dome

[Fr. dome, from Ital. duomo =a dome, from Lat. dom us a house; Gr. domos; Ger dom=a cathedral.] I. Ordinary Language : *1. A house, a mansion, a building, a temple. "Sleep frighted flies, and round the rocky dome For entrance eager howls the savage blast." Thomson: Winter , 189, 190. 2. In the same sense as II. "Above all happy hearths and homes, On roofs of thatch, or golden domes ." Long fellow: Golden Legend, iii. 3. Any object, natural, artificial, or symbolical, resembling a dome in shape. "The dome of Thought, The palace of the soul."-Byron. II. Technically : 1. Arch .: A term applied to a covering of the whole or part of a building; the word dome is strictly applied to the external part of the spherical or polygonal roof, and cupola to the internal part. The dome or cupola is a roof, the base of which is a circle, an ellipsis, or a polygon, and its vertical section a curve line, concave toward the interior. Hence domes are called circular, elliptical, or polygonal, according to the figure of the base. The most usual form for a dome is the spherical, in which case its plan is a circle, and the section a segment of a circle. The top of a large dome is often finished with a lantern, which is supported by the framing of the dome. The interior and exterior forms of a dome are not often alike, and in the space between a staircase to the lantern is generally made. According to the space left between the external and internal domes, the framing must be designed. Sometimes the framing may be tru ed with ties acro the opening; but often the interior dome rises so high that ties cannot be inserted. Accordingly, the construction of domes may be divided into two cases, viz., domes with horizontal ties, and those not having such ties. The oldest dome on record is that of the Pantheon at Rome, which was erected under August us, and is still perfect; the largest is that of the Luther an Church at Warsaw, the diameter of which is 200 ft. The dome of St. Sophia at Constantinople is an oblate semi-spheroid 104 ft. in diameter, 201 feet high. It was built in the sixth century. The dome in the Duomo of Florence was built by Brunelleschi, in 1417. It is of brick, octagonal in IMG:content-0349.jpg:[blocks in formation] plan, 139 ft. in diameter, and 310 ft. in height. The dome of St. Peter's, at Rome, was built at the close of the sixteenth century, from designs left by Michael Angelo. It is 139 ft. in diameter, 330 feet high. The dome of St. Paul's, in London, by Sir Christopher Wren, is not masonry, but a shell inclosing the brick cone which supports the lantern. It is 112 ft. in diameter, 215 ft. high. The dome of the Capitol, Washington, is 287 ft. 11 in. above the base-line of the east IMG:content-0350.png:[merged small][graphic] "Mars is now entering into the first house, and will opy is 180-25 ft. Domes shortly appear in all his domal dignities." -Add is on : Drummer. do-man-I-al, a. [Eng. domain ; -ial.] Pertain ing to or connected with a domain. are a common feature in the construction of Turkish and Arab buildings. The former are usually of a flattened, segmental character, being mostly derivatives of the dome of St. Sophia. The Arab domes are usual ly of the pointed form, such as are derived Dome of Florence. from the rotation of the Gothic arch, or bulbous, the section being a horse-shoe arch. A surbased or diminished dome is one that is segmental on its vertical section; a surmounted dome is one that is higher than the radius of its base. ( Weale , Gwilt , .) marine; gō, pot, The American Dictionary and Cyclopedia IMG:content-0352.png:[graphic][subsumed] DOMES-MODERN RENAISSANCE. IMG:content-0353.png:[blocks in formation] The American Dictionary and Cyclopedia IMG:content-0355.jpg:[graphic][subsumed][subsumed][subsumed] 2. Chem.: The upper part of a furnace, of the shape of a dome. (REVERBERATING-FURNACE.] 3. Crystal log.: A termination of a prism by two planes, meeting above in a horizontal edge, like the roof of a house. 4. Steam-eng.: The steam-chamber above some forms of boilers, as the locomotive. It frequently has an arched crown. 5. Rail .: The elevated upper section of a pa enger-car projecting above the general level of the roof, forming a space for ventilation, light, and ornament. dome-cover, s. Steam-eng.: The bra or copper cover over the dome of a locomotive, which serves to prevent the radiation of heat.