abacus
abbey
acanthus
altarpiece
ambulatory
amphora
andachtsbild
apse
arch
architecture
architrave
archivolt
articulated
asymmetrical
atmospheric perspective
atrium
attic
axis
balance
balustrade
basilica
bay
black-figured
blind arcade
block book
book of hours
burin
buttress
calligraphy
campanile
cantilever
capital
cartoon
caryatid
casting
cathedral
cella
chapel
chartreuse
château
chiaroscuro
choir
choir screen
church architecture
clerestory
cloister
codex
coffer
collage
color
Colossal order
column
complementary color
composition
compound pier
connoisseur
continuous narration
contour
contrapposto
cool colors
cornice
crenellated
cromlech
crossing
crypt
diptych
dolmen
dome
domus
donjon
drapery
drôleries
drum
drypoint
echinus
elevation
enamel
encaustic
engaged leg
engraving
entablature
entasis
etching
façade
ferroconcrete
fête galante
figure-ground relationship
finial
flat color
fluting
focal point
foreshortening
free leg
fresco
frieze
frontal
gable
genre
gisant
glaze
gold ground
Gospel book
Greek and Roman temple architecture
Greek vases
ground-line
ground plane
guttae
hallenkirche
hand
handling
hatching
highlights
hôtel
hue
icon
illuminated manuscript
illusionism
impasto
insula
jamb
keep
kinetic sculpture
kouros
kylix
lantern
lapis lazuli
lekythos
line
lintel
lithograph
loggia
lunette
madrasah
mastaba
medium
megalithic
megaron
metope
mezzanine
mihrab
minaret
miniature
mobile
modeling
module
molding
monastery
monumental
mosaic
mosque architecture
motif
mural
mutule
naos
narthex
nave
odalisque
oil painting
Orders
painting media and techniques
palazzo
papyrus
parchment
pastel
pavilion
pediment
pendentive
peripteral
peristyle
perspective
piazza
picture plane
picture space
picturesque
pier
pigment
pilaster
pillar
pinnacle
plan
plane
plasticity
podium
portico
post-and-lintel system
predella
primary colors
printmaking
profile
program
pronaos
proportion
psalter
pylon
qibla
quatrefoil
ready-made
red-figured
refectory
register
regula
relief sculpture
respond
rhythm
rhyton
rib
rose window
rosette
rustication
sacristy
salon
sanguine
sarcophagus
saturation
scale
scriptorium
sculpture
secondary colors
section
sfumato
shade
shading
shadow
shape
side aisle
sinopia
skeletal construction
span
stalactites
stele
stereobate
stereometric
stupa
style
stylobate
subject
sun-break
superimposed orders
symmetry
tablinum
tactile
taenia
tempera
terracotta
tesserae
thermae
tholos
thrust
tint
tone
tracery
transept
trefoil
triforium
triglyph
triptych
trophy
trumeau
truss
tympanum
underpainting
value
vanishing point
vault
vellum
vestibule
viewpoint
volume
volute
voussoir
wall
warm colors
wash
watercolor
westwork
woodcut
workshop
ziggurat
Abu
Achilles
Acis
Aeneas
Ahriman
Ahuramazda
Alcoyoneus
Amazons
Amun
Antaeus
Anu
Aphrodite
Apollo
Ariadne
Artemis
Aten
Athena
Aurora
Bacchante
Bacchus
Bodhisattva
Centaurs
Cephalus
Cerberus
Coatlicue
Cupid
Amor
Cybele
Cyclopes
Demeter
Diana
Dionysus
Eos
Erechtheus
Europa
Fame
Faun
Fortuna
Gaea
Galatea
Ganymede
Genius
Giants
Gorgons
Hades
Hera
Herakles
Hercules
Hermes
Horus
Io
Iphigenia
Ishtar
Juno
Jupiter
Khonsu
Laestrigonians
Laocoön
Lapiths
Maenad
Mars
Medusa
Memnon
Mercury
Minerva
Minotaur
Muses
Mut
Neptune
Nike
Niobe
Niobids
Nymph
Odysseus
Orpheus
Pan
Paris
Peleus
Perseus
Polyphemus
Portunus
Poseidon
Putto
Ra
Remus
Romulus
Sabines
Satyr
Shamash
Sibyl
Sileni
Silenus
Siva
Shiva
Sphinx
Tammuz
Telephus
Tellus
Thetis
Venus
Yakshis
Zephyr
Zephyrus
Zeus
Christian Subjects
Devotional Subjects
The Trinity
The Pantocrator
Deësis
The Virgin and Child
The Four Evangelists
The Twelve Apostles
The Four Latin Fathers
Narrative Subjects
The Fall of Main
The Incarnation
The Annunciation
The Visitation
The Nativity
The Annunciation to the Shepherds
The Adoration of the Shepherds
The Adoration of the Magi
The Presentation in the Temple
The Flight Into Egypt
The Public Ministry of Christ
The Baptism
The Calling of St. Matthew
The Supper in the House of Levi
Christ Walking on the Water
The Delivery of the Keys to St. Peter
The Transfiguration
The Tribute Money
The Parable of the Prodigal Son
The Passion
The Entry Into Jerusalem
The Last Supper
Christ Washing the Feet of the Disciples
The Agony in the Garden
The Betrayal
The Denial of Peter
Christ Before Pilate
The Flagellation
Christ Crowned with Thorns
The Bearing of the Cross
The Crucifixion
The Descent from the Cross
The Pietà
The Entombment
The Descent into Limbo
The Resurrection
The Ascension
The Mission of the Apostles and the Second Coming
Pentecost
The Last Judgment
Old Testament Prefigurations of New Testament Events
Abel’s Sacrifice
Cain Killing Abel
Melchizedek Offering Abraham Bread and Wine
Abraham’s Sacrifice of Isaac
Jacob Wrestling with the Angel
Jacob Blessing the Sons of Joseph
The Crossing of the Red Sea
David and Goliath
The Misery of Job
Jonah and the Whale
Saints and their Attributes
St. Agnes
St. Anthony Abbot
St. Augustine
St. Barbara
St. Bartholomew
St. Catherine of Alexandria
St. Christopher
St. Dorothy
St. Francis of Assisi
St. George
St. Gregory the Great
St. Helena
St. James the Great
St. Jerome
St. John the Baptist
St. John the Evangelist
St. Lawrence
St. Lucy
St. Luke the Evangelist
St. Margaret
St. Mark the Evangelist
St. Mary Magdalen
St. Matthew the Evangelist
St. Michael
St. Paul
St. Peter
St. Sebastian
St. Stephen
St. Theodore
St. Theresa of Avila
St. Thomas
Christian Signs and Symbols
apple
bird
chalice
city
columbine
column
crosier
cross
crown
dead tree
dog
dove
dragon
eagle
fountain
garden
glass
globe
grapes
halo
hand
hourglass
instruments of the passion
iris
keys
lamb
lance
light
lily
lion
mandorla
monograms of Christ
nails
ox
palm branch
palm tree
pelican
roses
ruins
scroll serpent
shoes
skeleton
skull
sponge
tower
trefoil
triangle
vine
violets
wash basin
wheat
wheel of fortune
zodiac
Sources Cited
Pierce, James Smith. From Abacus to Zeus: A Handbook of Art History. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc. 1968.
Key Facts
At time of upload on July 5, 2024:
- 383 duplicative terms of those already existing in the Architectural Dictionary
- 93 original terms
- 476 total terms in source
- 19.5% original terms in source
- 141 sources in dictionary
- 23,582 unique terms in dictionary
- 44,224 total terms all sources in dictionary
- 53.3% unique terms in dictionary