Glossary

Safe passage following surrender in the Islamic tradition.

Curved aisle allowing the faithful to walk around a holy place.

Construction that terminates the choir of a church, either semicircular, canted or flat-walled.

An oblong slit in the walls of a castle or fortress through which archers fired a bow or crossbow.

Besieging forces would usually attack the weakest face of a fortress.

In the Middle Ages, the bailiff was an agent of the king or lord in a district where he exercised administrative and military power as well as the judicial powers delegated to him.

This term generally refers to an outer fortification over a gateway. It can also describe a lower or outer enceinte around the main enceinte. In the Near East, the barbican is called the bachura.

In architecture, it is said of a rectangular structure whose main entrance is on one of the large sides.

Portion of certain blocks projecting outwards from a stone or wooden building, to be worked later to varying degrees, with bossage types including rusticated or economical, and tabular. It is also known as bossed-face masonry.

Its purpose is the subject of debate. According to ancient authors, bossage protected the blocks by cushioning the impact of projectiles from siege engines, although bossage was sometimes used to decorate building exteriors. Bossage may also save time when dressing the stone, speeding up the building’s construction.

A corbelled-out construction with crenels, hoardings or machicolations.

Heraldic figure representing a serrated object that could be an instrument for grinding hemp (hemp bray) or a horse bit (horse bray).

Part of a church at the head of the nave, beyond the sanctuary.

A type of vault or arch in which the brick or masonry courses are built out beyond the one below.

Type of construction forming a projection on the vertical plane of a wall and supported on overhanging corbels or brackets.

Quarter-sphere vault.

Section of wall between two bastions or towers.

Office or administrative department in some Islamic systems.

A frontal and true-to-scale view made in projection on a vertical plane.

The study of written matter, generally ancient, engraved or sometimes painted on durable materials such as stone, clay, or metal.

A method of painting using water-based colours on a freshly plastered wall or masonry surface. Used as a metonym, the mural painting produced by this method.

This term refers to a tower that is larger than other towers and serves defensive and residential purposes. It is often wrongly called a keep or donjon.

Corbelled-out wooden gallery erected on top of fortifications such as a tower or curtain wall to direct the field of fire downwards.

An architectural term of Persian origin for a high vaulted room or hall with one end open to a courtyard.

A medieval term for the symbolic centre of a lord’s manor. It is sometimes incorrectly used to refer to the main tower. The main tower is known as the “great tower” or simply “the tower”.

Area reserved for toilets. Also known as the garderobe.

Outer palisade enclosure used to defend the access to a castle. Also used to refer to the space between the rampart and this enclosure.

A corbelled-out gallery at the top of a fortification with holes at its base for defensive observation of the enemy or offensive discharging of projectiles and burning materials on to attackers.

A military device used in the Middle Ages to throw stones and other missiles.

A service forming part of the traditional Divine Office of the Western Christian Church, originally said at or after midnight.

Portion of a parapet between crenels.

Architectural and decorative element indicating the direction of prayer, placed in the qibla wall of a prayer room.

A military campaign is a large-scale, long-term movement by an army with a warlike aim. Most often, kings used military operations to collect tribute, seize booty, crush revolts, and support vassals who recognised their authority. Campaigns also aimed to extend imperial territory by systematically annexing defeated regions.

Pulpit for preaching in a prayer room to the right of the mihrab. The imam who leads the prayer mounts the minbar to deliver the sermon during the Friday midday prayer, and prays for the reigning sovereign.

Soldier who specialised in digging underground tunnels and burning their supporting props in order to collapse the base of a building, tower or portion of a curtain wall.

Ornamental motif typical of Islamic architecture. Also known as honeycomb vaulting.

Opening in the arch of a gateway or ceiling of a passage through which defenders would drop objects.

A pointed arch is formed by two symmetrical half-arches resting on each other.

A pointed vault rests on a series of pointed arches.

A wooden grille, usually strengthened with iron plates, that can slide down grooves on either side of a gateway. Used to rapidly close an entrance, it could be raised or lowered by means of winches and counterweights.

A covered passage with a vault supported by columns or arcades on at least one side, often attached to a building and giving onto an open space.

A small side or rear door to the castle.

Biblical iconographic theme taken from an episode in the life of Jesus recounted in the Gospel according to Luke: his parents present him in the Temple of Jerusalem, where he is received by Simeon who announces him as the "Master" and "the light that will bring revelation to the Gentiles".

Direction towards Mecca used by Muslims in various religious contexts, including ritual prayer. In mosques, this direction is indicated by the qiblah wall, usually holding one or more mihrabs.

Soldier. Unlike miners, sappers would dig directly at the base of buildings to cause them to collapse or open a breach.

Sloping base used to strengthen a fortification.

The Arabic word tell refers to an artificial mound formed by superimposed habitation layers, with each new occupation built on the ruins of the previous one. During excavations, archaeologists know that the lowest levels are the oldest and the upper levels the most recent. 

An ornamental design of three rounded lobes. Also know as a trilobe.