Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 17, 2026

Blind arch

A blind arch is an arch found in the wall of a building that has been infilled with solid construction and so cannot serve as a passageway, door or window. The term is most often associated with masonry wall construction, but blind arches are also found in other types of construction such as light frame construction. Some blind arches were originally built as open arches and infilled later. Others were originally built with solid infill as intentional stylistic elements.

Last revised
Jul 17, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
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Citations
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Source
Blind arches in the form of a blind arcade at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. source ↗
Blind arches in the form of a Lombard band on a wall in Siena (Italy). source ↗
Blind arches in outer walls of the Church of San Tirso, Sahagun, Spain source ↗

A blind arch is an arch found in the wall of a building that has been infilled with solid construction and so cannot serve as a passageway, door or window.1 The term is most often associated with masonry wall construction, but blind arches are also found (or simulated) in other types of construction such as light frame construction. Some blind arches were originally built as open arches and infilled later. Others were originally built with solid infill as intentional stylistic elements (multiple arches form a blind arcade).

The half-circle-shaped (sometimes roughly triangular) area at the top of the blind arch is called a lunette.2

See also

See also

References

References

  1. A Dictionary of Architecture; Fleming, John; Honour, Hugh & Pevsner, Nikolaus (1966)
  2. Hourihane 2012, p. 130, Lunette.
Sources

Sources

  • Hourihane, C. (2012). "Arch". The Grove Encyclopedia of Medieval Art and Architecture. Vol. 1. Oxford University Press. pp. 129–134. ISBN 978-0-19-539536-5. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
External links

Media related to Blind arches at Wikimedia Commons