Parapet

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Parapet

A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof

Roof

A roof is the covering on the uppermost part of a building. A roof protects the building and its contents from the effects of weather. Structures that require roofs range from a letter box to a cathedral or stadium, dwellings being the most numerous....
or structure

Architectural structure

An architectural structure is a free-standing, immobile outdoor construction.The structure may be permanent. Typical examples include buildings and nonbuilding structures such as bridges, dams, electricity pylons, and radio masts....
. It may serve to prevent unwanted falls over the edge or it may be a defensive, constructional or stylistic feature.

word comes ultimately from the Italian

Italian language

Italian is a Romance languages spoken by about 63 million people as a first language, primarily in Italy. In Switzerland, Italian is one of four Linguistic geography of Switzerlands....
parapetto (parare = to cover/defend and petto =breast). The German

German language

German is a West Germanic languages, thus related to and classified alongside English language and Dutch language. It is one of the world's world language and the most widely spoken mother tongue in the European Union....
term Brustwehr has the same significance.

Parapets may be plain, embattled

Battlement

A battlement, in defensive architecture such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet , in which portions have been cut out at intervals to allow the discharge of arrows or other missiles....
, perforated or panelled, which are not mutually exclusive terms.

pets surrounding roofs are extremely common in London

London

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Encyclopedia

A parapet is a wall-like barrier at the edge of a roof

Roof

Architectural structure

Building parapets

The word comes ultimately from the Italian

Italian language

German language

Battlement

Plain parapets are upward extensions of the wall, sometimes with a coping
Coping (architecture)

Coping , consists of the capping or covering of a wall.A coping may consist of stone, brick, tile, slate, metal, wood or thatch. In all cases it should be weathered to throw off the water....
at the top and corbel
Corbel

In architecture a corbel is a piece of stone jutting out of a wall to carry any superincumbent weight. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger"....
below.
Embattled parapets may be panelled, but are pierced, if not purely as stylistic device, for the discharge of defensive projectiles.
Perforated parapets are pierced in various designs such as circle
Circle

A circle is a simple shape of Euclidean geometry consisting of those point in a plane which are the same distance from a given point called the center....
s, trefoil
Trefoil

Trefoil is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism. The term is also applied to other symbols of three-fold shape....
s, quatrefoil
Quatrefoil

File:Quatrefoil, St. Guthlac, Croyland Abbey.JPGThe word quatrefoil etymologically means "four leaves", and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts....
s.
Panelled parapets are ornament
Ornament (architecture)

In architecture, ornament is a decorative detail used to embellish parts of a building or interior furnishing. Ornament can be carved from stone, wood or precious metals, formed with plaster or clay, or impressed onto a surface as applied ornament....
ed by a series of panels, either oblong or square, and more or less enriched, but not perforated. These are common in the Decorated
English Gothic architecture

English Gothic is the name of the architectural style that flourished in England from about 1180 until about 1520. As with the Gothic architecture of other parts of Europe, English Gothic is defined by its pointed arches, Vault roofs, buttresses, large windows, and spires....
and Perpendicular
English Gothic architecture

English Gothic is the name of the architectural style that flourished in England from about 1180 until about 1520. As with the Gothic architecture of other parts of Europe, English Gothic is defined by its pointed arches, Vault roofs, buttresses, large windows, and spires....
periods.

Parapet roofs

Parapets surrounding roofs are extremely common in London

London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
. This dates from the Building Act of 1707 which banned projecting wooden eaves in the cities of Westminster

City of Westminster

The City of Westminster is a London borough of London with City status in the United Kingdom. It is located west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, and forms part of Inner London and the bulk of London's central area....
and London

City of London

The City of London is a geographically small city status in the United Kingdom within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which, along with Westminster, the modern conurbation grew....
as a fire risk. Instead an 18-inch brick parapet was required, with the roof set behind. This was continued in many Georgian

Georgian architecture

Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking world to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four Monarchy of the United Kingdom of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United Kingdom, and George IV of the...
houses, as it gave the appearance of a flat roof which accorded with the desire for classical proportions.

Bridge parapets

Parapets on bridges and other highway

Highway

A highway is a main road intended for travel by the public between important destinations, such as city and towns. Highway designs vary widely and can range from a two-lane road without margins to a multi-lane, grade separated freeway....
structures (such as retaining wall

Retaining wall

A retaining wall is a structure that holds back soil or rock from a building, structure or area. Retaining walls prevent downslope movement or erosion and provide support for vertical or near-vertical grade changes....
s) prevent users from falling off where there is a drop. They may also be meant to restrict views, to prevent rubbish passing below, and to act as noise barrier

Noise barrier

A noise barrier is an exterior structure designed to protect sensitive land uses from noise pollution. Noise barriers are the most effective method of mitigating roadway noise, railway, and industrial noise sources ? other than cessation of the source activity or use of source controls....
s.

Bridge parapets may be made from any material, but structural steel

Structural steel

Structural steel is steel construction material, a Profile , formed with a specific shape or cross section and certain standards of Chemistry and strength....
, aluminium

Aluminium

Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white and ductile member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al; its atomic number is 13....
, timber

Timber

Timber may refer to:* Lumber, i.e. wood materials* Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Oregon* Timber , a 1984 arcade game by Bally Midway...
and reinforced concrete

Reinforced concrete

Reinforced concrete is concrete in which steel reinforcement bars or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen a material that would otherwise be brittle....
are common. They may be of solid or framed construction.

In European standards

European Committee for Standardization

The European Committee for Standardization or Comit? Europ?en de Normalisation , is a private non-profit organisation whose mission is to foster the European economy in global trading, the welfare of European citizens and the environment by providing an efficient infrastructure to interested parties for the development, maintenance and...
, parapets are defined as a sub-category of "vehicle restraint systems" or "pedestrian restraint systems".

Parapet

Building parapets

Parapet roofs

Bridge parapets

See also

External links