“You see what’s on the other side and you pass between pilasters. Not a wall, not a corridor, I don’t know.”
The archway row is a row of openings between pilasters resting on a half wall. It is the first room in Level 0.0 that doesn’t close off the space and merely orders it without dividing it.
How to recognize it
A room about five meters deep whose long side is a half wall 1.2 m high. Each opening is framed by pilasters half a meter wide that rise from floor to ceiling. Between one pilaster and the next, a decorative lintel at 2.15 m and one standard lamp per opening.
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| Openings | 3 to 7 |
| Clear width of opening | 1.6 to 2.2 m |
| Pilaster | 0.5 × 0.5 m |
| Half wall | 1.2 m high, 0.3 thick |
| Depth | 5 m |
Entrances and exits
The half wall is too high to jump, since the wanderer’s body steps up 45 centimeters at most. The two sides communicate only through the gaps between pilasters, and there are at least two, 1.4 meters or more. Whoever tries to climb the wall is left stuck halfway, in view of everything.
How to survive
- Cross through a gap, never over the wall.
- Since you can see through it, what is on the other side sees you. Before going in, count the silhouettes between pilasters.
- If you are being chased, don’t duck into the recess of a pilaster. It has no depth and every opening is a door open on both sides.
What people say
Someone swears there is a version with rounded arches, lovelier than the straight-lined one, but those who say they have seen it can’t remember which way they left.
It is also claimed that the archway lamps all flicker at once, though not in step with the lamp of the neighboring opening. Nobody has managed to time it without running out of patience, or sanity.
See also
Level 0.0, Great halls and landmarks, “LOBBY” Reception, Fluorescent hum, Sanity.