Imbrex
/ˈɪm.brɛks/noun
A curved roofing tile used to cover the joints between flat tiles in ancient Mediterranean construction.
Did you know?The imbrex formed part of the Roman tegula-and-imbrex roof system, whose overlapping design may have influenced the visual language of later temple and domestic architecture.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₂emǵʰ-
“A reconstructed root associated with rain or wet weather”
Proto-Italic
Proto-Italic
*imbris
“Rain; rainfall”
Classical Latin
Latin
imber
“Rain or a rainstorm”
Classical Latin
Latin
imbrex
“A curved roofing tile, literally associated with rain”
19th Century
English
imbrex
“A technical architectural term for the curved tile covering joints between flat roof tiles”
Modern English
English
imbrex
“A curved interlocking roof tile, especially one used in ancient Roman or Greek construction”
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