Mansard Roof Architecture

The steep roof with windows creates an additional floor of habitable space a garret and reduces the overall height of the roof for a given number of habitable stories.

Mansard roof architecture. A mansard or mansard roof also called a french roof or curb roof is a four sided gambrel style hip roof characterized by two slopes on each of its sides with the lower slope punctured by dormer windows at a steeper angle than the upper. There is a sort of visible distinction between flat roofs and mansard roofs. Thus this roof architecture was christened as the mansard roof in his honor. Simply put the mansard roof also known as the french roof or curb roof is a hybrid between a gambrel roof and a hip roof.

You can consider gambrel roof to be a modified version of a gable roof. It depends upon what type of design customer wants to implement. If you are not familiar with a gambrel roof then let us first explain its architecture in brief. But you cannot misunderstand them as straight panel roofs.

In cross section the straight sided mansard can appear like a gambrel roof but it differs from the gambrel by displaying the same profile on all sides. Although the style was used as early as the mid 16th century in england and italy and was employed by pierre lescot at the louvre it was named for the 17th century architect françois mansart who used it on paris hôtel s. Mansard roof type of roof having two slopes on every side the lower slope being considerably steeper than the upper. The popularity of the mansard roof kept on growing in france and became even more fashionable during the reign of napoleon the 3rd 1852 1870.

The mansard roof was popularized by the famous french architect francois mansart 1598 1666 who used this distinctive style in many of his works.