Abargeboard orrake fascia is a board fastened to each projectinggable of aroof to give it strength and protection, and to conceal the otherwise exposedend grain of the horizontaltimbers orpurlins of the roof. The wordbargeboard is probably from the Medieval Latinbargus, orbarcus, ascaffold, and not from the now obsoletesynonymvergeboard.
Historically, bargeboards are sometimes moulded only or carved, but as a rule the lower edges were cusped and had tracery in thespandrels besides being otherwise elaborated. An example in Britain was one atOckwells inBerkshire (built 1446–1465), which was moulded and carved as if it were intended for internal work.[3]
Modern residential rake fascias are typically made of 2-by dimensional lumber, with trim added for decoration and/or weatherproofing later.
Princetown Road 30–40; ca 1890; Terrace of two-and-a-half-storey stucco houses with frilly barge boards to deep-eaved dormers over ground floor canted bays; ...
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Bargeboard".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.