Pediment

The crowning feature of a Greek temple front, the pediment is a large triangle—an obtuse isosceles triangle, to be precise—resting on the entablature at the gable end of the building. The pediment typically is framed by two types of cornices: a horizontal one on the bottom and two slanting, or raking, cornices on top. The space inside the pediment is known as the tympanum and was a showcase for Doric sculptures—most famously, the Elgin marbles from the Parthenon.

The pediment evolved to be a prominent decorative feature of Ancient Roman and Renaissance architecture, appearing above doors and windows and sometimes featuring a curved or broken shape.