Abstract
This study aims to clarify the historical process and the construction systems of the traditional balconies in urban houses taking Catalonia of Spain as an object area. This paper specially focuses on the change from windows to balconies on the facades of historical urban palaces from the 14th until the 19th century. The small multiple windows of gothic facades which demanded the defensive character were to be enlarged and transformed into the rectangular form with the passage of time. Balconies appeared in the 17th century as additions to the windows of buildings constructed in the former ages. In the 18th century balconies had already been an important element for facade design of palaces. The most traditional construction system of a balcony consists of flat stones projecting from the facade and inserted under the jambs of an opening.
