The terms in the glossary are used throughout the database and the supporting materials. Most of the definitions are derived from the Getty’s Art and Architecture Thesaurus.

Important! The links on this page will launch a pop window. To view the images you must adjust your browser settings to allow pop windows for the following url: lunaimaging.com. For more instructions, click here.

A

	Aerial views Designates views achieved by photographing from an aircraft or other high locations. For nonphotographic depictions with high viewpoints, see bird's-eye views. [view larger image]
	Allées Walkways bordered by formally planted trees, clipped hedges, or shrubs; usually found in formal gardens or parks. [view larger image]
	Animal husbandry Science and practice of breeding, raising, feeding, and tending domestic animals, especially but not exclusively farm animals, including silkworms. [view larger image]
	Antiquarianism Interest in or devotion to things of the past, especially of ancient times. The term implies admiration of a style or object simply because it is old. [view larger image]
	Arboretum Botanical gardens devoted to the cultivation and exhibition of trees and other woody plants, rare or otherwise.
	Arbors Light, open structures either formed from trees, shrubs, or vines closely planted and twined together to be self-supporting or formed from a latticework frame covered with plant materials; generally less extensive and less substantial than pergolas. [view larger image]
	Arcades A range of arches raised on columns or piers that may be either freestanding or attached to a wall. This term may also designate covered walks with such lines of arches along one or both sides. [view larger image]
	Arches The spanning of an opening by means other than that of a lintel. [view larger image]
	Atriums (Roman halls) The main inner halls of Roman houses having a compluvium (opening in the roof) for rainwater and an impluvium (rectangular basin) to collect the water. [view larger image]
	Automata Mechanical figures or contrivances, as toys, amusements, and in clocks, constructed to move as if by their own power, generally by intricate hidden mechanisms; known since at least the Hellenistic period. [view larger image]
	Aviaries Houses, enclosures, or large cages for confining live birds; distinguished from birdhouses, which house birds but do not confine them. [view larger image]
	Axes (open spaces) In landscape design, a central, straight line around which portions of the design are more or less symmetrically located. [view larger image]

^ back to top

B

	Balconies Railed platforms projecting from the exterior walls of buildings. [view larger image]
	Balustrades Parapets or low screens composed of balusters and carrying a rail or other horizontal member that is usually heavier in proportion to the balusters themselves. [view larger image]
	Barrel vaults Vaults of plain, semicircular cross sections supported by parallel walls or arcades. [view larger image]
	Basilicas Religious or secular buildings characterized by an oblong plan divided into a nave with two or more side aisles, the former higher and wider than the latter and lit by clerestory windows; usually terminated by an apse. [view larger image]
	Battlements Fortified parapets with alternate solid parts and openings. Also known as crenellations. [view larger image]
	Belvederes Rooftop pavilions or small lookout towers intended for the enjoyment of a view. For rooftop structures that are primarily ornamental, see cupolas; for small pavilions, in a garden setting, intended for enjoyment of a view, see pavilions. [view larger image]
	Berceaux An arched trellis, similar to a pergola, for climbing plants, also closely planted trees trained to form an arched foliage-covered walkway. This French term is derived from cradle, probably because antique cradles have a similar deeply arched form. See also arbors. [view larger image]
	Bird's-eye views Use with reference to nonphotographic depictions having a viewpoint well above normal eye level. For photographs, see aerial views. [view larger image]
	Bocage In France, farmlands made by lines of trees and hedges into small fields. [view larger image]
	Boschetti A small compartment of trees within an Italian garden, usually found near the house and often planted according to a regular plan. [view larger image]
	Boscos The Italian term for a wooded grove within a garden. See also boskets. [view larger image]
	Boskets (bosquets) Garden areas composed of ornamental groupings of trees pierced by walkways. The French term for a wooded grove within a garden. See also boscos. [view larger image]
	Botanical gardens Primarily outdoor areas where a variety of plants are grown and displayed for scientific, educational, or artistic purposes.
	Bowling greens Designates closely mown, level pieces of ground reserved for the playing of lawn bowls. [view larger image]

^ back to top

C

	Caryatids Supporting members serving the function of a pier, column, or pilaster and carved or molded into the form of a draped female human figure. [view larger image]
	Cascades Man-made stepped waterfalls, whether naturalistic or architectural in form. For similar natural or highly naturalistic features, see waterfalls. [view larger image]
	Casinos (garden structures) A term referring mostly to a small pavilion or lodge on the grounds of an Italian villa garden. Usually casino denotes a summerhouse for dining and refreshment some distance from the principal villa residence; but in cases where a villa might be used simply for a day's sojourn, it signifies the pleasure pavilion that serves as its principal architectural structure. [view larger image]
	Catena d'acqua The Italian term for water chain, an ornamental inclined channel designed to catch and animate the water falling from one shallow basin into another. See water chains. [view larger image]
	Chateaux Large country houses in France, which were usually fortified before the sixteenth century. [view larger image]
	Classical revival Late 18th- to early 20th-century architecture and ornament based relatively closely on ancient classical forms. [view larger image]
	Colonnades Rows of columns supporting an entablature and often one side of a roof. Includes spaces behind such a feature when they are long and used for circulation. [view larger image]
	Conservatories Greenhouses or mostly glazed rooms, devoted to growing and displaying plants and attached to a residence. [view larger image]
	Corinthian order Architectural order characterized by a capital having a bell-shaped echinus decorated with a combination of spiral and plant, usually acanthus motifs. [view larger image]
	Courtyards Uncovered areas, surrounded or partially surrounded by the walls of a building. [view larger image]
	Crenellations See battlements.
	Cupolas Small structures built on the ridges of roofs, particularly common in American architecture; when these structures are intended to be used as lookouts, prefer belvederes. [view larger image]
	Cryptoportici Corridors or galleries in Roman architecture with windowlike openings, whether subterranean or above ground. [view larger image]

^ back to top

D

	Domes Structural elements, usually resembling spheres or portions of spheres, exerting equal thrust in all directions. [view larger image]
	Doric order Architectural order characterized by columns generally without bases, relatively simple capitals, and a frieze composed of alternating triglyphs and metopes. [view larger image]
	Dovecotes Birdhouses, often quite large, for doves or pigeons, usually having small interior niches to facilitate nesting and breeding. [view larger image]

E

	Entablatures Elaborated superstructures carried by the columns in classical architecture, horizontally divided into architrave, frieze, and cornice. Use also for similar features in other contexts, such as along the upper portions of walls. [view larger image]
	Espalier A fruit tree that is placed against a wall or other structure and trained, through pruning and manipulation of its branches, to grow in a flat plane, usually in a symmetrical fashion. The term espalier is derived from spalla, meaning shoulder in Italian. [view larger image]
	Exedrae Semicircular outdoor seats, usually of stone or concrete. [view larger image]

^ back to top

F

	Facades Exterior faces of a building that are substantially in one plane and seem to have been designed with special regard to their conspicuousness or association with entrance. [view larger image]
	Fermes ornée The French term for ornamental farm used by the English after Stephen Switzer appropriated it in The Nobleman, Gentleman, and Gardener's Recreation (1715) to promote the arrangement of agricultural estates as aesthetically pleasing compositions in which, typically, the hedgerows separating fields were enhanced with shrubs, vines, and flowers, an occasional monument was placed in a manner calculated to provoke poetic association, and a circuit drive laid out to enable movement through the landscape. [view larger image]
	Forecourts Courts forming an entrance plaza for a single building or several buildings in a group. [view larger image]
	Fountains Structures with apertures designed to allow water to spout or flow periodically or continuously, as for amenity or public access. [view larger image]
	Fresco painting Mural painting technique in which permanent limeproof pigments, dispersed in water, are painted on freshly laid lime plaster. [view larger image]

^ back to top

G

	Gatehouses Structures at, near, or over entrance gateways, usually containing a gatekeeper’s dwelling. [view larger image]
	Giardini segreti Small private gardens, primarily those found accompanying Italian Renaissance villas, discreetly sited, but not secret, set near the house and designed as intimate places for entertaining and reflection away from the public gaze. [view larger image]
	Giocchi d'acqua The Italian term for water games. Giocchi d'acqua were fountain effects designed by hydraulic engineers during the Renaissance to add an element of amusement to the garden experience as visitors, who unintentionally activated jets of water from hidden sources, were treated to surprise drenchings as a practical joke great house In England, the palatial mansion of an aristocratic country estate. See also water tricks. [view larger image]
	Gothic revival Refers mainly to the style in English and American architecture and decorative arts from the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century. The style is characterized by the use of rosettes, pinnacles, tracery, foils, and polychrome effects inspired by Gothic architecture and reproduced with the aim of historical accuracy. [view larger image]
	Granaries Storehouses or other repositories for grain, especially after it has been threshed or husked; sometimes also used to store corn. [view larger image]
	Greenhouses Structures enclosed by glass and devoted to the cultivation and protection of plants out of season. [view larger image]
	Grottoes Artificial caverns, usually with fountains and other waterworks and decorated with rock and shell work. Known to have been a feature of ancient Roman gardens, it was revived in the Renaissance; for the natural features, use “caves” or“caverns.” [view larger image]
;	Groves Groups of trees, often of a single species, smaller than forests in extent, growing naturally or planted in formation, and generally with little or no undergrowth. [view larger image]

H

	Ha-has Barriers in the form of trenches or sunken fences; usually used to prevent livestock from crossing. [view larger image]
	Hedges Plantings of bushes or woody plants in a row, usually as fences, dividers, or windbreaks. [view larger image]
	Herbaceous borders In gardens a planter or flower bed edge that features annual or other leafy, nonwoody foliage plants. [view larger image]
	Herms Sculpture in the form of a head, bust, or half figure, supported by, as if growing out of, a pillar or tapering pilaster, and often exhibiting a phallus below; originally usually depicting the Greek god Hermes. [view larger image]
	Hippodromes (garden structures) Garden structures imitating the form of ancient Greek oblong enclosures curved at one end and built for horse and chariot racing. [view larger image]
	Horticulture Intensive and extensive cultivation of garden plants including fruits, vegetables, flower crops, and landscape and nursery crops. [view larger image]
	Hunting lodges Temporary residences used during hunting trips. [view larger image]

^ back to top

I

	Illuminations Ornamental decoration and illustrations in manuscripts and in some early printed books if done by hand. [view larger image]
	Initials (layout features) The first letter of a text or section of text when it is emphasized, usually by making it significantly larger than the following text. [view larger image]
	Ionic order Architectural order characterized by capitals with volutes, richly carved moldings, and columns with bases. [view larger image]

^ back to top

J

K

Knot gardens Intricately designed gardens in which ground cover, low shrubs, or colored earths are arranged in interlacing patterns. [view larger image]

L

	Landscape gardens Grounds laid out so as to produce the effect of natural scenery. [view larger image]
	Lattices Networks of small light bars of wood, metal, or other material crossing at regular intervals, usually diagonally. [view larger image]
	Lawns Areas of cultivated grass or other ground cover maintained for aesthetic quality or recreation. [view larger image]
	Limonaias Within an Italian garden, a walled garden filled with potted lemon trees. [view larger image]
	Locus amoenus The Latin term for a pleasant and delightful place; used in antiquity and the Renaissance to signify a rural or garden retreat of distinctive beauty.
	Loggias Covered, roomlike spaces, open to the outdoors usually through arcades or colonnades; may be contained within or adjacent to buildings. [view larger image]

^ back to top

M

	Manuscripts Handwritten documents as distinguisehd from those published or otherwise printed, as in the cases of typed personal letters or a typescript from which printed versions are made. [view larger image]
	Mechanical arts In medieval times, practical areas of knowledge such as weaponry, military science, navigation, hunting, medicine, and construction arts. [view larger image]
	Menageries Places where collections of wild or unusual animals are kept or exhibited. [view larger image]
	Mixed cultivation (coltura promiscua) Intense farming of grains with fruit or willow grees at its edges supporting the vines. [view larger image]
	Moats Deep, wide defensive ditches surrounding towns, castles, or houses and usually filled with water. [view larger image]

^ back to top

N

	Naumachias Ancient Roman spectacles representing naval battles. A Renaissance garden feature consisting of a a flooded basin designed to function as a theater where mock naval battles were held. [view larger image]
	Nymphaea Spaces or structures with fountains embellished with statues, pools, or plants and used for relaxation. [view larger image]

^ back to top

O

	Obelisks Tall, slender, four-sided, usually monolithic stone shafts which taper upward and end in a pyramidal tip. [view larger image]
	Oculi Small round or oval openings, such as windows in a wall or openings in the crown of a dome. [view larger image]
	Otium Denoting industrious leisure comprising worthwhile mental and physical pursuits away from the distractions of urban business, politics, and society. Otium as a concept originated with ancient Roman villa owners and was practiced by proprietors of rural estates in subsequent societies where civilized country life was equated with virtue and refinement.

^ back to top

P

	Parks (grounds) Enclosed, more or less carefully preserved, and extensive woodland and pasture attached to substantial residences; especially in England and British colonies. [view larger image]
	Parks (recreation areas) Permanently dedicated public recreation areas generally characterized by their natural, historic, or landscape features; often administered by governmental agencies. [view larger image]
	Parterres Formally arranged flower beds, planters, or boxed sections of gardens, often set with raised borders and in different shapes. See also parterres de broderie. [view larger image]
	Parterres de broderie The French term signifying an intricate ground-plane design in gravel and herbs, boxwood, or clipped grass, featuring decorative scrolls, palmettes, and arabesques, often with the addition of a monogram. These elements may bear some resemblance to embroidery. See also parterres. [view larger image]
	Patte d'oies Three avenues radiating in the form of a goose foot from a central point. See also trivio. [view larger image]
	Pavilions (garden structures) Light, sometimes ornamental, structures in gardens, parks, or places of recreation that are used for entertainment or shelter. [view larger image]
	Pergolas Garden structures with open wood-framed roofs, often latticed, supported by regularly spaced posts or columns; often covered by climbing plants such as vines or roses, shading a walk or passageway. Distinguished from arbors, which are less extensive in extent and structure. [view larger image]
	Peristyles Colonnades surrounding a building, such as a Greek temple, and Roman courtyards surrounded by a colonnade. [view larger image]
	Peristyles (Roman courtyards) The court toward the back of a Roman house, commonly with a small garden surrounded by a colonnade. [view larger image]
	Piazzas In Italian cities and towns, open public spaces usually surrounded by buildings.