Groin vault
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[[Image:Volta crociera.gif|thumb]]
[[Image:Palladio Palazzo della Ragione upper.jpg|thumb|240px|Renaissance groin vault [[loggia]] at the [[Palladio]]'s [[Basilica Palladiana|Palazzo della Ragione]], [[Vicenza]].]]
A '''groin vault''' or '''groined vault''' (also sometimes known as a '''double barrel vault''' or '''cross vault''') is produced by the intersection at [[right angle]]s of two [[barrel vault]]s. The word groin refers to the edge between the intersecting vaults; cf. [[ribbed vault]]. Sometimes the [[arch]]es of groin vaults are pointed instead of round (see the image of the Gårdslösa Church below). In comparison with a [[barrel vault]], a groin vault provides good economies of material and labour. The [[thrust]] is concentrated along the groins or [[arris]]es (the four diagonal edges formed along the points where the barrel vaults intersect), so the vault need only be [[abutment|abutted]] at its four corners.
Groin vault construction was first exploited by the [[Roman Empire|Romans]], but then fell into relative obscurity in Europe until the resurgence of quality stone building brought about by [[Carolingian architecture|Carolingian]] and [[Romanesque architecture]]. It reached its ultimate expression in the [[Gothic architecture]] of the [[Middle Ages]]. Difficult to construct neatly because of the geometry of the cross groins (usually elliptical in cross section), the groin vault required great skill in cutting stone to form a neat arris. This difficulty, in addition to the formwork required to create such constructions, led to the [[rib vault]] superseding the groin vault as the preferred solution for enclosing space in Gothic architecture.<ref name="britannic">[http://concise.britannica.com/ebc/article-9074917 Concise Britannica]</ref>
The construction method was particularly common on the [[basement]] level, such as at [[Myres Castle]] in [[Scotland]], or at the ground floor level for the storerooms as at [[Muchalls Castle]] in Scotland.<ref>C.Michael Hogan, ''History of Muchalls Castle'', Lumina Press, Aberdeen (2005)</ref>
==History==
[[Image:Olandxgardslosachurchdown.jpg|thumb|left|180px|Gårdslösa Church, [[Öland]], [[Sweden]].]]
While the barrel vault was more common than the groin vault in very early [[architecture]], including [[Roman architecture|Roman]] and even earlier civilisations, the Romans developed the groin vault widely for applications in a variety of structures, some with significant span widths. However, it was not until the [[Middle Ages]], when the aspirations of [[church]] building reached its zenith, that the groin vault was pursued aggressively for its ability to create strength, without massive [[buttress]] formations; in addition, it provided the church architects a remedy for the dim [[lighting|illumination]] inherent in the barrel vault design, since the barrel vault had to minimise [[fenestration]] to retain adequate strength.
20th-century [[structural engineering|structural engineer]]s have studied the static stress forces of the groin vault design and validated the Romans' foresight in an efficient design to accomplish the multiple goals of: minimum materials use, wide span of construction, ability to achieve lateral illumination and avoidance of lateral stresses. A seminal modern design is the largest [[Europe]]an train station, [[Berlin Hauptbahnhof|Hauptbahnhof]] in [[Berlin]], which features an entrance building with a glass spanned groin vault design.<ref>{{cite journal|first=Hans |last=Schober|title=Berlin's recently completed Hauptbahnhof|journal=Civil Engineering Magazine|month=August|year=2006}}</ref>
==Comparison with other vault designs==
{|align="center"
|[[Image:Groin vault under edit.jpg|thumb|right|A groin vault viewed from the underside, showing the [[arris]] or 'groin'.]]
|[[Image:Groin vault plan force.jpg|thumb|220px|right|Plan of the vault from above showing resultant outward thrust.]]
|[[Image:Groin vault top.jpg |thumb|right|240px|Vault from above.]]
|}
The construction of a groin vault can be understood most simply by visualising two barrel vault sections at right angles merging to form a squarish unit. The resulting four ribs convey the stress loading to the four corners, or piers.<ref>[http://employees.oneonta.edu/farberas/arth/arth109/Arch_Vaults.html Architectural comparison of various types of arch design]</ref> The more complex groin vault is intrinsically a stronger design compared to the [[barrel vault]], since the barrel vault structure must rest on long walls creating less stable lateral stress, whereas the groin vault design can direct stresses almost purely vertically on the piers.<ref>Robert A. Scott, ''The Gothic Enterprise: A Guide to Understanding the [[Medieval]] [[Cathedral]]'' University of california Press (2003)</ref> A common association of vaulting in cathedrals of the Middle Ages involves a [[nave]] of barrel vault design with [[transept]]s of groined vaulting.<ref>[http://titan.iwu.edu/~callahan/conques-voute-e.html Discussion of the Romanesque Conques, St. Faith Cathedral]</ref> The [[fan vault]] is similar to the groin vault in theory, but has a much more elaborate splaying of multiple ribs emanating from each springer, either decoratively or structurally.
==Examples==
[[Image:Porticoguardiagrele.jpg|175px|thumb|Santa Maria Maggiore at [[Guardiagrele]] in [[Abruzzo]]]]
*[[Baths of Caracalla]], [[Rome, Italy]], early 3rd century AD 32.9 meter high groined structure<ref>Leland M. Roth, ''Understanding Architecture: Its Elements, History and Meaning'', Westview Press, Boulder, CO ISBN 0-06-430158-3 (1993)</ref>
*[[Charlemagne]]'s [[Palatine Chapel in Aachen]] ([[Aix-la-Chapelle]]), [[Germany]]
*[[Santa Maria Maggiore di Firenze]], [[Florence, Italy]], 11th century church<ref>Guido Zucconi, ''Florence: An Architectural Guide'', published by Arsenale Editrice, San Giovanni Lupatoto, Verona, Italy, November, 2001</ref>
*[[Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio]], [[Milan]], [[Italy]]
*[[Old Cathedral of Coimbra]], [[Coimbra, Portugal]], lateral aisles, 12th century
*[[Muchalls Castle]], [[Scotland]], ground floor rooms from the 14th century
*All early Russian palaces, including the [[Palace of Facets]] (1487-91)
*Church of St. Triphon at [[Ivan III]]'s suburban estate of Naprudnoe, near [[Moscow]], 1490s
*Three churches of the [[Rostov]] [[Kremlin]], 1670s and 1680s
*[[New Orleans Mint]], [[New Orleans, Louisiana]], [[1838]]
==See also==
*[[Tower house]]
*[[Vault_%28architecture%29#List_of_architectural_vaults|Architectural vault types]]
== References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
*[http://www.ariadne.org/studio/michelli/stcvaults.html Classical beauty and vaults]
*[http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mxb/roman_republic.html Roman Architecture: Discussion of arches and vaults]
[[Category:Arches and vaults]]
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[[it:Volta a crociera]]
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[[nl:Kruisribgewelf]]
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