Crossword clues for spandrel
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Spandrel \Span"drel\, n. [From Span.]
(Arch.) The irregular triangular space between the curve of an arch and the inclosing right angle; or the space between the outer moldings of two contiguous arches and a horizontal line above them, or another arch above and inclosing them.
A narrow mat or passe partout for a picture. [Cant]
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
"triangular space between the outer curve of an arch and the molding enclosing it," late 15c., apparently a diminutive of Anglo-French spaundre (late 14c.), which is of uncertain origin, perhaps a shortening of Old French espandre "to expand, extend, spread," from Latin expandre (see expand).
Wiktionary
n. 1 (context architecture English) The space (often triangular) between the outer curve of an arch (the extrados) and a straight-sided figure that bounds it; the space between two contiguous arches and a straight feature above them 2 (context architecture English) The triangular space under a stair; the material that fills the space 3 (context architecture English) A horizontal member between the windows of each storey of a tall building 4 An oriental rug having a pattern of arches; the design in the corners of such a rug, especially in a prayer rug 5 (context genetics English) A phenotypic characteristic that evolved as a side effect of a true adaptation
WordNet
n. an approximately triangular surface area between two adjacent arches and the horizontal plane above them [syn: spandril]
Wikipedia
A spandrel, less often spandril or splaundrel, is the space between two arches or between an arch and a rectangular enclosure.
There are four or five accepted and cognate meanings of spandrel in architectural and art history, mostly relating to the space between a curved figure and a rectangular boundary - such as the space between the curve of an arch and a rectilinear bounding moulding, or the wallspace bounded by adjacent arches in an arcade and the stringcourse or moulding above them, or the space between the central medallion of a carpet and its rectangular corners, or the space between the circular face of a clock and the corners of the square revealed by its hood. Also included is the space under a flight of stairs, if it is not occupied by another flight of stairs. This is a common location to find storage space in residential structures.
In a building with more than one floor, the term spandrel is also used to indicate the space between the top of the window in one story and the sill of the window in the story above. The term is typically employed when there is a sculpted panel or other decorative element in this space, or when the space between the windows is filled with opaque or translucent glass, in this case called spandrel glass. In concrete or steel construction, an exterior beam extending from column to column usually carrying an exterior wall load is known as a spandrel beam.
The spandrels over doorways in Perpendicular work are generally richly decorated. At Magdalen College, Oxford is one which is perforated. The spandrel of doors is sometimes ornamented in the Decorated period, but seldom forms part of the composition of the doorway itself, being generally over the label.
In evolutionary biology, a spandrel is a phenotypic characteristic that is a byproduct of the evolution of some other characteristic, rather than a direct product of adaptive selection.
The term originated during the Roman era as an architectural word for the roughly triangular space between the tops of two adjacent arches and the ceiling. These spaces were not actually utilized until later on, when artists realized they could make designs and paint in these small areas, enhancing the overall design of the building. Stephen Jay Gould, a paleontologist at Harvard, and Richard Lewontin, a population geneticist, borrowed the word to apply to secondary byproducts of adaptations that were not necessarily adaptive in themselves.
Usage examples of "spandrel".
William Spandrel shared with his mother beneath the eaves of a lodging-house in Cat and Dog Yard.
Those fine gentlemen who had assured William Spandrel senior that they would buy a copy of his map with which to adorn their soon-to-be-gold-leafed drawing-room walls had eagerly lent him the funds for his enterprise.
In the corner, half-hidden by the washing Mrs Spandrel had hung in front of the fireplace, stood one of the waywisers he and his father had pushed round the streets of London, calculating distances to an obsessive nicety.
And while Spandrel stayed cooped up in Cat and Dog Yard, as the rules of the Fleet demanded, there would be no more sheets.
Jupe beetled his brow to let Spandrel know how absurd the suggestion was.
Margaret Spandrel returned to Cat and Dog Yard later that morning, laden with dirty washing, she found her son staring out of the window of their room at a view so familiar to both of them that contemplation of it was surely futile.
Mrs Spandrel was a warm-hearted woman, who had married for love and been rewarded with five children, only one of whom had lived beyond the cradle, early widowhood and greater poverty than she had ever imagined descending into.
William Spandrel would have been able to guess the service Sir Theodore Janssen required of him, even had he been a fly on the wall of the board-room at South Sea House that Saturday, when, with candles lit against the gloom and rain drumming on the windows, the Secret Committee of Inquiry began its examination of Robert Knight.
He said nothing at first, merely looking Spandrel up and down as if wondering whether his clothes were the best he could find for a visit to such a distinguished person.
A fire was burning, almost raging, it seemed to Spandrel, so unaccustomed was he to anything beyond the bare minimum of fuel.
How could Spandrel be sure further, more onerous, demands would not be made of him if he proved himself useful by accomplishing this straightforward task?
Mr Spandrel, is that of someone who has nothing to lose and nothing to bargain with.
Sir Theodore raised his hand to forestall objections, though in plain truth Spandrel could conceive of none.
Next morning, washed and refreshed, Spandrel felt his fragile confidence return.
It was early afternoon and Spandrel was eager to press on to his destination.