Know Your Architectural Styles Quiz

Answer: Mayan

Located in the extreme west of Belize, near the border with Guatemala, the site at Xunantunich is one of the world's best-preserved examples of late Mayan architecture. By the time this site was built, Mayan civilization was already in decline, but the city at Xunantunich lasted a century longer than most other sites in the region.

Answer: Dravidian

Part of a group of monuments in South India designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984, Shore Temple is one of the oldest stone-cut temples in the region. The main shrine and one of the two smaller ones are dedicated to Shiva, whilst the third honors a reclining Vishnu.
The octagonal shape of the shikaras of the two temples dedicated to Shiva are typical of the Dravidian style. The principal feature of the architectural style temples with pyramid shaped towers, usually constructed of sandstone, soapstone or granite.

Answer: Armenian

The Saint Hripsime Church is located in the city of Vagharshapat in western Armenia, near to the Turkish border. It was built on the site of a fourth-century mausoleum containing the remains of the martyred Saint Hripsimé who died in 290 A.D.
Armenian architecture, and their churches in particular, have several distinctive features. These include pointed polygonal (most often octagonal) dome mounted above vaulted ceilings; vertical emphasis, often reinforced by tall, narrow windows and arches; built almost entirely of stone; and roofs intersecting to support the dome.

Answer: Byzantine

Built between 532 and 537, Hagia Sophia was an Eastern Orthodox cathedral until taken over by Catholicism in 1204. Orthodoxy returned in 1261 and remained until the building became an Imperial Mosque in 1453. When Turkey became a republic in 1935, the first president, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, converted the building into a museum.

It was the world's largest church building until the completion of the Seville Cathedral in 1920. Architecturally, Hagia Sophia is one of the greatest surviving examples of the Byzantine style. One of the significant developments was the use of pendentives to enable a circular dome to be placed over a square or rectangular room.

Answer: Visigothic

Completed in 665, the Chapel of São Frutuoso is part of group of religious buildings built by the Visigoths in the trademark form of a Greek cross. This building was designated as a National Monument in 1944.
Visigothic architecture typically features horseshoe arches without keystones, the use of columns and pillars with unusual Corinthian capitals, barrel vaults with cupolas at the crosses, and walls of ashlar blocks.
Other surviving examples, all of them in Spain, include the Church of San Juan Bautista in Palencia, San Pedro de la Nave in Zamora and the Santa María de Melque in Toledo.

Answer: Romanesque

Located on the southwestern shore of the Laacher See (Lake Laach) near the town of Andernach, the abbey was known as 'Abtei Laach' ("Lake Abbey") until 1862 when the Jesuits added the "Maria".
Semi-circular arches, thick walls, large towers and a symmetrical plan are the most easily identifiable features of Romanesque architecture, and Maria Laach Abbey is a classic example. The east end has a round apse with square twin towers. A broad cupola with cone-shaped roof covers the transept crossing and the monumental west façade includes round twin towers and a square central tower.

Answer: Gothic

A major tourist destination, attracting more than a million visitor annually, Reims Cathedral is a classic example of French Gothic architecture. It is particularly noted for its statues and statuettes -- only Chartres has more sculpted figures amongst European cathedrals.
The principal characteristics of Gothic architecture are the pointed arch, the ribbed vault and the flying buttress. The style evolved from Romanesque architecture in the 12th century and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture in the 16th.

Answer: Tudor

The final development of Medieval architecture in England came during the Tudor years between 1485 and 1603. Work on the King's College Chapel actually began prior to this, in 1446, and spanned the Wars of the Roses. The building itself was completed in 1515 but its world famous stained-glass windows were not finished until 1531.
The four-centered arch is typical of the period and is now simply known as a "Tudor arch". Tudor architecture is also renowned for numerous remarkable oriel windows.

Answer: Baroque

As well as a hospital and retirement home for France's war veterans, Les Invalides also houses three museums including the 'Musée de l'Armée', the military museum of the French Army. It is also the burial sight for numerous military luminaries including Napoleon Bonaparte.
Construction of Les Invalides began in 1671 and was completed seven years later.
Baroque architecture began in the late 16th century and quickly spread throughout Europe and Latin America. Distinctive features of the style often include dramatic use of light, large-scale ceiling frescoes and pear-shaped domes.

Answer: Georgian

The exterior of Royal Crescent has remained virtually unchanged in more than 240 years. There is now a hotel and a museum and some interiors have been converted to flats and offices, but aesthetically they remain much as they always have.
"Georgian architecture" usually refers to the style during the Hanoverian period (1714-1830), when four successive kings named George sat on the British throne. The style was revived in the U.S. in the 20th century, although it is then sometimes referred to as Colonial Georgian.
Distinctive characteristics of Georgian architecture include a simple one or two-story box using strict symmetry, a panel front centered door with rectangular windows and a centralized portico with a window in the roof.