Tympanum (architecture)
A tympanum (plural, tympana; from Greek and Latin words meaning "drum") is the semi-circular or triangular decorative wall surface over an entrance, door or window, which is bounded by a lintel and an arch.[1] It often contains sculpture or other imagery or ornaments.[2] Many architectural styles include this element.[3]
Overview[edit]
In ancient Greek, Roman and Christian architecture, tympana of religious buildings usually contain religious imagery.[4] A tympanum over a doorway is very often the most important, or only, location for monumental sculpture on the outside of a building. In classical architecture, and in classicising styles from the Renaissance onwards, major examples are usually triangular; in Romanesque architecture, tympana have a semi-circular shape, or that of a thinner slice from the top of a circle, and in Gothic architecture they have a more vertical shape, coming to a point at the top. These shapes naturally influence the typical compositions of any sculpture within the tympanum.
Bands of molding surrounding the tympanum are referred to as the archivolt.[5]
In medieval French architecture the tympanum is often supported by a decorated pillar called a trumeau.
Gallery[edit]
Ex Nihilo (Out of Nothing) by Frederick Hart, tympanum over center doors, Washington National Cathedral.
Tympanum of Kumari-ghar at Basantapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu.
Archivolts surrounding a tympanum of the west façade Strasbourg Cathedral, France.
The three tympana on the main façade of Notre-Dame de Paris, France.
Tympanum of Banteay Srei, Cambodia, depicting Sunda and Upasunda fight over the Apsara Tilottama.
Sculpted tympanum in Stralsund, Germany
Adoration of the Magi on a tympanum on Saint-Thiébaut Church, Thann, France.
Scenes of the lives of Saint Peter and Mary, St Peter's, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain.
High-relief bronze tympanum of Writing, Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, DC, USA.
Tympanum (showing the tree of life) and archivolt at Church of St Mary and St David, Kilpeck
Tympanum showing Christ in Majesty with four attendant angels, Rowlestone, Herefordshire, UK.
Romanesque Tympanum in the cathedral of Trier from about 1180
Tympanum of the Manila Cathedral in Intramuros, Philippines.
See also[edit]
Citations[edit]
- ^ "Glossary - Tympanum". Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent. Retrieved 2007-06-28.
- ^ "Glossary of Medieval Art and Architecture - tympanum". University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2007-06-23.
- ^ "Illustrated Architecture Dictionary - Tympanum". www.buffaloah.com. Retrieved 2014-04-12.
- ^ "Tympanum". www.OntarioArchitecture.com. Retrieved 2007-06-25.
- ^ "Glossary of Medieval Art and Architecture - archivolt". University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2007-06-23.
External links[edit]
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Look up tympanum in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
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Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Tympanum. |