Cupola a vela: Volta monumentale la cui pianta e' costituita da un poligono.
http://www.peter-news.it/beni culturali/puglia settentrional...

Dalla definizione di "cupola a vela" si coglie che è sinonimo di "cupola a padiglione"
Cupola a padiglione o volta a padiglione: a base poligonale e costituita da vele che poggiano sui lati del tamburo.
http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cupola

Tanto che la cupola su base ottagonale del Brunelleschi di Santa Maria del Fiore, a Firenze, è definita ora "a vela", ora "a padiglione"
"la cupola “a vela” ottagonale del Brunelleschi rimane ancora la più grande struttura voltata in mattoni sino ad ora realizzata e conserva ancora tutto il fascino e l’enigma della sua sorprendente realizzazione"
http://www.professioneacqua.it/default.asp?ACT=5&content=870...
Fu Filippo Brunelleschi (partendo dalla lezione di Arnolfo di Cambio) a rinnovare la tradizione, in maniera personalissima, con la copertura di Santa Maria del Fiore, a Firenze, una doppia cupola a padiglione, a pianta ottagonale (generata dalla intersezione di quattro cilindri ellittici)
http://www.archinfo.it/home.php?_idnodo=128507&liv=1.2.7&PHP...

Ecco la definizione ora di segmented or cloister dome:Segmented dome or cloister vault:
A dome placed over a polygonal base. It is not a semi-sphere, but is formed of curved sections which correspond to the parts of the polygon on which it rests.
http://www.legolas.org/castle/castle_glossary.html

Mi pare che corrisponda perfettamente.

http://www.tibursuperbum.it/ita/monumenti/villaadriana/Rocca...
http://www.tibursuperbum.it/eng/monumenti/villaadriana/Rocca...

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Note added at 16 ore (2008-11-11 08:25:42 GMT)
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http://books.google.it/books?id=U8Muzx1VrbwC&pg=PA176&lpg=PA...

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Note added at 16 ore (2008-11-11 08:27:46 GMT)
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The construction, including barrel and groin vaults and an octagonal cloister vault in the dome, reflects late Roman pratices rather than Byzantine techniques employed at San Vitale, and its plan simplifies the complex geometry of the Ravenna building. Roman or Romans may refer to: History Ancient Rome Roman Kingdom (753 BC to 509 BC) Roman Republic (509 BC to 44 BC) Roman Empire (44 BC to AD 476) Roman citizen Byzantine Empire (330 to 1453), also known as the Eastern Roman Empire Romioi, a name for the Greeks... The 11th-century monastery of Hosios Lukas in Greece is representative of the Byzantine art during the rule of Macedonian dynasty. ... The Basilica of San Vitale is the most famous monument of Ravenna, Italy and is one of the most important examples of Byzantine art and architecture in western Europe. ... Ravenna is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. ...
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Palatine-Chapel-in-...



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Note added at 16 ore (2008-11-11 08:30:09 GMT)
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(ho notato che nel copia e incolla sono stati copiati anche i riferimenti dei link: è da considerarsi solo il primo periodo)

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Note added at 16 ore (2008-11-11 08:31:30 GMT)
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a reference to villa adriana: The dome is supported on eight piers. It has 16 sides, using a combination of a gored (pumpkin) dome and a cloister vault. This was a known structural concept in Roman architecture (cf. Tivoli--Hadrian's Villa, vault of the Serapaeum, 118-34).
http://www2.arch.uiuc.edu/courses/arch311/II-A/justinian.htm...

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Note added at 16 ore (2008-11-11 08:51:09 GMT)
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The dome of the canopus is referred to as "cupola a spicchi" and not "a vela". The English translation is "gored or pumpkin dome". BTW the structure is quite similar to a cloister vault. In fact, Brunelleschi's cloister vault is somewhere also referred to as "volta a spicchi".

http://www.google.it/search?hl=it&q="cupola a spicchi"&btnG=...