Romanesque

/ˌˈroʊməˌnɛsk/

/rəʊmənˈɛsk/

Other forms: Romanesques

Use the adjective Romanesque to describe an 11th- and 12th-century architectural style that was prominent in Western Europe. Romanesque architecture included a lot of arches and small windows.

In the 19th century, art historians invented the term Romanesque to describe a period of Western European architecture and art between the pre-Romanesque and Gothic eras. The word itself refers to the strong influence that Roman style had on the art and design that flourished between about 1000 and 1150 CE. Key features included massive, thick walls; heavy supporting pillars; large vaulted ceilings; and semicircular arches.

Definitions of Romanesque

1. noun

   an architectural style developed in Italy and Western Europe between the Roman and the Gothic styles after 1000 CE; characterized by round arches and vaults and by the substitution of piers for columns and profuse ornament and arcades
   synonyms: Romanesque architecture

   types:

   Norman architecture

   a Romanesque style first appearing in Normandy around 950 AD and used in Britain from the Norman Conquest until the 12th century

   type of:

   architectural style, style of architecture, type of architecture

   architecture as a kind of art form