Architectural and Engineering Glossary

P

Parvis

1.The open square in front of a large church.2.An enclosed court or room in front of a church.3.A room over a church porch.

Pas-de-souris

In a castle,the steps leading from the moat to the entrance.

Pascal

The Standard International unit of pressure;1 pascal is equal to 1 newton per square meter.

Pass Door

A door through the proscenium wall,from stage to the auditorium.

Pass-through

1.An opening in a partition for passing things from one adjoining space to another,usually between a kitchen and a dining space in a dwelling,but also between any two spaces in a building.2.A provision in a lease that makes the tenant,rather than the owner,directly responsible for certain costs.

PASS.

On drawings,abbr.for “passenger.”

Passageway,passage

A space connecting one area or room of a building with another.

Passenger Elevator

An elevator exclusively for the use of passengers.Also see freight elevator.

Passenger Elevator Car

See elevator car.

Passenger Lift

See elevator car.

Passive Solar Energy System

A building subsystem in which solar energy is collected and transferred predominantly by natural means;uses natural convection,conduction,or radiation to distribute thermal energy through a structure,within the limits of the indoor design temperature conditions. Compare with active solar energy system.

Paste Filler

In painting,a filler,3 in paste form;usually thinned with solvent prior to application.

Paste Paint

A mixture of oil,pigment,and some solvent in paste form;requires mixing with additional solvent and/or oil to produce a usable paint.
 
 

Pastiche

A mixture of materials,forms,motifs,and/or styles;often incongruous.

Pastophorium,pastophorion

In the early church,one of the two apartments at the sides of the bema or sanctuary;this arrangement has been retained in the modern Greek Orthodox church. 

Pastoral Column

A tree trunk used as a column,for example,as used in cottage orné.
 

Pat

As applied to a specimen of neat cement paste,a sample about 3 in.(7.6 cm) in diameter and 1⁄2  in. (1.3 cm) in thickness at the center and tapering to a thin edge;applied on a flat glass plate to determine the setting time.

Pat.

In the lumber industry,abbr.for “pattern.”

Patand

See patten.

Patch

1.In stone masonry,a compound used to fill natural voids or to replace chips and broken corners or edges in fabricated pieces of cut stone;applied in plastic form;mixed or selected to match the color and texture of the stone.2.In carpentry and joinery, a piece of wood or veneer glued into a recess to replace defective portions or voids;an insert or plug.

Patch Board,patch Panel

A board or panel where electric circuits are terminated with jacks and plugs,and where they may be interconnected temporarily by means of a cord called a “patch cord.”

Patent

glazing A system of glazing which employs any of a variety of commercially available devices for securing the glass sheets without the use of putty.

Patent Board

A building board manufactured under a patented process.

Patent Hammer

A two-faced hammer,each of whose faces is composed of a number of parallel thin chisels;used for dressing stone.

Patent Knotting

In painting,a knot sealer;a solution of shellac and benzine or similar solvent. Also see knotting.

Patent Light

Same as pavement light.

Patent Plaster

1.A gypsum plaster that is mixed with sand;used as a base-coat plaster.2.A plaster manufactured under a patent process whose exact constituents are secret;a chemical plaster.3.Same as cement plaster.

Patent Plate

Same as plate glass.

Patent Stone

See artificial stone.

Patera

A roundel,often decorated with leaves,petals,or the like;sometimes used as a decorative element,such as on a corner block.Also see rosette.

Peg Mold

A running mold.

Peggies

Slates of random length and width. 

Peggy Timber

Same as pecky timber. 

Pein

Same as peen. 

Pele

Same as peel.

Pellet

1.Any small,round,decorative projection;usually one of many.2.A circular wood plug which covers a countersunk screw.

Pellet Molding

A molding decorated with a series of small,flat disks or hemispherical projections.

Pelmet

A valance or cornice,sometimes decorative,built into the head of a window to conceal the drapery track or blind brackets or fittings.

Pendant Luminaire

A suspended luminaire.

Pendant Post

In a hammer beam roof,the lower post at the foot of the truss.

Pendant Switch

An electric wiring switch which is suspended from overhead at the end of a two conductor cord;used to control lamps or other devices that are mounted overhead,beyond the reach of a person standing on the floor.

Pendent

Same as pendant.

Pendentive Cradling

The curved ribs in arched and vaulted ceilings,used to carry or support the plasterwork.

Pendice

See penthouse.

Pendiculated

Supported by a pendicule.

Pendicule

A small pillar which serves as a support.

Penetralia

1.The interior part of a building,as a sanctuary.2.An inner apartment.

Penetrometer

A device that measures the depth to which a standard needle penetrates a material under standardized conditions.

Penn Plan

Similar to the Quaker plan,but having an interior chimney rather than an exterior chimney.

Pentacle

In Gothic tracery a five-pointed star motif with a pentagon in the center.