Lisbon Cathedral in the context of "Barrel vault"

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⭐ Core Definition: Lisbon Cathedral

The Cathedral of Saint Mary Major (Portuguese: Santa Maria Maior de Lisboa or Sé-Catedral Metropolitana Patriarcal de Santa Maria Maior de Lisboa), often called Lisbon Cathedral or simply the (Sé de Lisboa), is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Lisbon, Portugal. It is the oldest church in the city, built in 1147. The cathedral has survived many earthquakes and has been modified, renovated and restored several times, resulting in a mix of different architectural styles. It is the seat of the Patriarchate of Lisbon, and has been classified as a National Monument since 1910.

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👉 Lisbon Cathedral in the context of Barrel vault

A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are typically circular in shape, lending a semi-cylindrical appearance to the total design. The barrel vault is the simplest form of a vault: effectively a series of arches placed side by side (i.e., one after another). It is a form of barrel roof.

As with all arch-based constructions, there is an outward thrust generated against the walls underneath a barrel vault. There are several mechanisms for absorbing this thrust. One is to make the walls exceedingly thick and strong – this is a primitive and sometimes unacceptable method. A more elegant method is to build two or more vaults parallel to each other; the forces of their outward thrusts will thus negate each other. This method was most often used in construction of churches, where several vaulted naves ran parallel down the length of the building. However, the outer walls of the outermost vault would still have to be quite strong or reinforced by buttressing. The third and most elegant mechanism to resist the lateral thrust was to create an intersection of two barrel vaults at right angles, thus forming a groin vault.

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Lisbon Cathedral in the context of Triforium

A triforium is an interior gallery, opening onto the tall central space of a building at an upper level. In a church, it opens onto the nave from above the side aisles; it may occur at the level of the clerestory windows, or it may be located as a separate level below the clerestory. Masonry triforia are generally vaulted and separated from the central space by arcades. Early triforia were often wide and spacious, but later ones tend to be shallow, within the thickness of an inner wall, and may be blind arcades not wide enough to walk along. The outer wall of the triforium may itself have windows (glazed or unglazed openings), or it may be solid stone. A narrow triforium may also be called a "blind-storey", and looks like a row of window frames.

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