Monolithic architecture describes buildings which are carved, cast or excavated from a single piece of material, historically from rock. The most basic form of
monolithic architecture is a
rock-cut building, such as the
monolithic churches of
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
built by the
Zagwe dynasty, or the
Pancha Rathas in
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. These are cut out of solid rock, to which they remain attached at the base. In most cases, this is evident from the remaining surrounding rock, but sometimes a building is cut from an
outcrop
An outcrop or rocky outcrop is a visible exposure of bedrock or ancient superficial deposits on the surface of the Earth and other terrestrial planets.
Features
Outcrops do not cover the majority of the Earth's land surface because in most p ...
, as in the
Shore Temple in southern India, and only inspection at close quarters reveals that the building is monolithic.
The terms ''monolith'' and ''
monolithic column'' are normally used for objects made from a single large piece of rock which is detached from the ground. They may have been moved a considerable distance, as with several ancient
Egyptian obelisks, which have been moved around the world. Buildings with a structural material that is poured into place, most commonly
concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...
, can also be described as monolithic. Extreme examples are
monolithic domes, where the material is sprayed inside of a
form to produce the solid structure.
An ancient example of a monolithic dome is that of the
Mausoleum of Theodoric in
Ravenna
Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...
,
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, the roof of which is made from a single stone.
See also
*
Architecture of cathedrals and great churches
*
Church architecture
*
Early Christian art and architecture
*
Statue of Ahimsa, largest monolithic sculpture
References
*Russell Sturgis, ''Sturgis' Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture and Building''
External links
*
Monoliths
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