frieze

(frēz)

1. A plain or decorated horizontal part of an entablature between the architrave and cornice.
2. A decorative horizontal band, as along the upper part of a wall in a room.

[French frise, from Medieval Latin frisium, frigium, embroidery, from Latin Phrygium (opus), Phrygian (work), from PHRYGIA.]

(frēz)

1. A coarse, shaggy woolen cloth with an uncut nap.
2. A dense, low-pile surface, as in carpeting, resembling such cloth.

[Middle English frise, from Old French, from Medieval Latin (pannī) frīsiī, woolen (garments), from pl. of Frīsius, Frisian.]

Click to Play

How a Catholic Priest and D-Day Veteran Inspires Citizenship - Matt Curtis

View more Science videos

For more information on frieze, visit Britannica.com.

1. In Classical architecture and derivatives, the middle horizontal member of three main divisions of an entablature, above the architrave and below the cornice.
2. A decorative band at or near the top of an interior wall below the cornice.
3. In house construction, a horizontal member connecting the top row of the siding with the underside of the cornice. Also see cushion frieze.

frieze, 1

from the frieze, 2 of the Parthenon

An ornamental band that runs around a building. Friezes are usually on the exterior of a building and are often sculpted in bas-relief.

Tutor's tip: The "frieze" (a sculptured or patterned strip on a building) on the building depicts a hero as he "frees" (to release) a child from the ice, only to "freeze" (to turn to ice) to death in the bitter cold himself.

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

• Building and Machine Parts - frieze: horizontal piece that connects siding to soffit, usu. decorative
• Structural and Decorative Elements - frieze: richly ornamented band; entablature between architrave and cornice
• Fabrics and Cloth - frieze: heavyweight wool with rough, uncut nap
• Classical Elements and Design - frieze: horizontal band in entablature between architrave and cornice, usu. ornamented

Frieze of the Tower of the Winds, Athens

The Circus (Bath), UK. Architectural detail of the frieze showing the alternating triglyphs and metope. (John Wood, the Elder, architect)

Frieze of animals, mythological episodes at the base of Hoysaleswara temple, India

For other uses, see Frieze (disambiguation).

This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2009)

In architecture the frieze ( /ˈfriːz/) is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon the architrave ('main beam') and is capped by the moldings of the cornice. A frieze can be found on many Greek and Roman buildings, the Parthenon Frieze being the most famous, and perhaps the most elaborate.

In interiors, the frieze of a room is the section of wall above the picture rail and under the crown moldings or cornice. By extension, a frieze is a long stretch of painted, sculpted or even calligraphic decoration in such a position, normally above eye-level. Frieze decorations may depict scenes in a sequence of discrete panels. The material of which the frieze is made of may be plasterwork, carved wood or other decorative medium.

In an example of an architectural frieze on the façade of a building, the octagonal Tower of the Winds in the Roman agora at Athens bears relief sculptures of the eight winds on its frieze.

A pulvinated frieze (or pulvino) is convex in section. Such friezes were features of 17th-century Northern Mannerism, especially in subsidiary friezes, and much employed in interior architecture and in furniture.

The concept of a frieze has been generalised in the mathematical construction of frieze patterns.

External links

• Media related to Friezes at Wikimedia Commons
•  Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). "Frieze". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
1.
n. - frise

2.
n. - række, optog, vadmel

Nederlands (Dutch)
fries (grof wollen materiaal), fries (deel van top pilaar), fries (versierde lijst/band), band/lijn/serie

Français (French)
1.
n. - (Archit) frise

2.
n. - (Tex) ratine

Deutsch (German)
1.
n. - Fries

2.
n. - Fries

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (αρχιτ.) διάζωμα, ζωφόρος

Italiano (Italian)
rascia

Português (Portuguese)
n. - borda (f) (de papel de parede)

Русский (Russian)
фриз, бордюр, байка

Español (Spanish)
1.
n. - friso

2.
n. - paño de lana pesado para tapados

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - fris (arkitek. o texil)

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
1. 中楣, 带状装饰

2. 起绒粗呢

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
1.
n. - 起絨粗呢

2.
n. - 中楣, 帶狀裝飾

한국어 (Korean)
1.
n. - 띠 모양의 장식품

2.
n. - 아일랜드산 모직물

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 小壁, 帯状装飾, 行列
v. - けばだてる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) العزيز , نسيج صوفي‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮רצועת עיטור לקיר מתחת לתקרה, אפריז‬
n. - ‮בד צמר גס ושעיר‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.