PURPOSE: To provide an improved emergency brake apparatus for an elevator, a hoisted elevator in particular.

CONSTITUTION: An additional emergency brake apparatus is provided for an elevator including a car, a balance weight, a winding up rope, a drive rope sheave 1, a brake, a motor and an elevator car safety. The emergency brake apparatus acts directly on the drive sheave and is intended to accomplish emergency braking in the upward direction of travel of the car. A star-shaped brake element 5 located at the shaft 7 of the drive sheave 1 is permanently pressed by a cup spring 6 against an annular end surface of the drive rope sheave, and normally rotates together with the shaft of the drive rope sheave. In the event of overspeed in the upward travel direction of the car, starting-up mechanisms 12 and 6 displace an arresting bolt 11 between spokes of the star- shaped brake element, block the brake element and thus produce an appropriate braking torque by means of braking plates bearing at the annular end surface. The braking torque can be greater than by an order of magnitude than the braking torque which can be produced by the normal operating brake.