, or, ideally, from
laundry. The main living room was situated the two corners opposite, to the piano nobile
on the first floor. where a large central hall, placed on the axis
In the 14th and 15th centuries there is of the main facade and often two storeys high,
evidence of increasing luxury and splendor in served as the center of all social and official
the use of larger external windows, more activities. Around it were private reception
concern with decoration and spatial effect, rooms and often a library and a chapel. On
and a striving after symmetry. In England two the third floor were the family rooms, dining
new features appeared to add comfort to the rooms, and bedrooms. An attic storey below Half-timbered yeoman's house:
Wealden Hall House in Kent,
feudal manor house. The first was the addi- the flat or low-pitched roof contained the England (c. 1500).
tion of a porch to the external doorway, and servants' quarters. On the first floor were
the second was the conversion of the space business offices and storerooms. Externally, Riccardi Palace, Florence,
under the chamber into a parlor-a private the facade was divided into three storeys, the Italy (1444) by Michelozzo.
room for the family or a quiet place for lowest being heavily rusticated and the
conversation. The timber beams which sup- uppermost gently embellished in delicate ash-
ported the plank floor above were carved into lar work. The whole facade was crowned by a
an ornamental ceiling, and the wall was great cornice. This 15th-century pattern,
paneled. From then onward in England the developed in the Medici, Strozzi, and Rucellai
parlor tended to become the principal palaces in Florence, became the model for
first-floor room of the house , with the main almost every Italian Renaissance palace in the
bedchamber above it. The hall gradually 16th century.
shrank in size, being retained as the central The town palace and villa architecture of
circulation space between the entrance door- Andrea Palladio (1508-80) in the mid-16th
way and the stairway. century was to have a profound effect on the
whole of Europe. He used classical temple
porticoes, complete with pediments and raised
Renaissance houses podiums, to prepare · the visitor for grand
The Renaissance with its deliberate imitation cubic or circular reception rooms, sometimes
of classical patterns and conscious return to crowned with domes, which formed the cen-
classical standards of value-although, of tral spaces of his villas. Smaller rooms,
course, at that time they were frequently ranged on two or three levels, formed the
 82 Residential

comers of the plans, and there were some- use of mirrors which gave the impression of a
times cross axes which emerged through other succession of volumes. This illustionistic
porticoes (Villa Capra, La Rotunda, near effect was paralleled in a light decorative
Vicenza). The axes of the porticoes were surface plaster work which replaced the
extended into the landscape in wide paths and monumental mural decorations of the pre-
flights of stairs flanked with statues. Ancillary ceding century.
farm buildings were linked to the main house At the beginning of the 18th century the
to make majestic forecourts lined with col- influence of Palladio was revived by the
onnades resembling Greek stoas, sometimes school of Lord Richard Burlington (1694-
extending far out like arms embracing the 1753). The classic purity of the stately sym-
landscape (Villa Trissino). metrical houses of the Georgian era rep-
Palladio's style was distinguished by lucid- resents the late fulfillment of the classical
ity, balance, and a harmony of proportion Renaissance in northern Europe. Their
derived from the use of simple numerical interiors were more varied than their
relationships repeated and correlated exteriors. The hall was generally conceived as
throughout the design . His influence was an imposing entrance, but there were usually
disseminated partly through his own published projecting galleries at second-floor level,
work, in which many of his buildings were where all the principal rooms were situated.
illustrated. Designs based on his ideas con- Octagons, ovals, circles, and squares were
tinued in Italy until the 18th century and combined to produce fine effects.
spread in the 17th century to Germany,
Holland, and England, as in the Queen's The Neo-Classical house
House, in Greenwich, England, designed by
Inigo Jones (1573-1652). Palladian country houses in England reveal an
From the 16th century onward there was an essential contrast with their Continental coun-
increasing tendency for all city dwellers terparts. Whereas Renaissance and Baroque
except the very richest to live in multi-family villas had extended their architectural dis-
Courtyard of the Strozzi Palace,

buildings, which externally adopted many of cipline into the landscape around them in
Florence, Italy (1489), by B. de
Majano.
the attributes of aristocratic palaces. Rooms formal terraces and avenues, the English
were arranged in a number of apartments on classical houses have an essentially romantic
each floor, or extended vertically over several character, standing as they do in landscaped
floors on a narrow frontage . In the early 17th gardens shaped to an ideal vision of nature
century even dwellings for the lesser nobility derived from the Italian and French landscape
assumed this form in Paris and London (Place painters of the late 17th century (Stowe,
Dauphine and Place Royale, Paris, and Pain's Hill). The pictorial effect of these
Covent Garden, London). settings, which recall the scenery of the
The Baroque age inherited from the Italian Roman campagna as painted by Claude Lor-
Renaissance a taste for varied scenographic rain (1600-82) or Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665),
effects which were now carried to extra- was at first peculiar to England. In its literary,
ordinary visual lengths in house architecture poetic allusions to a golden Roman age it
by developing the Roman sequence of spaces heralded the Romantic movement.
into a vestibule, courtyard, and monumental Late 18th-century domestic architecture in
staircase, followed by suites of rooms of England was dominated by the style of Robert
Villa Capra, La Rotunda, near varied shape: square, rectangular, circular, Adam (1728-92), which was based on his
Vicenza, Italy (1550-57 ), by Andrea elliptical, or cruciform. The importance of the studies of the excavations of ancient Roman
Palladio.
monumental staircase grew until it became the houses in Pompeii and Herculaneum. The
central feature of late Baroque and Rococo rooms became even more varied in shape and
houses, achieving immense size in the the painted walls and ceilings were divided
inverted pyramidal volumes of Austrian and into geometric shapes by the lightest of
southern German palaces (Briichsal, moldings , delicately enriched by classical
Wiirzburg, and Pommersfelden). Similar Roman ornaments in which swags and flutes
scenographic effects were created externally predominated. Rooms were flooded with light
in Baroque houses (Palazzo Carignano in by increasingly large windows with knife-edge
Turin, Italy, and Blenheim in Oxfordshire, glazing bars, and the comforts of private
England). bathrooms and toilets adjoining dressing
The enfilades of rooms opening one upon rooms began to be introduced.
the other, which was a prediction of the 17th
century, was abandoned with the advent of
European Rococo. Previously the rooms had The Romantic house
Place des Vosges (Place Royale) in been arranged with all their doors opening in The Romantic movement led to a revival of
Paris, France. An urban square laid line with one another, providing long axial interest in historic styles, culminating in an
out in 1610 for Henry IV. vistas with the rooms disposed symmetrically interest in Gothic houses. The first of these,
above them. In the 18th century the preferred Horace Walpole's converted house at Straw-
arrangement was for small suites of rooms, berry Hill in England (c. 1750-70), was fol-
preserving the illusion of long vistas by the lowed by the great cathedral house of Fonthill
 Residential 83

(1796) and by other Gothic Revival houses in

France, Germany, and North America. An
admiration for the simplicity of rustic life Jed
to the creation of the Hameau, a charmingly
fragile pastoral village at Versailles for Marie
Antoinette, and subsequently to a fashion for
rustic cottages such as those advocated in
Plaw's Ferme Ornee (1795) and realized by
John Nash (I 752-1835) in his thatched cot-
tages at Blaise Hamlet in England (18Il).
With their irregular planning and variety of
Monticello, Virginia, a novel silhouettes, these buildings exhibit a
Neo-Classical house remodeled by
Thomas Jefferson between 1796
taste for the Picturesque in architecture which
and 1808. was to profoundly influence 19th-century
domestic building in Europe and North
America. A house could now appear as sham Typical suburban development in
England post World War I.
castle, as Neo-Classic villa, or as Tudor hall.
The number and variety of rooms increased in
proportion to the increasing affluence of the
middle class. In addition to drawing rooms,
dining rooms, and bedrooms, there were now
smoking rooms, billiard rooms, study and gun
rooms, as well as parlors, pantries, sculleries,
and kitchens. In a reaction against the terrace
house, the middle class accepted the semi-
detached house, a pair of houses resembling a
detached villa.
Blaise Hamlet, near Bristol,
England (1803-11 ), by John Nash.
Housing of the Industrial Revolution
One effect of the great expansion of industry
at the beginning of the 19th century was the
introduction of mass housing in the industrial
towns. Back-to-back row houses were often
three or four storeys high with staircases of a
cramped winder type passing through each
room. Legislation restricting such housing
was introduced after 1832, and a series of
movements for reform, such as the Prince
Consort's Model Houses of 1850, led to the Entrance hall of an early
20th-century English house in the
eventual provision of kitchens and toilets and
Rural Revival tradition.
the elimination of back-to-back planning in the
Terraced housing in the industrial second half of the I9th century.
town of Burton-on-Trent, England
(1865).
The evolution of the modern house
After 1860 a taste for simpler architecture,
with less insistence on the imitation of rich
and elaborate styles from the past, led to
concern for the use of simple building mat-
erials and good craftsmanship. The English
socialist William Morris (1834-96), with his
slogan of "Fitness for purpose" encouraged
tidier planning and simpler furnishing. By the
beginning of the 20th century, English domes-
tic architecture was everywhere beginning to
take on its familiar semi-rural character. Gar-
den City development at Turnham Green
(1876) by Norman Shaw (1831-1912) and at
Letchworth (1903) by Barry Parker (1867-
1941) and Sir Raymond Unwin (1863-1940)
became the prototype for less successful Perspective view of Leys Wood in
surburban patterns which were copied Sussex, England (1868), by Richard
throughout the world and led to a decline in Norman Shaw.
traditional city life.
 84 Residential

In the U.S. the revolutionary architecture housing which is once more close to the
of Frank Lloyd Wright (1869-1959) produced ground, although , where economy is a con-
a house in which rooms flowed into one sideration, the dwellings may be closely
another without separating doors. By pro- packed together in terraces or stacked in four
jecting the rooms in wings at right angles to or five floors of apartments and maisonettes,
each other, Wright was able to introduce light as in the Byker development (begun in 1970)
on all sides and provide effective cross ven- at Newcastle, England, designed by Ralph
tilation for hot summers. Winter heating was Erskine (b. 1914).
introduced under the masonry floors, and the
fusion between house and garden was The Islamic house
emphasized by extending the roofs outward in Islamic houses were essentially of two types.
overhanging eaves, car ports, and covered In inland mountain regions, such as those of
Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House terraces. Some of Wright's innovations were Yemen and High Atlas, they related to an
in Chicago (1909). made possible by 19th-century engineering ancient Arabian type of tower house in which
developments in the use of new materials: the harem and cooking areas were at the top
steel and concrete. This fusion of new struc- of the house, the reception rooms usually in
tural possibilities with the principle of "Fit- the middle, with storerooms and stalls for
ness for purpose" of the Arts and Crafts animals below. In the remainder of the
movements might be said to have given rise to Islamic world, dwellings were spread out
the 20th-century house. horizontally around a courtyard. Frequently,
In the period between the two World Wars, and perhaps under the influence of the ancient
improved notions of hygiene led to the pro- Egyptian model, the courtyards contained
vision of bathrooms and indoor sanitation as a pools and fountains and were surrounded by
normal part of domestic design. Suburban flowering plants and shaded by fruit trees.
living in detached houses was now the ideal, The Islamic house was normally divided
although apartment living was accepted in the into two clearly differentiated zones: the
Project for freehold maisonettes largest cities. In the 1920s, Le Corbusier and reception area for men and the harem or
with individual raised gardens by other avant-garde architects introduced the private living area for women and children. In
Le Corbusier and P. Jeanneret idea of "functionalism," of the house as an some regions each zone had its own courtyard
(1925).
instrument for living. The house is raised on onto which the rooms faced; in other regions
pi/otis (freestanding columns or piers) which there was only one courtyard, the harem
allow the parking of cars and drying of clothes rooms being relegated to a dark zone behind
beneath the living area. The second-floor an arcade or reception room at one end of the
living room rises through two storeys, the court. In the northern hemisphere the main
kitchen and dining space flowing into it on the rooms were usually on the south side of the
lower level and the bedrooms overlooking it courtyard to avoid the penetration of the sun;
on the upper level. Above, the house is the other side was sometimes colonnaded or
enlarged by a flat roof garden, and sometimes arcaded. In colder regions there might be a
a roof room. second main living room on the north side to
Le Corbusier also applied his concept of catch the winter sun. Roof ventilators, to
domestic living to multi-dwelling apartments, catch the breeze blowing across the top of the
which he exemplified in a full-scale model in built-up area, were introduced in early Islamic
the Paris Exhibition of 1925. Each double- architecture following the precedent of
height living room was to be fronted by a ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt.
double-height terrace where plants might be From Parthian and Sassanian architecture
Low-rise houses in the Byker
redevelopment area, grown. The living units would be grouped in in Persia, Islamic architecture in the 9th
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England immense rectangular blocks raised on pi/otis century adopted the use of the iwan, a deep,
(1970) by Ralph Erskine. so that the landscape would run through vaulted reception space, completely open .on
undisturbed beneath them. In this way the the courtyard side so that people sitting under
ground area would be liberated to become a the shade of its roof felt that they were sitting
continuous parkland for the use of residents. in the open air of the courtyard. Because of
Cement roads through this parkland would the extremes of climate from summer to
give access for vehicles. This vision of a new winter, Persian houses had often had two
type of apartment building was not realized such iwans , one facing north and the other
until after World War II, with the con- facing south; this principle was often adopted
struction of the Unite d'Habitation at Mar- elsewhere, even in areas without such
seilles, which was quickly followed by the extremes.
erection of a number of other such buildings The Persian practice of utilizing, in large
in France and Germany. They were charac- houses and palaces, four iwans (deep-vaulted
terized by the provision of a shopping street reception halls)-one in the center of each
halfway up the height of the buildings, and of side of the courtyard-was also adopted in
theaters, gymnasiums, and schools on the roof many parts of the Islamic world in the 9th
The "wall" built along the edge of
the site at Byker, by Ralph Erskine terraces. Now, in the last third of the 20th century. (See also ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE.)
(1970). century, Le Corbusier's vision of high apart- Various interpretations of these traditions
ment buildings is being replaced by that of survive today in houses in Iran, Syria, North
 Residential 85

Africa, and Spain. In Mamluk Cairo, the the court, and on this raised platform boys,
density of urban building led to the elevation girls, servants, and various other members of
of the iwan to the second-floor level, in the the family slept in various areas which were
form of an arcaded gallery. The main recep- predetermined by custom.
tion room became a double iwan with a Family prayers were said in the courtyard
central space covered by a lantern, rep- in front of the treasury shrine before sunrise
resenting the residual form of a small cour- and at sunset. The living court was used for
tyard . Large houses had two such reception all domestic activities, including washing and
rooms, one at ground level used by men and bathing, by the women and children of the
the other at right angles above it used by the family.
women.
In Ottoman Turkey, cool weather for much
of the year made courtyard life impractical; The Buddhist house
instead, the form of the Islamic courtyard Buddhism in its pure form did not involve the
house was retained but it was covered with a worship of any god or spirit. Neither caste nor
raised lantern or dome, surrounded by large inequality between the sexes was recognized
iwans on two or four sides. by it, and in many parts of the Buddhist world
Late medieval houses in hot humid regions today this absence of hierarchy, dogma, and
often utilized pierced masonry and wooden ritual is reflected in the design of the house.
screens on the upper storeys to provide cross Buddhism survived in its purest form in
ventilation through the harem levels. Screens Ceylon, where the late medieval houses are
of this type in wood, enclosing projecting distinguished by their lack of division into
balconies, sometimes rose in tiers one above zones or parts. A high wall enclosed the
the other to give rise to the characteristic house, on the inside of which lay a col-
Courtyard of a house in Cairo, street scenery of many parts of the Islamic onnaded gallery under a tiled roof, usually
Egypt. world. extending around all four sides of a sunken
courtyard.
The Hindu house Although the open plan emphasized the
Strict religious rules determined almost every lack of segregation in the house, an-
aspect of the traditional Hindu house. The thropologists believe that custom would still
permissible size of the house and the extent to have led to a division into functional zones so
which it was subdivided into zones-the most that, for example, specific areas were prob-
private areas being entered only by members ably used by different sections of the family
of the family and people of equal or higher for sleeping, for business, and for storage. It
caste-depended on the caste of the inhabit- is not possible to establish the practices of
ants. 2,000 years ago, however, when in the early
The kernel of a Brahmin house was the phase of Buddhism a great flexibility of use
room in which the family possessions and the may have been deliberately introduced into
family shrine were kept; this sometimes dou- the house.
bled as the main bedroom-wherever poss-
ible, however, the shrine and the owner's
sleeping room were separate spaces. In larger The Chinese house
houses a third room was provided, for storing Archeological evidence suggests that Chinese
the large sacred vessels in which the rice and houses had their origin in the prototype of a
meat for ceremonies and weddings were kept. long, rectangular, hall-like building con-
Hindu house: looking from the The roof of this section had to be as high, and structed on a raised platform of a timber
men's reception space into the preferably higher, than any of the surrounding framework with an infilling of brick and
court. roofs whether they were those of the same plaster. At an early period this was divided
house or of neighboring houses. The doors of into two parallel rectangular structures sepa-
the shrine room and the owner's bedroom rated by a square courtyard; the front struc-
opened on the east side into the private living ture, which could be opened using doors or
court which was regarded as a purified living screens on both of its long sides, be~;ame the
area; entry by a foreigner or member of a reception hall for guests while the rear hall
lower caste rendered it polluted. became the private living and sleeping space;
The men's reception room (barsati or it also contained the ancestors' shrine and
barasti) faced north in the hottest climates to served as the prayer room.
avoid the sun. It was often open on the Eventually, by the period of the Tang
outside but was separated from the private dynasty, in the 7th to 5th centuries AD, houses
living quarters by a pair of doors. The court had characteristically two zones: a formal
was square in plan and surrounded by rooms courtyard in front, entered through an impos-
on all sides. In general the living space under ing gateway or doorway in a high wall, and a
the roofs was open to the court and separated private living court in the rear.
Sunken courtyard in a Buddhist from it only by a light wooden colonnade; the As only thin walls of oiled silk, paper, or
house, Sri Lanka.
floors of these shaded spaces were raised I ft. light sliding timber screens separated the
8 in.-2 ft. (5<W>O em.) above the pavement of rooms from the courtyard, houses in the north
 86 Residential

of China were often extremely cold in winter. house had a mat floor, made up of tatami
In some houses a raised seating area (kwang ), mats approximately 6 ft. 6 in. x 3 ft. (2 x 1 m)
made of masonry, sometimes had provision in size, arranged in a traditional pattern. The
for the insertion of charcoal braziers under- remainder of the floors were made of wide
neath, but in general heating was limited to planks. The rooms were divided from each
the use of small movable braziers. The other by lightweight sliding screens, usually
inhabitants had to rely on padding clothing if with a thin timber framework covered with
they wanted to keep warm in winter. (See also rice paper; these screens could be replaced by
CHINESE ARCHITECTURE.) impressive painted screens during a time of
It was customary for Chinese houses to ceremony or for an important visitor. In the
have a garden at the back and on at least one heat of summer almost the whole of the wall
of the sides. Following the principle that surface could be removed to provide one
Traditional courtyard house in man-made architecture was essentially com- continuous open space and thus provide the
Peking, China. posed of straight lines forming squares and maximum cross ventilation. During sudden
rectangles, while nature was essentially cur- storms or to furnish insulation in winter,
vilinear, the garden was made as irregular as sliding screens of wood could be quickly put
possible and entrance doorways to it fre- in position around the outer edge of the
quently took the form of pure circles. How- house. The cold winter was combated by the
ever small, the garden would normally con- use of small charcoal braziers and by the
tain water in the form of pools or a running wearing of thick padded clothing, as in China.
stream-where this was not possible it might The main house was usually flanked by
be represented symbolically by sand or gardens surrounded by high walls. The gar-
gravel. Frequently the garden would be con- dens frequently followed Chinese precedent in
ceived as an ideal landscape scene, complete representing landscapes in miniature. Very
with literary allusions, reduced in scale so that large houses were made up of a number of
even mountains and cliffs might be rep- single house nuclei placed together; in par-
resented in a small space, as well as winding ticular, the living, reception, and visitor zones
paths and bridges. might spread across a large area producing an
In larger houses the two-court nucleus in irregular profile on the garden side of the
the center of the plan was extended sideways building.
Interior of a guest room in a and sometimes longitudinally by further
Japanese house. The beam and
floor have tracks for movable
courts which allowed a subdivision of func- Apartments
screens. tions and the accommodation of an extended
family of relatives and retainers. The outside An apartment is a room or set of rooms for
edge of the house on the garden side might be domestic use that is contained within a larger
made more irregular to allow the penetration building. Such arrangements are known to
of the garden between some of the rooms of have existed in republican and imperial Rome;
the house, and separate pavilions for relaxing the tenements at Ostia (1st to 3rd century AD)
and entertainment were sometimes built in the being the best preserved from this period.
garden itself. The pavilions often took on an These were used to house the labor force that
exotic and fanciful architectural style and worked in the port of Ostia, and the repetitive
were linked by covered galleries with varied cellular character of their planning and con-
window openings and screens. In such a struction would seem well adapted to the
house the normal, ceramic-tiled roofs might provision of shelter for a large, undif-
be elaborated with green or turquoise glazed ferentiated group of social equals.
tiles, with dragons or phoenix finials on the It was not only in cities that apartments
overhanging eaves. were required . During the Middle Ages and in
the early Modern period apartments were an
Garden view of an old house in inevitable part of the larger and more pow-
Kyoto, Japan. The veranda looks The Japanese house erful houses throughout Europe. These
out onto the garden with its
stepping stones leading to a fish Japanese houses were distinguished from the households might contain as many as 500
pond. Chinese in that all the daily activities of the apartments, and even a mode<;t nobleman
household occurred under one roof. The might have supported 50 or so. Members of
house was divided into two zones: at one end, the family, servants, visitors, and their ser-
usually the northern, there was a cooking vants all required accommodation, and this
zone with an earthern floor; at the other end, was provided either as a series of more or less
with the floor elevated on a timber framework similar chambers with independent access-
and constructed of timber planking, was the the upper storeys being reached by internal
living space. The external walls of the house stairs between each pair of rooms-or by
were made up of areas of wooden boarding rows of connected rooms. Each of these latter
and light sliding screens of wood and/or rooms could be occupied by one or more
paper. These were held in the timber post- persons, usually servants or people of little
Reconstruction of a Roman insula
and-beam framework which supported the account. More illustrious individuals would be
at Ostia, with tenements above heavy thatched or tiled roof. given suites of rooms to themselves, or for
shops (1st-3rd century AD). Only the most important rooms of the themselves, their servants, and companions.
 Residential 87

By the 17th century the French had developed 1860s the common-stair-access houses became
a characteristic sequence of three rooms for the typical format for working-class tene-
this purpose: the antechamber, the chamber, ments, while at the same time numerous
and the closet. The antechamber was for those gallery-access houses were also constructed.
awaiting an audience and for public appear- The Engtish architect Henry Roberts had
ance; the chamber was for sleeping in and for provided the specific models for both types in
more familiar entertainments; and the closet, his Model Dwellings for Families in
more private than the bed, was for con- Bloomsbury, 1847, (gallery access) and his
fidential transactions and for personal sol- Model Houses for the Great Exhibition, 1851 ,
itude . After the mid-17th century this (common stair access).
arrangement was frequently supplemented by In the 1870s large numbers of specially built
back stairs leading from the closet or apartments began to appear for the first time
chamber. There were many other arrange- in Britain. Most were urban but there were
ments of similar type. also suburban developments. The charac-
The word apartment was first applied to teristic of the most advanced of these schemes
these personal suites within grand houses , but was the incorporation of a variety of other
it was only in the 18th century that the services within the estate or building-
building type that would now be recognized as communal gardens, leisure facilities , food
an apartment house reappears. Urban life in delivery services, dining rooms, laundry
the preceding centuries had certainly involved services-as well as private accommodation;
the frequent subdivision and subletting of a practice which may have been suggested by
Model houses, with common stair
larger houses originally occupied by one fam- the luxurious conversion in 1804 of the access, at Cowley Gardens,
ily and the construction of tenements of Albany in Piccadilly into serviced bachelor London, England, to a design first
repeating rooms (usually iliegal and therefore apartments. In any event, the apartment was proposed atthe Great Exhibition of
difficult for the historian to trace). Suprisingly able to offer something more than condensed 1851 .
little is known of these. housing; something that could not be obtained
Apartments for middle-class occupation in private houses.
were being built in Paris in the 1730s and The opportunity of supplementing domestic
blocks of buildings four or five storeys high rooms with these special facilities was
were familiar by the end of the century developed much further in the U.S. and in the
throughout Europe. They soon developed a USSR. Already in the 1890s skyscraper
peculiar social structure of their own-a mi- towers of apartments around a core of
crocosm of the city as a whole, with the elevators with a wide range of social facilities
well-to-do occupying the second floor and beneath were being built in New York. The
perhaps part of the first floor, the respectable sumptuous Ansonia, designed by Emile
occupying the third floor, the hard pressed the Duboy, for instance, had 19 storeys, 2,710
fourth, and so on, with the social dregs in the rooms, palm gardens, a laundry, a dairy, a
basement and garrets. restaurant to seat I ,000, billiard rooms, and a
With the growing fascination in the seamier private catering service. A contemporary
side of city life in the 1830s and 1840s came suburban counterpart of this is the self-
more vivid descriptions of the living con- contained condominium for senior citizens,
ditions of the margins of society, particularly young marrieds, the childless, singles, etc.; Tudor City, New York (1925-28): an
in the Parisian ouvriers and the London communities of equals within which there is elevator-access apartment
complex of 12 brick-clad towers
rookeries. Multiple occupation, not just of an emphasis on public life. with tudor styling.
houses but of rooms, was the rule. What After the revolution in the USSR, the
offended social investigators and philan- constructivists and their allies worked out a
thropists alike, apart from the filth and the number of propositions for communistic liv-
smells, was the apparent absence of any ing. In some the family was no longer to be
principle in the architectural organization of the basic social unit, its functions having been
public and private space within the slums. taken over by the state. An individual's social
Two classic types of apartment house life was entirely public, and all social events
developed as a way to supply the poor with could therefore be subtracted from the home
housing that would encourage a clean, decent, and thrown open to the community. Nurse-
and domestic way of life: the common-stair- ries, dining rooms, common rooms, and
access house and the gallery-access house. kitchens took the place of equivalent areas in
Both these types had existed before and had the conventional house: only sleep and rest
also been proposed for utopian schemes. took place in private. Thus the apartment
Common-stair-access houses had been built by might be reduced to 100 sq. ft. (9 sq. m) of
Robert Owen (1771-1858) at New Lanark, floor space for bed and personal storage, as in
Scotland, in the early 19th century to house the Barshch and Vladimirov communal house
his mill workers, and gallery-access apart- project of 1929. The experiments with social
ments had been put forward by Charles condensers were short lived, however. Under An apartment house (1913)
opposite the Metropolitan
Fourier (1772-1837) for his Phalantery settle- Stalin more conventional policies soon pre- Museum, New York. The 12 floors
ments, several versions of which were built vailed. are incorporated into a Florentine
later in the 19th century. But in the 1850s and Meanwhile, the apartment had been Palazzo facade.
 88 Residential

adopted by the Modem Movement in Europe the Egyptians always built their palaces of brick
as the necessary and correct form for con- and timber and the remains of them are
temporary urban living. The arrangements in therefore scanty. Ruins at A marna and Thebes,
modem schemes were often similar to those however, give us some idea of their splendor.
devised in the 19th century-gallery-access The latter complex, built by Amenhotep III in
slabs, common-stair-access blocks, elevator- the 14th century BC, clearly distinguishes
access towers-but there were other types between ceremonial spaces, of which the most
too. L'Unite d'Habitation realized by Le important is a columned audience hall with a
Corbusier (1887-1966) at Marseilles in 1955 throne dais on the entrance axis and, lying at
had central corridor access to two-storey right angles to this, the suites of rooms for the
apartments on what is known as a scissor prince and his harem women. Each suite is a
l'Unite d'Habitation, Marseilles,
plan. Sandwiched in the middle of the block complete dwelling repeating a unit of vestibule,
France (1951 ), by le Corbusier. was a layer of shops, and on the roof a throne room, bedroom, and bathroom. At
This apartment building has running track and various social facilities. The Amama, Amenhotep IV (1372- 1350 Be) built a
central corridor access. architectural organization was novel (though palace on two sides of a road. The official
based on unbuilt Russian projects of the palace with courtyards and hypostyle halls is
1920s), as was the attempt to isolate the connected by a bridge with a "window of
building and its occupants from the sur- appearance" to the much smaller family palace.
roundings. The small temple palaces, which were used
In contrast to thi~ , the superficially similar only during religious festivals, demonstrate
schemes put forward in the 1950s and 1960s Egyptian symmetry at its most rigid. A typical
for slab blocks with " streets in the air," example is that built for Ramses II at Medinet
derived from ideas taken from Peter and Habu which has a main hypostyle hall in front of
Alison Smithson (b. 1923 and 1928), tried to the throne room with the royal apartments
recreate the social conditions of the traditional clearly separated from the public spaces.
working-class streets they had replaced. The The remains of Assyrian palaces show the
best known scheme of this type is Park Hill in same clear division into functional areas,
Sheffield, England (1955-60), by J. L. although the axial system of planning is not so
Womersley (b. 1910). clear. Each group of rooms is organized around
an axis, but there is no overall control, the
Park Hill, Sheffield, England
Palaces groups are simply added together. At Khor-
by J.l. Womersley:
(1955~1 ),
Gallery-accessapartments.
sabad, the Palace of Sargon II (742-705 BC) was
Palaces are the sumptuous homes of rulers- built on a raised platform covering 25 acres (10
whether Egyptian pharaohs, French monarchs, hectares). It consists of courtyards surrounded
or German bishops. As such, their functions by rooms. The largest court is enclosed by
extend beyond those of a simple house into temples and offices and, beyond this , a second
accommodating the administration of territory ambassadors' court leads to a throne room with
and the exercise of authority. They also the royal apartments surrounding a third,
symbolize the concentration of political power smaller court. Thus, before they reached the
and , since (unlike castles) they are unfortified , throne, foreign emissaries had a long and
the existence of relative peace and stability. In imposing procession past carved stone walls
their fulfillment of these purposes, all palaces and painted plaster murals reminding them of
can be interpreted as combinations of various Assyrian power.
functional elements-public rooms, the private Nebuchadnezzar's brick palace (c. 600 Be) is
apartments of the prince and his family , made up of five courtyard complexes placed
Conjectural restoration of northern accommodation for functionaries and servants, side by side. Each court has access to a throne
angle ofthe Great Court of storerooms, kitchens, and stables. Innovations room on its south side and residential quarters
Sargon's Palace at Khorsabad in palace design are represented in the organ- on the north. In onecomerofthe palace aline of
(742-705 BC). ization of these elements and by the attempts to massive vaults may have been the supporting
achieve an image of pomp and circumstance. structure for the hanging gardens of Babylon.
While distinguishable from houses and castles, The theme of raising the ruler's palace on an
palace architecture gives and receives inspi- artificial platform was taken up by the Persians,
ration from the domestic and military architec- notably at Persepolis (begun 518 s c). Here, on a
ture of its epoch. high terrace, Darius and Xerxes built square
hypostyle audience halls and throne rooms
The Ancient Middle E ast and flanked by ranges of smaller rooms. The whole
complex is an assembly of several rectangular
Mediterra nean buildings but, although each one is axially
The formality commonly associated with planned and all the axes are similarly orien-
palace layout was present from earliest times. tated, there is no attempt to impose a sym-
Evidence suggests that Egyptian palaces of the metrical relationship between them. Besides
3rd millennium BC were walled rectangular the scale and monumentality of the blocks,
enclosures with a ceremonial gateway leading Persepolis is remarkable for the sculptural
Plan of Sargon's Palace, to a pavilion with a throne room and private quality of the stairs leading to the podium,
Khorsabad (742-705 BC). apartments. Unlike their temples and tombs, which was not surpassed for 2,000 years.
 Residential 89

While the cultures of the Middle East were northern quarters of the block accommodated
developing the palace on monumental and more soldiers and officials.
or less symmetrical lines, the Minoan culture of In the troubled times following the fall of the
Crete was exploring a different theme. The Roman Empire, the feudal rulers were primar-
Palace at Knossos, dating from the 15th century ily concerned with building fortified residences.
Be, is an apparently random agglomeration of During the Middle Ages the castle, rather than
various building types growing outward from a the palace, was the symbol of secular authority.
single large courtyard. There are state rooms Reflecting contemporary military architecture,
grouped on the first floor reached by a the few palaces that were built are notable for
ceremonial staircase, but the organization of the introduction of the "Great Hall" around
the whole complex, with numerous light wells which other rooms were grouped. Halls are ~
and twisting passages between blocks, can only found at Charlemagne's palace at lngelheim, in The Palatine, Rome. View of Nero's
be described as labyrinthine. There is no the 11th century at Goslar; and they culminated Golden House, begun AD 64.
precise delineation of the palace limits-the in the 14th-century timber hammer-beam roof
outer wall simply follows the projection and of Westminster Hall. Toward the end of the
recession of the storerooms and servants' feudal era the growing power of the cities found
quarters on the edge of the complex. This expression in the civic palaces of Italy and
deliberate informality is not an indicator of a Flanders. Buildings such as the Cloth Hall in
lack of sophistication; the palace dwellers Ypres, the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, and
enjoyed bathrooms and toilets drained by a even the Palazzo Ducale in Venice are meeting
system of terra-cotta pipes. places for council or senate, halls of justice and
public archives rather than residences.
During this period the palace tradition was
The Romans continued by the Arabs who, in buildings such
The next European palace builders, the as the 13th-century Alhambra at Granada,
Romans, did not adopt the Minoan precedent developed the Roman form of rooms arranged
but looked further away for inspiration. Their around columned peristyles containing pools
and fountains. In spite of formal, axial planning t
palaces were planned in the formal , axial
tradition of the Middle East. To this was added they used a painted timber and plaster vocab-
an engineering skill capable of spanning large ulary of stalactite vaults and elaborate capitals
spaces with concrete vaults, and an architec- to produce an environment of lightness and The Strozzi Palace, Florence, is a
tural vocabulary based on the Greek orders. subtle elegance. 13th-century China also used semi-fortified town house built in
Domitian's palace on the Palatine (the word the axial planning of the ancient Middle East to 1489 by Benedetto da Maiano. The
outer walls are heavily rusticated,
palace is derived from the name of this Roman build strictly symmetrical complexes of open rising to an ornate classical
hill) is arranged around a series of arcaded columned halls raised on low platforms. cornice.
courts. One half of the palace, the Domus
Flavia, includes a vaulted audience chamber
over 150 ft. (46 m) high which opens onto a The Renaissance
peristyle from which the banqueting hall was With the decline of feudalism it was the new
reached. The private apartments were located merchant prince who sought to express his
in the Domus Augustana, a separate contiguous growing wealth and power through the erection
building at a lower level. of an imposing residence. The architects who
In the country, the Emperors constructed built city palaces for the wealthy families of
more extravagant projects. Hadrian's Villa at 15th-century Florence combined the form of
Tivoli and Maximian's Villa at Piazza the medieval town hall-three storeys sur-
Armerina in Sicily are both a series of freely rounding a courtyard and itself derived from the
disposed geometric conceits where the func- Roman insula-with a grammar of architectural
tional groups-the dining rooms, baths, and detail also based on Roman precedent. The
libraries-are careful symmetrical com- earliest of these palaces, the Palazzo Medici by
positions, but there is no dominating axial Michelozzo di Bartolommeo (1396-1472) built
Plan of the Escorial near Madrid,
relationship between all the parts and the in 1444, presents a forbiddingly rusticated Spain (1559-84), by Juafl de
surrounding landscape. In contrast, when the appearance to the street. The main rooms are Herrera.
Emperor Diocletian built a palace at Split on the second floor above the offices and stores,
around 300 Be he adopted the Roman castrum and look inward onto a shaded and quiet
as a model with very different results. The courtyard. The building extends over a city
rectangular block is clearly quartered by two block and is crowned by a massive overhanging
colonnaded streets-namely the cardus and cornice. All the openings are regular, and a
decumanus-with the royal apartments facing change in the rustication , together with carved
south with a columned gallery overlooking the string courses, defines each floor. The concern
sea. The Emperor's octagonal mausoleum and with articulation is carried further in the
a Temple of Jupiter are on a subsidiary Palazzo Rucellai (1446-51) where, for the first
east-west axis and the circular vestibule to the time, Leone Battista Alberti (1404-72) uses
royal apartments is reached through a peristyle three superimposed orders of pilasters, Doric,
on the main north-south axis which has the Ionic, and Corinthian, to subdivide the street
earliest known columned arcade. The two facade . This established a building type that
 90 Residential

was to accommodate many urban functions. two-storey colonnade raised on a plain,

For over 500 years, banks, offices, universities, podium-like first floor. Unlike earlier work at
and even department stores were based on the the Louvre, there is no visible pitched roof, but
form of the Florentine palace. a flat balustrade with a central pediment.
In the 16th century, Roman architects The palace that Louis XIV started to build in
developed the basic palazzo formula into 1669 at Versailles was to become the prototype
complex and richly sculptured facades such as for most subsequent palaces in Europe-
Raphael's Palazzo Vidoni-Caffarelli (1515), Blenheim in England, Schonbrunn in Austria,
with its coupled Doric columns over a hori- Caserta in Italy, and Aranjuez in Spain. The
zontally rusticated first floor. The grandest of architects Louis Le Vau (1612-70) and Jules
Renaissance palaces, the Farnese, built be- Hardouin Mansart (1646-1708) produced a
tween 1534 and 1540 by Giuliano da Sangallo structure over one-third of a mile (0.5 km) long
(1445-1516) and Michelangelo Buonarroti that represents a fusion of architecture with
(1475-1564) has a monumental gateway leading painting, interior design, and landscape
to the courtyard while the street facade is not architecture. The palace, and therefore the
articulated by pilasters but by the rhythm set up monarch, stood at the center of a system of
through highly modeled window aedicules with radiating paths which stretched out across the
alternating circular and triangular pediments. countryside, dominating nature in a way that
Outside Rome, Andrea Palladio (1508-80) built was to be emulated in many city master plans
palaces in the Vicenza which are notable for such as Karlsruhe and L'Enfant's plan for
their elegance and clarity while, later, Guarino Washington. On the urban side ofthe palace the
Parts of facades of Roman Guarini (1624-83) in the Palazzo Carignano in wings enclose a three-sided cour d' honneur
Renaissance palaces. LEFT: Turin (c. 1678) uses alternating convex and which contains stables, the chapel, and ser-
Palazzo Farnese, Rome (begun
1534) by Antonio da Sangallo. concave plans to give the street facade a vants' quarters. The main rooms in the central
RIGHT: Palazzo Massimo aile Baroque interpretation. block, the corps de log is, are on the second
Colonne, Rome (1532--36), by Renaissance ideas traveled rapidly. The floor. There was no attempt to distinguish state
Baldassare Peruzzi. Palace of Charles V (started 1526), in the rooms from the King's private apartments-the
Alhambra, is unique for its huge circular court royal awakening was a most public affair.
intended for bullfights, but otherwise it shows a The architects of lesser monarchs in emu-
full understanding of the Italian style. At the lating Versailles produced variations on the
Escorial built for Charles' son, Philip II , Juan theme laid down by Louis' architects. At
de Herrera (c. 1530-97) turned back to the Stupinigi, in 1729, Filippo Juvarra (1678-1736)
Palace of Diocletian for inspiration. The palace developed the cour d' honneur into an extended
sits on an artificial platform-another old sequence of geometric spaces which culminates
idea-in the desolate hills north of Madrid. in a great domed salon. The architects of the
Constructed in an austere undecorated style, minor German princes developed the staircase
the building consists of an immense rectangle in a particularly original way. At Briichsal the
divided by 16 courtyards into a grid of college, oval staircase dominates the palace and con-
monastery, and palace. It contains an early sists of flights of different curvature apparently
example of the "imperial" staircase which floating on either side of a columned space. At
starts with one flight and divides at the first Wiirzburg the same architect, Balthasar
landing into two flights returning parallel to the Neumann (1687-1753), and in the Belvedere at
first. Vienna, Lucas von Hildebrandt (1668-1745),
North of the Alps the Italian ideas were not exploited the dramatic possibilities of the
so quickly established. The Chateau of Cham- imperial staircase.
Overall view of the Escorial Palace. bord (1519-47) built for Francis I is a medieval With the end of the 18th century and the
Built in y ellow gray granite its vast castle in plan, although the main block with a overthrow of the absolute monarchies, palace
plain and relatively unadorned central spiral stair is noteworthy for its building came to a halt. The palaces of the 19th
facades measure 675 x 685ft. (205 x
209m).
arrangement of rooms in suites instead of along century were exhibition halls-the Crystal
a corridor. The detail is classical, although it is Palace, the Galerie Des Machines. They were
used in a quite unique way. The skyline, for important for their use of new materials, glass
example, is a fairy-tale composition of chim- and iron, but they did not fulfill any residential
neys, cupolas, and pinnacles springing from a function.
high-pitched roof. This century, palaces seem to have returned
to their origins in the Middle East. It is only in
Baroque palaces the oil-rich states of that part of the world that
palace building is now taking place. The
It was in France, under Louis XIV, the greatest administrative functions of government are
of the European absolute monarchs, that the accommodated in office blocks, but there still
palace reached its apogee. In Paris, where the exists a demand for the ceremonial residence.
old Louvre was rebuilt in courtyard form, the The palace for the Shah of Iran's sister, by
city palace achieved its most perfect form in Taliesin West Associates, is designed around a
Claude Perrault's (1613-88) east facade. Six transparent, domed, air-conditioned garden
Chateau ofChambord, Loire valley, hundred ft. (183m) long, with slightly projecting which is surrounded by small domed apart-
France (1519-47). center and corner pavilions, it consists of a ments on a curving ramp. It is a 20th-century
 Residential 91

interpretation of a theme that is at least 3,000

years old.

Hotels
Ancient and medieval inns
The provision of accommodation for travelers
was the main function of the ancient inns of
the Roman world. The evidence is that these
were planned like Roman villas, with two
courtyards around which were arranged sleep-
ing, eating, cooking, and stabling accom-
modation . The ancient Greeks, however, had
no inns , instead the traveler lodged at private
homes. Even today the same word is used in
Greece for stranger and guest. The ancient
Persians , however, built luxurious inns along
their excellent highway systems.
In the ancient East , caravanserais
developed along carrier routes for the shelter
of caravans and travelers. These were wa- century , while similar baths existed in Japan. Front view ofthe Palace of
tering places set about 8 mi. (12 km) apart, Following the Norman Conquest in dritain, Versailles, Poissy, France
(1669--85), by Louis Le Vau and
often fortified with thick encircling walls. towns developed and trade fairs became Jules Hardouin Mansart.
Inside these walls arcades surrounded a cen- popular, attracting merchants and visitors
tral court, with stables and stores at ground from other regions. Pilgrimages also became
level and sleeping accommodation above. The fashionable. The monasteries could not cope
upper arcades were often separately domed, with the increased demand for accom-
the corners sometimes raised as watchtowers modation and they began to build separate
which, together with the heavily emphasized lodging houses called "inns." The Crusades
gateway, lent the whole structure a fort-like of the 11th century substantially increased the
appearance. Khans (similar structures but number of travelers in Europe and abroad ,
smaller in scale) developed in villages and and the Knights Hospitalers created shelters
market towns, and frequently came to be used and hospices for Crusaders and pilgrims to the
by a particular trade. The silk khan at Bursa Holy Land . In some cases , tokens were given
in Turkey , is a finely preserved example. to guildsmen and knights which , when
In Europe the enclosed arcaded form matched, ensured reciprocal accommodation
recurred in monasteries, which were effec- throughout Europe. In Coventry in England,
tively the only form of accommodation avail- the Guild of Merchants built lodgings for The George Inn at Southwark,
London, England; a surviving
able for the traveler in the early Middle Ages. pilgrims in 1425. example of a medieval coaching
Free board and lodging for wayfarers was Noblemen at this period were traditionally inn. The present structure dates
considered to be a Christian duty, although a accommodated with their entire retinue in the from about 1676.
voluntary contribution according to the host's palace. As this custom increased, spe-
traveler' s means was generally expected. The cial lodging houses were built at the gate of
monastery provided rooms with varying the estate to house the servants. These came
degrees of comfort , depending on the social to offer accommodation for travelers when
status of the guest. unoccupied , as did the manor house when
Commercial inns were introduced by the vacant, both in the country and in town. In
Romans into Britain. The taberna , where the London, the great houses of the nobility also
legionaires and officials used to drink, was served as hotels for visiting nobles; one such
separate from the caupona, where sleeping example was the Savoy Palace of the Earl of
accommodation was offered. Some of the Richmond, on the Strand . However, as the
Roman inns, as at Bath and Silchester in wealth that upheld this hospitality declined ,
England, had a system of baths, consisting of some of the private houses became com-
a series of steam-heated rooms of increasing mercial inns.
temperature, a massage room, and cold The dissolution of the monasteries by
plunge. The Roman baths, or thermae, pro- Henry VIII in the period 1536-40 gave a
vided libraries and eating, sleeping, and rest further impetus to the development of com- Silk Khan at Bursa in Turkey, dating
from the 15th century.
facilities, and were therefore the precursors of mercial inns. Another stimulus was provided
the European spa movement of the 19th by the increase in coach travel from the 16th
century. Similar forms occurred throughout century onward. By 1576, England had about
the world; in the Islamic East baths called 6,000 inns. Medieval inns in England, Spain,
hammans were attached to mosques, and and Germany were usually planned on three
these later developed into spas in the 16th or four sides of a courtyard with stabling and
92 Residential

stores at ground floor and sleeping quarters dington, Charing Cross, and St Pancras to
accessed by timber balustraded galleries accommodate the ever-increasing number of
above. The George at Southwark, London, railroad travelers. These hotels were generally
still in existence, is a fine example of a less luxurious and less expensive than the
galleried coaching inn. In 1473 it had 13 guest "grand luxe" type of hotel. Similar hotels
rooms, each with three beds, a table, and soon appeared in every city in Europe, as well
benches. as in the U.S. and Canada.
Travelers at this time usually ate whatever
provisions they carried with them or dined
with the innkeeper in his kitchen. Only later U.S. developments
were the rich served in their rooms, and this Hotel development in the U.S. followed very
tradition lasted right up to the 19th century. similar lines to that in Europe. Inns started in
When liquor was sold this was usually drunk seaports in the 17th century, then, as people
in the kitchen, where it was stored. Slowly the moved inland, inns were built along the rivers
"tap room" came to be separated off with a and the post roads. One of the earliest inns
low partition or rail; the origins of the bar was the Blue Anchor in Philadelphia, where
counter. William Penn (1644-1718) was welcomed on
In the years from the fall of Rome to the his arrival from England in 1682.
time of the Reformation, European inns As roads improved, so the inns multiplied
gradually developed from small, uncom- and improved. In form they were similar to
fortable buildings to larger, more hospitable the European model with communal sleeping
structures. accommodation above a large ground-floor
communal room which served as bar, meeting
The European "grand luxe" hotel room, and eating place. In New York in the
late 17th century, the Dutch Mayor built
In the 17th century it became fashionable for special accommodation to house the continual
young British gentlemen to make the "Grand stream of settlers that he was expected to
Tour" of Europe, and as a result luxurious, as welcome; a hospitable tradition previously
opposed to purely expedient accommodation adopted by the European gentry.
developed. By the 1760s Dessin's Hotel in Spa resort hotels in the U.S. developed
Calais, France, was reputed to have a theater, much earlier than their European coun-
workshops, ballrooms, as well as stabling terparts. One was built at Yellow Springs,
accommodation. Similar was the Rotes Haus Pennsylvania, after the mineral springs were
in Frankfurt, Germany (1767), and the Royal discovered in 1722, and a hotel at York
Hotel in Plymouth, England (1811). Sulphur Springs opened in 1790. By 1830,
The spa movement, which reached its Saratoga Springs, New York, had become the
zenith of popularity in the mid-19th century most fashionable watering place in the U.S.
brought about a marked change in hotel and other spa resorts followed.
development throughout Europe. Although The Tremont Hotel in Boston (1829),
European spas had their origins in the 16th designed by Isaiah Rogers (18~9) was at
century, when the Belgian town of Spa first the time the most modern and luxurious hotel
became fashionable, it was only later in the in the world. It offered private, lockable
19th century that fashionable society went to bedrooms, introduced the idea of bellboys and
"take the waters" at such resorts as Baden desk clerks, and was the first hotel with
Baden in Germany, Bad Gastein in Austria, indoor toilets. The hotel occupied a full city
and Vichy in France. Palatial resort hotels block and had an impressive Greek portico.
developed on a "grand luxe" level of comfort The Tremont was emulated immediately
with private suites of rooms, as at the Hotel throughout the U.S. where cities vied with
Byron and the Hotel Interlaken in Swit- each other to construct the most prestigious
zerland. With the new type of clientele, hotel. The Astor Hotel opened in New York
entertainments were provided, and balls and in 1836 with 309 rooms, and was two floors
concerts became an intrinsic part of hotel life. higher than the Tremont. The San Francisco
Parallel to the development of these palatial Palace Hotel was built in 1875 with 775
resort hotels, where the rich could live in their rooms, at a cost of 5 million dollars, while the
accustomed style, where great banquets could United States Hotel in Saratoga Springs
be served, and international meetings held, boasted 1,000 rooms.
there also emerged at this time the less lavish The city hotel became the focal point of
commercial hotel. Commercial hotels were social activities for a growing middle class.
often built near railroad terminals, and catered Winter gardens, conservatories, piazzas, and
specifically for the needs of traveling sales- bridal suites were some of the more elaborate
men. Special facilities such as writing desks, facilities provided. The development of the
stockrooms, mail delivery and collection steel frame and the elevator allowed hotels to
points were provided. In London between increase in size. It was essential that strict fire
184~5 hotels were built by the railroad precautions were taken, and the Palace Hotel
companies at the terminals of Euston, Pad- (1875) was one of the first to have its own fire
 Residential 93

hose system, with reels on each floor, a tank architectural features; the unique character of
on the roof with 130,000 gallons (590,980 each locality. Resort towns, such as :Port
liters) of water. It also pioneered the idea of Grimaud in France, as well as hotels in
building its stairs in ve;tical brick com- Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, have estab-
partments as smoke checks. Despite all these lished low-rise developments using traditional
precautions the hotel burned down in 1906. forms. The El Jerba Hotel in Tunisia is an
The development of services radically expansive covered walk, lined with small
affected the planning of hotels. The Regent shops and enclosed spaces formed by the
Hotel at St Leonards was one of the first to public rooms-all combining to create the
have toilets on each floor, while the Lindell scale and ambience of an Arab village. The
Hotel in StLouis (1863) had running water in Club Mediterrane, with its fashionable vil-
all rooms and bathrooms in 14 suites. Central lages of reed huts and beach cabins, has
Marlborough/Blenheim Hotel, heating was first installed in the Eastern similarly provided a solution to the problems
Atlantic City, New Jersey (1905), by
Price and Mc;;Lanahan.
Exchange in Boston in 1846. Passenger of intrusive structures and overdevelopment.
elevators were installed in the 5th Ave. Hotel, In the U.S. , resort hotels have been
New York in 1859, and electricity came into developed along coastal regions, and par-
use in the 1880s. The introduction of these ticularly along the Florida coast. Here the
services meant the planning of hotels with tourist resort hotel developed a flamboyant
vertical stacks, and radiating corridors. The architectural vernacular of its own. Architects
Statler Hotel in Buffalo (1908) was the first such as Morris Lapidus (b. 1902), designer of
hotel to offer a bathroom in each room. the Eden Roc and Fontainebleau in Miami
The Statler hotels were a type of hotel Beach, elevated the resort hotel to a level of
designed specifically to appeal to the com- fantasy to include palatial lobbies, banquet
mercial traveler. From the 1860s to the early halls, gymnasiums, casinos , nightclubs,
1920s almost all hotels were built near railroad swimming pools, and sumptuous restaurants.
stations. The Statler Hotel in Buffalo was the The Fontainebleau set the trend for the over-
PortGrimaud, France (1966), by first modern commercial hotel, the brainchild development of Miami Beach's Collins
Francois Spoerry. of Ellsworth M. Statler, who developed the Avenue. In 1976 a bankrupt Fontainebleau was
most successful chain operation in the history sold at auction.
of hotel development. The Statler hotels were The growth of automobile use created the
sold to Hilton in 1954. motel, which first appeared in the U .S. at St
Europe was behind the U.S. in services Louis Obispo in 1924. By the 1930s the motel
development. In 1889 the Savoy led the field had become an established form of accom-
in Britain by installing 70 bathrooms fed from modation in the U.S. although it was only
its own well, and its own generator to ensure introduced in Europe in the 1950s. In its initial
a continuous supply of electricity. By 1930 the stage the motel offered very little in the way
basic mechanical engineering for the modern of luxury, but for the traveler who wanted
hotel had been established: the plumbing and cheaper, informal , standardized accom-
heating services, elevators, lighting, tele- modation the motel provided the answer.
phones, and mechanical ventilation. Today most of the motel chains in the U.S.
offer a standard of comfort comparable to the
more luxurious resort hotels. The modern
The Hotel Fontainebleau, Miami The 20th century form for many motels and hotels consists of a
Beach, Florida (1955), by Morris
Lapidus. An extravagant resort Just as the advent of the coach, and then the multistorey bedroom block and an expansive
hotel. railroads, played a major part in the develop- low-rise structure, which accommodates
ment of hotels, so the introduction of the public rooms, administration, and services.
automobile and of mass air travel has brought In any discussion of urban hotels , mention
about a dramatic increase in the number and must be made of the American architect John
variety of hotels. Airport hotels have been Portman (b. 1924) who set a whole new
built at almost every major airport terminal in pattern for hotel design with his Regency
the world. At least 50 hotels and motels Hyatt Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia (1972). The
operate near Chicago's O'Hare airport. These building features an internal lobby which
hotels are particularly convenient for transit pierces the entire height of the building,
and other passengers, as they often provide crowned with a skylight and revolving roof
courtesy cars to and from the airport. restaurant. All bedrooms overlook this grand
The second effect of the air age on hotel lobby which contains a cocktail bar, news
development has been the increase in tourist stand, and tree-surrounded seating area.
resort hotels , particularly in response to Glass elevators move up the lobby shaft,
demands of package tour operators. In some depositing visitors on the appropriate balcony
parts of Europe, and particularly in those floor for their bedrooms, or taking them up to
countries bordering the Mediterranean, tour- the restaurant. Portman's idea was to bring
ism may rank as the second- or third-largest the city into the hotel lobby and to create a
Regency Hyatt Hotel, San source of national income. In many Mediter- social focus there. This pattern has now been
Francisco (1973), by John Portman. ranean regions, architects are now becoming successfully repeated in many hotels through-
View ofthe internal lobby space. aware of the need to try and preserve local out the U.S. by both Portman and others.
94 Industrial

Industrial
Factories on waterpower and charcoal. Waterpowered
tilt hammers, used for forging, were first
A factory implies a certain level of organ- recorded in Germany in 1010. Waterwheels
ization. The first real evidence of this after the were also in use until the end of the 18th
collapse of the Roman Empire can be iden- century for powering furnace fans, wire-
tified by the growth of the monastic institu- drawing machines, and machinery for boring
tions in Europe from the 12th century. out cannon barrels.
Monastic organization was rigidly structured, Almost 6,000 mills were recorded in Eng-
teams of monks being allocated specific tasks. land in William the Conqueror's Domesday
It was no accident that when the reaction Book of 1066, although some were animal
came to what was little short of monastic rule powered. The mill of the Middle Age:S was a
in some parts of Europe, the great workshops simple, rectangular building, often built in the
were seized and put to a similar secular use as style of domestic accommodation; timber
manufacturing centers. A later example was frames infilled with wattle and daub, with a
the Montgolfier family's use of the Abbey of horizontal shaft from the waterwheel piercing
Fontenay in Burgundy to develop their one wall to drive the mill stones through
papermaking industry in the 17th century. gearing. It was the millers who were the first
The monastic orders, not being so preoc- engineers, pioneering developments in shaft
cupied with defense, had developed the basili- drive, gearing, belt drive, and mechanical
can building type using locally available mat- handling equipment; they had to manipulate
erials, stone, and timber, to provide gener- heavy loads in confined spaces.
ously lit and well-ventilated work areas, not Mill structures developed as strong timber
unlike the abbey buildings themselves. frames clad with weather boarding, but their
proximity to running water meant that they
The influence of the watermill were often built on marshes, on timber pile
The first mills, in Asia Minor, employed foundations. Mills seldom survived wet rot for
human and animal power as far back as 5000 more than two centuries. Brick mills did not
Be, to split grain from the wild grasses. The appear in Britain until the 17th century, and
vertical millwheel was probably a Persian then were not firmly adopted until well into
invention for irrigation, a form that can still be the next.
seen today. The major technical break- Before the 18th century large buildings,
through, however, was in the hydraulic where a substantial number of workers con-
engineering theories of Archimdes (287-212 centrated around some manufacturing activity,
Be). He not only developed the Archimedes began to appear in many countries. These
screw for raising water, but also horizontal buildings, when the production process
gearing for power transmission. involved the use of machinery, took advan-
The overshot waterwheel was developed in tage of some concentrated power source,
Roman times, producing more power in pro- which in the early stages was invariably
portion to the volume of water required than waterpower. The French royal workshops
undershot types, but this innovation required were established by Jean Baptiste Colbert
sophisticated hydraulic engineering. The dams (1619-83) in the 1660s; the Gobelins tapestry
and weirs to raise the level of the water made factories near Reims are a good example. The
river navigation virtually impossible in many tobacco factory at Seville built between
areas until the lock was developed in France 1728-70 grew to become a vast production
in the 17th century. The first recorded over- area measuring 615 x 480ft. (187 x 146m).
shot wheel was in the agora at Athens dating
from the 4th century AD, powering two sets of
stones through reduction gearing. Later, a British mills
multiple mill was built by the Romans at The predecessor of nearly all the British, and
Barbegal in France. It was built on a stream later of the continental and American mills,
running down a steep hill; a double mill race was a silk factory built near Derby by John
drove eight pairs of overshot wheels, each Lumbe between 1718-22. It consisted of a
driven from the tail race of the other. five-storey building measuring 110 x 39ft. (34
Mills were not confined to grinding grain. A x 12 m), with 468 windows. The 18 ft. (5 m)
horizontal mill dating from AD 31 has been waterwheel activated 26,000 machine wheels
discovered in China, used to power bellows in this building when 300 people were
for a forge. The Romans used edge mills employed.
(where a pair of vertically disposed stones Technical developments in spinning
rotate over a circular trough) for grinding technology, such as James Hargreaves' (d.
olive oil. Cloth mills were recorded in the 13th 1778) invention of the "spinning jenny,"
century and continued with only minor Richard Arkwright's (1732-92) water frame
changes until steam-powered machinery (1769-75), and Edmund Cartwright's (1743-
replaced them. The iron industry tended to be 1823) loom of 1785, contributed to the rapid
located away from communities prior to the growth of the textile industry. Many of the
Industrial Revolution because of its reliance British 18th-century factories were built for
 Industrial 95

this type of manufacture. Arkwright, Strutt,

and Need's mill at Cramford was the first
cotton mill and was built in 1771.
Until the introduction of iron, these build-
ings had internal structures of heavy wooden
beams, joists, columns, and trusses. The
wider span afforded by the timber trussed-
roof construction provided an attic for the
spinning machinery . The lower floors were
used for other manufacturing activities requir-
ing mechanical power from the horizontal
shafting, and the remainder of the space was
used for storage. Since they were lit by naked
flames, and inflammable lubricants were used
on the machinery, these buildings were a great
fire hazard. The spectacular burning in 1791
of the Albion Flour Mill in London, designed
by Samuel Wyatt, is just one of the many
disasters that occurred.
Two interrelated influences were instru-
mental in design innovation: the need to
reduce fire risk, and the adoption of steam
power. constructed the mill in Salford for Philips and Late 18th-century silk mill at
The first use of cast-iron columns was at Lee that iron and steam technology were truly Malmesbury, Wiltshire, England.
Calver Mill in Derbyshire, England, in 1785; integrated. The seven-storey mill, 140 x 42 ft.
this building still used timber beams and thick (43 x l3 m), employed 9 in. (225 mm)
masonry load-bearing walls. William Strutt diameter, hollow, cast-iron columns for all
(1756-1830), in partnership with Richard floors , which were also used for heating. The
Arkwright, erected a six-storey mill at Derby 1-section cast-iron beams carried the brick
in 1792-93, described as "fireproof," with arches of the floors. Heavy floor loadings
iron columns and brick-arched floors sprung were possible throughout the building.
from plaster-encased timber beams. The first A large number of mills were built on this
completely iron-frame mill was built by type of model, and they were much admired
Charles Bage at Shrewsbury in 1796. It by foreign visitors, among them the French-
employed cast-iron columns and beams which man Dupin who wrote on the superiority of
supported flat brick arches which formed the British industry after the Napoleonic War
floors. which ended in 1815, and K. F. Schinkel who
Thomas Newcomen (1663-1729) invented a visited Britain in 1826 for the Prussian gov-
rudimentary, steam-assisted, atmospheric ernment.
pumping engine in 1712, but it was not until Working conditions in these early factories
Boulton and Watt perfected steam operation were often extremely bad. The work force- a
with rotary motion in 1783 that steam power large ·proportion of which consisted of
became an industrial reality . The waterwheel children-worked long hours in badly ven-
was limited in its power production to about tilated and badly lit buildings, close to
20 horsepower. William Strutt's iron-framed dangerous machinery. In the early years of
mill at Belper of 1804, with its huge wheel and the 19th century, visionary reforms were
full exploitation of horizontal and vertical proposed by writers such as Robert Owen in
shafting, was the ultimate in this develop- Britain, author of A New View of Society
ment. Steam power was revolutionary (1813-16), and Charles Fournier in France,
because the factory was no longer tied to a author of Le Nouveau Monde Industriel. Both
site determined by a natural power source, these reformers proposed that the respon-
but the early steam-powered mills still tended sibilities of mill owners extended beyond just
to be built by rivers for reasons of coal paying wages, and that they should provide Stanley Mill, Gloucestershire,
supply. Strutt's Derby mill of 1792 was steam housing, schools, and many other facilities for England (1813).1nterior view of
powered, with a centrally positioned engine their workers as well as some involvement in cast-iron columns and framing
house to reduce shaft length. Bage's iron- running the enterprise. Owen experimented incorporating supports for shafting
and machinery.
framed mill was designed for steam power with his ideas after buying the New Lanark
with the engine house at one end. The Mill at the age of 28. By 1800 he employed
restricted length of shafting through power about 180 people who benefited from coopera-
loss was well illustrated when this mill needed tive housing, education for children, encour-
to be expanded two years after the initial agement of trade unions, and so on. Many
completion-another engine house had to be reformers and philanthropists, such as Andre
installed at the opposite end of the extension, Godin and Titus Salt, were to follow with
with its own independent shafting. further practical experiments in opposition to
It was not until Boulton and Watt in 1801 upholders of the status quo such as Dr
 96 Industrial

Andrew Ure who defended the factory system the hollow brick arches supported on
as it was in his Philosophy of Manufacturers, wrought-iron joists drew hot, moist air out
published in the 1830s. through ceiling vents to the outside. The
Many innovations in structure and power spans were 27ft. 6 in. (8.4 m) and 22ft. 10 in.
transmission occurred before 1850. Cast-iron (6.9 m), unequal due to the demands of the
beams and columns were developed with machinery, an early instance where machine
more structurally efficient sections, inves- layout generated building design . Another
tigation into fireproofing iron structures was innovation was Fairbairn' s use of rolled-iron
initiated and the use of wrought-iron joists and angle to build trussed girders spanning the
beams, which began in the 1830s, became whole 50 ft. 4 in. (15.3 m) width of the attic
commonplace, often combined with lighter without intermediate support, and carrying
arches between them, as in William Fair- iron purlins, in turn supporting extensive roof
bairn's floors for his sugar refinery (1844-45), lights.
Titus Salt's mill at Saltaire,
Yorkshire, England (1853), by which had arches of boiler plate topped with Multistorey construction was not used for
William Fairbairn and architects. concrete. the vast weaving shed . The demand for even
Lockwood and Mason. During this period Fairbairn established daylighting and Salt's preoccupation with bet-
that the main efficiency problem with the ter working conditions resulted in the pro-
stationary steam engine was the Watt vertical totype for many factories to the present day.
boiler. Fairbairn introduced at this refinery North-light trusses were used over a 36ft. (11
the horizontal multi tubed boiler, later m) span in one axis and 18 ft. (5.5 m) in the
adopted worldwide as the Lancashire boiler. other. Integral cast-iron gutters formed the
Most textile mills of this area were based on junction between cast-iron columns and the
a rectangular structural grid of between 9 and trusses. All the drive shafting was restricted
12 ft. (3 and 4 m), and were four to seven to an undercroft, the machinery being pow-
storeys high . Apart from the influence of ered by belt drive through slots in the floor. A
power transmission, the need for natural large ornamented chimney belonging to the
lighting and ventilation kept the proportions steam engine plant was made an integral part
long and narrow, seldom exceeding two lines of the composition of this complex. Chimneys
of machinery across the width . It was those were used by the designers of many mills as
great innovators Matthew Boulton (1728- an opportunity for architectural embel-
Ornamental chimney designs from 1809) and James Watt (1736-1819) who lishment. The Tower Works, built at Leeds in
a mid 19th-century bricklayer's pioneered gas lighting in factories. Their chief about 1900, had a chimney in the style of
treatise. engineer, William Murdock (1754-1839), Giotto's campanile in Florence.
installed gas lighting, perfected from Philippe Single-storey textile mills and factory sheds
Lebon's experiments in Belgium, at their had existed previously. Marshall's Temple
ironworks in Birmingham. Their first major Mill at Leeds (1838-40), designed in the
installation was in the mill for Philips ar.td Lee Egyptian style by Ignatius Bonomi , is an
in 1801, and by 1804 they offered a com- interesting example. It consisted of a hall of
mercial installation service to mill owners. slender columns supporting cross vaults, each
Early textile factories were envisaged as with a central skylight. The domes which
massive machines. The structural frame of the were covered in waterproofing drained
building which carried all the floors also through the columns. They were covered with
served as a support for all the shafting that earth and grassed over, and sheep were reared
transmitted power to the various looms and to keep the grass under control. This elabo-
other machines from the central waterwheel rate roof served the purpose of helping to
or steam engine. In many cases, the cast-iron maintain the correct level of humidity for flax
The Duke of Devonshire's iron and
columns had brackets and bearing supports weaving.
steel works at Barrow-in-Furness, cast into them to hold this machinery in place. Brick or masonry walls supporting trusses
built in the 1870s. Apart from a One factory complex stands out in the early in cast or wrought iron, or timber, were often
large number of blast furnaces the history of the factory as a coordinated power used to make enclosures for production
complex included docks for barges
and ships and extensive railroad
and service package-Saltaire. Built by Titus spaces for heavy manufacturing processes
yards. Salt, it was a model factory in the country, such as those found in foundries and iron-
with a model village for the work force-much rolling mills.
as Robert Owen had done at New Lanark 50 The roof of Maudsley and Field's machine
years before. The mill complex was designed workshop built in 1825 was made of cast iron.
by Fairbairn in 1853, with the architects It collapsed soon after it was erected, prob-
Lockwood and Mason . There were two mill ably because it lacked horizontal ties, but this
blocks disposed about a central entrance, was not widely reported. It continued to be
each five storeys high and flanked with its illustrated in European construction manuals
own engine house. The attic was high enough for many years as an example of an elegant
to clear the entrance arch and engine houses, structure in that material.
and ran 550 ft. (168 m), the whole length of Light enclosures using an iron or wooden
the two buildings; the longest room in Europe framework with a cladding of boarding or
at the time . The cavity walls were revolution- corrugated iron had, by the mid-century,
ary in that they drew cool air in at floor level; become a common form for factory sheds.
 Industrial 97

A typical, well-designed multistorey mill of Percier and Fontaine, and was begun in 1822.
the 1880s in Britain had tnany features in This factory complex consisted of buildings
common with those built early in the century, arranged in a formal rectangle, forming a
but there were some refinements. Floor struc- courtyard, with two semicircular ends measur-
tures of wrought-iron joists carried arches of ing 460 x 260 ft. (140 x 79 m). Workers'
concrete, but the joints were normally cased cottages and other facilities were planned
with fire-resistant material. Flat roofs built in nearby.
a similar way to the floors, but covered in European engineers developed incom-
waterproof material, were not unusual. The bustible and fireproof framing techniques,
external masonry walls would often have piers similar in many respects to those pioneered in
incorporated in them to carry the loads of the Britain. Roof framing for sheds and work-
beams, and to make it possible to employ shops followed similar evolution to those in
wider openings for the windows, which gave Britain and the U.S. Camille Polonceau
more light and made deeper plans possible. (1813-59) invented a simple trussed-rafter
Stair towers would be designed to project truss in 1837 which was very similar in form
from the main structure so as not to create to those developed by A. Fink in the 1840s.
awkward corners in the plan. Doors separated These were first used in railroad-shed struc-
the stairs from each level. Toilets and other tures, but quickly found a wide application in
sanitary facilities were accommodated on half factory buildings of moderate span. They
landings with good ventilation, and in many could be made in timber with iron tie rods, but
cases fire hydrants would be provided. Fire they were often made entirely of iron. Large
escapes became a common adjunct, and in areas of unencumbered floor space were often
many cases buildings provided for heating and required in buildings associated with heavy
ventilation. These buildings had regular grids industry, and many engineers rose to the
of columns whose modules were arranged to occasion by providing innovative structures.
conform as far as possible to the dimensions The Galerie des Machines designed by Fer-
of the machinery, and to space occupied by dinand Dutert and Victor Contamin between
processes, within the limits of economic 1887-89 in Paris for the International Exhib- Drying shed at Guell Textile Mill,
Santa Colonia, near Barcelona,
spans. In some areas, standard modules were ition of 1889, although not strictly an indus- Spain (late 19th-century).
used for buildings serving many different trial building, shows how far these techniques
purposes, leading to the standardization of had developed by the end of the century. In
components and ease of planning. this vast building, designed to exhibit large
machines, three-pin portal frames spanned 377
European factories ft. (115m).
In Europe, British industrial processes and The Menier Chocolate Mill at Noisiel-
techniques had a strong impact on the design sur-Marne, designed by Jules Saulnier (1817-
of factories. William Wilkinson (1738-1808), 81) between 1871-72, broke with the tradition
the younger brother of John Wilkinson of load-bearing external walls. Instead Saul-
(1728-1808), helped establish the great royal nier designed this four-storey building-which
foundry complex in France at Le Creusot straddles the river like a bridge-on four
between 1779-85. These buildings consisted massive piers, as a complete freestanding
of double and single-storey volumes arranged cage. The structure was made up of riveted
formally around courtyards. European wrought-iron sections with cast-iron columns Menier Chocolate Mill,
mechanized cotton manufacture began in and an extensive system of diagonal bracing Noisiel-sur-Marne, France
Germany in 1784 using Arkwright's methods, which is visible on the facades. The non- (1871-72), by Jules Saulnier. A
introduced at Ratingen near Dusseldorf by load-bearing external walls were enclosed in pioneer framed structure with
non-load-bearing walls.
J. G. Brugelmann. carefully executed decorative brickwork with a
Claude-Nicolas Ledoux (1736-1806), who repetitive motif of cocoa flowers and the
became inspector of the Royal Saltworks in Menier monogram. The machines in the fac-
1771, began to build a new Saltworks plant at tory were driven by three turbines which had
Chaux in 1776. This complex, based on a become a viable and more efficient alternative
semicircle of buildings, was never finished but to the waterwheel.
its famous plan survives, along with an expan- Many of the developments in turbines had
sion of the project to the level of a large taken place in France from 1826 when Pon-
visionary assembly of interrelated buildings celet invented his inward-flow turbine. Other
on or near the site, serving many industrial developments included the outward-flow tur-
housing and social functions. Ledoux also bine designed by Benoir Foumeyron (1802-
produced schemes for other types of industrial 67), and Jonval's axial-flow turbine, intro-
buildings including large foundries. In many duced in 1843.
cases early European factory complexes, Multistoreyed factories of skeletal con-
often funded by the State, were more impres- struction became fairly common in France
sively and formally planned than those in and other European countries. The metal
Britain. framing, often consisting of wrought-iron lat- Partial view of the Royal Saltworks,
Le Grand Hornu, near Mons in Belgium, tice beams and diagonal elements, was in Chaux, France (1776-79), by
was designed by Bruno Renard, a pupil of many cases exposed outside the enclosing Glaude-Nicolas Ledoux.
 98 Industrial

walls. A good example of a building of this buildings was slow. Spinning machinery was
type is the Usine de Ia Societe Urbaine d'Air first introduced in 1787 at Beverley, Mass.,
Comprime in Paris, built by the engineer and the first power loom was used by Francis
Joseph Leclaire in 1891. Cabot Lowell in 1814 at Waltham, Mass.
The great majority of European factory Initially, industrialization was limited to the
northeastern states. In 1810 there were 54
buildings, as in other parts of the world, were
utilitarian in design, but occasionally these mills in Massachussetts, 26 in Rhode Island,
buildings were elaborately ornamented as was 14 in Connecticut, and 12 in New York State.
the Benedictine liqueur factory at Fecamp Until 1810 nearly all American mills were
(1893-1900), designed by C. Albert in a timber-framed and clapboarded structures,
French Gothic and Renaissance style. normally not exceeding three storeys. The
Toward the end of the century reinforced first cotton mill in the U.S. was the Slater
concrete began to be used for factory build- Mill at Pawtucket, Rhode Island, built in
ings in Europe. A pioneer in this field was 1793. External walls in stone began to be used
Fran~ois Hennebique (1842-1921) who built in about 1810-an early example of this form
the large Charles VI spinning mill at Tour- was the first Georgia mill at Smithfield,
coing in 1895. The tradition of reinforced- Rhode Island , built in 1812. This mill was
concrete factory building in Europe soon totally rebuilt in 1853 but continued the
became firmly established. At first the forms tradition of building an internal timber frame
used were similar to the repetitive post- with stone external walls. Many American
and-beam systems typical of wood and metal mill owners built houses for their workers,
construction, but forms based on mushroom especially when their mills were built at a
columns and slab construction introduced distance from settlements in order to take
before 1910 by C. A. P. Turner in the U .S. advantage of waterpower.
and Robert Maillart (1872-1940) in Swit- Ingenious labor-saving techniques were a
zerland were soon to be included in the common concern of American mill designers.
vocabulary of reinforced-concrete con- As early as 1783 , Oliver Evans (1755-1819)
struction along with other forms appropriate built a totally mechanized grain mill at Redley
to this new material. Examples of these Creek, Delaware, in which all the products
Templeton's Carpet Factory, include the Esders sewing workshop in Paris were handled by mechanical power or gravity
Glasgow, Scotland (1889-92), by
William Leiper. Glazed brickwork in (1919), designed by Auguste Perret (1874- and passed from one process to another by
Venetian Gothic. 1954); the Van Nelle Tobacco Factory systems of chain bucket conveyors, chutes,
(1828-29), designed by Johannes Andreas Archimedes screws, and other methods. This
Brinkman (1902-49) and L. C. van der Vlugt early precursor of automated factories was
(1894-1936); the Fiat Works in Turin (1927), published by Evans in his Young Millwright
designed by Matte Trucco; and the Boots and Millers Guide and was much admired by
factory at Beeston, near Nottingham, England British and European mill builders including
(1932), designed by Owen Williams (b. 1890). Thomas Telford (1757-1834), who advocated
The AEG Turbine Factory at Berlin its use in his unpublished work on grain
(1908-09), designed by Peter Behrens (1868- milling.
1940), and the Fagus Factory at Alfeld (1911), Rapid industrialization in the U.S. led to
designed by Walter Gropius (1883-1969) and the emergence of vast industrial complexes,
Adolf Meyer (1881-1929), were both forward- often exceeding European examples in size.
looking buildings combining symmetrical and The Bay State Mills at Lawrence, Mass., of
severe repetitive compositions with large 1846, consists of a large range of buildings
areas of glass. These buildings were to including three nine-storey blocks in a row,
become very influential to European Modern each 200 ft. (61 m) long. In many cases these
Movement architects. Before World War I, large enterprises did not restrict themselves to
these avant-garde architects began to admire one type of production. The Amoskeag Mill
the forms of American industrial buildings, at Manchester, New Hampshire, made tex-
often built by little known engineers, and tiles as well as heavy industrial machinery.
these were published as examples of the The first iron columns to be used in an
direction architects should take. American textile mill date from 1846 at the
Fagus Shoe-Last Factory at Among factories designed by European Metacomet No 6 Mill at Fall River, Mass.
Alfeld-an-der-Leine, Germany architects, mention should be made of Hans The Pemberton Mill at Lawrence, Mass.,
(1911 ), byWalterGropius and
Adolf Meyer. The external walls
Poelzig's (1869-1936) monumental brick built in 1853, had hollow cast-iron columns
consist of glass screens between chemical works at Luban in G ermany (1911- supporting timber beams and joists. This
the columns ofthe frame. 12), Erich Mendelsohn's (1887-1953) hat fac- building collapsed in 1860, killing 200 people
tory at Luckenwalde (1921-23), with its angu- through a failure in the columns which were
lar shapes, and Alvar Aalto's (b. 1898) cel- defectively cast. Disasters of this type helped
lulose factory at Sunila, built in 1936-39. to establish stricter controls on building, and
insurance companies played a major role in
effecting these changes. After this period,
Factories in the U.S. reliable methods of iron framing became
In the U.S . the adoption of iron for factory common in multistorey factories. In the U.S.
 Industrial 99

there were significant innovations in struc- The electric motor

tures associated with industrial processes. From the later years of the 19th century, the
James Bogardus' Shot Tower, built in New influences on factory design were: increased
York in 1855, was an eight-storey tower, speed of design and construction; reduced
octagonal in plan, using a load-bearing, exter- costs; increased productivity through atten-
nal, cast-iron frame infilled with thin, non- tion to materials flow and machine layout; and
load-bearing, brick panels. Because of bad the ability to alter production technology.
soil conditions, a light structure was neces- While the Industrial Revolution in Britain
sary and a freestanding skeleton frame was stimulated rapid technological development,
proposed and built. innovation was proceeding rapidly in Europe
The cast-iron fronts and building frames and the U.S. The elimination of the depen-
marketed by Bogardus, Badger, and others dence on shaft and belt drive from a central
from the 1850s onward had an impact on the power source virtually led to the modern
design and construction of industrial buildings factory as we know it. Michael Faraday
by introducing nonmasonry incombustible (1791-1867) had discovered the principle of
walls in multistorey structures together with the electric motor in 1821, and the dynamo by
other innovations. Large grain elevators 1831, but substantial power generation was
posed problems to designers of industrial not practical until the advent of Gramme's
buildings and after the mid-century many direct current generator in 1870. This was
patents were obtained for improved and more developed by R. E. B. Crompton (1845-1940)
economical methods of construction. in Britain, and Werner von Siemens (1816-92)
G. H. Johnson, for example, patented sys- in Germany. Crompton, famous for his steam
tems of reinforced brickwork in 1862 and 1869 trains, had pioneered electric lighting in his
for these structures. Toward the end of the cousin's cast-iron foundry at Stanton in 1877,
century they were being built in reinforced to enable the operation of a night shift. This
concrete. was a great improvement over the gas lamp,
American factory designers helped to make opening the way for deep-plan buildings.
important advances in the design of roof From the 1870s, Crompton developed electric
trusses for factory sheds from the 1840s power rapidly for industrial use, joining with
onward. These structural elements, first made Edison in 1883 to form the United Electric
out of wood and later iron, were in most cases Light Company in the U.S. By the mid-1880s,
derived from variations on truss systems electric motors started to replace steam
developed for railroad structures. By the end engines, at first on shaft drive systems. The
of the century there were over 60 different rapid development of a range of small motors
types of roof frame in use. opened up a new area of planning flexibility;
The use of reinforced concrete as a struc- plant layout and materials handling were
tural material in place of wood and iron was established as major contributors to pro-
pioneered in the early 1880s by E. L. Ran- duction cost reductions.
some (1844-1917) in California, where iron
was expensive. In 1885 he built a mill for
Starr and Company at Wheatport, in Califor- The interwar years in the U.S.
nia, with a complete reinforced-concrete
structure. This was the first of many buildings While Gropius and Meyer and the other
built by Ransome and his company through- Bauhaus pioneers searched in the late 1920s
out the U.S. that exploited the opportunities for their "complete and inseparable work of
offered by this new material. At the Borax art," architects and engineers in the U.S.
Works at Alameda, California, he cast beams, were concentrating on designing factories for
slabs, and joists as homogeneous elements in the needs of rapidly expanding mass-
1889. In the New Jersey factory on the Pacific production industries. Management sciences,
Coast, Borax Company at Bayonne (built such as operations and methods analysis were
1897-98), Ransome brought concrete frame well known by 1920, typically in the Ford
onto the facade, breaking away from the organization, and during the 1920s work study
tradition of small windows which are required and factory layout became highly developed.
in other types of masonry construction. The relationship between the factory structure
Albert Kahn's Packard No 10 building in and bay size to materials flow and production
Detroit, Michigan, built in 1905, is another organization was clearly understood, with
example of this type. The use of concrete architects like Albert Kahn (1869-1942)
construction spread to many types of indus- pioneering integrated industrial design.
trial buildings throughout the U.S. Before Where the typical factory of the turn of the
World War I, in the areas around the Great century had been dominated by the unidirec-
Lakes, large industrial complexes contained tional nature of the structural frame, due to
Section through the press shop
factories with unadorned, repetitive, concrete overhead gantry cranes, the use of north-light at Chrysler Corp., Detroit, Michigan
frames and there began to appear massive trusses, or pitched Warren or Fink trussed (1936) by Albert Kahn Associates,
batteries of grain and cement silos on the construction, a new awareness of the benefits showing interior lighting levels
skyline. from improved mechanical handling techni- produced by monitor roofs.
 100 Industrial

ques demanded new developments in steel to the unidirectional emphasis of half a cen-
frame design. The mass-production lines tury before. Concrete ribbed slab and column
employed overhead conveyors, and numerous construction was carried to a high level of
piped services; and the development of structural efficiency by Pier Luigi Nervi (b.
forklift trucks in the early 1930s required 1891) in the State tobacco factory at Bologna
unrestricted floor surfaces. Freedom of pro- in Italy in 1949-50.
duction layout required deep buildings and Considerable advances were made in the
wide spans. Lattice steel construction 1960s in construction systems employing both
technology had progressed rapidly with bridge steel and concrete. The monitor roof con-
design, and it was to bridge-type trusses that tinued to be favored as an alternative to the
Albert Kahn turned for his wide-span monitor deep-plan, air-conditioned factories.
roofs of the 1930s. Developments in three-dimensional steel
Kahn had been concerned about the uneven structures, or space frames, advocated
light from the north-light roof form, which enthusiastically by Konrad Wachsmann (b.
produced pronounced shadows behind 1901) and others, allowed very large areas to
York Shipley Factory at Basil don, machinery. The monitor roof introduced a be covered with only perimeter support. This,
England (1962), showing controlled amount of south light opposite the however, could only be achieved at a high
wide-span monitor roof
construction.
north light, resulting in a greatly improved cost, and although theoretically it offered a
overall lighting level without producing too limitless choice for routing services, in prac-
much insolation or heat loss. This form was tice the numerous structural members proved
used for the Harrison Radiator Division of to be a constraint. Equally, the experiments
General Motors, and for the press shop for with thin concrete shell forms, begun in 1920
~~~ DeSoto, part of Chrysler at Detroit, in 1936. by the engineering firm Dykerhoff and
1 Perhaps the greatest demonstration of the
steel truss and monitor construction was
Widmann-who built many shell concrete
factory roofs and other structures after World
, Kahn's hangar for the Martin Aircraft Com- War 1-were not sufficiently adaptable in
pany in Baltimore in 1937. A column-free area many cases for the servicing needs of modem
of 500 x 330ft. (150 x 100m) was achieved by industry operating in conditions of increasing
30 ft. (9 m) deep trusses spanning the longest change.
dimension, bridged alternately top and bottom The oil crisis of 1973 imposed another
to form a monitor roof. influence on factory designs, perhaps cur-
The lessons learned in flat-truss con- rently the most important one-that of energy
struction were used by architects and con- conservation. There are currently numerous
struction companies for the U.S. factory schemes attempting the recovery of process
building boom in the 1940s to support the war heat for reuse in the factory, but it is
effort. The Austin Company of Cleveland becoming clear that the scale of the man-
built 300ft. (91 m) span trusses for the Boeing ufacturing operation has to be large to justify
bomber factory at Wichita, Kansas, sup- the capital cost against current savings. The
porting 10 ton (9,090 kg) capacity underslung energy crisis has reopened the arguments for
cranes. The same company built a clear-span and against the deep-plan factory with an
factory for the Singer Sewing Machine Com- artificial environment, or the naturally lit plan
pany at Finderne, New Jersey, designed for types. There is a desire to return to smaller
Production lines inside a modern
artificially lit, deep-plan factory. rapid services rearrangement to suit alter- factories with more natural environments, due
ations of the workbench layout; the services to experience in the I%0s of centralized
ran within the roof trusses. But the major plants being closed for long periods through
departure which heralded much of the factory strikes, and increasing evidence that both
development in the U.S. in the 1950s and improved productivity and labor relations
1960s was the deep-plan space which incor- result from care being taken in the design of
porated no roof lighting and was fully air the work place. It is also being accepted that
conditioned. The windowless, air-conditioned full automation is only economic in certain
box had arrived. well-defined areas of production, such as
welding car bodies, and that developments in
Current developments mechanical handling techniques, such as
After World War II, two main requirements wire-guided automatic work carriers, can be
dominated factory design in Europe and the successfully integrated with personnel to
U.S. : firstly the provision of flexible space for increase productivity and improve job satis-
optimizing production layout and materials faction.
flow, and secondly low-cost speed of erection.
In some cases these goals proved mutually Warehouses
exclusive, with the low-cost steel or concrete
portal frame being calculated by the plastic "Warehouse" is a generic term for three
Typical deep-plan factory of the theory of design to contain so little material distinct storage functions. A warehouse can
current American pattern with unit that although capital cost was reduced, so was be used like a tank, to even out peaks of
environmental control mounted on
roof, central boiler plant, and room the structure's flexibility to accept service production and continuous consumption, such
for expansion. loading. This form of structure also returned as a harvest, or continuous production and
 Industrial 101

irregular demand. Sufficient quantities can be entirely of concrete. Still larger warehouses
metered out to control the selling price, and were erected at Ostia, the principal supply
considerable economies result from continuity port. The most important commercial build-
of production in industry. Warehouses can ings were three public warehouses (horrea)
equally be transshipment and redistribution that were used to store goods after discharge
points; collecting diverse material from many from seagoing vessels, prior to reshipment up
production locations, sorting and sometimes the River Tiber. The horrea were large,
packaging it before redistribution to cus- enclosed, rectangular buildings, with storage
tomers for reprocessing or sale. This oper- chambers opening off a colonnaded courtyard .
ation was typical of the great mercantilist Construction was typically concrete vaulting.
companies in the Middle Ages. Warehouses The barrel vaults of a warehouse at Tivoli
can also be used as repositories, where stor- were over 30ft. (9 m) high; nothing like them
age area or volume is charged to companies occurred again until the 19th century.
short of their own space. A warehouse there-
fore has to provide volume with security,
Medieval and early mercantile
together with easy access and handling for the
warehouses The Dutch East India Company
stored material. Demand for space dictates warehouses and timber wharf. The
the size, but the current construction and In many parts of Europe, the feudal organ- monumental symmetrical
handling technologies generate the form the ization operated on the tithe principle, each five-storey brick building in the
background has regularly spaced
building takes. artisan or serf providing one-tenth of his loading doors flanked by windows.
output, and large buildings were required to Goods delivered to the wharf
store these dues. The tithe bam is the fore- would be hoisted for storage at the
Storage in early civilizations runner of the pre-Industrial Revolution appropriate level. This type of
arrangement remained common
Commercial storage played an important part warehouse-with their massive timber con- until the end of the 19th century.
in the growth of intercommunity trade in struction these buildings survived many cen-
southern Europe and Asia Minor, and there is turies. The tithe bam at Great Coxwell in
evidence of substantial storage complexes Oxfordshire, England, still survives. Built on
from the Minoan and Mycenean cultures. The a stone foundation the store is 152 ft. (46 m)
early Mycenean megaron, from about 2000 long, 44 ft. (.13 m) wide and 48 ft. (15 m) high
BC, has been found in round and rectangular to the apex of the pitched roof. Heavily
form, in groups surrounded by palisades. In a framed roof construction provided a clear
late Minoan building at Ninos (c. 1500 BC), span across the width and bore onto thick
evidence has been found of groups of indi- stone walls, the lateral thrust being absorbed
vidual storehouses centralized under one roof. by substantial buttresses.
The building was 100ft. (30 m) square, with a As trade developed during the medieval
cellular construction of closely spaced storage period, alliances were established between
chambers. several cities in northwest Europe, in an
The expansion of the Greek Empire in the attempt to resist economic and military har-
4th century BC required the development of a assment. The greatest of these organizations
storage and distribution network to supply the was the Hanseatic League, which at the
military machine. In 330 BC a very large height of its power controlled 80 cities. The
warehouse was constructed at Piraeus, the records indicate that substantial warehouses
main base for the Greek navy. The building were built in the cities of the League; these
measured 405 x 55 ft. (124 x 17 m), with a were timber framed in the north German ports
gabled roof supported by two rows of columns but sometimes of brick construction in Flan-
35 ft. (10 m) high. We can only surmise the ders and Brabant. Because of restricted quay
construction methods that were employed, area, these warehouses developed as mul-
but it is likely that heavy timber frames would tistorey buildings. At first manual hoists were
have spanned from the masonry external walls used , but by the end of the 15th century
across the columns-similar to the larger cranes powered by horsedriven treadmills
temples. were in use. They comprised beams mounted
As the Roman Empire supplanted the as jibs on stout timber turntables to slew loads
Greek, the extent of their conquests and from vessels' holds into the upper storage
settlements posed a considerable logistic prob- levels of the adjoining warehouses.
lem. A highly organized, centralized dis- While the mainland of Europe suffered from
tribution system evolved based on the ports the devastation of the Thirty Years War and
around Rome, with redistribution centers at the trade leagues' disintegration, the British
the principal ports and cities of the Empire. economy continued to develop due to the
The Romans had access to a wide range of stimulus of trade with the new colonies across
construction techniques, including concrete the Atlantic. The watermill provided pro-
and wide-spanning timber trusses. A very totypes for the warehouses of the late 18th
large granary, measuring 285 x 160 ft. (87 x 49 century, with their massive timber con-
m), was built in 193 BC at Porticus Aemilia in struction and clear spanning storage lofts,
Rome. This was a vaulted structure, disposed supplied by hoists cantilevered out from the
on three levels down a slope, and constructed gable (the locum) and powered via a crown
 102 Industrial

wheel and pinion from the main drive shaft of cated the use of iron framing for naval stores
the waterwheel. Because these mills had to be and warehouses in 1807 and when a large
built adjacent to running water they were complex-the Quadrangular Storehouse at
often founded in marshy soil: the consequent Sheerness-was built by Edward Hollin 1827,
problem of rotted structures led to the a special structural system was evolved to
development first of massive masonry foot- cope with the very bad bearing capacity of the
ings, and eventually to stone or brick walls. local soil. Instead of heavy brick arches
between cast-iron beams, Holl made his floors
out of much lighter Yorkshire flagstones
Developments in the Industrial supported on joists between the beams.
Revolution In 1845, William Fairbairn (1789-1874)
There was little difference between the early advanced the design of the iron frame by
factories and warehouses-both were multi- replacing the brick arches with thin, vaulted
Warehouses around the basin of storeyed, with timber-framed floors and roof iron plates filled to floor level with concrete
the Albert Dock, Liverpool, England
(1845), by Jesse Hartley.
construction bearing onto massive walls of for his eight-storey sugar refinery and ware-
local stone or brick. Their main disadvantage house, while at a later date he introduced
was that they were very inflammable. The wrought-iron beams. He still, however, relied
answer lay in cast iron. on massive masonry walls for lateral support.
Charles Bage's mill at Shrewsbury, England In 1837 the Lorillard warehouse was erected
(1796), was the first to employ cast iron for in Gold Street, New York, with cast-iron
both columns and floor beams; Boulton and piers and lintels in the external walls.
Watt perfected the technique in their Salford In 1856, Colonel Greene designed a boat
mill of 1801. Their cast-iron framework store, again at the Sheerness shipyard, in
employed hollow cast-iron columns of 9 in. which the iron frame, consisting of cast-iron
(225 mm) diameter and cast-iron !-section columns and wrought-iron beams, was also
beams from which brick arches were sprung. the supporting element of the facade which no
Equally heavy storage was possible on all longer relied on massive masonry walls to
floors. stabilize the building frame. The facades are
In Britain, the expansion of commerce made up of wide horizontal strips of glazing
Plan, elevations, and sections of demanded the creation of well-organized over corrugated-iron spandril panels between
the Quadrangular Store House in warehousing, especially in seaports. In Lon- columns. This innovation in design made it
Sheerness, England (1827), by
EdwardHoll. don the construction of enclosed dock basins, possible to introduce more light into interiors,
with locks to remove the influence of tides, making deeper building practical.
was begun in 1800. These basins usually had When warehouses were built close to com-
quays on all sides with warehouses opposite mercial and office districts they were often
them·for storing goods. In other places along embellished with architectural features based
the river, warehouses continued to be built mainly on Gothic and Classical forms, and it
directly on the waterfront. Examples include was not uncommon for the same building to
the West India Dock by Jesse Hartley, begun combine administrative and storage functions.
in 1800, and St Katherine's Dock by Philip The reputation of iron-framed warehouses
Hardwick (1792-1870), begun in 1827. Many was severely tarnished by a great fire in
of these buildings were built with cast-iron Cubitts Building Yard in London in the 1850s,
columns and beams with brick arches, on the when a large iron-framed warehouse filled
model of the textile mills. Where, as in St with timber and joinery burned down and
Katherine's Dock, they were built directly collapsed very rapidly, while a timber-framed
over the quay, the lower storey is treated as a building which also caught fire remained with
colonnaded loggia to facilitate the unloading its roof. From this time onward a better
of goods. In other cases, such as at the understanding of fire protection techniques
London Dock, the space under the quay was began, and warehouses were compartmented
vaulted with brick domes or cross vaults on internally to contain fires to manageable
cast-iron columns to provide further storage. areas.
The Albert Dock at Liverpool, built by Jesse In the U.S., the work of James Bogardus
Hartley in 1845, is a further illustration of an (1800-87) and other iron-founders such as
extensive dock basin surrounded by monu- Daniel Badger advanced the use of iron
mental and severe five-storey dock ware- structures. Many prefabricated buildings and
houses, whose only decorative features are facades were intended for warehousing. For
massive Doric cast-iron columns on the his warehouse for Harper Brothers in New
ground-floor loggia over the quay. York (1854), Bogardus designed a cast-iron
Large warehouses were built in other coun- frame that was completely self-supporting.
tries, and these were often similar in most The design was an early example of true
respects to those which evolved in Britain, system building, with standard components
Mid 19th-century warehouse in the although the use of iron framing was less produced for easy transportation and rapid
City of london, England, showing extensive-as in the Packhof in Berlin, by assembly in the developing ports and cities in
loading doors at various levels and Karl Friedrich Schinkel (1781-1841). the U.S. Bogardus' pamphlet Cast Iron Build-
crane. In Britain, John Rennie (1761-1821) advo- ings (1856) had a major influence on industrial
 Industrial 103

building design, and by the beginning of the created spaces without using downstanding
next decade, systems of the type he initiated beams which restricted storage and con-
were firmly established. Fine specimens of sequently reduced the useful light of each
these warehouses were built on the waterfront storey. Maillart's warehouse in Zurich (1910)
at St Louis and in other cities. In 1865 grain is an early example of this type of structure,
elevators using cast-iron framing were erected which gained popularity in Europe and the
in New York by Daniel Badger, a rival of U.S. between the wars.
Bogardus. In the same year, Hippolyte Fon-
taine built a large six-storey warehouse at the
St Ouen Docks in Paris. This large building,
measuring 630 x 82 ft. (192 x 25 m), had its Single-storey storage sheds
external walls supported by cast-iron columns Robert Maillart's concrete
warehouse in Zurich, Switzerland
and wrought-iron beams. It was therefore an While developments were taking place in the (1910).
early example of a substantial iron-framed evolution of framing techniques for mul-
building with non-load-bearing external walls. tistorey warehouse buildings, single-storey
Stability was ensured by rigid column- sheds were also receiving attention from
and-beam connections. designers, who often adapted structural forms
The form of the warehouse did not change developed for bridges, factories, and other
significantly until the 20th century. There was industrial buildings. Improvements in truss
a tendency toward deeper buildings after the design and roof framing, first in timber and
introduction of electric light on a commercial later in iron, resulted in considerably cheaper
scale in the 1880s. Cast-iron cranes, fitted to and more secure structures.
the slewing brackets on the face of the Corrugated iron, a major innovation in the
warehouses, still lifted material into loading development of building materials, was orig-
doors disposed in a vertical line on every inally designed specifically for the con-
floor. The safety elevator, developed in the struction of storage sheds. Henry Robinson
1850s by Elisha Otis (l8ll-61), did not make Palmer (1795-1844), while working as
an industrial impact until the 1880s, when engineer to the London Dock Company, was
electric motors also became available for faced with the task of providing extra storage
powering cranes. space on the quayside. In 1829 he developed Early 20th-century Dutch dock
A major development in the construction of and patented the use of corrugated sheets of
warehouse. Machine rooms for
hoists interrupt the skyline. These
warehouses, but still adhering to their tra- wrought iron which were manufactured by deliver goods to the various levels
ditional multistorey form, was the intro- Richard Walker. Palmer's sheds consisted of within the building, which is
duction of reinforced concrete. corrugated-iron vaults supported by cast-iron artificially lit.
In the U.S., many large warehouses and gutters carried on columns. This type of
storage building complexes were built in the structure was considerably more economical
major manufacturing centers to store goods than structures framed and enclosed in other
and prepare them for distribution . The use of ways. With the development of galvanizing in
reinforced concrete on a large scale was the late 1830s, this material quickly became
introduced by E. L. Ransome (1844-1917) in popular for roofing and enclosing walls of
his storage buildings for the Arctic Oil Works single-storey warehouse buildings. This popu-
at San Francisco in 1884. Soon after the tum larity has continued to the present day, and a
of the century, concrete was being widely large variety of different corrugated sheet
used in a variety of structures associated with materials are now available. From the 1840s
storage functions. Large grain elevators were onward numerous manufacturers in Britain,
built at major transshipment points, especially such as E. T . Bellhouse of Manchester, Corrugated-iron warehouse shed
along the shores of the Great Lakes. The Morewood and Company, J . H. Porter, and advertised in Marshall, Lefferts,
eight-storey warehouses designed by Charles D. Young of Edinburgh and London,
and Brother's catalog of 1854. This
New York firm produced sheds
R. E. Schmidt, Garden, and Martin for the marketed prefabricated corrugated-iron sheds with or without sides, in any length,
Montgomery and Ward Company in Chicago throughout the world. The California gold and with spans up to 30ft. (9 m).
(1908) are a good illustration of an extensive rush of 1849 provided one of the many
warehouse complex. Here windows are larger markets for their buildings. An early Ameri-
than in most masonry precedents, allowing for can firm in this field was Marshall Lefferts
deeper, better lit plans. These vast and some- and Brother who were established in New
times stark storage buildings were often built York in the early 1850s.
around special docks for railroad cars, to Developments in mechanical refrigeration
facilitate loading and unloading. In some which began in the mid-19th century led to a
cases rail tracks occupied areas within the new kind of storage building-the refrigerated
first-floor areas of these buildings. warehouse. They are normally sealed, com-
The use of beamless floor slabs was initi- pact, highly insulated volumes with a
ated by C. A. P. Turner in the U.S. in 1908, minimum of openings to reduce heat loss. By
and by Robert Maillart (1872-1940) in Swit- the 1880s the rapidly growing international
zerland in 1910. Beamless floors were more trade in frozen meat, and later in frozen
efficient structurally as load-bearing surfaces vegetables, helped expand the demand for
than their trabeated predecessors since they buildings of this type.
104 Industrial

The development of unit load handling The first automated warehouse to attract
widespread attention was for the Brunswig
Battery electric platform trucks were used in Drug Company in Los Angeles. Built in 1%0,
multistorey warehouses from about 1910, but it was rapidly made redundant by an overall
although they moved between floors by change in company policy. The next major
elevator, they still had to be loaded and development-which was really the precursor
discharged manually. Some crude lifting of subsequent automated warehouses in the
machines were in use in the 1920s, but the real sophistication of its control systems, handling
breakthrough did not occur until Sears intro- plant, and the fact that the whole warehouse
duced their Model L in the U.S. in 1930. This was chilled-was for the kitchens of Sara Lee
was a forklift truck as we know it today, with at Chicago, a cake manufacturer. More than
hydraulic lifting and mast tilting, battery elec- I00 product lines were handled automatically.
tric drive, and rear steering. From that date, In Europe, automated warehouse develop-
the days of the multistorey warehouse were ment was initially confined to countries with
numbered. very high land and labor costs: Sweden and
During World War II palletized handling Switzerland. A 63 ft. (20 m) high warehouse
and stock control techniques were developed for a paper company in Lausanne, Swit-
Single-storey dockside in order to deal with the transportation and zerland, was the first to integrate the structure
warehousing.
storage of vast tonnages of material, and after of the pallet racking with support for the roof,
the war these techniques were firmly estab- the walls, and the stacker crane's guide rails.
lished in the U.S., Europe, and Britain. Old This innovation was quickly copied in the
single-storey factories were pressed into ser- U.S., Sweden, Germany, and Britain. A
vice as warehouses, but it was soon rec- warehouse for the Dr Maag Pharmaceutical
ognized that much space and handling effort Company in Germany successfully overcame
was being wasted by the intrusion of columns the constructional and operating problems
and the pitched roof structure. Developments experienced in some of the early integral
in factory design, particularly in the U.S. in building/rack structures from the very tight
the 1940s with wide-span welded trusses at tolerances required by the electronic control
economic prices, led in the 1950s to specially of the machinery: the 56 ft. (17 m) high rack
built warehouses, specifically designed to structure was made of vertical, precast con-
accommodate the newly introduced pallet crete elements. The 63 ft. (20 m) high auto-
racking systems which greatly improved mated warehouse for Pressed Steel Fisher at
selectivity and the use of built volume. The West Bromwich in Birmingham, England, was
structural grid was a balance between the innovatory in that the whole volume was fully
capital cost of wide spans and the necessity to air conditioned, with humidity control, for
space the columns in multiples of the storage storing unpainted car bodies. From the mid-
racking and forklift-handling aisles. I%0s the continuing trend for higher land
In the I%0s, the widespread replacement of prices in Europe stimulated the development
small retail outlets with supermarkets oper- of automated warehouses to over 100 ft. (30
ated by a few large companies increased the m) storage height, while in the U:S. control
pressure to centralize warehousing and dis- systems became more reliable with the ware-
tribution facilities. But the increase in area house height leveling off at about 63ft. (20m).
demand coincided with rapidly increasing land Developments in the U.S. and Europe in
prices. New handling methods were required the late 1960s concentrated on increasing the
A reach truck working in a to store vertically rather than horizontally. lifting height, using forklift technology. As a
warehouse with a pallet racking Computerized stock control had already been result three distinct building types have
arrangement. developed to reduce order/delivery cycle evolved, each with different machinery:
times: the concept of automating the lifting warehouses of about 25 ft. (8 m) clear height
devices was the logical development, eliminat- for forklifts and reach trucks; warehouses of
ing the problem of operators confined to about 40 ft. (12 m) for turret trucks (forklift-
inhospitable working conditions. Forklift type machines that do not turn in the aisle
technology had been exceeded with the between the racking to place the load, but
demand for storage to heights of more than 25 handle it from side to side in an aisle just
ft. (8 m); it was crane manufacturers who wider than the pallet); and automated ware-
were the innovators. The stacker crane, houses for higher lifting. The first two types
which revolutionized high-density storage, do not employ integral pallet racking, per-
involves a rigid vertical mast structure with a mitting flexibility of layout. The column cen-
pallet-carrying fork assembly. The mast runs ters are normally spaced to allow racking to
on a single bottom rail, stabilized by another be economically installed for either system.
at the top, powered by its own traction motor. Wide spans can be cheaply provided through
A maze of steel structural hollow The Otis Company in the U.S. were pioneers advances in structural steel and reinforced-
sections forming the Eastern in the field of computer-controlled stacker concrete design, principally by the two- and
Electricity Board's new
computerized "superstore"
cranes, although development was so rapid in three-pin portal frame. First demonstrated in
warehouse at Waltham Cross, this field that there was clearly parallel design the structure of the Halle des Machines at
Hertfordshire, England. work by other companies. Paris (1889), this form has been perfected by
 Industrial 105

the plastic theory of design to maxJmtze A turret truck ope

strength for the minimum of material. Pioneer warehouse with r
forms of this type of structure, used on a racking.
commercial scale as "standard" buildings,
were "Butler" in the U.S. and "Conder" in
Britain.
Current warehouse innovations aim to
reduce energy costs; for example, the use of
loading dock shelters, where the box-bodied
truck forms a hermetic seal with the face of
the warehouse. Other developments continue
to refine mechanical handling techniques for
ease of control and improved reliability and
flexibility of operation. Perhaps the greatest
innovation of the early 1970s was the
minicomputer, offering automated control for
small installations at a comparatively low cost
and retailing systems completely integrated
with centralized storage. Existing warehouses
are sometimes modified by converting them
into sealed secure volumes by closing off their
windows and installing air conditioning.
Future trends must include the eventual
elimination of the stockholding warehouse,
except at a small local scale. In its place real
time computer control for ordering, stock
control, and manufacturing programing will
enable the rapid distribution of required goods
directly from smaller factories to nearby out-
lets. Most of the storage capacity would then
be contained within the distribution network.
 106 Commercial and administrative

Commercial and administrative

Offices around the Strand and in Fleet Street in the
1830s. By 1850 distinctive office building
The office as a distinctive building type is a types began to appear, such as Oriel Cham-
late 19th-century phenomenon. Before that bers built in 1864 in Liverpool, and exchanges
time the office function was an adjunct of such as the London Coal Exchange of 1849.
government, trading, or manufacturing. It was The speed with which business could be
accommodated in the merchant's house, the transacted was increased by a series of inven-
palace, or the place of production. It was tions. The frrst patent for a typewriter was
unusual for a building to be designed espe- granted in England in 1714, but it was not
cially for office use; Somerset House in until 1868 that a practical commercial model
London, England, built in 1789 for adminis- was developed by Remington. In 1837 Cooke
trative offices of government, stands out as and Wheatstone invented the needle tele-
the exception. However, as manufacturing graph, and by 1868 almost all major American
changed from a craft to an industrial base, cities had telegraphic links. The duplicator,
there was a greater demand for administrative developed by Gestetner in 1861 , further
control and the keeping of records , and the increased the flow of paper. The most impor-
office function grew rapidly. As organizations tant invention for the speed and ease of
became more complex and the amount of communication was the telephone. Alexander
transactions multiplied toward the end of the Graham Bell (1847-1922) patented the tele-
19th century, the demand for specially desig- phone in 1876 and by 1900 it was an indis-
nated office space increased. Since the 1950s pensable tool.
offices have again developed dramatically and By the end of the 19th century more or less
now provide a sophisticated environment for a instantaneous contact was possible between
wide range of functions . the manufacturing plants or warehouses and
Office work is generally concerned with the the financial or commodity exchanges . The
receiving, recording, arranging, and giving of office function was no longer restricted to
Oriel Chambers, Liverpool, information, and the safeguarding of assets by being close to the function it was servicing. A
England (1864), by Peter Ellis, with ensuring that the cash and stock representing further concentration of office building took
cast-iron facades and large plate
glass bay windows foreshadowing
the value of the business are fully accounted place: in London between 1867 and 1886 new
the form of Chicago buildings of for. Offices exist wherever record keeping "office streets" such as Victoria Street in
the 1880s. and the exchange of information is coor- 1871 and Shaftesbury Avenue were con-
dinated or performed. structed. In New York, offices began to be
Leiter Building II in Chicago (1891) Innovations in office design have occurred located in downtown Manhattan during the
by William LeBaron Jenney.
This building represented both in the form of buildings and in their 1880s. Chicago's Central Business District,
an advance in structural interior environment and planning. Develop- within the loop of elevated railroads, also
techniques with the iron framing ments in communications and information emerged in the 1880s. The development of the
extended to the outer walls. production and handling equipment have had office as a distinctive building form continued:
a dramatic effect on the scale and organization large firms began to cluster all their office
of the office function. This in turn has created functions together in the cities, in prototypes
demands on the type of building and envi- of the corporate headquarters.
ronment required. In the late 19th century a The 19th-century office was a small room
large office may have employed no more than where no more than three or four clerks might
50 staff in " counting rooms," as an adjunct to work, or where the individual went for sol-
the manufacturing plant, whereas today up to itude from the noise of the production area or
5,000 staff may be employed in a single the exchange. The Leeds Com Exchange in
corporate headquarters. England (1863), for example, had a central
oval dealing floor overlooked by small rooms
Innovations in the function and accessed by galleries. As industry and bus-
organization of offices iness developed, these types of offices were
During the early part of the Industrial Revolu- superseded by the " general office" or
tion the small numbers of artisans employed " pool. " These housed up to I00 clerks in
by manufacturing establishments began to be large, often toplit rooms surrounded by small
replaced by much larger work forces. As individual rooms for managers. Two examples
production increased, so also the supporting of this arrangement are Frank Lloyd Wright' s
functions of financing , insuring, and exchang- Larkin Building in Buffalo, New York, built
ing goods, and the administrative function of in 1904, and the Lever Brothers Port Sunlight
directing, controlling, and accounting for the Building in Cheshire, England , built in 1914.
factory output developed. Although the Between 1920 and 1950 the use of machines
accounting and managerial functions remained for collating, storing, and reproducing infor-
attached to the plant, the trading and financ- mation increased dramatically. New office
ing functions were separated from the factory occupations arose as the traditional role of the
and occupied the most central locations of clerk was taken over by machines which
cities. The first major clustering of specialized could be managed by workers with a lower
office accommodation in London, England, level of skills. At the same time the number of
occurred with the location of insurance firms women in office work began to increase.
 Commercial and administrative 107

Offices became more organized and took on

similarities to the factories they served.
Departments were formed with defined func-
tions which were part of a sequence of
information flow.
IBM's first automatic digital computer was
completed in 1944 and by the early 1960s
computers began to be applied to office
activities. The number of computers in use in
offices is at present rapidly increasing with the
development of minicomputers and the latest
microprocessors. The impact of the computer
has been to encourage the further sys-
tematization of office work flow, to restore
the need for skilled office workers, and to
enlarge the management and planning role of
office organizations. Automatic data pro-
cessing has freed time for thinking and plan-
ning. The office function today is less con-
cerned with processing paper than with face-
to-face communication and the exchange of
ideas.
102 storeys of the Empire State in 1931, and in Distant view of BMW
Technical innovations and building form 1971 by the towering World Trade Center of Headquarters, Munich, Germany
(1973), by Professor Karl
As office work expanded, greater pressures 110 storeys. Schwanzer.
were placed on the land available in central The space provided was anonymous ser-
business districts, and development began to viced space built speculatively to be rented off
go upward. Some of the most successful early to the highest bidder. The Schiller Building in
tall buildings are to be found in Chicago. The Chicago of 1891, designed by Dankmar Adler
first central city buildings were limited to 10 (1844-1900) and Louis Sullivan (1856-1924),
storeys, due to the need to strengthen the was intended to provide either hotel or office
normal 12 in. (300 mm) thick masonry wall for accommodation, either use requiring a lobby
every additional floor above two storeys. or reception area, corridors lined with rooms,
It was not until the 1880s, with the stairs, elevators, and bathroom facilities.
development of the cast-iron frame and the Today an office building can be equivalent to
passenger elevator, that the skyscraper a small city in terms of space provision. The
became an established building form. In 1884 World Trade Center has over 20 acres (8
the Home Insurance Building of Chicago, hectares) of office space, and can accom-
designed by William Le Baron Jenney (1832- modate 50,000 workers. In New York during
1907), was completed, using a steel and iron the early 1960s a new profession was formed
skeleton frame . This was followed by a to plan, manage, and adapt the stock of
number of glass and skeleton-framed buildings speculative space. These firms of space plan-
which created the original Chicago style. The ners, from their experience of designing the
steel frame, clad with masonry fire protection, interface of office organization and their build-
allowed for a uniform thickness of external ings, have begun to influence the design and
walls. This in turn provided more usable quality of office shells.
office space and increased the size of the In Europe tall office buildings did not
offices. The technology was available for the appear until after 1945 due to height restric-
city to build upward, providing goods and tions. Some early examples are the Pirelli
people could be transported rapidly and effi- Building in Milan (1961) and the Shell Center
ciently to the upper floors. The first com- in London (1962).
mercial elevator was installed by Otis in New Although buildings were able to develop
York in 1857. In the initial stages elevators upward , they were constrained in the depth of
were used mainly for hotels, and it was not space by the need for natural light and
until 1873 that the first elevator was installed ventilation. In 1870 Swan and Edison
in an office for the Western Union in New invented the incandescent lamp and by 1907
York. By 1887 electrically operated elevators tungsten was introduced for commercial pur-
were introduced and limitations on the height poses. It was not, however, until 1938 that
of buildings were finally lifted. The "sky- fluorescent tubes were introduced com-
scraper" was born. The progression upward mercially by Westinghouse and G EC.
was rapid: in New York the Metropolitan Fluorescent lighting reduced energy con-
Building of 11 storeys in 1892 was followed by sumption, glare, and above all, heat build up.
the Singer Building of 47 storeys in 1908, the This allowed the continuous use of artificial
Woolworth Building of 60 storeys in 1913, the lighting, an increase in the depth of buildings,
 108 Commercial and administrative

and reduced the problems of air conditioning. In 1963 Robert Probst, in association with
The principles of conditioning the envi- George Nelson, brought out the prototype of
ronment were well known in the 19th century Action Office Furniture. Probst, perceiving
and used extensively in industrial buildings both the limitations of continuously moving
and ships. Apart from isolated examples, such partitions and the changing nature of office
as Frank Lloyd Wright's Larkin Building of work, conceived of a system of screen-hung
1906, which was specifically designed for a work surfaces which could be adapted to a
noisy and dirty location, the air conditioning variety of styles of work and management.
of office buildings was not considered to be an Action Office provided the privacy of the
economic proposition until the 1920s. The individual room, with ease of adaptation, and
1928 Milam Building in San Antonio, Texas, is the possibility of interaction. In 1968, Action
the earliest air-conditioned building given over Office 2 was launched on the commercial
entirely to offices. The Howe and Lescaze market, interior layouts became more relaxed
PSFS Building in Philadelphia was completed and the number of enclosed offices was
in 1932 and was probably the first truly reduced. Furniture began to be marketed as a
modern, air-conditioned office slab, and is a coordinated system rather than as individual
pointer to the New York developments of the desks, filing cabinets, and chairs. The pro-
1950s. The typical office floor plan is inter- duction of furniture was big business and large
esting in that although offices are organized industrial organizations entered the market,
around a central corridor, there is an inner such as Westinghouse and Steelcase in the
bank of offices relying on artificial lighting and U.S., and Strafor and Olivetti in Europe.
an outer bank of smaller perimeter offices. Furniture has taken on many of the traditional
The day-to-day use of air conditioning for roles of the building shell by carrying cables
commercial office buildings began to take (Voko), supporting lighting (Westinghouse),
effect after World War II. By then, the level providing privacy (Marcatre), and allowing
of technology had made it practical to localize the character of finishes to be varied .
input and extract so that the building interior Up to the early 1950s the impact of air
could be subdivided into cellular spaces as conditioning and the ability to build deep
required. The buildings of Skidmore, Owings, spaces which were not dependent on the
and Merrill provided space that was unin- perimeter for light and ventilation had only
PSFS Building, Philadelphia (1932) terrupted by columns, service cores, and fixed been used in a few buildings. The speculative
by Howe and Lescaze. One of the
first modern air-conditioned
partitions, and no longer dependent on the office building of the U.S . in the early 1950s
buildings independent of period perimeter for its services. The Pepsi Cola began to break away from the constraints of
styling. Building, New York (1959), the Inland Steel the 25 ft. (8 m) depth from window to core or
Building, Chicago (1957), and the CIS Build- corridor, and started to provide deeper spaces
ing, Manchester, England (1962), are exam- and a central core. In Britain, speculative
ples of the flexible uninterrupted space that office forms continued to be dictated by the
architects were striving for. demands of natural light and individual
offices, and the shallow-depth office block
persisted. In Germany, however, where the
Innovations in the design of office tradition for custom-designed office blocks
interiors was stronger, a new generation of building
From the beginning of the 19th century until shells appeared. The Quickborner Team in
the end of World War II office buildings and the late 1950s developed a new approach to
organizations increased in size and in the office planning through analyzing individual
amount of paper needing to be processed, but needs and work relationships. Office land-
there was no fundamental change in the scaping, or Biirolandschaft as it was termed,
nature of the interior environment. The typ- proposed a free-form layout in deep open
ical prewar office interior consisted of heavy spaces which, it was claimed, could improve
desks, butted together in clerical areas, and organizational efficiency by facilitating work
glass-partitioned cubicles. The introduction of flow and ease of interaction. The resultant
computers in the 1950s reduced much of the buildings were two or three storeys high with
repetitive clerical work; work flow became floor areas at least 70ft. (22 m) in depth, and
less critical and working groups became normally with an off-center core to allow for a
smaller and more project orientated, adapting zone of cellular spaces. The Nino Building in
as the workload and the function of the Nordhorm (1963) is an early German exam-
organization changed. The demand for organ- ple, and the experimental offices of 1969, for
izational flexibility resulted in buildings being the Department of the Environment at Kew,
designed so that ceilings, service points, par- pioneered the concept in England.
titions, and sometimes even furniture, were In the U.S. the European tradition for
dimensionally coordinated, of the same style, cellular offices has never been as pronounced.
and easily adaptable. Skidmore, Owings, and The regular rows of desks of the "general
Merrill's Union Carbide Headquarters (1959) office" naturally developed into open plan-
Union Carbide Headquarters, New
York (1959) by Skidmore, Owings,
reflected a systems approach with total mod- ning, as reflected in the Union Carbide Build-
and Merrill. ularity and interchangeability throughout. ing of 1959 by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill.
 Commercial and administrative 109

The emphasis of postwar office development iety of different-sized and interconnected

was on the image-conscious corporate head- spaces. The character of spaces is dif-
quarters. Telecommunications and trans- ferentiated in plan by structure and walls, and
portation had become so sophisticated that in section by changes of level and voids.
large corporations felt able to leave the secu- Lighting is becoming more variable, relying
rity of physical proximity to their suppliers, on task lighting associated with the work
clients, and competitors, and often moved to station to provide for specific requirements.
"green field sites ." With the removal of (See also SERVICES.)
constraints on site and land values, buildings
could spread outward instead of upward.
Buildings began to reflect their natural set- Skyscrapers
tings, and office work took on a new quality,
as for example in the Connecticut General No other building type delights in such an
Building, completed in 1957. evocative name, nor one so free of functional Interior view of open-plan
connotation than the skyscraper. Whatever Burolandschaft office in the Osram
else a skyscraper might stand for it stands, Headquarters, Munich, Germany
Present developments and future trends above all, for technical confidence, for mas- (c. 1960).
The euphoria of the l%0s for fully air- tery of technical means, and it has done so
conditioned, deep, open-planned space, unin- since the patrician families of medieval Italy
terrupted by walls and individual offices has raised their personal fortified towers over San
been tempered by experience. The realities of Gimignano and Bologna in the 13th century.
planning and managing single floors with up to The origins of exceptionally tall buildings
500 staff in one space, and the realization that are, of course, older still. The tower of Babel
some activities or individuals might require is often cited as a key antecedent , and it must
offices for reasons of privacy or status, have be admitted that the actual monuments that
stimulated designers to look at alternative inform the myth of Babel are remarkable for
plan shapes. Buildings are reverting to their technology (mainly of brick con-
medium-depth space of 48-52 ft. (15-16 m), struction) and for their effect in punctuating
where either cellular or open-planned layouts relentlessly hot and barren landscape. In a
can be accommodated. This is described in similar way, the Gothic cathedrals of 13th-
Germany as "reversible space." As with the century Europe loomed over huddled towns. John Deere Offices in Moline,
domestic scale of 19th-century offices, the The aim in both instances was to reach Illinois (1964). by Eero Saarinen.
Built in a landscaped park in the
building structure again begins to manage and heaven, whether literally or metaphorically. open countryside.
regulate activities. Subsequently, the skyscraper has become a
In 1973 an outstanding innovation in office conventional vehicle for more frankly secular
design was achieved in Herman Hertzberger's aspirations which have to do with erecting
Centraal Beheer Cooperative Insurance permanent marks of human ingenuity and
Headquarters in Apeldoorn, Holland. Hertz- daring. Rational justifications of the basic
berger has taken the undifferentiated charac- skyscraper concept, whether found in the
ter of Biirolandschaft as his starting point and logic of real estate, or of management theory,
then proceeded to bring the building shell have often obscured but never extinguished
back into use. Hertzberger and his client the fundamental urge to create man-made
argued that the building should provide easily landmarks.
definable space for small working groups and
reflect the better level of education and
environmental awareness of office workers. Origins of the modern skyscraper
The building is a honeycomb of constant-sized Three vital technical developments have Centraal Beheer Cooperative
spaces, defined by structure and punctuated paved the way for modern skyscrapers. The Headquarters in Apeldoorn,
by voids, within which the individual can first was the rapid development of structural Holland (1973), by Herman
Hertzberger.
manipulate furniture, decoration , and lighting. engineering from the 1830s onward. Laws of
Centraal Beheer may well reflect the future of statics, discovered empirically, were resolved
office building design. into formulas which described the behavior of
Office organizations are also in flux . The a whole class of structures (i.e. columns ,
repetitive data-processing functions can be trusses). (See STRUCTURAL THEORY.) In this
handled by computer, leaving the office way, for the first time, generalized laws and
worker to plan and manage. Greater emphasis principles could be applied to different classes
is placed on meetings, working in small of forms and materials, and could explain
project groups, and interaction with outsiders. behavior independent of experience with a
Organizations are becoming less hierarchical, specific form . The ability to reliably predict
more open and participative. The design the behavior of forms greatly reduced the
implications of such changes are to provide dependence on past experience that had gov-
buildings that are open yet also afford small erned building over the previous 5,000 years.
group spaces. Trends in office design are Any form to which the laws of statics may be San Gimignano, Siena, Italy.
moving away from undifferentiated space to applied can be realized. Thus, detailed cal- Thirteen of the medieval towers
multifunctional buildings which provide a var- culation was sufficient to persuade the French still dominate the town.
110 Commercial and administrative

government to allow Gustave Eiffel to build well as an architect-Burnham and Root,

his 1,010 ft. (300 m) high tower, which, in Holabird and Roche, and others, wanted to
1889, was the tallest structure in the world. break down distinctions between architects
The second development was the making of and engineers, and to evolve an architecture
a clear differentiation between the supporting depending for its effect on mass and prop-
skeleton of a building and its enclosing skin. ortion rather than on ornament. The Reliance
Although this distinction was made to a Building, a slender 15-storey tower of 1895,
limited extent in Gothic architecture, and in designed by D. H. Burnham and J. W.
the domestic architecture of several cultures, Root, epitomizes the Chicago skyscraper.
it was not part of the Renaissance load- Finished in white glazed terra-cotta panels
bearing masonry tradition which informed and glass, the tower sports no cornice and has
most of what was considered architecture in a freely subdivisible floor plan served by a
the mid-19th century. Hence the popularity of bank of elevators on one side.
the Gothic style for many early skyscrapers, An important aspect of the Chicago School
notably the 1913 Woolworth Building with a was the way in which novel forms and plan
height of 792ft. (241 m) and the 1923 Chicago types were evolved for departmental stores,
Tribune Building with a height of 450ft. (137 apartments, and hotels, all based on the
m). technical potential of frame construction,
The last tall building in load-bearing innovative plumbing and drainage, electric
masonry construction was the Monadnock lighting, and demountable partitions. Chicago
Building (1891) in Chicago. Sixteen storeys has also produced at least two unbuilt but
high with brick walls 7 ft. (2 m) thick at the important skyscraper projects. In 1891 Adler
base, it stands close by the first skeleton- and Sullivan proposed a 36-storey skyscraper,
frame skyscraper, the tO-storey Home Insur- the first with a system of setbacks which
ance Company (1885) designed by William Le anticipated the requirements of the New York
Baron Jenney (1832-1907). The crucial virtues City Zoning Law of 1916, on a downtown
of the framed building were an improved site. In 1956, Sullivan's pupil, Frank Lloyd
Reliance Building, Chicago strength to weight ratio, with a consequent Wright (1869-1959), designed the Mile-
(1894-95), by Daniel Hudson
Burnham and John Wellborn Root:
relative economy of foundations, "fireproof' High-a skyscraper of 528 floors.
an early Chicago skyscraper with a construction to the extent that floors were no The Chicago School also had a strong
skeleton frame. longer supported on timber, and speed of influence on the development of architecture
erection. elsewhere, and particularly in Europe. Ger-
The third development was the invention of mans who visited Chicago in the 1920s to see
a safety device by Elisha Graves Otis (18ll- Frank Lloyd Wright's houses, stayed to mar-
61) to prevent elevators from falling . He vel at the earlier commercial buildings. Sig-
demonstrated his safety elevator at the 1853 fried Giedion (1893-1968), the architectural
Crystal Palace Exhibition in New York, and historian, saw the Reliance Building as a
by 1872 more than 2,000 of them were in possible source for Mies van der Rohe's
service. The architecture of hotels, apart- studies (executed in 1919 and 1921) for 30-
ments, office buildings, and department stores storey, glass-clad towers.
evolved rapidly in response to the potential of Up until 1960, it was generally accepted
the steam-powered elevator. Electric drive, that the steel frame was the only suitable form
push-button control, and speeds of 700 ft./ of construction for skyscrapers. European
min. (212 m/min.) were commonplace by the developments in reinforced concrete were,
tum of the century. however, helped by the relative economy of
concrete outside the U.S., Canada, and
Japan, and some tall buildings have been
Oaily News Building, New York
Chicago constructed in that material. It is therefore
(1930), by Raymond Hood. An early The fire which destroyed a large part of somewhat ironic that Water Tower Place in
multi-functional skyscraper. Chicago in 1871 effectively produced the first Chicago will be the world's tallest concrete
modern city in the world. After the fire, new skyscraper at 860 ft. (262 m), with 7 floors of
building within the area of the Loop had to be shopping, 19 floors of hotel, and 40 floors of
of fireproof construction and, as fireproof apartments.
R.C.A. Building in the Rockefeller construction was too expensive for most
Center, New York (1931-32) by residential building, this had the effect of
Corbett, Harrison and McMurray.
Part of a large complex of 14
producting a downtown area which was used New York
buildings. almost entirely for commercial and adminis- One of the greatest skyscrapers is the Wool-
-~--- trative purposes. This specialization in turn worth Building (1913) on New York's lower
pushed up land values and created con- Broadway designed by Cass Gilbert (1859-
siderable pressure to build the largest possible 1934). This technically advanced building of
building on any particular site. The result was 55 storeys, clad in terra-cotta, is vaguely
the cluster of skyscrapers built within the area Gothic in style. What became known as
of the Loop in the decade 1885-95. "Woolworth Gothic" was the style that
The Chicago architects, William Le Baron launched Raymond Hood (1881-1934) as the
Jenney (1832-1907}-who was an engineer as master of skyscraper design in the 1920s and
 Commercial and administrative 111

1930s. He won the Chicago Tribune com- and Merrill and the Seagram Building (1958)
petition of 1922 with a 34-storey structure by Mies van der Robe and Philip Johnson,
reaching a height of 450 ft. (137 m) which both situated in New York, were rep-
defeated entries by many notable European resentative buildings of this period.
modernists.
The logic of building high in New York was Recent developments
only partly due to real estate values. There
was also a positive desire for the density of Three-dimensional structure is the key struc-
activity which resulted from building sky- tural concept of today's skyscrapers. The
scrapers close to each other. Some of the Empire State Building was designed as a
architectural consequences of such desires series of plane frames, while today's buildings
were most clearly worked out by the drafts- are designed as three-dimentional "tubular"
man Hugh Ferris, particularly in the Met- cantilever structures. The core of the building
ropolis of Tomorrow which he published in constitutes an inner tube, and the outer
1929. columns and spandrels constitute another
The concept of multifunctional buildings, tube. The tube concept is attributed to Fazlur
sometimes with nonutilitarian interiors, began Kahn, the structural engineer for Chicago's
to materialize in the late 1920s. Raymond John Hancock Tower, a 100-storey tapered
Hood's Daily News Building of 1930 had a 50 tube with external diagonal bracing I, 127 ft.
ft. (15.2 m) high circular lobby in black glass (344 m) high, completed in 1968. The Han-
containing only a spotlit 10 ft. (3 m) globe. cock Tower was swiftly followed by the N .Y.
Only the radio transmission possibilities of the World Trade Center of 1973, engineered by
102-storey Empire State Building made it Leslie Robertson, which was I ,350ft. (411 m)
economic. Designed in 1929 by Shreve, high. These twin tubular structures were the
Lamb, and Harmon, the 1,044 ft. (318 m) fi rst to use sky lobbies, which allow elevators
building remained unsurpassed until 1973 to travel above each other in the same shafts
when the twin towers of the World Trade and save vital core space.
Center (1,350 ft./411 m) were completed. The The tapering form of the Hancock Tower, The United Nations Building, New
1931 Downtown Athletic Club by Starrett and besides being more resistant to wind pressure, York (1950) pioneered the use of

Van Vleck has the most startling amalgam of also corresponded in section with the different curtain walling on a tall building.

uses, including a miniature golf course on the floor areas which were required at different
7th floor and a swimming pool on the 12th heights in the building, and this innovation has
floor. Less whimsical and far larger in scale is been taken further in the design of a number
Rockefeller Center in midtown Manhattan of skyscrapers whose sections taper in curves
by Hood, Harrison, and others. Thi~ in one direction but not the other. The First
complex of 14 buildings, built between 1931- National Bank Building, built in Chicago in
39, anticipated today's multifunctional sky- 1969, is an early example of this type of
scrapers in many ways. It contains the famous skyscraper. Some skyscrapers, such as the
6,200-seat Radio City Music Hall and the Hancock Tower in Boston, are now being
70-storey RCA building, as well as an open- subjected to additional loading on their upper
air ice rink. Below street level, a continuous floors in order to increase their inertia and so
shop-lined concourse links together all the reduce their movement in strong winds .
separate buildings, while the upper levels The highest skyscraper at the present time
accommodate several bars and restaurants is Fazlur Kahn's giant Sears Tower in
often with their own roof gardens and obser~ Chicago, completed in 1974, which reached a
vation decks. height of I ,450ft. (442 m). The concept of the
building is a "bundle" of nine perforated
square tubes, two of which terminate at the
Postwar skyscrapers 50th floor, two at the 66th floor, three at the
The United Nations Building of 1950 ushered 90th floor, and two of which go the full height
in a new era in skyscraper construction. of 110 storeys. As Fazlur Kahn himself says
Although not exceptionally tall, it was the "today without any real difficulty, we could
first tall building clad mainly in glass curtain build a 190-storey building. Whether we will
walls. The technical problems, which were and how the city will handle it is not an
highlighted by the use of the curtain wall, engineering question, it is a social question."
spurred industry to develop air-conditioning
systems, sealants, and the technology of thin Shops, stores, and shopping centers
metal claddings in general. Despite the basic
technical shortcomings of the curtain wall, The open market, composed of temporary
hardheaded clients were no match for the stalls, is the earliest known arrangement for John Hancock Tower, Chicago
(1968) by Skidmore, Owings, and
fanciful logic of industry and art in unison. buying and selling goods. The Greek agora, Merrill (engineer Fazlur Kahn). A
Ingenious economic arguments were used, the center of the city, was both a public 100-storey braced tube structure.
and these bought time until the curtain wall meeting place and market. It was surrounded
was the cheapest way to clad tall buildings. by public buildings with arcades under which
Lever House (1952) by Skidmore, Owings, permanent shops were built as early as the 5th
112 Commercial and administrative

century BC, and even at this time both market Market hall at Lyons,
France (1909-13) by
and shops were zoned for the sale of different Tony Garnier.
kinds of merchandise. The shop itself was the
space between the . warehouse or workshop
and the street where the purchaser stood to do
his business.
The Roman forum was originally occupied
by a market and shops, but during the Empire
civic and religious buildings were sited here
and shops were regrouped elsewhere in spe-
cially built market places. Covered markets
date from this time; the one at Pompeii, built
in the 1st century AD, was typical with walls
decorated with mythological subjects and pic-
tures of the goods on sale. Trajan's markets in
Rome, built in the early 2nd century AD, were
the most ambitious and architecturally com-
plex examples of this general type. Each
taberna, or individual shop, had a sales
counter toward the front and storage behind,
and sometimes above, and this basic arrange-
ment continued to be used throughout Europe
until the end of the 17th century. were the Royal Opera Arcade, finished in
The Moslem and Asian pattern for selling 1818 by John Nash (1752-1835) and Hum-
was established in ancient times and has phrey Repton (1752-1818), and the Burlington
continued with little alteration to the present Arcade, finished in 1819 by Samuel Ware, Rue de Rivoli, Paris,
France (1811 ): a fashionable
day. The bazaar grouped together shops and both in London. Also planned for London but arcaded shopping street.
workshops by trades along passages with never built was Joseph Paxton's Great Vic-
connections between them. Roofs varied from torian Way-it was to have been 10 miles (16
straw mats to stone vaults. Instead of coun- km) long, the glazed roof would have been 108
ters, shops had low platforms where artisans ft. (33 m) high and it would have been served
sat working or shopkeepers, surrounded by by a regular carriageway with sidewalks, as
merchandise, bartered with their customers. well as an underground railroad. The finest of
In the West, shops remained open-fronted all arcades, the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
until the beginning of the 18th century, in Milan, finished in 1867 by Giuseppe Men-
although the customer was often protected by goni (1829-77), had a glazed barrel roof 137ft.
a canopy or the overhanging upper storey of (42 m) high, and the arms of the cruciform
the building. The first enclosed and glazed plan met in a domed octagon 128ft. (39 m) in
shopfronts appeared in Holland in the late diameter.
17th century; in France they appeared by The finest American example was in Cleve-
about 1700, and in England by about 1736. In land, Ohio, finished in 1890 by Eisenmann
all these early examples, the windows were and Smith, and had a pitched glazed roof and
glazed in small panes, as larger ones were not four upper levels of individual shops, served
yet available. Plate glass was introduced at by iron balconies and grand staircases. In
the beginning of the 19th century; the biggest Moscow the GUM building, finished in 1893
sheets available were 8ft. (2.5 m) by 4ft. (1.2 by Pomeranzev, combined features of the
m) and, in the larger shops, windows were Eastern bazaar with those of the arcade; it
often arranged in series separated by clas- was planned on an equal grid covering 16
sically detailed cast-iron columns. blocks and had shops on four floors.

Shopping arcades Department stores

Arcaded streets sheltering shoppers were The first large shops or specialized stores
common throughout Europe in medieval were built in Paris after the Revolution; they
times, and stalls and shops under a common were known as magasins de nouveautes and
roof were introduced in the Royal Exchange sold women's clothing, fabrics, and acces-
Burlington Arcade, London,
in London in 1566. However, the shopping sories. Similar shops appeared in England in England (1819) by Samuel Ware,
street entirely protected by a continuous roof the 1830s, the most notable being Kendall housing a complex of72 shops.
did not appear until the end of the 18th Milne in Manchester, started in 1831, where
century. Twenty such streets, usually with all the goods were visibly priced. The first
pitched glazed roofs, were built in Paris true department store, that is one with a range
between 1790 and 1860, and of these the of different departments , was the Bon Marche
Galerie d'Orleans, finished in 1830, was the in Paris which was organized along such lines
most grand and had a glazed barrel roof. in 1852 by Aristide Boucicaut. In 1869 he
In England, the best examples of this type commissioned a new building from M.A.La-
 Commercial and administrative 113

planche which was planned around a sen-

sational curving staircase to entice shoppers
upward. Later extensions in glass and iron
were by Louis-Auguste Boileau (1812-96) and
Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923). Despite the fire
risks, such features as open staircases, domed
skylights, and exposed iron frames were
common in many of the department stores
which followed, especially in France.
In America, the design of the building for
E. V. Haughwout in New York of 1857 by J.
P. Gaynor was very advanced, although the
shop itself specialized in high-class furnishings
and was not therefore a department store. It
was planned around a central well with a large
rooflight and was the first building with a
passenger elevator, installed by Elisha Otis.
On the upper floors were workrooms and
storage space.
John Wanamaker (1838-1922) started the
first American department store in Philadel-
phia in the late 1860s but neither his new
building of 1875, nor others which followed in
New York, Chicago, and elsewhere, were of tions and basically relied on shoppers arriving GUM Department Store interior,
much architectural interest. The one great on foot, but by 1930 in the U.S. the increasing Moscow, USSR (1888-93) by A.N.
Pomeranzev. Originally a series of
exception to this was the Schlesinger and use of private automobiles had begun to separate shops in 16 blocks, linked
Mayer store, now Carson Pirie Scott, in suggest a whole range of different pos- by glass arcades.
Chicago, built in 1899 and extended in 1904, sibilities. In California a developer, A. W.
which was the last major work of Louis Ross, had in 1921 purchased 18 acres (7
Sullivan (1856-1924). The handsome pro- hectares) of open land along Wilshire
portions of the steel frame are directly ex- Boulevard to the west of Los Angeles, as it
pressed on the street elevations, and inter- then was, and easily accessible from the
nally they create a light and airy atmosphere fast-growing communities of Beverly Hills
on all floors. and Hollywood. This land ran for a mile (1.6
In Europe, generally, considerable attention km) along the Boulevard, and by 1928 there
was given to the facades of department stores. had been so much commercial development
In Berlin, the sculptural use of granite and along this section that it became known
glass on the front of the Wertheim store built locally as the "Miracle Mile." Many of the
in 1896-1904 by Alfred Messel (1853-1909) individual developments incorporated a var- Aerial view of Northland Center,
was in sharp contrast to the large areas of iety of functions-shops, offices, and very Detroit (1954), by Victor Gruen and
continuous glazing, the first fully developed often, a movie theater-but what they all had Associates. A group of stores and
curtain walling, on the Hermann Tietz store in common was a parking lot to the rear, often shops surrounded by acres of
parking lots. A typical American
(1898) by Sehring and Lachmann. In Brussels, with direct access into the development, as suburban shopping center.
L'Innovation had a splendid Art Nouveau well as the usual type of entrance directly off
front in iron and glass by Victor Horta the boulevard.
(1861-1947), finished in 1901 and sadly burned An early example of a department store Au Bon Marche store interior,
down in 1966. In London, the most interesting with this double access arrangement, on Wil- Paris, France (1852-76), by
facades were those of Harrods, a buff terra- shire Boulevard but not part of Miracle Mile, Louis-Auguste Boileau and others.
The various shopping levels are
cotta version of the French Renaissance, was Bullocks-Wilshire of 1928 by John and linked together by glass-covered
finished in 1905 by Stevens and Hunt, and Donald Parkinson. Later examples of this lightwells and monumental
Selfridges, which was started in 1908 by type made for greater use of modern materials staircases.
Frank Atkinson with Daniel Burnham (1846- and environmental control systems; for
1912) as consultant architect, and is imperial instance, the Sears Roebuck Building on Pico
Roman in style. The Modern Movement's Boulevard, Los Angeles, built by John S.
answer to facades of such grandeur were Redden and John G. Raben in 1939, had a
those which Erich Mendelsohn (1887-1953) considerable amount of parking on the roof
designed for the Schocken stores in Chemnitz with stairs and an escalator leading down into
and Stuttgart, of 1926 and 1928 respectively. the windowless sales floors below.
In both these buildings the structural and It was not long before the importance of
expressive qualities of reinforced concrete automobile access was generally accepted,
were exploited to the full. with serious consequences even for small
individual shops. Downtown, where it was
difficult to arrange parking, no longer seemed
Shopping centers such an attractive place to be; a through route
All these examples were in downtown toea- with lots of passing traffic and space for
 114 Commercial and administrative

parking seemed far better. Some facilities mercia! developments which, besides their
were even designed in such a way that goods parking facilities, also connect into a con-
could be purchased without getting out of the tinuous system of underground walkways.
automobile. Examples of the "strip" envi-
ronment which these developments resulted in Banks
can still be found on highways around most
American towns and cities. Bank buildings only developed as a specific
Strip development on the American pattern type toward the end of the 18th century.
is comparatively rare in Europe, largely due European banking grew steadily from the 14th
to stricter planning controls. Instead, the century, when consequent to the increase in
demand for a high degree of vehicular access interregional trade and the rise of wealthy
to shopping facilities has had to be dealt with mercantile family dynasties, letters of credit
largely within the context of existing and money began to be exchangeable for
downtown areas. In some cases this was goods. At the same time the attitudes toward
facilitated by the large amount of recon- usury changed. At first the wealthy banking
struction which was necessary after World families (Medici, Chigi, Fuggers, De La
War II. In England, for instance, the centers Poles) carried out their affairs from their
of Plymouth and Coventry were rebuilt during multifunctional palaces, and the only refer-
the 1950s with the primary intention of ence to any special accommodation for bank-
separating vehicular and pedestrian cir- ing was the Camera dell Tasca-the money
culation. In both cases, many of the shops bag room. Subsequently exchanges developed
faced into traffic-free precincts served by with large covered floor areas to accom-
multistorey parking structures. Elsewhere, the modate the regular goods fairs which took
same intentions were pursued in a more place in commercial cities. These developed
piecemeal manner, and in many cases existing as columned halls or open loggias underneath
shopping streets were transformed into pedes- town halls. The Loggia dei Mercanti at
The Galleria, Houston, Texas trian precincts by the exclusion of vehicular Bologna (1382), the Taula dei Canvi at Bar-
(1970), by Neuhaus and Taylor. A traffic. celona (1383), and the Royal Exchange in
three-storey enclosed mall is the In the U.S., more recently, there has been London (1566), are examples. At Bruges the
focus of this shopping center. a definite tendency away from strip develop- activity took place in a cloistered square
ment as such and back toward the advantages surrounded by buildings erected by mercantile
once enjoyed by downtown shopping: choice families . In both the exchanges and the
and variety in a very small area. The result private palaces the ground floor became
has been shopping centers, sometimes of increasingly penetrable by the public.
enormous size, some located on surburban Banking practice had become established
sites with parking at ground level , and others by the middle of the 17th century. Banks were
located on urban sites with parking structures. privately owned and like many commercial
Houston, Texas, has examples of both. Town activities banking was carried out from private
and Country Village, started in l%5, is in a residences. The Bank of Jones, Loyd and
surburban location and consists of 120 shops Company of London was the residence of Mr
grouped to create a village atmosphere. In Loyd in 17% and for a time in 1724 the Bank
addition, there are offices, a hotel, several of England, founded in 1694, was housed in
restaurants, four theaters-movie and live- the home of the Bank's head, Sir John
and an ice-skating rink. The whole develop- Hublon.
ment covers 120 acres (49 hectares) and there After the English Joint Stock Legislation in
are 17 entrances and exits for easy access. the 1820s and 1830s, banks grew rapidly as a
The Galleria, built in 1970 by Neuhaus and public service. Banks came to reflect the
Taylor, is also in a suburban location but is collective aspirations of a capitalist society.
more urban in form. Specialty shops are The power and stability associated with clas-
arranged on three levels along either side of a sical models produced a commercial clas-
wide mall with a glazed roof and skating rink sicism based on the more monumental Greek,
below. In addition there are offices, a depart- Roman, and Renaissance forms . The imagery
ment store, a hotel, three restaurants, an went hand in hand with the models which
athletic club, ten indoor tennis courts, and a accommodated early banking-the Palace and
medical clinic, all within the same building the Exchange. The development of a specific
complex. There is parking for 7,000 auto- functional program began to modify the mod-
mobiles. The Houston Center, begun in 1972, els . Already the ground floors of bankers'
when completed in about 30 years' time will houses had grown to accommodate the con-
be the largest continuous mixed commercial tinuing increase in public and staff, and the
development in the world, with a capacity of counter became a necessity to separate the
The interior of the Eaton Center in 40,000 automobiles. In Montreal, Place Ville two. Lighting these increasingly large floor
Toronto, Canada (1976), by Craig, Marie, completed in 1966 (1. M. Pei and areas became an acute problem. Windows
Zeidler, and Strong. Part of a large
downtown block redeveloped into
Associates) and Place Bonaventure completed grew and developed into glazed, arcaded ,
a shopping center on various levels in 1967 (Affieck, Desbarats, Dimakopoulos, ground floors along with other commercial
with automobile parking facilities. Lebensold, Sise) are examples of large com- enterprises. But in banks this tendency was
 Commercial and administrative 115

restricted for reasons of security-both in of the few not adhering to the classical
reality and for appearance sake. tradition; nevertheless in plan it conforms to
The internal courtyard of the palazzo, utiliz- the type. The roof is developed into a com-
ing the developing technology of glass infilling plete double skin of steel and glass. Wagner
an iron skeleton, provided the solution. was innovative in his placing of the banking
Already the exchanges had adopted this form hall on the second floor, leaving the first floor
of construction-the Paris Bourse (1763 and free for the circulation of post. The Credit
1808), the London Stock Exchange (1801), the Lyonnaise, Paris (1908), where the glass and
St Petersburg Exchange (1804), and finally the iron is highly wrought with Louis Quatorze
Berlages Amsterdam Exchange (1898-1903). motifs, has the same plan. A more recent
Furthermore, the Renaissance palazzo was example is Helsinki Pension Bank (1952)
ideal for the new long facades of city blocks, designed by Alvar Aalto (1898-1976).
being capable of horizontil extension through In the early 19th century in England and the
repetition. The increasing need for private, U.S., branch banks grew rapidly and began
cellular offices could be satisfied by arranging holding small savings. They were small and
these along corridors which, to be fully often occupied narrow, terraced sites in main
utilized, had to be double banked with offices shopping streets. The pedimented temple
looking into internal light wells. These light front was the classical model adopted. At the
wells when glazed over at first-floor level Bank of England branches in Liverpool, Man-
served as public top-lit halls, continuing the chester, and Bristol (1844-46), Cockerell
traditional organization of public first developed a solution which effectively
floors with more private accommodation employed a false facade containing three
above. floors of offices in the temple facade arcade,
The Bank of England designed by Sir John behind which was hidden the top-lit banking
Soane (1753-1837), occupying a large city hall.
block, was both the earliest and largest exam- American banks developed along very simi-
ple of a new type of building for banking and lar lines. Benjamin Latrobe (1764-1820), a
came to serve as the standard model. The first pupil of Cockerell's, designed the Bank of
bank building of 1732 was a large Palladian Philadelphia in 1798 as a temple with a Midland and International Bank,
basilican plan. This was enlarged by Tyler in freestanding Ionic portico, complete with en- Throgmorton Street, London,
England (1871) by William Burnet.
1765, who designed a top-lit rotunda with tablature, pediment, and steps up to the main Formerly the Ottoman Bank, this is
radiating halls (for which there were Roman floor. The cella of the temple was domed with a typically Victorian building in its
models). It was Soane who mastered the a skylight to form the banking hall. Similar, ltalianate style.
solution with his series of interrelated halls but more monumental, was the Grecian-style
(1788-1823), top lit with skylights in lanterns Second Bank of the United States (1818)
and drums, arranged behind a giant blind designed by William Strickland (1788-1854).
external wall. Soane also eliminated all timber The growing use of cast iron in American
in the bank's construction after 1792 to mini- buildings in the first half of the 18th century
mize fire risk. In the later design for a branch was reflected in early bank buildings. The
bank in Liverpool by Charles Robert Cock- Miners Bank, Pottsville, Pennsylvania (1829),
erell (1788-1863), the vaults were constructed contained cast iron in its facade , and the
entirely of masonry. Continental Bank in New York (1856) had an
Bank buildings began to increase in number iron frame .
after the tum of the century. The Royal Bank Until the mid-20th century, the majority of
of Scotland in Glasgow (1827) and the Com- banks remained within the classical tradition .
mercial Bank of Scotland in Edinburgh are The Westminster Bank in London's Thread-
large, fully pedimented structures, deep in needle Street (1930) was almost an exact copy Bank of England, London, England
plan. The London and Westminster Bank of the Palazzo Massimo in Rome designed by (1799), by Sir John Soane. Interior
(1823) was typical of many that followed Baldassare Peruzzi (1481-1536). Similarly, in of one of several domed banking
halls in the building.
Soane's model. Internally, Sir William Tite Europe, banks were treated as exercises in
(1798-1873) designed a large, rectangular, the hybrid styles of the 19th century-as in
top-lit hall with a giant Corinthian order the eclectic design of the Italianate Kre-
running through two floors supporting the ditanstalt, Zurich (1873), and the Baroque
lantern. A hydraulic lift was installed to raise Wechselbank in Munich (1895).
and lower the heavy cash and plate boxes The only significant development during the
from the vaults. The Westminster Bank at 19th century was in the increase in security.
Bishopsgate, designed by John Gibson Locks, with the key acting directly on a bolt,
(1817-92) in 1862, is a fine preserved example had long existed and were vulnerable. Joseph
of an early banking hall, with three oval Bramah's lock with circular tumblers (1784)
glazed domes and colonnades of Corinthian was the first to give real security. This was
columns. widely used in banks until Linus Yale
The basic form remained unchanged developed the pin tumbler cylinder lock in
throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. 1851, followed by his combination lock which Main banking hall of the Postal
The Postal Savings Bank in Vienna (1904-06), became standard for bank vaults and safes, as Savings Bank in Vienna, Austria
designed by Otto Wagner (1841-1918), is one has the time lock which was developed in the (1904...{)6), by Otto Wagner.
 116 Commercial and administrative

U.S. During the same period, fireproofing of were not held in specially designed buildings,
safeboxes developed, initially in France in the but consisted of temporary stalls and displays
1820s. These had two skins of iron filled with of merchandise arranged according to dif-
heat-resisting material. Basic construction ferent classifications, very similar to a modem
techniques remained unchanged and trade fair. Today, such a display would be
improvements in material technology made called a "commodity fair" as the goods were
these increasingly effective; consequently by sold on the spot.
mid-century they were in general use.
Architecturally , banks developed no
further. As banking became more widespread, Trade fairs
and with the introduction of automated During the 18th century, as the medieval fair
accounting in the 1920s, the amount of clerical declined, the " trade fair" developed to stimu-
work increased disproportionately to the work late industrial growth. The new form of
in the banking hall. Central bank headquarters exhibition, where goods and products were
became no different from standard office displayed rather than sold directly to indi-
premises. Banks patronized the contemporary vidual customers, was first exploited by the
international modern idiom of postwar Society of Arts in England as early as 1756;
architecture and commissioned some of the and in 1761 the first organized industrial
better examples. Skidmore, Owings, and exhibition was held in a London warehouse
Merrill's Chase Manhattan Bank and Man- adjoining the Society's headquarters.
ufacturers Hanover Trust (1953) in New York The idea of specially organized displays of
are examples. In England, the National machinery and products spread to Europe and
Westminster's new headquarters, undis- in 1798 the first large-scale national industrial
tinguished architecturally, will nevertheless be exhibition took place in Paris. In 1798, Baron
the highest building in London. With the de Neufchateau organized a national exhib-
acceptance of deep, permanently lit spaces, ition in temporary buildings erected on the
banking halls, large or small, differed only in banks of the River Seine as a means of
Helsinki Pension Bank, Finland their furnishings from other commercial encouraging French industry to compete for
(1952), by Alvar Aalto. The building enterprises. There is one interesting dif- world markets. The early years of the 19th
houses a banking hall as well as ference in the fitting out of banking halls. In century saw several such national exhibitions
administrative offices. Europe money is handled only by a cashier- in France and other European countries, as
the main floor being furnished with desks , the well as in the U .S.-all in existing buildings
counter acting only as a space divider. In such as the Louvre in Paris or temporary
England and the U.S., however, all counter structures of little interest, which have long
staff handle money, and the need for secure since disappeared.
partitioning between public and staff areas has In 1845 the Society of Arts in London
developed. These take the form of steel grills, decided to hold a national industrial exhib-
sometimes fitted with bullet-proof glass. ition, which was eventually to change the
During the 1960s, banks introduced whole history of exhibitions. Prince Albert's
mechanized cash dispensers and started to interest was gained and after a disappointing
experiment with fully automated cashiers. start the advice of Henry Cole, an enthusias-
Owing to their frequent failure, their intro- tic and gifted civil servant, was sought. In the
duction has been slower than expected. meantime, the Society held small annual
Nevertheless, the development of bank ser- exhibitions in London, and in Birmingham a
vices as a standard clerical operation, the permanent exhibition building, known as
acceptance of permanent artificial lighting of Bingley Hall, was built in 1850. This was the
deep spaces, and the likely growth of mechan- first specially built exhibition building in Eng-
ized cashiers have already rendered obsolete land and, as it is still in regular use, it can
that special architecture that grew out of the fairly claim to be the oldest exhibition building
person-to-person nature of early banking. in the world.

Exhibition buildings The international buildings of the 19th

century
The history of exhibitions goes back many
centuries. One of the earliest records of an Following a visit to Birmingham by the Prince
organized exhibition can be found in the Bible Consort and a visit by Henry Cole to the
in the Book of Esther which records that the Paris Exposition of 1849, it was decided that
Persian King Xerxes in 486 BC " shewed the the "Great Exhibition of Industry of all
riches of his g]orius kingdom" in his palace at Nations" should be held in London in 1851.
Shushan. Later in the Middle Ages, huge fairs Thus the first international exhibition was
were held in the principal European capitals born. As no existing building was large
and formed an important part of the economic enough to house the proposed exhibition, a
system of the time. In the U.S. and Europe part of Hyde Park in London was allocated as
the word "fair" is still used to describe a the site for a temporary building. Joseph
commercial exhibition. The medieval fairs Paxton (1801-65) was the designer for this
 Commercial and administrative 117

unique structure, which was named the Cry-

stal Palace. It was remarkable not only for its
scale, but because it was completely pre-
fabricated using iron, glass, and wood com-
ponents.
The 1851 Exhibition started a wave of
similar enterprises in other parts of the world;
New York, Paris, Vienna, Philadelphia, and
Chicago all staged international exhibitions in
specially designed settings between 1853 and
1900. The Chicago Exhibition of 1893 extend-
ed over nearly 700 acres (283 hectares) includ-
ing 200 acres (81 hectares) of buildings. The
Chicago Exhibition attracted 21 million vis-
itors, while more than 48 million visited the
1900 Paris Exhibition. Such enormous under-
takings often resulted in spectacular and novel
buildings of which no details now exist; and
designers soon realized that new ideas could
be explored in buildings which had only a
limited life. Some of these unique structures
have survived , but others have been as opportumtJes to develop new building The Crystal Palace, London,
demolished. materials and techniques. New scientific England (1851 ), designed by
Joseph Paxton. Exterior view.
The Crystal Palace, designed to last for developments and inventions such as electric
only six months, was reerected at Sydenham lighting, motion pictures , automobiles ,
in London, and survived until it burned down aeronautics, and radio transmission were all
in 1936. The tower designed by the French first seen by the general public at these
engineer Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923) as the international exhibitions, which became rec-
temporary centerpiece of the Paris 1889 ognized showplaces for scientific and techni-
Exhibition, still stands over I ,000 ft . (305 m) cal innovation.
high and is one of the most remarkable The first major exhibition after World War I
engineering structures of the world. The was the British Empire Exhibition held at
G alerie des Machines (1889), designed by Wembley in 1924 and 1925. Most of the
Ferdinand Dutert (1845-1906) and Victor buildings were temporary, Neo-Classical in
Contamin (1840-98) with steel portal frames style, and mediocre in design. The only
and an uninterrupted span of 375 ft. (114 m), exception was the great concrete stadium
was a remarkable example of innovation in seating 125,000 people, designed by engineer
building. It has since been demolished. Three Sir Owen Williams (b. 1890) and architect
buildings remain from the Paris Exhibition of Maxwell Ayrton, which is still the scene of Interior of the Crystal Palace,
1900: the Grand Palais, the Petit Palais, many major sports events and rock music London, which was 1,848 ft.
which became the Paris Museum of Fine concerts. In 1928, the International Exhib- (563 m) long and 108ft. (33m) high
and contained industrial exhibits
Arts, and the Alexander II Bridge linking the itions Bureau was set up in Paris and a and work from the whole of the
Champs Elysees with the Esplanade des convention signed, which was intended to British Empire.
Invalides. control and to lay down the basic guidelines
for the organization and operation of inter-
national exhibitions.
Exhibitions in the early 20th century In the years before World War II , regular
The early years of the 20th century were international exhibitions or "world fairs"
marked by a number of major exhibitions in were promoted, the most important being
the U .S. , including St Louis in 1904 and those at Brussels in 1935, Paris in 1937 (which
Buffalo, New York, where President Mc- included Picasso's famous mural painting
Kinley was assassinated while attending a Guernica in the Spanish Pavilion), San
public reception. The St Louis Exhibition Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, the Golden
covered an incredible I ,272 acres (515 hec- Gate Bridge, and Treasure Island . This was
tares). Everything was planned on a vast an artificial island 200 acres (81 hectares) in
scale; the agricultural building alone covered area where the two bridges met. The exhib-
20 acres (8 hectares), and a tour of all the ition also introduced fluorescent lighting.
exhibits involved a 9 mile (14 km) walk. The The New York World Fair, the largest Aerial view of the site of the
exhibition was used to develop the new exhibition ever held, was built on the site of a Chicago Exhibitio n of 1893.
invention of radio transmission, and automatic 3 mile (5 km) long garbage dump near New
telephone exchanges and teleprinters were on York , now called Flushing Meadow Park-a
display. remarkable example of land reclamation. The
Up to the outbreak of World War I , many New York City building subsequently became
major exhibitions were held in Europe and the the first home of the United Nations which
U.S., and architects and engineers used these was set up in 1945.
 118 Commercial and administrative

Post-World War II developments

The first major exhibition after World War II
was a national one: the Festival of Britain
which, in 1951, celebrated the centenary of
the 1851 Exhibition. The centerpiece was the
South Bank Exhibition with Sir Hugh Casson
(b. 1913) as coordinator, featuring such impor-
tant buildings as the Royal Festival Hall built
in 1950 (architects Sir Robert H. Matthew (b.
1906) and Sir Leslie Martin (b. 1908)),
undoubtedly one of the finest concert halls in
the world and the model for many buildings in
The Paris Exhibition of 1937: Europe and the U.S. , and the Dome of
general view from the Trocadero. Discovery (architect Ralph Tubbs), the
largest dome in the world at that time,
constructed of aluminum and s ince
demolished. This exhibition was notable for Fuji Group Pavilion by Mutaka
its overall design standards and landscaping. Murata at Expo '70 in Osaka, Japan.
The first postwar international exhibition A double-skin inflated structure
with 16 closed tubes bent to a
was held in Brussels in 1958 and the central horseshoe shape to enclose the
feature was the Atomium, based on the exhibition space.
enlarged atomic structure of a metal crystal.
This structure still stands although, apart from
the permanent buildings erected by the Bel-
gian Government, the other national and
international buildings have been demolished.
Some of the buildings were reerected else-
where; the German Pavilion, designed by
Egon Eiermann (b. 1904) was rebuilt as a
school in Germany and the British Industry
Pavilion, designed by Edward D. Mills (b.
1915) was rebuilt in Hilversun, Holland, as a
permanent exhibition center. Considerable
use was made of many new building techni-
ques; curtain walls, prestressed concrete, and
welded steel all played an important role in
the building's construction.
Other postwar international exhibitions
included New York in 1964-65, Montreal in Municipal Exhibition Hall in
Kitakyushu, Japan (1977): a
1967, and Osaka , Japan, in 1970. The two cable-stayed enclosure by Arata
most outstanding innovations were to be lsozaki.
found at the Montreal Expo: the United
The 1930 Exhibition in Stockholm,
Sweden, designed by Gunnar
States Pavilion was in the form of a 250 ft. (76
Asplund. Detail of glass-walled m) diameter geodesic dome designed by
pavilion. Richard Buckminster Fuller (b. 1895), and the
German Pavilion by Rolf Gutbrod and Frei
Otto (b. 1925) was a vast tentlike structure
suspended by prestressed cables from eight
tubular masts , a forerunner of the highly
innovatory suspended structures since
designed by Otto.
Osaka 1970 may be the last of the great
international exhibitions , the next is
scheduled for 1982 in Barcelona, but many
people belive that rapidly changing world
conditions may mean that Expo 1982 may
never happen. However, exhibition buildings
will continue to be built for permanent exhib-
The Atomium which was the itions and these will owe much to the experi-
centerpiece ofthe 1958 Brussels mental work that has been done throughout
International Exhibition. the world on buildings that were, with a few
notable exceptions, intended to be only tem-
porary. In fact, most of the world's exhibition
centers grew from buildings first built as
temporary international exhibitions.
Commercial and administrative 119

LEFT: Raising the girders ofthe

Crystal Palace (1851) RIGHT:
Erection of the transept arches of
the Crystal Palace.

Osaka, Expo 70: Canadian Pavilion

by Erickson and Massey.

Osaka, Expo 70: Mitsui Group

Pavilion by Takamitsu Azuma.
120 Government

Government
Civic buildings The medieval period saw the rees-
tablishment of the city as an independent
The civic building, as an expression of the entity, and the town hall became an integral
collective, began when administration ceased and important focal point of the city fabric.
to be the direct prerogative of a tyrant. This The free cities were run by oligarchies of
is, of course, a partial definition as the trade guilds and the city was divided into
administrative process and the structures it areas dominated by a particular activity. Each
requires is much the same under any ideology. area had its guild hall, where the guild held its
But the involvement of the ruled in the meetings, and these buildings, together with
process of decision making produces struc- the parish churches, provided a focal point of
tures, social and physical, which are par- local life. The system still exists in Venice.
ticipatory and are also the expression of civic The 16th-18th centuries were times of
Dages Palace, Venice, Italy pride and consciousness. increasing nationalism and centralization.
(1309--1442). The largest and most Personal rulers administered (and in many Civic buildings were the palaces of the pow-
prominent Venetian civic building. countries still administer) summary justice erful and Louis XIV was the exemplar of his
and controlled their societies by simple phy- period. He built extravagantly and established
sical force. They found, and still find, a palace at Versailles in 1669 an extraordinary example
or a fortress an appropriate architectural which was to be emulated throughout Europe
setting. This physical image of power still and the Americas. Versailles was not only the
remains with us, transferred perhaps, in the home and office of the king, but also the home
case of the palace, to the town hall or of the attendant court and an army of
parliament building. bureaucrats who ran the various ministries.
With the birth of the Greek democracies, As most decision making was personal, and
the process of civic consultation, persuasion, ministers depended entirely on the king's
and confrontation began. The Athenian citi- presence and favor, their staffs were similarly
zen assembly took place on the Pynx, a centralized and concentrated. (see PALACES . )
natural amphitheater below the Acropolis. The free cities of the Middle Ages were
Here the great speeches were made, on a bare soon destroyed by the authoritarianism of
hillside, under the temples. The city council central governments. One of the first such
of delegates, first representing the original cities, Florence, was also one of the first to
tribes and later the city sectors, met in the succumb to tyranny. In 1560 the Medicis built
bouleterion, next to the agora or market. It the first modem block, the Uffizi , to contain
was a small building with a semicircle of their bureaucracy, connected by a half-mile
tiered seating facing the chairman's dais, and (804 m) secret passage to their Pitti Palace.
this arrangement still constitutes our civil
assemblies. The bouleterion was never a The 19th century
prominent formal element in Greek cities. It The French Revolution at the close of the
was placed near the center, the agora, but 18th century set loose an ideology which is
neither in scale nor formal complexity was it still being worked out in both social terms and
ever dominating. In this it reflected the in terms of civic architecture. The revolution-
relatively small role of the state in the citi- ary assembly followed the classical pattern; a
zens' lives. These two forms of assembly, the semicircle of tiered seats which could accom-
popular and the delegate, still persist into our modate a wide range of opinion. The Assem-
own day as assembly hall and council bly, symbol of the representation of the
chamber. people by the people, was the essence of both
The Romans established a rule of law, the French and American Revolutions. In the
backed by force. Administration was handled U.S. the puritan tradition of town assembly
by appointees from the center, so that no new and devolved civic administration was both a
Town Hall at Brussels, Belgium
(1401-55). A large late medieval
participatory administrative building type was contrast and an example to contemporary
civic building with an imposing evolved. Their halls of justice, the basilicas, Europe. In France, when the Second
spire, rivaling contemporary were, however, the prototypes of most sub- Republic was set up in 1848 (only to become
ecclesiastical buildings. sequent covered public spaces. The require- the Second Empire a few years later) it
ments of a courtroom, a large space with a established a system of local government. It
broad apse for the judge's seat, work very was later clothed and formalized by
well for public assemblies, and the plan with Georges-Eugene Haussmann (1809-9 1) and
its nave and aisles is still often used. Basilicas remains a model today.
were directly adopted by the early Christians Haussmann's 17 years as Prefect of the
as a suitable form for churches. The early Seine (1853-70) enabled him to establish the
church was primarily an assembly, where it form and responsibilities of local government,
was essential to hear the message, and to see and to provide its prototypical architectural
the speaker. In the basilicas the Romans forms. Each urban sector was focused by the
developed a building type of considerable provision of a town hall, and a network of
Palace of Versailles from garden
grandeur, which could take its place in the related police stations was established. Some
(166~5), by Louis le Vau and city along with the baths and the temples, as functions were centralized: the provision of
Jules Hardouin Mansart. an urban element. clean water and sewerage, the establishment
 Government 121

and maintenance of parks, the planning and turesque effect. The inspiration was, of
building of roads. Through his system of course, in the varied skylines of northern
planning control and consultation, he pro- Gothic building which coalesced into
duced the most beautiful city in the world, homogeneous cities. Within such complex
with very little direct intervention, and at little organisms each house, hall, or church
cost to the community. It is an example of the retained, indeed proclaimed, its individual
force of a book of rules which were, however, identity. Out of this spirit of mutual com-
simple, elementary, and easily understood. petition, of small-scale challenge and
He was fortunate that in his time there existed response, confrontation, and emulation, there
a generally agreed architectural aesthetic. It developed an unparalleled density of visual
was carefully controlled, monitored, and suit- and tactile experience. The understanding of
ably rewarded through a small, powerfully the need for detail and complexity is a
entrenched academy at the Ecole des Beaux constant throughout the 19th century, and it
Arts. This school provided the prestige, intel- makes the buildings both readable (in the
lectual force, and leadership in architectural sense of structuring our understanding of the
matters untill914. purpose and use of the building) and some-
Haussmann restructured Paris, provided what endearing.
markets, fire stations, slaughter houses, In the U .S. during the same period there
roads, canals, and a major world exhibition in was also great concern at the rapid and
1867. Each initiative was the occasion for a uncontrolled growth of many cities. Frederick
civic building, a monument; for a rein- Law Olmsted (1822-1903) saw parks, park-
forcement of the beauty and coherence of the ways, and park systems as a way of relieving
city. Since the Revolution of 1789 the reality high densities and overcrowding while, at the
of communal responsibility for every aspect of same time, giving some sense of order, in
urban life has inexorably come about. The spatial terms, to different areas within cities.
royal collections became the core of national Probably his most famous undertaking in this
museums; the local landowners' palaces respect was Central Park in New York ,
became, in due course, civic structures. This designed in 1958 in partnership with Calvert
process continues today with the conversion Vaux (1824-95). Olmsted and his followers
Uffizi Palace, Florence, Italy
of magnates' houses into museums, as in the also saw these open spaces as being suitable, (1560-71 ). by Giorgio Vasari. Built
recent transformation of the Carnegie house in many cases, for locating civic buildings. by the Medicis to house city offices.
in New York to the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, This combination of open spaces and civic
part of the Smithsonian Institute. buildings was to provide the basis for the City
The 19th century had command of several Beautiful Movement, which was first for-
architectural languages , all rich in meaning mulated in the 1890s and has continued to be
and rhetoric, which it applied with enthusiasm influential throughout much of this century.
to a wide range of quite new problems, in Boulevards, parks , and squares were used as
scale and in building types. The first problem a means of creating a sense of order on a large
for architects was the drastic change in the scale, then within the more important of these
scale of the building process during this spaces were located civic buildings, visible
period. Though large buildings had been built and accessible to all. Daniel Burnham (1846-
previously they were always exceptional- 1912) was the leader of this movement and
palaces or cathedrals. After 1820, large build- executed proposals for many cities in the U.S .
ings became commonplace in cities as opera The most complete and ambitious of these
houses, railroad stations, covered markets, proposals were contained in his Plan of
and the like were erected in the heart of old Chicago, published in 1909. Many later
cities. The languages of eclectic architecture developments such as the Civic Center at Los
were extended, or compounded, to deal with Angeles, first projected in 1939, are based, at
these buildings. In France, the classic tradi- least in part, on the same approach.
Section and elevation ofthe Capitol
tion, always capable of a grand statement, in Washington D.C. (1856---{)4). The
produced a series of triumphant solutions: the large iron-framed dome was designed
Paris Opera, Les Hailes , the Bibliotheque The 20th century by Thomas U. Walter.
Nationale. They were grand in scale and The Modern Movement, on which our current
conception, and were carefully placed in the architecture is based, sought its poetry
city to maximize their civic and visual impor- through control of, and involvement in, the
tance. industrial process. This essentially hopeful
In England another method was advanced: ideology is still with us, although now often
aggregation. Here there was a longstanding questioned . It was a theory all too convenient
mistrust of megalomanic architecture, which for both bureaucrats and businessmen,
was closely associated with French centralism because it discounted the spiritual elements,
and Empire. Large buildings like the National and set aside the humanizing (and expensive)
Gallery, the Law Courts, or St Pancras qualities of craft tradition. Since World War Plan of the U.S. Capitol. The
building, which is in the Classical
Station all pretend to be an agglomeration of II, the main function of civic buildings have style, has an imposing grandeur
smaller buildings, with a variety of elements therefore been largely lost. T he representation with its large dome dwarfing the
in juxtaposition to create a romantic, pic- of, and contact with, the community which three-storey wings around it.
 122 Government

the building is intended to have, is set aside in country's attention inward to its own
the name of efficiency, function, and resources and development. The plan, by
economy. Lucio Costa (b. 1902) is a Beaux Arts mas-
Furthermore, new government buildings terpiece of cross axes and major monu:
today tend to be built out of the city itself, on mentality. Like Chadigarh, the government
open campus sites. This fashion, based on sector is too grandly spaced. It is a city for
Garden City propaganda of the 1890s, is automobiles, for speed, and all the effects are
exemplified in the creation of the major best observed from a vehicle rather than as a
monumental ensembles of the British Com- pedestrian. The city is nonetheless the pro-
monwealth: New Delhi; the Union Buildings duct of a heroic vision, and the forms
in Pretoria; Canberra; and Ottawa. Here the invented by Oscar Niemeyer (b. 1907) have
monuments take on a life of their own, an elementary geometric power which per-
responsible only to themselves, with wide, fectly matches the vision.
empty spaces around, far removed from any The League of Nations Building in Geneva,
urban activity. Switzerland, was the result of a famous and
The major postwar group of comparable controversial architectural competition in
quality is Le Corbusier' s Government Center 1927, which established modern architecture
at Chandigarh in India. Here one of this as a viable alternative style. The completed
century's great architects produced a solution building, in the white stripped classic style of
very similar to the New Delhi of Sir Herbert bureaucratic buildings everywhere, conforms
Baker (1862-1946) and Sir Edwin Lutyens to the image of an isolated building camping in
(1869-1944). Vast, searing spaces between the a park, which became the hallmark of postwar
primary buildings ensure an inevitable sterility planning. It was only the generosity and
in use. Le Corbusier was, however, su- intelligence of the Rockefellers (who also
premely conscious of architectural language owned much surrounding land) that brought
and his buildings at Chandigarh provide many the United Nations Building into the urban
clues for the future. He understood the context of eastside Manhattan. The support
primary need for focus and identification, and structure of a great metropolis sustains the
so developed a series of forms to signal organization without effort. The building,
entrances, hierarchies, and uses. Such forms though much watered down from Le Cor-
are, of course, the basic language of Classical busier's conception by Wallace K. Harrison,
architecture. The orders carry appropriate one of the architects of the Rockefeller Center,
Victoria Tower, Houses of meanings about function and use as well as fits into the city with ease, and has helped
Parliament, London, England
(1835--36), by Sir Charles Barry.
such combinations as porches, colonnades, regenerate a decayed neighborhood. The
and balconies-being well understood sym- United Nations Building was a development
bols for entrances, indications of route, and triumph, and it illustrates a prime function of
hierarchy of importance. the civic building to sustain its neighborhood,
Le Corbusier developed the grand entrance to provide the necessary dream, the psychic
to his buildings, inventing forms equivalent in energy of the city.
monumental quality to classical prototypes, to When the United Nations came to build in
draw the eye and establish a hierarchy of Paris it chose Marcel Breuer (b. 1902) as the
route. In his Secretariat Building, an ordinary architect, and his UNESCO Building is a
office building in most respects, he structures paradigm of postwar building. It has a very
the facade with double-scale elements which high quality of finish and the organization of
Plan ofthe Houses of Parliament in indicate the ministerial suites; a hierarchy of the plan, based on an early Le Corbusier
London, England. The effect of the importance. The Parliament Building, too, design, is elegant and clear. First-rate col-
regularity of the plan is reduced expresses its constituent elements simply and laborators like Pier Luigi Nervi (b. 1891),
externally by the asymmetrical clearly-an easily read and impressively Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Joan Mir6 (b .
arrangements of the towers.
scaled entrance portico, the council chamber 1893), Henry Moore (b. 1898), and Isamu
signaling its presence above the surrounding Nogachi (b. 1904) enabled Breuer to create
View of one ofthe wings of the service spaces. The forms are new, but the one of the very few convincing civic buildings
UNESCO Secretariat, Paris, France method is classical. of the century. Its tragedy is that , coming at
(1957-58), by Marcel Breuer and
others.
Also classical is the device of the grand the beginning of the world's greatest building
scuptural monument-in Chandigarh the boom, its forms were instantly copied and
"Open Hand"-to lock the spaces visually debased around the world.
together, and to provide the iconography The few buildings of real quality built
essential to any urban ensemble. Civic anywhere in the world by the public sector
monuments act in two quite separate dimen- since World War II are almost invariably
sions: as urban funiture and also as reminders designed by independent architects working in
of the heroic past or the hopefully heroic conditions of competition very similar to
future. those of the 19th century. Such buildings are
The most spectacular new government exceptional and are the result of architectural
ensemble is Brasilia, a new capital set 800 mi. competitions or chance appointments, for
(1 ,280 km) in the heartland of Brazil. The bureaucracies have generally been unwilling
intention of the new capital is to focus the to take the responsibility for patronage.
 Government 123

The growth of large design offices within

local and central government is also a recipe
for a loss of architectural quality. Such
organizations are concerned with committee
decision making and are fundamentally irre-
sponsible, and unresponsive. No one can be
blamed, or even singled out for praise.
Nevertheless there are some hopeful trends.
Firstly, there is an awareness of the value of
our existing buildings and monuments. Sec-
ondly, there is a slowly developing language
of modern architecture which is in great need
of invention and experience. Here the prob-
lem is to overcome the anonymity of indus-
trial systems, without losing the economic
benefits. It is here that civic buildings have a
major role to play in the development of a
meaningful and responsive architecture. An
example like Boston City Hall , designed by
Kallmann, McKinnell, and Knowles, intro-
verted and self-regarding as it is, nevertheless
makes an attempt at complexity of form and The Assembly Building
Chandigarh, capital of the Punja
association which is very welcome. Thirdly India. Completed 1961 by Le
the testing of postwar building technology is Corbusier.
now almost complete. We have tried almost
everything, every method, every material, and
can learn some lessons from that. Fourthly,
the radical changes in the energy equation will
bring a need for higher quality and more
intelligent buildings.
Civic buildings should by definition be
exemplary. We still have a tradition of
architectural competitions for particularly City Hall, Boston, Massachusett:
important buildings. It remains our best hope (1962-69), by Kallmann, McKinn
and Knowles.
for an elevating, ebullient civic environment.

National Congress Group in

Brasilia (1960) by Oscar Niemeye
housing administrative offices an
the Assembly Building.
 124 Educational and research

Educational and research

Schools sloped slightly toward the front so that each
child could be seen. An aisle 5 ft . (1.5 m) wide
Every civilization in history is known to have was left around the perimeter in which chil-
had a system of education, but in very little dren stood in semicircles to go through their
evidence remains of any specialized school lessons with a monitor. Windowsills were
buildings. Even in our own civilization the high, leaving walls free for lessons, and baize
physical remains of medieval schools are curtains were hung from the exposed roof
extremely scanty. Teaching methods were structure to keep down the level of sound.
probably oral rather than by written exercises, The Madras Schools, as Andrew Bell's model
and very little provision was therefore became known following his experiment with
Central School ofthe National required by way of equipment or buildings. the form in India, was somewhat freer in plan
Society, London, England: early Many of the buildings used were not designed and specification. Its model Central School in
19th century. for schooling. London consisted of two rooms, one for 600
The first development of importance boys, the other for 400 girls, each with
occurred in the 14th and 15th centuries with cast-iron columns supporting a trussed roof
the emergence of religious colleges whose structure. A single row of benches was placed
activities included education. Winchester around the perimeter leaving the central space
(1382) and Eton (1440) in England are two empty for groups of children to stand in
surviving examples. The school at Winchester squares around their monitors.
consisted of a single room some 45 x 29 x 15 This principle of teaching by monitors was
ft. (14 x 9 x 4.5 m) built of stone walls with no challenged in 1820 when Samuel Wilderspin
fireplace. Stepped seats within the window opened a model school for infants which
reveals were provided for monitors to oversee included a smaller room off the main school-
the pupils. The 16th century saw the establ- room for pupils to be taught directly by the
ishment of many new schools, the prototype master. Wilderspin later extended this prin-
for which was St Pauls School, London, ciple to the schoolroom itself, with the inno-
founded by John Colet, the then Dean of St vation of raked seating from which all the
Pauls. Erasmus (1466-1536), who was a pupil , children could see the master. The system,
describes the school as consisting of four which had originated in Holland, relied upon
Central School of British and chambers; two were schoolrooms divided by a the use of pupil-teachers to teach classes, and
Foreign School Society,
Southwark, London, early
curtain, one a chapel, the other an entrance. the typical plan of a school became that of a
19th-century. By the 17th century there was something long narrow schoolroom 65 x 18 ft. (20 x 5.5
approaching a national system of schools in m) accommodating 120 children seated at
most European countries. The majority of desks on raked galleries facing across the
school buildings, however, still consisted of a width of the schoolroom. The children could
single room. They were unpretentious in be divided into groups by drawing curtains
appearance and differed little from the houses across the room. A small classroom 13 x 20ft.
of the period. Yet in 1660 Charles Hoole, an (4 x 6 m) opened off the schoolroom for
early writer on education, proposed a three- "object" lessons. The style of these build-
storey school building for 500 scholars. This ings, of which several remain, varied from
was to contain, on the middle floor, a school- plain Tudor to plain Gothic.
room divisible by folding partitions into six In the 19th century it was Germany that led
classrooms with a desk for every pupil; the the world in education and consequently in
upper and lower floors to contain further the design of schools. King Frederick II
classrooms, a library, and gallery. In the 18th (1712-86) had established the principle of
century, attention was turned to the education compulsory school attendance as early as
of the poor with the founding of charitable 1763. Teaching was, without exception, in
schools. Blue Coat School, Westminster classes of less than 60 pupils. The design
(1709), is typical, consisting only of a single principles for schools had been rigorously
room 42 x 30 ft. (13 x 9 m) for 86 boys and researched, the fundamental principle being
girls. that of daylighting. By 1850 a typical elemen-
The 19th century saw the development of tary school consisted of a set of identical
mass education in Europe. In England, two classrooms arranged on two or three storeys
educationalists, Joseph Lancaster (1778-1838) that were planned compactly around two
and Andrew Bell (1753-1832), proposed staircases, one for each sex. It was estab-
model schools which were to become the lished that 27 ft. (8 m) was the maximum
prototypes for the schools that attempted to distance at which a child could read a black-
provide an education for the enormous num- board, and that 21 ft. (6.4 m) was the
Typical plan of school of mid-19th bers of poor children inhabiting the manu- maximum economic span to avoid columns.
century showing galleries and facturing towns. The Lancastrian Schools, The classroom size was therefore 30 x 21 x 13
separate schoolroom.
following Lancaster's model of 1811, con- ft. (9 x 6.4 x 4 m). Windows were invariably
sisted of a single large schoolroom 70 x 32 ft. on the pupils' left-hand side when facing the
(21 x 10 m) to accommodate 320 children blackboard to avoid shadows being cast on
seated in 20 rows of benches facing the master the pupils' work. Secondary schools, of which
at one end. The floor of the schoolroom by this time Germany had a completely
 Educational and research 125

developed system, were designed on corridor earliest designs were for schools in which
plans. Classrooms for as many as 900 pupils each classroom was a pavilion attached to a
were supplemented by specialized spaces: connecting corridor. The principle of day-
laboratories, drawing rooms, and rooms with lighting from the left was replaced with that of
special equipment for mathematics and daylighting from both sides of the room. Later
natural philosophy. They also included a hall designs had quadrangular plans with class-
in which the majority of the school population rooms and a hall on one side of an open
could congregate, and a gymnasium building. corridor which enclosed a courtyard. Hygiene
These schools were usually grand and built in had obviously distracted architects from the
a Neo-Classical style, much influenced by problems of the appropriate style for school
Karl Schinkel (1781-1841). buildings which in this period became plain
In the U.S., Henry Barnard (1811-1900), an and parsimonious.
educator from Boston, had published a range The ideas of hygiene and economy con-
of school plans which had become widely tinued to dominate school design for the next
accepted. Educators largely followed the 40 years. Sunlight became an important ingre-
German model but had reservations about a dient, and the "finger plan school" became Plan and elevation of the
total commitment to teaching solely in the norm: parallel rows of south-facing, highly Gymnasium at Liegnitz, Germany.
classes. Many schools were built with sliding glazed classrooms linked by long corridors. In
partitions between classrooms such that they the 1930s, under the influence of the Modern
could be opened up to form a large space for Movement, the style of school buildings
the simultaneous teaching of larger numbers. changed to one of flat roofs, steel frames, and
The American plans were ingenious, but paid metal windows, but the pattern of regimented
less attention than those of the Germans to and identical classrooms persisted. In an era
matters of daylight, and more to matters of of depression and economy, the Cam-
economy. The buildings tended to be solid, bridgeshire Village Colleges in England were
compact in plan, and somewhat plain exter- an isolated architectural and educational
nally. innovation. These were community schools,
In England E. R. Robson (1835-1917), the offering education and culture to children and Gymnasium at Liegnitz, Germany,
architect to the London School Board, pub- adults alike. The most famous , at lmpington, (1867). A typical German school of
lished in 1874 a comprehensive survey of was designed by Walter Gropius (1883-1969) the mid-19th century.
contemporary school design in his book together with Maxwell Fry (b. -1899) in 1939.
School Architecture, and consequently estab- The college consists of a hall with two wings ,
lished the prototypical plans for English one containing classrooms, the other, curving
schools. They, like the American schools, around a promenade, contains a library,
followed the German model of classrooms, recreation spaces, and common rooms . Con-
but also included on each floor a large structed of brick and glass, its appearance was
schoolroom or hall with raked seating at one "modern" yet not industrial.
end for teaching in larger groups . This plan For some time after World War II school
would be repeated on as many as four floors design continued essentially unaltered-that is
in schools containing as many as 1,500 chil- in the "finger plan" form. The recent
dren. Robson's schools paid considerable advances in environmental science led
attention to environmental design and equip- architects to concentrate even more on refin-
ment, incorporating ducted ventilation sys- ing aspects of lighting and ventilation. In the
tems and the innovation of the locker desk. In U .S. architects developed linear buildings
his search for an architectural style which with uni-, bi-, or even tri-lateral lighting.
suited the needs of day lighting and economy, More serious innovations in school design
Robson developed and established the Queen appeared in the late 1940s, and they sprang
Anne Style as the accepted style for school from a development, or rather a belated
buildings in his time. acceptance, of "child-centered" educational
By the end of the 19th century there was ideas. A far deeper understanding between
increasing concern for health standards in the educationalist and architect existed at this
seriously polluted cities of this period. Day- time than had ever prevailed before, and
light, sunlight, and above all ventilation, were particularly so in Hertfordshire, England,
seen to be the solutions at a time when where these innovations originated. The
surburban development was beginning. One schools designed were relatively compact,
innovation of this movement was the "open- with classrooms designed as multipurpose
air" school , the first of which was built at workrooms, clustered in groups around
Charlottenburg, near Berlin, in 1904. Such shared facilities. They were constructed of
schools consisted of single-storey pavilion factory-prefabricated, standardized com-
classrooms in which the complete side of a ponents : lightweight steel frames with timber
classroom could be opened-the concept infill panels. The light, domestic, and informal
possibly inspired by the design of isolation character of these schools ideally reflected the
hospitals of the time. The more lasting out- new freer and varied educational ideas within
come, however, was the introduction of cross the schools.
ventilation as a principle in school design. The These ideas on design and prefabrication Desks for graded schools (1874).
 126 Educational and research

were adopted and developed by the British fabrication to American school building. The
Ministry of Education and spread rapidly in concept, developed by Ezra Ehrenkrantz, was
primary school design. Consortiums of local for long-span, steel roof structures incor-
authorities were formed to sponsor pre- porating lighting and air conditioning inte-
fabricated school construction systems. the grated with a demountable partitioning sys-
Ministry architects researched and developed tem. The implications of this system were
design ideas in model schools. Their Amer- toward deep-plan and open-plan schools. And
sham Junior School of 1958 soon became this was the direction that school design took.
typical. Instead of classrooms there were a Schools were designed on pure open-planning
series of interrelated and varied activity principles with large carpeted areas sub-
spaces; defined areas had vanished with the divided by screens or demountable partitions
more informal use and the demand for more and with a controlled air-conditioned envi-
Primary School at Cheshunt, usable space. These ideas reached their full ronment. In the affluence of the 1960s the
Hertfordshire, England (1947). development in the Eveline Lowe Primary range and variety of facilities included in
One ofthe system-built, prefabricated
schools developed after World War I.
School of 1966. Here the teaching spaces schools, now often having as many as 4,000
became a continuous series of semi-open bays pupils in a high school, would be expected to
for particular activities-painting and craft- include extensive workshops and laboratories,
work, reading and discovery-with carpeted sports halls, swimming pools, and audi-
stepped spaces for story telling. School fur- toriums.
niture design had also developed: it was now The most recent innovations in schools
designed to stack and fit together to match the have followed the revival of the concept of the
freedom and flexibility of use of space. Inter- community school. As a consequence, sec-
nally, these schools, with their varied spaces ondary schools have grown even larger in
and a child-size scale that offered freedom of size, with the addition of libraries, sports
movement yet maintained a sense of enclos- centers, and theaters to their facilities, and
ure, were some of the most sophisticated and these valuable resources are shared with the
sympathetic of modern architecture. Exter- local community. The definition of the school
nally, they were somewhat incoherent. as a building as well as an institution may be
Innovation in secondary schools in England disappearing into history.
came more slowly. The range of spaces
specifically designed for particular activities Universities
increased as curricula became more diver-
sified, but formal and rigid planning around a The first universities were founded in Italy in
structuring circulation system continued. The the 11th and early 12th centuries. Up to that
first significant developments were associated time higher education was the prerogative of
with attempts to ameliorate the social prob- monasteries and cathedrals. The universities
lems of scale in large comprehensive schools. arose to teach secular subjects, and were the
Spaces were grouped into faculty blocks or outcome of a civilization which, by the 13th
"house" blocks and the schools designed on century, required professional and scholastic
campus principles. In the 1960s, following the expertise. The earliest seem to be Salerno in
publication of the Ministry of Education's southern Italy, which was famous for
Fodrea Community School, development project for the Arnold School, medicine, and Bologna in northern Italy,
Columbus, Indiana (1973), by Nottingham, ideas of open or semi-open plan- renowned for law. The University of Paris
Caudill, Rowlett, and Scott. ning spread to secondary schools. Their plans was founded around the same time. A uni-
became amorphous in a similar manner to versity was originally called a "studium" or
those of primary schools; the rigid, struc- "studium generate," the word "universitas"
tured, and institutional atmosphere delib- referring to the body of teachers who were
erately exchanged for one of freedom, infor- licensed to teach. The university needed no
mality, and variety. more than suitable classrooms, and these, for
Innovation in school design in the U.S. the small numbers of students at this period,
took a significantly different direction, one were located in private houses.
based more on the possibilities of technology, The first specific university buildings were
and particularly the attractions of physical colleges designed to provide living accom-
flexibility, and less on new educational ideas. modation rather than teaching space. The first
One important innovation came in 1952 with records of university colleges are at Paris, the
the Hillsdale High School, San Mateo, earliest being that of the Hotel Dieu in 1180.
California, designed by John Lyon Reid. This The Sorbonne was originally a college
was the first deep-plan school. It abandoned founded by Robert de Sorbon in 1256. The
the constraints and the costs of linear build- University of Oxford, England, had its first
ings to contain its teaching space in a top-lit college, Merton, founded by Walter de Mer-
and air-conditioned single-storey steel struc- ton in 1264 and incorporated in the university
ture measuring 196 x 430ft. (60 x 131 m). The in 1274. The University of Cambridge, Eng-
classrooms, otherwise quite conventional, land, was established following a migration of
were formed internally with relocatable par- students from Oxford in 1209, and a sub-
titions. Another innovation introduced pre- sequent migration from Paris in 1229, and had
 Educational and research 127

its first college, Peterhouse, founded in 1280

by a Bishop of Ely. The English colleges,
however, were not intended for students but
for teachers, and were in fact very similar to
religious colleges of priests serving in a
church. The students, many of them foreign,
formed hospitia, or hostels, to accommodate
and protect themselves.
The Old Court, Corpus Christi College,
Cambridge (1352), is the best surviving exam-
ple of a 13th-century college. In its original
form it consisted of a hall, kitchens, offices, a
masters' lodge, and chambers which were
located in a two-storey building around an
irregular quadrangle or court. The chambers
each consisted of a large room together with
four small cubicles. The cubicles were for
study, the large room for sleeping. The most
important prototypical college was, however, versities also increased.) The forms of these Perspective of Trinity College,
New College in Oxford, which was founded universities varied. Many of them were built Cambridge, England (1535)
showing buildings centered
by William of Wykeham in 1379. It is both the on the peripheries of the towns. around the Great Court.
first English college where staff and students In Italy, in the 16th century, the scale and
lived together inside the college, and the first monumentality of university buildings
university building aimed at unified monu- increased enormously, and the common form
mental architecture. The college, built around adopted was that of the Renaissance palace.
a central quadrangle, consisted of members' (The English college had adopted something
chambers, a chapel and hall, and a gatetower of the form of the religious college and
to the west. The structure was originally of country house.) They consisted of a large
two storeys. New College became, in square block with a square central courtyard
academic constitution and architectural form, with cloistered galleries on one or two floors.
the model for successive colleges. Jacopo Sansovino (1486-1570) built in Padua
At about this time the first buildings spec- the University of the Venetian Domains, the
ifically designed for lecturing appeared. The courtyard of which was completed in 1547.
activities of the universities had outgrown the The Archiginnasio (1565) was built to house
capacity of private rooms, but their demands Bologna University. Such monumental and
for space were not large. Cambridge built its unified buildings for universities were The Rotunda, University of
Divinity School some time between 1350 and unknown at this time in Britain. Virginia, Charlottesville (1822-26).
by Thomas Jefferson.
1400, and during the 15th century a library The small-scale collegiate building around a
and buildings for the other subjects were quadrangle remained the pattern of building at
erected-for canon law, civil law, and Oxford and Cambridge, and the serene
philosophy-the whole forming the small academic atmosphere produced the ideal
quadrangle known as "Old Schools." Oxford model for collegiate developments in Ameri-
similarly built a quadrangle but on a far can colonies. But none of the nine colonial
grander scale (1426--80). The Grandes Ecoles colleges which were chartered between 1636
at Caen (c. 1436), in a building 250ft. (75.5 m) and 1780, and which represented the seeds of
long, had a Salle des Arts and Ecole du Droit American universities, had the money to
on the first floor, a Salle de Theologie and produce such an environment. Like Old Col-
Classe de Medecine on the second, and a lege, Harvard (1638), they were plain, indi-
library on the third. Krakow University, vidual structures sited on open land. Har-
Poland (c. 1400), was built around a cloistered vard's Stoughton Hall (1698) became a model
courtyard, with lecture rooms on the first for future dormitories, with bedrooms on four
floor and larger halls and living quarters for floors, each room having cross ventilation, a
masters on the second. fireplace, and a private study.
The later 14th and 15th centuries were great In 1807 William Wilkins (1778-1839)
university-founding periods. During the 13th demonstrated a new form of college layout in
century there were only eight universities his design of Downing College, Cambridge.
in existence-Bologna in Italy; Paris, His design incorporated the discoveries of
Toulouse, and Montpelier in France; Pal- 18th-century English landscape and became
encia and Salamanca in Spain; and Oxford the prototype for the U.S. campus. Instead of
and Cambridge in England. Thereafter, uni- the quadrangle format it consisted of separate
versities were founded at Prague, Krakow, buildings and pavilions, all in pure Neo-
Vienna, and Heidelberg, and seven more Classical Greek style, around three sides of a
were established in Germany, twelve more in lawn. The first realized campus plan in the
France, and three in Scotland. (The number U.S. was that prepared in 1813 by John
and size of the colleges at the existing uni- Jacques Ramee for Union College, Schenec-
 128 Educational and research

tady, New York. The most important plan Royal Institution in London (c. 1800) for the
was that by Thomas Jefferson for his Uni- demonstration of scientific experiments was
versity of Virginia at Charlottesville, begun in semicircular in plan, measuring some 60 x 40
1817. With a Neo-Classical architecture, Jef- x 30 ft. (18 x 12 x 10 m) and with raked
ferson produced a design which accom- seating. Here, the principle of direct sight and
modated the activities of the university in a sound paths between audience and speaker
rational and functional manner. The plan was was established, and in 1909 Guadet pub-
arranged around a rectangular open space, lished a range of lecture theater plan forms for
with ten pavilions each containing the living various academic subjects. The idea of
spaces and a teaching hall for the professor of research as one of the basic functions of a
each school of study. These pavilions were university had also become established by the
linked by colonnades, off which opened end of the 19th century, and the scientific
single-storey students' rooms. Behind the laboratory and workshop became part of the
pavilions were gardens, and between them normal range of university buildings. The
Portico of University College, paths for the servicing of buildings, all form of student housing also changed. Many
London, England (1827-28), by enclosed by a further line of student quarters. of the newly founded universities were local
William Wilkins. At one end of the open space, in a rotunda, and hence not residential. Of the others, few
stood the library. Each of the buildings was contained the collegiate pattern of combined
designed differently to furnish examples for residential and academic life. Instead, the
architectural teaching. In Jefferson's words student dormitory and the hall of residence
"such a plan would afford that quiet retire- established themselves as university building
ment so friendly to study." types, with the principle of students living
The 19th century saw a great upsurge in outside the college in lodgings.
university building, due no doubt to the The form of the 19th-century university was
appetites of industry and commerce for exper- essentially monumental and historicist. Con-
tise. Science had begun to appear in uni- tiguous Gothic structures around quadrangles,
versities in the 17th century; in Italy it was still inspired by Oxford and Cambridge, was
absorbed by the existing institutions , while in one form. The University of Chicago
other countries new specialized universities designed by Henry Ives Cobb (1859-1931) in
were formed-the Ecole Polytechnique in 1893, is the finest example in the U.S: its
Paris in 1794, and the Vienna Technische enclosed spaces formed by sculptured Gothic
Hochschule in 1815. These new foundations walls connected by towers a.nd gateways
produced a single building complex, housing emulate the character of its 15th-century
administrative and academic accommodation precedents. The Neo-Classical campus plan
with inbedded lecture theaters for the various designed around vistas remained another
disciplines. Such new universities or colleges form, as in the University of California at
were established in most major cities of Berkeley and the University of Birmingham in
McGill University, Montreal, Europe, their architectural arrangement reach- England. Both were conceived in monumental
Canada.
ing the grandest expression in Nenot's build- master plans which were never realized.
ing for the Sorbonne, Paris (1895). One Beginning in the late 1920s university build-
prototypical form for these universities was ings began to free themselves from historicist
that established by William Wilkins in his if not monumental influences. Perhaps the
design for London University (now Uni- most significant plan was that of Mies van der
versity College) of 1827-8. It consisted of a Rohe (1886-1969) for the Illinois Institute of
grand central Neo-Classical block with por- Technology.
tico and dome raised on a podium and two Following World War II, the demand for
monumental wings enclosing an open space university education increased dramatically,
on three sides. The organization of the build- the existing universities expanded, and
ing bore no relation to the academic activities entirely new universities were established.
it contained. The design of these was based on a more
By the end of the 19th century the uni- functional attitude toward the activities of a
versity curriculum had broadened, and uni- university, and reflected an academic desire
versity buildings included a wide range of to break down the barriers between schools of
specialized spaces. The lecture theater had study. The need for growth and change was
School of Architecture (Crown Hall) appeared as a new and distinctive element in taken very seriously. The planning concepts
at the Illinois Institute of all university teaching buildings as this form very much followed those prevailing in town
Technology (1955) by Mies van der
Rohe who designed the whole
of instruction became the norm. The lecture planning, tending away from the campus plan
campus as a series of steel and theater has its origins in medicine as theaters to more compact layouts , to the segregation of
glass rectangular pavilions. for the demonstration of anatomical dis- traffic and pedestrians, and to the use of
sections. Sir Christopher Wren (1632-1723) structuring devices for the overall organ-
built one in 1689 for the Royal College of ization of the university. In England, between
Physicians which consisted of a regular 16- 1958 and 1%0 the construction of seven new
sided space of 40 ft. (12 m) internal diameter universities began . The variety of adopted
with steeply raked seats and a demonstration forms exemplified different planning concepts.
table in the center. The theater built at the Sussex was designed as a series of precincts
 Educational and research 129

of individual buildings set in parkland; York other objects were accommodated in rooms
as a series of buildings linked by a covered which opened into each other in a continuous
way arranged around a lake: Essex , designed sequence. These types of spatial organization
on a linear plan, extendible at both ends-like suited the needs of viewing, and the con-
Simon Fraser University, Vancouver; and tinuity of the route has remained a guiding
Loughborough designed not as a group of principle of museum design ever since. It can
buildings but as a single building type with a be seen in designs which are otherwise rad-
universal space for teaching and research ically different to the original palace galleries,
buildings, the whole structured by a dis- as for example in the spiral form of the
ciplining grid. The Free University of Berlin, Guggenheim Museum in New York, designed
designed c. 1960 by Candilis, Josie, and by Frank Lloyd Wright (1869-1959), which
Woods, gained considerable attention as a was built in 1956-59.
prototype. It is organized by a grid of pedes- The display of objects was at first deter- Interior of the Guggenheim
trian routes connecting low-rise buildings in a mined by the taste of the collector, and was Museum, New York (1959), by
very compact and highly interconnected form. not necessarily arranged systematically . Frank Lloyd Wright.
The buildings are serviced by underground However, with the Age of Enlightenment in
passages, and the whole complex is delib- the 18th century, collections tended to
erately unfocused and unmonumental. become more specialized and were arranged
During this period each of the constituent into categories of objects. The viewing of
building types of the university became the these early collections was arranged privately,
subject of research and their design evolved and usually required letters of introduction.
into highly specialized forms . Student resi- One of the first collections to be publicly
dential buildings became more independent, owned and open to the public was the Hans
the study bedroom closely designed around Sloane collection, acquired in 1753 by Par-
the imagined activities of a student. In 1921 liament for the original British Museum. But
Le Corbusier (1887-1%6) produced a scheme visiting by the public was restricted to three
which provided each student with the experi- hours a day, and formal application had to be
ence of an attic studio but his plans never made for admission.
materialized. Scandinavia contributed the
innovation of grouping student rooms around
a communal kitchen and social space. The The development of the civic museum The British Museum, london,
open-access library was invented and evolved During the 19th century many of the great England (1823-47). The classical
a specialized form. Research laboratories private collections of Europe and America facade was designed by Sir Robert
became another highly developed building were made available to the public, either Smirke, the portico and the dome
ofthe reading room by Sydney
type and highlighted the enormous problems because of the development of democratic Smirke.
of functional obsolescence in university build- principles as in America, Britain, and France,
ings in that they, the most expensive, are the or through the enlightened despotism of rulers
least permanent. of the German States. Many great institutions
Since that period, ideas about the university were founded and built, such as the Altes
can be said to have focused on its relationship Museum in Berlin (1823-30), the British
to the city. There has been regret for the Museum in London (1823-47), and the Met-
location of new universities in isolated loca- ropolitan Museum in New York (1874-80).
tions . The scale of some new universities is The Berlin Altes Museum was designed by
that of a city in itself; others, like those in Karl Friedrich Schinkel (1781-1841), who
Cambridge, Massachusetts, have generated expressed the new public function of a
cities around them. It is now generally museum by making the whole of the front
accepted that the dissemination of knowledge , facade into an entrance. The importance of
which has become one of the major activities the public entrance was a feature of many of
of our age, should not take place in isolation. the new institutions.
A great expansion of museum collections
Museums and buildings took place during the second
The museum is a Western concept which half of the 19th century. Specialist institutions
came into being with the collections of objects for science, natural history, fine arts, and
of art, antiquity , and natural science begun applied arts were created. Two notable exam-
during the Renaissance. The essential func- ples are the British Natural History Museum
tion of a museum is the display of a collection of 1871-81 , designed by Alfred Waterhouse
of objects so that it may be viewed in (1830-1905), and the American Natural His-
sequence by circulating visitors. tory Museum in New York designed by J. C.
Cody in the 1870s. During the same period a
series of international exhibitions, such as in
The early private collections London in 1851 , Paris in 1889, and Chicago in
The first collections were housed in the 1893, popularized the viewing of collections of
Renaissance palaces of their collectors. Long, objects and affected the design of exhibition
wide passages, known as "galleries," were spaces and the display of items. (See EXHIB-
used to display sculptures. Paintings and ITION BUIL DINGS.)
 130 Educational and research

Display in museum design hoven in Holland, founded in 1966, is a good

example of such a museum, and several
Methods of displaying objects followed two temporary exhibitions designed by Charles
Eames (b. 1907) make use of similar methods.
main trends, often at the same time. The first
trend regarded a museum as a storehouse of All these changes in display and presen-
tation have their own specific design require-
great treasures: this applied particularly to
collections of paintings, sculpture, and thements, but may not necessarily affect the
applied arts. In terms of the display the design of the museum as a whole. The
totality of the collection rather than the large-scale architectural considerations have
individual work of art was emphasized. The been most affected by the increased range of
second trend was concerned with education subject matter of museums. In Lucerne, for
and placed great emphasis on the label, the example, the Transport Museum houses rail-
writtyn description of the object, and its road engines and paddle steamers; at Beaulieu
The World War I Gallery in the in Hampshire, England, a whole museum
origins. This trend applied to collections of
Smithsonian Institute, Washington natural history, science, and antiquity , andcomplex is devoted to automobiles and
D.C. The institute was started in
1847 by James Smithson and such a museum could be described as a seriesmotorcycles. In Stockholm, The Waasa-a
James Renwick. of illustrated labels. The late 19th-centurytimber warship raised from the bed of Stock-
museum, therefore, tended to be composed holm harbor-was enclosed within a large
either of extremely long galleries or of hugestructure and had to be continuously sprayed
spaces with side galleries and top lighting, and
for several years to allow it to dry out
was filled with innumerable display stands and
gradually. In Washington D.C., the National
cases containing labeled objects. Air and Space Museum contains aircraft
The great innovatory reaction to this con-suspended from the roof and space explo-
cept of museum design was not fully realizedration craft. Such material poses architectural
until the reconstruction of many Italian problems different in both scale and character
museums after World War II. The museum from the exhibition of paintings and sculpture
renovations in Genoa, Florence, Verona, in rooms that might at one time have been
Venice, Milan, Palermo, and elsewhere by those of a Renaissance palace.
Franco Albini (b. 1905), Studio BBPR, and A further extension of the scale of museum
Carlo Scarpa (b. 1906), were carried out design has occurred with the creation of
mainly between 1950 and 1965, and empha- whole sites as museums. The first example of
sized the visual uniqueness of the works of art
this, which has since been widely copied, was
on display. The arrangement of items became Skansen in Stockholm. A whole island was
less crowded so that objects could be seen layed out in 1891 as a zoo for national animal
separately. Display supports or backgrounds species and a museum of vernacular building
were often designed individually and labels types and national folklore. A more recent
were kept to a minimum. These renovations example is at Ironbridge in Shropshire, Eng-
have generally been carried out within the land, where artifacts of the early Industrial
original museum spaces, which again under- Revolution were manufactured and still exist.
lines the appropriateness of the RenaissanceThe design problem of these large-scale
palace plan type. This recent Italian inno- thematic museums is to make a coherent
vation has now influenced museum display in display of a dispersed group of elements.
most countries and has, in general, helped the In most cases, however, the crucial prob-
ordinary visitor although it has occasionally
lem is the design of the middle- and small-
annoyed the specialist. The danger of the scale parts of a building which form the
Italian approach is an overemphasis on immediate background to the exhibits. It is
design at the expense of the object itself. the combination of such details with the idea
The Italian contribution to change in of a route that provides the distinguishing
museum design was confined to the display offeatures of a museum. These details involve
works of art. Its application to museums of the wall and its ability to accept fixings, or the
science and technology was less direct, and design of rails from which objects can be
here the main change has been due to the hung, the provision and control of natural and
introduction of alternative means of visual artificial light to deal with a wide variety of
communication. In museums of art, ethnog- conditions depending on the type of display,
the floor, and its ability to take supports for
raphy , and natural history it is important to
screens or to have power points for servicing
see the original object rather than a facsimile.
showcases, and, most important of all, for
This is less true when communicating ideas in
science and technology. It may, in fact , bewalls and floors to be clear of elements such
helpful to use other methods besides the as grilles, heaters, pilasters, security points,
display of the products of science and and light switches, which can cause visual
technology, such as charts, films, recorded interference with the viewing of objects.
talks, multiscreen presentations, and similar
devices, and moreover to allow visitors to
manipulate and test machinery specially cre- Lighting
ated for the purpose. The Evoluon at Eind- Currently a major problem of design concerns
 Educational and research 131

methods of lighting, and is caused by the areas which are crucial to the proper func-
serious limitations placed on the display of tioning of a museum. These comprise storage,
many objects by the needs of preservation. conservation, research, and administrative
All organic materials containing carbon- areas. These functions may occupy as much
textiles, paper, ivory, leather, feathers, wood, as one-third to one-half of the total floor area
and many pigments-are subject to varying of the museum building.
rates of deterioration under the action of light. The ways in which we look at objects and
The amount of deterioration is proportional to the messages we seek from them change in
the intensity of light and the length of expo- time, as can be seen from an analysis of
sure. Recommended lighting levels for the museum design over the last two centuries.
preservation of different materials are very The main architectural problem is, therefore,
low-50 lux for fabrics, watercolors, and one of creating a permanent enclosure
similar sensitive exhibits, 150 lux for oil together with certain service functions, while
paintings. In comparison, the normal lighting at the same time allowing for variety and
level for offices is 300 lux. In a museum the change in settings to fit the content and nature
eye has to be gradually accustomed to the of particular displays .
required lower lighting levels through the These requirements have recently been
organization of the space and the control of interpreted as an argument for anonymous
daylight. flexible space, which has therefore been seen
This need has led to the design of elaborate as the main innovating requirement of
methods of reducing daylight by deep baffles museum architecture. Two major examples of
and overhead louvers, sometimes auto- this approach are the Centre Pompidou in
matically controlled to prevent the light inten- Paris (1977), by Piano and Rogers, and the
sity exceeding a given amount. These devices Sainsbury Center For The Visual Arts in
tend to occupy a large proportion of the England (1978), by Foster Associates. These
building volume and are also expensive. The buildings provide large empty spaces. The
simplest solution to the lighting problem has spatial organization of exhibitions is seen as a
been to omit daylight altogether and to rely separate task from the design of the building Oakland Museum, California
entirely on artificial sources of light. The which does, however, provide the technical (1969), by Roche, Dinkaloo, and
Partners.
Hayward Gallery in London (1968), demon- infrastructure for servicing the display of
strates both approaches: the upper galleries objects. But no space is genuinely anony-
have natural overhead lighting controlled by a mous; in the Paris galleries, for example, the
complex louver system, while the lower gal- deep beams, the exposed services, and the
leries are windowless, and artificial lighting is views of the surrounding rooftops are all
reorganized to suit each new exhibition. visually strong and specific. Also, no single
There has been a discernible reaction to space is flexible over the entire range of
both these solutions-the museum as a possibilities; an artificially lit enclosure does
machine controlling daylight and the museum offer a great number of possible ways of
as a black box-and alternatives are being arranging a route and screens, but does not
explored in which deep rooms receive some allow the arrangement of exhibits so that they
side lighting through windows . This would are seen in silhouette against natural sunlight
provide a sense of daylight but much of the and foliage.
actual illumination would come from artificial Other recent approaches to museum design
sources selected for the specific lighting needs have also been concerned with variety and
of particular objects. change in exhibition settings, but have tended Interior view of museum space in
Museum and exhibition design has had to to concentrate on providing the most appro- the Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
respond to the pressures of an increasing priate settings for particular collections. An (1977), by Piano and Rogers.
number of visitors. The need to keep interesting example of this is the J.P.Getty
museums open through large parts of the day, Museum in California (1974). Here the build-
irrespective of natural lighting conditions, has ing is a reconstruction of an ancient Roman
made it necessary to include artificial lighting villa. The original spaces of such a villa
in any design. Other ways in wh,ich museu111 provide a great variety of settings for
design has adapted to the pressures of num- objects-open and covered exterior spaces,
bers are by enlarging and reemphasizing the side-lit, top-lit, and totally windowless interior
route through the exhibition, and by reor- spaces. The ancient plan and volumes have
ganizing many service functions--from post- been ingeniously adapted to accommodate
card counters to toilet facilities . In recent modern museum technology, including visitor
years many exisiting museums have reor- parking lots, air conditioning, and security
ganized their entrance halls and restaurant systems. Another museum which seeks to
areas to accommodate the crowds of visitors provide a variety of types of space and to
which may attend during the weekend and include natural settings is the Oakland
peak evening hours. Museum (1968) by Kevin Roche (b. 1922). A
further innovation of this museum is that it is
The organization of space designed to integrate with the surrounding
Besides these public spaces there are other area and community, and can be entered in an
132 Educational and research

informal way at many different points. In of solution types, skillful pragmatism has been
conclusion, flexibility in museum design may more of a virtue than the expressive embodi-
often most usefully consist in the provision of ment of science. The buildings are so expen-
a variety of spaces covering a wide spectrum sive to construct and maintain that the suc-
of potential museum needs. Each space may cessful synthesis of different engineering sys-
be suggestive of certain purposes but also tems and complex planning requirements is
allow some alternative use. more important than the packaging. In fact,
most of the key ideas in laboratory design
Laboratories since World War II have been dressed up in a
wide variety of architectural fashions.
The laboratory was originally conceived sim-
ply as a work place, although it has now come
to signify a room, building, or complex of Early designs
buildings devoted to experimental or routine During the 1940s and 1950s the emphasis in
procedures associated with the sciences, or laboratory design was on applied building
the teaching of sciences. The history of science in the service of the individual
laboratory buildings before World War II laboratory worker or group of workers. Day-
reveals little as to the nature of actual or lighting studies and mechanical engineering
future laboratories. The traditional pattern of predominated to create well-serviced work
laboratory layout was established around stations. The Bell Telephone Laboratories in
1800, but with the dramatic changes in science the U.S. (1941) exemplify this period. Here,
research and teaching techniques since the all the services are distributed in a matrix of
1940s, laboratory buildings widely disparate in horizontal and vertical ducts in the external
nature have emerged. walls, with branches carried in floor ducts to
In recent years, primarily as a result of bench positions. However, the building struc-
massive government support, science has ture makes few concessions to its complex
become an establishment. At the forefront is burden of pipes, wiring, and convectors.
"Big Science"-a label given on the one hand Other laboratory buildings ran the services in
to public enterprise that builds, for example, ducts lining a central corridor. Although such
particle accelerators, and on the other, to buildings were, by contemporary standards,
private enterprise that constructs vast heavily serviced, no special logic was invoked
laboratory installations for endless routine to relate the working environment to the
control procedures. Between these extremes services provided. "More is better" was the
fall the college-based teaching and research acceptable axiom of servicing demands of
facilities that range from very basic to highly scientific research. Nevertheless, the Bell
sophisticated buildings. Building exemplified both American and
Public and private "Big Science," the European practice for nearly 20 years.
universities, and hospital-based research
laboratories have this in common; they are all
threatened by obsolescence at an accelerating British rationalism
Richards Medical Research Center,
rate. The life expectancy of a body of know- In Britain in the 1950s, laboratory design was Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1 960),
ledge in small particle physics, for example, the concern of the Nuffield Foundation for by Louis Kahn.
has been estimated at no more than four
years. The model rate of revision for all
sciences is now probably about 15 years, and
yet laboratories are probably the most techni-
cally sophisticated of all buildings, and are
generally expected to last at least 40 years.
Acknowledgment of the question of obsoles-
cence is not recent, however. Serge Cher-
mayeff (b. 1900), in his laboratory designs for
Imperial Chemicals Industry (ICI) Dyestuffs
Division at Blackley in England (1935), pro-
duced many now familiar motifs. One such
solution was the installation of benches at
right angles to external walls for both ease of
servicing and segregation of less costly office
space from the expensive laboratories them-
selves. Although many similar solutions have
since been devised, none have completely
overcome this major problem.
While it is true that some laboratory build-
ings have been designed by such well-known
architects as Louis Kahn (1901-74) and Eero
Saarinen (191~1), in terms of the evolution
 Educational and research 133

Architectural Studies. Detailed studies of

laboratory bench activities, daylighting, and
artificial lighting, and of the ease of installing
and maintaining services were carried out. All
these studies informed a great boom in
academic laboratory building in the late 1950s
and 1960s. Laboratory work increasingly
demanded a controlled environment, and the
need for air handling and distribution
prompted theories of rational services dis-
tribution. The key notion was of planning
based on regular grids within which functions
would be defined and parts made inter-
changeable.
Interest in modular coordination and indus-
trialized building was not confined only to the
laboratory design field . In some designs ,
services were installed above or below floor
slabs. In others they were grouped in vertical
structural ducts; these were often positioned
at the perimeter of the building. Alternatively,
a double or "tartan" grid was used with wide
bands for corridors and narrow bands for
services. The most notable example of this
type is Loughborough University of Technol-
ogy designed by Philip Dowson in 1967.

American rationalism
Architects in the U.S. were less attracted to
theories of services distribution. Taking air
conditioning for granted, they began in the
early 1960s to go directly for solutions which
put ease of servicing on the same level of
importance as occupant requirements. Two
buildings by Eero Saarinen (1910-61)-the
International Business Machines (IBM) The British Sintacel Metriscope
Research Laboratory at Yorktown, New designs. The former is a six-storey win- range of movable laboratory
York (1961) and the Bell Telephone dowless tower of agronomy laboratories with benching serviced from above
Laboratories at Holmdel (1962)-collect all very clear and simple articulation of structure
illustrates a general trend away
from built-in furniture toward
services into large linear vertical cores feeding and services--alternate coffers of standard systems that can be adapted by
laboratories either side. These double bands T-planks are occupied by air-distribution or users. In this system liquid waste
of laboratories alternate with double bands of bench services fed from perimeter main ducts. can be pumped away
offices reached from the laboratories across a The Salk Institute provides a loft space of 245
automatically via the overhead
boom.
corridor-a people duct. The work spaces in x 65 ft. (75 x 20 m) with all services carried
these buildings have no windows; rest areas in an interstitial space within a Vierendeel
with windows are provided instead, an truss floor structure; offices are housed in
arrangement which apparently suits the "pods" plugged into one side of the three-
occupants but which won U.S. laboratory storey building.
design few friends in Europe. The grouped These two buildings may be seen as the end
services design most admired by architects product of the first major thrust of research
was not the essentially horizontal scheme of into science buildings. They embody the fruits
Saarinen, but that of Louis Kahn (1901-74) in of both British and American experiments.
his Richards Memorial Medical Research But both were very expensive to construct.
Center. This building has windows, but the
researchers have obscured many of them
themselves. Kahn's dislike of services and his Indeterminacy
overriding obsession with his symbolic inten- Many of the laboratories and experimental
tions also led to needlessly complex dis- facilities of Big Science have become highly
tribution patterns. particularized, but the bulk demand for
Probably the most elegant technical designs laboratories is for teaching and research. The
of the period are the State University College rapid rate of growth and change in teaching
at Cornell (1%9), designed by Ulrich Franzen and research ensured the obsolescence of
(b. 1921) and the Salk Institute for Biological older buildings in postwar years and the
Sciences at La Jolla, another of Kahn's impossibility of pinning down needs for long
 134 Educational and research

enough to realize new building that could building's life. The fundamental premise of
meet them. Poor utilization of space and very the approach is that since plan requirements
costly upgrading and alteration were the con- change faster than basic technology, a sens-
sequences. ible approach is first to optimize the con-
Laboratory designers reacted in two ways. struction technology according to its intrinsic
First, there was an interest in improving space properties (the most economic spans for struc-
utilization through better understanding of tures, the optimum volumes for air-handling
teaching patterns and research practice. This units, for example), and then to test the result
could be described as a management approach against a wide range of possible plan con-
to laboratory design, and it coincided with a figurations. This approach led to the "space
more general optimism about the value of module" concept-large-scale (10,000-12,000
scientific management in the late 1960s. sq. ft./930-1,116 sq. m) building blocks of
Second, rather than simply coping with serviced space which can be arranged in many
'f930 1940 t950 1960 1970
demands for change, some architects set out different configurations but which always
LIFE SCIENCES BUILDING
U.C. Berkeley
to design with future change in mind. Flex- obey the logic of efficient use of the con-
ibility, indeterminacy, and adaptability struction technology. Some elements such as
became the watchwords in laboratory design. structure, main ducts, and ceiling grid, are
Flexibility lay in the choice of construction treated as permanent, while lighting, par-
technology rather than in modifying users' titions, and secondary services are designed
behavior patterns. Much work in this field for ease of alteration. A key feature is the
was done by the Educational Facilities strict zoning of the services distribution in the
Laboratory in the U.S. and by the ceiling space.
Laboratories Investigation Unit in Britain. This approach, in contrast to earlier, more
They concerned themselves with laboratory ideological solutions is pragmatic because its
furniture, equipment, and services that would aim is to find an optimum balance, based on
be more responsive to short-term changes of life-cycle costs, between general requirements
use and layout than the traditional fixed and specialized ones; for example, animal
benching. houses and cold rooms remain outside the
However, flexibility led to increased costs, scope of the system. In this way redundancy
Initial and was therefore not a complete answer. of flexibility is minimized. The BSD approach
Furthermore, many designers lost sight of the has to date found most widespread application
Occupancy

original aims of flexibility in pursuit of clever in the U.S. Veterans Administration hospitals
technical devices which might never be used of Lorna Linda (1977) and Martinsburg (1978),
1960 1970 1980
or, more often, which tied the future usability a building type with similar problems to
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES I
U.C.Davis of the building to some contemporary gadge- laboratories.
try. Redundant flexibility could be tolerated in A counterpart for this style is also found in
prestige buildings (such as the Salk Institute), the recent work of John Weeks in Britain. An
but the mass market demanded an equation early prophet of indeterminacy, he now advo-
between capital cost and the cost of op~rating cates a minimum of technologically "special"
and altering its less sophisticated laboratories. construction to achieve a long-term chance to
fit between the majority of laboratory
activities and the building. Special needs may
The new pragmatism always be met on an ad hoc basis.
An important study of the criteria for cost
effectiveness in laboratory buildings was car-
ried out for the University of California by Future designs
Building Systems Development (BSO) in Increasing automation or encapsulation of
Initial
Occupancy
1970. The study focused on bios(tience teach- routine. Laboratory work continues to dimin-
ing and research laboratories where the prob- ish the need for special design or building
lems of rapidly changing requirements were, techniques, particularly since standards of
and still are, acute. An examination of the environmental and services design for non-
1960 1970 1980
cost histories of many laboratories built from laboratory buildings have risen to meet
REVELL COLLEGE BUILDING B
1928 onward showed a progressive shortening present-day expectations. Many speculative
UC. San Diego of the period of routine expense incurred office buildings could ably meet needs which
following completion. Buildings started in previously required a laboratory environment.
1966, for example, incurred continuing costs This is particularly true since the advent of
of nearly half the initial construction spending adaptable and movable laboratory furniture
rate as soon as they were completed. Analysis and equipment. In a similar way, present-day
Graph of cumulative capitalization of the costs indicated that plumbing and school and junior college teaching space
of laboratory buildings built in electrical work, and the disruption caused to amply meets the needs of basic science
1928, 1958, and 1960 show cost of adjacent spaces, were the major cost com- teaching with its emphasis on prepackaged
coping with changing needs. Most ponents. experiments and similar teaching aids.
recent building incurs alteration
costs as soon as it is completed, From these analyses, BSD developed an The frontiers of laboratory design may be
whereas 1928 laboratory enjoyed approach to laboratory design aimed at found in research laboratories, particularly for
20 years of stability. minimizing the total owning cost over the multidisciplinary research and in the housing
 Educational and research 135

of large-scale testing and experimental equip- The Academic Building System of

1970 for the Universities of
ment. However, the latter, as in the case of California and Indiana was
particle physics and astronomy, may more developed for the complete
accurately be classed as pieces of equipment, laboratory requirements of science
(which may or may not require to be and engineering teaching and
research. The system is a set of
enclosed) than as laboratories. They will design rules aimed at reducing the
inevitably continue to throw up the need for cost penalty of unforseeable
buildings where the cost of enclosure will be change. All services are
insignificant alongside the cost of the equip- pre-coordinated; no two
component systems try to share
ment. Elsewhere, the demand for energy the same space. Contrast with the
conservation, together with the need for complex integration of structure
environmental servicing, will probably ensure and services of earlier design
that the deep-plan, small-window format for approaches.
research laboratories will persist for some
time, although an increasing number of com-
monplace laboratory functions will probably
be adequately housed in quite ordinary and
habitual building forms.
136 Entertainment and recreation

Entertainment and recreation

Theaters interludes, began to take an increasingly
important part in the Church's drama, this ,
Ancient, classical, and medieval theaters together with Renaissance interest in the
Archaeologists have found evidence of litur- classical past, led to a new kind of theater. In
gical drama in ancient Egypt but its form can the courts of the late 15th-century Italian city
only be surmised. It was the Greeks whose states there were productions of rediscovered
drama first reached a pitch of achievement Latin comedies and the tragedies of Seneca,
which persisted as a major influence, even to but the presentation was medieval rather than
the present day. Their dramatic performances classical, with the action on a raised stage.
were part of religious festivals staged in the At the same time, there was a growing
ol?en air, originally in natural amphitheaters, interest in the ruins of Greek and Roman
With the audience sitting on a hillside and a theaters and in ancient writers, such as Mar-
flat circular area (the "orchestra") cleared for cus Pollio Vitruvius (active 46-30 Be). When Roman theater at Orange, southern
dancers. and singers. The lead was taken by Sebastiano Serlio (1475-1554) published his France, designed for7,000
the Athenians and it was in the theater of Architettura in 1551, it contained a plan for a spectators.
Dionysus on the sloping side of the Acropolis theater in the classical manner; a semicircular
at Athens that plays by Aeschylus, Sopho- theater surrounded a flat open space-
cles, Euripides, and Aristophanes were first corresponding to the ancient orchestra-
performed in the 5th century BC. connected by steps to a raised stage.
One of the best preserved and most beau- The particularly Italian contribution was
tiful of Greek theaters is at Epidaurus (c. 350 the use of elaborate perspective painted on
BC), where the audience of up to 10,000 sat in canvas-covered wooden frames, and even-
an extended semicircle around the circular tually this led to more complex stages. While
orchestra. Behind this was the skene (hence stage machinery had been used from the
"scene"), a raised platform with openings in earliest times, the Italian perspective settings
its rear wall for actors' entrances. The main needed a special system for changing scenes.
setting was still the open landscape behind. This was achieved by locating painted wing-
Theaters approximating to this layout are flats in grooves along which they could slide
found in all the ancient Greek or Hellenistic back and forth in front of a painted canvas
cities around the Mediterranean. backdrop. Flying scenery above the stage and
Greek drama was the basis of Roman the use of trapdoors and elevators beneath it
drama, but by the time the Romans began were further developments.
building theaters of their own, the religious The Teatro Olimpico at Vicenza in Italy, View of auditorium from the stage
content had virtually disappeared ; the later built to the design of Andrea Palladio (1508- ofthe Teatro Olimpico,
Greeks introduced very broad comedies of 80), and completed in 1584 four years after his Sabbionetta, near Mantua, Italy
manners which the Romans translated and death, stands as a good example of the early (1588), by Vincenzo Scamozzi.
Scamozzi also completed the
developed. Italian theater. Its permanent architectural Teatro Olimpico started by Andrea
The typical Roman theater was still open to background in the Roman manner has three Palladio.
the sky, but enclosed by walls. The audience "portals," with streets in false perspective
now sat in an exact semicircle about the behind them. The large central portal
semicircular orchestra, and the stage had an developed in later buildings into the familiar
elaborate architectural background of columns proscenium arch, with doors for the per-
and portals in two or three tiers. A theater formers at the sides. The first permanent
built under Pompeii (c. 55 Be), was the first proscenium theater, the Teatro Farnese at
stone-built theater to which Roman engineer- Parma (1617-28), set the pattern not only for
ing skill and architectural taste were applied, the typical Italian theater, with its ornate
and the pattern was repeated all over the proscenium and tiered boxes around shallowly
Roman world; there is a well-preserved sloping stalls, but also for most European
example at Orange in the south of France (c. theaters for the next 300 years. This was
AD 50). largely due to the widespread influence of the
After the collapse of the Roman Empire Italian Baroque, which itself put great stress
theater building ceased, but drama gradually on the theatrical arts. Opera, which virtually
reemerged, again within the context of reli- fused all the arts, developed directly out of
gion. This time, Christian religious ritual was Italy's choral and musical tradition, and in the
accompanied by mystery plays, recounting theater there was as much emphasis on the art
Bible stories which were enacted in cathe- of the scene painter as on that of the drama-
drals, churches, or in the streets leading to tist.
them. Sometimes actors performed against Some of the greatest achievements of Ba-
tableaux mounted on horsedrawn carts, or on roque architectural thought were to be found
temporary wooden stages. not in stone and brick but painted on canvas
flats. Some artists worked on both; one
Renaissance theater-the Italian remarkable 18th-century dynasty of designers ,
the Bibienas, not only designed marvelous
influence stage settings, they also built some beautiful
As secular elements, in the form of comic Italian theaters one of which, the Margrave' s
 Entertainment and recreation 137

Opera House at Bayreuth, survives intact. In

England too, Inigo Jones (1573-1652) sowed
the seeds of his architectural career as a
designer of court masques.
While the Italian emphasis on the picture
inside the frame pushed the actors behind the
proscenium, the English theater retained the
tradition of a forestage until the 19th century.
Also, most English theaters were much
smaller than continental ones, and there was
more emphasis on acting than on spectacle.
The theaters that began to be built in America
in the 18th century followed this pattern.

English theaters
England's first permanent playhouse as such
was built in 1576 by the actor James Burbage,
just east of the City of London. Toward the
end of the century, Southwark in London
became the center of theatrical activity, in
response to the extraordinary flowering of
dramatic writing culminating in the work of
William Shakespeare (1564-1616). We have,
however, very little definite knowledge of
these theaters, even of the Globe which towers, lateral wings, and undercroft areas Reconstruction drawing of the
Shakespeare helped Richard Burbage (c. below the stage accessed by trapdoor, Fortune Theatre, London, England
(c.1588).
1567-1619) found in 1599, for none has sur- together with ancillary workshop areas and
vived. What is certain is that a raised thrust greenroom facilities, began to constitute a
stage projected into the middle of a space high proportion of the total volume of the
surrounded by three tiers of shallow bal- theater. Furthermore, the need for rapid
conies. These balconies and the stage were scenery changes Jed to many special devices
roofed, but the yard in the middle where the apart from the use of flying sets; these
"groundlings" stood was open to the sky. included the use of mobile sets on tracks, and
The stage was joined to one side of the arrangements of scenery on turntables.
structure and actors made use of its storeys as Throughout Europe the erection of an opera
part of the permanent setting. Only in the 17th house became the symbol of civilization. The
century was there a trend toward properly rows of private boxes, with the central royal
roofed buildings. box, and the parterre for Jesser folk, suited
the social climate; people came as much to be
seen as to see, and the lighting in the
Theaters from the mid-18th century auditorium was as strong as that on the stage.
In Europe, the stylistic lead eventually passed This did not suit Richard Wagner (1813-83),
from the Italians to first the Germans, with who determined that the audience must
the full flowering of Rococo decoration in, for become immersed in his music dramas with-
example, Munich ' s Residenz Theater (1753), out being distracted by their fellows, or even
and then to the French, who were challenging by the sight of the musicians. With the help of
so many established ideas at the time of their a local architect, and the financial backing of
Revolution. Exteriors became more grandly King Ludwig of Bavaria, he opened his
classical and the theater itself became a Festspielhaus at Bayreuth in 1876, a year after
separate monumental element, its foyers and the Paris Opera-and in total contrast to it.
approaches now as important as the Gone are the rows of boxes, the exotic
auditorium. The Grand Theater at Bordeaux, decorations , and the plush seats; instead the
built between 1773-80, was aptly named, with audience sits on cane seats in a single, steeply
a grand colonnade leading to a magnificent raked, fan-shaped tier, while the large
staircase in a great hall the whole height of the orchestra is hidden mostly under the stage.
building. This was the style which dominated The acoustics are extremely successful.
the European theaters of the 19th century, In the 19th-century theaters of Britain and
culminating in the Paris Opera of 1875, the U.S. the boxes had retreated to the sides
designed by Charles Garnier (1825- 98), a and the tiers were more open, though inter- Plan of La Scala, Milan (1778),
palace of fantastic splendor decorated with rupted by columns supporting the balconies. designed by Giuseppe Piermarini.
marble, sculpture, mosaic, and gilt. It was not until the 1890s that a system of The auditorium is surrounded by
seven tiers of boxes. Behind the
Backstage areas increased in size and com- cantilevered balconies allowed the elimination proscenium arch there is an area
plexity in order to make possible the use of of columns and made possible deep tiers with almost the size of the auditorium
increasingly more elaborate scenery. Fly improved sight lines for large audiences. used for stage sets and flats.
138 Entertainment and recreation

Other technical innovations included gas Europe and the U.S. since World War II
lighting, which allowed much greater control indicate that the theater is still very much
than candles and oil lamps, while electricity alive.
later brought still more intensity and flex- A recent design concept which deserves
ibility. Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan's special mention is the series of thrust-stage
capacious Auditorium Theater in Chicago theaters inspired by the theater director Sir
(1889) was one of the first to introduce electric Tyrone Guthrie (1900-71). He first adapted a
lighting, with thousands of carbon filament non-theater building, the Assembly Hall in
lamps giving the gilded auditorium a magical Edinburgh, and was then invited to Canada to
atmosphere. The Auditorium Theater also advise on the Festival Theater in Stratford,
enjoyed a form of air conditioning. Ontario. This was followed by Powell and
Firt; was a constant scourge. The greatest Moya's Chichester Festival Theatre in Eng-
danger was on stage, where there was a land and the Tyrone Guthrie Theater in
constant risk of candles, gas, or electric lights Minneapolis. They vary in detail but each has
igniting hanging canvas and wooden frames. a large amphitheater with a thrust stage
Interior view of foyer, Paris Opera,
Safety measures gradually introduced from surrounded on three sides, and a back wall to
France (1875), by Charles Garnier. the end of the 18th century included an the stage which can be modified within limits.
iron-framed safety curtain to shut off a stage (See also SERVICES.)
fire from the auditorium, drenchers and
sprinklers over the stage, and smoke ven- Movie Theaters
tilators in the roof. Means of escape for the
public was also the subject of legislation from Early forms of cinematographic
the end of the 19th century. entertainment
The movie theater is essentially a 20th-
The 20th century century building type, although its early
In this century, the traditions of the 19th- development took place in the 1890s. After
century theater allied to new safety reg- inventing the phonograph in 1876, Thomas
ulations became inhibiting to many directors Edison (1847-1931) was keen to devise its
and dramatists. They reacted against over- visual equivalent and by 1889 he and George
elaborate scenery and effects, the confines of Eastman (1854-1932) had perfected a celluloid
the picture frame, and the conventions forced film strip whose sequential frames could be
on actors in the very large-capacity theaters projected to give moving pictures. The first
which, for commercial reasons, were built in commercial use of this invention was in the
the Victorian Age. In 1910, for example, Max Kinetoscope, a manually operated slot
New York State Theater in the Reinhardt staged an in-the-round production machine in which short films, usually of a
lincoln Center complex (1964), by of Oedipus in an old Berlin circus building, risque or slapstick nature, were projected for
Philip Johnson.
later converted by the architect Hans Poelzig the individual viewer. Starting in 1892 these
(1869-1936) into the Grosses Schauspielhaus, machines could be found in rows in penny
with the audience on three sides of the stage. arcades or Kinetoscope parlors.
Many experiments in open stage pro- In the next few years a number of people
ductions were made by Vsevolod Meyerhold experimented with the projection of much
(1874-1942) in Russia, Jacques Copeau larger moving images on a sheet or screen
(1879-1949) in France and New York, and which could be viewed by many people at
Erwin Piscator (1893-1966) in Germany. It once. This first took place in public in Berlin
was Piscator who briefed Gropius for the and Paris in 1895, in London at the Empire
"total theater" project which, though never Music Hall in 1896, and in New York at
built, has had a great and not altogether Koster and Bial's Music Hall, also in 1896.
beneficial effect on design theory. The desire Because of this early association, the design
to experiment with audience-to-actor rela- of the first movie theaters was based on that
tionships has, in a machine-dominated age, of contemporary music halls: the auditorium
inevitably led to attempts to design buildings faced a stage (for entertainment between
which can be transformed by machinery . A films), with a proscenium arch and orchestra
more successful approach has been to design pit, and connecting with the street was an
a complex with two or three auditoriums, as entrance lobby with a box office and candy
in many projects built since 1945: at the kiosk.
Lincoln Center, New York, designed by The dramatic popular success of early
Opera House, Sydney, Australia Philip Johnson ~b. 1906) and others; the movies was, however, more connected with
(1957-73), by J0rn Utzon and National Arts Center, Ottawa; at Mannheim the development of amusement arcades than
engineers Ove Arup. The complex and Dusseldorf in Germany; at the National with this type of theater. By 1900 projection
houses two major theaters and
other facilities.
Theatre in London, designed by Denys Las- equipment was more easily obtainable and
dun (b. 1914); and at the Sydney Opera cheaper, and in the Los Angeles area Thomas
House, designed by Jf/lrn Utzon (b. 1918). L. Tally set up a movie show at the back of an
These are on the grand scale, but the many amusement arcade. So successful was this
more modest theater buildings erected in venture that he very soon took over the rest
 Entertainment and recreation 139

of the arcade as an auditorium and named it

"The Electric Theater." This arrangement
was quickly imitated around the world and
was generally known as the "nickelodeon."
By 1905 they were found throughout the U.S.,
and by 1907 there were 300 of them in New
York City alone. Each consisted of a simple
screen with a curtain, a space for a piano or
small orchestra, seating for the audience , and
advertising at.the street entrance. The English
equivalent was the "penny gaff."
The spread of the nickelodeon led directly
to a demand for higher standards of public
safety in movie theaters generally. In Britain
the Cinematograph Act of 1909 specified the
number of emergencey exits and the fire
extinguishers that must be provided, also
laying down as a requirement a fire-resistant
wall between the projection room and the
audience. Similar controls were adopted in the
U.S. but varied from state to state.

although following many of the same trends, Grauman's Chinese Theaters in

was in some ways very different from that in Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles
American movie theater design 1910-30 the U.S.; it also varied from one country to (1927), by Mayer and Holler.
After 1910 the design of movie theaters another.
became more competitive, the general aim In Germany the traditional importance of
being to increase audience sizes, both by the small opera house, with its wide aisle
attracting those who previously would have encircling the auditorium, resulted in a strong
nothing to do with nickelodeons and those emphasis on the auditorium as a separate
who frequented music halls. Upholstered design element. This emphasis was clear in
tip-up seats replaced simple benches, and Oscar Kaufman's theaters of 1909 and 1911 in
lounge furniture was put out in the foyer . At Berlin. German designers also realized that
this time, the main elements of a movie their theaters were primarily used at night and
theater consisted of a highly decorated street developed facades based on elaborate displays
facade with a barnlike hall behind it, accom- of neon lighting.
modating a decorative interior. In France there was a general tendency to
Gradually the designers gained confidence. follow the American "atmospheric" pattern
In the U.S. , Thomas Lamb was instrumental for large theaters, but with the audience at
in providing luxurious, spacious buildings that several different levels. But the French also
could be enjoyed by the public at popular developed small, specialist theaters whose
prices. His approach was that of the classical design was specifically directed at certain
or "hard top" school which gave the public sections of the public.
the elegance of chandeliers , elaborate stair- Finally, in Europe, the Modem Movement
cases, and fine draperies, and by 1921 he had was beginning to influence theater design . The
designed over 300 movie theaters. Another Skandia Cinema in Stockholm (1922) designed
designer, John Emberson, developed a dif- by Gunnar Asplund (1885-1940) is an early
ferent approach with "atmospheric" interiors example of this influence, relying as it does on
reflecting the romantic and exotic character of sound planning and simple decor. A later
the epic films of the day. The Capitol and example is the U niversum Kino in Berlin
Paradise Theaters, Chicago; Lowes Paradise, (1926-28) designed by Erich Mendelsohn
New York; and the Olympia, Miami, exem- (1887-1953) which has a horseshoe-shaped
plified this approach. In Hollywood, the auditorium derived entirely from functional
Egyptian Theater of 1922 and Grauman's considerations.
Chinese Theater of 1927 are also of this type,
but have large forecourts in order to accom- The 1930s
modate the crowds on premiere nights. The
size of theaters also increased; the Roxy in The next major influence on the design of
New York, designed by Walter Ahlschlager, movie theaters was the advent of "talkies" in
had a seating capacity of 6,000. 1928. Suddenly it became important that the
shape and finish of auditoriums should re-
inforce sound production and eliminate echo,
and in these respects many of the older
European movie theater design 1910-30 bamlike interiors were seriously deficient.
The design of movie theaters in Europe, Also, acoustic insulation against extraneous
140 Entertainment and recreation

noise from outside the theater became impor-

tant.
Most of these problems were successfully
dealt with within a few years, and during the
same period the quality of sound reproduction
was improved with multicellular, high-
frequency hom speakers replacing one simple
loudspeaker. The overall result of these
improvements was a significant increase in
audience sizes. In London the Gaumont State
of I937 had a seating capacity of 4,000 and
waiting space for another 4,000, and in Britain
generally at this time the average seating
capacity for a local movie theater was I ,400-
I,800.
Besides these general developments, two
new types of movie theater were developed in
the I930s : the news theater, and the drive-in
theater. The news theater had existed pre-
viously but not in a specialized form; during
this period many were built in urban locations
wherever people might have time to spare. impact by using three synchronized projectors One of a large chain of English
Very often the sites chosen were restricted on a wide screen and stereophonic sound from movie theaters; the Odeon in
Burnley, Lancashire, England
and noisy, and required considerable planning five speakers. The following year 20th Cen- (1937), by Harry Weedon.
skill to overcome these problems . The De tury-Fox brought out the CinemaScope sys-
Handelsblad Cineac in Amsterdam, built in tem which used an auxiliary anamorphic lens
I934, by Johannes Duiker (1890-I935) was a in front of the normal lens to project images of
good Modem Movement example of this twice the width that was previously possible.
type. The CinemaScope system with its deep curv-
The drive-in theater was first developed in ing screen and single projector proved to be
the U.S., usually in suburban locations, and more easily adaptable to most existing theat-
consisted of a fan-shaped parking lot, with ers than the Cinerama system with its three
each parking space supplied with a loud- projectors.
speaker which could be detached from a post The CinemaScope system is still widely
and taken into individual automobiles. The used today; more complex systems have been
screen was supported by a structure that developed, often to project 360° images, but
could withstand extreme wind conditions. The these have so far had only limited use. Walt
screen itself had to be as large as possible in Disney's Cinerama of 1958 encircled the
order to be seen from a distance; in a theater audience with a continuous image on a
at Point Florida, Trinidad, the screen is I IO x perimeter screen in a circular auditorium.
54 ft. (33 x I6 m) and the height of the whole More recently the "New York Experience"
structure is 74 ft. (22 m). Also included in the and the "London Experience" have com-
layout were rest rooms, snack bars, and play bined still and moving images projected simul-
areas, and sometimes food was available on taneously, together with stereophonic sound,
trays that could be taken into the automobiles. in order to create a complete atmospheric
Obviously this type of theater was particularly experience. One of the most advanced the-
suited to countries with a good climate. aters of this general type is the Space Theater
at the San Diego Hall of Science. Here the
audience sit in reclining seats to view con-
Postwar movie theaters tinuous images projected onto a tilted hemi-
After World War II, there was growing spherical screen which is the underside of the
competition between the movies and radio dome enclosing the auditorium. The systems
and television which necessitated a fresh drive in use here are the Spitz Transit Simulator
to attract larger audiences to movie theaters. and the Omnimax Film Projection System.
During the war several technical advances In recent years commercial pressure on the
had been made in cinematography, specif- cinema industry has caused a reduction
ically in the development of new types of in the number and size of movie theaters.
photographic emulsions, color systems, and Promoters have subdivided existing theaters
camera lenses. These advances were eagerly so that several small auditoriums under the
taken over by the movie industry and as a same management can provide a diversity of
result it was soon possible to project onto film entertainment with flexibility of audi-
larger screens without any appreciable loss in torium size. Automation is reducing the staff
picture quality. required for projection. Cinemation used by The De Handelsblad Cineac,
Amsterdam, Holland (1934), by
In 1952 Cinerama was introduced with the the Rank Organization has the complete prog- Johannes Duiker.
aim of creating a powerful visual and aural ram, auditorium lighting sequence, internal
 Entertainment and recreation 141

music, and curtain control monitored elec- nificance comprising many places of worship,
tronically. Few cinemas have been built in and this significantly influenced the form of
Europe in recent years, but by adapting them the stadiums.
in this way, they have managed to survive in The first Olympic stadium was designed as
the face of increasing competition from color an embankment stadium with a capacity of
television. 20,000. Spectators were seated on banks cut
into the Cronus Hill on one side and on banks
Sports buildings built up artificially on the other. A small
Sport as a formalized demonstration of skill grandstand for honored guests was situated
and prowess appears to have existed in almost near the finish of the racecourse which was
every civilization. Certainly buildings for 100 ft. (30 m) wide and 660 ft. (200 m) long.
sport were known in Ancient Egypt, Mexico, The athletes entered from the east through a
Classical Greece, and Imperial Rome, and special archway from the Altris or sacred J.M. Kirov Stadium, Krestovsky
major sports festivals were recorded in Imper- grove-the original site of places of worship. Island, Leningrad, USSR (1937). A
ial China. The basic types of sports and Adjoining the stadium was the hippodrome, massive open-air arena built for
recreation buildings were developed 2,000 to with a field of play some 1,050 x 2,525 ft. (320 spectator sports.
2,500 years ago in the form of stadiums, x 770 m) for horse racing and with spectator
palaestrae, gymnasiums, thermae, theaters, banks in a U-shape on the surrounding slopes
hippodromes, basilicas, walled courts, and and hills; again the open end faces east toward
domed hall structures. the Altris. The Gate of Triumph for the
Sports buildings can be divided into two horsemen, however, was out to the west,
distinct categories; those whose primary func- keeping the horses away from the sacred
tion is the promotion of sport as a mass grove. The layout of the site at Olympia, with
spectator event, and those designed for par- the main stadiums to the west of the Altris
ticipation. In their modern forms, these two and the training buildings to the east, reflects
categories, although based around the same the cultural and religious significance of the
core activities, bear little relation to each Games as the temples are en route between
other as building types. They appear to have training and performing areas. This allowed
distinctly different roots and differ greatly in athletes to invoke assistance of the gods
both physical and institutional scale. before they raced and to give thanks after-
ward.
Mass spectator sports buildings Other major festivals of sport and demon-
The basic geometric requirements for sports strations of physical skill were held in Greece
arenas have remained unchanged throughout in association with festivals of the arts and
their 2,500-year history and are the same for theater. The circular theater forms of Clas-
athletics and ice hockey in the 20th century as sical Greece established seating tier patterns
they were for gladiator events in the 1st which are still present in stadiums today. The
century. The plan forms of all mass spectator theater at Epidaurus, the best preserved of the
stadiums are controlled by the ergonomic Greek theaters, has 32 rows of seats forming
requirements of good views of the field of play the lower tier separated from the top 20 rows
for standing or seated crowds. The variations by a wide gallery. The seating tiers are
of seating arrangements-horseshoe, oval, segmented by 24 radial stairways giving
round, rectangular, etc.-are generated by access to all the seats. The seating tiers were
optimizing the relationship between players, constructed by cutting into existing land forms
the field of play ' and the audience, within and setting marble slabs in the cut ground.
given topography and orientation. There was a theater of this kind, with a
The division of seating tiers into segments circular area for the orchestra and a raised
and blocks develops both from the practical stage, in every major town.
considerations of access and exit and also Imperial Rome The Romans developed more
from the desire to denote social rank or price urban forms of stadiums and arenas explicitly
in relation to the best views. The addition of for mass entertainment rather than cultural
ancillary accomodation for both audience and celebration. Sport as a mass entertainment
performers is related to the primary move- was seen as one way of subduing a potentially
ment routes. The development of all stadiums restless populace. It was also seen as an
can be seen as variations on these four factors essential part of educating the young for
using available technology. military training. As the maintenance of the
Classical Greece By far the most influential Empire was a primary concern of the ruling
center for sports in recorded history is Oly- classes, sporting prowess was a matter of
mpia, home of the Olympic Games. It is also general social concern.
one of the earliest sites where evidence of The Romans continued the plan form of the
building remains. The Games developed over Greek hippodrome in the development of
a period of 1,000 years from 776 Be to AD 394 their circuses. The largest circus built (in AD
when they were banned as a pagan ritual by 311) was the Circus of Maxentius which had
Theodosius 1 (346-395). The site at Olympia the same field of play as the Hippodrome at
had always been a place of cultural sig- Olympia but the seating tiers were built up in
142 Entertainment and recreation

masonry and concrete to seat, according to architecture was to have pride of place.
Pliny, 250,000 people. The seating tiers were The 1908 Games in London provided the
surrounded by colonnaded galleries and stair- first permanent Olympic Stadium at the White
ways giving access to the ground, a scale of City London, designed by James B. Fulton.
construction unknown to the Greeks. Although a very plain functional elliptical
Amphitheaters were also a form unknown stadium for 80,000 people, it gave impetus to
to the Greeks but were found in every the revival of Olympic architecture. How-
important Roman settlement. They are good ever, the architecture competition within the
exponents of the character of life of the Games did not generate the excitement that
Romans, who preferred displays of mortal de Courbertin expected, and it was not until
combat (considered to be good training for standardized rules and dimensions were estab-
Interior view of the Colosseum,
a nation of soldiers), to the demonstrations of lished that the challenge of building stadiums Rome (AD 80); the largest Roman
skills favored by the Greeks. The largest was taken up. It is worth noting that the most amphitheater.
Roman amphitheater was built in AD 80. exciting sports stadium developments of this
Initially known as Amphitheater Flavium, it period lay outside the Olympic competitions,
was later renamed the Colosseum after the notably the racetrack stadium of Zarzuela
enormous statue of Emperor Nero (37-68) near Madrid, Spain (1935), designed by
which was erected nearby. In plan it is a vast Eduardo Torroja (1899-1%1). Here the main
ellipse, like two Greek theaters face-to-face, stand, in the form of a fluted deadweight
620 x .513 ft. (190 x 156 m) with an internal concrete cantilever roof, was counterbalanced
arena 287 x 180 ft. (87 x 55 m) surrounded by by vertical tie rods behind the stanchions.
a wall behind which was the Imperial podium. It was not until 1928 that fixed dimensions
Above the podium level were seats in four for athletics tracks were settled, and the
diminishing levels for 50,000 people with period up to 1948 was one of rationalization.
galleries and access stairs behind . The main Moving the Games to a new location every
structure for the seating tiers and galleries was four years made it essential to have uni-
concrete, with 80 stone, arched openings on versally accepted dimensions for all aspects of
each of the four levels, the ones on the second sports, and their equipment. Sports arenas
floor forming entrances to the staircases. The became one of the only building types with
performers , both gladiators and animals, were unified functional requirements. In addition,
housed under the lowest seating tier at arena increasingly sophisticated measuring and tim-
floor level. The arena floor could also be ing devices introduced during this period
flooded for naval displays. The positioning of created complexities which demanded the
the Imperial podium just behind the arena development of new forms and skills beyond
wall allowed the Emperor to compete for the those envisaged by the builders of the original
crowd's attention with the performers. Olympic stadiums.
The organization and form of Spanish bull- The acceptance of international regulations
rings continued the form of the Roman for sport influenced all sports stadiums not
amphitheater long after the end of the Roman just those for the Olympics themselves. The
Empire. They adhered to the elliptical or regulations not only introduced set sizes but
circular layout with the same strictly hierar- also considerations of wind speed and direc-
chical relationships between performers, tion. With the added influences of staging
important personnel, and audience. With the sports events in countries with more variable
exception of the bullrings, there is little climates than that of Greece, coupled with
evidence of a revival of mass spectator sports demands for increasing spectator comfort,
stadiums until the 19th century, when sport stadium forms began to develop around the
once again became a matter for general social problem of building roofs .
concern with the rising importance of physical The range of structures developed for the
education in Europe. partial roofing of large field stadiums and the
Modern times Attempts to revive the Olympic complete roofing of many smaller arenas have
Games were made as early as the 18th developed a new range of forms through the
century in Greece and Germany. Their true application of reinforced concrete, steel, and
revival, however, was due to the French lightweight materials to long spans. The
educationalist Pierre de Courbertin in 1894. Olympic buildings of the last 30 years provide
His vision gave a new impetus to building for useful examples of these building forms.
sport. The first modern Olympics were held in The first Olympic stadium at White City,
Greece in 1896 using the reconstructed London, had a simply supported steel truss
Panathenian Stadium in Athens with a 1,093 roof spanning over the seats on the straights
ft. (333 .3 m) track within the U-shaped tiers of from the top of the seating tiers to columns in
seats. The second and third Games in Paris front of the stands. This form of roof had the
and St Louis were staged alongside world serious disadvantage of columns cutting
exhibitions in temporary accommodation. In across everyone's view. The introduction of Exterior view ofthe Plaza de Toros
Monumental, Barcelona, Spain
1906 Pierre de Courbertin tried to introduce this form of roof did not change the basic (1913-14), by Raspall y Mas.
the arts competitions into the Games; five amphitheater form of the stadium. The Spanish bullrings continued the
competitions were introduced, of which Amsterdam Games stadium for 1928 designed tradition of Roman amphitheaters.
 Entertainment and recreation 143

by J. Wils had a more sophisticated roof of a

similar form using a counterbalanced steel
truss cantilevered out beyond columns one-
third of the way down the seating tier.
Therefore only one-third of the seats had a
partially obstructed view.
The first completely covered spectator
arena for the Olympics was the swimming
arena in Melbourne, Australia (1956) ,
designed by Borland, Mcintyre, and Murphy .
The steel trusses for the roof are supported on
raking lattice beams carrying the seating tiers
and giving the building a trapezoidal form
which reflects the layout of seats around a
rectangular pool. The Palazzetto sports palace
designed by Pier Nervi (b. 1891) and A.
Vitellozi for the 1960 Games in Rome is a
circular , domed structure which spans clear
over the central arena and surrounding seating
tiers. The dome is constructed from precast
concrete members forming a self-supporting,
lattice-grid shell held up on fine, raking,
reinforced-concrete columns which are free of stadiums. It was feared that the shadows cast Palauetto delle Sport, Rome, Italy.
the seating tiers. by a solid roof would have made color filming One of two sports halls built for the
1960 Olympic Games by Pier Luigi
The Aztec stadium designed by P . R. Vas- of the Games impossible. Nervi and A. Vitellozi.
quez and R. Mijares and built primarily for The Montreal Stadium (1974) designed by
football for the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, is R. Taillibert and A. Daoust was the first
an example of the new forms generated by athletics stadium to have completely covered
completely roofing a multiple tiered stadium. seating areas. The immense reinforced-
The basic form of the Aztec Stadium is concrete cantiliver beams are tied back into
similar to that of the Colosseum in Rome, the structure for the seating tiers as in the
however the introduction of an in situ case of the Aztec Stadium. The arched form
reinforced-concrete frame with the cantilever of the cantilevers with their outer tips
roof beams contiguous with the supports for restrained by a concrete ring beam dominates
the seating tiers produces an extraordinarily the overall form of the stadium. The stadium
light appearance-a dematerialized Col- is still incomplete as it was proposed to build
osseum. The Swimming and Sports Arena for a raking concrete tower rising above the
the same Games, designed by Rosen, cantilever roof that would carry a rectractable
Recamier, Gutierrez, and Valderde, intro- fabric roof to cover the central ellipse and so
duced another new form of structure again allow the stadium to be used throughout the
generated by the roof spans and independent year.
of the seating tiers . Using a structural form The Sports City designed by John Roberts
derived from suspension bridge construction, and Partners, which is proposed as the basis
the two rectangular halls are lined at their for a bid for the Olympics in the late 1980s in
ends by tall pylons which carry the curved Riyadh , is a further development of roofing. It
steel suspension ropes for the roofs, with comprises an immense steelwork lattice arch
externally exposed guys stabilizing the spanning I ,200 ft. (366 m) across the center of
pylons. the arena carrying cable nets on either side to
The Munich Stadium for the 1972 Games, cover the whole stadium. Sunbreakers within
designed by Behnisch and Partners with the the cable-net roof are proposed to give a
engineer Frei Otto (b . 1925), is the first controlled environment while maintaining
stadium where the roof structure becomes the conditions for "natural turf" to survive.
dominant form for the stadium as a whole. When completed, this stadium will produce a
The structure of the seating tiers becomes a form where the roof do~"s not simply dominate
secondary element. The roof consists of a net but will dwarf the rest of the structure.
of cables covered with plexiglass sheets sus- The development of large field arenas has
pended by steel ropes from masts which are now reached a decisive turning point whereby
guyed down to concrete anchor foundations the technology exists to cover them com-
buried in the surrounding landscape. This pletely and may result in " outdoor stadiums"
produces an undulating form in sympathy with becoming simply large-scale versions of
the landscape but independent of the rigorous "indoor stadiums. "
geometric requirements of the seating tiers Future developments The range of examples
Interior of main Olympic Stadium,
and track. The use of this translucent roofing described above shows not only the increasing Munich, Germany (1968- 72). by G.
material is the first example of the direct technical feasibility of covering spectator Behnisch and Partners, and Frei
influence of television on the construction of sports stadiums, but also that as the dimen- Otto.
144 Entertainment and recreation

sional and environmental requirements for existing buildings. Fives courts are directly
each sport have been codified and fixed so the based on the form of a courtyard at Eton
technical solutions for the building envelope College, England, and real tennis courts are
have become divorced from the strict thought to be based on the court at Hampton
geometry of the sports. Many building forms Court, England, where the game was played
have evolved in the last 30 years which are in the reign of Henry VIII (1491-1547).
quite distinct from earliest stadiums although Buildings in and around courtyards was the
the core activities remain the same. However, accepted form of early sports buildings.
the immense capital and running cost of these Classical Greece The Gymnasium at Olympia
buildings is causing great concern as the level was built in the 3rd century BC and was
of use of the facilities does not appear to intended for practice of events requiring a
justify the level of investment. There appear great deal of space. The central open court-
Astrodome (Harris County to be three areas of development in response yard was surrounded by pillared archways
Stadium) in Houston, Texas (1965), to this concern. and halls, the largest of which was the racing
by Lloyd and Morgan. The First, there are attempts to find cheaper hall 690 x 38 ft. (210.5 x 11 .5 m)-slightly
enclosed stadium can solutions to roofing large spaces. Experiments longer than the length of the main stadium
accommodate 66,000.
such as those carried out at the Pontiac racecourse. The palaestrae of the same
Metropolitan Stadium at Michigan and at the period, built for gymnastics, wrestling, box-
University of Iowa using cable-retained, air- ing, and jumping, were constructed in the
supported structures spanning 722 ft. (219 m) form of a central open square surrounded by
and 424 ft. (129 m) respectively, claim con- restrooms, classrooms, dressing rooms, and
siderable cost savings and may develop a baths. The biggest sports building at Olympia,
further form of stadium building. the Leonidaeum, was also of this form.
Second, there are attempts to increase the Originally designed for gymnastics, this build-
range of events held in any one stadium. ing typifies the pure courtyard form with a
There have been some attempts to develop central square surrounded completely by a
banks of seats which can be moved to shallow pitched-roofed building colonnaded
accommodate different field sizes, and hyd- both externally and internally.
raulic floors have been installed capable of Imperial Rome The Romans built extensively
Exterior of the Astrodome (Harris
converting swimming stadiums into dry sports for participation in sport as a leisure activity.
County Stadium), Texas. arenas. The development of these mechanical Every major town had thermae, which are
aids has been restricted to the U .S. and their normally thought of as simply baths buildings
economic viability has yet to be proved. but usually contained many other facilities as
Third, there are attempts to find new forms well . The thermae building form also
of mass entertainment events which will developed from the courtyard form , although
attract sufficiently large audiences, both live the outer wall is no longer made up of the
and on television, to offset the costs of the roofed buildings.
buildings. The sports extravaganzas and The thermae at Caracalla was the greatest
sporting superstar competitions j:Jave undoub- sports and recreation building of antiquity.
tedly introduced an unprecedented level of Started in AD 211, it consisted of a sur-
finance into the staging of sports events and, rounding colonnaded wall housing small
along with professional sport, have introduced apartments, lecture theaters , shops, accom-
stringent technical requirements into stadium modation for slaves, and the water reservoirs
design in order to exploit television revenues for the baths. Within the walls the main baths
to the full. The Houston Astrodome (1965) building stands in a park with avenues lined
designed by Lloyd and Morgan, and the New with trees and with sculptures and fountains;
Orleans Unidome are examples of this. The part of the park was set out as a small arena
continued development of stadiums may well for wrestling and gymnastics. The central
reflect the need to maintain this revenue building was an immense basilica structure
income. covering 285,000 sq. ft. (26,473 sq. m) with a
central hall 183 x 79 ft. (55.5 x 24 m) roofed
with a three-bayed intersecting vault built in
Participant sports buildings concrete and held up on eight masonry piers
Unlike stadiums, participant sports buildings faced with granite columns. The surrounding
do not have a consistent basic controlling halls, all of vaulted and domed construction,
geometry and have developed more from the were highly decorated with mosaics and
use of existing buildings or building types. For sculpture.
this reason there appears to be little direct The courtyard form continued through from
connection between early and modern forms, Greece and Rome to the Spanish plaza, such
except in the case of specific games such as as Plaza Madrid (1619), and to the Zwinger
walled court ball games where the court Dresden, East Germany (1728), but until the
configuration is itself derived from an earlier real revival of interest in mass participation in
building. Games such as squash rackets, sport in Germany and Britain in the 19th
fives, real (royal) tennis, and peleste all have century, there appears to be little reference or
their origins in games played in courtyards of interest in these traditional forms despite
 Entertainment and recreation 145

archaeological information being published at

the time.
Modern times The revival of interest in sport
around the 1890s coincided with both the
height of Imperial effort and with the concern
for public health and fitness resulting from the
appalling conditions in cities. Sport was con-
ceived in a strenuous abnegatory spirit not as
leisure to be enjoyed. The forms of Roman
and Greek origin may have appeared inap-
propriate for this reason. The first generation
of public baths in Britain had more to do with
public cleanliness than leisure or enter-
tainment, and the development of gym-
nasiums associated mainly with education
were seen more as centers for endurance and
fitness training than for elegant demon-
strations of prowess. These buildings were of
a basically utilitarian form normally built in
masonry with cast-iron roof trusses with
lantern lights mounted above them. The spans
involved posed no particular challenge, and
the building forms remain within the range
developing for other hall structures of the
period such as industrial premises.
The rationalization of dimensions and con-
trol requirements for individual sports is
clearly reflected in the forms of public sports
centers in Europe. Those centers which group sheds. The future form of sports buildings will Ground plan of the Thermae of
together facilities for a variety of sports, such depend on the relative pressures of demand Caracalla, Rome.
as Billingham Forum, Carlton Forum, and between the leisure side and the competition
Picketts Lock sports centers in England, are training side to produce economically viable
planned as a series of courts and halls, each facilities.
with its correct height, length, and breadth Increasing sophistication in timing and
grouped around centralized common facilities measuring equipment alongside the inter-
such as changing rooms. By minimizing cir- national acceptance of dimensional criteria
culation and placing the main spaces around a has produced ever-increasing demands for
central core this generation of sports centers buildings producing optimum controlled envi-
tend to have a massive and unrelenting ronments for each sport. At the same time,
exterior with none of the leisured generosity concern over the economic and social viability
of the colonnaded form. of institutions generated by these factors is
Similarly, the change in form of swimming growing. The future developments in the form
pools from public health pools to measured of sports buildings must lie in the resolution of
competition pools generated a group of build- these demands in order to produce solutions
ings during the 1950s and early 1960s of a capable of answering society's sporting needs
slightly more open form . But it was not until at an appropriate social and economic cost.
the early 1970s that participant sport reached
a level where it became a marketable com-
modity. Sports buildings have now started to
include bars and restaurants as standard
accommodation, and free-form swimming
pools with wave machines and palm trees are
being introduced more akin the facilities of
luxury hotels than the "public health" pools
of 50 years earlier.
Future developments The assimilation of leis-
ure into sports centers otherwise dominated
by the dimensional and control requirements
of particular sports has not yet been resolved
in terms of the building form . Some hybrids
have developed, such as the sports center at
Swindon, England, designed by Gillinson and
Empire Pool, Wembley, London
Barnett, where a free-form pool is housed in (1934), by Sir Owen Williams. A Interior of the multi-purpose
an elegant domed building and adjoins the large enclosed swimming pool leisure center at Swindon, England
sports halls which are still massive unrelieved with a movable floor. (1976), by Gillinson and Barnett.
146 Institutional

Institutional
Hospitals
Medical knowledge in early societies was
nearly always confined to the priesthood.
Medical schools, therefore, arose in the guise
of temple complexes such as those in Edfu in
Egypt, Benares in India, and Epidaurus in the
Peloponnese. At the close of the Roman
Empire a few slave hospitals existed, but in
general wealthy landowners could afford their
own doctors; peasants or slaves were too
disposable to warrant the expensive hos-
pitalization. Valetudinaria were, however,
built for the Legions, and the example at
I nchtuthil shows a rectangular building about
200 x 300 ft. (60 x 90 m) around a court with
single or two-bed rooms down either side of a
wide corridor. Hospital buildings are known
to have existed in the civilizations of India,
Ceylon, Persia, and Arabia. But they were
rare because a hospital is the product of the
developed society and is dependent upon the
moral and economic support of the com-
munity.
The Middle Ages
Medieval man lived in a highly structured
feudal society where change was slow. His
buildings reflect this and were constructed
slowly and used over very long periods of
time. Innovation was concentrated in
ecclesiastical structures, and only insofar as
these were adapted for hospital purposes
could technical invention be credited to hos-
pitals . The basic medieval hospital unit is the
church nave of the early Christian church.
This came to be converted into a ward by
placing beds down either side. The simple
bed-nave then developed ancillary accom-
modation, sometimes around a court, and in
time several bed-naves would be linked arranged down either side of the great bed- Church of Notre Dame de
together in a haphazard form. There were nave, with its altar at the far end. The Hotel Fontenilles, Tonnerre, France,
exceptions , such as the specially built infir- Dieu at Beaune, founded in 1443 by Nicholas founded c. 1293. An early example
of a Hotel Oieu type of hospital with
maries attached to the great abbeys, and the Rolin and completed around 1450, was a an open-plan bed-nave.
isolation hospitals. further development. Its ancillary accom-
By the 12th century infectious patients, modation was arranged around a court, and
usually lepers, were separated from the non- the great hall 148 x 45 ft . (45 x 14 m) had 30
infectious and were placed in a lazar house or beds divided by timber partitioning. It is
Maladerie . Ordinary hospitals were known as thought to be the first example of a hospital
Hotel Dieu. The Maladerie de Tortoi, built in where rich patients, accommodated on the
the 14th century, demonstrated the clear upper floors, were thereby segregated from
division of function thought necessary in the the poor patients .
treatment of infectious sick. The entire build- As the Church became wealthier and better
ing, sited outside the town wall, was itself organized, great abbeys were built and the
surrounded by a high wall through which the monastery hospital, perhaps the nearest thing
patients were fed. They could be supervised to a medieval teaching hospital, emerged. As
from a high-level gallery in the bed ward, and size increased, so did the problem of sani-
a corridor linked the ward to the chapel, tation. At Fountains Abbey, founded in Eng-
where patients were separated by a barrier land in 1132, many buildings were sited along
from outsiders. At Tonerre the Church of or over the river, which was widened for
Notre Dame de Fontenilles, founded 1293-95, sewage. The infirmary itself rested on great
is a fine example of a simple Hotel Dieu. It piles and spanned the multiple drains that ran
had a massive wooden barrel vault with beneath it.
openings for ventilation. One window per Medieval hospitals continued to be used
cubicle was provided for the 40 beds, and often expanded during the Renaissance.
 Institutional 147

In the 15th and 16th centuries hospitals times accommodated up to 2,000. Each
averaged 300-500 beds, but by the 17th and patient had access through a door between the
18th centuries these same hospitals would beds to the sanitary undercroft below and in
have increased to take between 1,000 and this aspect it was far in advance of other great
2,000 beds. There was tremendous over- buildings of the time, such as San Spirito in
crowding, particularly of the urban hospitals. Rome, or the great hospital of the Order of St
In France commerce developed and towns John in Valletta, Malta. Both these fine
expanded rapidly. The Hotel Dieu in Paris, buildings were T-shaped in plan and the latter,
before it was burned down in 1772, was built by Grand Master La Cassiere in 1575,
perhaps the greatest medieval example. Its and enlarged by Cottoner in 1662, became one
original bed-nave became interlocked with of the major medical centers of Europe in the
other bed-naves over the centuries, each a 16th and 17th centuries. It was badly damaged
complete hospital in itself, until this enormous in the last war, but the great ward, 520 x 35ft.
medieval agglomeration bridged the Seine and (158 x 11 m), can still be seen today, sited
extended along the south bank. In 1515 up to above the harbor where the galleys landed to
eight people shared a bed and 7,000 patients offload the wounded. Beneath the great ward
inhabited the warren, with a mortality rate of were galley slaves' quarters, and the iron- Ospedale Maggiore, M ilan, Italy,
one in four. There were few stairs for escape pillared beds were backed up by a chapel, begun in 1461 by Antonio Filarete.
and these acted as airborne infection routes library, linen store, laundry, and chief phy- Only one court of a much larger
due to stack effect. In 1748, the ventilation sician's quarters. plan (centered on a chapel) was
completed.
was examined by Duhamel, who proposed In Spain Filarete's crucifonn plan reached
that fresh air be admitted through high win- its highest perfection. In 1504 Enrique Egas
dows and wanned by stoves. built the hospital of Santa Cruz in Toledo and
here two-storey bed-naves with an altar at the
The Renaissance richly vaulted crossing enabled eight wards to
In the early decades of the 15th century celebrate mass simultaneously. In 1591 Juan
Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446) and his col- de Telosa introduced the double-sided loggia
leagues deliberately set out to break with their at Medina del Campo; previously bed-naves
medieval inheritance and create a new art. In would be either without loggias or provided
1419 he built the Foundling Hospital in Flor- with a single-sided one, being part of an abbey
ence, with its famous arcade and terra-cotta cloister. He now provided both inner and
medallions by Luca della Robbia (1400-82). outer loggias down both long sides of the
Buildings now began to reflect the geometric bed-nave, not only to give shaded access, but
harmony that Renaissance man perceived in to provide secluded ambulatory space for
the universe. There was a mathematical exac- patients. His bed-naves were subdivided by
titude in the balance and symmetry of design, central altars and had deep alcoves for addi-
and inspiration was drawn from classical tional privacy, while the whole building was
Greece and Rome. Buildings were seen as arranged around a central courtyard.
self-contained and finite, often conceived on
an axis and composed for maximum propor-
tional harmony. Hospitals began to have The 18th century
formalized master plans in the shape of stars, In England leprosy had declined in the 15th
squares, or tees. Sometimes a master plan century and the Maladerie fell into decay .
would take several centuries to complete, as The dissolution of the monasteries between Medina del Campo (1591) by Juan
did the Ospedale Maggiore built by Filarete 1530 and 1540 put an end to almost all the de Telosa : elevation and plan. This
(1400-69), but the concept was adhered to remaining hospitals for 200 years. As the introduced a bed-nave with loggias
doggedly through the years, which was quite Industrial Revolution gathered pace and the for shaded access and with
ambulatory space for patients.
different to the haphazard growth of the closure of common land occurred, the sick
medieval period. congregated in the industrial centers. The
The Ospedale Maggiore is a transitional population of England increased from 5.5 to 9
building with a Renaissance plan and Gothic million during the 18th century. The threat of
facades. The austere geometry is monumental epidemic diseases became imminent, but the
in scale, with medieval bed-naves retained but importance of good ventilation was now rec-
set out in the form of a double cross with ognized. With the advent of mechanization,
altars at their intersections. He placed men on people began to experiment with hospital
one side of the great court and women on the ventilation. In about 1743 Hale's ventilators
other. The building was sited near the town were installed at Winchester, while Sir John
moat and canals were channeled through Pringle, an anny surgeon, advocated certain
undercrofts which were flushed by rainwater minimum distances between beds in naturally
in times of storm. The stonnwater pipes ventilated wards.
doubled as ventilation pipes to bring air to the The mid-18th century saw the beginning of
undercrofts, which included store rooms for the corridor and pavilion plan fonn, spec-
bread, wine, and live cattle. Laundry, too, ifically designed to reduce airborne infection.
was undertaken here. Originally designed for For the first time a deliberate and methodical
300-350 patients, the building has in recent approach was applied to health buildings;
148 Institutional

wards, at right angles to the communication The 19th century-Renkioi

system instead of alongside it, became a
standard feature of hospitals from then on. One of the products of the Industrial Revolu-
The Royal Naval Hospital at Plymouth, Eng- tion was the ability of nations to make war on
land, designed by Rovehead in 1756--64, was one another more effectively. As man became
possibly the first hospital to be designed on more obsessed by mechanization, so he
the pavilion system; single and two-storey developed prefabrication techniques and
ward pavilions were connected by col- began to apply them to hospitals. In 1855 the
onnades, the roofs of which served as ter- British Army, at war in the Crimea, com-
races. The whole building housed I ,250 beds missioned a hospital from Isambard K. Brunei
and probably formed the basis for the great (1806-59). At Renkioi he produced the cheap-
Mower General Hospital, Chestnut
French hospital ofLariboisiere, since members est, lightest, and fastest building yet seen. The Hill, Philadelphia (1863), built by
of a French Royal Commission visited Ply- ward units weighed 200 lb. (90 kg) per bed, John McArthur Jr, with 51 timber
mouth with a view to adopting its design in were timber-framed with attachable, winter- pavilions providing some 3,100
the rebuilding of the Hotel Dieu in Paris. insulated linings, and had polished tin roofs beds.
In Paris the Academie des Sciences initi- with external whitewashed walls to reflect the
ated a competition for hospital design. One of heat in summer. An iron kitchen per 1,000
the greatest submissions was by Jean Baptiste meals and an iron washhouse per 2,000 beds
LeRoy in 1773. He believed "a hospital ward were provided with other ancillary buildings.
was really a machine for the treatment of the The pavilions were placed either side of the
sick" and had his building been built, it would central spine---22 ft. (7 m) wide--to give
probably have been the most splendid exam- extensibility to ground levels, and his organ-
ple of hospital architecture since Filarete. ization diagram remains valid today. Down
Bernard Poyet's design advocated a radial the center of this spine ran a railroad from
building to increase natural ventilation to the which the troops would be unloaded directly
bed areas and had gigantic dimensions. It was from the ships. The sewers were constructer\
the ultimate in formalism and was rejected by with interlocking wooden trunking mains, and
the Academie. Lavoisier and his colleagues, a positive-pressure, decentralized ventilation
however, designed a hospital that was not system was installed by means of a rotary fan
built until 1846-53. This was Lariboisiere, at the corridor end of each 50-bed pavilion.
designed specifiCally to reduce the spread of This gave I ,500 cu. ft./min . (42 cu. m/min.),
airborne infection. It was classical in layout, piped through an underground duct, and pre-
with colonnades at either side of the central vented bad air from the toilets penetrating the
courtyard, adapted to the climate of northern wards. The air itself was humidified by being
France. The 612 beds were in self-contained, passed over water.
three-storey wards, each of 32 beds, with a A few years later America benefited from
sister's room, office, toilet, washroom, and Brunei's designs at Renkioi. The American
sluice. Lariboisiere was artificially ventilated genius for mass production was seen in the
and warmed, but it produced a high mortality vast amount of building that was undertaken
rate because the ventilation system was a during the Civil War. In four years the Union
negative-pressure one. The contaminated air, Army built 204 hospitals with nearly 137,000
warmed by water stoves, was sucked out by beds, mostly prefabricated, lightweight, and
central, vertical flues at a 1,000 cu. ft./hr. (28 disposable. The Satterlee General Hospital in
cu. m/hr.) and contaminated the patients it West Philadelphia, built in 1862, was the
passed. The hot water was provided by a largest hospital north of the Mason-Dixon
high-pressure, hot-water system. To coun- line Its total capacity was 3,519 beds. John
teract this airborne infection, Thomas McArthur Jnr in 1862 built the Mower Gen-
Laurens later installed a positive-pressure eral Hospital at Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia.
system using a steam engine to fan clean air Its 51 timber pavilions provided 3,100 beds
inward and extract it through vertical shafts. around an enormous elliptical corridor 2,400
Nevertheless, the block planning was superb ft. (730 m) long, with administration and
and Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) in her service buildings in the center. The average
book, Notes on Hospitals, advocated it as the mortality rate of Union hospitals was 8%,
standard for future hospital designs. The which was lower than in many civilian hos-
wards formed the basis of "Nightingale pitals and considerably lower than that in
wards ," themselves a development of the Europe during the Franco-Prussian Wars.
medieval bed-nave, central work tables In the latter half of the 19th century, Britain
replacing the altars. was at the height of the Victorian empire and
Heating, lighting, natural and artificial was influencing hospital design in Europe and
ventilation were now the most important America. Hospitals were considered to be
topics of hospital design. In the late 1870s there civil monuments. The Civil Hospital at
was a further development which took the Antwerp (1880) by Baekelmans and Bilmeyer
form of a brief vogue for circular wards, in is a good example; it shows the brief vogue
the belief that this would aid natural ventila- for circular wards and it supplied its 380
tion still further. patients with water from an iron-piped water
 Institutional 149

system. There were two different drainage

systems : one for storm and one for sewage,
the latter drained into two huge brick cesspits
with road access for removal. Innovation in
the Victorian era can primarily be seen in the
field of engineering rather than hospitals ,
though the new technology was applied in
hospital sewer systems , gas installations, and
numerous mechanical devices.
In medical practice specialization
developed, while in hospitals the dominance
of the ward gave way to the diagnostic and
treatment areas. Anesthesia, discovered in
1846, made surgery an exploratory science,
while Joseph Lister and Von Bergman found
ways of preventing infection. In 1895 Wilhelm
Konrad Roentgen (1845-1923) invented the
x-ray, and by the 1920s diagnostic laboratory
services were fairly advanced.
The 20th century
Compared to the Victorian building boom,
few significant advances in hospital planning
occurred in the first half of the 20th century.
Reinforced concrete and steel technology
enabled tall buildings to be built and at the of Northwick Park Hospital and Clinical Northwick Park Hospital and
end of World War II, the U.S., Switzerland, Research Centre in England, begun in 1963 Clinical Research Center, London,
England (1963), by
and Sweden were building vertical hospitals, (architects Llewelyn-Davies Weeks). This Llewelyn-Davies Weeks.
where ward towers sat upon a podium of was the first deliberate attempt at an
diagnostic and treatment departments. All but unfinished, wholly flexible, horizontal hos-
Britain had abandoned the "Nightingale pital. Here the overall complex is loose, the
ward" for smaller rooms and each of these structure and main communication routes are
vertical hospitals relied upon a central "hard" and the buildings served by the
elevator stack to reduce walking distances and communication routes are "soft," and inde-
optimize volume to reduce air-conditioning pendently variable. They are modular, and
costs. The most significant postwar hospital have regular services reticulation. This pat-
was St Loin northern France by Paul Nelson, tern, categorized as "indeterminate," is
and this was closely followed by Gordon designed to allow for episodic growth.
Friesen's work at the United Mineworkers ' An alternative solution focuses attention on
Hospital in Pennsylvania. He fundamentally the importance of services engineering, which
reorganized the supplies problem by har- now accounts for over one-third of the cost of
nessing existing technology, such as any hospital. The integration of ducts and
elevators, trayveyors, pneumatic tubes, and pipework has become nearly as important as
ejection devices , to further reduce staff num- the medical planning. To free the latter from
bers and revenue costs . engineering constraints, the "interstitial
During the early 1950s, work study and space" hospital has emerged. Greenwich
organization and methods study, were applied Hospital, London, and the Veterans'
to hospital planning, with the general intention Administration Hospital, San Diego, are
of replacing the generally empirical con- among the first such hospitals. They have
temporary design methods with industrial been closely followed by McMaster Medical
study techniques. However, as hospital brief- Center, Ontario, and, more recently, by the
ing processes were developed, and as the first Woodhull Hospital in Brooklyn, New York.
postwar hospitals were reassessed in use, it In these hospitals, every other floor is
became clear that the functions around which devoted to engineering services, thereby seg-
they were so carefully constructed always regating pipes, ducts, and mechanical plant
changed, often before the buildings were from occupied spaces. In this type, the struc-
complete, and continued to change. In ture and horizontal service voids are "hard"
response to this, a number of new planning and everything else is "soft." This type offers
approaches and technical solutions were a very high level of internal flexibility, but
developed . In principle they offered alter- may be subject to "catastrophic" pressures .
native strategies for the definition and rela- There may come a time when growth over-
tionship of constructionally "hard" and takes the capacity for adaptability , in which
"soft" elements, and the degree and kind of case the whole building becomes obsolete.
flexibility required in detailed planning. In planning hospital provision within the
One solution was represented by the design community, the emphasis is now placed more
150 Institutional

on small additions to existing plant rather than only distinguishing feature being some kind of
total replacement. So long as the pressures for surrounding wall.
growth and change can be contained by Meanwhile, there had been a number of
gradual incremental alteration, an organi- proposals in which the architecture of the
zation can avoid the enormous capital expen- prison was becoming more specific to its
diture and organization shock which cata- purpose. The House of Correction in Rome
strophic growth entails. When new hospitals (1702--04) designed by Carlo Fontana (1634-
are being considered as part of a regional plan 1714) and built under the auspices of Pope
for hospital bed provision, large new hospitals Clement XI; Bugniet's project for a prison at
are now less frequently planned. Greater Lyons (1762); and the Maison de Force at
emphasis is placed on smaller bed and medical Ghent (c. 1772), built for Count Vilain XIII,
service packages, more easily accessible to are the most notable examples. Fontana's
local communities. Nevertheless, the balance silentium was for undisciplined children, and
between the requirement for wide-spectrum its solitary sleeping cells and common central
availability of sophisticated specialties in a aisle reflect the monastic basis of its peni-
large central hospital, and the more limited tential discipline. Bugniet's prison and the
availability in smaller hospitals , is not easily Maison de Force both adopted rigid cen-
attained. tripetal plan geometries to consolidate enorm-
The British Department of Health and ously extended institutional layouts.
Social Services has developed a system which During the 1780s, the purpose of the prison
is likely to become a prototype for hospital was, in any case, to become redefined. The
construction in the 1980s. It is based on blatant coercion of bridewell and house of
The Maison de Force at Ghent, central, extensible, linear communications correction association with forced labor was
Belgium, begun in 1772. This which serve standard departmental "shells" overlaid with a new motive when the reform-
shows the original plan for the
building, in fact only five ofthe on either side. This system is highly flexible ing power of solitude on the mind was added
eight sides were built during the and adaptive, and allows small or middle- to the unanswerable power of compulsory toil
18th century. sized hospitals to be extended and integrated on the body.
with new construction. It therefore responds The late 18th-century penal reforms were
positively to the two points made above: the mainly the work of Cesare Beccaria (1738-94)
need to avoid catastrophic growth pressures and John Howard . Beccaria was primarily
by allowing episodic growth and change, and concerned with the criminal law and his work
the trend toward gradual development of had no effect on the form of prison building or
small peripheral health facilities. administration. Howard, on the other hand,
(See also SERVICES.) was concerned almost exclusively with pris-
ons. His journeys had convinced him that
Prisons practically every prison in the civilized world
was the breeding ground of disease and vice,
Although prisons of one sort or another and that reform could only be effected by a
existed in Greek and Roman times and were total rebuilding.
common in medieval Europe, they were gen- The first of Howard' s suggestions was that
erally incorporated into other types of build- prisons should be thoroughly ventilated so as
ing or were little more than impromptu cages. to eradicate endemic jail fever (typhus).
The prison as an institution in its own right Although his faith in ventilation was due to
emerged in the Low Countries and England the mistaken idea that the disease spread only
during the 16th century when bridewells and in confined air adulterated with effluvia and
houses of correction were set up to take care animal steams , it remained the foundation of
of the indigent, disorderly, and immoral ele- his campaign. Second, he maintained that
ments of the population. (Criminals were prisons should also be architecturally sub-
disposed of in other ways.) These new institu- divided to prevent " evil communication," a
tions did not give rise to an architectural type, Pauline phrase much in vogue with 18th- and
most being housed in existing buildings such 19th-century penal reformers . Divisions were
as disused palaces, monasteries, or convents. to be made between male and female pris-
Thus , in the 1770s, on the eve of the great oners; the innocent and the convicted;
penal reforms, Europe's prisons were rarely debtors and felons. In the same cause, they
buildings specifically constructed for the pur- would be provided with cells for solitary
pose, and even when this was the case, as confinement during some or all of the day to
with London's 15th-century Newgate, the further stem the advance of corruption by
building was modeled on the traditional city communication between prisoners and to
gate and bore no specific relation to its use as allow solitude to breed virtuous thoughts-
a prison. John Howard (1726-91), who another central reformist belief which ,
installed momentous prison doors at Newgate although rooted in the monastic tradition, was
(1774), showed that most prisoners, whether given new meaning in rationalist psychology.
debtors, misdemeanants, or felons , were These requirements were drawn together
maintained in buildings hardly different from into an architectural form almost single-
cottages, lodging houses, and tenements; their handed by an obscure English architect Wil-
 Institutional 151

liam Blackburn (1750-91). He is known to The Penitentiary Panopticon (1791)

have been involved in the design of at least 19 by Bentham and Reveley.
prisons, and was regarded as Howard's
architectural amanuensis at the time. Most of
his prisons were courtyard plans in which the
need for subdivision to control com-
munication was at odds with the need for
wholesale perforation of the building fabric to
effect ventilation; however, the plans are
recognizably of a specific building type with a
program peculiar to itself. The external
appearance of the prison was also made
recognizable with a high boundary wall, away
from other buildings, punctuated only with
an entrance portal of suitably ponderous prop-
ortions to which the insignia of confinement
were then applied-chains, manacles, fasces,
exaggerated rustication, and mottoes such as
"solitude."
The death of both Howard and Blackburn
in 1791 put an end to this first phase of prison
reform which had been restricted to England.
A second, international phase began in the
same year with the setting up of Walnut Street
prison in Philadelphia, U .S., and, more
importantly, with the publication of plans for
a model prison, Panopticon, by the English
philosopher and reformer Jeremy Bentham
(1748-1832), also in 1791. In early radial
prison plans, such as the Maison de Force,
the geometric center was also the center of
the highest authority-chapel and government
offices. Nevertheless, these plans were no
more than pictures of a power hierarchy; they
did not help enforce authority through the
medium of architecture. The Panopticon did.
Here the governor sat in the hub of a rotunda,
his officers perambulated around "annular
galleries" suspended in the space of the drum,
and the prisoners were locked in cells around
the outer surface. The purpose of this were prisons, like Tothill Fields, Westmin- Sectional view of Bentham's
arrangement was, via the manipulation of ster, with 24 classifications from female Panopticon. The design ofthe
building with the governor's office
light, image , and even sound, to make all juvenile misdemeanants to male felons await- in the center, helped to enforce
information flow inward toward the center, ing transportation to penal colonies ; each authority.
and none outward. Two, less radical, and corresponded to a rung on the ladder of moral
more immediately practicable versions of this corruption from the most innocent to the most
idea were a detached wing radial plan and a depraved. The dense, segmental geometry of
polygonal plan, and there were , during the prison plans during the 1820s and 1830s was
second decade of the 19th century, various therefore a result of the increasing sensitivity
disputes about the superiority of the one over to the different shades of criminal malevol-
the other. These were resolved in favor of the ence. It was not easily compatible, however,
radial. with the desire to unify the whole prison
Meanwhile, the basis of reformed penal under one sovereign eye, that of the governor,
discipline had changed little from Howard's and so the centers of power had to proliferate
time, except that the prison itself was now in order that each class could be properly
considered the vessel of authority. Its func- overseen. A certain type of programatic
tion was to impose and maintain order under architecture had thus been developed to a
the direction of the governor. One problem, point of impasse where either classification or
apparently administrative but in fact of a more centralization had to be compromised.
general character, was emerging in the 1820s. Just at this critical point, the existing type
Divisions between one type of prisoner and of penal discipline, based on solitary night
another were increasing. In the 1780s a good cells and daytime classification, was given up.
reformed prison might have six classifications In its place was introduced a kind of solitary
of prisoner, and six segregated wards. In 1818 confinement far more thoroughgoing than that
it would have at least 12, and by 1830 there of the 1780s. Cherry Hilr Prison in Philadel-
152 Institutional

phia (1821-29), was designed by John Havi-

---........
land (1792-1852), was the first of this new
regime. It was a radial of the conventional
-- --

...
type except that the wings joined the center
- and the corridors fed directly off the central

.
::--.:
.
rotunda. The accommodation comprised cells
only (plus adjoining solitary exercise yards).
Internal surveillance space was again unified,
and the number of possible classifications was
infinite, each prisoner being his own class.
. The technological and architectural prob-
lems of creating total solitude had seemed
insoluble in the 18th century, but between the
1820s and 1840s enormous efforts were made
to devise suitable aids. These studies of the
engineering of human separation within a
densely occupied building type culminated in
the construction in London of Pentonville
Model Prison (1840-42) by Joshua Jebb
(1793-1863), an engineer by profession. With
its galleried radiating halls, lined with several
_.,.,......., storeys of solitary cells, Pentonville remained
the genotype of the prison in 19th-century
Ground plan of Mill bank
Penitentiary (1812-18) by William Europe. In the U.S., the back-to-back, barred
Williams and Thomas Hardwick. cell block, surrounded by surveillance gal-
Six pentagonal prisons are located leries, was the preferred type. This derived
around a hexagonal administration from another form of penal discipline-the
and services core.
Auburn or Silent system-in which prisoners
worked together during the day. No sophis-
ticated technology of separation was
employed, but policing was accordingly more
intimate, and surveillance more pervasive.
By the 1850s the matter of prison design
became an increasingly hermetic area of
expertise over which the prison authorities
had firm control. Only in the late 19th and
20th centuries did the layout, organization,
and servicing of prison buildings change rad-
ically, and then it was in an effort to rid the
prison of the stigma attached to its past. This
amelioration of the power of the prison over
its inmates commenced early on with the
foundation of the Colonie Agricole for young
offenders at Melbray (1839-50) designed by
Abel Blouet. This was organized into family
houses and looked like a model alpine village.
In terms of overall plan, the most significant
change was the introduction of the telegraph
pole layout with parallel cell blocks attached
to either side of a central service corridor.
This was first seen at Fresnes, France, in
1898, in a design by F . H. Poussin. It is a
Cherry Hill Prison in Philadelphia type that has been much used in the U.S.
(1821-29) by John Haviland. during the 20th century. A good example is
the Louisiana State Penitentiary, completed in
1955. The Metray pavilion layout, which is
increasingly informal in appearance , was
employed at the Illinois Women' s Prison,
Dwight, in 1930, and continues to be used in
prisons for first offenders, juveniles, petty
criminals, and those with social problems.
Certainly in the 20th century the prison as a
special and particular type of building is
tending to disappear as the morality of sep-
aration is brought into question.
 Institutional 153

The pla nning ofthis modern

French prison, with its five
star-shaped cell blocks enclosed
from the outside by a high wall
formed by outer buildings, ow es a
great deal to 19th-century
precedents.
154 Defense, emergency, and portable

Defense, emergency, and portable

Fortifications
Since man ceased being a nomad and began to
live in groups he has sought to protect himself
and his possessions against aggressors. Few
human activities have absorbed so much
effort as the construction of fortifications. The
effect that these have had on the form of
human settlements cannot be over-
estimated-it is only in the last century that
the need to secure defense has ceased to be
the major element in urban morphology.
The means adopted for defense has always
depended on the weapons used for attack-an
innovation by the attacker provoking a
response in the design of the defenses. At any
one time, the effectiveness of particular for-
tifications depends on the relative strengths of
the means of attack and the means of defense.
Sometimes the balance favors the defenders,
as in the late Middle Ages, at other times it
favors the attackers, as in the 16th century.
In achieving protection, the first necessity
is to exploit whatever defensive opportunities
are offered by natural features. An enemy
attacking uphill is at a disadvantage and thus
hilltop sites have always been a first choice.
Water is also a hindrance to attack and this niques: a defensive perimeter or enceinte with The Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde
National Park, Colorado, is the
explains the construction of Iron Age villages special arrangements at its weakest point-the largest known prehistoric cliff
on lakes, or the building of Venice: a entrance. The earth rampart, with perhaps a dwelling. The circular structures
medieval city on a lagoon. Caves also pro- timber palisade, evolved in Europe into a are the remains of ceremonial
vided refuge for primitive man but were still stone-faced wall wherever stone was avail- chambers, called kivas. The square
buildings were the living quarters.
proving useful as late as the 16th century, able; a variation is the vitrified wall where the The site had the advantage of being
when a castle was built in the mouth of the stones are welded together by fire. Masonry easily defended against attack.
Predjama Cave in Slovenia. The choice of a fortifications were, however, used much ear-
site is always the most important decision in lier in the Middle East; the remains of a 23 ft.
defensive building and the art of military (7 m) high wall dating from about 7500 BC
architecture lies in using the manmade work have been found at Jericho. This is the
to exploit the potential of the terrain. Where earliest example of a wall enclosing a settled
the configuration of the land offers no natural area.
opportunities then artificial defenses must be A different system was used to defend
created. Anatolian cities of around 6000 BC. Catal
Hiiyiik and Hacilar consisted of one-storey,
Early times mud-brick houses built contiguously with no
The simplest artificial defensive system is ground-level street, and accessible from their
exemplified by the Iron Age fort where a roofs. The outside walls of these houses
ditch is backed by an earth rampart. The formed a defensive perimeter. An enemy who
rampart offered a height advantage not only in successfully breached the wall would find
hand-to-hand fighting and hurling stones but himself trapped in a single room and subjected
also a vantage point for observing the enemy's to attack from above. Although suited to a
approach. These type of forts are found in situation where all access was from the
Britain and Central Europe and vary con- rooftops, houses built against a city wall
siderably in size and complexity. Maiden hindered rapid movement of its defenders in a
Castle in Dorset, England, covers 15 acres (6 city with ground-level streets.
hectares) and accommodated 4,000 inhabit- The Hittites, who ruled Anatolia around
ants within its triple line of ditches and 1900 BC, were adept at taking advantage of the
ramparts. The weakest point in the defensive defensive possibilities of land forms. Bogaz-
system was the entrance, and this was pro- koy, their capital, is located with a deep
tected by additional lines of ramparts so that ravine on three sides and is subdivided into a
an attacker who breached the gate would find number of independent quarters, each capable
himself in a maze of passages and subjected to of separate defense in the event of other parts
attack from above. These forts clearly of the city being taken . This is an important
demonstrate the two elements which were to concept that emerges in different epochs of
be adopted over millennia in the quest to military architecture. Hittite walls were built
counter improvements in offensive tech- of stone on brick and varied between 6 ft . 6
 Defense, emergency, and portable 155

in. (2 m) and 13 ft. (4 m) in thickness. their northern frontier between the Rhine and
Gateways were protected by towers , with the the Danube. Examples from this century are
entrance passageway turning through 90o to the French Maginot Line and the wall which
hinder enemy penetration. Another notable now divides east and west Berlin.
Hittite innovation of the 2nd millenium is the If the crenellated, towered walls of the
caisson wall-two parallel walls connected by fortresses of the Ancient Near and Middle
short cross walls. East resemble those of medieval Europe it is
Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs for castles scarcely surprising, since their techniques of
indicate a rectangular walled space with a siege warfare as depicted in Assyrian reliefs
gateway in one corner, and often show a were very similar to those employed in the
tower in the furthest corner from the 14th century. Battering rams , siege towers,
entrance-perhaps a forerunner of the and scaling ladders were all used to assault
medieval keep. Enclosures with double walls walls, which were also subjected to under-
and protected gateways dating from the 29th mining operations .
century BC have been found at Abydos and
Hierakonpolis . Other hieroglyphs show iso-
lated circular towers with what appear to be
battered walls and a crenelated balcony , and Greece and Rome
during the civil wars of the 21st century small On mainland Europe the Myceneans built
brick forts were built which also had cren- citadels which were neither purely military
ellated walls. At the same period the newly installations like Egyptian forts, nor shelter
conquered territories of Nubia were secured for the surrounding population, but rather
by a chain of fortresses built on the banks or heavily defended palaces. The best preserved
islands of the Nile. Where the terrain is are those at Mycenae and Tiryns, which date
irregular the defense works follow the con- from around 1500 BC. The former consists of a
tours but where the ground is flat the fortress hilltop surrounded by a continuous, towerless
is rectangular and axial in plan, establishing a wall. It was entered by a ramp through double
formal precedent that was to endure for 3,000 gateways the first of which , the Gate of the
years . Buhen is a fine example of the latter, Lions, is notable for its massive monolithic
with a rudimentary form of concentric jambs. At Tiryns, the hilltop is crowned with
defense. A low rampart about 656 ft. (200 m) even more massive masonry-in places the
square overlooked a rock-cut moat and was walls are over 27 ft. (8 m) thick. To enter the
backed by a massive brick wall 30 ft . (9 m) citadel an attacker had to move along a ramp
high and nearly 16 ft. (5 m) thick, reinforced which exposed his right side, unprotected by a
with square bastions. The gates in the middle shield, to the wall. He then had to pass
of each wall were guarded by projecting through three gateways set at right angles to
towers and other towers protected each one another before reaching the royal resi-
corner. dence at the center.
Double walls also surrounded the citadels The offensive armory was extended around
of the Assyrians; they were 100ft. (30m) high 400 BC by the Greeks who invented catapults
and wide enough to accommodate a chariot and ballistae which could shoot arrows and
Section of the Great Wall of China
(c. 246 BC) which extends along the
pulled by four horses abreast, while at Baby- hurl stones over an effective range of I ,312 ft. former northern boundary.
lon they were reinforced by projecting towers
along the perimeter. The enceinte defending
the city was usually rectangular although at
Zincirli, built around 1000 BC , it forms a
nearly perfect circle I ,968 ft. (600 m) in
diameter.
The most important Mesopotamian inno-
vation was the Medean Wall, which was built
between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers
by the Samarians during the 4th millennium
BC . It was the prototype of a strategic
concept-building a frontier where no natural
barrier existed-which was to be emulated by
many civilizations widely separated in space
and time . Later examples were the Great Wall
of China which was started in 246 Be and
eventually stretched 3,720 mi. (6,000 km);
Hadrian's Wall which was started in AD 127
and stretched the 73 mi. (117 km) from the
Tyne to the Solway in order to stop the
Caledonian tribes from invading the Roman
province of Britain; and the Limes Ger-
manicus , the wall which the Romans built on
156 Defense, emergency, and portable

(400 m). In a siege these weapons could be system, were an example of the latter.
used to neutralize the defense, so that bat- Detached watchtowers, or burgi, were built in
tering rams could be brought up to a city's the middle of the 2nd century. Unable to
walls. Defenders could also use the new accommodate more than a few troops, these
weapons to frustrate an assault as well as were for defensive purposes only and are
bombarding the besieging batteries. Greek important as the forerunners of the medieval
architects responded to the new threat with a keep. With the increasing threat to the Empire
number of important innovations. Towers from the barbarians, the need to protect the
were built higher to outrange the enemy, and hitherto undefended Roman cities became
they were also enlarged to accommodate imperative. The 12 mi. (19 km) Aurelian wall
heavier weapons. was built around Rome, and in about 400 BC
To protect catapults from wet weather, to Theodosius II provided the eastern capital
which they are particularly susceptible, the Constantinople with a defensive system which
enclosed chamber, or casemate, was devised. resisted invaders for I ,000 years until it was
Missiles were fired through slits in the breached by the Turks in 1453. This consisted
masonry walls, and to obtain a wide field of of three walls and a ditch, each line of wall
fire circular or pentagonal towers were built. overlooking that in front, and with the two Permanent fortifications of the
These were arranged to give flanking fire inner walls protected by battlemented square Roman type. Towers projected
from the crenelated walls forcing
along a curtain wall. Another feature of or octagonal towers. the attackers to expose their flanks
classical Greek defensive systems is the idea to the defenders, in any assault on
of defense in depth. Concentric rings of the walls.
defense were established to force the enemy
artillery out of range of the center of the The .Middle Ages
defensive position.
Castel Eurialo at Syracuse is the most The castle is as much a symbol of feudal
perfect example of a Greek fortress which Europe as the Gothic cathedral, and
incorporates these innovations. An attacker thousands were built to dominate the frag-
would have to negotiate three rock-cut ditches mented territories that succeeded the Roman
protected by outworks before reaching the Empire. In some countries, particularly those
main enclosure. The outworks were con- on the edges of Christendom, their abundance
nected by a system of underground passages has given the name to whole provinces-
which enabled large numbers of concealed Castile in Spain and Burgenland in Austria.
troops to be rushed to any critical point. This Before the castle emerged in its final form in
type of fortress defended cities such as the 13th century, builders had to relearn the
Miletus and Priene, both of which consisted skills of the classical civilization of Greece
of an orthogonal grid of streets loosely sur- and Rome; for European fortresses of the
rounded by a city wall which cut across the Dark Ages were simple variations on the Iron
contours and surrounded a cliff top to prevent Age hillfort. A good example is the Viking
an enemy seizing a dominant position. The encampment at Trelleborg in Denmark which ,
walls follow a sawtooth plan which exposes in spite of its careful geometry of squares
the attacker's unprotected right side. At contained within circles, is still defended by a
Miletus, each sector of wall is protected by a ditch and earthen rampart. City walls of Avila, Spain, which
completely surround the town.
tower with a small sally port every 197ft. (60 The Viking descendants, the Normans, Begun in AD 1090.
m). Although the Romans never achieved the
subtlety and sophistication of Greek for-
tifications the standardized designs of their
defense works were to be emulated in Europe
for I ,000 years after the fall of the Empire.
The legionary fortress , or castrum, as exem-
plified by Chester in Britain or Timgad in
North Africa, was based on two main streets
crossing at right angles, and was surrounded
by a rectangular enceinte. This consisted of a
ditch and earth rampart about 16 ft. (5 m)
high, which was made permanent by an outer
skin of stone. It was sometimes punctuated by
towers with a twin-towered gatehouse guard-
ing each entrance. This type of Roman struc-
ture was to form the foundation of many
future cities.
Chains of smaller forts were built to provide
shelter for marching armies at intervals of one
day's march, and to protect vulnerable prov-
inces from sudden attack. The forts built in
the 4th century AD, as Britain's first defense
 Defense, emergency, and portable 157

evolved the motte and bailey castle. The Frederick Il's Castel del Monte (1240) in
motte was an artificial earth mound topped by Puglia, Italy, is a variation of the shell keep. .,
a wooden tower. A palisade enclosed ground It is a regular octagon enclosing an octagonal •
at the foot of the motte to form a courtyard or courtyard and with projecting octagonal
bailey in which people and livestock could towers on each corner. The symmetry of its
find shelter. The tower on the motte was planning, and the detail of its entrance, point
developed into a massive stone keep or to oriental and classical antecedents , for
donjon (the earliest has been dated to 992 at Frederick II had taken part in a crusade to the
Langeris on the Loire) with a square ground Holy Land in 1227. These wars had already
plan as in the White Tower in London. The given a tremendous impetus to castle design
main living quarters of the feudal lord were on by transferring the ideas of Byzantium to
the upper floors of these towers which were western Europe. These concepts were being
entered at second-floor level. implemented as early as 1185 when the keep
Throughout the feudal era the keep at Dover Castle was surrounded by inner and
remained a feature of castle building. During outer curtains to provide a system of con-
the 13th century it was sometimes incor- centric defense based on the walls of Con-
porated into massive gate towers, as at H ar- stantinople.
lech, or simply became the largest among a In Palestine the Crusaders established a
number of towers, as at Caernarvon. With the system of rule by a military aristocracy based
breakup of feudalism, greater use was made of in castles. They sought to secure the territory
mercenary troops whose loyalty was always by a chain of massive fortresses which were
doubtful, and again the keep emerges as so well sited that even today one of them,
capable of defense from an internal as much Beaufort in south Lebanon, still fulfills an
as an external threat. Tattershall Castle important military function . The hilltop Krak
(1434-46) is an example of a late type of keep. des Chevaliers is perhaps the finest of these
The first change to the square plan tower castles. Consisting of two concentric curtain
was made necessary because of the vul- walls with circular towers strengthened by
nerability of its corners to attack by mining. massive battered plinths, its only approach-
Round towers were to prove more effective in able flank is defended by a moat. The keep
this respect and also in deflecting missiles. At has been replaced by three connected towers
Chateau Gaillard, built by Richard the in the center of the system. The approach A medieval town under siege.
Lionheart in 1196, a cylindrical keep presents used the old techniques of exposing an enemy Catapults, scaling towers, m ovable
a massive masonry prow to the only possible to attack on his right side, while machico- shields, and other siege engines
line of attack. In England, shell keeps con- lations projecting from the walls and towers are being used in an attempt to
sisting of a circular wall with buildings inside enabled missiles and boiling oil to be hurled breach the walls and bridge the
moat.
enclosing a circular courtyard were built at on the heads of those approaching the base of
Restormel and, although altered later, at the defense enceinte.
Windsor. Edward I was another Western monarch
In Germany, towers or "bergfrieds," who had taken the Cross, and the chain of
derived from Roman burgi, remained tall and castles which he built to subdue the Welsh
slender with only limited accommodation and mark the culmination of a technique of for-
were often attached to a surrounding wall tress building that started with the Greeks.
which enclosed the main living quarters at Caernarvon Castle, with its octagonal towers
ground level. This combination produced such and its decorative use of masonry, must have
romantic silhouettes as the Rhineland for- been derived from the walls of Con-
tresses of Eltz or Pfalzgrafenstein, where the stantinople. Like Conway, the space inside
island tower is surrounded by a boat-shaped the curtain is divided into two wards. At both
enceinte. In the 19th century Ludwig of these castles the main towers are crowned by
Bavaria used these buildings as inspiration for smaller turrets and unlike Edward's other
follies like Neuschwanstein. works the walls follow an irregular outline. At
The palisade surrounding the Norman Harlech and Beaumaris the same designer,
bailey was also replaced by a stone curtain Master James of St George, produced care-
wall. The danger of an attacker breaching a fully composed symmetrical concentric
wall by a battering ram or by scaling it was designs with massive keep-gatehouses
countered by arranging projecting towers attached to the inner curtain.
higher than the wall so as to provide flanking At Caernarvon and Conway, the castles are
fire on the entire length of the perimeter-a part of the defenses of two bastide cities built
technique used by the Greeks. Framlingham as part of a colonization program. Like the
is an early English example of a curtain French bastides at Montpazier and Aigues
strengthened by towers. Walls were also Mortes, or the Italian Montagnana, these
strengthened by buttresses, as in Con- cities have an orthogonal grid plan reminis-
nisborough keep. Sometimes the two were cent of the Roman castrum and are sur-
combined-the Gravensteen fortress at Ghent rounded by a rectangular curtain wall with Krak des Chevaliers, Syria
owes its unique appearance to the towers built projecting towers. Saxon colonies planted in (1210- 1252). A crusader's castle,
on top of the buttresses of the outer curtain. Transylvania in the 12th century to defend the built with concentric fortifications.
 158 Defense, emergency, and portable

eastern border of Hungary evolved an original juxtaposition with large windows. In Scot-
form in their village fortresses, which con- land, where there was for much longer a
sisted of a circular wall 40 ft. (12 m) high and threat of sudden raids, a unique type of tower
10 ft. (3 m) thick enclosing a circular space house was evolved which was capable of
with a large church in the middle. Living resisting attack by small firearms. They were
quarters for the civilian population were on built on an L plan as at Balbengo or, like
four floors of a timber structure supported by Claypotts and Castle Fraser, on a Z plan.
the outer wall. The most spectacular demonstration of the
City walls were the symbol of a free inadequacy of medieval fortresses had
citizenry and the right to fortify was jealously occurred in 1494 when the artillery train of
guarded. Carcassonne, the best preserved of Charles VIII had swept through the Italian
Early 15th-century siege cannon.
medieval fortified cities, has two concentric peninsula. It was not surprising therefore that
valls flanked with towers and separated by a the polymaths of the Italian Renaissance
valkway. The two gates are pr9tected by should have applied their talents to the prob-
•arbicans and the whole system is streng- lems of defense and the late 15th and early
hened by a citadel located on the western 16th centuries are notable for the number of
vall. In Italian cities in particular, the Middle published works discussing this topic. Leone
\ges were a period of internecine strife Battista Alberti (1404-72) advocated the star-
•etween the nobles. This led to the con- shaped citadel and Francesco di Giorgio and
truction of a high tower of refuge as part of Antonio Filarete (1400-69) proposed a
he town house-the bristling silhouette of serrated plan for the defense perimeter. The
lan Gimignano stands as a monument to this former introduced the idea of the caponier; a
•ractice. protected position from which fire could be
directed along the floor of a surrounding
rhe age of the gun ditch. Leonardo da Vinci made many studies
ust at the time when the design of the castle of fortresses with casemated gun positions
eached its zenith, when a well-victualed and with carefully profiled embrasures to
ortress was virtually impregnable and it deflect shot.
;eemed that the balance had tipped irre- The medieval round or square tower pro-
rievably in favor of defense, a weapon was duced an area in front of it which could not be
Low round bastion containing
oeing developed which was to render obsolete covered by fire from neighboring towers and it
embrasures with cannons (early the high stone walls which had proved effec- also presented difficulties in concentrating
15th-century). tive for thousands of years. Although the defensive fire. The Italians therefore replaced
earliest illustration of a gun dates from 1326 it the tower by the triangular bastion, both faces
was in the 15th century that firearms had a of which could be swept by fire from the
significant effect on warfare. The English flanks of adjoining bastions. Antonio da San-
Late 16th-century triangular defeat in the Hundred Years War had as gallo the Elder (1455-1534) built a fort at
bastion being abandoned during much to do with the efficiency of French Nettuno in 1520 which had a square plan with
an attack. The assailants have
bridged the moat and 'have built
artillery as the inspiration of Joan of Arc. four triangular corner bastions and introduced
earthworks to protect themselves The first reaction to the new weapons was a defensive system that was to be developed
from the fire ofthe defenders. to thicken existing walls since the high, over the next 250 years. Earthwork bastions
relatively thin walls of the medieval castle not were used at Ravenna in 1512 and had
only presented a good target but were inca- become common practice by 1527 when
pable of providing the wide platform needed Michele Sanmicheli (c. 1484-1559) used them
to accommodate defending cannon. Existing at Verona; consequently, during the next
fortresses had new works added which were century, Italian engineers were in demand
capable of resisting the impact of cast-iron throughout Europe for their knowledge of the
shot either through sheer thickness of stone or bastioned system of defense.
by backing a stone wall with an earth rampart. While the Italians were developing the
Transitional fortresses such as Senigallia or triangular bastion the English, under Henry
Ostia in Italy have low towers and battered VIII, were building a dozen coastal forts
walls but relatively few gunports, and they which exploited the planning possibilities of
still use machicolations. Salses in France, the circle in a typically Renaissance concern
built in 1498 with large gunports and curved with geometry. Built around 1540 they were
parapets, represents a further step toward intended to protect the south coast from a
meeting the new threat. continental invasion and were probably
The close of the Middle Ages and the derived from the published work of Albrecht
eclipse of feudalism by the nation state also Diirer. The largest, Deal , has a central cir-
saw an increasing functional division between cular tower surrounded by two lower rings,
the fortress and the residence. Although some each of six semicircular bastions mounting
large houses, particularly French chateaux guns in the open and in casemates.
like Chenonceaux or Azay-le-Rideau , These forts represent an interesting aber-
retained drum towers and machicolations, the ration because the future lay with the bastion
symbolic and decorative nature of these which was already being exported from
defensive devices is emphasized by their Europe to the New World. The Spanish
 Defense, emergency, and portable 159

during their domination of Central and South The French school of military engineering,
America protected their ports by elaborate and in particular Vauban, dominated for-
systems of bastioned fortresses. At Havana tification building during most of the 17th and
and Cartagena the usually rigid geometry used 18th centuries. The simple bastion and curtain
in Europe is carefully adapted to the local of the Italians was developed into "three
topography while the Castillo de San Marcos systems." The first of these protected the
in Florida, built a century after Nettuno, curtain by a low outwork beyond the ditch
represents the ultimate development of the while the second detached the bastion from
symmetrical quadrilateral fort . the curtain so that in the event of its being
The bastion, however, was not new to the captured the city could still be defended. In
Americas. Around AD 1200 the Chimu had Vauban' s third system, used at Neuf Brisach
built a fortress at Paramonga in central Peru (1698), the diminutive bastions are protected
which , in addition to surrounding a hill with by counterguards with a third line of outer- Naarden, Holland: one of the few
three lines of walls, extended a platform at works , ravelins between the counterguards. settlements retaining a complete
each corner to form bastions, presumably to The whole is protected by a system of 17th-century fortification network.
remove the core of the citadel out of bow or covered passageways, or caponiers, covering
slingshot range of an attacker. The Chimu the ditches. Vauban's great rival in both
capital, Chan Chan, covered an area of 8 sq. defense and attack was the Dutchman
mi. (20 sq. m) and consisted of ten or more Coehoorn who had developed an even more
rectangular walled citadels which, it is complex " three systems," which relied on
suggested , accommodated different clans or wet ditches and hollow construction in several
tribes. The greatest pre-Columbian fortress layers. His first method was used at Bergen-
was Sacsahuaman, built by the Incas to op-Zoom but his second and third methods
defend their capital Cuzco. This was con- would have required such vast areas of land
structed of massive granite blocks up to 20 ft . for their lines of defense that the small area
(6 m) long and 8 ft . (2.5 m) wide , with remaining within the fort could not have
mortarless joints. It has three lines of ram- accommodated an adequate garrison.
parts arranged in a sawtoothed plan which Although Vauban's fame today rests on his
exposed an attacker to flanking fire in the defensive building , his contemporaries
same way as a projecting tower. respected him for his success in attack. By a
It was more difficult to adapt city walls than method of digging a series of parallel trenches
to build single forts according to the new and bombarding walls at close range from
bastioned system. Existing buildings had to be breaching batteries, he took every stronghold
respected in laying out fields of fire and that he attacked . With the advantage appar-
narrow streets made it difficult to shift cannon ently in favor of the attacker, by the end of
around quickly so as to bring maximum the 18th century engineers were proposing
firepower on the point of attack. One of the radical changes to the bastion system. One of
most comprehensive examples of the new these was the sawtoothed or tenaille enceinte
system applied to an existing city is Lucca, in which eliminated the weak curtain wall and
Tuscany . Here by 1561 low, wide bastions replaced it by an arrangement of contiguous
with blunt corners were encircled by a ditch triangular outworks. Montalembert advocated
with a sloping glacis, extending into the backing the tenaille with two-storey gun
surrounding countryside and forcing enemy towers and using three-storey casemated
siege batteries beyond range of the city caponiers; two ideas which were to be
center. developed during the 19th century .
The new defensive requirements could only Circular towers came back into use; mar-
be fully met in the new cities which were built tello gun towers of various sizes were used for
to defend the boundaries of the emerging coastal defense by the British during the
nation states . These took up the ideas of the Napoleonic wars, and the Austrians used
Renaissance theorists . Francesco di Giorgio's them in the defenses they constructed at Linz
1480 plan for a city, based on an octagonal and Verona in the 1830s. Three-decker forts
perimeter with streets radiating from a central had repulsed the Allies at Sebastopol during
space, became the prototype for projects such the Crimean War but during the American
as Philipville (1555) on the Franco-Belgian Civil War increasingly effective shells demon-
border or Palmanova (1593) on the eastern strated the limitations of masonry in resisting
frontier of the Venetian republic. The original an explosive impact. Steel and concrete,
plan for the latter had nine bastions on the which were being developed for structural
corners of a regular polygon connected by purposes, especially in France, offered an
radial streets to a central square where troops effective alternative.
and artillery could be held in reserve and The increasing power of 19th-century rifled
rushed to any point of attack. A century later guns forced defenders to extend their
when Sebastien Vauban (1633-1707) built a perimeters even further than the 2 mi. (3 km)
garrison town at Neuf Brisach in Alsace , he of Vauban's day , in order to keep the urban
abandoned the radial plan for an orthogonal center out of the besiegers' range. It therefore
grid contained within a fortified octagon. no longer became possible to surround a city
 160 Defense, emergency, and portable

with a continuous enceinte and it was heaviest bombardment so, in the event of
replaced by a series of small fortresses several their being reached by an enemy, could call
miles from the center, covering one another down fire on themselves from neighboring
with interlocking fields of fire. The aban- batteries. The Maginot Line forts were never
donment of continuous walls was of great taken by assault but they could not save
consequence, for it permitted the suburban France from defeat in 1940 by the Germans
expansion of the 19th century. who exploited two offensive weapons
Detached forts had proved very effective in developed during World War I-the aircraft
the Peninsular War when the British lines of and the tank.
the Torres Vedras , a series of 59 earthworks, The threat of aerial bombardment had led to
successfully resisted the French advance on defensive measures being taken during World
Lisbon. By the end of the 19th century the War I. German submarine pens at Bruges
detached fort was being constructed in the used a combination of precast beams and in
Part of the Magi not Line, a new materials, often comprising a reinforced- situ reinforced-concrete slab roofs which
defensive system built along the concrete block buried in earth. A limited became the basis of structures built on the
eastern boundary of France in the number of artillery pieces was mounted in French coast during World War II.
mid-1930s.
armor-plated cupolas and infantry attacks In World War II the Germans tried to
were repulsed by machine guns , sometimes protect their armament industry against Allied
mounted in retractable turrets. Antwerp and bombing. A submarine assembly plant near
Liege were surrounded by rings of forts of this Bremen had a roof of reinforced concrete 23
type and around Verdun the same engineer, ft. (7 m) thick and fighter-plane factories were
Brialmont, built examples with protective built with concrete shell roofs, using gravel
concrete roofs 3 ft. (1 m) thick, separated mounds as framework. An underground fac-
from the main structure by 3ft. (1 m) of sand. tory was constructed during 1943 by slave
labor at Nordhausen to produce V1 and V2
weapons and jet engines. It consisted of two
The 20th century parallel tunnels 1.25 mi. (2 km) long, con-
The new underground forts were tested in nected by 61 ft. (200 m) of parallel galleries.
World War I and stood up to German attack By the end of the war work had started on
with varied success. The Belgian forts were other underground weapon factories as well as
quickly overwhelmed by enemy artillery bar- subterranean liquid oxygen and synthetic oil
rages but the more heavily fortified works at plants.
Verdun proved a more formidable obstacle. As well as protecting their installations, the
Submarine pen built by German
forces in occupied Trondheim,
With the establishment of a line of field Germans adopted a policy of dispersal away
Norway (c. 1941 ). fortification stretching 496 mi. (800 km) from from concentrations of population. This
the Channel to Switzerland, and the high cost strategic policy in Britain contributed to the
in lives of attempting any attack, the pen- success of the New Town movement which
dulum had once again swung in favor of was intended to accommodate people from
defense. The Germans in particular developed London and the provincial conurbations in
the single slit trench into deep systems of new towns in the countryside. The idea was
interconnected dugouts , trenches , a nd that by reducing the population density in
pillboxes up to 1.25 mi . (2 km) deep. Initially existing cities, any future bomb attack would
the dugouts could be as much as 40 ft. (12 m) be less effective.
underground, but in the later stages of the war Aerial bombing created a completely new
shallower concrete structures were used to type of building: the air-raid shelter. The most
house command posts, barracks, telephone interesting British innovation was the mass
exchanges, and field hospitals. Where ground production of small steel "Anderson" and
conditions did not permit excavation both "Morrison" shelters. Germany made shelters
sides used concrete pillboxes with walls over available for a much larger proportion of its
3ft. (I m) thick. population: some of these concrete bunkers
After the war , the French developed this were designed to accommodate as many as
apparent defensive superiority into the for- 18,000 people. They were built above ground
tifications of the Maginot Line. The line, and their massive concrete walls were
A fort in the Thames estuary; one which was started in 1930, was compared to a camouflaged with painted windows or as
of several surrounding the English
coastline.
battle fleet in that it deployed units of various burnt-out buildings. Their construction could
sizes ranging from border minefields, fortified resist direct bomb hits but they could offer no
houses, and barbed wire entanglements protection against the fire storms caused by
through concrete "avant-postes" manned by the heaviest Allied raids.
25 men and two-storey artillery casemates, to Another building type unique to World War
the famous underground forts or " ouvrages." II was the anti-aircraft or flak tower. German
These were sited every 3-5 mi. (5-8 km) and towers, as many as ten storeys high , gave an
held garrisons of up to I ,200 men in five unobstructed field of fire from their roofs
storeys of underground accommodation with while accommodating guncrews, air-raid shel-
only armored cupolas protruding above the ters, and hospitals in their lower floors .
surface. They were capable of resisting the Similar towers housed radar equipment and,
 Defense, emergency, and portable 161

whether square or circular in plan, are

="'-J:.~ "'"; '""""""

Emergency, portable, and
reminiscent of medieval keeps complete with ' • l
0 A '

projecting gun platforms which look like huge temporary buildings

I
machicolations. The high observation towers The concept of built structures generally
built by the Germans in the Channel Islands
as part of the Atlantic Wall used rough
assumes the idea of permanence. However,
there has always been a significant and
!
I
m
shuttered concrete in a way which anticipated influential minority of structures which have '
the postwar work of Le Corbusier. not been permanent and whose very essence I
The British built forts in the sea approaches has been their temporary nature. These struc-
to provide a defense against enemy surface
vessels in addition to aircraft. Navy forts, 9
tures fall into three broad catagories. Firstly,
there are structures designed for easy initial
.
mi. (15 km) offshore, consisted of two con- transportation; a good example is the World
crete towers connected by a steel super- War II Nissen and Quonset huts, a further
structure. They were constructed onshore and example is the factory-finished, road-
then towed out and sunk in position. Army transportable mobile home. Secondly, there Ill
forts were also floated out after fabrication. are structures designed for a continuous cycle
These were sited about 4 mi. (6 km) offshore of transit, erection, use, dismantling, packing,
and consisted of several three-storey accom- transit, and so on. Here the best example is
modation units, with gun platforms sitting on
top of steel and concrete frames.
the circus tent. Finally, some have been
designed for a short-term specific function; .
The threat of nuclear war hanging over the the Crystal Palace in London, England, was
world during the last half of the 20th century an example of this type of structure. Some =
has provoked a number of responses in structures combine characteristics of two
defense building. The logic of nuclear deter- categories. Will Ill II !IIIII
rence means that a defender must have know-
ledge of an incoming attack in order to launch
The architectural interest in temporary
structures stems from an extremely rapid time ffiiii lllll.llillli
his own planes and missiles: hence the build-
ing of the DEW (Distant Early Warning) line
scale for erection and demolition and the
unusual freedom from aesthetic, legal, and ffiiii llU~]
across the Arctic wastes of North America.
These are not conventional forts but radar and
financial constraints which have characterized
the erection of such structures. As a result,
Wl1 lllll·i"i,•
communication complexes housed in plastic temporary mobile structures often display a
geodesic domes. This electronic shield range of remarkable innovative skills in sol-
extends into the Atlantic where "Texas
Towers" accommodate similar equipment on
platforms derived from oil dwelling rigs. Elec-
ving formidable problems. The resultant
design freedom acts as a persistent challenge
to the well-worn conventions of traditional
1 1 -A ~~
tronics in the form of "people sniffers," heat architecture. Internal and external elevations
and section of one 24ft. (7 m)
detectors, and laser beams have also invaded structural bay oft he Crystal Palace,
the conventional battlefield although more Structures designed for easy initial London, England (1851 ). by Sir
orthodox defenses still have their uses-the transportation Joseph Paxton.
underground forts of the Bar lev line played a
very important part in the Yom Kippur war H ouses Prior to industrialization and the
and the Vietnamese built elaborate dugout consequent development of transportation , it
systems against American saturation bomb- was rare for all the components of a building
ing. to be moved any distance. There are excep-
In a planning response to the atom bomb a tions, as in the 18th century when East
number of decentralization proposals were Anglian bricks were shipped to St Petersburg
made in the 1950s 'on a scale far exceeding in Russia for the building of the Czars'
that previously proposed in Britain. A sugges- palaces. The need to move entire buildings in
tion was made to divide the whole of the U .S. prefabricated form occurred with the immi-
into 25 mi. (40 km) squares, each with a grant movement to the various colonies in the
factory in the middle and housing arranged in period before 1820. In 1624 the English
linear strips of 160 dwellings to the mile. brought a prefabricated, panelized house to
Similar Soviet decentralization proposals were their fishing settlement at Cape Anne in the
based on the experience of the industrial U .S. In 1727 two timber houses were manu-
dispersion of World War II. factured in New Orleans for use in the West
The height of the Cold War saw a brief Indies. Later buildings of this type formed
period of shelter building in the U.S. There ready markets in the California Gold Rush
was argument between the advocates of large and in the development of the Prairie States of
blast shelters and those of light fallout shelters the U.S.
which, it was claimed, could mean a dif- One major innovation, dating from 1829,
ference between 20 and 80 million casualties. was the development of corrugated-iron sheet-
The Federal Civil Defense Administration ing. An English firm called "Richard
prepared a program for the strengthening of Walker-Carpenter and Builder" carried out
existing buildings and the provision of blast- the initial development of the material (which Interior view of the Crystal Palace
after its reerection at Sydenham,
proof concrete cores for all new shelters. was invented by Henry Robinson Palmer) south London, England in 1853.
 162 Defense, emergency, and portable

recogmzmg its potential for use in roofing, porary" homes are still with us. During the
doors, shutters, partitions, and external walls. war, prefabrication techniques had wide-
In 1833 Walker advertised his product: "(cor- spread military and civilian use . In 1943 for
rugated iron) is particularly commended for example, German authorities built 1,625 pre-
portable buildings for exportation. The small fabricated homes in Hamburg following the
space occupied in storing them, when the bombing of the city. In the approach to the
respective parts are separated, renders their "D Day" landings the South of England
convenience cheap and easy. For new set- became a vast camp with over 1.4 million
tlements, the facility with which they may be troops accommodated in "hutments." A wide
erected or removed from place to place is a variety of prefabrication techniques were
desideration of great consideration.'' used, one of the most common being the
In addition to Walker's advertisement, corrugated-iron C'testiphon system. The
Loudon's Encyclopedia of 1833 described two American Quonset system was also exten-
major wooden prefabricated houses both built sively used.
in the late 1820s. They were manufactured by
a Mr Manning of Holbom, working with a Mr
Portable cottage for emigrants Richard, a carpenter from the East End of Structures designed for continuous
designed by Mr Manning of High London. The first of these houses was built to movement
Holborn, London, England, in 1830. accommodate the exiled Napoleon living on The Tabernacle in the wilderness In chapters
Built out of accurately cut
standardized timber elements.
the island of St Helena. It was 118 x 49 x 23 25-31 of the biblical book of Exodus there is a
ft. (36 x 15 x 7 m). The second was a rather highly detailed account of the building of the
more ambitious house designed for the Gov- Tabernacle. This was a portable sanctuary in
ernor of New Zealand. It included an the form of a tent structure built to symbolize
enclosed promenade 328 ft. (100 m) long, God's presence with the Israelites on their
weighed over 250 tons, and cost £2,000. desert wanderings. It has been calculated that
Thus, from the 1820s there were firms the Tabernacle was built c. 1491 sc, thus
producing prefabricated houses. Walker's making this one of the earliest fully
corrugated-iron structures were less de- documented accounts of a building. The struc-
veloped in detail than Manning's timber struc- ture was used for 40 years in the desert
tures, and their acceptance was probably wanderings of the Israelites and then for 343
limited due to the corrosion problem. Man- years in Shiloh, giving the structure a life span
ning's designs included a wide range of of383 years.
"mobile homes." He had already solved The Tabernacle was approximately 157 x 79
many of the inherent difficulties of pre- ft. (48 x 24 m). It was made up of stan-
fabrication and standardization-assembly, dardized units of curtains on timber framing
erection, and portability. (19 x 9 units). Within this open-roofed cour-
Military structures Prefabricated military tyard the Tabernacle (which means the "Tent
buildings of one kind or another have existed of Congregation" in the original Hebrew) was
from the earliest times. During the 19th positioned. This structure was the most sa-
Patent drawing of a Nissen hut by
century many different systems of hutting for cred part of the edifice; it contained the Ark
Captain Nissen (1916). These temporary barracks, hospitals, and stores of the Covenant, which contained the stone
steel-framed and corrugated-iron were developed. During the Crimean War in tablets with the Ten Commandments
buildings were used extensively in the 1850s, timber and corrugated-iron shelters inscribed upon them.
both World Wars.
of many designs were used. Isambard King- Portable prefabricated tent shrines similar
dom Brunei (1806-59) designed his famous in form to the Tabernacle had been con-
timber Renkioi hospital in this campaign, structed in Egypt prior to this structure, but
which was erected and brought into operation precise details are not known.
in a very short period of time (see HOS- Membrane structures On the upper wall sur-
PITALS). The American Civil War provided a face of the Colosseum in Rome there is a
large market for camp buildings of various rhythm of projecting stone brackets. Origi-
kinds. Skillings and Flint lumber dealers of nally these supported timber masts that held
Boston and New York began producing stan- up a vast "velaria." This was a linen fabric
dard panelized components for buildings canopy to provide protection from rain or sun
before 1861 and found a large market in the and it was slung across the structure, sup-
Union Army. ported by natural fiber ropes. This membrane
In 1916 Captain Nissen invented the "Nis- and cable structure was widely used through-
sen hut," a prefabricated frame structure out the Roman Empire to support roofing to
covered in bolted sections of corrugated iron. amphitheaters and theaters.
In addition to this , there were prefabricated During the intervening centuries the
homes built in Britain and Europe after World development of membrane structures was
The Tabernacle (c. 1491 BC), a War I. limited to military tents and similar structures.
massive portable tent structure However, it was not until World War II Probably the next major development
used by the Israelites on their
wanderings through the Sinai that prefabrication techniques, coupled with occurred with the circus tent. The develop-
Desert following the exodus from the development of road transportation ment of the circus began about 1800 with
Egypt. became an everyday activity and these "tern- performances being held in large halls which
 Defense, emergency, and portable 163

were often specially built for the purpose. In "summit meeting" between King Henry VIII
the 1860s in the U.S., circus companies began of England and Francis I , King of France,
to use the railroads to transport their equip- and their courts. The meeting place became
ment to towns which did not possess such known as the Field of the Cloth of Gold; an
large halls. This required the development of apt description of the finery that was liberally
structures that could be quickly assembled applied to the vast array of temporary struc-
and dismantled. In 1867 an American circus, tures. The French relied upon a series of
complete with its own tent and technical spectacular tent structures, while the English
apparatus, visited Paris. This created much built a vast temporary palace as well as a
excitement, and resulted in the use of similar series of banqueting marquees.
structures by European circus companies. The French marquee was an astonishing
These tents, such as the classic "Chapiteau," 120 ft. (37 m) high, supported by a central
were up to 164 ft. (50 m) in diameter, mast of wooden posts lashed together. The A demountable tent dome devised
by students of the Architectural
supported on four primary masts made from British were more ambitious, building a tem- Association in London, England,
machine-woven linen or hemp canvas. By porary palace 180 ft (5.5 m) square. The and used for an exhibition in 1969.
1872 the Stromeyer Company, which man- building was a curious mixture of materials.
ufactured large tent structures, was estab- The roof was of canvas and below this was a
lished in Germany and is still in existence timber-framed structure. The walls were
today. pierced by vast windows of over 5,000 sq. ft .
In 1917 an English engineer, F. W. Lan- (464 sq. m) of glass that gave great delight to
chester (1868-1946), took out a patent for the the occupants. Then below the frames was a
design of large tent structures, which had no brick base which in turn sat on a stone
need for poles or supports. His patent was for foundation.
an air-supported structure, with entry con- Masques The first opera was staged in 1597
fined to various air locks. However, the and complex art form required elaborate Painting depicting the " Field ofthe
patent was not developed until the 1940s. scenery with complex machinery to control its Cloth of Gold"-the meeting place
Nowadays, the inflatable structure has wide- movement. Masques were initially confined to between King Henry VIII of England
and Francis I of France in the year
spread use, particularly for temporary ware- indoor theaters but they soon outgrew the 1520.
housing. It has also been used in combination confines of the four walls. Large-scale struc-
with the geodesic dome. Here, the rate of tures were devised for use in the open air;
inflation of the membrane support structure is many of them were movable and were oper-
related to the speed at which operatives can ated by complex pulleys and winches. Similar
bolt together the metal sections of the dome structures existed in medieval times for
structure. In this way the membrane forms a pageants and religious plays.
type of scaffolding that raises the structure as Exhibition halls Ever since 1851 there has
it is continually added to at ground level. This been a succession of Great Exhibitions. The
removes the need for complex scaffolding, Crystal Palace (1851), designed by Joseph
and the membrane structure can serve as the Paxton (1803~5), was made up of stan-
weather protection. dardized, mass-produced, cast-iron, and
Geodesic domes Dome structures, the inno- timber details and a vast acreage of glass. It
vation of Buckminster Fuller (b. 1895), have was designed on a module of 8 ft. (2.4 m) and
been progressively developed since the early covered an area of over 91,507 sq. ft. (8,500
Polyurethane igloos donated by
1950s. In 1957, for example, the Hawaiian sq. m). the Red Cross after the 1972
Symphony Orchestra was able to give a From this date, there has been a long earthquake in Managua,
concert inside a 157ft. (48 m) diameter dome succession of "landmark buildings" built for Nicaragua. They were however
that 24 hours earlier had been no more than a various exhibitions and world fairs . They unoccupied until138 days after the
earthquake.
collection of subunits unloaded from an air- range from the Eiffel Tower of the Paris
craft. The U.S. government sponsored the Exposition of 1889 up to the air structures
design of a dome-shaped Trade Pavilion designed for the Osaka World Fair in Japan of
which was used in various sites in different 1970. (see EXHIBITION BUILDINGS.)
countries from 1956 onward. However, Disaster housing Since the early 1960s relief
despite the qualities of these dome structures, agencies have attempted to design disaster
there are very basic inherent problems such as shelters that can be flown to areas of need in
the difficulty in dividing up the internal space. great haste. One such innovation is a poly-
This is not a particular problem with exhibi- urethane dome structure 16 ft. (5 m) in
tions, but for many other functions it may rule diameter which is sprayed onto an inflatable
out this form of structure. mold. This is then deflated and the completed
dome removed. However, with a greater
understanding of the survivors' needs it is
Structures design for short-term now apparent that there is very rarely any
functions need for such provision. Surviving families
Pavilions~he Field of the Cloth of Gold can rebuild their homes very rapidly, or move
Perhaps the most sumptuous temporary struc- in with relatives. In terms of time, the critical
tures ever built were erected in a field outside factor is always the acquisition of land for the
Calais in the year 1520. This was for a 13-day structures, not the time to fabricate them.
Section 33
Section Structural design,
elements,systems
and processes
166 Structural design

Structural design and its

bases Subsequent development has been in the
practical application of these theories. Until
Structural theory recently, it has been limited to statics, initially
Structural theory, as it now exists, is a growing to the determination offorces in structures that
body of mathematical models of the ways in were "statically determinate," but increasingly
which structures carry loads and deform under for the past century also to similar deter-
them or, at their limit, collapse through minations in structures that are "statically
instability or local overstressing of the mate- indeterminate." The distinction here is bet-
rials. Most of these models relate to particular ween structures whose geometry, support, and
types of structural element or system, and internal jointure allow only one internal dis-
particular types of loading and response to the tribution of forces for a particular pattern of
load. They are based on a few much more loading, and structures in which they would
fundamental and widely applicable models of allow numerous different distributions, so that
the conditions of static and dynamic equilib- the actual distribution depends also on the
rium and the deformation of materials under material properties and the resulting defor-
load. They have to be supplemented in use by mations. Only the former (or, more strictly, the
data on, and theories about, the loads likely to idealizations of them that are considered for the
be experienced. purpose of analysis) are statically determinate.
Even the fundamental models-the basic The first structural forms to be analyzed were
theories of statics, dynamics, deformation, and the hanging flexible chain and the arch envis-
failure-are mostly of recent origin. Prior to aged as an inverted chain. The next major
their formulation, there was a different kind of The practical application of application was to pin-jointed trusses in the
structural theory usually calls for a
codification of the experience gained in actual knowledge of material strengths.
mid-19th century. Since applications to stat-
construction to serve as a guide to design. But These French testing machines ically indeterminate structures must take
we will consider here just the development of (late 18th century) were used to deformations into account, they have involved
these basic modern theories and the other determine the crushing strengths also the basic theories of deformation and will,
of building stone.
models or theories derived from them. therefore, be considered below. Applications of
dynamics to problems of major structural
interest, like the response of buildings to
A view oft he right-hand machine fluctuating wind loads or earthquake shock,
Statics and dynamics shown above in use. The loading involve the deformational characteristics in yet
lever, pivoting on knife edges,
The basic theories of statics and dynamics can allowed the applied load to be another way and have become practical only in
at least be traced back to Greek beginnings. magnified up to 63 times. the last few decades.
Only Archimedean statics were of practical
relevance though; and they were limited to the
determination of centers of gravity and the laws
of balance for the simple case where the weights
on the balance arm act vertically. This limi-
tation was a grave shortcoming because it
precluded any valid application to the balance
of forces in any case, like that of an arch or
dome, in which major forces were inclined to
the vertical.
A precise concept of a force acting in any
direction was arrived at only slowly between
the 13th and 16th centuries by men like
Jordanus , Leonardo, and Stevin. They envis-
aged an inclined force in terms of the effective
weight of a body partly supported by an inclined
plane, or in terms of the pull on a balance arm of
an inclined cord passing over a pulley and then
carrying a weight vertically at its free end. On
this basis, they were able to form some idea of
the conditions of balance or static equilibrium
of forces acting in different directions. A more
powerful concept was arrived at in the following
century in terms of dynamics; that is of the
movements that different forces would pro-
duce. This concept received its classic state-
ment in Newton's laws of motion. It was more
powerful because it was completely unre-
stricted by particular physical models like
weighted cords, and because it included the
situation where movement does take place as a
result of the forces acting.
 Structural design 167

Deformation and strength

Complementary theories of deformation and
strength did not really begin to appear until the
publication of Galileo's Two new sciences in
the early 17th century. Though Galileo's
conclusions had been foreshadowed to some
extent by Leonardo, it was Galileo who first
clearly formulated them in a coherent set of
general propositions. The main subject of
interest was the bending strength of a beam,
which observation showed was not simply
proportional to the cross-sectional area for a
given material, as was the tensile strength.
Galileo correctly deduced that the bending
strength of a beam of rectangular cross section
was proportional to its width and the square of
its depth. However, he arrived at too high a
ratio of the bending strength to the strength in
direct tension because he assumed that the en-
tire cross section would fail simultaneously
in tension, pivoting about the bottom edge.
Galileo's error may have stemmed from the
observation that a stone beam does, in fact, fail
throughout its depth in tension. But it is not a
simultaneous failure. It starts at the top and
rapidly progresses down as the remaining
unbroken section is reduced in depth. To
understand this it was necessary to take into The simple theory of the bending
account the deformations associated with bend- been many further applications to members of of beams was largely worked out
between the mid-17th and early
ing, and the relationship between these defor- composite cross section-notably of reinforced 19th centuries. But considerable
mations and the development of internal and prestressed concrete-and to complex reliance was still placed on direct
resistance to the applied load. The brittle structural elements and systems that have had testing when Peter Barlow made
fracture of a rectangular stone beam is, to be considered three-dimensionally. this test in about 1810.
moreover, a simple phenomenon compared The postulate of a direct proportionality of
with the deflection and failure of a beam of non- stress and strain is, however, an idealization of
rectangular section made of a material like varying validity for different materials. For
wrought iron, steel , or reinforced concrete. some, it is valid almost up to failure. For others,
Fuller understanding was only gained slowly it is valid only for relatively small deformations
and was dependent on basic theories of elastic compared with those they are capable of
and plastic deformation. sustaining without failure. And, for some of
The basic theory of elasticity postulates a each, the stress at which failure occurs is not
direct proportionality of stress (internal resis- constant but varies with the type of stress. In
tance) and strain (local deformation) and is a particular, it may be much lower in tension than
restatement of Hooke's Law, published in the in compression. Throughout the 19th century
late 17th century, that the force required to and well into the 20th, the consequent limi-
produce a given extension is proportional to the tations in the validity of predictions based on
extension. On this basis, the stress in a beam this postulate tended to be a source of
varies uniformly from a maximum tension on confusion. There was not usually much trouble
one face to a maximum compression on the when they were used only to give indications of
opposite. Coulomb first applied similar ideas to stiffness or safety under loads well within the
the problem of bending in the late 18th century, ultimate capacity; but they could give very
and they were developed further by Navier in misleading indications of ultimate strength. An
the early 19th century. On the foundation laid early hint of this arose in the course ofthe initial
by C.L.M .H. Navier (1785-1836) there was search for the ideal cross section for a cast-iron
then an ever-widening range of application to beam. Elastic theory suggested an I-section
fresh problems of statically indeterminate with equal top and bottom flanges, which is
behavior. In the 19th century these remained indeed the stiffest section. But tests, which
predominantly problems of bending-including were usually designed only to measure
the bending of columns, of beams continuous strength, indicated that a very different I-
over several supports, and of continuous section, with a much larger bottom flange, was
frames-and of interactions between members considerably stronger for the same cross-
in structural systems like statically inde- sectional area. In this case, the theoretical
terminate plane trusses and stiffened sus- predictions could be reconciled with the
pension bridges. In the 20th century, there have experimental observation simply by allowing
168 Structural design

for the different strengths of the material in estimated strengths.

tension and compression. Less easily resolved During the 19th century, this approach had to
discrepancies between predicted and true be supplemented in two ways. Loads other than
strengths became apparent later when materials the weight of the structure itself became more
like steel and concrete were used, particularly important, particularly for railroad bridges, and
when they were used in systems which were the development of elastic theories of the
statically highly indeterminate. Here they were behavior of the main structural elements and
the result of considerable capacities possessed some complete structural systems called for
by these materials for deforming further with- further criteria to bypass the reliance on
out failure after the stress had reached a value strength tests of these elements and systems.
near its maximum. Tests were made to determine both wind loads
The simplest alternative postulate to cover and the effective loads imposed by moving
this situation was the simple theory of plas- locomotives, but the data obtained remained of
ticity. According to this, the material does not limited and somewhat questionable validity for
fracture but continues to deform at a constant want of adequate understanding of the nature of
yield stress once this stress is reached. Under these dynamic loads. To ensure the safety of
lower stresses, its deformation is relatively so each element of the structure, it became usual
small that it can be ignored. On this basis, the to estimate the maximum stresses that would
stress in a beam made of a single material arise under the maximum loads that would
increases at failure to a uniform tension over normally be expected, and to compare these
one part of the -cross section and a uniform "working stresses" with "allowable stresses"
compression over the remaining part-not quite for the materials used. These latter stresses
Galileo's assumption because the compression were substantially below the stresses at which
must balance the tension and will usually have tests had shown that the material would fail, the
to act over a comparable depth. Hitherto the margin being a matter of judgment, initially by
main applications of this theory have been in the individual designer and later by groups of
predictions of the ultimate strengths of rein- the more experienced designers.
forced-concrete slabs and continuous frames, In the first half of the 20th century, much
and of steel rigid-jointed frames; but, since they more data was acquired on the loads to be
are again based on idealizations, these pre- expected, and design criteria for particular
dictions usually only indicate possible limits classes of structure-like steel frames and
or bounds to the real strengths. reinforced-concrete frames-were pro-
The present trend is toward more realistic gressively codified for normal design in terms of
basic postulates recognizing both an initial design loads and allowable stresses. Since it
elastic deformation and a subsequent plastic was increasingly realized that the estimated
one, and toward more comprehensive pre- maximum stresses would be subject to varying
dictions of the response of complete structural margins of error, according to the sort of
systems to increasing loads. In particular, more approximations or idealizations implicit in the
attention is being paid to stability which usually estimations, the allowable stresses were usually
deteriorates as deflections increase, even when stated in relation to particular specified means
an ample margin of strength might seem to of estimation. They also took some account of
remain. Considerable attention is also now the nature of the loading (steady or fluctuating,
being given to dynamic behavior. All these closely predictable or highly unpredictable) and
developments have involved calculations on a the likely mode of failure (sudden or gradual;
scale which involves the use of computers. catastrophic or purely local) as well as of the
variability of the material. However, they
remained, to a large extent, a matter of
professional judgment and were ultimately
Design criteria justified or found lacking only by the test of the
When the basic theory of static equilibrium for safety of structures designed to them. Some
forces acting in any direction was first applied in aspects of design remained outside these
structural design in the second half of the 18th criteria and were still covered, as they had long
century and the early 19th, the criterion of a safe been, by direct use of proven practice.
design seemed obvious enough. The structure In the last few decades, far more again has
would be safe if it could support its own weight, been learned about likely loads, particularly
and perhaps the weight of a wagon passing over wind loads and earthquake shocks, and about
it, or of machinery on a floor, without their variability, and that of the strengths of
overloading any crucial element-arch rib, materials and of the structural elements made
beam, column, masonry pier, or tie rod. The from them. In the light ofthis knowledge, and of
strengths of these elements could be assessed the newly available theories of ultimate strength
by loading specimens to failure, or by similarly based on the theory of plasticity, there have
loading specimens of the material if the strength been two new trends. The first has been toward
of the element could then be estimated by recognizing the variabilities explicitly in the
simple proportion. For greater safety, some design criteria, coupled with the use of prob-
factor would be allowed on the measured or ability theory to arrive at the precise criteria.
 Structural design 169

The second has been a move away from an materials. Because they were not framed in
almost exclusive concern with allowable terms of the strengths of the materials and the
stresses at normal loads, toward a parallel or loads to be carried, they had to be learned
primary concern with ultimate strengths. The afresh by trial and error whenever there was a
criterion of safety here reverts almost to the significant change in material or scale or loading
original criterion, but with a precisely specified if the strength of the element was the main
margin between the estimated strength and the consideration. They were generally useful
expected load. Additional criteria are then because in many structures the stresses were
introduced to guard against possibilities of almost entirely compressive and well within the
excessive deflections and other undesirable strength limits of the material if they were
behavior under normal loads. In principle, each sufficiently uniformly distributed. Safe design
eventuality considered is guarded against by was largely a matter of ensuring this reasonable
ensuring that it has a sufficiently low specified uniformity by suitable geometric proportioning.
probability of occurrence. A further important factor was that the loading
was nearly always predominantly self-weight,
which was also determined by the proportions,
though scale was also important here.
Structural design In these circumstances, innovation was for a
Design must always be distinguished from long time a very slow evolutionary process
analysis-structural design as much as any punctuated not infrequently by collapses or
other kind. In the limited sense of conceiving partial failures when the designer went a little
and drawing or modeling a form to be built, it too far in some direction. Many such collapses
should be based on one sort of analysis-an are on record, as are the remedial works which
appraisal of the relevant requirements-and often followed. There must have been many
must precede another, the testing of the design more of which we now know nothing. As the
against appropriate criteria to obtain some height of Gothic churches was increased, for
assurance before it is built that it will meet the instance, there was fairly frequent trouble from
requirements. In practice though, there tends to the high vaults pushing out the supporting piers,
be a certain amount of alternation between and one origin of the flying buttress was the
conception and these two sorts of analysis, so addition of external props to some churches to
that it is probably better to consider design as halt such movements before the vaults col-
embracing all three activities. In these more lapsed. Elsewhere, ties were added across the
embracing terms at least, structural design has springings of the vaults for the same purpose.
clearly changed considerably with the growth of Occasionally, however, more radical inno-
modern theory and of the associated pos- vation was attempted. Two instances were in
sibilities of analysis. On the other hand, much the rebuilding of the Church of Hagia Sophia in
structural innovation occurred without the Constantinople in the 6th century, and in the
benefits of this theory, so it is worth considering construction without centering of the great
how this was possible. dome of Florence Cathedral in the 15th
Before doing so it will be helpful to consider century. In both these cases, the designers must
the general course of structural design. This has have had a considerable intuitive grasp of the
always been far Jess innovative, but has been relevant conditions of static equilibrium,
the soil from which innovation has sprung. though they must have seen them primarily in
Usually it has gone no further than developing geometric terms and fallen back, like their
small variations on what has been built pre- contemporaries, directly on past experience
viously. Heights or spans may have been when they had to decide on the dimensions of a
changed slightly, a different material may have buttress or a tie. In Constantinople, Anthemius
been substituted somewhere, or the plan may and the elder Isidorus underestimated the
have been adapted to fit a different site or meet a necessary buttressing, with the result that more
different functional requirement. Today, the had to be added as construction proceeded. It
safety of such variations is checked by routine was also necessary, some years later, to rebuild
analyses of stresses, strengths, and deflections the dome to a raised profile. But this does little
in accordance with some " code of practice" to diminish an achievement that was almost
whose rules, though framed in terms of the without parallel. In Florence, Filippo Brunel- By a theory of statics made in the
kinds of criteria discussed above, are essen- leschi (1377-1446) built only the dome, and was early 1750s, the cracked dome of
tially rules for the safe, but limited, develop- fortunate in the work of his predecessors who StPeter's, Rome, was envisaged
as composed of a ring of
ment of past experience. The chief difference in had provided a very secure base for it. His orange-slice arches (bottom
the past, before such rules were available, was design for constructing it was based throughout center), and each arch was then
that past experience had to be drawn on more on a very clear recognition of the stability of a considered as a mirror inversion
directly, and with less understanding of the circular dome with a central circular opening of of a similarly weighted hanging
chain.
likely limits of its validity. The corresponding any size by virtue of the continuous horizontal
rules, whether explicitly formulated or just part arch at this opening, and he seems to have very
of the builder's know-how, mostly related imaginatively applied lessons learned from a
directly to the safe proportions of elements used study of flat Roman concrete arches in over-
in particular ways and constructed of particular coming the problem presented by the octagonal
170 Structural design

plan of his dome. It is notable that he made one suspension bridges (see BRIDGES). Long series
large brick model before starting construction of carefully planned tests played the major part
of the dome itself, presumably to test the basic in guiding the beam designs. Telford also relied
concept. largely on tests to establish the profiles and
Though it is possible that both Leonardo da cross sections of the suspension chains both for
Vinci (1452-1519) (in projects for the dome of his projected 980 ft. (300 m) central span over
Milan Cathedral) and Sir Christopher Wren the Mersey at Runcorn and for the slightly later
(1632-1723) (in designs for the dome of St executed bridges over the Menai Straits and the
Paul's, London) were guided by a fuller Conway River. But Navier, having studied
understanding of the conditions of static Telford's and other designs, then provided a
equilibrium, it is not until the mid-18th century theoretical basis for future designs. Truss
that there was clear evidence of practical design finally emerged from an early, very
application of statical theory. It was used then confused phase only with the introduction of
in several analyses of the stability of the simple and accurate ways of calculating the
cracked dome of StPeter's, Rome, built more forces in the members in mid-century; and
than a century earlier. A little later it was used further development was greatly facilitated a
again in analyses by Gauthey of the stability of a little later by the introduction of purely graphic
projected dome for Ste Genevieve (now the methods of analysis.
Pantheon) in Paris; this being probably the first In comparison with the innovative design of
time that it played a direct part in innovative the first half of the 19th century, design in the
design. latter part of the century and the first half of the
Ste Genevieve was, however, still a masonry 20th century was mostly a series of more direct
structure in which the stresses were pre- extrapolations of previous designs. Develop-
dominantly compressive and self-weight was ments in theory and related developments in
the major load. Analyses based on statical design criteria made it possible to vary forms,
theory and the theory of elasticity, closely increase their scale, and even introduce new
coupled with tests on prototype elements and materials like reinforced concrete, with much
models, really began to play a major part in greater freedom and assurance than would have
design in the first half of the 19th century. been possible previously. But, in so doing, they
Without them, the unprecedented rapid must have reduced the incentives to innovate
development of new types of beam, truss, and more radically, and they probably led to a
suspension system in cast and wrought iron, frequent overemphasis on the analytical
often to carry heavy imposed loads, would have aspects of design. Hardy Cross (1885-1959), a
been impossible. Notable examples were Sir great American teacher, was among those who
William Fairbairn's (1789-1874) and Eaton recognized this overemphasis and helped to
Hodgkinson's (1789-1861) search for efficient counter it by introducing a new way of
forms of beam, initially for mill buildings and analyzing complex building frames that enabled
then, in association with Robert Stephenson the designer to focus throughout on the physical
(1803-59), for the 400ft. (122m) and 450ft. (137 reality rather than a mathematical abstraction.
m) spans of the Conway and Britannia Tubular A few designers in reinforced concrete, from
Bridges, and the contributions by Thomas Robert Maillart (1872-1940) and Eugene Frey-
Telford (1757-1834), and C.L.M.H. Navier ssinet (1879-1962), to men like Eduardo Torroja
(1785-1836) to the development of wide-span (1899-1961) and Ove Arup (b. 1895), also saw
that, as a guide and stimulus to creative design,
The detailed application of the
hanging-chain analogy (see structural theory was valuable mainly as a
previous picture). source of insight into the ways in which
structures behave. Where they could not justify
the safety of their designs by calculation, they
resorted again to testing, and were able to learn
considerably more from the tests than their
predecessors could have done, thanks to their
deeper theoretical insights.
Recent further developments in theory and
design criteria, together with improvements in
model-testing techniques and the revolution in
calculation brought about by the computer,
have made a new wave of innovative designs
possible. Typically, these designs have been
developed much like some of those of a century
or more previously through both tests and
analyses. But these have explored types of
interactive structural behavior far beyond the
reach of the earlier tests and analyses. Analysis
by computer can, moreover, be arranged to
explore very rapidly a range of variations on a
 Structural elements 171

particular design to enable the most appropriate with the undersides of all four cut to a
configuration or proportions to be selected. The continuous semicircular or segmental soffit. In
selection can even be made automatically if the other examples, larger numbers of small blocks
designer feeds into the computer the necessary were similarly laid, usually to form an inverted
basis of selection; but there is no need for him to V-shaped opening in a wall.
hand over responsibility to the computer to this None of these early forms was very effi-
extent. In the design of buildings at least, the cient. Spans rarely exceeded 6 ft. 6 in. (2 m).
structure is only a part of the whole. There is The spanning of substantially wider gaps called
therefore a strong feeling among the best for true arches constructed on centering from
designers that, unless they have to push a form large numbers of bricks or stone voussoirs .
to the very limits of practicality, they should Small true brick arches appeared first in
remain in more direct control. Mesopotamia and Egypt, to be followed, by the
5th or 4th century Be, by arches of accurately
cut stone voussoirs. Initial caution was
Structural elements reflected in the use of voussoirs of a depth
exceeding the radius of the arch. But, with
increasing confidence, the Romans reduced
Arches this depth to about one-tenth of the radius on
Throughout most of architectural history, the spans up to 82ft. (25 m) by the 1st century Be.
arch has been the chief means of overcoming This, however, was mainly for bridges. In
the spanning limitations of single blocks of buildings, concrete was then beginning to be
stone or lengths of timber. It carries its loads in used in place of cut +;tone, and was used in
simple compression, acting along a line which Rome for all the longer spans from the 1st
curves downward from the crown toward each century AD. Superficially, Roman concrete
abutment. Because of this simple compressive arches might be mistaken for brick arches,
action, the individual units of a brick or stone because they were invariably faced with brick.
arch need merely be butted against one another, But only about one brick in four penetrated the
either with or without an interposed bed of thickness of the arch to divide the concrete core
mortar to give more uniform contact. Provided into voussoir-shaped sections. Elsewhere, in Roman concrete arches c. AD 200.
The brick facing has gone,
that the joints are aligned roughly at right angles the later Empire, this concrete form was often showing the concrete mass
to the compression, the precise curve of the transposed back into pure brick or stone. A behind divided into voussoir-like
arch is not very critical until its depth becomes a semicircular or segmental profile was almost sections by other bricks
small fraction of its span. The relative immo- universal; partly, perhaps, because it was penetrating the thickness.
bility of the abutments (which tend to be forced considered to be strongest, but also, no doubt,
apart by the arch thrust) is more important. The because it made construction easier. On short
flatter the arch, the less critical is its precise spans the Romans did, however, introduce the
curve, but the greater the outward thrust be- flat arch, and then sometimes joggled the
comes and the more important the immobility voussoirs (i.e. made them interlock).
of the abutments. In the extreme it may Later brick and stone arches departed from
have a completely flat soffit, but very strong Roman precedents mainly in the adoption of
abutments are then necessary except for other profiles. Of these, the most important
the smallest spans. were the pointed profiles characteristic both of
Timber arches are the principal
One obstacle to the early realization of this most Islamic and of Gothic arches. The Islamic elements of the fine
true arch form would have been the need for form appeared first and was preceded by a hammer-beam roof of
some kind of centering to give temporary Sassanian form of roughly parabolic profJ.le, Westminster Hall, London.
support to two halves of the incomplete arch
during construction. The earliest forms were
therefore probably merely approximations to it
that eliminated this need. One, which survives
today in Mycenean cyclopean construction,
consisted of only three rough blocks of stone,
the central one somewhat larger than the gap
between the other two and wedged between
them. A second, of which monumental exam-
ples survive in Egypt from the 3rd millennium
BC , consisted of only two long blocks inclined
toward one another as an inverted V-shape.
This form was probably constructed even
earlier in timber. The third, of which surviving
examples are very widespread, was what is
commonly known as the false or corbeled arch.
This consisted, in fully developed Egyptian and
Greek examples, of four large blocks laid on
horizontal beds with the upper two projecting
forward over the lower two to close the gap and
172 Structural elements

1 1I 1
where the main objective was probably the The development of cast- and
rolled-iron and steel beams: a-e,
same-a reduction in the amount of temporary cast-iron cross sections and a
support required during construction and hence typical profile, 1796-1824; f, a
in the quantity of timber required for centering. cast-iron beam trussed with
To economize further in this scarce resource, a b c d
wrought-iron rods, c. 1840; g-j,
wrought-iron and steel cross
brick arches were constructed of superimposed sections, 1850-1955.
rings in such a way that only part of the first ring
had to be carried, during construction, by the
centering alone. Gothic pointed arches were
usually built in stone and economy of centering
re::::,
was a less important consideration. The chief

r
merit of the pointed profile was probably the
ease with which it could be used in ribbed vaults
of any plan shape and, without aesthetic
inconsistency, throughout structures that vaul-
f
ted in this way. Many other profiles were also
adopted, sometimes highly fanciful. But they

I I I I
were of no structural significance because they
involved no more than the cutting away of part
of the soffit of a deep arch of a more normal
profile. A final development was the 18th-
century French flat arch which was heavily
reinforced with iron to make it function more 9 h
like a beam.
Arches of other materials-timber, iron, expected, since timber is easier to cut and
steel, and reinforced concrete-have usually transport. Apart from its inferior durability, it is
been, structurally speaking, somewhat impure also a more appropriate material because the
forms; in that their action has not been purely structural action of a beam involves internal
compressive. They have also been capable of tension as well as compression, and timber,
some bending resistance to the loads to be unlike stone, has a tensile strength along the
carried and could therefore be made cor- grain to match its compressive strength. Simple
respondingly more slender. In later develop- cut timber beams spanned about 26 ft. (8 m)
ments of the timber inverted V (or cruck) form, between the columns of the great audience hall
it was usual to peg or strap together three or at Persepolis, and were probably transported
more parallel arch rings with the joints in one from Lebanon. At the expense of a much
ring offset from those in adjacent rings. A fine greater effort, certainly of cutting, the far more
example may be seen in the late 14th-century massive stone slabs and lintels of the Hypostyle
roof of Westminster Hall, London. This led to Hall at Karnak have clear spans of only about
the timber arch with multiple lamination that 20ft. (6 m). For most types of stone, the limit
became common in the 19th century and has was substantially lower, though greater spans
been given a further lease of life with the have been attainable from certain types of
introduction of more durable glues in the last timber.
few decades. Additional stiffness has usually To overcome these spanning limitations,
been provided by some form of bracing, either various other means have been tried. With
to a second parallel arch or to other structural stone there was really only one possibility-the
elements. Early cast-iron arches of the late 18th use of metal reinforcement at the bottom to
and early 19th centuries all closely resembled improve the tensile weakness. Though there do
braced timber arches. Later steel and rein- seem to have been earlier attempts, it is unlikely
forced-concrete arches have usually been given that anything significant was achieved by such
the necessary stiffness simply by the adoption reinforcement until the 18th-century develop-
of an I-shaped, boxlike, or tubular cross ment of the reinforced flat arch. With timber,
section. there was a wider range of possibilities includ-
ing, in addition to the use of metal rein-
forcement, the building up of beams of greater
Beams and slabs length or greater effective depth than could be
Already in the early 3rd millennium BC, in cut from available timber in one piece. Mostly
Zozer's tomb complex at Saqqara, blocks of this involved, until very recently, the use of
stone were being deliberately shaped for use as techniques very similar to those used in building
ceiling beams instead of just used as found. The up wide-spanning timber arches, except that,
fact that their undersides were cut to a rounded instead of simply butting successive lengths of
form suggests an even earlier use of cut timber, timber at the bottom of the beam against one
probably palm logs. Indeed, the prior use of cut another, they were joined in ways that per-
timber is generally suggested by the detailing of mitted some direct transmission of tension.
prototypical stone column and beam forms Recently, the introduction of much more
down to the Doric temple. This is to be efficient glued joints has vastly extended the
 Structural elements 173

useful range of possible built-up forms and

permitted the construction of wide-spanning n:::r~~+
• ..., _.,, +:r·tt::~tr=~tttr
.::a •• --. '.1'. -----. -~~ =:- -;:z " '

«
rJtLr.
The development of reinforced-
and prestressed-concrete
beams: a, an early American
beams of I or box section. A further possibility proposal for a prestressed-stone
was a hybrid trussed form, best exemplified by beam, 1811; b-f, reinforced-
concrete beams, 1854-c. 1920; g,
early 19th-century beams with wrought-iron
rods constituting the ties of a simple shallow ............. : .. ·:. _, prestressed-concrete, c. 1950.

truss. b
Iron beams have a long history too; but they
became structurally important elements only in
the late 18th century with the widespread
introduction of cast iron. The most efficient
form of cast-iron beam was found to be one of
!-shaped cross section with a larger bottom
flange, on account of the lower strength of the
material in tension than in compression. In the H .I
19th century, spans were extended, as in the
case of timber beams, by trussing with
wrought-iron rods. In this way, it was also
9

T
possible to support the heavier loads that were
then becoming more common, but the appli-
cation of the rods was often badly conceived
(with the end attachments too high in relation to .• <
the compression flange), and this led to some
serious collapses. By the middle of the century,
wrought iron began to oust cast iron and was Turner in the U .S. and by Maillart in Swit-
then, in tum , ousted by steel (see BRIDGES). zerland) that such slabs could be reinforced to
They did away with the disparity of tensile and span in any direction and could, for instance,
compressive strengths and, hence, with the span directly between the four comers of a
need for trussing or unequal flanges. The rectangular bay. Such slabs, of a uniform depth
associated change from casting to rolling as the less than half that of the beams that would
method of fabrication also led to the adoption of otherwise be required between the corner
constant depths and cross sections for the supports, are sometimes referred to as flat
standard beams, instead of depths increasing to plates.
midspan, as had been adopted for many Prestressing of the reinforcement has per-
cast-iron beams. For the largest loads and mitted a more efficient use of modern high-
spans, variable cross sections could however be strength concrete. The reinforcement is initially
built up by riveting on (or more recently by tensioned to a high enough stress to ensure that
welding on) additional plates as required. For all the concrete will remain in compression even
lighter loads, lightweight beams have been when the beam is subjected to its maximum
made with open webs. load. Because some of the initial tension is
Reinforced-concrete beams may be regarded inevitably lost, higher strength reinforcement
as the modem counterpart of the reinforced flat than is normally used is essential, but this
stone arches. Early development in the late 19th became more readily available from the 1930s
century was mainly empirical, as had been the onward. Beams for use in buildings are most
development of most earlier forms. But the economically precast and such beams, usually
right choice and placing of the reinforcement to of I section, have been widely used in the last
develop the full potential strength of the few decades. Similar larger beams have also
concrete section called for at least some been used for bridges with spans up to about 60
quantitative analysis of the internal stresses to ft. (18 m). For longer spans, box sections are
The welded-steel box girder deck
be expected. Design was placed on a much preferred and, as an alternative to precasting of the Severn Bridge, England,
more certain basis in the first decades of the these in one piece, in situ prestressing has under erection in 1964. The
20th century, and further improvements permitted a return to the reinforced flat arch closed box form is especially
resulted from a better understanding of the form with the complete span assembled from suited to carrying loads that may
cause twisting as well as
factors that determined concrete strengths. short voussoir-like sections. symmetrical bending, and the
Reinforced concrete then became a highly trapezoidal cross section
versatile structural material, since the strength Columns, piers, and walls
adopted here also had
of the concrete, the overall geometry of the considerable aerodynamic
advantages.
element, and the quantity and placement of the The average compressive stress in a brick or
reinforcement rods were all under the stone wall has, until very recently, rarely been
designer's control. This versatility also per- more than a small fraction of the compressive
mitted, for the first time, the construction of strength of the brick or stone. Development
monolithic slabs of any desired width trans- was therefore seen largely in terms of a repeated
verse to the main span. These could be search for economy in construction, without
constructed simply as laterally extended loss of cohesion through the thickness or
beams. But it was soon realized (notably by excessive nonuniformity of stress leading to
174 Structural elements

instability. Much the same could be said of

freestanding columns and piers which can
collapse in any direction and not just at right
angles to their length, and in which a local
weakness cannot be supported by an adjacent
margin of strength.
Brick walls and piers have, from the begin-
ning, usually been of fairly uniform con-
struction throughout their thicknesses. Dif-
ferent bonds, or methods of laying the bricks,
have been devised to avoid the weaknesses that
would be introduced by continuous vertical
joints. Stone walls, on the contrary, were rarely
as uniformly built. To economize in the effort of
cutting, they were built with two skins enclos-
ing a filling of loose rubble-bound more or less
effectively, by earth or mortar. The blocks of
the skins were dressed to fit fairly closely on the
surface in many different bonding patterns. But
behind the surface they were usually left much
rougher and less closely fitting, so that much of
the total compression was concentrated on the early date. But it was not a role that was capable Cast-iron columns supporting
primary and secondary cast-iron
skins. Stone piers were usually built in the same of much continued development, and timber is beams in a boat store at
way, with one continuous outer skin. Only in not a naturally appropriate material for the Portsmouth, England, built in
relatively slender, freestanding columns was construction of load-bearing walls other than 1845. The principal beams are
the construction uniform, although the framed walls in which columns (or studs) are the trussed with wrought-iron rods.
superimposed drums were usually dressed to fit main load-bearing elements. Further develop-
only around the circumference when the whole ment in this direction came about through the
column was not monolithic. substitution of cast iron , and later of steel, for
Within the broad pattern of the many timber.
variations on this theme, it is possible to Cast-iron columns, of single-storey height,
distinguish only one significantly new form- were introduced at about the same time as
the Roman concrete wall or pier. This may have cast-iron beams, and continued being used
come into being through the accident of the throughout the 19th century. They were usually
existence of a natural pozzolanic earth which tubular in cross section, this being the most
made excellent concrete when used, in the efficient section to avoid buckling under an
usual way, to bond the rubble core. Once the axial vertical load. Steel columns of many
strength of this concrete was realized, more and different cross sections, both rolled and built
more reliance was placed on it, and the skins up , have been used since the latter part of the
became little more than a facing to it-a kind of 19th century. The usual rolled section has been
permanent shuttering. Wall and pier thick- an I or a broader flanged H, but tubular sections
nesses remained, nevertheless, almost as great have now become available again. Sections
as had been common previously, giving a great built up by welding from huge plates can now be
margin of extra strength. obtained to carry loads through 100 or more
Only in the 20th century have further new, storeys. Even larger columns are built up ,
but related, forms appeared. The much more partly in situ, for long-span bridges.
slender "calculated" brick wall is a direct
development from earlier brick walls, exploit-
ing both the availability of a wider range of Domes and related elements
bricks of different guaranteed strengths, and a The dome may be regarded as the three-
clearer understanding of actual and desirable dimensional counterpart of the arch. In its true
strengths. The modern concrete or reinforced circular form, a vertical arch is rotated around a
concrete wall and its counterpart, the rein- vertical axis and sweeps out, at every level, a
forced-concrete column, are, on the other hand , continuous circular horizontal ring. Loads can
more closely associated with the development be transmitted both along the meridian lines of
of reinforced-concrete beams and slabs than the vertical arches and around the horizontal
with Roman concrete walls and piers. The rings. This dual mechanism allows, in principle,
column developed at the same time as the beam. a much freer choice of profile than for an arch of
The wall, characteristically even more slender similar thickness, though the full freedom is
than the "calculated" brick wall, has been realized only with appropriate support con-
largely a development of the last few decades. ditions plus a capacity to resist circumference
Timber is as immediately adaptable to the tensions in the lower rings when the meridians
role of a column as to that of a beam. Indeed the become steeply inclined. In masonry and
upright growth of the tree must have suggested unreinforced concrete domes this was never
this role in manmade construction at a very fully realized. But one related possibility was
 Structural elements 175

widely exploited-that ofleaving an open eye in archlike form known as a squinch and a
the center, with the uppermost horizontal rings spherical triangular form known as a pen-
acting, in effect, as the keystone to all the dentive. The latter was, in effect, a small part of
incomplete vertical arches. a larger dome springing lower down. The other
There are good reasons for believing that the development was the double dome , in which the
simple dome form, set directly on the ground, outer dome served primarily to protect the inner
was the first completely manmade spatial one from the weather but also offered the
enclosure. Simple domed huts, constructed possibility of achieving a more impressive
from a wide variety of materials, can still be external silhouette-a possibility that was
found throughout the world. It certainly seems widely exploited both by later Islamic
probable that the masonry form preceded that architects and by Western architects from the
of the two-dimensional masonry arch because it High Renaissance onward.
can be built entirely without centering, taking The later Western development was initiated
advantage of the keying action of each suc- by an achievement that, in the circumstances of
cessive horizontal ring. In fact , it would have the time , probably exceeded that of Hadrian's
been seen as a circular wall gradually closing in architect of the Pantheon dome. This was
on itself, rather than in terms of a ring of vertical Brunelleschi's construction of the dome of
arches. The dome, constructed with hori- Florence Cathedral in the early 15th century. A
zontally bedded rings and sharply pointed Roman concrete dome of the major difficulty here was the octagonal plan
Pantheon. A circular dome,
profile, had already achieved monumental unlike an arch, is self-supporting form which Brunelleschi was constrained to
proportions by about the 14th century BC in the with such an opening at the follow throughout the height of the dome itself.
great tombs at Mycenae. But these tombs were crown. His central idea was to construct it, neverthe-
not completely freestanding. They depended less, as if it were a circular dome of the same
partly for their stability on the earth piled internal diameter as the diagonals of the
against them outside. octagon-a diameter that slightly exceeded that
The full development of the potential of the of the Pantheon dome. In this way, and by
truly freestanding .dome owed much to Roman means of numerous related devices, he suc-
concrete. Casting the concrete in horizontal ceeded in completing it without any centering,
layers and varying the constituents toward the as the first Renaissance double dome. Nearly
top to lighten it, Roman builders constructed all later major domes returned to the circular
over the Pantheon in the early 2nd century a plan and were built partly on centering. There
dome that has twice since been equaled but was also, after the construction of the dome of
never really surpassed. As was their usual St Peter's, an increasing separation between
practice, they made it immensely thick at the the inner and outer domes, even to the extent of
base, but stepped it back externally as it calling for one or more intermediate domes and
ascended and left an open eye at the top. Taking reducing the outermost to a timber-framed roof,
advantage of the ease with which the wet as it had already become in most bulbous
concrete could be made to take on any shape Islamic and Byzantine domes.
that was first given to the timber formwork, In these later domes some attempt was made
they also experimented with different vari- to contain the outward thrusts developed above
ations on the basic circular geometry of the by means of circumferential ties in the lower
inner surface. The inside of the Pantheon dome parts where radial cracking would previously
was deeply coffered. Elsewhere the surface was have been observed. But it is probably not until
scalloped or lobed; but always the circular plan the 19th century that the ties were fully
form was retained outside. Yet rarely, if ever, effective. Toward the end of that century very
does the thick monolithic base seem to have had thin brick or tile domes were being built (see
enough tensile strength to contain the outward The octagonal dome of Florence SHELLS). There was, however, an earlier form
thrusts developed higher by the meridian arch Cathedral, whose construction that could be made quite thin without calling for
actions. between 1420 and 1432 gave circumferential ties if it had a firm base. This
great impetus to subsequ ent
With these Roman precedents the develop- Renaissance developments. was the tall spire, often octagonal in plan, which
ment of similar forms in other materials was is a special category of dome that rises to the
fairly rapid, much of it occurring initially in crown without ever curving inward. In it, the
parts of the Empire which lacked a natural circumferential stresses are compressive
pozzolanic earth and the skill of making good throughout the height if the outward thrust
concrete. Brick was the usual alternative developed is fully resisted at the base. Tension
material, but timber and stone were also used, did, nevertheless, develop and led to cracking
as were specially made, interlocking, open- when this resistance occurred only after some
ended earthenware tubes set in a continuous outward spread had occurred.
spiral. Two associated developments were of
considerable importance later. One arose from
the need for more clearly defined, transitional Floor systems
elements where the substructure from which The continuous slab constitutes a self-
the dome rose was not circular in plan. The contained floor system, though it may be
corners somehow had to be bridged, and the desirable for nonstructural reasons to add a
two basic means devised were a diagonal separate top surface and a separate ceiling
176 Structural elements

Some 19th·century fireproof Today the usual floor system, apart from
floors: top, an early form with intermediate floors within single dwellings , is
shallow brick arches spanning
between iron beams and the reinforced-concrete slab with or without
carrying a concrete topping; projecting beams. For very heavy loadings and
center, a variantform with wide spans, a grid of beams within a bay may be
corrugated iron in place of the used to stiffen and strengthen the slab without
brick arches; bottom, a lighter
form with special hollow
requiring it to be of great thickness throughout.
terra.cotta blocks introduced in In all cases, the slab has a great advantage over
Chicago in 1872. most earlier systems because it is a good
horizontal diaphragm, binding the walls or
columns together and distributing any side
loads between them, as well as serving its
primary purpose; though some of this advan-
tage may be lost if it is not continuous over the
whole floor area.

below. Before the development of the rein-

forced-concrete slab, the nearest equivalents Foundations
were the floor composed of beams of timber or The loads that a structure imposes on the
stone set immediately alongside one another, ground normally reach the ground (or the level
and the floor provided by a more or less solid fill of the lowest floor if that is below the outside
above a brick or concrete vault. The first of ground level) through walls, piers, or columns.
these involved a very extravagant use of Ideally, if the ground surface is a firm stratum of
material and hence expenditure of effort, so it natural rock, able to take the loads directly
usually gave way to a more differentiated form without noticeable settlement, the walls, piers,
with increasing skill in construction. The or columns can simply be ended when they
second was more efficient, inherently strong, reach it-or rather can be built up directly from
and fireproof, and continued to be used for it after some preliminary leveling. Unfor-
these reasons until supplanted by the rein- tunately, such strata have rarely been found in
forced-concrete slab. But it had the drawbacks the places where men have wanted to build, and
of greater overall depth than alternative forms, some means have had to be provided to spread
and of greater weight plus the generation of the loads more widely or carry them down to
outward thrusts, so that stronger walls were rock or firmer ground at a lower level.
called for. These drawbacks were minimized in Apart from shallow excavation to reach rock
the 18th and 19th centuries by the development close to the surface, there were three means
of appropriately light and shallow tile vaults, that were already widely practiced in Roman
but they could not be wholly eliminated. times, and the first two at least were much
The alternative to these forms was always older. These were the spread footing, piling,
some composite system, with beams as the and the continuous raft. The first and last
principal spanning and load-bearing elements. spread the load fairly near the surface, simply
In the commonest of these systems, still widely by providing each wall, pier, or column with a
used, light timber beams span at short intervals substantially wider base or providing a more
between opposite walls and are covered by continuous and still wider base for a number of
boards or twigs and rammed earth or something piers or columns. The same materials were used
similar spanning across. In a slightly more as for the superstructure, though the Romans
~laborate variant, often adopted in 18th-century generally preferred concrete, especially for
mills to give large minimally obstructed floor continuous rafts and foundations below water
areas, the light beams spanned between heavier level. The second, piling, carried the load
timber beams which were carried by isolated further down without necessitating deep exca-
columns. None of these forms is frreproof and vation. The piles were almost always of timber.
that defect led, toward the end of the 18th Once hammered into the ground, they acted as
century, to successive changes in the latter columns, usually transmitting part ofthe load to
form that finally culminated in the reinforced- firmer ground at the foot and spreading part of it
concrete slab, either spanning between steel or through the intermediate strata by surface
reinforced-concrete beams or spanning directly friction. A group of piles might be capped by a
between columns. The first change was the timber grillage, to provide a level platform on
substitution of shallow brick vaults for the which masonry could be set.
secondary timber beams and boarding, with With the exception of the continuous con-
iron tie rods between the heavy main timber crete raft, which was not used again until the
beams to neutralize the thrusts of these vaults. later 18th century, these methods continued in
Later, iron beams were substituted for the main use well into the 19th century, with little change
timber beams; and finally the heavy brick vaults except in such matters as methods of pile
were replaced by lighter forms, usually flatter driving and of working below water level. By
vaults made from special hollow blocks or from the middle of that century, however , further
some early form of reinforced concrete. development was stimulated: first by the need
 Structural elements 177

for deeper underwater foundations for large or are otherwise restrained against overturning;
bridges; then for foundations capable of sup- but otherwise it will, in itself, be unstable . It can
porting buildings of 20 and more storeys in be made inherently stable in its own plane in one
places like Chicago, where rock was far below of two ways: by diagonal bracing or by
the surface. connecting the beams to the columns in such a
For deep underwater foundations the answer way as to prevent any relative rotations at the
was the pneumatic caisson. This was a joints. In the latter case, the beams and columns
development of the earlier cofferdam-a wall will respond as one to any load and lose much of
within which, after pumping out the water, it their independence. From this point of view the
was possible to excavate and then build the base whole assembly-or at least the typical basic
of the pier in the dry (see BRIDGES). The caisson assembly of a beam carried by two columns-
was a prefabricated continuous wall furnished may be regarded as the structural element.
at the foot with a cutting edge. It was towed to Looked at in another way, it is the limiting case Sectional elevation of the Crystal
the site and then sunk through the ground to a of an arch whose profile departs so far from a Palace, London, (1850-51 ).
sufficiently firm stratum under its own weight possible purely compressive line of resistance Rigidity was obtained by the use
as the upper strata were excavated within it. In to the imposed loads that it has to resist them of deep trussed beams, but was
supplemented by means of some
the pneumatic caisson, the top was closed and largely in bending. Since the columns must auxiliary diagonal bracing.
provided with airlocks, so that inside enough participate in the bending, the form cannot be
pressure could be maintained to keep out water realized in unreinforced masonry.
even at a considerable depth, thereby still The true rigid-jointed portal frame (as the
allowing the excavation to proceed in the dry. basic assembly is known) was first realized in
By making the wall of iron, or later of steel or iron in the mid-19th century. It was, for
reinforced concrete, it could also serve, when instance, the basic structural element of the
excavation was completed, as the outer wall of Crystal Palace and of several slightly earlier
the pier itself. structures in the English docks, though it was
The caisson could also be used on land when introduced with caution as indicated by the
the requirements were similar, and was used in additional provision of diagonal braces in some
this way toward the end of the 19th century. frames. Before this, approximations to the form
However, the new requirements for tall build- in timber had been fairly common. Usually a
ings were mainly met by the substitution of partial rigidity of the joints was achieved mainly
grillages of steel beams for the less efficient, by the use of short diagonal braces across the
earlier spread footings. These have since given corners. Toward the end of the 19th century
way to footings and rafts of reinforced concrete, complete rigidity of the joints was obtained in
while there have been parallel developments in heavy steel construction by a somewhat similar
piling with the substitution of steel and rein- means-the use of rounded fillets between the
forced-concrete piles for the previously uni- underside of the beam and the column. In
versal timber pile. The heaviest reinforced- modern frames of steel, reinforced concrete, or
concrete piles are nowadays cast in situ in a pre- timber, the necessary rigidity of the joints is
bored hole. achieved more directly and elegantly. In
Equally significant has been the increasing reinforced concrete it is achieved primarily by
exploitation of the buoyancy principle-that of continuity of some of the reinforcement bet-
creating open basements below ground level of ween column and beam; in steel by welding or
sufficient volume to displace a weight of earth high-strength bolting that prevents slip by
comparable with the total weight of the creating large frictional resistances; and in Heavy steel portal frames with
building, so that there is only a small net change timber by closely comparable means, including deep rounded filets between
columns and beams as used
in pressure at foundation level when con- the use of high-strength glues and special bolted throughout the 17 storeys of the
struction is completed. In terms of structural connectors. In single-storey frames the beam Old Colony Building, Chicago
form, this calls for a rigid , boxlike form below may be hipped, giving a more archlike form with (1893-94).
ground level, usually achieved with a heavy reduced bending action.
reinforced-concrete base slab and reinforced-
concrete side walls braced by the floor slabs and
framing at the intermediate basement levels; Shells
but it has also led to further developments in The term shell is used here to denote a spanning
construction processes that are referred to and space-enclosing element of domed or other
under that heading. vaultlike form, but with a thickness and order of
magnitude less than was usual for these
masonry and mass-concrete forms. Like the
latter, a shell may be curved in two directions or
Rigid frames in one only; but the two curvatures of the
In a structural system composed of columns doubly curved form may be of opposite sense,
and beams, the beams may simply rest freely on like those of a saddle-a possibility almost
the supporting columns . Both then remain restricted to the fan vault in masonry-and the
independent elements. The system will remain singly curved form may be taken to include
stable under a small sideways disturbance along barrel-shaped and folded or corrugated forms
the line ofthe columns if these have broad bases that span along the length of the barrel or the
178 Structural elements

very easy to calculate, and the whole surface

could be generated by sweeping one straight
line (or set of straight planks) along two others
spaced apart at opposite extremities and
inclined in opposite directions. The barrel-
shaped and folded forms appeared a little later.
None of these forms is as suitable for really
large spans as the domed form, and for shorter
spans other types of roof call for less labor in
construction and are now, therefore, usually
cheaper. But the shell, together with the doubly
curved tensile membrane or cable net, has so
enlarged the formal vocabulary of architecture
that it will continue to play an important role
where economy is not the overriding con-
sideration. The Saarinen/Ammann and Whit-
ney roof of the TWA Terminal Building at
Kennedy Airport demonstrates its versatility at
the limits of practicality; J!Zim Utzon's (b. 1918)
original impracticable proposal of sharply
ridged shells for the Sydney Opera House went
beyond these limits and called for a different
arched type of construction.

The freely modeled shell roofs of folds, and act as deep beams. To achieve the Trusses and space frames
the TWA Terminal at Kennedy
Airport, whose support at only a
reduction in thickness, tensile strength must be Trusses and space frames are assemblies of
few isolated points necessitated provided in the shell itself, or at the level of linear members that act primarily in axial
considerable thickening oft he support, or in both places~ in accordance with tension or compression as ties or struts. The
concrete to withstand large the requirements of the surface geometry, the term truss denotes an assembly in one plane,
bending actions.
pattern ofloading, and the type of support. Both and the term space frame describes a three-
because an adequate understanding of these dimensional assembly in which the inter-
requirements has been gained only in the course connections are such that a load at any point is
of the past I00 years, and because the means of distributed in all directions through the assem-
providing the tensile strengths have largely bly. The joints need not be rigid and , ideally,
been developed over the same period, the true should allow free relative rotations of the
shell is a recent innovation. members. But they must be capable of trans-
The first shell-like domes were built around mitting tension as well as compression. The
the turn of the century in the eastern U.S. The usual role in a building is of carrying a roof-in
outstanding example was the dome (intended as place of the arch, dome, vault, beam, or slab.
only a temporary closure) over the crossing of Like the arch, dome, and vault, they over-
the Cathedral of St John the Divine in New come the spanning limitations of the individual
York City. This was constructed of several members . But the parts they have played in
layers of flat tiles set tangentially to the surface architectural history have been briefer, partly
to give an average thickness of only about 1/250 on account of the greater difficulties of under-
of the span. It was reinforced near the base with standing sufficiently clearly the structural
circumferential steel rods. Since the early behavior, and partly because of the difficulties
1920s, reinforced concrete has been used, with of making suitable joints.
prestressed circumferential reinforcement for The simplest roof truss consists of a pair of
the larger domes. In very large flat domes, rafters joined at the foot, and thereby prevented
where all the tensile strength is required at the from spreading, by a horizontal tie. It is just
level of support, the surface has sometimes possible that the Greeks arrived at this form.
been corrugated radially to reduce the risk of But there is no clear evidence of it until Roman
buckling under the meridional compression. times , and the oldest surviving examples are in
The other forms have all been introduced in the roof of the Monastery of St Catherine on
the 20th century, and reinforced concrete has Mount Sinai, constructed in the 6th century.
been the natural choice of material, though The major French Gothic cathedrals were
timber has also been used on a small scale- roofed with more steeply pitched trusses of
giving a less durable structure but eliminating essentially similar kind, and trusses more
the wastefulness of first constructing the form closely resembling those of St Catherine's
in timber, then casting the concrete shell on it seem to have remained the normal means of
and dismantling the timber form. The anti- roofing the basilican church in Italy and further
clastic or saddle-shaped forms were introduced east. But in England, for instance, most
first, chiefly because the ideal state of stress in surviving roofs constructed prior to the 18th
one of them-the hyperbolic paraboloid-was century show a very poor understanding of the
 Structural elements 179

truss principle and must have acted more as

beams or (as in the case of the hammer-beam
root) as arches. The term "tie beam" for the
bottom horizontal member is symptomatic of
this confusion.
In the early 19th century, the true timber
truss, necessarily somewhat elaborated, and
with the bottom tie made from shorter lengths of
timber with lapped joints, was stretched to span
about 150ft. (45 m); but the first wide-span iron
roofs (of basically arched form) had then been
built, and future development was in iron and
steel. With the introduction of wrought iron for
the ties, there was a clearer differentiation
between these and the struts that was carried
over into steel construction. Because there was
no risk of the ties buckling, they were made
appreciably more slender.
Alongside the 19th-century development of
the roof truss, there was a much more intensive
development of the bridge truss , stimulated
particularly by the great demand for bridges on
the new railroads. In the early trusses, whether
constructed wholly of timber, of timber with
iron ties, or wholly of iron, there was usually a
fairly close lattice of diagonal members with or
without additional uprights between a hori-
zontal bottom chord and a horizontal or arched
top chord. By the middle of the century, a
clearer understanding of the structural behavior distribute applied loads; a uniform distribution The StLouis Climatron- a
Buckminster Fuller geodesic
permitted the elimination of unnecessary mem- of the members to match the usually fairly dome constructed in 1960. The
bers and a virtual standardization of a few uniform distribution of maximum stresses in the predominantly hexagonal
simpler and more efficient forms . These could equivalent shell; and the minimum variation in structural grid is double to give
easily be adapted later to the requirements of the length of members. In a barrel vault or other more resistance to buckling.

longer spans, including spans in which the form curved in one direction only, these
entire truss was arched, or in which it was objectives were easily met by aligning most of
cantilevered out, with diminishing overall the members in two directions, equally inclined
depth, on both sides of each support. They to the principal curvature to form a diagonal
could also be adapted for use in buildings when grid, with others parallel to the axis. In a dome it
the span or the load would have called for an was impossible to achieve them fully with the
excessively heavy, solid-webbed beam. numbers of members that were desirable
Architectural ly, the most important space because there is a definite limit to the number of
frames are lighter framed equivalents of domes ways in which a spherical surface can be
and vaults, or of slabs spanning in two or more divided into identical equal-sided parts. It can,
directions simultaneously. The framed dome is at most, be divided into 20 triangular parts or 12
a very early form, particularly if we include pentagonal parts. Buckminster Fuller (b.l895),
primitive dome-shaped huts. But even in fully in his geodesic domes, has taken the triangular
developed timber-framing systems, the ribs division as the starting point and has further
were invariably aligned radially and circum- divided the basic equilateral triangles into
ferentially, and the system was then braced smaller, and inevitably slightly irregular,
by additional diagonals or by the outer cov- triangles. These triangles have then sometimes
ering. Early iron-framed domes merely repro- been grouped into hexagons as the basic units
duced this timber form, and it was only in the for fabrication and erection.
second half of the 19th century that an The space-frame equivalent of the slab is
inherently stiff, triangulated pattern of framing entirely a recent 20th-century innovation,
was substituted. This might be regarded as the partly on account of the computational dif-
first true space frame . ficulties of carrying out an adequate analysis of
Further development of the framed dome or its structural behavior. It usually takes the form
vault has taken place almost entirely in the 20th of a two-way or three-way grid of intersecting
century and has lagged somewhat behind plane trusses that are interconnected at each
parallel development s in airframe structures, intersection by having a member in common.
where there was a greater incentive to seek the Because it is much lighter than the equivalent
most efficient use of material to save weight. solid slab, it can economically span much
There have been three objectives: triangulation further at the expense of some increase in
of the members to give inherent stiffness and overall depth.
180 Structural elements

Suspension elements, tensile

membranes, and cable nets
Suspension is, in itself, easier than support from
below. There is no risk of a loaded suspender
overturning or buckling. Provided that the point
of attachment remains firm, failure can occur
only through inadequate tensile strength,
though problems may arise through lack of
stiffness. The use of suspension elements in
both buildings and bridges has therefore been
inhibited through most of architectural history
largely by the near impossibility of making large
rods or cables capable of carrying loads
comparable with those that could be supported
by a large pier or column, or by an arch. From at
least the 6th century (in Constantinople) iron
rods were forged large enough to serve as ties
across arches and vaults. But this, and a similar
use as circumferential ties around domes,
remained the only major use until the end of the Tension roofs for the 1972 wanted, or large numbers of people are to be
18th century. Then, with iron more widely Munich Olympics. The cable accommodated. Among the forms that have
available, eye-bar chains and wire cables began networks (visible above the more been built are simple single skins, single skins
prominent joints in the
to be made for use in suspension bridges. In the transparent weather shields strengthened for longer spans by auxiliary
20th century, with the advent of much higher suspended from them) are cables, and double skins. The last are inflated
strength steel cables and bars, these have found tensioned through the edge between the skins, so that there is no need for
use also in wide-span and tall buildings. cables and guy ropes. airlocks to maintain a complete enclosure, and
Tensile membranes, in the form of simple rigidity is more easily obtained. A double skin
tents, have a much longer history. The also allows more freedom in the choice of
development of new forms, capable of spanning geometric form. With a single skin, this is
greater distances and enclosing large areas with restricted to smoothly curved forms that are
minimal obstruction, has similarly been made essentially bulbous.
possible in the last few decades, partly by the In a tent, the fabric is kept in shape by
availability of cables and fabrics of higher tightening the guy ropes. This has the effect of
strength than previously available. In this case tensioning the fabric directly in one direction,
however, an equally important and com- and indirectly in a direction at right angles,
plementary role has been played by a newly where the manner of cutting leads to it assuming
acquired ability to analyze the stress dis- an opposite curvature. Tentlike membranes or
tributions and determine surface geometries cable networks are similarly tailored to have
that will result in fairly uniform stresses, and opposite curvatures in different directions .
thus minimize the required strengths. For a Overall tension is then imposed by tensioning
given loading per unit area, stress in general the fabric or cables in one of these directions
depends on curvature. The flatter this is, the against pulls induced in the other. Within
greater the stress becomes. But fabric stresses the general requirements of opposite curvatures
can be kept within feasible limits over large everywhere in the two principal directions ,
spans that necessitate flattish overall cur- and a surface geometry that will give
vatures by using a network of cables to carry the a reasonable uniformity of stress, a wide choice
main loads, and allowing the fabric merely to of form is possible with different shapes of
span between them. The main design problem boundary and different main points of support.
then becomes one of determining the cable There are also different ways of imposing the
geometry, including the locations of the cable necessary overall tension. Recent large roofs
intersections. A further possibility has been have been of very varied form and have usually
opened up by developments in mechanical had the necessary tensions imposed either by
engineering. By means of air pumps, the entire guy ropes or by means of continuous arched
weight of a membrane can be supported by air edge members. The latter method was used in
pressure. To prevent it billowing in the wind, the first large roof, that of the Dorton Arena
the pressure must be kept slightly higher than constructed in the mid-1950s . The former
would be necessary for this purpose alone, and method was used in all the large roofs con-
the tensile strength of the membrane and of any structed for the Munich Olympics in the early
auxiliary cables is called upon only to resist this 1970s.
slight excess pressure.
Large inflated membranes were proposed as
fixed spatial enclosures early in this century. Vaults
Today they are still under development and The simplest type of masonry or mass concrete
viewed with some suspicion if long life is vault is the barrel vault. It is just an arch
 Structural elements 181

extended so that its width is comparable with, the Byzantine (see

EARLY CHRISTIAN AND
or more usually exceeds, its span. The exten- BYZANTINE ARCHITECTURE). It went little
sion removes the risk of lateral instability and further than a blurring of the distinction
collapse and reduces the risk of collapse as a between a groin vault and a dome on pen-
result of a local weakness~ in much the same dentives. This came about through an adap-
way as does the lateral extension of a column to tation of the centerless method of barrel vault
make a wall. If, as was often the case, the vault construction to the intersecting barrels of the
was closed at one end by a wall, construction groin vault, leading to the upward arching of the
without centering was also possible if thin flat crowns of these barrels toward the center of the
bricks were used and set in successive flat rings, vault and the disappearance of clearly defined
each leaning back toward the wall. groins in the upper half of the vault.
For these reasons the barrel vault was, In the Islamic world, the roughly parabolic
almost certainly, the first type of vault, after the profile of the barrel vault gave way to a much
dome, to be devised as an alternative roofto the more clearly defined, pointed one. Without the
simple beam or slab. And, while its develop- groined vault as the basis for further develop-
ment has been closely associated with that of ments over a square base, the new forms that The earliest surviving barrel
the arch, it was probably in the lead in the did emerge here were related, instead, to the vaults of true arch form, built of
earlier stages. Thus the extensive remains of dome set on squinches, and to the opposite of mud brick at the Ramesseum,
brick barrel vaults over the storerooms of the the groined vault-the pavilion or cross vault, Thebes, in the 13th century BC.
Ramesseum at Thebes, built without centering in which sections of barrel vaults rise directly
as described in the previous paragraph, ante- from the four sides of the base to meet one
date by about six centuries the nearby earliest another on the diagonals. Ribs, composed of
surviving, freestanding brick arch of similar bricks set on edge, were incorporated in these
span. Likewise the 82 ft. (25 m) span of the forms with the apparent primary objective of
Taq-i Kisra of the Palace of Ctesiphon near serving as permanent integral centering, but
Baghdad, a Sassanian brick barrel vault, was with an obvious secondary delight in the surface
matched only many centuries later in the similar patterns that they created. The most charac-
arches of some Iranian bridges. Both the teristic pattern was that of a geometric inter-
storeroom vaults and that of the Taq-i Kisra lace, very similar to the starlike interlaces used
were roughly parabolic in profile. on a smaller scale as a purely decorative motif.
This pattern was repeated over a shorter Its close relationship to the squinch form is also
period in the development of the Roman made very clear by the existence-side by side
concrete barrel vault and arch from the early in the Friday Mosque in Isfahan-of vaults
2nd century BC to the 1st century AD. Indeed, ribbed in this way, and others formed by
the pure concrete arch never really appeared. multiple tiers of squinches.
What has been described above as a concrete In the late Romanesque and Gothic West, the
arch might perhaps be better regarded as a short semicircular barrel also gave way to one of
length of concrete barrel vault, faced on both pointed profile and, much more importantly,
sides by a brick arch . The use of wet concrete the groined vault gave way to a different kind of
did necessitate centering to support the timber ribbed vault. In this, the ribs followed the
formwork on which the concrete was placed. groins, as embedded brick ribs had done in the
A typical Islamic brick ri bbed
Probably because it was easier to construct this earlier Roman concrete vaults. But there was a vault in the Friday Mosque in
to a semicircular profile, that was the profile fundamental difference in that the ribs seem Isfahan, probably 11th century.
nearly always adopted. The use of centering usually, if not always, to have been built first as The interlacing of the ribs may be
and formwork did, however, facilitate a more a skeleton that defined the form and simplified compared with the usual Gothic
preference for diagonal ribs
adventurous choice of vault form , as also in the the rest of the construction, whereas the Roman meeting at the crown.
case of the dome. The most important inno- ribs were constructed integrally with the rest of
vation was the groined vault, formed by the the vault at the same level. Usually, also, the
intersection of two barrel vaults aligned at right webs between the ribs were considerably
angles to one another. This permitted the thinner and lighter, and were arched up slightly
vaulting of a square bay open, or partly open, on between the ribs and the boundary arches. T he
all sides. It was the usual Roman way of doing use of pointed profiles of different rise-to-span
this: the dome being used only over a circular ratio resolved the geometric problem of keeping
base, or a n octagonal or other near circular one, the crowns of the diagonal ribs at the same
from which the transition to the circle could height as those of the boundary arches, though
easily be made. this was not always attempted; some Gothic
Later vaults in the West have mostly been ribbed vaults were of more dome-like form,
developments of the transposition into stone of like Byzantine groined vaults. Structurally,
these Roman forms; those in what was the the manner of construction would usually have
Eastern Empire were developments of a similar resulted in much of the load passing through the
transposition into brick; and those in the ribs to the fairly solid (and horizontally coursed)
Islamic world were developments of the earlier tas de charge, from which each group of ribs
brick forms, built without centering or with a and boundary arches sprang.
minimum use of it. The least change occurred in Early Gothic ribbed vaults had only diagonal
what was the Eastern Empire and later became ribs and boundary arches , except for some of
182 Structural systems

those that covered two adjacent rectangular were simple dome-shaped huts. Another reason
bays of the high central nave of a church (see is the unitary form of other structures like birds'
GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE). In these, there was an nests that are similarly built, rather than the
additional rib parallel to the transverse boun- product of natural growth or an adaptation of an
dary arches and connecting the two inter- existing form. The first such huts may well have
mediate points of support along the sides of the been built about 10,000 years ago. Almost 3,500
nave. The vault was then known as sexpartite. years ago the great Tholos tombs of Mycenae
In later vaults, additional ribs were usually recalled the lineal descendants of some of these
added, either to further simplify the con- prototypes on a vastly increased scale, with
struction of the webs or for their decorative diameters up to 47ft. 6 in. (14. 5 m).
value. Two extreme results of this trend were The more complex pre-Roman systems
the fan vault and the net vault. In the first, included both domes and barrel vaults set on
bundles of ribs of identical profile radiated low walls. However, by far the commonest
fanwise from each point of support. In the system was a combination of walls and/or
second, a diagonal network of ribs covered the columns as the vertical supports, with beams
whole surface and largely obliterated the for horizontal spanning. It may have originated
division of a sequence of vaults into individual with the laying of fallen branches over existing
bays. Closely related to this latter form was a clefts in the rock or in some similar manner; or it
rarer type of vault over a square bay that looked may have been a development of the simple
almost identical to the Islamic vault, with a domed form. Archaeological evidence shows
starlike interlace of ribs. This had one brief that it had probably appeared by the end of the
sequel in the 17th century when Guarino 8th millennium BC. Fairly thick walls of mud
Guarini (1624-83) and Bernardo Vittone brick or stone enclosed roughly rectangular
(1704-70) largely eliminated the webs to create rooms and must have been roofed by closely
diaphanous inner domes. spaced timber beams.
Before the masonry and brick vault were The fully developed form of this wall and
largely superseded by reinforced-concrete shell beam system, with internal columns to permit A wall painting of a three-storey
forms, there were three further developments wider rooms, is well portrayed in a wall painting house (shown in cross section
with somewhat distorted
of varied structural significance. The first was a in a New Kingdom tomb at Thebes. This proportions) from the Egyptian
revival of the stone groined vault, constructed represents a three-storey Egyptian house with New Kingdom tomb at Thebes,
of precisely dressed voussoirs-but now delib- few openings in the external walls and at least probably 12th century BC.
erately constructed to complex surface geome-
tries to demonstrate virtuosity in stone cutting.
The scale was always small, and so was the
structural significance. Most important
architecturally were the larger scale, ribbed
vaults of Johann Balthasar Neumann (1687-
1753) and others that were given similarly
complex surface geometries and tended to call
for some hidden reinforcement. Finally, there
were the first thin lightweight vaults, con-
structed of flat tiles laid to follow the surface,
usually over fairly small spans. These provided
the first modern fireproof floors and were also
used as ceilings. Mostly they were barrel or
cross vaults oflow rise-to-span ratio.

Structural systems
Early forms
The combination of structural elements such as
walls , columns, beams, piers, arches, and
domes to create complete space-enclosing
systems involves the provision of adequate
support for each element and the ensuring of
overall stability, sometimes under adverse
conditions of wind or earthquake. It also
involves devising appropriate connections. It is
therefore inherently simpler to conceive and
construct what might be called a unitary
structure, composed of just a single element.
This is the main reason for believing that the
first completely manmade spatial enclosures
 Structural systems 183

one column or row of columns in each room to

assist in carrying the timber floor, or the flat
timber roof. The proportions shown are dis-
torted but excavations show that the mud brick
walls would have been about 3 ft. (I m) thick.
With walls also running at right angles to one
another, this would have given an ample margin
of lateral stability; the internal columns being
kept upright by being connected, through the
floor beams bearing on them, to the walls.
Three storeys were probably the limit to which
this structural system was then used.
It was reproduced, more substantially and
durably, in a variety of public buildings and in
the column and beam temple. Usually these
were single-storey only, though the Greeks
built several two-storey stoas and used double
tiers of columns to reduce the internal roof
spans of some of their larger temples. The
temple was usually very substantially built. In
Egypt, from the middle of the 3rd millennium
BC, it was built entirely in stone, including the
flat roof of heavy slabs and lintels. Partly for
this reason , the columns were of such massive
proportions that they needed little stabilizing by
the surrounding walls, as did the timber
columns in the house. This is amply demon-
strated in those instances where the collapse of
the roofing slabs has long left a row of
freestanding columns, or where the roof was
never completed (as in the case of the col- warning light for shipping. The famous light- The Temple of Concord at
onnades of Amenophis III at Luxor). The house of Alexandria, built in the mid-3rd Agrigento, about 440 BC. One of
the best preserved exa mples of
Doric column was also of substantial pro- century BC, rose in medieval times to a height of the fully developed Dori c form.
portions and has in a few cases, (as at Segesta), 430ft. (131 m) from a base 99ft. (30m) square,
demonstrated a similar inherent stability. On and must have been constructed in much the
the other hand, there are instances of Doric same way. On account of its greater height,
colonnades being overthrown by earthquake. If though , it was constructed in three superim-
their collapse had not been brought about partly posed sections, each of which tapered some-
by previous cutting at the base, connection to what as it rose. At the base, the walls were
the walls of the cella through the roof beams probably immensely thick.
would have originally provided an additional The ziggurat was simply a high temple
margin of stability. Where the columns were platform that acquired a stepped profile as it
slenderer, the stability of the structural system was progressively enlarged and heightened by
as a whole would have been assured primarily successive rebuilding. It was therefore of far
by the continuous walls running in two direc- from homogeneous construction and is of less
tions, and by the interconnections provided by structural interest than the pyramid which is
the roof beams. both a much earlier form, and one which was
Other unitary and near-unitary forms were the product of deliberate design. If we ignore
the walls and towers built for defense, similar the small internal chambers and access pas-
towers built occasionally for other purposes, sages, the geometric form is as simple as that of
the pyramid, and ziggurat. The walls were the defense wall. Nothing would have been
usually much more substantially built than simpler, in principle, than to construct it
domestic walls and had ample margins of throughout of uniform courses of well-fitted
stability under normal conditions. The defense blocks of stone; but this was beyond the
tower was, typically, a section of wall built to a resources of even the early Egyptian kings .
greater height on a closed square, polygonal, or Most of the mass was a loose fill of uncut stone
circular plan. Floors or galleries and internal and sand, and the problem was to stabilize this.
stairs were usually constructed of timber beams In the later pyramids of the Old Kingdom, this
or stone slabs, sometimes cantilevered out from was achieved by facing the fill at intervals
the walls for a short distance rather than through the thickness with inwardly sloping
spanning right across the tower. The closed- walls of cut stone. The technique was learned in
plan form conferred great inherent strength, so a very revealing series of experiments that
that it was not necessary to make the walls quite began with the Step Pyramid at Saqqara, an
as thick as the adjacent sections of the main enlarged flat-topped mastaba, and continued at
defense wall . One other purpose was to carry a Meidum and Dahshur.
184 Structural systems

Later wide-span buildings drum, where it is solid from face to face.

In the octagonal room of the small baths at
Timber-, concrete-, and masonry-roofed sys- the Villa, a dome that, in its lower part, curved
tems. Three Roman, orlargely Roman, innova- boldly inward on alternate sides of the
tions vastly increased the structural possibili- octagon, was interrupted at the same level by
ties of creating large, unobstructed, spatial large window openings on the remaining sides.
enclosures. They were the timber roof truss, In the nearby vestibule of the Piazza d'Oro, an
the concrete dome, and the concrete groined internally scalloped dome was carried over tall
vault. They appeared, moreover, at times when open arches on four sides , and by outwardly
architects and their patrons were very ready to projecting semicircular walls on the other four
exploit the possibilities offered and, thereby, to sides. In the latter case, the sinuous and
stimulate further development. interrupted support was clearly expressed
The greatest architectural impact was made externally, since the vestibule was free-
by the dome: the groined vault being of only standing. In both cases, arched forms were
slightly less importance at the time, and of no used to deflect the weight of the dome over the
less importance in relation to later innovations. openings, with outwardly projecting walls to
Both were employed in association with the The octagonal room of Nero's
resist the outward thrusts. If the larger pavilion
closely related element, the arch. Since both the Golden House in Rome (AD at the opposite end of the Piazza ever carried a
groined vault and the arch are essentially 58·64). The dome still shows vault like that in the small baths, the further step
outward thrusting elements, and since the dome clear impressions of the boards of carrying the main weight vertically down
on which the wet concrete was
also exerted outward thrusts in practice, on tipped.
through columnar screens across the openings,
account of the relative weakness in tension of while the outward thrust was resisted as in the
the concrete, the chief structural problem was other structures, must also be credited to
that of thrust containment without excessive Hadrian's architect. if not, this was the most
structural movements. Typically, it was solved important subsequent Roman innovation in the
partly by the provision of massive supports that use of the dome.
were not easily overturned, and partly by an There were, in principle, three possible ways
increasingly skillful opposition of thrust and of supporting the groined vault while leaving the
counterthrust. sides of the square either completely open or
The main initial exploitation of the dome took partially open with clerestory windows. All, of
place in a period of about 60 years , extending course, included adequate vertical support for
from the reign of Nero in the mid-I st century to the downward weight at the corners and some
that of Hadrian in the early 2nd century. means of resisting the thrusts that acted
Thereafter, architects were largely content to diagonally outward. One way of resisting the
adapt the forms then established or introduce thrusts was with iron ties at about the springing
variations on a smaller scale. It began with the level, either on both diagonals or across the
construction of the domed octagonal room of sides. Another was to rely on the sheer bulk and
Nero's Golden House. This has an unusually weight of very massive and broadly based
large central eye and is steep-sided externally comer piers. A third was to take advantage of
right to the level of this eye, so that its outward the partial neutralization of the thrusts of
thrusts can never have been large. They are adjacent vaults, and to resist the remaining
buttressed by walls running outward from each thrusts by means of walls projecting from the
supporting comer pier. It culminated on the one comers at which the vaults met, and at right
hand with Hadrian's Pantheon, and on the angles to their open sides. The first was
other with some of the spatially more exciting The Church of Hagia Sophia,
impractical at the time, and the second is
domed rooms of his Villa near Tivoli. Constantinople (Istanbul), inefficient except for fairly small, single vaults.
The Pantheon dome is notable, above all, for looking westward from the apse. Almost from the start, when using such vaults
its unprecedented size. Since the diameter of its This was the outstanding in sequence over long rectangular rooms, the
achievement, both structurally
central eye relative to its span is also less than and architecturally, of the
Romans adopted the third. To extend the space
half as great, it also thrusts outward much more Byzantine Empire. enclosed further, barrel-vaulted bays were
than the dome of the Golden House. Under- created between the projecting walls, also
standably, therefore, it was given a more aligned at right angles to the open sides, and
continuous support which appears externally as thus contributing to the buttressing action. In
an almost unbroken, tall, circular drum. Closer Trajan's Market, in Rome, this was done on
examination reveals, however, that this drum two levels, but the side bays created were, as
consists of three superimposed rings of semi- shops, not fully open to the central space. In the
circular or part-circular arches, mostly filled on typicallargefrigidaria of the Imperial baths, the
the exterior, but either open to the interior or side bays were fully open to the central space,
open to voids within the total thickness of the and open to one another through arches cut in
drum. The thrusts of these arches largely the projecting walls. Here already, in essence,
balance one another circumferentially, but do was the structural system of the Gothic
have components that act outward, and add to cathedral.
the outward thrusts of the dome. The resultant Provided that the roof truss had a fully
total outward thrusts are resisted by the effective bottom tie, it called merely for the
buttressing action of the overall thickness of the same purely vertical support as a beam, except
 Structural systems 185

when subjected to a side load by the wind. usual transition element from a square or
While it offered the possibility of wider spans, it polygonal base, and in the avoidance of sinuous
did not therefore need, like the dome and curvilinear support boundaries.
groined vault, new types of support. The most In the truss-roofed basilica, as taken over by
important Roman use was in the basilica; a the Western Christian Church, there was
large rectangular hall serving as a place of usually one difference from the structural
general assembly. In Trajan's Basilica Ulpia, system of the Basilica Ulpia. Side aisles,
not far from the Market, the main rectangle was sometimes double, were only single-storey and
flanked on both long sides by two parallel were roofed at a lower level than the central
colonnades, each of two storeys. The columns nave in order to permit clerestory lighting. This
were probably connected longitudinally by tended to leave the long clerestory walls,
stone beams or architraves, and spanned carried on relatively slender colonnades, with
transversely at the intermediate level by timber inadequate lateral bracing. In Italy, this weak-
beams to create galleries over the aisles below. ness, when it became apparent, was made good
The structural system would be still essentially by the addition of transverse arches at intervals,
that of earlier columned halls with continuous sometimes in combination with transverse
outer walls. It was taken over with very little timber struts and ties. In France, Germany,
change by the early Christian church. Spain, and England, it was avoided in the
In post-Roman times it was the New typical Romanesque, timber-roofed church by
Rome-Constantinople-and the Byzantine the adoption of more sturdy proportions
Empire that kept closest to Roman precedents. throughout, including the replacement of col-
The chief innovations were made in a single onnades by substantial piers.
outstanding structure. Here, in the 6th-century It was already becoming commoner in these
church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople countries, however, to construct stone vaults
itself, an earlier basilica was rebuilt in a form over the nave and aisles. Initially, the nave
that fused some of the possibilities inherent in vault was a continuous barrel, then a sequence
Roman domed structures with the fully of groin vaults. Outward thrusts again had to be
developed buttressing system of the large resisted. Most significantly , this was done by
frigidaria. The chief innovations were the means oflean-to arches over the aisle vaults and
Amiens Cathedral showing the
support of the central dome on giant pen- under a steeply pitched lean-to roof on each Gothic structural system of the
dentives springing from only four piers, and the side, or continuous half-barrels of similar great 13th-century cathedrals of
buttressing of the outward thrusts of this dome profile. In the Gothic structural system, as seen the lie de France.
on two sides by half-domes of the same in the great French cathedrals of the early 13th
diameter rising to its base. A single, completely century, the ribbed vault replaced the groined
open space was thus enclosed, measuring vault, the supporting piers became more slen-
double the length covered by the dome alone. It der, and the lean-to arches over the aisle vaults
was flanked by aisles and galleries on both rose above the aisle roofs to counter directly the
sides, as the nave of the earlier basilica had thrusts from the main nave vaults. Often these
been. But these were now given the strong arches were doubled; the upper arches similarly
buttressing characteristics of the side bays of resisting wind loads on the steeply pitched,
thefrigidaria, though vaulted with domed groin timber roofs above the main vaults. Outer Flying buttresses around the
exterior of the apse of Notre
vaults over the aisles and small domes over the buttress piers rose above the aisle roofs to Dame, Paris- the external
galleries. To increase the buttressing, the walls receive the bases of the arches, themselves hallmark of the Gothic structural
dividing the bays (actually pairs of parallel commonly referred to as flying buttresses. system.
walls) were extended above the gallery roof
level to the base of the main dome. Smaller
half-domes opened off the large ones to swell
the open central space further and contribute to
the buttressing in the longitudinal direction.
With the Ottoman conquest of Con-
stantinople in the 15th century, there was some
further development of this form in the Imperial
mosques. Typically, the support system of the
central dome was simplified and openly ex-
pressed, and the disparity between two dif-
ferent types of buttressing either reduced or
eliminated. In the nearby Mosque of Ahmet,
for instance, the buttressing half-dome, as used
only at the east and west in Hagia Sophia, was
used on all four sides in precisely the same way.
This was consistent with an earlier Islamic
preference for simple structural forms and, in
particular, for a simple, fully centralized sup-
port system for the dome, differing from the
Roman chiefly in the use of the squinch as the
186 Structural systems

Although the manner of transfer of loads the use of a tie or a buttress to resist an outward
from the high vaults to the ground was thrust, the tie became an even more attractive
essentially similar to that in frigidaria of the choice with the wider availability of wrought-
Roman Imperial baths, this Gothic structural iron rods, and subsequently of high-strength
system differed greatly in other ways. It used steel wire, coupled with a better ability to
the pointed arch throughout in place of the estimate the required strength. In addition, the
semicircular. It had a slenderness of prop- new architectural requirements were usually
ortion, almost a linearity, that had no precedent more flexible than the earlier requirements of
in masonry-vaulted construction and was in the church or the mosque, and could often be
complete contrast to the massiveness of the met by a simpler overall structural system more
Roman system. This slenderness (which was akin in this respect to the original, simple
matched by a much reduced average thickness dome-shaped hut.
of the vaults) called for a more precise These simple, almost unitary, forms were
placement of the elements in relation to one employed first for structures like con-
another to ensure that all loads could be carried, servatories and train sheds, though this use was
as far as possible, in simple axial compression. heralded at the start of the 19th century by the
Badly eccentric loads could cause excessive ribbed iron dome of 128 ft. (39 m) diameter of
bowing over a period of years, and thereby lead the Paris Corn Exchange supported on a
to collapse. Numerous such collapses are on two-tier masonry arcade. In the Palm House at The Pantheon, Paris- a
record, and others were forestalled only by the Kew Gardens, London, two long wings con- Neo-Classical reinterpretation of
addition of new flying buttresses or, later and sisted simply of semicircular, iron-ribbed, the Gothic structural system in
which the central dome (upper
particularly in Italy, of iron ties across the main glazed barrel vaults bearing on low masonry right) was carried on
vaults. strip foundations. In the center there was a proportionately much lighter
The use of iron ties to contain thrusts became slightly more complex cross section consisting piers than had been usual in
more important from the Renaissance onward. of similar barrels raised on iron columns to the Renaissance churches like St
Also the dome, the semicircular arch and barrel level of the top of the wings and flanked by half Peter's. Outward thrusts were
resisted partly by circumferential
vault, and the flat entablature in the form of a barrels of the same form. For the train shed ties and partly by hidden flying
flat arch came back into favor in the West. Iron roofs, timber arches apd trusses were widely buttresses.
ties became normal around the base of the
dome, and the unprecedentedly massive piers
that supported the dome of StPeter's in Rome
gave way to much lighter and more daring
supports, even allowing for the reduced spans,
in churches like Guarino Guarini's San
Lorenzo in Turin and Jacques Germain
Souffiot's Ste Genevieve (now the Pantheon) in
Paris. Though here the outward forms were no
longer Gothic, the lessons of the Gothic
structural achievements had been learned and
were reapplied to other spatial and formal
concepts.

Iron-, steel-, and reinforced-concrete roofed

systems. Jacques Souffiot (1713-80) also made
wide use of iron reinforcements in the archi-
traves of the portico of Ste Genevieve, and, on
the basis of this experience, designed the first
completely iron-framed roof for the Louvre.
This was followed a few years later by a larger
iron roof over the new Palais-Royal Theater.
From the early 19th century onward, iron roofs,
then roofs of steel and reinforced concrete,
increasingly became the usual choices for
buildings ranging from market halls, con-
servatories, and train sheds to exhibition halls ,
concert halls, and aircraft hangars. They were
lighter in weight than mass concrete or masonry
roofs, not combustible as timber roofs were,
and were capable of spanning further without
necessarily calling for very heavy supports.
The basic support requirements of the dome,
the vault, the beam, and the truss remained as
they always had been. However, they were
reduced in magnitude for a given span, and
where there was , in principle, a choice between
 Structural systems 187

used at first, and these were then simply copied

in iron, in many cases without any major
innovation. Rivalry between competing com-
panies then led to more novel designs like that at
St Pancras Station, London. Here, eight tracks
were bridged by a single iron-ribbed and partly
glazed barrel vault of 230 ft. (70 m) span. The
ribs rose directly from platform level and were
carried below on massive brick piers. The piers
were relieved of outward thrusts by means of tie
rods beneath the tracks, and the whole roof was
given additional longitudinal rigidity by means
of diagonal bracing between the ribs and the
main purlins. Twenty years later, toward the
end of the 19th century, the steel-arched roof of
the Galerie des Machines in Paris introduced
the only major variation on this form-the
insertion of pins at the feet and crown of each
arch, making the structural action fully deter-
minate and easing the construction process.
The arch thrusts here were taken by large
concrete foundations.
In the 20th century, a number of closely
comparable barrel vaults springing at or near
ground level have been built in reinforced
concrete. Notable examples are Eugene Frey-
ssinet's airship hangars at Orly Airport, and equivalent of the slab also lends itself, is in the St Pancras Station roof, London,
exhibition halls in Italy constructed by Pier large cantilevered roof or canopy. The can- England (1866-68). This was the
widest spanning of the
Luigi Nervi (b. 1891). In these, the ribs were tilever can either be balanced around the points mid-19th-century iron roofs, its
made contiguous and given trough-shaped of support or extend largely to one side so that it arches being almost four times
cross sections for greater stiffness. There was is unbalanced, but even where it is balanced the span of the timber arches of
no need of diagonal bracing for longitudinal under normal conditions some imbalance must Westminster Hall.
stiffness. Nervi adopted a similar form for his be allowed for under wind or snow load , for
large Sports Palace in Rome, varying it chiefly instance, and stability under side loads must be
by rotating the basic rib around a vertical axis to ensured. To ensure lateral stability, stiff sup-
give a shallow dome rather than translating it ports well anchored in the ground are needed.
along a horizontal axis. The thrusts were taken An even firmer anchorage will also withstand
to the ground by legs that continued the line of overturning in the direction of overhang; but it
the vault and were, in effect, a part of it. has been usual, in grandstand roofs for
Reinforced-concrete shells have usually been instance, to reduce the anchorage requirement
used in similar ways or as straight alternatives by having a secondary tie pulling down at the
to trussed roofs. On account of their slen- rear to reduce the effective imbalance. Some-
derness, and the consequent need to avoid times, as in the Alitalia Hangar at Leonardo da
major deformations of the surface or bending Vinci Airport, Rome, this tie has been attached
actions, it has been necessary, however, to give to a secondary structure at the rear, whose own
more precise attention to the conditions of weight has thereby served to balance that of the
support. In particular, it has been necessary in cantilever overhang.
the case of large roofs to avoid the situation in A counterpart to the cantilevered roof, that
which the support, in taking the load, shortens, avoids the problems of unbalanced load, is the
extends, or otherwise moves in a way that is beam or slab roof supported on both or all sides,
incompatible with the natural deformation of and either with or without some symmetrical
the shell itself. Therefore, it has frequently been overhangs. This first became capable of cov-
necessary, rather than just helpful , to prestress ering wide spans in about the middle of the 19th
ties or reinforcement. Further difficulties have century with the appearance of large open-
arisen where, for architectural reasons, it has webbed, wrought-iron beams. Beams of this
been desired to provide only local supports type with a span of 72 ft. (22 m) were the main
where continuous support would have been roofing element of the original Crystal Palace,
preferable, or to use one shell to stabilize London. They were rigidly joined to cast-iron
another, either continuously along a surface columns as early portal frames , and lateral
discontinuity or locally. All these difficulties rigidity was largely ensured in the plane of these
had to be faced at the TWA Terminal Building frames by this jointing and, throughout the
at Kennedy Airport, New York, and called for building, by the use of similar frames of one
very considerable thickening along all the shell third of the span in two directions in flanking
boundaries and ridges. aisles and galleries. It was a modern equivalent
A new use, to which the space-frame of Trajan' s Basilica Ulpia, freed of dependence
188 Structural systems

on outer masonry walls for its stability, but

incorporating some diagonal bracing as an extra
safeguard. A more recent equivalent, although
of simpler form, since it lacks the aisles and
galleries, is the welded steel portal framing of
Mies van der Robe's Crown Hall at the Illinois
Institute of Technology, Chicago (1952). Pure
slab roofs in reinforced concrete cannot achieve
comparable spans. The two-way spanning roof
is therefore one with an associated grid of
beams or is the actual space frame equivalent of
this . Such roofs have been used recently where
a large area is to be covered with at least four
widely spaced supports, rather like the legs of a
table. Some cantilevering beyond them on all
sides is not only possible but desirable since it
reduces the maximum bending actions, and
thus the necessary depth of the roof. Lateral hung from the cable nets to complete each roof. A detail of the space-frame roof
oft he McCormick Place
stability is ensured by rigid connections at the In the second type of lightweight roof, a Exhibition Center, Chicago (1970).
tops of the supports to give an omnidirectional continuous membrane is the roof. The support This roof spans in two directions
portal frame action. A common method has in this inflated type of roof consists, in part, of a between isolated columns 148ft.
been to splay out the column heads or even to simple continuous tying down at ground level to (45m) apart and cantilevers 74ft.
(22 .5m) beyond the outermost.
use several legs splayed out from the foot at a foundation beam or slab which is able to resist
each support position. uplift. Besides this, it takes the completely
A further possibility with roofs of beam or novel form of slightly pressurized air supplied
slab type , used for instance by Nervi in the by air pumps , the pump requirement being
Burgo Paper Mill, Mantua, is to suspend the minimized by the provision of airlocks or a
roof from supports rising above it. In this way, double skin. For longer spans it has, however,
very large spans can be achieved without the been found desirable to strengthen the mem-
depth of roof that would otherwise be neces- brane by the addition of an external cable
sary, because much more closely spaced points system that is also supported, through the
of support can be provided by the suspension membrane, by the intemal pressure.
system (which resembles that of a suspension
bridge or a stayed girder bridge). In effect, the
whole roof including the suspension system Later multistorey buildings
becomes a much deeper beam, of which the roof
proper is the bottom member. This means that it Bearing-wall systems from ancient times. The
is subject to some overall compression that structural form consisting of timber floors
would not otherwise arise. spanning between bearing walls, with or with-
out intermediate column supports, has con-
Systems with lightweight roofs. In lightweight tinued to be built, with only minor variations on
roofs the whole roof is in tension. In the type much earlier examples like the Egyptian house
that is closely related to the suspended roof just referred to previously. Still with mud-brick
described , the suspension system becomes a walls, fairly closely spaced behind narrow
fairly close mesh of cables in two directions . As frontages, it served for the tenements of
described elsewhere (see CABLE NETS), the Republican and early Imperial Rome. Else-
cables in one direction must everywhere have where , sometimes with the substitution offrred
an opposite curvature to those in the other brick or stone for mud brick, it has served for
direction and one set must be pretensioned structures rising to about ten storeys. But, The cable roof used to great
against the other set to give enough stiffness to where the height has been sought partly for architectural effect in the Yale
the whole system. This is done through edge reasons of defense, it has assumed more of the Hockey Rink, Newhaven,
members to which families of cables running in character of the earlier, purely defensive tower. Connecticut (1958). The cables
span longitudinally and
a particular direction are attached at regular Such towers also continued to be built for transversely between a vertically
intervals. For roofs of relatively simple shape, simple defense until superseded by squatter arched spine beam and two
stiff reinforced-concrete arches have been forms with changes in methods of warfare, and horizontally arched side beams.
used, as for the Dorton Arena, Raleigh, and the
Yale Hockey Rink. For roofs of more complex
shape, like those erected for the West German
Pavilion at Expo '67 in Montreal, and for the
1972 Munich Olympics, heavier cables
stretched between the tops of tall sloping legs
and ground anchorages, or between one ground
anchorage and another have been sub-
stituted-almost a return to the structural
system of the early tent. A light weather skin is
 Structural systems 189

they served as prototypes for other types of was, in fact, stiffness to spare. In subsequent
tower like the church bell tower and the slender structures this height has been more than
minaret. doubled, not only with concrete walls but also
The Roman tenements were far from ideal with brick walls that are little thicker and only a
structures and far from being the best examples quarter of the thickness that would have been
of the form; but their very defects did lead, adopted for such heights toward the end of the
particularly after the disastrous fire of AD 64, to 19th century.
the first major improvements. These were the Two variations of this system have been a
substitution of concrete for mud brick in the simplification in which the main walls all run in
walls, and of concrete vaults for at least the one direction, and a version of the original form
floors that separated one dwelling from in which walls and floors are both precast as
another. This latter substitution was probably large panels of storey height or room width. The
the first systematic attempt to achieve a first is inherently much less stiff in the direction
frreproof structure for an everyday, non- at right angles to the walls, and is suitable only
religious use. The resulting form is best seen for buildings that are fairly long in this direction
today in the partial remains in the Roman port and of only moderate height. The second can be
of Ostia (where the upper storeys are largely just as stiff as its prototype, but only if the joints
gone) and in the more fully preserved structure between panels are equivalent to those in
of the Market of Trajan in Rome itself (where concrete cast continuously which has been
the main hall referred to previously was flanked Three-storey shops flanking
Trajan's Market in Rome. These
difficult to achieve in practice at reasonable
by three storeys of similarly constructed are the best surviving example of cost. All these forms-prototypes and
shops). Concrete barrel vaults, with flat topping the later substantial Roman variants-call for a fairly close spacing of the
to provide the floors above, spanned between brick-faced concrete multi storey main walls and for their continuity throughout
party walls about 16 ft. (5 m) apart and there structural forms. the main height of the building, so that they
were intermediate timber mezzanine floors. have been found suitable only for apartment
Such structures were always constructed in buildings.
larger blocks or insulae, so that there would
have been no real problems of lateral stability.
The modest thrusts of the barrel vaults would Hybrid systems that utilize partial timber or
largely have neutralized one another and, iron framing. Any of the bearing-wall systems
where they were unbalanced at the end of a referred to above that has intermediate timber
block, the end wall and its returns were strong column supports for the floors might, to that
enough to contain them. extent, be described as a hybrid system. The
Though there continued to be an intermittent term is used here only for those in which there is
use of stone vaults of various kinds, chiefly over a complete internal framing system of columns
basements or to carry a piano nobile in and beams with external brick or masonry walls
post-Roman times, there was no further major A French 18th-century
or in which a complete timber frame is infilled to
counterpart to the Roman form
advance until the 18th century. Then, initially in seen above, w ith lighter create a type of bearing-wall system.
France, lighter kinds of fireproof floors were incombustible floors substituted Structures of the latter type range all the way
introduced and, since they were lighter, they for the heavy Roman concrete from ones in which the timber framing is little
could readily be used again throughout the vaults. Buildings of very similar
more than a series of uprights and horizontals
construction were erected at
height of the building. Usually they were still of Versailles toward the end of the embedded in brickwork or rubble masonry, to
vaulted form, using either flat tiles or hollow century. others in which closely spaced timbers virtually
pots, until the introduction of the reinforced-
concrete floor in the late 19th century. Only
with this was the whole structural system
significantly changed by virtue of the ability of J'Jltllll /1 11 .\I /lt I

such a floor to act as a much more efficient

horizontal diaphragm than any earlier floor of
comparable depth and weight. This ability was
not properly exploited until well into the 20th
century when there were complementary
developments in walling and in structural
understanding.
The full exploitation of the reinforced-con-
crete floor began with its upended counterpart,
the modem thin concrete wall, as the vertical
structural element. Walls of uniform thickness
throughout their height were arranged, inter-
nally and externally, in two directions at right
angles. Together with continuous floor slabs,
they gave a system like a single cellular vertical
cantilever rooted in the ground, with excellent
natural lateral stiffness and resistance to wind
loads. At a height of only eight storeys there
190 Structural systems

constitute a wall. They have been built, as a Gardner's Store, Glasgow (1856).
rule, where the strength and stability of the Internal cast-iron framing has
here spread to the facades, but
brickwork or masonry alone was inadequate, stability is still ensured by tying
where there was a risk of earthquake or the beams back, on alternate
differential settlement leading to distortions floors, to masonry walls atthe
that simple masonry was less able to accept rear.
without collapse, or where timber was the most
readily available material. Only where the
columns and beams of the frame were fairly
widely spaced and braced across their joints
with short diagonals, as, for instance, in later
English timber-framed houses, was there much
similarity with later fully framed structures.
The complete internal framing of structures
of the former type was the more immediate
ancestor of later fully framed structures.
Complete internal framing was used in ware- Fully framed systems of iron, steel, and
house and mill buildings to give wide expanses concrete. The complete multistorey frame of
of open floor, and was distinguished from the columns and beams needed another source of
other type of frame by the absence of either lateral stability which could, in principle, be
infilling or bracing between the columns and provided in three ways: by means of rigid joints
beams to give lateral stability. All lateral and the inherent stiffness of the frame itself
stability was provided by the enclosing box of when so jointed; by means of diagonal braces;
substantial outer walls. Up to the end of the or by means of infills of masonry that acted as
18th century, and well into the 19th in the case braces without being called upon to carry floor
of warehouses, both columns and beams were loads, as were the unframed outer walls of the
of timber, and the floors were also of timber warehouses and mill buildings described pre-
boards. Then, after numerous disastrous fires, viously. All three means were adopted in a
there was a progressive substitution of cast number of convergent developments in the
iron, first for the columns and then for the mid-19th century. These developments
beams also, coupled with the substitution of the included the use of rigid portal framing two or
early brick-vault type of fireproof floor for the three storeys in height with some sup-
timber-boarded floor. With this substitution, plementary diagonal bracing in the aisles and
the frame itself usually became two- galleries of the Crystal Palace and in roughly
dimensional with beams running only across the contemporary English dockyard buildings; the
shorter width of the structure, typically over use of four-storey rigid framing of surprisingly
two intermediate columns. This frame was, modern detailing and without supplementary
therefore, further dependent for its stability on bracing in the aisles and galleries of a slightly
its connections, through the floor system, with later boathouse at Sheerness Dockyard in
the end walls. England; and the expansion of the complete
internal warehouse frame to the facades of
An upper floor of an early 19th- similarly framed commercial buildings near the
century warehouse at London city centers in London, Liverpool, Glasgow,
Docks, showing a hybrid
structural form with complete and New York. In the large six-storey ware-
internal timber framing (then house built a few years later around three sides
already giving way to cast-iron of the St Ouen Docks in Paris, the iron frame
framing) stabilized by substantial
outer masonry walls on all sides.
was carried into all the outer walls except the
relatively short principal facade, and all the
floors were fireproof shallow vaults of hollow
brick topped with concrete. Partial brick
infilling of the framed facades contributed to the
lateral stability, but was carried, storey by
storey, by the frame.
From these beginnings the frame was
developed rapidly in the later stages of the
rebuilding that followed the Chicago fire of
1871. Notable achievements were the nine-
storey Home Insurance Building, the first
building in which the frame was fully protected
by fireproof casing, and the 14-storey Reliance
Building, probably the best of the steel-framed
structures built toward the end of the century
with all lateral stiffness provided by the frame
itself, no party walls, and only light external
cladding of terra-cotta and glass. Reinforced-
 Structural systems 191

concrete frames of similar height followed early vices. A second has similarly relied on a few
in the 20th century. These also had beams transverse walls, continuous through the height
between the columns. At the same time, of the building but isolated from one another. A
reinforced-concrete frames of fewer storeys, third has transformed the whole frame, apart
designed for heavier floor loadings, were built from a central core, into the equivalent of a
with beamless floors; splayed column heads giant outer tube.
being provided to collect the floor loads and The first two of these systems were much less
achieve overall rigidity. radical innovations than the third because they
While the reinforced-concrete frame was may be said to have done no more than
being developed, the steel frame was pushed to deliberately exploit sources of stiffness that
its limits, if not beyond, in a series of ever taller were, to some extent, already present in most
skyscrapers that culminated in the Empire State earlier framed skyscrapers but largely ignored
Building, 85 storeys high without the obser- in the design. However, by taking them
vation tower, which was built later. Not only explicitly into account and making the most of
the need for lateral stability, but also the need to them, considerable economies have been
avoid unacceptable movements of the upper achieved in buildings of up to about 40 or 50
storeys in the wind, necessitated greatly storeys. The first system is the most widely
increased amounts of steel in these buildings for applicable, though it is most appropriate to
bracing purposes, either in the form of diagon- buildings of squarish or circular plan where a
als or as deep portals, notwithstanding the single central service core is called for. In
bonus of stiffness contributed by heavy buildings oflong rectangular plan, this core may
masonry claddings and additional internal have to be split in two for both structural and
walls. At heights above about 20 storeys, new functional reasons, and this will give less
hybrid forms that are structurally more efficient stiffness at the expense of more wall. For such
have therefore been introduced. At lower buildings, the second system is likely to be more
heights recent development has concentrated efficient, with continuous gable walls and
on overall simplification of the frame and its perhaps one or two transverse walls or equi-
design as a single entity rather than an valent continuous systems of diagonal bracing. The Reliance Building. Chicago
aggregation of individual elements. This has For buildings above about 50 storeys, the (1895). Fully framed both
internally and externally and a
been facilitated by the possibility, for instance, third system has proved to be the only one prototype for the lightly clad steel·
of varying concrete strengths to achieve the capable of limiting the penalty for height to not framed buildings of 50 years
required strengths of column at different much more than that which inevitably arises later.
heights with little or no change in cross section, from the greater vertical loads to be carried at
and by an architectural preference for simple, the base. Without its introduction it is unlikely.
repetitive, open-floor plans. Welding and bolt- that any more such buildings would have been
ing, too, have now made it easier to achieve the built this century. It calls, even more than the
desirable rigid joints in steelwork. At heights of first system, for a roughly square or circular
only two or three storeys, new light forms of plan, preferably identical from top to bottom or
steel frame have been introduced using hollow slightly reduced in area on successive floors . It
section columns and open-web beams, both is most efficient where the architectural
often fabricated as standard components. requirement is for the maximum openness of
the floors between the central service core and
Recent hybrid systems for tall buildings. the perimeter, to allow the maximum freedom
The inefficiency of the tall column and beam of use. Ideally, all wind loads are resisted not by
frame of the type developed in the late 19th bending of the individual lengths of column, but
century, stems from the fact that its stiffness as by overall tension on the windward side and
a vertical cantilever had to be provided by the overall compression on the leeward side,
bending stiffness of the individual columns or superimposed on the compression on both sides
by very extensive diagonal bracing. In the first due to gravity. One way of achieving this , first
case, the columns had to be much heavier than adopted on a fairly small scale for the 13-storey
they need have been, solely to carry the extra IBM Building in Pittsburgh, but since used for
weight of additional storeys. In the second the 100-storey John Hancock Center in
case, there was the additional cost and incon- Chicago, is to depart from a pure column and
venience of the diagonals. If the structure is beam grid in favor of a more trusslike form . In
considered as a single entity, a more efficient the IBM Building, an overall diagonal lattice
form is that of a single vertical tube or was used, of constant mesh and cross section
something similar. This is, of course, the form from top to bottom, but with different steel
of the tower with a continuous outer masonry members according to the load to be carried. In
wall- a form that has recently been built the Hancock Center, normal beams and col-
successfully in reinforced concrete to heights umns were retained, but a few very large
up to 1,640 ft. (500 m). One modern hybrid diagonals traversing the whole facade were
system has relied, as the main source of added. The other way (of varying efficiency ac- Twentieth-century
developments of tall multi storey
stiffness, on one or more such towers or cores cording to the proportions adopted) is to make framed buildings in Chicago:
occupying part of the total area and accom- the beams which interconnect with the columns Hancock, De Witt, and Lakeshore
modating elevators, stairways, and other ser- far stiffer than in a normal frame. This has been Drive Buildings.
192 Structural systems

done in a number of buildings of both steel and The World Trade Center, New
rein{orced concrete by both spacing the col- York, nearing completion in
1972. The twin 1,345ft. (410m)
umns more closely and increasing the depth of towers are also made to act as
the shorter beams that result, up to the limit of very stifftubularcantilevers, here
the full spandrel depth between windows. In the by means of the close spacing of
twin towers of the 110-storey New York World the peripheral columns and the
use of very deep beams to
Trade Center, the columns were set only 3ft. connect them at each floor.
3in. (I m) apart and the beams made 4 ft. 3 in.
(1.3 m) deep to come very close to the ideal.
Response to the wind is not, however, static
since the wind force itself fluctuates. Further
means may therefore be desirable to limit
movements in such tall structures. In the case
of the World Trade Center, dampers were
incorporated in the connections of the wide-
spanning floor beams to the outer columns.
Two variants of the first system with a stiff
core may be more briefly mentioned. In the
first, adopted by Frank Lloyd Wright (1869-
1959) in the Laboratory Tower for the Johnson
Wax Company at Racine, Wisconsin (1949), the
core carries all vertical loads and provides all
lateral stiffness, the floors being individually
cantilevered out from it. In the second, there
are just a few larger cantilevers, usually of
storey depth and accommodating service plant,
or one only, and the floors are either suspended
from these by peripheral vertical suspenders or
carried by peripheral columns. These systems
cannot be justified in the same way. Their chief
merit, in certain circumstances, is in freeing a
large area at ground level, either for later use or
according to the proportions adopted) is to make
to facilitate construction on a constricted site.
ondary binding reinforcement in beams and
Protection against fire and other hazards. The columns. The most novel approach has been to
risk of fire has been present at all times and protect steel columns by keeping them filled
in all places. It has most obviously stimulated with water to keep their temperature down.
innovation when it has led to the replacement of This approach has been adopted for several
combustible timber systems or elements by recent tall buildings and has entailed a return to
incombustible ones-notably the replacement the tubular cross section of many early cast-iron
of timber roofs by stone or concrete vaults (or columns (which sometimes doubled as internal
the construction of such vaults as ceilings below rainwater drains). In other cases they have
the roof proper, as in Romanesque and Gothic again been left bare and set some distance
churches), the replacement of timber floors by a outside the building to reduce their exposure to
variety of "fireproof' floors, and the replace- the heat of a fire. Further indirect influences on
ment of timber column and beam framing by structural form have arisen through provisions
iron framing. But fire can also weaken a to limit the spread of fire and ensure means of
structure by raising its temperature exces- escape in large buildings.
sively. Iron and steel, though incombustible, The main earthquake risk is fortunately
suffer fairly rapidly by losing strength and limited to certain parts of the world. In some of
distorting badly. Reinforced concrete can also these-in parts of Greece, Turkey, and Iran for
suffer if its reinforcement is overheated. When instance-there is evidence oflong traditions of
these possibilities were recognized, they were forms of construction that are better fitted than
first guarded against by means of protective some other forms to survive an earthquake. The
layers of insulation. In the case of iron and steel use of embedded timber framing in walls, as
this has taken various forms-lightweight, mentioned earlier, is one of the best examples.
specially fabricated hollow blocks, casings of It is difficult to say, however, to what extent
dense or lightweight concrete, and, most these forms were developed or subsequently
recently, sprayed-on insulants. In the case of used on this account. There are other possible
reinforced concrete (and prestressed concrete) reasons for their adoption, they are also found
it has naturally taken the form of an adequate elsewhere, and they were not used to the
concrete cover to the essential reinforcement, exclusion of much less suitable forms and of
though this cover has had to be prevented from undesirable practices like that of making very
spalling off as its temperature rises by sec- heavy roofs . It is possible to see a more
 Building and construction processes 193

deliberate response to the earthquake threat in accidental damage does not lead to more
the extensive and systematic use of both timber extensive collapse. Although this has not led to
and iron ties across arches in Byzantine any radically new structural systems, it has led
churches, perhaps because architects were to a different approach to the structural
very conscious indeed of the threat during the detailing of some bearing-wall systems and
most innovative period in 6th-century Con- some others without a large natural measure of
stantinople. It is only very recently, however, structural continuity.
that the nature of earthquake movements and of
the response of a structure to them has been
understood well enough to enable proper
consideration to be given in design. On the Means and processes
whole, this consideration has not so much led to
new forms as to a greater selectivity and the
provision of greater margins oflateral strength. Construction plant
It is recognized that certain things are unde- All construction involves carrying, lifting, and
sirable, like asymmetrical, broken, or sprawling placing materials, either in an unformed state,
plans, weak columns, weak joints, any top- or partly or entirely preformed. Usually it has
heaviness, especially in tall structures, and any also involved some cutting and positive joining
marked variation in foundation support. The (as distinct from just laying units on one
main difficulty arises with tall multistorey another). In recent years it has increasingly
buildings. Various means of partly isolating involved operations of stressing or jacking up to
these from the ground shaking have been obtain the desired distributions of internal
proposed, such as making the bottom storey stresses, or otherwise assist in the construction
more flexible than the others. But the problem process. Foundation works have, in addition,
of absorbing a very large amount of energy involved operations like excavation, pile driv- A Roman guyed mast crane
powered by a human treadmill as
without the collapse of this storey remains. The ing, and pumping away unwanted water. shown in a contemporary relief
more general and fundamental problem of By early dynastic times in Egypt (3rd now in the Vatican Museum.
predicting the type of shaking to which a millennium Be), if not earlier, basic tools like Note the use of pulley blocks to
particular structure is likely to be subjected also the chisel and axe, the saw and the bow drill , gain a mechanical advantage.

calls for further research. It is known that the were already in use, and wedges were used to
most appropriate design depends a good deal on assist in freeing blocks of stone in the quarry;
the dominant frequency of this shaking, so the but the only motivating power was that of
next advance may have to await better pre- human hands. Direct human effort similarly
dictive techniques. served to move, lift, and place even the largest
It is considerably easier to design structures blocks of stone. Large ramps were built in mud
to survive other types of ground movement that brick, and the blocks were hauled up the ramps
occur more slowly. The slowly advancing wave on sleds or rollers. The ramps were later
of surface settlement that follows underground dismantled on completion of construction.
mining is one such type of movement. The Such methods were probably adopted by all
obvious structural answer to this, if the megalithic builders up to and including the
settlement is not likely to be too great to builders of the earliest classical Greek temples.
preclude. building on the site, is to make the Immense expenditures of labor compensated
building and its foundation stiff enough to ride for the as yet undeveloped skills of building
the wave as it passes; at least it is today, now durable, large-scale structures from small units,
that this is perfectly feasible without devising though examination of the details of stone
any new system. In the past, the building that cutting and fitting shows clear evidence of
survived would more likely have been one able attempts to reduce the labor required.
to undergo considerable deformation without In classical Greek and Roman times, labor
collapse. One recent innovation has been a new requirements were greatly reduced; partly by
type of flexible steel-framed system for use progressive improvement of the basic hand
initially in schools of up to three storeys-the tools and, more importantly, by the intro-
CLASP system, used in Britain. This sits on a duction of simple cranes with guyed masts and
flexibly jointed, reinforced-concrete raft and ropes manipulated by windlasses and passing
incorporates telescopic-sprung, diagonal through pulley blocks to give a mechanical
braces which act as normal stiff braces except advantage. The motivating power might have
when accommodating movements of the raft. been either animal or human; large treadmills
Finally, extreme local loads have usually were sometimes used in the latter case. Similar
been deliberately provided for only in defense arrangements, perhaps with men hauling
walls and towers and, more recently, certain directly on the ropes, must have been used for
types of shelter that differ from other con- pile driving. There is also evidence of the
temporary structures mainly in being more existence of fairly efficient pumps, and of a
substantially built, and in their plan form. The variety of wheeled vehicles for transportation.
chief exception to this rule now is a deliberate Some of the earlier constraints on design were
provision of a measure of "fail safe" strength, thereby removed and replaced mainly by limits
in tall buildings particularly, so that local on the sizes and weights of individual structural
194 Building and construction processes

units of construction. that a high premium was placed on the adoption

From the Renaissance onward, surviVmg of geometrically simple forms.
evidence of the plant used is much more The merits of forms that could be simply set
plentiful. Cranes capable of moving loads out and checked did not disappear with the
horizontally, as well as lifting them, became widespread introduction of divided scales and
common, there was a widespread use of gears to measuring chains and tapes, nor with the later
obtain a mechanical advantage (though usually introduction of more versatile and precise
at the expense of a great deal of friction), and counterparts to the table-mounted direct optical
devices like jackscrews were available. How- sight such as the theodolite; but a freer choice of
ever, apart from the occasional harnessing of form did become possible, provided that the
wind or waterpower, the work was still done by form could be adequately defined. In addition, a
men or animals until well into the 19th century. far more important structural freedom of choice
The main improvements on Roman plant has been gained, largely in the last 100 years,
began with the substitution of more durable and through a growing ability to measure and
efficient iron gears and transmission systems monitor forces and resultant movements in the
for ones made predominately of wood. They course of construction, and to prooftest struc-
continued, in the latter part of the 19th and early tural materials and elements. This ability has
20th centuries, with the introduction of steam been gained through the development of
engines and then of electric and diesel motors as instruments to measure pressures and strains
the sources of power, and numerous further (small dimensional changes) in particular, and
detailed improvements and innovations in the thereby determine forces applied by hydraulic
design of the plant itself. These included hew jacks and internal forces and stresses.
types of cranes and hoists, mechanical pile
drivers and excavators, mechanical concrete Scaffolding, centering, and
mixers, hydraulic jacks capable of exerting form work
large controlled forces, a wide variety of
hand-held tools operated by compressed p.ir or The ramps of mud brick or earth constructed up
electricity and, at the opposite end of the scale, to the working level by early Egyptian and other
Construction of the Eddystone
Lighthouse in 1757-59. Lifting new large static plant for rolling steel and builders to enable large blocks of stone to be
gear is shown mounted on the fabricating or casting complete structural and manhandled into place, also served as the only
structure itself at successive other components. Even more than the necessary working platforms. Once con-
stages of construction. Graeco-Roman innovations, they have con- struction was complete, they could be used for
tributed immensely to the economy of con- final dressing of the stone and decoration of its
struction and-together with new materials and surface as they were progressively dismantled.
methods of structural analysis-to widening the Other methods of lifting and placing materials
designer's range of choice. Structurally, the have usually called for separate working plat-
most significant innovation has been the hy- forms supported by temporary scaffolds. Until
draulic jack as used in most prestressing oper- well into the 20th century, when tubular steel
ations. Modem electric welding equipment scaffolding was introduced, these scaffolds
comes a close second in relation to steelwork. were always made of timber as they still are in
less industrialized countries today. In the
commonest form, horizontal putlog1' were set,
Measuring equipment at one end, in holes left for the purpose in the
Only the most primitive types of structure could ascending structure, and they were lashed at the
be built by eye alone. Measurement soon other to freestanding uprights. Other horizontal
became necessary to control widths and timbers ran parallel to the working face to give
heights, and to keep floors horizontal and walls stability and assist in supporting the working
vertical. 'very simple means seem, neverthe- surface of hurdles or planks or something
less, to have sufficed for a remarkably long similar. In one variant, used mainly at higher
time. The plumb line served to establish levels, and in vault and dome construction,
verticals. Attached to an A-frame with a mark there were no uprights. The putlogs were more
on the crosspiece, or to some similar device, it deeply anchored in the ascending structure and
also served as a level. Alternatively, water further secured by raking struts or ties attached
levels were used, or the whole site might be a little lower or higher.
temporarily flooded. Bubble levels seem hardly A third type of scaffold provided a much
to have been used until the 19th century. Setting more substantial and extensive working plat-
a building out was usually done geometrically form at an upper level, such as the springing
with only a few base measurements. For this level of main arches or vaults, in a tall vaulted
purpose cords would be used, or square and structure without intermediate floors. This
compass. For larger scale surveying, table- platform probably supported a crane as well as
A French late 18th-century crane mounted direct optical sights took the place of men and materials, and sometimes centering for
still powered like the Roman one cords. Divided scales, either linear or angular, the arches or vaults as well. Surviving evidence
but better adapted to traversing a seem to have had very limited use in building suggests that it was carried, as far as possible,
load as well as lifting it. Similar
cranes were coming into use in work up to the Renaissance. The chief con- off the ground by a combination of heavy
the 15th century. sequence of reliance on these simple means was horizontal timbers and raking struts built into or
 Building and construction processes 195

supported by the structure already built. Centering for the construction of

the dome of StPeter's, Rome, in
Provisions for its support would have called for 1588-90. The dome was of double
the greatest amount of forethought. However, shell form with 16 radial ribs
even so, they can never have influenced design between the two shells (top and
as much as requirements for temporary support upper half below}. The centering
spanned between the springings
of the structure itself. Framed structures in to provide support beneath each
general have called for much less scaffolding rib (top and lower half below}.
since, to a greater extent, they have provided
their own working platforms.
The need for temporary support of th'e
structure itself during construction has arisen
mainly in the case of spanning elements like
arches and vaults, and more recently reinforced-
concrete floor slabs, put together or cast in situ.
The former have not been self-supporting until
completed, and the latter not until the concrete
has hardened sufficiently. The usual support for
an arch or vault was a timber center of the
desired profile, either strutted up at intervals
from directly below, or carried by fans of raking
struts anchored near the springings, or spanning
as a timber arch between the springings. A Construction of a bridge at
ribbed vault usually required centers only under Mantes, France, in 1764, showing
centering, temporary access
the ribs. Reinforced-concrete spanning ele- bridge, and lifting and traversing
ments cast in situ were, until recently, usually arrangements.
supported by timber beams and props. Now, in
multistorey buildings, these timber beams and
props have mostly been superseded by easily
adjusted telescopic beams and props of steel.
In addition to centers and other props for
spanning elements, continuous local support
has always been necessary for any element cast
in a material like wet concrete that initially has
no strength and gains strength only slowly. This
local support is provided by what is known as
formwork. Until the recent introduction of
forms of sheet steel and other materials , timber
must have been the usual material, and the
impressions of timber boards can still be clearly
seen on the exposed faces and undersurfaces of
early Roman concrete walls and vaults. The use
of timber in this way would, however, have
been extravagant until mechanically sawn
boards became available, and it would have
restricted the choice of surface geometry for a
vault. Ways of economizing and at the same
time gaining greater freedom in the choice of
surface geometry included the later Roman
practice of casting behind a veneer of brick or
tile which was, in effect, permanent form work,
and a less easily substantiated but probably
widespread practice of molding the actual form
of a vault in earth or loosely bound rubble above
much more roughly executed centers and
formwork. The modem use of steel formwork
imposes a different restriction on design, since
it must be reused repeatedly to justify its initial
cost. In multistorey buildings, this tends to call
for repetitive floor plans so that the same forms
can be used on each floor. On the other hand,
with walls continuing unbroken over a con-
siderable height, it has been possible to make
self-contained forms that can be progressively
slid up the wall itself and anchored to it as
casting proceeds.
196 Building and construction processes

Construction processes across the main arches that carry the dome of
Florence Cathedral and were sawn off when the
A new building or bridge may be envisaged by dome was almost complete. Nevertheless,
its designer in its entirety before construction sufficient width was usually given to the piers to
starts, and it may even finally assume this resist the temporarily unbalanced thrusts dur-
intended form, though changes in plan during ing construction. This was invariably done in
construction often occur. The resulting differ- bridges until, in the late 18th century, J .R.
ent and incomplete structure must, neverthe- Perronet (1708-94) bridged the Seine at Neuilly
less, be stable throughout the building process and was able to halve the proportionate
and it may, for instance, need temporary thickness of the piers by constructing all five
weather protection. When, as in the past, the arches simultaneously. With this reduction in
construction of large buildings and bridges was thickness he eased the flow of water and
often a very lengthy process, and it was much thereby reduced the risk of scouring at the feet
more difficult than today to foresee how the of the piers.
completed structure would behave, more In the later 19th and 20th centuries, more
thought was probably given to ensuring the diverse structural systems have called for a
stability of successive incomplete forms than to greater variety of temporary support without
the final state. Today, careful consideration of completely outmoding these earlier types. In
intermediate states has again assumed great wide-span structures of arched or cantilevered
importance, both where prestressing is carried form, the chief innovation has been the use of
out to achieve the desired final state, and where tensile stays, either radiating from raised
the stresses and scale of construction are great supports above the two ends of the span, as in
enough to lead to significant dimensional the construction of the Eads Bridge in St
changes or changes in geometric configuration Louis, Missouri, and other iron and steel
as construction proceeds. Considerations of bridges, or incorporated within the depth of the
overall economy must have always been of structure, as in some modern prestressed
some importance too, and they have tended at concrete bridges. In tall buildings the usual
different times and places to favor different need has been for additional lateral bracing of
distributions of effort between the building site tall frames before all the walls are added.
and the sources of supply of materials. Here we Temporary diagonal cable braces have served
shall give a few examples of the influences of this purpose.
the adoption of different construction processes Dimensional changes have always occurred
on structural forms, and then briefly consider in the course of construction as the inevitable
some aspects of the prefabrication of com- accompaniment of taking up loads and develop-
ponents and elements before they reach the ing resistance to them. Since they are usually
building site. only small changes, they are not a direct
constraint on design; as the need to ensure
Problems associated with the incompleteness stability of the incomplete structure has been.
of the structure during construction. Up to the However, they can influence the practicality of
19th century, the chief problems of stability a construction process and have a considerable
were those experienced with arched and vau- effect on the final structural behavior, so they
lted structures. In multibay buildings and have indirectly influenced designers' choices.
multispan bridges the thrusts of adjacent arches It has, for instance, always been necessary to
or vaults along the axis neutralized or largely allow for the progressive deformation of
neutralized one another in the completed centering-particularly timber centering-as
structure, but did not do so to the same extent an arch or vault is built over it, and for the
during construction if the arches or vaults were further deformation of the arch or vault when
constructed one at a time, as was usually the centering is removed. To minimize the first
desirable from other points of view. Each arch deformation, it was realized long ago (as Leone
or vault normally became self-supporting only Batti~ta Alberti (1404-.72) noted in the 15th
when completed (see also ARCHES AND century) that construction on centering should
VAULTS). be undertaken as rapidly as possible. Where a
In both arched and vaulted structures, the lengthy construction process had to be envis-
problems could, in principle, be overcome by aged, it was preferable to adopt a form that did
using temporary supports; but, while arches not require centering.
and barrel, groined, and ribbed vaults were Examples of important dimensional changes
constructed on centering when they needed in modern buildings and bridges are the
such support, analogous temporary inclined shortening of the usual concrete core (con-
shores seemed rarely, if ever, to have been used taining elevators, services, etc) of a tall
The National Westminster
to resist temporarily unbalanced thrusts. Where building, and the progressive deformations in Building, London, under
temporary support was provided it took the numerous highly interactive structural systems. construction in 1977 showing the
form of ties across the arch or vault. Use was When the core of the tall building is built ahead reinforced-concrete core that
sometimes made of such ties, later unhooked or of the surrounding structure, as it frequently is, provides much of the lateral
stability rising above the outer
sawn off close to the piers, in Gothic con- the subsequent shortening of the outer columns steel framing that is being
struction. Similar ties (of iron) were placed must be properly allowed for if the floors are to erected around it.
 Building and construction processes 197

finish horizontal. In the highly interactive analytical techniques necessary for a full use of
system, the whole way in which the building' s the possibilities.
own weight is carried may depend on the
sequence and manner of construction, par- From prefabrication to industrialization and
ticularly when a material like concrete is used. systems building. For a surprisingly long time
It is this dependence that is deliberately there has been a measure of prefabrication in
exploited in modern prestressing. building-for instance in the Roman mass
production of marble columns and in precutting
of members of timber frames and trusses before
Prestressing. The pretensioning of guy ropes they were taken to the building site. Such
must have been practiced for several millennia. prefabrication became significant in relation to
Iron ties also had to be pretensioned if they design when industrialization of the fabrication
were to be fully effective in restraining unde- process called for the standardization of major
sired movements, and the practice oftensioning structural components and elements. It became
them by driving wedges into eyes formed in the most significant with the introduction of col-
ends of the bars dates back at least to medieval umns and beams of cast iron. Its major, though
times. It was carried over into the pretensioning untypical, achievement toward the end of this
of the wrought-iron bars used in the mid-19th phase was in permitting the completion of the
century to truss cast-iron beams. But it became Crystal Palace for the 1851 London Exhibition
more usual at this time to form screw threads on in less than six months. Prefabrication of
the ends of such bars and on the ends of the ties reinforced concrete followed, rather ten-
in roof and bridge trusses and of the diagonal tatively, toward the end of the 19th century; its
braces in column and beam frames. This would main initial merit being that it allowed pre-
have allowed better control over the tensioning. testing in a situation of still inadequate know-
Another procedure introduced then for mod- ledge of the strengths to be expected.
ifying the stress distribution in a composite iron In the 20th century, industrialized pre-
structure was employed in the construction of fabrication has become much more common,
the Britannia Tubular Bridge over the Menai both for reasons of economy and to gain the
Straits. Each of the four spans was fabricated benefits of the better working conditions and
separately at a nearby site and then lifted into possibilities of quantity control in a factory.
position by hydraulic jacks. Had all four been There has been a great production of pre-
set on their final bearings before they were stressed concrete beams , concrete wall and
connected together, each would have inde- floor panels for use in housing, and a somewhat
pendently had to support its own weight: by the smaller production of a variety of structural
raising of the far end of each span after the first components for use in schools, offices, and
above its final bearing at the time of making the factories. However, in most of these cases, the
connection, all four spans were made to support components have been designed to fit together
themselves as one continuous beam. with others from the same source to make
Modern applications of prestressing include complete structures, rather than being incor-
examples similar to all these mid-19th century porated in structures otherwise fabricated in
examples, but the commonest application has situ, or from components from completely
been to reinforced concrete, where a redis- independent sources.
tribution between the steel and concrete of the Coordinated production of this kind is one
stresses that carry the self-weight can be facet of what is known as systems building.
particularly beneficial on account of the relative Outstanding examples have been various sys-
weakness of the concrete in tension. If, on tems of housing construction employing the
completion of construction, the concrete is large panels, mostly designed in the decades
under adequate compressive stress every- immediately after World War II to relieve an
where, it is able to play a full part in resisting acute housing shortage. The CLASP system of
subsequently applied loads. The usual techni- school construction, employing a fairly light
que has been to tension the reinforcement by steel frame, was also designed at this time. The
means of hydraulic jacks at one stage of heavy concrete large-panel systems have called Modern structural prefabrication
construction and then, at an appropriate later for great ingenuity in solving the problems of -a precast storey-height
concrete wall panel of the
stage when the reinforcement has been making joints that are adequate both struc- Balency system being lifted from
anchored or bonded to the concrete, to remove turally and in keeping the weather out. They its mold.
the jacks. Even more than new joining techni- have also called for heavy investment in plant at
ques , like the welding of steel and gluing of the casting factory , and have entailed the
timber, such prestressing has contributed maximum restriction of the designer's freedom
immensely to the development of structural in planning individual buildings. Less restric-
forms in which material is used to the greatest tive or more "open" systems are now pre-
advantage. Most of the pioneering development ferred, and there has been a parallel develop-
was undertaken by Eugene Freyssinet (1879- ment toward different concept systems , more in
1962) in France in the second quarter ofthe 20th terms of a basic idea and a package of relevant
century. Subsequent development was unusu- design skills, and construction and management
ally rapid, thanks partly to the availability of the expertise.
Section 4
200 Services before the Industrial Revolution

Services, mechanical and environmental systems

The development of services in buildings has
a lengthy and complex history. It is possible, A Roman oil lamp.
however, to introduce some order into the
subject by drawing a series of dividing lines to
define relatively distinct historical periods.
The first of these lines can be drawn at the
beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Much
of what is nowadays referred to as building
services depends upon the availability of
sources of mechanical energy. Just as the
Industrial Revolution itself depended upon
the invention of the steam engine, so the use
of steam power, and slightly later coal gas,
made possible fundamental developments in
the way in which buildings were conceived
and used.
The next dividing line occurs with another
major development in power sources-
electricity-and the enormous steps forward
which followed, first from the availability of a There is evidence that as early as 1700Bc
safe, controllable, and brilliant source of houses in Crete enjoyed the amenities of
artificial light, and then from the rapid appli- bathrooms, water closets, and their associated
cation of electrical power to other uses. The piped water and drainage services. In the
final line is only recently drawn, but the Middle East, the center of city evolution,
recognition of the finite limits of the earth's ditches and drainage channels were dug to
energy resources has provoked new thinking serve as sewers; remains of these have been
about building services. found at Khorsabad (800 BC), some being
Another set of lines can also be drawn and constructed of brick and protected by a vault
these distinguish between building types: brick. The Romans aspired to high standards
assembly buildings, hospitals, offices, of domestic and urban comfort, applying their
schools, and domestic buildings. Each of engineering skills to the construction of public
these types, at various stages in its develop- toilets and public baths and, most spec-
ment, has been the vehicle for a number of tacularly, in bringing water supplies to the
important innovations in services systems. cities. (They also invented the candle in the
Through these it is possible to examine the 1st century AD, but the evidence suggests that
question of the relationship between the this was regarded as an inferior substitute for
growth and development of building services, the oil lamp and it is clear that their standards
and developments in architectural form itself. of domestic lighting were never high.) In the
A final distinction which can be made in the Middle Ages in Europe, most of this earlier
organization of such a subject is that between knowledge was lost, although, as at Can-
practices in Europe and in the U.S. For terbury in England in the 12th century, there
reasons of culture and climate, building ser- is documented evidence of its survival in
vices, and particularly those for environ- isolated instances. In general, in towns and
mental control, have developed along dif- cities of this period the disposal of sewage
ferent paths on opposite sides of the Atlantic. was generally to a cesspit provided either in
the garden or, in certain cases, under the floor
Before the Industrial Revolution of the building. These pits were often con-
structed of stone with vaulted roofs and
Before controllable sources of energy were to examples have survived in many old towns
hand, the supply of heat, light, and ventilation such as Winchelsea in Sussex and Winchester
to buildings, and to some extent the removal in Hampshire, England. Although usually
of unwanted waste products, was an unre- provided with a ventilation shaft these
liable and laborious process. The open fire cesspits became offensive in use and over-
was only capable of warming the very small- flowed , contaminating the surrounding soil.
est of spaces and required constant attention. This contamination affected water supplies
Similarly, when artificial lighting depended and Jed to repeated outbreaks of serious
upon oil lamps or candles, the intensity of epidemics including bubonic plague which, in
illumination was extremely low and its source 1348 and 1349 caused the death of one-third of
was short lived and erratic. Furthermore, by the population of England. It was only when
virtue of their method of construction, build- the urban populations began to increase in
ings were inherently difficult to seal, and numbers with industrialization that attention
because smoke from the fire demanded the was again given to these questions.
construction of an aperture-later of Hamburg is thought to have been the first
chimneys-ventilation was usually abundant, major city in modern times to construct a
often to the point of discomfort. sewer system. This was built in the recon-
 Services before the Industrial Revolution 201

struction of the city following a major fire in Following the extinction of Roman influ-
1843. Even so, as late as 1854 there were ence in Europe, heating methods reverted to
cesspools in Red Lion Square and Bedford primitive central fires for hundreds of years
Row in the center of London. One of the until simple recesses in the thickness of
earliest sewers in the city was constructed in medieval walls connected to the exterior by a
the Strand in 1802 but it was not until 1865 short flue began to make their appearance.
that there was a comprehensive main drainage However, the wasting away of natural forests
system in London. Within buildings, attention and the growing use of coal as fuel for heating
was given to proper sanitation as early as 1596 emphasized the wasteful design of large open
when Sir John Harrington (1561-1612) fireplaces. Also, coal burned badly in them Diagram of a Roman bath
designed what is thought to have been the first and a great number of experiments were building with a hypocaust
water closet. By the 18th century the idea had conducted to increase efficiency. In 1624 heating system.
been conceived of using a water sealed trap to Louis Savot provided a novel fireplace in the
protect the interior of a building from the Louvre in Paris which incorporated passages
odors of the drainpipe. under the hearth from which warmed air was
Even before the Industrial Revolution the delivered from grilles in the mantlepiece. A
needs of the growing urban populations led to further notable advance in fireplace design
the construction of water supply systems in a was the introduction in 18th-century France of
number of European cities. The Germans the canopy incorporating a restricted throat
were the leaders in this and by 1558 Augsburg complete with a movable damper. The prin-
had an extensive and plentiful supply. In ciples of modem firegrate design were laid
London in the 16th century water was down by Count Rumford (1753-1814) who
pumped from the River Thames to a reservoir discovered the importance of the distance
from which it was supplied to nearby houses between the fire opening and the flue throat: if
through lead pipes . From contemporary excessive, the flue temperature dropped and
accounts of the state of the river water this the fire refused to draw, and if too small,
Cast-iron stove with an oven,
must have been a dubious amenity. In 1613, excessive combustion ensued. early 19th century.
water drawn from pure springs near Hertford, Enclosed fires or stoves were developed in
20 mi. (32 km) to the north of London, was Europe in the 15th century. They were usu-
piped to a reservoir at Islington and from ally of brick and placed centrally in the house
there to the city. In France, in about 1608, a to promote maximum warmth . From this
"lifting pump" was constructed beneath the developed the Scandinavian stove with its tall
Pont N euf over the River Seine in Paris in iron flue incorporating baftles to extend the
order to supply water to the Louvre and the travel of hot gases from the fire. In 1744 in the
Tuilleries, and a similar machine was con- U .S. Benjamin F ranklin (1706--90) developed
structed in 1669 at the Notre Dame. The most the improved cast-iron, wood-burning stove
elaborate waterworks of all at this period was which bears his name (and is still available in
that completed in 1669 by the Dutch engineer Britain today). An important development of
Rannequin , to supply the gardens at Ver- the freestanding iron stove came in 1792 when
sailles. This transported water a distance of an Englishman, William Strutt (1756-1830),
three-quarters of a mile (0.9 km) from the produced an iron stove in which air passing
river and lifted it through a height of 533 ft. over a heated surface was distributed by
(160m). It must be recognized, however, that natural convection. From this was developed
these supplies were enj'oyed by very few in 1806 the Belper stove incorporating a
houses. The majority, at best, would have greatly increased output for commercial pre-
access to a standpipe in the street from which mises .
they could draw water for perhaps an hour All these inventions and developments were
each day. for single apartment heating. The heating of a
In terms of heating, apart from the central number of rooms and floors from a single
fire with logs burning on a stone hearth, the source developed from the 18th-century use in
earliest heating apparatus was probably the France of hot-water heating for horticultural
bronze tripod brazier of the classical Greek purposes. Using large bore pipes and a simple
household. Readily portable and utilizing car- boiler, the first commercial installation was
bonized wood (charcoal) as a fuel, it survives for the new Bank of England, London, in
today in remote areas of the Middle East. A 1792. Early systems operated by gravity; cold
new system of heating-the hypocaust-was water being denser fell back to the boiler
developed by the Romans, who incorporated through pipes, forcing the lighter warm water
it into their houses. This construction com- to rise to the radiators. Boilers were placed in
prised a stokehold in the external wall from basements or stokeholds until the introduction
which a large flue passed to a brick chamber of motor-driven pumps or circulators made
formed under the tesselated concrete floor of boiler location a matter of convenience rather
the principal room. Radiating flues carried than simple physics.
smoke and hot gases to flues contained within Steam heating was invented by James Watt
the thickness of the walls, discharging at (1756-1819) in 1784 using waste steam from
eaves level. boiler testing to heat his workshop by intro-
202 Services in the 19th Century

ducing it into high level pipes running around this as automatically as possible.
his workshop. He did not, surprisingly, see During the 19th century all of these desires
the commercial possibilities and it was an came to be satisfied in buildings of all types.
English inventor-Hoyle from Halifax in Although the benefits were not enjoyed by all
Yorkshire-who in 1791 patented a method of members of society, the fundamentals of the
steam heating. One of the earliest commercial technology of building services and, perhaps
installations was the heating of a silk mill in of even greater significance, a set of new
Watford, England, designed by Thomas Tred- expectations about the services which a build-
gold in 1824. ing could accommodate, were well estab-
It is evident from these two examples that lished. From this platform the subsequent
even at the end of the 18th century most developments of the 20th century could easily
buildings had very little service equipment. proceed.
Consequently, the utilitarian role of buildings
was to provide shelter from the elements and
to offer a degree of modification of the The 19th century
external climate. For the majority of people,
in both the cities and the country, the pattern Assembly buildings
of domestic and productive life was fun- From the point of view of services design,
damentally conditioned by the external cli- assembly buildings are interesting in three
mate, with its daily and seasonal variations. ways. The first of these is the problem of
This meant that useful light was only available ventilation, namely the maintenance of an
for an average of 12 hours a day and that a acceptable thermal environment in densely
comfortable temperature could only be occupied spaces. Second, the importance of
achieved in the winter months in a restricted good vision focuses attention upon the
area of a building. These limitations were only technology of lighting systems. Third, the
barely ameliorated by the rudimentary importance of good sound for both music and
sources of artificial light and heat that were drama introduces the subject of architectural
available. acoustics.
Contemporary references illustrate con- To outline the main stages in the develop-
ditions in pre-industrial buildings. In the early ment of ventilation systems up to this period,
17th century John Aubrey reported that the the old and new buildings of the Palace of
wife of William Oughtred, the English Westminster, London, clearly illustrate the
mathematician, "would now allow him to relevant technological changes which
bume candle after supper, by which means occurred as society moved into the Industrial
many a good notion is lost." As a further Age.
example, the records at the Jacobean mansion It is recorded that Sir Christopher Wren
at Audley End in Essex, England, show that, (1632-1723) attempted to provide ventilation
in the winter of 1765, the daily candle con- in the original building by placing truncated
sumption was a mere 3 lb. (1.4 kg) in weight. pyramids, each with an openable lid, above
On the subject of the thermal environment in the ceiling at the four comers of the House of
pre-industrial buildings, there is a record at Commons. It was hoped that these pyramids
Trinity College, Cambridge, dated February would conduct the heated air from the
1739, in which the librarian is instructed to chamber. However, when the air in the roof
prepare a new catalog in the magnificent space was cooler than that in the House,
college library designed by Sir Christopher undesirable downdrafts were created. In 1723
Wren (1632-1723). The work was to be under- a Dr Desaguliers (1683-1744) was called to
taken "as soon as the weather permits." attend to the problem. He adapted Wren's
An important by-product of the Industrial pyramids by running a trunking from them to
Revolution was the proliferation of institu- a firegrate which then guaranteed a consistent
tions and of the buildings and plant necessary flow of air from the chamber by assisted
to sustain them. In this situation a fun- convection. He later installed a "centrifugal,
damental change was wrought in the expec- or blowing wheel," which was to be turned by
tations of buildings. No longer were the a man, to be called a "ventilator." This
limitations of the natural climate allowed to device remained in use until the building was
determine how people should live and work. destroyed by fire in 1834.
A building whose use was restricted to certain The associated House of Lords also suf-
periods of the year, or which was incon- fered from ventilation difficulties and here Sir
venient to use after dark, was no longer Humphry Davy (1778-1829) added brick flues
acceptable. Similarly, a building which alongside its earlier, hypocaust-like heating
required its occupants to devote a good deal system, and led fresh air through these to
of their time to its operation was equally numerous small holes in the floor. Extraction
undesirable. What was needed was a building was provided by two metal tubes in the
in which the environment was appropriate to ceiling, each of which passed through a
the activities at any time of day or night and furnace to assist convection.
any season of the year, and which achieved Following the fire of 1834, the question of
 Services in the 19th Century 203

environmental control was a central issue in

the design of the new building. A whole series
of authorities was involved in the work. The
first was a Dr John Reid, who was also
responsible for the apparently successful ven-
tilation arrangements in the Commons' tem-
porary home in the reroofed shell of the
House of Lords. In this he made provision for
cooling the air in summer, in addition to
winter heating, by filling the water pipes over
which the air passed with cold water. A
similar system was installed in the new Com-
mons' chamber but after a dispute the
architect Charles Barry (1795-1860) took
charge of the job in the House of Lords using
a system of supply and extract through the
ceiling. In the event neither of the original
systems proved to be very successful and
other specialists were called in. In 1865 a Dr
John Percy installed a system which was
sufficiently successful to survive into the 20th Chicago (1885) had a very similar system Dr Reid's ventilation system for
century. This was, to all intents and purposes, except that there the input was through the the temporary House of
Commons, London (1830s)
a full air-conditioning system in the sense that ceiling and extract through the floors. This
it heated the space in winter, and cooled it in system achieved a ventilation rate of four air
summer by passing the air over blocks of ice. changes an hour.
Control in the chamber was in charge of an By 1895 the utility of "the fan system" was
attendant who watched a thermometer and acknowledged as the most suitable arrange-
covered or uncovered areas of the pipes. ment for theaters. It was considered that a
Environmental control in theater buildings d'ual duct system-one for warm air, the other
also inspired great ingenuity. For example, for cool-would be best. In one proposal the
early in the 19th century the Marquis of mixture of warm to cool air was to be
Chabannes-"an earnest and successful can- controlled by attendants, each operating a
didate for smoke-doctor distinction"-had damper between the two ducts, who were
installed a ventilation system in the Covent seated in the various parts of the theater. In
Garden Theater, London, based upon a large effect these attendants were human ther-
gas chandelier supplemented by " calor- mostats.
iferes." These were positioned in one of the In Europe, the basis for heating and ven-
galleries, another over the stage, and others at tilating theaters remained relatively unsci-
every entrance and staircase so that the incom- entific throughout the middle decades of the
ing air was warmed before it entered the century. Nevertheless, a good example of that
auditorium. A steam-heating system was subsequently achieved was the Hofburg The-
placed under the stage. Extract ventilation ater in Vienna (1874) designed by Gottfried
was through three ducts which passed through Semper (1803-79). This had a combination of
the roof, each placed over a calorifere. collecting, heating, and mixing chambers from
In the U.S., control of the thermal envi- which air at an appropriate temperature was
ronment in theaters had become very sophis- conducted throughout the building. Delivery Mechanical forced ventilation
ticated by the 1880s. The theater at New to the auditorium was beneath the seats. using fans of various types
provided a reliable method of
York's Madison Square Garden (1880), During cold weather extract ventilation relied moving large volumes of air.
designed by McKim, Mead, and White, was upon the buoyancy of the warmer air inside Their use increased rapidly
described as "the first theater in New York at the building, but when it was warm outdoors toward the end of the 19th
least, to be efficiently ventilated as well as exhaust fans were brought into action. Cool- century.
properly heated and satisfactorily cooled in ing was achieved by passing the air over a
summer." The system delivered air to open- water surface of 1,440 sq. yd. (1 ,203 sq. m)
ings under the seats. In winter, the air was supplied with water from a deep well. This
warmed by being passed over steam radiators, was capable of reducing the temperature of
and summertime cooling was achieved by the air by 3-5°C on a summer's day. The
passing the incoming air over "enormous center of the whole installation was the lavish
blocks of ice." Extraction was through open- "engineer's room" from which the system
ings in the ceiling and under the galleries. The was controlled. However, even this advanced
success of this installation, which required a installation relied upon the fact that warm air
high degree of integration of the services with rises to achieve adequate ventilation in cold
the structure of the building, was such that weather. This is an important contrast with
similar installations rapidly became com- 20th-century ventilation practice which has an
monplace in most theaters in New York. almost · exclusive reliance upon mechanical
Adler and Sullivan's McVickers Theater in extract from such buildings.
204 Services in the 19th Century

Theater lighting progressed during the 19th

century from a state similar to that which had
prevailed since the evolution of the enclosed
theater in the 16th century to a level which
contained the essence of present-day practice.
Until the advent of limelight in 1794, 18th-
century theater relied upon oil lamps and
candles for illumination. The difficulty in
managing these meant that the houselights
generally remained lit during the performance.
Gas lighting was first demonstrated in 1788 at
the then English Opera House (later the
Lyceum Theater), but this was as a display
itself and not as a means of lighting drama. tics in the large lecture room at the newly Sectional elevation of New
(Municipal gas lighting and power distribution constructed Fogg Art Museum. Following a Boston Music Hall (1900). W.C.
Sabine acted as acoustics
commenced in 1813 with the formation of the remarkable series of experiments he not only consultant for the designers
London and Westminister Gas Company.) In solved this particular problem but also dis- McKim, Mead and White.
1817, both the stage and auditorium of the covered the precise mathematical relationship
Lyceum were gaslit, and around 1856 Sir between the dimensions and construction of
Henry Irving (1838-1905) began to insist upon an auditorium and its acoustical quality.
the houselights being dimmed during a per- Armed with this knowledge he was able to act
formance. as a consultant of McKim, Mead, and White
Electric light made its appearance as early in the design of the New Boston Hall (1900),
as 1846 when an arc lamp powered by now Symphony Hall, the home of the Boston
batteries was used to simulate the rising sun at Symphony Orchestra. This building, although
a performance of Meyerbeer's Le Prophete at relatively conservative in its form, may thus
the Grand Opera in Paris. In 1879 the be recognized as the first "scientifically"
Bellacour Theater in Lyons was lit by Jab- designed auditorium since antiquity.
lochkoff candles-an improved arc lamp pow-
ered by a generator. In 1881 the Paris Opera
and the Savoy Theater in London were both
lit by incandescent lamps. At the Savoy the
system was designed and installed by the Hospitals
Siemens Company and power was produced In the 18th century most hospitals owed their
by six generators.There were nearly 1,200 form and arrangement as much to the canons
lamps in the building; 114 in the auditorium, of architectural composition as to any con-
715 clear lamps and 100 tinted blue over the sideration of the special requirements of their
stage-the latter for night scenes-with the function. During this period it is easy to
remainder in the corridors and dressing recognize the similarity in plan between hos-
rooms. Five years later the Vienna Opera pitals and country houses. On the continent of
House was lit by as many as 5,000 lamps. Europe, and particularly in France, however,
In addition to the advantages of artistic attention was beginning to be paid to the
effect and control which electric light brought question of the form of the "hygenic" hos-
to the theater, it also eased the problems of pital. This was in reaction to the difficulties
ventilation by producing light without fumes, experienced in unsuitable buildings inherited
and, as an even greater advantage, it con- from the Middle Ages-in particular the Hotel
siderably reduced the fire risk. Dieu in Paris. Out of this situation was born
In the design of theaters and other assembly the pavilion plan, which rapidly became the
buildings in the 19th century, acoustics-the standard basis for hospital design. Neverthe-
third criterion of performance-was largely a less, scientific modes of, for example, ven-
hit-and-miss affair. Charles Gamier (1825-98) tilation, were rejected as inadequate, and the
sought an understanding when he was design- importance of tall windows to promote good
ing the Paris Opera, and was forced in the end daylighting, in addition to ventilation, was
to declare his inability to come to terms with stressed. Hospital heating too, even in a
"this bizarre science." The Opera did have building based on wards for more than 20
good acoustics, but these were achieved by patients, was often by open fireplaces or
adopting the standard Italian " horseshoe stoves "because heat both promotes the rapid
plan," tried and tested over a century or decomposition of foul excretions and also
more. increases the discomfort of the feverish sick
Modern architectural acoustics was born in by surrounding them with an unnaturally dry ,
the U.S. in the closing years of the 19th hot atmosphere.''
century. Wallace Clement Sabine (1868-1919), Even after the 1850s authoritative opinion
a young physics professor at Harvard, was in Europe was reluctant to accept the con-
asked in 1895 by the president of the uni- venience of central heating and scientific
versity to investigate the cause of poor acous- ventilation for hospitals. The predominant
 Services in the 19th Century 205

reliance upon simple natural ventilation in the 1 'ratMrtJ"II! St•ctiuJ~ .

hospitals of the second half of the 19th

century, however, was not due to a shortage WARD Ol:ILDISG.
Corridor F. Lln·atory, ~.
of ideas about mechanical aids; it must be A.
fl· Ventilating fan
e. Ward room
concluded, therefore, that these proved to be c. Orderlies' bcd·t·oom 11. Yentiloting nir-tnmk
unreliable in practice, and that the natural 0. Dath-room i. l\Inin drain
conservatism of the new bureaucracies pre- E. Mcdicn.! oftloor j. Tables in wanls
vailed in insisting upon the use of tried and
tested methods. Invariably, it was only when
the circumstances of the construction of a
building were in some way unusual that
experiment proved more acceptable. This was
beautifully demonstrated by lsambard King-
dom Brunei (1806-59) in his design for a
hospital at Renkioi in the Dardanelles during
the Crimean war. This was remarkable in
many ways and not only for its ventilation
system and other services. Ventilation was
achieved by a system of man-powered fans,
one to each ward pavilion. The fans propelled
air along a system of floor ducts into the
wards. Opening windows were also provided,
and these were sheltered from the heat out-
side by the eaves overhang. The aim was thus
to avoid bad air entering the wards by this
process of forcing air into them rather than
drawing it out. There were no stoves or
fireplaces, but hot water was supplied by a
small boiler, heated by candles. Lighting was
also by candles in specially designed lanterns.
Drainage was through a system of tarred Plan and section of a ward
wooden sewers. pavilion in I.K. Brunei's Renkioi
In the U.S., characteristic enterprise was Hospital showing underfloor
ventilation trunking.
applied to the problem of hospital design, and
this is best exemplified in the design by John
S. Billings (1838-1913) of the Johns Hopkins
Hospital in Baltimore (1877). In plan the
pavilion arrangement was unremarkable, but a
cross section through a typical ward block
shows that considerable ingenuity went into
the design of the ventilation system. Each
block consisted of two storeys, with the ward
proper on the upper level and the sole
function of the lower being to serve as an air
intake. The air, having passed across the
lawns, entered the long windows in the walls Section of a ward in J.S. Billing's
Johns Hopkins Hospital in
of the lower floor. The walls of this floor were Baltimore (1877) showing air
lined with water-filled heating coils and the air ducts and ventilation towers.
circulated from these into the ward. Foul air
was extracted by two routes. There was first a laden, and often impure atmosphere of our
duct system linked to grilles beneath every cities and towns, ... a natural system (of
bed. This was connected to the main vertical ventilation in hospitals) is impracticable." He
ventilator shaft. In addition, a further series of illustrated his own solution to the problem by
outlets were located in the ceiling, and these his designs for the New General Hospital in
led through the roof space to meet the Birmingham. Here he installed four plant
ventilator shaft at a high point just below a rooms in the basement, •.ach with air intakes,
steam-heated coil This added further motive filters , heaters, and humidifiers. These con-
force to the extraction process. In cold nected to a duct system which supplied the
weather the ceiling outlets were not opened, wards and other rooms on the three floors
being only brought into use on warm days. above. The building had no opening windows
At the end of the 19th century the question and very few open fires. Extract was through
of mechanical ventilation for hospitals was flues to the roof level. The motive power for
revived in Europe. In England, for example, the system was from electric motors driving
William Henman declared in 1894 that "in our eight fans.
constantly varying climate, with the smoke- The sophistication of this building was not,
206 Services in the 19th Century

CAMBERWELL
P\.,AN ~WING

C,ALORif"~
INFIRMARY.
,AAA,ANCOIDIT OF eOI..EII:>.

,AND DYN,AM03.
.... - - •
J_(-~ ;
- I

,--==-··...

------ --- _.

Plan of the plant room ofthe however, typical of everyday practice, and at in addition they had to rely on rooflighting.
Camberwelllnfirmary by E.T. the turn of the century Edwin T. Hall (1851- The advantages of this arrangement in terms
Hall showing the disposition of
boilers. calorifiers, and dynamos.
1923) presented an extensive discussion of the of movement about the building are clear, yet
Hall, who opposed artificial principles of hospital design. In his opinion, the density of the building was no greater than
ventilation for hospitals, artificial ventilation was "a mistake in any at Birmingham because the insistence on
nevertheless employed other hospital." In his design for Camberwell natural lighting restricted the building to a
advanced servicing systems for
the time. Infirmary, London, Hall was ambiguous single storey.
about ventilation. While emphasizing that all This comparison between Henman's and
wards had openable windows on three sides, Hall's buildings neatly encapsulates the basic
he also mentioned that they had electric alternative approaches to hospital design
extract ventilation. His point was that the air around the 1900s; hospitals were fun-
for wards should not be delivered through damentally determined by the nature of their
ducts because they were likely eventually to service installations.
become foul. However, in spite of his oppo-
sition to artificial ventilation, Hall was not Offices
reactionary in all things since the designs of The office building is essentially a product of
all the hospitals he described were advanced the 19th century. However, examined from
in their environmental services. Camberwell, the viewpoint of services design, and par-
for example, had a very substantial plant ticularly environmental services, even this
room containing four boilers, three calorifiers, radical invention, in its early days, owed
and three dynamos. Exhaust steam from the much to buildings of the past, especially to
dynamos supplemented the heating. The domestic building. The very first office build-
building was electrically lit and had electric ings in the U.S., and many built even during
elevators serving the ward blocks. The heat- the decades up to and into the 20th century,
ing system, consisting of hot-water radiators, were aggregations of quite small rooms which
was arranged on a dual circuit principle to were lit by daylight and ventilated by open-
ensure that the building would be heated even able windows. Some were heated by open
if one circuit required maintenance. fires and only later were the attractions of
Hall's building could be said to represent some centralized, labor-saving heating system
the best of conventional practice at the time, recognized. The New York Life Assurance
but William Henman was simultaneously lay- Company's office designed by Griffiths
ing down his beliefs once more through his Thomas, for example, was heated by steam
design for the Royal Victoria Hospital in forced into it on the fan principle. This
Belfast (1903). In this the implications of the development did not, however, fundamentally
system which he had used at Birmingham alter the basis of the design of the building. In
were fully realized and applied. The plan of Europe, the domestic influence was more
the building was compressed so that the wards apparent, both visually and technologically,
were now only separated by a party wall and and this persisted for much longer. For
 Services in the 19th Century 207

example, even as late as 1899 the Parr's Bank corijunction with the plant of the heating
in Liverpool designed by Richard Norman system. By the end of the century architec-
Shaw (1831-1912), still relied upon the open tural journals in the U.S. could publish firm
fire to heat the smaller offices. guidelines for deciding upon the number and
By the end of the 19th century the use of location of light fittings in a room. A dis-
central heating for offices was well established tinction was made between small and large
in the U.S., and it was possible for Architec- rooms. In the former, "ceiling lights are not
tural Record to publish in 1895 quite com- as useful as wall brackets." In the latter, "the
prehensive guidance on the nature of effective most ideal light is one which is diffused from
heating systems for these and other building small clusters of two or three lights each,
types. In this, a basic distinction was made distributed uniformly on the ceiling." Also,
between the modes of heating for the "cor- where a large space is broken up by columns
poration offices which occupy the lower " . . . a very good illumination is often
floors" and the upper offices, which were for obtained by rings of lights arranged about the
rent. It was recommended that the former columns and carefully worked into the
should be heated by the indirect, fan- ornamentation." The precise number of lamps
system-warmed air, while the latter, because to be provided seemed to be an open ques-
of the greater subdivision of the upper floors tion, but " 50 to 60 (sq.) ft. (4.7 or 5.6 sq. m)
for rental purposes, should be heated directly per light may be considered an average" in
by a one-pipe system supplying small open spaces. Small offices had two or three Richard Norman Shaw's Parr's
radiators located in front of each window. such lamps which "makes the average lighting Bank, Liverpool (1899).
Typical speculative plans for offices in New about one to 40-45 sq. ft. (3.7-4.2 sq. m)."
York at this time illustrate how this arrange- A discussion of the office buildings must
ment worked. This same article also discussed inevitably include an appraisal of the role of
the merits of various types of thermostat, so the elevator. Elevators for goods and pas-
indicating that automatic control was already sengers were in existence (in a form known as
part of everyday practice. "teagles") in British textile mills as early as
At the turn of the century, therefore, 1830. These were operated by cables from the
particularly in the U.S., there was no shortage main engine of the factory; they were inher-
of advanced ventilation technologies. But ently unsafe. One of the. earliest hydraulically
these were only applied where the nature of operated systems consisted of a cage directly
the activity performed in the building was mounted on a long plunger which descended
distinctly non-domestic. Most office activity into a cylinder located in a deep pit. Elisha
could be satisfactorily undertaken by small Otis (1811-61) solved the safety problem and
numbers of people in small rooms and the thus allowed the passenger elevator to
domestic analogy therefore held good. When, emerge, by using a ratchet and pawl system at
however, the nature of a business could be the sides of the shaft. He demonstrated his
best served by a different building arrange- prototype at the New York Fair in 1854 and
ment, the rules of the game were redefined took out a patent in 1857, followed quickly by
and other technologies were brought to bear. Sir William Armstrong (1810-1900) in Eng-
This is clearly what later occurred with the land. Elevators around this time were invari-
collaboration between the Larkin Company of ably powered by steam. Later in the century
Buffalo and Frank Lloyd Wright (1869-1959) more highly sophisticated hydraulically and
in 1906. Here the whole building was for a electrically operated systems were developed.
single organization whose functional effi- By 1870 the term "elevator building" was in
ciency could best be promoted by an open- common use, and the potential for the con-
plan arrangement. This allowed Wright to struction of convenient high buildings which it
achieve this new synthesis between form and
environmental technology. Nevertheless, sys-
tems of this kind were already in existence
and in widespread use on the corporation
offices of conventional office buildings and in
other building types. Wright's achievement Interior view of Frank Lloyd
was to see the potential in these systems to Wright's Larkin Building in
allow a new arrangement of office space. Buffalo (1906).
In terms of lighting in the late 1800s, even

I I
the most advanced office designs were still
conceived as being predominantly daylit. Yet
their lighting had come a long way from the
unsatisfactory reliance upon candles at the
beginning of the 19th century. In both Europe
and the U.S., electric lighting was absolutely
standard for office buildings by the 1890s.
Often, particularly in the U .S., the power A teagle in a multistorey British
supply was generated in the building itself in textile mill ofthe 1830s.
208 Services in the 19th Century

offered, was recognized and vigorously

exploited.
The problem experienced by designers of
tall office buildings in the late 19th century
was that other service systems could not all
be simply extended vertically. It was not
possible, for example, to rely upon natural
convection to circulate hot water around a tall
building; puw~ed circulation became neces-
sary. Similarly, the water services could not
operate on the normal mains pressure. This
was overcome by pumping water up into
storage tanks at the top of the building and
distributing it downward by gravity. This
solution itself led to problems as buildings
became taller since the pressure on the lower
floors became excessive. This was solved by
the introduction of pressure-relieving tanks on
intermediate floors.
In the U.S. the fire hazards in tail buildings
were solved by technology. In the early
discussions of the problem the emphasis was
upon fireproof construction and upon the developments in services technology in the Floor plan of Burnham and
provision of fire eSCii-PeS which were quickly 20th century, however, led to an almost Root's Reliance Building
(1890-94).
recognized to be essential features of any tall elaborate concern for their concealment.
building. Service systems had their part to
play too, and there is a record as early as 1881
of the Chicago architects Burnham and Root Schools
receiving an instruction from their client, One of the major social developments during
Peter Brooks, to run a fire fighters' standpipe the 19th century was the acceptance of uni-
all the way up the southeast comer of the versal education. Throughout Europe and in
eight-storey Montauk Building. In Europe, in the U.S. the school building emerged as an
contrast, the problem was solved for many independent building type with its own special
years by the simple device of legislative functional requirements carefully analyzed
prohibition! and the nature of appropriate designs widely
An additional problem of early office blocks discussed. By the 1870s it was the established
was that heated air achieved very high ve- view that the design of a school should follow
locities in ventilation and elevator shafts, thus a logical sequence from a consideration of the
causing cold air to be sucked through open- teaching method, through to the "elements
ings at the lower floors. This "stack" effect which control the shape and size of the
rapidly produced a response in the form of the schoolrooms and classrooms composing the
revolving door. This was the brainchild of building," and on then to details of their
Theophilus van Kannel who was, in 1889, construction a nd equipment. Such con-
honored by the Franklin Institute with the siderations also incorporated the question of
presentation of their John Scott Medal in ''warming and ventilation'' and of toilets and
recognition of the value of this innovation. washrooms. It was assumed that lighting
The growth in the size of the institutions meant daylight. (The installation of electric
housed in tall buildings also produced the lighting in schools was essentially a 20th-
need for improved systems of communication. century innovation.)
The potential of the telephone, patented by In Europe, reference to research in Ger-
Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) in 1876 many into building design led many architects
as a means of internal communication, was to adopt a scientific approach to design of
quickly recognized, and the use of elevators services in schools. In England, for example,
and chutes for the conveyance of goods and lighting was based on a relationship of 30 sq.
documents was soon standard practice. in. (192 sq. em) of glass to every sq. ft. (0.09
By the end of the 19th century a high level sq. m) of floor area. The sills of the windows
of servicing was regarded as essential to the were to be at least 4 ft . (1.2 m) from the.
commercial success of any office building, floor. It was also stated "that lighting from The United Telephone
Company's Exchange, London
particularly in the U.S. The common practice the side-especially the left side-is of such (1883).
was to expose all pipes and fittings. As Peter great importance as properly to have a mate-
Brooks wrote to Burnham and Root in con- rial influence over our plans." The English
nection with the Montauk Building, "This architect E.R. Robson (1835-1912) advocated
covering up of pipes is all a mistake, they that "warming and ventilation must be treated
should be exposed everywhere, if necessary as inseparable or, at least, in treating of one
painted well and handsomely." Further the other must be always present to our
 Services in the 19th Century 209

mind." Following on from this he outlined the

scientific basis for design by pointing to
German studies of the effects of occupancy
upon the freshness of the air in a classroom.
He also discussed the relationship between
the size of windows and the heating require-
ments of a room. This offered a basis for
calculating the heat requirement of a room,
and established a clear, if conflicting, rela-
tionship between lighting and heating.
After discussing such methods of heating as
gas stoves and systems using high-pressure
hot-water pipes. Robson had to confess that
"It is much easier ... to determine what we
ought not to do, than to draw final con-
clusions as to the best course for adoption in Cast-iron radiator suitable for
each case. " At this time the open fire was still large rooms, late 19th century.
considered to be acceptable, partly because it
had "in its favor a strong prejudice in the
mind of the English people." Also, the fact
that the building would invariably have a
caretaker meant that tending the fire would be
the latter's responsibility and not the
Integrated heating and
teacher's. Robson therefore recommended ventilation system for a school
that the open fire was suitable for schools of from Robson's School
three departments containing 500 children, Architecture (1874 ). A central
and that for schools for 750 or more children boiler heats air which is
distributed to the various rooms
an artificial system was preferable. In be- by convection.
tween these numbers the choice must be
decided "by the peculiarity of the plan."
In the late 1800s technology of heating was
wide ranging in both the U .S. and Europe.
Open fires could be set in grates which
supplemented the radiant heat they produced
with convected air. Freestanding stoves, such
as the Gurney stove, were not approved
unless they were placed in a basement
chamber, although even here there were
objections on the basis that the caretaker
could not be relied upon to operate the
apparatus efficiently. Nevertheless, this idea
was developed further in a system installed at
the Luisen Schule in Berlin. This had a
separate extraction system, with its own small
boiler which was used to assist the flow of
heated air from the heating chamber through
the building. This could also be used inde-
pendently in the summer months to provide
ventilation when the heating was not in use.
London Board Schools and Jonson Street
School in Stepney (c. 1890) designed by T.R.
Smith, built to accommodate 1,500 children,
exemplifies the fusion of these design prin-
ciples and technologies into a very satisfying
whole. Such innovations in 19th-century
school building illustrates the contrast with T.R. Smith's Jonson Street
the contemporary attitudes to hospital build- School, Stepney, London (1890);
ing; there was a much readier acceptance of perspective and plan of upper
quite sophisticated services technology in floor.
schools. In the 20th century services in
hospitals are now equally sophisticated.

Domestic buildings
To illustrate the development of services in
210 Services in the 19th Century

domestic buildings during the 19th century, it discussed the subject of heating and other G

is useful to draw parallels between customs services in his two-volume work House
and methods in Europe and in the U.S. At the Architecture, and even though he described
beginning of the century a typical house in central heating systems of the kind advocated
each continent could be described, environ- by Downing, he concluded that "for heating
mentally, in very similar terms. Heating was English houses, the best system, on the
by open fires, ventilation was by openable whole, is the old one of open fires ... it has
windows, generally of the sliding sash variety, the advantage that we are used to it, and that
and artificial lighting was by lamp or candle. everyone understands it . .. " Stevenson's
Although during the early years of the 19th book also offers valuable insights into other
century there was no lack of experiment and aspects of English (and hence other Euro-
development in appliances for heating and pean) domestic services toward the end of the
ventilating houses-Sir John Soane (1753- 19th century. In a chapter on ventilation he
1837) in England, for example, had steam- wrote "In good ventilation there must be
heating systems installed at his own houses at security that the changing of the air will be
Tyrringham (1797) and Lincolns Inn Fields, carried on in all circumstances. The fresh air A.J. Downing's central heating
London (1831)-these practices were not must come in without cold drafts, and there system using a Chilson furnace
widespread at this period. must be a power of regulating the quantity of (1850).
By the mid-1800s it was still standard air supplied according to the number of people
practice in Europe to consider the open fire or who have to breathe it. The air let in should
stove to be the most appropriat~ means of be pure, and free from dirt and dust." As to
heating a house, and ventilation was still by his views on the subject of artificial lighting,
means of openable windows. In many homes, although recognizing the greater efficiency of
candles and lamps still provided the night-time gas over lamps or candles, Stevenson felt that
lighting, but, in the cities, coal gas was this advantage was outweighed by the unde-
widely used. sirable products of its combustion and the
In the U.S. the constraint of tradition was necessity to have the light in a fixed position
less strong, and by the middle of the century, in the room. He concluded that gas was
American manuals on house design accepted preferable for illuminating stairs, passages,
some form of central heating, and in some and the "offices" of a house, but that lamps
instances controlled ventilation, as being and candles were better in the main rooms.
absolutely standard and demonstrably desir- Finally, Stevenson also included a chapter on
able. Although the use of the open fire was hot-water service in which he described a
not dismissed completely, a system of heating straightforward, direct system heated by the
every room in the house was preferable to a kitchen fire, with flow and return pipes and
single furnace . Andrew Jackson Downing branches to the various taps for baths, sinks,
(1815-52), in his Architecture of Country and housemaids' closets.
Houses published in 1850, proposed a system In the year in which Stevenson's book was
with two components; a hot-air furnace- published, electric lighting was installed for
preferably that invented by a Mr Chilson of the first time in a house in England. This
Boston-and a ventilation system based on followed the almost simultaneous develop-
that devised by a Frederick Emerson, also of ment of a reliable incandescent bulb by
Boston. Chilson's furnace consisted of a Edison (1847-1931) in the U .S., and by Swan
cast-iron casing lined with fire brick, and with (1828-1914) in England. The house was
an elaborate arrangement of flues above it. "Cragside," the residence of the inventor Sir
The air to be heated passed over these flues William Armstrong, which was designed by
on its way to the warm-air pipes leading to the Richard Norman Shaw. The power for the
various rooms of the house. The furnace was system came from a water turbine located
placed in a brick chamber in the basement. 4,500 ft. (I ,370 m) from the house, and the
But Downing's recognition of the need for installation consisted of 45 Swan lamps. By
good ventilation, and his enthusiasm for cen- 1882 several reliable incandescent lamps were
tral heating as a means of achieving it, did not available in both the U.S. and in Europe. In
completely blind him to the traditional attrac- August of that year the Electric Lighting Act,
tions of the open fire. In a footnote he 1882, passed into English law "to facilitate
declared , "We have a great love of the and regulate the supply of electricity for
cheerful, open fireplace with its genial expre- lighting and other purposes .. . " In the same
ssi()n of soul in its ruddy blaze, and the wealth year an "Electric Exhibition" was held at the
of home associations that surround its time- Crystal Palace, London, where 38 English
honored hearth." and 13 foreign exhibitors displayed their pro-
Very soon after Downing's publication, ducts.
whole-house heating became standard prac- Gas lighting was not defeated by these
tice in the U.S. whereas the Europeans, developments and the invention in Germany
particularly the English, remained faithful to in 1886 of the incandescent mantle by Carl
the open fire for many years after. In 1880, for von Welsbach (1858-1929) restored it to the
example, the English architect J.J. Stevenson lead in domestic lighting. The inverted burner
 Services in the 19th Century 211

which was developed in 1903 by Ahrend, also Victorian domestic drainage.

in Germany, allowed gas to continue even Diagram of open soil-pipe
longer as a competitor to electricity by throw- system used by Richard Norman
Shaw at 6 Elverdale Road,
ing most of its light downward rather than London (1877).
onto the ceiling. It was not until around 1913,
when electricity supplies were generally avail-
able and costs had become truly competitive
with gas, that the issue was finally decided.
Access to the amenity of adequate lighting
was limited for many years to city dwellers,
therefore the introduction of the kerosene
lamp in the late 1860s was of great importance
in the impact it had upon rural life. This
cheap, safe, odorless, and bright light offered
the countryman a quality of illumination
almost comparable to that which gas provided
in the cities.
The pressures for urbanization in the 19th
ceatury also focused attention upon the need
for effective drainage within buildings. Early
in the 19th century, ironworks, finding their
markets for cast-iron guns diminishing, turned
their attention to casting pipes. These,
together with the development of steam-
pumping engines, revolutionized the instal-
lation of plumbing in buildings. Water could
now, under normal mains pressure, be pro-
vided to a reasonable height in buildings
enabling apartment houses several storeys
high to be built, each storey complete with its
own water supply and internal plumbing ser-
vices. In addition, the water closet, still in its vidual bathrooms controlled by an attendant
infancy and generally working on a valve and served from a central boiler.
principle, could be located in compartments By the end of the 19th century the divergent
throughout the building connected to soil approaches to domestic environmental ser-
stacks of cast iron discharging into public vices in Europe and the U.S. had become
sewers in the streets. confirmed in everyday practice. Although
The Public Health movement in both quite sophisticated drainage, hot water, and
Europe and the U.S. led to the construction lighting systems were known in Europe, and
of public sewers in the cities. Many diseases, were extensively used in large buildings, it
such as cholera and typhoid, are directly was exceptional for a European house to be
spread by polluted water supplies. The ear- centrally heated. In the U .S., on the other
liest essays in water filtration were carried out hand, it was almost inconceivable for a house
by the Glasgow Water Company in 1806 but not to have some form of heating system,
the first full purification plant was that usually a warm-air type. These differences in
installed by James Simpson (1779-1869) for attitude and in technology of environmental
the Chelsea Water Works Company in 1829. control had, by this time, an important influ-
It was, however, not until 1854 that John ence upon approach to domestic architecture
Snow (1815-58) conclusively proved that the on either side of the Atlantic. This is borne
London cholera epidemic was directly trace- out by a comparison of houses of around the
able to foul water drawn from Broad Street 1900s which may be taken to be rep-
well, and the need for filtration and treatment resentative of practice in each country.
of all drinking water supplies was proved In the U.S., the achievement of Frank
beyond doubt. Nevertheless, it was not until Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) in forging a domes-
1907 that the chlorination of water supplies tic architecture in which the elements of
was introduced at Maidstone, England, fol- environmental services were fully integrated
lowed in the next year by the installation of into a coherent whole, had a major influence.
the first U.S. treatment plant at Jersey City, Examination of almost any of Wright's plans
New Jersey. for the domestic buildings that he designed in
The advent of the Industrial Revolution the first decade of the 20th century shows
also stimulated the desire for personal clean- how doors and windows were reconsidered
liness, leading to the development of the and reorganized within a new conception of
public bath house to compensate for the domestic space. In the living room, a cold-air
almost total lack of domestic plumbing. These intake register is located near the french
institutions consisted mainly of small indi- windows, making it clear that wintertime
212 Services in the 19th Century

ventilation was carefully considered but

strictly controlled. The fireplace which domi-
nates the plan has more a symbolic than
practical role in environmental control. The
plan also shows that every window is an
opening light and allows one to form the
impression of the house in summer as an
inward extension of the covered porches,
open on all sides with ventilating breezes
blowing through.
Also in 1908, Barry Parker (1867-1947) and
Raymond Unwin (1863-1940), in their plans
for a house of similar size, made very clear
reference to the English vernacular, although
there is a level of sophistication in the way in
which they dispose of the traditional elements
to produce a house of surprising modernity.
Within the severe rectangle of the plan the
major space of the living room is articulated to
form a series of areas, each with specific
environmental attributes. The inglenook is the
obvious source of winter comfort, with its
utility enhanced by the carefully positioned
windows to supply light for reading in the constantly controlled internal environment, Frank Lloyd Wright's plan of
warmth of the fire. Fuel is immediately to though this possibility does not seem to have Evans House, Chicago (1908).
hand through a hatch giving access to the fuel occurred to or attracted designers. In some
store. Dining takes place at the center of the areas, however, the new technology had been
room opposite the fire and in the light from successfully exploited. It was commonplace,
the bay window. The bay itself is, in effect, a for example, for undesirable waste products
small room in which advantage can be taken to be safely and efficiently carried away, and
of the sun's warmth at all times of the year, both people and goods could be transported
even in the winter. On occasions when the about by mechanical systems.
space needed additional warmth, a fire could While it is generally accepted that the
be lit in the hearth in the entry area, helping to Industrial Revolution necessarily depended
extend the effect of the ingle fire. The upon the conceptual advance of earlier sci-
summers in this northern part of England are entific revolution, it has been argued that this
both cooler and less reliable than in the science directly contributed very little to the
midwest of the U.S. so the interior of the technology of the 19th century. The evidence
house remains relatively isolated from out- of building services seems to support this
doors with the only direct connection being view; general application of either theoretical
made onto a small protected veranda through analysis or controlled experimentation in
doors positioned off the principal axis of the design was clearly Jacking. Although many Plan of Parker and Unwin's
living room. technical authors included data and formulas Whirriestone House at Rochdale,
From the characteristics of these houses it on aspects of heating and ventilation, most England (1908).
is evident that that by the use of central
heating Wright achieves a uniform envi-
ronment throughout the house in the winter,
·.··.··

1Wt . - - ~- -. -.. :_.-. -~

and this allows him to cut free from traditional
constraints and gives him the freedom to ... : ... .·....
~·. ~
"
pursue his unique architectural vision. Parker
and Unwin, on the other hand, accept the
European preference for the open fire and its
corollary, but go on from this to develop an
environmental scheme of great subtlety and
utility.
; :·. ·:.·:: . .·: ....
The 20th century .· .. ''·::·~\
.. ;:
The development of building services during <~·.
the 19th century reflects how the conceptual ........
·
and material fruits of the Industrial Revolu- ..:.
:
: ... .·.·.. ·'. :·::. ·...
:·.~·
. . ';
;
tion were brought to bear upon this aspect of
building design. By the end of this period
there was no technical reason why any build- o , • ' ', . ~ •,: ' , ' ', o o,'o: o I
1 ;~~.:.:.-~.-:~<r"t~·:--:. ;-·.'·.·.:u.. ··..;·>
...
ing could not be made to offer a precisely and
 Services in the 19th Century 213

contemporary discussion concerned itself with

practical empiricism.
The emergence of a more truly scientific
basis for design is the first of the four features
which distinguishes the 19th from the 20th
century in terms of building services . The
second is the availability of relatively cheap
and abundant electrical power and the pro-
found influence which this had in extending
the scope and application of the systems
developed during the preceding century. The
third, which to some extent is dependent upon
the previous two, is the gradual emergence of
the idea of the building which offers total
control of its internal environment. Finally, Diagrammatic section through
the auditorium of the Royal
one of the major developments in building Festival Hall, London (1951 ),
design in the 20th century is the emergence of showing the distribution of
architectural languages which readily allow surfaces with different acoustic
services systems to be fully integrated into the properties.
building fabric . The developments of the 20th
century in design of services in the various
building types illustrates these features.

Assembly buildings
The technology of environmental control in
assembly buildings was already highly
developed by the end of the 19th century. The Royal Festival Hall, London. The
elements of full air conditioning were in auditorium is protected from
existence, and their integration into the fabric external noise by subsidiary
spaces and by having an
of the building was comprehensively independent structure.
achieved . Similarly, in the theater, the attrac- It is clear that the formal possibilities of the
tions of electric lighting had been eagerly new science were known to some of the
exploited . During the 20th century, therefore, leaders of the movement for a new architec-
the principal developments have been ones of ture around this time. The auditorium of the
refinement rather than of fundamental inno- Centrosoyus Building in Moscow (1929)
vation . There are, however, two important designed by Le Corbusier (1887-1966) had its
exceptions to this , first in the field of acous- cross section determined by an analysis of
tics and, second, in the lighting of buildings reflected sound, and he made even more
made possible by the emergence of a new explicit reference to these principles in his
sub-type: the movie theater. project for the Palais des Soviets in 1931. In
The foundations of the modern science of both cases the plan was fan shaped. At the
architectural acoustics were laid down by same time , Alvar Aalto (1898-1976) in Fin-
Sahine at the end of the 19th century. Ini- land was generating the marvelous undulating
tially, as in its first application in the design of timber ceiling of the lecture room at the
Symphony Hall at Boston (1900), the new Municipal Library at Viipuri (1935) from an
science was used to allow the designer to extensive analysis of reflected sound .
reproduce the qualities of known and admired After World War II, the construction of
precedents . It was only later that a secure London's Royal Festival Hall (1951) offered
basis for innovative design was established. Bagenal an opportunity to apply his ideas to
In 1924, in England, Hope Bagenal pre- the design of a major building. The nature of
sented the first paper on the subject of the building was fundamentally influenced by
acoustics to be given before the RIBA in the design response to acoustical questions.
London since 1895. In this he outlined the The rectangular shape and construction of the
results of new work carried out by the auditorium clearly predominate. But even in
Building Research Board into the sound this building the plan shape of the auditorium
absorption of materials, and was able to was selected by reference to precedent. Allen
discuss some basic relationships between the and Crompton, two members of the Building
shape of spaces and their acoustic per- Research Station's team, wrote in 1951 that
formance . The emphasis was still, however, "no decisive guidance on this point could be
upon precedent as the basis for new design. obtained from acoustical theory and it was
Nevertheless, there was an indication of the decided therefore to fall back upon tradition .
potential of the scientific approach in form The evidence, even so, was necessarily slim,
making, although tentative, in his recom- but it seemed to point toward halls with
mendation of a fan shape as the basis for the parallel sides as having generally better repu-
design oflarge concert rooms. tation for musical acoustics than 'fan' or
214 Services in the 19th Century

'horseshoe' plans." Another acoustical Plan of Hans Scharoun's

Philharmonie, Berlin {1956-63)
determinant was the response to the problem showing seating arrangements.
of excluding noise from trains which rattled
over a bridge along the edge of the site. This
was achieved by both planning and con-
structional means. First, the auditorium was
surrounded by foyers and other ancillary
spaces and, second, its structure was made
totally independent of that of these other
spaces.
With this building the direct and positive
influence of acoustical science upon the Section of Philharmonie. Berlin.
nature of architecture was first com- ___< ___..-• The audience is arranged on
prehensively demonstrated. In the years various levels around the
orchestra.
which followed, most major auditoriums ~-
throughout the world reflected its influence in
both method and form. That architectural
acoustics is, however, a hazardous science
was dramatically and expensively demon-
strated at New York's Philharmonic Hall at
the Lincoln Center (1956-1962). Here the
acoustic consultant, Leo Beranek, carried out
the most extensive survey of auditoriums ever
undertaken, covering 54 concert halls and
theaters throughout the world. But still the
combined weight of all of this empirical
evidence, plus the application of the most
up-to-date theory, failed to guaranteee satis- developed to allow the acoustics of a hall to
factory conditions. The hall-which was be changed to suit the needs of a particular
horseshoe shaped-has subsequently been event. Such systems have been installed in
completely rebuilt. halls in the U.S., Africa, and in England, for
Almost contemporary with the Philhar- example. Advanced research in the field is
monic Hall, but representing a fundamental now part of the program of Pierre Boulez'
break from the mainstream of 19th- and Institut de Recherche et Coordination
20th-century tradition was Hans Scharoun's Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM) at the Centre
Philharmonie in Berlin (195~3). Scharoun Pompidou in Paris. Its work suggests fas-
(1893-1972) was determined to create a com- cinating possibilities for redefining the con-
pletely new relationship between audience ventional relationships between architectural
and orchestra, and between the various sec- space and acoustics.
tions of the audience itself. He proposed a In the period between the two World Wars
plan in which the audience is broken up into the most popular form of mass entertainment
small groups seated in what he called vine- throughout the western world was the motion
yards. The first reaction to this by the picture. To meet this demand an enormous
acoustics consultant, Lothar Cremer, was number of movie theaters were constructed.
that the idea was too risky. Scharoun pre- While there are obvious similarities between a
vailed, however, and the completed hall has movie theater and a theater, there were at that
proved to be a great success. His profound time differences in the social context within
intuition about the processes by which sound which the two building types operated, and
is reflected helped to open up completely new these were sufficiently powerful to allow some
horizons for both the design and theory of aspects of movie theater design to develop
auditoriums. along altogether new lines. Among these was
An intriguing possibility for the future is the the extreme originality which was displayed in
use of electronic devices to modify the acous- the use of electric lighting as a decorative
tics of an auditorium. In 1964 a system known medium rather than as a merely utilitarian
as assisted resonance was installed as an service.
experiment to improve the low-frequency From a very early date, the creative pos-
sound of the Royal Festival Hall in London. sibilities of electric exterior lighting were
This used a number of microphone-amplifier- explored in theater design and, later, in movie
loudspeaker units called channels, positioned theaters. In the U.S., by 1905, carbon
in the auditorium so that each channel dioxide-filled Moore tubes, invented ten years
increased the reverberation time over its own previously, were available in lengths up to 200
narrow band of frequencies. A total of 172 ft. (61 m) and could be twisted into the shapes
channels were used, the experiment was of words. Their use was restricted, however,
successful, and the installation is now in by the fact that they required a current of
permanent use. This technique has since been around 16,000 volts. They produced a white
 Services in the 19th Century 215

light, and soon the decorative possibilities of clearly never to be repeated. All of that
the red light from neon-filled tubes were inventiveness and technical ingenuity in light-
recognized by George Claude (1870-1960) in ing design was subsequently expended upon a
France. These were used at the Grand Palais new building type-the "super cinema"-but
in Paris in 1913 while in London, in the same this was to be short-lived and had virtually no
year, the facade of the West End Cinema influence upon the design of other buildings.
combined an arch of white Moore tubes with
the theater name in red neon.
Much interesting work in lighting systems
was done in Germany during the 1920s; the Hospitals
interior of the "Capitol" in Berlin (1925), At the end of the 19th century, hospital
designed by Hans Poelzig (1869-1936); the building was at an interesting state of
"Universum" (1926-31) also in Berlin by development. The technology of environ-
Erich Mendelsohn (1887-1953); the exterior of mental control had advanced to the point
the "Capitol" in Breslau by Friedrich Lipp; where very large buildings could be ventilated
and Schoffler, Schlonbach, and Jacobi's entirely by mechanical means, but established
"Titania-Palast" in Berlin (c. 1930). opinion continued to argue the virtues of
Movie theater designers at this time were natural ventilation. During the 20th century
also developing "atmospheric," or "scenic" innovations in hospital design can still be
lighting. In many of the auditoriums the decor classified under these two categories.
represented exotic locations, such as Moorish More than most other building types, hos-
palaces, and these were enhanced by lighting pitals are influenced in both their form and
systems which could simulate sunrise or sun- equipment by extra-architectural con-
set or the star-spangled night sky. These siderations. Changes in medical theory and
effects required the extensive use of elaborate practice can transform the priorities of design
dimmer systems and very quickly the poten- overnight. This is clearly illustrated by the
tial of these, and of color mixing systems, was example of the repercussions of the attitude of
recognized. In the New Victoria Cinema in the medical profession to the importance of
London, for example, which was opened in sunlight in hospitals. The value of fresh air
1930, the color of the interior was more the and sunlight in the treatment of tuberculosis
product of colored lights reflected from was recognized in the 19th century and influ-
neutral-colored surfaces than of applied color. enced the layout and orientation of many
By the development of these techniques it sanatoriums. This influence continued into the
became possible for a movie theater to change 20th century. In 1912, for example, the
its color scheme from performance to per- American architect William Atkinson pub-
formance, and the interaction between light lished a design for a hospital that was based
and the folds of elaborate curtain drapes on an ingenious organization of wards relative
became almost an art form in itself. to service spaces in order to maximize the
One of the leaders in the technology of exposure of the former to light and air. This
movie theater lighting was the Holophane influence reached its zenith during the 1920s
Company. In 1930 they installed a three-color and 1930s, as illustrated by the design of
reflector system to illuminate the ceiling of the Alvar Aalto (1898-1976) for the Sanatorium at
Richmond Cinema in England, designed by Paimio, Finland (1928-33). Here the entire
Leathart and Granger. This allowed 672 se- form of the building is determined by the
quences of lighting effects to be arranged desire to achieve maximum exposure to the
automatically. The possibilities of this system sun's rays. The main ward block becomes a
provoked Rollo Gillespie Williams of Holo- seven-storey-high slender slab facing south,
phane to liken it to a piano: the circuits terminating at each level in an open terrace.
were the strirtgs, the controls the keys, and As with other building types, hospital
the lighting effects were the music. From this design in Europe and the U.S. has moved in
vision it was but a short step to the col- different directions during the 20th century,
laboration between Holophane and the Wur- largely becuase of the effects of attitudes to
litzer Organ Company that led to a lighting environmental controls and services. By the
control system operated directly by the organ 1920s hospitals throughout Europe were gen-
keys. The ultimate achievement in this was erally designed on the pavilion model. In the
probably at the Capitol Cinema in Manchester U.S., however, the experience of using quite
(1930), where the system was capable of sophisticated services in office buildings and
producing 5,044 color combinations. apartments led to similar principles being
After World War II the film industry applied to hospital design. The emphasis was
concentrated its technological resources more therefore upon vertical planning, with the
on improvements in the films themselves and, elevator, laundry chute, and various other
as a result, the cinema building was relatively labor-saving devices playing a leading part in
neglected. The social and economic cir- the construction. This approach simplified the
cumstances which produced the architectural problem of the heating, lighting, plumbing,
extravaganzas of the interwar years were and other services by the use of vertical
216 Services in the 19th Century

stacks. The kitchen was most frequently

placed in the basement and mechanically
ventilated. It was equipped with every sort of
device, with refrigerators being in general use.
During the interwar years hospitals in the
U.S. came to rely more substantially on
artificial control of the environment. In
operating blocks, for example, artificial light
was becoming the norm, and patients' bath-
rooms and toilets opened directly from the
wards and were frequently without windows,
depending upon mechanical ventilation.
Another novel service was the almost uni-
versal signal system which allowed a patient
to call a nurse by a push-button. By and large,
European hospital designers rejected these
developments from across the Atlantic by
reviving the traditional arguments about "light
and air." They were equally conservative in
their choice of heating systems. Hot-water or
steam systems using either radiators or pipes
in the wards were favored, and while the
theoretical attractions of the warm-air planum
system and of a panel system with pipes
embedded in walls and ceilings were rec-
ognized, these were rejected because of
"many objections in practice." One inno-
vation that was approved in some designs was
the introduction of a "sunroom," glazed with
"Vita-glass" which, unlike ordinary glass, enormous Bellevue Hospital in New York by Plan of a typical floor of the
was transparent to ultraviolet rays. Operating Pomerance and Breines. Here is a flexible Bellevue Hospital, New York
(1964) by Pomerance and
theaters were naturally lit, and it was recom- cube 264 x 240ft. (80.5 x 73 m) in plan and 25 Breines. This fully
mended that they should have a large, ver- storeys high, fully air conditioned with natural air-conditioned multistorey
tical, north-facing window with a 45o sloping light restricted entirely to patients' rooms. This hospital relies entirely on
light above this; the latter was to be fitted design was based upon the argument that artificial environmental controls.
Only the patients' rooms along
with a water-spray pipe above it for cooling in "supporting functions can be carried on as the perimeter receive natural
hot weather. well if not better in artificial light, patients' light.
Following World War II, the possibility of rooms are "arranged along outside walls, and
having a fully artificially controlled envi- supporting services are located in the central
ronment in a hospital was soon recognized in areas of each floor. This deployment sets the
the U.S. The combination of air conditioning need for complete air conditioning, and effi-
and artificial lighting permitted construction of ciency of the arrangement justifies the
"fatter" buildings since the traditional com- expense."
promise between the planning of patients' In Europe generally, developments and
rooms with outside light and efficient advances in hospital design since World War
departmental planning could be avoided. A II have closely followed U.S. trends. In
much greater freedom of planning could there- countries such as Britain, however, it has
fore be achieved. seldom been possible to justify the budget
As environmental service systems used in limits of their National Health Services. The
buildings became more advanced and sophis- only major exceptions in Britain, for example,
ticated so the traditional differences between are Greenwich Hospital, London (1963-69),
the form of buildings of distinct functional designed by the Health Ministry's own
types were progressively eliminated. With architects, and Yorke, Rosenberg, and Mar-
reference to hospitals, in the late 1950s Skid- dall's new block for St. Thomas' Hospital in
more, Owings, and Merrill designed the Central London (1966). With their obvious
Northwest Community Hospital at Arlington references to U.S. practice, these are clearly
Heights, Illinois, with full air conditioning of good designs in the technical sense. The
all of its core areas and service spaces and restrictions of both capital and running costs
with provision for air conditioning the wards have, however, kept alive the tradition of the
at a later date. The appearance of the building pavilion plan. Powell and Moya's Wexham
is predominantly the product of its Park Hospital at Slough (1957-60) exploits its
technologies and it shares these substantially suburban location and generous site to pro-
with another building type, namely the office. duce a traditional form in which high-level
The potential of this manner of building was environmental technology is applied to treat-
fully realized in 1964 in the design of the ment areas, but where the ward blocks are
 Services in the 19th Century 217

modeled more on ideas from domestic build- tice for heating New York office buildings at
ing. These are L-shaped units of side-lit and this date was a two-pipe, low-pressure vac-
top-lit naturally ventilated areas enclosing uum system with radiators under the win-
open spaces into which patients may move dows. Ventilation was still by natural means ,
when the weather and their health permit. In except for toilets, basements, and those cases
view of present economic conditions, it is where whole floors were in single occupancy.
probable that designs for future hospital build- In these mechanical extraction was used.
ings will also consist of a mixture of 20th- Although air-conditioning systems were con-
century and traditional ideas. templated for structures for large cor-
porations, it had not become common practice
and was not installed.
Office buildings The benefits of air conditioning were first
At the beginning of the 20th century the office realized in 1902 by Willis Carrier, by general
was well established as a building type in both consent the father of this innovation. He
Europe and the U.S. Because of the enorm- discovered that by controlling the temperature
ous expansion of commercial and adminis- of air it was also possible to control its
trative activity in the preceding 50 years it had humidity. This allowed every aspect of the air
been possible to lay down extensive and in the building to be controlled ; temperature ,
reliable ground rules for its design . These rate of movement, velocity , and cleanliness .
embraced all aspects of form , layout , con- Probably the first fully air-conditioned office
struction, and services. The majority of these blpck was the Milam Building in San Antonio ,
buildings, on both sides of the Atlantic, were Texas (1928) designed by George Willis. Thi s
constructed for rental, and their design very used a simple system consisting of one plant
quickly became stereotyped within the serving the principal lower floors and a series
framework of constraints imposed by legis- of smaller systems to serve the standard office
lation, the calculations of real estate, and the floors above. Input of conditioned air was
available technology. Furthermore, their through a duct above the central corridor, and
origin in domestic building continued to domi- the corridor itself was used as the return duct.
nate design in the first decades of the new Contemporary textbooks dealing with air
century, although the conscious precedent conditioning, such as that by Moyer and Firtz Adelaide House, London
was now the office building itself. published in 1933 , argued that the commercial (1922) by Sir John
Burnet and Partners.
A good example of "up-to-date" office attractions of the air-conditioned office build-
design in Europe after World War I is Sir ing were in terms of the greater efficiency of
John Burnet and Partners' Adelaide House the employees who would enjoy constant
next to London Bridge (1922). As the plan comfort and would be released from the
shows, this was conceived as a daylit build- distractions of manual adjustments of
ing. Because of its relationship to the river the radiators, windows , and desk fans. (It is
building was allowed to rise to 11 storeys, interesting to note that, even at this date, ice
higher than the building regulations normally was still considered to be a viable cooling
allowed, and it had an installation of four medium, particularly for systems for small
elevators ~ Heating was provided by a low- buildings .)
pressure, hot-water circulating system with In these developments of heating and ven-
radiators beneath the windows. Ventilation tilation systems were the beginnings of one of
was provided through fresh-air inlets behind the most significent influences upon office
the radiators .Other services were an electric building design in the 20th century, but, as
vacuum-cleaning plant and a mailshoot linking with many innovations, the full implications of
all parts of the building directly to the postal the advances went unrecognized. In other
room in the basement. respects , such as layout and lighting systems,
Contemporary U .S. practice can be illus- these buildings were absolutely conventional.
trated by McKenzie, Voorhees, and Gmelin 's It was more than a decade later that the
Barclay-Vesey Telephone Building in New concept of a totally artificial environment-
York (1923-26). This had a 16-car elevator thermal , visual, and acoustical-became the
system which was seen to be fundamental to logical extension of the application qf air
the whole conception of the 32-storey build- conditioning in office buildings. A vital addi-
ing. The building' s original electrical equip- tional component of this equation was the
ment included direction sign, light , ventilating development in 1938 of the fluorescent
fan, pump, vacuum cleaning, heat control, lamp-marketed simultaneously by GEC and
and communication systems, plus office Westinghouse in the U.S. This offered greatly
machinery and a photographic plant. All the increased efficiency over the incandescent
electrical outlets were located off-center on lamp and made it possible to achieve high
columns to allow flexibility in locating office levels of lighting without overheating the
partitions . The drainage system was located in building. By 1942 technology was sufficiently
the service core, and the toilets were mechan- advanced to allow a building of the size of the
ically ventilated into the plumbing shafts, with Pentagon, Washington D.C., to be fully air
outlets at the 32nd storey. The general prac- conditioned. Its requirements were supplied
218 Services in the 19th Century

from a separate powerhouse building through Plan of the Inland Steel Building
an underground tunnel 1,500 ft. (458 m) long. (1956-58). Elevators and other
A separate distribution system supplied the services are linked to an area of
free office space at each level.
requirements of the interior areas. This huge
installation had five massive boilers supplying
the heating, and the air distribution was
handled by 570 fans located in service areas
around the building. Other services in the
building included an underfloor duct network
for signal systems, including a 12,000- Inland Steel Building, Chicago (1956-58) rep-
extension telephone system, a pneumatic resenting the urban solution, and perhaps the
inter-office communication network, a cen- most typical of all, the Union Carbide Build-
trally controlled synchronous clock system, ing in New York (1957--60).
and fire alarm systems. It is clear that a The utility of this vernacular as a solution
building on this scale would have been incon- to the problem of the office building in the
ceivable if it were not for the availability of U.S. and, by the 1970s, throughout the world
these mechanical services. is demonstrated by recent designs. Architec-
An important secondary theme in the tural Record, in 1976, published Hugh Stub-
development of the technology of air con- bins and Associates' designs for the Citicorp
ditioning was the introduction of the unit air Center, New York; Marani, Rounthwaite,
conditioner. This could be installed in a room and Dick and Arthur Erickson's Bank of
and provide full environmental control with- Canada, Ottawa; and Philip Johnson and John
out the need to install an elaborate network of Burgee's Pennzoil Place, Houston. While
ducts throughout the building. A prototype each of these represents a degree of rein-
room cooler devised by General Electric was terpretation of the vernacular and new sophis-
installed experimentally in Willis Carrier's tication in the mechanical systems, they
own house in 1929, and the Carrier Company nevertheless rest fundamentally on the earlier
themselves marketed an "Atmospheric environmental philosophy of Lever House.
Cabinet" room cooler in 1932. In Europe, postwar designs for office build-
In the years after World War II office ings clearly owe a considerable debt to Lever
buildings in the U.S. and in Europe developed House, but at first, in the late 1940s and in the
along fundamentally different lines. This 1950s, environmental conception was fore-
divergence was influenced by such factors as most about daylighting. Many buildings with
climate, economics, scale, and tradition. In large areas of clear glazing and narrow cross
the U.S. an office building without air con- section were constructed. Ventilation was
ditioning would be almost inconceivable. In invariably by natural means and heating was
Europe circumstances have meant that a supplied by hot-water systems. However, this
much wider range of options has been approach soon fell from favor. The reasons
explored. for its downfall were almost entirely environ-
Concerning events in the U.S., develop- mental. First, the combination of large areas
ment was very rapid after the war. Kahn and of glazing and lightweight structures led to
Jacobs' Universal Pictures Building in New serious problems from solar overheating. The
York (1947), for example, no longer relied second reason, which was closely related to
upon either daylighting or natural ventilation, the first, was that with the growth of pros-
with a full 11 storeys of deep-plan space. By perity in the 1960s, building owners and
the early 1950s, with the completion of the designers became attracted to the benefits of Citicorp Center, New York (1978).
United Nations Headquarters in New York air conditioning, particularly since they had This recently completed office
under the executive control of Wallace Har- by then acquired firsthand experience of building continues the tradition
of building with lightweight,
rison (b. 1895), and of Skidmore, Owings, and buildings which failed environmentally in the sealed, heat-resistant glass
Merrill's Lever House (1952), the vocabulary summer months. An early example of the use envelopes enclosing a fully
of a lightweight, sealed, heat-resistant, glass of air conditioning in such an office building air-conditioned artificial
environment.
envelope wrapped around a fully air- was Robert Matthew, Johnson-Marshall, and
conditioned, artificially lit environment was Partners' New Zealand House in London
established, although paradoxically in both (1958-63). This is, in form, in the center of the
these cases the buildings, with their slender mainstream, with its tower above a podium,
cross sections, appear to be naturally lit. A and it was conceived as a daylit building. The
vernacular fundamentally founded upon this air conditioning was therefore primarily
approach to environmental control soon installed to overcome the environmental
emerged, and was applied with both con- shortcomings of the type, but did not influ-
sistency and flexibility to numerous projects ence the nature of the design in any fun-
in a wide variety of situations. Skidmore, damental sense.
Owings, and Merrill's own work typifies this Even though this development overcame
phase through such examples as the Con- the difficulties of the earlier type by the
necticut General Life Insurance Building application of cooling, it was to enjoy an even
(1954-57)-a low-rise suburban design-the shorter life. The combination of the higher
 Services in the 19th Century 219

running costs that were inevitably involved,

the growth of interest in new ideas on office
space planning, in particular the German
"Biirolandschaft" approach and of new
research into the problem of environmental
control, led quickly to the adoption of a
deep-plan design. In some instances, espe-
cially in city centers, this moved much closer
to the American model of a deep tower with
solar control glass helping to reduce the roo!
influence of ambient energy upon the func-
tioning of the environmental control systems.
In other cases, a very deep, low-rise form
emerged. In Britain, buildings such as Foster
Associates' Willis Faber Building at Ipswich,
and Yorke, Rosenberg, and Mardall's Central
21
Electricity Generating Board Building at
Gloucester, owe much to American practice.
By the mid-1970s a new development could
be detected in European office design, par-
ticularly in suburban and rural locations. Here

·-·-
the emphasis is upon the reconsideration of
the attractions of natural lighting and, in some
cases, of natural ventilation. The inspiration
for this move was the result of a combination
of interrelated circumstances. First, the
effects of the enormous increase in energy
costs of the early 1970s. Second, a shift of
emphasis in the "sociology" of office organi-
zation away from the management science
image of the 1960s toward a less formal view,
with more emphasis being placed upon the
individual. Finally, an almost inbuilt resis-
tance to artificial environments, as demon-
strated principally by the English, made this
approach self-evidently attractive.
In all such approaches to office building
design the total integration of the services
systems and the building fabric is fun-
damental. In the past 30 years there has been
a shift from the idea of the suspended ceiling
as a cosmetic layer applied beneath the
structural floor to conceal unsightly services,
to the acceptance of the idea of the "service
zone" as a major element in any highly
serviced building. The ceiling plane itself has ... ~ ',
become a complex element of environmental
Section of CEGB
control containing lighting fixtures , air input
Building, Bristol ~1970s) by Arup and extract points, smoke detection devices, . '
Associates. and water sprinklers. The ceiling also has an
I
.I
. ~·

........... loo.

Willis Faber and Dumas Office

Building, Ipswich, England ~1 974)
by Foster Associates. Deep office
floors occupy the whole site area
withfloorto ceiling glazing at the
curvilinear perimeter. Access to
the various levels is by means of
escalators in the central wall.
220 Services in the 19th Century

acoustic control function, primarily by offer- amendments for almost a quarter of a century.
ing an absorbent surface to reduce sound In the U.S., where school design has
levels in the space below. In some buildings tended to be less influenced by centralized
even acoustics are the province of systems, control, experimentation has been more
with loudspeakers delivering a continuous common. As an example, in 1947 Laurel
background noise as part of a "sound- Creek School in California, by architects/
conditioning" installation. engineers Franklin, Kump, and Falk, had a
classroom cross section into which all of the
environmental control systems were fully
Schools integrated. The deep-plan classroom-32 ft.
Any discussion of environmental systems in (10 m) square-was lit by floor-to-ceiling
schools of the 19th century is inevitably windows on one side and a clerestorey at the
concerned primarily with urban schools other, both protected by a wide roof over-
located on small sites and in hostile urban hang. Working light at the center of the room
environments. These constraints prompted came from a continuous skylight at the apex
considerable ingenuity of environmental and of the roof. Ventilation air was supplied
service systems design and, from this point of through a system of ducts along the window
view, schools had reached an advanced state walls and exhaust was through a vent in the
of technological development by the end of skylight. The principal heating of the building
the 1800s. came from heating coils embedded in the floor
In the 20th century the sociological context slab, and preheating, when necessary, could
within which schools are designed has be supplied through the ventilation air system.
changed considerably from that of the pre- Each classroom had its own thermostatic
vious century. The emergence of a suburban control system. Although the design as pub-
life-style for city workers necessitated the lished did not incorporate hot-weather cool-
construction of many schools in low-density ing, its provision was anticipated and was
locations and this has allowed other ways of claimed to require only minor modifications.
creating an internal environment to be This building represented a significant
adopted. Whereas the 19th-century school development in school design since it both
used advanced environmental technologies, in abandoned the "responsible" mode of
the 20th century, at least in the first part, the environmental control represented by
emphasis has been upon a naturalistic view of Neutra's 1935 design and took a major step
the environment. The attractions of daylight, toward a mechanically controlled, largely arti-
sunlight, and fresh air seized the imagination ficial environment. This direction of develop-
of both educationalists and architects and ment progressed further in 1950 when Alonzo
resulted in the concept of the "open-air" J. Harriman published a study of school
school. operating costs. In this he calculated heating
In the period between the two World Wars costs for four school forms. The argument
these ideas about the priorities of environ- was extensive and moved inexorably to the
mental design in schools and the technologies conclusion that "daylight proves expensive."
necessary to satisfy them remained unchanged From these studies Harriman developed his
on both sides of the Atlantic, although "K-8" prototype school. In this the inner half
mechanical ventilation was more readily of each classroom was designed to be per-
accepted and used in the U.S. than in Europe. manently artificially lit and the outer half to
Toward the end of this period the influence of have predominantly natural lighting, but even
the analytical methods of the Modern Move- here with some artificial supplement.
ment in architecture began to be evident in A combination of the technologies of Laurel
designs, and the Corona A venue School at Creek School and of K-8 provided all the
Bell, California (1935), designed by Richard elements of a totally artificial environment,
Neutra (1892-1970), for example, represents a with automatically controlled heating, cooling,
sophisticated response to the local climate. and ventilation, and with permanent artificial
Each classroom has an outdoor teaching area lighting. Such a scheme was used in 1956 in
and the connection between indoors and the North Hagerstown High School in Mary-
outdoors can be controlled by a double sys- land, designed by McLeod and Ferrara. Here
tem of adjustable blinds and sliding windows. sophisticated heating, cooling, and ventilating
Following World War II, daylighting systems were installed but, more important, a
requirements became a dominant environ- major step toward open planning was made.
mental influence on the design of European An additional innovation was the incor-
schools. Quantitatively expressed design poration of an experimental educational tele-
standards and design tools to ensure that vision installation, fully integrated into its
these were achieved were introduced. In services system. This functioned not only to
consequence, the standard pattern for school receive commercial television but also to
design was of a dispersed plan with large provide facilities for closed circuit work
areas of glazing in the teaching spaces. This throughout the building.
pattern was to survive with only minor By the early 1960s the idea of a fully
 Services in the 19th Century 221

artificial environment was quite commonplace

in U.S. school design. The fundamental shift
in the attitude of architects to environmental
control is well illustrated by John Lyon Reid
who wrote in 1964, "we know that young
people learn better when environmental con-
ditions are right for them. Air conditioning
must be considered as one of the components.
Architecture cannot be considered as merely
a matter oflight, shade, form, and texture."
Against this background, the School Con-
struction Systems Development program in
California (1962) can be seen to be a logical
step in a process of evolution which had been
in operation for two decades. Its achievement
was the complete degree of integration which
it achieved between all the elements of the
program, both functional and technological.
At the outset, four criteria for the design of
schools were established-long-span struc-
tures; varied mobility of partitions; full ther-
mal environmental control, with the ability to Diagrammatic perspective of
adopt to changing plan configurations; and an SCSD system showing long-span
rooftrusses. integrated ceilings,
efficient and attractive low-brightness lighting roof-mounted packaged
system which adapts to changing plan con- air-conditioning system, and
figurations. The design solution finally movable partitions.
adopted consisted of an "umbrella" roof
covering a deep space. Beneath this a flexible
partition system allowed enormous flexibility
of internal planning. The roof itself carried
unit air conditioners with flexible ducting and
a variable system of modular lighting fittings.
From this basic kit a wide range of schools
could be fashioned and, within them, edu-
cation could proceed unimpeded by the va-
garies of the natural climate.
In Europe daylighting standards remained a
dominant influence upon school design until
the very end of the 1960s. Then, under the
combined influence of ideas from the U.S.
and developments in educational theory,
StGeorge's School, Wallasey,
experiments were made with deep-plan forms England (1961 ), designed by
and with an increasing reliance on mechanical Emslie Morgan, uses a solar wall
modes of environmental control. With this with controllable panels to
relaxation of daylighting requirements in achieve a satisfactory internal
schools a further development followed. The
theory of Integrated Environmental Design,
environment without the use of
complex , mechanical.
energy-consuming systems.
-- r--------------
,..
II
.
::
which was an important influence on office
building design , was applied to schools with ciples which underlie traditional con-
the intention of reducing energy consumption servatories to the design of a school, Morgan
and, at the same time, providing a highly was able to make one of the very few radical Reflected ceiling plan diagrams
controlled environment. The designs that innovations in environmental control of the of duct installations in aR SCSD
resulted from this clearly shared the essential whole century. The main building of the School.
features of the lED office buildings; deep
rectangular plans with small areas of glazing.
In this they were more evidently the product
of a theory of environmental design than of
the earlier traditions of European school
building.
As a postscript to this account of school
design it is essential to mention St. George's
School in Wallasey, England, designed by
Emslie Morgan and completed in 1961. The
fundamental conception of this building was
far from modern but by applying the prin-
222 Services in the 19th Century

school consists of a two-storey classroom and bathrooms, an electrical lighting instal-

block with a solar wall along the long south lation, and extensive central heating.
face, with the remainder of the enclosure of For most western countries this state has
heavy, highly insulated construction. The been reached by gradual development and
solar wall has two glazed skins, the outer one improvement, but right at the outset of the
with clear glass, the inner mainly of obscured century there were visionaries who, perhaps
glass. Certain areas of the inner skin have by a mixture of ingenuity and eccentricity,
reversible panels, with one face painted black offered a glimpse of the future. A remarkable
to act as a heat absorber and the other of example of this was the Villa Feria Electra
reflecting polished aluminum. These offer near Troyes in France. This was the invention
such a high degree of heating control that the and home of Georgia Knap, an automobile
building has been able to maintain a satis- manufacturer. Among its features the Villa
factory thermal environment without recourse Feria Electra boasted electrically operated
to any other heat source. entrance gates, floodlit at night, with an
Unfortunately such truly innovatory intercommunication system to allow the
designs in architecture take many years before occupant of the house to speak to the visitor
they become models for general practice. The at the gate. The house was electrically heated
lessons of St. George's School have yet to and lit, and had an automatic fire alarm. But it
find their way into the repertoire of present- was in the preparation and presentation of
day school designers. food that Knap excelled himself. The kitchen
had an electric range of immense proportions
with automatic controls. There was also an
Domestic buildings array of gadgets including a dishwasher, a
The main theme of serv1cmg of domestic mincer, a miniature butter churn , a may-
buildings in the 20th century is the installation onnaise maker, a coffee grinder, and a knife
of labor-saving systems. The burden of all polisher. An American visitor to the house in
domestic chores may now be lightened by 1907, the architect Frederic Lees, later
mechanical aids. The storage, preparation, offered Knap's extraordinary house as a
and cooking of food has been transformed by pointer of "the way toward progress."
technology to a point where all earlier con- With reference to the mainstream of
straints have been abolished. Cleaning the architectural theory and practice, ideas about
house is assisted by mechanical tools, as is the servicing of the house were central to
the maintenance or modification of a house or what was to become known as the Modern
its contents. In terms of the more traditional Movement. Le Corbusier (1887-1%6), in his
concerns of building services design, it is now book Vers Une Architecture (1923), pointed
almost inconceivable that a house in the out that the technologies of heating and
Villa Savoie at Poissy, France
western world should not have full internal lighting had developed to a point which
(1929-31) by Le Corbusier and
Jeanneret before its restoration. sanitation, mechanical ventilation of kitchens allowed the functional performance of tradi-
tional materials and arrangements to be aban-
doned. He also rejoiced in the effect that they
would have upon life-style: "A house is a
machine for living in. Baths, sun, hot water,
cold water, warmth at will, conservation of
food, hygiene, beauty in the sense of good
proportion." These statements were reflected
in his designs, with their compact planning,
absence of fireplaces, and celebration of
kitchens and bathrooms.
The influence of Le Corbusier's ideas
rapidly spread and in 1934 Raymond McGrath
introduced his survey Twentieth Century
Houses, published in England, in which
he drew attention to the importance of auto-
matic systems of heating, lighting, etc. in
achieving the smooth operation of the com-
plete house. McGrath stressed the importance
of electrical power for this scheme. He also
emphasized that these new systems would be
visually unobtrusive but would, at the same
time, have a profound effect upon house
design. It is apparent, therefore, that the
Modern Movement incorporated an approach
to environmental control and services that
was both extravagant in its use of resources
and perhaps over-enthusiastic in its faith in
 Services in the 19th Century 223

technology. r
In the U.S. in the period between the two
World Wars, one of the major contributions to
both the theory and practice of domestic
architecture came from Frank Lloyd Wright
(1869-1959). His project of 1934 for a "zoned
house" showed three arrangements of a simi-
Jar series of spaces for rural, suburban, and
urban sites. Common to each design was a
clear expression of a centralized service core.
This incorporated all the systems: oil-burning
boiler and fuel tanks; air compressors; oil and
gasoline supply for an automobile; heating,
and air-conditioning units; electric wiring and
plumbing; and vent and smoke flues. Each
bathroom was a one-piece, standardized fix-
ture directly connected to the stack-as were
the kitchen sink, ranges, and refrigerator. By
these means what Wright called "the wasteful
tangled web of wires and piping (at present)
involved in the construction of the ordinary
dwelling," was replaced by a factory-
produced, standardized unit. This was a sig-
nificant development insofar as by collecting
together all the service systems into a com-
pact unit they became more economical and
efficient in their own terms and also allowed
freedom of planning elsewhere in the house.
Wright's "Usonian" houses of the late
1930s have a clear relationship to his earlier
scheme. They also incorporate a further
innovation-a means of heating described by
Wright as "gravity heat." This was an under-
floor system with steam or hot-water pipes
buried in a rock-ballast bed beneath the
concrete floor. This system, while restricted
to a single-storey house, freed the architect
from the problems of integrating heating influence upon design of houses as radical as Frank Lloyd Wright's Herbert
devices, such as radiators, neatly into his that predicted by the pioneers of 20th-century Jacobs House, Westmorland,
near Madison, Wisconsin (1937).
designs although, as his earlier work demon- design, and which, to a large extent, has Compact services occupy a
strated, this was a problem which Wright had happened in the U .S.-European conservatism pivotal position in the plan.
already mastered. still prevails.
In designs such as Wright's Usonian No account of domestic services in the 20th
houses, the vision of the fully serviced, century can be complete without mention of
labor-saving house was substantially realized. the special servicing problems which arise in
Since World War II there have been many high-rise, high-density forms of housing. As in
stylistic developments in house design, but in the case of late 19th-century office building,
most respects these make use of the such a radical change in the scale of building
technologies which were already in existence inevitably led to new problems. In housing,
by 1940. In the U.S., houses equipped with waste disposal is the major problem when
packaged air-conditioning units were not large numbers of people live in apartments
uncommon by the mid-1950s and were com- above ground level. By the early 1930s this
monplace a decade later. Nevertheless, as had been recognized and a number of solu-
with other building types, and following the tions had been tried. Arguably the most
earlier history of domestic architecture, Euro- sophisticated of these was the French "Gar-
pean practice has followed a somewhat dif- chey" system. In this, all domestic waste is
ferent path. In England, for example, it was collected in a hopper under the kitchen sink
only in 1961 that it was recommended that and is carried away through a mains system
government-financed housing should, in by waste water from the sink. The waste is
future, be centrally heated. Nowadays , in collected at a central disposal station where
Europe generally, central heating is standard liquids and solids are separated and the latter
in new buildings in both public and private burned in an incinerator. The system is
sectors and most households are equipped frequently used in conjunction with a district
with labor-saving services. But there is little heating scheme-the heat is derived from the
evidence of these developments having the incinerator-from which all the apartments
224 The Responsible Age

receive their space heating and domestic hot storage vessel under the house. Heat is drawn
water. Waste disposal apart, however, service off from this and delivered, in this case as
systems in high-rise apartment houses pre- warmed air, to the habitable rooms.
sented few problems that essentially had not A fundamentally different approach, based
already been overcome in dealing with office upon short- rather than long-term storage
buildings. was adopted in the design of the Baer House
in New Mexico (1972). Here collection and
storage of energy are combined and consist of
Postscript-the Responsible Age a series of water-filled metal drums arranged
to form the south wall ot: the house behind a
Innovation in building services since the single sheet of glass. At night and in cloudy
Industrial Revolution has clearly been charac- weather the collectors are covered by insu-
terized by a process by which the activities of lated shutters. The house is heated by the
man have been liberated from the restrictions transfer of heat from the drums to the interior.
of climate and the rhythm of the seasons by As a third variation of this theme, the
the increased control over his environment design by Integrated Life-Support Systems Diagrammatic section of MIT
which his buildings have been able to offer. Laboratories, also in New Mexico (1972), Solar House No. 1 (1939). Water
heated by the solar collectors on
This progress has been almost entirely depen- seeks to optimize the relationship between the the roof is stored in a large
dent upon the massive use of energy- habitable space of the house and its enclosing insulated tank under the house.
consuming devices of environmental modi- envelope by the use of a dome structure. The hot water heats air which is
fication and control. The realization that the Collection and storage of solar heat takes ducted to the habitable spaces in
earth's resources of energy are finite, and place outside the dome allowing the designer the house.
already largely consumed, marks the begin- to avoid the problem of balancing the rela-
ning of a new era in the latter part of the 20th tionship between the form of the building and
century-the "Responsible Age." the optimal design of its energy collectors.
Architects, and others involved in the This house also has a wind-powered generator
design of buildings, were among the first to to supply its electrical requirements.
recognize and respond to the question of Two designs which attempt to achieve total
better energy use. In this discussion a dis- self-sufficiency are Project Ouroboros at the
tinction may be drawn between "alternative" University of Minnesota in the U.S., and the
technologies , which predominantly seek to Autarkic House Project at Cambridge Uni-
make use of ambient, renewable energy versity in England. In both designs waste
sources such as the sun and wind, and other products are used to produce methane gas as Project Ouroboros House,
approaches which seek to reduce the use of an additional renewable source of energy. University of Minnesota. The
conventional types of energy within buildings. Also, each plan distinguishes between a pri- guiding principle in the design of
In the sense that they introduce radically mary habitable zone and a secondary glass- this house is energy
conservation and the
different parameters into the equation of house space for food production and as an exploitation of ambient energy
building design , the former are more obvi- extension of the living space. In both cases sources in an attempt to be
ously exciting but, in the short and medium the systems and the fabric of the building are totally self-sufficient.
term at least, the latter are demonstrably more
necessary and they too have a fundamental
influence upon the nature of buildings and 5kW DC aerogenerotar
their services.
The principal technical problem of the
"alternative" approach is to have ambient
energy available at the time when it is
required. This new correlation between cli-
mate and architecture has directed con-
siderable attention toward problems of the
storage of energy, either from day to night or
from summer to winter. While such problems
may be solved quite easily in some locations, /shading overha ng
it is likely that in major centers of population 1 (svmmer only)
the problem will prove to be technically or I
I

economically intractable.
Interest in the use of solar energy in
buildings goes back many years. One of the in•v\olin9 ~-"':'. _..._ -·'
most advanced early designs was the Mas-
·· v _,_,,-·r ',\'\'~/_-·:·.-) ~==::;--;::::=~~=;:;:=~~~
sachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) . higher ros .. -¥ --,;~:..;,~~rg::'7'?r.o~,;;:::;~
Solar House No. 1 (1939) built at Cambridge,
Massachusetts. Here are many of the ele- . _::·;~
•'<
ments found in solutions to the problem of '• · ··~

long-term thermal storage. Water heated in a

solar collector, which is an integral part of the
.:.:,:. ~;,,:;:(a ~ea!.J ,~•r::: :·: '._r~--~'T;i~.,,;-·:";r~~:·:':?'-ir:;:
!_I__ -.
building fabric, is passed to a large insulated constant 5CPF
 The Responsible Age 225

highly integrated.
In France, Professor F. Trombe, in associ-
ation with architect Jacques Michel, has
developed a device using the thermal storage
capacity of a thick concrete wall behind a
glazed skin to set up warming convention
currents through the house in winter. In
summer the operation of simple controls
allows the system to induce ventilation. In
locations such as the Pyrenees, where there is
a good deal of winter sunshine, between
50-75% of the total heat requirement can be
supplied in this way. selective radiation barrier (glass)
There are currently many experiments seek-
ing to improve the performance of building
elements of this alternative kind, and it is heat storage wall
clear that aspects of this technology will have
an impact on more conventional designs and
upon the design of non-domestic buildings in
the years ahead. It is prophetic that a new
computer building in New Mexico, designed
by Emilio Ambasz and due to be completed in
1979, will use a solar wall to provide the
power for the air-conditioning plant which is
vital to the operation of environmentally
sensitive computers. Schematic section of
In 20th-century houses, offices, and Trombe-Michel House built in the
Pyrenees, France. It incorporates
schools, the high cost of sophisticated a solar wall which stores heat
environmental services has led, particuarly in from the sun. This is suitable for
Europe, to a number of designs which, within area of the house that receive
the framework of conventional design aims high levels of winter sunshine.

and technology, are seeking to reduce energy

consumption. It is clear from such designs
that, by paying attention to the form and
construction of the building's envelope and to
the design of its systems, considerable
economies can be made. In England, for
example, collaboration between the London
architects MacCormac and Jameson and
researchers at Cambridge University has
resulted in a proposal for a low-energy build-
ing form which achieves a compromise be-
tween the advantages of a daylit building and
of a deep-plan, air-conditioned design without
the environmental shortcomings of the former
or the energy consumption of the latter. This
has been attained by organizing daylit space
around glazed courtyards. The generic court
can be combined to produce a wide variety of
buildings for many uses. Theoretical analysis
of designs for office buildings based upon this
principle has shown that their annual energy
consumption in the British climate would be
between one-third and one-half of that of
air-conditioned buildings.
In these examples it can be seen how the
need to conserve energy has provoked an
imaginative response from the designers of
buildings and how, no doubt, innovations in
services and environmental systems in build-
ings will be as numerous and significant as
they were during the previous two centuries.
Seciton 5
 228 Introduction

Building materials
Until the early 19th century, most buildings assimilated by it. Often the spurts of invention
were constructed and fitted out with easily happened during or after major wars or social
available, local materials. If the area was well upheavals , when normal economic patterns
provided with timber, as in Sweden and New were disrupted and shortages and gluts on a
England, the buildings were inevitably large scale influenced the market in building
wooden. If, as in the Cotswold region of materials . One example of this trend can be
Britain, there was an abundance of easily seen in the situation after World War II, when
accessible stone, the builder's material would the volume of production of aluminum sec-
be stone. If, as in the Netherlands, or in much tions and other products had reached large
of the Middle East, both wood and stone were proportions in order to supply the aircraft
in very short supply, it was natural to tum to industry. When this demand lessened after the
brick. If wood, stone, and brick earth were all war, there was a spare capacity in man-
A donkey being used to carry sand
missing, as they were in the prairie region of ufacturing potential, which could provide the
to a building site. Changes in the U.S ., the settlers were forced to make do building industry with aluminum products at a
methods oftransportation have with walls made of turf. reasonable price.
made a great impact on the The exceptions were prestigious buildings The tremendous impact of these changes
building industry, but
traditional techniques still
such as temples, palaces, monuments, was felt throughout the world, often increas-
survive in many parts of churches, and the homes of wealthy people. ing people's material standards , and the safety
the world. For these purposes, fine quality materials and durability of their buildings. In other
were imported from a considerable distance. cases, rapid and ill-considered applications of
Luxury, in many countries and for much of new materials and techniques led to buildings
history, has consisted in providing an envi- inferior both environmentally and con-
ronment which was not built solely of local structionally, compared to traditional solu-
materials; the exotic was a symbol of power tions.
and importance. Resistance to new methods of building
Fashion and taste have always played an often exists in conservative building legis-
important part in the choice of building mate- lation, and in the building trades themselves,
rials. During the 19th century, improvements whose members are often reluctant to adapt
in canals, roads, and railroads made it their skills to new conditions .
economically viable to transport heavy and
bulky materials over long distances. The use Timber
of materials manufactured far away from the
building site became practical for the first time Until the introduction of structural elements
on a large scale. Manufacturers developed made of iron in the late 18th century, wood
elaborate trade catalogs illustrating their was almost the only material available for
products and describing their properties so structural framing, or for those parts of
that designers could choose and specify their buildings such as beams, trusses, rafters, and
goods accurately. Reliable postal services and joists which had to be capable of withstanding
the rise of telegraphy played a part in easing tension and bending.
the flow of information to and from builders There are many species of timber used in
and manufacturers. one way or another in building and they vary
The cast-iron veranda of During this period, a wide range of new greatly in all their properties. They range in
a school building in
Johannesburg (c. 1890).
building materials was invented or old ones density from balsa wood 10 lb./cu. ft. (160
Prefabricated cast-iron were used in new ways. Inventions and kg/cu. m) to lignum vitae 78 lb./cu. ft. (l ,249
components were imported improvements in materials often occurred kg/cu. m). Timber can normally be classified
from MacFarlane's iron outside the building industry, but were later into two broad groups-the softwoods and the
foundry in Glasgow.
hardwoods. Softwoods are all derived from
conifers and are native to the Northern Temp-
erate Zone. Hardwoods are broad-leaved,
mainly deciduous trees that are widely dis-
tributed throughout the world.
In climates where trees are part of the
natural vegetation wood has been used since
earliest times as a traditional building mate-
rial. Generally, the oldest forms of building
used timber with a minimum of shaping and
forming, often employing complete trunks or
saplings in prodigious quantities . This reduced
to a minimum the laborious work with crude
and simple tqols. Where quality timber was
naturally scarce, as in Egypt and parts of
Arabia, it was a precious commodity which
often had to be imported and consequently
was only used sparingly for major structures.
The evolution of carpentry through the ages
 Timber 229

has normally responded to the introduction of were set upright and socketed at the top into a
new tools, the growing scarcity of timber, and horizontal beam, producing a framework simi-
a better understanding of its structural prop- lar to an inverted boat. The loads were carried
erties and jointing techniques. New tools have directly to the ground. A great many trees
enabled carpenters to undertake more accu- were needed for this form of construction in
rate and intensive working of logs to produce order to find enough limbs with a similar
specially useful shapes, and have enabled natural curve.
them to consider employing more substantial A form of construction often called the
and complex joints for fastening than lashing "box frame" also has very early origins. Its
and tying, which were almost certainly the evolution eventually led to the development of
earliest forms of timber jointing. the balloon frame. Here, posts were erected
Because of its many varied and competing separately and temporarily propped up by
applications in the construction of houses, permanent diagonal bracing. They were then Interlocking log construction.
ships, bridges, and as a fuel for major man- covered by wall plates that dropped into Traditional Norwegian building
ufacturing industries, good building timber has position over specially prepared joints, and with walls and roof in heavy
always been in very great demand. Carpenters over these spanned a tie beam which locked timber.
have therefore been compelled to be more the posts and wall plate together. Inter-
ingenious and economical in their framing mediate studs, joists, rafters, and other sub-
techniques. This demand for wood has also frame elements were placed piece by piece
stimulated the study of its structural prop- into the stmcture at the same time. This type
erties in order to achieve economy through of building could be made rigid and durable if
efficiency in use. adequately braced and jointed.

The Middle Ages

In the English stave church at Grinstead, Late and post-medieval timber building
England, which was built in 1013, the walls From about the 15th century onward, timber
were constructed of half-trunks of oak with was no longer available in inexhaustible quan-
the split face set inward. Splitting of tities in parts of northern Europe such as
hardwood with wedges was a process used Britain, Holland, Denmark, and northern
until relatively late, since sawing with primi- France where it had been a traditional build-
tive saws was both laborious and time- ing material. Carpenters responded by using
consuming. Baulks were often finished with timber more sparingly with smaller structural
the adze. sections spaced more widely, and with infills
In Scandinavia and other parts of northern of other materials, such as wattle and daub,
Europe where forests were widespread, a brick noggings, or planking and boarding.
traditional form of construction evolved in Buildings using secondhand timber, often
Eighteenth-century Norwegian
which whole timber logs were laid hori- from old ships, were not uncommon. Oak, "loft" storehouse at Gransherad.
zontally over one another and notched at the which had been the favored timber, was The lower storey under the
comers. In better buildings straight logs were replaced by elm and imported softwoods. cantilevered upper storey employs
chosen and shaped slightly to interlock along Sawmills were introduced in Germany in a form of log construction which
has changed little from the Middle
their length in order to reduce water pene- the 14th century, and in Sweden in the 16th. Ages.
tration and drafts. Windows were only incor- These countries began to export timber by
porated in these buildings in the 17th and 18th water to places where it was becoming scarce.
centuries since they tend to weaken the This trade continued to expand through the
structure and require special posts and trim- centuries, and Sweden still continues to be
mings. In cruder buildings the gaps between one of the major timber exporters.
logs would be filled with mud , moss, and Until well into the 19th century the frames
earth, a technique of construction that was of timber buildings used large timber sections
adopted by American frontier pioneers in by today's standards, but this was often
their log cabins. inevitable because of the jointing methods
Another form of medieval building is known employed. Traditional medieval joints
as post and plank construction, in which the involved cutting out large parts of the cross
wall consists of a series of heavy boards section of one piece of structural timber in
slotted between even heavier posts or be- order to joint it to another, thereby weakening
tween grooved horizontal members spanning it considerably. Variations of this type of
between the posts. The stave churches of framing continued to be utilized until the Traditional timber-framed house in
Norway dating from the 12th and 13th cen- mid-19th century, even though many attempts Sussex, England. The panels
turies are of this type. During the medieval were made to reduce the volume of timber between the framing are filled in
period in western Europe, the shape of indi- used in buildings through developments in the with wattle and daub.
vidual branches was utilized in the con- understanding of its structural behavior and
struction of roofs . The extreme form of this refinements in joint design. American settlers
was the technique known as cruck building, in in New England and other parts of the U .S.
which roughly squared tree limbs, curving employed large framing members in their
naturally for about a third of their length, buildings, and they adapted this to a wide
230 Timber

range of building applications, including mills, keted as packages, with all the lumber cut to
large barns, naval sheds, etc. length and numbered.

Roofs and large spans in timber

The evolution of light timber framing Roof and large-span timber framing of various
Mechanical methods of producing cheap types evolved from the earliest times. The
screws and nails increased the repertoire of Romans are known to have made timber
simple wooden joints. Machines for making frames both for the centering of their large
screws were invented and patented in arches and for their bridges. There is a
America in 1760 by Job and William Wyatt. carving of a bridge on Trajan's column (AD Water-powered saw (c. 1250).
Pointed screws were patented between 1830 114) in which a statically indeterminate form From Villard d'Honnecourt's
and 1840. Nailmaking machines were patented of truss is shown. Sketchbook.
in the late 18th century by both Rritish and Medieval roof frames were made with many
American inventors: Jesse Reed's machine of combinations of main frames, purlins, and
1807 cut, shaped, and headed nails in a single rafters along with bracing and bridging ele-
operation and could make 60,000 per day. As ments. Sometimes the principal rafters were
a result, the price of nails fell dramatically. propped up from the tie beams of box-frame
A further major influential factor in the construction, while in other cases collar
timber industry was the advent of steam beams high up in the structure of the roof tied
power. Mechanical sawmills, often driven by the elements together. Alternatively cross
waterpower, had existed in Roman times and braces, springing halfway up the principals,
had been used continuously and in increasing were used. Many of these roofing techniques
numbers after a revival of their use in relied on the enclosing walls of the building to
medieval Europe. Steam power helped to provide some lateral restraint. Hammer-beam
greatly increase the volume of sawn timber. systems were developed in the 14th and 15th
Vast quantities of boards and planks of many centuries, of which the roof of Westminster
sections and profiles were produced and Hall in London, England, is a good example.
exported throughout the world from countries Andrea Palladio (1518-80), in his Quattro
like the U.S. and Scandinavia, with their Libri (1570), shows designs for statically
extensive softwood forests. determinate trusses for both roofs and
The combination of cheap nails and mass-
produced timber sections led to the develop-
ment of the balloon frame, thought to have
been invented by Augustine Deodat Taylor, "Balloon frame" house. Only light
an architect and builder from Connecticut, sawn boards are used, joined
who moved to Chicago. The first building to together by mass-produced nails.
The balloon frame was developed
use this form of construction was the small in Chicago in the 1830s.
catholic church of StMary's, built in Chicago
in 1833. Thin studs, approximately 2.5 x 3 in.
(62 x 75 mm), were closely spaced and nailed
to sole and wall plates and externally boarded
to form the walls. Joists and battens were
nailed to the plates and studs, and diagonal
bracing completed the frame. This form of
construction could be erected by relatively
unskilled workmen using simple tools, nails,
and mass-produced standard timber sections,
since it eliminated all the skilled work of
mortising and tenoning structural pieces of D
ABOVE : 19th-century framed
timber. building with the spaces between
This technique quickly spread throughout joists, studs, and rafters filled with
the U.S., especially in rapidly developing insulation.
areas, and can be considered as the fore-
runner of many later variations of frame
construction, among them the platform frame. s
UPPER LEFT: 14th-century roof
Closely spaced studs and other framing mem- from Adderbury Church,
bers joined together in much the same way as Oxfordshire, England.
in the balloon frame are extensively used in
the production of prefabricated timber panels
and other factory-produced timber com-
ponents. These forms of frame construction LEFT: Drawings from a
have become a standard building method for 19th-century carpentry manual
small buildings in the U.S. and other coun- showing a king post truss above
tries. Balloon-frame buildings were soon mar- and a queen post truss below.
 Timber 231

bridges, but these simple forms were not

universally adopted until the work on graphic
statics had been done by Ritter, Clerk Max-
well, Culman, Mohr, and Bow in the 19th
century. Many of the trusses used in the
intervening period had superfluous and
redundant members that often prejudiced the
efficiency of the truss and certainly made their
behavior difficult to predict.
A roofed, crudely triangulated truss bridge
dating from 1333 survives near Lucerne in
SWitzerland (the Kapell Briicke). Another
roofed bridge built nearby in 1568 combines a
timber arch with the truss in its structure. In
1754 Grubenmann, a Swiss carpenter, built a
bridge spanning 394 ft. (120 m) at Schaff-
hausen. It was constructed with a pillar in the
middle since the authorities did not believe
such a large span was possible, but the post
was removed during the opening ceremony.
After the 16th century, roof trusses in Late 14th-century hammer-beam
important buildings were commonly of the roof at Westminster Hall, London; X II,
king-post or queen-post type. The former was shown in half section and with
used for smallish spans up to 35 ft. (II m), details.
while the latter could be used in its simple
form up to 50 ft. (15m). Combinations of both
types with additional members could span up
to 80 ft. (24 m). Larger roofs often had
indented and notched arches incorporated into
the trussed structure. One of the largest-ever
trusses in timber (235 ft.n2 m), which was
said to have been executed over a riding
school in Moscow in 1790, was of this type,
although some 19th-century writers have dis- ,.
puted its very existence.
The degree to which savings in timber could ABOVE: Trusses for
be effected by design improvements is illus- Medieval timber roof at Rushden, roofs and bridges from
Northamptonshire, England (c. Andrea Palladia's
trated in the design by Inigo Jones (1573- 15001. Ouattro Libri (15701.
1652) for the roof of St Pauls, near Covent
Garden in London , which was built in 1631-
38. Its original roof spanned 50 ft. (15m), and
had a volume of 273 cu. ft. (8 cu. m) of
timber, but the trusses eventually failed
through poor jointing. A replacement roof,
designed in the 1830s by Philip Hardwick
(1792-1870), contained 98 cu. ft. (3 cu. m) of
timber. This was possible because many of
the joints were no longer simple wooden
mortise-and-tenon connections, but included
combinations of iron straps and collars that
made the joints more secure and rigid and the
timber sections lighter.
American bridge building in timber made
many advances in the late 18th and early 19th
centuries. The earlier trussed bridges were
often of the covered type which protected the
vulnerable joints from the weather, and in
many cases they combined arches with
trusses. Timothy Palmer's bridge (1797) over
the Schuylkill and Theodore Burr's bridge
(1814-15) at McCall's Ferry over the Sus-
quehanna were both of this type. The latter
RIGHT: 19th-century American
was the longest timber truss ever built in timber truss bridges. Bridges of
America, spanning 364ft. (Ill m). this type were often protected from
Special truss forms invented and adapted by the weather by roofs.
232 Timber

Ithiel Town (1820), Elias Howe (1840), T. W. Timber roof trusses with cast-iron
Pratt (1844), Whipple (1840s), and others shoes and wrought-iron ties.
often combined timber with wrought-iron ten-
sion members and cast-iron shoes to simplify
jointing. Many of these different truss types
were used in railroad bridges, but fire proved
a constant hazard and these forms were later
translated into iron (see BRIDGES).
Similar developments took place in the
evolution of roof trusses . Tension members
made out of wrought-iron rods were combined
with cast-iron shoes and jointing elements that
reduced the amount of labor needed to secure
the timber membranes together. Kingbolt,
collar beam, trussed rafter (Fink truss), and
queen-rod trusses are all trusses of this type.
Attempts to conserve large pieces of timber
for the French Navy stimulated the 16th-
century architect Philibert Delorme (1512-70)
to develop a new system of timber con- Wrought-iron straps and cast-iron
struction for domes using arched ribs of shoes used to simplify and
increase the rigidity of joints in
timber in lieu of trusses. These ribs were trusses.
formed of short lengths of plank placed
edgeways and bolted together in thickness ,
the planks in one thickness breaking joint with
those in the adjoining thickness . The Halle au
Ble in Paris, France, had an arched timber
roof which spanned 120 ft. (36 m), but this
burned down in 1802.
Colonel Emy, an early 19th-century French
engineer, developed another technique using
laminated timber arches , this time with the
fibers of the timber coinciding with the cur-
vature. The various planks were bolted or
strapped together. The first roof of this type
spanned 65 ft . (20 m) and was erected in 1825
at Marac, near Bayonne in France.

Treatment and conversion of timber in

the 19th century
During the 19th century many machines for
planing, turning, boring, carving, fretworking ,
dovetailing, mortising, tenoning, and molding
timber were invented and improved. These
were driven initially by steam, and later by
electricity and replaced many of the hand Arched timber roof at Marac near
tools commonly used until then by carpenters. Bayonne, France (1825), designed
by Colonel Emy; shown in section
Mass production of window frames, doors, and with details.
sections of baseboard, moldings such as pic-
ture rails and cornices, and numerous decora-
tive elements such as turned balusters and
valances, were made possible by these
developments. Many new types of nail,
screw, and bolt were invented, each with its
own special properties and a seemingly infi-
nite array of ironmongery items came into the
building market, making a very wide range of
new joinery items possible.
The range of timber available to carpenters
and joiners was vastly increased in the 19th
century. The great forests of North America Mass-produced turned balustrades
and northern Europe produced softwoods and for stairways, verandas, and
balconies. From 1879 catalog of
well-established hardwoods, while the forests George 0 . Stevens and Company,
of Africa, South and Central America, Asia, Baltimore.
 Timber 233

and Oceania yielded an ever-increasing range Forest management has become an impor-
of new timbers. Mahogany imported from the tant part of the industry. Replanting and
Honduras was fashionable during the 18th careful cropping makes timber a renewable
century for joinery items such as handrails resource that can be grown commercially over
and furniture, but during the 19th century the and over again. This method is now used in
volume of timber imported and exported grew most softwood-producing areas, but many
to the level of major worldwide trade. For tropical hardwoods are still taken from virgin
example, most of the railroad sleepers used in forests, and reafforestation is by no means a
the Indian railroads of the 1860s were made of common practice.
Baltic fir which had been creosoted in Britain Tree felling in softwood forests has become
before being reexported, while teak from increasingly mechanized. Whole areas of trees
India became widely used in the interiors of of roughly the same age are now all cut down
prestigious buildings both in Europe and the at the same time by clear felling. The mechan-
U.S. At the great 19th-century exhibitions ical chain saw, which replaced axes and
and trade fairs, new types of timber were manual saws, is being superseded by vehicles
always on show, together with lists of their known as feller bunchers, which cut trees and
properties and uses. lift them to a position where they can be taken
Methods of treating timber against insect up by buckers. These machines, normally
and fungal attack began to be studied seri- crewed by two men, cut off all the branches of
ously in the mid-19th century. Creosote, a felled tree and stack them ready for col-
which is a by-product of the gas industry, was lection. They can process two large trees per
first used to treat timber in the 1830s in minute. The trees are then taken by tractor to
Germany. Other chemicals and techniques of roadside depots and then transported by
impregnating timber by vacuum processes trucks to sawmills. In many countries the
were developed soon afterward, making it long-established practice of floating logs Pre-glazed, factory-produced
possible to treat timber in depth rather than downriver to the sawmill is dying out. window units built into a timber
solely on the surface. At the sawmill, trees are stored in water or frame. An increasing proportion of
Traditional methods of seasoning timber, under sprays to protect them against fungal timber products now arrive on site
as finished components.
which involved slow drying out in protected growth and insect attack. The logs are taken
conditions in the open air, began to cause from storage and studied carefully to deter-
bottlenecks in the production process. Before mine the best way of cutting them to give the
timber can be used in carpentry and joinery, it best yield of planks and other sections. They
must loose about 50% of its natural moisture are then cut by frame, circular, or band saws
content so that it can harden, become stable, depending on the size of the sawmill and the
and less liable to movement and twisting. varieties of log being handled. The cut boards
Softwood logs may season naturally in three are then passed through edge-trimming saws
months to one year, while hardwood logs may to render the sides parallel. They are then
take considerably longer. taken from the mill for seasoning, either by
The requisite moisture content in any piece careful stacking in the open air to allow
of timber depends on its eventual use. Joinery free-air circulation, or in a kiln where they can
items normally require very dry, well- become seasoned in less than a week. After
seasoned timber. Kiln drying was well estab- this process, planks and boards are often cut
lished by the 1870s, and this process rapidly to fixed lengths, then graded and packed into
spread to many timber-producing areas in an rectangular bundles held together by plastic or Loading timberfrom sawmill depot
attempt to speed up production. Special- steel straps for easy handling. In many cases onto cargo ship.
ization within the timber industry began to
evolve after the mid-19th century when, for
example, the manufacture of plywood and
other wood-based sheet materials began to
develop (see PLYWOOD AND OTHER SHEET
MATE RIALS).

The 20th century

In the 20th century timber became a sci-
entifically controlled engineering material. Its
physical properties are now carefully mea-
sured and logged, and it is graded according to
its strength and appearance. This was done
visually until comparatively recently, but now
in many sawmills it is stress-graded by
machine and carefully marked from a range of
standard symbols, or each batch is given a
complete specification, listing all its properties
and qualities.
 234 Plywood and other sheet materials

packages are now made up of equal lengths of timber. Using these modem techniques it is
timber, so that these bundles can be made possible to make timber structures of many
square at both ends. different forms and large spans.
Many chemical processes have been Many of these developments were the
developed during this century for treating result of research carried out during both
timber in order to make it more resistant to World Wars. Timber and labor shortages
fungal and insect attack , moisture penetration, provided an incentive for new thinking which
and fire . Chemicals may be applied by brush often led to interesting forms of construction.
or spray to the surface of the wood, the One such form is the lamella roof, which
timber may be dipped or steeped in a liquid utilizes short pieces of timber that would
bath or the chemicals may be introduced into otherwise be wasted to make up an arched
the :wood by pressure impregnation. This roof without the use of trusses. Complex
century, improvements in timber engineering shapes based on double curvature geometry,
have simplified jointing techniques still further such as hyperbolic paraboloids, have often
and have made possible further economies. been constructed permanently in wood, or
New and improved waterproof adhesives, have been made of wood as shuttering prior to
many of them based on synthetic resin pro- casting in reinforced concrete. Wooden
Various forms of timber
ducts, make it possible to join timber in a way folded-plate structures are becoming widely
connectors used to spread the load which is analogous to welding in steel, to form used. All these techniques use new timber
of bolts over a wider area within a permanent bonds and joints. These adhesives products and fixing methods, combined with
joint. replaced earlier ones which were largely made new structural ideas.
by boiling down and treating organic materials Timber lends itself to prefabrication, and
such as hides, bones, starch, and the like, but has been used extensively in many countries
these were not permanent or waterproof. for this form of construction. Prefabricated
Joints using resin-based adhesives can be as timber buildings have existed since the Middle
strong or stronger than the materials they join. Ages and became very popular during the
Random lengths of lumber may be united 19th century when large and often sudden
by finger jointing to produce structural sec- movements of population took place. The
tions, which can lead to considerable savings growth of prefabricated timber housing was
in timber which would otherwise be wasted. helped by large government-sponsored pro-
Boards can be laminated together to form jects such as the Tennessee Valley Authority
"glulam" beams or arches . These can be development in the U .S., which started in the
designed in such a way that high grades of late 1920s. Prefabrication in timber has grown
timber can be utilized for high-stress areas, dramatically since World War II in many
whereas other parts of the beam can be made countries.
of less expensive material . These types of An increasing proportion of timber products
Prefabricated, mass-produced beams and arches have been widely used now arrive at the building site as finished
timber rooftruss with gang nail since World War II. By using laminated components and assemblies. These include
plate securing joints. constructions of this type, it is now possible wall panels, door sets, preglazed windows,
to construct structural elements with rigidity internal fittings, roof trusses, and other items.
and continuity between beam-and-column Timber is one of the oldest and most
elements. adaptable of building materials. Unlike other
Combinations of boards and plywood are natural resources , the supply need never be
made in order to exploit the properties of totally exhausted as man has learned tech-
stressed-skin construction and these are niques of afforestation, thereby ensuring its
widely used in the manufacture of girders and continued availability. As a building material
beams as well as floor, roof, and wall ele- it is favored for its color, texture, and appear-
ments. Timber trusses, using plywood gusset ance. For all these reasons, it will continue to
plates , which are nailed and glued to the play a major role in building for years to
members, can lead to savings in materials and come.
speed of fabrication. Scientifically controlled
nailing, screwing, and bolting, have helped Plywood and other sheet materials
A factory-finished Calder Homes produce efficient joints whose behavior can be A sheet of plywood is essentially a number of
"box-unit" being craned into carefully designed and predicted. Nailing, thin veneers glued together with the grain of
position in a housing scheme in
Britain (1965). bolting, stapling, and screwing are often car- the adjacent veneers running at right angles to
ried out on the building site where gluing one another. Plywood made it possible for the
would be impractical. Special elements such first time to have a thin sheet of wood which
as split-ring connectors, and steel shear plates was strong, light, and able to be easily curved
have been developed to spread the load of and fixed without the risk of cracking or loss
bolts over a wider area within a joint. The use of strength. It was probably invented in
of nail plates, which are used in a similar way ancient Egypt, where wood was scarce and
to gusset plates in the manufacture of trusses, precious. The sheets contained up to six plies,
has led to the mass production of cheap usually fastened together with wooden pegs.
trussed rafters which are compact, easy to Until the second half of the 19th century,
transport, and make use of shorter lengths of veneers were nearly always cut with saws, a
 Plywood and other sheet materials 235

task demanding great accuracy and skill. In

1844 a factory at Revel, in Estonia, began to
make plywood seats for bentwood chairs; and
in America, soon after the Civil War, a
number of people took out patents for making
laminated wood sheets in this way. Early in
the 1870s, George Gardner of Brooklyn began
making plywood-seated benches for railroad
stations and other public places, curving the
material by bending it after it had been
steamed.
Knife-butting machines became available in
the 1890s. By this method, the log was rotated
against a knife edge, so that a continuous
veneer was produced. These large sheets of
veneer, which replaced the narrow strips
obtained by the old process, allowed plywood
boards to be built up of a size and strength
which had been impossible previously. Rapid
technical advances were made during World
War I to meet the needs of aircraft builders.
The waterproof phenolic and other resin
adhesives evolved by European and American
chemists at this time improved the quality of
plywood to such an extent that by the 1920s it
had largely lost its reputation of being a cheap
substitute for solid wood and had become
accepted as a useful material in its own right.
In timber engineering, plywood is par-
ticularly suitable for uses where its high-panel
shear values, combined with flexural rigidity
and light weight, can be fully exploited, as in various materials, or combinations of the Interior of a factory manufacturing

sheathing to framed buildings, gussets for basic panel products-all designed to meet blackboard, which consists of a
layer of softwood battens bonded
timber trusses, 1-webs and box beams, particular conditions of use. between two layers of ply.
folded-plate roofs, and stressed-skin panels. It The development of chipboard (particle
is also widely used as structural flooring, roofboard) dates from World War II. Of all the
decking, wall sheathing, and cladding for wood-based sheet materials it had the fastest
timber-framed houses. Shuttering for concrete growth in recent decades, rivaling that of
work is another important market for ply- plastics. It is made of wood chips, bonded
wood. The first successful experimental together with synthetic resin and cured under
stressed-skin plywood house was erected at heat and pressure. Wood chipboards may be
the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, homogeneous in structure or have surface
Wisconsin, in the 1930s. A vast number of layers of higher quality or denser texture to
houses of this type have been erected since improve finishing or strength.
that time in many countries. During the past 30 years, the particle-board
industry has developed from the original
concept of a means of using waste wood to
Other wood-based boards being a major manufacturing industry for
Since World War II, the forest industries have which wood is specially grown. Standard
produced a number of wood-based materials grades of chipboard, produced originally for
in sheet or slab form which have become furniture and joinery, were found to be suit-
commonly used in building and timber able for wall linings, partitions, and the denser
engineering. They include, in addition to grades for structural flooring. Compared with
plywoods and their associated solid-core plywoods their shear values are low and their
boards, such as laminated board and block- moisture movement high. They are not gen-
board, particle boards, fiber building boards, erally suitable for external work or for con-
and wood-wool slabs. Due to their different ditions of high humidity. Within the last
methods of manufacture, or the admixture of decade or so, structural quality boards have
various bonding agents, these panel products been produced in some countries, as well as
possess properties which differ in certain boards treated to resist moisture and others
respects from each other as well as from with high resistance to the spread of flame.
natural wood. There is also a growing pro- In fiber building boards the primary bond-
duction of these materials with overlays of ing is derived from the felting of the wood Chipboard sheets being installed
wood veneers, paper, plastics, or metal , or in fibers and their inherent adhesive properties. as a floor surface.
sandwich form containing insulating cores of Additional bonding, impregnating, and other
 236 Stone

stressed-skin structures in timber possible.

Their use in substitution for solid timber or
other building materials has generally reduced
the volume and weight of materials, site labor
requirements, and construction costs. Their
development also enables a much fuller use to
be made of forest resources, since in their
production, trees and timber species not
otherwise suitable for building purposes can
be used, as well as tops, branches, and mill
waste.

Gypsum board and other sheet materials

Sheet materials based on materials other than
wood have also revolutionized certain aspects
of building. Gypsum board consists of gyp-
sum plaster sandwiched between two sheets
of paper. It originated in the U .S.-Augustus
Sackett's first patent was taken out in New
York in 18~nd by 1910 this material was
Prefabricated plywood wall panel agents may be added in the course of man- being widely used in America.
being craned into position on a
building.
ufacture. Various processes are used for Until the invention of gypsum board, plas-
chipping, pulping, felting, pressing, and sub- tering was a laborious and skilled operation.
sequent treatment. In frame buildings, plaster had to be applied
Early production of fiberboards was con- to laths nailed to studs and joists-bringing
centrated on highly compressed hardboards wet trades into an otherwise dry form of
and on low-density insulating and acoustic construction. Gypsum-board ceilings and wall
boards. In recent years, however, there has linings can be erected quickly with a minimum
been a greater diversification to meet specific of mess. This material also has the advantage
needs in building. New types of board, par- of possessing fire-retarding properties.
ticularly in the medium-density range, have Improvements in gypsum board have
been produced with good dimensional stability included the use of special paper surfaces
and adequate strength for wall linings and capable of holding thin coats of finishing
similar uses. Bitumen-impregnated insulating plaster to produce jointless surfaces.
boards are widely used for external sheathing Aluminum foil can be bonded to one side of
of timber-framed buildings while the denser the board to form vapor barriers, as well as
hardboards, especially of the oil-tempered increasing the insulation value of a composite
variety, have been used successfully for struc- wall or ceiling. Specially tapered edges of
tural components. boards have made it possible to mask and fill
Mineral-bonded wood-wool slabs were first joints without the need for a skim coat of
produced in Austria in 1914. They are rad- plaster.
ically different in appearance, properties, and Straw and other vegetable fibers can be
end uses from the other purely organic, compressed to form useful building boards
wood-based boards. They are much thicker which are lightweight and also possess insulat-
and heavier; the portland cement or other ing properties.
hydraulic binder accounting for about half Besides being manufactured to specified
their weight. They are practically non- performance standards, sheet materials are
combustible and have good sound absorption marketed to agreed sizes. The dimensions and
and insulation properties . In addition to their properties of these products dictate the spac-
common uses as non-load-bearing partitions, ing and disposition of framing elements in all
wall linings, and ceilings, the stronger type types of construction in which they are used.
boards are widely used for roof decking. Steel
reinforced slabs are also marketed for the Stone
latter use.
The effects of the introduction of wood- Some varieties of stone make excellent build-
based boards of different types into the ing materials, others relatively poor ones. The
building industry have been far-reaching . inferior types have been used locally; the
They have revolutionized the production of better stones have justified the cost and
joinery items, such as doors and kitchen trouble required to transport them over con-
cabinets 1 made the mobile-home industry siderable distances.
Framed plywood panels on a
possible, and greatly accelerated the Properties of stone vary greatly according
house ready to receive external development of prefabrication. They sim- to their type, and considerable variations can
cladding which is in brick veneer on plified timber-framed construction for resi- occur in the properties of different specimens
the lower storey. dential and other buildings and made from the same quarry. Durability depends not
 Stone 237

only on the chemical composition of the Vehicle·mounted mechanical saw

stone, but also on the atmosphere in which it being used to cut stone blocks from
a rock face.
is used and its degree of exposure to the
elements. Facility of working may be an
important criterion in the choice of a par-
ticular type of stone. Soft stone with an even
grain and no distinct beds may be good for
sculpture, whereas a hard stone composed of
thin layers that can easily be separated may
be appropriate for rubble masonry. Hardness
may be a sought-after property in con-
structions where surfaces are subject to abra-
sion, or where sharp detailing is required.
Hard stones may, however, be brittle and less
resistant to chemical decay than other var-
ieties.
The compressive strength of stone may
sometimes be important, but most stones used
in building are understressed. The weakest
sandstones can carry 120 tons/sq. ft. (1 ,290 Eighteenth-century masons at
tons/sq. m) while at the other end of the scale work on a construction site
measuring cutting, lifting, carving,
some granites can support 800 tons/sq. ft. and laying stone slabs.
(8,600 tons/sq. m). In the dome of St Peters in
Rome for example, the greatest stress in any
part of the structure is 15.5 tons/sq. ft. (167
tons/sq. m). Other important factors that
guide selection are appearance, which may be
an overriding consideration where color, tex-
ture patterning, and grain are important, and
weight. Weight varies greatly from light rocks
such as pumice and vermiculite to dense
stones such as granite and basalt.

Types of stone
Geologically, there are three families of stone:
igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic
rocks.
Igneous rocks are formed directly from
molten materials of the earth's crust. Granites
are made up of varying proportions of quartz,
mica, and felspar, combined with other mineral
materials; they have been popular in building
since antiquity. Granites containing a large gray or black and are very hard. Mica, which
proportion of quartz are difficult to work, is found in large transparent sheets in Russia,
while those with a large amount of mica tend was sometimes used in place of glass, earning
to be weak. Most granites used in building are the name of Muscovy glass.
selected for their hardness and durability. Sedimentary stones are composed of either
Many can accept a high polish and retain the reconsolidated debris of igneous rocks, or
sharp edges for long periods of time. Egyptian of the fossil remains of living creatures.
granite obelisks such as that from the temple Sandstone represents the first type, limestone
at Thebes, now at Place de Ia Concorde in the second.
Paris, which is 3,500 years old, still show little Sandstones consist of grains of quartz and
or no deterioration in their inscriptions. Gra- other materials, cemented by silica, alumina,
Dressing a stone block. From a
nite has often been favored for heavy iron oxide, or other substances. They vary tomb at Thebes (c. 1450 BC).
engineering works as well as for surfaces greatly in their color, texture, and other
exposed to abuse and wear such as bollards, properties. Edinburgh, in Scotland, has a
copings, and paving. Special types of granite great proportion of its buildings built out of
have often been selected for their appearance. gray Craigleith sandstone. Brownstone row
Syenite from Upper Egypt and porphyritic houses, built from a variety of reddish-brown
granite, with its large independent crystals of sandstone, became very popular in Boston
felspar, are examples of these. and New York in the late 19th century.
Other igneous rocks used in building "Laminated" sandstone flags from Yorkshire,
include porphyries, which often occur in in England, have been popular for paving
dykes, and basalts, which are normally dark because of their hardwearing surfaces and
 238 Stone

because they are readily split into slabs. important buildings in Asia. The translucent
Sandstones that laminate easily are also used onyx marble of Algeria, found in cloudy
for tiles or roofing flags . Grits are coarse- yellow and brown colors, was used both at
grained stones used for engineering work and Carthage and in Rome. The quarries at
millstones. Torbole and Carrara in Italy have been
Limestones, which consist of calcium car- worked since classical times. In India, a fine
bonate together with small percentages of white marble, quarried at Makrana in Raj-
clay, iron, magnesia, silica, etc, have been putana, has been used for civic buildings for
popular over many centuries because of their a long period; it was the stone used to build
known hardwearing properties, appearance, the Taj Mahal at Agra. Many countries
and workability. The Great Pyramid in Egypt throughout the world have indigenous marbles
is built of over 2,000,000 blocks of limestone, with their own coloring and patterning charac-
Houses with random rubble some of them weighing more than 1,000 tons. teristics.
granite walls and slate roofs, in The Romans made extensive use of different Slate is another metamorphic rock made up
Nielson Square, Gatehouse of types of limestone. Travertine was chosen for of clay sediments that have been hardened by
Fleet, Britain (1812).
its weathering properties and used in exposed great heat and pressure. Slate splits readily
parts of structures. Tufa varied in quality, but into thin slabs, making it useful for roofing and
reliable quarries were in operation by Augus- other purposes.
tan times; it was used for internal parts of
structures. In France and Belgium the famous
pierre bleu has been quarried since the 12th
century. This limestone is easily worked and
stands up well against frost, damp, and
smoke. It has an exceptionally high com- Quarrying and transporting
pression strength. Its blue surface becomes Before quarrying was initiated, most stone
white at the points where it is struck by a used in building was obtained from weathered
hammer or chisel, and a wide range of effects rocks and boulders. The Egyptians pioneered
can be obtained by different methods of quarrying using wedges, cutting, and drilling to
dressing. Caen stone is another famous remove the blocks they wanted. These
French limestone, used in many of the Gothic methods have changed little in principle over
cathedrals and churches. It was imported into the ages, but the processes have become
England for the construction of Westminster increasingly mechanized. In some cases stone
Abbey. is extracted in the open, in others it is mined
Portland stone, which is a white, hard underground. The use of gunpowder and
stone, became very popular for important other explosives has added to the methods of
buildings in Britain from the 17th century extraction; it is used especially for rocks
onward. It was used by Sir Christopher Wren such as granites which do not have natural
forSt Pauls Cathedral, and has been exported bedding planes that can ease removal by
to many different parts of the world , espe- wedging and splitting.
cially British dominions . Bath stone, with its In antiquity, large stones were moved by
honey-like color, is another well known En- sledges, rafts, rollers , levers , ropes , and
glish limestone. In the U.S., Indiana limes- ramps . Pulleys were first used in about the 8th
St Paul's Cathedral, London, tone, which was used in the construction of century BC by the Assyrians. Wherever possi-
England (1675-1710), built of Washington Cathedral, has been extensively ble, stones were moved by water, which made
Portland stone by Sir Christopher used in building. transportation less of a problem. The advent
Wren. Metamorphic rocks originate from igneous of canals and railroads in the 18th and 19th
and sedimentary rocks that have been trans- centuries made the choice of a much wider
formed under great heat and pressure. Mar- variety of building stones practicable.
bles, quartzites, and slate belong to this The Romans imported stone from different
group. Many varieties of marble have been regions of their Empire from state-owned
much sought after for their special color, quarries which supplied large depots with
patterning textures, and ability to accept a stone. In Rome it was not uncommon for
high polish. They are normally hard and large, standard-sized columns to be produced
crystalline, and consist largely of calcium at a distant quarry for use at a later date in
carbonate. some civic building. Standardized dimensions ,
Marble from Mount Pentelikon was used by accumulation of stocks , and a substantial
the Athenians for the buildings on the measure of prefabrication contributed to the
Acropolis. This marble, which starts off white possibility of rapid construction of buildings.
and acquires an attractive golden patina as it The vast Baths of Diocletian (AD 298-305)
oxidizes, has weathered well over the cen- took only eight years to build.
Moving a stone pillar with levers
near a quarry. Transporting and
turies, but is now faced with rapid deterio- Improvements in hoisting and lifting tech-
lifting large masonry blocks has ration on the Acropolis due to atmospheric niques have contributed to the ease with
always placed limits on builders. pollution. which stone can be used in buildings. Der-
At Lydia and Caria, in Anatolia, the ricks used by the Egyptians , Greeks, and
Greeks quarried a fine white marble for their Romans were capable of lifting weights up to
 Stone 239

200 lb. (90 kg). Windlasses, introduced into

Europe in about AD 1100, were capable of
raising weights of over 1,000 lb. (454 kg).
Mechanical power, improved cranes, and
techniques of multiplying mechanical advan-
tage have greatly reduced these limitations.
Techniques of cutting, drilling, carving,
shaping, and polishing stone have changed
little in principle, but there has been an
increasing use of machinery, eliminating
heavy work. The Romans developed water-
powered saws. In the 19th century, steam,
and later electrical power, were applied to an Dry-stone random rubble walling
with rubble-on-edge coping.
ever-increasing variety of machines; these inc-
luded saw frames, circular saws with car-
borundum cutting edges, planing and molding
Side view of the portico of the machines, and pneumatic hammers.
Parthenon, Athens (5th century BC)
built out of pentellic marble.
Masonry techniques
The ways in which stones are combined to
form structures vary greatly, from dry stone
rubble walling at one end of the scale, where
roughly shaped stones are piled on top of each
other to form walls without mortar, to care-
fully executed ashlar work where accurately
cut stones are assembled with great precision. Coarsed rubble wall with coping;
The masonry work in the Parthenon in front and side views.

Athens is an example of the latter. Because of

the high cost of ashlar work it has often been
common practice to build walls and other
massive parts of structures as two leaves of
ashlar with a filling of rubble, often with
header stones to help bind into the core. A
large proportion of medieval cathedrals were
built in this way. Another technique that
Cutting thin slabs of marble with a contributes to savings is to use a masonry
frame saw. From an 11th-century
manuscript.
facing with a backing in brickwork.
Where careful attention is paid to the
relationship of joints to one another in walls , Ashlar walling with chamfered and
stronger and slenderer structures can be built. rusticated quoins and plinths
(LEFT) and with rabeted joints and
The coincidence of vertical joints should be molded quoins (RIGHT).
avoided. (Until about the 2nd century BC the
Romans used carefully cut stone blocks with- Royal Crescent, Bath, England
out any consistent pattern of staggered joints.) (1764-74) by John Wood the
younger. Main facade in ashlar;
Slender walls can be given greater rigidity by side wall in rubble.
the use of buttresses. Stones may be held
together with mortar of various types or by
cramps and dowels of metal or wood.
Evidence of different masonry techniques
can be as useful as stylistic variations in
distinguishing between work carried out at
different times in structures that were built
over long periods of time. At St Albans
Abbey in England, Norman work is dis-
tinguished by axe marks, the transitional
period by chiseled stones, the early English
period by bolster tooling, culminating in the
Hand crane for lifting masonry finely scraped work in the Perpendicular
elements. period.
Stone arches, vaults, and domes have been
used as ways of spanning openings and
spaces. The trulli buildings in Apulia in Italy
still use an ancient form of corbeled dome for
their roofs which are made out of the local
240 Stone

limestone that splits readily into rectangular

blocks. The earliest arches and vaults were
probably made out of brick in about 3000 Be
in Mesopotamia, but these techniques were
soon applied to stone. Stone voussoirs in
arches, vaults, and domes require a mastery
of accurate geometrical techniques. Two-
dimensional structures, such as simple arches
and barrel vaults, are not so demanding, but
the shaping of stones for three-dimensional
curved surfaces, such as parts of domes and
complex vaults, requires considerable geomet-
rical skill. Gothic cathedrals generally used
carefully cut vault ribs with panels made up of Ornamental arcades, Canterbury
smaller, roughly shaped stones between them. Cathedral, England, with stone
In the Renaissance period the art of worked with axe (LEFT-c. 111 0)
stereotomy was developed, making it possible and with chisel (RIGHT-c. 1180).
to work out and describe the exact shapes of
stones for complex vaulting.
Accurate understanding of the forces
involved in arched, domed, and vaulted struc-
tures made it possible to reduce the mass of
material used in masonry structures.
Improved understanding of the behavior of
these structures can be traced in the evolution
of Gothic cathedrals, where masons vied with Injecting epoxy resin into cracks in
each other to create lighter, higher, and less Cross vault constructed of rough
masonry to counteract weathering.
massive buildings. A high point in the stonework; from medieval castle in
development of analytical techniques was Syria.
reached by Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926) in the
funicular models he used to examine the likely
forces in the church of the Colonia Giiell
(1898-1914) and later in the studies for the
masons of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

Weathering and decay

Stone is subject to erosion by water and wind.
Chemicals in the atmosphere, often dissolved
in rainwater, contribute to the decay of stone.
Some stones are attacked by chemicals given
off by lichens and other vegetation, while
others are to some extent protected by cov-
erings of these plants. Moluscs attack some ABOVE: Carefully cut vault ribs
forms of limestone that are employed below in a medieval cathedral.
water. Many varieties of stone harden after
they have been quarried and exposed to the RIGHT: Stone-crushing
air. For important works, where careful selec- machine (c. 1880).
tion of stones at the quarry is necessary to
ensure their durability, it may be advisable to Other types of masonry and artificial
allow them to weather in the open air for a stone
number of years. This practice was recom- Stone is inevitably an expensive material. If
mended by Vitruvius. there is to be a future for natural stone in new
When sedimentary stone is used in building, construction, it must lie in more mass pro-
close attention should be paid to the bedding duction of standard units , and in acceptable
planes. In walls, these should be laid in the techniques which allow ashlar facing to be
same sense and direction as they are found at easily and efficiently attached to steel and
the quarry. When this is not observed and concrete frames. Very large stone panels are
stones are used haphazardly, some will now available for cladding purposes, and
weather and decay rapidly through frost sophisticated systems of attaching thin, non-
action and other weathering due to the easy load-bearing slabs of stone have been
penetration of water. Badly weathered stone developed using noncorrosive clips and dow-
must be replaced, but many chemical prep- els made from such metals as stainless steel
arations have been developed to slow down and bronze.
these processes. Crushed stone is extensively used in the
 Earth, in various forms 241

construction industry in connection with road

building, and especially as the aggregate com-
ponent in concrete mixes. Stone used for
these purposes is chosen for its particular
mechanical properties, and careful grading of
sizes often takes place after crushing.
Various artificial or reconstituted stones
have been used since the early 19th century.
They are made by mixing crushed stones, say
granite quarry refuse, with portland cement to
create Victoria Stone. Other types of cement
and crushed stone may be used in com-
bination with artificial dyes to gain different
effects, and many patent systems have been
developed. The "stone" is made into objects
by casting into molds in much the same way
as c~ncrete is formed. It may then be polished
or given other surface treatments.

Earth, in various forms

Broadly speaking, builders throughout the system was known as clay lump building and Ndebele house built out of
world have used earth when they could get was used for domestic and agricultural build- sun-dried mud bricks covered with
painted mud plaster. Near Pretoria
nothing else, or where the cost of alternatives ings. An outer skin of brickwork sometimes in South Africa.
has been impossibly high. When the oppor- takes the place of rendering and gives greater
tunity has arisen to abandon adobe, cob or protection. Rendered walls are protected from
pise, or whatever the particular kind of rain by a brick base up to 2ft. (61 em) high . In
earth-construction may have been, and to go Nigeria, the blocks, formed without molds,
for something more durable and sophisticated, are known as tubali. They are usually conical
that opportunity has almost invariably been and they are laid alternately big and little end
taken. Earth has been very much the poor outward. The mortar contains horse dung and
man's stone, although, like any other mat- the blocks are coated with clay as the work
erial, it benefits from good craftsmanship. It proceeds. Two- and three-storey buildings
has the great advantage of requiring only very constructed. in this way are quite normal. In
simple tools. adobe building, as with all earth walling, good
maintenance is essential for long life.
Adobe The adobe used for the Aztec and Toltec
pyramids was exceptionally well protected.
Adobe, from the Spanish word adobar, to The body of the pyramid, formed of rubble
plaster, is the name given to a system of and adobe blocks, was faced with dressed
building using sunbaked but unburned earth stone, which in turn was plastered over with
blocks. Adobe building is widespread in the brightly colored stucco.
north of Mexico, in California, and the In the southwest of the U.S., artists and
southwest of the U.S., where the climate is do-it-yourself homebuilders have recently
semiarid. A similar system is to be found in revived the Spanish tradition of adobe build-
New South Wales in Australia, and there are ing with some remarkably beautiful results.
variants in many countries, particularly in the
Third World. Almost any soil can be used. It
usually contains at least 50% sand and, if the
clay content is high, chopped straw or grass Cob and chalk mud
fiber are added. The material is first mixed Cob walls are built from a mixture of earth,
Houses in Zaria, Nigeria, of
into a sticky mass, often by treading, and then straw, and water. The method of building plastered mud-brick construction.
thrown into molds. As soon as it is dry differs from that of pise de terre. The material
enough not to slump, the blocks, measuring is thrown down on a stone or brick base
about 16 x 8 x 6 in. (400 x 200 x 150 mm) and course, without using formwork, and is then
weighing about 60 lb. (27 kg), are removed trodden and compacted by the workmen, not
from the molds and laid out on the ground; rammed. Work starts from one end of the
later they are piled into open stacks for final wall. The material is thrown to form a course
drying. The quantity of clay in the soil is not about 1 ft. (30.5 em) high, care being taken to
critical, oecause the shrinkage it causes avoid any vertical joints in the wet material .
occurs in the drying-out process before the Once a course is completed it is protected
blocks are used. The blocks are laid in mud from the weather and allowed to dry out
mortar, sometimes with the addition of a little before the next is started. The sides of the
lime and, as with pise de terre, they are wall are leveled and trimmed to the correct
rendered externally. In eastern England the width as the work goes on. Like other forms
242 Earth, in various forms
--------------------------------------------- -----------------------

of earth wall building, it is a fair weather any type of earth can be used , provided it
operation, and for this reason it is usually does not contain too much clay. An ideal mix
carried out in the spring and summer. consists of 25% clay and 75% small gravel.
In the southwest and west of England and Lumps have to be broken up and pebbles
Wales, cob was the normal walling material more than I in. (25 mm) in diameter removed.
for laborers' cottages in the 17th and 18th Not more than one day's supply of earth is
centuries. If it was properly mixed and laid prepared at any time since the moisture
and protected by a masonry base and over- content is critical. Openings for doors and
hanging eaves, it created few problems. Cot- windows are left as building continues and
tages and small houses built long before 1800 lintels are built in. Mud plaster or a weak
are still to be found in good condition. In mixture of lime and sand is the normal Traditional movable wooden form
some central areas of southern England, rendering, but sometimes one or more coats from Morocco used for the
construction of rammed earth or
where only a thin layer of earth covers soft of tar, mixed with sand, have been used pisewalls.
and easily dug chalk, walls have been built of instead. Colored whitewash has been the
crushed chalk, straw, and water. The process favorite form of decoration. To protect walls
is the same as for cob, but it differs from pise from rain, a ground course of brick or stone
building in that although lintels are built in as about I ft. (30 em) high is commonly used,
the work proceeds, the openings for doors and and garden walls are capped with thatch or
windows are not cut out until the walls are tile. Improved pise using stabilized earth to
complete and any settlement due to shrinkage protect walls against rising damp and rain
has taken place. The need to allow each penetration, incorporated damp-proof courses
course to dry out before the next is started strong enough to withstand the impact of
makes it a slow system. If walls are not ramming.
completed before the onset of frost or bad
weather, they are given a temporary roof of Wattle and daub
thatch and left until work can be resumed the
following spring. Cob walling is no longer Wattle and daub is a method of wall con-
carried out commercially, but some enthu- struction whereby wattles made of vertical
siasts have built this way for themselves timber stakes are interwoven with horizontal
during recent years. branches and daubed with clay. The tech-
nique of applying earth materials to a sup-
porting network of light wooden twigs or
Pise de terre reeds is common in many forms of primitive
Pise de terre, or rammed earth, is walling made traditional building throughout the world.
of compacted earth. It differs from cob and These methods made it possible to make
chalk mud in that damp earth is compacted by relatively waterproof structures.
hand-ramming in climbing formwork which is Remains of circular Iron Age dwellings
raised and refilled until the required height of using this method of construction have been
wall is reached . If properly made and laid, it found in England, where the staves were
is a hard and durable material. Pise has been driven into the ground without framing. In
used since ancient times; according to Pliny, framed buildings the staves, sharpened at both
Hannibal built pise watchtowers in Spain. The ends, had their upper points inserted in holes The blank wall of this building in
Romans introduced it into France, but it is bored in the underside of a horizontal timber, the Transvaal, South Africa, is built
found there only in the valley of the Rhone, while their lower ends were held in a groove of clay over a close framework of
where two- and three-storey farmhouses sev- gouged from a similar timber. The branches saplings and rendered over by
hand with a mud slurry. The wall in
eral hundred years old are still to be seen, and were then woven through the staves to form a the foreground is built of sun-dried
around La Rochelle in the northwest. stable panel for the clay daub and plaster. The clay bricks mixed with straw.
External protection is essential in all but the
driest climates. Pise weathers badly and can
be eaten by rats unless precautions are taken.
The process is known in most countries of
Europe, in Africa, and the Americas, although
it mainly occurs where other building mat-
erials are scarce. It has had its champions in
times of shortages of materials, notably after
both World Wars, when officially sponsored
experiments were carried out in many coun-
tries, including Germany , Belgium, the U.S.,
and Britain. Although a system of steel
formwork was patented after World War II,
timber was the traditional material for this,
with forms 10-12 ft. (3-3.6 m) long and from
1-3 ft. (30-90 em) in depth. Walls are usually
I ft. (30 em) thick for single-storey buildings
and 18 in. (45 em) for two storeys. Almost
 Bricks 243

practice died out because of a shortage of were first made in regions where stone for
dauber craftsmen and the more general use of permanent building was scarce. Brick-build-
bricks. ing may have commenced in the valleys of the
Tigris and Euphrates at least 5,000 years ago,
Stabilized earth using sun-baked units. For unexposed posi-
Stabilization is a name given to processes tions sun-baked bricks were tolerable but for
which make earth used as a building material durability and an external finish high-tempera-
stronger and harder, less liable to volume ture firing is essential. Such fired units were
change, or more resistant to water. Earth for made from very early times, in the Babylonian
pise de terre, cob, and mud wall building can period. Vast structures such as ziggurats were
generally be improved by the addition of built solid, with the outer layers of material of
stabilizers, of which there are two main fired quality; Birs Nimroud, built by
types-those which impede moisture pene- Nebuchadnezzar, was 272ft. (84 m) square by Brick cottage in Sussex, England.
tration, and those which prevent the capillary 160ft. (48 m) high. Bricks oftwo distinct colors arising
rise of dampness. From Mesopotamia brickmaking spread, to out of differing degrees of firing are
used to produce a pattern.
Experimental houses built in Belgium after Egypt, to Persia, and probably through Persia
World War I used hydraulic lime to stabilize to India-there was brickmaking near Bom-
crushed brick earth and debris in a pise de bay by 2000 Be. The process probably did not
terre system which included reinforced- reach or at least become regularly used in
concrete piers and string courses. The walls China until much later. In Greece the abun-
were waterproofed and hardened externally dance of stone meant brickwork was rare but
with a mixture of benzol, bitumen, resin, and the Romans used it widely. There were
lime. In Britain, the Building Research Sta- Roman kilns in western Britain in AD 90, and
tion experimented with cement and chalky reused Roman bricks are a feature of the
earth in pise work, and the U .S. Bureau of tower of St Albans Cathedral near London.
Standards and the University of Illinois built With the breakup of the Roman Empire
in cement-stabilized earth, which was given brickmaking stopped in much of Europe. In
the name of "Terracrete." The University Britain it recommenced in the 13th century, in
also produced a bitumen-stabilized adobe East Anglia, possibly after some importation
block, known as "Butudobe." of bricks from Holland. Little Wenham Hall in
In ordinary pise work, the external wall Suffolk is the earliest known example of that
faces were sometimes "plated" with a thin period and was built in the years 1260-80, but
layer of stabilized earth to give protection certainly by 1300 there was a brickworks at
against the weather. The stabilized earth was Hull. In America bricks were used by about
placed down the sides of the form containing 1580, with the Dutch having a reputation as
the ordinary earth and rammed with it. Bands good bricklayers.
of stabilized earth, the full thickness of the Until the mid-19th century bricks were fired
wall, were placed over the lintels to give either in small intermittent kilns with a high
added strength. fuel consumption, or they were fired in open
clamps. In the latter the "green" bricks were
stacked on top of a layer of fuel, and after a
Bricks rough top-covering with old bricks and earth,
the fire was started and allowed to burn itself
Brickwork uses small building units , often, but out over a period of several weeks. Large-
not always, made from fired clay and jointed scale production needed a more economical
with mortar. Structurally, brickwork is strong and better-controlled method , and this came
in compression but weak in tension. It is with the introduction in Germany in 1856 of
excellent for fire resistance. The small size of the Hoffmann kiln. This consists of a number
the unit, together with possible adaptation of of kiln compartments with the fire being
joint thickness, not only makes fitting to transferred from one to another, and heat from
horizontal and vertical dimensions easy but the cooling areas being used for warming up
enables curved work to be constructed rela- later loadings.
tively simply. Clay suitable for making bricks
is widespread in many countries. In the face Modern developments in brick
of modern constructional alternatives, possi- manufacture
bly the outstanding characteristic of brick-
work is its aesthetic appeal and the fact that In 1875 at Bridgwater, in England, the first
its attractive appearance is usually long lasting machine that mechanically shaped clay was
and combined with low maintenance cost. introduced on an industrial scale. This pro-
cess, which consisted of extruding a column
of plastic clay and then cutting it with wires, Plan and cross section of a
History of brick manufacture has continued as an important method and is Hoffmann kiln. The continuous
The manufacture of clay bricks involves two still widely used. Further progress in machin- cycle of stacking, cooling, burning,
and drying bricks would be moved
main processes: shaping the clay and then ery made possible the shaping of much drier consecutively through the
converting it to durable form. Clay bricks clays by forcing them, under high pressure, chambers ofthe kiln.
 244 Bricks

medieval work in Denmark. Long thin bricks

are sometimes used today for their aesthetic
effect. The Romans mostly used a large, thin
unit, more like tiles than bricks, often about
18 x 12 in. (45 x 30 em) and I or 1.5 in. (2.5
or 3.8 em) thick. The Romans also made
triangular-shaped units as a permanent
formwork material for masonry walls with
concrete cores. Recently, attempts have been
made to produce much larger bricks in order
to speed up the laying process. Furthermore,
few modern bricks are completely·solid; with
pressed bricks there is a "frog"-an inden-
tation on the top face of the brick-while most
extruded bricks have a series of vertical holes
through them. These holes help reduce fuel
consumption in the firing process by exposing
a much larger surface area of brick to heat.
Either method reduces weight without seri-
ously affecting strength.
Early bricks tended to be somewhat irreg-
ular in shape and size and wide mortar joints
were necessary to take up the variations; but
nowadays most types of clay and calcium
silicate bricks are regular in shape and size
and thin jointing is then possible. From about
1600, in England, a particular type of
"rubber" brick was made. Being homogene-
ous in composition and relatively soft enabled
it to be rubbed to shape. Arch bricks were
Brickmaking by hand. Removing into molds. An outstanding example of the rubbed to slightly wedge shape, but rubbers
bricks for stacking and drying.
advantages this provided was the start of the were also used to enable very regular and thin
"Fietton" brick in the Peterborough area of jointed brickwork to be laid. Rubbers and
England at the end of the 19th century. By a normal bricks were sometimes used as con-
process of compression, this enabled a clay trasting materials on the .same building, as at
with a high carbonaceous content to be used, Hampton Court, England (c. 1690) by Sir
and this provided a large part of the fuel Christopher Wren.
required for firing and therefore a reduction in
cost. Fletton bricks now form roughly half of Use of bricks in buildings
the total output in Britain.
Manufacture of an alternative to clay bricks As a decorative form, glazed bricks have long
started in 1881 in Germany. A mixture of been utilized. Many of the very early build-
lime, silica sand, and water, plus coloring ings in the Near East were faced with a glazed
material, was mixed and pressed to shape and material, sometimes bricks with a glazed
then steamed under pressure in an autoclave. surface, sometimes thinner, glazed tile units.
This calcium silicate or "sandlime" brick is In medieval work some decorative bonding
made in most European countries and in the patterns were made more obvious by selecting
U.S. and in other countries such as Taiwan. heavily fired bricks which had fused to a
Kings Dyke brickworks,
Where good clay is readily available sandlime glazed surface. Applied white and colored
Peterborough, England.
bricks form a relatively small part of the brick glazed finishes became popular in the late 19th
production; in Britain 346 million were pro- century for use as light-reflecting surfaces in
duced in 1968. internal courtyards of large buildings and for
wall finishes in such places as dairies and rest
rooms where hygienic, easily cleanable sur-
Brick shapes and sizes faces were required.
Ease of handling and adaptability have always As with any type of construction, changes
been important aspects of bricks; and the in method and results come from two direc-
units have tended to be usually about 4 in. (10 tions: the demand for new building uses and
em) wide, which gives a suitable hand grip, the changes in properties of the materials and
with their length being about two times their in knowledge of how to use them. It must be
width. Much larger sizes have been used from noted that for brickwork the components are
time to time, however: up to 16 in. (40 em) bricks plus mortar. In the earliest work, large
long in early Persian examples; the "Great structures were either solid, or, if built as
Brick" in England following taxation based on walls, were very thick. Unnecessarily massive
numbers of bricks; the "Monk" brick in construction was gradually refined by a pro-
 Bricks 245

cess of trial and error plus the occasional

introduction of some uncalculated "engineer-
ing" improvement. Overall bulk was reduced
by forming local buttresses to provide stiff-
ening to long or high walls . An interesting
refinement to this is to build a wall which is
"wavy" in plan. Walls of this type can be
seen at the University of Virginia, Charlottes-
ville in the U .S.
Wall building is a relatively simple process
but small building units present a problem
when bridging openings . Stepped "corbeled"
brickwork was a possibility but the arch was
the real answer. The oldest known brick
arches date from about 3000 BC. They are the
vaulted culverts of the Akkadian Palace at
Eshnunna in Mesopotamia. These techniques Catalan brick vaulting in the crypt
spread to Egypt and other regions. The ofthe Guell chapel, near Barcelona,
Ramseum at Thebes (1292-1 125 sc) used Spain, by Antoni Gaudi.
brick vaults similar in form to those still used
today in the Nile Valley. Brick vaulting has
continued to be used and perfected over the
ages, especially in areas where timber is RIGHT: Ornamental brickwork
scarce. From the earliest times ingenious using bricks of different colors and II IIIII
techniques of laying bricks in vaults and a variety of bonding patterns. ••••••
domes were developed which eliminated or
reduced the use of elaborate temporary cen-
tering. It was used with great confidence by
the Romans in combination with concrete,
and was developed to a high level by Catalan
masons in Spain who carried their techniques
to Mexico where these became a vernacular
form of construction in some areas .
Throughout the early periods of develop-
ment in constructional methods the pos-
sibilities of decorating buildings simply by the
arrangement of bricks was seen. Between the
lOth and 12th centuries bricklaying skills and
decorative design rose to a peak in such forms
as Persian minarets and tomb towers , and in
the many and varied treatments of domes, for
Vaulted drain beneath palace at
example the Friday mosque at Isfahan. Nimrud (c. 8th century BC).
After the development of the vault and
dome, building changes were gradual and
more a matter of design style rather than of
fundamental constructional change . Two
aspects worth noting for their legacy of
memorable architecture are first , the use of RIGHT: Modern polychrome
brickwork used on the Byker Wall,
brickwork as infill material in timber-frame Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England
buildings in European medieval work, and (1977), by Ralph Erskine.
second, the use of rendering as an external
finish . The reasons for applying a cemen-
titious material to the external face of brick-
work may be either utilitarian or aesthetic.
For small buildings, such as most domestic
work, quite thin brick walls provide adequate
strength but built as solid walling they are not
completely proof against rain penetration in
wet climates. Their weather resistance can be
improved by an applied rendering. In regions
such as Scotland, where long periods of wet
weather occur, rendered brickwork became,
and remains, a characteristic feature.
An alternative solution for full protection Serpentine or "wavy" brick wall at
against rain penetration is cavity wall con- Lymington, Hampshire, England.
246 Terra-cotta

struction. Scattered examples of this can be prefer brickwork, and so far few of the many
found in Europe and North America from "prefabricated" home construction alter-
about 1880. In Britain cavity construction, at natives have proved to be very serious com-
least for small houses, became general by petitors. The chief exception is where timber
about 1920. In addition to providing better framing is used. Although widespread as a
protection against rain penetration, the cavity traditional system in the U.S., this has
increased the thermal insulation value of the recently achieved some popularity in various
walling. Thermal insulation can be further European countries . Even so, at least in
improved by filling the cavity with very traditional brick areas, the timber frame is
lightweight insulating materials but care is often surrounded by an external brick finish .
needed to ensure that this does not spoil the Nevertheless, the brick industry is aware of
effectiveness of the cavity as a water barrier. competition and of the need for constant
Brick vaulting at Masjid-i-jami in
Rendered finishes have also been widely development. At the manufacturing end, this
Isfahan (1088). used for aesthetic reasons. Outstanding has resulted in the closure of many small
examples of this can be seen in many regions : brickworks and developments such as tunnel
in Italian Renaissance palaces and villas; in kilns, automation within the works, and
decorative French work of similar date; or in advances in handling and transportation
England in works such as the stucco finishes areas. On the constructional side there has
of the Adam brothers in the 18th century. been a good deal of experiment on pre-
These coverings were often detailed to imitate fabrication of brick panels-notably in the
expensive stone construction. U.S. and in Holland. This, and possibly more
The Industrial Revolution brought with it a use of reinforced brick construction, seems
demand for large factories and warehouses the likely direction for development in the
with the need to carry heavy floor loads and immediate future.
to be as resistant as possible to fire. Floors of
a composite construction of shallow brick Terra-cotta
arches, supported on cast-iron beams, were
developed in response to this new require- Terra-cotta is most familiar to us in its
ment. common use as reddish-brown clay flower-
Over the centuries manufacturing methods pots. However, in many places in the world it
and constructional knowledge gradually continues to be used for roof tiles on ver-
improved but basic scientific research on nacular forms of houses, and, particularly in
materials was lacking. Around 1920 research its glazed form, for decorative purposes. In
laboratories began to fill this gap, with the the past it was extensively used to create
Building Research Station at Garston, Eng- splendid and elaborate decorations for build-
land , as a notable leader. ings of every type.
Research on the nature and properties of Terra-cotta is made from yellow to
both bricks and mortars had two effects: it brownish-red clays of a fineness and unifor-
pointed the way to making better materials mity somewhere between the clays used in
and it gave the rapidly growing work of the bricks and vitrified wall tiles. The clay is
structural engineer more reliable data. Quality sometimes mixed with fired clay, ground to a
standards for materials were set up in most powder to reduce the shrinkage of the molded
industrialized countries and structural codes object during firing. Mter molding the mixture
of practice complemented them . Brickwork is fired once, if the product is left unglazed,
structures changed from wasteful rule- and twice for glazed terra-cotta or faience, the
of-thumb affairs to properly engineered, cal- glaze being applied between the two firings.
culated work . Although this has affected all In making faience, the first firing is carried
types of brick building, its most spectacular out at a high temperature and the second at a
effect has been seen in high blocks of appart- low temperature.
ments and hotels where the small room sizes The Greeks made much use of terra-cotta
give a cellular-type building for which brick for roof tiles, cornices, and other ornamen-
structure is especially suitable. Some of the tation on buildings, and !he Romans also
earliest work of this kind was in Switzerland, applied the technique to facing slabs and to
but by 1960 brick structures 18 or 20 storeys antefixes at the ends of roof ridges. Mter the
high, with thin walls, were widespread. In the fall of the Roman Empire, the use of terra-
U.S. some buildings of this general form used cotta declined in Europe, but continued in
cavity brick walls with the cavity filled with Turkey , Persia, and the Far East. A great
lightly reinforced concrete. This type of wall European revival of the craft took place in the
added to lateral stability, and made feasible 14th and 15th centuries, especially in northern
the use of wider span floors in conjunction Italy and Germany.
with load-bearing brick walls. The art of terra-cotta was introduced into
For at least the past 50 years there have England from Italy in the early 16th century.
Terra-cotta facade of the Natural been repeated arguments that the bricklaying Italian craftsmen made terra-cotta ornaments
History Museum, London (1887), process is an absurdly antiquated method. for Hampton Court Palace and for other great
by Alfred Waterhouse. for producing buildings. Nevertheless, people houses of the period. It remained a con-
 Roofing materials and tiles 247

tinental specialty until 1722, when Richard

Holt and Thomas Ripley set up a factory at
Lambeth, England. In 1769 the premises were
taken over by George and Eleanor Coade,
who made a very high-quality terra-cotta
which became known as " Coade stone". This
included a flux and was fired at about 2,012°F
(I, 100°C). It was very hard, weather-resistant,
and greatly superior to ordinary terra-cotta,
especially in an urban atmosphere.
In America, Louis Sullivan (1856-1924)
used terra-cotta to decorate a number of his
buildings including the Wainwright Building
(St Louis, 1890-91) and the Prudential Build-
ing (Buffalo, 1894-95). One of New York's
early skyscrapers, the Woolworth Building
(1913), designed by Cass Gilbert (1859-1934),
was also clad in terra-cotta. On the West Traditional flat roofs in a village in
central Syria.
Coast of the U.S ., glazed terra-cotta (faience)
medallions and decorative tiles remain popu-
lar ornaments for mission-style buildings. This
type of decorative glazed terra-cotta is also
popular in Italy and Spain, where it is still
The terra-cotta and brick facade of produced and widely used.
the Russell Hotel, London (1898),
by Fitzroy Doll. A great deal of old terra-cotta and faience is
still to be seen in large cities, mainly dating
from the 19th century. Much of what was
produced in Victorian times was fired at too
low a temperature. It deteriorated quickly and
architects became wary of using it for deco-
rations on a large scale. When well-fired, it
has proved durable in urban atmospheres as
can be seen in the facades of the Natural
History Museum in London (1868), designed
by Alfred Waterhouse (1830-1905). The
terra-cotta blocks must be relatively small so
that distortions which occur in firing do not
become too exaggerated. Since the material Conical roof being woven out of
also shrinks about one-twelfth during this straw in southern Mozambique.
process, all the elements have to be designed
with this in mind. In the 19th century it
became common to make terra-cotta blocks
hollow with walls up to I in. (25 mm) thick. the techniques employed in their use, together
The blocks were often designed to fit around with their degree of exposure to wind, snow,
structural elements such as iron or steel and rain. Vegetable materials, stone slabs,
frames, which added to their fireproofing , or and animal hides were certainly the first
to be closely linked to a brick backing wall. m?.terials used to produce water-shedding
Sometimes the blocks were filled with con- surfaces.
crete.
Detail of terra-cotta work on the
facade ofthe Russell Hotel, London
Vegetable materials
(1898). Roofing materials and tiles Thatching is one of the oldest and most
widespread forms of roofing. Thatched roofs
Roofs are the parts of buildings most exposed consist of bundles or layers of reeds, straw,
to the elements. The creation of a surface grass, or heather laid onto a sloping
capable of shedding water adequately has framework. The slope and the thickness of the
always been one of the most taxing tasks for material work together to form a waterproof
builders in all but the most arid climates. In covering.
all other regions, sloping roofs of one kind or Roofs thatched in straw that has been badly
another have been used almost universally threshed often retain seeds which attract birds
until relatively recently, when dependable and and rodents, thereby considerably reducing
cheap methods of flat roofing became poss- the life of a roof. Mechanical threshing
ible. renders straw useless for thatching. A roof
The traditional roof forms of any particular expertly thatched with reeds specially grown
region depend on the materials available and for the purpose may last up to 100 years.
 248 Roofing materials and tiles

Complex shapes can be created with thatch restricted to areas close to quarries. In Bri-
since it can be laid with ease around valleys, tain, these 18th-century improvements made
dormers, and ridges in gently flowing lines, slate a strong competitor with most other
without the introduction of other materials. roofing materials on account of its relative
Thatch has a high insulation value but is lightness and durability and the fact that it
extremely inflammable. could be laid at a low pitch. Many of the
A combination of layers of overlapping towns that sprang up during the Industrial
strips of birch bark, covered with grass sod, Revolution are almost entirely roofed in slate.
moss, or other protective layers, was a trad-
itional roofing method in parts of northern
Europe, while in areas of the world within the Clay tiles
palm tree belt, roofs are often made with Clay tiles are thought to have originated in
Thatched roof in southern "tiles" of woven or matted palm fronds. China. Tiles dating back to 1000 BC are known
Mozambique. Shingles made from split or sawn log drums from remains found at the temple of Hera at
are an old form of roofing material. Many of Olympia in Greece, and they were introduced
the buildings of ancient Rome were shingled. into most parts of southern Europe by the
Shingles vary in length and breadth, but are Romans . Their use died out in many places
normally wedge-shaped in section. Round or with the collapse of the Empire only to be
patterned shapes were sometimes cut on the revived in the Middle Ages. These early tiles
ends of shingles used to roof important build- depend on two elements to achieve a water-
ings in northern Europe, as can be seen on proof surface. Wide, slightly curved slabs
some of the stave churches in Norway. (tegulae) were laid side to side with their ends
Shingled roofs are light and relatively durable. overlapping the course lower down. The gap
They may last up to 60 years if they are laid between the tiles was covered with over-
properly to an adequate slope and employ a lapping semicylindrical elements (imbrex), to
- - wood such as western red cedar, which has a prevent water entering the joint. Forms in this
Traditional Japanese thatched roof suitable grain and oils that inhibit the growth family are known as "Normal," " Asiatic," or
from a building near Tokyo; from a of fungus. "Roman" tiles.
late 19th-century drawing. All vegetable-based roofing materials are Tiling systems based on the imbrex and
inflammable to a greater or lesser extent, tegula principle developed characteristic local
making their use hazardous in tightly packed forms throughout the ancient world south of
urban areas. There are many records of about 44°N. In some cases, a narrow tegula
Roman and medieval legislation which and a wide imbrex were employed, while in
restricted or prevented the use of these some Roman and Greek forms, the tegula has
materials in congested towns. a flat bottom and vertical sides. The most
common and simplest form of this type of tile
is one in which the imbrex and tegula are
Stone identical, semiconical elements up to 2ft. (60
Overlapping slabs of stone may form a water- em) long, that fit loosely over each other. This
tight surface in much the same way as is the traditional tile of the Mediterranean
shingles. Slate is a popular roofing stone region, and its use extends over large parts of
wherever it is found, since it splits easily Asia. It is made by various processes-it can
Roofs of plaited palm fronds in along its bedding planes into thin slabs. Slates be formed over a master mold, it can be made
northern Mozambique. are generally cut or shaped to regular, often by cutting a cone thrown on a potter's wheel
rectangular shapes and fixed to battens by down the middle, as is the practice in parts of
some form of nailing. In some places how- India, or it can be made by machine. Decora-
ever, such as in Galicia in Spain, irregular tive molded ridge and eaves tiles were often
slabs of varying sizes are laid over each other employed to add interest to roofs. Imbrex and
to form very distinctive roofs. tegula tiles can be laid loosely on a sub-
Stone flags or stone tiles made from sand- structure, and in exposed situations stones or
stones or limestone were a common method other forms of weight may be placed on the
of roofing in many parts of the world. Roofs roof to prevent tiles being blown off. In China
covered in these stones are heavier and and Japan roof tiles are often bedded in mud.
generally coarser than those covered in slate. Clay tiles which are laid in a similar fashion
The stones were often rounded at the top to to shingles are the common form in northern
reduce weight and were fixed to battens or Europe. The tiles are laid in regular courses,
laths with wooden pegs or animal bones. It is but in order to protect the joints between tiles,
usual to find larger slabs near the eaves with each tile overlaps two others, leaving only
diminishing courses up to the ridge. "Mortar about two-fifths of the surface exposed. In
torching'.' on the inside of the roofing slabs order to shed water and snow, roofs of this
was generally used to prevent wind and snow type have high pitches, generally exceeding
Manufacture of roofing slates at a
quarry in Wales (late 19th century).
being blown in through the spaces left bet- 45". Clay tiles are also used as a cladding for
ween the stones. walls. These tiles are thought to have origi-
Until the advent of cheap and reliable nated as a more durable and less inflammable
waterborne transportation, slate roofing was substitute for shingles. This, the "Germanic"
 Roofing materials and tiles 249

or shingle form of tile, is known in England as

the plain tile. These tiles often have a marked
camber in order to prevent capillary infilt-
rations , and are held in place by nailing or by
• ribs molded onto the back of the tile. Because
of the double lapping, roofs of this type are
fairly heavy. The tiles vary in size from region
to region, but their dimensions in England
were standardized by Act of Parliament in
1477 as 10.5 x 6.5 in. (262.5 x 162.5 mm).
Steep and complex roof shapes, charac-
The slate roofs of a French town in teristic of northern Europe, are easil y
the Loire valley. achieved in this tile by using specially formed
ridge and valley elements. Varying textures
and patterns are possible by using tiles with
decoratively shaped, exposed ends and by
using multicolored tiles.
Before the Industrial Revolution, a third
family of tiles developed. These are known as Plain tiles used on a house in
Sussex, England. Complex roof
pantiles or "Belgic" tiles. The tiles are shapes are possible in this tile.
S-shaped and are formed in such a way that
each tile covers the side joint with its
neighbor. The amount of overlapping is
greatly reduced with this type of tile, making
roofs considerably lighter than with the plain
tile. Roofs can be laid quite safely at lower
pitches~own to 30°-thus reducing the
amount of roof framing required. This type of
tile is best suited to simple roof forms.
The pantile may have developed in Holland
or Belgium, where it replaced other types of
roof covering. It was introduced into England
in the 17th century where it became popular in
the eastern counties. Its dimensions were
fixed at 13.5 x 9.5 x 0.5 in. (337.5 x 237.5 x
12.5 mm) during the reign of George I. This
tile is extensively used in Scandinavia and
was introduced into Java by the Dutch.
Gauge controlling the dimensions Glazed pantiles have occasionally been popu- Pantile roof.
of roof tiles, from the market place lar. A similar form developed, perhaps inde-
in Athens (5th century BC). pendently, in Japan. It is interesting to note
that the Japanese form laps to the left when
viewed from the ground, whereas in other
countries lapping is invariably to the right.
The Japanese "Yedo" tile, found in Tokyo
and Kyoto, is often finished at the eaves in
such a way that it looks like an older form of
imbrex and tegula tile.
During the 19th century a large number of
different, specially shaped, interlocking clay
tiles were designed and patented. By the
1830s a variety of nontraditional shapes were
available in France. A special form known as
the "Marseilles" tile was being widely used in
France and exported throughout the world by
the 1860s. Most of these new forms were
made on accurate molds by hand or produced
IJ
·" by machinery. Their profiles are usually com-
Ancient Greek terra-cotta roofing plicated , having systems of grooves and ridges
tiles with decorative 'antefix' intended to reduce the amount of overlap Shingled roof on a stave church at
closing piece. necessary to achieve a weathertight surface. Borgund, Norway (1150).
These tiles can generally be laid without risk
at considerably lower pitches than the tra-
ditional forms , in some cases below 15°.
Because they often have a thinner overall
 250 Roofing materials and tiles

thickness and require a minimum of overlaps require a flat or boarded surface for support.
to shed water, these tiles are generally lighter Roofs may be waterproofed with hot-laid
and therefore reduce the roof framing neces- asphalt or other liquid materials that set to
sary to support them. form a watertight surface. Roofing felt, water-
Concrete tiles, imitating the forms and proofed with wood tar, was introduced in
colors of traditional and modem interlocking Sweden in the 18th century. Asphalt roofing
tiles, have been manufactured since the 1920s. became popular in the 19th century when
These tiles have gained popularity, as they are natural deposits of bituminous limestones
often considerably cheaper than clay ones and were commercially developed. Lake Asphalt
can be made to accurate tolerances. Most tiles from Trinidad has a high reputation, together
used today are laid over a lining of felt or with deposits in France and Switzerland, from
other waterproof material to reduce drafts in which numerous patent compositions
the roof space and to reduce the danger of emerged.
leaks if tiles are dislodged. Bituminous felt is a popular roofing material
Mass production of concrete roof
tiles.
Greek tiles made out of marble are known of relatively recent origin. It is normally laid
from the 6th century BC, while the use of on flat roofs as a composite of a number of
bronze tiles is recorded by Pliny. The British layers, carefully sealed with pitch.
Houses of Parliament, designed by Charles Bituminous-felt shingles are a widely used
Barry (1795-1860), are roofed in large cast- material for sloping roofs.
iron tiles. Plastic-based materials, such as hypalon,
have been developed for roofing. In many
cases, joints between sheets are welded
Corrugated sheeting together on site.
Corrugated wrought-iron sheeting, invented
by H. R. Palmer in 1829 for roofing ware-
The first corrugated-iron roofs
houses in the London Dock, brought a new
were used in these warehouse
sheds at the London Dock (1829), form of roofing material onto the market. Wall and floor tiles
by Henry Robinson Palmer. Until his invention, all roofing needed con- Decorated wall and floor tiles were made in
siderable quantities of ever-diminishing pieces Egypt as early as the 3rd dynasty. The
of framing to support small scale-like elements Assyrians and the Babylonians had glazed
that shed the water. Alternatively, roofs had wall tiles and bricks in the 9th century BC,
to be close-boarded so that thin metal or other with designs painted on the surface with
non-self-supporting waterproof sheeting could colored glazes. This technique died out in the
be laid. Corrugated iron, the first self- 4th century BC and neither the Greeks nor the
supporting light sheet material, required only Romans used tiles for decorative purposes.
minimal framing and could be made to span The Romans made use of both marble and
between purlins, thus eliminating rafters, bat- clay tiles for their houses and civic buildings,
tens, and boarding. sometimes with mosaic infilling. The use of
Corrugated iron became even more attrac- glazed tiles was revived in the Moslem coun-
tive when it could be given a protective layer tries, as a result of contact with China. The
of zinc by hotdip galvanizing, which became Persians made both luster and mosaic tiles
commercially available in the 1840s. It is an from the 13th century onward, the mosaic
easy material to transport, as it packs together consisting of large monochrome tiles cut up
tightly, and can be laid rapidly by relatively into small pieces and reassembled to form
unskilled labor-hence its popularity for mili- complex designs. The method reached its
tary hutting, agricultural and industrial build- peak in the 14th century and outstanding
ing, and any other large enclosures. examples can be seen at Isfahan, in Persia,
Vinyl corrugated sheeting for
Self-supporting, flat, or curved sheeting is and at Samarkand, in Uzbekistan.
roofs. Insert shows drive screw, made in many other materials with a great In Persia, mosaic tiles were gradually aban-
vinyl washer, and cap. variety of surface treatments. Both steel and doned in favor of painted faience, a fashion
aluminum corrugated sheets are supplied with which spread throughout the Islamic countries
specially applied paint surfaces or plastic of Asia and North Mrica and eventually to
sheet coatings. Aluminum may have special Spain, where it can be seen in the Alhambra
anodized surface treatments that increase its at Granada and the Alcazar at Seville. Deco-
life and enhance its appearance. Transparent rated tiles were rarely used in Europe, outside
and translucent sheets are made in a variety of the Iberian Peninsula, until the end of the 12th
plastics, and corrugated asbestos sheeting has century, and then only for floors. The Italians
been available since about 1910. particularly favoured marble mosaics, but in
northern Europe the cheaper tile mosaics and
inlaid tiles were preferred. The inlaid tiles
Other roofing materials were made by pressing a carved wooden
Sheet lead and copper have been used as design on the surface of the dried tile before
roofing materials since antiquity. They can be firing and then filling the design with clay of a
laid relatively flat, but are expensive and different color.
 Plaster 251

Decorated glazed wall tiles were made in purposes, both inside and outside buildings,
the Low Countries from the 14th century the plaster was usually made of a mixture of
onward. Majolica tiles were being made there lime and sand, with a little ox or cow hair
and exported in the early 16th century. added as a binding agent, to prevent the
Concern for hygiene in the 19th century led plaster from cracking.
to the development of many forms of mass- During the 15th and 16th centuries, the
produced glazed tiles. These accurately made Italians began to study Roman techniques of
tiles, with special elements for comers and plastering and fresco painting. They used a
angles as well as other moldings, made it stucco duro , a mixture of air-slaked lime and
possible to make easy-to-clean interiors for marble dust, with a little gypsum added in
toilets, dairies, butchers' shops, and the like. order to help it set. Henry VII's Palace of
Nonsuch contained stucco decorations, por-
Plaster tions of which have been discovered during
excavations, still in excellent condition.
For at least 3,000 years builders have Much more elaborate plaster ornamentation
experimented with methods of covering was carried out in England from the 17th
masonry and the various types of earth wal- century onward; the influence of Inigo Jones
ling with a smooth layer which would protect (1573-1652), Sir Christopher Wren (1632-
the material underneath, improve the appear- 1723), and Grinling Gibbons (1648-1720)
ance of the building, and, in some cases, make being very marked. Gibbons in particular
it easier to apply decoration. Gypsum plaster specialized in plaster sculpture with wires,
has often been favored for the purpose. twigs, and strips of lead used to reinforce the
Calcium sulfate plasters are made either representations of fruit and flowers. English
from gypsum or from anhydrate. By calcining craftsmen included a wide range of substances
gypsum at 266°-338°F (130°-l70°C) for about in the plaster mix , such as fruit juices, beer,
three hours, three-quarters of the water is cow dung, blood, cheese, milk, and beeswax
driven off and plaster of Paris, or hemihydrate to improve the quality.
plaster, is formed. At 752°F (400°C) all the In the mid-18th century, architects began to
Medieval English encaustic floor water is driven off and anhydrous sulfate is favor another group of stucco mixtures,
tiles. A stamp bearing a design in produced, much the same result being known as oil mastics or oleaginous cements.
relief was impressed upon them, obtained by grinding the raw mineral anhy- Two of them, patented in 1765 and 1773, were
leaving an ornamental pattern on drate. bought by the Adam brothers, who marketed
the tile. Before fixing, the
depression would be filled with a Hemihydrate plaster, made by roasting them, first as "Adams Patent Stucco" and
clay of another color. Tiles of this gypsum in shallow pits, was made by the later as "Adams Cement." This substance
type were mass produced in the Egyptians, who preferred it to lime mortar or was used as a rendering on the fronts of a
19th century. lime plaster, because wood fuel was scarce number of buildings in Bedford Square and
and lime burning needs three times as much other prestigious London building projects for
fuel as gypsum burning. The Egyptians used which the Adam brothers were responsible.
1 gypsum plaster to cover brickwork and stone Other later compositions were patented by
as a means of producing a surface suitable for Dihl in 1815 and 1816 and by Hamelin in 1817.
painting. Both the pyramids at Giza and the Dihl's cement contained linseed oil, lead
tombs at Saqqara contain gypsum plaster used oxide, china clay, and ground brick, thinned
in this W<\Y. Gypsum is soluble in water and is with turpentine. Hamelin used a mixture of
consequently a poor material for outside use powdered limestone, brick dust, sand, lead
in countries which have high rainfall. Gypsum oxide, and linseed oil. Both of these cements
plaster was introduced into England from were used by the architect John Nash (1752-
France in the 13th century; hence its popular 1835).
name, "plaster of Paris." Expanded metal lath has generally replaced
To make plaster of Paris suitable for build- the wooden laths that were traditionally used
ing work, small quantities of keratin, made by as grounds for plastering. Metal lath is often
boiling hom, hoof, or animal hair in caustic used in suspended ceilings when complex
soda, have to be added to retard the set. The shapes need to be built up. Plaster .can be
anhydrous calcium sulfate, on the other hand, given various special properties by incor-
needs an accelerator. This resulted, in the porating special additives; it can, for example,
early 19th century, in the marketing of a be made with a fibrous content to increase its
number of brand name plasters. Until the 20th properties of sound absorption.
century, however, plaster of Paris was rather Since the end of the 19th century, with the
• '-1 - - . . ....,. expensive, and it was consequently reserved invention of gypsum board and the decline of
~~~-~·~~~~~~·~~~-~~~~~~ for providing the walls and ceilings of impor- elaborate decoration, wet-laid plaster has
tant houses and civic buildings with a smooth, gradually been replaced by this dry material
hard finish , sometimes with ornamentation. for the lining of interiors in frame buildings. In
These ornamental cornices, ceiling roses, some countries it is now common to use a
Design for plaster ceiling festoons, niches, medallions, and the like portland-cement-based mixture for internal
from a 19th-century plasterers' were often made in factories and sold to plastering of masonry construction for all but
handbook.
builders via catalogs. For more ordinary the finest work.
 252 Mortar and cement

Mortar and cement have reliable hydraulic cements. Inventors

realized their opportunity, and by 1850 three
The most primitive type of walling consists types of cement were available for making a
simply of stones placed one on top of another, mortar which would set in a damp atmosphere
with no bonding material to fill the joints and or in the absence of air. These were the
hold them together. This technique, in the so-called natural hydraulic cements, the arti-
hands of a good craftsman, can produce a ficial or proprietary cements, and the true
Lime kilns (c. 1870) shown in surprisingly strong wall; but it allows damp portland cements.
section; LEFT-empty, and wind to penetrate easily and cannot The natural cements were made by burning
RIGHT-ready for firing. normally be used for structures much more stone which contained a suitable mixture of
than 8-10 ft. (2.5-3 m) high. For anything lime, alumina, and silica. Several patents for
more ambitious or complex, the stones or these cements were taken out between 1790
bricks have to be firmly attached to one and 1830. One of the best known was James
another, and mortar is essential. A mortar Parker's (1796). It was made from the septaria
made from sand and slaked lime was common or nodules of argillaceous limestone which
in classical times, and it was the only kind to were found in large quantities along the
be used throughout the Middle Ages and until northern shore of the Thames estuary, par-
comparatively recently. ticularly around the coast of the Isle of
Many experiments were made during the Sheppey. So much of this material was taken
18th and early 19th centuries in order to from the foreshore that in 1825 the British
discover ways of improving lime mortar. The government prohibited any digging closer than
traditional method was first to bum chalk or 50 ft. (15 m) from the cliffs. Parker mis-
limestone, and then to mix it with sand and leadingly called his product Roman cement.
water. This produced a mortar which hard- After his patent elapsed in 1810, Roman or
ened as the calcium hydroxide converted into natural cement used material from several
calcium carbonate. The process was slow and sources along the eastern and southern coasts
affected only the outside of the mortar layer, of Britain. Parker's cement was used a good
so that the bond was relatively weak. If some deal by both Thomas Telford (1757-1834) and
form of siliceous matter, such as volcanic ash Marc Isambard Brunei (1769-1849).
or burned clay, was added to the mixture, a In 1818 the American canal engineer, Can-
Portable steam-operated mortar much stronger material was obtained, with the vass White, discovered a source of natural
mill (c. 1880). whole mass of the mortar becoming more hydraulic cement near Sullivan, New York.
resistant to rain or seawater. The Greeks and These local deposits of clayish magnesian
Romans made much use of these siliceous limestone became known as cement rock.
additions. or pozzolanas- the name comes White used it originally for facework on the
from Pozzuoli in Italy, where a natural source walls and aqueducts of the Erie Canal, but by
of such material exists in the form of volcanic 1850 it had been adopted throughout the U.S.
earth. This is one of the main reasons their for many different kinds of structure. Between
structures have lasted so long. The Romans 1819, the date of White's patent, and the
used both natural pozzolanic material and middle of the century, natural cement was
crushed bricks, tiles, and pottery. With the discovered at a number of sites along the
help of these strong mortars, they were able eastern seaboard, in Kentucky, and Illinois.
to design buildings with much thinner walls, The best product came from Rosendale, New
and to construct arches and vaults with York. Rosendale cement proved superior to
complete confidence. White's cement, and it was the most favored
Water-resistant or hydraulic lime mortar by builders and engineers until the estab-
can also be obtained by burning a mixture of lishment of an artificial cement industry in
limestone and clay, a discovery made in the America during the 1870s.
second half of the 18th century. In 1754, John The artificial or proprietary cements were
Smeaton (1724-92) visited the Netherlands made by mixing limestone or chalk with clay
and observed the successful use of what was or shale, by rule-of-thumb methods, and then
known as tarras mortar--a mixture of poz- burning the mixture at a temperature of
zolanic earth and slaked lime-in the con- between 2,012° and 2,372°F (1 ,100° and
struction of harbor works and sea defenses. 1,300°C), which achieved partial vitrification
Smeaton experimented with different types of of the material. Joseph Aspdin's so-called
limestone and found that burned Aberthaw portland cement, for which he was granted a
Roman concrete wall using
puzzolanic mortar combined with a blue lias (limestone), which contained clay, patent in 1824, probably belongs to this group
stone facing and rubble fill, at produced a cement which hardened effec- although the patent says nothing about kiln
Hadrian's Villa. tively. In the construction of the Eddystone temperature. All that is known of his method
lighthouse he used a mixture of Aberthaw lias is that he burned a mixture of limestone and
and pozzolana from Italy. clay at a temperature high enough to produce
The demand for stucco as a facing for a glassy clinker. When this was ground to a
buildings and the greatly increased scale of powder, it yielded a stronger and more reli-
civil engineering works--cana ls, harbors, able cement than had hitherto been achieved.
bridges, and railroads made it essential to It is impossible to say whether Aspdin was
 Concrete 253

the first to produce portland cement, but he Concrete

certainly originated the name, choosing it
because of its resemblance to Portland stone
which enjoyed a high reputation for quality. Roman concrete
By the 1850s the true portland cements The invention of concrete is normally attrib-
constituted a third, distinct group. They con- uted to the Romans who revolutionized build-
sisted mainly of calcium silicates, produced ing by its use. It is conjectured that its special
by raising the material to a temperature of properties were discovered near Putoli (mod-
around 2,500°F (I ,370°C) in order to have as em Puzzoli near Naples) where the inhabit-
complete a reaction as possible between the ants used local volcanic dust or sand as a filler
lime and the silica, although this was dis- combined with lime mortar. This "filler"
covered by trial and error and the chemical material improved the quality of the mortar by
processes were not understood at the time. making it set harder and faster as well as
The first reliable portland cement was pro- underwater. Similar types of sand are found
duced in 1845 by I.C. Johnson in Kent, over a large area of Italy, south of Lake
England. Portland cement works, to be econom- Bolsena, and their varying properties became
ically viable, had to be close to readily avail- known by slow experiment over the years. A
able sources of chalk and clay. concrete made with similar mortars and stone
Cement kilns were originally of the inter- aggregate was used from ancient times on the
mittent type. The first continuous kiln, the Greek island of Thera, but its use did not spread
Dietsch kiln, was introduced from Germany throughout the Greek-speaking world.
in 1880. The first successful rotary kiln, which In 199 BC, the harbor of Putoli was built
allowed the raw materials to be fed into the using pozzolanic material which allowed the
kiln as a slurry without the need for previous cement to set underwater. Concrete was used
drying, was not in operation until 1900. in many buildings and civil engineering pro-
Scientific cement production was pioneered jects, and by the Augustan era its use was
in Germany. By 1875, the best German generalized. Roman bridges often consisted of
cements were reaching compression strengths an arch of single stone thickness with spandril
80% higher than in 1860 and tests made in walls built of masonry coursed as headers and
1885 showed a further increase of 60% com- stretchers, with the headers projecting into Ruins of the Baths of Caracalla in
pared with 1875. Without these greatly the core of the structure which, when com- Rome (AD211-217). The piers have
lost their brick facing skins,
improved cements, reinforced concrete con- pleted, was filled with concrete to form a exposing the concrete core.
struction would have been difficult. well-bonded monolithic mass. This method
Since the 1880s, a number of specialized greatly reduced the labor in making the
portland cements and cement additives have falsework, by using elements that only had to
been developed. These include cements that be strong enough to support one ring of stones
harden rapidly, evolve less heat of hydration at a time and could be used again, an
than normal, resist various forms of chemical advantage since shuttering would invariably
attack, have water-repellent or waterproof be made out of timber, which was often
characteristics, and many other properties. scarce. The technique of building concrete
White cement is manufactured in special kilns arches also vastly reduced the work in pro-
from white china clay and white limestone. ducing precise masonry.
Colored cements can be made by adding By the end of the Imperial regime, the
pigments to white or gray portland cement. Romans were using concrete in bridges and
Cements may be made resistant to rapid other structures without relying upon any
deterioration in moist atmospheres by coating other masonry structural members. Large
the particles with water-repellent film-the Roman walls were commonly built with two
film is rubbed off when the cement is mixed facing skins of stone or brick with a core of
with the aggregate and hydration takes place concrete. A special form of flat triangular
normally. Additives to cement include pro- brick was often used with its point projecting
ducts that make mixes more workable, requir- into the concrete core in order to bond it in.
ing less water to be used. Accelerators These became especially popular after
increase the rate of setting and strength Tiberius, when large centralized brickyards
development. Retarders, on the other hand, could provide regular supplies. This facing
reduce the rate of setting and have various was known as "opus testacium." Other types
useful applications. of facing commonly used form the bases upon
High-alumina cements were evolved to which Roman structures can be classified and
develop early strength, resist certain chem- dated-these include "opus mixtum" and
icals, and resist high temperatures. These "opus reticulum." Roman concrete was nor-
cements have been misused in some situations mally made by pouring pozzolanic cement on
which have led to structural failures. Super- layers of small broken stones (caementa) and
sulfated cements also have special chemical- repeating the process until the structure was
resistant properties and evolve comparatively filled.
little heat in setting which makes them useful Baths and utilitarian buildings such as
for mass concrete in hot climates. warehouses and markets had been vaulted in
254 Concrete

concrete since the 1st century BC. The fire

which destroyed large parts of Rome in AD 64
in Nero's time helped establish regulations
which attempted to impose strict controls on
construction. Buildings were restricted in
height to 70 ft. (21 m), they had to be
structurally independent of one another, and
the use of inflammable materials was severely
restricted. Concrete was the material suited to
answer these needs. New concepts of space
made possible by the use of concrete were
evolved and absorbed over a very short
period, completely revolutionizing the forms
of enclosed structures except in the most
conservative areas of religious building where
traditional forms persisted, often as a thin
veneer over a concrete core. Domes, vaults,
and extensive walls became the elements of a
new architectural vocabulary which was used
with great skill and confidence on a large scale
that would have been difficult in any other
material.
In the period after the fire, the use of The revival of concrete The Eddystone Lighthouse (1756)
built by John Smeaton using
concrete spread to an ever-increasing range of carefully chosen hydraulic
buildings including the famous Golden House During the Dark Ages, the use of concrete mortars. It was reerected at South
of Nero, built in AD 64, where the architects died out except in isolated areas where its Point of Hoe in 1882.
Severns and Celer used concrete walls, working was passed from father to son.
domes, and vaults to great effect. Interest in concrete was revived after 1414
The Pantheon, which was built in AD when a manuscript of Pollio Vitruvius was
118-128, illustrates the degree to which discovered in a Swiss monastery. Vitruvius ,
Roman concrete construction could be taken. who completed his famous books on architec-
The hemispherical dome has an internal ture in about AD 27, discussed the properties
diameter of 143ft. (43 m), which continued to of concrete and the various forms of poz-
be the largest span for this type of structure zolanic earths at considerable length. The first
until well into the 20th century. At the base, edited version of his work was printed in
the walls are 20ft. (6 m) thick, narrowing to 4 1486. Fra Giocondo (c. 1433-1515), who
ft. (1.2 m) at the crown where a 30 ft. (9 m) edited a text of Vitruvius which was published
oculus was open to the sky. The aggregate in Venice in 1511, used pozzolanic mortar in
material (caementa) was varied at different the pier of the Pont de Notre Dame in Paris in
levels in the construction. At the lower levels, 1499. He claimed to have made the first
large tufa stones were incorporated to help recorded use of concrete since Roman times.
bear the heavy load, while further up lighter Old workings of pozzolanic material in the
stones were used culminating in pumice and area between Koblenz and Cologne may cast
hollow clay jars, which considerably reduced some doubt on this statement. This material,
the burden of the dome. At the crown, the known as Rhenish trass, was used for many
material has two-thirds of the weight per unit of the protective works of the Low Countries.
volume of the material in the lower parts of John Smeaton (1724-92), who began to
the structure. There are complex systems of erect the Eddystone Lighthouse in 1756,
brick arches that go through the body of the needed a strong hydraulic mortar to help bind
dome to strengthen it, a slightly unusual and point his dovetailed blocks of Portland
feature in Roman concrete construction of stone. He conducted extensive research into
this date. the properties and methods of making mortars
Large public buildings such as the many and cements and experimented with .Italian
baths, amphitheaters, forums, and basilicas pozzolana and Rhenish trass which he had
were built out of concrete. The Baths of seen used in Holland. Both types served him
Diocletian erected in AD 302 are a good well and his meticulous reports on the work
example. For smaller buildings, including were useful to later engineers. Mass concrete
domestic apartment complexes, the surviving was first used on a large scale in Britain at the
remains of Ostia, largely built after the end of West India Dock built in 1800 by William
the 1st century AD , provide an idea of the Jessop (1745-1815), who was the son of
extent to which concrete was employed. Smeaton's principal assistant on the Eddy-
Concrete continued to be widely used until stone Lighthouse. It is probable that the
the end of the Roman Empire. The vaults and cement employed in this case was Parker's
arches at the lower levels of St Sophia in " Roman cement" which was first marketed in
Constantinople (AD 540), are made in concrete. 1796. It contained natural argillaceous lime-
 Concrete 255

stone which was found in nodules in tertiary his business continued to prosper. Burnham
strata near Northtleet where Parker set up a and Root's Phoenix Building in Chicago
factory to bum and grind the material. (1885-86) was built with his materials. Other
Natural hydraulic cement was discovered in important manufacturers of artificial stones
the U.S. by Canvas White in 1818 and was included E. L. Ransome, who set up a
extensively used in the docks, abutment company in San Francisco in 1868, and the
works, culverts, and other constructions New York and Long Island Coignet Stone
associated with the Erie Canal. His "water Company which was established in the early
lime" cement continued to be used until the 1870s and held the American rights to Coig-
1890s. Similar deposits were found in many net's patents.
In-situ concrete house under
other countries making the use of these construction; from an American
cements widespread. drawing of 1886.
Reinforced concrete-the early
Portland cement was invented by the
experiments
Englishman Joseph Aspdin (1779-1855) in
about 1811. He made his artificial cement by The combination of concrete, which normally
burning a controlled mixture of clay and consists of well-mixed cement, sand, and
limestone. He patented his process in 1824 stones, with some form of reinforcing 0f other
and moved his factory from Wakefield near materials, has an obscure early history. Con-
Leeds, to Gateshead on the Thames. Obadiah crete by itself is weak in tension, and Illany
Parker from New York developed a similar attempts were made to remedy this by
cement to Aspdin's in the 1830s and built a embedding other materials in the body of
number of houses in which monolithic walls of structural elements. Ralph Dodd, a British
that material were used. Isaac Charles engineer, took out a patent in 1818 for
Johnson improved (1844 patent) on Aspdin's including wrought-iron bars in concrete.
cement by heating materials of closely con- Michele's machine for testing Thomas Telford (1757-1834) used iron bars in
trolled chemical composition to a sintering cement briquettes (c. 1870). the concrete abutments of the Menai Bridge
temperature of 2,550°F (I ,398°C) evolving a (1825) to tie them together more firmly and in
more reliable product, very similar to the type 1829 Dr Fox, also in England, developed a
generally used today. method of filling the space between iron
Concrete became a popular material for the girders with this material, and he patented this
foundations of buildings and for other civil in 1844.
engineering works. Early in the 19th century, In the 1850s, a large number of inventions
French engineers used massive concrete were patented for combining iron with con-
blocks (344 cu. ft./9.7 cu. m) for a harbor crete. W. B. Wilkinson, an engineer and
works at Algiers and Louis-Joseph Vicat inventor from Newcastle, invented a system
(1786-1861), a French polytechnician, of using old wire colliery ropes and iron bars
developed methods of testing the properties of in concrete beams in 1854. He built a cottage
hydraulic limes; these he published in 1818 in about 1865 which was made entirely of
and 1828. These scientific studies form the concrete reinforced in this way. When it was
basis of many tests still used today, and made demolished in 1954, the reinforcement was
it possible for manufacturers of cement to found to be in the correct lower portion within
control the quality of their products carefully the beams and slabs, so as to resist efficiently
and accurately. Other French scientists made
Precast concrete blocks imitating the tensile forces which occur in bending. In
masonry building elements (late
further contributions to the theoretical know- 19th century).
1849, Lambot made a boat of concrete rein-
ledge of cement and its properties throughout forced with iron rods, which was exhibited at
the century. Of these, A. L. Lavoisier (1743- the Paris Exhibition of 1854. This boat lasted
94), Le Chatlier, and Feret deserve special
mention.
In the U.S., natural cements, or portland
cement imported from Britain, continued to
be used until David 0. Saylor began to
manufacture artificial portland cement at Cop-
ley, Pennsylvania, in 1871. Many man-
ufacturers of "artificial" building stone had
sprung up in the U.S. from the 1850s onward,
and this was one of the most popularly used
forms of the material. G. A. Frear, who set Concrete block-making machine
up a company in Chicago in 1868 to man- shown with three blocks ready for
ufacture his patent blocks, made many forms removal (early 20th century).
including decorative elements and trim that
would have been very expensive if hand-
carved in stone. His products were used in The suspension bridge over the
many Chicago buildings and his influence Menai Straits, Wales (1815-26), by
Thomas Telford. Iron bars are used
spread as far as San Francisco.His "stone" in the concrete of the abutments.
behaved well in the Chicago fire of 1871, so
 256 Concrete

method to one invented by the British cor-

rugated iron contractor, J. H . Porter, in the
late 1840s, which in turn was a development
of a system that had been used by William
Fairbairn with arches of flat plate between
beams in his refinery building of 1845.
Between 1871-76, William E. Ward built his
own palatial residence at Chester, New York,
in which all the structural elements were in
Flooring system combining iron reinforced concrete. The building was
well into the 20th century, but the techniques
joists and corrugated-iron arches designed by Robert Hook, and the system of
used in making it were not widely exploited
with concrete fill. From the catalog construction was inspired by the patents of
for some years to come. Fran9ois Coignet in
of the Philadelphia Architectural
Monier and Coignet. This large house, which
Iron Company (1872).
his first of many patents (1855) invented a cost over $100,000 at the time, was thoroughly
~::::::=-- system of combining concrete with iron joists. tested structurally by having large loads
Joseph Monier (1823-1906), a Parisian gar- imposed on the floors before it was com-
_..,_..,._.- dener, began to use iron mesh as rein- pleted. Only small deflections were noted in
forcement in concrete flower tubs in 1861. He the slabs, but this building remained an
extended his very successful method, which isolated phenomenon in the U.S. for about 15
1..-..---- he patented in 1867, to other articles such as years.
' - - - - containers, pipes, and railroad sleepers.
t::::::::~~ These products were exhibited at the Paris
Reinforced concrete-early structures
~~~~~~~~~~~ 1,_.....,.,..- concrete
~ Exhibitionarticles
,.---,ur
Coignet, with
by together
of 1867, reinforced-
and were noted
by many visitors. Monier built an arched 52
ft. (16m) bridge in 1875, but his floor slabs, in
Fran9ois Hennebique (1843-1921), one of the
great French pioneers of reinforced concrete,
began work in 1879. In his early work he
Reinforced-concrete system by which he did not position the reinforcement established the best position for reinforcing
Francois Hennebique (1892), efficiently, were not a great success. within a concrete section. In beams this was
showing positions of reinforcing Work on grading of cements and aggregates found to be in the lower portion where tensile
bars in cutaway sections.
undertaken in France made possible the pro- stresses are at their strongest. He may have
duction of reliable mixes, without which all known of Hyatt's work, and certainly took
these products would have had unreliable advantage of the theoretical research done in
properties. France in the previous decades. Hennebique
In the early 1850s, Thaddeus Hyatt (1816- patented his ideas in 1892 and these were all
1901), a British lawyer who had established used over Europe and parts of the Americas.
himself in the U.S., experimented inde- By 1900 he himself had been responsible for
pendently with the use of flat iron bars which over 3,000 structures in reinforced concrete,
were perforated at intervals to receive trans- of which at least 100 were bridges. The others
verse round bars. He concluded that these were mainly industrial buildings. Hennebique
would perform best in the tension zone of the maintained a reputation of being an excellent
concrete beam or slab. Hyatt made many contractor and able businessman. In the 1890s
remarkable deductions about the behavior of he built a villa for himself in Bourg-la-Reine in
reinforced concrete, advocating the use of which he demonstrated some of the unique
T-beams and remarking on the similar co- structural possibilities of concrete even
Weaver and Company granary and efficients of thermal expansion of iron and though the house was decorated in the idiom
flour mill in Swansea, Wales concrete. He continued his work in England of the time. The villa employed large can-
(1895-97), by Francois where he conducted tests in Kirkaldy's tilevers over the streets and had various roof
Hennebique.
laboratory between 1876-77. He published the gardens at different levels. His Charles VI
results of his work in a book Experiments with mill, built in 1895, was one of the first
Portland cement concrete which was one of buildings to use a repetitive, unadorned,
the first scientific investigations on the subject reinforced-concrete grid of columns, beams,
that was widely circulated. joists, and slabs, that was to become an
Reinforced concrete appeared in the U.S. essential part of the idiom of modern architec-
after the Paris 1867 Exhibition and was ture.
influenced by French research, even though Anatole de Baudot (1834-1915) designed
there had been some independent work in that and built the church of StJean de Montmartre
country including S. T. Fowler's system for in 1894. It had slender concrete columns and
walls with reinforcing made out of bolted vaults and was enclosed by thin walls. It was
timber grillages patented in 1860, and Charles an early example of a reinforced concrete,
Williams' walls (1868) reinforced with iron non-utilitarian public building. Baudot, a pupil
straps, inspired by reinforced brickwork of Henri Labrouste (1801-75) and Eugene
techniques for grain silos. Concrete and metal Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-79), was an
floor slabs made by filling in between joists enthusiast for the invention of a new architec-
StJean de Montmartre, Paris over corrugated-iron plates were patented by ture and believed in the necessity to create
(1894-1903), by Anatole de Baudot. J. Gilbert in 1867-a remarkably similar new architectural forms appropriate to mod-
 Concrete 257

ern materials. In 1884 Ransome began to build structures

Auguste Perret (1874-1954), who trained at or parts of structures largely made of rein-
the Beaux Arts, dedicated himself to the use forced concrete, starting with the Arctic Oil
of concrete from the early years of his career Works at San Francisco and a mill for Sta1T
as an architect. His first building in reinforced and Company at Wheatport in California.
concrete was built in 1890. The famous This mill, built in 1885, had an entire structure
apartment block, which he built for himself at of reinforced concrete. In 1888 he built a large
the Rue Franklin in Paris, in 1903, was an floor made up of a series of arches joining a
inspiration to young architects in that its plan series of beams together. He built the first
was not encumbered with load-bearing walls concrete bridge in the U.S. in 1889 and in the
since the structure consisted of columns, same year designed the structure of the
beams, and slabs. His Garage Ponthieu in four-storey Academy of Sciences building in
Paris, 1906, is also often quoted as a seminal San Francisco, in addition to work carried out
work. Perret had a long career and designed at the Borax Works at Alameda, California,
many, often very big buildings of many types. where he cast beams, slabs, and joists as
In his later years he was sometimes con- homogeneous structural elements. One of
demned for his return to a stiff classical Ransome's largest 19th-century works was a
vocabulary, but his church of Notre Dame du factory for the Pacific Coast Borax Company
Rainey (1922-23) developed an inspired use of at Bayonne, New Jersey (1897-98), where he
columns and vaulted slabs with large expanses broke away from the tradition of building with
of glazed non-load-bearing external walls that small windows, common in other forms of
have been widely admired. masonry construction.
In the 1880s, theoretical knowledge about In the 1890s, the Ransome Engineering
the behavior of concrete structural elements Company received commissions throughout
developed very rapidly. G. A. Wayss, having the U.S. and Ransome's reputation as a
seen Monier's exhibit at the Antwerp Exhib- designer and engineer grew. He invented and
ition of 1879, bought the rights for the process improved many processes and techniques Apartment house at 25, Rue
Franklin in Paris, France (1922-23),
for use in Germany where M. Koenen (1849- commonly used today in reinforced-concrete by Auguste Perret.
1924) participated in initial familiarization construction. Among these were patents for
tests on the material. Koenen published the glass lenses or prisms cast in concrete as a
first analysis of the behavior of reinforced- method of lighting basements (1891 and 1894),
concrete beams in 1886. Between 1888 and techniques of extending floor slabs, uniting
1894, Edmond Coignet (1850-1915), son of reinforcing bars and cantilevers, as well as a
Fran«;:ois Coignet, collaborated with N. de system of standardized and reusable
Tedesco on research which led to the deri- formwork units (1902 and 1909).
vation of expression for the strength of beams In Europe, Tony Garnier (1869-1948),
based upon elastic behavior. This work was while a scholar in Rome, designed a whole
the foundation upon which many of the city in which a large proportion of the build-
computation methods used today are based. ings were concrete structures (1901-04). This
In the U.S. in the 1880s, concrete con- visionary scheme for U ne Cite I ndustrie fle
struction began to be considered seriously. anticipated remarkably accurately many of the
Numerous patents were taken out on many forms that would become part of the general Notre Dame du Rainey, Paris,
forms of beam, arch, and slab, and a large vocabulary for designers in concrete. In his France (1922-23), by Auguste
range of reinforcing elements from expanded career after the completion of this project, Perret.
metal to combinations of bars and meshes. Gamier had the opportunity of building many
Concrete foundations, poured around grillages buildings along lines similar to those he had
of metal beams, became common for large established in this work. His Grands Travaux
buildings, and experiments with precast de Ia Ville de Lyon of 1919, the Grange
beams were initiated. P. H. Jackson from San Blanche Hospital (1915-30), and the Etats
Francisco patented a method of making pre- Unis residential district (1928-35) are a few
stressed concrete beams in 1886, but these among these.
beams were not entirely successful. Large American factory buildings in rein-
Ernest L. Ransome (1844-1917) was born in forced concrete, built by Ransome and other
England and later moved to the U.S. in the pioneering engineers, with their simple lines,
1860s, after having gained some experience in large windows, and repetitive structures,
the use of concrete from his father, who was became known and admired by European
an iron founder and manufacturer of special avant-garde architects including Walter
cements. Ransome went directly to California Gropius (1883-1969), Le Corbusier (1887-
where he eventually worked as superintendent 1966), Erich Mendelsohn (1887-1953), and Reinforced-concrete floor
construction. Diagram of system
of the Pacific Stone Company. In the 1880s he others who also drew inspiration from Ameri- used by E.L. Ransome in the Borax
began to patent various improvements to can and Canadian grain or cement silos from Works, Alameda, California (1899).
reinforced-concrete construction, including the period around the turn of the century. In
systems of expansion joints and the employ- 1913, Walter Gropius published photographs
ment of twisted iron bars to increase the bond of these factories and silos in the annual of
between them and the concrete. the Deutscher Werkbund as examples of
 258 Concrete

modern architecture to be emulated by pro- this bridge he used a cellular structure, but his
gressive designers. Le Corbusier eulogized intuitive understanding of the material led him
them in his book Vers une Architecture of to simplify its form. Hitherto, engineers had
1923: " ... they show us the way and create normally used concrete in systems of beams,
plastic facts, clear and limpid, giving rest to joists, and columns, similar in concept to
our eyes and to the mind the pleasure of timber and steel structures where linear forms
geometric forms. Such are the factories, the are the elements of the vocabulary. Maillart
reasssuring first fruits of the new age." In the made slabs perform as structural elements in
Dom-Ino housing project of 1914, Le Cor- their own right either as flat or curved planes.
busier postulated a regular grid of columns He continued to exploit and perfect the use of
Standard column-and-slab house supporting flat slabs between which "free slabs in many of his major works. In the
frame: Dom-Ino project (1914) by plan" forms could be made with non- Schwarzenburg Bridge of 1933, Maillart
Le Corbusier.
load-bearing walls. He had become familiar developed the ideas he had been working with
with concrete through his many contacts over the years to a high level of perfection.
including Auguste Perret, for whom he had The bridge consists of an arched concrete slab
worked in 1908, and the circles of the in the form of an inverted catenary, which is
Deutscher Werkbund, whom he had been in just thick enough to resist compressive
contact with in 1911-12. stresses without buckling. From this arch
There were many important buildings built springs a series of vertical slabs to carry the
in Europe before World War I in which curved roadway which acts as a stiffening
reinforced concrete was used with confidence girder for this fully integrated structure.
and innovatory skill. Among these, mention Maillart's work included many buildings, a
must be made of Max Berg's Centenary Hall large proportion of them industrial, in which
at Breslau (1912-13) which employed a huge he explored many new possibilities of con-
ribbed dome spanning 213 ft. (65 m), and crete construction. Beamless floor slabs for
Conzelman system of precast Matte Trucco's vast five-storey Fiat-Lingotti industrial and other buildings were first
concrete construction. works in Turin of 1915, which incorporated an developed by C. A. P. Turner in the U.S.
automobile testing track on the roof. who published an article in 1908 entitled The
The .high standard set by Hennebique mushroom system of construction. The first
throughout his career both in his buildings and building to use this form of slab was the
his bridges, were applied by other engineers in Bovey Building in Minneapolis. In the slab,
Europe from before the turn of the century the reinforcing was arranged radially near the
onward. Among his great bridges, mention columns which had large capitals to help
must be made of Pont Neuf Chatellerault reduce the stresses around them. By this
(1898) which spanned 164 ft. (50 m), and the technique it was possible to avoid the use of
Risorgimento Bridge in Rome (1911), span- beams which could interfere with the day-
ning 328 ft. (100 m). Great care was taken to lighting of interiors, the disposition of ser-
use the right proportion of stone, cement, vices, and the total useful height of each floor.
sand, water, and in the placing of rein- Maillart's experiments with flat concrete slabs
Patent drawing for single-storey forcement and the pouring of concrete, so that for floors also date from 1908, but he had used
buildings entirely built of precast the behavior of the structures could be more them in bridges earlier. Maillart's columns
elements, byBessonneau and accurately predicted. This was helped by the employed capitals to spread the load but their
Besnard (1917).
researches of R. Foret whose work of 1892 design, and the way he disposed of the
established a quantitative basis for deter- reinforcement, were slightly different. They
mining the final strengths of concrete using were employed in a warehouse he designed in
different amounts of water in the mix. Zurich in 1910. Turner's system was used in
Engineers had always had to compromise with the Van Nelle factory in Rotterdam (1927-28)
this variable, as wet concrete is easier to by J. A. Brinkman (1902-49) and L. C. Van
handle and coax into molds and into spaces der Vlugt (1894-1936).
between reinforcing elements. In most cases, Pier Luigi Nervi (b. 1891) studied engineer-
drier concrete will develop a higher strength, ing at Bologna and graduated in 1913. His first
but it requires careful placing to avoid leaving important work was the Communal Stadium
voids in the structure, and this could only be at Florence (1930-32) in which he created an
achieved by fairly labor-intensive ramming. architecture out of the naked structural ele-
The work of Morsch, Wayss, and Freitag in ments of raking concrete beams and can-
Germany, both in theoretical fields and in tilevered curved staircases. This work was
Van Nelle Factory in Rotterdam, actual structures, helped widen the use of much admired by avant-garde modern
Holland (1927-28), by J.A.
Brinkman and L.C. Van derVIugt.
concrete. Hennebique was followed by architects. Nervi executed a number of mili-
engineers such as Cottancin and Chandy in tary aircraft hangars between 1935 and 1941,
France, but the work of the Swiss engineer built up of curved lamella networks of load-
Robert Maillart (1872-1940) stands out among bearing joists, with which he was able to
the second generation of reinforced-concrete lighten the structure considerably. In the
innovators. His brilliant bridges began with a 1940s he undertook extensive research into
fairly modest span of 98 ft (30 m) at the Inn prefabrication of precast concrete elements,
Bridge at Zuoz in the Engadine in 1901. In prestressing techniques as well as thin con-
 Concrete 259

crete components that derive their strength civil engineering works by Freyssinet. Hewet
from their forms. He designed a series of in the U .S. introduced a system in 1923 of
immense roofs for a large range of different using lubricated steel bars in concrete, that
buildings, among which the roof of the Exhib- were subsequently prestressed. This tech-
ition Hall at Turin (1948-49) stands out. It nique was mainly used for large cylindrical
consisted of a large barrel vault made up of tanks. Dirchinger and Finsterwalder in Ger-
precast undulating components. He used simi- many developed the use of post-tensioned ties
lar forms for the ribs of the large shallow in bowstring bridges and lattice girders.
dome at the Palazzo dello Sport in Rome Freyssinet's Elsby Bridge (1949) was made
(1958-59), capable of accommodating 15,700 up of elements precast in a nearby factory. The
spectators. Many of Nervi's forms are bridge, with its shallow arch span of 248 ft.
derived from careful observation of structures (76 m), used all the most advanced techniques;
in nature. He has exploited forms that give many of them developed by his firm, including
strength through shape, and in the Pirelli special jacks and anchorages for pretensioning
building in Milan (1958) he worked with the cables. The steel used was up to five times as
architect Gio Ponti (b. 1891) to produce a efficient as mild steel at half the cost. Frey-
structure that reduces dramatically in cross ssinet developed and perfected many other
section throughout the height of this tall branches of concrete construction. As direc-
building. tor of Enterprises Limousin (1913-28) he
designed the famous airship hangars at Orly
(1916-24), 205ft. (63 m) high and 984 ft . (300
Prestressed concrete m) long, built out of precast curved and
In the early years of this century, further specially shaped elements. Vibrated concrete
research was carried out by Stussi and Whit- was first used in these structures making
ney, among others, on the properties of possible a much higher quality of concrete
reinforced concrete under load. This led to through thorough compaction. Freyssinet was
the evolution of ultimate load theory, by to continue using carefully conceived, repeti- Pirelli Building, Milan, Italy (1958),
which it was possible to design beams and tive precast elements in many of his struc- by Gia Ponti and Pier Luigi Nervi.
other structural elements in which the steel tures, often steam-cured in their molds to
and the concrete would begin to fail together speed up production. His company was
at the same load. High-tensile steels became responsible for a wide variety of works rang-
available, capable of taking up to many times ing from bridges and airports to dams and
the tensile stresses permitted for mild steel , many buildings of all types throughout the
but even with special precautions it was world . In Germany , Hoyer, who adopted the
difficult to control the cracks that develop Freyssinet system, introduced piano wires as
with concrete under heavy loading. reinforcement, capable of very high tensile
Eugene Freyssinet (1879-1962) was among strength. Because of the very good bond that
those who solved this fundamental problem these wires develop with the concrete, on
by eliminating the tensile stresses in the account of their favorable area to cross
concrete by stretching the reinforcement so section ratio, no anchorages are needed.
that when released it would impose a com- For many years Freyssinet's systems were
pressive stress over the whole concrete sec- a virtual monopoly in France. In Germany ,
tion throughout the life of a structure over a where prestressed bridges became extremely
Prestressed concrete joists used in
wide spectrum of loadings. Earlier attempts at popular to replace the vast numbers destroyed conjunction with hollow tile blocks
prestressing concrete beams had failed, in World War II , many engineering and ready to receive concrete topping.
through lack of thorough investigation, since contracting firms developed their own sys-
among other things concrete shrinks while tems of anchorages for cables, jacking sys-
curing, and steel tends to stretch. Pioneering tems, and other special refinements.
work in this field had been undertaken in Prestressing can be achieved in two ways .
many countries. In the U.S. , P . H. Jackson Bars or cables can be stretched with jacks and
had patented the idea in 1886. Doehring, a then released once concrete has been poured
Berlin builder, invented a similar technique in around them (pretensioning), or voids can be
1888 for floor panels. Other attempts were left in precast concrete elements to allow
made by Emperger (Hennebique's North cables to be threaded through and stretched to
American agent), Ritter, and Rabut who had the right level (post-tensioning).
been one of Freyssinet' s teachers. Pretensioning is extensively used in the
Freyssinet began his practical work on production of factory-made building com-
prestressing in parts of structures about 1908 ponents, such as beams, up to very large
when he used a prestressed concrete tie to spans, and other prefabricated elements,
unite the abutments of a bridge over the among them, street light posts, railroad sleep-
Allier. His investigation into prestressing ers, etc, made under carefully controlled
became known in 1927 at the same time as the conditions. It is often combined with steam
Belgian G . Mengel published his parallel curing which speeds up the hardening of the
work. From 1933 onward, prestressing was concrete, making it possible to reuse the mold
used in many structures, some of them large rapidly. (In countries with a warm dry climate
260 Concrete

pretensioning is especially popular as it can

take place outdoors.)
These techniques make it possible to use
much lighter building components as the
constituent materials are used much more
efficiently . Larger spans or heavier loads can
be accommodated with far less material and
structural depth than conventional reinforced
concrete.

Shell structures
Shell structures, in which the thickness of the
material is slight in relation to surface area,
exploit the shape of constructional elements
to gain rigidity . In 1925, Walter Bauerfeld, an
engineer in the firm Dykerhoff and Widmann,
designed a hemispherical dome for a
planetarium for the Zeiss company at Jena. It
had a diameter of 52 ft. 6 in. (16 m) and the
concrete shell was only 1.2 in. (30 mm) thick.
By the mid-l930s a number of industrial Restaurant Xochimilco in Mexico:
Shell roofs under construction; by
commercial exhibition and sports buildings
Felix Candela and Ordonez (1958).
had been built using shell concrete con- rately over a large area.
struction. These included the barrel-vaulted Outstanding postwar examples of shell con-
market hall at Frankfurt am Main by Martin crete construction include the Cosmic Rays
Elsasser of Dykerhoff and Widmann (1927)- Research Laboratory at Mexico City (1951)
the first large building using shell concrete; by Jorge Gonzalez Reyna and Felix Candela
repair shops at Bagneux by Freyssinet (b. 1910); the Kresge Auditorium M.I.T. in
(1928-29); a foundry at Milan by Giorgio Cambridge, U.S. (1954-55), by Eero Saarinen
Baroni; the racecourse roof at La Zarzuela (1910-61); the Palazzo dello Sport in Rome
(1935) by C. Amiches, L. Dominguez, and (1957) by Pier Luigi Nervi (b . 1891); and the
Eduardo Torroja (1899-l%1); the pelota court church of San Jose Obrero (1959-60) in
at Madrid (1935) by Torroja, and aircraft Monterrey, Mexico, by Felix Candela. The
hangars by Dykerhoff and Widmann at competition design for the Sydney Opera
Munich (1938-40). House (1956) by J~m Utzon (b. 1918) was
Maillart's cement hall at Zurich (1938-39) originally intended to be built as a shell
aroused interest in the slender forms that structure, but after extensive analysis, carried
could be achieved by this form of con- out by the engineers of Ove Arup in London,
struction , and after World War II non- this was found to be impractical and the vaults
rectangular curved forms became acceptable were made of carefully shaped blocks of
as elements in the vocabulary of modem precast reinforced concrete that were post- Carey and Latham's concrete
mixing machine (c. 1890). Sand
architecture. tensioned on site. and balast are delivered into the
Concrete shells have been exploited bril- mixing cylinder by the bucket and
liantly by a large number of architects and chain where they are joined by a
engineers. They have been used in many Other significant developments controlled volume of cement and
water.
forms: as barrel vaults, domes, warped sur- An important contribution to making the use
faces such as hyperbolic paraboloids, and of concrete feasible for large works was the
countless other shapes . Water towers, cooling evolution of methods of mixing and delivering
towers for power stations, and roofs for it mechanically. The hand-operated concrete
buildings are among the many uses to which mixer was invented by Louis Cezanne in
this form of construction has been applied. 1854. During the remaining years of the 19th
The expensive formwork needed for molding century, improvements were made on mixers
complex shapes has often led to the use of and larger and larger models became avail-
repeated precast components, in many cases able, eventually using mechanical power to
subsequently prestressed, or to the use of drive the mixing drum. For larger building
geometries such as those found in hyperbolic programs, when concrete is mixed on site, it
paraboloids where surfaces are generated by is common to find large hatching and mixing
straight linear elements. Inflatable formers plants where the quality of concrete is con-
Messet's patent concrete mixer (c.
have been used as temporary structures to trolled accurately by regular tests. The man- 1890). This machine was hand
support the concrete of some shell roofs. ufacture of ready-mix concrete off the build- operated.
Sprayed concrete, a process developed in the ing site was made possible by the develop-
1920s, lends itself to some types of shell ment in the U.S. of lorry-mounted transit
construction since large amounts of rapidly mixers which appeared in about 1926. This
hardening material can be delivered accu- technique has become popular all over the
 Concrete 261

world, and is especially useful for buildings of

a medium size or where sites are restricted
and the local mixing of the concrete is
impractical.
Concrete is normally delivered to the
necessary part of the structure by means of
skips carried by cranes or by the use of
mechanical hoists. Relatively inaccessible
parts of structures can be concreted by pump-
ing the materials into the right position
through flexible hoses. Truck-mounted pumps
can easily be connected to ready-mix delivery
vehicles. In countries where labor is cheap,
delivery is generally by means of wheel-
barrows, buckets, and ramps-even for large
structures.
Sprayed concrete, in which the correct
amount of water is mixed with the other Simple board shuttering for in-situ
constituents in the nozzle of a cement gun, concrete beams and slabs in
was developed after World War I. Concrete Istanbul, Turkey.
delivered by this method can be very dense
Modern mobile transit mixer being and with a low water content. This technique
loaded with raw materials. is used for resurfacing worn and weathered
concrete, repairing damaged structures, form-
ing embankments, and so on. It also lends
itself to shell structures where a thin compact
layer of relatively dry, rapid-setting concrete
is required.
An almost infinite range of different
formwork systems exists. For in-situ work
steel, wooden, or plywood shuttering is used
in combination with systems of adjustable
props and struts. Formwork represents a
major cost item in concrete construction,
which has stimulated the development of
modular systems of reusable shuttering ele-
ments that can be adapted to a wide variety of
jobs including curved work. The surface of
the shuttering can be of great importance if
the concrete is to be visible since it imparts its
texture to it. Le Corbusier and many modern
architects favored the appearance of concrete
with the imprint of shuttering boards with a
rough grain (beton brut), while in other situ-
ations a smooth finish has been desirable, and
carefully faced metal, ply, or sometimes plas-
Concrete floor being cast with a tic shutters have been used. Shutters with
pumped delivery of concrete from absorbent linings of material such as
a mobile pump unit fed from a
transit mixer.
wallboard can help by slightly reducing the
water content of the concrete, which may
have been high as an expedient for efficient Modular plywood shuttering with
placing. This technique also eliminates air steel stiffeners being prepared for
bubbles forming on the surface. Other the casting of walls in an apartment
methods of extracting excess water include a building.
vacuum process whereby suction mats are
applied to the surface of the concrete as soon climb the structure so that continuous pouring
as it has been poured. Where it is desirable can take place without construction joints.
to use less water, vibration is used in order to These forms are often combined with steam
Timber shuttering for a curing which accelerates the development of
reinforced-concrete beam.
compact and consolidate concrete. Vibrators
can be mounted on the shuttering or they can strength in the concrete. Multistorey struc-
be in the form of vibrating pokers that are tures with repetitive plans may economize on
introduced into the material in its wet state. formwork by having all the floors cast on the
Tall structures such as concrete chimneys, ground and fitted into position up the columns
oil rigs, elevator cores, and silos often employ by means of hydraulic jacks. This technique
systems of moving formwork that gradually became popular for multistorey apartments
262 Concrete

and other buildings after World War II. readily than other concretes. Concretes that
Formwork for factory production of com- heat up very little during setting are useful in
ponents can make elements to close toler- work where large volumes of material are
ances. Steam curing, closely controlled mix- needed, so that the heat evolved during
ing , prestressing, and carefully designed forms hydration can be controlled. Concretes that
have contributed to making concrete pre- do not shrink but swell on setting were
fabrication of components fast and reliable. developed in France during World War II for
Precast concrete performs many duties in repairs to foundations of damaged buildings.
construction. In the USSR after World War They are also very useful in conjunction with
II the prefabrication of large units on a vast pretensioning techniques .
scale, including whole boxlike room sections Aggregates can be used to give concrete
of apartments, was initiated as a solution to special properties. Lightweight aggregates
chronic housing shortages. Whole wall, floor, made from foamed blast-furnace slag,
and roof units have been produced in many expanded clay, sintered pulverized fuel ash ,
countries often incorporating ducts and con- and pumice, can reduce the weight of con-
duits for all the utilities. Frame elements such crete components and increase their thermal
as columns, beams, trusses, flooring systems, insulation. No-fines concrete, which uses
and portal frame units in precast concrete are specially graded aggregates without employing
also widely used for an types of buildings . sand in the mix, makes it possible to use less
Joints in precast concrete have to be care- cement and very much lighter formwork com-
fully designed to ensure the stability of struc- prised of frames supporting wire mesh panels.
tures. It is often difficult to achieve in precast The concrete, which does not contain much
concrete the degree of continuity and mono- water, can be held in these without leaking
lithic construction possible in concrete cast in out. This technique was developed in Europe
situ. Dimensions of precast components are in the 1920s and has been extensively used in Precast wall panels in a factory
controlled largely by the size of lifting housing schemes when two-storey wall units yard in southern France.
machinery and restrictions on sizes of com- can be poured in one operation. The cavities
ponents that can be transported . between the stones help to increase the
Concrete cast in situ lends itself to the insulating qualities and form a barrier to
creation of forms with continuity of structure capillary water infiltration.
and complex special shapes. It has been used Aerated concrete, made by including addi-
in an inventive way by many 20th-century tives which evolve gases during setting, are
architects to achieve forms impossible in any useful for blocks and other building elements
other material . Frank Lloyd Wright's Johnson where good insulating properties are required.
Wax Building at Racine, Wisconsin (1936-39), Various chemicals can be added to concrete
where he used cantilevered mushroom roof mixes to accelerate or retard setting, while
forms; the Falling Water House at Bear Run , other chemical additives can increase the
Pennsylvania (1936), with its large can- workability of the mix.
tilevered terraces; and the Guggenheim Good concrete design involves careful
Museum designed in 1943-46 and built in examination of many factors outside purely
1956-59, are a small ·sample of significant structural considerations . Since concrete is
Different concrete finishes. A panel
buildings designed by one architect using this placed as a liquid material , there will be joints with exposed aggregate against a
method. Countless other architects have con- at places where different pouring programs wall with a surface imprint of
tributed to innovations in forms and techni- meet. Expansion joints have to be used to wooden shuttering boards.
ques by using this relatively new material. take up movements in all but the smallest
From the time reinforced concrete began to structures . The detailing of joints and surface
be used, vast amounts of scientific research finishes are of paramount importance in con- Reinforced concrete and shuttering
of various types in the construction
have been undertaken to improve the quality crete structures where these are visible . of a theater at the Barbican in
and predictable behavior of all the ingredients Concrete with a surface imprint of boarded London, England (1976).
and methods by which they are selected,
graded, and tested.
Since World War II there have been great
improvements in concrete-mix design, making
it possible to achieve much higher com-
pressive strengths. Special designs of rein-
forcing bars vastly increase the bond between
them and the concrete, reducing cracking and
permitting a more efficient use of the steel.
Cements with special properties have been
developed. Among these, high-alumina
cement develops its strength very rapidly and
heats up considerably during the process,
enabling work to be carried out in frosty
conditions. Unfortunately, concrete made
with this cement is liable to crack more
 Iron 263

form work has already been mentioned. Other Asbestos products are still used extensively
textures and patterns can be included in the in the building industry for their fireproofing
design of molds. The surface layer of concrete properties. Asbestos can be used in many
may be removed to expose the aggregate by forms, ranging from boards that can be sawn
bush hammering or by using retarders in the in much the same way as wood, to a form that
concrete close to the shuttering. Expensive can be sprayed directly onto structures.
white concrete can be placed as a thin skin on In recent years there have been two
an ordinary concrete body by pouring both developments which have considerably
mixes into a mold with a separator between reduced the popularity of asbestos cement.
them which is withdrawn as the formwork is One is the now proved health hazard to
filled. Masonry skins and other finishes such workers both in the mine and in the factory,
as tiles and mosaics can be cast onto concrete and the other the decolonization of most of
by including them in molds. Many of these Africa where many of the mines are located. Corrugated asbestos warehouse
finishing techniques lend themselves to pre- Glass fibers are becoming a strong com- roofs.
casting in factory conditions where the man- petitor for some of the duties normally per-
ufacturing process can be carefully controlled. formed by asbestos, especially when com-
bined with cement to produce glass-reinforced
concrete (G.R.C.).
Asbestos
Asbestos is a fibrous mineral. Fire-resistant Iron
fabrics made from it were available in the
1870s, and it was used in combination with Iron artifacts are known to have existed
cement as a fireproofing material to case before 2500 Be, but its smelting and use on a
vulnerable structural elements and as insu- significant scale date from the end of the
lation to boilers. Asbestos sheets, which were Hittite Empire in the Middle East (c. 1200
made by combining asbestos with canvas BC).
cemented to a surface layer of felt, produced a Early iron smelting was a laborious process
compact, flexible roofing material resembling in which small spongy masses of iron mixed
leather and this came into use in the 1880s. with slag "blooms" would be removed from a
Lagging for heating and other pipes in asbes- furnace after many hours of hard work at the
tos dates from this period. bellows. This directly reduced wrought iron
In 1893 Ludwig Hatschek, an Austrian was then worked at the forge to produce
textile manufacturer, carried out experiments useful objects. It could be converted into steel
in mixing short fibers with various bonding by combining it with carbon by further labor-
agents in an attempt to produce a new type of intensive processes.
building material. In 1900 he succeeded in Iron made by these methods was a precious
making the first asbestos-cement sheets, using metal and its use in building remained slight
a modified Fourdrinier papermaking machine, until other processes of production were
fed with a slurry composed of 15% asbestos developed. Improved and longer-lasting tools
and 85% cement. By 1910, asbestos cement with harder and sharper cutting edges were
was being manufactured on a large scale in no manufactured. These made the working of
less than ten countries. wood, stone, and other metals a great deal
Corrugated roofing sheets were in use dur- easier and more accurate than with tools of
ing World War I, and by the 1920s factories bronze or stone. Medieval wrought-iron gate
were producing sheets of the same size and Iron was used for fastening timber and screen-Se Velha, Lisbon. Portugal.
profile as those familiar to us today. The first stone building elements together and for
asbestos-cement pipes were made in England strengthening parts of structures, as well as
at Widnes in 1927, and by 1930 public health for ironmongery. Wrought-iron gates and
authorities in many countries had approved screens date back to antiquity, and medieval
asbestos-cement water pipes as an alternative cathedral builders used iron frameworks in
to the traditional cast iron. They were shown their traceried windows to support the leading
to have a resistance to corrosion superior to which held the stained glass in place. They
iron, and their joining could be flexible also used iron for the elaborate hinges they
enough to absorb settlement and vibration. made for church doors . Iron-reinforced
Asbestos-cement sewer pipes, gutters, roof masonry was introduced in some 13th-century
decking, and drainpipes, introduced after 1940 cathedrals in the lie de France.
have met with similar success.
Asbestos-cement products are bulky and The development of smelting
heavy in proportion to their value, con- Blast furnaces capable of reaching the melting
sequently transportation costs are always a temperature of iron (2,786°F/1,530°C) were
matter of concern. For this reason, man- only developed in Europe, near Liege in
ufacturing has been decentralized as much as Belgium, in the 14th century although they Wrought-iron bands reinforcing a
possible, a system which also helps to reduce had existed in China as early as the 4th masonry vault rib, Ste Chapell e.
the danger of breakage in transit. century BC. These furnaces were charged with Paris, France (c.1240).
 264 Iron

ore, charcoal, and fluxes and their combustion wrought-iron designs in the 18th century.
was aided by water-driven air blowers. The structural use of wrought iron in
When one of these furnaces was tapped it combination with masonry was revived in
could produce up to I ton (907 kg) of pig iron: France when Claude Perrault (1613--88) built
a brittle form of iron with a high carbon the eastern facade of the Louvre in 1667-70.
content and a crystalline structure containing This technique was refined by Jacques
a number of impurities. Pig iron was con- Souftlot (1713--80) in the giant portico at the
verted into wrought iron by remelting it in a Pantheon in Paris (1770-72). In 1779, Souftlot
charcoal-fired hearth "finery," in which oxy- also developed a self-supporting iron roof,
gen combines gradually with the carbon found spanning 51 ft. 8 in. (15 .8 m) for a gallery of
in pig iron , reducing it to a more fibrous and the Louvre. This roof was made up of forged
workable form. Iron made in this way was bars assembled with many collar joints similar
then shaped into bars and strips by the use of to those used in the portico. Experiments with
tilt hammers and slitting mills, and this combinations of forged bars forming beams
Blast furnace (c. 1870); shown in
section and in elevation. malleable material could then be made into and joists for floors were made from 1782
objects by the process of forging. Alter- onward by M. Ango. Victor Louis combined
natively, the pigs could be remelted and these uses of iron with a revival of Roman
poured into sand molds to form useful objects hollow pot vaulting, introduced at the time by
of cast iron: a crystalline and more brittle St Fart, in his designs for the Theatre du
form of iron. Palais Royal in Paris (1785-90). This remark-
Blast furnaces used up prodigious quantities able building was built entirely of incom-
of charcoal which contributed to the rapid bustible materials to reduce the risk of fire,
depletion of forest in areas where the iron which had caused many deaths in similar
industry developed . In Britain, Abraham Parisian buildings.
Darby (1677-1717) succeeded in smelting iron
with coke in 1709 at his iron foundry in The development of cast iron as a
Coalbrookdale, Shropshire. In 1784, Henry
Cort (1740-1800) developed a "reverbatory or
structural building materiall700-1850
puddling" furnace in which pig iron could be Cast iron came into use in buildings gradually.
converted into wrought iron without picking Until the 18th century it was mainly used for
up impurities from the coal which was burned decorated firebacks and other domestic fit-
Nineteenth-century puddling in a separate compartment. tings. In 1714, stout cast-iron railings were
furnace shown in section. The coal
James Watt's rotary power steam engine, erected around St Paul's Cathedral in Lon-
is burned in a chamber separated
from the iron. developed in the 1780s, made it possible to don. From that time cast iron became an
drive all the machinery necessary for large- increasingly economic substitute for wrought-
scale iron production, thus allowing all the iron railings and balconies. These elements
parts of the manufacturing process to be could be mass produced in sand molds from
brought close together. Previously these had their wooden patterns. Trade catalogs from
been dispersed to take advantage of water- the late 18th century onward helped market
power. these products far and wide.
All these inventions and innovations con- The structural use of cast iron was
tributed to making iron a much cheaper and pioneered in Britain. In 1706, Christopher
more readily available material, and were Wren (1632-1723) used slender cast-iron col-
followed by many further developments in the umns to support a gallery in the House of
19th century that made it possible for blast Commons, so as not to obstruct the view on
furnaces to produce well over I ,000 tons the floor of the House. Similar columns were
(1 ,016 metric tons) of iron per day . occasionally used in churches later in the
Puddling furnace-5tirring the century. In the 1750s, John Smeaton (1724-
metal with an iron paddle to 92) initiated the use of cast-iron parts for mill
expose it to the gases within. Wrought iron up to the end ofthe 18th machinery and claimed to have made cast-iron
century beams.
Wrought iron continued to be used for rail- The first successful iron bridge was erected
ings, gates, and other fittings in increasing over the River Severn at Coalbrookdale in
quantities after the Middle Ages but its Shropshire, England, in 1779 by Thomas F.
method of manufacture relied upon the craft Pritchard, John Wilkinson, and Abraham
of the blacksmith and changed little until the Darby III. The various components are
end of the 18th century, when small rolled joined together with dovetails and pegs,
sections became available. reminiscent of carpenters' joints .
Architectural wrought iron reached its Thomas Paine (1737-1809) arrived in Eng-
height in the late 17th and 18th centuries, with land from America in 1787 with the intention
the work of French master craftsmen such as of having a cast-iron bridge made for crossing
Daniel Marot (1660-1752), Jean Tijou, and the Schulkill at Philadelphia. The bridge was
Jean Lamour. In 1693, Jean Tijou published a to be assembled from interlocking cast-iron
The Minerva Iron and Steel Works,
Staffordshire, England, in the 1870s. pattern book entitled A New Book of Draw- voussoirs. He abandoned the project after
A typical enterprise of the period. ings which had a great influence on English initial trials, but a bridge to a similar design
 Iron 265

was erected over the River Wear at Sun-

derland in 1796 by Rowland Burdon.
By 1800 iron bridge building was firmly
established in Britain. The Pont des Arts in
Paris (1801-03), designed by L. A. de Cessart
(1719-1806) and J. Lacroix Dillon (1760-
1806), was the first iron bridge erected in
France. (See also BRIDGES.)
Toward the end of the 18th century it
became imperative for British mill owners to
find ways of making multistoreyed buildings
incombustible, since many of the expensive
timber-framed textile mills had burned down
with great loss of life and property. There was
an early attempt in 1792-93 at a mill in
Milford, built by William Strutt (1756-1830),
where iron columns were used to support
heavy timber beams with brick arches span- The Iron Bridge at Coalbrookdale,
Wrought-iron gates at Hampton ning between them. The timber was cased in England (1779).
Court, England. From Jean Tijou's incombustible materials. Soon after this in
A New Book of Drawings (1693).
1796, a flax mill at Shrewsbury, built by
Charles Bage, had a complete iron frame
within the sturdy brick walls. The beams were
11 in. (275 mm) deep cast-iron flats 1.125 in.
(28 mm) wide, integrating an 8 in. (200 mm)
skewback on the bottom chord. They spanned
9 ft. 6 in. (3 m) between cast-iron columns of

• X-section and carried segmental brick vaults

••
of 10ft. 6 in. (3. 2 m) span which sprung from
the skewbacks. The floor was leveled over
these arches to provide a working surface.
- I.E-Mif:I!L~BIE\t73JI Bage evolved formulas for calculating the stre-
ngth of columns and beams based on full-scale
Masonry reinforced with wrought tests .
iron-portico of the Pantheon, In the years 1799-1801, James Watt (1734-
Paris, France (1770-72), by 1819) built a mill at Salford in which spans of
Jacques Soufflot.
14 ft. (4 m) and arches of 9 ft. (3 m) were
used. The columns in this case were hollow
Doric cast-iron tubes. By 1803 cast-iron roof Cast-iron bridge at Sunderland,
trusses were being used in some of these England (1796), erected by
buildings. This form of structure became Rowland Burdon using
interlocking cast-iron voussoirs.
generalized for incombustible buildings, not
only for factories and warehouses but in many throughout the world. After the end of the
cases for civic buildings. Cast-iron beams Napoleonic wars in 1815, the price of iron
were used in the floors of the British dropped dramatically and many new con-
Museum, designed in 1824 by Sir Robert structional applications for it were found.
Smirke (1780-1867). Experiments by Thomas At the Quadrangular Storehouse at Sheer-
Tredgold and William Fairbairn (1789-1874) in ness (1824-29) Edward Holl used cast-iron
the early 19th century contributed to the beams and joists supporting flagstone floors,
evolution of cast-iron beam shapes. The spanning between them to make a lighter
mathematician Eaton Hodgkinson (1789-1861) building than would have been possible with
established the "ideal" form for cast-iron brick arches, to suit the bad soil conditions.
beams in 1827-30, in which the material is This technique was adopted in cast-iron pre-
distributed in the most economic way. These fabricated barrack frames which were ordered
beams employed far less material for a given for the West Indies in 1826 by the Duke of
load than the original Bage design. Wellington (1769-1852) who was at the time
In 1813-16, John Cragg (1767-1854) and Master General of the Board of Ordnance.
Thomas Rickman (1776-1841) built churches The rapid expansion of the railroads from
in Liverpool, England, with iron roofs and the 1830s onward demanded the erection of
St Michael's in the Hamlet, extensive Gothic cast-iron decoration, many bridges, and in Britain a large pro-
Liverpool, England (1814), by John eliminating the work of the stone carver. portion of these were in cast iron, either in the
Cragg and Thomas Rickman. A Cast-iron railings, balconies, verandas, form of arches or beams. Beams were favored
brick building with Gothic
decoration in cast iron. porches, brackets, window frames, and count- in many cases because they exert no lateral
less other useful objects were produced and thrust and do not rise in the middle. Single
sold in ever greater quantities to builders castings were limited by handling and casting
 266 Iron

techniques to about 50 ft. (15 m). As the

demand for wider spans grew , engineers
invented many new techniques, including
beams made up of a number of sections bolted
together, and cast-iron beams trussed with
wrought-iron elements in order to exploit the
tensile strength of that material. By the late
West Indian barrack system with
1840s many forms of combined beams had
cast-iron verandas and floor been tried, some ending up in the collapse of ' ,.
structure (1826). buildings and bridges, as in the Dee Bridge
disaster of 1847. This led to strict regulations
and considerable caution in the use of cast
iron in situations where it was subject to
bending. Metal bridges on the truss principle
based on the designs of Howe, Pratt, Whip-
ple, Bollman, Fink, Warren, and others, were
developed in America in the 1840s, the first
being the Highway Bridge over the Erie Canal
in 1840. These structures often combined cast
and wrought iron and wood, and there were
also a number of failures.
After 1850, cast iron was used less and less
in structural elements subject to bending,
except over relatively short spans. The Cry-
stal Palace of 1851 had cast-iron columns, but
all the girders except the shortest 24 ft. (7 m)
spans were in riveted wrought iron, which by ~
r •
this time had become relatively cheap. I!
Cast iron continued to be employed for all
""'

'~
the decorative purposes mentioned above and
Cast-iron columns from a catalog its use extended to the production of whole
of the Coalbrookdale Company
(c.1880).
facades of buildings and components for
internal framing which became popular along Cast-iron balusters and stair
the eastern seaboard of the U.S. as well as in railings (c. 1885); from the catalog
the cities of the Midwest. James Bogardus of MacFarlane's iron foundry in
Glasgow, Scotland.
(1800-74) and Daniel Badger were two New
York iron founders who specialized in this
field from the 1850s onward. From this time
the range of cast-iron goods used in buildings
expanded still further to include parts for all
the utilities, from lampstands to drainpipes.
In Britain during the 1850s, there was a
public reaction against the use of visible iron
elements in important buildings. This had
been partly stimulated by the appearance of a
much disliked exhibition building that was
erected in 1856 in South Kensington , London.
This building had been bought from a con-
Cast-iron decorative w indow hood,
tractor, C. D. Young, who specialized in front and side views. From the
prefabricated structures, because public funds Buffalo Eagle Iron Works, New
were strained by the Crimean War. Another York-catalog of 1859.
blow to confidence in the use of iron in who, in collaboration with the Derbyshire
buildings was the spectacular burning of the iron founding firm of G. Handisyde , con-
New York Crystal Palace in 1858. structed a number of buildings in cast iron
John Ruskin (1819-1900) objected to mass- including an ornamented kiosk that was
produced molded elements on the grounds exported to India in 1870. The use of mass-
that they degraded the nobility of crafts- produced components and the creation of a
Interior of Oxford Museum, man ship. H e persuaded the architects new architecture based on the potential appli-
England (185~0), by Dean and Thomas Dean (1792- 1871) and Benjamin cations of iron construction were enthusias-
Woodward. Woodward (1815-1861) to use iron columns tically advocated by William Vose Pickett in a
with wrought-iron decorative capitals, each number of pamphlets published in the 1840s
made individually by a blacksmith, for the and 1850s.
Oxford Museum building of 1855-60. The From the mid-1840s onward , iron founders
opposite view was held by some architects and other contractors in Britain and Europe
and designers such as Owen Jones (1809- 74) expanded their markets to cover the supply of
 Iron 267

railroads, manufacturing plant, public utilities,

complete buildings, and prefabricated com-
ponents, to countries throughout the world,
especially in the rapidly developing areas of
South America, Asia, Australia, and Africa.
In these parts there was little or no resistance
from established building crafts; trained labor
was in short supply but was often skilled in
working with iron in ship and railroad work-
shops, mining, and other engineering trades.

The development of rolling mills and

wrought iron after 1800
Rolled sections found applications in many
branches of industry from boiler plates to tie
rods. Between 1800 and 1820 wrought-iron
angles were first rolled-perhaps in France
for shipbuilding-while T-sections appeared
between 1828-30. Attempts to roll rail sec-
tions in wrought iron to replace more brittle
and heavier cast-iron ones succeeded in the
1820s with the appearance of the small 2.25 in.
(56.25 rnrn) deep Birkenshaw Rail. The famil-
iar form of rails used today was invented in
1831 by R . L. Stevens of the Camden and of iron appears to have been rolled in France Rolling stands for wrought-iron
Amboy Railroad of New Jersey. After many in 1848, to the orders of the French consulting bars.
trials he persuaded a Welsh rolling mill to engineer C. F. Zores who had secured a
produce the first batch of 3.5 in. (87.5 mrn) sufficiently large order to satisfy the mill
rails. By 1846 four American mills were owners that the large cost of new machinery
rolling rails of this profile. was justified . Zores intended his 1-sections for
Wrought-iron rods and straps were used as use mainly in buildings. A patent for a similar
tie members in timber structures and later in form was obtained in 1844 by Messrs Vernon
combination with cast iron. One of the earliest and Kennedy of Liverpool for shipbuilding,
examples of the use of rolled wrought iron in but it is not clear whether or not they ever
compression members of a truss was in the manufactured.
roof frames of London's Euston Station Channel or half-beams were rolled and
(1835-39), where Robert Stephenson (1803- joined back to back for use as beams for the
59) used T-sections for the principal members. structure of the U.S. Assay Office Building in Rolled wrought-iron rooftrusses of
Experience gained through experiments in New York (1853). the original Euston Station,
London, England (1835), by Robert
developing structural framing in iron for his By 1862 techniques of rolling iron had Stephenson.
shipbuilding ventures during the 1830s led advanced to the point of being able to make
William Fairbairn (1789-1874) to deduce in beams with a depth of 3 ft. (90 ern) with top
1839 that the "strongest and most suitable for and bottom flanges 12 in. (30 ern) wide and
the support of decks" was the wrought-iron up to 40 ft. (12 rn) in length while plate could
1-section. Similar deductions had been be made up to 8 ft. (2 rn) wide, 4.5 in. (112.5
reached through theoretical testing by A. rnrn) thick and 16ft. (5 rn) long. However, the
Duleau, a French engineer working in manufacture of elements of this size in bulk
academic seclusion at the Ecole Poly- with reliable properties was only possible with
technique in the 1820s. The conclusions of the introduction of steel-making processes
these experiments were not widely circulated that rendered the volumetric limits of the
until 1854 when William Fairbairn published a puddling process obsolete.
book entitled The Application of Wrought and The invention of corrugated wrought iron in Riveted angles and flats used in
Cast Iron to Building. Because of the limi- 1829 produced an entirely new building ma- roof framing in France in the late
tations of the rolling mills, beams and girders terial whose potential was rapidly exploited 1830s.
which had come into use in the 1840s gen- for roofs and walls in lightly framed industrial,
erally consisted of combinations of angle and agricultural, and temporary buildings.
T-sections and iron plates riveted together, In England in 1741 a bridge 70 ft. (21 rn)
often to form large box sections. These played long, with wrought-iron chains, was built over
a major part in the research undertaken by the River Tees. In 1801, James Finley (c.
Stephenson and Fairbairn in 1845, culminating 1762-1828) erected a bridge, with 70ft. (21 rn)
in the erection of the Britannia Tubular Bridge spans , and towers to support the wrought-iron
of the Menai Straits (1849), with clear spans chains, over Jacobs Creek, Pennsylvania.
of 460ft. (140 rn). From that time many suspension bridges were
The first 1-section made from a single piece built using chain cables such as Telford's
 268 Iron

Menai Bridge (1826), which had a 570ft. (173

m) span. In 1816 a pedestrian bridge spanning
408 ft. (124 m) and using six wire cables was
built by White and Hazard in America to
connect their ironworks to the area across a
river where their labor force lived.
In France this technique was exploited for Iron rooftruss for small-span
structures of the Fink or Polonceau
many of the 114 suspension bridges built from type. These were extremely
the 1820s to the early 1840s. The first French popular for sheds and
bridge to have iron cables was erected in 1824 single-storey buildings of all types.
by the Seguin brothers. L. J. Vicat (1786-
1861), who had been an assistant to C. L. M.
H. Navier (1785-1836), suggested systems of
sheathing cables in metal envelopes to protect
them from corrosion, and in 1834 he invented
a process of spinning cables in the air to make
wire rope, rather than relying on wires being
draped side by side. This technique was
discovered independently in 1842 by John
Roebling (1806-69), when he used it to carry a
canal over the Allegheny River. This was the
first of many bridges erected by this method
by Roebling and his son, which include the
Cincinnati Bridge (1867) and the Brooklyn
Bridge (1883) which spanned 1,600 ft. (488 m)
and used steel in the spun cables. Steel cables
have since been used extensively in the
Corrugated iron wall and roof,
Prince Albert's Ballroom, Balmoral,
Scotland (1851 ).
construction industry for suspension bridges,
suspended and membrane roofs, diagonal
bracing to light structures, in pretensioning
I.
_I_~ '
Riveted joints in iron roofs; with
concrete, and as cables for elevators. skylight and ventilators (TOP) and
supporting slates and glazing
(BOTTOM) in a north-light roof truss.
Cast and wrought iron in buildings in the
19th century
Apart from the buildings and bridges already
mentioned, countless other structures were
built during the 19th century in which cast and
wrought iron were used in new ways.
Detail of a link in the wrought-iron
In industrial buildings, numerous inno-
chains of Telford's Menai vations in fireproofing and beam, column, and
Suspension Bridge, Wales floor design were made. A wide range of
(inaugurated 1826). different truss-roof shapes were evolved com-
bining cast iron with timber, timber with
wrought iron, cast and wrought iron, and
finally rolled wrought iron on its own. The
cast-iron roof over Maudslay's Machine
Workshop (1832) was a much publicized
James Bogardus' factory in New
example. When first erected it collapsed York (1848-49), constructed with
through fracture in the ribs , but was still facades entirely formed in cast
considered by contemporary commentators to iron.
be a good design. Efficient truss types were mill which was ordered from Constantinople.
evolved by American and European railroad This building had a complete iron frame, and
engineers. Camille Polonceau (1813-59) used all the enclosing walls were made in the same
trusses of the same form as the American material. It was followed by an order for a
Fink truss in his sheds for the Paris-Versailles large woollen mill also for Turkey.
railroad of 1837. These had timber principals, James Bogardus (1800-74) developed his
cast-iron struts, and wrought-iron ties. This famous cast-iron framing system in his own
form became very popular in Europe. The factory in New York in 1848-49 at the corner
Anchorages for steel cables being trusses at London's Euston Station (1835-39), of Center and Duane Street. In this , and
constructed for suspension bridge designed by Stephenson, used rolled wrought many buildings built on a similar principle, he
at Staten Island, New York (1963).
iron for the first time. North-light trusses in used a range of standardized columns and
wrought iron were used in Britain by William spandril girders which fitted accurately
Fairbairn for his mill at Saltaire (1853). In together by bolting, after the meeting surfaces
1840, Fairbairn built a small two-storey flour had been machined. In 1855-56, he built two
 Iron 269

shot towers, the height of the first 175 ft. (53 and tie rods. The covering was corrugated
m), the second 217 ft. (66 m), in which he iron. An iron-framed barrel-vaulted shed was
used iron frames on an octagonal plan with used in the Gare de I'Est in Paris (1847-52).
infill panels of brick; pioneering freestanding Paddington Station in London (1852-54) by I.
tall-framed structures in iron. In about 1865 K. Brunei (1806-59) is an example of an early
Daniel Badger, who had been in the cast-iron large terminus shed with a roof made up of a
business in New York before Bogardus, built series of barrel vaults. It incorporated a
cast-iron grain elevators for the Pennsylvania transept. The decoration of this utilitarian
Railroad and the U.S. Warehousing Company structure was entrusted to the architect M. D.
to the designs of his engineer G. H. Johnson. Wyatt (1820-77). In 1863 Jacob Hittorf
The St Ouen Dock Warehouses near Paris, (1792-1867) replaced a smaller station building
designed in 1864 by Hippolyte Fontaine, for the Gare du Nord in Paris, built in 1847 by
consisted of a six-storey block measuring 630 Leyonce Reynaud (1803-80), with a large
x 82 ft. (192 x 25 m), constructed with hollow train shed using Polonceau trusses spanning
brick arches spanning between wrought-iron 115ft. (35 m) with aisles of 57 ft. (17.5 m)
beams carried on columns at 13 ft. (4 m) supported on delicately decorated columns.
centers. This building pioneered the use of the In 1868, W. H. Barlow and R. M. Ordish Boat Store, Sheerness, England
multistorey iron frame, no longer reliant on designed the large roof for St Pancras Station (1858-60), by Col. Geoffrey Green.
masonry walls for its rigidity. On the external in London which comprised a single wrought-
enclosure, the iron framing is visible, and iron lattice arch springing from track level and
supports infill panels of brickwork. Rigidity is spanning 240 ft. (73 m), with a height at the
achieved through the column-and-beam con- center of 82 ft. (25 m). This was to remain the
nections. The Boat Store at Sheerness in largest span in an iron roof until the Galt!rie
Britain (1858-60) by Col. Greene is a four- des Machines of 1889, by Victor Contamin
storey, iron-framed building also relying on (1840-98) and Ferdinand Dutert (1845-1906),
rigid column-and-beam connections for its with its three-pin portal frames spanning 375
stability. The external walls have long hori- ft. (114 m). In the U .S. the first all-iron
zontal windows between the columns with arched train shed covering a number of tracks
corrugated iron spandril panels under them. was built at Cleveland, Ohio, in 1865-66 by B.
In this building much of the floor framing is F. Morse with a span of 180ft. (55 m). The
made in timber. largest single-span train shed in the world was
The Menier Chocolate Factory (1871-72) at Broad Street Station, Philadelphia (1892-93),
Noisiel-sur-Marne, designed by Jules Saulnier designed by the engineers Joseph M. Wilson
Paddington Station interior,
(1817-81), is another early example of the and Brothers. The clear span of 300 ft. 8 in. London, England (1852-54), by
complete iron frame in a multistorey building. (92 m) is made up of a three-pinned, multi- lsambard K. Brunei.
In this-building the new structural ideas are an centered arch.
integral part of the architectural design. The Market halls became common in many
facades which consist of non-load-bearing cities throughout the world in the 19th cen-
decorative brick walls are overlaid with a tury. An early iron example was the market
system of diagonal braces that confer rigidity hall at La Madeleine in Paris, built in 1824.
to the building frame. These structures, with The Hungerford Fish Market in London
non-load-bearing external walls, were the (1835), designed by Charles Fowler (1791 -
forerunners of the Chicago frame buildings of 1867), was an elegant, freestanding , single-
the 1880s, and other later skyscrapers. storey, cast-iron pavilion with a central raised
The first wrought-iron columns in the U.S. section to admit light and air. The roofs were
were developed by David Reeves of the pitched at shallow angles over the main span
Phoenix Iron Company at Phoenixville, with cantilever sections beyond the two rows
Pennsylvania, in 1864. T hese and other types of columns which carried the roof gutters. In
made up of rolled section became popular 1854 Victor Baltard (1805-74) and Felix Callet
when confidence in cast-iron columns reached (1791-1855) began to build the great central St Pancras Station, London,
England (1868). by W . H. Barlow
a low ebb after the collapse in 1860 of the market of Paris with its many three-tiered iron and R. M. Ordish.
Pemberton Mill at Lawrence, Mass. , which and glass pavilions and covered streets. This
killed 200 people. complex, which enclosed a vast area, was
Railroad stations, especially in large cities, demolished in 1973. Baltard and Callet's
were often covered with iron roofs of pavilions were less innovatory from a struc-
innovatory design. Euston Station, London, tural point of view than rival designs sub-
had wrought-iron roofs covering individual mitted by Hector Horreau (1801-72) and M.
tracks. In 1849-51, Richard Turner used a Flachat (1802-73), which had wider spans and
single arched span of 153 ft. 6 in. (47 m) to more forward-looking structures.
cover six tracks , three platforms, and a Covered shopping arcades were built in
roadway at the Lime Street Station in Liver- many European cities. In Paris the earliest Hungerford Market, London,

pool, England. This roof was of light ones date from the 1770s, and many of the England (1868), by Charles Fowler.

wrought-iron construction with principal raf- 19th-century ones have iron and glass roof
ters approximating standard rail sections in framing. Generally these have fairly modest
shape, strutted with wrought-iron members spans, rarely exceeding 20ft. (6 m). Examples
270 Iron

include the Passage du Grand Cerf (1824-26) (1832-1923) as engineer is a tour de force in its
and Passage Jouffrey (1845-47). The Galleria mastery of cast- and wrought-iron con-
Vittorio Emanuele in Milan , built by struction. This large building is in some places
Giuseppe Mengoni (1829-77) in 1867, is an up to six storeys high; the basement covered
example of this form of building on a grand an area of 30,000 sq. ft. (2,790 sq. m). Its deep
scale. The central cupola is 160 ft. (49 m) plan is perforated by light wells enclosed in
above ground, at the intersection of two iron and glass roofs and bridged by "pas-
covered streets, one 643 ft. (197 m) and the sarelles." Monumental staircases and bal-
other 344 ft. (105 m) in length with roofs at 88 conies with decorative iron work enrich these
ft. (27m). light-flooded spaces. This building formed a
Commercial buildings using iron became model for many subsequent large department
widespread in the 19th century. By the end of stores in cities throughout the world. The
the 1830s many shop fronts and beams above office building at 24 Rue Reaumur in Paris .
large shop fronts were being erected in cast (1904-05), which is attributed to Georges
iron in European and American cities. In Chedanne, uses riveted wrought-iron columns
1835, J . L. Mott built a foundry in New York and sheet iron spandrils in a totally fresh way,
specializing in the manufacture of cast-iron appropriate to the material and without any
store fronts. A four-storey commercial build- clear allusion to previous architectural styles.
ing erected at No. 50 Watling Street, London Around this time, Art Nouveau architects,
(c. 1843), incorporated cast-iron beams and among them Victor Horta (1861-1947), Hec-
columns in its upper two storeys, making tor Guimard (1867-1942), and Frantz Jourdain
Dittenhofer Building at 427-429
large windows possible. In the U.S. the (1847-1935), used wrought iron forged into Broadway, New York. A typical
Lorillard Building in New York (1837) has sinuous shapes as decoration and structure, multistorey cast-iron front (1870).
cast-iron columns extending through the first often with the acceptance of rivets as part of
two storeys, combined with ·cast-iron beams the decorative scheme. The Maison du Peuple
at both these levels. In 1846, Daniel Badger in Brussels (1896-99) by Horta, and the
moved to New York from Boston, where he Samaritaine department store by Jourdain
had been making iron store fronts since 1842. illustrate this trend. Eugene Emmanuel
Between the 1850s and 1870s he manufactured Viollet-le-Duc (1814-79), the French architec-
facades and other components for a pro- tural theorist, had advocated the use of
digious number of buildings, mostly between exposed and riveted iron in his lectures.
two and six storeys, to be erected in the U.S. Public buildings and places of assembly and
and for export. These buildings were normally entertainment were a mong the first building
composed in a repetitive Venetian Renais- types to employ iron structural elements. The
sance style with storey heights varying bet- House of Commons gallery in London (1706)
ween 9 and 14 ft. (3 and 4 m) and bay widths and the Theatre du Palais Royal (1758-90)
around 6ft. (2m). The five-storey Haughwout have already been mentioned. Foulston's
Building at the corner of Broadway and Theater Royal in Plymouth (1811-13) was
Broome Street, built in 1857, is a good probably the first public building in Britain to
example. employ cast- and wrought-iron framing on a
James Bogardus built many cast-iron large scale. John Nash (1752-1835) used iron
facades and other building components, columns and other elements in the Brighton
including buildings for the California gold rush Pavilion (1818-21). The Chesnut Street The-
and a scheme for the New York Crystal ater in Philadelphia (1818-24), designed by
Palace with a suspended roof in iron and glass William Strickland (1788-1854), was the first
(1852). He supplied cast-iron columns and U.S. building to use iron columns. In this ABOVE: Le Parisien Building at 24,
beams for the Harper and Brothers Printing building the slenderness of cast-iron columns Rue Reaumur in Paris, France
(1904-{)5), by Georges Chedanne.
Company Building (1854), designed by J. B. and decoration made possible by molding
Coliers. T his building was the first in the U.S. techniques were exploited architecturally.
to use wrought-iron joists to support the brick The John Travers Library in Paterson, New
arches that spanned between them. These Jersey (1846), initiated the use of cast-iron
were rolled by the Trenton Iron Works. floor beams in the U.S. These beams spanned Cast-iron structure of the dome of
In Britain cast-iron fronts similar to those 16ft.(5m). St. Isaac's Cathedral i n Leningrad
manufactured in the U.S. were made for In the 1840s, many public buildings in (1842), by A.R. M ontferrand.
export to the expanding colonies and other Britain employed iron in roofs, columns, and
markets, as well as for use at home. The beams, but these were often covered in other
Jamaica Street Warehouse in Glasgow (1855) finishes or otherwise hidden. Bridgewater
and Oriel Chambers in Liverpool, designed by House (1847-57), designed by Sir Charles
Peter Ellis (1804-84) in 1864, with its repeti- Barry (1795-1860), and the Museum of
tive bay windows foreshadowing some of the Economic Geology (1847-48), designed by Sir
Chicago buildings of the 1880s and 1890s , are James Penethorne (1801-71), both had cast-
both good examples. In Paris, the Bon iron roofs over their galleries. In the sorting
Marche department store (1873-76) designed room of the General Post Office in London
by Louis-Auguste Boileau (1812-1896) with (1845), designed by Sydney Smirke (1798-
Armand Moisant and possibly Gustave Eiffel 1877), the cast-iron arched ribs with their
 Iron 271

bolted connections were clearly visible inter- ing by M. C . Meigs and Schoenborn. All the
nally. Sir Charles Barry's Houses of Par- structural elements in this dome were made of
liament (1840-56) employed iron members cast iron. Later in the century wrought-iron
discreetly in many parts of its structure, but framing was used in the construction of large
had an iron roof covering of large cast-iron domes such as the one over the Albert Hall in
plates. The Bibliotheque Ste Genevieve in London (1867-71) by Captain Fowke (1823-
Paris (1843-50), designed by Henri Labrouste 65), which had a span of 185ft. (56. 5 m).
(1801-75), was probably the first large public Large glasshouses completely framed in
interior to use cast and wrought iron from iron were built from the early years of the
floor to ceiling. The external walls are of century. The Musee d'Histoire N aturelle in
masonry construction. T he reading room Paris (1833-34), by C.R. de Fleury, is an
measures 278 x 69 ft. (85 x 21 m) and is early example of an extensive building of this
divided down the middle by a row of 16 type. The iron and glass structures are built
columns which support two rows of perforat- against a masonry wall . Another important
ed arched ribs which carry the roof. glasshouse complely framed in iron is the
In Labrouste's Bibliotheque Nationale Palm House at Kew, built in 1845-47 by
(1858-68) the reading room is enclosed by Decimus Burton (1800-81) and Richard
nine domes supported on light, semicircular Turner. It is a freestanding building with
iron ribs, which are carried on slender cast- tightly spaced iron glazing bars enclosing
iron columns. The book stacks, which were barrel-vaulted spaces with apsidal ends. Many
designed to house 900,000 volumes, are of the great exhibitions of the 19th century
arranged on five floors including the base- took their inspiration from these glasshouses.
ment, and the space is flooded with light from The London Crystal Palace of 1851 , by Sir
a glass roof by the use of gridiron open-work Joseph Paxton (1801-65), was the first and
floors. Thomas U . Walter (1804-87) designed although it used iron for its major structural Wrought-iron gates (1905), by
additions to the U.S. Capitol in Washington components, its floor, gutters, glazing bars, Hector Guimard.
using iron extensively as. a fireproofing mea- and other parts were largely made in timber.
sure in the interiors of the Library of Con- Hector Horreau (1801-72) and Richard
gress room (1851-52) and the new wings Turner had both proposed all-iron and glass
(1852-54). Roof trusses, ceilings, wall panel- designs in the competition for this building.
ing, window frames, and the like are all made Many important exhibition buildings and
of iron. structures followed , including the New York
Many public buildings in the 19th century and Dublin Exhibition of 1853, the Paris
employed large domes over major spaces, and Exhibitions of 1855, 1867, and 1878, cul-
there was a tendency to build the framing of minating in the construction, for the 1889
these in iron, which was often far cheaper, Paris Exhibition, of the Galerie des Machines
lighter, and quicker to erect than masonry and and the Eiffel Tower (1887-89) which reached
much safer than wood, both in durability and a height of l ,000 ft. (300 m), and was
incombustibility. completed injust 26 months.
The Bourse de Commerce in Paris, which Churches and chapels using iron com-
had been the Halle au Ble before its wooden ponents and structural elements could in
dome burned down, was covered with what many cases be built considerably cheaper than Detail of ironwork from the
Bibliotheque Ste Genevieve, Paris,
was probably the first large iron-framed dome those using conventional construction. The France (1843-50), by Henri
(1806-1811 ), designed by Franc;ois-J oseph three churches erected in Liverpool between Labrouste.
Belanger (1744-1818) and Brunet. The 51 1813-16 by Thomas Rickman (1776-1841) and
cast-iron ribs were cast at Creusot, and when John Cragg (1767-1854) have already been
in position were held together by wrought-iron mentioned. Among these StGeorge's in Ever-
rods and straps. In 1842, August Ricard ton (1813-14) was the one in which iron was
Montferrand (1786-1858) designed an elabo- used most extensively. In 1842-43, Edward
rate cast-iron framing system for the dome of Blore (1787-1879) erected a chapel at Buck-
St Isaac's Cathedral, St Petersburg, Russia . ingham Palace, London, with cast-iron col-
The components were cast under the direction umns and decorative trusses. In 1855 ,
of William Handisyde, a British engineer who Louis-Auguste Boileau (1812-%) and the
worked in Russia for many years. The Coal engineer A. L. Lusson completed the church
Exchange in London (1846-49), designed by of St Eugene in Paris, in which cast and
James Bunstone Bunning (1802-63), had over wrought iron was used extensively for the ABOVE : Dome structure of the Albert
its main court a large hemispherical dome structure and interior t)f the building. It was Hall, London, England (1867- 71 ),
composed of richly decorated, cast-iron ribs built for a quarter of the cost of competitive by Captain Fowke with Groover
framing elaborately painted panels. This was designs, and its interior, with its slender and Ordish as engineers.

followed in 1854 by Sydney Smirke's large structural members and lofty proportions,
dome over the reading room of the British albeit in a Gothic style, was much admired for
Museum, London. The timber dome of the the new spatial possibilities it offered. Notre
U.S. Capitol was replaced in 1856-64 with a Dame du Travail, also in Paris (1901-1903),
larger more impressive cupola designed by by Jules Astruc (1862-1935), created an
Thomas U. Walter (1804-87), with engineer- interior in which the structural wrought-iron
 272 Steel

elements with all their rivets and diagonal corrugated iron ballroom at Balmoral in Scot-
bracing were visible without extra adornment. land, which still stands. Bellhouse' s con-
In 1876, an iron spire was built on the tower tracting, like many of his competitors, was not
of Rouen Cathedral to replace a wooden one limited to buildings. In 1858 he built the gas
which had burned down. The cathedral thus works and supply system for port Buenos
became the second tallest building in Europe , Aires in Argentina. Daniel Badger in New
second only to Cologne Cathedral. Cast-iron York exported buildings abroad, including a
and wrought components for churches were large sugar storage shed for Havana in Cuba
exported by missionary societies and con- in the 1860s. These contractors built railroads ,
gregations to British and later to French water supply systems, port facilities, fac-
colonies . The church at Macquire Street in tories, and many other civil engineering works
Sydney (1853) had a cast-iron front probably throughout the world. The British West
made by the contractors Charles D. Young Indian barrack system of 1826 has already
and Company of Edinburgh and London. been mentioned. The French also
Samuel Hemming, a corrugated iron building experimented with prefabricated, military
manufacturer, exported many churches to the buildings for their colonies. In 1845 the
colonies and erected hired temporary French Navy erected a small experimental
churches for congregations in Britain. The hospital building in wrought iron in
temporary church of St Paul's, Kensington Guadeloupe to designs by A. Romand.
(1855), with seating for 800 people, is an Perhaps the most sophisticated 19th-century
example of one of his larger buildings. system for prefabricated buildings in iron was
Because these structures were popular in developed in the 1880s in Belgium by Joseph
Britain, the Ecclesiological Society, which had Danly. He used a wrought-iron structure ,
set itself up to control the forms and use of cast-iron connecting pieces, and modular
objects used in the ritual of the Church of pressed-iron cladding panels forming walls
England, commissioned the design of an iron with internal ventilation. This system was
church which was published as a model in intended for buildings in the Congo.
Eiffel Tower, Paris, France 1856. Many of the internal details of this Cast-iron lighthouses were erected in many
(1887--a9), by Gustave Eiffel. building were borrowed from Dean and isolated places throughout the world. The
Woodward's Oxford Museum of 1855. The lighthouse at Morant Point in Jamaica,
exterior was of simple, corrugated iron . erected by Alexander Gordon in 1841, was
Other types of iron buildings made for constructed of 135 flanged cast-iron plates
export became extremely popular after the bolted together on the inside of the structure
1830s. King Eyambo of Calabar ordered a which was 108 ft. (33 m) high. A skeletal
two-storey iron palace from William Laycock wrought-iron lighthouse structure was erected
of Liverpool in 1843 . Industrial sheds and by Richard Walker, a British contractor, for
other buildings such as the market for San the American Government on the Florida
Fernando, Trinidad (1848), and a sugar fac- Sands in 1851.
tory for Barbados (1846), were exported to the In Britain in the early 19th century the
West Indies and other places by J. H. Porter development of seaside resorts resulted in the
King Eyambo's Palace (1824-95) during the 1840s. E . T . Bellhouse building of many promenade piers . One of the
exported to Africa in (1816-81) of Manchester exported a number first to use an iron structure was the pier at
1843.
of buildings and sheds to California during the Brighton, built by Captain Samuel Brown in
Prefabricated corrugated-iron gold rush in 1849 and when his exhibit was 1822 as a suspension structure using wrought-
buildings, mainly for export to the admired at the 1851 Exhibition by Prince iron chains with spans of 255 ft. (78 m). The
colonies, at Samuel Hemming's
works near Bristol, England (1854).
Albert , he was commissioned to build a total length was I, 136 ft. (346 m) but parts of
it were destroyed in gales in 1833 and 1836.
Many other piers followed, but they were
generally built as a deck supported on cast-
iron columns often founded on iron screw
piles: Gravesend Pier, built in 1844, is a good
early example.

Steel
Steel is a form of iron containing a measured
proportion of carbon (0.15-1.5%). The prop-
erties of steel can be carefully controlled: it
can be made highly elastic and ductile, hence
its general replacement of wrought iron, or it
can be made of great hardness and durability.
Many other properties can be given to steel
by alloying it with other metals .
In 1854, the Englishman Henry Bessemer
(1813-98) accidentally developed a process of
 Steel 273

converting pig iron into steel by blowing air Steel rails were first rolled in 1860, and
through molten iron. The air "burned" out a rolling mills making other sections soon took
large proportion of the carbon normally found advantage of the fact that they were no longer
in the pig iron, leaving behind steel. His restricted by the puddling process, and could
results became widely known and con- roll sections containing a large volume of
siderable interest was shown by many people material. Wider and taller rolled products
in the iron trade. The invention of this could now be made on a large scale.
technique is a controversial subject since the Rolling mills developed enormously in the
American William Kelly (1811-188!!) con- 1850s and 1860s by becoming increasingly
tested Bessemer's claim, proving in a patents mechanized . In 1862 the continuous mill was
case that he had made " refined iron" by a introduced, in which the piece to be rolled
similar process in 1851. After intial setbacks, would pass from the first roll stand near the
Bessemer was able to make steel from furnace through a succession of roll stands,
phosphorus-free ores in his "converters" until the desired form emerged . Previously,
which, soon after their invention, could make pieces had been passed back and forth across View from control pulpit of
5 tons (4 ,536 kg) of steel in less than half the a stand of rolls, with much loss of heat and slabbing mill at a modern steel
time needed to make 560 lb. (254 kg) of wastage oflabor. works.
wrought iron. The increase in production of blast furnaces
During the late 1850s Charles Werner von and steel mills led to further mechanization,
Siemens (1823-83) developed ways of reduc- and hence the initiative passed from Europe
ing the fuel consumption of furnaces by to the U.S . where mechanized pig iron casting
recovering heat from combustion gases. His and furnace changing featured among the
furnace, which was gas-fired, found appli- many new important developments. By 1890
cations in other industries requiring high the U.S. was the world's largest iron pro-
temperatures for their manufacturing pro- ducer. The electric motor began to be used in
cesses. In 1863 the Frenchman Pierre Emile rolling mills from 1880 onward. At first its use
Martin (1824-1915) successfully produced was confined to light duties, but gradually it
steel in a Siemens furnace. This gave rise to superseded the steam engine as a more easily
what is known as the "Siemens-Martin" or controllable, less bulky, and less awkward
"open hearth" steel-making process, in which source of power.
the iron is raised to a very high temperature in The universal mill was invented in 1897 by
contact with a suitable slag, which decar- the Englishman Henry Gray, but it was first
bonizes the iron, converting it into steel. By used in Germany in 1902. In this type of mill ,
1870 the open-hearth process was being rollers act on all sides of a section simul-
employed in a number of countries . This taneously, resulting in a product with truer Finishing mill at a steel works.
method had the advantage of allowing the use dimensions and with surfaces more accurately
of a greater variety of iron ores, as well as faced. At first, it was used to roll plate, but
scrap, and since the operation of the process was later employed for the universal beams ,
was much slower than the Bessemer con- columns , and channels so well known to the
verter (6-15 hours compared to half an hour), construction industry.
the quality of the product could be carefully The first steel bridges were a group of three
controlled and monitored. erected in Holland in 1862 with spans of up to
121 ft. (37 m). Further bridges constructed in
Bessemer convener apparatus (in Holland, which employed Bessemer steel,
section); for the manufacture of showed signs of unreliability . Steel was
steel from pig iron.
regarded with suspicion in the construction
industry, even though it had been used in the
construction of a steel-hulled warship for the
French Navy in 1874. Improvements in steel
production, aided by metallurgical research ,
gradually raised confidence in the material,
but wrought iron remained the main structural Fonh Bridge, Scotland ('1882-90),
form of iron until about 1890. In the U.S. the by J. Fowler and B. Baker.
first bridge made entirely of steel was the
Glasgow Bridge (1872) over the Alton River
in Missouri. This made use of steel whipple
trusses, with spans of 314ft. (96 m), produced
in an electric arc furnace . Extensive tests
were carried out on this material before it was
accepted , and even though one of the spans
collapsed during erection it was not as a result
of the quality of the steel.
In 1877 the British Board of Trade author-
ized the use of steel in construction engineer-
ing which led to its use in the famous Forth
274 Steel

Bridge in Scotland, built between 1882 and rock caissons, fully riveted structures, and the
1890 by Sir John Fowler (1817-98) and Sir use of wind-bracing elements integrated into
Benjamin Baker (1840-1907). The main struc- the structure. Adler and Sullivan's Carson,
tural members were hollow steel tubes con- Pirie, Scott Store (1899-1906), is an example
structed out of riveted plates. The two center of the mature form of "Chicago con-
spans were I ,710ft. (521 m) long. struction."
In New York the erection by the Keystone
Bridge Company of Gustave Eiffel's iron
Steel-framed buildings internal framework for the Statue of Liberty
In the late 1880s the multistoreyed steel frame (1883-86) fired the imagination of many desig-
using riveted and bolted steel columns, ners, with the potential that this type of
beams, and joists was developed in Chicago. structure offered.
The Home Insurance Building (1884-S5), Iron framing for tall buildings began to be
designed by William Le Baron Jenney (1832- used tentatively in New York before the end
1907), was the first Chicago building to use of the 1880s, but New York lagged behind
steel in part of its structure. In the upper six Chicago in structural innovation. The first
of the ten storeys, Jenney was permitted to application of iron framing in New York was
use steel beams in place of wrought iron as the 11-storey Tower Building at 50, Broadway
originally specified, and these were supplied (1888-89), designed by Bradford Gilbert. The
by the Carnegie Phipps Steel Company of Manhattan Life Insurance Company Building
Pittsburg. This building had originally been (1893-94) by Kinball and Thompson, used a
designed as a complete freestanding frame , completely framed structure for its 17 storeys.
but the authorities insisted that some of the From then onward , buildings of ever-
loads be carried by the party walls. In the increasing height were erected. By the end of
Steel frame of the Unity Building,
second Leiter Building (1889), Jenney was the century, a 30-storey building had been Chicago (1892), before
able to use an independent steel cage to built. Improvements in developing more rigid concealment by external cladding.
support the whole structure, and the eight- framing connections and other technical Architect C.J. Warren.
storey facade was no longer carried on heavy developments enabled the construction of
masonry walls. such buildings as the 58-storey Woolworth
The Auditorium Building in Chicago Building (1912), by Cass Gilbert (1859-1934),
(1887-89) , designed by Dankmar Adler and the 102-storey Empire State Building
(1844-1900) and Louis H . Sullivan (1856- (1931), designed by Shreve, Lamb, and Har-
1924), although partly of masonry con- rison.
struction, used iron and steel framing with From the early years of this century, many
impressive confidence in the creation of many advances were made in the construction of
of its large and elaborate volumes. The com- tall, steel-framed buildings. After World War
plex , containing 63,350 sq. ft. (5,891 sq. m), II, the use of masonry, which had been the
included a large theater, offices, hotel rooms, normal external cladding, began to be
and other accommodation. The Tacoma superseded by curtain walling, which had
Building (1888-89), designed by Holabird and been proposed by Mies Van der Rohe (1886-
Roche, had street elevations completely 1%9) as the appropriate cladding for tall
framed in iron, and all the junctions between buildings as early as 1920-21 in his project for Detail of steel column and girder
the structural elements were riveted, con- glass-clad skyscrapers. Typical examples of structure; designed by William Le
ferring extra rigidity to the structure. buildings as early as 1919-20 in his project for Baron Jenney for the Fair Store
Building in Chicago (1892).
Baumann and Huell's Chamber of Commerce construction include the Alcoa Building in
Building (1888-89) was the first building of Pittsburg (1953), by Harrison and
this type employing no structural masonry at Abramovitz, with its stamped aluminum clad-
all. ding panels, and Lever House in New York
The Reliance Building (1890-94), designed (1954) by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill
by Daniel Hudson Burnham (1846-1912) and (S .O.M.). Precast concrete as a cladding
John Wellborn Root (1850-91), is an out- material became popular in the 1960s, and the
standing example of a freestanding Chicago Pan Am Building in New York can be taken
steel tower with a marked vertical emphasis as an example of this type of construction.
and a facade of steel and glass which anti- Masonry cladding had contributed to the
cipated many 20th-century buildings . In the stiffness of structures, but with lighter walling
structure, two-storey steel columns were systems other methods had to be found for
used, which made the erection of the frame bracing tall structures against wind and
very rapid . The structural cage of the final ten seismic loading. Elevator and service cores,
storeys was erected in 15 days . which had been used for a long time as Diagram of the steel structure of
By the time of the 1895 depression, stiffening elements, had greater demands the Statue of Liberty in New York
engineers and architects in Chicago had cre- placed on them. More reliable rigid con- (1883~6), designed by Gustave
ated many structural innovations to make the nections between columns and flooring ele- Eiffel.
framing of these steel-framed buildings more ments were also developed . Plant floors,
reliable, efficient, and economical. These carrying air conditioning and other services,
innovations include the development of bed- were distributed at a number of levels through
 Steel 275

the height of the building, and these were

made into rigid structural elements by the
introduction of extensive diagonal bracing that
would have been obstructive to windows on
other floors. The use of these braced plant
floors contributed considerably to the stiffness
of the entire structure. Another form of
stiffening which has become popular is the use
of diagonal bracing throughout the height of
the building, making the whole structure into
a rigid tube. The John Hancock Building in
Chicago (1968), designed by Fazlur Kahn of
S.O.M., is a well-known example of this type
of construction.
The Sears Tower in Chicago (1974) which
reached a height of 1,460 ft. (445 m), was
designed by S.O.M. as a further development
Woolworth Building, New York of the same principle, being built up of nine
(1912), by Cass Gilbert. minitubes each 75 ft. (23 m) square which
reduce in number through the height of the
building. These externally braced towers pro-
duce great savings in steel when compared to
other types of framing for buildings of a
similar height.
Normal techniques of fireproofing steel
structures involve the use of some form of
casing to the structural members, either in the
form of concrete cast around the members or
Lever House in Park Avenue, New
of some other kind of protective material. York (1950), by Skidmore, Owings,
These systems evolved after a number of and Merrill. The building is clad in a
iron-framed buildings burned down in the glass curtain wall .
1830s and 1840s: until then, they had been
presumed fireproof. The Chicago fire of 1871 John Hancock Center, Chicago
was a further stimulus to the development of (1968) by Skidmore, Owings, and
Merrill. Constructed with external
fireproofing techniques. A complete system of bracing throughout the height of
fireproofing using terra-cotta elements was the tower.
patented in Britain by Whitchord in 1873. The
disadvantages of fireproofing techniques are
that they may add considerable weight to the
structure, increase the time taken for instal-
lation, and tend to make the structural steel
elements invisible by burying them in some
type of casing. An alternative fireproofing
method has been developed which allows the
steel frame to be left unclad, by constructing
it of tubular members containing water fed
from tanks, which cool the structure in the
event of a fire. This alternative method is
employed in the 64-storey United States Steel
Corporation Building in Pittsburgh and the
Centre Pompidou in Paris (1976), designed by
Piano and Rogers.

Alcoa Building, Pittsburgh (1953),

by Harrison and Abramovitz; clad
Other developments in the use of iron
in stamped aluminum panels. and steel
After the mid-19th century, metallurgical sci-
ence advanced at a rapid rate and many new
alloys of iron were studied and developed. An
example of this progress can be seen in the
invention of tungsten-alloy steel in 1868,
which revolutionized steel-cutting tools , by
providing harder, more durable cutting edges
for drills, lathe bits, etc.
Welding and associated processes, which
 276 Steel

developed toward the turn of the century, stamped into objects such as electrical junc-
increased the range and potential of iron and tion boxes, or formed into protective conduit
steel design and fabrication . The melting of for electrical wires . The spanning charac-
metals by electric arc was invented by the teristics of corrugated sheet steel are utilized
Russian Barnados in 1887, with further in the construction of some reinforced-
developments following shortly afterward. concrete floors, in which the steel contributes
Acetylene was discovered in the U.S. in 1892, to the load-bearing properties of the deck and
and by 1900 the first serviceable oxyacetylene acts as permanent shuttering, resulting in
torch was already in use. It is possible to speedy erection and savings in formwork .
reach very high temperatures (5,548°-6,268°F/ Mild steel bars have been used in ever-
3,100°-3 ,500°C) by means of these techni- increasing quantities since before the turn of
ques, thereby allowing the iron or steel (melt- the century for reinforcement in concrete
ing point 2,668°F I 1,500°C) to join together by construction. These bars, especially in larger
fusion at the welded joint. There is no reason sizes , often have deformed surfaces to
for these joints to be weaker than the parent increase their bonding with the concrete. Bars
material, although welded joints were initially may be welded to form premade rein-
regarded with suspicion. Welded structures forcement cages, meshes, or mats; alter-
began to be used toward the end of World natively they can be made into the desired
War I. The first all-welded bridge in the U.S. shape on the building site, by bending and site
dates back to 1927. assembly.
Flame cutting of iron and steel evolved at Wide-flange beams and columns were
about the same time as the welding techniques developed soon after World War I in Lux-
described above. The heated steel does not embourg. These have . wider and thicker
melt under the jet of oxygen, but oxidizes flanges than normal sections and the flanges
rapidly to form a clean cut. These cuts can be are of uniform thickness, making the con-
made quickly even through thick pieces of nections , splices , fixings , and joints much
material. Flame cutting is cheap, fast , and simpler and cleaner. In the U.S., which
Large-span tubular steel beam at efficient for producing any desired shape in pioneered their use on a large scale, these
the Centre Pompidou, Paris, France steel. Cutting torches can be guided by hand larger and heavier sections were rolled with
(1976), by Piano and Rogers. but the process also lends itself to automation. varying widths of flange for the same depth of
Flame cutting combined with welding beams, simplifying the range of connection
makes it possible to fabricate structural mem- details needed in complex structures.
bers that have forms tailored to the loads they Numerous steel products began to be made
have to carry. Cleaner, lighter structures are and used in the period between the wars ,
therefore possible . They are less subject to among them steel window frames and steel
corrosion in hidden joint areas and the simpler tubes. Seamless steel tubes were first man-
forms reduce the amount of maintenance ufactured by the Mannesman brothers in
work required. 1885. Steel tubes, normally 2 in. (50 mm) in
It became feasible to cut standard rolled diameter, became very popular for scaf-
sections and produce efficient structural folding, especially when combined with
shapes which were economic in their use of patent connections which made rapid erec-
material, by giving them extra depth where tion and removal possible. Galvanized steel
required and by removing steel where it was water pipes and electrical conduit were mar-
not needed. Castellated steel beams are an keted extensively, combined with a large
example of such a form. array of accessories to form connections and
Castellated steel beam supporting Between the wars, structural sections made junction parts. Steel tubes are strong in
a steel roof deck and a ceiling. out of cold rolled steel strip or sheet began to compression and were therefore used in the
be used. The sheet is deformed into desired construction of columns and trusses, and later
shapes by rolling or bending. Useful sections as members for space frames. At first, tubes
can also be made by building up combinations with a circular cross section were the only
of these cold rolled sections by spot welding, ones available , which made jointing by weld-
a process that can be highly mechanized. ing fairly complicated since the tubes required
In 1935 the French engineer E. Mopin built cutting to complex shapes, but square and
a complex of 1,200 apartments using struc- rectangular tubes became economically viable
tural members of this type in the building for use in buildings in the late 1950s and early
frames . These sections are employed today in 1960s. These can be used to make very clean
many parts of the construction industry. and light-looking beams and trusses .
Good examples are the Z-purlins, used as Developments in metallurgy and structural
spanning elements over roof trusses, and the theory have imposed stricter demands on the
members of grids that support suspended performance of iron and steel alloys , and have
ceilings. Steel sheet has many further appli- led to advances in structural design; special
cations in building: it is used for the fab- high-tensile steels are available which have a
rication of ventilation and air-conditioning permissible tensile stress much higher than
ducts; it is made into expanded metal used in normal mild steel. These steels were used in
concrete and in plastering, and it may be the construction of Bailey bridge panels during
 Copper 277

World War II, and many improvements He used these in a highly original way, with
have since been made in the properties of close attention to detail, color, and proportion
these steels. to create lively and airy spaces-some of
Stainless steel was developed accidentally them reminiscent of old Japanese houses.
in 1912. This alloy, which does not corrode, Bruce Goff (b. 1904) has always made use
normally contains about 10-14% chromium. It of materials in an inspired way, often unen-
is used in building products such as kitchen cumbered by conventional preconceptions . In
sinks, facing panels, bolts, tension wires, etc. 1949 he utilized war surplus components,
Other steel alloys such as "Weathering," taking the curved steel framing members of
also known as "Cor-ten," have been adopted Quonset huts as structural elements for the
by architects, engineers, and builders for their Umbrella (Ford) House. Instead of using
special properties. "Cor-ten", which is a them to create barrel-vaulted enclosures, for
copper-steel alloy, develops a tenacious oxide which they had been originally designed, he
coating which obviates the necessity of paint- combined them radially with other materials
ing. Ordinary steel emerges from the mill in a to form a remarkably original internal space,
form that will corrode rapidly if not treated. which was covered on the outside with wood
Many paint systems as well as plastic and shingles.
metal coating systems, such as galvanizing Tubular steel members in a space
and sherardizing, have been developed to Copper frame; Vienna Airport, Austria
improve its resistance to oxydization and to (1960), by Klaudy, Hoch, and
enhance its appearance. Steel may also be Copper began to be worked c. 3500 BC in Schimke.

stove-enameled, which gives a resistant and China, and before 3000 Be in Mesopotamia. It
smooth vitreous coating which can be easily was in common use in Egypt by 2600 BC
cleaned. Intumescent paints swell up under where copper cutting tools have been found
intense heat, producing a layer of insulation dating from the Old Kingdom . It is possible
around structural elements. This is a rela- that they were hardened by the addition of
tively recent form of fireproofing. arsenic, or that traces of arsenic and other
Steel framing has been used by many hardening metals occurred naturally in the
architects in remarkably personal and indi- ores. Until the 15th century AD, the demand
vidual ways, displaying different attitudes to for copper was small, the requirement being
the material and contrasting aesthetic ideas. mainly for making bells and utensils.
This often becomes most apparent in designs It was occasionally employed in building
for houses, where budgets and other limi- and in sculptural additions from weather
tations can be more relaxed. This divergence vanes to large figures on account of its du-
of stylistic approach is exemplified in the rability and the ease with which it is worked. School building at St Michel-sur-
works of four major 20th-century architects. Hinges cast in copper were sometimes used in Orge, France (1967-68), by Jean
Jean Prouve (b. 1901) was trained as an the Middle Ages. Basel Cathedral, rebuilt in Prouve, using light metal structure.
art-metalworker. He has dedicated himself to 1356, has a copper roof with plates of two
the study of construction using light metal different colors forming a patterned surface.
prefabricated components and has designed a Statues made of copper repousse work held
wide range of houses and other buildings in over a supporting core were not uncommon in
which he abandons formalistic attitudes and the Middle Ages. The great dragon of the
replaces them with an empirical analysis of Ghent belfry, measuring 12 ft. (4 m) from tip
practical problems of assembly and use . Pro- to tail, was brought from Constantinople, to be
duction and manufacturing techniques, as well installed at Ghent in 1204. Copper lends
as forms derived from the automobile and itself to gilding and enameling, but if left
aircraft industries, are often a major source of unprotected it will develop a patina ranging
inspiration to him. This is clearly seen in such from light green to almost black.
buildings as the Abbe Pierre House and the Between 1450 and 1550, however, the
experimental houses at Mendon (1954). development of bronze cannons and mortars
Mies Van der Rohe (1886-l%9), in his completely changed the situation; improved Farnsworth House, Fox River,
Farnsworth House in Fox River, Illinois production methods had to be discovered and Plano, Illinois (1945-51,), by Mies
(1946-50), uses standard rolled steel the scale of operations changed. By 1650 a van der Rohe,
H-sections as the framing elements of a large proportion of the copper used in Europe
welded frame, supporting horizontal roof and was coming from the Falun mine in Sweden.
floor slabs which contain a rectilinear glass The use of copper for roofs, gutters, rain
enclosure. Obsessive attention was paid to leaders, sculptures, etc grew rapidly. Pal- Umbrella (Ford) House at Aurora,
visual detail in this carefully perfected struc- ladio's basilica in Vicenza has a copper roof Illinois (1949), by Bruce Goff.
ture, which demanded an extremely high level (1549), and the quadriga sculpture on the
of craftsmanship. 'Brandenburg gate in Berlin was made in this
Charles Eames (1907-78) built his own material .
house at Santa Monica, California (1949), In the 19th century, mechanically embossed
using prefabricated steel components such as copper was extensively used for ornamental
light lattice joists, beams, and window units work. Copper, because of its ductility, is
ordered direct from manufacturers' catalogs. easier to work and form than most other
278 Brass

metals. Sheet copper would be stamped a

number of times between zinc dies until the
desired shape of pilaster capital, decorative
coffer or spandril panel emerged. Frank Lloyd
Wright's Price Tower in Bartlesville,
Oklahoma (1953), has stamped copper clad-
ding panels which were used as permanent
formwork for reinforced- concrete backing.
Where copper is to be used for an individual
work, the sheet can be beaten to the required
form. The Statue of Liberty in New York
(1883-86), designed by Frederic Auguste Hinges, stays, and other door and
Bartholdi (1834-1904), is made up of copper window furniture are often made in
sheeting supported on an immense and elabo- brass. The illustration shows
sections of various hinge
rate steel framework. Copper is easily sol- installations from a late
dered and can be lapped and screwed. 19th-century carpentry textbook.
Another method of working copper is to
Basilica at Vicenza, Italy (1549), by shape the sheet material in a lathe by forming
Andrea Palladia. The roof is it over a circular block of the desired shape.
covered in copper sheeting. Many conical, spherical, and other shaped
lamp fittings have been made in this way.
Facsimiles of three-dimensional work can
be made by electro-deposition (electro-types)
in which a layer of copper is deposited over a
core in another material.
The unprecedented market for brass, an
alloy of copper and zinc, brought about by the
18th-century growth of the Birmingham metal
trade's use of engine and machine building,
led to an enormous expansion in copper
mining, quarrying, and smelting. Copper is
used with other metals to form a wide range of
alloys. Copper oxide is u::;ed in the coloring of
glazes, and copper salts are an important
ingredient in many timber preservatives.
In the building industry, copper has con-
tinued to be used, in the 20th century espe- Yale lock (1889): precision-made
cially, for hot-water storage tanks, water lock mechanism in brass.
pipes, electric wiring and cables, and con-
siderable quantitieshave continued to go into
sheets for roof covering and flashings.

Brass
Brass, an alloy of copper and zinc, was
probably a Greek discovery , made early in
the 1st millennium BC. At that time, and for
many centuries later, it was produced by
heating copper bars embedded in charcoal and
powdered zinc ore. It has been widely used in
the East since antiquity. In the West it was of
minor importance, except as a soldering
agent, until the late 18th century, when the
new engineering and machine building indus-
tries began to require it in large quantities for
fittings of all kinds.
From that time onward, four main markets
can be distinguished in addition to engineer-
ing. The growth of population and prosperity
during the Victorian period greatly increased
the demand for hinges, castors, knobs, hand-
les, hooks, and window fasteners, and a high
Price Tower, Bartlesville,
Oklahoma (1953), by Frank Lloyd proportion of these were made of brass. The Ornamental zinc roofing and trim;
Wright. Panels and fins are clad in improvements in sanitation which took place from the catalog of Frederick Bra by
embossed copper. in the middle of the 19th century made it and Company (c. 1890).
 Bronze 279

necessary to extend the manufacture of brass Bronze

faucets, plugs, washers, pipes, and valves.
The mounting investment in household and Bronze, which is an alloy of copper combined
industrial property made the more prosperous with tin or antimony, is thought to have
sections of the community more security originated in the Caucasus in about 3000 Be.
minded and more anxious to buy locks with It was used for ornaments and tools in the
which to safeguard their possessions and, latter half of the 2nd millennium BC in
although many of these locks were of iron or Mesopotamia, and its use is recorded in Egypt
steel, brass was often preferred, especially for from about 2200 BC. In China, bronze working
domestic premises. Electrical fittings, joinery techniques were developed to a very high
screws, and other precision-made elements level of perfection in the period between the
are often made in this material. 14th-3rd century BC, and it was employed in
Brass is easily cast, lends itself to being the manufacture of a wide range of objects
worked on a lathe, can be extruded without from cooking utensils to statues and bells.
difficulty, and in its sheet form can be formed In Greece, large lifesize statues were cast
by stamping and embossing. Because of its in bronze, ,culminating in the superb works of
durability and resistance to corrosion, it is the 5th century BC. Many of these statues
often used in naval applications and in build- were made by the "eire perdue" or "lost
ings with severe exposure to sea air. Window wax" technique, in which a clay core is
gauzes can be made out of brass to give them a covered in wax which is molded to the
longer life. appropriate shape and then covered in a
further outer layer of clay. The wax is melted
Zinc out, leaving a space between the two layers of
clay which is then filled with molten metal .
Zinc in a relatively pure form is thought to This technique required great skill and control
have been discovered in India in the 14th both in the making of molds with their
century, and in the West early in the 16th, and appropriate vents and supports, as well as in Bronze doors in the Baptistery of
it may have been known in China even earlier the production of sufficient quantities of mol- Florence Cathedral, Italy. These
in the Christian era. Zinc-bearing ores have ten metal at the correct temperature. Bronze were designed by Andrea Pisano
in 1336.
been used since antiquity in the making of tiles, cladding, and fixing elements and other
brass. Unrefined zinc was being imported by objects connected with building were also
the Dutch and Portuguese from the Far East made by the Greeks.
in the 17th century. European production of The Romans extended the use of bronze to
zinc in quantity did not begin until the 18th include bronze pillars and monumental doors
century and did not become important until for civic buildings, large statues like the
the 19th, after the production of galvanized equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, as well
iron had become well established. as utilitarian objects such as water pipes,
In western Europe, and especially Britain, locks, keys, and oil lamps. Bronze window
the primary use of zinc continued for a long frames were used in Pompeii, and the Panth-
time to be as an alloy with copper to make eon in Rome (AD 118-128) had bronze roof
brass, but from the late 1830s the process of trusses in its portico which, at the time of the
coating iron or steel with the metal, known as Renaissance, were dismantled in order to
galvanizing, became increasingly important. utilize the metal for the manufacture of can-
At first iron was coated by dipping it in vats nons. The Pantheon also had bronze doors,
of molten zinc after it had been treated to which still remain in position.
remove grease and dirt. Toward the end of the After the collapse of the Roman Empire,
19th century galvanization by electrolysis bronze working on a large scale continued in
became commercially viable. Zinc compounds Byzantium but the technique was largely lost
are also used in protective paints and other in the rest of Europe. Large bronze doors
corrosion-resistant finishes. were made for Mainz Cathedral in Germany
Zinc roof covering was pioneered in Europe in AD 998, and in Italy Byzantine craftsmen Seagram Building, New York
and by the mid-19th century the roofs of many made bronze church doors in Verona, Rome, (1958). by Mies van der Rohe.
buildings in cities such as Paris comprised the Amalfi, and other places between the lOth and Curtain wall in glass with
bronze mullions and facade
material. The Vieille Montagne Company, the 12th centuries. These doors, which rep- elements.
which was established near Liege in Belgium resented considerable investment both in skill
before the 1850s, was a very large producer of and money, were often made of cast,
zinc for roofing and embossed ornamental repousse, and engraved bronze elements fixed
work. Zinc roofing is normally laid over a to a wooden core. This tradition of monu-
boarded base, but corrugated sheets were mental bronze doors continued, culminating in
made self-supporting and were used in the the great bronze doors cast by Lorenzo
19th century. It has also been extensively Ghiberti (1378-1455) for the Baptistery of
used for embossed ornaments, for flashings Florence Cathedral (1425-52), which marks a
and other waterproofing elements, as well as high point in design and metal craft.
for fixings for slates and other roofing ele- Renaissance sculptors revived the Roman
ments continually exposed to the weather. art of making large equestrian statues by
280 Lead

perfecting sophisticated techniques of bronze During the medieval and Renaissance

casting. The Gattamelata statue at Padua period, the Roman practice of soldering pipes
(1453) by Donatello (1386-1466) and the Col- with molten lead was continued, but from the
leoni statue in Venice by Andrea del Ver- 17th century onward the joint was closed with
rocchio (1435-88) are good examples. Other tin and a soldering iron, the lips of the seam
semi-architectural elements made in bronze being beveled before soldering was under-
since the Renaissance include railings, church taken. Joining, in Roman times, was effected
fonts, and other pieces of church furniture by melting a lead casing around the junction
such as lecterns. The famous Baldacchino and then hammering to shape.
over the high altar at St Peter's Rome, Mills for rolling sheet lead were introduced
created by Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini (1598- in England in the late 17th century and in
1680), was made of bronze. France in about 1730. Until the late 18th
Bronze does not corrode easily, and century, lead was the only metal to be rolled
develops an attractive, maintenance-free industrially. Lead tubes were first extruded in
patina and is therefore favored for external 1820, by Thomas Burr, at Shrewsbury, Eng-
ornament, fittings, and other building ele- land, using a hydraulic ram to force the metal
ments where cost is not a major con- through the die. A patent for a similar type of
sideration. Because it can be melted down process had been taken out in 1790 by John
easily, much early architectural bronze in Wilkinson (1728-1808).
Europe was seized by invading armies in In many instances, lead-bearing ores are
various wars, in order to make coinage, found combined with silver, and a workable
cannons, and other objects. method of separating the two metals was first
Bronze lends itself to rolling and extrusion. discovered by the Romans. Improved tech-
Elements made in this way are often used as niques for doing this were developed in Lead used as a waterproof
framing members for shop fitting, and for Bohemia in the early 15th century, so increas- covering over a masonry wall and
ornamental work such as cornices and bead- ing the profitability of combined lead/silver domes in Jerusalem.
ing which may have sections appropriate to mining operations. In general, lead is one of
these processes. In some cases the bronze the few metals to have been in adequate
used for extrusion contains a proportion of supply from Roman times onward. The intro-
zinc to increase its ductility, making it more duction of blast-furnace smelting of rich ores
like brass. Bronze window frames are made in the 19th century allowed the great increase
from extruded or rolled sections and are in demand to be met.
popular when they can be afforded. The Until the 19th century, lead was almost the
Seagram Building in New York (1958), only reliable material that could be used for
designed by Mies van der Rohe (1886-1%9), relatively flat roof areas in the damp and rainy
has a complete curtain-walling system made climate of northern Europe. Many Gothic
out of superbly detailed bronze components. cathedrals and churches have lead-covered
A wide range of special bronze-based alloys roofs . Gutters, flashings, and rainwater goods
is produced for their special distinct prop- such as hoppers and drainpipes were often
erties. These include phosphor bronze, which made of sheet lead since it is a material that
is popular for load-bearing fixings, and gun- can easily be formed into fairly complex
metal, containing zinc and sometimes lead, shapes.
which is popular for casting. Bronzes with 6% Ornamental lead drain leaders became
tin are suitable for cold working and drawing, popular in England from the 15th century
while those with 10-18% tin are suitable for onward. In France ornamental roof ridges and
casting and are a popular material for bells. finials were used on important buildings at the
same time.
Lead Because of its low melting point, lead can be
cast with greater ease than other metals and
Assyrian and Babylonian masons used molten was often used for sculpture. Andre Le Notre
lead for anchoring clamps and fixings in (1613-1700) employed many lead sculptures in
masonry. Lead was used by both the Greeks his design for the gardens of Versailles Lead cames holding stained glass
and the Romans as roofing sheets, for pipes, (1662-90). These developed a soft white in position in a Gothic window.
and for lining water tanks. For these the metal patina which blends in with the vegetation.
had to be cast in flat trays or beaten out to the Lead is comparatively expensive, but
required thickness , so that only relatively because of its ability to resist corrosion it is
small sheets were available. Pipes were made often used today in combination with other
by wrapping lead sheets around a wooden materials to provide reliable waterproofing at
spindel and soldering the seam. In Rome the critical joints between building materials.
lead strip used for pipemaking was required Lead is sometimes alloyed with antimony to
by law to be of a standard width, about 4 in. make it harder.
(100 mm). This is the first known example of The great stained-glass windows of the
engineering standardization. The Romans, Middle Ages employed lead cames to hold the
incidentally, were well aware of the dangers different pieces of colored glass together. The
oflead poisoning. H-shaped strips of lead were fitted snugly
 Aluminum 281

around the glass panes to make a waterproof

seal. These strips were then soldered at the
joints.
Heavy-duty underground electrical cables
are in many cases sheathed in lead to protect
the copper conductor from corrosion.

Aluminum
The commercial production of aluminum
dates from the 1890s. The cupola of the S.
Gioacchino in Rome was covered with
aluminum sheet in 1897, but this was an
architectural freak. Until the outbreak of
World War I aluminum was used mainly for
pots and pans . Output increased considerably
during the war as a result of military demand,
but for the first postwar decade the market
continued to have a kitchenware emphasis.
The building industry began to think seriously
about the possibilities of aluminum in the
early 1930s, when it became possible to
produce aluminum glazing bars reasonably
cheaply by the extrusion process. This
method allowed more complex and more
efficient shapes to be designed, incorporating
condensation channels and glazing systems
into one extrusion. There was the additional
great advantage that the tedious task of
painting could now be entirely avoided.
Apart from glazing bars, most of the
aluminum that went into buildings before 1939
was used for decoration. The Canada Life
Building (1895) in Montreal has an aluminum
cornice; the German Evangelical Church
(1927) in Pittsburgh was given an aluminum
spire; and the Rockefeller Center, New York,
has cast aluminum spandrels. Aluminum win-
dows were used occasionally when finances ABOVE : Aluminum doors of
Brabazon Assembly Hall, Bristol,
permitted. England (1947). Because of its light
After World War II both the aircraft and weight, aluminum was ideally
aluminum industries found themselves with suited for the construction ofthese
surplus production capacity. Prefabricated huge doors.
aluminum housing was one answer to the
problem. By 1948, 78,000 aluminum bun-
galows had been built in Britain. Most of them
used aircraft scrap, which was in plentiful
supply at the time.
During the same period in the U.S.,
aluminum houses designed by Charles Good-
man for private purchasers were built in large
numbers by National Homes at the com-
pany's three regional factories. Fifty-three LEFT: Aluminum door furniture.
different models were available and the price
was kept low by using modular components. Houses constructed in aluminum con-
Ribbed aluminum sheets were also used dur- sequently had the benefit of very advanced
ing the 1940s for the external cladding of production techniques.
prefabricated schools. During the 1940s a great deal was learned
Even scrap aluminum is an expensive mate- about ways of using aluminum in structural
rial, and the designer has to use the minimum engineering. During the 1950s and 1960s, the
quantity that will give the strength he range of applications of aluminum in the
requires . Aircraft designers are used to building industry was greatly widened, from
approaching problems in this way , because structural components to foil insulation.
the need to save every ounce of weight is of Aluminum roof-trusses are also increasingly
great importance in aeronautical engineering. used, especially in corrosive atmospheres and
282 Glass

horticultural buildings, where low mainte- flourished in Roman times, and part of a large
nance costs and long life more than offset the window frame with cast glazing has been
higher original costs. found in Pompeii. Roman window glass was
Aluminum has been successfully used for cast, and was full of distortions and imper-
bridge building. The world's first all- fections; the largest piece known to us was 3
aluminum bridge, the Arvida Bridge over the ft. 8 in. x 2ft. 8 in. (1,100 x 800 mm). Roman
Saguenay River, Quebec, was completed in window glass was not transparent. The win-
1950 and has a main span of 250 ft. (77 m). dows were composed of small, thick, trans-
The Grasse River Bridge at Massena, New lucent panes of a greenish or bluish color.
York, has a 100 ft. (30 m) center span of Even in Roman times, glazed windows were
aluminum, which weighs only 53,000 lb. very exceptional and alabaster, mica, and
(24,062 kg), compared with 128,000 lb. (58,ll2 shell continued in use until the glassmakers
kg) for the adjoining steel spans of the same were able to produce an economic, color-free Stained glass windows in Notre
dimensions. glass, in about AD 200. The Roman Empire Dame d'Auxonne, France (16th
century).
The use of aluminum instead of steel is spread glassmaking skills over a large area,
often the only way of adding another storey to but when it collapsed only France and parts of
an existing structure. This is well illustrated at Germany continued to use the techniques
the Ford Motor Company's Rotunda Building which had been developed. In northwest
in Dearborn, Michigan. The old Rotunda Europe, where protection against cold and
Building would not carry the 160 ton rain was welcome, the houses of the medieval
framework of a steel dome, but easily sup- period had wicker lattices, sometimes covered
ported an 8.5 ton aluminum geodesic dome. with oiled linen and parchment.
Aluminum tubes are very popular for geodesic The first recorded glazing of an English
domes and for space-frame structures. church is at York c. AD 670. But nothing is
Aluminum alloys of many kinds are pro- known about the glass employed. By this time
duced each with its own special properties. lead strips or "cames" had already been used
Some of these, for example, are highly duc- to join glass in windows. The use of metallic
tile, increasing the range and size of products oxides to color the glass greatly increased the
that can be made by cold forming. scope of the church glaziers, and fragments of
Aluminum sheeting has been increasingly lOth-century pictorial windows still survive.
used since World War II for cladding, roofing,
suspended ceilings, trimmings, and many
other parts of buildings. In order to increase From the Middle Ages to the Industrial Blowing and swinging cylinder
its rigidity, sheet aluminum is often deformed Revolution glass (c. 1850).
by rolling or stamping. (Prefabricated storey- The period from the early 12th century to the
height aluminum cladding panels were used in end of the 15th century was the great era of
the 30-storey Alcoa building designed by stained glass. As building technology
Harrison and Abramovitz in 1953). Aluminum developed throughout the Gothic period, win-
sheets are sometimes bonded to other mate- dows increased in size and the art of the
rials such as plywood polyurethane, to pro- glazier became more important. The dis-
duce rigid, light, sandwich panels. covery, in the 14th century, that the addition
Many different surface finishes are possible of silver nitrate made glass yellow, came at a
for aluminum products, ranging from untreat- time when church builders wanted their build-
ed mill finishes to surface bonded layers of ings to be flooded with light, and this led to
plastic films. Anodized aluminum is produced glazing techniques using white and yellow
by artificially increasing the depth of oxide glass to allow the daylight to come through
film on the surface of a piece of aluminum by the great perpendicular windows. The Refor-
electrolysis. This process creates a harder, mation largely put an end to church patronage
more stable surface. This oxide film can be of stained glass, but the newly powerful
dyed with a wide range of colors. courts had commissioned lavish windows dur-
ing the 15th century. Then the art of stained
Glass glass declined with the coming of the Renais-
sance, and the glassmakers turned to the more Spinning a blob of glass in a
Early glass mundane problem of making glass for ordi- "flashing furnace" in the making of
crown glass.
The manufacture of glass is of considerable nary domestic windows.
antiquity. It was invented in about 2000 BC, The first sheet glass was made in Germany
probably in Syria, but for many centuries its in the 11th century and the process remained
use was confined to vessels and decoration. a major glassmaking technique until the 20th
The site of a glass factory was discovered at century. The method was for the glass maker
Tel-ei-Amarna by Sir Flinders Petrie (1853- to blow a glass sphere on the end of a hollow
1942), who dated it at 1400 BC. blow iron and to swing this to and fro so that
By the end of the 3rd century BC, tech- the sphere elongated to a sausage shape. The
niques of forming vessels by glass blowing ends were opened out to form a cylinder, and
and of making crown glass were common in this cylinder was, in tum, cut with shears
the eastern Mediterranean. Glassmaking down its length, reheated, and flattened in a
 Glass 283

furnace to form a sheet of glass. Glass made Helens in 1773 , but it was too expensive for
in this way was known in England as broad general use. However, in 1832 Georges Bon-
glass. It was considered to be inferior to temps (1799-1884) and Robert Lucas Chance
crown glass and was used in the houses of improved the production of sheet glass in
poorer people. England. They utilized the continental cylin-
In the 14th century, the glass industry of der process, but improved on it by using a
Normandy achieved preeminence with crown larger cylinder, by cutting the cylinder with a
glass. This technique involved the spinning of diamond cutter, and by flattening it onto glass
a blob of glass on the end of a rod until it had instead of sand-covered iron plates. There
formed a flat disc or "table," which could be was a great demand for the new sheet glass,
anything from 3 ft. 4 in. to 5 ft. (1-1.5 m) in and by 1851 Chance was able to supply 1
diameter. The larger sizes demanded great million sq. ft. (92,900 sq. m) of it for the
strength and skill on the part of the Crystal Palace at Hyde Park.
Nineteenth-century casting table
glass maker. The disadvantages of this process During the 19th century, plate glass gradu- for the manufacture of plate glass.
were firstly that the thickness was far from ally came down in price-by 1849 it was about
uniform and this caused distortion, secondly one-quarter of the cost it had been five years
that large pieces could not be obtained with- earlier-and many owners of Georgian town
out an eye in the middle where the glass had houses ripped out their glazing bars and put
been sheared off the punty, and lastly that one piece of plate glass in each sash. When
there was a lot of wastage, as the glass was Victorian architects made bold use of the
made circular and most windows needed newly available plate glass in commercial
rectangular panes. However, the brilliance of buildings the results could indeed be impres-
the surface of crown glass is unmatched by sive, as, for example, in the buildings of the
glass made by any other technique before or "Chicago School" of the last two decades of
since, as it is the only method of glass the 19th century. The Chicago window, usu-
manufacture where the glass does not come ally consisting of a very large square of plate
into contact with any other material when it is glass flanked by double-hung sashes, gave a
cooling. Crown glass was introduced into distinctive style to the city.
England from Normandy in the late 17th Cellar lights, thick slabs of cast glass fixed
century; and its name originated from the into stone or into an iron frame, were being Victorian window with large sheets
habit of a London glassmaker, John Bowles, installed from about 1850 onward. The more of glass.

of embossing a crown in the center of each familiar metal-framed sidewalk light, with cut
pane. squares of glass fitted into a metal grid, dates
The old Roman technique of casting glass from the 1880s. More recently, the practice
was reinvented in France at the end of the has been to fit smaller lenses into reinforced
17th century by Bernard Perrot, at the Royal concrete. This combination withstands heavy
Glass Works. Perrot made glass of unpre- traffic without damage. During the 20th cen-
cedented size by pouring it into frames where tury, new developments in the glass industry
it was spread evenly with rollers. The glass have provided the architect and the builder
was then stuck on a stone surface with lime, with a series of important technical inno-
and ground and polished. The process was vations . The invention of wired or "Geor-
laborious, but for the first time builders had at gian" glass came from Pilkingtons in 1898. In
their disposal plate glass in large sizes without the event of breakage, the mesh, embedded in
blemishes. This also made possible the man- the center of the glass, supports the fragments
ufacture of large mirrors, free of distortion, and greatly reduces the risk of injury from
which became very popular in interior deco- falling splinters.
ration, especially in palaces and public build-
ings such as theaters. The 20th century
Glass bricks and blocks made their appear-
The Industrial Revolution ance in Germany at the turn of the century,
As glass with relatively few distortions and were quickly adopted by modern
became available at a reasonable price, so the architects as part of their new vocabulary.
nature of the window changed from the Bruno Taut (1880-1938), for example, used
medieval idea of something to look at, to the this new material extensively in his Cologne
modern one of something to look through. At glass pavilion of 1914, creating hitherto
the beginning of the 17th century, windows impossible spatial and visual effects.
were fixed in small panes in lead cames In 1900 the Germans began making what
between stone mullions, a system in which was then called "glass silk," that is, glass
the quality of the glass was not critical. By the fiber, a material not developed commercially
end of the century, the double-hung sash until the 1930s. It is now extensively used for
window was normal, with much larger panes thermal, acoustic, and electrical insulation. It Large steel windows with louvered
opening sections; Casa del Popolo,
of glass in big windows subdivided by thin is the reinforcement element in glass re- Como, Italy (1931 ), byTerragni.
glazing bars. inforced polyester (fiberglass), and in glass The concrete roof over the window
Plate glass was first made in Britain at St reinforced concrete. It can be produced as a is cast with glass lenses.
 284 Glass

"wool," or it may be woven into a fabric. manufacture in various ways. Patterned glass
Foam glass was developed by the Pittsburg normally has one face imprinted in a rolling
Plate Glass Company. It is used in the form process with a texture or pattern giving
of cellular lightweight blocks for insulation various degrees of obscuration and diffusion.
and is produced from molten glass by ''foam- Diffuse reflection glass is specially prepared
ing" or aerating, by the evolution of internal to reduce reflection by having a slight texture
gas under pressure at high temperature. on both its surfaces.
In 1904, a Belgian invention by Emile
Fourcault enabled flat sheet glass to be drawn
direct, avoiding the double process of blowing Glazing systems
a cylinder and then flattening it. Fourcault's The great conservatories and exhibition build-
process involved using a tank of molten glass. ings of the mid-19th century were totally
The sheet was drawn through a fireclay slot glazed structures. Glazing-bar systems,
below the level of the glass in the tank, and employing putty to hold glass in place, were
the glass was then drawn up over rollers into replaced by glazing systems where glass was
an annealing chamber. The following year the held in place with clips and other fixings,
American company, Libby-Owens, improved cutting down manufacturing and installation
on the Fourcault process by running the glass costs. The London Crystal Palace of 1851 had
onto rollers revolving at different speeds. The wooden glazing bars, made on the building
Pittsburg Plate Glass Company further site by sophisticated milling machines. Iron
improved the process by containing the edges sections were being used in many con-
of the glass. servatories soon after the end of the
The making of plate glass was similarly Napoleonic Wars in 1815, but they required
Maison de Verre in Paris, France mechanized, first by the Bicheroux process, regular painting to keep them from rusting.
(1928--31 ), by Pierre Charreau. The involving rollers, and then by Ford at Detroit, Metal glazing systems became com-
walls are constructed of glass who discharged molten glass straight onto the mercially practical after the introduction of
blocks. rollers to obviate the casting process. Pil- the hot rolling and extrusion processes for the
kingtons subsequently adapted the Ford pro- manufacture of clip-together, "patent" glaz-
cess to the larger sizes of glass required for ing bars, combined with methods of eliminat-
building, and evolved a continuous process to ing painting, such as galvanizing, lead she-
include the polishing. Finally, in 1959, Pil- athing, or by using a metal such as aluminum
kingtons rendered the whole process of plate which is not subject to rapid corrosion. These
glassmaking obsolete by their float glass pro- systems were originally developed for indus-
cess, where the glass is floated onto molten trial and horticultural buildings.
tin, a surface so flat that polishing is no longer Iron, steel, and concrete structural frames
necessary. made it possible to use non-load-bearing walls
Toughened or annealed glass is a 20th- in multistorey structures. Architects, wishing
century product which greatly extends the to break with the tradition of heavy masonry
range of uses to which glass can be put. It is buildings, used glass walls to clad their framed
made by heating the glass ·until it becomes buildings. The Fagus Factory (1911), designed
Float glass manufacturing plant. almost plastic, and then cooling it rapidly by by Walter Gropius and Adolf Meyer has
means of cold-air jets. The resulting pre- a corner made up of windows , which would
stressed glass is resistant to shock and heat, have been impossible in a building without a
being able to withstand loads up to five times framed structure. Mies van der Rohe (1886-
Daily Express Building in London, that of normal glass. It is widely used in 1969), in his Berlin skyscraper project of 1919,
England (1932) clad in transparent
and opaque (vitrolite) glass;
industry, for vehicle windows, for frameless designed a 20-storey building entirely clad in
Designed by Owen Williams. doors, shop display windows, partitions, and glass, with the independent floor planes
in all other situations where conventional clearly visible behind the transparent skin.
glass might be considered hazardous . After World War II, glass curtain walling
Annealed glass must be made to an exact size, became popular for many buildings, especially
with all holes and shaping, since it cannot be skyscrapers. Industrial glazing systems were
cut or worked after heat treatment. improved and adapted, and new forms
Laminated glass is another form that is emerged. Special injection-molded, synthetic
resistant to breakage. Two sheets are rubber gaskets were developed to provide
cemented with an interlayer of polyvinyl weathertight seals as well as protection
butyral. If breakage occurs, the fragments are against excessive vibration, expansion and
held in place by the interlayer. contraction, and heat loss or gain through the
Glass is now produced with many special glazing bars.
properties. Opaque glass has been popular for Suspended assemblies of toughened glass
cladding, fittings, and shop signs since the have made it possible to glaze very large
1930s. There are two types of opaque glass; apertures in buildings without the use of
one having opacity and color throughout the frames or glazing bars of any kind. The glass
thickness of the glass, and the other having a skin is stiffened by glass fins that are fixed to
colored ceramic fused onto one surface. Sur- the frame of the building, and the gaps
faces of glass sheets may be treated during between the sheets are filled with a trans-
 Paint 285

parent polysulfide or silicone sealing com- In the Chou dynasty (1169-255 Be) the
pound. Chinese developed lacquer work using the sap
of the lacquer tree. This technique spread to
Special forms of glass Japan and reached a high level of perfection
during the Ming dynasty (AD 1368-1644). In
Special types of glass were developed for some cases it was used to protect vulnerable
glass-clad buildings in order to make their structural timber units from the elements, but
internal environments bearable, and to reduce its use was restricted by laborious methods of
the costs of heating and air conditioning. Solar preparation and application.
control glass is specially manufactured to In Europe, oils were used for varnish in
reduce solar heat gain either by absorption, special situations such as high-quality external
reradiation, or by reflection, while still allow- work as early as the 6th century AD. The oils
ing a high proportion of visible light to be form a thin protective film on drying. In the The Palm House at Kew, London
transmitted. Carefully controlled tints of color 11th century, a monk, Theophilus, developed (1845-47), by Decimus Burton and
may be added to the surface or to the body of a recipe for varnish prepared by dissolving Richard Turner.
the glass. Reflective solar control glass is resins in hot oil. The resins commonly used
made by the vacuum deposition of a thin were amber and copal. Pigments, usually of
metallic film on the inner surface of one of mineral origin, were added to the varnish.
two panes of glass which are then laminated Linseed oil was the oldest and most com-
together to give complete protection from monly used oil, but castor and fish oils were
abrasion and atmospheric attack. The prop- also employed. These types of paint appli-
erties of this kind of glass can be varied by cation became more widespread during the
controlling the type of metal deposited, typ- Renaissance, and by the 1640s driers were
ically gold or bronze, and by controlling the being used in paint preparations. In 1750,
thickness of the film. Photosensitive glass Alberti of Magdeburg mentioned the use of
may soon become practical for buildings. This turpentine as a thinner.
type of glass, commonly used for eyeglasses, The paint industry, in the sense of the
changes its transparency with the amount of supply of ready-made products, dates back to
light falling on it. the end of the 18th century. Until that time, Sections of 19th-century patent
Double glazing, with clear or tinted glass, the situation was not greatly different from glazing bars.
can reduce energy costs considerably by what it had been 2,000 years earlier, with each
increasing insulation. Factory-sealed, craftsman preparing his own material. Varnish
double-glazed windows are manufactured in factories were established in England in the
many forms, either with the edges closed, by 1790s and in France and Germany 30 years
the panes being fused together, or by the use later. Once these developments had taken
of another material as a separator. place, very few changes occurred until the
Glass may be curved and shaped on reheat- 20th century. The marketing of tested, reliable
ing to form domes and curved windows and paints in quantity is a recent development.
may be worked in various ways for special In water-based paints, the water acts as a
effects. These include silvering to produce vehicle for carrying the film-forming and
mirrors, engraving and brilliant cutting, sand- coloring ingredients. The procedure estab-
blasting, and etching. lished by the Egyptians and Hebrews- water
and whitewash mixed with milk curds (cal-
Paint cium caseinate) as a binder--continued to be
used until the 1800s. In colonial America, the
Using the knowledge and skills already avail- casein came from skim milk. At the end of the
able in Mesopotamia, the Egyptians made 19th century, the powder paints for mixing
considerable use of paints for decorative and with water consisted of glue-bound clays or
protective purposes. By about 1300 BC colors whitings, sometimes with inorganic pigments
were obtained from finely ground mineral added.
pigments and the base was usually tempera, The film-forming constituent in modern
prepared with a glue, gum gelatin, or egg paints is the binder or resin. Solvents or
albumen. The Egyptians, like the Romans, thinners may be added to the binder to make
also used encaustic painting, either by mixing it flow easily. Other constituents include
beeswax into the pigment, which they applied driers which assist in the hardness of the film;
with a brush, or by spreading it as a protective pigments which produce color; stabilizers
coating over the surface to be covered. For a which neutralize the destructive effects of
short period the Egyptians also used trans- ultra-violet rays in sunlight; fillers which
parent varnishes made with resin from pine improve the mechanical properties; and plas-
trees, sandarac, or the mastic tree. The fresco ticizers which assist in the hardening of the
technique, using pigments dissolved in lime- film or give the paint flexibility.
water and spread over a freshly plastered The mechanics of film forming were not
Suspended assembly of
wall, was first used toward the end of the understood until World War I. It then became toughened glass. Willis, Faber, and
Hellenistic period and was common practice possible to synthesize film-forming products. Dumas Building, Ipswich, England
in Roman times. These synthetic resins, which included the (1975), by Foster Associates.
 286 Plastics

alkyd resins, became commercially available transportation made it possible to organize

in the 1920s. Research into the chemistry of regular and large-scale imports from the prin-
synthetic rubbers during World War II stimu- cipal world source: the huge Pitch Lake in
lated the development of latex resins for use Trinidad. Shipped in the form of hard blocks,
in water-based paints . it was widely used during mid-Victorian times
The pigment in a paint film has mechanical for paving, basement flooring, flat roofing,
as well as decorative properties. It controls and damp courses.
transmission of moisture through the film and Felts made from a mixture of animal and
screens out harmful light rays. Some pig- vegetable fibers are impregnated with bitumen
ments, such as red lead , are corrosion and given various surface treatments accord- Main Stadium at Munich Olympics
inhibitors. Metallic pigments, for example ing to their intended use . They were (1968-72). Roof detail by G.
stainless steel, zinc, and aluminum, are widely developed in the late 1870s and have been Behnisch and Partners. with Frei
used in corrosion-resisting paints. widely used for flat and sloping roofing as a Otto. Transparent skin of
Extenders and fillers improve the physical waterproofing material either in the form of plexiglass.
and mechanical qualities of the dry film by sheet, generally supplied in rolls , or as shing-
preventing cracking and increasing the resis- les. There are special bituminized felts which
tance to abrasion. They also control gloss or are used as underlining to other roofing
flatness. Common fillers include chalks, materials such as tiles. Special felts were
clays, tales, and silicas. Nowadays fungicides developed toward the end of the 19th century
and insecticides are often added to house for lining reservoirs and dams to reduce
paints . seepage.
An important 20th-century development has Kraft paper, saturated or coated with bitu-
been paints for concrete. These have to be men , is used for lining light-frame buildings on
free flowing to cover the rough surface, yet the inside of their weathering surface. This
they must not penetrate too deeply. They lining reduces drafts and inhibits the pene-
must be water- and alkali-resistant. Cement tration of moisture . Saturated stout paper may
water-based paints consist of portland be used as a damp course. Retractable PVC roof of a skating
cement, lime, and often a siliceous aggregate, Rock asphalt began to be used as a water- rink at Conflans-Sainte Honorine,
France (1972), by Frei Otto.
such as sand or gravel. A small quantity of proof road-surfacing material during the sec-
calcium stearate is added to provide a water- ond half of the 19th century. This useful
repellent film. material consists of limestone impregnated in
Water-based paints containing acrylic and its natural state with bitumen. It is mined at
polyvinyl acetate resins are widely used as several places in Europe, the most important
masonry coatings. They have good resistance being Ragusa in Sicily, Limner in Germany,
to alkalinity and water. Paints based on and the Val de Travers in Switzerland.
chlorinated rubber and on polymethane and Rock asphalt is sold either as a powder or
epoxy resins give tough, durable coatings . as mastic. The powder is used mainly for road
They are used, for example, on swimming surfacing. It is laid hot and constant traffic is
pools and floors. needed to keep it compacted. The mastic is
Intumescent paints swell or bubble on prepared at the works by heating the powder
heating to form an insulating layer. Coatings with a small quantity of refined bitumen and
containing brominated compounds release then casting the mixture into blocks. At the
gases that exclude air from the surface and so site, the blocks are broken up and heated for
extinguish flames. several hours, sand and a little bitumen being
added to the mix. Properly laid, this produces
an excellent waterproof coating. Successful
Bitumen and asphalt asphalting is dependent on skilled , con-
scientious workmanship. Poor results are
In Mesopotamia, bitumen occurs naturally as usually caused either by not carrying out the
seepages in valleys and as rock asphalt in the work quickly and continuously, or by laying
mountains. In ancient times it was used as a the mastic on a damp surface. It is extensively
mortar for bricklaying and for waterproofing used for roofing, flooring, and tanking below
walls, tanks, and floors, and it continued in ground.
use until Greek and Roman times, when
building methods changed and lime-based Factory-made cladding panels in
mortars supplanted bitumen. After that, the Plastics plastic for the GLC Building in
Paddington, London (1961H'i7).
smaller demand for waterproofing materials
could easily be met by wood tar or pitch, so In the 19th century scientists made the basic
the traditional sources of bitumen and asphalt discoveries about plastics, but it was not until
were forgotten. the late 1930s that commercial production
Bitumen was valued as a waterproofing began. The range of available plastics is now
material in ancient Egypt, although the quan- very wide . The basic differences between the
tity used annually was probably never very various types are increased during man-
large. It began to be extensively marketed in ufacture by the inclusion of plasticizers, to
Europe in the 19th century, when improved make the material softer and more flexible; of
 Plastics 287

antioxidants, to prevent weakening by light or a stain-resistant surface.

heat; of fillers, to add extra toughness; and of Reinforced plastics. Any type of plastic ma-
coloring agents. In addition to this, most terial containing a reinforcing agent is a
plastics can be foamed, to produce lightweight "reinforced plastic," but the term has come
materials. to be reserved for moldings produced for
The main types of plastics and their uses polyester and expoxide resins reinforced with
are:- fiberglass. These very strong moldings are
Decorative laminates. These are available as particularly useful for casting complicated
durable veneers or with the veneer bonded to concrete shapes.
a core such as masonite. The veneer is a hard, Urea formaldehyde. This is used for bonding
dense material, made by impregnating layers plywood, for door fittings, and for a cellular
of paper with synthetic resin and then sub- insulating material that can be put into wall
jecting them to heat and pressure. cavities as a foam.
Epoxide resins. Before use, these are mixed In general, plastics are lightweight, com-
with hardeners. They have excellent mechan- bustible (their main disadvantage), resistant to Polystyrene sheet being removed
ical properties and chemical resistance. They corrosion by chemicals, and adversely from a thermoforming machine
after being molded into a bath
adhere to concrete, glass, metal, and timber affected by sunlight. They have a high panel.
and are used to reinforce concrete. strength to weight ratio, but they are much
Melamine formaldehyde. This comes in the more flexible than other structural materials,
form of moldings and of a surfacing liquid for and because of this they cannot be used as
decorative laminates. load-bearing structures in the usual way.
Nylon. This is the general name for ther- One of the earliest large, all-plastic enclos-
moplastic materials known as polyamides. ures was the U .S. Exhibition Building in
Nylon is tough and resists abrasion. It is Moscow, erected in 1959. It consisted of
much used for window and door fittings, and interconnected fiberglass umbrellas . In some
for castors. situations, the lightness of the material is
Phenol formaldehyde. This group of materials important. In France, the Societe des Chan-
is used for making, for example, electrical tiers Reunis Loire-Normandie erected a mar-
fittings and toilet seats. Fillers have to be ket hall at Fresnes in 1964 which consisted of
incorporated in the mix and these are chosen 18 large umbrella elements containing trans-
to suit the kind and quality of product lucent parts. The structure occupied a site
required. Fiberglass, paper, nylon, asbestos, with unsatisfactory soil conditions that would
cotton, and sawdust, are all used . Phenolics have implied prohibitive foundation costs for
fade in sunlight and are produced only in the most other structural solutions. Space struc- Rigid plastic panel being removed
darker colors. tures using pyramidal plastic elements, com- from a compression molding
Polystyrene. This is a cheap material, easily bined with aluminum or steel struts, have press.
molded and with a good surface finish. It is been erected with success either as simple
often blended with synthetic rubber to space-frame decks or as barrel vaults or
improve its properties. It is available in sheet domes. Plastic foams bonded to plastic, ply-
form , which is excellent for concrete shut- wood, or metal sheet make sandwich panels
tering, for moldings, which range from wall that are extremely rigid and combine spanning
tiles to toilet cisterns, and as a cellular properties with insulation. Corrugated metal
material. Expanded polystyrene, styrofoam, is roofing with a foam backing is popular for
a good cheap insulating material; it is supplied industrial and agricultural buildings.
as sheets, boards, or moldings. In the 1960s Dow Chemicals developed the
Polyethylene. This can be bought as film, "spiral generation" technique of forming
sheet, moldings , or extrusions. The film is enclosures, in which boards of rigid framed
widely used for damp courses, for on site plastic are bent, placed, and bonded into
protection of materials and machinery and for position by an erecting device. Disaster relief
sheltering building workers against the shelters have been built by "Bayer" in which
weather. Molded and extruded, polyethylene urethane foam is sprayed onto an inflated
is used for drainage systems. balloon which is removed after the plastic has
Polyvinyl chloride (Vinyl). This can be fle xible set, leaving a rigid structure.
or tough and rigid , according to the fillers and Plastic products will continue to replace
plasticizers that are employed. Vinyl is used components in traditional materials in the
for rooflight sheeting-these panels are vir- building industry. Extruded sidings for frame
tually unbreakable, they are light and easy to buildings are relatively maintenance-free
fix and they can be made to exactly the same when compared to painted wood. Plastic
profile as other corrugated sheeting. Floor plumbing is considerably easier to work with
coverings, tiles, rainwater pipes, guttering, than conventional types. In many cases these
and handrail coverings are other popular uses new products are handled by the traditional
of this material. Vinyl-coated metals are used trades. When whole structures are involved
for cladding for industrial buildings. however, these often have to be produced and
Polyvinyl fluoride. Supplied as a film, this can erected by specialist crews, often from out-
be bonded to a variety of materials to provide side the building trades.
 SectionS
Tools,
techniqu--~­
and
fixin s

-- .. _,.

.. : :-; ... , ...,., r.,.

~--:":::,..._.. //::::,.- ·.. ,
-- .
-. ---· - , ,
290 Tools

Tools
The hand tool existed in a rudimentary form as
far back as the Stone Age, and it is still widely
used today, often with surprisingly few fun-
damental differences from its counterpart in
antiquity. But power-driven machinery was
also used in the ancient world: water wheels,
windmills, and treadmills were pressed into
service for a variety of building operations,
particularly for the moving, lifting, and pro-
cessing of heavy items. Heron of Alexandria, in
the 1st century AD, described a variety of basic
mechanical devices used in building: the screw,
the wedge, the windlass, the lever, and the
pulley. Writers such as Vanoccio Biringuccio
(1480-c.1539) and Georgius Agricola (1494-
1555) vividly portray how quite massive
machinery had come into use in medievaltimes,
mainly in mining but to a not inconsiderable
extent in building. Denis Diderot (1713-84), in
his Encyclopedie, shows how mechanization
had further developed by the mid-18th century.
After that the pace of events, which had not
changed much for nearly 2,000 years, was Portable electric power tool (in
cutaway section). Interchangeable
quickened by the introduction, in com- accessories for drilling. sanding.
paratively rapid succession, ofth'e steam engine sawing. etc, can be fitted.
in the 18th century and the internal combustion
engine and electric motor, both in the second and other engines need some qualification. In
half of the 19th century. ancient times extraordinary feats-which
In some cases the introduction of mechanical would tax the resources of a modem building
power in place of human strength involves contractor-were accomplished because of an
rather little change in the basic design of the tool abundance of cheap human labor. Egyptian
concerned: the modem electric drill is little temples incorporated stone blocks weighing
different in principle from the bow drill of the hundreds of tons and a block in the quarry at
early Egyptian or Roman carpenters, except Baalbec, squared up but never used, weighed
that it involves continuous rather than inter- over 1,000 tons (907 metric tons). The difficulty
mittent rotary motion. Much the same may be with manpower is concentrating it: there is a
said of the saw. Early mechanical saws, such as limit to the number of men who could be
that depicted by Villard de Honnecourt (c.1250), deployed, for example, to gather around and lift
copied the to-and-fro motion of the traditional the drums used to construct the columns of
handsaw. Continuous motion came much later, Greek temples. Lifting devices of one sort or
with the circular saw and the band saw. another became essential. The steam hammer
On the other hand, the introduction of power made possible a rapid succession of powerful
led to some new kinds of machine, such as the blows that no amount of organized manpower
milling machine for producing flat surfaces, could have contrived.
invented by Eli Whitney in 1818. The advent of In short then, the developments in buildings
steam, giving a compact source of power far went hand in hand with developments in
greater than any available in the past, had technology as a whole, although these have not
another important consequence--it made feas- occurred universally at an equal rate. Even
ible the undertaking of much heavier jobs than today, builders in India and other countries
had been previously possible. James Na- where money is scarce and labor plentiful, use
smyth's steam hammer, invented in 1839, was, methods similar to those depicted in medieval
for example, far more powerful than the pictures. Similarly on many modem building
water-powered tilt hammers that preceded it: in sites, huge containers of ready-mixed concrete
building it found an important application in stand next to laborers using the traditional
driving piles for foundations. Another impor- method of mixing sand and cement with the aid
tant consequence of the availability of very of a shovel. The building industry is something
powerful machinery was that It made possible of a paradox in being at one and the same time Reciprocating mechanical saw c.
1850 used for cutting thin planks of
new methods of forming materials into standard both conservative and progressive. timber.
shapes suitable for use in building. In this way,
the first massive iron building units were cast,
for use in the famous iron bridge at Coal- Carpentry
brookdale, England (1777-79). Later powerful Until the comparatively recent advent of
rolling mills were used to form iron into strip, powerful machinery for the mass production,
sheet, and girders. usually off site, of wooden components for the
The consequences of the availability of steam building industry, such as circular saws, band
 Tools 291

saws, and shapers, the basic woodworking

tools remained basically the same for 2,000
years. The replacement of bronze by iron, and
iron by steel, gave keener and more durable
cutting edges and enabled work to be done
more quickly, but the tools themselves changed
remarkably little.

The hammer
Basically the hammer is a striking tool like the
axe or adze, and the power of its blow is a
function of the weight of the head and the length
of the handle. It may be applied directly, as in
driving a nail or gouging a piece of iron, or
indirectly, as in tapping a chisel or striking an
iron wedge to split wood. Hammers vary
greatly in weight, from the half-ounce (14 g)
Raising the obelisk i.n StPeter's head used for veneer pins and small tacks, to the
Square, Rome (1586), using ropes, 10 lb. (4.5 kg) and upward of the ordinary
pulleys, and capstans. Directed by sledgehammer.
the papal architect Domenico
Fontana.
The shape of the head is often varied to
provide a function different from that of merely
striking a blow. One of the commonest variants
is the claw hammer, which enables nails to be
withdrawn as well as hammered in. Metal-
working hammers commonly have a round boss
as well as a flat head.
Closely allied to the hammer is the mallet,
used when a more cushioned blow is required or
Tool kit and tool rack c. 1900.
to avoid striking soft surfaces, such as wood,
with hard metal. It too varies greatly in size
from the small bench tool used, for example, for
knocking out the blades of planes, to the heavy
beetle or maul, with a head the size of a small
cheese, which is used for driving wedges.

Axes and adzes

These two fundamental tools have much in
common. Both have sharp cutting edges on a
relatively large head, allowing a heavy blow to
be struck. In the axe, used mainly for chopping
across the grain and for splitting, the cutting ABOVE: Tack and claw hammers c.
edge is parallel to the shaft. In the adze, used 1900.
mainly for rough trimming along the grain, the
blade is at right angles to the shaft. The first BELOW: Hammer heads c. 1880 as
used by engineers, mechanics, and
axes were of stone, the axe head being lashed to boiler makers.
a knee-shaped piece of wood or antler: this was
a curious design for the crook was an obvious
point of weakness. In Europe this cumbersome
design continued into the Bronze Age. Bronze
axe heads had a square or round socket for the
shaft that continued upward from the blade
(palstaves), still necessitating the angled
handle. It has been suggested that this is why
European bronze axe heads are surprisingly
Masons and carpenters using
small-the weakness of the handle would not
mallets, bolsters, pit saws, hand allow a very heavy head. Expense may have
saws, axes, pincers, and braces in been another factor; stone axes continued in
construction of a stone bridge and use throughout the Bronze Age. By contrast,
wooden fortifications during the
siege of a city c. 1460.
the now universal shaft-hole axe was intro-
duced at a very early date in Mesopotamia.
Homer's Odyssey (8th century AD)
describes the use of both bronze and iron axes
292 Tools

'( (and adzes) and the way in which iron was

tempered by heating it strongly and then
plunging it into cold water. Bronze had the
advantage over flint in having a longer life
before becoming blunt, and because it was three
times denser, in giving a much heavier blow for
a given size. But ordinary iron has no great
advantage over bronze; the secret of the
popularity of the iron axe was that early
blacksmiths discovered, quite empirically, that
if a little carbon was worked into the iron it
turned to steel, which can take a much harder
and keener edge. Analyses of Roman axes
show that many contain steel. Very often, a
steel cutting edge was welded over an iron base,
though a few were made entirely of steel. By
medieval times the axe with a steel cutting edge
had reached essentially its present form, though
with a variety of regional shapes. It was the
most widely used of all woodworking tools and
virtually no representation of carpenters at
work failed to depict it.
The history of the adze was similar. As in the
Adze and hammer combination axe, the cutting blade was at first lashed to the
heads c. 1880. end of a knee-bend shaft, but even by the 1st All-metal jack, smoothing, rebate,
millennium BC this had been considerably and block planes c. 1900. The jack
improved upon. Instead of being lashed, the and smoothing planes are fined
blade was secured by an iron collar, made tight with adjustable double irons.
by driving a wedge of wood between collar and
blade. As we shall see later, this was the way in
which blades were secured in early planes, and
it is possible that the wedged adze was the the block, or stock as it is called.
forerunner of the plane. The next major development came at the end
A working carpenter would be changing of the 18th century, with the introduction of the
frequently from axe to adze and it is not double iron, probably invented in England. In
surprising therefore that hybrid tools appeared this an upper iron (the break iron) is attached to
at an early date. One half of the head would the cutting iron to stop the wood tearing.
comprise an axe and the other an adze. Finally, in the mid-19th century, better
Occasionally, again, a hammer head might be methods of adjusting the blade, usually incor-
partnered with an axe or an adze. porated in a cast-iron stock, were devised. A
screw clamp replaced the wedge, and the lateral
set of the blade was controlled by a lever which
The plane could be clamped when the setting was made.
With the axe and adze alone the ancient Generally speaking, there are three principal
craftsmen could accomplish a surprising types of plane. The relatively short jack plane is
amount. For example, the trunk of a tree could used for coarser work; the longer trying plane
be squared up to form a main timber without gives the work a better figure, testing it for
recourse to any other tools; the timbers of many straightness and accuracy; and the short smooth-
old houses show the adze marks very clearly. If ing plane gives a final finish. Space does not
a really smooth finish was required, however, permit description of the wide variety of planes
the surface had to be planed rather than devised for special purposes, such as rebating,
chipped; that is to say, thin layers of wood had grooving, and molding, but all of these work on
to be shaved off with a sharp blade held at an essentially the same principle offixinga cutting
angle to it. For small surfaces this could be done iron firmly in a stock which is pushed away from
with a chisel, carefully pushed along either with the operator-though a few early planes were
the hand alone or tapped with a mallet, though drawn toward the worker, like a spoke-
the chisel was used also for chopping wood out. shave-while held against the work. Rough
But for heavier work a plane was used: in effect, edges were trimmed up with a file and for a final
this is a chisel blade permanently locked in a finish , abrasive sheet, apparently introduced
Quirk O.G. and plough planes c.
1900 with wooden blocks and
rectangular block of wood with a hole roughly in about the beginning of the 19th century, would
cast-steel irons. the middle of its base to allow the blade to be used . Abrasive sheet consists of powdered
extend very slightly beyond it. The hole in the emery, glass, or sand glued to paper or cloth.
base is carried through to the top of the plane as This was a logical development of the use of
the mouth, and is sufficiently large to admit the abrasive powder, worked with a stone block,
shavings, which are thus thrown up to the top of which was commonly used in Egyptian times.
 Tools 293

The saw so that the blade is less likely to jam in it as the

cut gets deeper. Saws of this type have to be
Like the axe and the plane, examples of the saw reset from time to time; that is to say, the teeth
are found among the earliest tools known, have to be rebent and sharpened with a file on
though flint blades with serrated edges were their cutting edge. A skilled craftsman can set a
probably used as knives or scythes rather than saw with a hammer, laying the edge of the blade
saws. However, as plenty of true saws survive along a piece of rounded iron. In inexperienced
from the Copper and Bronze Ages, it is hands, however, this is liable to break the teeth
demonstrably a tool that has been in use for off, it is better to use a special saw-setting tool. Bow or frame wood saw. A
some 5,000 years. In appearance, the oldest In the saws described, emphasis has been laid finely-toothed blade fixed in a
wooden f.-a me is tensioned by
saws closely resemble their modem coun- on rigidity, but for cutting curves narrow twisting a piece of catgut or thong.
terparts but the tool has in fact gone through a flexible blades are required. Some of these are
steady process of evolution in both design and of conventional design, as in compass saws; in
construction. others (pad saws) the interchangeable blade is
Copper and bronze are relatively soft metals fixed in the handle with a locking screw.
and the teeth of saws made in these materials In the earliest saws the teeth were very
were, therefore, set so that the cutting stroke simple, and known as peg teeth: they were
was that in which the blade was pulled toward simply a succession of V-shaped teeth, some-
the operator. With very few exceptions, mod- times with a flat bottom to the gullet between
em saws cut on the thrust action and this them. From a very early date they were
practice was followed when iron, or iron/steel "raked" in the direction of the cut. Teeth
saws were introduced in Roman times. An shaped like an inverted M appeared toward the
alternative method of preventing buckling of end of the 15th century. Later, the Great
the blade was to keep it under tension in a American tooth was introduced, with three
frame, as in the modem hacksaw or bush saw. points in each group instead of two as in the Arch frame wood saw. This is a
Large frame (or bow) saws were in common use simple M-type saw. The "count" of teeth-i.e. modification of the bow saw which
became popular in the U.S. in the
in Roman times, mainly for such jobs as cutting the number of points per inch-and the amount 19th century.
planks. The tension ofthe blade was maintained of "set" depends on the nature ofthe work to be
by twisting a double strand of string and using a done. Generally speaking, coarser teeth and a
wooden toggle to stop it unwinding: such saws wider set are used for ripping wood along the
are still sold today. The biggest saws of this kind grain rather than for cross cutting.
were worked by two or three men, as were long
wide-bladed saws with a handle at each end. The drill Tenon saw with fine toothed blade,
These two-handed saws were commonly used for cutting across the grain of
used vertically , one man standing above the Holes need to be made in wood for many wood.
work and the other below it, although some- purposes, but particularly to receive the thongs,
times there were two men below and one above. dowels, or nails used to hold the finished job
In England and Denmark this was commonly together. The simplest of all tools for this
done by using a saw pit, which avoided the purpose is the awl, simply a metal spike set in a
necessity of lifting very heavy timbers. Else- wooden handle and thrust into it. It was soon
where, however, it was usual to get the realized, however, that a quicker and neater job
necessary clearance by lifting the wood onto a could be effected if the tool was rotated while it
trestle. was applied to the work.
Another method of conferring rigidity in the In northern Europe, at least from Viking
blade was to provide it with a stiffener along the times, the auger was widely used. This was an
back, as in the modem tenon saw. The iron rod spoon-shaped or twisted at the end to
disadvantage of this was that the stiffener was enable it to cut into the wood and throw out the
too wide to go into the kerf (the narrow slot cut waste. It was either square ended, to fit into a
into the wood by the blade) and the.depth of cut wooden handle at right angles to the shaft,
was therefore limited. This defect was put to or-especially for the larger sizes-had a
practical use in the so-called grooving saws, ring-shaped end through which a toggle bar
virtually unknown in Britain, but used on the could be put to tum it. The familiar modem American hand or panel saws with
continent of Europe from the 18th century. In gimlet is the direct successor of the ancient coarse teeth, used for ripping wood
along the grain.
these the depth of the blade-set into a wooden auger.
stock-is very small indeed, say one-quarter or Surprisingly, the auger seems to have been
one-half inch (6 or 12 mm). Such saws are very unknown in ancient Egypt, although a number
convenient for repetitive cutting of grooves of a of surviving bits indicate that it was widely used
fixed depth. by the Romans. The Egyptians relied on the
The operative parts of the saw are, of course, bow drill, in which rotary motion was imparted
the teeth. In the earliest saws these were by looping the string of a bow around a
irregular and set in the plane of the blade. Pliny cylindrical piece of wood holding an iron bit. As
records that even in his day it was usual to make the bow was pushed to-and-fro the tool turns,
the teeth project slightly left and right in tum, though only intermittently, and with an idle
though he did not fully understand the reason return stroke.
for this. The main purpose is to widen the kerf, Another very old boring tool was the breast Roman bow drill with iron bit.
294 Tools

auger. In this the shaft of the auger had a freely hole is proportional to the amount of stone to be
rotating boss at its upper end and short removed. This led, again at a very early date, to
projections at the side. The workman pressed the use of tubular bits, used with an abrasive.
the tool into the work with his chest, at the same These drilled out a neat core of stone; if the
time turning it with his hand by means of the thickness of the stone was greater than the
side pieces. About the beginning of the 15th length of the bit the stone could be reversed and
century the now familiar carpenter's brace bored from the other side. This use of abrasive
appeared. In some respects it resembled the offset the softness of the drill.
earlier breast auger, but the pressure was An alternative method of drilling holes is by
applied with one hand and the rotary action with simple percussion: a pointed tool is repeatedly
the other, this being made possible by the hammered into the stone, rotating it a little
crank-shaped stock. between each blow, until a hole of the necessary
In about the beginning of the 19th century depth is made. This method is still widely used
hand drills appeared in which continuous today: for example, to bore shot holes in
rotation was effected by a cranked handle, quarrying and to make small holes in walls to
turning the bit through beveled gears. In the receive plugs.
larger sizes, there was something of a rever- With such simple tools masons cut blocks of
sion to the breast auger. The operator pressed stone, from quite small ones up to giants
Anaugerandgimletmakerc.1526.
The tips of the tools were wrought
the tool into the work with his chest and weighing scores of tons, with such precision
not filed. steadied it with a short handle at the side. that far from requiring mortar the joints
What the teeth are to the saw, the bit is to the between them were barely visible. The brick-
drill. The advent of improved steels in the 19th layer's problems were rather different.
century made possible a keener cutting edge Although local standardization of size was
and a longer life. Much ingenuity was shown in general, early bricks tended still to be rather
the design of bits to ensure that they engaged irregular, so rather thicker layers of mortar
easily with the wood, usually by means of a were used than are usual today. This was
short screw thread at the end, and that the applied, at least from Roman times, with a
helical groove in the shaft discharged the waste diamond-shaped trowel identical with those
smoothly. used by modern bricklayers.

Masonry
Just as the Roman carpenter would see nothing
to surprise him in the toolchest of his modern
counterpart, so the ancient mason would see
surprisingly little change over the last two
millennia. Perhaps the main difference he
would note, with satisfaction, was that shaping Masons using wheelbarrow,
was no longer done by simply pounding a large plummet level, hoist, and
stone with a small one. The basic tools remain plumb line in the construction of a
the scabbling axe, the wooden mallet, the metal wall. From a 13th-century
chisel, assisted-as with the carpenter-by a manuscript.
try square and plumb line. Stones that had
cleavage planes were split with wedges. Some-
times wooden pegs were used; when soaked
with water these expanded and exerted great
pressure. When such simple means failed, saws
were used which were very similar to those
already described for cutting wood. To assist
the cutting of hard stones, sand or mixtures of
sand and steel filings were sprinkled under the
teeth of the saw.
There is evidence that hand saws up to 15ft.
(4.5 m) in length were used by Roman masons,
but as early as the 4th century, the poet
Hand drill. Mass-produced drills of Ausonius refers to sawmills located in the
this type, using interchangeable
bits, became popular in the 19th
valley of the Ruiver, used for cutting stone
century. required for buildings in the Imperial City of
Treves. Rough surfaces were smoothed by
patient rubbing with blocks of hard stone,
working in a mixture of sand and water.
Abrasives were also used in drilling stone,
when the bit was commonly turned with a bow
drill, as for wood. Roughly speaking, the Mason's brick and pointing trowels
amount of work that has to be done in drilling a c. 1900. From a trade catalog.
 Tools 295

Glazing and sealing important. The plastering of walls with lime,

made by roasting limestone in kilns to expel
The glazier's tools, like those of the mason, carbon dioxide, dates from at least 2500 BC. For
have remained very simple. Technically, glass walls that were to be decorated, calcined
is a supercooled liquid: that is to say, its gypsum, sometimes mixed with a little lime,
properties are uniform in all directions unlike was preferred. Externally, stucco-a mixture
wood or many stones, which have a pro- of lime and sand-was used to give inferior
nounced grain. In cooling, tensions are set up brickwork or masonry a superficial resem-
and if these are relieved, fracture easily results. blance to a massive stone wall.
Such relief may be imparted by scratching the Apart from the float, mentioned above, the
surface and glass may readily be cut to shape by plasterer requires few basic tools, and these are
scratching the desired lines of fractures and very simple. Plaster is applied from a hawk, a
then applying slight pressure. For a clean board no more than about I ft. sq. (30 em sq.)
break, however, a single uniform scratch must with a stout handle underneath. It is applied
be made. The ideal way of achieving this is with with a trowel, which has a flat steel blade about
a diamond, but the normal glass cutter consists 12 in. (300 mm) long and 4 in. (100 mm) wide,
of a stout blade with a small sharp-edged wheel with a handle turned back parallel to it. Before
at the end made of hard steel. The blade has a the plaster sets, the surface is finally leveled
series of rectangular notches along it, cor- with a darby, a two-handled board about 4 ft.
responding to different thicknesses of glass. (1.2 m) long and 4 in. (100 mm) wide. Usually, a
These are used for breaking off pieces of glass Glazier's knives used for smooth surface is desired for the application of
that have not parted freely in the first instance, application of fresh putty (LEFT) paint or paper but sometimes other finishes
but the skilled workman will rarely have and for removal of old, hard such as tiles are to be applied. In that case the
putty (RIGHT).
occasion to use them. plasterer gives a rough finish to the work by
Glass is notoriously brittle and cutting must means of a scratcher, a simple wooden tool
be done on a flat table, usually covered with a carrying about six pointed projections.
blanket to even out minor irregularities. To In framed buildings plaster was traditionally
ensure a straight and accurate cut, the tool is applied to closely spaced wooden laths. These
guided by a simple straight edge or T-square. have generally been superseded by substitutes
Toughened glass, however, must be cut, such as expanded metal lath. This material can
ground, and drilled in the factory before it is be shaped to the many complex forms which
treated to give it its special properties. The may be required in decorative ceilings.
other main tool of the glazier is the simple putty Plasterboard and other sheet materials are
knife, used to apply the seal that holds the glass now extensively used in the lining of interiors of
firmly in position in its frame. buildings. Plasterboard may be given a com-
Many new types of seal, other than putty, are Using a tool with a small cutting plete coat of fine plaster to cover nail heads or
wheel at the tip to cut through
now used in building. These include mastics, glass.
joints. In many cases, however, the edge of the
which in some situations may be applied by board is slightly feathered, to allow for taping
knife. In many cases the compound is injected and a small application of plaster or other
into the joint between glass and frame or any material to bring the surface up to a smooth
other gap between building components with a plane. Joints in other sheet materials may be
pressure gun similar to the grease gun com- treated in a similar way, allowed to remain
monly used in lubricating machinery. Seals visible, or given a cover strip of some kind.
using gaskets and employing zippers require
special tools and lubricants to force the zipper Painting
into position. When taped joints are used,
special devices have been developed to facili- The traditional tool for the application of paint
tate this process. is the brush, made in a variety of sizes and
shapes according to the nature of the work to be
done. The whitewashing of walls, for example,
Finishing and ancillary trades calls for a large, relatively coarse brush. Most
domestic woodwork, coated with oil,paint to
Plastering preserve and decorate it, called for a much
Plastering, in a crude form, was one of the smaller brush with finer bristles; the endless
earliest building crafts, for wattle daubed with task of painting the glazing bars of windows
mud or clay was one of the earliest con- called for a finer brush still, with the end of the
structional materials. Plastering of a much more bristles often cut on the slant, to make working
sophisticated kind is portrayed at a very early at an angle easier.
date, however, and surviving murals from The ancients used reeds as brushes. The
Pompeii show the use of a rectangular float with Egyptians soaked the ends in water to separate
a handle on the back, such as those supplied by the fibers. Bundles of hog's hair were tied to
builders' merchants today. It was, indeed, to sticks and, later, tufts ofbristle were set in holes
form a suitable surface for such murals that in a stick and secured with pitch.
much plastering work was done, although the Brushes for the application of The brushmaking industry was well
smooth rendering of rough surfaces was also paint and varnish. developed in Europe by the 15th century. In the
 296 Tools

U .S. brushmaking was a household industry

until the early 20th century, but important
technical developments had taken place long
before this. An American patent of 1830 for a
paintbrush in which the bristles were held in the
handle with pegs was ahead of its time, but
pointed the way to commercial developments
which became significant later in the century.
All the split ends of the bristles were exposed,
which increased the paint-carrying capacity of
the brush and made it soft. Animal bristles were
always used until after World War II. A high Blacksmith's anvil. Metal objects,
proportion of brushes are now made from nylon held with tongs, are worked and
shaped on the anvil with a
and other synthetic fibers. With the advent of hammer.
emulsions, latex and other nondrip interior
finishes, rollers, instead of brushes, have
become popular.
Spray painting was introduced into the
automobile industry in the 1920s, but has not
become widely popular on the building site.
One reason is that the drift of the spray is not
easy to control, and is unpleasant to the worker
unless properly ventilated spraying booths can
be used.

The blacksmith
Until recently, the blacksmith was a familiar
craftsman on all the bigger building sites, his
main task being to repair and sharpen the
various tools that have been described . Addi-
tionally, he would make the various iron
fitments that came increasingly into use as iron
Portable forge c. 1830.
became more plentiful. Iron dowels and
clamps, set in lead, were used to secure
masonry in the 1st millennium BC, and bronze
and iron fittings were used for doors and
windows. His requirements were simple: a
Decorator's chisel knives or forge with bellows to improve the draft,
strippers. anvil, tongs , and hammer. As with many other
craftsmen, however, the work of the blacksmith
increasingly moved away from the site to
workshops at a distance. Although some
architectural ironwork for special purposes is
still handforged, most of it is now mass
produced in factories.
Finally, mention must be made of the pick
and shovel, basic tools for site preparation until Shovels, pick, crowbar, and
rammer c. 1870.
the advent of modem earth-shifting machines
and still widely used for minor works and for
major ones where labor is cheap and plentiful.
The wheelbarrow is traditionally associated immemorial--on picks, shovels , and wheelc
with the pick and shovel: it is clearly depicted in barrows to prepare the site and traditional hand
some of the frescoes of ancient Egypt. tools for the construction work. However, the
advent of the internal combustion engine and of
Powered tools small but powerful electric motors at about the
tum of the 20th century began substantially to
Until the beginning of the 20th century hand change this . The internal combustion engine
tools prevailed on most building sites . Medieval could be used in two ways. Firstly , it could be
pictures, it is true, show cranes, and other used to provide compressed air, as for the
devices for lifting and hauling operated by pneumatic drill and certain other hand tools .
treadmills or windlasses but these would be Secondly, it could be a direct source of power,
encountered only in the building of major as in cement mixers, hoists, and pumps. It can
Paraffin and petrol blowlamps c. works. In the main, the building worker be used in remote situations where no mains
1900 used for metalwork and paint
stripping. relied heavily-as he had done from time electric supply is available. Where there is an
 Tools 297

electric supply the electric motor is especially gromatici, so called from their use of the groma
suitable for small hand tools, because it is clean as ca sighting instrument to fix lines of orien-
and light, and requires only a thin electric cable tation. This consisted of two wooden arms
in place of the heavy hose of the pneumatic placed at right angles in a horizontal plane.
devices. Its adoption involved some changes in Plummets were suspended from the ends of the
the nature of certain tools. For example, arms.
although the electric jigsaw with a reciprocating A more elaborate instrument was the choro-
blade is widely used-for cutting laminates, for bates, used for leveling. Essentially, this was a Surveying in the Middle Ages with
example-the natural role of the electric motor four-legged table, with two plummets hanging sighting instruments.
is to provide continuous rotary action. Thus the from each side. The table was judged exactly
electrical successor of the handsaw is more level when all eight lines coincided with marks
often than not the circular saw or, for rougher on the side of the table. According to Vitruvius
work, the chain saw. Sanding machines may be (active 46-30 sc) the leveling process was often
based on a continuously rotating abrasive disk assisted by a water trough in the center of the
or on vibrating orbital motion. The principle of table, with a horizontal groove on its inner
the drill , however, was unchanged, for as we surface. When the water surface coincided with
have seen it had long been based on continuous this groove the table was level. Vitruvius also
rotations; electric hand drills began to become describes the use of a glass tube containing a
available shortly before the beginning of the bubble of air, clearly closely akin to the modern
20th century. spirit level.
The electric drill lent itself to a variety of Another important surveyor's instrument,
interchangeable accessories that could be fitted described (and perhaps invented) by Heron of
into the chuck at will. One such accessory was Alexandria in the 1st century AD, was the Surveying in the 18th century using
the sanding disk already mentioned. Others diopter. This was essentially a theodolite a modern type of theodolite.
were the wire brush, useful for cleaning up iron combined with a water level. The rule of the
and other rough surfaces; rasps; and hole diopter, some 6ft. (1.8 m) long, was provided
cutters. For many purposes the high speed of with an eyepiece at one end and an objective at
the electric drill is an advantage resulting in fast the other. It was mounted on a table which
work and a clean finish.ln some circumstances, could be turned both horizontally and ver-
however, it is a disadvantage, for example when tically. However, it was far too sophisticated
drilling very hard materials such as stone or and elaborate an instrument to have been used
brickwork with bits tipped with specially tough in everyday building.
steel. At high speeds excessive heat is gen- The modern theodolite, a precision optical
erated, resulting in the tool losing its sharpness. instrument that can be regarded as a successor
To obviate this, drills with reduction gearing to the diopter, appeared about the middle of the
were introduced. As a further refinement, 18th century. Accurate angular measurements
so-called hammer drills appeared. In these, the can be made in the horizontal and vertical
rotation of the drill bit is combined with a planes with the aid of vernier scales, and the
hammering action that helps to break down the incorporation of a compass allows precise
hard material at the bottom of the holes; this is, bearings to be taken. In its various forms, the
of course, the action of the pneumatic drill, theodolite is an essential part of the modern
widely used in site preparation. surveyor's equipment for the layout of con-
The hammer was adapted for power in two structional sites . Except for the very largest of
ways. Firstly, the necessary repetitive blows these, such as long ridges, line-of-sight obser-
were struck by a reciprocating mechanism vations suffice, the curvature of the earth being
actuated pneumatically or by an electric motor. negligible. For distances above about 300 yd.
Secondly, the so-called hammer gun was (270m) a small correction may have to be made
introduced. For massive bolts the power is to allow for this.
derived from a small explosive cartridge. More Key points in the construction, such as
commonly, however, compressed air or the anchor bolts, are located by first plotting their
release of a powerful spring is used. As we shall position on a coordinate grid and then marking
see later, mechanical riveting hammers were them in the field by proceeding from a
introduced soon after the middle of the 19th convenient reference point by means of mea-
century, though they did not come into general surement by tape and transit sighting.
use until the turn of the century. In marking out the site a system of reference
points must be established that will not be
Surveying instruments disturbed during the progress of the work.
Orientation in the horizontal plane is achieved
Although small buildings were doubtless built by means of the compass or by relating to fixed
on an ad hoc basis, the more ambitious projects points. Differences in level are determined by
had to be constructed to a carefully pre- the use of a leveling staff. The latter-varying in
conceived design. The execution of this length between 10 and 16 ft. (3-5 m)--is
demanded surveying techniques of a fairly high graduated in feet or meters with their sub-
order. As early as the 3rd century sc land divisions. To determine the difference in height Measuring chain, land chain, and
surveying in Rome was in the hands of the between two points on the site, the staff is held measuring tape.
298 Techniques

Techniques
upright at the two points and readings are taken With few exceptions, materials used in building
on each while the telescope of the theodolite (or have to be subjected to various preliminary
dumpy level) is turned in a horizontal plane. treatments to convert them to a manageable
The difference between the two readings-the form, and during the course of history, several
back sight and the foresight-gives the differ- principal techniques have evolved to effect
ence in elevation. Accurate measurements may these changes. A few techniques, such as
now be made using electronic instruments, and oxyacetylene cutting of steel , are com-
laser beams are becoming increasingly popular, paratively recent innovations, but most are
both for measuring and leveling. Various direct developments of techniques practiced in
techniques of accurate photographic survey ancient times. The modem lathe, for example,
have played a part in reducing and supplement- does not differ in principle from the pole lathe
ing the work of the surveyor in the field. depicted in Egyptian frescoes, though the
The groma, the chorobates, and the diopter improvements are enormous.
enabled the work to be set out with precise For many purposes materials may have to be
vertical and horizontal alignments. As it subjected to several finishing techniques
developed, however, the working craftsman before being ready for use: wood may first have
would rely very much on the plumb line to keep to be cut to manageable size and then turned on
it vertical and the try square to ensure that the the lathe; small metal components may be made
angles were true. by first rolling the metal into sheet and then
Finally, mention must be made of the rule and stamping out the desired shapes.
dividers. Being generally made of wood, few The revolution in the mechanization of
rules have survived to the present day, but they woodworking is epitomized in the block-
are widely illustrated among craftmen's tools. making machinery designed at the beginning of
A few bronze folding rules survive from Roman the 19th century for the Portsmouth Dockyard
ABOVE: A transit, an extremely
accurate theodolite for surveying
time. Units of measurement were, of course, in England by Marc Isambard Brunei (1769-
over great distances, c. 1900. standardized only recently and there were 1849). At that time the Royal Navy required
considerable local variations. However, this more than 100,000 pulley blocks a year.
did not matter greatly provided that all crafts- Brunei's other machines automatically cut the
men on a particular site were using the same blocks of wood roughly to shape, bored holes
BELOW: Block-shaping machine.
Portsmouth Dockyard, England
units . Allied to the rule was the ungraduated for the sheave pin and the start of the mortise for
(1801-08), used to produce blocks straightedge, which could be used to check that the sheave, cut the slot in the sheave, formed
for ships' rigging. Invented by M.l. a line was true, or to mark out straight lines on the outer surfaces with a shaping engine, and
Brunei, these steam-powered wood or stone. For marking out measurements cut the groove for the rope with a scoring
machines could do the work of 50
men with only4.
dividers were used , and these have remained machine. Only the final assembly and polishing
virtually unchanged to the present day. remained to be carried out by hand. The plant
enabled the work of I 10 skilled men to be done
by 10 unskilled men , and there was an annual
saving to the Admiralty of £17 ,000 per annum
for a capital outlay of£54,000.
Similar machinery was devised for making
virtually all the basic wooden components for
the building industry. The introduction of the
steam engine as a source of power, and of
improved cutting steels for the tools ·made it
possible to work more quickly and to handle
heavier work. In Britain a considerable incen-
tive was given by the urgent needs of the Great
Exhibition building of 1851. Traditional wood-
working methods could not have done the
necessary work in the time: for example , some
200 mi. (320 km) of sash bar were required for
the roof alone. Charles Tomlinson, in the 1866
Appendix to his Cyclopaedia ofuseful Arts and
Manufactures states that the machines devised
primarily for the urgent needs of the Crystal
Palace had by then found their way into general
use. They included machines for precision
cutting of handrails and rafters, as well as sash
bars. There was even a machine for painting the
sash bars so that they were delivered to the site
ready for use. A machine for cutting mortises
and tenons was used for preparing sash frames
and sash bars for assembly, and mechanical
planes were commonplace. In effect, wood
could be produced shaped to virtually any
 Techniques 299

section, precision cut to length, and with precut

parts of joints ready for immediate engagement
with other members.

Casting and molding

Since they depend on the same principle, these
two techniques may conveniently be con-
sidered together. In either case the desired
shape is imposed on the material while it is in a
liquid or plastic form, which it retains on
solidification. In the casting of metals, solid-
ification occurs simply on cooling, this is true
also of certain plastics. In the case of some
other materials, such as plaster or concrete,
solidification depends on internal chemical
changes.
The simplest form of metal casting is sand
casting. In this, sand is packed in a suitable
container around a pattern of the component
desired. The compacted sand is then divided
into two halves so that the pattern can be
withdrawn, and the cavity is filled with molten
metal. When this has cooled and solidified, the
mold is reopened and the casting removed. If a ABOVE : Machine manufacture of
hollow casting is desired, a core of appropriate sash bars for the roof of Crystal
Palace, london, for the Great
shape must be used. Exhibition of 1851.
There are a number of important factors
which must be taken into account when RIGHT: Sash bar machine detail.
Wooden plank passes first over
considering the technique of casting metals. rotary cutters then through a set of
First and foremost, the pattern must be so circular saws.
designed that the finished product parts easily
from the mold-this precludes, for example,
undercut parts and makes difficult the inclusion
of thin parts, such as fins. Since virtually all
metals shrink on solidification, the casting will
be slightly smaller than the pattern, and
allowance must be made for this. An allowance
must be made too for a further reduction in size I I
cr =
RIGHT: Plank (shown in
if the casting is to be subjected to machine
finishing. As the solubility of gases is greater in
section) cut into four sash bars. ' 11>1
~~"'": :: ::J
II
liquid metals than in solid ones, gas tends to be
produced as the metal cools, and this may cause
undesired porosity. Again, the final metal- RIGHT: Gutter cutting machine c.
1851 used at Crystal Palace,
lurgical structure of the casting is determined by showing series of cutters (A-D) set
various factors, incluging rate of cooling; at various angles.
consequently the outsides of castings, which
cool fastest, may differ significantly in prop-
erties from the interiors.
Special green molding sands are used for this
FliGHT: Step-by-step
process. They are usually mixed with a little formation of gutter as timber
clay and various additives to ensure their passes across cutting machine.
stability when the pattern is withdrawn. Com-
monly, the sand is preheated to drive off excess
r~==----~
1:~
·.. L· · ·- . .,..J

Mold-making kit consisting of pair

of molding flasks, molding trowel
(side and top views), molding wire,
and runner stick.
 300 Techniques

moisture which, g1vmg rise to steam, might industry generally. Plastics fall into two main
cause surface defects . categories. First there are the thermosetting
A major advance, made during World War II, plastics; these are akin to ceramics in that once
was shell molding. In this process the sand is heated they retain their shape permanently.
mixed with a thermosetting resin. The pattern is The second category, thermoplastics, resem-
heated, and the mold mixture immediately in ble asphalt or lead; they can be repeatedly
contact with it sets solid, thus producing a thin melted and solidified by heating and cooling.
shell corresponding exactly to the shape Both types are commonly made into the
desired. required shapes by molding. In the early days,
Another important form of casting is die only quite small items could be made in this way
casting. In this, the liquid metal is forced under but now comparatively large ones, such as
high pressure into a metal mold by means of a water cisterns and garbage cans, can be molded.
piston. By varying the details of the technique, Although the material is relatively cheap, molds
the method can be used both for metals of low are expensive and the technique lends itself
melting point, and for those nonferrous metals primarily to the manufacture of large numbers
which have a higher melting point, such· as of identical items, such as electrical switches,
aluminum. Die casting has the advantages of sockets, door furniture, buckets, and so on.
rapid production, close tolerance, good surface In compression molding the plastic, in
finish, and high strength due to rapid cooling. In powder form, is forced into the mold under
centrifugal or spin casting the molten metal is pressure and this is then heated. Thermosetting
distributed and forced into the shape of the plastics can be removed almost at once but
mold by centrifugal force. thermoplastic materials must be cooled
While the casting of metals is a technique beforehand to avoid distortion. In injection
which goes back to the Bronze Age, the molding, the method most widely used for
molding of plastics, which is a basically similar thermoplastics , the liquid material is forced
ABOVE: Inspecting a rigid plastic technique, is a recent innovation. The first under pressure into the cold mold. As it cools
component removed from a commercially successful plastic, Baekeland's rapidly it can be removed quickly, thereby
compression molding press. Bakelite, was introduced in 1906, and since that favoring high production rates.
time the ever-increasing range of plastic items For most plastics, the difference in tem-
BELOW: Injection molding machine
producing plastic containers. and components indicates its importance in perature between softening and decomposition
is so small that some form of pressure must be
applied in the molding process. A few, how-
ever, such as highly plasticized cellulose
acetate-nitrates, are sufficiently stable to be
melted and cast in molds like molten metals. As
plastics became available in sheet form,
vacuum-molding techniques were developed.
In these, the softened sheet is sucked by
vacuum against a surface having the desired
profile. The method is cheap and quick and is
used, for example, in making decorations and
display signs.
Plaster was widely used as an interior finish
for walls at a very early date (see PLASTER).
Basically, it is made by calcining gypsum, a
naturally occurring form of calcium sulfate.
When this is powdered and mixed with about
one-fifth of its weight in water, it quickly sets
hard. If this process is allowed to take place in a
mold, a variety of decorative fixtures , such as
rosettes, cornices, and medallions can be made
and used to give an artistic finish to interiors.
Much more important than plaster in the
present context, however, is concrete. Like
plaster, the setting of this material depends
upon an irreversible hydration process. Today,
it is used in enormous quantities for a wide
variety of purposes. In most applications,
whether on site or off site, it is shaped to its final
form by some kind of molding.

Extrusion
Extrusion is allied to casting and molding in that
the material is shaped by means of a fixed-shape
 Techniques 301

former. The technique is exemplified by the Large diameter PVC plastic pipe
emerging from an extrusion die.
squeezing of toothpaste from its tube, when it
emerges as a long cylinder. Most metals can be
similarly extruded through a die, either hot or
cold, but the technique may not be economic for
some high-strength alloys because of the great
pressure required. In hot extrusion, the heated
slug of metal is placed in a die having an orifice
of a shape corresponding to the cross section of
the desired product. Hydraulic pressure is then
applied and the hot metal is forced steadily out
through the die. Some lubricant is necessary to
facilitate the process. The speed of extrusion
depends on the metal-some aluminum alloys
must be extruded slowly while some copper
alloys and lead may emerge at speeds up to
I ,000 ft./min. (304 m/min.). Cold extrusion,
which was first applied to steel in about 1930,
has been called cold forging, because the great
forces exerted on the metal are similar to those
exerted in the forging process.
Plastics, because they are so easily extruded and Scandinavia. The biggest user, however,
when softened by moderate heat, are widely was to be America, where a serious shortage of
shaped by this technique. By using suitably labor, combined with a need for ambitious
shaped dies a variety of tubes, angles, rods, and projects, favoured mechanization. The great
the like can be quickly and cheaply man- timber bridges that carried the railroads west-
ufactured. Extrusion is also used in brick- ward in the wake of the log cabins are symbolic
making, the soft unfired clay being extruded as of the rapid growth of a new nation that set great
a rectangular length and chopped into appro- store by labor-saving techniques.
priate lengths by wires. The technique of power sawing developed
along two main lines. In one, the reciprocating
action of the hand saw was imitated, with a
Carving number of blades being mounted parallel to
Casting, molding, and extrusion are all pro- each other in a frame. They could be indi-
cesses appropriate for repetitive work. Very vidually renewed or sharpened as the need
often, however-though less now than in the arose. The circular saw, introduced around the
past-decorative work in wood or stone is end of the 18th century, was an improvement in
required for particular buildings or for resto- two respects: firstly, it avoided the necessity-
ration work. The basic tools are gouges, inherent in all reciprocating devices-of
chisels, and a mallet, although the skilled having repeatedly to reverse the motion of
craftsmen undertaking elaborate work will moving parts, and secondly its cutting action
require a great variety of these for roughing out, was continuous because there was no idle
finishing, incising letters, undercutting, and so return stroke. Against this, the need for a
Mortising machine (1860s). The
on. The design to be carved is first transferred central axle limited the depth of cut that could mortise is carved out by a chisel
to the wood and then painstakingly excised, be mad~,just like the stiffener along the back of operated by a foot press.
great care being necessary to observe the the tenon saw. The depth of cut could be
grain. Whether working in wood or stone, the roughly doubled, however, by arranging for the
texture of the material must be noted; the finer saw to be taken around the wood to be cut, as in
the work the closer the texture must be. the pendulum saw made for the Portsmouth
Dockyard, England, in about 1803. The band
saw overcame this effect and, because of the
Cutting narrowness of the blade, could be used to cut
In much cutting work the basic technique is curved shapes such as those required for ships'
sawing, as it was in very early times. Over the timbers . For a long time, however, no satis-
centuries, however, saws have been greatly factory method of making the blades was found.
improved in both the scale of work that can be Riveting was unsuitable, because of the extra
undertaken and in their constituent materials. thickness ofthejoin, and brazing was unreliable.
Although it is established that water-powered Eventually, in the mid-19th century, con-
saws were used by the Romans in the 3rd tinuous blades were made. This was made
century AD, and one is depicted in a French possible by the adaptation of the technique
manuscript of the 13th century, they made developed for making steel tires for railroad
little overall contribution until somewhat later. rolling stock.
Widespread interest was first shown, not Such techniques suffice for cutting wood and
surprisingly, in countries where wooden build- stone, although for the latter the cutting action Pendulum saw (1803) being used
ings were commonly used, such as Germany of the teeth needed to be reinforced by to cut a tree log.
302 Techniques

application of an abrasive powder. Soft metals More recently, the electric arc has been used to
too, such as lead and copper, could be cut by replace the boring machine: in this process the
similar methods. Steel and similar hard metals work forms one electrode and the boring bar the
presented a problem as they increasingly came other. The boring bar is fed into the work as the
into use, for the ordinary saw blade could make hole deepens and debris is flushed away with a
little or no impact on them. Special cutting nonconductive liquid . An advantage of this
tools were therefore introduced, to be held method is that its application is not limited to
against the moving metal. The development circular holes , as the hole will follow the cross
of steels with a high carbon content, and later section of the boring bar, though it will always
the introduction of tungsten steels--often with be a little larger.
a finely powdered tungsten carbide dis-
seminated through the matrix-greatly
increased the cutting power and enabled cutting Grinding
speeds to be increased fivefold in the early Grinding is a technique for removing material
years of the 20th century. Before the intro- by the action of an abrasive and was used by
duction of thermal cutting at the end of the 19th early Egyptian masons for smoothing the Hand-operated saw c. 1885 with a
century , iron and steel had. to be cut by surface of building stones. Today, grinding is continuous steel blade.
laborious techniques using saws and red-hot effected by the action of a power-driven
metal or large mechanical shears. These grinding wheel, with the abrasive grains of the
techniques often bent the metal being cut, wheel making a succession of minute cuts on the
which then required extra work to straighten it surface. The grinding agents are usually silicon
out. carbide or alumina, which are so hard that they
Meanwhile, a new cutting technique was can be used to machine the hardest steel. A
developing, namely thermal cutting. In this great deal of heat and dangerous dust is
technique, cutting of metal is affected either by generated in the process, and some form of fluid
melting or by chemical reaction with oxygen at is necessary to dissipate these. Oil, or oil
a very high temperature. The necessary heat emulsions, are commonly used for this purpose.
may derive from an oxyacetylene flame or from Although a wheel is the commonest grinding
an electric arc. The point of heat application can tool, modern grinding machines have many
be so strictly localized that a clean cut can be variants to allow different types of work to be
effected. This method of cutting is widely done . In some machines the work is moved
employed in the erection of structural steelwork across the abrasive, in others the reverse is
where the same technique, using a high- done, while as a further variant, a planetary
intensity flame or arc, is used for welding . motion can be used. In addition to surface Automated thermal cutting of steel
grinders, there are internal grinders designed to sheet.
Drilling grind the surfaces of holes to a precise
Much drilling is still done by methods based in tolerance .
principle on traditional techniques. The main
developments have been the introduction firstly
of special alloy steels to drill tough metals, and
secondly of drilling machines with powerful
motors, making it possible to undertake far
heavier work than could be considered in the
past. Such drills were of particular importance
in building in the · heyday of riveted steel
construction, but this was to a great extent
superseded by welding .
Medieval builders were remarkable for the
lack of attention they paid to foundations, but in
more recent times the literally fundamental
importance of this has been fully realized . In the
context of building in its broadest sense, boring
now extends to the drilling of holes in the
ground to receive concrete piles, to carry the
weight of the structure. For this purpose large
augers are used, which are virtually no more
than scaled-up versions of the traditional
carpenter's tool. For constructional work they
may be I ft. (30 em) or more in diameter. Smaller
sizes may be driven from the power take-off of a Chipping rock debris from a drill Heavy-duty, hand-operated pillar
tractor, but for major works a specially built auger used to excavate holes in drilling machine c. 1900. By virtue
mobile drill is employed . frozen terrain for the erection of of a system of gears and flywheel,
As previously discussed, drilling is no more steel supports for an oil pipeline. relatively heavy drilling work could
be undertaken.
than a way of making a hole, and in the earliest
days this was done simply with a pointed awl.
 Techniques 303

Milling
Milling is another technique for removal of
metal, in which a rotating multitoothed cutter,
made of special alloy steel and of a profile
corresponding to the shaping to be done, shapes
the surface of the work as it is passed across it.
Most milling machines are horizontal or ver-
tical, according to the axis of rotation of the
power spindle, but universal machines can be
fixed at any desired intermediate angle .
The origins of milling techniques have
already been discussed at the beginning of this
section.

Turning
Mortising, boring, and tenoning
Like milling and grinding, turning in a lathe is a
machine c. 1900. technique for removing material from a work-
piece by rotating it under power against a
suitable cutting tool. This process can be used
for wood, stone, or metal. In simple lathes the
craftsman holds the tool and urges it against the
rotating surface, varying its proximity to the
axis of rotation according to the shape desired.
Modern lathes are much more sophisticated; Industrial lathes c. 1900. Prior to
electrification, lathes were
for example, the cutting tool is moved radially invariably worked by a treadle or
or longitudinally by a mechanical device. In were belt driven.
the turret lathe, first introduced in the 19th
century, a succession of cutting tools, which are
mounted on a rotation turret, can be brought
into operation without needing to reset the
machine. Apart from general turning, lathes can
be used to cut screw threads of any pitch by
varying the longitudinal speed of the tool
against the rotation of the workpiece.
Filemaker using sharp-edged Grinding, milling, and turning are essentially
hammer to cut each line of the file finishing techniques. They are used to give a
(c. 1417). final form to products already roughly shaped
by casting, cutting, or other methods . This is
done by removing excess metal by moving the
workpiece repeatedly over some form of cutter.
In their simplest form these processes are done
manually, but modern machine tools, capable
of handling very massive items, are fully
automated . They have the common dis-
advantage of removing metal , however, which
is wasteful. These techniques fall within the
field of precision engineering.
There is another set of techniques which
shapes metal essentially by brute force. These
were the techniques most profoundly affected
by the advent of the steam engine in the 19th
century. This technological innovation not only
enabled far greater force to be applied, but

___ __)
provided the means for handling the heavy
products involved . In forging, for example, the
traditional equipment was still the blacksmith's ruq~
hammer and anvil. Later, as heavier work was
demanded , this was reinforced by the water- Representative forms of gouges
powered tilt hammer, although its use was and chisels used for wood turning
limited by the fact that it could be raised only a c. 1900.
short distance. In 1839, when the steamship
Mortising and tenoning machine c. Great Britain was being designed , it was
1870 (elevation and plan) with
details of cutting, shaping, and proposed that it should have a paddle shaft 30
drilling elements. in. (750 mm) in diameter (screw propulsion was
 304 Techniques

LEFT: Stone baluster being worked

on a lathe.

RIGHT: Electrically operated

modern bench lathe.

ultimately adopted). There was at that time began to be manufactured in Wolverhampton,

nowhere in the world where such a shaft could England, in 1838 and were soon used in
be forged and this led the Scottish engineer enormous quantities throughout the world.
James Nasmyth (1808-90) to devise his Galvanized wire, including barbed wire , was
famous steam hammer. also extensively used for fencing, especially in
the huge new cattle-raising areas.
Rolling The availability of heavy rolling equipment
had other consequences for the building indus-
This is a metal-shaping technique in which try . Toward the end of the 19th century, rolled
deformation is effected by heavy rollers. It can mild-steel joists became available in various
convert ingots into strip, rod, sheet, or special sections. One of the commonest was the
shapes such as corrugated sheet for galvanized 1-section joist with thick flanges. This
iron roofing. This method can be used with hot made an excellent beam but its stiffness was
or cold metal , but the latter gives better much reduced when it was bent in the plane of
dimensional tolerance and a smoother surface. the flanges; it was, therefore, unsuitable for use
Rolling is normally a repetitive process, the as a column. For this purpose composite
ingot being repeatedly passed back and forth to sections were made by riveting several of the
reduce its thickness progressively. One of the available standard ones together (Gray sys-
first to use a rolling mill appears to have been tem). Later, improved rolling techniques made
the Swedish ironmaster Christopher Polhem it possible to make wide-flanged beams in which
(1661-1751), who employed this technique the flanges, instead of tapering, were of uniform
early in the 18th century. Thereafter, progress sections throughout. These were first rolled in
was rapid. In 1861, 20 ton (18,144 kg) plates of I Luxembourg at the very beginning of the 20th
ft. (30 em) in thickness-destined for use as century, and were soon afterward man-
naval armor-were rolled in Sheffield, Eng- ufactured on a large scale in the U.S.
land, and by the end of the century, Krupps For many constructional purposes and par-
could reduce a 130 ton (117,936 kg) ingot to ticularly with compression members, tubes are
sheet of the same thickness, measuring roughly favored. These are used especially for exposed
40 X J0 ft. (12 X 3 m). structures, such as bridges and pylons, because Sheet mills for tinplate rolling,
One limitation of the use of iron is the their wind resistance is much lower than that of early 20th century.
readiness with which it rusts unless the surface
is protected. The introduction of rolling led to
an important development in this respect. In the
early 19th century, thin iron sheets were coated
with a thin layer of tin to form tinplate, the
manufacture of which remained virtually a
British monopoly until 1890, when America
introduced the McKinley tariff. In 1829, R.
Walker of Rotherhithe, England, under licence
from the inventor, H . R. Palmer, introduced
rolled corrugated iron sheeting for roofs , the
corrugation giving additional strength. Eight
years later the French chemist, M. Sorel,
improved this product by coating it with a
protective film of zinc to form so-called
galvanized iron. Galvanized roofing sheets
 Techniques 305

corresponding flat-surfaced units. Originally, rigid base, such as an anvil, and then ham-
tube was made by bending strip metal over a mering along the line of the edge until the
mandrel bar and then welding or brazing the required degree of bending has been achieved.
joint, or alternatively by extrusion. The latter For simple articles with a high margin of
technique was used from about 1820 for soft strength this is satisfactory, but on long
metals such as lead, which until recently was production runs, where metal must be con-
widely used for plumbing. However, copper served, problems arise.
and its alloys proved more difficult and their A bend is a potential source of weakness;
extrusion was not achieved until the latter part metal on the outside is stretched and on the
of the 19th century. Steel is an even harder and inside compressed. As a result, wrinkling or
more intractable metal, and seamless steel cracking may result. Further, except with the
tubing was not available until the Mannesmann very softest metals such as lead, some degree of
brothers perfected an entirely new rolling springback occurs after bending. To allow for
technique in 1885. this, the metal must be slightly overbent, so that
when pressure is released the required degree of
bending is permanently assumed.
Forging Short straight bends are generally carried out
Traditionally, forging is associated with the in mechanical presses, but for long sections
shaping of red-hot iron by hammering on the strip is passed through a series of rollers, each
blacksmith's anvil. To a limited extent this still one bending the metal a little further than its
prevails, as for example in the making of predecessor. In wiper bending, the stock is
custom-made grates and grills, and similar small progressively forced by a roller against the
architectural items. Some large forgings, too, curvature of a former. It is particularly useful
are still made by beating hot metal with for bending tube, where there is a risk of
mechanical hammers: the importance of the flattening on the bend, so obstructing the bore.
introduction of James Nasmyth's steam Most of the bending techniques described
hammer in 1839 has already been mentioned. above are carried out without heat. When it was
This method has the advantage of being necessary to bend a large rolled iron section to a
appropriate for a large range of sizes and having special shape, as was often the case in the
low tooling costs, but it is too slow for long framing of iron ship hulls, these elements were
production runs. heated to a high temperature and bent against
Today, the technique of forging is much more pegs on a special floor. In buildings, elements of
widely interpreted. In particular, it generally this type may be used for the framing of domes
implies the shaping of metal against some kind and other curvilinear work.
of former or die. The necessary force may be
applied by hammer blows-for example, using Stamping
a drop hammer-but this can equally well be
achieved by using the silent pressure of a Sheet metal can be formed by stamping, in
hydraulic press. For very large forgings, forces exactly the same manner as addresses can be
up to 50,000 tons (45,350 metric tons) may be impressed on writing paper by an embossing
necessary. Presses usually have vertical rams machine. It is a process much used in the mass
but may also have horizontal ones, permitting production of such objects as small cups or
simultaneous forging in several directions. The box-shaped items. Basically, the sheet metal
forces now available make it feasible to forge blank is forced into the die by means of a piston
cold metal in this way, but in practice this can be which squashes the metal against the walls of
done only for small parts because of the strain the die; it is not necessary for the metal to be
hardening that results in all cold-working heated. The process is, therefore, not limited to
operations. articles of circular cross section. Except for
Forging is a less versatile way of shaping very simple items, stamping is not usually
metals than casting, simply because solid metal completed in one operation. The usual practice
cannot be made to flow under pressure with is for the desired shape to be impressed by
anything like the readiness that liquid metal will successive deformation involving different
flow in a mold. Articles for forging must be free tools.
of the recesses, sharp corners, small holes, and As in bending, stamping presents difficulties
the like, which present no problem in casting. in attaining the desired distribution of metal.
As in casting, however, any sort of under- Flanges, for example, are compressed on the
cutting must be avoided, as otherwise the inside and stretched on the outside, the sheet
finished article cannot be removed from the die. metal blank is stretched in the stamping process
and the walls of the finished product may be too
thin or of insufficiently uniform thickness.
Bending Stamping, therefore, has the advantage of being
Like most metal-working techniques, the bend- able to impart quite elaborate shapes to sheet
ing of metals has developed from a simple to an metal but, like most other metal-working
elaborate one. Malleable metals can be bent techniques, it at the same time alters its
simply by laying them across the edge of some mechanical and physical properties.
306 Joints and fixings

Joints and fixings

Joints and fixings are of great importance in When such joints first came into use is
architecture for two reasons. Firstly, virtually doubtful, but many of those used in modern
every building is an assembly of units which woodwork are to be seen in Egyptian coffins of
must be securely joined together. Secondly, the Old Kingdom, that is about 2500 BC. The
every joint is a potential source of weakness and construction of Stonehenge suggests that car-
it is important to choose the one most appro- penters of northern Europe were equally
priate to a particular situation. Joints can be a familiar with some of the basic joints for
source of weakness for several reasons. First woodwork at much the same time. Each upright
and foremost, they may be intrinsically weak stone of the main circle is topped with two
from the outset because too much material may tenons, which engage with corresponding mor-
have been sacrificed in making them. On the tises cut in the lintels. The latter are further
other hand, they may be adequate at the outset secured by having fishtail joints at their ends:
but become weaker with time. It is com- the whole structure therefore interlocks firmly
monplace to see iron screws and nails in old both horizontally and vertically. This mode of
woodwork, for example, that have corroded to construction is generally regarded as a trans-
such an extent that there is virtually no metal lation into stone of earlier methods used in
left; glues may disintegrate through the action of wooden architecture.
moisture or molds; metal fatigue may be a In devising joints for woodwork two primary
source of breakdown in rivets or welds. Again, considerations had to be kept in mind if
joints may be adequate for their original maximum strength was to be achieved. Firstly,
purpose but not for new ones as, for example, supposing that members of equal size had to be
when bridges are rebuilt to carry heavier loads. joined, roughly the same amount of wood
Even unfixed joints may be a source of should be sacrificed from each part. Secondly,
weakness; for example, rafters may rot through the joint should be as unobtrusive as possible;
at the ends where they enter damp walls, and ideally, it should not be apparent at all. The
yet be completely sound .for the rest of their latter consideration would, of course, be of
length. Generally speaking, joints and fixings greater consequence in doors, windows, etc,
are potentially the weakest points of most than in roof timbers which, even if exposed, are
buildings and it is not surprising, therefore, that not normally open to close inspection.
much ingenuity has been shown in devising Homogeneous joints may be subdivided into
them. two main classes. In one, the joint is so
constructed that only the two members con-
Lashings cerned have to be shaped to fit. In the other, a
third piece of wood is involved: this might be in
One of the simplest ways of joining things is to the form of a simple dowel or a wedge-shaped
Common simple homogeneous
joints used in carpentry. Combined
lash them together, and we have already noted key interlocking with the two principal parts. with pegs and dowels these joints
that the heads of tools such as axes and could be made rigid.
Three main types of joint are involved in the
hammers were originally lashed to the shaft. It
building:
was natural that this device should be carried (1) Joints for lengthening timbers, by con-
over into construction, especially for tempor- necting them end to end.
ary structures. In the 4th millennium Be, Egypt- (2) Framing and bearingjoints used in trusses,
ian workers used to build temporary wooden
floorings, etc.
huts in the fields. The walls were of roughly cut
(3) Joints for ties and braces.
planks, overlapping and with holes bored along
Timbers may be joined end to end simply by
the edge so that they could be laced together.
putting them in position and securing them with
Later, quite elaborate systems of knots were
short pieces of wood overlapping the joint and
evolved for joining timbers together, especially secured with nails and bolts. Such a joint is,
for use on board ship or for construction of
however, weak as well as inelegant and
military devices in the field. Of more direct
consequently scarf joints were introduced at an
relevance to buildings, medieval pictures of
early date. In effect, the two pieces to be joined
builders at work clearly show scaffolding lashed
are tapered off equally but in opposite senses
together at the joints, the lashing often tight-
and the two sloping ends put face to face. The
ened with a tourniquet. Although, as we have
joint is then secured with screws, bolts, or
noted, this has now been almost entirely
straps. This is the very simplest type of scarf,
superseded in the Western world by steel-tube
however; by 2000 BC Egyptian carpenters were
scaffolding, it is still common elsewhere to use
using more sophisticated variations. In one,
lashed wooden poles.
wedge-shaped mortises were cut in the two
halves of the scarf and butterfly-shaped cramps
Homogeneous joints for wood of hard wood were carefully cut to fit exactly
At a very early date woodworkers devised a into these. Another early alternative was to cut
range of joints dependent on one member being corresponding wedges and grooves to receive
so cut and shaped that it interlocks with them on the opposed faces of the scarf. The
complementary shaping of another. No alien French scarfing joint known as the traits de
material was included in them. These will be Jupiter was so called because the jagged cut of
termed homogeneous joints. the scarf, seen from the side, resembled a flash
 Joints and fixings 307

of lightning. The size of the scarf-i.e. the Dovetail joints are often seen used for this
overlap-depended on the wood used. Tred- purpose, but are not really satisfactory because
gold's Carpentry recommended that in oak, as timber ages it shrinks more across the grain
ash, or elm the length of the scarf should be six that it does longitudinally. Dovetail joints-
times the depth of the beam and in deal it should again of great antiquity-are, therefore, best
be twice as long again. These figures were for reserved for joints in which the grain in both
unreinforced joints; if bolts and indents were pieces runs in the same direction. The advan-
used a reduction of two-thirds could be made. tage of the dovetail is that the joint pulls tighter
Mechanically produced finger jointing, com- under strain, but formerly its construction
bined with adhesives and techniques oflamina- demanded considerable skill on the part of the
tion have largely replaced these forms of joint. craftsman. Tody, dovetails and other joints
The scarf joint was, of course, used for can be cut mechanically with precision. For
extending horizontal timbers subject to bending cheaper work corner locking was used: this Masonry joints (5th century BC).
forces. For vertical timbers, subject only to resembles the dovetail but the interlocking Metal dowels were used for
longitudinal compression, some form of parts were cut square instead of wedged. vertically stacked elements,
cramps for those arranged
mortise-and-tenon joint would suffice, though horizontally side by side.
sometimes these were quite elaborate. Thus the
top of one unit might be castellated, engaging Masonry joints
with a corresponding cross-shaped tenon on the Masonry joints developed from existing prac-
bottom of the next higher one. Where boards tice with wood. Where very massive units were
had to be joined edge-to-edge wooden dowels, used , carefully shaped beforehand to rectilinear
inserted in holes bored in the edge, were used. proportions, their own weight would keep them
Even at an early date these were sometimes in position, but for smaller ones some means
glued into place and this was particularly useful was necessary to prevent them shifting once
if the fit was bad; a good craftsman , however, they were in position. Most of the wood joints
would work with such precision that the two just described have their parallel in masonry.
pieces could be simply tapped together. We have noted that in the construction of
For framing and bearing joints some form of Stonehenge massive mortise-and-tenon joints
mortise-and-tenonjoint is used, the tenon often were used. These were very laborious to
passing right through the mortised piece. construct, especially the tenons where almost
Tenons are usually made one-third of the the whole end of the block had to be pounded
thickness of the timber they are cut from. away to leave the tenon standing proud. By
Mortise-and-tenon joints may be held rigid classical times resort was already had to some
simply by cutting them so tightly that they are form of simple dowel. A common device was to
quite firm when driven home. If the structure is drill matching holes in the two opposing
likely to develop strains that might draw the surfaces ready to receive a dowel made of
tenon from the mortise, some means of bronze, iron, or oak. When metal dowels were
anchoring the joint is necessary, and ancient used they were commonly set in lead, poured
craftsmen developed three methods that are into place in the molten state. None of these
still used today. Firstly, the tenon may be made materials were, however, entirely satisfactory.
so long as to extend beyond the far end of the Wood became brittle and lost its strength; iron
mortise, when a cross pin or wedge can be was liable to corrosion which caused unsightly
inserted in a hole or slot in the extended part. staining and , worse still, caused expansion
Secondly, if the mortise extends right through which might in fact end up by disturbing the
the wood, a cut is made across the end of the structure rather than holding it firmly in place.
tenon before it is inserted: when in place, a These difficulties were avoided by using stone
narrow wedge is driven into the crosscut cramps-often with a butterfly section, as in
slightly to expand the end of the tenon. This early woodwork-fixed in position with
device is still commonly used today for fixing cement.
the heads of axes, hammers , etc, on their hafts: Again on the evidence of Stonehenge, ton-
most ironmongers sell suitable iron wedges in gued and grooved joints were used at a very
various sizes. If the mortise did not go right early date. Early masons also used what were
through the wood an ingenious technique called joggled joints, in which a wedge-shaped
known as foxtailing was used. As before, a cut tenon at the end of one block fitted into a
was made across the end of the tenon and a correspondingly shaped mortise on another.
narrow wedge was inserted loosely in this. The However, this too was very laborious and
tenon was then hammered home with a mallet wasteful of stone, and an easier way was simply
and as the thick end of the wedge met the to cut a mortise, open at the top, in each block
bottom of the mortise the wedge was driven into and drop a dowel joggle into this when the work
the cut in the end of the tenon, making a very was assembled.
secure joint. For special purposes very elaborate dovetail-
For making cross joints for ties and braces ing and doweling systems were used, as in John
the most satisfactory is the simple halvingjoint. Smeaton's Eddystone lighthouse, built in 1759
As its name implies, each piece is cut out to half to replace two earlier structures, one of which
its depth , to the width of the crosspiece. had been swept away in a storm (1703) and the
308 Joints and fixings

other, a wooden structure, by fire (1755). substances which accelerate this process: nails
Smeaton realized that he could not transport to taken from old woodwork are often no more
the Eddystone Rock blocks of sufficient size to than a fraction of their former size. Corrosion of
withstand Atlantic gales by their weight alone. the fixing nail is one of the commonest causes of
He therefore had every course prefabricated on failure in slate roofs. Secondly, as the nail is
land from stone blocks, each cut to dovetail basically a smooth cylinder it puts up little
with its neighbor until the circle was complete. resistance to tension along its length. Various
The joints were then grouted with strong devices were, and are, used to overcome this
hydraulic cement, thus forming virtually a solid defect. If the nail was long enough to go right
disk of stone. The stones of each course were through the wood, until stopped by its head, it
Nail cutting machine, early 19th drilled on their upper and lower surfaces so that could be clenched by bending the protruding
century. they could be secured with heavy oak dowels. part flat with a hammer, preferably across the
The whole structure resembled a Chinese grain of the wood. Another method was to make
puzzle and, indeed, when a new lighthouse was circular corrugations around the shank of the
built in 1882 it was possible to dismantle nail to make it less easy to withdraw. More
Smeaton's structure and reassemble it on recently, the screw nail has been introduced.
Plymouth Hoe. This has a fluted shaft rather like a stick of
barley sugar: as the nail is driven home the
fluting makes it rotate and engage with the
Nails wood, like a screw.
The variety of nails is such that they could form Most nails have a flat or slightly domed head,
the subject of a book in itself. All probably to stop them going any further once the whole
derived from the wooden pins used from the shank has been driven home. This is not always
most ancient times to secure mortisejoints,join desirable, however. For example, it may not be
planks, and so on. From this it would be an easy desirable for the head of the nail to show.
transition, as copper, bronze, and iron suc- Again, iron nails rust so easily that they are
cessively became available, to nails of modem liable to stain through when wood is painted. In
type, and these in fact survive from Egyptian such cases, headless nails are used which can
times . When soft metals were used it was first finally be driven a little below the surface of the
necessary to bore a hole, somewhat narrower wood with a punch. The resulting hole can then
than the nail, to receive it; this also helped to be filled with some sort of stopping, to give a
avoid splitting the wood. In Egyptian work, the completely smooth surface.
Nails for carpentry and masonry c. heads of exposed nails were often decorated. As every handyman knows, nails are liable to
1860s-floor brads, clasp nails,
chair nails, tacks, and sprigs.
Nails were used not only for joining pieces of split wood, especially when driven in near the
wood together, but until the 16th century were end of a piece. This can be obviated by drilling a
invariably used to fix such attachments as guiding hole first or, more simply, by using nails
hinges, locks, and bolts. of oval or rectanguar. cross section, driven in
The earliest nails must have been hand with the longer axis parallel to the grain.
forged, but by the end of the 15th century Finally, mention must be made of the staple,
nailmakers were improving their output by which is essentially a double-headed nail. This
driving short lengths of iron rod through slightly is used in enormous quantities of fixing wire
smaller holes in an iron plate. In effect, this is and netting fences to wooden posts.
the reverse of making them by drawing wire Smaller wire staples similar to those used to
through a die. Mechanical sawing of wood was secure papers together are used in fixing
first extensively used in America because of the sheeting materials to framing. Small staple guns
exceptional use there of wood in buildings, are spring activated, but in larger models
bridges, etc. Vast numbers of nails were compressed air is used. Special steel masonry
required for this type of constructional work, nails have been developed for fixing to brick,
and it is not surprising therefore that it was in stone, and concrete. In many cases these are
America that nailmaking machinery first driven home by explosive cartridges used in
appeared. The first patent was taken out by special nailing guns.
Ezekiel Reed in 1786 and some ten years later Nails are available in an immense variety of
machines capable of producing 500 ready- shapes and sizes, from tiny sprigs used to hold
pointed nails a minute were in use. By 1830 glass in place, to 6 in. (150 mm) nails for roof
manufacture of nails in eastern U.S. alone far timbers. Variations in shape reflect particular
exceeded that in Britain, which for many years uses to which they are put. Thus nails with
had exported nails to all parts of the world. In domed heads and slightly twisted shanks are
the mid-18th century some 60,000 people were used for securing corrugated-iron roofs; flat-
engaged in the nail trade in Birmingham alone, headed nails are used for roofing felt, to make it
on a cottage industry basis, making some 200 less likely to tear free, and for slates.
tons (181 metric tons) of nails per week. Nail plates, made from sheet steel that has
In appropriate circumstances, nails make been stamped to produce a sheet with many
excellent fastenings, but they have two major spikes, are used on surfaces of timber members
defects. Firstly, like all ironwork they are liable to join them rigidly together. They are used
to rust, and some woods contain corrosive extensively in mass-produced trussed rafters.
 Joints and fixings 309

Screws and bolts

111--_=-- ~ The principle of the screw was well known in
the ancient world, but only as a mechanical
device to obtain a gearing effect, as in presses.
Not until the 16th century were they used in
carpentry, and not at all widely so until the 17th.
At first they were of uniform bore throughout

-- their length, making it necessary first to drill a

hole sufficiently deep to receive them. The
modern type of screw, tapering to a point, with
j----- a relatively coarse spiral thread along about
two-thirds of its length, was not in general use
until the beginning of the 19th century. The
slotted head brought into use (c. 1812) a new
hand tool, the screwdriver. More recently this
has found a rival in the cross-head (Phillips)
screw, requiring a driver with a cor-
respondingly shaped head; this is particularly
suitable for use with power-driven screw-
drivers. Apart from size, screws differ main! y in
the shape of their heads. If, as is commonly the "Gang nail" connector plate. The
metal nail plate is laid across the
case, the screw must be flush with the surface of joint of this prefabricated rooftruss
the work, a countersunk head is necessary: this and then driven home under
[)iniitiii ! (> requires a rose countersinking drill bit to make mechanical pressure.

<tt illii!i! Ji I>

the depression necessary to receive it.
The great advantage of screws over nails is Bolts are used extensively for fixing struc-
that they are extremely resistant to longitudinal tural elements together and for securing com-
tension. For most purposes they are made of ponents such as cladding panels to the frame.
iron, but like nails they are then liable to Because of problems of tolerance between
corrode. This is doubly disadvantageous : apart components and movement of various kinds, a
from being weakened, rusting makes it difficult large variety of special fixing systems have been
to remove a screw should this be necessary. For developed that allow for fixing bolts to be used
high-quality work brass screws may be used. with a minimum of on-site adaptation to the
The larger sizes of screws, requiring con- components. In these fixing systems the final
siderable force to insert, often have square position of the bolt may be adjusted to varying
heads so that they can be tightened with a degrees in all three dimensions .
wrench rather than a screwdriver. In certain
circumstances it is desirable to use a screw in
the same way as a dowel; this gives a stronger
Riveting and welding
joint and one less liable to lengthwise move- As for so many of our modern building
ment. For such situations double-ended screws techniques, the joining of metals by rivets can
are available. Special screwing and bolting be traced back to classical antiquity: a surviving
techniques have been developed for use with example of riveted work from Crete dates back
new sheet materials such as chipboard. to about 750 BC. Often the heads of the rivets
For many purposes-such as pinning scarf or were decorated to improve the appearance of
mortise joints-a steel rather than a wooden pin the finished article. Until comparatively
or iron nail is required. For this purpose recently, however, riveting was not used in
threaded bolts have been used since the 18th major constructional work. Whatever the use,
century. The coach bolt is a typical example. the principle is the same. The shank of the rivet
This has a broad head, immediately beneath passes through holes drilled in the parts to be
which the shaft is of square cross section joined, fitting snugly, with a short length
slightly larger than the shank: this ensures that protruding. According to circumstances, the
when driven firmly home into the hole bored to head of the rivet is then held immovable against
receive it, the bolt will not turn in its socket. either an anvil or a heavy hammer, while the
This makes it easy to screw a nut, usually with a free end is hammered to mushroom it out and
washer beneath it, onto the other ·end of the stop it retracting. A final hammering with a
shank, of which only the protruding length is punch having a recessed head gives a neatly
normally threaded. domed finish. To give a smooth finish , the end
(]~:!hiTlt[ll&lll[nrnJu[Jilttlmt•limutlrnmttll ~:> Specially designed torque bolts and wrenches of the rivet was driven into a countersunk hole
have been developed which make it possible to in the work, any excess metal being ground
Nails a~d tacks-:- cut taper ~lanks tighten the bolts to an exact and predetermined down or struck off with a chisel.
for glazmg and linoleum fixmg; cut degree. Other types of nuts and bolts with Where extra strength is required, the two
tacks for carpets and upholstery; . . .
grimp pins and grooved tacks for lockmg devices that prevent them becommg parts to be united may be joined not directly to
heavy-duty upholstery work. loose through vibrations are also widely used. each other but to a third unit, such as a piece of
 310 Joints and fixings

1J
'rt
g

~'d
J ,...., :

llltllllilllllllllll -
vita.
llllllti;

Machine and coach bolts, machine Proprietary fixing blocks specially

screws, wing and hexagonal nuts, designed for butt jointing
and washers used in carpentry and composition boards. Phillips
metalwork (c. 19181. screws are being driven with a
mechanical screwdriver.

Nut cutting and tapping machine c. Clip and bolt cladding fasteners A range of bolts of different
1870 (front and side viewt. allow for considerable tolerance in shapes and sizes suitable for a
the fixing of corrugated sheeting to wide range of applications.
rails or purlins.
 Joints and fixings 311

heavier plate or angle iron. Rivets are com- Apart from the problem of alignment, the
monly of mild steel, but brass and copper have mere drilling of the rivet holes was a source of
been extensively used and-since the intro- weakness: in the mid-19th century it was
duction of aluminum sheet for constructional supposed that a riveted structure was only
purposes-also aluminum. To avoid galvanic about half as strong as it would have been had it
corrosion, it is desirable to make rivets of the been possible to make it in one piece. That so
same metal as those being joined. few major failures resulted was largely a
The smaller sizes of iron rivet can be worked consequence of the high margin of safety
cold, but for larger ones it is easier if they are allowed for in the design, often as much as
inserted red-hot-necessitating a portable fourfold; trouble came when old structures
hearth-and the work completed before they were exposed to much bigger loads than they
cool. This method of working has an additional had been designed for.
advantage: as the metal cools it contracts, thus The inherent weakness of riveted structures
forming a particularly tight union. is avoided, in theory at least, in welded ones, in
For work in light gauge sheet metal, pop which there is no discontinuity in the metal.
rivets, which were developed in the aircraft Forge welding, in which hot metals are joined
industry, are often used. These rivets, which by hammering or pressing, was familiar to
are applied to the work from one side only are Egyptian artisans: it was used, as previously Rivets--{;apended ; pan, and
often made out of aluminum, and are placed and noted, for putting a steel cutting edge on an iron cheese-headed hammered; and
secured in position by a special tool which pulls tool. In its usual modem form, however, the countersunk.
a steel pin that is incorporated in the rivet, edges of the parts to be joined are actually
pulling and distorting its foot so that it tightens melted so that they fuse together on cooling. In
together the pieces being fixed. practice this is usually done by shaping the
Riveting became of major importance with edges to be joined to a V: molten weld metal
the advent of wrought iron, and later steel, as from a welding rod is then allowed to flow into
major constructional materials. A notable early the resulting valley. This requires an intense
example was the Britannia tubular railroad and compact source of heat, such as is provided
bridge over the Menai Straits, designed by by an oxyacetylene or oxyhydrogen flame. In
Robert Stephenson (1803-59), which was com- arc-welding the metal to be melted forms one
pleted in 1850. In this construction over two electrode of an electric arc: the other electrode
million rivets were used, securing some 10,000 is made of nonconsumable material, such as
tons (9,072 metric tons) of wrought iron and tungsten or carbon.
2,000 tons (1 ,814 metric tons) of cast iron. This Another modem form of welding, par-
was a reasonable advance: the longest spans ticularly suitable for sheet metal work, is
over the water were 459ft. (140m) compared electric-resistance welding and spot welding. In
with a maximum of 31 ft. (10 m) previously these the parts to be joined are pressed in
achieved in wrought iron. It was the forerunner contact and then heated to near melting point,
of tens of thousands of plate-girder bridges so that they coalesce, by passage of a powerful
throughout the world, many still in use. electric current. The process is, therefore, Semi-tubular rivet machine in
With the construction of massive riveted analogous to the old forge-welding process. In operation.
structures such as this, some mechanization of flash welding, by contrast, the parts to be joined
the process became desirable, but this was are held lightly in contact while an intense
confined largely to making the rivet holes. For electric current is passed through spaced-out
the Britannia Bridge, for example, a riveting contact points. Local melting occurs almost
machine was devised that could punch 8,500 instantaneously at these bridges, and flashing is
1 in. (25mm)holesadayin .75in. (19mm)plate. continued until a layer of molten metal has been
This work had to be done before erection and formed , when the two surfaces are firmly
difficulties were encountered in getting the pressed together to complete the weld.
holes aligned, especially where several thick- Electric welding processes lend themselves
nesses of metal had to be joined; the channel to joining at intervals-like riveting-as in spot
had to be reamed out before the rivet-up to 5 welding, or to forming a continuous seam that is
in. (125 mm) long-could be driven through. completely gas tight and watertight. In the latter
This was unsatisfactory, in that some of the case rotating electrode wheels are used. If very
metal plates were then inevitably a loose fit and easily oxidizable metals are to be welded, such
undesirable strains were set up. The closing of as aluminum, oxygen must be excluded and the
rivets, however, was still largely done man- welding carried out in an inert atmosphere such
ually. A riveting hammer worked by com- as argon or helium.
pressed air was introduced about 1865, but it As we have noted, welding is in theory an
was half a century before such machines came ideal way of forming a joint because it creates
into general use. Hydraulic riveters came in what is in effect a single homogeneous struc-
about 1871, and portable riveters of this type ture. In practice, however, this is not achieved:
were specially designed for building the 54,000 the intense heat of the process causes local
ton (48,988 metric ton) Forth Bridge (1882-90). changes such as brittleness, and stresses in the
For this bridge all rivet holes were drilled and metal which are a potential source of weakness. Oxyacetylene welding trolley c.
not punched as for Britannia. Such defects became very apparent in some of 1900.
312 Joints and fixings

the Liberty ships built during World War II. material; weight for weight, large beams can
Both riveted and welded structures, there- be built up as cheaply as small ones. By the
fore, have their defects . Although riveted use of cramps and formers before the glue sets
structures are still being erected, there has been large beams of curved section can be built up;
a decisive swing to welding since the 1920s, the spans of up to 200 ft. (60 m) can be achieved.
main factor being economic. The amount of Such beams have better fire resistance than
labor that could be saved by welding was trusses of similar strength made of smaller
enormous, and it was no longer necessary to pieces. Lamiuates also permit maximum uti-
carry large stocks of differently shaped steel lization of the full strength of the wood . Jn
rollings. There were no rivet holes to drill out ordinary woodwork, unless very carefully
and align by reamering, and no great stocks of selected, the occurrence of knots and other
variously sized rivets to hold. Above all- defects may mean that little more than half of
although designers were slow to recognize the theoretical strength can be achieved. In
this-scientific principles of design could be laminates, even allowing for the chance of
applied without the constraints necessarily imperfections in adjoining plies coinciding, the
imposed by the use of riveted girders. In theoretical strength can be much more nearly
particular, it made possible the development of attained.
the box girder with its great torsional strength. Synthetic glues are also increasingly used to
This was used, for example, in the Severn Road secure joints of various kinds including those
Bridge in England (1966). Although this was of in quite heavy members such as roof
almost exactly the same length as the Forth trusses-thereby replacing nails or screws.
Road Bridge, completed only two years earlier, Th·e glue may be applied directly to the joints
it required only half as much steel. But the most in the ordinary way, or a plywood gusset may
Sophisticated, carefully controlled
double jointing welding work on oil historically significant event had occurred some be cut to reinforce the joint.
pipeline in progress. two years earlier still. In 1%2, the first welded Even with the best craftsmanship, not all
box girders were used in a reconstruction of joints are self-sealing and wind and rain are
lsambard K. Brunei's famous suspension liable to find their way in. Adhesives play a
bridge at Chepstow, built in 1852. double role in both securing and sealing joints,
Pieces of metal may be joined together by but sealing compounds based on bitumen have
soldering and brazing. In these techniques the been used from the earliest times , especially
pieces of metal are united by an alloy which is in Mesopotamia where it occurred naturally
more readily fusible, so the composition of the and formed a useful sealing compound for the
solder varies with the metals to be jointed. very porous bricks used there. Genesis tells
These processes are of considerable antiquity us that Noah's Ark was sealed within and
but the availability of portable blow torches and without with pitch. The Romans used wood
electric soldering irons have made these tech- tar and in northern Europe this was in
niques considerably easier. constant use until the 19th century. One of the
biggest outlets was in roofing felt , apparently
first introduced in Sweden in the 18th century.
Adhesives and sealing compounds With the rise of the gas industry in the 19th
Adhesives of animal or vegetable origin were century, coal tar became available as a cheap
used by ancient craftsmen, but generally only and efficient substitute, and by the end of the
for making relatively small articles for indoor century the roofing-felt industry , especially in
use, such as furniture. This was doubtless Germany and the U.S. , had an annual output
because such glues tend to become brittle measured in hundreds of thousands of tons. In
with age and are not resistant to moisture. America, the growth of the petroleum indus-
Adhesives became important in building only try and the increasing exploitation of natural
in comparatively recent times , when a variety gas, led to coal tar being largely replaced by
of tough and durable synthetic products similar residues from petroleum distillation.
became available. Their main role has been in Another important and widely used sealing
laminated structures, of two main kinds; these agent is ordinary glaziers' putty. Soft 'putty is
are respectively sheets and beams. made basically from raw linseed oil and
Plywood is familiar to everybody as ordi- whiting; for a harder and quiclrer drying putty
nary three-ply sheet, though more complex boiled linseed oil is used. Today, with availa-
sheet laminates are also made. In these, the bility of a large range of prefabricated metal-
differing strengths of wood along and across framed windows, often of the double-glazing
the grain can be evened out by bonding them type, increased reliance is placed on various
alternatively at right angles. If desired, the forms of weatherstrip.
outer plies can be of better quality wood than In glazing with lead cames little or no putty
the others. is used, and a longer lasting seal is obtained.
Similarly, bea ms of great size can be built This is how the stained-glass windows of the
up from comparatively thin strips. As the Gothic cathedrals were assembled from small
M etal clip and rail fittings for fixing
plasterboard or other sheeting
highest stresses occur in the top and bottom panes of glass. In the 19th century a large
materials in the construction of laminations , the central ones can be built of variety of " patent" glazing bars were
suspended ceilings. random lengths of relatively poor quality developed mainly for horticultural and com-
 Joints and fixings 313

mercia) buildings, in which the glass is held in tight joint. Before the zipper is forced into
position by clips and other devices and sealed position by a special tool, the gasket is fairly
against drafts with strips of material such as flexible , making it easy to force around the
greased cord or rubber. These glazing tech- edges to be joined. Intersections of gaskets
niques have been much improved in the can be weak spots, but it is possible to weld
20th century. most gasket materials, and this is normally
A wide variety of mastics is now used to done off site.
seal glass and other materials into frames. Many other products exist for sealing joints
With large sheets of glass, the material is between building components against water,
normally held in position by blocks of some moisture, and draft penetration. They include
relatively soft material such as lead to prevent a range of adhesive tapes with various treat- Hollow wall fixing -the legs of the
fracture due to the buildup of local stresses. ments and sponge material impregnated with anchor fold out as the bolt is
tightened.
The glass may also be suspended. In these water-repellent material, such as bitumen.
types of glazing, the mastic acts purely as a
sealing compound.
Plastic mastics are nonsetting compounds Miscellaneous fixings and
and are mostly based on oil, bitumen, poly- fastenings
isobutylene, butyl rubber, and other products.
They may be applied by putty knife or by When the main structure of a building is
injection · gun. These are used in relatively complete, a great range of additional fittings
sheltered positions where large amounts of are still required before it is completely ready
movement are not expected. They are for occupation.
employed in some forms of glazing and for The evolution ofmethods for dry assembly
sealing gaps between door and window frames of components, which began in the 19th
and the structure or cladding of a building. century and has accelerated ever since, has
Elastic mastics are those which set after introduced an almost infinite range of special
application and include polysulfide rubber, fixing and joining devices into the building
rubber, silicone, polyurethane, and some industry. In many cases the fixings form a
butyl rubber mastics. Many of these are basic and integral part of the range of components
supplied in two parts which react chemically used in a particular system. In suspended Hollow wall fixing. The assembly
can pass through a narrow hole
and are thoroughly mixed prior to application, ceiling assemblies for example, special fixings drilled in the wall lining. As the
which is often done by means of a pressure may be required by particular fixing problems screw is tightened, the anchor is
gun similar to those used for applying grease posed by the structural components used. In forced open on the inside face of
to machinery. Many of these mastics are used these assemblies, the components must be the lining, securing the fixing.
in glazing, normally with some backing mat- joined together and allowance made for level-
erial against which they are forced. Some, ing off.
such as silicone mastics, which may be made In finishing trades it is common only to be
transparent, may seal the joint between two able to work from one side, especially where
sheets of glass without any other material objects are being fixed to walls. Where walls
intervening. consist of hollow partitions made of modem
Mastics are widely used in other situations sheet materials, a wide choice of ingenious
where seals are necessary. The trend toward toggle-screw systems exist that simplify the
dry construction has greatly extended their operation. Some of them have captive nuts
use. The choice of mastics depends on a large that can pass through the holes drilled in the
number of factors including the materials to sheet, but then fold out. Others have threaded
be joined, exposure, and expected movement. elements that crush on the inside of the
Some mastics may need to be protected partition when the screw is tightened. Such
against sunlight as ultraviolet rays accelerate fixings can support considerable weights; they
chemical breakdown, and this may have are often used in shelving systems.
implications on the shape of junction details Many techniques of concealed fixing exist,
between components. but with dry construction it is often difficult to
Gaskets, made of natural or synthetic conceal joints. These are often carefully con-
rubber or plastic, extruded to a particular sidered and incorporated into designs by
form, depend upon being held in compression carefully coordinating their appearance on
rather than upon adhesion to the components various surfaces.
to be sealed. Many different forms are avail- Light fixings for use in masonry can be
able for glazing and other sealing duties, made by the use of screws and screw anchors,
ranging from very simple profiles to complex which expand in position when the screw is
shapes. Gaskets can grip sheet materials such driven in. These were formerly made out of
as a sheet of glass, or fasten around a linear whittled wood, but today mass-produced
element such as the flange of a steel angle. screw anchors of plastic or other materials are
These are often made in two parts; the main in general use. Where heavy fixings are
body of the gasket gripping the material while required, expanding bolts are generally used;
the "zipper" element, which acts like a linear these automatically expand after insertion as a
wedge, exerts pressure so as to maintain a nut on the protruding shank is tightened.
Index
Atlas Mountains, 84 Boileau, Louis-Auguste, 113, 270
Atwood, Charles, 110 Bolivia, 24, 26
Augsburg, 201 Bologna, 114, 126, 127
Australia, 143, 241 bolts, 309
Austria, 38, 39,41, 82, 92, 159 Bonatz, Paul, 48
Aachen, 32 Avebury, 19 Bonomi, Ignatius, 96
Aalto, Alvar, 98, 115, 213, 215 Awazo, Kiyoshi, 53 Bontemps, Georges, 283
Aarhus University, 63 axes, 291-2 Borland, Mcintyre, and Murphy, 143
Abbas I, Shah, 42-3,60 Ayrton, Maxwell, 117 Borrornini, Francesco, 37,38
Abbasids, 42 Aztecs, 25,241 Boston, 92, 93, 111, 123,204,207,213,237
Abu, Mount, 46 Boucher, Fran'<ois, 39
Abydos, 155 Babylon,22,56,88, 155,243,250,280 Boucicaut, Aristide, 113-14
acoustics, 204,213-14 Bad Gastein, 92 Boullee, Etienne Louis, 40
Adam brothers, 40, 82,246,251 Badami,45 Boulton, Matthew, 95, 96, 102
adhesives, 234,312-13 Baden Baden, 92 Bourges, 34
Adler, Dankmar, 107,274 Badger, Daniel, 99, 102-3,266,269, 272 Bournville, 61
Adler and Sullivan, 110, 203 Baekelmans and Bilmeyer, 148-9 Brabant, 101
adobe,241 Bage, Charles, 95, 102, 265 Bragdon, Claude, 52
adzes, 291-2 Bagenal, Hope, 213 Bramah, Joseph, 115
Aegean, 26,79 Baghdad, 42 Brasilia, 61, 122
Affieck, Desbarats, Dimakopoulos, Lebensold, Bagnaia, 57 brass, 278-9
Sise, 114 Bahamas,62 Brazil, 59, 67, 122
Afghanistan, 21 Bahrain, 13 Breuer, Marcel, 49, 122
Africa, 14,20,29,35,46,85 Baker, Sir Benjamin, 66,274 Brialmont, 160
Agra,46 Baker, Sir Herbert, 46, 122 bricks, 174,243-6
Agrigento, 27 Baljeu, 50 Bridgeman, Charles, 58
Ahlschlager, Walter, 139 balloon frames, 230 bridges, 64-7, 170, 180, 196,231,258-9,264-8,
Aihole, 46 Baltard, Victor, 269 273-4,282
air conditioning, 108,203,216-18,223 Baltimore, 68 Brinkman, Johannes Andreas, 98, 258
airports, 70-5, 93 Banham, Reyner, 52 Bristol, 69, 115
Alacaluf, 15 banks, 114-16 . British Columbia, 17, 19
Albert, Prince Consort, 116, 163, 272 Barcelona, 114, 240 Brittany, 63
Albert, C., 98 Barlow, W.H., 69,269 bronze, 279-80
Alberti, Leone Battista, 36, 37, 89, 158, 196 Barnard, Henry, 125 Bronze Age, 18-19
Albini, Franco, 130 Baroni, Giorgio, 260 Brown, Lancelot "Capability," 58
Alexandria, 183 Baroque, 37-8,40,57, 82,90-1, 136-7 Brown, Captain Samuel, 272
Algeria, 93, 238 barrows, 19 Bni"chsal, 39, 82,90
Alphand, Jean, 60-1 Barry, Sir Charles, 41 , 203, 250, 270-1 Brugelmann,J.G., 97
alpine climate, 14 Bartholdi, Frederick Auguste, 278 Bruges, 114
Alps, 17 basilicas, 30, 31, 185 Brunei, lsambari:l K., 65, 66, 68, 69, 148, 162,
Al'Ubaid,21 Bassae, 28 205,269
aluminum, 281-2 Bath, 60,91 Brunei, Marc Isambard, 252
Amaravati, 46 Battista, Giovanni, 39 Brunelleschi, Filippo, 35-6, 147, 169-70, 175
Amarna, 78, 88 Baudot, Anatole de, 256-7 Brunet, 271
Ambasz, Emilio, 225 Bauerfeld, Walter, 260 brushes, 295-6
Arniches, C., 260 Bauhaus,49,50-1,99 Brussels, 113, 117, 118, 270
Arniens, 34 Baumann and Huell, 274 Buckhout, Isaac C., 69
Amsterdam, 38,61-2, 140, 142-3 Beaman, S., 69 Buddhism, 43, 44,45-6, 57,85
Anatolia, 18, 154-5, 238 beams, 172-3, 177 Buffalo, 62, 93, 106, 117
Andes, 25-6 Beauvais, 34 Bugniet, 150
Anthemius ofTralles, 31, 32, 169 Beccaria, Cesare, 150 Buhen, 155
Antwerp, 148-9 Beckford, William, 41 building methods, 193-7
An-yang, 44 Behmisch and Partners, 143 Bukhara,42
apartments, 86-8 see also houses Behrens, Peter, 47, 98 Bunning, James Buns tone, 271
Arabia, 12,14,21,42,229 Belanger, Francois-Joseph, 271 Burdon, Rowland, 265
Arabs, 89 Belgium, 16, 34, 49, 53, 92, 118, 160,238,242-3, Burgee, John, 218
Aranjuez, 90 249,263 Burle Marx, Roberto, 59
Archaemenids, 22 Bell, Alexander Graham, 106 Burlington, Lord, 37,82
Archer, Thomas, 37 Bell, Andrew, 124 Burnet (Sir John) and Partners, 217
arches, 171-2, 196; brick, 245; bridges, 64, 65; Bellhouse, E.T., 103,272 Burnham, Daniel Hudson, 110, 113, 121,274
Gothic, 34; Islamic, 42; Roman, 184; bending techniques, 305 Burnham and Root, 110, 208, 255
Romanesque, 33 Benedictines, 32-3 Burr, Theodore, 231
Archimedes, 94 Benin, 12 Burr, Thomas, 280
arctic climate, 14 Bentham, Jeremy, 151 Bursa, 91
Arizona, 20 Beranek, Leo, 214 Burton, Decimus, 271
Arkwright, Richard, 94-5,97 Berg, Max, 258 Bush, Lincoln, 70
Arrninghall, 19 Berkeley, 62, 128 Buttertield, William, 41
Armstrong, Sir William, 207, 210 Berlin, 51, 58, 129, 139,215 Byzantium, 30-2,43, 181, 185, 193, 279
Arp,Jean,47 Bernini, Giovanni Lorenzo, 37-8
Art Nouveau, 47,48-9,270 Bessemer, Henry, 272-3 cable nets, 180, 188
Arts and Crafts movement, 83, 84 Bethlehem, 30 Cadbury Brothers, 61
Arup, Ove, 170, 260 Bibienas, 136 Caen, 34, 127
Aryans, 45 Billings, JohnS., 205 Cairo, 13, 34, 85
asbestos, 263 Birmingham, 128,205-6 caissons, 177
Ashur, 22, 23 Birs Nimroud, 243 Calais, 92
Asia Minor, 27, 42, 94 bitumen, 286 California, 59, 62, 63, 113, 131,241
Aspdin, Joseph, 252-3, 255 bituminous felt, 250 California, University of, 128, 134
asphalt, 250, 286 Blackburn, William, 150-1 Callet, Felix, 269
Asplund, Erik, 52 blacksmiths, 296 Cambridge, 34, 126-7, 128
Asplund, Gunnar, 63, 139 Blenheim, 38, 58, 82, 90 Cameroons, 14
Assyria,21,22,56, 77,88,155,238,250,280 Blore, Edward, 271 Campbell, Coler, 37
As true, Jules, 271 Blouet, Abel, 152 Canada,20, 114,138,143
Athens, 27-8, 32, 94, 238, 239 Bockum, 16 Canberra, 122
Atkinson, Frank, 113 Bogardus, James, 99, 102-3,266, 268-9,270 Candela, Felix, 260
Atkinson, William, 215 Bogazkoy, 154 Candilis, Josie and Woods, 129
Atlanta, Georgia, 93 Bohm, Gottfried, 52 Canterbury, 33, 34,200
cantilevers, 187 250; walls, 174 dynamics, 166
Caracalla, 144 Constantine, Emperor, 30,33 Dystus, 78
Carcasonne, 158 Constantinople, 30-2,43, !56, 169, 180, 185, 193,
Carlo, Giancarlo de, 63 254 Eads, James, 65, 66
carpentry, 229-33,290-4,306-7 Constructivism, 49-50,51,87 Eames, Charles, 130, 277
Carrier, Willis, 217,218 Contamin, Victor, 97,269 earth, building with, 241-3
Cartha~e, 79,238 Cooke and Wheatstone, 106 earthquakes, 192-3
Cartwnght, Edmund, 94 Copeau, Jacques, 138 Eastman, George, 138
carving, 301 copper,250,277-8 Eckbo, Garrett, 59
Caserta, 90 Le Corbusier, 46, 48, 51, 52, 61, 63, 84, 88, 122, Eclecticism, 47, 49
Cassan, Urbain, 70 129,161,213,222,257-8,261 Ecuador, 24
Casson, Hugh, 118 Cordoba, 42 Edinburgh, 60, 115, 237
casting, 299-300 Corinth, 27 Edime,43
castles, 33, 154-61 Cort, Henry, 264 Edison, Thomas, 107, 138,210
Catal Hiiyiik, 18, 154 Cortona, Pietro da, 38 educational buildings, 124-35
cathedrals, see churches Costa, Lucio, 122 Eesteren, Cor van, 50
cement, 252-3 Courbertin, Pierre de, 142 Eftu, 24
cemeteries, 63 courtyards, 12, 26, 77-80, 81, 84-5 Eggert and Faust, 70
centering, 194-5, 196 Coventry,9!, 114 Egypt,43
Central America, 24-5 Cragg,John,265,271 Egypt, ancient, 182-3; building materials, 229-86
Cessart, L.A. de, 265 Cramford, 95 passim; building methods, 193, 194;
Ceylon, 13, 85 cranes, 194 fortifications, !55; gardens, 57; hospitals, 146;
Chaldeans, 22 Crete,26,27, 73,78,89,200 houses, 77-8, 84; palaces, 88; primitive
chalk mud, 241-2 Crompton, R.E.B., 99 architecture, 12, 17, 21, 23-4; structural
Chambers, Sir William, 58 Cross, Hardy, 170 elements, 171, 181; tombs, 63
Chance, Robert Lucas, 283 Crusades, 157 Ehrenkrantz, Ezra, 126
Chandigarh, 46, 61, 122 Crystal Palace, 47, 60, 90, 117, 161, 163, 177, Eiffel, Gustave, I 10, 113, 117,270,274
Chartres, 34 187,190,197,266,271,283,284 Eindhoven, 130
Chatsworth, 58 Ctesiphon, 23, 42, 181 Eirmann, Egon, 118
Chaux, 97 Cubitt, Joseph, 68 Eisenmann and Smith, 112
Chavin, 25 cutting, 301-2 electricity, 99, 204, 210-11, 217, 222
Chedanne, Georges, 270 Cuzco, 26 elevators, 207
Chemnitz, 113 Cyprus, 18, 34, 77 Ellis, Peter, 270
Chermayeff, Serge, 132 Elsasser, Martin, 260
Chicago, 177, 188,230, 255; airports, 74, 93; Daestrum, 27 Emberson, John, 139
1893 Exhibition, 117; movie theaters, 139; Dallas, 73 Emdrup,62
multistoreyed buildings, I 10, Ill, 190, 191, Damascus, 42 Emy, Colonel, 232
274, 275; offices, 106-8, 218; railroad stations Dan, Dam, 53 Ephesus, 27, 28
69, 70; services, 203; shops, 113; theaters, Danly, Joseph, 272 Epidaurus, 28, 136, 141, 146
138; university, 128; warehouses, 103, 104; Danube region, 17 Erickson, Arthur, 63
windows, 283 Daoust, A., 143 Erskine, Ralph, 84
Chichen Itza, 25 Daphni, 32 Eshnunna, 245
China, 43,44-5, 263; building materials, 243-85 Darby, Abraham, 65, 264 Eskimos, 15-16,20
passim; chinoiserie, 58; gardens and parks, Darby, Abraham III, 264 Essex, 18
56, 57, 60, 86; Great Wall, !55; houses, 20, Davy, Sir Humphry, 202 Etruscans,28,29, 79
85-6; palaces, 89; primitive architecture, 18, Dean, Thomas, 266 Euboea, 78
20 deformation, 167-8 Evans, Oliver, 98
chipboard, 235 Deir-ei-Bahari, 24 exhibition buildings, 116-18, 163
Christianity, 30 Delhi,46 Expressionism, 49-50
Church, Thomas, 59 Delorme, Philibert, 37,232 extrusion, 300-1
churches, 185-6; Byzantine, 31-2; early Delos, 28, 79 Eyck, Aldo van, 52
Christian, 30; Gothic, 34-5; Gothic Revival, Denmark, 17, 62, 63, !56, 229,244
41, 265; iron used in, 271-2; mosques, 42, 43; Desguliers, Dr, 202 factories, 94-100
Rococo, 39; Romanesque, 32, 33; stained design, structural, 168-71 Fairbairn, Sir William, 96, 102, 170, 256,265,
glass, 280-1, 282 Dessau, 50 267,268
ClAM, 51-2,53 De Stijl, 50 Faraday, Michael, 99
cities, Greek, 28; parks, 60-2; Roman, 29 Didyma, 27, 28 farms, 80
civic buildings, 120-3 Dihl, 251 Fatehpur Sikri, 46
cladding, 274 Dirchinger, 259 Feininger, Lyonel, 51
Clarke, Gilmore D., 62 Dodd, Ralph, 255 Ferdinand and Contamin, 117
CLASP system, 193, 197 Doehring, 259 Feret, 255
Classicism, 39-40 Does burg, Theo van, 50 Ferris, Hugh, Ill
Claude, George, 215 domes, 174-5, 178;Byzantine,31;concrete,254; Fertile Crescent, 16,77
Claude Lorrain, 40, 58,82 Florence Cathedral, 169-70, 175; frames, 179; fiberboards, 235-6
clay tiles, 248-50 geodesic, !63, 179; iron-framed, 271; Roman, Filarete, Antonio, 147, 148, !58
climate, 12-14 28, 30, 175, 184; Turkish, 43 Fin de Sieclism, 48-9
Coade, George and Eleanor, 247 domestic architecture, 76-88 Fink, A., 97
cob, 241-2,243 Dominguez, L., 260 Finland, 14, 48, 70,213,215
Cobb, Henry lves, 128 Dordogne, 15 Finley, James, 67, 267
Cockerell, Charles Robert, 115 Dorians, 26 Finsterlin, 50
Cody,J.C., 129 Domach, 50 Finsterwalder, 259
Coehoom, 159 Downing, Andrew Jackson, 210 fireproofing, 192,208,275
Coignet, Edmond, 257 Dowson, Philip, 133 Firuzabad, 23
Coignet, Fran~ois, 256 drainage,200,205,211 Fisker, Kay, 63
Colbert, J.B., 94 Dresden, 144 fixings, 306, 308-13
cold climates, 14 drills, 293-4, 297, 302 Flachat, M., 269
Cole, Henry, 116 Duboy, Emile,87 Flanders, 89, 101
Coliers, J.B., 270 Du Cerceau, Jacques Androuet, 37 flats, 86-8
Cologne, 34 Duiker, Johannes, 140 Fleury, C.R. de, 271
Colombia, 24 Duleau, A., 267 floor tiles, 250-1
columns, 173-4, 177; early Christian, 30; Dulles, airport, 75 floors, 175-6
Egyptian, 23; Greek, 26-8, 183; Romanesque, Dupin, 95 Florence,35-6,37,57,8!,89-90,96, 120,147,
32 Duquesney, Fran~ois, 69 169-70,175,196,258,279
concrete, 253-63; beams and slabs, 173; bridges, Durham,34 Florida, 62
64, 66-7; frames, 191; prestressing, 197, Dutert, Ferdinand, 97,269 foam glass, 284
259-60; reinforced, 255-9; shells, 187; tiles, Dyckerhoffand Widmann, 66, 100,260 Font-de-Gaume cave, 15
Fontainebleau, 37 Gestetner, 106 Hamelin, 251
Fontaine, Hippolyte, 103,269 Ghiberti, Lorenzo, 279 hammers, 291, 297
Fontana, Carlo, 150 Gibberd, Frederick, 61 Handisyde, William, 271
Forest, R., 258 Gibbons, Grinling, 251 Hanseatic League, 101
forging, 305 Gibbs, James, 37 Hansen, Sven, 63
formwork, 194-5,261-2, 263 Gibson, John, 115 Hara, Hiroshi, 53
Fort Worth, 73 Giedion, Sigfried, 51, 110 Harappa, 45
fortifications, 154-61 Gilbert, Bradford, 70, 274 Hardwick, Philip, 68, 102, 231
Foster Associates, 131,219 Gilbert, Cass, 41, 110, 247, 274 Hargreaves,James,94
foundations, 64-5, 176-7 Gilbert J., 256 Haring, Hugo, 52
Fourcault, Emile, 284 Gillinson and Barnett, 145 Harlow, 61
Foumeyron, Benoir, 97 Gilly, Friedrich, 40 Harriman, AlonzoJ., 220
Fournier, Charles, 87,95 Giocondo, Fra, 254 Harrington, Sir John, 201
Fowke, Captain, 271 Giorgio, Francesco di, 158, 159 Harrison, Wallace K., 122,218
Fowler, Charles, 269 Giulio Romano, 36 Harrison and Abramowitz, 274
Fowler, Sir John, 66,274 Giza, 23-4,63,251 Hartley, Jesse, 102
Fowler, S.T., 256 Glasgow, 115,190 Harvard University, 127
Fox, Dr, 255 glass, 280-1,282-5,295 Hatschek, Ludwig, 263
frames, 189-91; portal, 187; rigid, 177; roof, 230; Glass Chain group, 50 Hatsheput, Queen, 24
space frames, 178-9; steel, 274, 277; timber, glass fiber, 283-4 Haussmann, Baron Georges, 60, 120-1
229-30 glasshouses, 271 Hawksmoor, Nicholas, 37
France, airports, 73; apartments, 87, 88; Godin, Andre, 95 heating, 201-25 passim
Baroque, 38; bridges, 66-7; building materials, Goff, Bruce, 52, 277 Helsinki, 70, 73, 115
229-87 passim; churches, 32, 185; civic Goodman, Charles, 281 Hemming, Samuel, 272
buildings, 120-1; exhibitions, 116, 117; farms, Gordon, Alexander, 272 Henman, William, 205-6
80; fortifications, 158, 159, 160; gardens and Goslar, 89 Hennebique, Fran"ois, 98, 256, 258
parks, 57-8, 60-1; Gothic architecture, 34, Gothic architecture, 34-5, 109, 110, 169, 171-2, Herculaneum, 39, 82
178; hospitals, 146-8, 149, 204; hotels, 92, 93; 178, 181-2, 185-6,240 Hertzberger, Herman, 109
houses, 81-4; industry, 94,97-8, 104-5; Gothic Revival, 41,82-3 Hewet, 259
modem architecture, 48-9; movie theaters, Gramme,99 Hierakonpolis, 155
139; multistorey buildings, 189; museums, Granada, 56, 89, 250 Hildebrandt, Lucas von, 90
131; palaces, 90; primitive architecture, 15; Gray, Henry, 273 Hinduism, 46, 85
prisons, 150, 152; railroad stations, 69, 70; Great Britain, 178-9; apartments, 87, 88; banks, Hitchcock, Henry-Russell, 52
Renaissance architecture, 37; Rococo, 38-9; 114-16; Baroque architecture, 38; bridges, 65, Hittites, 154-5, 263
services, 201, 215; shops, 112-13, 269-70; 67; building materials, 229-87 passim; Hittorf, Jacob Ignaz, 69, 269
tents, 163; theaters, 137; universities, 126, cemeteries, 63; churches, 32, 33; civic Hodgkinson, Eaton, 170,265
127; warehouses, 190 buildings, 121; exhibitions, 117-19; Hoffmann, Josef, 49
Frankfurt am Main, 70, 74, 92, 260 fortifications, 154-61; gardens and parks, Holabird and Roche, 110, 274
Franklin, Benjamin, 201 58-62; Gothic architecture, 34; Hadrian's Holden, Charles, 70
Franklin, Kump and Falk, 220 Wall, 155; hospitals, 146-50,205-6, 216-17; Holl, Edward, 102,265
Franzen, Ulrich, 133 houses, 80-4, 210-12, 223; industry, 63, 94-7, Holland, 34, 50,61-2,70, 82, 109, 112, 130,
Frear, G.A., 255 101-2, 103, 105; inns and hotels, 91-2, 93; 148-9,229,243,249
Freeman Fox, 67 laboratories, 132-4; modem architecture, 47, Holt, Richard, 247
Freysinnet, Eugene, 66, 170, 187, 197,259,260 48, 52; movie theaters, 139, 140; museums, Honduras, 24,25
Friesen, Gordon, 149 129-31; Neo-Classicism, 40; offices, 106-8, Hood, Raymond, 110-11
Fry, Maxwell, 125 217, 219; primitive architecture, 18-19, 29; Hook, Robert, 256
Fujii, Hiromi, 53 prisons, 150-1; railroad stations, 69-70, 269; Hoole, Charles, 124
Fuller, R. Buckminster, 118, 163, 179 Romanticism, 41; schools, 124, 125-6, 208-9, Horreau, Hector, 269,271
Fulton, James B., 142 221-2; services, 201-25 passim; shops, 112, Horta, Victor, 49, 113, 270
Furness, Frank, 41 114, 270; sports buildings, 142, 144-5; tents, Horyuji, 43
furniture, office, 108 163; theaters, 137, 138; universities, 63, 126-7, hospitals, 146-50,204-6,215-17
Futurism, 50 128-9; warehouses, 190 hot climates, 12-14
Greece, 142, 192 hotels, 69, 91-3
Gabo, Naum, 49, 62 Greece, ancient, 91, 183; building materials, houses, 76-86, 161-2, 163,209-12,222-5
Galileo, 167, 168 238-80 passim; building methods, 193; civic Houston, 114,144
Gallen-Kellela, 48 buildings, 120; fortifications, 155-6; gardens, Howard, Sir Ebenezer, 61
Gandhara, 46 57; houses, 78-9; markets, 111-12; primitive Howard, John, 150-1
gardens and parks, 56-62, 86 architecture, 26-8,29, 77; services, 201; sports Howe, Elias, 232
Gardner, George, 235 buildings, 141, 142, 144-5; structural Howe, William M., 69
Gamier, Charles, 137,204 elements, 171, 178; theaters, 136; Hoyer, 259
Garnier, Tony, 48, 257 warehouses, 101 Huaca del Sol, 26
gas, 210-11 Greek Revival, 41 Hungary, 34, 157-8
Gaudl, Antoni, 48, 240 Greene, Colonel, 102,269 Hyatt, Thaddeus, 256
Gaynor, J.P., 113 Greene, Herb, 52
GEC, 107 Greenough, Horatio, 52 Ictinus, 28
Geneva, 122 Gremer, Lothar, 214 Imhotep, 23
Gentofte, 63 grinding, 302 Incas, 25, 26, 159
geodesic domes, 163, 179 Gropius, Walter,50,51,98,99, 125,138,257-8, Inchtuthil, 146
Georgian houses, 82 284 India, 12-14, 19, 20, 44,45-6,56, 146,233,238,
Gerloo, Vanton, 50 GroupZo, 53 243
GermanY., airports, 73; Baroque, 38; bridges, 66, Guanni, Guarino, 38, 90, 182, 186 Indian Ocean, 13
67; budding materials, 229-87 passim; Guatemala, 24, 25, 163 Indians, North American, 20
cathedrals, 32; churches, 185; farms, 80; Guimard, Hector, 270 Indonesia, 20, 45
fortifications, 157, 160-1; Gothic architecture, Gulbarga, 46 Indus Valley, 45
34, 35; Greek Revival, 41; houses, 82-4; Guptas, 46 industry, 63, 94-105
industry, 94, 97, 98, 101, 104; inns and hotels, Gutbrod, Rolf, 118 lngelheim, 89
91-2; modem architecture, 47-9, 50-2; movie Guthrie, Sir Tyrone, 138 inns, 91-2
theaters, 139; museums, 129; offices, 108, 109, gypsum board, 236 Institut de Recherche et Coordination
219; palaces, 90; parks, 60; prefabrication, Acoustique/Musique, 214
162; primitive architecture, 29; railroad H acilar, 154 International Modernism, 47,51-2
stations, 68, 70; Rococo, 39; schools, 124-5, Hakra, 23 Iraklion, 73
208-9; services, 200-1,210-11, 215; shops, 113; Halaf culture, 18 Iran, 20, 84, 90-1, 192; see also Persia
sports buildings, 143, 144; theaters, 137, 138, Hall, Edwin T., 206 Iraq, 13,16,20,34
214; universities, 127 Halprin, Lawrence, 59,62 iron, 263-72, 275-6; beams, 173, bridges, 64, 65,
Gesellius,48 Hamburg, 70, 73, 162,200-1 66; cast, 264-7, 268-72; columns, 174;
 corrugated, 161-2, 250; frames, 177; roofs, Lamb, Thomas, 139 Mannerism, 57
186; wrought, 264,267-72 Lambot, 255-6 Mannesman brothers, 276
Iron Age, 19, 154, 242 Lamour, Jean, 264 Mansart, Jules Hardouin, 65, 90
Ise, 43 Lancaster, Joseph, 124 Maori, 19
Isfahan, 42-3,60, 181,245,250 Lanchester, F.W., 163 Marani, Rounthwaite, and Erickson, 218
Isidorus ofMiletus, 31, 169 Lapidus, Morris, 93 Mari, 22
Islamabad, 46 Laplanche, M.A., 112-13 Marinetti, Filippo, 50
Islamic architecture, 41-3,56,84-5, 171-2, 175, Lariboisiere, 148 Marot, Daniel, 264
181 Lasdun, Denys, 52, 138 Marseilles, 61, 84,88
Isozaki, 53 lathes, 303 Marshall Lefferts and Brother, 103
Israel, 161 Latrobe, Benjamin Henry, 40, 115 Martin, Leslie, 118
Italy, 109; banks, 114; building materials, 238, Laugier, Abbe, 39 Martin, Pierre Emile, 273
239-40,247,250,25l;churches,32-3, 185, 186; Laurens, Thomas, 148 Martini (Eugene) and Associates, 62
factories, 100; fortifications, 157-9; gardens, Lavoisier, A.L., 255 masonry, 239-40, 294, 307-8
57; Gothic architecture, 34-5; hospitals, 147; Laycock, William, 272 materials, building, 229-87
houses, 79, 82; museums, 130; palaces, 89-90; lead, 250,280-1 Mathura,46
primitive architecture, 18, 27; prisons, 150; Leathart and Granger, 215 Matthew, Robert, 118
railroad stations, 70; Renaissance Lebon, Philippe, 96 Matthew (Robert), Johnson-Marshall and
architecture, 35-7; Roman architecture, Le Chatlier, 255 Partners, 63, 218
28-30; Romanticism, 41; sports buildings, 143; Leclaire, Joseph, 98 May, Ernst, 52
theaters, 136-7; universities, 63, 126-8 Ledoux, Claude Nicolas, 40, 97 Maya culture, 25
Leeds,%, 106 measuring equipment, 194
Jackson, P.H., 257,259 Lees, Frederic, 222 Medinet Habu, 88
Japan, 14,43-5,52-3,56-7,60,86,91, 118, 163, Le Havre, 70 Mediterranean, 13, 18, 20, 93
248-9 Leipzig, 70 Melbourne, 143
Jarmo, 16 Le Marec and Limousin, 70 Melos, 78
Java,249 L'Enfant, Pierre, 60 Mendel, John, 58
Jebb,Joshua, 152 Leningrad, 63 Mendelsohn, Erich, 50, 98, 113, 139, 215, 257
Jefferson, Thomas, 62, 128 Le Notre, Andre, 57-8,280 Mengoni, Giuseppe, 112, 270
Jekyll, Gertrude, 59 Leonardo da Vinci, 158, 167, 170 Merv, 23
Jellicoe, G .A., 62, 63 LeRoy, Jean Baptiste, 148 Mesopotamia, 29, 84; building materials, 240-86
Jenney, William LeBaron, 107, 110,274 Letchworth, 52, 61,83 passim; fortifications, !55; primitive
Jericho, 16, 18, 154 Le Vau, Louis, 90 architecture, 12, 17, 18,21-3, 77; structural
Jerusalem, 30, 33,42 lighting, 107-8, 130-1, 200-21 passim elements, 171
Jessop, William, 254 Lindgren, 48 Messel, Alfred, 113
Johnson, G.H., 99,269 Lipp, Friedrich, 215 Metabolism, 52-3
Johnson, Isaac Charles, 253,255 Lisbon, 38 Mexico, 24-5,241,245
Johnson, Philip, 111, 138, 218 Lissitzky, Eliezer, 47,49 Mexico City, 143
joints, 306-8 Liverpool, 68, 106, 115, 190,265,269, 270, 271 Meyer, Adolf, 98, 99,284
Jones, Inigo, 37, 82, 137, 163,231,251 liwans, 12, 22-3,84-5 Meyer, Hannes, 51
Jones, Owen, 266 Llewelyn~ Davies Weeks, 149 Meyerhold, Vsevolod, 138
Jonval, 97 Lloyd and Morgan, 144 Miami, 93, 139
Jourdain, Frantz, 270 Lockwood and Mason, 96 Michelangelo, 36, 37, 90
Juvarra, Filippo, 90 Lodoli, Carlo, 39 Michelozzo, 36
London, apartments, 87; banks, 114, 115; MiesvanderRohe,Ludwig,47-51,52 , 110, Ill,
Kahn, Albert, 99-100 bridges, 65-6; exhibitions, 47, 116-18, 163; 128,274,277,280,284
Khan, Fazlur, Ill, 275 gardens and parks, 60, 62; houses, 52, 82; inns Mijares, R., 143
Kahn, Louis, 46, 132, 133 and hotels, 91, 92; MARS plan, 52; movie Milan, 32, 70, 107,259
Kahn and Jacobs, 218 theaters, 140;museums, 13l;offices, 106,107, Miletus, 28, !56
Kallmann, McKinnell, and Knowles, 123 217; Olympic Games, 142; prisons, 150-2; milling, 303
Kandinsky, Wassily, 51 railroad stations, 68-9, 187, 269; schools, 124; mills, 94-7,98, 101-2,265
Kannel, Theophilus van, 208 sewers, 201; shops, 112, 113; theaters, 137; Mills, Edward D., 118
Kansas City, 74 university, 128; warehouses, 102, 190; water Milton Keynes, 61
Karlsruhe, 60 supply, 201,211 Minoa, 101
Karnak, 24, 172 long houses, 17, 20, 76, 77, 80 Mir6, Joan, 122
Kassel, 60 Loos, Adolf, 47 Mistra, 32
Katsura, 57 Los Angeles, 113,121,138-9 ModernMovement,50,53,88,98, 113,121,125,
Kaufman, Oscar, 139 Lossow and Kuhne, 70 139, 140, 220, 222-3
Kelly, William, 273 London, John Claudius, 59 Moguls, 46, 56
Kent, William, 58 Louis, Victor, 264 Mohenjo-Daro, 45
Khafagae, 77 Lowell, Francis Cabot, 98 Moholy-Nagy, Laszlo, 51
Khajuraho, 46 Lucerne, 130 Moisant, Armand, 270
Khirokitia, 18, 77 Luckhart Brothers, 50 molding, 299-300
Khorsabad,22, 77,88,200 Lumbe, John, 94 Moller, C.F., 63
Kikutake, Kiyonori, 52 Lusson, A.L., 271 monasteries, 32-3,46,91, 94, 146
Kinball and Thompson, 274 Lutyens, Sir Edwin, 46, 122 Mondrian, Piet, 50
Klee, Paul, 51 Luxor, 183 Monier, Joseph, 256, 257
Knap, Georgia, 222 monsoon climate, 13
Knight, Richard Payne, 58 McArthur,JohnJr, 148 Monta, Mozuna, 53
Knights Hospitalers, 91 MacCormac and Jameson, 225 Montalembert, 159
Knights Templars, 33 McGrath, Raymond, 222 Montaner, Domenech i, 48
Knossos, 26, 89 McHarg, Ian, 62 Montferrand, August Ricard, 271
Koenen, M., 257 McKenzie, Voorhees, and Gmelin, 217 Montreal, 114, 118, 143, 188
Korea, 43 McKim, Meade, and White, 70, 203, 204 Montuori, E., 70
Krak des Chevaliers, 157 Mackintosh, Charles Rennie, 49 Monumentalism, 47-8
Krakow, 127 McLeod and Ferrara, 220 Moore, Henry, 122
Krayl, 50 Madrid, 144 Mopin, E., 276
Kroll, Lucien, 53 Magdalenian culture, 15 Morandi,67
Kurokawa, Kisho, 52 Mahabalipuram, 46 Morewood and Company, 103
Kyoto,43, 57,249 El-Mahun, 77-8 Morgan, Enslie, 221-2
Maillart, Robert, 66, 98, 103, 170, 173,258, 260 Morocco, 13, 14,93
laboratories, 132-5 Maki, Furnihiko, 52 Morris, William, 83
Labrouste, Henri, 256,271 Malevitch, Kasimir, 49 Morse, B.F., 269
Lacroix Dillon, J., 265 Malta, 34 mortar, 252
Laloux, Victor, 70 Manchester, 108,112,115,215 Moscow, 112,213,231
mosques, 42, 43, 46 Otaka, Masato, 52 Plymouth, 92, 114, 148
motels, 93 Otis, Elisha, 103, 104, 107, 110, 113,207 plywood, 234-5
Mott, J.L., 270 Ottawa, 122 Poelzig, Hans, 47, 49, 50, 98, 138,215
movie theaters, 138-41,214,215 Otterlo, 51 Poland, 32, 34, 127
multistoreybuildings, 107,109-11,188-92,274-5 Otto, Frei, 118, 143 Polonceau, Camille, 97,268
Munich, 115,137,143,180,188 Owen, Robert, 87, 95,96 Pomeranzev, 112
Murdock, William,% Oxford, 126, 127, 128 Pommersfelden, 82
Muscat, 13 Pompeii, 39, 57, 82, 112,279,282
museums, 129-32 Pacific, 20 Poncelet, 97
Muthesius, Hermann, 49 Padua, 127 Ponti, Gio, 259
Mycenae,26,27, 101,155,171,175,182 Paestum, 39 portable buildings, 161-3
pagodas, 43-4 portal frames, 177
Naiku,43 Paine, Thomas, 65, 264 Porter, J.H., 103,256,272
nails, 308 paint, 285-6, 295-6 Portman, John, 93
Nalanda, 46 Paiute Indians, 15 Portugal, 35, 38,46
Nara,45 Pakistan, 13, 14,46 Post-Metabolism, 53
Nash,John,60,83, 112,251,270 palaces, 21-3,26-30,39,44-5,77,82,88-91, 129 Post-Modernism, 53
Nasmyth, James, 290, 304,305 Palestine, 16, 34, 157 Potsdam, 58
National Romanticism, 48 Palladian School, 37, 40, 82 Poussin, F.H., 152
Navier, C.L.M.H., 167, 170,268 Palladio, Andrea, 36, 37, 66,81-2,90, 136,230-1, Poussin, Nicolas, 40, 58,82
Nelson, George, 108 277 Powell and Moya, 138,216-17
Nelson, Paul, 149 Palmer, Henry Robinson, 103, 161, 250 powered tools, 296-7
Neo-Classicism, 39-40,41,82. Palmer, Timothy, 231 Poyet, Bernard, 148
Neoplasticism, 50 Panovsky, Erwin, 35 Prairie School, 52
Nervi, Pier Luigi, 100, 122, 143, 187, 188,258-9, Pantheon, 175, 184, 254,279 Pratt, T.W., 232
260 Paris, airports, 73; apartments, 87; banks, 115; pre-Columbian architecture, 24-6
Neufchateau, Baron de, 116 civic buildings, 120-1; exhibitions, 116, 117, prefabrication, 161-2, 197,234,262
Neuhaus and Taylor, 114 163; factories, 98; Gothic architecture, 34; prestressing, 197
Neumann, Johann Balthasar, 39, 90, 182 hospitals, 147, 148, 204; houses, 82; industry, Pretoria, 122
Neutra, Richard, 59, 220 103;museums, 131;0lymp_icGames, 142; Price, Sir Uvedale, 58
New Brutalism, 52 palaces, 90; parks, 58, 60-1; railroad stations, Priene, 28, 78-9, 156
New Delhi, 46, 122 69, 70, 269; Rococo, 38-9; shops, 112-13, primitive architecture, 14-20, 76-81
New Lanark, 87, 95,96 269-70; theaters, 137; universities, 126-8; prisons, 150-3
New Mexico, 20, 224, 225 warehouses, 104-5, 190; water supply, 201 Pritchard, Thomas F., 264
New Orleans, 144, 161 Parker, Barry, 83,212 Probst, Robert, 108
New York, airports, 74, 178; apartments, 87; Parker, James, 252,254-5 Procopius, 31-2
banks, 115, 116; civic buildings, 121, 122; Parker, Obadiah, 255 Prouve, Jean, 277
exhibitions, 117, 118; factories, 99; hospitals, Parkinson, John and Donald, 113 Providence, Rhode Island, 69
149, 216; hotels, 92, 93; houses, 237; movie parks and gardens, 56-62 Ptolemies, 24
theaters, 139;museums, 129;offices, 1~8, Parma, 136 Pueblo culture, 18, 20
206,207,217, 218; parks, 61; railroad stations, Parthians, 22-3,84 Pugin, Augustus Welby, 41, 47
69, 70;services,203;shops, 113,270; Pasargadae, 22 Putoli, 253
skyscrapers,41, 110-11, 192,247,274; Pataliputra, 45, 46 Pylos, 26
warehouses, 102-3, 190 pavilions, 163 pyramids, 23-4,25, 26, 183,238
New York Five, 53 Paxton, Sir Joseph, 47, 58, 60, 61, 112, 116-17,
Newcastle, 68, 84 163,271 QuickbomerTeam, 108
Newcomen, Thomas, 95 Pei (I.M.) and Associates, 114
Niemeyer, Oscar, 122 Peking, 20, 45, 60 Raben, John G., 113
Nigeria, 12, 20, 67,241 Pelae, 28 Radicalism, 49
Nimrud, 22,77 Penethorne, Sir James, 270 railroad stations, 68-70,92, 186-7,269
Nineveh, 22, 77 Penizzi, Baldassare, 115 Ramee, John Jacques, 127-8
Ninos, 101 Penn, William, 92 Ransome, Ernest L., 99, 103,255,257
Nissen, Captain, 162 Pennsylvania, 149 Raphael, 36, 90
Nocera, 30 Percy, Dr John, 203 Ratingen, 97
Nogachi, Isami, 122 Pergamun, 28 Ravenna,30,31, 158
Normandy, 283 Perpendicular style, 34 Red Sea, 13
Normans, 156-7 Perrault, Claude, 90, 264 Redden,JohnS., 113
North America, 18, 20, 35, 58; see also United Perret, Auguste, 48, 98,257,258 Reed, Jesse, 230
States of America Perronet,J.R., 1% Reed and Stem, 70
Norway, 229,248 Perrot, Bernard, 283 Reeves, David, 269
Norwich, 131 Persepolis, 22, 88, 172 Reid, John Lyon, 126, 203,221
Nubia, 155 Persia, 12, 21-3,42,46, 56, 60, 84, 88,91, 116, Reims,34
Nysa, 23 243-6, 250; see also Iran Reinhardt and Sossenguth, 70
Persian Gulf, 13; 21 Renaissance, 35-7,57,81-2,89-90, 110, 129,
Oakland, 62, 131-2 Peru, 24, 26, 159 136-7' 175, 240, 246, 279-80
offices, 106-9,2~8,217-20 Peruzzi, Baldassare, 36 Renard, Bruno, 97
Olbrich, Joseph Maria, 49 Pevsner, Antoine, 49 Renkioi, 148, 162, 205
Olifant, 67 Phaestos, 26 Rennie, John, 65, 102
Olivetti, 108 Phantasts, 50 Repton, Humphrey, 58, 60, 112
Olmecs, 25 Philadelphia, 69, 92, 108, 113, 115, 148, 151-2, Revett, Nicholas, 40
Olmsted, Frederick Law, 60, 61, 62, 121 264,269 Reyna, Jorge Gonzalez, 260
Olympia,27 Philae, 24 Reynaud,Leonce,69,269
Olympic Games, 141,142-3 Piano and Rogers, 131, 27 5 Rheill1s, 70
Olynthus, 78 Picasso, Pablo, 117, 122 Rhineland, 17,33
Oman, 13,21 Pick, Frank, 70 Richardson, Henry Hobson, 41, 47, 69-70
Ommayads, 42 Pickett, William Vose, 266 Richelieu, Cardinal, 57
Ontario, 149 piers, 173-4 Rickman, Thomas,265,271
Ordish, R.M., 69,269 Piraeus, 101 Rietveld, Gerrit, 50
Oregon, 62 Piscator, Erwin, 138 Ripley, Thomas, 247
Organicism, 52 pise de terre, 241,242,243 riveting, 309-12
Orkney Islands, 18 Pittsburgh, 69, 191 Riyadh, 143
Orthodox Church, 32 planes, 292 Robbia, Luca della, 147
Osaka, 43, 118 plaster, 251,295 Roberts, Henry, 87
Osmunden and Staley, 62 plastics, 286-7 Roberts, John, 143
Ostia, 79, 86, 101, 189,254 Plaw,83 Robertson, Leslie, Ill
Robinson, William, 59 Sehring and Lachmann, 113 Strafor, 108
Robson, E.R., 125,208-9 Selinus,27 Street, George Edmund, 41
Roche, Kevin, 131-2 Semites, 21, 22 strength, 167-8
Rococo, 38-9, 40, 82, 137 Semper, Gottfried, 47, 203 Strickland, William, 115,270
Roebling, John A., 65, 67, 268 Serlio, Sebastiano, 36 structural elements, 171-82
Rogers, Isaiah, 92 services, 200-25 structural systems, 182-93
rolling, 304-5 Settignano, 57 structural theory, 166-71
Roman Catholic Church, 32 Seville, 94, 250 Structuralism, 47
Romand, A., 272 sewers, 200-1, 211 Strutt, William, 95, 201, 265
Romanesque, 32-5,41, 181 Shahjahanabad, 46 Stuart,James,40
Romanticism, 40-1, 82-3 Shaw, Richard Norman, 47, 48, 83,207,210 Stubbins (If ugh) and Associates, 218
Rome, 37, 70, 90, 143, 147, 150 Sheffield, 88 stucco, 252
Rome, ancient, 23-32, 184-6, 188-9; apartments, shell structures, 177-8, 187,260 Studio BBPR, 130
86; bridges, 64, 65; building materials, 230-85 shingles, 248 Stupinigi, 90
passim; building methods, 193, 195; Shook, John B., 69 Stussi, 259
cemeteries, 63; civic buildings, 120; shops, 111-14,269-70 Stuttgart, 48, 113
fortifications, 155; gardens, 57; hospitals, 146; Shreve, Lamb, and lfarmon, Ill, 274 Sudan,20
houses, 79-80; industry, 94; influence of, 35, Shrewsbury, 95, 102 Sullivan, Louis If., 47, 107, 113, 247, 274
36, 40, 41, 82; inns, 91; markets, 112; palaces, Shushan, 116 Sumer, 56
89; services, 200, 201; sports buildings, 141-2, Shute, John, 37 Sung Shan, 44
144-5; structural elements, 171, 174-6, 178, Siberia, 15 surveying instruments, 297-8
181; theaters, 136; warehouses, 101 Sicily, 27, 29, 79,89 Susa,22
roofgardens,56,62 Siemens, Werner von, 99, 273 suspension elements, 180
roofs, 186-8,230-2,247-50,268,269-70,279 Silchester, 91 Swan, 107,210
Root, John Wellborn, 274 Simpson, James, 211 Sweden, 62, 104, 130, 139, 149,229
Rosen, Recamier, Gutierrez, and Valderde, 143 Sinan, Koca, 43 Switzerland, 18-19,34,50,51, 66, 92, 98, 103,
Ross, A.W., 113 Skansen, 130 104, 122, 149,231,246
Rotterdam, 49 Skidmore,Owings,andMerrill, 108, Ill, 116, Sydney, 138, 178
Rovehead, 148 216,218,274 Syracuse, 27, 156
Rumford, Count, 201 skyscrapers, 107, 109-11, 191-2 Syria, 18,21,34,42,43,84
Ruskin, John, 41, 47,266 slabs, 172-3
Russia, 15, 17, 41, 49, 63, 87, 88, 112, 161,262 slate, 248 Tabernacle, 162
Slovenia, 154 Tacoma, 73,74
Saarinen, Eero, 63, 132, 133,260 Smeaton, John, 252, 254, 264 Tatlin, Vladimir, 49
Saarinen, Eliel, 48,70 Smirke, Sir Robert, 265 Taillibert, R., 143
Saarinen/Ammann and Whitney, 178 Smirke, Sydney, 270,271 Taliesin West Associates, 90-1
Sabine, Wallace Clement, 204 Smith, T.R., 209 Tally, Thomas L., 138-9
Sahara, 18 Smithson, Peter and Alison, 52, 88 Tampa, 74
St Leonards, 93 Snow, John, 211 Tange, Kenzo, 53
StLouis, 70,93, 103,117,142,1% Soane,SirJohn,40, 115,210 Taut, Bruno, 50, 283
Salford, 95 solar heating, 224-5 Taylor, Augustine Deodat, 230
Salonica, 32 Soleri, Paolo, 52, 53 Team X, 52
Salt, Titus, 95,% Sompting, 33 techniques, 298-305
Saltair, %, 268 Sonck, Lars, 48 Tedesco, N. de, 257
Samarkand, 250 Sl1!rensen, C. Th., 62,63 Tefft, Thomas, 69
Samarra, 34 Souffiot, Jacques Germain, 186,264 Tegea, 28
Samos, 27 South Africa, 67 Telford, Thomas, 65, 67, 98, 170,252,255,267-8
San Antonio, 108 South America, 13, 24, 25-6 Tell Agrab, 77
San Diego, 149 space frames, 178-9 Tell Brak, 21
San Francisco, 92, 103, 117,255,257 Spain, 29, 32, 35; Baroque, 38; building tells, 21
San Jacinto, 59 materials, 245,247,248, 250; churches, 185; temples, 21-8,43-6,88
Sanchi, 45 fortifications, 158-9; gardens, 56; Gothic temporary buildings, 161-2
Sangallo, Antonio de, the Elder, 158 architecture, 34; hospit~s, 147; houses, 8~; tensile membranes, 180
Sangallo, Giuliano da, 90 inns, 91-2; modern architecture, 48; Moonsh tents, 162-3, 180
Sanmicheli, Michele, 158 architecture, 42; \'alaces, 90; sports buildings, Teotihuacan, 25
Sansovino, Jacopo, 127 142, 144; univers1ties, 127 terra-cotta, 246-7
Sant'Elia, Antonio, 50 Speer, Albert, 48 thatching, 247-8
Saqqara,23, 172,183,251 Split, 30, 89 theaters, 28, 136-41 , 203-4, 213-14, 270
Sasaki, Dawson, Demay Associates, 62 sports buildings, 141-5 Thebes,24,88, 181,182-3,245
Sassanians, 21, 23, 42, 84, 171-2, 181 Sri Lanka, 13,85 Tiahuanaco, 26
Saulnier, Jules, 97,269 stabilized earth, 243 Tiepolo, Giovanni Battista, 39
savanna climate, 13-14 Stacchin, Ulisse, 70 Tierra del Fuego, 15
Savot, Louis, 201 stained glass, 280-1, 282 Tijou, Jean, 264
saws, 293, 301-2 Starn, Mart, 49 Tikal, 25
Saylor, David 0., 255 stamping techniques, 305 tiles, 248-51
scaffolding, 194-5 Starrett and Van Vleck, Ill timber, 18-19,66, 174,229-36,290-4,306-7
Scamozzi, Vincenzo, 36 statics, 166 Tiryns, 26, 155
Scandinavia, 17, 32, 63, 129,229, 230,249 Statler, Ellsworth M., 93 Tite, Sir William, 115
Scarpa, Carlo, 130 Steegman, P., 63 tithe barns, 101
Scharoun,lfans,50,52,214 steel, 64, 66, 67, 174, 272-7 Tivoli, 57, 89, 101, 184
Scheerbart, Paul, 50 Steelcase, 108 Tokyo, 52-3,249
Schinkel, Karl Friedrich, 47, 95, 102, 125, 129 Stein, Clarence, 61 Toledo, 147
Schlemmer, Oskar, 51 Steiner, Rudolf, 50 Toltecs, 25,241
Schmidt (R.E.), Garden, and Martin, 103 Stephenson, Robert, 66, 68, 170,267,268 tombs, 23-4,26,27,63
Schoffier, Schlontach, and Jacobi, 215 Stevens, R.L., 267 tools, 194,290-8
Scholasticism, 35 Stevens and lfunt, 113 Torcello, 32
Schonbrunn, 90 Stevenson, J.J., 210 Toronto, 74
schools, 124-6, 208-9, 220-2 Stiris, 32 Torrigiano, Pietro, 37
Scotland, 34, 48, 63, 87, 115, 127, 158,237,245 Stirling, James, 50,52 Torroja, Eduardo, 142, 170,260
Scott, Sir George Gilbert, 47, 69 Stirling University, 63 Toscanella, 32
screws, 309 Stoa, 28 Touraine, 57
sealing, 295, 312-13 Stockholm, 62, 63, 130, 139 towers, 183, 188-9; see also multistorey
Sears, 104 stone, 236-41, 248 buildings
Seattle, 73,74 Stone Age, 15-18, 77 Town, Ithiel, 69, 232
Seguin brothers, 268 Stourhead, 58 trade fairs, 116
Tredgold, Thomas, 202, 265 Vauban, 159 Westinghouse, 107, 108
Trelleborg, 17, 80, 156 vaults, 178, 180-2, 187, 189, 1%; brick, 245; Whipple, 232
Trinidad, 140 Gothic, 34, 185-6; Islamic, 42-3; Roman, 184 White, Canvas, 252, 255
Trombe, F., 224-5 Vaux, Calvert, 121 White and Hazard, 268
tropical climate, 12-14 Venice, 36, 89, 119, 154, 159 Whitney, 259
Trucco, Matte, 98, 258 La Venta,25 Wilderspin, Samuel, 124
trusses, 66, 170, 178-9, 184-5,230-2,268 ventilation systems, 202-20 passim Wilkins, William, 127, 128
Tubbs, Ralph, 118 Venturis, 53 Wilkinson, John, 97, 264, 280
Tunisia, 93 verandas, 12 Wilkinson, W.B., 255
Turin,38,82,90,98, 186,259 Versailles, 38,57-8,60, 83, 90, 120,201,280 Wilkinson, William, 97
Turkey, 13,42-3,85, 91, 192,246,268 Vicat, Louis-Joseph, 67,255,268 Williams, Charles, 256
Turner, C.A.P., 98, 103, 173,258 Vicenza, 36, 136 Williams, Owen, 98, 117
Turner, Richard, 269,271 Vienna, 90, 115, 127, 128,203 Willis, George, 217
turning, 303-4 Vieq:ehnheiligne, 39 Wils, J., 143
Tyler, 115 Vietnam, 161 Wilson (Josiah M.) and Brothers, 269
Vignola, Giacomo Barozzi da, 36, 57 Wiltshire, 19
villas, 80,81-2 Winchester, 34, 124
Ukraine, 15 Viollet-le-Duc, Eugene-Emanuel, 47, 256, 270 Winckelmann, Johann Joachim, 39
Ulm,34 Virginia, 58 Womersley, J. L., 88
United States, airports, 71, 73, 74; apartments, Virginia University, 62, 128,245 wood, see timber
87; banks, 115-16; bridges, 65-7, 231; building Vitellozi, A., 143 Wood, John, 60
materials, 229-87 passim; circuses, 162; civic Vitruvius Polio, Marcus, 36, 37, 78, 136,254 Woodbury, 19
buildings, 120-2; exhibitions, 117, 118; Vittone, Bernardo, 182 Woodhenge, 19
fortifications, 159, 161; gardens and parks, V oysey, Charles, 48 Woodward, Benjamin, 266
59-62; hospitals, 148, 149,205, 215-16; hotels, World War I, 160,263
92-3; houses, 83, 84,210-12, 223; industry, 63, Wachsmann, Konrad, 100 World War II, 52,104,114,160-1,162
98-100, 102-5; laboratories, 132-4; modem Wagner, Otto, 115 Wotton, Sir Henry, 37
architecture, 52; movie theaters, 138-9, 140; Wagner, Richard, 137 Wren, Sir Christopher, 37, 128, 170,202,238,
museums, 129, 130;offices, 106-9,206,207, Wales, 66, 157 244, 251' 264
217-19; prefabricated buildings, 161, 162; Walker, Richard, 103, 161-2,272 Wright, Frank Lloyd, 52, 53, 59, 84, 106, 108,
prisons, 151-2; railroad stations, 68,69-70, wall tiles, 250-1 110, 129, 192,207,211-12,223,262,278
269; Romanticism, 41; schools, 125, 126,208, walls, 173-4, 188-9 Wright, Henry, 61
209, 220-1; services, 201-15 passim; shops, Walpole, Horace, 41,82 Wurzburg,39,82,90
112, 113-14, 270; sports buildings, 144; Walter, Thomas U., 271 Wyatt, Job and William, 230
structural elements, 178; theaters, 137-8; Wanamaker, John, 113 Wyatt, M.D., 269
universities, 62-3, 127-8 Waraka, 21 Wyatt, Samuel, 95
universities, 62-3, 126-9 Ward, William E., 256
Unwin, Sir Raymond, 83,212 Ware, Samuel, 112 Yale, Linus, 115
Ur, 21 warehouses, 100-5 Yemen,84
Urbino,63 Washington, 60, 74, 130,217-18,238 Yorke, Rosenberg, and Mardall, 216,219
Ure, Dr Andrew, 96 Wasserburg Buchau, 19 Yorkshire, 19
Uruk, 21 waste disposal, 223-4 Young, Charles D., 103,266,272
Utilitarianism, 52 Watanabe, 53 Ypres, 89
Utrecht, 50 water supply, 201, 208, 211 Yucatan, 25
Utzon, Jjijm, 138, 178,260 Waterhouse, Alfred, 47, 129,247 Yugoslavia, 30
Uxmal, 25 watermills, 94-5, 101-2
Watt, James, 95, 96, 102,201-2, 264, 265 Zakharov, Adrian Dimitrievitch, 40
wattle and daub, 242-3 ziggurats, 21, 183,243
Valetta, 147 Wayss, G.A., 257 zinc, 279
VandeTelde, Henry,49 Weeks, John, 134 Zincirli, 155
Vander Vlugt, L.C., 98,258 welding, 275-6,309-12 Zoroastrianism, 23
Vanbrugh, Sir John, 37 Welsbach, Carl von, 210 Zores, C.F., 267
Vancouver, 63 Welwyn Garden City, 61 Zoser, King, 23
Vasquez, P.R., 143 West Indies, 13 Zurich, 73, 115

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