I'm Calder Loth, architectural historian, and I'm pleased to welcome you to part
two of our four-part educational series on classical architecture. (music) (music) The first session of this series focused
onto the distinguishing features of the five orders of Roman classicism. This session will be devoted to Greek
classicism or what we might think of as the other classical style. In the first session we
discuss Palladio's parallel, ionic volutes and his use of
Eustyle spacing of columns. We heard about Vignola and the mutual
or Doric order and we learned about Scamozzi and the angle volute ionic order. These and other Renaissance architects
all dealt exclusively with Roman versions of the orders. Why? Because that
was what was all around them. They just had to step into their front
doors and find plenty of Roman examples to study and to incorporate
in their treatises. Their treatises provided much of the
material for later publications, particularly 18th century English ones, and these English treatises and pattern
books became references for builders in the American colonies. So colonial mansions such as Drayton Hall
had only Roman orders and details for embellishments. For instance, this Drayton Hall window uses a Roman
Ionic frame based on an English pattern book design. Thomas Jefferson worked
exclusively with Roman orders, which as we saw were applied to the
various facades in his design for the University of Virginia. Greek ruins were not dealt
with by Renaissance architects
because they weren't easily accessible. Moreover, the few Greek temples in Italy primarily
were at Paestum in Southern Italy and were remote and hard to get to, and the Paestum temples really were
archaic examples of Greek architecture, not considered fitting models for
emulation compared to those of the age of Pericles. So what about Greece? The most important and
sophisticated examples of
ancient Greek architecture were of course in Athens,
but by the 18th century, Athens had dwindled almost to a village. Unless you were interested
in architecture, there was
little reason to go there. In addition, with the fall of the Byzantine empire in
1453 Greece became part of the Ottoman empire and the Turks did not
welcome visitors from the West. However, in 1751 two British architects, James Stuart and Nicholas Revett obtained
permission to make an expedition to Greece. For the next four years,
they studied, measured, drew, and documented Greek ruins
in Athens and nearby. The fruit of their efforts
was the antiquities of Athens. Published in three volumes
over a 33 year span. This was one of the most influential
and certainly one of the most beautiful treatises on architecture ever produced. Let's look at one example to see
how Stuart and Revett worked. This is the Hephaisteion temple in Athens, among the best preserved of Greek temples. It was dedicated to Hephaestus,
the god of fire and iron making. His Roman equivalent is Vulcan. Stuart and Revett mistakenly thought
the temple was dedicated to Theseus, the legendary slayer or the Minotaur.
That's why it's often called the Theseum. Stuart and Revett first documented the
temple with sketches and watercolors as they found it. The drawings would then be made
into engravings for publication. From their studies, they would also make drawings of
the temple in restored condition , as it looked originally. For this one temple, Stuart and Revett published
30 engravings including plans, sections, and details, details showing all the
sculpted decorations. These illustrations, especially those depicting the
temple in restored condition, had profound influence. This conveyed for the
first time the honest, virile beauty and sophistication
of Greek classicism. Such images provided design
resources for new works, launching the Greek revival, a movement that swept Europe and America
in the first half of the 19th century. This new style was particularly popular
because of its association with Greek culture: its art, philosophy, and literature. Moreover, it was a formal acknowledgement that
Greek classicism had an integrity all its own. Stuart and Revett's illustrations brought
about innumerable Greek revival works. The elevation, for example, inspired many imitations of its Hexa
style or six column portico of massive Doric columns on both
sides of the Atlantic. These include Grange Park, an
English country house seen here. Andalusia near Philadelphia,
the home of Nicholas Biddle, one of the first Americans
to travel in Greece. A school for deaf and blind
children in Virginia. And a Methodist church in Charleston, South Carolina to cite just a few The Greek revival style was first
practiced in America by British architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe, who emigrated to the US in 1796. Latrobe arrived well-trained
in the Grecian style, which had already gained
popularity in England. One of Latrobe's first built works in
this country was Philadelphia's Bank of Pennsylvania, completed in 1798 and
unfortunately demolished in 1867. Although it had a dome
and round arch openings, both Roman innovations, its two porticoes employed
Greek ionic columns, the first known use of
a Greek order in the US. We have Latrobe's drawing for
one of the bank's capitals. While it's similar to Roman ionic, there is a conspicuous difference
which we will discuss shortly. The Greek revival caught on quickly in
this country. Indeed, it became a fad. Americans in the early 19th century
felt an affinity with Greece's ancient democracy and with the Greek struggle
for independence from the Turks. But what really spread the Greek revival
style throughout this country was the publication and easy
availability of numerous pattern
books and builders manuals promoting the use of
Greek forms and details. Fortunately, a number of these pattern books are
easily available today in inexpensive reprints. Among the most popular of these pattern
books was the Practical House Carpenter by Boston architect Asher Benjamin, published in 1830. As we
see on its title page, this book dealt exclusively with the use
of the Grecian style and it was aimed not at the homeowners, but at the
person doing the work of building: the house carpenter. Benjamin stated in the subtitle (quote)
"being a complete development of the Grecian orders of architecture
methodized and arranged in such a simple, plain and comprehensive manner
as to be easily understood. Each example being fashioned according
to the style and practice of the present day" (unquote). The book is filled with finely delineated
engravings of Greek forms and details. Benjamin devoted 12 pages of drawings
and texts just on how to craft the Greek Ionic order and its related components. By following such a guide, a competent carpenter could execute a
literate wooden version of the Ionic order for the portico of a house such as this. And here we see how a carpenter has
adapted one of Benjamin's front doorway designs for the entrance of this
same house. It's not an exact copy. Carpenters frequently would put
their own spin on a published design. We see the carpenter has used Ionic
capitals instead of Benjamin's Doric ones, but we should note that most of the
details here are based on ancient Greek examples. These pattern books were filled with
details in the Grecian taste--ideas for builders to copy and adapt to satisfy the
increasing demand for new construction in the expanding country. These included mantles, doorways, storefronts, and more. Let's now look at the premier ancient
Greek temple studied by Stuart and Revett. This of course is the Parthenon. Its exterior survived with minimal
alterations until 1687 but during a war between the Turks and the Venetians, the Turks used the Parthenon
to store gunpowder. A Venetian shell hit the
Parthenon and blew it apart. Stuart and Revett recorded the mutilated
temple as they found it in the 1750s. By then, a mosque had been
built within its ruins. They duly produced many images of the
temple's likely original appearance. Its facade was dominated by an
Octa style or eight column portico. As with the Hephaisteion, this restored elevation inspired many
new versions both in America and abroad. William Strickland's Second Bank of
the United States in Philadelphia was directly based on Stewart and
Revett's image of the Parthenon. The former US Customs House,
on new York's Wall Street, is also an adaptation of the Parthenon. Its architect, Alexander Jackson Davis, was a foremost proponent of
the Greek revival. In Europe, the Walhalla near Regensburg, Germany is a near
reproduction of the Parthenon. Its architect Leo von Klenze, believed that a large contingent of
the Dorian tribe had settled in Germany while the rest went to Greece. Therefore, a Doric temple was appropriate for what
was to serve as a German hall of fame. But we have a Parthenon in
this country too: Nashville, Tennessee's Parthenon. It was built in temporary materials
in 1897 for the Tennessee Centennial exposition. It was rebuilt in permanent materials
beginning in 1921 and finished a decade later, and it's a credible
reproduction. In Virginia, the Berry Hill Plantation mansion of
1842 referenced the Parthenon with its looming Octa style portico. Although the portico was inspired
by the Parthenon's portico, the mansion's general form had little
resemblance to a real Greek temple. The typical ancient Greek
temple was peripteral, meaning it was wrapped with
freestanding columns on all four sides. Also, most Greek temples were
placed on a platform of two
or three tall steps called a stereobate. Stereo means fundamental as in stereotype. Bate just refers to base. So this is the fundamental base
for a temple, the Stereobate. The top step is called the Stylobate, meaning the base for the
columns. Stylo comes from stylus, the Greek word for a column
or something cylindrical. Roman temples on the other
hand were generally Prostyle, meaning they had freestanding
columns on the front portico only. The portico could be two or three columns
deep as seen with the Maison Carrée in France, seen here. If the temple had half columns embedded
in its side and rear walls like the Maison Carrée, it's
called Pseudoperipteral, meaning the temple visually
implies that it is peripteral, but actually isn't. It is
pseudo or false peripteral. Also, instead of being
placed on a stereobate, the typical Roman temple was set on a
tall pedestal like platform called a podium. Usually the podium was extended forward
to frame the temple's front steps. These extended sections provided a
convenient platform for making speeches. Hence the word podium now means
any platform for making a speech. The Greek revival also prompted
attention to subtle Greek details such as moldings. Greek moldings are quite sophisticated
and are different from Roman moldings. To explain: Roman moldings are all
segments of circles. Each curve in the moldings of this diagram
has only one radius to describe it. Greek moldings are more complex. Greek ovolos come in an
infinite variety of ellipses. An ellipse requires several radii to
describe it and instead of the ovolo directly abutting the soffit of
an abacus or a fascia above it, it returns slightly to form
the prow of the ellipse. We call these quirked ovolos. Sometimes there is a small recessed
band or fillet between the ovolo and the fascia or abacus above. This serves to create a thin
shadow and emphasize the curve. And note the several radii
in this quirked overload. Asher Benjamin had a particular
partiality for Greek moldings. He offered a detailed justification of
their superiority in the preface of the Practical House Carpenter. I think it
worthwhile to read the pertinent parts. (Quote) "Since my last publication, the Roman school of architecture has
been entirely changed for the Grecian. Very few things of the same nature differ
more than the Greek and Roman creeds of the orders. The Roman orders are chiefly composed
of small and ungraceful parts and the moldings are made up of parts of a circle
which do not produce that beautiful light and shade so happily
effected by the Grecian moldings. These latter are composed of
parts of ellipses, parabolas, hyperbolas and other conic
sections and consist, mostly, of large bold parts, which are so strongly marked that each
member of the profile is plainly seen at a very considerable distance
and can likewise be executed
with less expense than the former. I confess myself to be an admirer
of Grecian architecture" (unquote). So what is Benjamin getting at? Let's look at the Greek Doric capital
on the temple of Hera in Olympia in Greece, one of the oldest surviving
examples of the Doric order. Its echinus is elliptical in
the form of a quirked overload. Notice how the edge of the ellipse
catches the light just before it returns under the abacus. In this
Greek revival mantle, the Greek quirked ovolo has a definite
highlight along its protruding edge, and this is emphasized by the deep shadow
of the reset fillet between it and the moldings above it. We see a similar effect on the mantle's
top molding, also a quirked ovolo. For contrast, let's look at a Roman ovolo
molding on an 18th century mantle. The ovolo just a plain quarter rim, vertically abuts the soffit above it. It catches no highlight. This is what was so admired by Asher
Benjamin (quote) "that beautiful light and shade so happily effected by
the Grecian moldings" (unquote). On the subject of moldings, We should note the difference between
Roman panel moldings and Greek panel moldings. In 18th century
Roman style panel moldings, the moldings that framed the
panel were cut from the panels, rails and styles. You will note that the curves of the
Roman molding profiles are segments of circles. In Greek revival panel moldings, the actual moldings are separate
members and are applied to the rails and styles. Also, you will see that the molding profiles
are mostly variations of quirked ovolos. Let's now turn to the Greek orders and
note how they differ from Roman orders. The Greeks didn't have the Tuscan, so we'll start with the Greek Doric order
and compare it with the Roman Doric. Ancient Greek Doric
columns were always fluted. Roman Doric columns were
sometimes fluted, sometimes not. I'll explain that shortly. The Greek Doric column never has a base. An ancient Roman Doric column
may or may not have a base, but renaissance in later versions of the
Roman Doric columns nearly always were given a base. The Greek Doric column is set
directly on the platform or stylobate. Roman Doric columns may or
may not be set on a pedestal. In the Greek Doric entablature, the end triglyph is always
placed at the edge of the frieze. In Roman Doric, the end triglyph
is centered over the end column, leaving a partial metope at the edge. The Greek Doric entablature
has no bed moldings or dentals. The Roman Doric can have dentals and
other ornaments in its bed moldings. The Roman Doric has an astragal
separating the capital from the shaft. The Greek Doric has no astragal. Instead it has a thin groove
between the capital and the shaft. This groove has an interesting
name: the hypotrachelion. Hypo means "under" as in
hypodermic or under the skin. Trachelion refers to the
neck as in the trachea, which is your windpipe and the
windpipe is part of your neck. So this is the groove under
the neck of the capital. So what is the reason
for the hypotrachelion? It perhaps symbolizes the
fact that columns were
originally made of tree trunks. In order to keep the wooden
column from splitting, a metal band was put
around it near the top. The hypotrachelion is the symbolic
location of that band. We see the hypotrachelion on the
National Portrait Gallery in Washington, an important Greek Revival
work by Robert Mills. The Doric order here is based
on the Doric of the Parthenon, with an Octa style portico. For another feature of Greek design, we'll looking again at the
Hephaisteion which we saw earlier. We see that it too is peripteral. That is, it's wrapped with freestanding columns. Now look at the temple's
facade in pure elevation, as we saw in this Stuart
and Revett illustration. We see that the end bays have daylight, are void between the columns. And behind the inner bays is the
front wall of the cella, a solid. In other words, the inner bays are backed by solids
rather than voids or daylight. If the end bays were the
same width as the inner bays, the light between the columns of the end
bays would create an optical illusion. It would make the end bays appear
wider than they really are. To deal with that, the Greeks made the end bays slightly
narrower than the inner or middle bays. That meant the end triglyphs lifts
couldn't be centered over the end columns, the triglyphs are at
the edges of the frieze. Greek Doric porticoes on Greek revival
buildings usually follow this rule even when the porticoes are not
on a peripteral building. We see this effect on the portico of the
Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind. Even on this Greek revival dwarf portico, we see that the triglyphs are properly
placed at the corners of the frieze. I mentioned earlier that ancient Greek
Doric columns were nearly always fluted, meaning the shafts were cut with grooves. As we see on the Parthenon here. There may be two reasons for that. The fluting is said to reference the
fact that columns were originally tree trunks. When tree trunks were used for
columns the bark had to be removed. This was likely done with draw knives
that left grooves on the surface of the tree trunk. The visual effect of the grooves was
replicated on the later stone columns, hence fluting. Also look closely at the column shaft
and you will see that it's composed of several sections or drums. This resulted in thin
joints between the drums. The fluting was a way of visually
deemphasizing the joints. Ancient shafts were often covered with
a thin coat of plaster to hide the joints, but they could still open up. The fluting helped distract
your eye from the joints. I noted earlier that Roman column
shafts may or may not be fluted. They were not fluted when the shafts
were monolyths, or one piece of stone, as are the columns on
the Pantheon in Rome. Each column shaft is one solid
piece of Egyptian granite. It would be pointless and
difficult to flute them. While on the subject of fluting, we should note that Stewart and Revett
didn't confine their studies to Athens and environs. They found time to make an expedition to
the tiny Island of Delos in the Aegean. Although they found it deserted, the Island was an important holy sanctuary
in ancient times having many temple complexes. Among the artifacts they recorded were
fragments of Doric columns that they identified as belonging
to the Temple of Apollo. Stuart and Revetts reconstruction drawings
of the temple's order showed that the columns were fluted for only two short
sections just at the top and bottom of the shaft. The greater part of the shaft, the area between the
fluting, was left smooth. Stewart and Revett surmise that this
was done because the ancient Greeks wrap the columns with tapestries
during ceremonies. We now think it more likely that
the shafts were simply unfinished. Nevertheless, the depictions of
this Doric oddity spurred imitation. One of the earliest uses of the Delos
Doric is found in the German city of Regensburg. The French trained architect Emmanuel
Heriguyen employed it for his 1808 circular memorial to the
astronomer Johanness Kepler. In this country the architect Robert
Mills took a fancy to the Delos Doric and used a somewhat attenuated version of
Delos Doric for the portico of the 1814 monumental church in Richmond. Mills took a slightly different approach
in 1849 with his massive columns on the interior of the patent office,
now the national portrait gallery. However, he elected to apply fluting
only at the top of the shaft. The rest of the shaft
is smooth to the bottom. Mills did the same for his
Washington monument in Baltimore. They put a narrow band of
flirting at the top of the shaft, but not at the bottom. William
Strickland followed suit, but in miniature scale with his Doric
stair ballisters in the Tennessee state Capitol. Now, familiarity with such architectural
esoterica can attract your attention in unexpected places. It would be difficult to say whether
the carpenter who built this front porch was aware of the Delos Doric. Even so, if it weren't for Stewart and Revett, these columns would probably
have looked quite different. I might add that nothing should prevent
the use of the Delos Doric on a building today. It is a legitimate variation of the
Doric and would stimulate interest. Let's next take a closer look
at the Greek ionic order. We noted in the first session that the
ionic order originated in the Greek areas of Asia minor called Ionia. The most famous use of the order was
the enormous second temple of Artemis in Ephesus. One of the seven wonders of the ancient
world seen in this conjectural image. The temple is long gone, but
archeological fragments remain. We get some idea of the temple scale
from this capital in the British museum. It's accurately reconstructed
using fragments from one
of the temple's original capitals, and it's a big capital. I said earlier that the Greek ionic is
very similar to the Roman ionic except for a conspicuous difference. When we put the two side by side, note in the Greek ionic capital, the drapery-like swag
between the channels, also called canals, between the volutes. This is a distinguishing feature
of the Greek ionic order. In the Roman ionic, the channel or canal extends straight
across the top of the echinus. This is a reliable way to determine
whether an ionic order is Greek or Roman. A version of the Greek ionic order, much
favored by Greek revival architects, comes from this tiny, much altered temple, formerly situated next to
the Illisus river and Athens. This view shows it as
Stuart and Revett found it. The heavily altered temple
had long been converted to a church. The temple was demolished
for its materials a few years
after Stewart and Revett recorded it. Its site is now
a busy Athens street and the Illisus river is now buried
in a culvert. Nevertheless, enough of the temple's form and
fabric survived in order for Stuart and Revett to make conjectural
restoration drawings of it. The temple was not peristyle.
It had Tetra style or four column porticoes
on the front and rear. When a temple has portico on the front
and rear with no columns on its sides, it's called amphiprostyle. Amphi
is Greek, meaning front and back. Prostyle means columns on the front
hence amphiprostyle means columns on the front and back. The appealing qualities of the Illisus
temple where its beautiful capitals and its restrained entablature. The entablature has a plain
architrave and frieze. Now this engraving shows, Stuart
and Revett's lightly drawn, sculpted figures in the frieze. They are only speculative. They didn't exist when Stewart
and Revett recorded the temple, so it may never have had them. Note that the abacus has
a quirked ovolo profile, and also a quirked ovolo
molding underlies the tenian. As I said, the temple's order was much admired by
Greek revival architects and builders. They applied it to many of their works. British trained architect George Hadfield
made one of America's earliest uses of the, Illisus ionic in the portico ofthe
District of Columbia's city hall in Washington completed in 1820. Hadfield no doubt had access
to the antiquities of Athens, since the city hall's Ionic order
duplicates the Illisus ionic exactly. The only inconsistency is the lack of
fluting on the city house column shafts, probably a cost savings.Fluting, however, was not avoided in the finely executed Illisus ionic doorway on this Washington
square townhouse in New York's Greenwich village. And this example of the Illisus ionic is
regularly seen by thousands of people. It's on the facade of the
1822 essay office building
that formerly stood on wall street in New York. The facade now graces the courtyard of
the American wing of the Metropolitan Museum. It was donated to the museum in 1924
when the building had to be replaced by a new structure. We now turn to the richest and most
beautiful version of the Greek ionic. This is the ionic of the
Erechtheion, the small, complex temple next to the
Parthenon on the Acropolis. We see Stewart and Revett's view showing
the famous caryatid porch, the priestesses of Caryae supporting
the porch roof on their heads. The temple is noted for its elaborately
ornamented ionic capitals seen in Stewart and Revett's drawing. Let's look closely at
the capital's detailing. The abacus is decorated with
an egg and dart molding. The volutes have many canals or folds
making them resemble actual drapery swags. The achaenus is composed of three
ornamented parts, a braided band, and egg and dart molding,
and a bead and reel molding. The capital's most
distinguishing feature, however, is the wide band of the neck
decorated with a series of anthemions, or stylized plant forms. This capital is found on the columns
of the Erechtheion's East Portico. We see the East front as
it exists today. However, the portico's right corner
column is a modern replacement. The original column was removed by Lord
Elgin in the early 19th century when he stripped the Parthenon of its sculpted
decorations and took them to England. They, along with the Erechtheion column and
even one of the caryatids from the side porch are now in the British museum, and are known as the Elgin marbles. Nevertheless, unlike the
other capitals still in place, the London column capital escaped the
erosion caused by modern air pollution. We can appreciate the exquisite
qualities and crispness of its carving. The Erechtheion ionic has inspired
innumerable copies and adaptations. It first appeared on a 1764
London townhouse designed
by James Stewart himself. The very first Greek revival house. Actually, the order here is based
not on the Erechtheion's East ortico, but its North portico which
is just slightly different, a bit more compressed. The North portico capitols were
also recorded by Stewart and Revett. An American example of the Erechtheion
ionic that may be more familiar is this one. It's on the US treasury department. Check your $10 bill. The Greek revival of course was
an international phenomenon. This version of the Erechtheion ionic
was utilized for Berlin's Altes Museum by Karl Friedrich Schinkel. This was one of Europe's first
purpose built art museums. Its imposing facade has a Colonnade
of 18 columns of the Erechtheion Ionic order. Well, we one-up them with the 30 column
colonnade on the East side of the Treasury Department, all employing
the ionic of the Erechtheion. This is one of the longest
classical colonnades in the world. As with nearly all classical orders, versions of the Erechtheion ionic
were mass produced by building supply companies in the early 20th century. We see an example on a porch in Richmond, but could be anywhere in the US. They are still available for
modern building supply companies. The monuments that Stuart and Revett
recorded in the antiquities of Athens were certainly not the only
significant Greek ruins. There is one highly important temple ruin
that unsurprisingly Stuart and Revett were not aware of. I say unsurprisingly because this temple
is located high in the mountains of the Peloponnese, a region into which
Stewart and Revett never ventured. Its isolated site is about
as remote as one could find. The ruin is nobly named the temple
of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae, it dates from around 400 BC. Its design is ascribed to Ictinus, one of the architects of the Parthenon. It derives special distinction for being
the only Greek temple to employ all three Greek orders. We see in
this early photograph that, like the Parthenon, its
exterior order is Doric. Because of damage suffered from
earthquakes and wind erosion, the temple is undergoing
long term stabilization. It's currently being protected from
further wind damage by a huge tent. The temple was first recorded in 1811
by British architect Charles Cockrell. He led an expedition to Bassae
not only to study the ruin, but to remove most of its sculpted
details and take them to London, where they too are now
displayed in the British Museum. Among the images Cockrell produced
was a conjectural view of the temple's interior showing a single
axial Corinthian column, and a series of side fins
terminated with ionic half columns, each topped with an unusual ionic capital. The defining characteristic of the capital
is the linking of its volutes by an arced curve. Most of the capitals had been badly
damaged by the time Cockrell arrived at Bassae. However, he was able to reconstruct
the design from fragments. One of those fragments is now on
display in the British Museum. We see the arced treatment of the
volutes more precisely in this depiction published in Charles Norman's
famous parallel of the orders. The Bassae ionic is a very rare, if not unique, ancient version
of the ionic order and one that has inspired imitation. One of the first replications
of the Bassae order was by Cockrell himself. He employed the order for the portico
inside elevations of the Ashmolean museum of Oxford University completed in 1845. The Bassae order is not often
found in this country. Nevertheless, it can give character to
a building or structure, and set it apart from the more
typical Greek revival works. Architect Daniel Burnham incorporated
a beautiful polychrome version of the order in the original dining room
of Washington's Union Station. He even used the order for the column
supporting the train platform canopies, providing a point of interest for
architecturally informed passengers. A modified version of the order using
parallel volutes was applied to the columns of the 1934 US Department of Justice in
Washington's federal triangle. The Greek order here provides a touch of
diversity amid the various Roman orders in the rest of federal triangle. They are modern examples as well. We'll now look at the last of the
three Greek orders, the Corinthian. Ancient examples of the Greek Corinthian
are very scarce and only a handful survives, and there were
never many to begin with. One of the oldest known examples of the
Greek Corinthian is a capital discovered during the archaeological
investigations at Epidaurus in Greece. The capital is unfinished and is believed
to have been a sculptors model for the capitals for the tholos, or
circular temple, in the complex. The carving is of the
highest quality. Now, the most famous version of the Greek
Corinthian order was discovered by Stewart and Revett on a small monument encased
in the walls of a Capuchin monastery in Athens. Enough of the monument was accessible
for Stewart and Revett to make detailed drawings of it, including
restoration drawings. From its inscriptions. Stuart and Revett identified the
structure as the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates. Choragic
refers to choir. Lysicrates had a choral group that
won a singing contest. The monument was erected
to honor their achievement. The prize was a bronze
trophy that originally was
placed on the fancy finial at the top of the monument. The monastery has long since been removed. We see the monument as it exists today, free standing. It's quite small when we compare
it with the figures beside it. Stuart and Revett's drawings of the
order effectively convey its exceptional beauty and we should note
that this version of the
Greek Corinthian is unique to this monument. Nothing comparable is known elsewhere. The order is similar to
the Roman Corinthian, but there are noticeable differences. The Lysicrates Corinthian has only one
row of fully developed acanthus leaves and they are interspersed with flowers. Below it is a row of stylized
laurel or olive leaves, and below them instead of an astragal, there is a groove recalling the
hypotrachelion of the Greek Doric order. And shaft that the chef
flutes flare out at the top. We see above the acanthus
leave, a swirl of helices or calicholi, and note the deep concave
Abacus with a pomet in the center. In short, the Lysicrates Corinthian is
full of vigor and movement. The Roman Corinthian by
comparison appears almost stolid. However, the Lysicrates
entablature is fairly tame, more resembling a standard
ionic entablature. Benjamin Latrobe is credited was one
of America's earliest uses of the Lysicrates Corinthian. He employed the order for the
colonnades in the original house of representatives chamber in the
United States Capitol. Now, statuary hall. On the other hand, the entablature with its modillions
is Latrobe's improvisation. Greek orders do not use modillions. This black and white photo illustrates
how closely Latrobe's capitals match the original. Additional
examples of the Lysicrates Corinthian are rare in this country,
so it's rewarding to encounter them. Architect William Strickland,
a pupil of Latrobe's, applied the order to Philadelphia's
Merchant's Exchange building of 1834. Its capitals are faithful replications
of Stewart and Revett's depiction, and we might note that the buildings
cupula is an adaptation of the monument itself. In Richmond, Virginia the portico of St. Paul's Episcopal Church has finely
detailed Lysicrates capitals. These capitals will never weather
as they are made of cast iron. The Lysicrates Corinthian can be
found on Greek revival domestic works, but only rarely. A handsome example is this house
in Middletown, Connecticut. The order was not favored for domestic
architecture because it was costly and difficult to execute. Also it was thought to be too monumental. For an alternative, we'll look at a
variation of the Greek Corinthian, one that proved to be very popular. This leads us to Athens Roman Agora. Here Stuart and Revett came across a
half buried octagonal tower in the shadow of the Acropolis. This is their
view of it as they found it. The tower has since been fully excavated, so its form and dimensions
are fully visible today. The building is commonly known
as the Tower of the Winds. It's generally thought that
it dates from around 50 BC. The name is derived from the series of
relief sculptures of the different winds in the wide frieze around the top. The tower is more officially known as
the Horologion of Andronikos Kyrrhests. Horologion means clocktower. Stuart and Revett found evidence that
its interior housed a water clock, operated from water
sourced from the Acropolis. Where we need to focus is not
so much on the tower itself, but on the surviving capital from
one of the towers original two dwarf porticoes. The capital is currently housed in
a sort of cage next to the tower, but it's a very influential
capital, as we shall see. Naturally, Stuart and Revett produced restoration
drawings showing the tower with its two dwarf porticoes intact, and we have Stuart and
Revett's illustration of
the portico's order based on their examination of the capital
and other retrieved artifacts. Most modern scholars regard the tower's
order as a simplified version of the Greek Corinthian order,
which indeed it is. It's not a separate order in the
classical canon, though for convenience, many simply refer to it as
the tower of the winds order. Its entablature resembles a generic
ionic entablature and may well be largely conjectural. Stuart and Revett's rendition of
the capital, on the other hand, is based on the surviving capital, which became one of the most
popular of all capital designs, thanks to Stuart and Revett. Their illustration demonstrates
the power of publication, since for many years, this distinctive capital was known to the
West only through Stewart and Revett's published depiction. Other ancient versions of this
capital certainly existed, but they were not recorded or published. The capital has a refined simplicity. It consists of one row of acanthus leaves, above which is a row of plain water
leaves clasping the upper part of the bell and supporting a square
abacus with molded edges. The capital was admired because it had
the elegance of the Lysicrates Corinthian capital without its monumentality. Hence, it was deemed especially
suitable for residential architecture. So it's not surprising to see it
gracing the front porch of an official residence, the Virginia
governor's mansion. And it lends both dignity and elegance
to Sturdivant Hall, and antebellum mansion in Selma, Alabama. The tower of the winds order
was particularly popular
for prestigious early 20th century houses, as we see
on this portico. In fact, this happens to be one of
America's most famous houses, Graceland, home of Elvis Presley. Elvis long felt that if he had
a dignified house like this, it would truly signal his success, and we would like to think that the tower
of the winds capitals was one of the features that drew him to it. Tower of the winds capitals also grace
a number of government buildings, so they give special
stateliness to Petersburg, Virginia's 1840 courthouse. And add decorum to the Senate chamber
of the historic North Carolina state Capitol. And we can find it in some surprising places. Such as on a masoleum in Charleston, or a country Greek revival
mantle in Virginia. Like almost all classical capital, the tower of the winds capital was mass
produced by building supply companies in the 20th century. Hundreds of examples can be seen across
the country on front porches of houses, or porches of apartment houses. They're still commercially available. Now, certainly not all Greek revival details
are strictly beholden to specific ancient examples. Greek revival architects could be
creative with their knowledge of Greek classicism and could even invent
orders. I'll show two examples. The first had little influence.
The second enjoyed much popularity. The first invented order
is Asher Benjamin's attempt
at creating a Greek version of the composite order. This was published in Benjamin's
practice of architecture of 1839. As you can see, the capital's ionic upper portion is in
the Greek style with the drapery-like swag of the canal between the volutes. It has standard Corinthian
acanthus leaves below it. Though handsome, I have
never this design executed, and to my knowledge it never has
been. It'd be worthwhile to try it. We have an approximation of a Greek
composite capital in the house chamber of the Tennessee State Capitol.
This too is an improvisation. For the second invented order, the New York architect Minard Lafever
offered a new form of Greek capital in his highly influential 1835 pattern book, The Beauties of Modern
Architecture. By modern, Lafever meant the Greek revival, which was the modern style of the 1830s. The book's plate 11 illustrates this
invented Greek capital for which Lafever stated (quote) "This is a design composed of
antique specimens and reduced to accurate proportions, with a view to render
it acceptable in many places, instead of the standard orders" (unquote). The bottom half of the capital with
its acanthus leaves interspersed with blossoms, and row of stylized
water leaves below it, resembles that of the
Lysicrates Corinthian. The top half consists of elongated
pedals that flop over the tongue. The abacus is decorated
with Greek tendrils. Lafever's pattern books sold widely and
his invented order achieved immediate popularity. The design was duplicated exactly for
the capitals of the Alabama State Capitol of 1851. A near copy of Lafever's capital is seen
on the whalers museum of Sag Harbor in New York. The museum was built as a
private residence in 1845
and has been attributed to Minard Lafever. Lafever, however, is the documented architect of Sag
Harbor's remarkable Old Whaler's church. Here, Lafever used a simplified form of his invented
order for the columns supporting the galleries. Philadelphia
architect Thomas S. Stewart adapted Lafever's capital for
the interior pillaster capitals of Richmond's St. Paul's Church. It shows that the design worked
successfully when flattened out. Lafever's order in finely carved marble
is used for the series of half round columns in the rotunda of
the Boston customs house. And finally, a psychedelic version, a capital very loosely
referencing Lafever's order. This is one of the capitals supporting
the gallery in Alexander Thomson's, St. Vincent Street Church
in Glasgow, Scotland. Thompson, also known as Greek Thompson, was perhaps the most creative
of all Greek revival architects, but he is known to have relied on
Lafever's two pattern books as sources of inspiration for his detailing. The capital demonstrates how far one
might venture into design and still remain grounded in the classical tradition. Successful free interpretation such as
this requires detailed knowledge and appreciation of the subject, and such informed creativity helps
maintain the vigor and viability of the classical tradition. The majority of the buildings we've looked
at in this session date from the 19th century, the flourishing
period of the Greek revival. It should be emphasized
that Greek classicism is and
can be an important design resource for new classicism.
To illustrate the point, we will close with three recent examples
of architectural works using Greek sources. The first is the Maitland Robinson
Library at Downing College at Cambridge University by Quinlan Terry. The octagonal cupula recalls
the tower of the winds. The portico with its paired Doric columns
is based on the porticoed entrance to the Roman Agora in Athens, as recorded by Stuart and Revett. The second example by George Skarmeas
is the new public entrance to Thomas Jefferson's Virginia State Capitol. It's modeled after the Choragic
Monument of Thrasyllus, as illustrated in the
antiquities of Athens, but with columns instead
of a central pier. The Thrasyllus monument related
to the Parthenon on the Hill, as this new entrance structure relates
to Thomas Jefferson's temple form, Capitol on the Hill. The third example is the new federal
building and courthouse in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, designed by Thomas Beeby. The stately temple front design was
inspired by the restoration image of the Temple of Zeus at Nemea in Greece. The judge required a design reflecting
the popular image of a historic courthouse, and signal
the majesty of the law. We could cite many other
examples, but the message here, especially to aspiring
practitioners of classicism is: don't forget Greece and don't
forget Stewart and Revett. So thank you for joining us in
part two of this four part series. I'm Calder Loth, and I'll see you for part three where
we will focus on the utilization and origin of popular motifs and
details of the classical language [music].
I found this very informative. The differences in details in columns from those of Roman versus Greek inspiration is neat. Since there are so many buildings that have been inspired by these I can't wait to inspect them for these subtleties.