BAR
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BAR
columns, placed between four piers, decorated with pilasters,are arranged round the basement story, these support asecond order of piers, similarly arranged, on which rests thedome. In the middle of the baptistery, is a large octagonalbasin of marble raised on three steps. See Font.
BAR, a piece of wood, or iron, for fastening any kind ofclosure, as a door, or shutter. It is used as an additionalfastening to a door, attached to the side, and movable toand fro upon the surface, so as to be inserted ordrawn out of the jamb, head, or sill, at pleasure; and ismost commonly placed on the vertical edge of the door.Doors and shutters have sometimes bars so long as to beequal to the whole breadth of the aperture, or somethingmore; and frequently made to turn upon a centre on the sideof the door or shutter.
Bars for the Shutters of Windows , are frequentlymade with one or more joints, according to the number ofshutters in the breadth of the window, and are fastened bymeans of bolts and fore-locks.
Bars of a boarded Door , are pieces placed on the back,to which the boards are fastened: bars of this nature aremore commonly called ledges.
Bars of a Sash, are those slight pieces of wood or metalwhich divide the sash-light into two or more compartments,so as to reduce the large opening into smaller ones of con-venient dimensions, suitable to the size of the panes ofglass.
Those bars which stand in the intersection of two verticalplanes, are called angle-bars. See Angle-Bars.
Bar-Posts, are those which are fastened into the ground,forming the sides of a field gate, and are mortised so as toadmit of horizontal pieces, called bars, which may be insertedeasily or taken out at pleasure.
BARB AC AN, or Barbican, in ancient fortifications, wasan advanced work, which frequently covered the draw-bridgeat the entrance of a castle. The term is likewise appliedto the aperture in walls, called embrasures. See Embra-sures .
Barbacan, in architecture, is a long narrow canal, oropening, left in the walls for water to come in and go outby, when edifices are placed so as to be liable to be overflown;or to drain off the water from a terrace or the like.
BARGE-BOARDS, two boards attached to the gableends of a roof, fixed near the extremity of the barge course,and following the inclination of the roof, used for the purposeof protecting the under or stuccoed side of the barge coursefrom the weather. They are found most usually in oldEnglish houses, and being carved in most rich and elaboratepatterns, add great beauty and picturesque effect to thebuildings. They have been of late applied in many instances,where their utility seems to have been entirely misunder-stood, and where, instead of protecting, they only serve as adead weight to the building. The word is probably derivedfrom an old Saxon term signifying to shade or cover.
Barge-Couples, two beams mortised and tenoned to-gether, for strengthening the building. The term is notmuch used.
Barge-Course, that part of the tiling which projectsover the gable of a building, and is made up below withmortar.
BARN , a covered building, for laying up and preservingl S< ? rts § ra m, hay, straw, &c. The situation of a barns ould be dry and rather elevated, and on the north or north-east side of a farm-yard; but neither contiguous to the house,nor to any offices connected with it. Barns may be con-8 ructed of either stone, brick, or timber, which last may be
wooden framing, covered with weather boarding ; but which-soever of these materials is used, holes should be left in thewalls at intervals, or the doors and windows should haveproper air-flights, so as to admit the ingress and egress ofair freely. The gable-ends are best formed of brick or stone,on account of their solidity: the covering may either bethatch or tiles. In the walls of the front and rear of thebuilding should be two large folding doors, for the con-venience of carrying in and out a cart or waggon load ofcorn in sheaves, or any other bulky produce : these doorsshould be of the same breadth with the threshing-floor, togive more light to the threshers, and admit more air for win-nowing the grain. Over the threshing-floor, and a littleabove the reach of the flail-poles, beams are often laid across,in order to form a kind of upper-floor, upon which thethresher may throw the straw or haulm ; and on the out-side,over the great doors, it is convenient to have a large pent-house made, projecting sufficiently, so as to cover a load ofcorn or hay, in case a sudden storm should come on before itcan be housed, and also to shelter the poultry in the farm-yardfrom bad weather, or too great heat. The hay-barns shouldusually be constructed of wood, and not too close: theyare sometimes formed in such a manner, as to be capable ofbeing moved to different places by wheels or rollers. Ingrazing-farms, which do not afford a supply of straw forthatching, the stacks with movable roofs, erected on strongupright posts of wood, or what is sometimes termed Dutchbarns, may be useful, as they may be raised or lowered atpleasure by screws and levers, so as to accommodate them-selves to the quantity of hay, either in proportion to the cropor its consumption, while, at the same time, they are cheaper,more airy, and less troublesome than close barns, in case ofheating. The under-pinning of barns is best of stone orbrick, which may be built to the height of about two feet aboveground; the sides should be boarded, and the roof covered withstraw or reeds; but those of the stables on its sides, with slateor glazed tile; because, as they must be more flat, the waterwhich runs from the roof of the barn would injure mostother coverings. At each end of the barn, and over the back-door, small doors, four feet high, should be fixed at theheight of twelve feet from the ground: the two former forputting in corn at the ends, and the latter for filling thermddle of the barn after the bays are full. All the baysshou d have a floor of clay or marl, and the threshing-floorshould be laid with hard bricks, which will be suitable for allsorts of grain, except wheat or rye; for threshing these, it willbe advisable to have planks of oak or red deal well fittedtogether, and numbered, to he laid down occasionally, andconfined by a frame at their ends.
Barns should be placed upon a declivity, as by this meansthey are rendered more durable, less subject to vermin, andthe grain can be kept more sweet and dry than on levelground: this situation also affords a commodious range ofstalls for cattle.
The invention of the threshing machine has, in a greatmeasure, altered the construction of barns, as, where they aremade use of, they should be contrived chiefly with a view tothe distribution of straw; the machines being built in thecentre, with the grain-stacks adjoining them, in such a man-ner, that they may be supplied without the assistance of cartsor horses. The barns, in these cases, need not to be solarge, but they should have granaries provided in them,which may perhaps be most conveniently placed over thefloors.
BARREL DRAIN, one constructed in the form of a hol-low cylinder. See Drain.