Short answers, pulled from the story.
The monument of Thrasyllus in Athens stands as the earliest known example of an attic style. This structure defined a storey or parapet rising above the cornice of a classical façade.
Ancient Rome adopted the attic form extensively for public monuments and civic structures. Builders utilized triumphal arches to display inscriptions or bas-relief sculptures within these elevated spaces.
Italian revivalists reimagined the attic as a complete story pierced with windows during the 16th century. Andrea Palladio implemented this transformation in his works across Vicenza.
Decorated attics featuring pinnacles appear throughout castles in Kraków, Gdańsk, Poznań, Lublin, Tarnów, Zamość, Sandomierz, and Kazimierz Dolny. Krasiczyn Castle offers one of the best examples of a rich Italianate attic design.
The usage of Attica style pilasters became current on top story façades during the 17th century. By the 18th century, the meaning shifted to describe the space behind the wall of the highest story.