Triangular arch explained

In architecture, a triangular arch typically defines an arch where the intrados (inner surface of an arch) consists of two straight segments formed by two stone slabs leaning against each other. In this roof-like^[1] arrangement, mitre joint is usually used at the crown, thus the arch was in the past also called a mitre arch.^[2] Brick builders would call triangular any arch with straight inclined sides.^[3] Mayan corbel arches are also sometimes called triangular due to their shape.

Since the sides of a triangular arch are experiencing bending stress, it is a false arch^[4] in a structural sense (historically preceding the invention of true arches and going back to Neolithic times^[5]). The design was common in Anglo-Saxon England until the late 11th century (St Mary Goslany).

See also

• Pediment, a triangular gable

Sources

• Book: Woodman . Francis . Bloom . Jonathan M. . Oxford Art Online . Arch . Oxford University Press . 2003 . 978-1-884446-05-4 . 10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.t003657.
• Book: Sturgis . Russell . Davis . Francis A. . Sturgis' Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture and Building: An Unabridged Reprint of the 1901-2 Edition . Dover Publications . Dover Architecture . 2013 . 978-0-486-14840-3 . https://books.google.com/books?id=j9wAW2YleywC&pg=PA116 . 2023-12-15 . Triangular Arch.
• Nikolich . Dimitriye . Thrust line analysis of triangular arches . Archive of Applied Mechanics . Springer Science and Business Media LLC . 90 . 9 . 2020-05-08 . 0939-1533 . 10.1007/s00419-020-01701-7 . 1861–1874.

Notes and References

1. Book: Passmore, A.C. . Handbook of Technical Terms Used in Architecture and Building and Their Allied Trades and Subjects . Scott, Greenwood, and Company . 1904 . Mitre arch . https://books.google.com/books?id=NawaAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA228 . 2024-02-27 . 228.
2. Web site: mitre arch . . 2023-07-01 . 2024-02-27.
3. Book: Brick Industry Association] . Technical Notes on Brick Construction . Brick Masonry Arches: Introduction . January 1995 . Brick Industry Association . 2 .
4. Book: The Oxford Dictionary of Architecture . 2021 . . 9780191918742 . 4th . triangular arch .
5. 1961. 2. Arch and Vault. 262.