What is a coffering in architecture?

coffer, in architecture, a square or polygonal ornamental sunken panel used in a series as decoration for a ceiling or vault. The sunken panels were sometimes also called caissons, or lacunaria, and a coffered ceiling might be referred to as lacunar.

What is the meaning of coffered?

1 : to store or hoard up in a coffer coffered his military memorabilia. 2 : to form (something, such as a ceiling) with recessed panels A ceiling that is coffered will bring an added dimension to a large room.

What is the purpose of the coffering in the pantheon?

Many authors, including Fine Licht (1968: 140) and Waddell (2008: 85), have stated that the coffers of the Pantheon’s dome do not play a constructive or structural role but are merely decorative elements. Their function is primarily related to visual perception, which may justify their complex design.

What is a coffered door?

A coffer (or coffering) in architecture is a series of sunken panels in the shape of a square, rectangle, or octagon in a ceiling, soffit or vault.

Why are they called coffered ceilings?

“Coffered ceilings are a very classic architectural detail consisting of a series of rectangular, square, or octagon grids in three-dimension sunken or recessed panels,” says Camp. “The word coffer literally means ‘indentation. ‘” Essentially coffered ceilings have a decorative 3D grid embedded into them.

What is a tray ceiling?

What is a Tray Ceiling? ‍ ‍ A tray ceiling (also sometimes called a trey or recessed ceiling) resembles a large upside-down tray that is set into the ceiling of a room. Generally, the center part of the design is between 6 and 14 inches higher than the perimeter.

What is a coffer used for?

coffer, in furniture, most commonly a portable container for valuables, clothes, and other goods, used from the Middle Ages onward. It was normally a wooden box covered in leather, studded with nails, and fitted with carrying handles.

What was the one flaw of the Pantheon?

What is the Pantheon’s mysterious flaw? The front portico of the patheneon is about 10 feet to short and doesn’t connect with the rotunda where it should. And the pillars are 40 feet instead of 50.

What is the Pantheon made of?

Made entirely out of concrete, without the reinforcing support of structural steel, no modern engineer would dare attempt such a feat, says David Moore, author of The Roman Pantheon: The Triumph of Concrete. “Modern codes of engineering practice would not permit such mischief.”

What are beams on the ceiling called?

A large beam in the ceiling of a room carrying joists is a summer beam. A ceiling joist may be installed flush with the bottom of the beam or sometimes below the beam.