Doric Columns and the Other Orders

By N.S. Gill, About.com Guide

Mathematics and proportion determine size and shape of the columns. According to Vitruvius, a Roman engineer for both Julius Caesar and Augustus, the masculine seeming Doric column's diameter-to-height ratio is based on the relationship between foot length and height in a man; whereas the slenderer Ionic column diameter-to-height ratio is based on the foot length-to-height ratio in a woman:

"As they wished to erect this temple with columns, and had not a knowledge of the proper proportions of them, nor knew the way in which they ought to be constructed, so as at the same time to be both fit to carry the superincumbent weight, and to produce a beautiful effect, they measured a man's foot, and finding its length the sixth part of his height, they gave the column a similar proportion, that is, they made its height, including the capital, six times the thickness of the shaft, measured at the base. Thus the Doric order obtained its proportion, its strength, and its beauty, from the human figure."

1. Doric Columns of the Parthenon
2. The Column
3. The Doric Order
4. Echinus and Abacus
5. Parthenon and Column Proportions
6. Optical Illusions of the Columns and Parthenon
7. Corinthian Capital
8. Ionic Capital
9. Column Technical Terms and Quiz

Previous

• Doric Columns of the Parthenon
• The Column
• The Doric Order
• Echinus and Abacus
• Parthenon and Column Proportions
• Optical Illusions of the Columns and Parthenon
• Column Technical Terms and Quiz
• Corinthian Capital
• Ionic Capital

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