Fascia () is an architectural term for a vertical
frieze
In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...
or band under a roof edge, or which forms the outer surface of a
cornice
In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...
, visible to an observer.
Typically consisting of a wooden board,
unplasticized PVC (uPVC), or non-corrosive sheet metal, many of the non-domestic fascias made of stone form an ornately carved or pieced together cornice, in which case the term fascia is rarely used.
The word fascia derives from Latin ''fascia'' meaning "band, bandage, ribbon, swathe".
The term is also used, although less commonly, for other such band-like surfaces like a wide, flat trim strip around a doorway, different and separate from the wall surface.
The horizontal "fascia board" which caps the end of
rafter
A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members such as wooden beams that extend from the ridge or hip to the wall plate, downslope perimeter or eave, and that are designed to support the roof shingles, roof deck and its associate ...
s outside a building may be used to hold the
rain gutter. The finished surface below the fascia and rafters is called the
soffit or
eave.
In
classical architecture
Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the works of the Roman architect ...
, the fascia is the plain, wide band (or bands) that make up the
architrave section of the
entablature
An entablature (; nativization of Italian , from "in" and "table") is the superstructure of moldings and bands which lies horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and ...
, directly above the columns. The
guttae or
drip edge was mounted on the fascia in the
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of ...
, below the
triglyph. The term fascia can also refer to the flat strip below the
cymatium.
See also
*
Bargeboard
Bargeboard (probably from Medieval Latin ''bargus'', or ''barcus'', a scaffold, and not from the now obsolete synonym "vergeboard") or rake fascia is a board fastened to each projecting gable of a roof to give it strength and protection, and to ...
, a board fastened to a projecting gable
*
Eaves
The eaves are the edges of the roof which overhang the face of a wall and, normally, project beyond the side of a building. The eaves form an overhang to throw water clear of the walls and may be highly decorated as part of an architectural sty ...
, a roof projection beyond the line of a building
*
Soffit, the surface or surfaces, often structural under a roof projection. The term used in other structures such as for the underside of an arch.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fascia (Architecture)
Columns and entablature
Architectural elements