Fan Vault

Confederation Hall of
Canada
Gothic Revival Style
11 August 1921-1953

Peterborough Cathedral,
Peterborough,
Cambridgeshire, England,
UK
Romanesque Style
Building
Built 11181237

How This Form Was

Developed and Why?
The fan vault resulted from the
intermittent financing of
staged building programs,
especially the restorations of
the earlier Norman stone
churches after their timber
framed structures were
replaced.

Gloucester Cathedral,
England
1089 - 1499

What materials were historically

used with this structural form?
A vault is generally composed of
separate units of material, such as
bricks, tiles, or blocks of stone, so
shaped or cut that when assembled
they form a tightly wedged and
stable construction whose weight
can be concentrated upon the
proper supports.
Vaults are also formed in a
homogeneous material, as when
built in concrete.
In modern work ceilings in the
form of masonry vaults are often
merely of plaster applied against a
curved framework of wood or
metal.

Compression occurring in the fan vault is energy being

compressed vertically.
Tension within the fan vault is energy being stretched
vertically tightly. Energy is outwards.
Shear forces are unaligned forces push some energy in
one direction and other energy in a different direction.
All of these forces have to be accounted for to sustain
and very efficient building to last for centuries and
more to come!

APA Citation
The romantic and pragmatic history of the fan vault has lessons for
contemporary structures. (n.d.) Retrieved March 31, 2016,
fromhttp://www.architectural-review.com/rethink/viewpoints/the-romantic-andpragmatic-history-of-the-fan-vault-has-lessons-for-contemporarystructures/8609423.fullarticle
Where Are You From? - Credo Reference. (n.d.). Retrieved March 31, 2016,
from http://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/vaul