Architrave

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Image:Spoleto SSalvatore Architrave1.jpg

The architrave (also called epistyle) is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of the columns. As such, it is the lowest part of the entablature consisting of architrave, frieze and cornice. The word is derived from the Greek and Latin words arche and trabs combined together to mean "main beam".<ref>Roth, Leland M (1993). Understanding Architecture: Its Elements History and Meaning. Oxford, UK: Westview Press. ISBN 0-06-430158-3.</ref>

The architrave is different in the different orders. In the Tuscan, it only consists of a plain face, crowned with a fillet, and is half a module in height. In the Doric and composite, it has two faces, or fasciae; and three in the Ionic and Corinthian, in which it is 10/12 of a module high, though but half a module in the rest.<ref>This article incorporates content from the 1728 Cyclopaedia, a publication in the public domain.</ref>

The word architrave is also used to refer to the mouldings (or other elements) framing a door, window or other rectangular opening. See also archivolt.