archivolt

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Romanesque archivolts over the arches of the nave of Southwell Minster, Nottinghamshire, England, mid-12th century

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archivolt

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Related Topics:: molding; arch

archivolt, molding running around the face of an arch immediately above the opening. The architectural term is applied especially to medieval and Renaissance buildings, where the archivolts are often decorated with sculpture, as in the archivolts on the west facade of Chartres cathedral (1140–50).