A balcony is a platform projecting from the wall of a building that supports columns and has an enclosure with a balustrade. In Italy, it’s called “balcone,” which means scaffold or beam in Old High German while Persian term بالكانه bālkāneh translates to covered terrace.
A balcony is a platform projecting from the wall of a building that supports columns and has an enclosure with a balustrade. Balconies can be used for many different things by people of every age. In ancient Greece, small rooms called “stoa” were built over the top floors of houses so that men could relax and socialize while enjoying the cool breeze. They became famous throughout Greece during its time of greatness as Romans copied them. So did Muslims when they conquered Egypt, Syria, Palestine, and Spain, which explains similarities between Islamic Moorish architecture and Spanish Renaissance architecture. Balconies also had practical uses as they enabled people to carry out daily tasks such as drying clothes or fishing while being protected from bad weather. Still, they are most famous for their use as a place for conversation and relaxation in the early modern Italian Renaissance. Balconies are also known today because they form the balconettes of theaters and galleries, which makes them often associated with cultural activities like music concerts or speeches.
The Architectural style to have balconies most prominently were: Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Moorish, and Spanish Renaissance architecture. They all used columns and had wooden railings that made it easier to move things on and off the balcony. In Spain, there is an example called Balcon del Cardenal in the luxurious Salamanca district that shows how Muslim architects adopted design elements from their predecessors, such as multiple columns instead of a single column underneath the balcony proper while continuing to employ traditional horseshoe arch.
