Transom (architecture)

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In architecture, a transom is a transverse horizontal structural beam or bar, or a crosspiece separating a door from a window above it. (This contrasts with a mullion, a vertical structural member.) Transom or transom window is also the customary U.S. word used for a transom light, the window over such a crosspiece. Speakers of British English usually call such a transom light a "fanlight". Fanlights often have a semi-circular shape, especially when the window is segmented like the slats of a folding hand-fan. A prominent example of this occurs at the main entrance of 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

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