Orders of architecture

Each Greek temple was designed in one of three architectural styles: the Doric, the Ionic and the Corinthian. These styles were called “orders”. An order consisted of the base, its column, and the capital, and the roof, which it supported. In the orders, as in all Greek sculptures, the proportions of the parts determined the design.

The Doric order predominated on the mainland. The acknowledge masterpiece is the Parthenon (448-432 B.C.) crowning the Athens Acropolis. A thick Doric column, like those of the Parthenon, had to bear a study cross beam divided up into simple alternating blocks of sculpture and blank stones. The Doric capital ended in a sturdy, flat slab.

The Doric columns are about five and a half diameters high. There are 20 elliptical flutes, separated by sharp edges. The height of the entablature is rather more than twice the diameter of the column. There were two Doric suborders: Roman and Greek. Roman Doric had a base and was less massive.

The Ionic order originated in the cities on the islands and coasts of Asia Minor. It features capitals with spiral volutes (scrolls), a more slender shaft with quite different fluting, and elaborate and curvilinear lines. There were 24 semi-circular flutes, separated by flat fillets. The columns are eight-nine diameters high and a little more than two diameters apart.

The Ionic order was used inside the Propylaea (begun 437 B.C.) and in the Erechteum (begun 421 B.C.) both on the Athens Acropolis. The beam of the Ionic order was more delicate than the Doric. Its fascinating entablature has continuous frieze, usually dentils in the cornice. Its base is molded.

The Corinthian order, a late development, introduced Ionic capital elaborated with acanthus leaves. It has the advantage of facing equally in four directions and it’s therefore more adaptable than Ionic for corners. It was the richest and most elegant of all the three styles, invented around 420 in the rich merchant city of Corinth. The design may have originated in Egypt, becoming more realistic with the time.

A simplified version of the Roman Doric is the Tuscan order with a less decorated frieze and no mutules in the cornice. The columns have no fluting. There are also fewer moldings. The Composite order is also a late Roman development, featuring a Roman combination of elements from both the Doric and Corinthian orders. The order is a version of the Corinthian.

Vocabulary:

1) roof – крыша;

2) determine – определять;

3) predominate – господствовать, преобладать;

4) thick – толстый;

5) have to – должен;

6) bear (bore, bore) – нести, выдерживать, подпирать;

7) flat – плоский;

8) flute – каннелюра, желобок, выемка;

9) edge – край;

10) suborder – подразделение;

11) volute – волюта, спираль, завиток;

12) slender – тонкий, стройный;

13) shaft – колонна, столб, вал;

14) elaborate – украшать;

15) fillet – поясок, углубление, полоска;

16) dentil – дентикула;

17) mo(u)ld – форма, формировать;

18) advantage – преимущество.

14. Answer the questions.

1. What is the order?

2. What are the parts of the order?

3. What was used in the construction of the Parthenon?

4. What is the height of the Doric columns?

5. What is the difference between the Roman Doric and the Greek Doric orders?

6. What are the characteristic features of the Ionic order?

7. Where was the Ionic order used?

8. What is the advantage of the Corinthian order?

9. Where was the Corinthian order invented?

10. How do the Roman Doric order and the Tuscan order differ from each other?

15. Compare the elements of the three orders:

the entablature;

the capitals;

the column;

the base.

16. Make up your own story of Greek orders. Use these phrases as the plan.

1. Doric:

a) was designed in ;

b) were called;

c) consisted of;

d) as in all Greek sculptures;

e) on the mainland;

f) the acknowledged masterpiece;

g) ended in.

2. Ionic:

a) on the islands and coasts;

b) spiral volutes;

c) was used;

e) fascinating entablature.

3. Corinthian:

a) a later development;

b) more adaptable for corners;

c) the most elegant.

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