Lintel - wikipedia Lintel Structural lintel Ancient Roman Severan Basilica at Leptis Magna, Libya A lintel or lintol is a structural horizontal block that spans the space or opening between two vertical supports. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented structural item. It is often found over portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. Modern day lintels are made using prestressed concrete and are also referred to as beams in beam and block slabs or ribs in rib and block slabs. These prestressed concrete lintels and blocks are components that are packed together and propped to form a suspended floor concrete slab. Contents 1 Structural uses 2 Ornamental uses 3 Examples gallery 4 See also 5 Notes Structural uses In worldwide architecture of different eras and many cultures, a lintel has been an element of post and lintel construction. Many different building materials have been used for lintels. In classical Western architecture and construction methods, by Merriam - Webster definition, a lintel is a load - bearing member and is placed over an entranceway. Called an architrave, the lintel is a structural element that is usually rested on stone pillars or stacked stone columns, over a portal or entranceway. An example from the Mycenaean Greece cultural period ( c. 1600 -- 1100 BCE ) is the Treasury of Atreus in Mycenae, Greece. It weighs 120 tons, with approximate dimensions 8.3 × 5.2 × 1.2 m, one of the largest in the world. A lintel may support the chimney above a fireplace, or span the distance of a path or road, forming a stone lintel bridge. Ornamental carved lintel over Mandapa entrance at Chennakesava Temple, in the Hoysala architecture tradition of southern India Ornamental uses The use of the lintel form as a decorative building element over portals, with no structural function, has been employed in the architectural traditions and styles of most cultures over the centuries. Examples of the ornamental use of lintels are in the hypostyle halls and slab stelas in ancient Egypt and the Indian rock - cut architecture of Buddhist temples in caves. Preceding prehistoric and subsequent Indian Buddhist temples were wooden buildings with structural load - bearing wood lintels across openings. The rock - cut excavated cave temples were more durable, and the non-load - bearing carved stone lintels allowed creative ornamental uses of classical Buddhist elements. Highly skilled artisans were able to simulate the look of wood, imitating the nuances of a wooden structure and the wood grain in excavating cave temples from monolithic rock. In freestanding Indian building examples, the Hoysala architecture tradition between the 11th and 14th centuries produced many elaborately carved non-structural stone lintels in the Southern Deccan Plateau region of southern India. The Hoysala Empire era was an important period in the development of art and architectural the South Indian Kannadigan culture. It is remembered today primarily for its Hindu temples ' mandapa, lintels, and other architectural elements, such as at the Chennakesava Temple. The Maya civilization in the Americas was known for its sophisticated art and monumental architecture. The Mayan city of Yaxchilan, on the Usumacinta River in present - day southern Mexico, specialized in the stone carving of ornamental lintel elements within structural stone lintels. The earliest carved lintels were created in 723 CE. At the Yaxchilan archaeological site there are fifty - eight lintels with decorative pieces spanning the doorways of major structures. Among the finest Mayan carving to be excavated are three temple door lintels that feature narrative scenes of a queen celebrating the king 's anointing by a god. Examples gallery Structural lintel over entrance, Treasury of Atreus, Mycenae, Greece The lintel stone at the Treasury of Atreus ( external view ) The lintel stone at the Treasury of Atreus ( internal view ) Structural lintel over the entry to main Buddhist shrine, Khmer Phimai historical park, Thailand Shebna Inscription on a lintel of a tomb cave near Jerusalem, 8th / 7th century BCE Structural lintel with a lauburu and founders ' names, above traditional Basque houses in Lower Navarre, Spain Non-structural Mayan ornamental lintel stone, from the Yaxchilan city site in Chiapas, southern Mexico. ( Late Classic period, 600 - 900 CE ). Non-structural decorative lintel at Buddhist Banteay Srei, in Cambodia Non-structural lintel in Buddhist cave temple at Ellora Caves, India Door lintel in Bozen - Bolzano from 1632 with Elias Tagger 's coat of arms, South Tyrol, Italy Non-structural marriage stone lintel at ' The Hill ' farm, Dunlop, East Ayrshire, Scotland One of many 16th century door lintels in Edinburgh 's Old Town Simonsbath House, Simonsbath, Exmoor Parish, Devon. Wooden lintel over kitchen fireplace with carved date of 1654. See also Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lintels and Post and Beam. Look up lintel in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Architrave -- structural lintel or beam resting on columns - pillars Atalburu -- Basque decorative lintel Dolmen -- prehistoric megalithic tombs with structural stone lintels Dougong -- traditional Chinese structural element I - beam -- steel lintels and beams Marriage stone -- decorative ( can be structural ) lintel Post and lintel architecture system Span ( architecture ) Notes ^ Jump up to : `` Glossary of Medieval Art and Architecture - Lintel ''. University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved 2007 - 06 - 25. Jump up ^ A Classical and Topographical Tour Through Greece : During the Years, Edward Dodwell Jump up ^ Keay, John ( 2000 ). India : A History. New York : Grove Press. pp. 124 -- 127. ISBN 0 - 8021 - 3797 - 0. Jump up ^ Simon Martin ; Nikolai Grube ( 2000 ). Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens. London : Thames & Hudson Ltd. pp. 117, 125. ISBN 0 - 500 - 05103 - 8. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lintel&oldid=838192452 '' Categories : Architectural elements Doors Ornaments ( architecture ) Talk Contents About Wikipedia Aragonés Български Brezhoneg Català Čeština Deutsch Eesti Español Esperanto فارسی Français Gaeilge Galego Ido മലയാളം Монгол Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Runa Simi Русский Slovenčina ไทย Türkçe 粵語 中文 20 more Edit links This page was last edited on 25 April 2018, at 14 : 01. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: what is the beam above a door called
Answer: lintel