CORNICES & FRIEZES
Cornices and friezes are decorative features at or near the top of a building's wall; they provide a visual termination or top for the wall. These features are quite common in Italianate and later buildings, especially late 19th-century commercial structures.

In Italianate houses, friezes often occupy the spaces between decorative roof brackets. Frequently outlined with wood paneling and molding, they often have small frieze windows to light attic spaces. On these buildings, cornices are usually confined to roof edges, often with decorative moldings. However, the entire composition of brackets, frieze, soffit, and roof edge can also be considered the cornice.

Late 19th century commercial buildings often have very decorative cornices. They are made of wood, stone, cast iron, sheet metal, or some combination of these. Because it was easy to form into shapes, inexpensive, lightweight, and simple to repair, sheet metal was probably the most common material used.

Recommendations
1. Avoid removing cornice and frieze elements because this results in a blank, unfinished look on a building. Repair these elements or replace them to match the original. Wood moldings and a variety of sheet metal shapes are available for such work.

2. Maintain and repair any surviving eave trim, or replace it in kind, if replacement is necessary. Eave moldings are readily available in a variety of profiles and are an important decorative element.

3. Avoid adding cornice and frieze elements as extra ornamentation on a building, unless physical or photographic evidence shows that the building once had these features.

4. Be sure that cornices and friezes are protected and left in place during any re-siding work or masonry cleaning.

5. See the recommendations in the Color section for information on painting cornices and friezes.