Spolia
/ˈspoʊ.li.ə/noun
Materials, ornaments, or works taken from one building or place and reused in another.
Did you know?In Roman and medieval architecture, spolia often carried political and symbolic power because reusing a monument’s stone could literally make old authority serve the new ruler.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*spel-
“to strip, split, or peel off”
Latin
Latin
spolium
“skin, hide taken off an animal; later, booty or spoils taken from an enemy”
Late Latin
Latin
spolia
“spoils, plunder; things stripped from a defeated foe”
Medieval Latin
Latin
spolia
“reused architectural fragments taken from earlier buildings”
Modern English
English
spolia
“reused architectural materials, especially from older structures”