The pointed arch, or ogival arch, is a type of arch formed by two curving sides, arising from two centres. This allows the keystone, at the point of intersection, to be higher than the classic full-centre arch. Already used in Islamic and Byzantine architecture, it also appeared in Cluny in 1088, with the construction of the third abbey. The ogival arch was used in Sicily (Cefalù, Palermo and Monreale) during the Norman and Swabian periods.
Thanks to the use of the pointed arch, the cathedrals became taller and more slender vertically, as it allowed for a better balance of weight and thus made it possible to abandon the thick walls, which also functioned as buttresses. This type of arch became, therefore, characteristic of Gothic architecture and was later taken up in Neo-Gothic architecture.
