STRUCTURAL DESIGN FOR ARCHITECTURE

Masonry structures

Fig. 5.14 Dome of St Paul's Cathedral, London, England, 17th century. Sir Christopher Wren, architect. In this dome the
principle of twin structural skins, which was first used in Florence by Brunelleschi, was extended to allow complete
independence to be achieved between the interior and exterior profiles of the dome. Here, the outer structural skin - a
cone of brickwork - is not actually seen but is used to support a timber outer dome of non-structural cladding.
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