Glossary 1041quadrifrons—Latin, “four-fronted.” An archwith
four equal facadesand four arcuated bays.
quadro riportato—A ceiling design in which
painted scenes are arranged in panels that resem-
ble framed pictures transferred to the surface of a
shallow, curved vault.
quatrefoil—A shape or plan in which the parts as-
sume the form of a cloverleaf.
quoins—The large, sometimes rusticated,usually
slightly projecting stones that often form the cor-
ners of the exterior walls of masonry buildings.
radiating chapels—In medieval churches, chapels
for the display ofrelicsthat opened directly onto
the ambulatoryand the transept.
radiocarbon dating—A method of measuring the
decay rate of carbon isotopes in organic matter to
determine the age of organic materials such as
wood and fiber.
rafters—The sloping supporting timber planks that
run from the ridgepoleof a roof to its edge.
raking cornice—The cornice on the sloping sides of
a pediment.
ramparts—Defensive wall circuits.
ratha—Small, freestanding Hindu temple carved
from a huge boulder.
Rayonnant—The “radiant” style ofGothicarchitec-
ture, dominant in the second half of the 13th cen-
tury and associated with the French royal court of
Louis IX at Paris.
Realism—A movement that emerged in mid-19th-
century France. Realist artists represented the
subject matter of everyday life (especially sub-
jects that previously had been considered inap-
propriate for depiction) in a relatively naturalistic
mode.
red-figure painting—In later Greek pottery, the sil-
houetting of red figures against a black back-
ground, with painted linear details; the reverse of
black-figure painting.
reducing—See oxidizing.
refector y—The dining hall of a Christian monastery.
regional style—See style.
Regionalism—A 20th-century American art move-
ment that portrayed American rural life in a
clearly readable,realiststyle. Major Regionalists
include Grant Wood and Thomas Hart Benton.
register—One of a series of superimposed bands or
friezesin a pictorial narrative, or the particular
levels on which motifs are placed.
relics—The body parts, clothing, or objects associ-
ated with a holy figure, such as the Buddha or
Christ or a Christian saint.
relief—In sculpture, figures projecting from a back-
ground of which they are part. The degree of re-
lief is designated high, low (bas), or sunken. In
the last, the artist cuts the design into the surface
so that the highest projecting parts of the image
are no higher than the surface itself. See also
repoussé.
relief sculpture—See relief.
relieving triangle—In Mycenaeanarchitecture, the
triangular opening above the lintelthat serves to
lighten the weight to be carried by the lintel itself.
reliquar y—A container for holding relics.
ren—Chinese, “human-heartedness.” The quality
that the ideal Confucian junzi possesses.
Renaissance—French,“rebirth.” The term used to de-
scribe the history, culture, and art of 14th- through
16th-century western Europe during which artists
consciously revived the classicalstyle.renovatio—Latin, “renewal.” During the Carolingian
period, Charlemagne sought to revive the culture
of ancient Rome (renovatio imperi Romani).
reoxidizing—See oxidizing.
repoussé—Formed in reliefby beating a metal plate
from the back, leaving the impression on the face.
The metal sheet is hammered into a hollow mold
of wood or some other pliable material and fin-
ished with a graver. See also relief.
respond—An engaged column, pilaster,or similar el-
ement that either projects from a compound pier
or some other supporting device or is bonded to a
wall and carries one end of an arch.
retable—An architectural screen or wall above and
behind an altar, usually containing painting,
sculpture, carving, or other decorations. See also
altarpiece.
revetment—In architecture, a wall covering or facing.
rhyton—A pouring vessel.
rib—A relatively slender, molded masonry arch that
projects from a surface. In Gothic architecture, the
ribs form the framework of the vaulting.A diago-
nal rib is one of the ribs that form the Xof a groin
vault.A transverse rib crosses the naveor aisleat
a 90-degree angle.
rib vault—A vaultin which the diagonal and trans-
verse ribs compose a structural skeleton that par-
tially supports the masonry webbetween them.
ridgepole—The beamrunning the length of a build-
ing below the peak of the gabled roof.
rocaille—See Rococo.
Rococo—A style, primarily of interior design, that
appeared in France around 1700. Rococo interiors
featured lavish decoration, including small sculp-
tures, ornamental mirrors, easel paintings,tapes-
tries, reliefs,wall paintings, and elegant furniture.
The term Rococo derived from the French word
rocaille(“pebble”) and referred to the small stones
and shells used to decorate grotto interiors.
Romanesque—“Roman-like.” A term used to de-
scribe the history, culture, and art of medieval
western Europe from ca. 1050 to ca. 1200.
Romanticism—A Western cultural phenomenon, be-
ginning around 1750 and ending about 1850, that
gave precedence to feeling and imagination over
reason and thought. More narrowly, the art move-
ment that flourished from about 1800 to 1840.
roof comb—The elaborately sculpted vertical pro-
jection surmounting a Maya temple-pyramid.
rose window—A circular stained-glasswindow.
rostrum—Speaker’s platform.
rotulus—The manuscript scroll used by Egyptians,
Greeks, Etruscans, and Romans; predecessor of
the codex.
rotunda—The circular area under a dome;also a
domed round building.
roundel—See tondo.
rubbing—An impression of a relief made by placing
paper over the surface and rubbing with a pencil
or crayon.
Rubéniste—A member of the French Royal Academy
of Painting and Sculpture during the early 18th
century who followed Peter Paul Rubens in insist-
ing that colorwas the most important element of
painting. See also Poussiniste.
rusticate (n.rustication)—To give a rustic appear-
ance by roughening the surfaces and beveling the
edges of stone blocks to emphasize the joints be-
tween them. Rustication is a technique employed in
ancient Roman architecture, and was also popularpre-Columbian (adj.)—The cultures that flourished
in the Western Hemisphere before the arrival of
Christopher Columbus and the beginning of Eu-
ropean contact and conquest.
predella—The narrow ledge on which an altarpiece
rests on an altar.
prefiguration—In Early Christian art, the depiction
of Old Testament persons and events as prophetic
forerunners of Christ and New Testament events.
primary colors—Red, yellow, and blue—the colors
from which all other colors may be derived.
primitivism—The incorporation in early-20th-
century Western art of stylistic elements from the
artifacts of Africa, Oceania, and the native peoples
of the Americas.
princeps—Latin, “first citizen.” The title Augustus
and his successors as Roman emperor used to dis-
tinguish themselves from Hellenistic monarchs.
print—An artwork on paper, usually produced in
multiple impressions.
Productivism—An art movement that emerged in
the Soviet Union after the Russian Revolution; its
members believed that artists must direct art to-
ward creating products for the new society.
pronaos—The space, or porch, in front of the cella,
or naos, of an ancient Greek temple.
proportion—The relationship in size of the parts of
persons, buildings, or objects, often based on a
module.
proscenium—The part of a theatrical stage in front
of the curtain.
prostyle—A classicaltemple planin which the
columns are only in front of the cella and not on
the sides or back.
protome—The head, forelegs, and part of the body
of an animal.
provenance—Origin or source;findspot.
psalter—A book containing the Psalms.
pseudoperipteral—In Roman architecture, a
pseudoperipteral temple has a series of engaged
columnsall around the sides and back of the cella
to give the appearance of a peripteral colonnade.
pueblo—A communal multistoried dwelling made
of stone or adobebrick by the Native Americans
of the Southwest. Upper-case Pueblorefers to var-
ious groups that occupied such dwellings.
pukao—A small red scoria cylinder serving as a top-
knot or hat on Easter Island moai.
pulpit—A raised platform in a church or mosqueon
which a priest or imamstands while leading the
religious service.
pulque—An intoxicating drink, similar to tequila,
consumed during Mesoamerican religious rituals.
punchwork—Tooled decorative work in gold leaf.
Purism—An early-20th-century art movement that
embraced the “machine aesthetic” and sought pu-
rity offormin the clean functional lines of indus-
trial machinery.
purlins—Horizontal beamsin a roof structure, par-
allel to the ridgepoles,resting on the main rafters
and giving support to the secondary rafters.
putto (pl.putti)—A cherubic young boy.
pylon—The wide entrance gateway of an Egyptian
temple, characterized by its sloping walls.
pyxis(pl.pyxides)—A cylindrical container with a
hemispherical lid.
qibla—The direction (toward Mecca) Muslims face
when praying.
quadrant arch—An archwhose curve extends for
one quarter of a circle’s circumference.