oriel (ôr`ēəl), projecting or bay window in an upper story, supported on brackets, corbels, or an engaged column, usually polygonal or curved in plan. It is most characteristic of the late medieval and early Renaissance period in England, where it was a favorite feature in civic and domestic buildings, but it is also found in France and Germany during the same period. The term is often loosely but incorrectly applied to any bay window.
oriel
Bay window in an upper story, supported from below by projecting corbels. Usually semihexagonal or rectangular in plan, oriels first became prevalent early in the 15th century. They were often placed over gateways or entrances to manor houses and public buildings of the late Gothic and Tudor periods. In cities of North Africa and the Middle East, the moucharaby is an oriel that uses grills or lattices in place of glass and shutters. See also brise-soleil.
oriel
oriel
1. In medieval English architecture, chiefly residential, and derivatives: (a) a bay window corbeled out from the wall of an upper story; (b) a bay projecting, inside or out, extending a room; (c) a windowed bay or porch at the top of exterior stairs.
2. (rare) In medieval Continental structures and derivatives, a subsidiary bay, or a corbeled, enclosed feature, exterior or interior.
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