January, 1923 
61 
THE ROOF OF THE ROOM 
Ij You Are Going to Build , Consider the Variety of Available Ceilings and Ceiling Treatments 
MARY FANTON ROBERTS 
A FIRST glimpse of the 
vast blue arch that covers 
the Mediterranean is a 
thrilling experience, just as a 
sparkling starlit night at sea 
seems to exalt one’s spirit. For 
the time being these great expan¬ 
ses become the ceilings of our 
world, and there is an immense 
encompassing peace in the bound¬ 
less space that curves above us in 
magnificent vaults from zenith 
to horizon. 
The idea of the ceiling, at least 
for great cathedrals and palaces, 
must have sprung from this 
vision of the sky as a covering 
of all the earths. And that is why 
so often the most splendid of the 
mediaeval ceilings were arched 
and vaulted, giving something 
of the sky’s peace. 
In France, from the time of 
Louis XII, vaulted ceilings 
were introduced and carved 
and painted or covered with 
rare tapestry testers attached 
by hooks, or boarded up in 
the manner of barrel vaults 
brilliantly painted. Often the 
1 n remodeling 
Colonial farm¬ 
houses much of 
the old interior 
atmosphere can 
be re-established 
if the ceiling 
timbers are left 
exposed, as here 
Painted panels in 
molded plaster 
frames are often 
found in larger 
Georgian houses. 
This is from the 
home of Win. 
Hayward, Guy 
Lowell architect 
spaces between the timljers were 
cut in panels and enriched with 
gold. 
In the reign of Louis XIII, 
finely wrought stucco ceilings 
gained prominence, sometimes 
richly colored. The plasterers be¬ 
came immensely important in the 
scheme of elaborate ceiling devel¬ 
opment, and some of the most sig¬ 
nificant Italian craftsmen de¬ 
voted their attention to the cre¬ 
ation of ornate stucco ceilings, 
walls and chimney-pieces. About 
this time stone slab ceilings be¬ 
came fashionable with exposed 
timbers, often painted and al¬ 
ways carved. 
In that gorgeous reign of the 
dapper little king, Louis XIV, 
palace ceilings became sump¬ 
tuous to the point of suffo¬ 
cation. They were vaulted 
and domed and adorned with 
elaborate swage, often carved 
and frequently painted. And 
walls with equal magnificence 
were built up to the ceilings. 
Not an inch of bare space re- 
(Continued on page 82) 
Parget, the 
finish used on the 
walls and ceilings 
of this room, 
consists of crude¬ 
ly molded plas¬ 
ter in which dec¬ 
orative designs are 
fashioned. It is 
suitable for Eng¬ 
lish types of 
rooms 
