Opus (architecture)

In architecture, the latin term opus is a word that generically indicates various techniques of constructing buildings that were in use in ancient Rome. Usually the word opus is not used alone in building descriptions, but is paired with specific attributes (incertum, latericium, etc.), whose purpose is to show precisely the building technique that was used (i.e. opus incertum, opus latericium, opus reticulatum, opus mixtum, etcetera).