Roman architecture Ancient Roman architecture adopted the external language of classical ancient Greek architecture for the purposes of the ancient Romans, but was different from Greek buildings, becoming a new architectural style. The two styles are often con ...

, a (or , from , board, picture) was a room in a ''

domus In ancient Rome, the ''domus'' (: ''domūs'', genitive: ''domūs'' or ''domī'') was the type of town house occupied by the upper classes and some wealthy freedmen during the Republican and Imperial eras. It was found in almost all the ma ...

'' (house) generally situated on one side of the atrium and opposite to the entrance; it opened in the rear onto the

peristyle In ancient Ancient Greek architecture, Greek and Ancient Roman architecture, Roman architecture, a peristyle (; ) is a continuous porch formed by a row of columns surrounding the perimeter of a building or a courtyard. ''Tetrastoön'' () is a rare ...

, with either a large window or only an anteroom or curtain. The walls may be richly decorated with

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

pictures, and often busts of the family were arranged on pedestals on the two sides of the room.

Description

The ''tablinum'' was the office in a Roman house, the owner's centre for business, where he would receive his clients. According to one hypothesis, it was originally the master bedroom.

''Takhtabush''

is the Arabic language, Arabic term for a tablinum. Like the ancient Roman tablinum, it opens onto a heavily shaded courtyard and, on the other side, a rear garden. Unlike the Roman tablinum, the garden side is closed with a lattice (Roman tablinums may have had open-weave curtains). If there is a wind, it tends to blow down into the windward court and up out of the leeward court. A draft can, however, be driven by convection. One of the courts will generally be hotter than the other; which is hotter may vary. The courtyard is often pale, paved and narrow, and may be shaded by an awning and evaporatively cooled by a fountain. The garden is generally darker in colour, but evaporatively-cooled by

evapotranspiration Evapotranspiration (ET) refers to the combined processes which move water from the Earth's surface (open water and ice surfaces, bare soil and vegetation) into the Atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere. It covers both water evaporation (movement of w ...

. The larger court will generally be less shaded by its own walls, and more exposed to hot winds; it may also be less sheltered by surrounding rooms. From both wind pressure and convection forces, the hottest air in the hotter court rises and escapes over the wall, pulling fresh air from the cooler courtyard through the into the hotter court.
low-res bw version
The cooler court is replenished with air from the side (drawn through doors, evaporatively-cooled projecting bow windows, and small vents in the wall), or from above, which cools by contact with masonry and evaporative cooling. The thus has a strong cross-breeze from the cooler court. The breeze is at least partly driven by convection, and may also be driven by wind pressure and evaporative cooling, so the gardens and courtyards are used as

windcatcher A windcatcher, wind tower, or wind scoop () is a traditional architectural element used to create cross ventilation and passive cooling in buildings. Windcatchers come in various designs, depending on whether local prevailing winds are unidi ...

s. Similar systems may be used to create a cool, breezy public roofed space between two public squares.

Description

''Takhtabush''

See also

References

Further reading