frieze1
[freez]
- Architecture.
- the part of a classical entablature between the architrave and the cornice, usually decorated with sculpture in low relief.
- any decorative band on an outside wall, broader than a stringcourse and bearing lettering, sculpture, etc.
- any decorative band at the top or beneath the cornice of an interior wall, a piece of furniture, etc.
- Furniture. skirt(def 6b).
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Origin of frieze1
1555–65; < Middle French frise, perhaps < Medieval Latin phrygium, frigium, frisium embroidered cloth, embroidery, Latin Phrygium, neuter of Phrygius Phrygian
frieze2
[freez]
- a heavy, napped woolen cloth for coats.
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Origin of frieze2
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for frieze
Contemporary Examples
So does the Parthenon frieze depict virgin sacrifice, and was it built over the tomb of these maidens of myth?
This notion of fashion as a kind of wearable narrative is in evidence at industry gatherings like Frieze and Art Basel.
It did not get made due to lack of financing but then Frieze went and did it, which is annoying!
Joshua Compston Was Once the Wunderkind of the British Art World…and Now He’s Been Practically ForgottenAnthony Haden-Guest
January 17, 2014
Since then, it has been screened at such venues as the British Film Institute, Southbank London (2008), Frieze Art Fair (2010).
From a 48 portraits of young men and women to a Jeff Koons lobster, the must-see art at Frieze London, which opens on Thursday.
Historical Examples
Get from a wall-paper dealer a sample of a frieze for a papered room.
Introductory American HistoryHenry Eldridge Bourne
Triglyph, the channelled feature in the frieze of the Doric order.
ArchitectureThomas Roger Smith
On the other hand, the frieze has no triglyphs, and but rarely sculpture.
ArchitectureThomas Roger Smith
The entablature is a positive triumph in cornice, frieze and architrave.
The Colonial Architecture of PhiladelphiaFrank Cousins
The cornice, of which the frieze is adorned with eight masks, rests on corbels.
Portuguese ArchitectureWalter Crum Watson
frieze1
- architect
- the horizontal band between the architrave and cornice of a classical entablature, esp one that is decorated with sculpture
- the upper part of the wall of a room, below the cornice, esp one that is decorated
- any ornamental band or strip on a wall
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Word Origin
C16: from French frise, perhaps from Medieval Latin frisium, changed from Latin Phrygium Phrygian (work), from Phrygia Phrygia, famous for embroidery in gold
frieze2
- a heavy woollen fabric with a long nap, used for coats, etc
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Word Origin
C15: from Old French frise, from Middle Dutch friese, vriese, perhaps from Vriese Frisian
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for frieze
n.
"sculptured horizontal band in architecture," 1560s, from Middle French frise, originally "a ruff," from Medieval Latin frisium "embroidered border," variant of frigium, probably from Latin Phrygium "Phrygian, Phrygian work," from Phrygia, the ancient country in Asia Minor known for its embroidery (cf. Phrygiae vestes "ornate garments"). Meaning "decorative band along the top of a wall" was in Old French.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
frieze
[(freez)]
An ornamental band that runs around a building. Friezes are usually on the exterior of a building and are often sculpted in bas-relief.
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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.