"Crosette Corner" Period Door Casing

An example with some discussion of a wide-shoulder door casing from the Georgian period in American architecture. January 19, 2011

Question
I am looking for any information or additional photos of this style of door casing treatment. I have seen a few incarnations of it in photos of the White House and even in old movies, but never a good enough image to actually determine how it is put together exactly.

My research has given me the following names for this door/window casing treatment:
1. Crossette
2. Greek Ear
3. Dog Ear/Leg
4. Shouldered Architrave
5. Kneed Architrave

Seems to be in the realm of neo-classical and Federal/Georgian period. I want to combine the shouldered aspect (perhaps with an added back-band) of this style with the more Victorian/Craftsman style elements of cap molding - head casing and parting bead.

Forum Responses
(Cabinet and Millwork Installation Forum)
From contributor D:
I don't know much about it, but simplifying would be easy with a backband with large rabbet, and just adjust the reveal on the casing to get the shoulders.




From contributor P:
I've always described it as a "shouldered casing." In my opinion, it needs to always be balanced with a plinth that is slightly larger than the shoulder to give it a proper anchored look. Overall, they are pretty straightforward to construct.


From Gary Katz, forum technical advisor:
Most of the books I have refer to that design as a crosette or crosette corner. It's not seen on Federal homes, but on Georgian homes frequently (hence The White House). In fact, it's an identifying element that's consistent enough to rely on if you're trying to distinguish between Georgian and Federal styles (along with two-part mantelpieces). Federal casing is more often neo-classical, using fluted casing with rosettes to mimic classical columns.

I like these crosette corners a lot, too. I've seen them at museums recently, which is kind of fun. The Getty remodeled the original museum in Malibu a few years ago, and they decorated doorways with that style of casing. It's a pretty sharp look and can be taken to extremes very easily with multiple backbands. One cool thing is that you can avoid a big miter in the face of the casing - just butt joint the casing in a trabbeated design (let the head casing project beyond the leg), then miter the backband around the offset. Simple to do, but a nice complex look.