Glossary · A
Abutment
The mass of masonry (pier, wall or buttress) that resists the thrust of an arch or vault.
Rules that use the word
The Derand–Blondel rule for abutments. To find how thick the pier of an arch must be, divide the intrados into three equal parts; draw a line from the springing through the first division, and produce it beyond the springing by its own length. A vertical through the end of that line marks the outer face of the pier.
Where it appears in the book
In the chapters The Arch.
Nearby in the glossary
Abacus · Ablaq · Acanthus · Acroterion · Ad quadratum · Ad triangulum