mushroom construction

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mushroom construction. Early C20 type of r.c. construction in which the tops of columns are shaped to form a circular disc much bigger than the diameter of the column: the shape is reminiscent of a mushroom-like form, or of the upper part of an Ancient Egyptian bell-capital, but much more slender. These discs support floor-slabs, and the distribution of loads is such that beams are unnecessary. Maillart pioneered it in 1908, and F. L. Wright exploited it to great effect in the Johnson Wax Building, Racine, WI (1936–9).

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