ATTIC, in architecture, any portion of wall raised above the main cornice, utilized by the Romans principally for decorative purposes, inscriptions, etc., as in triumphal arches. It was de veloped in the Renaissance as an important part of a façade, fre quently enclosing an additional storey, the windows of which were treated as part of the decoration. In modern usage the word is also employed to designate a storey immediately under the roof, especially when the roof is of steep pitch.