An architectural structure or framework consisting of horizontal beams or moldings, especially the decorated horizontal part that rests on top of columns in classical buildings.
From Old French 'entablement,' derived from 'entabler' (to put on a table or platform). The root is Latin 'tabula' (table, board), reflecting the function of these architectural elements as a flat platform or base supporting elements above.
Roman architects perfected this system of stacking horizontal decorative elements on columns, and it became so important that Renaissance architects spent centuries studying and copying it—it's basically what separates 'fancy classical building' from 'boring rectangle.'
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