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202
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proceeds in a diagonal line, a spiral horn or volute, the twoat each angle meeting under the abacus, which they support;two similar though smaller ones emerging from the centralleaves, meet under the centre of the abacus, and are sur-mounted by a small flower, called the flower of the capital.
The abacus is square in its general plan, or rather is of suchform as may be inscribed in a square; the sides are concave,curving out towards the angles, but the points which wouldbe formed by the intersection of the curves, are most usuallycut off; sometimes the corners are pointed, but rarely. Thisshape of the abacus arises out of the form of the capital,which recedes in the centre of each side, and projects at theangles ; the abacus does not overhang the capital. Themouldings consist of a cavetto, fillet, and echinus, the firstand last of which are sometimes enriched.
The proper Corinthian base differs from the Ionic or Attic,in having two smaller scotise separated by two astragals;both bases, however, are used indiscriminately, and perhapsthe Attic is more generally employed—it was preferred bothby Palladio and Scamozzi.
1 I The above may be considered as a description of the stan-j dard form, for the details of the order vary to a very con-| | siderable extent in the different examples, to such an extent,i indeed, that there are scarcely two ancient examples alike.
: The ornamentation of the capital differs very greatly in the{ Greek and Roman examples ; in the former, the leaves haveangular points, and are almost straight on the sides, while in thelatter they are altogether of a more rounded form, in fact theGreek leaves were more harsh and stiff, and have the naturalcharacter of the acanthus, whereas the Eoman are moreartificial. In the Temple of the Winds, which is a veryearly, if not the earliest specimen remaining, the upper rowof leaves, if it may be said to have more than one row, is| merely carved upon the vase, and consists of broad flatleaves, which have been named from their appearance, water-leaves ; there are no volutes, and in consequence the abacusis not curved, but is merely a square block; add to this theabsence of a base, and you will perceive at once that this speci-men disagrees almost entirely from the description above given.In the temple of Vesta at Rome , which is probably copiedfrom that at Jackly near Mylasa , the lower range of leaves,instead of following the line of the shaft as usual, projectbeyond it. The monument of Lysicrates is a beautifulthough small specimen, and differs materially from any ofthe above; in short, every example, whether Greek or Eoman,has its peculiarity.
The height of the abacus is one-seventh, the lower andupper tier of leaves each two-sevenths ; and the caulicoliand volutes, which spring from the stalks between every twoleaves in the upper row, the remaining two-sevenths of thediameter: the breadth of the capital at the bottom is one,and each diagonal of the abacus two diameters of the column.
Vitruvius makes no mention of obtunding the corners ofthe abacus, as is generally practised by the ancients as wellas the moderns : we are therefore led to suppose, that eachpair of the four faces of the abacus were continued till theymet in an acute angle at each corner, as in the temple ofVesta, at Eome, and in the Stoa, or Portico, at Athens .The division of the capital is the same as is frequently usedby the moderns; but the entire height is generally made one-sixth more than the diameter of the column, while that ofthe column is ten diameters.
This order does not appear to have had any appropriateentablature in the time of Vitruvius ; for, in book iii. chap. i.he informs us, that both Doric and Ionic entablatures weresupported by Corinthian columns ; whence it appears thatthe columns constituted the order, and not the entablature.
“ The Corinthian,” says he, “ has no cornice, or otherments peculiar to itself, but has either triglyphs, nlutU p 0 j-icthe cornice, and gutt® in the epistylium, as in , e0 til 9order ; or otherwise, the zophoras is ornamented, and eare disposed in the cornice, as in the Ionic .” p
This observation of Vitruvius regarding the u se t [ ia tDoric entablature, is no less extraordinary in itself,_it is unsupported by any ancient examples ; but hisconcerning the Ionic , is verified in many instances; as ^temple at Jackly near Mylasa , the temple of Vesta .Tivoli, and that of Antoninus and Faustina at K° ine ’ . ia darch of Adrian at Athens , the Incantada at Salome®^, ^the portico of Septimius Severus
thian columns supporting an entablature of » P”" tl> 6species. This consists of architrave, frieze, and c° rnl ’ 0 xfifirst of which is divided into three faces, the l0 ", r t S t,veeD much narrower than the upper two, with mouldings b^ £jj e t,each ; the upper surmounted by an astragal, ogee, a 11 . ^ gS ethe middle by a small ogee, and the lower by a bead , ^d,mouldings were frequently plain, but sometimes ellt iv , a 3more especially the two last-mentioned. The r ' e « !rl u ,e3 'sometimes plain, sometimes enriched with sculptured h u iPfoliage, or other ornamentation. The most striking P^ g 0 (arities are to be observed in the cornice, which c° n ® a iidthe denticulated band of the Ionic , supported byastragal enriched, and surmounted by an enriched putand echinus ; over these are the mutules of the D° jtheir proportion is changed, and their figure convei t pea console, which shows upon the ends and sides of ea( ^j e s i 11bottom being covered with a foliated leaf. Thethis application, are called modillions, and suppoit 1 . , v itl>which consists of the same mouldings as the *° n ’ B J a tin 1,Joccasionally a greater amount of enrichment ; the c) ofis often decorated with lions’ heads, to serve as s r pe®®gurgoyles. This entablature does not appear to - ce otin use in the time of Vitruvius , since he takes no n ® vor tli/ 0though very particular in many other points less ' l0 1)®attention. The cornice here specified, is notfound in most of the ancient buildings of Italy , hut isin all the celebrated works of Balbec and Palmyra- a ffec teiThus the Romans, and other contemporary nation ’ ^tu 1 ' 3 ’to give the Corinthian order an appropriate on ‘ ^ a ls®though the Ionic was sometimes employed. ” e . ^ jpodnanother form of cornice introduced occasionally, nj 1 ( , 0 jpol e: ’lions consisting of *— «i..;.. o
without any baud
two plain faces,below, either plain
id-
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or d ^ee«J
Examples of this are only to be found in the g
Nero, at Rome, and the Poicile, or Portico , at A^ j Bsome instances, an uncut dentil baud is substitu ’
of dentils, and in the temple of Antoninus anboth dentils and modillions are omitted. ..jo-iiia^
The above disposition inverts the order of the o o®as well as the description given by Vitruvius . , g j 0
trvi* ttu guvu k/j • --vU‘r»nS ^ f
example where dentils are placed above modal 1 ’ j±tb e . 6seco-nd cornice of the Tower of the Winds , pr»® ^although Vitruvius seems to assert that the conof placing the modillions uppermost, was ne^ efnP arby the Greeks. It is certain that the R 0111 ^ j n the ^
in
modillions in the latter position, as is evidence Qpies of Jupiter Tonans and Jupiter Stator , asForum of Nerva .
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orurn ot iNerva, o be '
If the entablature be enriched, the shaft slio ^ jjv
™ “‘“uiaiuio uc CUUV.UCU, “ .for 9
it be composed of variegated marble , .p j eC o* ^
urs confuses even a smooth surface ; an ir h g re_ a ,_ a i in a ® u
unless :of colours i
the ornament increases the confusion indegree.