in architecture, a concave part or ring of a column, lying above or below the flat member. The French call it le conge d'en bas, or d'en haut; the Italians, cavo di basso, or di sopra; and also, il vico di basso. The apophyge originally was no more than the ring, or ferril, at first fixed on the extremities of wooden pillars, to keep them from splitting; which afterwards was imitated in stone.