ABSTRACT
Vaults and timbrel vaults are one of the most particular construction techniques used in traditional Alentejo housing. To identify the vaulting solution types, this research deployed surveys of houses in four of the region’s cities. The most frequent vault types are groin, trough, barrel and segmental, with lunette and sail found in smaller numbers. In the case of timbrel vaults, the most frequent shapes are trough and segmental. A correlation was found between the types of vaults and house divisions, their position inside the house and the geometry of rooms. The chronology of the spread of vaulting in the Alentejo’s housing is still imprecise but may coincide with the early Modern Age evolution of housing typologies. The incidence of vaults also coincided with late 16th/17th century (and onwards) expansion of cities. The increase in recourse to vaulting solutions may also have been influenced by late 17th century military constructions.
