ovolo

American  

[oh-vuh-loh] / ˈoʊ vəˌloʊ /

noun

Architecture.

plural

ovoli

1. a convex molding forming or approximating in section a quarter of a circle or ellipse.

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ovolo British  

/ ˈəʊvəˌləʊ /

noun

1. Also called: quarter round.   thumb.  architect a convex moulding having a cross section in the form of a quarter of a circle or ellipse Compare congé echinus

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Etymology

Origin of ovolo

1655–65; < Italian, variant (now obsolete) of uovolo, diminutive of uovo egg ¹ < Latin ōvum

Example Sentences

It has fluted columns, an intricately hand-tooled dentil course in the cornice, richly incised architraves and carved ovolo moldings.

From The Colonial Architecture of Philadelphia by Cousins, Frank

The term is sometimes given to the ovolo of the Ionic capital, especially when curved with the egg-and-tongue enrichment.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 10 "Echinoderma" to "Edward" by Various

Apropos of Sherwood's at Jamestown, few of us, if any, know that his mansion possessed openings with ovolo bricks—bricks rubbed and cut in an egg-shaped ornamental moulding.

From Virginia Architecture in the Seventeenth Century by Forman, Henry Chandlee

Again: the Doric capital was unimitative; but all the beauty it had was dependent on the precision of its ovolo, a natural curve of the most frequent occurrence.

From The Seven Lamps of Architecture by Ruskin, John

This stone spans a large channel 2ft. 3in. wide, within which is fitted a very thick lead pipe, gradually narrowed horizontally and turned up under the ovolo concave stone.

From The Excavations of Roman Baths at Bath by Davis, Charles E.