Column Terms

When one thinks of columns, it is usually of the Classical Greek and Roman styles. But while these eras brought columns to the forefront of architectural discussion, columns had been used in ancient Egypt, though they were much larger in diameter and lacked the grace and elegance columns would attain in Hellenic times.

There are three main parts to classical columns:

1. The base is, as the name suggests, at the bottom of the column. Bases can be very plain or quite ornate. In the case of Doric columns (see below), there is no base at all.

2. The shaft of the column is the largest and main part of the column. It is the thin, cylindrical portion that runs from bottom to top.

3. The capital is the decorative cap on top of the column shaft. It sits between the shaft and the roof.

While there are numerous differences in the different column types, the surest way of telling what kind of classical column you have on your hands-or more likely, looming above you-is by looking at the "capital." Of the classical columns, there are three types:

Doric columns are characterized by having twenty flutes that come to a point, a shaft with no base, and a plain, disk-like, capital. The height of the column, traditionally, would be approximately 5 1/2 the width of the column.

Ionic columns are more ornate in their decoration than Doric. Ionic columns are identified by the scroll-shaped ornaments at the capital, which resemble ram's horns. The Ionic column rests on a rounded base.

Corinthian columns are the most decorative of the classical columns. The capitals have ornate flower carvings below a small scroll.

There are two lesser known types of classical orders: the Tuscan and the Composite. The Tuscan order has a plain shaft, a simple capital and base. The Composite order is a combination of the Ionic and Corinthian orders.

More information on columns