Finials (406)

In architecture, the decorative upper termination of a pinnacle, gable end, buttress, canopy, or spire. In the Romanesque and Gothic styles, it usually consists of a vertical, pointed central element surrounded by four outcurving leaves or scrolls. When the form it decorates has crockets (small, independent, sharply projecting ornaments, usually occurring in rows), the finial may be formed of four or more crockets surrounding the central upright. Finials in the form of candelabrum shafts occur frequently in early Renaissance work. The term now applies loosely to any small pinnacle, knob, or other decorative feature terminating a vertical motif.

The finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed to decoratively emphasize the apex of a gable, or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain rods or applied to chairs and furniture. These are frequently seen on top of bed posts or clocks. Decorative finials are also commonly used to fasten lampshades, and as an ornamental element at the end of the handles of souvenir spoons. Finials can also be decorative members at the ends of curtain rods. An architectural finial can also function as a lightning rod, and was once believed to act as a deterrent to witches on broomsticks attempting to land on one's roof. Finial is also a term given to straw animals at the ridges of thatched cottages. Finial maker is the term given to the artisan that makes the straw animal.