Octagon

Octagon buildings and structures are characterized by an octagonal plan form, whether a perfect geometric octagon or a regular eight-sided polygon with approximately equal sides.

The oldest known octagon-shaped building is the Tower of the Winds in Athens, Greece, constructed circa 300 B.C. Octagon houses were popularized in the United States in the mid-19th century. There are also octagonal houses built in other times and cultures.

The Octagon on the Square is a popular constructive type of building in Russian church architecture, stone and wooden. At the same time, the lower part is a cubic volume (in wooden architecture - a log house), and the upper one is an octahedron placed on it (a log house “with beveled corners”). One or two eights may be located above, with the completion in the form of a tent or dome. This type was prevalent in Russia in the 17th and 18th centuries (during the Baroque era).

View this octagon house plan with an octagonal gazebo.