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Monolithic architecture describes buildings which are carved, cast or excavated from a single piece of material, historically from rock. The most basic form of
monolith A monolith is a geological feature consisting of a single massive stone or rock, such as some mountains. For instance, Savandurga mountain is a monolith mountain in India. Erosion usually exposes the geological formations, which are often ma ...
ic architecture is a rock-cut building, such as the
monolithic church A monolithic church or rock-hewn church is a church made from a single block of stone. Because freestanding rocks of sufficient size are rare, such edifices are usually hewn into the ground or into the side of a hill or mountain. They can be of ...
es of
Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
built by the Zagwe dynasty, or the Pancha Rathas in
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. 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. Features Outcrops do not cover the majority of the Earth's land surface because in most places the bedrock or superficia ...
, 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 fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wid ...
, 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 The Mausoleum of Theodoric ( it, Mausoleo di Teodorico) is an ancient monument just outside Ravenna, Italy. It was built in 520 AD by Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths, as his future tomb. Description The mausoleum's current structure ...
in Ravenna,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, the roof of which is made from a single stone.


See also

*
Architecture of cathedrals and great churches The architecture of cathedrals and great churches is characterised by the buildings' large scale and follows one of several branching traditions of form, function and style that derive ultimately from the Early Christian architectural traditi ...
* Church architecture *
Early Christian art and architecture Early Christian art and architecture or Paleochristian art is the art produced by Christians or under Christian patronage from the earliest period of Christianity to, depending on the definition used, sometime between 260 and 525. In practice, id ...
* Statue of Ahimsa, largest monolithic sculpture


References

*Russell Sturgis, ''Sturgis' Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture and Building''


External links

* Monoliths {{Arch-style-stub