In architecture, a modillion is an ornate bracket, more horizontal in shape and less imposing than a corbel. They are often seen underneath a cornice which helps to support them. Modillions are more elaborate than dentils (literally translated as small teeth). All three are selectively used as adjectival historic past participles (corbelled, modillioned, dentillated) as to what co-supports or simply adorns any high structure of a building, such as a terrace of a roof (a flat area of a roof), parapet, pediment/entablature, balcony, cornice band or roof cornice. Modillions occur classically under a Corinthian or a Composite cornice but may support any type of eaves cornice. They may be carved or plain.
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Modillion in the context of Eave
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 style, such as the Chinese dougong bracket systems.
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In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal keyed into and projecting from a wall to carry a bearing weight, a type of bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in the wall, whereas a console is a piece applied to the structure. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger" in England.
The technique of corbelling, where rows of corbels deeply keyed inside a wall support a projecting wall or parapet, has been used since Neolithic (New Stone Age) times. It is common in medieval architecture and in the Scottish baronial style as well as in the vocabulary of classical architecture, such as the modillions of a Corinthian cornice. The corbel arch and corbel vault use the technique systematically to make openings in walls and to form ceilings. These are found in the early architecture of most cultures, from Eurasia to Pre-Columbian architecture.
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