POST, a stake or piece of timber set upright. Posts are used both in building and in fencing ground. In brick-buildings much of the strength of the fabric depends on the nature of the posts; as it is through them that the several parts are sustained and held together. The corner posts are called the principal posts; those formed into breastmusters between principal posts for strengthening the carcase of the house are called the prick-posts. Posts which are to be set in the ground ought to be well seasoned and coated to preserve them from rotting; burning the downward end has been recommended as an excellent preservative, but a coating of pitch or tar, particularly the late invented coal-tar, can be most safely relied upon. For the various uses to which posts may be applied, and the form and species of them fittest to be employed in each case, see the articles ARCHITECTURE, JOINING, GARDENING, HOUSE, FENCE, &c. In architecture and sculpture, POSTS are a term used to denote certain ornaments formed after the manner of rolls or wreathings.