Spear closet

A spear closet is an architectural “left over” space of small size and irregular shape.

Background

When laying out floor plans for buildings, designers sometimes are unable to avoid small “left over” spaces which cannot be put to practical use. This problem is particularly severe in buildings with angular or curvilinear geometry. These spaces are called “spear closets” because, due to their size and shape, they cannot serve any practical purpose other than possibly to store one’s spears.^[1]

Current usage

Since, in the modern world, few people actually own spears and keep them at home, the term is ironic. However, it is a commonly used^{[citation needed]} “professional slang” term in use among architects in the English-speaking world. A spear closet may actually have a door and be used as a storage closet. However, it may also simply be a “dead” space in a building which is completely surrounded by walls and which is inaccessible.

See also

• Spandrel

References

v t e Rooms and spaces of a house Shared residential rooms Billiard room Bonus room Common room Den Dining room Ell Family room Garret Great room Hearth room Home office Kitchen Kitchenette Private library Living room Home cinema Man cave Recreation room Shrine Study Sunroom Spaces Alcove Atrium Balcony Breezeway Conversation pit Corridor Deck Elevator Entryway / Genkan Foyer Hallway Loft Loggia Patio Porch Ramp Secret passage Sleeping porch Stairway Terrace Veranda Vestibule Utility and storage Attic Basement Box Room / Carport Cloakroom Closet Electrical room Equipment room Furnace room / Boiler room Garage Janitorial closet Larder Laundry room / Utility room Mechanical room / floor Pantry Root cellar Semi-basement Spear closet Storm cellar / Safe room Studio Wardrobe Workshop Wine cellar Wiring closet / Demarcation point Private rooms Bathroom Bedroom / Guest room Boudoir Cabinet Jack and Jill bathroom Nursery Suite Walk-in closet Toilet (room) Great house areas Ballroom Butler's pantry Buttery Conservatory Courtyard Drawing room Fainting room Great chamber Great hall Long gallery Lumber room Parlour Porte-cochère Salon Saucery Scullery Servants' hall Servants' quarters Smoking room Solar Spicery State room Still room Swimming pool Undercroft Other Building Furniture House plan Single-family detached home Multi-family residential Secondary suite Architectural elements Arch Baluster Ceiling Colonnade Column Floor Gate Lighting Medaillon Ornament Portico Vault Roof