Quincunx The quincunx is the composition of a church where four domes are placed at equal distances around a larger central dome. During the fifth century, Constantine installed Christianity as the overarching religion of the Roman Empire. During this period he imposed the Christian faith through architectural buildings in various sites throughout the empire. These architectural buildings were places of worship at key points. An example of this church form was the basilica of St. Mark’s. This church had five domes in the center which made up its quincunx form. ¹
The quincunx became even more developed during the ninth century. This development happened between the Byzantine Empire and the west. Many emperors would use the churches made during this time for political gain or to immortalize themselves. The most controversial example of this was when the Apostoleion church centered around the sarcophagus of the emperor Constantine with the quincunx arching over it. Surrounding Constantine’s sarcophagus were twelve sarcophagi’s representing the twelve apostles. For this reason, it was seen that Constantine was personifying himself as another apostle. Through this example it can be seen that these churches built with quincunx’s were used for various personal gains. ² This architectural type is also found in south America. During the time of ancient Mesoamerica. They believed that the world centered around four points and they would build their architecture based off of this belief. The first representation of the quincunx in Mesoamerica was found to have originated in the Middle Formative period. Mesoamericans would have dancing ritual processions into the center of the quincunx called sacbe. A more refined version of the quincunx was found in Mesoamerica after the new world invasion by the Spanish. The Spanish took it upon themselves to convert the indigenous people to Christianity. In relation to quincunx domes, another structure that deals with domes is the onion dome. Therefore, the Spanish conquers build large religious buildings that were structurally quincunx’s. ³ |
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Hand rendered St. Marks Basilica showing where four domes come together
⁴"Designing Buildings Wiki Share Your Construction Industry Knowledge Www.designingbuildings.co.uk." Preparation and Brief Project Stage - Designing
Buildings Wiki. Accessed November 16, 2018. https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/St_Marks_Basilica.
⁴"Designing Buildings Wiki Share Your Construction Industry Knowledge Www.designingbuildings.co.uk." Preparation and Brief Project Stage - Designing
Buildings Wiki. Accessed November 16, 2018. https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/St_Marks_Basilica.
St. Marks Basilica from the outside showing the arched dome
"St Mark's Basilica." Wikipedia. October 15, 2018. Accessed November 16, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Mark's_Basilica.
"St Mark's Basilica." Wikipedia. October 15, 2018. Accessed November 16, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Mark's_Basilica.
¹INGERSOLL, RICHARD. WORLD ARCHITECTURE: A Cross-cultural History. S.l.: OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2018
²"Back Matter." Hortus Artium Medievalium21 (2015): 457-60. doi:10.1484/j.ham.5.112452.
³"Ancient Origins of the Mexican Plaza: From Primordial Sea to Public Space." Choice Reviews Online 50, no. 12 (2013): 52-54. doi:10.5860/choice.50-6575.
²"Back Matter." Hortus Artium Medievalium21 (2015): 457-60. doi:10.1484/j.ham.5.112452.
³"Ancient Origins of the Mexican Plaza: From Primordial Sea to Public Space." Choice Reviews Online 50, no. 12 (2013): 52-54. doi:10.5860/choice.50-6575.