The pendentive allows the support of the circular base of a dome over a square or polygonal space. In a nutshell, it avoids the dome to fall out.
Explanation:
The pendentives, which are triangular segments of a sphere, taper into points at the bottom and spread at the top to establish the continuous circular or elliptical base necessary for a dome. The pendentives were mainly used in Renaissance and Baroque architecture. The first experiment with the use of pendants was carried out in Roman domed buildings in the early 2nd and 3rd centuries.
You have been a wonderful teacher and a very dear friend. I will miss your classes but I have all that you taught me stored safely in my mind and my heart. Thank you for the inspiration and always believing in me, even when sometimes I didn’t believe in myself.
