In addition, widely published pattern books touted spindles, towers, and other flourishes we associate with

Queen Anne architecture. Country folk yearned for fancy city trappings. Wealthy industrialists pulled out all

stops as they built lavish "castles" using Queen Anne ideas.

Although easy to spot, the Queen Anne style is difficult to define. Many are lavished with gingerbread, but

some are made of brick or stone. Many have turrets, but crowning touch is not necessary to make a house a

queen. So, what is Queen Anne?

Fanciful and flamboyant, Queen Anne architecture takes on many shapes. Some Queen Anne houses are

lavishly decorated. Others are restrained in their embellishments. Yet the flashy "painted ladies" of San Francisco

and the refined brownstones of Brooklyn share many of the same features. There is an element of surprise

to the typical Queen Anne home. The roof is steeply pitched and irregular. The overall shape of the house is

asymmetrical.

Queen Anne architecture is not an orderly or easily classified. Bay windows, balconies, stained glass, turrets,

porches, brackets and an abundance of decorative details combine in unexpected ways. Even the history of

the style is bewildering. These homes were built during the age of Queen Victoria. So, why are they called

Queen Anne?

Popular during the time of Britain's Queen Victoria, Queen Anne architecture has little to do with the 18th

century Queen Anne. Moreover, the exuberant style bears little resemblance to the formal architecture, which

was popular during her time.

Rather, British architects borrowed ideas from the earlier medieval era. In the United States, Queen Anne

houses became lofty, sometimes fanciful, expressions of the machine age. From New York to California, rows

of imposing Queen Anne homes stand as monuments to the industrialists who prospered there.

However, Queen Anne flourishes may also be found on less pretentious houses. In American cities, smaller

working-class homes were given patterned shingles, spindle work, extensive porches and bay windows. Many

turn-of-the-century houses are in fact hybrids, combining Queen Anne motifs with features from earlier and

later fashions.

Ironically, the very qualities that made Queen Anne architecture so regal also made it fragile. These expansive

and expressive buildings proved expensive and difficult to maintain. By the turn of the century, Queen

Anne had fallen out of favor. In the early 1900s, architects favored smaller Edwardian ("Princess Anne") and

more austere Colonial Revival styles.

While many Queen Anne have been preserved as private homes, others have been converted into apartment

houses, offices and inns. In San Francisco, flamboyant homeowners have painted their Queen Annes a rainbow

of psychedelic colors. Purists protest that bright colors are not historically authentic. However, the owners of

these "Painted Ladies" claim that Victorian architects would be pleased.

Active Vocabulary

1) elaborate – искусно сделанный, детально разработанный

2) steam – паровой двигатель, пар

3) to shuttle – передвигать в разных направлениях

4) to tout – назойливо предлагать что-либо

5) spindle – веретенообразный предмет

6) to yearn for – тосковать по

7) trapping – украшение

8) gingerbread – показная пышность, вычурность

9) turret – башенка

10) touch – штрих, оттенок, прикосновение

11) fanciful – причудливый

12) flamboyant – яркий, вычурный

13) embellishment – украшение

14) flashy – дешевый, показной, бросающийся в глаза

15) bay – изогнутый

16) bracket – полочка на стене

17) bewildering – ставящий в тупик, смущающий

18) shingle – обшивка, дранка

19) fragile – хрупкий

20) authentic – подлинный, достоверный

21) owner – владелец, хозяин

Exercises on the Text

Translate the following word combinations from Russian into English

1. новые технологии

2. трудно определить стиль

3. небольшое сходство

4. романтичный стиль

5. ярко украшенный

Fill in the gaps with the words given below

1. Of all the Victorian house styles, Queen Anne is the most … and the most …

2. Exuberant builders combine many ways to create … homes.

3. Wealthy industrialists pulled out all stops as they built … "castles" using Queen Anne ideas.

4. Queen Anne houses became … and … expressions of the machine age.

5. The history of Queen Anne style is …

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lofty, elaborate, fanciful, lavish, bewildering, eccentric, innovative

Find antonyms to the following words

1. romantic a. slowly

2. rapidly b. old

3. innovative c. flamboyant

4. austere d. cheap

5. expensive e. unromantic

6. fragile f. firm

7. irregular g. regular

8. resemblance

h. difference