Why Were Stone Vaults Covered With A Timber Roof

While most early medieval churches were covered with timber ceilings many romanesque buildings have either stone barrel vaults i e semi circular or groin vaults i e bays of barrel vaults crossing at a right angle their walls are necessarily thick to counter the outward thrust of the vault and they allow only small windows.

Why were stone vaults covered with a timber roof. The basic barrel form which appeared first in ancient egypt and the middle east is in effect a continuous series of arches deep enough to cover a three dimensional. In architecture a vault french voûte from italian volta is a self supporting arched form usually of stone or brick serving to cover a space with a ceiling or roof. Stone houses can and have been safely built in earthquake prone areas. Added benefits of bur flat roof gravel.

Romanesque buildings of the period 600 1100 ad clarification needed were entirely roofed in timber or had stone barrel vaults covered by timber roofs. Vault in building construction a structural member consisting of an arrangement of arches usually forming a ceiling or roof. The gothic style of architecture with its vaults flying buttresses and pointed gothic arches developed in the twelfth century and in the centuries that followed ever more incredible feats. Traditional stone masons who knew how often used timber confining elements and bands to give ductility to a building.

In its three stories in the nave and timber roof saint etienne at vignory resembles. The simplest kind of vault is the barrel vault also called a wagon or tunnel vault which is generally semicircular in shape. The barrel vault is a continuous arch the length being greater than its diameter. Because the gravel holds and releases heat the layer of gravel on a bur flat roof can both help water evaporate and keep heat away from the underlying roof structure.

The nave of pilgrimage churches such as saint sernin at toulous and saint james were covered by. Still vaulted ceilings were all the rage in mid to high end custom and. Roof covering of the top of a building serving to protect against rain snow sunlight wind and extremes of temperature roofs have been constructed in a wide variety of forms flat pitched vaulted domed or in combinations as dictated by technical economic or aesthetic considerations. Steeper roof pitches are necessary for higher vaults while lower pitched roofs will only accommodate shallower vaults.

At saint sernin the. The gravel provides a better grip for foot traffic when conducting maintenance or repairs. The earliest roofs constructed by man were probably thatched roofs that were made of straw leaves.