Orders of Architecture

Last week, regular contributor and fellow blogger Jim Smith asked what the deal was with all those different types of columns and stuff in Classical architecture.

Well, the Greeks, being real smart and all, and having a lot of time on their hand as well as skilled slave labor, really got into the whole decorative post business in a big way. This is a link is to a brochure put out by Timeless Architectural Reproductions, a company in Cumming, Georgia who make modern fiberglass versions of the Greek originals. (Which were not made of fiberglass, but of stone. See? I listened in class.)

Anyway, the reason I link to it is because it offers a nice and concise explanation of the various orders of columns, including all their bits and pieces. Although they might all look like a bunch of posts, the Classical orders of architecture were a sophisticated, thoroughly thought-out system of proportion and ornament that were easy to replicate in a wide variety of locations and local materials. The system of orders was a way that the power of the Greek states could physically manifest itself, regardless of what shore it found itself on. In a way, the reliance on a set proportional pattern prefigures modern usage of prefabricated parts, or the use of prototypical building designs by national chain stores. No matter where you go, Wal-Marts all look pretty similar;likewise, Greek architecture was, and is, instantly recognizable.

The Greeks were a bit more interested in just building boxes, though. They were incredibly advanced in thinking of a building as sculpture, and as a coherent whole, rather than an assemblage of stuff. If you look at the columns, you note they have a graceful taper. It's not a straight taper, though, but subtly curved inward in a precise mathematically determined ratio called "entasis."

Doing this does several things--straight columns tend to look as though the middle is concave, so a gentle curve towards the top counteracts this visual illusion, as well as accentuates the illusion of height. And not only is this curvature found in the shaft, but entire buildings, such as the Parthenon, use a similar scheme so that the columns are not concentric, but lean every so slightly to the center of the building, and the entablature and base both rise upward in the middle with yet another slight curve that keeps the horizontal lines from appearing to sag.

Now, what about them there Romans? Well, they were inveterate adapters and innovators, and as with so many of their other cultural particulars, they adopted the Greek methods of building as their own. They did add their own simple version of the Doric order to the vocabulary, known as the Tuscan, and introduced what is known as the Composite order, which is, as it sounds like, a mixture of features from several sources.

The one thing that was a true innovation by the Romans was the arch, and its spiffier descendant, the dome, as well as a novel building material--concrete. No longer bound by the short spans necessitated by unreinforced stone beams, buildings could encompass great open spaces with a relatively light weight enclosure. Again, having an easily reproducible system of measurement, proportion, and design allowed Rome to continue the expansion and exportation of visible reminders of its culture, as well as that of its Greek forebear.

So, Jim--there you go.

(OH, and by the way--my favorite Greek architectural word is xenodochion, which is a hotel room and means literally "a container for strangers." I've stayed in places like that before.)
posted by Terry at 12:13:00 PM