Arch
Terminology

A true arch is a load-bearing arc with elements held together by compression. In much of the world introduction of the true arch was a result of European influence. The term false arch has few meanings. It is usually used to designate an arch that has no structural purpose, like a proscenium arch in theaters used to frame the performance for the spectators, but is also applied to corbelled and triangular arches that are not based on compression.

A typical true masonry arch consists of the following elements:

A (left or right) half-segment of an arch is called an arc, the overall line of an arch is arcature (this term is also used for an arcade). Archivolt is the exposed (front-facing) part of the arch, sometimes decorated (occasionally also used to designate the intrados). If the sides of voussoir blocks are not straight, but include angles and curves for interlocking, the arch is called " joggled ".
language:response_language[Spanish], length_constraints:number_paragraphs[4]