atrium

atrium (ā`trēəm), term for an interior court in Roman domestic architecture and also for a type of entrance court in early Christian churches. The Roman atrium was an unroofed or partially roofed area with rooms opening from it. In early times its center held a cooking hearth. After the 2d cent. B.C., when the hearth was placed elsewhere, the center of the atrium held a tank (impluvium) to receive rainwater falling through the opening, which also furnished light to the surrounding rooms. In more luxurious and complex Roman dwellings, the private apartments had a court of their own, called the peristyle, and the atrium served merely as a semipublic reception hall. The ruins of Pompeii contain remains of atria in their various forms. In early Christian churches, the atrium was a large arcaded or colonnaded open court, serving as a general meeting place, in front of the church itself, with a fountain used for ablutions in its center. The basilican churches of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan and San Clemente in Rome have noteworthy atria. This type of large forecourt is also a characteristic element of the Muslim mosque. The term also refers to a modern building's central court, an often soaring interior space with a large skylight. Creating a flood of natural light and usually filled with plants, the feature has become practically ubiquitous in contemporary architecture; it is used predominantly in commercial buildings.

---

atrium

Atrium of the basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, Milan, 1088–1128.

(credit: Alinari/Art Resource, New York)

In an ancient Roman house, an open central court that contained the impluvium, a basin where rainwater collected. It originally contained the hearth and functioned as the center of family life. The term later came to be used for the open front courtyard of a Christian basilica, where congregants collected before services. The atrium was revived in the 20th century in the form of glass-covered, greenery-filled multistory spaces sometimes found in shopping centers, office buildings, and large hotels.

---

atrium

1. the open main court of a Roman house

2. a central often glass-roofed hall that extends through several storeys in a building, such as a shopping centre or hotel

3. a court in front of an early Christian or medieval church, esp one flanked by colonnades

4. Anatomy a cavity or chamber in the body, esp the upper chamber of each half of the heart

---

atrium [′ā·trē·əm]

(anatomy)

The heart chamber that receives blood from the veins.

The main part of the tympanic cavity, below the malleus.

The external chamber to receive water from the gills in lancelets and tunicates.

(architecture)

An open court located within a building.

---

atrium

atrium, 2

atrium, 1

1.. The main hall of an ancient Roman house, containing an opening to the sky