Roof lantern
– **History**:
– Glazed lantern developed in Middle Ages
– Notable medieval example at Ely Cathedral
– Roof lanterns used in Renaissance architecture
– Post-Renaissance lanterns made of timber and glass
– Victorian era popularized metal-framed skylights
– **Present day**:
– Modern lanterns benefit from advances in glazing and sealing techniques
– Roof lanterns constructed using wood, UPVC, or aluminium
– Serve as architectural feature with unique views
– Typically constructed with triangular and trapezoidal segments
– Traditional styles in the UK, modern styles common in the U.S.
– **See also**:
– Wikimedia Commons for lanterns related media
– Related terms: Chhatri, Cupola, Daylighting
– Passive daylighting and Tholobate
– Conservatory (greenhouse)
– **References**:
– Horn, Walter’s study on Romanesque Churches in Florence
– Rowland, Benjamin’s work on Art and Architecture of India
– Archived source on Skylights & Roof Lanterns
– Information on Roof Lanterns, Pyramid & Octagonal designs
– Duplus source retrieval date
– **External links**:
– Monitor (architecture) for related information
A roof lantern is a daylighting architectural element. Architectural lanterns are part of a larger roof and provide natural light into the space or room below. In contemporary use it is an architectural skylight structure.
A lantern roof will generally mean just the roof of a lantern structure in the West, but has a special meaning in Indian architecture (mostly Buddhist, and stretching into Central Asia and eastern China), where it means a dome-like roof raised by sets of four straight beams placed above each other, "arranged in diminishing squares", and rotated with each set. Normally such a "lantern" is enclosed and provides no light at all.
The term roof top lantern is sometimes used to describe the lamps on roofs of taxis in Japan, designed to reflect the cultural heritage of Japanese paper lanterns.