Branchial arch

“ Sir, so long as public approval be won, what matter for the arch? But that they are two, take this as sufficient explication——that they are too tall for doorways, too narrow for gateways; too light without, too dark within; too plain to be ornamental, and withal too fantastic to be useful. And if this be not enough, you are to note further that, were it all one arch, it must needs cut short one of those shafts which grace the Quadrangle on all sides——and that were a monstrous and unheard-of thing, in good sooth, look you. ”

“ Furthermore, do I promise and swear, that I will not give the Grand Omnific Royal Arch word, which I shall hereafter receive, neither in the Chapter nor out of it, except there be present two companions, Royal Arch Masons, who, with myself, make three, and then by three times three, under a living arch, not above my breath. Furthermore, that I will not reveal the ineffable characters belonging to this degree, or retain the key to them in my possession, but destroy it whenever it comes to my sight. ”

“ It is in some degree considered as a characteristic of the Anglo-Saxon and Norman styles. The stilted arch is chiefly found in conjunction with the semicircular arch in the construction of Norman vaulting over a space in plan that of a parallelogram. The segmental arch we meet with in almost all the styles, used as an arch of construction, and for doorway and window arches; whilst the form of the horse-shoe arch seems, in many instances, to have been occasioned by the settlement and inclination of the piers from which it springs. ”

“ Norman architecture is in the use of the pointed form of arch, yet in the study of the early buildings of this date it is curious to notice how evenly the balance is held between the pointed and the round arch, and how at one time it was quite an open question whether the Gothic style would be distinguished by a round or a pointed arch. ”

“ Q. What difference is there between the arches of this style, which support the clerestory, and those of an earlier period?
A. The lancet arch is seldom seen; the equilateral arch is generally, though not always, used. Both this and the obtuse-angled arch are, taken exclusively, difficult to be distinguished from those of an earlier period. In small buildings the edges of the pier arches are plain and chamfered. In large churches a series of quarter-round or roll-mouldings, which have often a square-edged fillet attached, are applied to the sub-arch, edges, and facing. ”

“ DISCHARGING ARCH, in architecture, an arch built over a lintel or architrave to take off the superincumbent weight. The earliest example is found in the Great Pyramid, over the lintels of the entrance passage to the tomb: it consisted of two stones only, resting one against the other. ”

“ Arches.—The semicircular is the characteristic form of the Norman arch, but there are few early examples in which the pointed arch was used, supported by massive piers; they are not likely to be mistaken for those of the next style. In the transition the pointed arch is very frequently used. Sometimes the arch is brought in a little at the impost, when it is called a horse-shoe arch; and sometimes the spring of the arch is above the impost, and is carried down by straight lines. ”

“ The North Chamber. In the north wall, near the east end, is the main entrance, 15 feet from the ground, and opening from the vestibule of the forebuilding. This is a bold, full-centred arch, of 6 feet 2 inches opening, with flat sides, in a wall here 10 feet 6 inches thick. The outer face is flanked by nook shafts, and the architrave has a bold chevron moulding. The inner architrave has a similar but rather plainer moulding, but the jambs are broken away. Just within the outer face is a square portcullis groove, and behind it a rebate for a door, expanding the passage to 7 feet. ”

“ The columns that form each angle of the arch are little more than fragments, but the engaged columns on the inside have suffered less. This arch was supposed by some archæologists to have some connection with the great arch at Orange, but nothing can be proved with any certainty. It remains one of those puzzling relics of the past that will continue to provoke differences of opinion until the fabric crumbles out of human sight and mingles with the dust of ages. ”

“ The arches are ogee trefoils cusped, and their spandrels are clumsily filled with enormous lions cut in deep relief, and boldly standing on nothing, whilst they manage to hold up a diminutive coat of arms as a sort of finial to the arch. In the upper arcades griffins take the place of the lions, and the arches are again richly cusped. I noticed the date of A.D. 1570 on the capital of one of the columns, but this I have no doubt was the date of the Pagan alterations, and not that of the original fabric, which is said to have been erected in the year 1461. ”

“ Beneath tlie chancel-arch is a stone rood-screen, plain, and supported by a simple pointed arch, now sustaining a huge organ gallery. The chancel is fitted with stalls, and the miserere seats exhibit grotesque designs, amongst which is a representation of the Scripture history of David and Goliath [1] . All the ceilings are flat inside, but as the transepts and nave retain their ancient pitch on the exterior, it is possible that the original roofs may still remain. ”

“ The Arches vary in form from a very blunt to a very sharp point, but they are generally acutely pointed, and are often richly moulded, as in Westminster Abbey. The mouldings, however, are the safest guide to the style, as the form of the pointed arch largely depends on convenience. As a rule, they are generally more acutely pointed in the cathedrals and large churches, whilst they are broader in small churches. ”

“ Amongst other misstatements is this, that the capitals are Norman and the arches of Moorish design. The four-centred arch is quite common in all third-pointed work.
[20] Reprinted in Preb. Hingeston-Randolph’s Registers of Bishop Grandisson. Exeter, 1897, p. 608.
[21] The arch over door and window is decisive against sixth-century work. All the earliest Irish churches have a stone slab thrown across from the jambs, and no arch with key.
[22] The church without, as outside of the camp. ”

“ Roll mouldings, quarter, half, or three-quarters round, frequently occur, and produce a very pleasing effect. The form of the arch is in many instances changed, and the graceful ogee arch is introduced. The piers are round or octagonal in village churches, and in large churches are formed by a cluster of cylindrical shafts, not detached as in the preceding period, but closely united. The capitals are bell-shaped, and in large churches richly sculptured. ”

“ In leaving openings for the exit of smoke and for admission of light in artificial arches, regard must be had to their position. They should be at the springing rather than at the crown of the arch, as they will thus less affect the strength of the masonry. ”

“ The abacus of the capital is invariably square in plan, and has its upper edge (except in a few of the latest examples) also square in section.
In the later buildings of the Period, foliage, exhibiting considerable freedom of design, is occasionally to be seen.
The Pointed Arch first made its appearance in the Transitional Period; in the earlier buildings it is used in the Arches of Construction only, or those constituting the framework of the building, such as the Pier-arches and the Arches of the Vaulting, and of the Crossing ”

“ The chancel arch is lofty, the modern side columns having richly carved capitals. Some of the stones of the original arch were found built into the chimney of a cottage near at hand. The sittings in the nave, and the roof timbers, are of pitch pine. The base of the tower forms a roomy vestry. ”

“ This form of arch, or a form closely similar, generally prevails in France, and is also very common in England—as in the Chapel of the Nine Altars at Durham, the Presbytery of Ely, and in many of the abbey churches, such as Tintern, Bridlington, Netley, Rivaulx, Whitby, Byland, Kirkstall, and others. But the distinctively Anglo-Norman type is rather the lancet form, the centres of whose curves lie beyond the points of springing—as in the smaller arches of the nave of Lincoln, and the pier arches of Westminster Abbey. ”

“ The progress in architecture among the nations of ancient civilization was quite rapid. Massive structures were built for capacity and strength, which the natives soon learned to {100} decorate within and without. The buildings were made of large blocks of hewn stone, fitted together mechanically by the means of cement, which made secure foundations for ages. When in the course of time the arch was discovered, it alone became a power to advance the progress of architecture. We have seen pass before our eyes a sudden transition in dwelling houses. ”

“ Bréville. The Romanesque gate in the south base of the tower, with a semi-circular arch formed by a grain molded by a torus followed by a chamfer carved with slightly visible saw-teeth. The archivolt is a thick band adorned with saw-teeth in high relief carved with a hollow row of triangular sticks. The archivolt rests on the right on a stone carved with a human head, while disappearing on the left into the masonry of the nave. The central keystone of the arch is adorned with a large human head carved in high relief. ”

“ There is not the smallest necessity, because the arch is pointed, that the aperture should be so. The work of the arch is to sustain the building above; when this is once done securely, the pointed head of it may be filled in any way we choose. ”

“ A pointed Gothic arch may be, often is, very beautiful; but, applying our test of utility, it is most obviously out of place, and therefore inartistic, where close economy, convenience, and abundance of light are required. For the sake of strength, if for no other reason, let the top of the openings be arched, but a low arch of one arc or two is often preferable to a high one. If, for economy's sake, you wish to make the top of the sash square, do so, curving the upper portion of the frame as a sort of centre on which the masonry may rest ”

“ Brick arches are laid, as in England, either in half-brick rings, or, in important works, with the bond carried right through the arch. The natives are very skilful in constructing cheap centerings of dry bricks and wooden soffits, plastered over with mud to the form of the arch, which answer well when your centering is not liable to be carried away by a rush of water. ”

“ Obviously, there will be more such counterweights needed the higher the side of the arch rises. In general, the area of wall needed as counterweight is at least as great as the area of overhanging. If the arch is to clear ten feet horizontally—hanging over five feet from each side—there must be five feet or more of masonry built up on each side of the clear space. A corbelled arch forming a relatively small doorway in the face of a wall presents no difficulty, but a corbelled arch that stands free is impossible. ”

“ One declares the style to be nothing more or less than the visible exponent of feudalism. If the system of Durandus were applied to this view, we should perhaps have the orders of the arch shown to represent the divisions of feudal aristocracy.—The point of the arch to be the king; the outer voussoirs the great, and the inner the lesser, vassals; the clustered pillars to be the bishops surrounded by their clergy; the ashlar stones the freemen; the rubble stones the villains and serfs ”

“ Most of the arches are built with alternate voussoirs of brick and stone, but beyond the outside line of the brick and stone arch there is invariably a line of very thin bricks laid all round the arch, delicately defining without pretending to strengthen the main arch, just as a label does with us. ”

“ The piers of the arch are rounded off into semi-columns, with capitals of very singular character, quite distinct from Norman work. The bases of the semi-columns are globular in form; and the blocks are sculptured in each compartment out of a single stone. The capitals or imposts are ornamented upon their angles with human heads, the hair of which is carried back and represented by shallow lines cut upon the face of the stone in a very fanciful manner. The window, which is 7 feet 6 inches in diameter, is composed of stones unequal in size, and displaying chevron ornaments in very low relief. ”

“ The chancel arch (Fig. 195) , while quite in proportion to the chapel, is little larger than an ordinary doorway. Its opening measures 5 feet 1 inch wide by 6 feet 4 inches to the springing of the arch, and 9 feet in height, measuring from the nave floor to the soffit of the arch, and there is a step up to the chancel. Each jamb (Fig. 196) has two monolithic shafts, set in nooks, with cushion cups. The arch, which is in two corresponding orders, is decorated with the ordinary chevron design. (Fig. 197.) Enclosing the arch is a label moulding, enriched with a lozenge pattern. ”

“ The flowing contours and curved lines of the previous style now gave place in the windows to mullions running straight up from the bottom to the top, and crossed by transoms. As the arch became more and more depressed the mouldings became shallower and less effective. In early buildings of this period the drop arch is very prevalent, but as the period advanced a form known as the Tudor arch began to be used. It is an arch in which, as a rule, the centres of the upper portion lie immediately below those of the lower, but this is not always the case. ”

“ Similarly the towers of churches and cathedrals, which are built on arches, will give away quite suddenly after standing to all appearance quite firm for hundreds of years. There is an architect's maxim which runs, "The arch never sleeps." That means that the arches on which the great weight of a church or cathedral tower rests are always in a state of strain; they are always, as it were, imperceptibly quivering; and they are always liable, if the strain on them should be increased in the slightest degree, to give way, or to resettle the weight on their shoulders in some way. ”