5 8 The Ordonnance of the Part II.

Chap. II. Curve-line* The First Way, which is after VitruYius , is most inUse. Scambzgj likes neither of these Sorts of Flutings, as not ac-counting them graceful: however, they are much in Use, and Vi-truYius fays they are particular to the Doric Order: He also affirms,that instead of Flutings, they sometimes make twenty Cants, whichthey leave quite flat, without any Cavity. There are but fewExamples of these canted Columns, nor can they have a goodEffect, it being impossible, but that Angles so blunt as those madeon the Periptery by the Lines of two Sides, each of which has butthe twentieth Part of the Circumference of the Circle, should ap-pear confus’d and disagreeable, through the Difficulty, there is, ofmaking the Separation of the two Faces sufficiently visible and di-stinct. On this Account it is, I prefer the Flutings of VitruYius ,whose Cavity is described by the Center of the Square, beforethose made from the Point of the Triangle 5 because the former be-ing deeper, the Angles of the Flutings are more acute, and theFlutings, by consequence, more distinct and conspicuous.

Capital. The Heights of the Members of the Capital are found by part-ing its whole Height, which is half the Diameter of the Columnbelow, into three as in the Tuscan , giving one to the Abacus; one tothe Ovolo, with the three Annulets beneath, which are in the placeof the Astragal in the Tuscan Capital; and leaving the other thirdPart entirely to the Gorgerine or Neck; whereas, in the Tufcan ythe Ovolo possesses one entire Third, and the Astragal and Filletunder it, are taken out of the part allowed the Neck. I have imi-tated VitruYius^ whom most of the Modems have also followed.<Palladio , Scamosgi, and Alhert't prescribe other Proportions: Albertimakes the whole Capital near half as high again as VitruYius , andgives also the principal Members, Proportions quite different fromhis. Talladio and Scamo^i y though they alter not the Height ofthe entire Capital, yet they enlarge that of the Abacus, and lessenthat of the Neck. Both the one and the other have Precedents inthe Works of Antiquity 5 for, at the Coliseum , the whole Capital iseight Minutes and three Quarters higher than that of VitruYius ; Inthe Theatre of Marcellus , it is only three Minutes higher : but, inthe latter, the Proportions of the Members, with respect to eachother, are more different from thole of VitruYius , than thole of theColiseum are, the Abacus being much greater in Proportion, and theQuarter-round much less.

The Heights of the lesser Mouldings are also found by dividingand subdividing into Three : for, the whole Abacus being dividedinto three, the upper Part is given to the Cima or Ogee, and thisbeing again divided into three, one is allowed to the Fillet, theother two for the Moulding. So likewise that part between the A-

bagus