Three Main Greek Architectural Column Designs: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian

2. Three Main Greek Architectural Column Designs Greek architecture is comprised of three main column designs: doric, ionic, and corinthian As you can tell from many Greek structures, Greeks used columns in a lot of their structures Each design is unique in its own way In modern day, these column designs are still used

3. Doric Columns Of the the three Greek columns, Doric are the simplest The column has a top made of a circle and topped by a square The tall part of the column is plain and has twenty sides Doric columns have no sides

4. Ionic Columns Ionic columns are taller than Doric columns Ionic columns also had flutes, flutes are lines carved into the columns from top to bottom The bases of Ionic columns are large and looks like set of stacked rings Ionic columns have scroll shaped carvings at the top and are more decorative than Doric columns

5. Corinthian Columns Corinthian columns are the most decorative The top of the columns are carved into flowers and leave below a small scroll The base of Corinthian columns are the same as Ionic columns

6. Examples of Doric Columns One major example of Doric columns on a Greek structure is of the Parthenon in Greece The Parthenon is one of the most famous buildings on Earth The Hephaisteion, in Athens, is another good example of Doric columns

7. Examples of Ionic Columns An example of Ionic columns would be the Temple of Athena in Athens The Temple of Athena is one of the most famous Ionic buildings ever Many modern day buildings also use Ionic columns

8. Examples of Corinthian Columns A good example of a building with Corinthian columns is the Temple of the Sybil in Rome Romans used Corinthian Columns like the Greeks did

9. Origin of Doric Columns Doric columns originated within Greece and were used by both Greece and Rome Doric columns were originally made of wood

10. Origin of Ionic Columns Ionic columns were invented Ionia, the southwestern coastland and islands of Asia Minor, settled by Ionic Greeks Ionic columns were practiced in the mainland of Greece and were most popular between 750 B.C. and 480 B.C. in Ionia

11. Origin of Corinthian Columns The name Corinthian is derived from the Greek city of Corinth Although, Corinthian columns first appeared in Athens

12. Greek Construction Methods Greeks constructed their buildings with specific methods Greeks would lay their masonry and then cut it exactly how they wanted it They used a coating composed of marble dust and lime

13. The Valley of Temples The Valley of Temples consists of seven Greek temples located outside the city of Agrigento, Sicily The temple of Concordia is the best preserved in the Valley and is one of the largest and best Doric style temples still standing Some other temples include the Temple of Juno and the Temple of Heracles

14. Temple of Hephaestus Located to the North of Acropolis, the Temple of Hephaestus is the best preserved Greek temple in the world The Temple of Hephaestus was dedicated to Hephaestus, the Greek god of metal working The Temple of Hephaestus was designed by Ictinus, one of the architects who also worked on the Parthenon

15. Paestum Temples Paestum is an ancient city in southern Italy home to three well-preserved Greek temples The oldest temple is the Temple of Hera, built around 550 B.C. by Greek colonists The next temple was built about a century later and was also dedicated to Hera, the goddess of marriage and childbirth The third temple is the Temple of Athena, which was built in about 500 B.C.