Editing Arcade (architecture) (section)

{{short description|Covered walk enclosed by a line of arches on one or both sides}}
{{Other uses|Arcade (disambiguation)}}
[[File:S95NormanArcadeEly.jpg|thumb|[[Norman architecture|Norman]] [[blind arcade]], [[Ely Cathedral]]]]
An '''arcade''' is a succession of contiguous [[arch]]es, with each arch supported by a [[colonnade]] of [[column]]s or [[Pier (architecture)|piers]]. Exterior arcades are designed to provide a sheltered walkway for pedestrians; they include many [[loggia]]s, but here arches are not an essential element.  An arcade may feature arches on both sides of the walkway. Alternatively, a [[blind arcade]] superimposes arcading against a solid wall.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z3FN4VL5lEwC&pg=PA865|title=Essex|first1=James|last1=Bettley|first2=Nikolaus|last2=Pevsner|date=January 1, 2007|publisher=Yale University Press|via=Google Books}}</ref>

Blind arcades are a feature of [[Romanesque architecture]] that influenced [[Gothic architecture]]. In the Gothic architectural tradition, the arcade can be located in the interior, in the lowest part of the wall of the [[nave]], supporting the [[triforium]] and the [[clerestory]] in a [[cathedral]],<ref>William Chambers (1973), ''Chambers's encyclopaedia, Volume 1'', International Learning Systems Corp, p. 534</ref> or on the exterior, in which they are usually part of the walkways that surround the [[courtyard]] and [[cloisters]].

A different, related meaning is "a covered passage with shops on one or both sides".<ref>
*[[John Fleming (art historian)|John Fleming]], [[Hugh Honour]] and [[Nikolaus Pevsner]], ''The Penguin Dictionary of Architecture'', p. 16, 3rd edn, 1980, Penguin, ISBN 0140510133</ref> Many medieval open arcades housed shops or stalls, either in the arcaded space itself, or set into the main wall behind.  From this, "arcade" has become a general word for a group of shops in a single building, regardless of the [[architectural form]].

The word "arcade" comes from [[French language|French]] ''arcade'' from [[Occitan language|Provençal]] ''arcada'' or [[Italian language|Italian]] ''arcata'', based on [[Latin]] ''arcus'', ‘bow’ (see arc and [[arch]]).<ref>''New Oxford American Dictionary''</ref>

A related but ambiguous term is '''{{vanchor|arcature}}''', which is either a small arcade or a [[blind arcade]].<ref>{{M-W|arcature}} "1. a small arcade (as in a balustrade). 2. a blind arcade, especially one that is decorative rather than structural."</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Lockwood |first1=Luke Vincent |title=The Furniture Collectors' Glossary |date=1913 |publisher=Walpole Society |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9ZM7AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA4 |quote=ARCATURE . — A small arcade formed by a series of little arches. It may be blind or open.}}</ref>