1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Architrave

ARCHITRAVE (from Lat. arcus, an arch, and trabs, trabem, a beam), an architectural term for the chief beam which carries the superstructure and rests immediately on the columns. In the ordinary entablature it is the lowest of the three divisions, the other two being the frieze and the cornice (see Order). The term is also applied to the moulded frame of a doorway.