Orders of architecture

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(§1) The first step in architecture was simply the replacement of wooden pillars with stone ones, and the translation of the carpentry and brick structural forms into stone equivalents. This provided an opportunity for the expression of proportion and pattern. This expression eventually took the form of the invention or evolution of the stone “orders” of architecture. These orders, or arrangements of specific types of columns supporting an upper section called an entablature, defined the pattern of the columnar facades and upperworks that formed the basic decorative shell of buildings.

(§2) The Greeks invented the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders. The Romans adapted all the Greek orders and also developed two orders of their own, the Tuscan and the Composite (Fig 3.1.).

(§3) The oldest order, the Doric, is subdivided into Greek Doric and Roman Doric. The first is the simplest and has baseless columns as those of the Parthenon. Roman Doric has a base and was less massive.

(§4) Both the Doric and the Ionic order appear to have originated in wood. The Temple of Hera in Olympia is the oldest well-preserved temple of Doric architecture. It was built just after 600 BC. The Doric order long remained the favourite order of the Greek mainland and western colonies, and it changed little throughout its history. The Ionic order evolved later, in eastern Greece. About 600 BC, in Asia Minor, the first intimation of the style appeared in stone columns with capitals elaborately carved in floral hoops. The order was always fussier, less stereotyped than Doric. The Ionic temples of the 6^th century exceed in size and decoration even the most ambitious of their Classical successors. Such were the temples of Artemis at Ephesus in Asia Minor and the successive temples of Hera on the island of Samos.

(§5) The Corinthian order originated in the 5^th century BC in Athens. It had Ionic capital elaborated with acanthus leaves. In its general proportions it is very like the Ionic. For the first time the Corinthian order was used for temple exteriors. Due to its advantage of facing equally in four directions it was more adaptable than Ionic for corners. There are not many Greek examples of the Corinthian order. The Romans widely used it for its showiness. The earliest known instance ofthe Corinthian order used on the exterior is the monument of Lysicrates in Athens, 335/334 BC.

(§6) A simplified version of the Roman Doric is the Tuscan order which has a very plain design, with a plain shaft, and a simple capital, base, and frieze. The Tuscan order is characterized by an unfluted shaft and a capital that only consist of an echinus and an abacus. In proportions it is similar to the Doric order, but overall it is significantly plainer. The column is normally seven diameters high. Compared to the other orders, the Tuscan order looks the most solid. It has a less decorated frieze and no mutules in the cornice.

(§7) The Composite order is also a late Roman invention, combining the volutes of the Ionic with the leaves of the Corinthian order. Until the Renaissance it was not ranked as a separate order. Instead it was considered as a late Roman form of the Corinthian order. The column of the Composite order is ten diameters high.

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