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THE 
 
 Cftril &rrf)tetitre of ^ttrtfoms* 
 
 COMPRISING 
 
 THOSE BOOKS OF THE AUTHOR WHICH RELATE 
 
 IJubltc an& iJrtbate .Cbtfice^ of fyz &ntimt& 
 
 TRANSLATED BY 
 
 WILLIAM WILKINS, M.A. F.A.S. 
 
 LATE FELLOW OF GONVILLE AND CAIUS COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE ; AUTHOR OF THE "ANTIQUITIES 
 
 OF MAGNA GRAECIA." 
 
 ILLUSTRATED BY NUMEROUS ENGRAVINGS. 
 
 flirt 3ftttatourttJM, 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 AN HISTORICAL VIEW OF THE RISE AND PROGRESS OF ARCHITECTURE 
 
 AMONGST THE GREEKS. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PRINTED BY THOMAS DAVISON, WHITEFRIARS. 
 
 FOR LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, AND BROWN, PATERNOSTER-ROW. 
 
 1812. 
 
TO 
 
 GEORGE, EARL OF ABERDEEN, K.T. 
 
 F. R.S. P.S.A. 
 
 VISCOUNT EOMARTINE, 
 LORD HADDO, METHLIC, TARVAS AND KELLIE, 
 
 &c. &c. &c. 
 
 MY LORD, 
 
 The science of Architecture has not been deemed 
 unworthy of cultivation by the greatest statesmen 
 in the most civilized nations of antiquity. 
 
 Athens, in her progress towards the most exalted 
 stage of her brilliant career, produced, under the 
 direction of Pericles, monuments which, as they 
 have never been equalled, may be justly considered 
 as affording to the followers of the science unerring 
 principles for their guidance. 
 
 A desire to tread in the footsteps of him, whose 
 exertions succeeded in obtaining for the arts 
 of his country a pre-eminence acknowledged by 
 surrounding nations, has been an inducement with 
 your Lordship to devote that attention to the study 
 
of Architecture which has tended to ennoble the 
 science : and an admiration of the works produced 
 under the auspices of that great man, has directed 
 your steps to those sources of information as yet but 
 imperfectly explored. 
 
 In seeking to obtain protection for a work on 
 the science of Architecture, to whom could I look 
 up with such assurance of success as to you who 
 have contemplated the noblest remains of the art, 
 in the country which fostered it and brought it to 
 perfection, and whose knowledge and taste are 
 justly admitted? 
 
 A high veneration for your character, to 
 which a long acquaintance has given birth, is 
 an additional motive with me to solicit for my 
 production that honorable distinction which your 
 patronage must necessarily confer. 
 
 I have the honor to subscribe myself, 
 Your Lordship's 
 most faithful 
 
 and devoted servant, 
 
 WILLIAM WILKINS. 
 
 Nets Cavendish-Street, Portland-Place, 
 December 31, 1812. 
 
ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 IN offering to the world a translation of an author so well 
 known as Vitruvius some apology seems necessary ; more 
 especially when it is considered that besides the various 
 editions, we have already a translation in our own tongue 
 and others into those languages which, in the present state of 
 society, are considered essential in any system of general 
 education. 
 
 The first editors of Vitruvius, accustomed to the 
 contemplation of the remains of Roman architecture, and 
 wholly ignorant of the existence of any early specimens of 
 Grecian taste, have searched for illustrations of their author 
 amongst the edifices of Rome ; expecting, with some 
 appearance of probability, that the principles he promulgates 
 would be found to prevail in the buildings of the country 
 which gave him birth. Engaged in this task, they seem to 
 have disregarded his uniform assertions, that, upon the 
 architectural monuments of Greece, or rather the writings 
 descriptive of them, the basis of his work was formed. Had 
 these assurances availed, instead of adopting in their editions 
 variations from the text of the manuscripts, which the 
 discrepancy between the principles upon winch the edifices 
 of Rome were constructed, and those detailed by Vitruvius, 
 seemed to authorize, they would have sought for that 
 
coincidence in the remains of Grecian architecture which 
 was not to be discovered amongst the vestiges of the art in 
 Italy. 
 
 When it is remembered that Vitruvius is the only ancient 
 writer upon the science of architecture whose works have 
 reached our times, an enquiry into the authority for admitting 
 the various readings and interpolations may not be thought 
 uninteresting: because, if that authority should be deemed 
 insufficient, and it be made to appear that the reading of the 
 manuscripts is compatible with his avowed practice of 
 seeking amongst the edifices of Greece for the principles 
 he disseminates, the ancient readings may, in many instances, 
 be restored, and the text in some degree purified from the 
 corruptions with which the early editors have loaded it. 
 Former translators, in following the text of the printed 
 editions, have propagated these errors, which, in many 
 instances, are wholly subversive of the principles of 
 architecture our author intended to inculcate. 
 
 An acquaintance with the remains of ancient art in 
 Greece and in Ionia, obtained by studying upon the spot 
 the principles of their construction, has been the chief 
 inducement with the author of the following translation 
 to devote his leisure to the examination of those books of 
 Vitruvius, in the illustration of which such a knowledge is 
 not only particularly applicable but essentially necessary. 
 It is obvious that the objections to the various readings 
 apply almost exclusively to those parts of the author which 
 relate to the civil architecture of the ancients; for which 
 reason these alone have been selected for examination. 
 
Many of the architectural terms used by Vitruvius are 
 incapable of being expressed in corresponding words without 
 much circumlocution ; on which account it was thought 
 adviseable to retain the original terms, and to give their 
 signification in a vocabulary at the end of the work. It was 
 likewise deemed expedient to preserve the orthography 
 of the Greek words, which are found scattered throughout 
 the books of Vitruvius, merely using Italic characters to 
 distinguish them. 
 
 For the sake of greater perspicuity, the translation 
 is first given according to the text of the manuscripts, 
 accompanied by notes explanatory of the reasons for 
 retaining such parts of it as have been altered in the printed 
 copies. The illustrations of the text and explanations of the 
 plates are given at the end of the several sections. The 
 division into sections corresponds with that used in the 
 books of the manuscripts; the order of the enumeration is 
 the same, but the mode is different, the first section answering 
 to the third book of the author. 
 
 The introduction is selected from materials for a much 
 more extensive work, which the author has wanted leisure 
 to arrange and complete. 
 

 
 ERRATA. 
 
 
 Page 3 Line 
 
 12 foi 
 
 •, analogy, read, 
 
 analogia. 
 
 5 
 
 25 
 
 monads, 
 
 monades. 
 
 27 
 
 24 
 
 to, 
 
 and. 
 
 46 
 
 11 
 
 parallel, 
 
 a parallel. 
 
 70 
 
 8 
 
 a triglyph, 
 
 the triglyph. 
 
 70 
 
 18, 
 
 
 
 71 
 
 2 
 
 coronae, 
 
 corona. 
 
 72 
 
 10S 
 
 
 
 73 
 
 13 
 
 follow, 
 
 follows. 
 
 81 
 
 7 
 
 coronae, 
 
 corona. 
 
 97 
 
 9 
 
 Olympiusa t, 
 
 Olympius at. 
 
 101 
 
 17 
 
 trabs, 
 
 trabes. 
 
 104 
 
 1 
 
 Tios, 
 
 Teos. 
 
 215 
 
 17 
 
 rest, 
 
 rests. 
 
 217 
 
 5 
 
 Cyziceni, 
 
 Cyzicenoi. 
 
 222 
 
 29 
 
 palestra, 
 
 palaestra. 
 
 230 
 
 15 
 
 tridinia, 
 
 triclinia. 
 
 281 
 
 22 
 
 so placed, 
 
 two so placed 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 All nations, in an advanced state of civilization, have been 
 unanimous in their admiration of Grecian architecture ; it 
 presents, therefore, a subject of interesting inquiry to 
 endeavour to ascertain whether this sentiment of admiration 
 be excited in us by any qualities or properties peculiar to 
 the style itself, operating previously to the intervention of 
 the judgement ; or whether it be not the effect of intellectual 
 association only. By intellectual association I mean the union 
 of such ideas as the imagination has originally presented to the 
 mind, and of such as the understanding has finally combined, 
 after having compared them with each other. This species 
 of association is, consequently, never to be confounded with 
 that which may be called sensible association, by which 
 ideas, in childhood always, and often at a more advanced 
 age, are admitted without scrutiny, and combined without 
 reflection. If, then, admiration of Grecian architecture 
 result from intellectual association, it will be found to exist 
 only among men of knowledge ; and its just proportion 
 will be determined by those whose taste is the most 
 cultivated, and whose science is the most extensive : but 
 if there be some intrinsic charm, some peculiar grace, 
 
 a 
 
11 
 
 which is necessarily acknowledged and felt by all mankind ; 
 we then must look for some more general principle, which 
 will accommodate itself to this more general feeling. 
 
 It seems impossible that we should contemplate any 
 remains of Grecian taste and science, of whatever description 
 they may be, without, at the same time, adverting to other 
 monuments of other arts, and connecting them in the mind 
 with those which are immediately before us. In vain would 
 we believe that we admire them as if they stood insulated 
 and alone, while association is softening every defect, and 
 enhancing every beauty, — while memory is retracing the 
 most affecting scenes, — or while fancy is grouping the most 
 interesting objects. We can scarcely deny, then, that the 
 pleasure which is derived from surveying the ancient models 
 of Grecian architecture is heightened by ideas connected with 
 learning, with science, and with art ; accompanied, as they 
 still must be, by all the nameless charms which imagination 
 combines with the history of the Greeks, and which it throws 
 over all their productions. It is probable, nevertheless, that 
 their buildings possess certain qualities which affect us 
 independently of all these associations, and which, even 
 without them, fail not to produce sentiments of admiration, 
 and feelings of delight. 
 
 In speculating on the nature of beauty, too much appears 
 to have been attempted. Dissatisfied with looking merely 
 to peculiar results arising from certain combinations of 
 qualities, or fatigued, perhaps, by the minuteness of details, 
 we have gone on abstracting, in the hopes of discovering 
 some general principles, to which every species of beauty 
 
Ill 
 
 may be referred, and some comprehensive rules, according 
 to which every example of it may be classed; although it is 
 highly probable that these hidden properties will continue 
 to elude the test of the strictest analysis. It has been this 
 desire of generalizing which has led Mr. Burke, and those 
 who have followed him, to adopt notions contrary to the 
 plainest dictates of reason and philosophy. To the art now 
 under consideration, the principles employed by this great 
 man either are not applicable at all, or they are so in a very 
 slight degree. It is not, however, to their truth and accuracy 
 in a limited sense, but to their universal and exclusive adoption, 
 that we ought to object. According to Mr. Burke \ the 
 essential requisites for the formation of the beautiful are, 
 "first, to be comparatively small ; secondly, to be smooth ; 
 11 thirdly, to have a variety in the direction of the parts ; but, 
 "fourthly, to have those parts not angular, but melted, as it 
 " were, into each other \ fifthly, to be of a delicate frame, 
 " without any remarkable appearance of strength ; sixthly, 
 " to have its colours clear and bright, but not very strong and 
 " glaring ; seventhly, or if it should have any glaring colour, 
 " to have it diversified with others." One moment's reflection 
 on this statement suffices to shew that these qualities, so 
 far from being essential to architectural beauty, are really 
 in some measure of an opposite description. Let us take as 
 an example the most beautiful perhaps of the buildings of 
 antiquity, raised and adorned by the most celebrated artists, 
 and the whole finished under the inspection of the most 
 
 1 Sub), and Beaut. Pt. iii. Sect. 18. 
 
IV 
 
 accomplished statesman of Greece, — the temple of the 
 Parthenon, at Athens. We shall find, that although it 
 is less than some few structures of the same description, 
 it is impossible that it should ever, with propriety, be 
 characterized as comparatively small, — that it possesses no 
 delicacy of frame, but that the appearance of strength is 
 such as becomes the style in which it is built, and plainly 
 denotes the permanence of its duration, — that the direction 
 of the parts is necessarily uniform, and the greater proportion 
 of these, sharp and angular, — that the colour, although now 
 somewhat softened by the effects of time and weather, was 
 formerly the most bright and glaring which it is possible 
 to imagine, viz. the dazzling whiteness of the marble of 
 Pentelicus, no otherwise diversified than by the lights and 
 shadows produced by the various masses which composed 
 the whole edifice. 
 
 Smoothness in this as in other buildings is indeed 
 pleasing, but from a cause different from that which is 
 assigned by Mr. Burke in his Essay on the Sublime and 
 Beautiful ; for the pleasure that we have in surveying the 
 polished exterior of a building, arises entirely from the ideas 
 which it gives us of the care and skill with which the work 
 has been finished. The smoothness which is observable in 
 any finely-laboured structure may certainly impart an 
 agreeable sensation; but it is different from that which is 
 experienced in looking at the blue expanse of the Heavens 
 softly laid on the smooth surface of a lake. It is yet more 
 different from that which is felt when the eye regards the 
 smooth and delicate skin of a beautiful female. When we 
 
admire smoothness in a building, we admire it as an effect, 
 which we naturally associate with the causes that have 
 produced it. In this instance, the secondary quality, 
 considered separately and in itself, produces no sentiment 
 of pleasure ; it is agreeable, only as it is the result of skill 
 and art. This is evident from our equal admiration of those 
 parts of architecture which are covered with a profusion of 
 minute and elaborate ornament, the general effect of which 
 is an appearance only of roughness, and whose forms, when 
 viewed in detail, being sharp and angular, cannot impart an 
 agreeable sensation by any organic affection of the eye itself. 
 It must be evident, I think, that the properties and 
 qualities considered by Mr. Burke as essential to every 
 species of beauty, have been principally, if not entirely, 
 collected from the female form. Now, although they are 
 here connected with all that is most lovely, yet the real 
 source of their attractions appears to have been overlooked, 
 and this is probably to be discovered in the sexual affections 
 and sympathies implanted in our nature. Had it, therefore, 
 been practicable by classing the charms of the most beautiful 
 work of the creation, to invest in these charms every other 
 object, the choice would have been judicious ; we might 
 even have desired the success of such an enterprise ; and yet, 
 according to the present order of things, it would seem a 
 little whimsical to maintain, that feminine graces, feminine 
 delicacy, and feminine proportions, ought to constitute beauty 
 in a tree or a house. The rules which Mr. Burke has laid down 
 may be found to be just when applied to the female form, 
 but to extend them to every form in nature seems little less 
 
VI 
 
 unreasonable than if we were to assert, that every species 
 of composition ought to be framed according to the decrees 
 which the critics have promulgated for the perfection of 
 the drama, — decrees, which are in themselves sufficiently 
 tyrannical, and which, unlike the rules of Mr. Burke, are 
 formed from the analysis of a most imperfect model. 
 
 Not satisfied with having triumphantly refuted the 
 notions of those theorists who maintained that fitness and 
 proportion are the sole causes of beauty, Mr. Burke has 
 gone so far as to deny that these qualities are in any way 
 necessary to its existence. This opinion, as far as it regards 
 architecture, is erroneous : — for, although there undeniably 
 exists a real distinction between the ideas of beauty and of 
 fitness to an end, yet in a scientific art, of which utility is the 
 chief object, the full perception of excellence requires some 
 effort of the understanding, and depends, in great measure, 
 on our finding that the means employed are justly calculated 
 for the attainment of what we know to have been the 
 ends proposed : here, therefore, proportion and fitness are 
 indispensable to the sensation of beauty. Certain striking and 
 remarkable qualities, it is true, may, independently of these 
 considerations, affect all minds alike ; but this arises not from 
 their beauty, nor their proportion and fitness, but from the 
 vague and indistinct ideas which those qualities suggest of 
 the superior power and energy requisite for their production. 
 All such qualities, indeed, as tend to create ideas of thatsuperior 
 energy and power by which an elevation and expansion of 
 mind are occasioned, may be stated as the real causes of 
 grandeur and sublimity in architecture. Of these, magnitude is 
 
Vll 
 
 the principal, and perhapsonly,quality which is indispensable: 
 but its effect maybe much heightened by the solidity of the 
 materials which compose the mass ; for this verifies and 
 strengthens the first impression of the whole, and, in addition 
 to the sense of original difficulty overcome, gives an appearance 
 of eternal stability to the building. Hence, we cannot fail to 
 be struck with the grandeur of the Egyptian pyramids, from 
 their solidity and their vast extent, although the pyramidal 
 form is not in itself peculiarly imposing, as is proved by the 
 mean character of that of Caius Sestius at Rome, and of all 
 others of small dimensions. 
 
 It is not, however, only in uniform and simple structures, 
 that the qualities, which I have mentioned, are productive 
 of the sublime in architecture. A great profusion of ornament 
 is far from being incompatible with a similar result. A 
 Gothic cathedral, with its lofty and slender proportions, and 
 endless variety of parts, — or a Grecian edifice with all its 
 decorated regularity and order, will produce similar sensations 
 of wonder and admiration. Thus, although no objects can 
 differ more both in their general character and in their 
 details than the great pyramid, York minster, and St. Peter's 
 church, yet, as each possesses the efficient cause of grandeur, 
 each excites those feelings which partake of sublimity. 
 
 Mr. Burke observes, that uniformity and succession of 
 parts, as the great causes of the artificial infinite, tend mainly 
 in architecture to produce sublimity; and thinks, that the 
 effect of a colonnade may be chosen with propriety to 
 exemplify the truth of his position 1 . Doubtless the portico 
 
 1 Subl. and Beaut. Pt. ii. Sect. 9. 
 
Vlll 
 
 at Palmyra, which was two thousand feet in circuit, or the 
 peristyle of the great temple at Selinus, which was sixty 
 feet in height, must have heen eminently grand and imposing; 
 but it is not true, that the mere collocation of parts, without 
 any reference to the magnitude of their dimensions, can ever 
 prove a source of the sublime. In these instances, as in all 
 others, its true origin will be found in that quality which 
 most powerfully excites ideas of the superior force and energy 
 necessary for the accomplishment of the work. 
 
 Architectural beauty may be said to arise from the 
 symmetrical proportion of the whole building, and from the 
 fitness and propriety of the ornamental parts. This will 
 sufficiently accord with the definition of the beautiful as 
 given by Aristotle, which consists, according to him, in 
 magnitude and order; the first being a term purely relative, 
 is made to comprise the whole extent of that scale which 
 the eye is able to embrace at one view 1 . The truth is, 
 however, that general rules for beauty in this or in any 
 other practical art, cannot be fixed from abstract conclusions ; 
 but must be deduced from experience and the continued 
 observation of those qualities which have been found 
 universally to please : and by an adherence to this principle 
 the Greeks seem in a great degree to have regulated their 
 practice. Hence, the remarkable uniformity of all their 
 buildings, in which, indeed, the variations are so slight 
 as scarcely, on a first view, to satisfy the natural desire 
 of novelty, or justly to merit the praise of invention. A 
 quadrilateral form, adorned with exterior columns, in different 
 
 1 to ydp xaAov, h (/.eyeiet km rd^si g'ri. Poet. P. ii. S. 4. 
 
IX 
 
 degrees of magnificence and profusion, constituted almost 
 invariably the figure of their most splendid edifices. But, 
 although generally similar in plan, distinct varieties are 
 observable in Grecian structures ; each peculiar and consistent 
 in all its respective parts. The character of massive and 
 imposing grandeur in the Doric style, — of adorned yet 
 simple majesty in the Ionic, — and of festive sumptuousness 
 in the Corinthian, is preserved throughout the minutest 
 details of these orders. If any one deny that a sense of 
 fitness and propriety in architecture be a source of pleasure, 
 he has only to bring together some of the more prominent 
 parts of these different modes of building, in order to be 
 convinced of the incongruity that would result from their 
 union. This incongruity, although invariably revolting to 
 the eye of taste, is, in fact, perhaps only apparent ; for there 
 is nothing in the nature of the members themselves which, 
 when joined, should render them really unfit for the purposes 
 of strength and utility; but from the long observation of 
 a contrary practice, recommended by so many powerful 
 associations, we have become impressed with this notion, 
 which it is now impossible to eradicate. Having constantly 
 witnessed the employment of columns, and other ornaments 
 under similar circumstances of apparent fitness, we are 
 shocked at any material deviation from established usage. 
 Hence, that which is commonly called a skreen, or a row of 
 columns supporting nothing but their own entablature, fails 
 not to create an unpleasant sensation ; because however 
 beautifully the parts may be executed, the mind remains 
 ignorant of the destination, and dissatisfied with the propriety 
 
 b 
 
of the whole ; which indeed can scarcely suggest any other 
 idea than that of a ruin, or of some unfinished building. 
 
 Architectural ornament, if not really useful, ought in 
 its principal parts to wear some semblance of utility ; there 
 should exist, at least in appearance, a sufficient reason for 
 its introduction, although, in truth, perhaps, there may be 
 none. We have frequently seen holes, or recesses, made in 
 walls for no other purpose but that of containing columns, 
 and it is not uncommon to find little projections formed 
 by sticking a couple of columns, with their entablature, at 
 intervals along the plain surface of a building. Decoration 
 of this kind is always offensive, because it is at once discovered 
 to originate in an ostentatious desire of splendour; producing 
 infallibly, however, the effect only of tawdry and misplaced 
 finery. 
 
 With respect to columns, perhaps their great charm, in 
 addition to the apparent fitness of their employment, consists, 
 by the power of lights and shadows, in the production of 
 a species of intricacy, and in a concealment of parts, which, 
 although really indistinct, the imagination can with certainty 
 fill up and supply to itself. Indeed, the variety of surface 
 necessary to occasion this result, and the preservation, at the 
 same time, of the general harmony and proportion of the 
 edifice, may be said to form the main object of ornamental 
 architecture. The perfection of ornament, as taught by 
 those examples which educated men have in all ages agreed 
 to admire, and by which criterion alone it is to be estimated, 
 is natural and consistent : it is fixed in that happy medium 
 which alike avoids the poverty that is caused by the extreme 
 
XI 
 
 of simplicity, or baldness, and the confusion that arises from 
 redundancy and caprice. If we seek for the manifestation 
 of pure taste in the monuments that surround us, our search 
 will but too often prove fruitless. We must turn our eyes 
 towards those regions, 
 
 Where, on the Egean shore, a city stands, 
 Built nobly! 
 
 Here, — it has been little understood, for it has been rarely 
 felt; its country is Greece, — its throne, the acropolis of 
 Athens. 
 
 It has been observed, in a work replete with learning, 
 ingenuity and good sense, that as the ancient buildings 
 remaining to our time are almost exclusively of a religious 
 description, and which, having been situated in streets and 
 squares, possess all the regularity of form desirable in city 
 architecture ; and, consequently, that the effect intended to 
 be produced is such only as may be compatible with their 
 circumscribed and contracted position — it therefore becomes 
 doubtful, how far we can with propriety adopt them as our 
 guides in the embellishment of rural scenery 1 . In all this 
 there appears to be some mistake; for even in towns the 
 temples were conspicuously placed on the most lofty and 
 commanding eininencies: and in Greek towns it is well 
 known these are generally to be found; but many of the 
 most beautiful were entirely removed from the habitations 
 of men. The temple of Minerva to be seen on the promontory 
 
 1 Knight, Analyt. Inquir. Pt. ii. ch. 2. 
 
Xll 
 
 of Sunium, that of Jupiter on mount Panhellenius in Aegina, 
 and of Apollo on mount Cotylus in Arcadia, built by the 
 most celebrated architect of Greece, and still standing in the 
 depth of the same forest, and amidst the descendants of 
 those oaks by which it was anciently surrounded, are a few 
 among the numberless examples sufficient to attest the 
 prevalence of the practice in the best ages of the art. It has 
 likewise been remarked 1 , that the villas and country-houses 
 of the ancients were quite irregular in appearance, and 
 adapted to local circumstances; and, therefore, had they still 
 existed, would have furnished more just notions for the 
 construction of our own mansions. This too, as far as we 
 can learn, is erroneous. The enormous extent of the villa 
 of the emperor Hadrian, as well as of those of other princes, 
 must, undoubtedly, have comprised every variety in form and 
 situation; bearing, in fact, more resemblance to cities than 
 to individual dwellings; but there is no reason to imagine 
 that the generality of their country residences were not in 
 their exterior perfectly simple and regular. On the contrary, 
 it is evident from the minute descriptions of Vitruvius, that 
 they consisted of bare walls, without any architectural 
 ornament 2 , every thing of this kind being lavished on the 
 interior fronts which looked towards the inclosed courts 3 . 
 The villa of Pliny which appears to have been of considerable 
 
 1 Knight, Anal. Inq. Pt. ii. sect. 38. 
 
 8 The town houses of the Romans very rarely boasted of exterior architectural 
 decoration ; in all common cases such a display appears to have been forbidden. 
 Julius Caesar obtained a decree of the senate which empowered him to adorn his 
 house like the front of a temple, and to add a fastigium, or pediment, to it. Cic. 
 Phil. ii. 43. 
 
 3 Vitruv. lib. vi. c. 3. 10. 
 
Xlll 
 
 extent and magnificence, and which is described with all the 
 
 detail naturally to be expected from the partiality of a 
 
 proprietor, presents none of this irregularity; or if by any 
 
 ingenuity of interpretation, something of the kind may 
 
 be conjectured to have existed, it must have been purely 
 
 accidental, and only produced in consequence of the necessary 
 
 arrangement of the interior apartments, without the least 
 
 reference to any general or preconceived design 1 . These 
 
 buildings, therefore, cannot reasonably be supposed competent 
 
 to afford us any correct views of picturesque effect in their 
 
 composition with natural scenery; and the fact is, that the 
 
 ancients never possessed any knowledge or perception of 
 
 those qualities of external objects which are called picturesque. 
 
 It is not intended by these remarks to prescribe the exclusive 
 
 or servile imitation of any particular species of the remains 
 
 of antiquity, but merely to recommend an adherence to those 
 
 general principles of excellence on which the Greeks worked, 
 
 and which are observable in all their undertakings in this art, 
 
 whether erected for the purposes of ornament or of utility. 
 
 Still less can these observations have any tendency to depreciate 
 
 a style of architecture, the principles of which have recently 
 
 been laid down with singular feeling and accuracy of taste 2 ; 
 
 — a style, which aims chiefly at picturesque effect, which 
 
 seeks to harmonise and connect the building with the 
 
 landscape around it, and in which the eye of a painter is, 
 
 perhaps, not less indispensable than the science of the 
 
 architect ; — which is recommended not only by the intricacy 
 
 1 Piin. Ep. lib. xi. 17. 
 
 8 Price. Essay on Architecture and Buildings as connected with Scenery. 
 
XIV 
 
 and variety of its parts, but, if the expression may be 
 permitted, by an union with the vegetable world, arising 
 either from the skilful grouping of trees and shrubs, the 
 luxuriant growth of creeping plants, or the blended tints of 
 mosses, lichens, and other parasitic vegetation. To a style 
 founded on these principles, it is evident that all precepts 
 derived from the simple and regular structures of Greece 
 must be perfectly inapplicable. 
 
 It appears somewhat extraordinary, and is certainly to 
 be lamented, that the Greeks, who carried the practice of so 
 many sciences and arts to a degree of perfection which has 
 since been unattainable, should have been so little solicitous to 
 examine the causes of their rise amongst them, or with any 
 care to trace their progress. Contented with the idle fables 
 handed down from early times, and repeated with additions 
 and embellishments acquired from the imagination or 
 garrulity of succeeding narrators, their real knowledge of 
 the origin of those objects which excited their pride and 
 admiration, appears to have been vague and unsatisfactory. 
 Even the gradual changes of their language, until a 
 comparatively late period, occupied but little of their 
 attention : and their national history itself, in its early ages, 
 if we except, perhaps, the first book of Thucydides, received 
 no illustration from the exertions of rational criticism and 
 philosophical enquiry. 
 
 We may safely conclude, that the history of their 
 architecture was left pretty much in the same state, for, 
 although no Greek writer on this subject has been preserved 
 to our time, it is probable that their compositions, in addition 
 
XV 
 
 to the tales generally propagated, were confined chiefly to 
 practical instructions, or scientific refinements. Vitruvius 
 not only professes to follow the steps of the Greeks in 
 treating of his art, but all the authors whom he describes as 
 the sources from which he derived his skill and knowledge 
 are selected from among that nation. The work, therefore, 
 of the Roman may furnish a just criterion of their labours. 
 This treatise, full of varied learning, remarkable for ingenuity, 
 science, and acuteness, will not, however, afford any succinct 
 view of the progress of architecture. A multitude of 
 uncertain traditions are collected and detailed without being 
 submitted to any test by which their fallacy may be detected : 
 we are bewildered by the opposition of opinions and 
 statements, equally positive and contradictory. But while 
 we are careful not to pay to these authorities the respect 
 due to historical truth, they ought in an enquiry into this 
 subject by no means to be cast aside; such as it is, they form 
 the chief body of the information we possess : and they 
 become doubly valuable when their internal probability 
 is corroborated by illustrations incidentally afforded by 
 contemporary writers, or by the known peculiarities of 
 ancient monuments. 
 
 Vitruvius, although the age in which he flourished is a 
 subject of dispute, appears to have lived about the reign of 
 Augustus. His reputation, early established, is so far from 
 having suffered by the lapse of time, that the admiration of 
 posterity has rendered his name almost synonimous with 
 excellence in his art. His own professions teach us to 
 expect that his leading principles and precepts will be 
 
XVI 
 
 conformable to the practice of the Greeks; and, although 
 nothing has hitherto been done in order to shew how far 
 this expectation has been fulfilled, I believe, nevertheless, 
 that it waits only the result of an exact and minute inquiry 
 to be fully realised. 
 
 Vitruvius brought to the composition of his work the 
 possession of much of the learning of that period ; so much 
 indeed, as probably to embrace the extensive range of 
 acquirements which he has himself laid down as necessary 
 for the architect. To this he added a mind replete with 
 notions in a high degree fanciful and visionary, and influenced 
 by a strong bias to metaphysical distinction and refinement. 
 Hence arose the laboured dissertations on the unintelligible 
 connection of architecture and music, and the institution of 
 that scale of harmonic proportions which has exercised the 
 ingenuity of the learned, to so little purpose, down to the 
 present day 1 . Hence too arose his perception of the analogy 
 which he supposed to exist between the members of 
 architecture and those of the human frame ; a notion which 
 he has pursued to a great extent. It was this imaginary 
 resemblance which induced one of the greatest artists of 
 modern times still further to declare, that even a knowledge 
 of anatomy was so indispensable to an architect, that without 
 it he must necessarily be ignorant of his profession 2 . How 
 
 1 Galiani, in a note to his translation of Vitruvius, considers the deficiency of 
 musical knowledge as the cause of the inferiority of modern architecture. Lib. ii. c. 1. 
 
 2 Michael Angelo, Lett. 17. 
 
 — e pero e cosa certa, che le membra dell' architettura dipendono dalle membra 
 deli' uomo. Chi non e stato, o non e buon maestro di figure, e massime di notomia, 
 non se ne puo intendere. 
 
XV11 
 
 this knowledge, which he certainly possessed in a high 
 degree, influenced his own practice as an architect is not 
 very apparent; but by an affected and ostentatious display 
 of anatomical science as a sculptor, he has much detracted 
 from the beauty and grandeur of some of his most admirable 
 works. But these are dreams ; or, at best, speculations of 
 the most groundless and fallacious description. 
 
 In presenting a view of the progress of architecture 
 among the Greeks, it is not my intention to dwell on the 
 history of its origin, or to speculate at length on the 
 probable means resorted to by a barbarous people in order 
 to protect themselves from the severity of the weather. It 
 must be evident, that among all nations an imperious necessity 
 has been the parent of their first endeavours, and that 
 whatever mode they may have adopted, must have been 
 entirely determined by the nature of the materials of which 
 they were in possession. It is probable that in their 
 subsequent advances in the art these early attempts were 
 not wholly forgotten, and that something of their original 
 character was insensibly imparted to all the improvements of 
 succeeding ages. Thus, we find the dark and ponderous 
 buildings of the Egyptians resembling, in some degree, 
 the rocky caverns to which, in a country destitute of wood, 
 their troglodite ancestors had recourse 1 . The ornamental 
 architecture of Greece, in its most essential parts, bore a 
 striking testimony to the early use of that timber with which 
 the country abounded. In India we discover the primitive 
 employment of reeds and bamboo, in the lofty and slender 
 
 1 Diodor. Sicul. lib. i. c. 45. 
 
 c 
 
XV111 
 
 buildings of later times: and in China there is scarcely an 
 edifice, the roof of which is not constructed in imitation of 
 the moveable tents of their Tartarian forefathers. 
 
 Architecture, from the period of its invention, in its 
 progress to perfection must have experienced those gradations 
 to which every art is necessarily subject: for, however this 
 progress may have been retarded or facilitated by the 
 intervention of temporary and accidental causes, we shall 
 not fail to perceive the successive changes from rudeness to 
 simplicity, from grandeur to magnificence. As an ornamental 
 science, it may naturally be expected to keep pace with the 
 advances made in those arts to which it is nearly allied, an 
 improved culture of each depending mainly on the same 
 vigour of imagination and general refinement of taste. In 
 Greece, therefore, that powerful cause, or combination of 
 causes, which so early produced by the operations of genius 
 such a magical effect on the arts of design, exerted a similar 
 influence on the state of architecture, and if this were the place 
 to prosecute the inquiry, a most remarkable correspondence 
 might be traced in the respective conditions of these various 
 arts throughout the whole history of that wonderful people. 
 
 On the rude endeavours of savages in the construction of 
 their primaeval huts Vitruvius has sufficiently dwelt. But 
 on the more interesting question of the obligations imposed 
 on the architecture of Greece, by the previously established 
 practice of Egypt, he is silent ; and not only neglects to 
 inquire into this point, but appears to avoid all mention of 
 the buildings of the latter country. However forcibly the 
 different character assumed by Grecian art may incline us 
 
XIX 
 
 to doubt its Egyptian origin, it will be difficult to resist the 
 unanimous voice of antiquity on this subject ; for we shall 
 scarcely find a district of Greece without its tradition of 
 foreign adventurers, bringing to the coasts an improved state 
 of knowledge and civilization ; and whether these personages 
 are to be traced directly to Egypt, or rather to Syria, is 
 immaterial, as in that age the two countries were nearly 
 identified 1 . The vanity of some nations may, perhaps, 
 receive gratification from the fabled intercourse of their 
 ancestors with foreign heroes, and their own descent from 
 such a source. The expedition of Aeneas, and even the 
 settlement of the Trojan Brutus might be pleasing to their 
 self-created posterity ; but the proud feelings of the earth-born 
 Athenians could never have been flattered by the invention 
 of a tale which confessed their rescue from the rudest 
 state of barbarism by an unknown Egyptian, whose only 
 claim to notice is in his capacity of their legislator. A 
 confirmation of the prior advances made in the arts of 
 design by the inhabitants of the coast of Syria and of Egypt 
 is afforded by the conclusive testimony of Homer, from 
 whose expressions the wealth and magnificence of the 
 Egyptians are apparent, and with whom it is a sufficient 
 commendation of any object of beauty and elegance that it 
 should be called Sidonian. The distinctive appellation 
 which he has given to this people, is that of * skilful 
 workmen 2 .' It is true, that with the Greeks the arts soon 
 
 1 See some conclusive observations on this subject. Mitford's Hist, of Gr. v. I. 
 It must however be admitted that the silence of Homer tends, in some degree, to 
 invalidate the notion of Egyptian colonization. 
 
 2 SifovEf tfoXuJai'JaAoj. II. xxiii. 744. et pass. 
 
XX 
 
 lost the character impressed on them by their first teachers : 
 their sculpture, at a very early period, far from bearing any 
 resemblance to the timid and lifeless productions of the 
 Egyptian artists, was carried to the opposite extreme ; all 
 is energy, and spirit and nature are in a manner burlesqued 
 by distorted action and violent gesticulation. This entire 
 change was owing to the same active and enterprising 
 mind, which had enabled them still more rapidly to advance 
 their poetry to perfection, and which arose probably from 
 the general freedom of their governments, and the constant 
 communication between numerous independent states. Yet, 
 even in Greece, there was a time in which sculpture 
 unquestionably partook of that stiff columnar style, which, 
 from the remotest antiquity, prevailed on the banks of the 
 Nile, unimproved and unchanged by succeeding ages. The 
 Daedalean statues, notwithstanding the exaggeration of 
 ancient writers, appear to have been of this kind, and the 
 existing descriptions of the earliest representations of the 
 deities, with the imitations of these works still remaining 
 to our times, place the resemblance beyond all doubt. 
 Architecture too, although it quickly ceased to be solely 
 employed in the erection of operose and tasteless fabrics, 
 and became in the hands of the Greeks distinguished for 
 propriety, elegance, and grandeur, may yet be said to have 
 been, in some measure, indebted to the practical endeavours 
 of this contemptible people. 
 
 In thus mentioning the obligations of Grecian architecture 
 to the practice of Egypt, the statement must be understood 
 as limited to the mere mechanism of the art, and not as 
 
XXI 
 
 intended in any degree to detract from the just claims of 
 the Greeks to originality. If, indeed, the discovery of all 
 that is admirable, of all in which its beauty and attractions 
 consist, can sanction such a claim, we may safely place this 
 art among those which they most distinguished by the 
 fertility of their invention, as well as by the unparalleled 
 beauties of their execution. 
 
 In treating of a period far removed from the approach of 
 regular history, it is fortunate that we are furnished with so 
 unerring a guide as Homer; whose general accuracy of 
 observation and minuteness of description are such, as to 
 afford a copious source of information respecting almost 
 every thing connected with the times in which he wrote ; 
 and who, being nearly contemporary with the events which 
 he relates, and, indeed, with the earliest matter for record, 
 cannot fall into mistakes and anachronisms in arts, or 
 manners, or government, as he might have done, had he 
 written at a more advanced and refined period. 
 
 It may be right, however, in this place to observe, that 
 in proportion to the value of the historical information 
 afforded by the works of Homer, and the implicit credit due 
 to his testimony, we should be peculiarly scrupulous in 
 admitting any passage which may possibly be spurious, 
 although possessing the authority of his name. This is not 
 the proper place to undertake an inquiry into the origin of 
 the Homeric poems; but the multitude of interpolations, 
 which are known to exist throughout these admirable 
 productions, render the utmost caution necessary, especially 
 
XX11 
 
 where any hypothesis is to be maintained merely by a 
 doubtful allusion or an insulated expression. 
 
 Whether either the Iliad or the Odyssey was the work 
 of a single hand has been much doubted, perhaps with 
 reason, but certainly with a considerable appearance of reason, 
 supported by evidence both external and internal, so far at 
 least as the Iliad is concerned. The total ignorance of the 
 history, or even real name of their author, the variety of 
 great poems, amounting to more than twenty in number, 
 attributed to him by the ancients, and the contention of 
 different states for the honor of his birth, are embarrassing 
 circumstances when considered with reference to a single 
 individual. But whatever may be the fact with respect to 
 the author or authors of these poems, the great mass of both 
 is undoubtedly of sufficient antiquity to be received as casting 
 the strongest, and indeed the only, light we possess on the 
 earliest ages of Grecian history. It is against the pretended 
 genuineness of detached verses and small fragments that we 
 should be on our guard, for such only are likely to be of 
 recent introduction; and a few words on the manner in 
 which these interpolations have found their way into the 
 poems, will shew that such a corruption of the text was 
 almost inevitable. 
 
 Without stopping to inquire whether the Homeric poems 
 were consigned to writing at the period of their promulgation, 
 or whether a written character was even known to their 
 author, we may, in passing, remark the singular circumstance 
 that he who alludes almost to every occupation of men, and 
 
XX111 
 
 draws his illustrations from all their pursuits, is wholly 
 silent with respect to this valuable art, even where the 
 mention of it would have been most obvious. But laying 
 aside this inquiry, as well as the story of the labors of 
 Pisistratus in first embodying the poems, we know the fact 
 to be undoubted that they were for many ages chiefly 
 preserved in the memories of rhapsodists, or professional 
 reciters. If they were written at all, the copies were rare, 
 for by the nation in general the poems of Homer were not 
 read, but heard. The rhapsodists, often poets themselves, 
 were persons who derived their support, as well as the 
 respect paid to their character, from these recitations. Their 
 popularity must have mainly depended on the interest of 
 the parts which they delivered to their audience : hence we 
 find that the more prominent events of the poems received 
 particular names, and formed the subject of separate 
 recitations. Plato in the Ion, which is a satire on the 
 rhapsodists, ridicules their mercenary conduct; and from the 
 motives by which they were actuated, it is obvious that their 
 interpolations must have been frequent, in order that they 
 might either avail themselves of the exercise of their own 
 poetic talents, or gratify the vanity of their hearers by 
 allusions to national tales, and subjects of local interest. 
 The early peculiarities of the Greek language and archaic 
 orthography of the Homeric age, were modified by succeeding 
 reciters to suit the forms of speech prevalent in their own 
 times; and hence the facility of interpolation was much 
 increased, and the difficulty of detection proportionably 
 augmented. From the manner in which the poems were 
 
XXIV 
 
 handed down in detached portions, little read or critically 
 examined until a comparatively late period, their condition 
 cannot be considered as likely to secure the integrity of the 
 text: for copies were not usually transcribed entire, but 
 favorite parts were preserved according to the fancy of the 
 possessor. Alcibiades is said to have beaten a schoolmaster 
 who had not a single rhapsody of the Homeric poems in his 
 school. 
 
 A certain test by which we may judge of the spuriousness 
 
 of all passages is still a desideratum in criticism. The 
 
 puerilities of the Greek writers, and their ignorance of the 
 
 early state of their own language and history, is most 
 
 unsatisfactory; yet the scholia of the Venetian manuscript 
 
 of the Iliad, although published in a very corrupt condition, 
 
 and the obeli of the Alexandrian critics, are valuable. The 
 
 only certain light which can be thrown on this difficult 
 
 subject, is afforded by the early language of Greece, where 
 
 a competent knowledge of it is attainable. The Greek 
 
 tongue has shared the fate of all others ; it has been exposed 
 
 to the constant operation of gradual change. The original 
 
 Greek of the Homeric ages and of Apollonius Rhodius differ 
 
 nearly as much as the English of Chaucer and Dryden. A 
 
 knowledge of these early peculiarities is best obtained from 
 
 the evidence of antient inscriptions, the legends of coins, and 
 
 scattered notices in later authors; but more especially from 
 
 an examination of the Latin language, which being derived 
 
 from the Greek at a very early period of its existence, has 
 
 retained a multitude of archaisms and forms of speech 
 
 entirely unknown to the more modern, or Attic Greek. In 
 
XXV 
 
 restoring the actual text of the Iliad or Odyssey to its 
 pristine condition, either by the insertion of the Aeolic 
 digamma, or the application of any other rule derived from 
 the sources just mentioned, we shall frequently find that the 
 metre is violated ; in these instances we may be certain that 
 the verse has been constructed according to the usage of 
 a more modern age. This is not the place to enumerate the 
 different modes by which we may be enabled to approximate 
 to a knowledge of the pure and genuine text of these poems : 
 we may be permitted, however, to observe, in conclusion, 
 that the successful execution of an endeavour to restore 
 them to their primitive state would prove of inestimable 
 value to the lovers of Grecian literature, and to the admirers 
 of these noblest productions of human genius. 
 
 In the early stages of civilization, the main object of an 
 assembled population would be security; for the attainment 
 of which, we may remark the disproportionate and astonishing 
 exertions used by various nations in their works designed for 
 defence and protection ; exertions which, by their more 
 polished descendants, have usually been attributed to the 
 agency of a supernatural power. Hence the vast labour 
 bestowed on the construction of walls, the remains of which 
 are so common in different parts of Greece, and which are 
 the first, and certainly among the most wonderful specimens 
 of building in that country. Of these the walls of Tiryns 
 are the most ancient, and perhaps the most celebrated ; 
 Homer, in the catalogue, gives to the town the characteristic 
 epithet of t^oWou 1 , a clear proof that the walls were calculated 
 
 1 II. ii. 559. 
 
 d 
 
XXVI 
 
 to excite admiration in his time as well as in our own. It 
 is difficult to ascertain the precise date of their erection : 
 they were said to have heen the work of Lycians under the 
 direction of Proetus, the hrother of Acrisius ' ; this story 
 would carry us five or six generations higher than the era 
 of the Trojan war. In after times, however, from their 
 massive and gigantic proportions, as well as from the 
 absence of authentic information respecting them, they were 
 generally considered as having heen raised by the Cyclops. 
 The description given by Pausanias is to this day correct 2 . 
 These walls are about a quarter of a mile in circuit, and 
 embrace a rising ground of inconsiderable elevation, situated 
 in the plain of Argos. There are separate entrances, and 
 leading from one of these may be seen a covered gallery or 
 passage, formed in the thickness of the wall, the course of 
 which it follows to some extent; the roof perfectly resembles 
 that of the gallery in the great pyramid, being composed of 
 single stones inclined towards each other, forming an acute 
 angle by their junction. 
 
 In the vicinage of Tiryns, nearly coeval with it, but 
 far surpassing it in extent, are the remains of Mycenae. 
 This city, so distinguished at its first introduction to our 
 notice, remained during the flourishing ages of Grecian 
 history in a state of ruin and desolation. Tradition names 
 Perseus as its founder, but the execution of the walls, like 
 
 1 Strabo, lib. viii. p. 373. Pausan. Algol, c. 16. 25. 
 * Pausan. Argol. c. 25. 
 
 Ttsvo'eyrai Ss apywv aJ^ojv, piyebos l%wv 'sxaroj \l$os, w; aV au'raV pj'J' dv d^/j/.v 
 x^Sijvai rov jMxgorxTov 'vvo gevyu; ijfwo'yiov AiSla $g ivifffAOrai vdkou, w$ /xaXir* 
 suTU'r j'xayoy dgfj-ovixY roT; ptydXoi; tdSois hvtu. 
 
XXV11 
 
 those of its neighbour town, is referred to the hands of the 
 Cyclops. The condition of Mycenae is, I should suppose, 
 very much that in which it was seen by Pausanias, or even 
 by Thucydides five hundred years before : indeed, these 
 stupendous masses, in their present dilapidated state, appear 
 to be so indestructible as to defy the further injuries of time, 
 as well as the violence of any force inferior to that which 
 was employed in their construction. Pausanias informs us, 
 that in his time among the ruins of the walls a gate remained, 
 over which was the representation of two lions \ This gate, 
 which seems to have been the principal entrance to the city, 
 does not stand even with the course of the walls, but is 
 placed considerably within the line described by their 
 general circuit. The approach, therefore, is for some paces 
 by a sort of passage between the walls, and scarcely of a 
 greater width than the gate by which it is terminated. 
 Defence was the object of this contrivance, by which few 
 persons abreast could reach the entrance at the same time, 
 and in the attempt must necessarily have been exposed to 
 destruction from the weapons of the inhabitants stationed on 
 the ramparts of each wall which formed the avenue. By 
 the accumulation of earth this gate is buried nearly up to the 
 top, where it is not more than eight feet wide, yet the 
 lintel is one massive stone twelve feet in length. The jambs, 
 which probably consist also of single stones, are inclined 
 towards each other, the width of the opening being gradually 
 diminished from the bottom ; a contrivance by which the 
 
 1 Pausan. Argol. c. 16. 
 
 \sivirai $s opus &' km «AA« rS ite^oXs, km 13 it^kf Kzwtes Is etpsryxxTW duty- 
 
XXV111 
 
 whole building is apparently strengthened, and which 
 furnishes us with a singular coincidence with the manner 
 of Egyptian building. The walls themselves have in their 
 construction more of care and art, and, perhaps, exhibit 
 the marks of a period somewhat later than those of Tiryns. 
 For, although the blocks are nearly of the same dimensions, 
 they are fitted together with greater exactness, and have 
 been so shaped in part as to ensure some degree of regularity. 
 The lions mentioned by Pausanias are executed in bas-relief 
 on a single stone nine feet in height, and about thirteen 
 feet in width. Their heads only are destroyed; between 
 them is placed a species of small column supporting a capital 
 of a singular form, on which their fore legs rest. Whether 
 we are to view this work as possessing any mystic and 
 symbolical meaning, or to explain it as an obvious and 
 general emblem, or even as the private device and imprcsa 
 of an individual, this is not the place to enquire. It may 
 be sufficient to observe, that probably no example of Grecian 
 sculpture is to be found of equal antiquity, and certainly 
 none whose age is fixed by evidence in any degree so 
 satisfactory. 
 
 There are many walls in various parts of Greece which 
 from a resemblance in their construction, and, in some 
 instances, even in their magnitude, to those of Tiryns and 
 Mycenae have acquired the appellation of Cyclopian. 
 These may be considered as among the first attempts of 
 Grecian art : although in assigning to them generally this 
 early date some caution is requisite ; for those characteristics 
 which at Athens and Argos may properly be viewed as 
 
XXIX 
 
 the unquestionable marks of the most ancient times, do 
 not necessarily lead to a similar conclusion when found 
 in Macedonia and Epirus. Perhaps the best criterion 
 of antiquity is afforded by their massive and gigantic 
 proportions, for we should scarcely be justified in 
 indiscriminately referring monuments to these remote ages, 
 solely from the appearance of a rudeness and peculiarity which 
 may have arisen from ignorance, or even from the affectation 
 of an archaism not unfrequently to be met with. 
 
 The same motives of defence and security which, during 
 the unsettled and turbulent condition of Greece, at the first 
 dawning of its civilization, prompted the small independent 
 states to strengthen the walls of their cities with such 
 incredible labour, seem very generally to have influenced 
 these communities, as well as some of the more powerful 
 individuals, in the measures adopted for the preservation of 
 their wealth and valuable possessions. Treasuries were 
 common in Greece at a very remote period. Minyas, who 
 ruled the Boeotian Orchomenos, considerably before the era 
 of the Trojan war, is said to have been the first who erected 
 a building for this purpose 1 : and the consecration of precious 
 offerings to Apollo at Delphi is coeval with the first notices 
 of Grecian history. The wealth of the ' Minyaean 
 Orchomenos' is celebrated in the Iliad 2 : and in the passage 
 in which Achilles rejects the offers of Agamemnon, even 
 although accompanied by all the riches inclosed in the ' stone 
 
 1 Pausan. Boeot. c. 36. s II. ix. 381. 
 
XXX 
 
 mansion of Apollo 1 ,' I think it highly probable that Homer 
 alludes, not, as is generally understood, to a temple, which 
 there is reason to believe did not exist at that time, but to 
 some treasury, which, from the manner of building employed 
 in these edifices, might well deserve the characteristic 
 appellation of aainos. 
 
 Many Grecian states had their separate treasuries at 
 Delphi, as well as at Olympia. That of the Corinthians 
 was built by Cypselus the father of Periander, about six 
 hundred and fifty years before Christ. The treasury of 
 Atreus and his family is mentioned by Pausanias as existing 
 at Mycenae in his time, and there are other scattered notices 
 of these early buildings occasionally to be met with in Greek 
 writers. The artists of the heroic ages most celebrated in 
 constructing these edifices were the brothers Agamedes and 
 Trophonius, concerning whom many particulars are related, 
 but of whom nothing certain is known, and whose very 
 existence seems more than doubtful. They are not once 
 mentioned or alluded to in the Homeric writings. A story 
 is told by Pausanias 2 of their employing an artifice in building 
 the treasury of Hyrieus, which by enabling them easily to 
 displace a certain stone of the edifice, gave them the power 
 of secretly entering, and of purloining the riches deposited 
 there, at their pleasure. Agamedes was at last caught in a 
 snare placed in the treasury for that purpose ; and Trophonius, 
 
 1 'OuJ' ova. Xoi'ivos s'Wy d<p^T0^»s hrl; U^yei 
 
 po//3s 'AvoWuivis IIu^o* ht Trstpijfao-y. II. IX. 404. 
 
 2 Pausan. Boeot. c. 37. 
 
XXXI 
 
 finding it impossible to extricate him, cut off his brother's 
 head, in order to prevent his own detection. All this, 
 however, with additional circumstances of absurdity and 
 disgust, is detailed by Herodotus in the words of the 
 Egyptian priests, from whom he had the fable, and to which 
 country the scene and actors exclusively belong 1 . We 
 cannot therefore place any reliance on the tales respecting 
 these brothers, nor ought we to give more credence to the 
 greater performances ascribed to Daedalus, whose fabulous 
 existence is still less equivocal 2 . This artist, it is true, is 
 mentioned in the Iliad, but there can be no doubt whatever 
 that we should consider the passage as spurious. It is to 
 be found in the description of the shield, in which allusion 
 is made to the representation of a dance executed by Daedalus 
 in celebration of the victory of Theseus over the Minotaur, 
 and his escape from the labyrinth 3 . No part of the story to 
 which this relates is to be discovered in the Homeric poems, 
 and although it would be superfluous to lose time in the 
 detection of so manifest an interpolation, abundant proof 
 may be afforded in few words from the account alone which 
 
 1 Herod, lib. ii. c. 121. 
 
 * Herod, lib. ii. c. 148. All works of sculpture or other monuments of the 
 highest antiquity and comparative merit appear to have been called Daedalian, 
 which name signified in reality nothing more than skilful. Pausanias expressly says 
 (Boeot. c. 3.) that statues were called a«i5«ao( before the birth of Daedalus, aaiaaaos 
 therefore signified, in fact, only ' the artist.' For additional particulars containing 
 a satisfactory refutation of the ancient accounts of this artist, see Goguet. orig. des 
 Loix. torn. ii. p. 1 1 . 
 
 3 II. xviii. 591, 2. The passage in the Odyssey in which mention is made 
 of the flight of Ariadne with Theseus, has long since been universally given up as 
 spurious. Od. xi. 320. 
 
XXX11 
 
 is given of the labyrinth. If a building of this nature ever 
 did exist in Crete, a supposition probably unfounded, all 
 writers agree in stating that it was constructed by Daedalus 
 in imitation of that which he had seen in Egypt. Now 
 Herodotus, the first author who has described, and in the 
 most detailed manner, the Egvptian labyrinth, positively 
 asserts that this stupendous edifice was the work of the 
 twelve kings, that is to say, between six and seven hundred 
 years after the date necessarily assigned to the Cretan 
 Daedalus. 
 
 Perhaps the most interesting monument of these ages is 
 the treasury of Atreus, still existing at Mycenae. It is a 
 building of a conical shape, or, more correctly speaking, in 
 the form of a paraboloid, about fifty feet in diameter, and 
 rather more in height; the stones of which it is composed 
 are of great magnitude ; that in particular which covers the 
 entrance is of enormous dimensions. They are placed in 
 horizontal layers, each gradually projecting over the other 
 until they meet at the top ; the whole therefore has the 
 appearance of a pointed dome, but the mode in which it is 
 constructed denotes an entire ignorance of the principle of 
 the arch. That the interior surface was formerly covered 
 with plates of brass we have good reason to suppose, for 
 large nails of the same metal, by which they were anciently 
 fastened, still adhere to the stones in different parts of the 
 building. The whole of this singular edifice is covered 
 with earth, and presents in its outward form the resemblance 
 of a mound or tumulus. This circumstance has, no doubt, 
 suggested the appellation of the tomb of Agamemnon, 
 
XXX111 
 
 which it usually bears, and which is also mentioned by 
 Pausanias; but independently of his description of the 
 subterranean treasury, which sufficiently points out the 
 destination of this building ', the Homeric rites of 
 sepulture are too accurately detailed to render it possible 
 for us to admit the probability of such a supposition. 
 Some few remains of the treasury of Minvas are still to be 
 seen at Orchomenus; and from these, as well as from the 
 account of Pausanias 2 , there is little doubt that it was 
 precisely similar to that which has just now been described. 
 An ingenious traveller, who had never heard of the building 
 at Mycenae, and whose premature death prevented him 
 from ever seeing it, by measuring these remains and applying 
 them to the restoration of the original design, produced a 
 building, in plan differing in no respect from the treasury 
 of Atreus. The scattered notices which we possess of works 
 erected throughout Greece for the same purpose, contribute 
 to remove all doubt as to the origin of the structure, which, 
 by a conjecture equally erroneous, has been sometimes 
 denominated the temple, as well as the tomb of Agamemnon. 
 It is to be observed that the later treasuries, although they 
 preserved the circular form, were often built with porticoes 
 in front. Pausanias describes the treasury of Megara at 
 Olympia as having the war of the giants represented in 
 the tympanum of the pediment 3 ; from which it is evident 
 
 1 Pausan. Cor. c. 16. 
 
 h Ss ro~i epeirtiois — 'Argsui; «a* tfwv tfalSuiv Ctfoycua, CKoSo^iiOifm, 
 
 2 Pausan. Boeot. c. 38. 
 
 3 Pausan. El. post. c. 19. 
 
 e 
 
XXXIV 
 
 that there must have been a portico. It is not unlikely 
 that the Pantheon at Rome, which corresponds with this 
 description, may originally have had a similar destination. 
 
 If we seek for those parts of architecture properly 
 termed ornamental, which were known to Homer, we shall 
 discover scarcely any thing to answer this description, and 
 nothing which can afford the least intimation of his having 
 possessed any knowledge of those varieties under which the 
 different modes of building have since been classed. The 
 chief decoration of the age seems to have consisted in a 
 polished surface. The stones were large, well-fitted 
 together, and above all perfectly smooth. The charm 
 and grace of forms were unknown : for although the 
 chambers and buildings themselves are sometimes said 
 to be lofty, there is no indication of any symmetrical 
 proportion. In the imaginary palace of Alcinous, which is 
 intended as the model of ideal perfection in the art, no 
 attempt is made to describe architectural beauties : but to 
 compensate for the defect, no exaggeration is spared to 
 make it rich. We have brazen walls and golden doors, 
 with silver posts and lintels 1 . The palace of Menelaus is 
 represented in nearly the same general terms of magnificence. 
 It was full of brass and gold, silver and ivory: it was 
 resplendent as the sun and moon, and appeared in the eyes 
 ofTelemachus like the mansions of Jupiter himself 2 . All 
 this seems pretty clearly to indicate the total deficiency 
 of what can with any propriety be called architectural 
 ornament. 
 
 1 Od. vii. 88. 8 Od. iv. 45. 74. 
 
XXXV 
 
 Perhaps we may in a great measure ascribe the simplicity 
 which reigned in these early buildings to the peculiar 
 superstition of that period. It is certain that the same spirit 
 of devotion which in succeeding times filled every state 
 with splendid monuments of art did not then exist, and I 
 think there is great reason to believe that in the Homeric 
 age temples were even scarcely known in Greece. It is 
 remarkable that in the Iliad mention is but once made of 
 any Grecian temple, and I think there will be little difficulty 
 in proving this passage to be an interpolation. In the 
 catalogue of the ships, when the forces of Athens are 
 enumerated, they are called ' the people of the noble 
 6 Erectheus, whom the fertile earth produced, and whom 
 ' Minerva nourished. She placed him in her own rich 
 ' temple, where he is annually propitiated by the Athenian 
 1 youth with sacrifices of bulls and lambs 1 .' To disprove 
 the authenticity of this passage, it is sufficient to state that 
 throughout the Iliad there is no indication which can lead 
 us to suppose that Homer was acquainted with the practice 
 of hero-worship. Divine honors were not paid even to 
 Hercules, or to any of those mortals who afterwards 
 became objects of adoration in Greece. The origin of the 
 interpolation may be easily traced to the desire of some 
 Athenian rhapsodist, to gratify his own national vanity, and 
 that of his audience at the expence of truth. There existed 
 
 1 H. ii. 547. It may be presumed, and the notion is sanctioned by authority 
 of the greatest weight on the subject of the early state of the Greek language, that 
 the personification of the earth under the title of geiSiagos "A^ufa is not Homeric, but 
 of a much later age. It again occurs Od. xi. 308. 
 
XXXVI 
 
 in Athens a most ancient temple dedicated to Loth Minerva 
 and Erecthe.us, in which they had their respective altars, 
 and which was perhaps more revered than any other 
 building in the city. This connection, so sacred, so 
 gratifying, the memorials of which were of an antiquity so 
 high, might, without much scruple, be made to receive 
 additional dignity from its insertion in the divine work of 
 Homer. — In Troy, however, we find a temple of Minerva is 
 mentioned, although without any description or circumstance 
 of ornament. — The doors are opened, and the goddess is 
 approached 1 , — the building, indeed, appears to have been 
 solely intended as a sort of shrine or receptacle for the 
 statue. Allusion is likewise made, but unaccompanied with 
 any particulars, to a temple of Apollo in the vicinity of the 
 same city 2 . In the Odyssey notices may occasionally be 
 found of sacred buildings even in Greece, and this is to be 
 considered as one, among other indications, which mark that 
 poem as the production of a later age. 
 
 The early Greeks therefore, being in a great measure 
 deprived of this abundant source of future magnificence, 
 their chief display of skill and splendor in the art was 
 confined to the erection of the habitations of their princes, 
 and to the buildings dependent on them. These, as I have 
 already stated, appear to have possessed little of architectural 
 ornament. It is not my intention, however, to attempt any 
 minutely-detailed description of these edifices, for the 
 
 1 II. vi. 297. — $J S ois wl£e Bsavui— 
 
 ■ Probably in Tenedos. II. i. 38. II. 4i6. II. vii. 83. 
 
XXXV11 
 
 Inquiry, although not uninteresting, being unassisted by the 
 remains of any coeval monument, and being founded on the 
 disputed interpretation of various passages, some of which 
 are themselves of doubtful antiquity, cannot be expected to 
 lead to any very accurate result 1 . A general view of this 
 species of the Homeric architecture will be sufficient, 
 preserving at the same time some attention to such particulars, 
 as from their character of ornament may serve to afford a 
 more correct notion of the state of the art. 
 
 These mansions, whose chief recommendation was 
 constituted by solidity and extent, were built round a 
 court; a plan universally adopted in succeeding ages, and 
 which still prevails in the same countries. The palace of 
 Priam answers this description ; it was composed of hewn 
 stone, constructed with open chambers or porticoes, and in 
 addition to the part occupied by the old king, contained 
 fifty apartments allotted to his sons, and on the opposite 
 side of the court twelve separate habitations for his sons-in- 
 law and their wives 3 . The chambers in general of the 
 Homeric buildings, with the exception of the great hall of 
 the palace, appear to have been small, at least no expression 
 occurs respecting them which can lead us to think otherwise. 
 Rich furniture was not uncommon; the seats and couches 
 were frequently distinguished by their costly materials 
 and beautiful workmanship 3 ; but the chief decoration 
 consisted, probably, in the magnificence of the arms, and 
 in the skilful manner in which they were arranged 4 . 
 
 1 See the explanation of Plate 5, Section iv. 2 H. vi. 242—50. 
 
 3 II. xi. 644. xviii. 390. Od. xx. 160. * II. vi. 321. 
 
XXXV111 
 
 We may conclude that the form of the roof was pointed, 
 for in the funeral games when Ajax and Ulysses grasp each 
 other for the purpose of wrestling, they are compared by 
 Homer to two beams of the roof, which some able architect 
 had closely fitted together at the summit 1 . These rafters in 
 subsequent ages retained the appellation by which they are 
 characterised in the Iliad 2 . Terms of admiration are 
 sometimes used in mentioning the beams 3 , but they are vague, 
 and contain nothing descriptive of their quality. It is not 
 easy to conjecture in what their beauty may have consisted, 
 unless perhaps in strength and suitable proportion. The 
 interior part of the roof it would seem was usually left open 
 to the top, with the insertion however of other timbers, in 
 order to afford additional security. Columns supported the 
 horizontal beams, to one of which the goat-herd Melanthius 
 was drawn up and bound by order of Ulysses until his 
 execution 4 . From one of the beams also, Minerva in the 
 figure of a bird, beheld the destruction of the suitors 5 . 
 
 1 II. xxiii. 712. 2 Poll. x. lib. 1. c. 8. 3 Od. xix. 37. 
 
 4 Od. xxii. 195. 5 lb. 239. 
 
 There is a passage in the Orestes of Euripides, which not only indicates the 
 ancient construction of roofs to have been of this description, but which, if it were 
 possible to give any credit to the accuracy of the Greek tragedians in these matters, 
 would at once convince us of the existence in the Homeric mansions of those 
 ornamental distinctions of Doric and Ionic architecture which were the creation of 
 a later age. After the murder of Helen at Argos, her Phrygian attendant informs 
 the Chorus that he escaped from the palace over the cedar beams of the roof and 
 the Doric triglyphs. 
 
 AojixaV re TgiyXvQcts- 
 
 Escaping by the Doric triglyphs may, perhaps, mean passing through the metopes, 
 which seem anciently to have been left vacant, for the purpose of admitting air and 
 light into the building. Orest. 1373. et vid. Schol. 
 
XXXIX 
 
 Homer extols the skill of the Trojan architects: a sufficient 
 proof of the superior advances made by the Asiatics in the 
 art; and yet it is remarkable, that neither in the palace of 
 Priam, nor in that of Paris, said to be raised by the most 
 able workmen, is there any thing which indicates the 
 appearance of ornament, excepting the mention of polished 
 stone 1 . This, indeed, seems to have composed the main 
 beauty of the Homeric buildings. In imaginary edifices the 
 materials are sometimes changed, and we find a profusion of 
 the precious metals employed in their construction ; but this, 
 as I have before observed, is an additional proof of the 
 poverty of the architectural decoration. From the frequent 
 mention of hewn and polished stone in the most costly and 
 magnificent mansions, it would appear that the general 
 practice in the time of Homer himself was confined to I he 
 employment of those irregular masses still to be seen in the 
 walls of Tiryns. In the Odyssey, however, amongst the 
 details of the palace of Ulysses, the marks of an age somewhat 
 later are discoverable. 
 
 It is not certain that the author of the Iliad had any 
 knowledge of houses formed in regular divisions of stories. 
 Two passages evidently alluding to such buildings are of 
 doubtful antiquity 2 ; and the true meaning of a third has, I 
 think, been forcibly bent to this interpretation 3 . In the 
 Odyssey, mention of the upper chambers, especially as the 
 residence of women, frequently occurs. 
 
 The use of columns was not unknown to the author of 
 
 1 II. vl. 315. 2 II. ii. 514. xvi. 184. 3 II. vi. 248. 
 
xl 
 
 this latter poem, although neither the word itself, nor the 
 thing signified, is to be found in the pages of the Iliad. It 
 may be requisite here to pay some attention to the columns 
 in the palace of Ulysses ; more especially as from a bare 
 allusion to the fact of their existence, it might be thought 
 unjustifiable to exclude them from the appellation of 
 architectural ornament. It is first to be observed, that 
 these columns form no part of the exterior building ; their 
 use is not only confined to the interior, but for any thing 
 that appears to the contrary, exclusively to the great hall of 
 the palace. Their employment in that situation was obviously 
 dictated by necessity. From the ample space of the apartment, 
 some support, in addition to the lateral walls, was required 
 to give security to the beams which composed the roof; this 
 security, we may conclude, was obtained by the insertion of 
 a row of columns passing longitudinally through the centre 
 of the chamber 1 . Such was the cause and mode of their 
 introduction. According to the general opinion, the material 
 of which they were formed was wood : and the accuracy of 
 this opinion is confirmed by the nature of their origin and 
 use, as well as by a combination of circumstances which 
 unite for this purpose. Throughout the Odyssey the 
 mention of columns is purely incidental : they are never 
 described in detail, nor do they make part of any description 
 
 1 It is remarkable that, in the Odyssey, frequent mention is made of the 'lofty 
 column,' or the 'great column,' as a single object: indeed if it were not for the 
 passage (xix. 36.) in which the columns are distinctly referred to in the plural 
 number, we might almost be tempted to imagine that Homer intended to describe 
 an apartment in which the beams of the roof were supported by a single column. 
 
xli 
 
 of architectural magnificence. Epithets of admiration are 
 frequently bestowed on the walls, the doors, the beams and 
 the pavement, while the column is never said to be well 
 built, well polished, or aptly proportioned. The height 
 only is occasionally alluded to. This rare and casual mention, 
 and always as a feature of so little prominence, seems clearly 
 to evince that Homer, at least, never imagined that his 
 palaces would derive additional beauty and splendour from 
 its introduction. 
 
 From these considerations it may be evident that we 
 cannot assent to an ingenious conjecture formed by Mr. 
 Knight, and since frequently repeated, respecting the origin 
 of the fluting in columns. The conjecture is founded on a 
 passage of the Odyssey, in which Minerva, on entering the 
 hall of Ulysses, is said " to place her spear by the tall 
 " column, within the well polished spear-holder, in which 
 " were many others belonging to the prudent chief 1 ." This 
 spear-holder has been understood to mean one of the channels 
 of the fluting. The word, however, seems clearly to allude 
 to a single and capacious repository of arms adjoining to the 
 column, or constructed in it. The spears of Ulysses are not 
 said to be ranged around the column, each in its proper, 
 spear-holder; one repository only is mentioned, which 
 contained the weapons of the prince, and in which Minerva 
 placed hers also. It is thus explained by Eustathius, who calls 
 the spear- holder a receptacle formed in the column for the 
 
 1 Od. i. 127. 
 
 syX°S , a ^ v P <=S~i)<rE tpegwv tfgo; Kiova [laK^v 
 SovgoSoxys avrocrSev sufcoov, hSia. ffsg aWa, 
 ty/l 'OSvovvjos ra\a.(rl<pgovo; itrra.ro itoWa,. 
 
xlii 
 
 convenience of containing the spears in an upright position 1 . 
 The illustrations of the word given by Suidas, Hesychius, and 
 Pollux 2 , are perfectly consistent with the interpretation here 
 stated,and afford not the slightest intimation of an architectural 
 origin. If the true meaning of the passage were less obvious 
 than it really is, however ingenious the conjecture, there 
 would still be strong presumption against its accuracy. That 
 an operose contrivance should have been resorted to for this 
 simple and useful purpose seems so highly improbable, that, 
 even if aotpoaokh must be considered as connected with, and 
 in manner forming part of the column, the explaining it to 
 mean some substance fixed to the column, and so fashioned 
 as to receive and support the spears, would surely describe 
 a more natural invention than that of twenty channels 
 laboriously cut around it, and which, at the same time, 
 presented a place of deposit for the weapons much less 
 secure and commodious. The very epithet of ' well-polished,' 
 or ' well wrought,' which is applied to the word, is so entirely 
 dissimilar from all those used in describing the columns, 
 that it must be considered as alluding to something of a 
 more ornamental construction, whatever may have been the 
 substance of which it was composed 3 . The spear-holder 
 
 1 Eustath. in Loc. 
 
 on SovgoSoxrj afi SirjK-rj oogarwv KLOvsiSr t s *i p-&\ir& si? xiova 
 £yyiy\vjj.Evrj, Iv ij if^o; oftoTfjTa. ra Sonata Urccvto. 
 
 2 Said, in Loc. Hesych. in Loc. Poll. 1. i. c. 10. 1. vii. c. 33. I. x. c. 33. 
 
 3 Achilles withdraws his spear from the long sheath, or case, (o-u'fiyyo?) in which 
 it had been preserved. (II. xix. 387.) The Homeric spear was nearly seventeen 
 feet long (II. viii. 494.), so that Mr. Knight, who admits the massive proportion of 
 columns to be regulated by their comparative antiquity, can scarcely expect, in the 
 very first ages of the art, to find them of a height, which, with the capital, would 
 give a diameter of nearly five feet. 
 
xliii 
 
 mentioned in the passage might possibly have been something 
 calculated for the safe preservation of such weapons as were 
 peculiarly valuable: for, it is manifest, that the usual mode 
 of disposing the spears was not against the columns, from 
 the circumstance of the suitors, when Ulysses begins their 
 destruction by the slaughter of Antinous, looking around 
 for arms — not to the columns, but to the walls of the 
 hall, from whence they had been previously removed by 
 Telemachus. 
 
 ex. <5s &£oyujv a\6gov<ra.v ogivdevrs; Kara. iw/MX, 
 ntav'roae itatfrduvovrz; EuJpj'raj itori TOIXOTS, 
 ouSt itrj drmi syjy, ov$' a-hxipov ErXOS lAiirOaf. ' 
 
 A few words remain to be added concerning that part 
 of the Homeric buildings which has usually been called the 
 portico; an appellation, however, which is very far from 
 affording any just notion of its real nature and appearance. 
 No intimation whatever is given that it was constructed with 
 columns, nor from any thing that appears in the pages of the 
 Iliad or Odyssey is there reason to believe that they formed 
 a part of its composition. A portico without columns cannot 
 be said to suggest ideas of much architectural beauty, and, 
 in fact, the terms employed in its description are not such as 
 to justify a belief that any thing ornamental was intended 
 to be expressed by them. Twice only is it mentioned that 
 these porticoes were polished or well wrought; and it is to 
 be observed, that in one instance the divine mansion of 
 
 1 Od. xxii. 23. 
 
xliv 
 
 Jupiter himself is alluded to; and in the other the splendid 
 and Asiatic palace of Priam 1 . The etymologies given of the 
 word AieorsA are by no means satisfactory, but we may 
 nevertheless collect sufficient from these, as well as from the 
 text of Homer, to enable us to form a probable conjecture of 
 its description and use. It seems to have been a species of 
 raised platform or exedra, probably covered at the top, but 
 exposed at the sides to the air, and to the enjoyment derived 
 from this exposure we may chiefly attribute its origin; at 
 least this is the purpose to which we find it generally 
 applied, and the most rational explanations of the word 
 justify this supposition 2 . 
 
 The influence of the same climate, and the pleasure 
 afforded by this practice in all ages to the inhabitants of 
 southern countries, lead us to expect that we should still 
 discover the existence of a similar custom. In this expectation 
 we shall not be disappointed. There is scarcely a house of 
 any magnitude in Greece or Asia-Minor which does not 
 possess a kind of balcony attached to it, and frequently 
 extending entirely round a court. Whatever may be the 
 grandeur of the mansion, these are always formed of wood, 
 and in a slight manner; in the day-time they are the 
 resort of those who seek the freshness of the open air, and 
 at night, being spread with carpets or skins, they become a 
 sleeping place for travellers, especially for those of an inferior 
 rank. The aigotsai of Homer will be found in their use 
 to coincide with this description, and there is no reason 
 
 1 II. xx. 1 1. vi. 242. 2 Vid. Hesych. in M. 
 
xlv 
 
 to imagine that in their appearance they were very 
 dissimilar 1 . 
 
 Whatever be the precise date we may assign to the 
 age of Homer, it is certainly to be viewed as nearly 
 contemporaneous with the occurrence of an event which 
 forms a most important era in the history of Greece. By 
 the return of the Heraclidae to the Peloponnesus, and the 
 circumstances attendant on the conquest of the peninsula, a 
 change, equally extensive both in the manners and in the 
 political condition of the inhabitants, was effected. Bloody 
 wars, and the conduct of the Dorian invaders, contributed 
 to check the advances which had already been made in 
 refinement, and to plunge the country into a state of 
 comparative ignorance and barbarism. How long these 
 ages of darkness continued it would be difficult with any 
 accuracy to determine; but, for several centuries after the 
 return of the descendants of Hercules, the history of Greece 
 presents nearly a total blank. During the heavy pressure 
 of such causes, the progress of ornamental architecture, we 
 may be certain, as well as of all those arts of civilization 
 which had previously been cultivated with success, was 
 entirely arrested. 
 
 In this situation, therefore, it is manifest that any inquiry 
 must be fruitless which has for its object to ascertain in 
 
 1 II. xxiv. 644. Od. iii. 399. vii. 336. xx. 170. 
 
 According to Pollux, it seems to have been a species of inner court. Onomast. 
 
 lib. 1. cap. Vll. iiou duty to ivSov, rjV d&ovtrzv "Opjjoj xaXsf. 
 
 In the Odyssey it is said that, in the court of Alcinous, while skins and carpets 
 were prepared in the portico for the bed of Ulysses, as a stranger, the king himself 
 retired to rest in the interior of the palace, vii, 344. 
 
xlvi 
 
 what manner and at what period the art became possessed 
 of those characteristics which subsequently distinguished, 
 the different orders of building. Vitruvius, in the absence 
 of all history or authenticated tradition, recounts a fable 
 respecting their origin, which is utterly incredible, and in 
 itself absurd. He says, that Dorus, the son of Hellen and 
 of the nymph Opticos, built a temple of Juno in Argos, 
 which, by chance, was of this (Doric) kind, although none 
 of the proportions, he adds, were regulated or known at the 
 time. The Ionian colonists on their arrival in Asia, wishing 
 to erect a temple to Apollo-Panionius, and being ignorant 
 of the proper method of proceeding, bethought themselves 
 of measuring the human foot, and having discovered that it 
 was about the sixth part of a man's height, they at once 
 adopted this proportion in the columns of the order, which 
 thenceforth they called Doric. At the same time, in building 
 a temple to Diana, the style of which was to receive their 
 own name, they wished to give a female character to the 
 columns employed ; for this purpose their height was 
 increased to eight diameters, in order to render their 
 appearance lighter and. more slender. Bases were added 
 instead of slippers, the volutes and ornaments of the capitals 
 resembled the head-dresses of the time, and the manner of 
 fluting the shaft was copied from the folds to be seen in the 
 drapery of the matrons of those days 1 . It is unnecessary 
 to pause for an instant in the refutation of these dreams. 
 The fact is, that the different modes of building received 
 their present appellation long after the date of their invention, 
 
 1 Vitruv. 1. iv. c. 1. 
 
xlvii 
 
 whenever that event may have taken place. It was entirely 
 owing to the continued observation and comparison of the 
 general practice that obtained in European Greece, with 
 that manner of building which was almost exclusively in 
 use among the Asiatic colonies. It is impossible, therefore, 
 to attempt to describe the origin, or to fix the era of this 
 grand distinction which so early prevailed in the history of 
 the art. Perhaps the most ancient example of the existence 
 of these two orders is to be found in the account which 
 Pausanias gives of the Sicyonian treasury at Olympia; at 
 least it is the first which is accompanied with the mention 
 of any circumstances entitled to belief: and even this is not 
 quite satisfactory, inasmuch as it appears that the respective 
 orders have reference only to interior decoration. The 
 treasury was built by Myron, the tyrant of Sicyon, in the 
 thirty-third Olympiad, or about six hundred and fifty years 
 before Christ. He made in it two chambers, one Doric, 
 the other Ionic. They were worked with brass. An 
 inscription containingthe dedication to Jupiter, and specifying 
 the weight of the metal, was to be seen in the building 1 . 
 Whatever may have been the precise nature of the 
 architectural ornaments of the Sicyonian treasury, it is 
 probable that in their general appearance they were in 
 conformity with the practice observed in succeeding ages. 
 It is not easy, in the absence of historical information, 
 
 1 Pausan. El. post. c. 19. The story of Acrisius and the brazen chamber of 
 Danae, there is little doubt, refers to a building similar to these treasuries, the 
 interior of which was covered with brass. (Pausan. Cor. 23.) It has already been 
 said that the indications of the plates of this metal, in the treasury of Atreus, are 
 clearly apparent. 
 
X 
 
 lviii 
 
 to assign with any certainty their true elates to the buildings 
 of antiquity, or from the peculiarity of their remains to fix 
 the period of their construction. The remarkable similarity 
 of manner which prevailed throughout Greece for so many 
 ages is the chief cause of this difficulty. Unlike the gradual 
 progress of Gothic architecture, in which the regular 
 variation of style and ornament furnish conclusive evidence 
 of the era of the work, the buildings of Greece generally 
 preserved the same uniformity of design and chaste simplicity 
 of execution; the changes which have taken place in the 
 Grecian orders, and the differences which exist, are nearly 
 confined to the details of the art, and in many instances 
 are scarcely perceptible to the common observer. It is 
 unnecessary to undertake any technical description of these 
 minute varieties : our present purpose will be sufficiently 
 answered by a general notice of the more conspicuous 
 edifices of Greece, with a reference to the writings of those 
 authors by whom they have been most accurately measured 
 and delineated. 
 
 As the doric style continued, with few exceptions, to be 
 generally adhered to by the European states of Greece until 
 the time of the Roman conquest, the examples still remaining 
 are numerous. One of the most ancient is to be found in 
 the temple of Jupiter Panhellenius in Aegina. It is said by 
 Pausanias to have been built by Aeacus considerably before 
 the Trojan war; a story wholly incredible, but which serves 
 to prove that it had outlived all tradition of its real origin. 
 It is still nearly entire, and the position it occupies is very 
 striking, being placed on the summit of the highest mountain 
 
xli 
 
 IX 
 
 in the island, and commanding a most beautiful prospect of 
 the surrounding sea and land 1 . 
 
 The site of the temple of Jupiter at Olympia has been 
 recently ascertained : some vestiges of this celebrated edifice 
 are yet to be discerned on the banks of the Alpheus. The 
 excavations performed by the inhabitants of the neighbouring 
 villages in order to procure stone and marble for their own 
 purposes, have in great measure laid open the ground plan 
 of the temple, together with the lower part of some of the 
 columns. The description of Pausanias is minutely accurate. 
 It was built of stone, and covered with a marble roof, cut in 
 imitation of tiles, an invention which has been thought of 
 sufficient merit to preserve the name of its author 2 . The 
 architect of the temple itself was named Libon, of whom we 
 hear nothing elsewhere ; but the age of the building may 
 probably be carried as high as six hundred years before the 
 Christian era 3 . 
 
 In mentioning the earliest monuments of Grecian 
 
 1 Pausan. Cor. c. 30. Ionian Antiq. vol. ii. 
 
 An interesting discovery has lately been made among the ruins of this building; 
 a large portion of the statues that formerly occupied both pediments of the temple 
 has been recovered, by removing little more than the surface of the earth immediately 
 beneath them. This sculpture, although, probably, not coeval with the temple 
 itself, is undoubtedly of high antiquity. The style of work conclusively denotes 
 a period at least as early as the Persian invasion ; and, indeed, immediately after 
 that event, the state of Aegina underwent such an entire change, that even if the 
 mode of sculpture were less decisive than it really is, we could scarcely refer to 
 any subsequent age, the execution of a monument of this description. 
 
 2 Pausan. El. prior, c. 10. Byzes of Naxos, who lived about the fortieth 
 
 Olympiad. 
 
 3 Pausan. El. prior, c. 10. Strab. lib. viii. 355. For some measurements, see 
 Antiq. of Magna Graecia. Appendix. 
 
1 
 
 architecture it is impossible to exclude the remains of a 
 Doric temple at Corinth, consisting of five stone columns, 
 which still support their architrave. It has been supposed 
 that this temple was dedicated to Venus ; but, in fact, no 
 information is to be obtained respecting its origin. Whatever 
 may have been its destination, no one can doubt, from the 
 appearance of the ruins alone, that they formed part of a 
 structure of the most remote antiquity'. 
 
 Although it be not more easy to fix with any precision 
 the periods at which the Grecian temples in Sicily were 
 erected, there are certain historical facts which may guide 
 us in an attempt to ascertain the limits of the time within 
 which it must have taken place, and by which we may be 
 enabled, if not accurately to verify, at least to approximate 
 the dates of these different buildings. 
 
 The city of Selinus, whose stupendous ruins are the 
 admiration of modern times, was founded by a Greek colony 
 from Megara, six hundred and fifty years before Christ; and 
 destroyed in the invasion of the Carthaginians, two hundred 
 and fifty years after its foundation. From the testimony of 
 historians it appears, that on this occasion the temples were 
 spared, as in a second invasion their destruction is mentioned. 
 It is clear, therefore, that they were in existence four hundred 
 years before our era. If we consider the number and 
 magnitude of the buildings, it will not be thought too great 
 a concession to admit, tliat some among them at least were 
 begun a century before this period, or about five hundred 
 
 1 Stuart's Athens, vol. iii. c. 5. 
 
li 
 
 years before the birth of Christ: it is even probable that the 
 Greek colonists would not suffer the space of one hundred 
 and fifty years to elapse before they employed themselves 
 in the performance of a duty which with them seems to have 
 been generally paramount to alt others. By what means and 
 under what circumstances the magnificent edifices of Selinus 
 were raised we are entirely ignorant; their appearance 
 strongly indicates the existence of wealth and power, but 
 the history of the state is nearly comprised in the bare record 
 of its foundation and destruction 1 . 
 
 The Corinthian colony which established itself in Sicily 
 is said to have taken possession of Syracuse so early as the 
 middle of the eight-hundredth century before Christ. The 
 details of the history of this city offer no means of determining 
 the time at which the first temples were erected : if we reflect, 
 however, within how short a period after the migration of 
 the Corinthians the country became an object of the greatest 
 desire to the Carthaginians, it does not seem improbable 
 that its riches and splendour should have been of rapid 
 growth. The remains of the temple of Minerva situated in 
 Ortygia, that part of the city which was first inhabited, bear 
 every mark of the highest antiquity 2 . 
 
 The temples of Agrigentum, numerous and costly as they 
 are 3 , appear to have arisen during little more than a single 
 century. The prosperity and independence of the city 
 commenced with Theron about four hundred and fifty 
 years before Christ; after the battle of Himera his thoughts 
 
 1 Antiq. of Magna Graecia, c. 4. 2 Ibid. c. 2. 
 
 3 Antiq. of Magna Graecia, c. 3. 
 
lii 
 
 were entirely turned to its decoration, and the Carthaginian 
 prisoners were made to assist by their labour in the erection 
 of trophies to perpetuate the glory of their conquerors. The 
 Agrigentines continued in this employment until a second 
 and more successful invasion of the Carthaginians found 
 them occupied in completing the temple of Jupiter Olympius, 
 the greatest in the island, and one of the most stupendous 
 monuments of ancient times. The capture of the city by 
 Hamilcar in the ninety-third Olympiad prevented its 
 completion, and according to Diodorus it continued ever 
 afterwards in the same unfinished state. 
 
 The history of Paestum is barren of incident, but some 
 important facts are authenticated, which serve in a 
 considerable degree to fix the age of the great hypaethral 
 temple, if not of the other buildings which still remain 
 within the walls. The first inhabitants of the city were 
 dispossessed by the Sybarites, who quietly enjoyed the fruits 
 of their conquest for more than two hundred years'. The 
 first hostile attack was made by Dionysius, who, although 
 he retired into Sicily without achieving his object, yet left 
 the state so enfeebled that it shortly after fell into the hands 
 of his Lucanian allies. This happened nearly three hundred 
 and fifty years before the Christian era. In the course of 
 about seventy years more it yielded to the growing power 
 of Rome, became a municipal town of the empire, and 
 received a Roman colony 2 . There can be little doubt that 
 we ought to date the construction of the great temple during 
 
 1 Strabo. lib. iii. 2 Veil. i. 
 
liii 
 
 the time in which the city remained under the dominion of 
 the settlement from Sybaris. The marks of ancient Grecian 
 art are indelible ! ; yet, even if the Lucanians possessed skill 
 and taste sufficient, they wanted the ease and leisure and 
 security requisite for so considerable an undertaking. How 
 far we ought to attribute the construction of the other remains 
 at Paestum to the Lucanians, or to the Roman colonists, it 
 is unnecessary at present to enquire; the origin and antiquity 
 of the hypaethral temple, at least, are clearly ascertained. 
 The buildings of Magna Graecia may probably be classed 
 in the following chronological order — Syracuse, Paestum, 
 Selinus, Segesta, and Agrigentum 2 . 
 
 Immediately next to these in the relation of time, but 
 in real grandeur and beauty to be classed above all the 
 architectural efforts of ancient or modern times, come the 
 Athenian temples. Here we may pause on the fall 
 perfection of the art ; after this period nothing was added ; 
 perhaps in the course of a few years its gradual decline 
 commenced. We have no difficulty in accurately fixing 
 the dates of these buildings. Mnesicles began the Propylea 
 in the eighty-fifth Olympiad ; the Parthenon was built 
 by Ictinus a few years later, during the time in which 
 Pericles exercised unlimited controul in the management 
 of public affairs, and when his popularity had left him 
 
 1 Antiq. of Magna Graecia, c. 6. 
 
 2 An attempt to trace the history and progressive improvement of the Greek 
 states of Sicily and Italy, especially of the latter, — to enquire into the sources of 
 their astonishing wealth and power, would be an interesting and valuable work. 
 The materials, it is true, are widely dispersed, and perhaps are not ample, but the 
 field is yet untrodden. 
 
liv 
 
 without a rival in Athens. They were both raised 
 under the direction of Phidias, to whose superintendance 
 this munificent statesman committed the execution of all his 
 plans of elegance. The temple of Theseus may be considered 
 as nearly coeval with the buildings of the Acropolis, or 
 perhaps of a somewhat earlier origin. If we suppose this 
 splendid monument of Athenian taste to have been destined 
 for the reception of the ashes of their national hero, its 
 commencement ought to be placed soon after his remains 
 were transported from Scyros to Athens, and when funeral 
 games were instituted in his honour. The expedition of 
 Cimon, the son of Miltiades, was forty years prior to the 
 time in which Pericles possessed that influence which 
 enabled him to apply the resources of the republic to these 
 purposes of magnificence 1 . The striking remains of the 
 temple of Minerva, on the promontory of Sunium, are in 
 all probability to be attributed to the same authors ; but 
 one of the noblest efforts of the genius of Ictinus is to be 
 seen in the temple of Apollo Epicurius in Arcadia, which 
 although still nearly entire, has been little explored or even 
 visited 2 . According to the testimony of ancient writers, it 
 surpassed in beauty,* with a single exception, all the other 
 buildings of the Peloponnesus. It is situated on an elevated 
 part of mount Cotylus, three or four miles from the ruins 
 of Phigalia, and commands one of the most enchanting 
 
 1 Plut. in vit. Pericl. Pausan. Attic, c. 17. Plut. in vit. Cimon. Stuart's 
 Athens, vol. ii. iii. 
 
 2 Pausan. Arcad. 41. 
 
 For some measurements and peculiarities, see Antiq. of Magna Graecia. 
 Appendix. 
 
lv 
 
 prospects which it is possible to conceive ; — woods, hills, 
 and vallies lie before it in wild confusion ; the distance is 
 terminated by the sea, and the venerable oaks with which 
 the temple itself is surrounded, confer an additional 
 solemnity and grandeur on the scene. 1 
 
 Sixty years after the death of Pericles, in the 
 hundred and second Olympiad, Epaminondas having broken 
 the power of Lacedaemon, restored the Messenians to 
 independence, and built the city of Messene. From the 
 extensive ruins which are still visible of the various public 
 edifices, it does not appear that the art had yet suffered any 
 material deterioration 2 . In a very short time, however, it 
 was destined to experience a considerable change, at least if 
 we may judge from the proportions of the portico in the 
 island of Delos, on which is inscribed the name of Philip of 
 Macedon 3 . This building could not have been erected after 
 the hundred and tenth Olympiad, the last year of which 
 was marked by the assassination of that prince. After this 
 period the Doric order gradually fell into disuse, and was 
 
 1 A discovery, similar to that at Aegina, has been made among the ruins of the 
 temple of Apollo : in this instance there is no reason to doubt that the sculpture is 
 coeval with the building itself. 
 
 2 Diod. Sic. lib. xv. 66. Pausan. Messen. c. 27. 
 
 The walls of the city merit particular attention. In many parts they are still 
 entire, and are to be traced throughout the whole extent of their ancient circuit. 
 They present the most beautiful and perfect specimen of the military architecture 
 of the Greeks, being fortified and adorned with numerous towers and gates. They 
 are described by Pausanias as superior to the walls of Byzantium and Rhodes, and 
 indeed to all that he had seen (Messen. c. 31). It is to be lamented, that no 
 traveller or artist has as yet given us any details of these most interesting remains. 
 
 3 Stuart's Athens, vol. iii. c. 10. Tournefort, t. i. lett. 7. 
 
lvi 
 
 at first nearly superseded by the Ionic, and ultimately by 
 the Corinthian style of architecture. The catalogue may 
 therefore be closed with the mention of the portico of 
 Augustus at Athens, which is, I believe, the most recent 
 structure of this description now existing in Greece ' . Having 
 briefly enumerated some of the principal Doric remains, 
 which in spite of the lapse of time, the fury of religious 
 zeal, and the barbarism of conquerors, are still permitted 
 to attest the magnificence and taste of the country which 
 produced them ; it may not perhaps be uninteresting or 
 useless if we attempt to inquire into the indications of their 
 comparative antiquity, and to ascertain what are the 
 peculiarities which may enable us to fix with some degree 
 of probability the respective dates of buildings not described 
 by ancient writers, and of which the origin is entirely 
 unknown. 
 
 A reference to the different proportions of the columns 
 and their entablature has been supposed to afford a criterion 
 of the antiquity of the edifice. Columns, in the earliest ages, 
 are said to have been invariably low and their entablatures 
 massive; but as the art advanced, the entablature, it is 
 affirmed, gradually diminished, and the columns became 
 more lofty and slender. This observation may be of great 
 service in determining the age of Grecian monuments, but 
 although it ought always to be kept in view, we should not 
 be justified in its universal application. Pliny says, that 
 according to the most ancient method, the columns were 
 
 1 Stuart's Athens, vol. i. c. 1. This building is conjectured to have been an 
 entrance to the Agora. 
 
lvii 
 
 only a third part of the height of the whole building 1 . It 
 is likely that in the infancy of the art an appearance of 
 this kind should have been produced by a general desire to 
 obtain strength, and from an ignorance of the weight 
 which might with safety be placed on a vertical shaft: but 
 the fact is, that several remains of the highest antiquity form 
 exceptions to these rules. There are, however, other 
 peculiarities which may furnish material assistance in this 
 inquiry, the most prominent of which is the depth of the 
 capital compared with the upper diameter of the column. 
 When this is found to vary in the same proportion with the 
 parts already described, the test acquires an additional 
 confirmation. To see how nearly the chronological order 
 we have assumed is borne out by the comparative lowness 
 of the columns, and the depth of their capitals, let us 
 take a number of examples from the temples to which we 
 have alluded, and first arrange them according to the 
 proportion of the diameter compared with their height, 
 and then according to the depth of the capitals compared 
 with the upper diameter of the column. 
 
 The first scale shews how many times the lower diameter 
 is contained in the height of the column, the second 
 denotes the proportion of the depth of the capitals to the 
 upper diameter, in decimals. It will be seen, from the 
 relative proportions, that both scales distinguish, by a 
 marked difference, the temples of Sicily from those of 
 Athens and its neighbourhood. 
 
 1 Plin. Hist. Nat. lib. xxxvi. c. 22. 
 
lviii 
 
 No. I. 
 
 Hexastyle at Selinus 4.339 
 
 Minerva at Syracuse 4.410 
 
 Octastyle at Selinus 4.478 
 
 Juno at Agrigentum 4.695 
 
 Concord at Agrigentum 4.807 
 
 Parthenon at Athens 5.566 
 
 Theseus at Athens 5.669 
 
 Propylea at Athens 5.764 
 
 Minerva at Sunium 5.899 
 
 Portico of Augustus 6.042 
 
 No. II. 
 
 Juno at Agrigentum .639 
 
 Hexastyle at Selinus .637 
 
 Minerva at Syracuse .636 
 
 Concord at Agrigentum .634 
 
 Octastyle at Selinus .603 
 
 Theseus at Athens .508 
 
 Parthenon at Athens .477 
 
 Propylea at Athens .470 
 
 Minerva at Sunium .458 
 
 Portico of Augustus .408 
 
 There are other signs which mark the antiquity of 
 columns, one of which is the three grooves sometimes found 
 at the hypotrachelium, or necking of the shaft. Although 
 these do not occur in every example of the earliest temples, 
 they are never to be discerned in those of later date ; and 
 when inserted, may invariably be considered as the work of 
 a remote age. Another proof is to be met with in the 
 form of the guttae, or drops, below the triglyphs. These in 
 the most ancient specimens are frequently deep, and, 
 excepting the temple at Paestum, in which they are conical, 
 of a cylindrical shape. In the more modern instances they 
 are comparatively little in depth, and generally trochoidal, 
 or pulley-formed. 
 
 The invention of the Ionic order of architecture appears 
 to have been coeval with that which prevailed in European 
 Greece ; and although chiefly confined at first to the Asiatic 
 states, it became in the progress of time more generally 
 attractive than the severe beauties of the rival style. The 
 earliest specimen, of which any remains are to be found, is 
 
lix 
 
 the celebrated temple of Juno at Samos. This in the age of 
 Herodotus, was considered as the largest and most stupendous 
 edifice ever raised by Grecian art. It was built about the 
 sixtieth Olympiad, by Rhaecus and Theodorus, two natives 
 of the island; and the style, possessing many peculiarities, 
 is such as strongly to denote its archaic origin 1 . The bases 
 of the columns are remarkable from the number and 
 complication of their parts ; the shaft is not fluted, nor is 
 there any appearance of volutes to the capitals : the most 
 ancient examples of this species of ornament are to be 
 discovered on the coins of several cities, and on earthen 
 vases, where an altar or capital of this description is frequently 
 represented. 
 
 The next building is the tomb of Theron at Agrigentum, 
 a strange mixture of the two orders, as Ionic columns with 
 their capitals are surmounted by a Doric entablature. There 
 is no reason to doubt the antiquity of this monument, or the 
 truth of the appellation which it has received. Theron died 
 in the seventy-seventh Olympiad; eighty years afterwards, 
 H annibal, in ord er to facilitate the approach of the Carthaginian 
 army, ordered the tombs situated without the walls of the 
 city to be destroyed : that of Theron being struck by 
 lightning, was spared by the besiegers. The building in 
 
 1 Herod, lib. iii. c. 60. Pococke's Travels, vol. iii. book i. ch. 7. Tournefort, 
 t. i. lett. 10. Choiseul Gouffier. This interesting ruin, although often visited, 
 has never received any architectural elucidation. From its proximity to the sea 
 shore it is much to be feared that a great proportion of the materials has been 
 removed for various purposes : nevertheless the accretion of sand and earth about 
 the site of the temple is very considerable, and there is little doubt that a judicious 
 excavation would be repaid by interesting discoveries. 
 
lx 
 
 question is placed on that side of the town where alone it is 
 accessible to a hostile force 1 . 
 
 The octastyle temple of Bacchus at Teos is a heap of 
 ruins, but enough remains to attest the exquisite beauty 
 of the ancient edifice, and fully to justify the praises lavished 
 by Vitruvius on the architect, Hermogenes of Alabanda. 
 This artist seems to have effected a considerable change in 
 the taste of his age, by maintaining, with some others of 
 equal merit, that the Doric order was unfit for temples. He 
 was so deeply impressed with the truth of this notion, that 
 he is said to have exchanged the materials which had been 
 prepared for the construction of the Teian temple, in order 
 that he might be enabled to complete the work in the Ionic 
 style. This splendid edifice was probably raised soon after 
 the Persian invasion, for Xerxes destroyed all the sacred 
 buildings of the Ionian cities, with the exception of Ephesus 2 ; 
 and as Hermogenes invented the pseudodipteral species of 
 temple, he could not have flourished later than the eighty- 
 eighth Olympiad, when other buildings of this kind are 
 known to have existed 3 . 
 
 It is difficult to ascertain the age of the double temple 
 at Athens. From the earliest times a building dedicated to 
 Minerva-Polias and to Erectheus, appears to have been an 
 object of the highest veneration among the Athenians. It 
 is probable, that in some cases the more modern edifice may 
 have been confounded with that by which it was preceded. 
 
 1 Diod. Sic. lib. xi. 53. xiii. 86. Antiq. of Magna Graecia. c. 3. 
 
 Strabo. lib. xiv. p. 910. ed. Oxon. 
 3 Vitruv. lib. iii. c. 2. iv. c. 3. Ionian Antiq. vol. i. c. 1. 
 
lxi 
 
 The ancient temple was to a certain extent destroyed by 
 Xerxes, and we are not informed that the present building 
 was restored by Pericles. Xenophon mentions the destruction 
 of the old temple of Minerva by fire in the ninety-third 
 Olympiad, from which period to the conclusion of the 
 Peloponnesian war we have the time requisite for the 
 completion of the new structure 1 . This agrees sufficiently 
 with the very curious architectural inscription brought from 
 Athens by Dr. Chandler, which describes the unfinished 
 state of the temple, and gives the measurement of its various 
 members 2 . Whatever be the precise date of its erection, it 
 will for ever be considered as the most perfect specimen of 
 the style in which it is constructed ; and being fortunately 
 preserved nearly entire, may serve as a model for the study 
 and imitation of all future artists. 
 
 The superb temple of Apollo-Didymaeus, near Miletus, 
 it is reasonable to suppose, was not built before the hundredth 
 Olympiad. The architects, according to Vitruvius, were 
 Peonius of Ephesus, and Daphnis of Miletus ; and as the 
 first of these is said to have finished the celebrated temple 
 of Diana, which was destroyed on the night of the birth of 
 
 1 Hellen. lib. i. c. 6. Stuart's Athens, vol. ii. c. 2. 
 
 2 That this interesting document relates to the building in question it is 
 impossible to doubt : its form is too peculiar to be mistaken. The shape of the 
 letters and general orthography are apparently much more ancient than the date 
 abovementioned, but this probably arises from an affectation of archaism, not 
 unfrequent among the Athenians. It is observable on their coins, especially the 
 tetradrachms ; and in many inscriptions which have been discovered in that country. 
 A remarkable instance of archaic language is to be seen on a marble in the museum 
 of the Earl of Elgin, containing an epitaph on the Athenian soldiers who fell at the 
 siege of Potidaea. 
 
lxii 
 
 Alexander, we are enabled to fix its real age with considerable 
 accuracy. Three columns entire, and a profusion of marble 
 fragments scattered around, are all that remains of this once 
 magnificent edifice ; but these are of a description amply 
 sufficient to indicate its former beauty and grandeur, even if 
 they had not been so highly extolled by the uniform voice of 
 antiquity 1 . 
 
 No doubt is left of the origin of the temple at Priene, as 
 the dedication of the building to Minerva-Polias by Alexander 
 of Macedon, remains inscribed on a fragment of the walls. 
 The architect was Pytheus, or, as he is sometimes called, 
 Phileos : he joined with Hermogenes in his proscription of 
 the Doric style 2 . 
 
 From this period to the Roman conquest we have no 
 existing specimens of the order, at least none of which the 
 age is in any degree certain. Little architectural information 
 can be collected from the scattered vestiges of the Ionic 
 temple of the Syrian goddess at Hierapolis, built by Seleucus; 
 for, although extensive, they furnish no specimens of former 
 beauty and magnificence 3 . 
 
 The remains of a grand and most imposing edifice are 
 to be seen at Sardis. It has been rarely visited, and, as far 
 as I know, never described. Five entire columns are situated 
 on the banks of the Pactolus; and the materials of the whole 
 building are heaped around. The diameter of the columns 
 is not less than six feet, from which some notion may be 
 
 1 Strab. lib. xiv. p. 634. Pausan. Ach. c. 5. Ionian Antiq. vol. i. c. 3. 
 
 2 Vitruv. lib. i. c. 1. Proem, lib. vii. 
 
 3 Lucian de Syr. Dea. 30. Pococke's Travels, vol. i. lib. ii. c. 18. 
 
1... 
 Xlll 
 
 formed of the vast dimensions of this temple. It is difficult 
 with any accuracy to fix its age, but, as Sardis was one of 
 the twelve cities of Asia Minor restored by Tiberius after 
 the dreadful earthquake which happened in his reign 1 , and 
 as the temple does not appear ever to have been entirely 
 finished, it is probable that we ought to refer its erection to 
 the era of that prince. At the same time it is to be observed, 
 that the remains bear some marks of higher antiquity: the 
 projection of the volutes, and other peculiarities, with the 
 beauty of the architecture, seem to indicate the work of an 
 earlier period. 
 
 The Corinthian order of architecture is comparatively 
 of recent invention. A fanciful and ingenious story of its 
 origin, related by Vitruvius, is well known; but unfortunately 
 cannot be received as credible history: the tale is valuable, 
 however, as affording an intimation of the date of its 
 introduction; for Callimachus, who is said to have transferred 
 the leaves of the acanthus from the tomb of the Corinthian 
 virgin to the capitals of his columns, lived towards the end 
 of the Peloponnesian war, and was the artist so celebrated 
 as the author of the lamp preserved constantly burning 
 in the temple of Minerva-Polias at Athens 2 . It is not 
 altogether improbable that the characteristic ornament of 
 the style may have been imported from Egypt : the flower 
 of the lotus, which generally formed the decoration of the 
 ponderous structures of that country, in some of its fantastic 
 
 1 Strab. lib. xiii. p. 627. 
 
 2 Vitruv. 1. iv. c. 1. Pausan. Att. c. 26. Strab. 1. ix. p. 396. 
 
Ixiv 
 
 varieties hears a near resemblance to the ornaments of the 
 Corinthian capital; and, as no great degree of intercourse 
 and traffic prevailed between Greece and Egypt until the 
 more recent period of their history, its late appearance in 
 Europe is sufficiently accounted for. 
 
 The concluding years of the Peloponnesian war witnessed 
 the first examples of the style in Greece : I believe, at least, 
 that no notice occurs in ancient writers of its prior existence. 
 The old temple of Minerva at Tegea was burnt down in the 
 ninety-fourth Olympiad, and was rebuilt by the famous 
 Scopas of Paros, who produced the largest, and according to 
 Pausanias the most beautiful, building in the Peloponnesus. 
 It was an hypaethral edifice, the interior of the cell was 
 adorned by two rows of Doric columns surmounted by others 
 of the Corinthian order. The peristyle was Ionic 1 . A few 
 shattered fragments constitute the only remains of this once 
 magnificent structure ; but as the situation is precisely 
 ascertained, the whole plan might easily be restored by 
 an excavation judiciously directed. 
 
 The choragic monument of Lysicrates, well known by 
 the appellation of the lanthorn of Demosthenes, was built, 
 
 1 Pausan. Arcad. c. 45. We are here furnished with the correction of a mistake, 
 into which the learned author of a work already quoted, has fallen, when he states, 
 that the practice of placing different orders one above the other is not older than 
 the theatres and amphitheatres of the Romans. Knight Anal. Inquiry, pt. ii. 
 c. 2. 46. It is possible however that we ought to reverse the order in which 
 Pausanias speaks of the exterior and interior columns; as it is more reasonable to 
 suppose that the peristyle was Doric, and that the less massive orders were in the 
 interior of the building. This is in some measure confirmed by the mode actually 
 observed in the temple of Apollo near Phigalia, which is compared by Pausanias 
 with that of Minerva at Tegea. 
 
lxv 
 
 according to the narrative inscribed on the freize, in the 
 hundred and eleventh Olympiad. This little edifice has 
 suffered nothing from the many causes which have contributed 
 to lay in ruins the noblest monuments of Athenian taste, but 
 is still entire, and may perhaps be considered as the most 
 exquisite and perfect specimen of the order 1 . It is probable 
 that the singular building called the temple of the Winds is 
 not of a date considerably later; it possesses some peculiarities 
 which are not observable in more recent structures, and 
 the formation of the roof, while it betrays an ignorance of 
 the principle of the arch, proves, at the same time, in a 
 remarkable manner the skill and ingenuity of the architect. 
 It is mentioned both by Vitruvius and Varro as the work 
 of Andronicus Cyrrhestes, but without any information 
 respecting his age 2 . 
 
 Many of the ornamented theatres, so numerous in Asia- 
 Minor, were built, in all probability, considerably before 
 the Roman conquest: that at Laodicea on the Lycus, and 
 that at Patara on the coast of Lycia, are the most remarkable 
 among those of the Corinthian order 3 . 
 
 The temple of Jupiter Capitolinus at Rome was built by 
 Domitian, out of the materials of some edifice at Athens 
 which had been transported from that city ; and this work 
 is worthy of mention, both because its prior destination is 
 probably to be referred to the period of which we are 
 treating, and on account of the remark of Plutarch, who 
 relates that the columns were cut and repolished after their 
 
 1 Stuart's Athens, vol. i. c. 4. 
 
 2 Vitruv. lib. i. c. 6. Varro de Re Rust. 1. iii. c. 5. 
 
 3 Pococke, vol. v. Ionian Antiquit. vol. i. 
 
 i 
 
lxvi 
 
 arrival at Rome, in order to produce a greater degree of 
 elegance and lightness, but that what they obtained in these 
 qualities they lost in grandeur and symmetrical proportion 1 . 
 
 The Roman conquest spread the Corinthian style 
 throughout Greece, almost to the exclusion of the other 
 orders. Although the buildings of this period are often 
 more splendid and costly than those of preceding times, yet 
 the pure taste and correct designs of the better ages of the 
 art are generally wanting. From this remark, however, 
 must be exempted some of the works of Hadrian, especially 
 if the columns at Athens which are called by his name, and 
 which are in reality the ruins of the temple of Jupiter 
 Olympius, owe their origin to this Emperor. These display 
 the utmost beauty and propriety, with perhaps the greatest 
 degree of magnificence and grandeur, ever attained to by the 
 architectural exertions of the emperors of the Roman world 2 . 
 The remains of a dipteral temple with columns composed of 
 the purest marble, more than six feet and a half in diameter, 
 and sixty feet in height, cannot be described in any terms 
 commensurate with the sensations excited by the view of 
 the original 3 . 
 
 1 Plut. in vit. Publicol. 
 
 2 These columns are perhaps the remains of that temple which, according to 
 Vitruvius, was first projected by Pisistratus ; the foundations of which were begun 
 by the architects Antistates, Callaeschros, Antimachides and Porinos. Afterwards 
 Cossutius, by birth a Roman, built the temple according to the design he made by 
 command of Antiochus Epiphanes. This we learn from the same author, who 
 further informs us that temple now built was of the Corinthian order, and of the 
 kind termed dipteral. This account is perfectly consistent with the mode of 
 arrangement preserved by the remaining columns, which proves it to have been a 
 temple of that description. Whenever, or by whomsoever, finished these columns 
 bear the indications of a pure age of Grecian art. 
 
 3 Pausan. Att. 18. Vitruv. proem, lib. vii. Stuart's Athens, vol. iii. c. 2. 
 
lxvii 
 
 Although these splendid remains have acquired an 
 appellation to which they appear to have no just claim, it 
 may be right here to ascribe to its real author an Athenian 
 building, of the Corinthian order, which possesses all the 
 characteristics of the age of this munificent prince, but to 
 which Stuart has erroneously attributed a Grecian origin. 
 From his authority it has generally been called the Poikile 
 Stoa ; but when we observe the appearance of the whole 
 work, the columns placed on pedestals, the foliage of the 
 capitals, the angles of the abacus, the epistylia composed of 
 two fasciae, all corresponding with the Roman practice, and 
 more particularly with the gate of Hadrian in the same city, 
 authenticated by the inscription which it bears, there is no 
 reason to entertain any doubt of its real date and origin. In 
 truth Pausanias, in his description, seems clearly to allude to 
 a striking peculiarity of this building; by which it appears to 
 have been a kind of atrium, surrounded by a portico open to 
 the interior, enclosing a museum, or building, for the reception 
 of statues and pictures 1 . 
 
 Having shortly enumerated the most striking vestiges of 
 Grecian architecture, and having indicated the sources from 
 whence an accurate knowledge of all their details may be 
 derived, it is scarcely necessary even to allude to what has 
 indeed been called the Tuscan style, but which, in fact, seems 
 merely to have been a corrupt imitation of the Doric : nor is 
 
 1 Pausan. Att. 18. itsimprcu Ss xa) rx~i etoxJs xzrd ta aura, ol rofyoi. The appearance 
 of the ruin fully explains this passage. 
 
 Compare this building given by Stuart, vol. i. c. 5. with the arch of Hadrian, 
 vol. iii. c. 3. 
 
1... 
 XV111 
 
 it more desirable to describe at length that barbarous mixture 
 which prevailed in the later ages of the Roman empire, 
 and which is known by the name of the Composite order. 
 The practice of the Greeks was confined to the three 
 species which have already been mentioned ; and it is 
 observable that the most perfect example of each kind is to 
 be found within the walls of the same city. The narrow 
 lanes and wretched hovels which compose modern Athens, are 
 still ennobled by the most unequivocal proofs of the glories 
 of ancient art. The majestic grandeur of the Parthenon, 
 the chaste elegance of the Erectheum, and the beautiful and 
 splendid decoration of the choragic monument, and of the 
 columns of Adrian, are alike unrivalled in their several 
 characters of varied excellence. 
 
 We ought not, m any view, however cursory, of the 
 ornamental buildings of the Greeks, to abstain from all 
 notice of an invention by which the representation of 
 human figures is substituted for columns, in the support 
 of an entablature. This use of Cariatides, as they are 
 called, although known in the best ages of the architecture 
 of Greece, does not seem ever to have been very general, 
 or even favoured in that country. Their name and origin 
 have been traced ; but it is not probable that the story of the 
 Carian women is entitled to more credit than the idle 
 traditions to be met with respecting the different Grecian 
 orders 1 . It is not unlikely that they may have been derived 
 from an Egyptian source; as in that country columns are 
 
 1 Vitruv. lib. vi. c. 10. 
 
lxix 
 
 frequently to be seen with the representation of female 
 heads by way of capitals ; and in the Memnonium at Thebes 
 the epistylia are supported by figures of men instead of 
 columns 1 . However this species of ornament may have 
 arisen, it has been so rarely practised in Greece, that I believe 
 the list afforded us by ancient writers may be comprised in 
 two examples. The first is the Persian portico at Sparta, 
 an edifice much celebrated in ancient times, and which, it is 
 likely, was one of the earliest specimens of the style. It is 
 now to all appearance utterly destroyed, and it is even 
 difficult to fix the precise spot on which it stood : could this 
 be accomplished, there is little doubt that considerable 
 remains might speedily be discovered, for the frequency of 
 earthquakes at Sparta makes it probable that the portico 
 has been thrown down by one of these convulsions rather 
 than by the effect of time ; and the rapid accumulation 
 of the fine alluvial soil that forms the valley of the Eurotas, 
 would effectually protect from external injury the interesting 
 fragments which it covered. The building was erected 
 shortly after the defeat of Xerxes, and the architrave was 
 upheld by sculptured figures habited in the loose drapery 
 and flowing robes of the Asiatics : among them were the 
 portraits of individuals, for those of Gobryas and Mardonius 
 are particularly mentioned 2 . 
 
 1 Denon Voy. d'Egypte, pi. 42. 61. 
 
 2 Pausan. Lacon. 11. It is not certain how these figures were disposed, but it 
 is probable that they formed a kind of second order, and were placed over the 
 columns of the building. The words of Pausanias seem to imply this — sW) 8e km rwy 
 xio'vwv Tiepa-M, AiSoy \swoZ— . The portico may therefore have resembled an edifice at 
 
lxx 
 
 A portico of the Paadroseum at Athens furnishes an 
 instance of the representation of female figures supporting 
 an entablature, and is so beautiful as almost to justify what 
 may perhaps be considered as a capricious deviation from 
 established taste. The date of this elegant structure must, 
 beyond all doubt, be deemed coeval with that of the double 
 temple of Minerva-Polias and Pandrosus to which it is 
 annexed 1 . 
 
 It is not at present my intention, in addition to these 
 remarks on the temples of the Greeks, to pursue and to note 
 the gradual changes and variations in the different species of 
 their ornamental architecture — their theatres — their forums 
 — their public baths and private dwellings ; although each of 
 these topics furnishes matter for much curious investigation. It 
 remains, however, to attempt briefly to ascertain the age and 
 origin of the use of the arch, an invention which was calculated 
 toproduce the greatestrevolution in the practice of architecture 
 at the period of its adoption, and which, from its many 
 advantages, has been universally preserved and admired in 
 modern times. After submitting this subject to a good deal 
 of inquiry and reflection, it appears most probable that the 
 era of the Macedonian conquest nearly coincides with that of 
 the first introduction of this remarkable feature of Grecian 
 architecture. Much has been written to prove that the use 
 of the arch was not only familiar to the earliest artists of 
 
 Thessalonica, still remaining in part, and described by Stuart (Athens, vol. iii. c. 9.) 
 This edifice, indeed, ought perhaps to be added to the examples mentioned in the 
 text, although its date is of questionable authority. 
 1 Pausan. Att. 21. Stuart's Athens, vol. ii. c. 2. 
 
lxxi 
 
 Greece, but was even to be traced throughout the yet more 
 ancient monuments of Egyptian labour. In adducing this 
 proof, the most obvious mistakes and the grossest blunders 
 have been committed : drawings and engravings of the actual 
 remains of the antiquities of these countries have been 
 referred to, and the wretched cabins of the Arabs, and the 
 towers and steeples of the modern Greeks, have been gravely 
 represented by some, as forming part of the ancient temples, 
 among which these fabrics are frequently to be discovered. 
 The selection of those travellers whose accounts are to be 
 received, has not always been judicious; to the authority of 
 such writers as Paul Lucas, and some others of his nation, 
 no particle of credit is due : his truth and accuracy are declared 
 by a recent traveller, his countryman, to be only worthy of 
 comparison with the Arabian Nights Entertainments 1 . In 
 like manner, the assertions contained in works of late date, 
 composed under the Roman empire, have been implicitly 
 adopted respecting the nature of buildings which either 
 never had any existence at all, or which had been utterly 
 destroyed long previous to the times in which their 
 pretended descriptions were published. The tales of the 
 hanging gardens of Babylon, of the labyrinths of Crete, of 
 Lemnos, and of Porsenna, are equally fallacious and 
 incredible. Strabo and Pliny, who undertake to detail the 
 wonders of these edifices, had no other object in view than 
 to convey the notion of vast and stupendous works ; the 
 display of arches and of domes was best calculated in their 
 
 1 Chateaubriand, Itineraire, pref. 
 
lxxii 
 
 own day to produce this effect, and accordingly they did 
 not hesitate abundantly to employ these forms in the account 
 of buildings which no one had ever seen'. 
 
 In considering this question, it is necessary to keep in mind 
 the difference between an arch constructed of wedge-formed 
 stones whose joints, if prolonged, would meet in a centre, and 
 one produced merely by the gradual projection of horizontal 
 courses of stones until they meet: of this inartificial description 
 I believe examples may be found in all ages; but as abundant 
 materials and massive proportions are required in its 
 formation, little was gained by the adoption of this method, 
 and it is therefore rarely seen. With respect to the arch 
 scientifically constructed, we may safely assert that no specimen 
 is to be met with before the age of Alexander, either in the 
 existing remains of art in Greece, or described in the works 
 of those writers who flourished previously to that period. The 
 words a*is, *AAis, 0OAO2, which unquestionably in later times 
 almost invariably implied arch, or dome, are used in a 
 different sense by the more ancient authors. Thus in Homer 
 «4>n is simply the connection of threads («»?», necto,) and there, 
 signifies the meshes of a net 2 . Herodotus in relating the 
 method by which the horses and their riders, sacrificed at 
 the funerals of the Scythian kings, were suspended in the 
 air, informs us that two curved pieces of wood passed under 
 the belly of the dead horse, and were fixed at each end to 
 
 1 Strab. lib. xvi. Plin. lib. xxxvi. c. 13. Herodotus, who not only saw, but 
 minutely described, the Egyptian labyrinth, the model of all works of this kind, 
 sufficiently proves that it was built without any arch, lib. ii. c. 148. 
 
 2 II. v. 404. 
 
lx 
 
 Xlll 
 
 the top of a pole erected in the ground for that purpose. 
 These pieces of wood he calls aWes 1 . Similar to this is the 
 meaning of the word as employed by Euripides to denote 
 the wheel of a chariot, or more properly its circumference 2 . 
 
 *aais in the recent ages of Greek literature was synonimous 
 with a*is; but the word is rarely to be met with in the works 
 of the earlier writers. In a fragment of Sophocles 3 , and 
 by Plato 4 , it is used in mentioning a subterranean edifice. 
 What it anciently signified as a term in building is very 
 uncertain, but if we might conjecture from its primitive 
 meaning, forfex, shears or scissars, it is difficult to imagine 
 how any thing descriptive of this instrument should enter 
 into the formation of an arch. 
 
 GOAos, which is interpreted dome, or cupola, implied 
 before the Macedonian conquest, merely a circular edifice, 
 without any reference to the nature of the roof 5 : this was 
 so far from being necessarily arched, that there is, on the 
 contrary, sufficient reason to believe it was in general of 
 a very different construction. The derivative from @fa os , 
 employed to express the pointed caps or bonnets worn by 
 the Greeks, serves to strengthen this belief 6 : it is thus 
 
 1 Melpom. Ixxii. 2 Hippol. 1233. 
 
 3 Lacaenae, quoted by Pollux, lib. ix. 
 
 * De legibus, lib. xii. There can be little doubt that the true reading is ^axlSx, 
 and not a<H«. The passage is thus cited by Suidas (in ¥a.\). See also Pollux, 
 lib. ix. 49. ed. Hemst : where in the notes other reasons are produced. I learn from 
 Mr. Gaisford that ¥«xi?« is the reading preserved in a MS. of the Leyden library 
 which formerly belonged to Isaac Vossius. ¥a,\l$z is likewise the reading of the 
 Scholiast published by Ruhnkenius. 
 
 5 Suid. in loc. 
 
 6 Qo\i« pileus in acutum desinens, vid. Stephan. 
 
 k 
 
1 
 
 XXIV 
 
 likewise explained by the old lexicographers 1 . The tholus 
 mentioned by Homer, it is clear, could not have been 
 vaulted, for the roof was supported by a large column in 
 the centre 2 . At Athens and Epidaurus were buildings 
 bearing this appellation; the first was an ancient edifice, in 
 which the Prytanes were accustomed to meet, the other 
 was the work of the celebrated Polycletus : they are both 
 described by Pausanias, but in neither does he intimate the 
 existence of any thing like an arch 3 . 
 
 From what has been said, it is evident that we ought to 
 hesitate in giving generally to these words the interpretation 
 of late writers; and where they occur in more ancient works, 
 all notion of a scientific arch is to be withheld, unless the 
 term itself be accompanied by such circumstances as are 
 sufficient to indicate the principle of its construction. It has 
 already been asserted that no such indication is to be found 
 in any author previous to the hundred and twelfth 
 Olympiad ; and when, in addition to this fact, among the 
 various architectural remains in Greece, we discover no 
 vestige of such a mode of building anterior to the same 
 date, the question seems to be nearly determined. 
 
 It is difficult to give a conclusive reason for adopting 
 the age of Alexander the Great in preference to a still later 
 period 4 , as that which gave birth to the invention of the 
 
 1 Hesych. in loc. ojxoj tl; o£u dirt>\yp/8va.v t^xjDV rrjv reyyv xaT£<rxiva.<rptvos. 
 8 Od. xxii. 456. 
 3 Pausan. Att. c. 5. Cor. c. 27- 
 
 * There is indeed a passage in Aristotle, that would, if it were genuine, compel 
 us to assign a period at least as remote as the reign of this prince ; for the principle 
 
1 
 
 XXV 
 
 arch : on the whole, however, it is not improbable that it 
 may have originated about this time: the advances of science 
 had been rapid and extensive, and a new world was then 
 opened to Grecian inquiry and research ; for it is to the 
 East that we are to look for the first authors of this style. 
 In truth, the scientific principle of the arch was likely to 
 have remained long unknown in Greece, where stone and 
 marble were found in such abundance. When height was 
 indispensable, it was obtained from the earliest times in that 
 country, by the gradual approximation of stones placed 
 horizontally each over the other ; but as this method, from 
 the ponderous masses necessarily employed, was attended 
 with great labour and expence, it was, as already stated, 
 rarely practised. In districts in which large blocks of 
 stone were with difficulty procured, as in many of the fertile 
 and extensive plains of the East, the invention of the arch 
 would probably arise from the mere necessity of the case, 
 in the use of such materials as were to be obtained ; and in 
 such situations, was of the highest value. We cannot however 
 wonder that a discovery, so powerfully recommended by its 
 character of utility, convenience and cheapness, should, 
 when once known, have been speedily adopted throughout 
 
 of the arch being held together by the key-stone is expressly mentioned, and is 
 made the subject of comparison with the government of the universe by the Supreme 
 Being. It is sufficient however to state, that the passage occurs in the treatise ' de 
 Mundo.' Concerning the genuineness of thiswork,in the agesimmediately succeeding 
 the restoration of literature, there was much difference of opinion ; but the dispute 
 is now set at rest to the satisfaction of every Greek scholar ; of which I will evince 
 my conviction by abstaining from the production of any one of those proofs by 
 which the composition might be shewn to be spurious. Aristot. itefi KoV/xou. c. 6. 
 
lxxvi 
 
 ihe civilized world. How far these advantages may have 
 contributed to the employment of the arch in situations to 
 which it was ill suited, and indeed inapplicable, it is not 
 necessary to inquire — perhaps we may doubt whether a 
 very material addition has been made to the ornamental 
 architecture of the Greeks by its introduction : few will 
 deny that its abuse has perpetuated a greater corruption of 
 style, and a more truly vitiated taste, than would probably 
 have been witnessed had it never existed . 
 
 NOTE. PACE XXX. 
 
 Since hazarding the conjecture in the text, I have met with a passage in Strabo 
 by which it is in great measure confirmed. He there states that the expression of 
 Homer, the aainos otaos, was construed to signify a subterranean treasury at 
 Delphi, and not the temple of Apollo. Lib. ix. p. 421. d^ro^; S'bSov, rh x«r« yijV 
 $rj<Ta,vgury.bv, x. r. A. 
 
 NOTE. PAGE LX. 
 
 From Herodotus it would appear that Darius, and not Xerxes, destroyed the 
 Ionian temples in consequence of the revolt of Histieus, lib. vi. c. 32. This author 
 makes no mention of the temple of Ephesus, but states that the temple of Juno at 
 Samos was spared in consideration of the conduct of the Samian fleet at the battle of 
 Lada, lib. vi. c. 25. Although the authority of Strabo is highly respectable, 
 perhaps the account of Herodotus is more probable ; it is certainly more consistent 
 with the situation of the Ionian states during the reign of these princes. 
 
THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTUR 
 
 OF 
 
 VITRUVIUS. 
 
 SECTION I. 
 
THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTURE 
 
 OF 
 
 VITRUVIUS. 
 
 SECTION I. 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 OF THE COMPOSITION AND SYMMETRY OF TEMPLES. 
 
 The several parts which constitute a temple ought to 
 be subject to the laws of symmetry; the principles of 
 which should be familiar to all who profess the science 
 of architecture. Symmetry results from proportion, which, 
 in the Greek language, is termed analogy. Proportion is 
 the commensuration of the various constituent parts with 
 the whole ; in the existence of which symmetry is found 
 to consist. For no building can possess the attributes 
 of composition in which symmetry and proportion are 
 disregarded; nor unless there exists that perfect conformation 
 of parts which may be observed in a well formed human 
 being. 
 
 Nature, in the composition of the human frame, has so 
 ordained that the face, from the chin to the highest point 
 
of the forehead whence the hair begins, is a tenth part of 
 the whole stature; the same proportion obtains in the hand, 
 measured from the wrist to the extremity of the middle 
 finger. The head, from the chin to the top of the scalp, 
 is an eighth, and as much from the bottom of the neck. A 
 sixth part is given to the distance from above the chest to 
 the highest point of the forehead; and from the same point 
 to the top of the scull is a fourth of the whole stature. If the 
 length of the face, from the chin to the roots of the hair, be 
 divided into three ecpial parts, the first division determines 
 the place of the nostrils; the second the point where the 
 eyebrows meet. 
 
 The foot is a sixth part of the height of the entire frame; 
 the cubit and the chest are each a fourth. The other 
 members have certain affinities which were always observed 
 by the most celebrated of the ancient painters and sculptors, 
 and we must look for them in those productions which have 
 excited universal admiration. In like manner the component 
 parts of sacred edifices ought to be commensurate with each 
 other, and have an appropriate relation with the whole 
 structure. 
 
 The navel is naturally the central point of the human 
 body; for if a man should lie on his back with his arms and 
 legs extended, the periphery of the circle which may be 
 described about him, with the navel for its centre, would 
 touch the extremities of his hands and feet. The same 
 affinities obtain if we apply a square to the human figure; 
 for, like the contiguous sides, the height from the feet to the 
 top of the head is found to be the same as the distance from 
 
the extremity of one hand to the other, when the arms are 
 extended. Since therefore the human frame appears to have 
 been formed with such propriety that the several members 
 are commensurate with the whole, the artists of antiquity 
 must be allowed to have followed the dictates of a judgment 
 the most rational when, transferring to the works of art 
 principles derived from nature, every part was so regulated 
 as to bear a just proportion to the whole. Now although 
 these principles were universally acted upon, yet they were 
 more particularly attended to in the construction of temples 
 and sacred edifices; the beauties or defects of which were 
 destined to remain as a perpetual testimony of their skill 
 or of their inability. 
 
 The standards, according to which all admeasurements 
 are wont to be made, are likewise deduced from the 
 members of the body : such as the digit, the palm, the foot, 
 and the cubit; all of which are subdivided by the perfect 
 number, which the Greeks call teleios. The perfect number 
 amongst the ancients was thought to be ten, because ten is 
 the number of the fingers. The palm was formed from 
 the digit, and the foot from the palm. But since nature 
 has given the number ten to the fingers of both hands, 
 Plato, for this reason, esteemed that number perfect; 
 because it is made up of units, which the Greeks call 
 monads; which when they are made eleven or twelve are no 
 longer perfect, inasmuch as they are excessive, nor can they 
 be so until another decade is completed ; for individual things 
 form the particles of that number. 
 
 Mathematicians, on the contrary, contend that six is the 
 
6 
 
 perfect number; because, according to their ideas, it has 
 aliquot parts whose sum amounts to that number : thus the 
 sextans is one, the triens two, the semis three. The bessis, 
 which is called dimoiros, is four; the quintarius, termed 
 also pentamoiros, is five; and the perfect six. Proceeding 
 upwards the epliectos is made by the addition of a sixth; 
 eight, which is formed by the addition of a third, is the 
 tertiarius, called epitritos ; nine, which is made by the 
 addition of the half, is the sesquialter, called hemioUos ; the 
 decade, constituted by the addition of two-thirds, is the 
 besalter, termed epidunoiros ; eleven, which results from 
 adding five, is the qiiintarius alter, or cpipentamolros ; twelve, 
 which is the double of the simple number, is called diplasion. 
 Moreover, reasoning from the proportions of the human 
 figure, six appeared to them to be the most perfect number; 
 for the foot is contained six times in the height of the whole 
 stature; the cubit is six times the length of the palm, and 
 twenty-four times that of the digit. 
 
 In conformity with the division of the cubit, which 
 contains six palms, the cities of Greece appear to have 
 divided the drachma into six parts; and it is equivalent to 
 six pieces of brass called oboli, which are stamped like the 
 Roman as: and the quadrant of the obolus, which some call 
 dichalcos, and others trichalcos, bears the same relation to 
 the drachma that the digit does to the cubit. 
 
 The Romans, however, preferred the ancient number 
 ten, and made the denarius equivalent to ten asses; and it 
 retains its ancient name to this day. Its fourth part, equal 
 to two asses and an half, they called sestertius. In process 
 
of time being led to consider both ten and six as perfect 
 numbers, they formed a more perfect number by combining 
 the two. From this number, sixteen, the divisions of the 
 foot arose; for, by taking two palms from the cubit, there 
 remained for the foot four palms of four digits each. Hence, 
 the denarius was made to contain as many brass asses as the 
 foot contained digits. 
 
 If it be true, therefore, that the decennary notation was 
 suggested by the members of man, and that the laws of 
 proportion arose from the relative measures existing between 
 certain parts of each member and the whole body, it will 
 follow that those are entitled to our commendation, who, in 
 building temples to their deities, proportioned the edifices 
 so that the several parts of them might be commensurate 
 with the whole. 
 
 Temples have various denominations, which are determined 
 by their outward forms; the first of these is the temple in antis, 
 or, as it is termed by the Greeks, news en paras tasin. Then 
 follow the prostyle, amphiprostyle, peripteral, pseudodipteral, 
 dipteral and hypaethral; the characters of which are thus 
 distinguished. A temple is said to be in antis when the 
 walls surrounding the cella are terminated in front by antae, 
 between which two columns are placed. Over these a 
 fasti gium is constructed the whole extent of the front, 
 according to the rules which are explained in a subsequent 
 chapter of this book. There is an example of this in one of 
 the three temples dedicated to Fortune, which is nearest 
 the Porta Collina. 
 
 A prostyle temple has all the appendages of a temple in 
 
8 
 
 antis; but columns are placed at the angles in front of the 
 antae. An entablature, similar to that of the temple in antis, 
 is constructed in front and returned over the interval in each 
 flank. The temple of Jupiter and Faunus, in the island of 
 the Tyber, affords an example of a temple of this description. 
 
 An amphiprostyle temple has all the characters of the 
 prostyle; besides which it has a portico in the rear similar to 
 the one in front. 
 
 A peripteral temple has six columns in the front and 
 rear; and eleven in the flanks, including those at the angles: 
 these are so situated that between them and the walls a 
 space, equal to the width of an intercolumniation, is left 
 for an ambulatory around the cella. Instances of temples 
 of this kind occur in the temple of Jupiter Stator, built by 
 Hermodus in the portico of Metellus; and in the temple 
 dedicated by Mutius to Honor and Virtue in the portico of 
 Marcellus, which was built without a posticus. 
 
 A pseudodipteral temple has eight columns in the fronts 
 and fifteen in the flanks, including those placed at the angles; 
 the walls of the cella range with the columns which are the 
 third in order from the angles of the fronts; so that between 
 the walls and the peristyle there is a space equal in width to 
 two intercolumniations and one diameter of the columns. 
 There is no example of a temple of this kind at Rome, but 
 at Magnesia there is one dedicated to Diana, which was 
 built by Hermogenes of Alabandus, and another to Apollo, 
 built by Mnestes. 
 
 A dipteral temple is octostyle in the pronaos and posticus, 
 and it has a double range of columns around the walls of the 
 
9 
 
 cella. This mode of construction has been adopted in the 
 Doric temple of Quirinus; and in the Ionic temple of Diana 
 at Ephesus, built by Ctesiphon. 
 
 An hypaethral temple has ten columns in the pronaos 
 and posticus; in all other respects it is similar to the dipteral. 
 Within the temple there is a double tier of columns on each 
 side, detached from the walls: the middle area is without 
 any covering, open to the sky, and the cella is approached 
 as well through the posticus as the pronaos. There is no 
 temple of this description at Rome, but there is one at 
 Athens, within the city 1 , dedicated to Jupiter Olympius 2 . 
 
 1 No disputed passage of any author has given rise to more discussion than the 
 concluding part of this illustration. The readings afforded by the different 
 manuscripts are various, and have tended much to embarrass the subject. Some of 
 them give the passage as follows, " Sed Athenis octastylos in templo Jovis Olympii." 
 In two belonging to the British Museum, the word " lovis" is omitted ; one of 
 them reads, " Sed Athenis octastylos in templo Olympio," and the other differs 
 from it in having the word et for in. In the MS. to which Rhode, the editor of 
 the Berlin edition, obtained access, it is similar to the last. In all those inspected 
 by Stuart, the celebrated author of the Antiquities of Athens, the word lovis, is 
 likewise wanted. 
 
 The greatest difficulty, however, arises from the introduction of the word 
 octastylos, which the context manifestly proves to be a corruption, unless we could 
 admit that Vitruvius who, in enumerating the various kinds of temples, illustrates 
 his explanation by alluding to existing monuments exactly in point, should, in the 
 present instance, refer us to a temple wherein the principles of construction are 
 so dissimilar to those which he has just informed us were necessary in hypaethral 
 temples. 
 
 The inconsistency which results from the admission of this word, has been felt 
 by all the commentators, who have attempted, in various ways, to restore the text 
 and reconcile the passage with the context. 
 
 In a former work (Antiquities of Magna Graecia, Introd. p. iii.) I have offered 
 some observations upon the passage in question ; and, as the simplest mode of 
 restoring the sense and reconciling it with the fact that a temple of Jupiter 
 
10 
 
 Olympius at Athens formerly existed, and still exists in part, which, as the 
 beginning of the passage leads us to expect of the temple subsequently alluded to, 
 had ten columns in the fronts, I conjectured the word octastylos to have been 
 interpolated. But having since found it to occur in all the manuscripts, it becomes 
 necessary to admit that a word, or words made up of characters nearly similar, was 
 originally introduced. 
 
 In order to discuss the question fairly, we ought to consider it in the form it 
 assumes in the majority of the manuscripts, and omit altogether the word Jovis : 
 the change of et for in is scarcely worthy of attention. 
 
 For octastylosin, I propose reading, inastylovis; the passage will then read as 
 follows, " Sed Athenis in asty Jovis templo Olympic" Here it ought to be 
 observed of the expression in asty, that Vitruvius makes use of it in the proem to the 
 seventh book, where he is speaking of this very temple, " In asty vero Jovem 
 
 Olympium " Again in the third chapter of the eighth book, wherein he alludes 
 
 to the springs at Athens, he says, " Haec maxime considerantur Athenis et in 
 
 osly et ad portum Piraeeum." On the other hand, when he alludes to the temples 
 upon the acropolis, he subjoins the words in arce, to denote their situation : as in 
 the seventh chapter of the fourth book, and in the proem to the seventh. 
 
 By retaining the word octastylos, many have been led to imagine that Vitruvius 
 referred his readers to an octastyle temple at Athens. Stuart, whose knowledge of 
 Grecian architecture entitles his opinion on subjects of this kind to be received 
 with all possible deference, supposes him to allude to the Parthenon, conceiving 
 this to have been an hypaethral temple. He was induced to form this opinion from 
 the description given of the temple by Wheler, before the operations of the siege of 
 Athens by the Venetians had reduced it to the state in which we now see it. The 
 Parthenon, however, was not an hypaethral temple, as I shall have occasion to 
 remark in a future publication, wherein I propose to treat, at some length, on the 
 subject of Athenian architecture. It will be sufficient in the present instance to 
 record a dissent from the opinion formed by preceding travellers respecting the 
 interior of the Parthenon ; and to add that, even supposing it to have been hypaethral, 
 Vitruvius could never mean to illustrate his precepts by referring to a building 
 which was deficient in the two essential points hy which such temples were distin- 
 guished — it was neither decastyle nor dipteral. 
 
 2 The temple of Jupiter Olympius, we are informed by Vitruvius, in the proem 
 to the seventh book, was built by the Roman architect Cossutius, upon the site of 
 one begun under Pisistratus, Antiochus being at the expence of its construction. 
 The magnificent remains of this temple justify the eulogiums bestowed upon the 
 entire building by our author, who ranks it among the four most celebrated temples 
 of antiquity. 
 
CHAP. II. 
 
 OF THE FIVE SPECIES OF TEMPLES. 
 
 There are five species of temples, namely, the pycnostyle, 
 in which the columns are placed far apart; the systyle, in 
 which they are more remote; the diastyle, whose columns 
 are at an ample distance from each other; the araeostyle, in 
 which the intervals between the columns are too great; and 
 the eustyle, whose intercolumniations are justly proportioned. 
 In the pycnostyle species, the interval between the 
 columns is equal to one diameter and an half; there is an 
 instance of this in the temple of Julius, and another in the 
 temple of Venus, which is erected in the forum of Caesar. 
 In all temples of this species the same interval between the 
 columns is observed. In the systyle species there should be 
 an interval between the columns equal to two diameters; this 
 arrangement would leave the space between the plinths of the 
 bases of the columns equal to the extent of the plinths 
 themselves. There are examples of this in the temple of 
 Fortuna Equestris, near the stone theatre; and in some 
 other temples, in the construction of which the same 
 principle has been followed. Neither of these species ought 
 to be generally adopted ; for the matrons who go to their 
 supplications, mutually supporting each other, cannot pass 
 
12 
 
 through the intercolumniations unless they separate and 
 walk in ranks. The view of the entrance and of the statues 
 themselves is also obstructed when the columns are placed 
 so little apart; and the ambulatory, whose width is governed 
 by the interval between the columns, is inconvenient from 
 its being so narrow. 
 
 The intercolumniations of temples of the diastyle species 
 may be as much as three times the diameter of the columns; 
 as we find them in the temple of Apollo and Dianij. One 
 objection attends this disposition of the columns, since the 
 epistylia are liable, from their great length, to break. 
 
 In the araeostyle species neither stone nor marble can be 
 used for the epistylia, but beams of durable timber must be 
 employed for that purpose. Temples of this species are made 
 low and wide, and the fastigia are ornamented with earthen 
 statues, or bronze sculpture gilt, after the Tuscan manner: 
 this practice has been observed in the temple of Ceres and in 
 that of Hercules built byPompey, both in the Circus maximus; 
 and also in a temple dedicated to this latter divinity in the 
 Capitol. 
 
 The eustyle species remains to be described. This 
 possesses, in the highest degree, the advantages of convenience, 
 beauty and solidity. The intervals between the columns are 
 made ecpial to two diameters and a quarter; excepting the 
 central one, which, both in the pronaos and posticus, is 
 enlarged to the width of three. This disposition produces 
 a form of great beauty, and renders the entrance to the 
 temple commodious: the ambulatory also around the cella 
 now becomes sufficiently spacious. 
 
3 
 
 The principles upon which temples of this species are 
 constructed are these : if there are to be four columns in the 
 front, the whole extent, exclusive of all projections beyond 
 the shafts of the columns at the angles, must be divided 
 into eleven parts and an half 1 : if the front is to consist 
 of six columns, the extent should be divided into eighteen 
 parts : and if the temple is intended to be octostyle in the 
 fronts, the number of the divisions should be twenty four 
 and an half. In all these cases one of the divisions is the 
 standard, and measures the diameter of the columns. Each 
 intercolumniation, that in the centre excepted, is made equal 
 to two moduli and a quarter; the central interval alone, in 
 both fronts, is equal to three. The height of the columns 
 will be a certain multiple of the modulus 2 . There is no 
 
 1 The MSS. state the number of the divisions to be ten and an half, when the 
 temple is prostyle, with four columns in front. This is evidently an error of the 
 copyists ; for whilst the divisions of the hexastyle and octostyle fronts, as they are 
 stated in the MSS. will allow of three diameters for the central intervals, and two and 
 a quarter for all the others, the divisions of the tetrastyle front would only admit of 
 a space equal to two diameters for the central intercolumniation; contrary to the 
 practice, which Vitruvius has just before recommended, of enlarging the interval in 
 the centre to the width of three diameters. It does not appear that the Greeks made 
 any difference in the intervals between the columns of temples of the Ionic order; 
 upon which particular order it is evident that Vitruvius is here treating : from which 
 it might be inferred, that he had no Greek original in view when he determines the 
 diameter of the columns from thus dividing the extent of the fronts. If however we 
 divide the tetrastyle front of the portico of Minerva Polias at Athens into eleven 
 parts and an half, each will be 2.10.8, which is very nearly the same as the diameter 
 of the columns. 
 
 2 In the various MSS. which I have examined, there is no mention made in this 
 passage of the number of moduli which is to be given to the height of the columns. 
 The passage stands thus, " Ipsarum columnarum altitudo modulorum habebunt 
 justam rationem." From the want of concord in the number of the substantive and 
 verb, the early editors of Vitruvius have been induced to believe that some other 
 
14 
 
 example of a temple at Rome with these proportions, but 
 at Teos, in Asia, there is one dedicated to Bacchus. These 
 proportions were first introduced by Hermogenes, to whom 
 we owe the invention of the octostyle pseudodipteral form. 
 Having omitted the innermost range of columns in the 
 peristyles of dipteral temples he diminished the number by 
 thirty eight 1 ; and thus reduced the labour and expence of 
 building. By this expedient the ambulatory around the 
 cella was rendered spacious, whilst the outward appearance 
 of the temple remained unaltered: the grandeur of the 
 structure was still preserved, and the eye was not conscious 
 of the absence of the superfluous columns; for the introduction 
 of the pteromata, and the disposition of the columns about the 
 cella, were calculated to give that boldness to the design which 
 results from the introduction of columns totally disengaged. 
 
 substantive was the antecedent to habebunt; and the passage, without any comment, 
 has been altered in the following manner : " Ipsarum columnarum altitudo erit 
 modulorum octo et dimidiae moduli partis. Ita ex ea divisione intercolumnia, altitudinesquc 
 columnarum habebunt justam rationem." This interpolation has tended to propagate 
 an error, concerning the real height of the columns, into which the editors have been 
 led, in a subsequent part of this chapter, which will be noticed hereafter. 
 
 1 The commentators of Vitruviu: have adopted various opinions in regard to the 
 number of columns which were spared by this invention of Hermogenes. Newton 
 supposes that the columns of the pronaos and posticus were included in the number 
 omitted; the epistylia must then have extended from centre to centre of the antae; 
 which cannot be thought to have been really the case. Probably the octostyle 
 dipteral temples were constructed with a triple range in the front; this would admit 
 of the omission of thirty eight when the inner ranges of the peristyles were taken 
 away. The temple of Jupiter Capitolinus at Rome, and that of Jupiter Obympius 
 at Athens, which were both dipteral, had a triple range in both fronts. But it is to 
 be observed that these temples were hypaethral, and were entered both from the 
 pronaos and posticus ; whereas it appears from Vitruvius, that octostyle temples had 
 only an entrance from the principal front. 
 
15 
 
 It also provided that the peristyles should afford ample space 
 for exercise to such as sought shelter from the sudden fall 
 of rain. Such is the construction of temples which are 
 pseudodipteral : from which we may infer, that Hermogenes 
 considered with great care and attention the ends which his 
 invention was intended to promote; and thus afforded a 
 useful lesson, of which posterity may avail itself in its studies 
 for the advancement of science. 
 
 The columns of temples whose species is the araeostyle, 
 should be so proportioned that their diameter may be an 
 eighth part of their height. In the diastyle species the 
 height of the column is divided into eight parts and an half, 
 one of which is given to the diameter. 
 
 The columns of temples of the systyle species should be 
 divided into nine parts and an half, and one part given 
 to the diameter. The diameter of columns in pycnostyle 
 temples should be a tenth part of their height. But in the 
 eustyle, as in the systyle species, the height of the columns 
 should be made nine times their diameter and an half 1 : thus 
 
 1 It is a very important point to ascertain the true height which Vitruvius 
 intended should be given to the columns of eustyle temples: because, having 
 preferred this species to all others for beauty and convenience, the proportions 
 of a part so essential as the columns, is the first consideration to which our 
 attention should be directed. The Elzevir and Berlin editions, as well as the 
 translations of Newton and Perrault, make eustyle columns, like the diastyle, eight 
 diameters and an half; thus it has happened that the proportions of the eustyle 
 species, which, when properly represented, have obtained the preference of our 
 author, have hitherto been misinterpretated. The reading however of various MSS. 
 which in defiance of all other authority, can alone be admitted to convey the idea 
 which Vitruvius entertained of the most perfect proportions, is at variance with the 
 text of all the editors and translators. In those which I have had an ojiportunity of 
 examining the passage stands as follows: " Aedibus araeostylis columnae sic sunt 
 
16 
 
 the height of the columns will be properly proportioned 
 to the intervals between them. The more the interval 
 between the columns is increased, the greater ought to be 
 the proportion of the diameter of the shafts to their height : 
 for if the lower diameter of the columns, in temples of the 
 araeostyle species, be made only one ninth or one tenth 
 part of their height, the columns will appear weak and 
 slender; because we estimate the bulk of the columns bv 
 comparing it with the void space between two : when 
 therefore this latter is considerable, the apparent bulk of the 
 shafts is comparatively small. On the other hand, if columns 
 in the pycnostyle species were made an eighth part of their 
 height, the comparative smallness of the intervals, by parity 
 of reasoning, would contribute to their apparent bulk, and 
 make them seem too massive. Hence it is that edifices 
 constructed upon different principles require proportions 
 peculiar to each. For a similar reason the columns at the 
 angles of a building should have their diameter enlarged by 
 a fiftieth part; because, from their situation, they are more 
 immediately contrasted with the light; whence they appear 
 less than the others. Thus the deception to which the sight 
 
 faciendae, uti crassitudines earum sint partis oclavae ad altitudines. Item in 
 diastylo demetienda est altitudo columnae in partes octo et dimidiam, et unius partis 
 columnae crassititdo collocetur. In systylo altitudo dividatur in novem et dimidiam 
 partem et ex iis una ad crassitudinem columnae detur. Item in pycnostylo dividenda 
 est altitudo in partes decern, et ejus una pars facienda columnae crassitude Eustyli 
 autem aedis columnae, uti systyli, in novem partibus altitudo dividatur 
 
 et dimidiam partem, et ejus una pars " In one of the manuscripts the 
 
 words in Italics are altogether omitted, which is evidently an error of the copyist, 
 who has been misled by the recurrence of the word altitudo so immediately after its 
 appearance in the passage alluding to the proportions of the diastyle species. 
 
17 
 
 is liable, should be counteracted by means suggested by the 
 faculty of reasoning. 
 
 The diminution of the shaft at the hypotrachelium is thus 
 regulated. If the column be at the least fifteen feet high, 
 the lower diameter of the shaft should be divided into six 
 parts, and the upper diameter made equal to five of them. In 
 columns from fifteen to twenty feet high the lower diameter 
 should be divided into thirteen parts, eleven of which are to 
 be given to the upper diameter. From twenty to thirty feet, 
 the diameter of the columns should be divided into seven 
 parts, and the diminution of the shaft made equal to one of 
 them. The diameter of columns, whose height lies between 
 thirty and forty feet, should be divided into fifteen parts, of 
 which thirteen should be given to the upper diameter. And 
 columns which are from forty to fifty feet in height, ought to 
 be contracted at the hypotrachelium one eighth part of their 
 diameter at the base. In columns of a greater height, the 
 contraction at the top of the shaft should be proportionably 
 less, because, to the eye, the diameter diminishes as the 
 height of the columns increases; hence, to preserve the 
 same apparent proportion of the diameters, it becomes 
 necessary to increase that at the upper part of the shaft. 
 The eye alone is the judge of beauty, and where a false 
 impression is made upon it, through the natural defects of 
 vision, we must correct the apparent want of harmony in 
 the whole by instituting peculiar proportions in particular 
 parts. 
 
 D 
 
18 
 
 The method for giving the proper increase to the shaft 
 towards the middle, which is termed entasis 1 by the Greeks, 
 so as to render it gradual and easily applicable to practise, 
 is explained by a figure at the end of this book. 
 
 The entasis is the measure of the deviation from the straight line drawn from 
 the extremities of the upper and lower diameters of the shafts. 
 
CHAP. III. 
 
 OF THE FOUNDATIONS OF TEMPLES; AND OF IONIC 
 COLUMNS AND THEIR APPENDAGES. 
 
 In preparing foundations for works of this kind, it will be 
 first necessary to dig down to a regular stratum, if such is to 
 be met with; and upon this the foundations, constructed with 
 great attention to their strength, are to be laid : their solidity 
 must be proportioned to the magnitude of the building in 
 contemplation. The piers above ground, below the columns, 
 should be thicker than the diameter of the columns they are 
 to support by one half, that these substructures, which are 
 called stereobatae, on account of their sustaining the whole 
 weight, may be enabled by their greater solidity to support 
 what is built upon them. The bases of the columns when 
 fixed, ought not to project before the face of the stereobatae 
 on either side. The intervals between the piers should 
 either be made solid by means of piles, or arched over, 
 so as to connect the piers. 
 
 If no compact stratum is to be found, but the ground, on 
 the contrary, is loose or marshy to a great depth, trenches 
 must be dug and piles of charred alder, olive, or oak, placed 
 closely together, be driven in by means of machines. The 
 intervals between them should be filled up with charred 
 timber, and upon this substratum a foundation should be 
 
20 
 
 formed with solid masonry. The foundations being reared 
 to the same level all around, the stylobate 1 is next to be 
 constructed. Upon this the columns are to be arranged, 
 in the manner already described, at intervals, which are 
 determined by the species of temple intended to be built; 
 whether pycnostyle, systyle. diastyle, or eustyle. In the 
 araeostyle species we are at liberty to place the columns at 
 any distance asunder. 
 
 In all peripteral temples, the number of the intervals 
 between the columns in the flanks ought to be double that of 
 the intercolumniations in the fronts: for then the length of 
 the whole building will, in all instances, be double its width. 
 Those temples in which the number of the columns in the 
 flanks is double that observed in the fronts, have been built 
 without any regard to this proportion, and they appear too 
 long by one intercolumniation. 
 
 The number of steps in the fronts of temples should 
 always be unequal; because if the first step, made in 
 ascending, be taken with the right foot, that by which the 
 
 1 Stylobatae and stylobatum are words used indiscriminately by our author, to 
 express the whole uninterrupted basis below the columns. They mean a plane 
 surface raised either upon a certain number of steps, which were continued all 
 around, or upon a podium, which afforded no approach but in front. It does not 
 appear that Vitruvius ever applied the word to mean the pedestals upon which we 
 sometimes observe the columns of ancient buildings to be raised: nor is there any 
 distinct mention made of pedestals throughout the whole work. That it has not 
 this signification in this place, is evident from the construction of the passage, 
 which is as follows : " Extructis autem fundamentis ad libramentum stylobatae sunt 
 colloccuukie. Supra stylobatas co\umx\a.e disponendae." If pedestals had been intended 
 by the use of the word sylobatae, " disponendae" would have been used instead of 
 " colloeandae;" and vice versa. 
 
21 
 
 level of the stylobate is gained, will also be taken with the 
 same foot. The rise of the step ought not to exceed, ten 
 inches, nor be less than nine, in order that the ascent may 
 not be too difficult: the width should be at the least a foot 
 and a half, but ought never to exceed two feet. If steps 
 be adopted on all sides, they should still observe the same 
 proportions: but when a podium is to be constructed on 
 three sides, the whole height, including the plinth, dye, 
 corona and lysis 1 , must not exceed the level of the stylobate. 
 The stylobate ought not to be constructed upon the horizontal 
 level, but should rise gradually from the ends towards the 
 centre, so as to have there a small addition. The inconvenience, 
 which might arise from a stylobate thus constructed, may 
 be obviated by means of unequal scamilli 2 . If the line of 
 
 1 Lysis, derived perhaps from the Greek alusis, a chain, or band. A kind of 
 plinth or step above the cornice of the podium, which surrounds or embraces the 
 stylobate; as we may observe in the temple of Fortuna Virilis. 
 
 2 The use and application of the addition which we are directed to give to the 
 middle of the stylobate, has been a subject of controversy with all the commentators 
 on Vitruvius: and the position of the scamilli impares has produced many elaborate 
 dissertations. Baldus, amongst others, has written upon it to a considerable extent; 
 without producing any satisfactory elucidation. The object of our author in 
 reducing every thing to the guidance of physical principles, is evident in various 
 parts of his work; and may be traced throughout the whole of the present chapter; 
 in which we are repeatedly directed to pursue certain measures calculated to 
 counteract the supposed imperfections of vision. 
 
 The rule for making an addition to the stylobate was undoubtedly prompted by 
 the same consideration. The image formed by the rays which pass through a convex 
 lens from a straight line is not, like the object, straight, but somewhat curved; and 
 is in fact part of a conic section. In like manner the image of a straight line, formed 
 upon the retina, is curved, whether the line be vertical or horizontal. Owing to this 
 defect of vision, if it may be so called, it might appear that the line of the stylobate 
 would form a curved image; and be what Vitruvius terms, alveolated; that is, 
 
22 
 
 stylobate were perfectly horizontal, it would appear like the 
 bed of a channel. The method of constructing the scamilli, 
 and the application of them, is explained by a figure at the 
 end of the book. 
 
 Having proceeded thus far, the next object is to fix the 
 bases of the columns in the places assigned to them. Their 
 
 hollowed like the bed of a channel. Hence if we wish it to appear perfectly 
 horizontal, we must make it to rise in the centre and fall gradually towards the 
 extremities. Whether however it he that the line of the stylobate is interrupted, 
 by being in some measure identified with the columns, and thus is only seen at 
 intervals ; or whether the eye becomes insensible, through habit, of the apparent 
 curvature of objects which are presumed to be in reality straight, this great 
 refinement, suggested by physical knowledge, does not appear to have entered into 
 the execution of the works of the ancients. 
 
 In rearing the columns upon a stylobate thus constructed, we must have recourse 
 to some expedient for placing them so that their axes may be perpendicular to the 
 horizon. This object may be effected by the use of scamilli impares, or small 
 plinths formed like wedges; placing them with the lower end towards the centre of 
 the building. Scamilli of this description are adopted in the portico of Saint 
 Martin's church; the stylobate of which is inclined towards the front for the purpose 
 of carrying off the rain which occasionally falls upon it. These scamilli have their 
 lower ends towards the pronaos, whereas those of Vitruvius have them towards Hie 
 centre of the stylobate. 
 
 This explanation of what was meant by the addition to the stylobate, will apply 
 to the passage alluding to the mode of placing the capitals of the columns upon the 
 shafts. For the same reason that the line of the stylobate would appear concave, 
 being below the eye, the line of the upper members of the epistylium would appear 
 convex, being above it. To counteract this appearance it seems necessary to 
 make the line of the epistylium concave towards the middle point; and the measure 
 of the deviation from a straight line should bear a certain proportion to the addition 
 made in the centre of the stylobate. The same inconvenience would arise, with 
 regard to the capitals, as before offered itself in fixing the bases, which might be 
 obviated by the use of similar scamilli. If the scamilli here used be all equal in size, 
 it follows, that the abaci of the capitals will rise one above the other as they recede 
 from the central point of the epistylium: and consequently the capitals will be in 
 different horizontal planes. 
 
23 
 
 height, including the plinth, should be half the diameter of 
 the columns, and their projection, which the Greeks call 
 the ecphora, a fourth; so that the width of the plinth may 
 be equal to a diameter and a half. If the bases are to 
 resemble the Athenian, their height is to be so divided that 
 the members above the plinth may be a third of the diameter 
 of the columns; what remains is given to the plinth. The 
 first division is to be subdivided into four equal parts, one of 
 which is for the upper torus; the remaining three are to be 
 equally divided between the lower torus and the scotia, 
 which the Greeks call trochilos, with its fillets. But if the 
 bases are to resemble the Ionian, the proportions will be 
 different; for the width of the plinth should be a diameter 
 and three-eighths. The proportions for the height of the 
 plinth, and the other members of the Athenian base, taken 
 collectively, are to be observed in the Ionian; but the 
 subdivisions of the latter must be made in a different manner; 
 for the upper torus should be equal to three parts out of 
 seven; two of the remaining four should be given to the 
 upper trochilus, with its astragals and supercilium, and two 
 to the lower trochilus. The lower trochilus will appear 
 greater than the upper, because it is made to project to 
 the face of the plinth. The astragals should be an eighth 
 part of the trochilus. 
 
 The bases being fixed in their places, we must proceed 
 to rear the columns of the pronaos and posticus; all of 
 which, excepting those at the angles, should have their axes 
 in a vertical line; but the columns at the angles, as well as 
 those which are intended to be placed in the flanks, should 
 
24 
 
 have their axes inclined, so that the faces next the walls 
 of the cella, may become perpendicular to the stylobate; 
 and the whole contraction of the shaft is made to take place 
 in the outward face. By observing this method in contracting 
 the shafts, the whole temple will assume that form which 
 accords with our ideas of perfection. 
 
 Having described the manner in which the shafts should 
 be fixed, we proceed to treat of the method of forming the 
 capitals; which, supposing them to be pulvinated, are to be 
 constructed in the following manner. The abacus must every 
 way be equal in extent to the lower diameter of the shaft 
 and an eighteenth part: the height of the capital, including 
 the volute, half this extent. A twelfth part of the abacus, 
 measured from the angles of those faces which are to be 
 ornamented with volutes, is to be taken, and from these 
 points perpendicular lines, called catheti, are to be let fall. 
 The whole height of the capital being divided into nine 
 parts and a half, eight are given to the depth of the volute, 
 and the remainder to the abacus. Then other lines are let 
 fall, parallel to the catheti and distant from them one part 
 and a half; and at those points where these lines are divided 
 in such a manner as to leave four parts and a half above, 
 and three parts and a half below, centres are assumed, from 
 which circles are described, whose diameter is equal to one 
 of the eight parts. These circles are called the eyes of the 
 volutes, and diameters are drawn in them perpendicular to 
 the catheti. The volutes are then described from centres in 
 the several tetrants of these circles; beginning with those 
 immediately below the abacus ; and after every revolution 
 
25 
 
 through the four tetrants, when we again arrive at those 
 below the abacus, the half spaces of the eyes are constantly 
 made less. The height of the capital is so divided, that of 
 the nine parts, three fall below the astragal at the top of the 
 shaft; the space intervening between that and the abacus, 
 is occupied by the cymatium and canal. The cymatium 
 projects as much before the abacus as the side of the square 
 circumscribing the eye of the volute. The greatest projection 
 of the bands, encircling the swell of the volutes, is limited 
 by an arc, described through the point of projection of the 
 cymatium, whose centre is situated in the tetrant of the 
 capital. The axes of the volutes should not be greater than 
 the eye, and the volutes are channelled to the depth of a 
 twelfth part of their width. 
 
 These proportions are calculated for the capitals of 
 columns whose height does not exceed twenty-five feet 1 . 
 When the columns are of greater height, the relative 
 proportions of the capitals must be different : the abacus, for 
 example, should every way be equal to the diameter of 
 the column and a ninth part; for inasmuch as the higher 
 columns diminish less in proportion, it becomes necessary to 
 increase the proportions of the capitals, in order that they 
 may preserve a consistent projection beyond the shafts. 
 The geometrical method of constructing the volutes is 
 explained by a diagram at the end of the book. 
 
 In placing the capitals upon the shafts of the columns, 
 they are not to be arranged so that the abaci may be in the 
 
 1 The printed copies read fifteen feet. 
 
 £ 
 
26 
 
 same horizontal level; but must follow the direction of the 
 upper members of the epistylium; which will deviate from 
 the straight line, drawn from the extreme points, in 
 proportion to the addition given to the centre of the 
 stylobate. 
 
 The proportional height of the epistylium is determined 
 from the actual height of the columns; when these are from 
 twelve to fifteen feet, the epistylium should be half the lower 
 diameter. When the height of the columns is from fifteen 
 to twenty feet it should be divided into thirteen parts, and 
 one of them given to the epistylium. In columns which are 
 from twenty to twenty-five feet, the height should be divided 
 into twelve parts and a half, and the height of the epistylium 
 made equal to one of such parts. The epistylia of columns, 
 which are from twenty-five feet to thirty feet high, ought to 
 be a twelfth part of their height. Thus the epistylia must 
 observe a greater ratio to the height of the columns as 
 these continue to increase in altitude. For vision is less 
 distinct as the height of the object increases; because the 
 rays have to pass through a greater body of air, and its 
 powers becoming exhausted in proportion to the space 
 through which it penetrates, a false idea of magnitude is 
 impressed upon the sense; whence it follows that when 
 buildings have colossal proportions, or when they are 
 situated upon elevated spots, we must increase the scale 
 of the proportions of the upper members. 
 
 The width of the epistylium, where it rests immediately 
 upon the capital, should be equal to the upper diameter 
 of the shaft; but at the top its width should be increased 
 
27 
 
 so as to equal the diameter at the base. The cymatium 
 should be a seventh part of the height of the epistylium, and 
 its projection the same. The epistylium, below the cymatium, 
 is divided into twelve equal parts, three of which are given 
 to the first fascia, four to the second, and five to the third, 
 or upper, fascia. 
 
 The zophorus should be a fourth less in height than the 
 epistylium; unless it be intended to enrich it with sculpture, 
 in which case it should be a fourth part higher; in order 
 that the sculpture may possess sufficient importance. The 
 cymatium should be a seventh part of the zophorus, and its 
 projection the same. Over the zophorus the denticulus is 
 placed, equal in height to the middle fascia of the epistylium; 
 and its projection is equal to its height: the interval between 
 the denticuli, which amongst the Greeks is termed metoche, 
 is determined by making the width of the denticuli half 
 their height, and the spaces between them two thirds of 
 their width. The cymatium of this member should be a 
 sixth part of its height. 
 
 The corona with its cymatium, exclusive of the sima above 
 it, ought together to be equal to~ the middle fascia of the 
 epistylium; and its greatest projection before the face of the 
 zophorus, should be equal to the distance between the 
 zophorus to the highest point of the cymatium: and in 
 general the best effect will result from making the projections 
 of all the members equal to their height. 
 
 The height of the tympanum of the fastigium is 
 determined by dividing the extent between the extreme 
 points of the cymatium of the corona into nine parts; and 
 
28 
 
 making the vertex of the tympanum one of such parts above 
 the corona. The face of the tympanum should be in the 
 same vertical plane with the epistylium. 
 
 The coronae of the fastigium, exclusive of the simae, are 
 equal in height to those above the clenticulus. The simae, 
 which the Greeks call epitithides, should be higher than 
 the coronae by an eighth part. The acroteria, at the angles 
 of the fastigium, should be reared to the height of the central 
 point of the tympanum; and those at the vertex an eighth 
 part more in height than the others. 
 
 All the members above the capitals of the columns, that 
 is to say, the epistylia, zophorus, coronae, tympanum, 
 fastigium and acroteria, ought to have an inclination towards 
 the front, equal to a twelfth part of the height of each; 
 for the rays which enter the eye from the upper parts of 
 the building being of greater length than those from the 
 lower, convey to the sense an impression that the object is 
 reclining; when, therefore, an inclination forwards is given 
 it in the manner here described, it will appear to be in a 
 plane perpendicular to the horizon. 
 
 The flirtings of the columns should be twenty-four in 
 number; and the channels so formed, that when the vertex 
 of a square touches any point in their concave surface, the 
 sides of it may touch the angles of the fillets between the 
 channels. The width of the fillets should be equal to the 
 entasis of the shaft. 
 
 Lions heads are generally sculptured upon the simae in 
 the flanks of temples; they should be so arranged that one 
 may be immediately over the axis of every column; and others 
 
29 
 
 disposed at equal intervals between them, against the centre 
 of every tile. Those over the columns should be perforated 
 down to the channel which receives the rain water; and the 
 others solid, in order that the water which is received into 
 the gutters from the roof, having no means of escaping 
 through them, may not incommode those who, in seeking 
 shelter, are obliged to pass through the intervals between 
 the columns. The water is discharged from the mouths of 
 such heads only as are placed over the columns. 
 
 Having thus closed the relation of what appertains to 
 the construction of Ionic temples, we proceed in the next 
 book to explain the proportions which are peculiar to 
 temples of the Doric and Corinthian orders of architecture. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION I. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION I. 
 
 The principles of civil architecture form no part of the 
 discussion contained in the first and second books of 
 Vitruvius. In the third, after giving some definitions, 
 and making some observations upon the origin of numbers, 
 he proceeds to relate the principles upon which temples 
 were constructed; and the proportions observed in the Ionic 
 order of architecture. 
 
 It is fortunate that the understanding of Plato's notions, or 
 those of any other antient philosopher, upon the doctrine of 
 numbers, is not necessary to the understanding of Vitruvius 
 upon the science of architecture. The passage alluding 
 to the ideas of Plato concerning the properties of the 
 number ten, can scarcely be made intelligible to an English 
 reader, because of the play in the original upon the words 
 " perficitur," and " perfectus." Without entering, therefore, 
 into a discussion, which would be uninteresting to the 
 generality of readers^ we shall proceed to consider the 
 subject of the remaining part of the third book. 
 
 The information which Vitruvius details on the proportions 
 of the several orders of architecture, does not appear to have 
 
 F 
 
been obtained by the investigation of buildjngs which were 
 in existence at Rome during his age: but, on the contrary, 
 to have been collected from writings, on that science, left by 
 his predecessors. Of those which he enumerates, it appears 
 that three only were productions of his countrymen. With 
 the exception of a volume written by Fussitius, and two small 
 tracts, one by Varro, and another by Publius Septimus, no 
 work upon the science of architecture seems to have been 
 known to our author. On the other hand, he confesses to 
 have derived the greatest assistance from the writings of 
 Grecian architects upon that subject. These he states to 
 have been numerous, and acknowledges that they supplied 
 him with the principal materials in the formation of his 
 treatise. Hence it will not be thought extraordinary, that 
 the various proportions he assigns to the different orders 
 should correspond very nearly with those adopted in Grecian 
 buildings: more particularly in the Ionic, upon which order 
 the number of writings enumerated by him greatly exceeded 
 the works upon the two remaining. 
 
 Opportunities are afforded to us of ascertaining the extent 
 of his plagiarism, by the partial existence of monuments, the 
 subjects of the very works whence he admits that he derived 
 his knowledge of architectural proportions. Amongst these 
 may be mentioned the temple of Minerva Polias and the 
 Erectheum, upon the acropolis of Athens; the temple of 
 Minerva, at Priene, and that of Bacchus at Teos. In 
 investigating, therefore, his proportions for the Ionic order, 
 we shall compare them with those which have been adopted 
 in these buildings. 
 
35 
 
 PLATE I. 
 
 Fig. 1 . Plan of a temple in antis. 
 
 Fig. 2. Plan of a prostyle temple. 
 
 Both temples are here represented with a podium around 
 three sides; the fourth is approached by a flight of steps. 
 The text of our author leaves us in doubt whether or not 
 the columns a a, between the antae of the latter temple,, were 
 suffered to remain. If literally construed, a prostyle temple 
 had only two columns more than a temple in antis; and 
 these were placed opposite the antae in the direction of the 
 walls. We cannot easily admit that such was his meaning, 
 because the interval between the two columns in the front 
 would have been too great to afford support to the epistylium. 
 The prostyle temples of Neptune Erectheus and Minerva 
 Polias, at Athens, had no columns intervening between the 
 antae; but the intervals were enclosed, leaving openings only 
 to give access to the cellae. These temples were without a 
 pronaos, which those described by Vitruvius were intended 
 to have. 
 
 PLATE II. 
 
 Fig. 1 . Plan of an amphiprostyle temple. 
 
 According to our author, amphiprostyle temples resembled 
 the prostyle, with the addition of a portico in the back front. 
 In the three species of temples already mentioned, the aedes, 
 or temple exclusive of the porticoes, is divided in the manner 
 
36 
 
 described in the fourth chapter of the second section. The 
 length being made equal to twice the width, the cella, 
 including the wall which separates it from the pronaos, is a 
 fourth part greater in length than the width of the temple. 
 
 Fig. "1. Plan of a peripteral temple. 
 
 We are to infer from the words of Vitruvius, that peripteral 
 temples were constructed with an area, or posticus, in the 
 back part, corresponding to the pronaos of the principal 
 front; because amongst the examples of peripteral temples 
 which he instances, one, deviating from the general plan, is 
 stated to have been* constructed without a posticus. The 
 word posticus here has a different meaning from the same 
 word, as it is introduced in the description of an amphiprostyle 
 temple; where it signifies the portico at the back part of the 
 temple. In the same manner the word pronaos is used in 
 the description of Tuscan temples, to express the area 
 occupied by the portico in front. The temple of Honor 
 and Virtue is described as peripteral, that is, having insulated 
 columns all around it; consequently there was a portico 
 in the back front; and therefore when it is represented as 
 having no posticus, we can only understand it to have been 
 constructed without an opisthodomus beyond the cella. 
 
 The instructions for the division of the aedes, or temple 
 exclusive of the peristyles, in the chapter referred to in 
 the description of Fig. 1, cannot be said to apply to any 
 other than temples which were not peripteral; otherwise 
 if the length of the aedes is to be the double of the width 
 only, it will not sufficiently occupy the length of the area, 
 comprehended between the columns in the two fronts of 
 
37 
 
 the temple: unless, indeed, the space remaining be allotted 
 to a posticus, of which however there is no mention in the 
 chapter above alluded to. 
 
 PLATE III. 
 
 PLAN OF A DIPTERAL TEMPLE. 
 
 If the columns which are distinguished by the lighter shade 
 be removed, the species of the temple becomes pseudodipteral. 
 According to the arrangement of the columns in the plan 
 before us, the number of columns requiring to be removed 
 is thirty eight; in conformity with the text of Vitruvius. 
 Since hypaethral temples alone had two approaches, it was 
 perhaps the intention of the author to represent dipteral 
 temples with a treble portico in that front only through 
 which they were approached. It appears, from Dionysius 
 of Halicarnassus, that a temple of Jupiter at Rome, like that 
 erected to the same divinity at Athens, had a double range 
 of columns in the flanks, and a treble range in both fronts: 
 but these temples were hypaethral, and consequently were 
 approached through both fronts; which, on that account, it 
 might be necessary to make equally magnificent. 
 
 The temple of Bacchus at Teos, is said by our author to 
 have been of the pseudodipteral species. In order, therefore, 
 to give some idea of the magnitude of the temple, the diameter 
 of the columns in the plate before us is made the same with 
 that of some of the columns of this temple which are yet 
 remaining. 
 
38 
 
 PLATE IV. 
 
 PLAN OF AN HYPAETHRAL TEMPLE. 
 
 The proportions of the temple represented in this plate 
 are similar to those which may be collected from Pliny's 
 account of the temple of Diana at Ephesus. According 
 to this author, Ionic bases and capitals were first introduced 
 in the columns of that temple. 
 
 PLATE V. 
 
 Fig. 1. Explanation of the mode in which the addition 
 was made in the middle of the stylobate of a temple. 
 
 Although our author assigns no reason why a stylobate 
 constructed upon a horizontal level would appear hollow, 
 like the bed of a channel, yet it is evident that he thought 
 an addition in the middle necessary to counteract some 
 supposed imperfection of vision. A stylobate thus constructed 
 would not permit the axes of columns placed upon it to be 
 vertical, unless small plinths, higher at one end than the other, 
 were first placed below the plinths of the bases; or the plinths 
 themselves were made like wedges; the height gradually 
 diminishing from one end to the other, so that their upper 
 surfaces might be in horizontal planes. The line of the 
 capitals of the columns ought not, we are told, to be horizontal, 
 but the capitals so placed, that the deviation of every line of 
 the entablature surmounting them from a straight line might 
 correspond to the addition made in the centre of the stylobate. 
 
39 
 
 We are left to conjecture in what manner this deviation is 
 made to take place. If the columns be all equally high, it is 
 evident that when placed upon the scamilli, the line of their 
 capitals will be parallel to the line of the stylobate; but 
 before we can admit that this was the meaning of Vitruvius, 
 it becomes necessary to consider by what principle of optics 
 he was guided, when he declared it necessary that an addition 
 should be given to the middle of the stylobate. The 
 principle, which it is probable he had in view, has already 
 been noticed in the commentary upon the passage; to which 
 the reader is referred. 
 
 Fig. 2. Profile of a column belonging to the pseudodipteral 
 temple at Paestum. 
 
 This example is chosen as an instance in which the 
 entasis, or swell, which Vitruvius directs us to give to the 
 middle of the shaft, is very evident: it is here somewhat more 
 than a nineteenth part of the lower diameter. If the fillet 
 between the flutings of Ionic columns be the measure of the 
 entasis of Vitruvius, the deviation from a straight line will 
 be scarcely perceptible in the outline of a column. In 
 fact, the entasis, like the addition to the stylobate, was 
 merely intended to correct the apparent want of bulk in the 
 middle which columns were supposed to have, if the shafts 
 were made to diminish in a straight line from the bottom to 
 the top. The temple from which this column is taken is the 
 production of an age, when the pure taste of the Greeks had 
 ceased to operate, and is here given only, because an extreme 
 case sometimes serves to illustrate a meaning imperfectly 
 understood. 
 
40 
 
 PLATE VI. 
 
 In proceeding to fix the shafts of the columns upon their 
 bases, we are directed to make the axes of those at the angles 
 as well as those in the flanks, incline so much towards the 
 walls of the cella, that the uppermost point of the shaft, 
 in the outward face of the columns, may deviate from a 
 vertical line drawn from the bottom, by a space equal to the 
 whole diminution, of the shaft: in other terms, to make the 
 inward face of the shaft parallel to the walls of the cella. 
 There is but one instance existing where such an inclination 
 of the shafts of the columns is observed, which is the 
 temple of the Sybil at Tivoli. We no where find it adopted 
 in peripteral temples; and its existence in this building is 
 not sufficient for inducing a belief that the practice was 
 commonly adopted: for although the general effect of the 
 temple is pleasing, it exhibits in its details such a depravity 
 of taste as amounts to a conviction, that it was constructed 
 during the decline of the arts in Italy. An inclination, 
 although by no means so great, is observable in the engaged 
 columns in the west front of the Erectheum at Athens; but 
 its introduction arose from the propriety of making a fluted 
 column, when inserted in the wall of the cella, somewhat 
 more than half an entire column. 
 
 Fig. 1 . A section through the lateral walls of a temple, 
 having columns inserted in the same manner as those of the 
 Erectheum. The reason for making the columns more than 
 semifrusta seems evidently to have been, in order that the 
 
41 
 
 flutings next the walls might be perfect. In this case it is 
 necessary to incline the axes of the columns; for otherwise 
 the portion of another flute will be apparent towards the 
 upper part of the shaft. 
 
 Fig. 2. A diagram which explains that, according to 
 the mode of reasoning adopted by Vitruvius, it becomes 
 necessary to give an increase to the proportionate height of 
 the epistylium, as the columns increase in height. 
 
 Vitruvius seems to have imagined that if objects, having 
 the same proportions but different heights, were situated at 
 the same distance from a spectator, the upper members of 
 the larger would appear less in proportion than those of 
 the smaller. To remedy this he proposes that an addition 
 should be made to the upper members of the larger object; 
 which virtually amounts to the proposition of measuring the 
 apparent heights of objects by the angles they subtend at 
 the eye. For if the arc Ad, be to the arc de, in the ratio of 
 the arc Ab to the arc be, DE will be to BC in a greater 
 ratio than AD to AB; because the tangents increase in 
 a greater ratio than the arcs. Thus by increasing the 
 proportions of the epistylium we preserve the proportions 
 of the angles they subtend at the eye; that is, according to 
 the ideas of our author, of the apparent magnitudes. 
 
 If however we could, for a moment, admit that the 
 apparent magnitudes of objects were measured by the angles 
 they subtend at the eye, no addition would be necessary, 
 unless both objects were placed at the same distance from 
 the spectator. For, if the distance of the larger object 
 were greater in proportion to its magnitude, the same 
 proportional heights would be necessary in both. 
 
42 
 
 But the apparent magnitudes are not measured by the 
 angles they subtend, unless when objects are small. When 
 they are considerable, the only means of estimating their 
 heights are by carrying the axis of the eye uniformly from 
 the base to the top. 
 
 Hence no additional height seems to be necessary; 
 nor indeed was it the practice of the Greeks to make the 
 entablatures of their larger temples greater in proportion to 
 the diameter of the columns, than those of edifices of a less 
 magnitude. For, although we find that different proportions 
 obtain in the entablatures of buildings of different ages, yet 
 in those which are nearly cotemporary they are universally 
 the same. We may instance, in proof of this, the temples 
 of Minerva and Theseus, and the Propyleum at Athens; 
 and the temple of Minerva at Sunium. 
 
 It may be asked, how the adoption of such a principle can 
 be consistent with the professions of our author, who avows 
 that his proportions were taken from Grecian models? To 
 which it might be answered, that it was probably suggested 
 by the consideration of buildings erected in different 
 ages. 
 
 In instituting a parallel between the Grecian Doric order 
 and that of our author, we shall select three instances; in 
 one of which the members are large, and in the others 
 considerably less. The proportions of the several parts will 
 be found to correspond in many instances with those laid 
 down by Vitruvius: whence the inference seems to be, that 
 having found the proportions to vary in buildings of different 
 magnitudes, he was led to form a scale for the proportions 
 of those whose magnitudes were between their limits; without 
 
43 
 
 taking into consideration the periods of their construction. 
 We shall afterwards state the reasons for selecting the 
 buildings to which we here allude in preference to the many 
 others now remaining in Greece. 
 
 Fig. S. Plan of part of the roof of a temple. 
 
 Byzes of Naxos is said, by Pausanias, to have first 
 introduced the practice of carving the stone, with which 
 the roofs of temples were covered, so as to represent tiles. 
 This method has been observed in the roof of the tower of 
 Andronicus Cyrrhestes at Athens. Vitruvius mentions this 
 tower in the sixth chapter of the first book; for which reason 
 the form of the tiles, and the manner of disposing them, are 
 taken from that example. 
 
 PLATE VII. 
 
 This plate exhibits a parallel between the Vitruvian 
 Ionic column, represented by Fig. 1, and one of those of the 
 temple of Bacchus at Teos. In order that the reader may 
 more easily comprehend the deviations of one from the other, 
 the diameters of both are supposed to be equal. Although 
 the Vitruvian base is raised upon a plinth, the divisions of the 
 members above it observe very nearly the same aliquot parts 
 of the entire height as those of the Ionian column. In the 
 latter, the torus differs rather more than ^ths of an inch 
 from three sevenths of the height of the base; which is the 
 proportion it bears in the Vitruvian column. The division 
 of the remainder, for the upper and lower trochdus, is into 
 
44 
 
 two equal parts, in conformity with the rule of Vitruvius. 
 The projection of the step before the line of the shaft varies 
 inconsiderably. 
 
 We have no data for ascertaining the original height of 
 the columns of this Ionian temple. I therefore suppose the 
 species of the temple to have been either eustyle or systyle, 
 and consequently the height of the column, including the 
 capital and base, to have been 9^ diameters or 40.2.6. As 
 the columns exceed 25 feet in height, the extent of the 
 abacus of the capital is to be made equal to the lower 
 diameter of the shaft and one ninth part, or 4.8.44; which 
 exceeds the abacus of the other by 4.84 inches. But it is to 
 be observed that, when the height of the column exceeded 
 40 feet, the upper diameter was to the lower in the ratio of 
 7 to 8: hence the upper diameter of the shaft ought to be 
 3.8.45; which is greater than the diameter of the other 
 column, and consequently requires a greater extent of 
 abacus. 
 
 The depth of the volute, according to Vitruvius, should 
 be eight parts of the nineteen, into which the extent of the 
 abacus is divided: this depth, therefore, in the Vitruvian 
 column will be 1.1 J. 76, which diners from that of the other 
 by ~ of an inch only. 
 
 PLATE VIII. 
 
 Fig. 1. The volute at large described from the different 
 centres. 
 
45 
 
 The cathetus a.b recedes from the extreme point of 
 the abacus one part of eighteen and a half, into which the 
 whole extent is divided. The depth of the capital, including 
 the volutes, is half the extent of the abacus: the volutes 
 occupy eight parts of nine and a half, into which the depth 
 is divided; three of these parts are below the abacus, and 
 the remaining five equally divided between the cymatium 
 and canal. According to this method of describing the 
 volute, its width will be to its depth in the ratio of seven 
 to eight: that is, the width will be 1.8.79, which differs 
 from the width of the volute of the Ionian capital by rather 
 more than half an inch. The spiral of this does not converge 
 quite so suddenly as that of the volute in the plate before us. 
 
 Fig. "2. The eye of the volute enlarged to shew the 
 centres. 
 
 The text of Vitruvius is so obscure as to the method of 
 finding the centres, that there are various opinions upon the 
 subject. The circle described within the square of the eye 
 contains half the space of the eye itself, and therefore this 
 diagram seems to illustrate the text; the words of which are, 
 " dimidium oculi spatium minuatur ." 
 
 Fig. 3. Section of the capital made by a plane passing 
 through the middle of the exterior face. 
 
 The projection of the cymatium, or ovolo, before the 
 square of the abacus, is here made equal to the diameter of 
 the eye, or 2.97 inches. This section also shews the depth 
 of the canal g, which, according to Vitruvius, ought to be 
 one twelfth of the depth of the volute, or 1.98. 
 
46 
 
 Fig. 4. The flank of the Ionic capital shewing the 
 pulvinar, or cushion; hh are the baltei, or bands; and ii the 
 axes of the volutes. 
 
 Fig. 5. Section of the capital made by a plane passing 
 through the middle of the flank. 
 
 In this section h is the balteus and i the axis. The limits 
 of the baltei are within the arc described with the centre k, 
 whose radius is equal to the distance of k from the furthest 
 point of the cymatium. 
 
 PLATE IX. 
 
 This plate exhibits parallel between the Ionic of 
 Vitruvius, and the order of the columns of the Erectheum. 
 The denticulus and coronae of the latter are similar to those 
 of the portico of the Pandroseum attached to the same 
 temple; and are here represented as bearing the same 
 proportion to the epistylium. 
 
 The diameter of the shaft of the Vitruvian column is 
 assumed 2.3.8, which is the diameter of the columns in the 
 Athenian temple. The upper torus and trochilus are each 
 3.47- The whole extent of the plinth is made equal to one 
 diameter and a half of the columns, or 3.5.7- 
 
 The whole height of the column, including the capital 
 and base, is to be nine diameters and a half, the species of 
 temple being the systle ; this reduced to English feet would 
 be 22.0.1. The height of the columns in the temple of 
 
47 
 
 Erectheus is 2l.7>5> being less than the proportionate 
 height of the Vitruvian column by nearly a sixth part of 
 the diameter. The columns being more than twenty feet 
 in height, the upper diameter must be to the lower in the 
 ratio of 6 to J: hence the upper diameter will be 1.1 1.82, 
 which differs but little from that of the Athenian column. 
 
 The extent of the abacus of Ionic columns whose height 
 is less than 25 feet, ought to be equal to one diameter and 
 an eighteenth part. In this instance, therefore, the extent 
 would be 2.5.32: in the Athenian columns the extent is 
 2.5.4. The volutes of these latter are so very dissimilar to 
 those of any of the columns found in Asia Minor, that we 
 are not to be surprized if we find but little analogy between 
 them and the volutes, as they are generally described by 
 Vitruvius. Their projection however, before the line of the 
 column, exceeds that of the others by 1.64 inches only; 
 although their depth is greater by somewhat more than 
 four inches. 
 
 From the state in which the Athenian temple remains, 
 we are enabled to ascertain, with the greatest precision, the 
 proportion which the epistylium, zophorus, and coronae 
 severally bore to the height of the columns. The portico 
 indeed has no member of the coronae corresponding to the 
 denticulus of Vitruvius ; but in that of Minerva Pandrosus, 
 which is attached to the same temple, we find it introduced, 
 and can readily ascertain the proportion it bore to the 
 epistylium. In the entablature of the column which is 
 here represented with the proportions of the Athenian, the 
 
48 
 
 denticulus is introduced, and its depth is made proportionate 
 to the height of the epistylium. 
 
 It has been generally supposed that Vitruvius meant 
 to include the cymatium in the height he assigns to the 
 epistylium; but whenever he intends to include in one 
 proportion the height of two members together, he expressly 
 marks his intention. Thus speaking of the epistylium of 
 Doric columns and the taenia, which is in the Doric order 
 what the cymatium is in the Ionic, he says, " Epistylii 
 altitudo unius moduli cum taenia et guttis;" and in Book iii. 
 Chapter 3, " Corona cum suo cymatio quantum media fascia 
 epistylii." 
 
 The height of the columns being more than twenty feet, 
 it is to be divided into twelve parts and a half; one of these 
 is given to the height of the epistylium; which therefore 
 will be 1.9128; this added to one seventh part of it gives 
 2.0.146, for the height of the epistylium and cymatium 
 together. The corresponding height in the temple of 
 Erectheus is 2.1.05. The zophorus of this temple having 
 been ornamented with bronze sculpture, let us give to the 
 zophorus of the Vitruvian entablature the proportion it 
 requires when ornamented in a similar manner. In this 
 case, the epistylium being 1.9.128, the zophorus will be 
 2.2.41, which added to one seventh part of it for the 
 cymatium, gives 2.6.18 for the zophorus and cymatium 
 together. The zophorus in the Erectheum is 1.11.75, 
 which together with 5.08, the proportionate height of the 
 cymatium below the denticulus, gives 2.4 83: thus those 
 
49 
 
 portions of the two entablatures, comprehended between 
 the capital of the column and the denticulus, differ in height 
 little more than ^ths of an inch. 
 
 The denticulus is to be made equal to the middle fascia, 
 or one third of the epistylium; its height, therefore, including 
 the capital, which should be one seventh part added, will be 
 8.21: the coronae, including the cymatium, should be equal 
 to the denticulus without the capital, or 7*09 ; and the sima 
 an eighth part greater than the coronae, or 7-97' 
 
 a.. 
 
 ..Plinth. 
 
 i.... Cymatium. 
 
 b., 
 
 ..Lower torus. 
 
 k....Zophorus. 
 
 c. 
 
 ..Trochilus. 
 
 1.... Cymatium. 
 
 d.. 
 
 ..Upper torus. 
 
 m.... Denticulus 
 
 e,. 
 
 . .Echinus. 
 
 n.... Cymatium, 
 
 f.. 
 
 ..Canal. 
 
 o.... Coronae. 
 
 g» 
 
 ..Abacus. 
 
 p.... Cymatium. 
 
 h.. 
 
 ..Epistylium. 
 
 q....Sima. 
 PLATE X. 
 
 ELEVATION OF AN HEXASTYLE PORTICO OF THE SYSTLE 
 SPECIES ACCORDING TO THE PROPORTIONS OF VITRUVIIJS. 
 
 In this portico the columns are made 2.3.8 in diameter; 
 in order to shew the analogy between it and the portico of 
 the Erectheum at Athens, represented in plate XI. The 
 intervals between the columns are made twice the diameter, 
 or 4,7-6; in the other portico the intervals are 4.7.4. The 
 
 H 
 
50 
 
 whole extent of the front, comprehended between the outward 
 faces of the columns at the angles, is, consequently, 37-0.8. 
 The corresponding extent in the Athenian portico is 36.1 1.8, 
 falling short of it one inch only. 
 
 If the columns be made nine diameters and a half in 
 height, which is the proportion assigned by Vitruvius to 
 columns of the systle species, they will exceed those of the 
 Erectheum by 4.6 inches only. 
 
 PLATE XT. 
 
 ELEVATION OF A PORTICO HAVING THE SAME PROPORTION OF 
 PARTS AS THAT OF THE TEMPLE OF NEPTUNE-ERECTHEUS. 
 
 It has been before observed that the entablature of the 
 Erectheum had no member corresponding to the denticulus of 
 Vitruvius. The proportion which the denticulus, introduced 
 in this plate, bears to the epistylium, is similar to that which 
 obtains in another portico connected with the same building. 
 
 PLATE XII. 
 
 FRONT OF A TEMPLE OF THE OIASTYLE SPECIES. 
 
 The limit of the intercolumniations in temples of the 
 eustyle species, is two diameters of the columns and a 
 quarter: whenever the interval exceeds this proportion, the 
 species becomes the diastyle, in which the greatest allowed 
 interval is three diameters. In the plate before us the interval 
 
51 
 
 is assumed between these limits, and, for the sake of a more 
 simple fraction^ is made two diameters and three quarters. 
 The columns are here supposed to be 2.9-5 for the sake of 
 exhibiting a parallel between this portico and that of the 
 temple of Minerva-Polias at Athens : the columns of which are 
 of the same dimensions, although the intervals are less, being 
 only 7.5.5. Under these circumstances the whole extents 
 of the porticoes would differ nearly eight inches. 
 
 The height of the columns of diastyle temples, according 
 to Vitruvius, should only be eight times the diameter and a 
 half: in this case therefore the height would be 23.8.75 being 
 less than that of the columns in the portico of Minerva-Polias 
 by nearly a fifth of the diameter. The columns being more than 
 twenty feet high, the diminution of the shaft ought to be one 
 seventh of the lower diameter, or 4-78 inches ; the diminution 
 in the shafts of the other columns is six inches. The height of 
 the whole entablature of the first would be 6.7-54; and of the 
 latter, provided the corona was embellished with a denticulus 
 proportioned to the epistylium, 6.11.84. 
 
 PLATE XIII. 
 
 A TETRASTYLE FRONT HAVING THE SAME PROPORTIONS AS 
 THE PORTICO OF THE TEMPLE OF MINERVA-POLIAS AT 
 ATHENS; WITH THE ADDITION OF THE DENTICULUS IN 
 THE CORONAE. 
 
 According to Vitruvius the height of the fastigium of a 
 
52 
 
 front of the same extent should be 4.6.5. In the portico 
 of the temple of Minerva-Polias the height is only 3.4.5. 
 
 PLATE XIV. 
 
 FLANK OF A PSEUDODIPTERAL TEMPLE HAVING A PODIUM 
 
 ON THREE SIDES. 
 
 Having shewn the fronts of various temples, it is necessary 
 to give an idea of the appearance of the flanks. The flank 
 of the temple represented in this plate is, in many respects, 
 similar to that of the temple of Fortuna-Virilis at Rome. In 
 some few instances, we find temples receiving their light 
 from windows; those which are here introduced are taken 
 from the west front of the Erectheum. Lions heads are 
 represented in the sima in the manner described by Vitruvius; 
 and the roof supposed to be covered with tiles, or stone 
 sculptured in the form of tiles. 
 
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THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTURE 
 
 OF 
 
 V I T R U V I U S. 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 
THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTURE 
 
 OF 
 
 VITRUVIUS. 
 
 SECTION II. 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 OF THE THREE ORDERS OF COLUMNS, THEIR ORIGIN, AND THE 
 PROPORTIONS OF THE CORINTHIAN CAPITAL. 
 
 1 he proportions of Corinthian columns are in every respect, 
 excepting their capitals, similar to those of Ionic; although 
 their form is more graceful and proportionably more delicate 
 by reason of the greater height of the capitals: for Ionic 
 capitals are a third part only of the lower diameter of the 
 columns, whereas the Corinthian capital is equal in height 
 to an entire diameter. The peculiar character of the capitals, 
 which admits of their being higher than those of Ionic 
 columns by two thirds of a diameter, gives beauty to the 
 columns by permitting an increase of the height without 
 violating the laws of symmetry. 
 
 The members constituting the entablature of this order., 
 observe the proportions which obtain either in the Doric or 
 Ionic: for the Corinthian has no proportions, for the coronae 
 
56 
 
 and other concomitant ornaments, peculiar to itself; but 
 mutules are placed in the coronae, according to the manner 
 in which triglyphs are disposed in the Doric zophorus, 
 and the epistylia are ornamented with guttae 1 ; or the 
 zophorus is enriched with sculpture and surmounted witli 
 the denticulus and coronae, after the Ionic manner. Thus 
 by uniting with the characteristics of the other orders a 
 capital whose form varies from both, a new order arises. 
 
 From the circumstances attending the origin of the three 
 orders arose their several denominations of Doric, Ionic, and 
 Corinthian ; of these several varieties the first mentioned claims 
 the priority of invention. Dorus, the son of Hellen and the 
 nymph Opticus, who governed Achaia and the whole of the 
 Peloponnesus, in some period of his reign, dedicated a temple 
 to Juno in the ancient city of Argos. The order of architecture 
 employed in the construction of this sacred edifice, which, 
 from its founder, was termed Doric, was afterwards adopted 
 by the cities of Achaia; although no certain principles had been 
 yet established by which its proportions might be regulated. 
 
 1 The only instance of the guttae forming an uninterrupted ornament of the 
 epistylium of a building, detached from the taenia, is in the Choragic monument of 
 Thrasyllus, built in the side of the Acropolis at Athens. We cannot however insist 
 that this building is of the Corinthian order ; because antae are used instead of 
 columns ; and from the antae alone we cannot always decide the order of the building. 
 We know that antae, similar to those of the Choragic monument, were sometimes 
 introduced with Corinthian columns; as in the porticoes of the tower of the winds. 
 For the same reason there is no authority for ranking this amongst edifices of the 
 Doric order; especially in the absence of triglyphs in the zophorus. There is a 
 circumstance which inclines us to believe that it might with greater propriety be 
 classed with Corinthian buildings; which is, that other monuments erected in 
 commemoration of Choragic victories, such as that of Lysicrates and the columns on 
 the rock of the Acropolis, are of that particular order. 
 
57 
 
 In a subsequent aera the Athenians, in conformity with the 
 response of the Delphic oracle, by the general consent of 
 the states of Greece, sent thirteen colonies into Asia, each 
 conducted by an experienced leader; and invested Ion, 
 son of Xuthus and Creusa, whom Apollo by his priestess 
 acknowledged as his offspring, with the supreme command. 
 He led them into Asia, and possessed himself of the territories 
 of the Carians, in which he founded the cities of Ephesus, 
 Miletus and Myus; the latter of which being destroyed by an 
 inundation, its rites and privileges were transferred by the 
 Ionians to the Milesians; likewise Priene, Samos, Teos, 
 Colophon, Chios, Erythrae, Phocaea, Clazomenae, Lebedus, 
 and Melite. The last was destroyed in the war which was 
 undertaken by the general concurrence of the other cities to 
 punish the arrogance of its inhabitants; and in its place 
 Smyrna was afterwards admitted amongst the confederated 
 states, through the mediation of Attalus and Arsinoe. 
 
 After the expulsion of the Carians and the Leleges, the 
 new acquisition was called Ionia, from the name of the chief 
 of the colonists; and temples were erected to the deities of 
 the Grecian mythology, the order of architecture of which 
 was similar to that observed in the sacred buildings of 
 Achaia; and called the Doric, from having originated in the 
 Dorian cities. The temple of Apollo Panionius was the first 
 they constructed in this manner. Desirous of adorning 
 this temple with columns, but unpractised in the rules of 
 proportion, they were led to consider the proportions of 
 the human frame; expecting principles to result from them 
 by the adoption of which the great objects of strength and 
 
58 
 
 beauty would be obtained. Finding that the foot was a 
 sixth part of the height of the whole stature, they instituted 
 the same proportions in their columns, whose height, including 
 the capital, they made equal to six times the diameter of the 
 shaft at the base. Thus the Doric column, formed according 
 to the proportions of the human figure, and emblematical of 
 manly strength and beauty, was first introduced in the 
 temples of Ionia. In later times however, when it was in 
 contemplation to consecrate a temple to Diana, they sought 
 to introduce a new order of columns by giving to them the 
 proportions of the female form; and that they might be 
 emblematical of feminine delicacy, the height of the columns 
 was made eight times the lower diameter. Bases were also 
 given to them in imitation of sandals, and volutes were 
 sculptured in the capitals in allusion to the ringlets which 
 fell down on either side the face. The cymatia and encarpi 1 
 
 1 The commentators are at a loss to imagine what is meant by the encarpi. The 
 Greek word encarpos signifies abounding in fruit; hence Philander supposes, that 
 the term was applied to the sculptured garlands, composed of fruits and flowers, 
 which, in some examples of the Ionic order, are observed to be suspended from the 
 eyes of the volutes. The instances, however, in which these occur are of modern date, 
 and no antique Ionic capitals afford authority for the introduction of such an ornament; 
 which it is probable might be first suggested by the garlands or festoons occasionally 
 suspended during festivals. It is moreover difficult to trace any resemhlance between 
 garlands of this kind and the hair as it was then worn. It is not unlikely that the 
 encarpi were the plaited bands which we find sculptured in the capitals of the columns 
 of the Ionic temples upon the Athenian Acropolis. The hair of the Caryatides, 
 supporting a portico attached to the same temples, is represented as braided and 
 carried round the head. 
 
 Pollux mentions the pericarpia amongst the ornaments of women: they appear 
 to have been bracelets and wrist-bands. The Greek word carpos signifies the wrist. 
 Poll. lib. v. 16. 
 
59 
 
 in front were intended to resemble the hair as it was then 
 worn, and the shaft was channelled in such a manner as to 
 bear some resemblance to the folds of the matronly garment. 
 
 Thus the invention of two different orders arose; one 
 exhibiting the boldness and simplicity of the masculine 
 figure; and the other the more finished form of a woman, 
 attired and richly decorated. Latter ages however, advancing 
 in refinement and judgment, sought to give greater 
 beauties to both by making the Doric column seven times 
 its diameter at the base of the shaft; and the Ionic nine 
 times x its lower diameter. The order whose use was 
 adopted first by the Ionian colonies, was called the 
 Ionic. 
 
 The third order, which is termed Corinthian, derives its 
 symmetry from an intention to make the form of the column 
 accord with the more delicate proportions of the maiden figure : 
 for at that early period of life the limbs are less robust, and the 
 figure admits of a greater display of ornament. The invention 
 of the capital is said to owe its origin to the following 
 circumstance. A virgin of Corinth, just as she had attained to a 
 marriageable state, was attacked by a disorder whose effects 
 proved fatal. After her interment the vases, the objects of her 
 admiration when alive, were collected by her nurse and 
 deposited in a basket, which she placed upon the grave, after 
 covering it with a tile to protect it from the weather. The 
 
 1 The manuscript copies read nine ; in order s therefore, to obviate the antilogy, 
 which the adoption of this reading would cause in this and the passage in the second 
 chapter of the first section, relating to the height of eustyle columns, as it stands in 
 the printed copies, the editors have here substituted " octo semis," for " novem." 
 
60 
 
 basket was accidentally placed over the roots of an acanthus. 
 The natural growth of the plant being impeded by the pressure 
 upon it, the middle leaf and the cauliculi appeared in the 
 spring around the bottom of the basket. The cauliculi, 
 attaching themselves to the external surface, grew upwards, 
 until their progress was arrested by the angles of the tile 
 projecting over the basket; which caused them to incline 
 forward and assume a spiral form. At this stage of its growth 
 Callimachus, who, from his great genius and talent for 
 sculpture, was called Catatechnos by the Athenians, chancing 
 to pass by the spot, observed the basket and the beauty of 
 the young foliage around it : pleased with its fanciful and 
 novel appearance, he adopted it in the columns which he 
 afterwards employed in the edifices of Corinth : having first 
 instituted laws for the proportions of the order; which was 
 thence termed Corinthian. 
 
 The proportions of the capitals are these. The height, 
 including the abacus, is equal to the lower diameter of the 
 columns; and the diagonal line drawn from the opposite 
 angles of the abacus is twice the height of the capital. All 
 the fronts of the abacus are of an equal extent; and are made 
 concave, the central point in each front receding a ninth 
 part of the extent comprehended between the angles. The 
 diameter of the capital at its base is the same as that of the 
 columns below the astragal and apothesis. The depth of the 
 abacus is a seventh part of the whole height of the capital : 
 the remaining part is equally divided into three parts, one of 
 which is occupied by the lower leaf; the second is given 
 to the middle leaf; and an equal space remains for the 
 
61 
 
 cauliculi, whence those leaves shoot which projecting 
 forwards appear to support the volutes 1 . The volutes 
 spring from the leaves of the cauliculi and extend to the 
 angles of the abacus: the lesser helices are carved in the 
 middle of the capital below the flowers in the abacus 2 . 
 These flowers occur in every front of the abacus, and are 
 made as large as the height of it will admit. 
 
 Such are the proportions of the Corinthian capital. It 
 is however a practice with some to place various capitals 
 upon columns of this kind, to which they give a diversity of 
 appellations. They have no laws of proportion peculiar to 
 them; yet the columns cannot be said to be of a new order, 
 for their characters, although disguised, may be traced either 
 to the Corinthian, Ionic or Doric, whose symmetries are 
 still preserved, although attempted to be concealed by the 
 introduction of novel and capricious ornament. 
 
 1 The printed copies read " uti abacum excipiant :" but the MSS. omit the word 
 abacum. The accusative case to the verb is probably volutas in the next line ; 
 which may have been altered to volutae. 
 
 2 The text of the printed editions is altered from, " minoresque helices intra suurn 
 medium qui sunt in abaco floribus subjecti scalpantur;" to, " minoresque helices qui 
 intra medium frontium abaci sunt subjecti scalpantur." 
 
CHAP. II. 
 
 OF THE ENTABLATURES OF COLUMNS. 
 
 After having expatiated on the different orders of columns, 
 the people amongst whom they arose, and what led to their 
 several inventions, it becomes expedient to treat of their 
 entablatures ; to give some account of their origin, and what 
 first suggested their introduction in buildings. 
 
 In all edifices the superstructures are formed by timbers 
 which have different designations: and as they vary in name, 
 so also are the purposes to which they are applied equally 
 distinct. The trabes are placed longitudinally over the columns 
 and antae; and the tigna and axes support the frame work 
 of the roof. If the span of the roof be great, transtra and 
 capreoli will be found necessary; but if otherwise, a columen 1 
 alone will suffice, with canterii projecting to the eaves of the 
 roof. Templa are layed upon the canterii, and asseres upon 
 them, below the tiles, projecting beyond the surface of 
 the walls. Thus every piece has a situation correspondent 
 to the purpose to which it is intended it should be applied, 
 
 In imitation of these early inventions and of works 
 executed in timber, the antients, in constructing their 
 
 1 In the printed editions there is an interpolation of a whole passage between 
 the words, " majora spatia sunt," and " transtra ;" for which there is no authority in 
 the manuscripts whatever. 
 
64 
 
 edifices of stone or marble, adopted the forms which were 
 there observed to exist. It was a general practice amongst 
 the artificers of former times to lay beams transversely upon 
 the walls, of such a length that their ends projected before 
 the exterior faces of the walls; the intervals between them 
 were then closed, and the whole surmounted with coronae 
 and fastigia of pleasing forms, executed in wood. The 
 projecting parts were afterwards cut away so that the ends 
 of the beams and the walls were in the same plane; but the 
 sections presenting a rude appearance, tablets, formed like 
 the triglyphs of more modern buildings, and covered with 
 blue wax, were affixed to them 1 , by which expedient the ends, 
 which before offended the eye, now produced a pleasing 
 effect. Thus the antient disposition of the beams supporting 
 the roof is the original to which we may attribute the 
 introduction of triglyphs into Doric buildings. In works of 
 a subsequent age canterii were added, projecting before the 
 triglyphs in a perpendicular direction to them: the direction 
 of the ends which projected was made inclining; and as the 
 disposition of the tigna before gave rise to the use of triglyphs, 
 the projecting canterii now suggested the introduction of 
 mutules below the coronae. Wherever we find mutules 
 adopted in buildings of stone or marble, we may observe that 
 
 1 The projecting ends of the beams being cut away close to the face of the wall, 
 when these tablets were affixed to them they must have had a projection before the 
 plane of the trabes, which were immediately over the columns and antae, and answered 
 to the epistylia of subsequent buildings. In the generality of Grecian temples the 
 faces of the tablets, or triglyphs, are in the plane of the epistylium: some instances 
 however of the contrary occur ; as in the portico of Philip in the island of Delos ; 
 and in the gate of the Agora at Athens. 
 
05 
 
 the plane of their under surfaces is inclined, which indicates 
 an intention of imitating the appearance of canterii 
 projecting before the building in order to form the eaves. 
 
 The most rational wav of accounting; for the introduction 
 of triglyphs and mutules in the buildings of the Dorian 
 cities, is by supposing it to have resulted from imitations of 
 these early inventions. For we cannot admit, as some have 
 erroneously insisted, that the triglyphs in more modern 
 buildings are representations of windows in edifices of an 
 earlier date; because they are introduced at the angles, 
 immediately over the tetrants of the columns; in which 
 places it is not possible that windows could ever have been 
 left : for if these spaces remained open for the admission of 
 light, all connection at the angles of such buildings would 
 have been destroyed. If we allow that openings formerly 
 were left where triglyphs are now placed, we must also 
 grant that the denticuli of Ionic buildings were formerly 
 apertures through which light was admitted; because 
 the intervals between the triglyphs and denticuli were 
 indiscriminately termed metopae; for the word ope amongst 
 the Greeks signifies the bed upon which both the tigna 
 and asseres rest; and what with us are termed cava, or 
 columbaria, by them are called metopae, because they are 
 the intervals between two opae. 
 
 The same kind of reasoning which serves to explain the 
 origin of triglyphs and mutules in the Doric order, will 
 assist us in tracing the prototype of denticuli in the Ionic 
 entablature ; for as the mutules are typical representations 
 of canterii, so in like manner the denticuli are in imitation 
 
 K 
 
66 
 
 of the projecting ends of the asseres. Hence it is that in 
 Grecian buildings denticuli are never placed below mutules, 
 because the asseres could never have been below the canterii: 
 nor can that building be constructed upon just principles 
 where we find those objects represented below the canterii 
 and templa which ought, consistently with propriety, to 
 have had their station above them. For a similar reason 
 the Greeks never introduced mutules or denticuli in the 
 fastigium, but simply coronae; because neither canterii 
 nor asseres have their ends towards the fronts; neither can 
 they have any projection beyond the tympanum, for their 
 direction is from the upper part of the roof towards the 
 eaves. What therefore could not in reality exist they 
 considered improper to be represented in sculpture. In 
 the most perfect of their productions they suffered nothing 
 to enter but what was consistent with propriety, and deduced 
 from the just ordinance of nature; approving only of what 
 could be supported by arguments founded upon the basis 
 of truth and reason. The symmetries and proportions 
 which they have left behind them for the various orders of 
 architecture were deduced from such unerring principles. 
 We have already explained the proportions which obtain in 
 the Corinthian and Ionic orders; it remains that we should 
 now describe, as concisely as the subject will permit, those 
 Avhich are peculiar to the Doric order. 
 
CHAP. III. 
 
 OP THE DORIC ORDER. 
 
 Some individuals, amongst the number of antient architects, 
 have contended that the Doric order ought not to be adopted 
 in sacred edifices; because its peculiar characters, if strictly 
 observed in the construction of temples, would be inconvenient, 
 and at variance with the purport of the building. Tarchesius 
 and Pitheus were amongst the number; and it is thought 
 that Hermogenes was of the same opinion ; because, having 
 prepared a great quantity of marble with the intention of 
 erecting a temple to Bacchus of the Doric order, he altered 
 his design, and with the same materials built an Ionic temple. 
 Not indeed that the order is considered as inelegant or 
 deficient in majesty; but the manner of placing the columns 
 is thought to be inconvenient, inasmuch as it renders the 
 just distribution of the triglyphs and the lacunaria difficult. 
 For in general the triglyphs are placed immediately over 
 the axes of the columns, and the width of the metopae is 
 made equal to their height; but the triglyphs over the 
 columns at the angles of the buildings are placed at the 
 extremities of the zophorus, and not over the axes of the 
 columns ; whence it happens that the metopae next these 
 triglyphs cannot be perfect squares, but their width must 
 exceed their height by a space equal to half the width 
 
68 
 
 of a triglyph. When therefore the metopae are made 
 equal, it becomes necessary to contract the width of the 
 intercolumniations at the angles by a space equal to this 
 excess. Whether the metopae be enlarged or the intervals 
 contracted inconvenience arises; and hence it was that 
 the antients avoided the use of the Doric order in sacred 
 edifices. 
 
 It is, nevertheless, our intention to describe the proportions 
 of the Doric order as we have received them from our 
 predecessors; in order that those who are desirous of being 
 made acquainted with them may find them explained, and 
 be enabled to introduce them, divested of their defects, in 
 the construction of sacred edifices. 
 
 That part of the extent of a Doric tetrastyle front which 
 is occupied by the columns should be divided into twenty- 
 eight parts: or if the front be hexastyle, the number of parts 
 into which this extent ought to be divided is forty two 1 . 
 
 1 The printed copies vary in their statement of the number of parts into which 
 we are directed to divide the fronts of hexastyle and tetrastyle temples of the 
 Doric order. The Amsterdam edition reads XXVIII, and XLIV: which reading 1 is 
 also adopted by the Berlin editor. Philander alters the reading to XXVII, and 
 XLII. The five MSS. copies which I have consulted invariably make the number 
 of divisions of the tetrastyle front XXVIII. The number for the hexastyle front is 
 altogether omitted in three, but the two remaining state it to be XXXII. All of 
 them agreeing in the number of divisions for the tetrastyle front, we can have no 
 hesitation in supposing that to be the number intended by Vitruvius. On proceeding 
 to enquire if the numberXXXII, for the divisions of hexastyle front, be commensurate 
 with the number for the tetrastyle, we find that that is far from being the case : for 
 in order to be commensurate with that number, the divisions of the hexastyle ought 
 to be XLIII and six tenths. To reconcile this with the number of divisions 
 stated in the MSS. and at the same time to observe the least possible variation in 
 the mode of writing the digits, we must suppose that originally the number was 
 written XXXXII ; and altered in the subsequent transcripts to XXXII. 
 
69 
 
 One of these divisions is made the modulus, which the Greeks 
 call embates, according to which the proportions of the entire 
 edifice are determined. 
 
 The diameter of the columns is made equal to twice the 
 modulus, and their height, including the capital, is seven 
 times the diameter. The height of the capital is one modulus; 
 and its greatest width is twice its height and a sixth part. 
 The height is divided into three equal parts, the upper of 
 which is given to the plinth, including the cymatium; the 
 second to the echinus with its annulets; and the third 
 to the hypotrachelium. The contraction of the shaft is 
 similar to that of Ionic columns, which has already been 
 explained. 
 
 The height of the epistylium, with the taenia and guttae, 
 is one modulus: the taenia itself is a seventh part of the 
 height. The guttae extend the width of the triglyphs 
 below the taenia; their height, including the regula, is a 
 sixth part of the modulus. The width of the epistylium is 
 equal to the diameter of the shaft at the hypotrachelium. 
 
 Upon the epistylium are placed the triglyphs and their 
 metopae: the height of the triglyphs is a modulus and an 
 half, and their width in front two thirds of their height. 
 The triglyphs at the angles, as well as those which are 
 intermediate, are placed immediately over the axes of the 
 columns. Between the triglyphs so arranged two others 
 are disposed, over every intercolumniation excepting that in 
 the centre; which, in both pronaos and posticus, is made 
 sufficiently wide to admit of three; in order that the access 
 may be commodious to those who come to their devotions 
 
70 
 
 in the temple. The width of the triglyphs is divided into 
 six parts, of which two and an half are set off on each side 
 of the line in the centre of the triglyphs; the regula, or 
 femur, which the Greeks call meros, equal in width to one 
 of the parts, is first left in the centre of the triglyph; then 
 on each side channels are formed as if hollowed with the 
 vertex of a square: next these are two femora, similar to that 
 in the middle of a triglyph, leaving half a channel at either 
 extremity. 
 
 The metopae between the triglyphs are left equal in 
 width to their height, excepting at the angles of the 
 zophorus where spaces are left equal in width to half a 
 triglyph only '. Thus the inequalities which must necessarily 
 occur in the lacunaria when the angular intervals are 
 contracted; or in the metopae, when triglyphs are placed at 
 the angles, will be avoided. The capital is a sixth part of 
 the modulus. 
 
 Upon the capitals of the triglyphs the coronae is placed, 
 projecting half a modulus and a sixth part; having a Doric 
 cymatiuin below and another above: its height, including 
 
 1 The space left at the angles is not accurately equal to the width of a 
 semitriglyph ; being as much less as the projection of triglyphs before the face 
 of the metopae. In the description of the monotriglyph species, the space left 
 between the angles of the zophorus and the triglyphs is properly said to be less 
 than half the width of a triglyph. In Grecian temples it may be observed, that if 
 we continue the lines passing through the axes of the columns at the angles, they will 
 coincide with the interior lines of the triglyphs : hence at the first view it might 
 appear that if the triglyphs were removed, so as to bring the centre point in this 
 line, a space would be left at the angles equal to half the width of a triglyph : but 
 upon removing the triglyphs we expose the plane of the metopae in the flanks, 
 which recedes from that of the triglyphs. 
 
71 
 
 the two cymatia, is made half the modulus. In those 
 parts of the under surface of the coronae immediately over 
 every triglyph and the centre of each metopa, channels 
 are cut, which leave six guttae in length and three in depth. 
 The spaces which are left between every two adjoining- 
 clusters of guttae, by the excess of the width of the metopae 
 above that of the triglyph s, are either left plain or hollowed 
 into channels 1 . In the projecting angle of the coronae a 
 small hollow is sculptured, which is called scotia. All the 
 remaining parts, such as the fastigium, its coronae and 
 simae, observe the same laws of proportion as have already 
 been laid down for the Ionic order. 
 
 The foregoing proportions are to be adopted only in 
 temples of the diastyle species. When the species of the 
 temple is pycnostyle 2 , and one triglyph only is introduced 
 over the intervals between the columns, the front, if it be 
 tetrastyle, should be divided into eighteen parts: if the front is 
 to consist of six columns, it should be divided into twenty-eight 
 parts 3 . In either case one of these parts is assumed for the 
 
 1 The printed editions read, " fulmina scalpatur:" but the MSS. read either 
 fluvia, or fiumina. The meaning of Vitruvius is that the regula, or band over the 
 guttae, is either continued without interruption, or is broken by being cut away 
 between the clusters of guttae. 
 
 2 See the explanation of plate III. at the end of this book. 
 
 The number of these divisions is differently stated by the editors of Vitruvius. 
 The Amsterdam and Berlin editions make the numbers XXIII, and XXXV. 
 Philander makes them XIX. S. and XXIX. S. On examining the manuscripts in the 
 Harleian collection, I find that only one out of five, makes the number of divisions 
 for the tetrastyle monotriglyph front XXIII; the remaining four agree in stating it 
 to be XVIII. The number of divisions for the hexastyle front is stated in two of 
 them to be XXVIII ; and in three others XXIX. The authority for the latter is 
 therefore greater than for the number twenty-eight: but twenty-eight divisions ibr 
 
72 
 
 modulus, according to which, as in the diastyle species, the 
 proportions of the entire edifice are determined. Upon the 
 several blocks, which extend from centre to centre of two 
 adjoining columns and form the epistylium, two triglyphs and 
 two metopae are placed, leaving at the angles a space somewhat 
 less than the width of half a triglyph. The centre interval is 
 enlarged so as to receive three metopae and three triglyphs; 
 in order that the approach to the temple may be rendered 
 commodious, and the view of the statues uninterrupted. Upon 
 the capitals of the triglyphs the coronae is fixed; having, as in 
 the preceding instance, a Doric cymatium below and another 
 above it: the height, including the cymatia, is half a modulus. 
 The disposition of the drops, which follow from cutting the 
 channels, and every thing remaining to complete the front, 
 should observe the same laws of proportion which obtain 
 in temples of the diastyle species. 
 
 The columns should have twenty flirtings; these are 
 sometimes left with a plane surface, in which case the plan of 
 the columns is a polygon with twenty angles: but when they 
 are to be channelled a square must be formed, one of whose 
 sides is the width of each of the flutings. From the centre of 
 the square an arc, whose radius is equal to half the diagonal, is 
 described, which is terminated by the two angles of the square : 
 the area included between the side of the square and the 
 arc is the quantity taken from the shaft in the formation of 
 every fluting. This method of fluting is peculiar to the 
 
 the hexaslyle front are more nearly commensurate with eighteen for the tctrastyle, 
 the authenticity of which seems established by a great majority, and may on that 
 account be preferred when sanctioned by the reading of two amongst five. 
 
73 
 
 Doric order. ' The entasis of the shafts of Doric columns is 
 similar to that already described for columns of the Ionic 
 order. 
 
 Having now explained whatever relates to the external 
 decoration of temples of the three several orders, the 
 proportions for the cella and pronaos become the next 
 consideration. 
 
CHAP. IV. 
 
 OF THE PROPORTIONS OF THE PRONAOS AND THE INTERIOR 
 
 OF THE CELLA. 
 
 The width of the temple is usually made equal to half the 
 length : the cella, including the wall in which the door-ways 
 are made, should be a fourth part longer than its width. 
 The remaining three parts are given to the pronaos, and 
 comprise in their extent the antae terminating the walls. 
 The width of the antae ought to be equal to the diameter of 
 the columns. If the width of the temple be more than twenty 
 feet, two columns are placed between the antae, and thus 
 separate the pronaos from the pteroma. The three intervals 
 between the columns and antae should be closed with plutei 1 
 of marble or wood work, and door-ways left in them to give 
 access to the pronaos. 
 
 If the width be more than forty feet, columns should be 
 placed inwardly opposite to those between the antae; of a 
 corresponding height, but their diameters less in the following 
 
 1 The word pluteus has different significations. In this passage, it means the walls 
 between the columns, like what is observed in the flanks of the temple of Fortuna- 
 Virilis, and in the front of the temple of Saturn, described by Labacco. In the 
 description of the Basilica, the pluteus means the continued pedestal, intervening 
 between the upper and lower ranges of columns. The printed copies describe the 
 pluteus in this passage as between the upper columns, but the MSS. read, " inter 
 superiores et inferiores columnas." It has the same meaning in the explanation 
 given of the scene of the theatre. 
 
76 
 
 proportion: that is, if the columns in front be eight times 
 their diameter in height, these should be nine: if the exterior 
 columns be nine or ten diameters in height, these must 
 observe a proportionate augmentation. The difference in 
 the bulk of the columns will not be apparent, because they 
 are not seen contrasted with the light. If, notwithstanding, 
 they should appear too slender, the number of their 
 flutings may be increased. Thus, if the columns in front 
 have twenty four, these may have twenty eight or even 
 thirty two: so that what in fact is taken from the bulk will 
 be apparently restored by the additional number of flutings. 
 This optical deception arises from the idea of greater 
 magnitude which is impressed by the transit of the visual 
 rays over a greater surface. For if the peripheries of two 
 circles of equal diameter, one of which is fluted and the 
 other not, be measured with a line which is made to be in 
 contact with every point of the peripheries, the length of 
 the line will not be the same in both cases; because in one 
 it has been made to touch every point in the concave surfaces 
 of the flutings in the intervals between the striae. Since 
 this deception therefore may be accomplished, it may be 
 allowed to make eolumns which are in confined situations 
 and little exposed to the light less massive than the others; 
 because their want of bulk may be rendered imperceptible 
 by augmenting the number of flutings as circumstances may 
 require. 
 
 The walls of the cella should be proportioned to the 
 magnitude of the building; the antae which terminate them 
 being always as much in width as the diameter of the 
 
77 
 
 columns. If they are to be formed of unhewn stone, the 
 pieces ought to be very small: but if squared stone or 
 marble be used in their construction, the blocks should be 
 of a moderate size and of equal length; because greater 
 firmness is obtained when the joints of one stratum are made 
 to meet in the middle of the blocks which constitute the 
 stratum immediately below them. If every edge of the 
 squared blocks be rebated, the effect produced will be much 
 more pleasing 1 . 
 
 1 We are to understand from this passage, that the walls are intended to be of 
 that kind of masonry which is commonly called rusticated; of which we find examples 
 in the Poikile at Athens, and several temples at Rome. Amongst the latter may 
 be mentioned the temples of Fortuna-Virilis and Mars-Ultor. The term expressiones, 
 which Vitruvius uses to express the faces of the stone projecting before the joints, 
 is used. exclusively by himself. 
 
CHAP. V. 
 
 OF THE ASPECTS WHICH ARE MOST APPROPRIATE FOR 
 
 TEMPLES. 
 
 The temples of the Gods ought to be so placed that the 
 statue which has its station in cella, should, if there be 
 nothing to interfere with such a disposition, face the west; 
 in order that those who come to make oblations and offer 
 sacrifices may face the east when their view is directed 
 towards the statue: and those who come to impose upon 
 themselves the performance of vows, may have the temple 
 and the east immediately before them. Thus the statues 
 they regard will appear as if rising from the east and looking 
 down upon the supplicants. Hence it seems necessary, that 
 all the altars of the Gods should face the east. 
 
 But if the peculiar situation of the spot renders such a 
 position impossible, the temple should be so situated that 
 the principal part of the walls may be seen from it. And 
 when temples are built in the neighbourhood of a river they 
 should command a view of its banks, like the temples of 
 Egypt upon the borders of the Nile. For similar reasons, 
 temples which are erected near public streets should be 
 situated so as to present themselves readily to the passers by, 
 who may perform their salutations whilst they are kept in 
 view. 
 
81 
 
 CHAP. VI. 
 
 OF THE PROPORTIONS OF THE DOORWAYS OF TEMPLES. 
 
 The proportions of the doorways of sacred edifices and their 
 antepagments vary according to the order of the building: 
 for each of the orders has a style of entrance peculiar to 
 itself. The proportions for doorways of the Doric order 
 are determined by placing the upper part of the coronae, 
 which surmounts the transverse antepagment, upon the 
 same horizontal level as the lower part of the epistylia over 
 the columns of the pronaos. The space which is intended 
 to be left open to the air 1 is determined by making the 
 doors equal to four parts of seven, into which the height of 
 the temple, from the floor to the lacunaria, is divided. The 
 height of the doors is divided into twelve parts, of which 
 five and an half are given to the width of the opening at 
 
 1 The printed copies read, "lumen autem hypothyri:" but the manuscripts read 
 either hypaetri, or hipetri, for hypothyri; meaning that part of the doorway which 
 was hypaethral, or exposed to the air. The original reading renders the meaning of 
 Vitruvius very clear; by not adhering to which much confusion has arisen, and 
 many conjectures have been offered as to what occupied the space between the 
 door and the transverse antepagment. Most of the editors are reduced to the 
 necessity of altering the text; and to make the height of the door five parts, instead 
 of four of the seven, into which the height of the temple, from the floor to the 
 lacunaria, is directed to be divided. Perrault, adhering to the numbers of the 
 manuscripts, introduces a deep tablet between the transverse antepagment and the 
 cornice above it. 
 
 M 
 
82 
 
 the bottom: at the top it is contracted in proportion to the 
 height of the doorways; that is, when this is less than sixteen 
 feet the diminution of the opening should be a third of the 
 antepagment 1 . In doorways from sixteen to twenty-five 
 feet in height, the contraction at the top is a fourth of the 
 antepagment; in those from twenty-five to thirty feet high, 
 the contraction is an eighth: all doorways whose height 
 exceeds this limit ousrht to have no contraction whatever. The 
 antepagments should be a twelfth part of the height of the 
 opening 2 , and diminish at the top a fourteenth part of their 
 width. The thickness of the supercilium 3 should be ecpial 
 to that of the antepagments at the top. The cymatium of 
 the antepagment should be a sixth part of its width, and its 
 projection the same: it is composed of the Lesbian cymatium 
 and an astragal. 
 
 The hyperthyrnm 4 is placed upon the superciliuin, and 
 
 1 Antepagments here mean the side pieces constituting the frame in which the 
 door is fixed: in a more limited sense it means the ornament fixed in front of the 
 frame which we, improperly, term architraves. In this sense it is used in the 
 description of the front of Tuscan temples, Chapter VII; where the antepagments 
 are said to be fixed in the front cf the projecting nmtules. 
 
 2 The proportion of the width of the antepagment to the opening is omitted in 
 the manuscript copies; that which is here given is taken from the Amsterdam 
 edition. 
 
 3 The supercilium is termed in a preceding passage "antepagmentum superius." 
 
 4 The hyperthyrum, as the derivation of the word evidently implies, is the 
 ornament extending over the aperture of the doorway: it consists, as the text 
 explains, of several members. The commentators and translators ofVitruvius have 
 generally supposed the hyperthyrum to be a kind of plain fascia intervening between 
 the supercilium and the members of the coronae; whereas the words of the text at the 
 beginning of the chapter clearly indicate that the hyperthyrum comprehends all the 
 
83 
 
 is equal to it in depth: it consists of the Doric cymatium and 
 Lesbian astragal, having but little projection, together with 
 a plain corona and cymatium. Its projection is equal 
 to the height of the supercilium which is placed upon 
 the antepagments. The supercilium projects beyond the 
 antepagments on the right and left : the cymatium is 
 continued around the projections, and is united, by means of 
 a mitred joint, with that of the antepagments. 
 
 If the doorway is to be of the Ionic order, the height of 
 the opening is determined in the same manner as in the Doric; 
 but its width at the bottom is two parts of five, into which 
 the height is divided 1 : the contraction at the top follows the 
 rules prescribed in the foregoing instance. The width of 
 the antepagments at the bottom is a fourteenth part of the 
 height of the opening; the cymatium is a sixth part of the 
 width: the remaining part is divided into twelve, of which 
 three are given to the first corsa, or fascia, and its astragal, 
 four to the second, and five to the third: these corsae and 
 their astragals are continued around the opening. The 
 
 members of the coronae: " corona summa quae supra antepagmentum superius 
 imponitur:" and not, "supra hypcrthyrum imponitur." In the generality of ancient 
 doorways, which, like that under discussion, were without ancones, no fascia is found 
 to intervene between the supercilium and the coronae: several instances maybe 
 adduced from the ruins of Balbec and Palmyra. The reader is referred to the works 
 on those subjects, and particularly to plates 10, 13, and 14, of the former; and plates 
 \ c 2, 20, 30 and 49, of the latter. Also to the doorways of the tower of Andronicus 
 Cyrrhestes in the first volume of the Antiquities of Athens. 
 
 1 For the same reason that the reading of the manuscripts, which states the 
 proportions of the Doric opening, has been altered in the printed copies, it has here 
 likewise been altered from "unius," to, " unius semis." 
 
84 
 
 space left open to the air 1 is determined in the manner 
 directed to be observed in Doric doorways 2 . 
 
 The ancones or prothyrides, as they are sometimes called, 
 are suspended from the coronae on the right and left of the 
 supercilium; the lower ends, exclusive of the leaves, are in 
 the line of the opening of the doorway. The width of the 
 ancones is a third of the antepagment, and it is a fourth 
 part less at the lower end than at the top. ; 
 
 The doors should be so framed that the scapi, upon 
 which the hinges are fixed, may be a twelfth part of the 
 height of the opening: the tympana are each a fourth part 
 of the distance between the two scapi. The compartments 
 of the doors are determined by dividing the height into five 
 parts, two of which are given to the upper and three to the 
 
 1 Here again, as in the Doric doorway, hypaetra, or hypaethra, is altered in the 
 printed copies to hyperthyra. 
 
 2 The printed copies here read, " qucmadmodum in Doricis hyperthyridibus." 
 The latter word is substituted for portis pedibus, which appears to be the reading of 
 the manuscripts; although in some of them the last word is not clearly made out. 
 Hoy portis pedibus I have little doubt that we ought to read portis foribus: since in 
 most of the manuscripts the three first letters of the word pedibus are indistinctly 
 written. The chapter professes to treat of the three several kinds of thyromata; 
 which word is synonymous with fores portarum. No objection to the reading here 
 suggested can arise from the latinity of the passage ; because in the manuscript 
 copies of the author we have several instances of the use of the ablative case for the 
 genitive; although the passages in which they occur are corrected in the printed 
 editions. It will be sufficient for our purpose to give the following quotations: 
 
 " Si enim majoribus symmetriis utemur in minoribus neque si autem 
 
 minoribus in majoribus utemur," lib. VI. c. 4. where minoribus, in the latter part of 
 the passage, and majoribus, in the first, are respectively used for minorum and 
 
 mqjorum, scil. atriorum " E q ui bus fonmscertkque corporibus figurata " Jib. 
 
 VII. c. 5. in which passage quibus and corporibus are put for quarum and corporum. 
 
85 
 
 lower. At the line of separation the middle impages are 
 placed: others are framed into the doors at the bottom of 
 the lower and at the top of the upper compartment. The 
 height 1 of the impages is a third part of the tympanum. 
 The horizontal scapi are together half the height of the 
 impages: the replum is two thirds of the remaining space; 
 and the cymatium above and below occupy the other third. 
 Those portions of the scapi which appear before the 
 antepagments are equal in width to half the impage. If 
 the doors are made folding 2 , it will not be necessary to 
 add to their height, but only to make their width somewhat 
 greater ; but if each folding door has two valves, the height 
 of the doorwav must be increased. 
 
 The Attic or Corinthian doorways are similar to the 
 Doric, excepting that the antepagments have a fascia below 
 the cymatium: the proportion which this fascia bears to the 
 antepagment, exclusive of the cymatium, is two parts to 
 seven. The antepagments are not to be embossed with 
 encaustic work, neither are they to be constructed for 
 the reception of double doors, but for folding doors 
 
 1 Through ignorance of the method in which ancient doors were formed, the 
 editors of Vitruvius alter attitudo, which is the reading of the manuscripts, to 
 latitudo. 
 
 2 Fores valvatae are folding doors. Vitruvius, having already described the 
 proportions for single doors, proceeds to say that if the doors be made valvatae, or 
 folding, it will be necessary that the doorway should be of greater width: the reason 
 for which is sufficiently obvious. The bifores are double doors; that is, one door 
 within the other, having an interval between them equal to the thickness of the wall 
 or of the antepagments. 
 
86 
 
 only : the outward parts of them appearing like 
 apertures 1 . 
 
 Thus I have explained, as far as I have been enabled to 
 collect from the most authentic accounts, all the proportions 
 for temples of the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian orders. The 
 proportions of Tuscan temples remain to be described. 
 
 1 This passage is understood in different senses by the commentators, who, for 
 the most part, imagine Vitruvius to be here speaking of the ornaments of the doors; 
 for which reason they interpolate the words "foriiwi ornament cC without any 
 authority for it. The passage in the manuscripts stands thus, " Ipsaque non hunt 
 caelostrata, neque bifora, sed valvata," &,c. The substantive to which ipsa relates, is 
 clearly antepagmenta. The ancients had a custom of ornamenting, with encaustic 
 work, the limina, or antepagmenta; as appears by the following line from Ausonius : 
 
 " Ceris inurens januarum limina." Epig. XXVI. 9. 
 The scholiast observes that there were three kinds of encaustic work in use anions 
 the Romans: one of which was burning ivory or horn with a sharp-pointed instrument, 
 called a caestrum; whence that method was called opus caestrotum. The word 
 caelostrotum may perhaps have been suggested by the use of a caelum, or graving 
 instrument, for a similar purpose. 
 
 The meaning of Vitruvius appears to be that as bifores, or double doors, were not 
 adopted, the folding doors were hung upon the interior face of the antepagments; 
 receding from the outward face, the depth of the antepagment, or the thickness of 
 the wall: so that the opening of the doorway was not closed on the outside, but the 
 aperture left unoccupied. The latter part of the passage in the manuscripts stands 
 thus, " aperturas liabent exteriores partes." The printed copies insert in before 
 " exteriores." 
 
CHAP. VII. 
 
 OF THE PROPORTIONS OF THE TUSCAN ORDER; OF ROUND AND 
 VARIOUS OTHER KINDS OF TEMPLES. 
 
 The area which the temple is intended to occupy should be 
 so proportioned, that if the length be divided into six parts 
 the width should be equal to five. The length should 
 be equally divided into two parts, the further of which is 
 designed for the cella, and the division in front is left to be 
 occupied by the columns. The width being divided into ten 
 parts, three on each side are given to the lesser cellae, or 
 the side aisles, if such be required: the remaining four are 
 for the width of the principal cella. 
 
 The disposition of the columns in the area before the 
 cellae is this: those at the angles of the front are placed 
 opposite the antae in the line of the lateral walls of the 
 temple: two others are interposed between them in the line 
 of the walls which form the divisions of the cellae. The 
 columns at the angles have their positions so far distant 
 from the antae, as to admit of two others, in the intervals, 
 in the same lines of direction. 
 
 The diameter of the columns is a seventh part of 
 their height, and their height a third of the width of the 
 temple: the diminution of the shaft is a fourth of the 
 diameter. The bases are half the lower diameter, and 
 divided in height into two parts; the lower of which is for 
 the circular plinth, and the upper for the torus and apophyge. 
 
88 
 
 The height of the capital is likewise half the lower diameter, 
 and its greatest extent is made equal to twice the height. 
 The plinth, which corresponds to the abacus of the other 
 orders, is a third of the height of the capital ; the echinus 
 and the hypotrachelium, with its apophysis 1 , are likewise 
 each a third. 
 
 Upon the columns trabes should be placed one upon 
 another to such an height as the magnitude of the temple 
 may render necessary; but their thickness ought not to 
 exceed the diameter of the columns at the hypotrachelium. 
 The beams should be joined together by means of cramps 
 and dovetails; but an interval of two digits left between 
 them; because if they are placed in close contact, and the 
 air is not suffered to circulate freely between them, a 
 fermentation takes place, and they soon decay. 
 
 The mutules should project a fourth of the height of the 
 columns, both beyond the beams and the lateral walls of the 
 temple; and have antepagments fixed against the projecting 
 ends. The tympanum of the fastigium should be constructed 
 in front, either of masonry or timber. The columen, canterii 
 and templa should be of such proportionate heights and 
 lengths that the eaves, formed by the projection of the 
 mutules in the flanks of the temple, may be proportioned 
 to the height of the roof, in the ratio of one to one and a 
 third 2 . 
 
 There are, however, various kinds of round temples: 
 
 1 There is no mention of any astragal, in addition to the apophysis, in the 
 manuscripts. 
 
 2 This passage is very obscure, and is variously interpreted by the commentators. 
 
89 
 
 those which are constructed with columns only, without 
 a cella, are called monopteral, and the others peripteral. 
 The first are raised upon a tribunal, to which there is an 
 ascent; its height is a third of the diameter of the temple. 
 Upon this stylobate the columns are placed, equal in height 
 to the diameter of the tribunal, and a tenth part of their 
 height in bulk. The epistylium is made half the lower 
 diameter of the columns: the zophorus and the other 
 members are determined in the manner already described 
 in this book 1 . 
 
 If the temple is to be peripteral, two steps and a stylobate 
 are first built : then the walls of the cella, which should recede 
 
 I have ventured to give it this meaning in consequence of the manner in which 
 Vitruvius applies the term tertiarius. In lib. iii. c. 1. it is thus introduced, 
 " Cum facta sunt octo, quod est tertia adjecta, tertiarium." Tertiarius, therefore, 
 signifies a quantity made up of any primary number and a third of that number. 
 
 Let us now consider what is to be the height of the roof. In general, the height 
 of the tympanum is a ninth part of the extent of the front, measured from the 
 extremities of the coronae ; the columen, therefore, of the roof, measured from the 
 tigna to the point where the axes, or principals, meet, is one ninth of the width of 
 the temple, including the walls. The projection of the mutules before the walls is 
 stated to be one fourth of the height of the columns j that is, one twelfth of the width 
 of the temple. Hence the height of the columen, is to the projection of the mutules, 
 in the ratio of twelve to nine; or one and a third to one: if, therefore, the projection 
 of the mutules be a primary number, the height of the columen will be its tertiary; 
 or, what is the same thing, the projection of the mutules will be the inverse tertiary 
 of the roof: which is apparently the meaning of the words, " ut stillicidium tecti 
 absoluti tertiario respondeat." 
 
 1 By referring to the proportions already described in this book, as well as by 
 giving an height to the columns equal to ten times their diameter, Vitruvius intended 
 it should be understood that round temples were always to be of the Corinthian order. 
 The printed editions alter the reading of the manuscript copies from quarto, to, tertio; 
 thereby referring to the proportions of Ionic columns. 
 
 N 
 
90 
 
 from the stylobate a fifth part of its diameter. A doorway 
 is left in the middle of the walls by which the cella may be 
 approached. The cella, exclusive of the thickness of the 
 walls and the width of the ambulatory around, determines 
 the height of the columns above the stylobate. The columns 
 should be arranged around the walls of the cella at proper 
 intervals, the proportions and symmetries for which have 
 already been mentioned. 
 
 The height of the roof in the centre is determined by 
 making the tholus 1 , including the flower, half the diameter 
 of the entire temple. The flower, exclusive of the pyramid, 
 should be equal to the capital of the columns. The proportions 
 of all other parts of these temples should be similar to those 
 already described for temples whose forms are rectangular. 
 
 Temples of various other forms are also constructed, 
 whose constituent parts are regulated by the same laws of 
 proportions as those of the temples already described; 
 although their general dispositions are somewhat dissimilar. 
 Of this description is the temple of Castor in the Circus, 
 Flaminius, and that of Vejovis situated between the two 
 groves. A temple dedicated to Diana in the Aricinian 
 grove has columns on the right and left of the humeri 2 of 
 
 1 See the explanation of Plate XII. Sect. 2. 
 
 * The humeri are the angles of the temple formed by the longitudinal and 
 transverse walls of the cella. The temple of Minerva upon the Athenian Acropolis, 
 one of the instances to which it is thought Vitruvius intended to allude, has nothing 
 very particular in its construction to render its form dissimilar to those described in 
 the third book. It is true that, instead of antae, columns are introduced at the angles 
 in front of the pronaos ; the antae must therefore have been behind the columns at 
 the angles, like those of the posticus. But the words of the passage imply, that in 
 
91 
 
 the pronaos. The earliest temples, constructed like that of 
 Castor in the Circus, were those dedicated to Minerva-Polias, 
 one of which was built upon the Athenian Acropolis; and 
 another at Sunium in Attica. The proportions of these 
 temples are alike, for the length of the cella in either is 
 double the width; and those features of the temple which 
 are commonly in front of the cella are, in these examples, 
 transferred to the sides 1 . 
 
 the temples here alluded to we are to look for those features in the sides which, in 
 general, are only introduced in the fronts: " et uti reliqua ex iis omnia quae solent 
 esse in frontibus ad latera sunt translata :" which makes it highly probable that the 
 temple upon the Acropolis, alluded to by Vitruvius, was that of Minerva-Polias, the 
 portico of which is in the side of the temple; and there is no entrance whatever in 
 the front. The words of the preceding part of the passage have been transposed in 
 most of the printed copies; which, instead of the order observed in all the MSS. 
 read as follows; " in arce Minervae et in Attica Sunio Palladis:" transposing the 
 word Minervae from the end of the passage. If the order of the words be restored 
 there will not be much difficulty in admitting that for " Minervae Palladis," we should 
 read " Minervae Poliadis ;" because otherwise it would appear extraordinary that the 
 two appellations of the same divinity should be used together. The only difficulty 
 which remains to be encountered is, that a temple of Minerva-Polias at Sunium is 
 implied to have been formerly in existence. Of such a temple there are no remains, 
 nor indeed any account given : but it is not improbable that there may have been 
 two temples of Minerva at Sunium as well as at Athens. 
 
 There are, however, two MSS. in which the passage, as it there stands, may be 
 interpreted so as to relate to one temple only at Athens. One reads, " Athenis in 
 arce et in Attica summa:" and the other, " et in Attica in summo;" sc. in summo 
 Atticae. It ought to be observed that these MSS. are the oldest of the five in the 
 Harleian collection. 
 
 In the Greek inscription relating to the survey of this temple, which was brought 
 from Athens by Dr. Chandler, the humeri are mentioned. They are there termed 
 harmoi, which corresponds to the Latin word barmi or armi; meaning literally those 
 parts of the shoulders to which the arms are affixed. 
 
 1 This passage is illegibly written in the MSS. In attempting to decypher it 
 the printed editions have introduced a term of which no satisfactory interpretation 
 
92 
 
 There are some who adopt the dispositions observed in 
 Tuscan temples in temples of the Ionic and Corinthian 
 orders : for by removing those parts of the wall which 
 extend from the cella to the antae, and substituting columns 
 in their stead, there results a form of temple in which the 
 Tuscan and Grecian modes of building are united. 
 
 Others take away the walls of the cella and close the 
 intervals between the columns of the pteromata; thus 
 affording a considerable width to the cella, by the addition 
 on each side of the spaces occupied by the walls and 
 ambulatories. In all other respects the temple remains 
 unaltered; and hence arises another form, which has been 
 called pseudoperipteral. This plan is adopted in temples 
 where the constant performance of sacrifices requires 
 considerable space : for temples consecrated to the worship 
 of different divinities ought not to be constructed upon the 
 same plan; because each has a mode of worship peculiar to 
 itself. 
 
 Thus have I explained, from the works of our predecessors, 
 the principles for the construction of temples; and have classed 
 under separate heads their various dispositions and proportions. 
 I have endeavoured to illustrate their different forms, and to 
 point out in what respects they vary from each other. It 
 follows that I should now treat of altars, and shew how they 
 will be best adapted to the purpose of performing sacrifices. 
 
 can be given. The passage is generally printed thus: " uti rdiqita exisona quae 
 solent esse in frontibus, ad latera sunt translata." Turnebus proposes to read ex 
 his omnia, for exisona. In one MS. I find it written thus; eypfotia: which may 
 probably be written for cjrpfonta: that is, ex Us omnia; p being used in the same 
 MS. for ii; and the symbol of contraction very general. 
 
93 
 
 CHAP. VIII. 
 
 OF ALTARS. 
 
 Altars should face the east, and be always placed lower 
 than the statues which are arranged about the cella; in 
 order that those who come for the purpose of offering up 
 prayers and sacrifices, may know from their different 
 heights to what particular Deities the several altars are 
 consecrated. The altars of Jupiter and the celestials 
 should be raised as high as circumstances will permit; those 
 of Vesta, Terra, and the marine Deities, on the contrary, 
 should be low. These regulations are necessary to be 
 observed in arranging the altars within the cella. 
 
 Having in this book explained the modes of disposition 
 adopted in sacred edifices, in the next we shall treat of the 
 construction of public buildings. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 In comparing the proportions of the Corinthian order of 
 architecture, as they are given by Vitruvius, with some 
 existing monument of the same order in Greece, it would 
 immediately occur to us that the building in which we might 
 expect to find the nearest coincidence in the proportions of 
 the several members, is the temple of Jupiter Olympiusa t 
 Athens ; as it is an example celebrated by Vitruvius himself 
 amongst the four most remarkable of the temples of antiquity. 
 
 It has been erroneously supposed that this temple owed 
 its origin to the emperor Hadrian, and the tradition has 
 been so universally believed, that the ruins are commonly 
 recognised by the title of the ' columns of Hadrian.' 
 
 It would be foreign to the purpose to enter here into a 
 formal refutation of this mistaken notion ; I purpose reserving 
 it for the subject of future discussion. 
 
 Unfortunately, however, the vast height of this temple 
 opposes difficulties to the minute examination of its various 
 members, not to be surmounted by the traveller possessed of 
 no other means of obtaining access to the upper parts than 
 
 o 
 
98 
 
 such as modern Athens is capable of affording. The task, 
 therefore, of drawing a parallel between the Corinthian 
 order of Vitruvius and the order of this temple remains 
 to be performed by some one who may command greater 
 resources. 
 
 No other Corinthian building at Athens is mentioned by 
 Vitruvius; for we cannot call the octagon tower of Andronicus 
 Cyrrhestes an example of this order; since its characters, so 
 far from having been preserved generally throughout the 
 building, have only been partially introduced in the columns 
 of the porticoes. We shall therefore pass over this building 
 in preference to one which, although it is not noticed by 
 Vitruvius, certainly existed prior to the period in which the 
 Olympeium was erected; and has therefore a better claim to 
 be considered of pure Grecian origin. The building alluded 
 to is the Choragic monument of Lysicrates, which was 
 erected in the street of the tripods at Athens. 
 
 PLATE I. 
 
 A PARALLEL BETWEEN THE CORINTHIAN ORDER OF 
 
 VITRUVIUS AND THE ORDER OF THE COLUMNS 
 
 OF A CHORAGIC MONUMENT AT ATHENS. 
 
 If we proceed upon the plan we have hitherto pursued 
 of drawing a parallel between columns of equal diameters, 
 we must suppose the shaft of the Vitruvian column to be 14 
 inches at the base : hence, according to the reading in the 
 seventh chapter of this book, the height of the column will 
 
99 
 
 be 11.8.0, or ten diameters. The height of the Athenian 
 columns is 11.7-65, making the difference little more than 
 -^ ths of an inch only. The diminution of the shafts of 
 columns which are less than fifteen feet in height, is directed 
 to be a sixth part of the lower diameter: hence the upper 
 diameter ought to be 11.666 inches: the upper diameter of 
 the columns of the Choragic monument is 11.65 inches. 
 
 The columns being elevated considerably above the level 
 of the ground, it is necessary, in considering the height of the 
 epistylium, to enquire what addition to the general proportion 
 would, on that account, have been given to this member of the 
 entablature. Vitruvius directs us when columns are elevated 
 to give a proportionate increase to the epistylium; without 
 noticing the principle upon which the scale of addition 
 should be formed. The epistylium of the Ionic entablature, 
 when the columns are less than fifteen feet, is half the 
 diameter, or one-nineteenth part of their height. And when 
 the height of the column lies between fifteen and twenty 
 feet, the epistylium is a thirteenth part. Hence, if instead 
 of supposing the epistylium to be that which would be 
 proportioned to columns between the first limits, we give 
 it that height which is generally to be observed when the 
 columns are between the second, on account of their elevation, 
 we must increase the semidiameter in the ratio of nineteen 
 to thirteen. This would give to the epistylium and its 
 cymatium together an height of 11.69 inches; which differs 
 from that of the Choragic monument by ^- ths of an inch. 
 
 If the zophorus of the Vitruvian column be ornamented 
 with sculpture, its height will considerably exceed that of 
 
100 
 
 the Athenian monument; and if we suppose it not to be so 
 embellished, it will be somewhat less; but then the entire 
 heights of the entablatures will nearly accord; for in 
 this case, the zophorus being 8.77 an d the whole coronae 
 ] 1.21, the difference will be ^ ths of an inch only. So great 
 a latitude has been allowed to caprice in the composition 
 of Corinthian capitals, that we scarcely meet with two 
 instances in which it is the same. The divisions for the 
 leaves, as they are given by Vitruvius, agree with no 
 example known, either of Grecian or Roman columns. As 
 far as the description is carried, the Vitruvian capital 
 resembles those in the arch of Hadrian, excepting in the 
 height of the lower leaf. In our representation of the 
 Athenian column the leaves in the upper part of the shaft 
 are omitted; because they cannot be said to form any part 
 of the capital ; but are rather to be considered as a peculiar 
 termination of the flutings, incidental to that degree of 
 embellishment by which this building is distinguished. 
 
 PLATE II. 
 
 Fig. 1. Transverse section through the roof of a temple. 
 
 This figure serves to illustrate what Vitruvius h 
 
 l & 
 
 as 
 
 advanced as to the origin of the ornaments adopted in 
 Doric entablatures. From this it will not be difficult to 
 conceive how the projection of the canterii might have 
 suggested the adoption of mutules. In the representation 
 of one half of the roof, the span is supposed to be very 
 
101 
 
 considerable; when the transtra and capreoli were used in 
 preference to the columen. 
 
 Fig. 2. The geometrical elevation of the same roof. 
 
 It is probable that the tigna, or tyes, were at first placed 
 over the columns only; because, unless the building was of 
 vast dimensions, which we cannot suppose to have been the 
 case with the early temples, no useful end would be obtained 
 by placing them at smaller intervals. Neither is it necessary, 
 in deducing the origin of the invention of mutules, to suppose 
 that the canterii were placed at intervals no greater than we 
 observe them in the entablatures of antient examples of the 
 Doric order of architecture. It will be sufficient to shew 
 their probable origin, without accounting for the frequency 
 of their repetition. Hence, in this figure the canterii are 
 supposed to occur once only in the interval between two 
 columns. 
 
 The trabs, or beams, which were placed immediately 
 upon the columns and antae, were notched in order to preserve 
 the tigna in their positions : these incisions were termed cubilia 
 by the Romans, and opae by the Greeks; whence the intervals 
 between two were called metopae. 
 
 a. 
 
 .The trabs. e Capreolus. 
 
 bb. . . .Tigna. f Columen. 
 
 cc Axes. gg... Canterii. 
 
 d Transtrum. hh...Templa. 
 
 ii Asseres. 
 
102 
 
 PLATE III. 
 
 APARALLEL BETWEENTHE DORIC COLUMN AND ENTABLATURE 
 ACCORDING TO VITRUVIUS, AND THE ORDER OF THE 
 
 PROPYLEUM. 
 
 We now proceed to consider the proportions which 
 our author assigns to the Doric order: the result of this 
 investigation will prove that they correspond, in many 
 particulars, with those of the most celebrated Grecian 
 examples. 
 
 It was evidently the intention of Vitruvius to establish a 
 modulus for this order upon a principle different to that 
 which determined the modulus for the Ionic. If however 
 the number of parts into which the fronts of monotrigliph 
 temples, whether tetrastyle or hexastyle, be as it is stated in 
 all the printed editions, the modulus will be virtually the 
 same; because what is the modulus in one case would be 
 twice the modulus in the other : and by making one any 
 multiple of the other, we do not alter the relative proportions 
 of the several parts. 
 
 All the manuscript copies of our author make the division 
 of the fronts different to what they are stated in the printed 
 editions; and from these divisions we obtain a modulus 
 differing altogether from that by which the several parts of 
 Ionic buildings are regulated. 
 
 Here it may not be improper to remark, that this general 
 
103 
 
 error seems to have arisen from the idea, that, in the 
 " opus diastylon," it was intended that the interval should be 
 accurately equal to three diameters of the column; without 
 considering that diastyle intervals varied from two diameters 
 and a quarter to three : for by the words, " truim columnarum 
 crassitudinem interponere possumus," Vitruvius means that 
 in this particular species we may place the columns as 
 far asunder as three diameters ; without inferring that 
 we are restricted to that particular interval. In the same 
 manner the intercolumniations of the systyle species may 
 vary from one diameter and an half to two diameters. Unless 
 this be allowed, how are we to class the greater number 
 of temples to which none of the intervals mentioned by 
 Vitruvius accurately apply? for instance, the temple of 
 Mars-Ultor, where the interval is two diameters and a third ; 
 the temple of Fortuna-Virilis, and the portico of the Pantheon, 
 in the first of which the interval is to the diameter in the 
 ratio of 2.142 to I ; and in the other, 2.095 to 1; the temple 
 of Jupiter- Stator, wherein the intercolumniation is more 
 than one diameter and an half; and various other temples 
 in Greece and Rome. 
 
 It is true that the intervals in the Grecian monotriglyph 
 examples are something less than one diameter and an half, 
 and therefore the species is rather to be called the pycnostyle : 
 perhaps, therefore, for systylon in the text we should read 
 pycnostylon: a correction which the commentators could 
 have had no difficulty in admitting; since in the second 
 chapter of the third book, octostylon is, by all, substituted 
 for hexastylon, in the description of the temple of Bacchus 
 
104 
 
 at Tios: the ductus litterarum does not appear to be more 
 direct in one instance than in the other. In the same chapter 
 a correction of a similar kind is made by all the commentators, 
 although improperly; where the proportions of eustyle 
 columns are said to be the same as the diastyle, instead of 
 the sijstijle; whicli is the reading in the manuscripts. 
 
 In the example which we shall take to illustrate the principles 
 given by Vitruviusfor porticoes with the polytriglyph interval, 
 it will be seen that the intercolumniation is to the diameter 
 very nearly in the ratio of 2.71 to 1 ; and therefore the species 
 of temple is diastyle, as the text states it to be. 
 
 The propyleum, or approach to the Athenian acropolis, 
 is one of the few instances existing; in which the Greeks 
 increased the interval between the central columns by the 
 width of one metopa and one triglyph more; and thus far it 
 corresponds with the hexastyle monotriglyph of Vitruvius. 
 But it fails in the want of equality of the other intervals, 
 which our author insists upon as necessary when the Doric 
 order is to be introduced divested of its defects. Hence 
 if we compare the Doric hexastyle front of Vitruvius 
 with the Grecian example, we must imagine the angular 
 intercolumniations of the latter to be the same as the others ; 
 the central interval remainingunaltered. The distance between 
 the axes of the central columns of the propyleum is 17-10.0; 
 and between the axesof those nextto them, 1 1.10.9; the extent, 
 therefore, between the axes of the columns placed at the angles 
 of the front, upon the supposition of equality in all the 
 intercolumniationsexceptingthat in thecentre,wouldbe 65. 5 6; 
 and the diameter of the columns being five feet, the whole 
 
105 
 
 extent of an hexastyle front would be 70.5.6: this is to be 
 divided, according to the MSS. copies, into twenty-eight parts, 
 two of which are to constitute the modulus, or diameter of the 
 column. The twenty-eighth part of this extent is 2.6.2, 
 consequently the diameter should be 5.0.4; this differs from 
 the true diameter by ^ ths of an inch only. So near a 
 coincidence in the Grecian and Vitruvian proportions is 
 scarcely to be expected; and we may be allowed to infer 
 from it an intention, on the part of our author, of strictly 
 following the proportions delivered down in the works of the 
 Grecian masters. We are not to expect that the proportion 
 of the height of the column to its diameter, as it is given by 
 Vitruvius, will apply to the columns of Grecian buildings; 
 because it is manifest that, with every desire to adopt 
 the Grecian proportions, he must have laboured under a 
 misconception of his authors, when he asserted, that the 
 proportionate height was altered from six diameters to seven. 
 The origin of this error seems obvious; for, in the most 
 finished of the Grecian productions in architecture, it appears 
 that the height of the column has indeed been increased by 
 one diameter from the primordial proportions; but it is 
 increased from four diameters and a half to five and 
 a half. 
 
 If we would ascertain in what manner the divisions for the 
 tetrastyle front, as they are stated in the manuscripts, would 
 affect the modulus, or the diameter of the column, we have only 
 to consider the extent which is occupied by the four central 
 columns of the propyleum. This extent is 46.7-8, and when 
 
 p 
 
106 
 
 divided by eighteen, gives 2.7«1 for the modulus, or 5.2.2 
 for the diameter of the columns; which differs 1 ^ inches 
 from the diameter obtained by the division of the hexastyle 
 front. 
 
 The diameter of the column is assumed five feet; the 
 contraction therefore at the hypotracheliuin ought to be 
 one-sixth; hence the upper diameter of the columns, had 
 they followed the proportions of Vitruvius, would have been 
 4.2.0, whereas in the propyleum it is less by 2 * inches. 
 
 All the printed copies state that an astragal was introduced 
 in the hypotracheliuin, or neck of the column; for which, 
 however, the manuscripts afford no authority whatever: 
 neither is it stated that the flutings of the shafts terminated 
 at any distance below the annulets of the capital. Acquainted 
 therefore as we are become with the practice of the Greeks, 
 and satisfied that the intention of our author was to pursue 
 that practice, we are justified in supposing the flutings to 
 have been continued through the hypotracheliuin. The 
 Grecians sometimes introduced three enchased annulets in 
 the hypotracheliuin, and sometimes only one: the great 
 depth given to this division of the Vitruvian capital, seems 
 to indicate that the greater number was intended to be 
 adopted. 
 
 The epistylium is directed to be one modulus, including 
 the taenia and guttae : but in the Doric, as in the Ionic order, 
 we ought to suppose that proportion intended for columns 
 whose height did not exceed fifteen feet. If the principle 
 upon which the augmentation of the epistylium was founded, 
 
107 
 
 'when the columns exceeded a certain height, he admitted in 
 the Ionic order, it must necessarily obtain in the Doric. We 
 are directed to make the epistylium of Ionic columns of the 
 eustyle species, whose height does not exceed fifteen feet, 
 one modulus; that is, a nineteenth part of the entire height 
 of the column: but if the height of the column be more than 
 twenty-five feet, the epistylium is to be a twelfth part of 
 the height. In the latter case therefore, the modulus, or 
 semidiameter, is increased in the ratio of nineteen to twelve. 
 If we apply this rule to the columns of the propyleum we 
 shall obtain for the height of the epistylium, including the 
 taenia and guttae, 3.11.5; which exceeds the actual height 
 by 2 j5 inches. The height of the triglyphs is directed to be 
 one modulus and an half, or 3.9-0; in the propyleum the 
 height is 3. 9-9* In the same example the width of the 
 triglyphs is 2.4.0; which is two inches less than the modulus, 
 the width which Vitruvius assigns to it. 
 
 The height of the cornice of the propyleum, including 
 the sima, is found to have been 2.0.5 ; which is less by half an 
 inch than it would have been if formed according to the 
 proportions of our author. 
 
 Thus we find in every particular, excepting in the height 
 of the columns, the proportions of the monotriglyph-hexastyle 
 front of Vitruvius correspond to a great degree of accuracy 
 with those observed in the propyleum. The want of 
 coincidence in the height must be attributed, as we before 
 observed, to a misconception; which an actual observation of 
 Grecian buildings would undoubtedly have corrected. 
 
108 
 
 a Cymatium of the plinth, k Metopa- 
 
 b Plinth. 1 Triglyph. 
 
 c Echinus. m Capital. 
 
 d Annulets. n Cymatium . 
 
 e Hypotracheli um. oo . . . . M utul es. 
 
 f. Epistylium. p Scotia. 
 
 g Taenia. q Corona. 
 
 h Regula. r Cymatium. 
 
 ii Guttae. s Sima. 
 
 PLATE IV. 
 
 AN HEXASTYLE DORIC FRONT ACCORDING TO THE 
 PROPORTIONS OF VITRUVIUS. 
 
 The diameter of the columns is made five feet; in order 
 to shew the analogy between this front and another hexastyle 
 front, represented in Plate V. which has the proportions we 
 find to have been observed in the propyleum. 
 
 The columns are represented as less than six diameters 
 in height. 
 
 PLATE V. 
 
 AN HEXASTYLE FRONT IN WHICH THE COLUMNS AND 
 
 ENTABLATURE HAVE THE SAME PROPORTIONS 
 
 AS THOSE OF THE PROPYLEUM. 
 
 The angle of inclination of the pediment is made the 
 same as that of the temple of Theseus: this gives to the 
 
109 
 
 tympanum an height of 7-10.2 : the height of the tympanum, 
 according to the rule for determining it, in the third chapter 
 of the third book of Vitruvius, would be 8.2.2. 
 
 PLATE VI. 
 
 A PARALLEL BETWEEN THE TETRASTYLE MONOTRIGLYPH 
 
 FRONT OF VITRUVIUS, AND A TETRASTYLE FRONT, 
 
 HAVING THE PROPORTIONS OF THE GATE OF 
 
 THE AGORA AT ATHENS. 
 
 Fig. 1 . The columns and entablature of this front have 
 the same dimensions as those of the gate of the agora ; the 
 interval between the central columns is likewise the same : but 
 the columns at the angles are placed immediately under the 
 tri glyphs, which makes the interval between the axes of the 
 two columns next the angles, 10.0.08. Hence, the diameter of 
 the columns being 4.4.05, the whole extent of a tetrastyle 
 front will be 39- 4. 57- 
 
 Fig. 2. Let us assume a similar extent for the front of a 
 tetrastyle portico. According to Vitruvius, the diameter 
 of the column should be a ninth part of the extent, or 4.4.5 ; 
 now one of the columns of the Athenian portico is 4.4.5 in 
 diameter: so far the coincidence is exact. The extent 
 measured between the axes of the columns at the angles 
 will be 35.0.07, which divided by seven, gives 5.0.01 for the 
 distance from centre to centre of two adjoining triglyphs : 
 hence the distance between the axes of the central columns 
 
no 
 
 will be 15.6.05; and of the others 10.6.0-2, Loth of which 
 dimensions differ very immaterially from those of Fig. 1. 
 
 PLATE VII. 
 
 AN HEXASTYLE FRONT OF THE DITRIGLYPH SPECIES, 
 ACCORDING TO VITRUVIUS. 
 
 Although the Greeks, during the age of Pericles, when 
 architecture had attained to perfection, do not appear to 
 have adopted a polytriglyph interval between their Doric 
 columns; in a subsecpient age we have an example of such a 
 practice in the portico of Philip, erected in the island of Delos. 
 It does not appear to be very improbable that Vitro vius might 
 have deduced his proportions for the polytriglyph species from 
 some particular account of this building: for the following 
 reasons. First, because the proportions of some of the parts 
 correspond with those given by our author, with a degree of 
 precision which could only be expected to result from an 
 indirect transfer of those of the one to the members of the 
 other. Secondly, he asserts that the antients generally 
 avoided the use of the Doric order in sacred buildings. This 
 assertion, whilst it affords a convincing proof that he never 
 could have visited Greece, where it was commonly adopted, 
 sufficiently explains that the works relating to this order, with 
 which he was conversant, for the most part treated of profane 
 edifices. And this is a reason why in the investigation of the 
 Doric proportions for the monotriglyph species, we should 
 
J 1 1 
 
 compare them with those of the propyleum and the Doric 
 portico above mentioned, in preference to those of any other 
 buildings at Athens. Thirdly, because the two methods of 
 fluting the columns, mentioned by Vitruvius, are both found 
 to obtain in this Grecian building, I believe, exclusively. 
 
 We are directed to divide the front of a polytriglyph 
 hexastyle portico into twenty-one parts; one of which is to 
 be given to the diameter of the columns, and is twice the 
 modulus. Let us assume the diameter of the columns to be 
 <2.11.5; then the whole extent of an hexastyle front will be 
 62. 15: hence the distance from centre to centre of two 
 adjoining triglyphs will be 3.8.375, and consequently the 
 distance between the axes of the central columns will be 
 14 9-5; and of the others 11.1.12. In the portico of Philip 
 the intervals are 10.11.7; differing 1 ^ only from the latter 
 of these distances: and if we increase the interval by one 
 metopa and one triglyph more, for the distance between the 
 axes of the central columns, it will become 14.7-6. The 
 whole extent, therefore, of an hexastyle front, having the 
 same proportions as the portico, would be 61.5.9; which 
 exceeds the extent, according to Vitruvius, by 4 ^ inches. 
 In a space of more than sixty feet this difference is scarcely 
 to be regarded. 
 
 The distance between the axes of the two columns at the 
 angles of a tetrastyle front, having the proportions of the 
 same portico, would be 36-7-0; this, divided by twenty-six, 
 according to the rule of Vitruvius, will give the modulus : 
 the quotient arising from this division is J .4.88, which 
 
113 
 
 differs from the semidiameter of the columns little more 
 than ^ lhs of an inch. 
 
 The columns being very nearly twenty feet in height, 
 we proceed to consider what ought to be the proportionate 
 height of the epistylium, according to the principles hitherto 
 observed. In the Ionic order, when the columns are less 
 than fifteen feet high, the epistylium is half the lower 
 diameter, or one part of the nineteen into which their height 
 is divided; in columns from fifteen to twenty feet, the height 
 is divided into thirteen parts, one of which is given to the 
 height of the epistylium. That is to say, in the latter case, 
 half the diameter is increased in the ratio of nineteen to 
 thirteen. If we pursue this rule in the example before us, 
 the height of the epistylium would be 2. 1 .92 ; which is greater 
 by 6 la inches than that of the portico. The proportionate 
 height of the epistylium of this portico deviates from that 
 which appears to have been generally observed in the best 
 examples of Grecian architecture, such as the temples of 
 Minerva and Theseus and the propyleum ; in all of which the 
 heights of the zophorus and epistylium are so nearly equal, 
 that they differ only by some decimal parts of an inch. Had 
 the equality between the zophorus and epistylium been 
 observed in the portico of Philip, the latter would have 
 been 2.1.9; and thus the difference between the height of the 
 epistylium, and the height determined by the rule of Vitruvius, 
 would have been reduced to the fiftieth part of an inch. 
 
 The width of the triglyph is less by 1 ^ inches than 
 the semidiameter of the columns. It ought to be remarked 
 
113 
 
 that the triglyphs of the portico project before the face of 
 the epistylium, and so far accord with the explanation given 
 by Vitruvius of the invention of triglyphs. 
 
 In this instance, as in those already mentioned, we must 
 be prepared to expect a difference in the proportionate 
 height of the columns from that which is given them in the 
 text of our author. Accordingly, instead of the height being 
 seven times the diameter, it is found to be somewhat less than 
 six and one-fifth. The proportions of the upper and lower 
 diameters are, notwithstanding, nearly the same ; for if the 
 diminution of the shaft had been one-third of the modulus, 
 the diameter at the hypotrachelium must have been 2.5.59, 
 instead of 2.5.5; which is the actual diameter at the top of 
 the shaft, in the columns of the portico. 
 
 PLATE VIII. 
 
 AN HEXASTYLE DORIC PORTICO OF THE POLYTRIGLYPH 
 
 SPECIES, HAVING THE PROPORTIONS OF THE PORTICO 
 
 OF PHILIP I]M THE ISLAND OF DELOS. 
 
 The portico of Philip has no remains of a front: but 
 several columns in one of the flanks, with their entablature, 
 remain entire. In the flank there is no inequality in the 
 intervals between the columns; but in designing a conjectural 
 front, the central intercolumniation is supposed to have 
 been wider than the others by the introduction of one 
 triglyph and one metopa more in the zophorus. 
 
 Q 
 
114 
 
 PLATE IX. 
 
 DORIC AND IONIC DOORWAYS ACCORDING TO VITRUVIUS. 
 
 We are directed to divide the height, from the floor of 
 the peristyles to the lacunaria, into seven parts. In ancient 
 temples the lacunaria sometimes ranged with the upper 
 part of the corona, and sometimes with the cymatium of the 
 epistylium. In the temples of Minerva and Theseus at 
 Athens, and of the Sybil at Tivoli, in all of which instances 
 portions of the lacunaria are still remaining, they ranged with 
 the corona. In fig. 1, the height from A to B is supposed to 
 be the altitude of a temple from the upper step to the upper 
 part of the corona; and AD the height of a column including 
 the capital, upon the supposition that it was seven diameters 
 in height. If A B be divided into seven parts, A C, four of 
 them, will be the height of the doors : the remaining space 
 e, between them and the supercilium, or upper antepagment, 
 f, being left open to the air; or perhaps closed with bronze 
 lattice work, like what is observed in the door-way of the 
 Pantheon at Rome. The Avidth of the door-way at the bottom 
 is five parts and a half of the twelve into which AC is 
 divided. The hyperthyrum g, is fixed upon the upper 
 antepagment, and is equal to it in width. 
 
 In framing the doors, their height is divided into five 
 parts; three of which are for the lower impages with the 
 tympanum, or pannel, and two for the upper. At the division 
 
115 
 
 the intermediate impages, a a, are framed; the others, bb, are 
 framed one below and one at the top. Each impage ought to 
 be one-third of the tympanum; if therefore the lower division 
 of the door be subdivided into five parts, the height of each 
 of the impages will be equal to one of these parts. The 
 impages in the upper division are supposed equal to those in 
 the lower. The replum d, is two-thirds of the impage. 
 
 Fig. 2. An Ionic door-way. 
 
 The space left open to the air is determined in the same 
 manner as in door-ways of the Doric kind. The width of 
 the door-way at the bottom is two parts of the five, into 
 which the whole lumen, or space between the floor and the 
 supercilium, is divided. The Ionic door-way differs from 
 the Doric by having ancones, or prothyrides, below the 
 hyperthyrum. 
 
 Fig. 3. Plan of the door and the antepagments. 
 
 The scapi cardinales, or the styles on which the hinges 
 are fixed, are a twelfth part of the whole aperture. Each 
 of the tympana is a fourth of the width of the door-way, 
 and the scapi are made to appear as much before the 
 antepagments as is equal to half an impage ; the rest being 
 concealed by the antepagment : this method of division will 
 leave a similar width for each of the middle scapi, in conformity 
 with the description of Vitruvius. The compartments of 
 the frame work resemble those of the doors in the pronaos of 
 the Pantheon; excepting that, instead of the two intermediate 
 impages of the Vitruvian doors, these have but one. 
 
 The door-ways and doors, as they are here represented, 
 
116 
 
 are altogether different to any described by preceding 
 commentators. 
 
 PLATE X. 
 
 PLAN AND ELEVATION OF A TUSCAN TEMPLE. 
 
 The length of a Tuscan temple is made a fifth part 
 greater than the width : it is divided into two parts, one for 
 the cella and the other for the pronaos. The width is divided 
 into ten parts, three of which are left on each side, either 
 for the lesser cellae, as shewn at a, or for alae, or aisles, 
 as at h. The remaining four are given to the middle cella c. 
 Columns, dd, are placed at the angles, in a line with the antae 
 which terminate the outer walls; and others, ee, between 
 them, ranging with the walls which form the divisions of the 
 cellae. 
 
 The columns are made a third of the whole width of the 
 temple; beams, framed together, are placed upon them, 
 and serve for the epistylium and zophorus. The width of 
 these beams is equal to the upper diameter of the columns: 
 nothing is said of their height: they are here supposed to 
 have been scpiare. The mutules project before the face of the 
 beams one-fourth of the height of the columns. The 
 tympanum of the fastigium rises a ninth part of the whole 
 extent of the front: the general rule for determining the 
 height of the tympanum is to divide the whole extent, 
 comprehended between the extreme points of the corona; 
 
117 
 
 but the general simplicity of the temple not admitting of 
 a corona, the height must be determined from the extent of 
 the front. 
 
 PLATE XL 
 
 Fig. 1 . Plan of a monopteral temple. 
 
 The order of architecture to be adopted in round temples 
 is not mentioned by Vitruvius ; but from the proportions he 
 gives to the columns it may be inferred that the Corinthian 
 was meant : we are directed to make the height of the column 
 ten times the diameter, which proportion, supposing when 
 no other interval between the columns is mentioned that the 
 eustyle is intended, implies the adoption of that order. The 
 temple of Vesta at Rome, that of the Sybil at Tivoli, and 
 the Choragic monument at Athens, are the only instances 
 existing of round temples, and they are all of the Corinthian 
 order. The Pantheon and the temple of Minerva-Medica 
 do not come within that description of temples of which our 
 author is speaking; for they are neither peripteral nor 
 monopteral. It is however to be observed, that the portico of 
 the first is Corinthian. Montfaucon mentions a round temple 
 described by Flamminius Vacca, which was pseudo-peripteral 
 and of the same order. A round temple of Mars-Ultor is 
 exhibited upon the reverse of some medals of Augustus; where 
 the columns are also represented with Corinthian capitals. 
 
 Fig. 2. Plan of a peripteral round temple. 
 
 The number of the columns, which form the peristyles of 
 temples of this description, is not mentioned: the temple of 
 
118 
 
 Vesta at Rome has twenty; that at Tivoli eighteen. In the 
 plan before us the number is made sixteen, in order to allow 
 of the eustyle interval between the columns. 
 
 PLATE XII. 
 
 ELEVATION OF A MONOPTERAL TEMPLE. 
 
 The tribunal, or stylobate of the temple, is one-third the 
 whole diameter. The width of the ascent is made equal to 
 the interval between the columns; which would be sufficient 
 when the columns were wide asunder, or when the temple 
 was upon a large scale. Vitruvius speaks of the tholus in 
 such vague terms, that many are at a loss to know to what 
 part of the building the term is applied. Some have imagined 
 that the tholus means the whole superstructure above the 
 entablature; but De Laet, one of the most elaborate of the 
 commentators, rejects this interpretation; because of the great 
 height it would have, if made to rise half the diameter of the 
 whole building. In a monopteral temple, where there were 
 no walls, the tholus may be presumed to mean the whole 
 of the dome above the columns; in which case half the 
 diameter would afford a just proportion for the height of 
 the roof. 
 
 Vitruvius is silent as to the exterior form of the roof, 
 which is here supposed to be conical; like that of the 
 Choragic monument. The pyramid was probably a portion 
 of the roof near the vertex, which, if the plan of the roof 
 
119 
 
 had been an octagon, like that of the tower of Andronicus 
 Cyrrhestes, might very properly have been called a pyramid. 
 This will be better understood by referring to the section of 
 that building given in the first volume of the Athenian 
 Antiquities. The lower part of the flos, or flower, which 
 alone remains, resembles the lower part of the capitals of the 
 columns: whence it is probable that the flos was nothing- 
 more than a Corinthian capital. Vitruvius gives it the same 
 height as the capital of the columns. 
 
 PLATE XIII. 
 
 SECTION OF A PERIPTERAL ROUND TEMPLE. 
 
 This plate represents the section of a temple, the plan 
 of which is given in Plate XI. The dome is an hemisphere, 
 rising from the level of the cornice of the temple, like that 
 of the Pantheon. If the tholus be equal in height to half 
 the diameter of the entire temple, it must include more than 
 the hemisphere : probably in the height of the tholus was 
 comprehended all that part of the superstructure which rose 
 above the level of the columns, the pyramid and flower 
 excepted, as we suggested in the explanation of the last 
 plate. In the Pantheon the hemisphere springs from the 
 principal corona ; which is below that of the superstructure. 
 From the existence of a second fastigium, rising above that 
 of the portico, from the level of the principal corona, I am 
 
120 
 
 induced to join in an opinion, which is very prevalent, 
 that the portico alone was an addition by Agrippa to a 
 building of an earlier date : and that the superior fastigium 
 belonged to the ancient front. 
 
Sect.H.fl.I. 
 
 Fublirhe&€Lr r/uJct directs. jSi.f. byZongman & CfTater/iostcrJRoH'. 
 
 Zon r ry Sculp. 
 
Sect.II. PI. 2. 
 
 1 
 
 warn 
 
 Xotvry Sculp. 
 
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THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTURE 
 
 OF 
 
 V I T R U V I U S. 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTURE 
 
 OF 
 
 VITRUVIUS. 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 OF THE FORUM AND BASILICA. 
 
 THE Greeks build their forum with spacious porticoes, two 
 tiers in height, arranged in a square form: the columns of 
 the porticoes are placed at small intervals from each other, 
 supporting stone or marble entablatures: and galleries are 
 made over the lacunaria of the lower porticoes as places 
 of exercise. But in Italy the mode of constructing the 
 forum is different; because by a custom, sanctioned by its 
 antiquity, the shew of gladiators is exhibited there; and 
 therefore the intervals between the columns surrounding 
 the area are made greater. The lower porticoes are occupied 
 by the offices of the bankers, which situation is calculated to 
 facilitate the management of the public revenue; and the 
 upper contain seats for the spectators of the diversions 
 in the forum. 
 
 The size of the forum must be regulated by the population 
 
124 
 
 of the place; so as not to be too confined, nor yet so large 
 that much of it may appear unoccupied upon public occasions. 
 The proportion of the length to the width ought to be as 
 three to two; because an oblong form is best adapted for 
 viewing those exhibitions which take place in the forum. 
 
 The columns of the upper porticoes should be a fourth 
 part less than those of the lower; because these, supporting 
 a greater weight, require to be more massy than those above : 
 moreover, such a diminution is consistent with the laws 
 observed by nature in the formation of trees ; such as the fir, 
 the cypress, and the pine; which are universally larger at 
 the base than at any other part of the bole, from whence 
 they gradually diminish to the top. Instructed therefore 
 by the example which nature affords us in the shape she 
 has given to trees, we are taught, when columns are placed 
 tier upon tier, to make the upper less in height and bulk 
 than those below them. 
 
 The basilica ought to be contiguous to the forum, and 
 on that side of it which is the least exposed ; so that the 
 merchants who meet there to transact business, may not be 
 inconvenienced by the cold in winter. The width of the 
 basilica ought not to be less than the third, nor more than the 
 half of its length; unless we are compelled by the nature of 
 the situation to adopt a different proportion for the building. 
 If the site will permit, the chalcidica l should be situated at 
 
 1 The use of the apartments which Vitruvius terms chalcidica, is not explained. 
 There are some grounds for supposing, that they were intended to receive grain 
 sufficient for a certain periodical consumption. In the Roman provinces the 
 pro-consul had the disposal of the corn: the situation of the store-rooms, at the end 
 
125 
 
 the ends in a manner similar to what has been observed in 
 the basilica of Julia Aquiliana. The height of the columns 
 should be equal to the width of the porticoes, which on^ht 
 to be a third of the distance between the columns, measured 
 across the basilica. The upper columns, in conformity with 
 what has already been observed, must be less than those 
 below. The pluteum, between the upper and lower ranges 
 of columns l 9 should be a fourth part less than the height of 
 the columns of the upper range; for by giving it such a 
 depth, those who are walking in the galleries above will not 
 be seen by the merchants from below. The epistylia, zophori 
 and coronae must be proportioned to the columns according 
 to the principles already explained. 
 
 of the basilica, would, on that account, be appropriate. The corn when first 
 collected was deposited in pits, from which the air was carefully excluded ; by 
 which means it might be preserved for years. This method of preserving corn is 
 still prevalent in the eastern parts of Europe. Ausonius, in perioch. Odys. XXIII, 
 makes the chalcidica agree with the imspuj'ia., or chambers in the upper story of the 
 house ; in which part of the country houses of the ancients were the rooms for stores 
 and provision. These might be distinguished by the term chalcidica, from a certain 
 kind of cement or plaster used in their construction. We learn from Varro, that 
 the creta chalcidica was celebrated for the virtue it possessed of preserving grain; 
 R. R. i. 57. i. The term chalcidica, is used by Ausonius, Arnobius and Hyginus, 
 to signify all the rooms in the upper part of the house ; although it might have been 
 first applied exclusively to those in which grain was preserved. Hence it seems 
 reasonable to conjecture that it might be transferred to any place in which corn 
 was kept. 
 
 1 The MSS. read " Pluteum quod fuerit inter superiores et inferiores columnas." 
 The printed copies omit the word " inferiores." It is evident from the description of 
 the scene of the theatre, c. 7- that the pluteum was here intended to allude to 
 some member, intervening between the upper and lower ranges of columns; similar 
 to the continued podium which we observe between every two ranges of columns 
 in the exterior of Roman theatres and amphitheatres. 
 
126 
 
 No general disposition of parts can be better calculated 
 to produce grandeur and beauty in a basilica, than that 
 I have adopted in constructing a building of this nature 
 in the Julian colony of Fanestrum; the dimensions and 
 proportions of which are as follows. The roof, over the area 
 surrounded by the peristyle within, is an hundred and twenty 
 feet in length, and sixty in breadth. The width of the 
 porticoes, measured from the columns of the peristyle to the 
 walls of the building, is twenty feet. The columns, which 
 are not intersected by horizontal lines, are fifty feet in 
 height, and five feet in diameter: behind them pilasters are 
 placed twenty feet in height, two and a half in width, and 
 one and a half in thickness; these support the wood-work 
 of the floors of the porticoes : over these similar pilasters are 
 placed, eighteen feet in height, two feet in width, and one in 
 thickness, supporting the roofs of the porticoes, which are 
 below the principal roof. The spaces between the horizontal 
 beams of the columns and pilasters are left open in order 
 to admit light into the building through the intervals 
 between the columns. Four columns, including those at 
 the angles, support each end of the principal roof; and 
 eight, that side of it which is next the forum: on the opposite 
 side there are only six; the two central columns being omitted 
 that they might not impede the view of the pronaos of the 
 temple of Augustus; the front of which ranges with the wall 
 of the basilica, and faces the middle of the forum and the 
 temple of Jupiter. 
 
 There is a tribunal in this temple whose front is made 
 to recede inwardly in a curve, which is less than half the 
 
127 
 
 periphery of a circle : its extent from one extremity to the 
 other is forty-six feet ; the middle point recedes fifteen feet : 
 so that the commercial transactions of the basilica do not 
 interrupt the administration of justice. Epistylia, formed 
 of three beams, each two feet square, are placed upon 
 the columns, and are continued from those which are the 
 third in order from the angles, over the antae; which 
 project forward so as to touch the extremities of the 
 circular tribunal. Pilae, serving as props, three feet in 
 height and four feet in width, each way, are placed 
 immediately over every column; these support other beams, 
 formed of two timbers two feet square, strongly connected, 
 which are fixed lengthways over the columns. Over these 
 are placed transtra and capreoli, extending across from the 
 opposite columns of the basilica, as well as from the antae 
 and the walls of the pronaos; supporting, in one direction, 
 the ridge of the roof of the basilica, and in the other that 
 of the temple, which is continued over the middle of the 
 pronaos. This disposition, which requires the introduction 
 of pediments in both directions of the roof, gives great 
 grandeur to the exterior of the building; and adds to the 
 internal beauty, by giving the appearance of an extended 
 ceiling. By departing from the mode usually practised of 
 introducing ornaments in the entablature, and by omitting 
 the pluteum and the second tier of columns, much of the 
 labour of building is spared, and a considerable part of the 
 expence avoided: whilst the columns extending from the 
 floor to the beams of the roof, uninterrupted by horizontal 
 lines, give great magnificence and dignity to the edifice. 
 
129 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 OF THE DISPOSITION OF THE TREASURY, PRISON, AND CURIA. 
 
 The treasury, prison, and curia, should be contiguous to the 
 forum, and their several dimensions proportioned to it. The 
 curia, more especially, ought to be built with a magnificence 
 consistent with the importance of the municipality or city 
 in which it is erected. If the plan of the building be a 
 square, the height ought to exceed the width by one-half: 
 bat if it be a parallelogram, the height of the building from 
 the floor to the lacimaria should be half the sum of the 
 length and breadth. The walls, moreover, ought to be 
 intersected by a corona, either of wood-work or stucco, 
 which should be continued around the building at half its 
 height from the floor; for without this precaution, the voices 
 of those who are debating would ascend to the upper part 
 of the court and be lost to the audience. But when coronae 
 are introduced and continued along the walls, the sounds 
 will be interrupted in their ascent, and be distinctly heard 
 before they are dispersed in air. 
 
131 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 OF THE THEATRE, AND THE MOST HEALTHY SITUATION 
 
 FOR IT. 
 
 After the site of the forum has been determined, the next 
 care is to select the most healthy spot within the limits of 
 the city for a theatre; in which sports may be exhibited on 
 days devoted to the celebration of sacred rites. For those 
 who frequent them in company with their families, engaged 
 by the interest they take in the representations, remain in 
 fixed attention; whence it happens that the pores of the 
 body are exposed to the effects of the atmosphere; which in 
 the neighbourhood of marshes, or spots otherwise unhealthy, 
 is charged with vapours prejudicial to the human frame. 
 This inconvenience may be avoided if the situation be chosen 
 with care and circumspection. It is no less necessary that 
 the theatre be not placed with its concave part facing the 
 south ; because, from its peculiar form, the sun would heat 
 every part alike and prevent the circulation of air; which 
 becoming rarefied and heated, causes the evaporation and 
 exhaustion of the corporeal juices. On these accounts 
 unwholesome situations must be avoided, and healthy spots 
 carefully selected. 
 
 If the situation chosen for the theatre be in the side of a 
 hill, the substructure will be formed with little labour; but if 
 we are compelled by circumstances to build a theatre in a plain, 
 
132 
 
 or on marshy ground, the foundations and substructure must 
 be made in the manner already described for those of sacred 
 edifices. Upon the substructure, the rising steps may be 
 constructed either of stone or marble. The number of 
 praecinctions must be proportioned to the capacity of the 
 building: their height should be equal to the width of 
 the passages which they form around the theatre; for were 
 they made higher, the sounds would not be heard with 
 distinctness by those in the seats above them; but be 
 interrupted in their ascent, and reflected back from the 
 upper part of the theatre. The method of arranging the 
 seats is determined by extending a line from the uppermost 
 to the lowest, and making the angles of all the intermediate 
 steps to touch it. In theatres thus constructed the 
 propagation of sound will not be interrupted. 
 
 The approaches should be numerous and spacious; nor 
 should those from the upper and lower parts of the theatre 
 have any communication, but the passages to every part be 
 direct, and without deviations; that when the representations 
 are ended, the audience may retire with facility from all 
 parts of the theatre, and not be subjected to the pressure of 
 the multitude. 
 
 We must also be careful in observing that the situation 
 chosen be not calculated, through local circumstances, to 
 check the dilation of sound; but, on the contrary, be such 
 as to permit the free expansion of the human voice. This 
 is the property of those places in which there is nothing 
 to interrupt the vibrations of the air: for sound is a subtle 
 fluid, acting upon the organs of hearing by the vibration of 
 
133 
 
 the particles of air, which are put in motion, and expand 
 themselves in an infinite succession of circles; similar in effect 
 to that which takes place upon the surface of water, 
 previously at rest, when a stone is cast into it: we may 
 observe that a number of concentric circles are generated, 
 which are constantly enlarging until circumscribed by the 
 narrowness of the stream, or some obstacle which prevents 
 their perfect formation : for when the undulations meet with 
 interruption, the first that recoil resist the progress of those 
 which follow in succession. The air is put in motion by 
 sound in a similar manner, with this difference, that the 
 undulations of the water are made in a plane surface; 
 whereas in air they ascend as they extend themselves. 
 
 Thus it is with the voice; when no obstacle interrupts 
 the first undulation, the next and those following* are perfect; 
 and make distinct impressions upon the sense of the spectators 
 who are in the upper, as well as those who are in the lower 
 seats; without reverberating. 
 
 The architects of former days, therefore, made use of 
 a form in the auditory of the theatre, adapted to the 
 configurations of air arising from the expansion of sound; 
 and by the application of physics to the science of music, 
 succeeded in effecting that the sounds which were uttered 
 from the stage were conveyed to every part of the theatre, 
 clearlv defined and better modulated. For as musical 
 instruments are formed of thin plates of metal or horn, with a 
 view to produce distinctness in the tones of the chords, so the 
 principles upon which the theatres of the ancients were 
 
134 
 
 constructed, and which were calculated to increase the 
 powers of the voice, were deduced from the elements of 
 harmony. 
 
135 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 OF HARMONY ACCORDING TO THE DOCTRINE OF 
 
 ARISTOXENUS. 
 
 Harmony is the literature of music; obscure and difficult, 
 particularly to those who are unacquainted with the Greek 
 language : because in our explanation of it we are obliged 
 to make use of Greek terms, some of which have no 
 corresponding appellations in Latin. I will therefore offer 
 the clearest explanation I have been able to collect from 
 the writings of Aristoxenus; which, by subjoining his scale 
 and pointing out the definitions of the notes, will enable my 
 readers, by due attention, to obtain a competent knowledge 
 of the subject without much difficulty. 
 
 The modulations of the voice are sometimes acute or 
 sharp, at others grave ; and take place in two manners ; 
 either in a continued sound, or at intervals. The continued 
 sound of the voice is not defined by any measures of time or 
 place; but renders the endings of the notes imperceptible; 
 whereas intervals between notes are very evident; as when 
 we pronounce, in common speech, the words, sol, lux, flos, 
 nox. Not only are the beginnings and endings of its notes 
 difficult to perceive, but the changes from treble to bass and 
 from bass to treble are not apparent to the ear. The 
 reverse is the case in that species which proceeds by 
 intervals : for when the voice makes different inflexions, it 
 
136 
 
 stops to produce a certain determinate sound; then another, 
 and by doing this backwards and forwards appears variable 
 to the ear; as when in singing we produce a variety of 
 modulations by the inflexion of the voice. Hence, when it 
 proceeds by intervals, the beginning and end of its notes 
 appear in the clear distinction of sounds: whereas the 
 intermediate notes, lying wide by intervals, are distinguished 
 with great difficulty. 
 
 The kinds of modulation are three. The first is that 
 which the Greeks term harmonia, the second chroma, and 
 the third dlatonon. The modulation of the enharmonic 
 scale is artificial; and, for that reason, its music has 
 considerable effect. The chromatic, from its insinuating 
 construction and the frequency of its tones, excites a more 
 delightful sensation. But the intervals in the diatonic, 
 which is the natural scale, are more easy. The disposition 
 of the tetrachords are different in the three kinds, inasmuch 
 as the enharmonic tetrachord has a ditone ' and two dieses. 
 Now a dieses is the fourth part of a tone; so that two dieses 
 form one semitone. In the chromatic, two semitones succeed 
 each other; and the third interval is of three semitones. 
 The diatonic consists of two continued tones ; and a semitone 
 completes the tetrachord. 
 
 Thus in all three scales the tetrachord is ecpially 
 composed of two tones and a semitone; but the tetrachords 
 when considered separately as belonging to each of the 
 
 1 Perrault reads for "et tonos," ditonum; and for "harmonia tetrachordorum," 
 harmoniae tetrachordum, both of which corrections appear to be necessary to the 
 sense of the context. 
 
137 
 
 kinds, have different appellations for their intervals. It 
 would appear that nature has discriminated the intervals of 
 tones, semitones, and tetraehords in the voice, and defined 
 their boundaries by certain measures; namely, by the 
 quantity of intervals; and by means of certain distinct 
 moods, has fixed their properties and proportions : according 
 to the standard of which the makers of musical instruments 
 construct them, so as to be adapted for concert. 
 
 To each species there are eighteen sounds, which the 
 Greeks term pthongoi; of which eight are invariable and 
 fixed in all three scales: the remaining ten are moveable 
 in ordinary modulation. The fixed are those which are 
 interposed between the moveable sounds, and serve to unite 
 the tetraehords; these are permanent within their own limits 
 in all the distinctions of the three scales. Their appellations 
 are as follows: proslambanomenos, hypate-hypaton, hypate- 
 meson,mese,nete-synemmenon,paramese,nete-diezeugmenon, 
 and nete-hyperbolaeon. The moveable are disposed in 
 the tetrachord between the fixed, and change their places 
 with the change of position, or of the kind of music. They 
 are called parhypate-hypaton, lichanos-hypaton, parhypate- 
 meson, lichanos - meson, trite - synemmenon, paranete- 
 synemmenon, trite-diezeugmenon, paranete-diezeugmenon, 
 trite-hyperbolaeon and paranete-hyperbolaeon. Those sounds 
 which are moved change their natures, for their intervals 
 are increased. Thus the parhypate, which in the enharmonic 
 scale is only a quarter-tone removed from the hypate, in the 
 chromatic differs by a semitone, and in the diatonic by a 
 
 T 
 
138 
 
 tone. The sound which is termed lichanos differs from 
 the hypate, by a semitone in the enharmonic, two hemitones 
 in the chromatic, and three in the diatonic scale. 
 
 The ten sounds by reason of their transposition into the 
 different scales, produce a threefold variety of modulation. 
 
 The tetrachords are five in number: first, the grave, 
 which the Greeks term hypaton: secondly, the middle, which 
 is termed meson: thirdly, the conjunct, termed synemmenon: 
 fourthly, the disjunct, termed diezeugmenon : lastly, the most 
 acute is called in Greek hyperbolaion. 
 
 The concords natural to man, which are termed in the 
 Greek symphoniai , are six in number: these are the diatessaron, 
 the diapente, diapason, the diapason with a diatessaron, the 
 diapason with a diapente, and the disdiapason 1 . Their 
 appellations are derived from the number of intervals: thus, 
 when the voice, after resting upon any particular note, rises 
 to the fourth from it, the chord is called diatessaron: when 
 it rises to the fifth it is called diapente : to the eighth, diapason : 
 to an octave and a half, diapason with diatessaron : to a ninth 
 and a half, diapason with diapente : to a fifteenth, disdiapason. 
 For neither in vocal nor instrumental music will the second, 
 third, sixth, or seventh form a concord ; but, as I have 
 
 1 That is, the fourth, fifth, octave, eighth with a fourth, eighth with a fifth, 
 and the double octave. This account of the concords is very different from the 
 principles of thorough bass, according to the modern school. It appears strange 
 that the fourth should be enumerated instead of the third. The Greek names 
 specify the number of intervals by which the concords rise dia tessaron, through 
 four intervals: dia pason, through all seven. 
 
139 
 
 already remarked, the fourth and fifth, taken in order as 
 high as the double octave, are naturally corresponding 
 parts of the voice; and these concords are produced by the 
 union of those sounds, which the Greeks callpthongoi 1 . 
 
 1 The reader who may be desirous of gaining information on the subject of the 
 music of the antients, is referred to the Entretiens sur la musique des Grecs; introduced 
 in the twenty-seventh chapter of the Voyage du Jeutie Anacharsis. 
 
141 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 OF THE VASES OF THE THEATRE. 
 
 From the foregoing investigations brazen vases have been 
 made upon mathematical calculations, proportioned to the 
 magnitude of the theatre. They are so constructed, that upon 
 being struck they form amongst themselves concords of the 
 fourth, fifth, regularly in succession, on to the double octave. 
 They are then arranged amongst the seats of the theatre, 
 according to a certain musical proportion, in cells made for 
 their reception. They ought not to be placed in contact 
 with the wall, but have a vacant space above and around 
 them. They should be inverted, and the edge next the 
 stage raised by means of wedges, six inches in height at the 
 least : apertures ought to be made in the seats of the lower 
 row, opposite to the cells, two feet in width and one in 
 height. 
 
 The following rules ought to be attended to in arranging 
 the vases. If the theatre be not very spacious, thirteen 
 arched cells should be constructed equally distant, and 
 in the same line, at half the height of the building. In 
 the cells at the extremities of the auditory, the vases which 
 sound the nete-hyperbolaeon should be placed : and next to 
 them those which sound the fourth to the nete-diezeugmenon. 
 In the cells, which are the third in order from the ends, 
 those vases which give the fourth to the nete-parameson ; 
 
142 
 
 and next to them those which give the fourth to the nete- 
 synemmenon. In the cells which are the fifth in order, 
 those should be placed which give the fourth to the mese; 
 and next to them those sounding the fourth to the hypate- 
 meson. Jn the central cell a vase should be placed which 
 sounds a fourth to the hypate-hypaton. By observing this 
 order, the voice which diverges every where from the stage, 
 as from a centre, striking each of these hollow vases, will 
 acquire an increase of clearness and strength, and at 
 the same time produce corresponding tones in concord with 
 its own sounds. 
 
 But if the theatre be of large dimensions, there should 
 be four divisions in the height; in order to admit of three 
 ranges of cells across the theatre, for the enharmonic, 
 chromatic and diatonic scales. In the lower ranges, the 
 enharmonic vases should be arranged, in the manner already 
 described for small theatres. In the middle range, the vases 
 which sound the chromatic hyperbolaeon, should be placed in 
 the cells at the extremities of the auditory; those which sound 
 a fourth to the chromatic diezeugmenon, in the cells which 
 are second in order from the ends. In the cells which are 
 third in order, those which sound the chromatic synemmenon; 
 in the fourth, those giving a fourth to the chromatic mese 1 ; 
 in the next, the vases sounding the fourth to the chromatic 
 hypaton; and in the sixth, those sounding the fourth to the 
 paramese, which is a common concord of a fifth to the 
 
 1 The reading of Jocundus " ad chromaticen mese," is adopted in preference to 
 " ad chromaticen svnemmenon." 
 
143 
 
 chromatic hyperbolaeon, and a fourth to the chromatic 
 meson. The central cell should be without a vase; because 
 in the chromatic scale there is no other sound capable of 
 producing a perfect concord. 
 
 In the cells at the extremities of the upper range, vases 
 which give the diatonic hyperbolaeon should be placed; in 
 the next cells, those which sound a fourth to the diatonic 
 diezeugmenon ; in the cells which are third in order from 
 the extremities, those which give a fourth to the diatonic 
 synemmenon ; next these, the vases sounding a fourth to the 
 diatonic meson : in the cells which are fifth in order, those 
 which give a fourth to the diatonic hypaton; and in the 
 cells on each side the central one, those giving a fourth to 
 the proslambanomenos. In the middle cell a vase should 
 be placed which sounds the mese, as making common 
 concords of fifths with the proslambanomenos diapason, and 
 the diatonic hypaton. 
 
 If it should be required to bring these to perfection 
 without great study, a reference may be made to the 
 diagram at the end of this book; which is drawn according 
 to musical proportion, and was discovered by Aristoxenus, 
 with the aid of great acuteness and industry. It has 
 descended to us with his divisions for the different scales. 
 There will be no great difficulty, from the consideration 
 of this diagram and the calculations here laid down, in 
 constructing a perfect theatre; as far as relates to the nature 
 of the voice and its pleasing effects upon the spectators. 
 
 It may perhaps be said that many theatres are built 
 every year at Rome, in which no attention has been paid to 
 
144 
 
 these points : the objection however is not applicable, because 
 it is not considered that all public theatres constructed with 
 wood have many surfaces which act as sounding-boards. 
 The truth of this will be manifest, if we observe those who 
 sing to the harp; who, whenever they wish to sing in a 
 higher tone, turn themselves to the leaves of the scene; from 
 which they receive the assistance of corresponding sounds. 
 But when theatres are not sonorous, in consequence of their 
 being built with solid materials, such as stone or marble, 
 whether wrought or unhewn, it then becomes necessary to 
 have recourse to the expedient just explained. 
 
 If indeed it be asked in what theatre this plan has been 
 pursued, I am unable to mention any in Rome; but there 
 are examples where it has been adopted in Italy, and in 
 many of the Grecian states; in proof of which it may be 
 adduced, that Lucius Mummius, after destroying the theatre 
 at Corinth, brought its brazen vases to Rome; and from the 
 spoils dedicated a temple to Luna. 
 
 Many skilful architects who have built theatres in small 
 towns have, in order to lessen the expence, adopted vases 
 of pottery, instead of brass of the same pitch ; and by 
 arranging them according to these principles have produced 
 the most useful effects. 
 
145 
 
 CHAP. VI. 
 
 OF THE PLAN OF THE THEATRE. 
 
 The plan of the theatre is thus determined. A circle is 
 described whose perimeter incloses the intended area of the 
 orchestra; and four equidistant and equilateral triangles are 
 inscribed in it, which touch the perimeter and divide it into 
 twelve equal portions. The same method is practised by 
 those versed in astrology, in dividing the zodiac into twelve 
 constellations; from the belief that a musical concordance 
 exists in the dispositions of the stars. The side of one of 
 the triangles nearest to the situation which the scene is 
 intended to occupy determines the line of its front; another 
 line is drawn parallel to this through the centre of the circle, 
 dividing the pulpitum of the proscenium from the orchestra. 
 This method of determining the divisions renders the 
 pulpitum of the Roman theatre more spacious than that 
 of the Grecian; for with us all representations take place 
 upon the stage, and the orchestra is appropriated to the 
 accommodation of the senators. The height of the pulpitum 
 ought not to exceed five feet, in order that what is passing on 
 the scene may be distinctly seen by those in the orchestra. 
 
 The different ranges of seats allotted to the reception 
 of the audience are separated by staircases : the positions 
 of those which give access to the first praecinction are 
 determined by the points made by the angles of the triangles 
 
 u 
 
146 
 
 • 
 
 at the circumference of the circle circumscribing the orchestra. 
 The staircases which separate the middle and give access to 
 the upper ranges of seats are determined by points which 
 are intermediate between the seven staircases of the lower 
 ranpje. The remaining; ang-les of the triangles determine 
 the several divisions of the scene. One in the centre is 
 opposite to the principal entrance. The hospitalia 1 are 
 opposite the two on the right and left; and the remaining 
 two face those approaches to the stage which are situated in 
 the returns of the scene. The height of the steps of the 
 auditory, upon which the benches are arranged, should 
 not be less than a foot and a palm; nor more than a foot 
 and six inches: their width not more than two feet and a 
 half, nor less than two. 
 
 1 The hospitalia of a Greek house were rooms in which strangers were received 
 and entertained. The word hospitalium being used by Vitruvius, to designate a 
 part of the scene on the right and left of the principal door-way, has given rise to 
 an idea that there were rooms behind the scene of the theatre for the accommodation 
 of strangers. We learn from Pollux, that the scene representing houses in which 
 strangers were entertained was on the right of the centre scene; from which 
 circumstance, it is probable, that that part of the permanent scene might have been 
 called hospitalium. 
 
147 
 
 CHAP. VII. 
 
 OF THE PORTICO AND OTHER, PARTS OF THE THEATRE. 
 
 The uppermost range of seats has a portico constructed 
 over it; the roof of which ought to range with the highest 
 part of the scene; so that the voice, expanding uniformly, 
 may be carried to the upper seats, and thence to the roof. 
 For if the roof and the scene were of unequal heights, the 
 sounds would be broken after passing the lower of the two 
 altitudes. 
 
 Whatever be the diameter of the orchestra included 
 within the lower range of seats, a sixth part of it should be 
 assumed for the height of the approaches 1 to the stage in 
 
 1 The height of the itinera, or entrances, which is determined by making it this 
 portional part of the length of the orchestra, is thought by the commentators to be 
 enormous; believing that Vitruvius, by the " itinera," intended to allude to the 
 entrances into the orchestra. Galiani and Perrault, therefore, consider it necessary 
 to alter the text from the diameter to the semidiameter, in opposition to the reading 
 of all the manuscripts. I have however ventured to translate " aditus," as alluding 
 to two of the approaches to the stage. These are mentioned by our author in the 
 preceding chapter, in which they are called " itinera versurarum," or the approaches 
 in the returns of the scene. The returns may be considered as forming part of the 
 scene itself; because, from remains of the scenes of the ancient theatres, we may 
 perceive that they were a continuation of the same design. Our author, in the 
 passage immediately following, describes the various parts of the front of the scene, 
 which are all proportioned by the scale of the orchestra ; hence it would appear 
 consistent that the approaches in the returns, or lateral continuations of the scene, 
 should likewise be commensurate with the orchestra. The same reasoning will not 
 apply to the entrances into the orchestra, of which there appear to have been several: 
 
148 
 
 either extremity of the cavea. The lintels of these entrances 
 should be placed at a height, above the lower seat, equal to 
 this portion of the diameter of the orchestra. The length 
 of the scene should be twice the diameter of the orchestra 1 . 
 The height of the podium, with its coronae and lysis, a 
 twelfth part of the diameter above the level of the pulpitum. 
 Upon the podium columns are placed whose height, including 
 the capital and base, ought to be the fourth part of the same 
 diameter: the epistylia and other members of the entablature 
 should be a fifth part of the height of the columns. The 
 height of thepluteuin above this entablature, with its coronae 
 and cymatium, ought to be half that of the podium; and 
 upon it a second range of columns is placed, which should be 
 a fourth part less in height than those of the lower division 
 of the scene: the entablature, like that of the lower range, 
 should be a fifth part of the height of the columns it 
 surmounts. If it be intended to have a third episcenium, its 
 pluteum should be half the height of that belonging to the 
 second division of the scene; and its columns a fourth part 
 less than those of the intermediate range : their entablature, 
 like those of the two lower divisions of the scene, a fifth 
 part of their height. 
 
 The same proportions of the constituent parts cannot, 
 with propriety, be observed in all theatres, whatever their 
 
 these may indeed with reason be supposed to be included amongst those parts which, 
 as our author afterwards informs us, must necessarily be of the same dimensions in 
 great as well as in small theatres. 
 
 1 It is evident that Vitruvius intended to include the returns, or sides of the 
 scene, in this proportional length. 
 
149 
 
 magnitude: but it becomes necessary for an architect, in 
 particular instances, to determine various proportions from 
 which symmetry may result; and adopt such as may best 
 accord with the nature of the situation; and at the same 
 time be consistent with the magnitude of the building. 
 There are parts in all theatres, whether large or otherwise, 
 which are necessarily made to an invariable standard : such 
 as the steps, the diazomata, the plutei 1 , the passages, 
 staircases, pulpita and tribunals, and other parts of a similar 
 nature; which, were their proportions to depend upon the 
 scale of the theatre, would prove inconvenient for general use. 
 
 When marble, timber, and other requisite materials are 
 with difficulty procured, the judgment must be exercised to 
 enable us to take away some parts and add others; the 
 introduction of which is calculated to obviate an unnecessary 
 expenditure of materials. To succeed in this requires not 
 only great science, but likewise experience and fertility of 
 invention on the part of the architect. 
 
 The sliding scenes 2 placed in the centre of the stage 
 commonly represent a royal palace ; those on the right and 
 left, houses for the reception of strangers. Next to these are 
 places which the Greeks call periactoi, because machines 
 are stationed there which have revolving triangles; each 
 
 1 The pluteum here mentioned seems to mean the podium surrounding the 
 orchestra, from which the first tier of seats takes its rise. The tribunal was 
 probably the thymele of Pollux, which, he says, was either a tribunal or an 
 altar. 
 
 2 The scenes which Vitruvius now proceeds to explain were the moveable 
 scenes ; although from the use of the term valvae, the translators imagine that he 
 alludes to the doors of the architectural scene. See the explanation of Plate VI. 
 
150 
 
 side of which has a different representation : these are 
 turned whenever there is any change in the fable of the 
 piece represented, or when the Gods are introduced with 
 sudden bursts of thunder; and vary the character of the 
 scene. Near these are the returns of the scene, affording 
 two approaches to the stage ; one of which is supposed to 
 be from the forum, and the other from the country. 
 
 The three varieties of scenes 1 are termed tragic, comic, 
 and satyric, each of which has a style of decoration peculiar 
 to itself. In the tragic scene columns are represented with 
 their fastigia and statues, and other embellishments, indicative 
 of public buildings. The comic scene represents the houses 
 of individuals, with their balconies and windows arranged 
 after the manner of private dwellings. The satyric is made 
 to resemble trees, caverns, mountains, and other objects 
 characteristic of the country, and commonly constructed 
 of topiary-work \ 
 
 1 In the printed editions, the eighth chapter begins here; but what follows 
 seems so particularly connected with what has gone before, that a division of 
 chapters appears to be improper. The Greek theatre, on the contrary, seems to 
 have so little connection with the various kinds of scenes used by the Romans, that 
 it requires to be noticed under a separate head. In the manuscripts the different 
 books are not subdivided into chapters. 
 
 2 The printed copies read " in topiarii operis speciem deformatis ;" but the 
 manuscripts, for topiarii, have topeodi. It is difficult to conjecture to what kind of 
 work the latter word can allude. The opus topiarium was a kind of grotto-work, 
 made with leaves and branches of trees; the use of it, therefore, would seem 
 peculiarly adapted to the representation of rural scenes. 
 
151 
 
 CHAP. VIII. 
 
 OF THE THEATRE OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 In the Greek theatre the mode of construction is, in some 
 respects, dissimilar to that which obtains in the Roman ; for 
 instead of four equilateral triangles, which are inscribed in 
 the circle of the orchestra of the Roman theatre, the Greeks 
 made use of three squares, whose angles touch the periphery. 
 That side of one of the squares which is nearest to the 
 intended situation of the scene determines the extent of the 
 proscenium: and a line drawn parallel to it through the 
 point of curvature most distant from the auditory marks the 
 front of the scene. A diameter of the circle is drawn 
 parallel to the front of the proscenium intersecting the 
 circle in two points: these are assumed as centres, from 
 which arcs are described, extending from the extreme points 
 of the diameter to the front of the proscenium. Thus the 
 orchestra of the Greek theatre, described with three centres, 
 is more spacious than that of the Roman; the scene more 
 distant, and the pulpitum, which is termed logeion, is less 
 in width. For with the Greeks dramatic performances 
 alone are exhibited on the stage, and all other theatrical 
 representations take place in the orchestra: whence it is 
 
152 
 
 that the actors in these different species of entertainment 
 are severally termed scenici and thymelici l . 
 
 The height of the logeum ought not to be less than ten 
 nor more than twelve feet. The positions of the staircases 
 which lead to the first praecinction between the cunei, are 
 determined by the several angles of the squares. The number 
 from the first to the second praecinction is increased by 
 the introduction of others which are intermediate between 
 those of the lower range. The same method is observed 
 throughout the remaining praecinctions; so that every 
 succeeding range of seats has a greater number of staircases 
 than that which immediately precedes it. 
 
 These preliminary dispositions being determined with 
 great care and circumspection, the next thing to be considered 
 is, whether the nature of the place chosen for its situation 
 be such as will admit of the voice being heard without 
 much exertion: and whether there be nothing to cause 
 a repercussion of the tones, from which a confusion of sounds 
 might ensue. For there are places which naturally impede 
 the propagation of sound; such are those which we term 
 dissonantes, and the Greeks catechountes ; or circumsonantes, 
 which they term periechountes ; and again, others which we 
 call resonantes and consonantes, and they, anteclwuntes and 
 sunechountes. Those spots are called dissonantes, where 
 the voice, in ascending, meets with interruption from some 
 solid substance, by which it is reflected downwards, and 
 made to obstruct the free ascent of succeeding sounds. 
 
 1 See the explanation of Plate VI. 
 
153 
 
 Circumsonantes are those in which the voice is compelled 
 to be continually revolving; and the terminations are 
 rendered indistinct by being blended with the sounds 
 which follow in succession. Resonantes are those in which 
 the sounds, striking upon some solid substance, are reflected, 
 and an echo of the voice is produced, causing an apparent 
 repetition of the last syllable of words. Bat those places 
 are termed consonantes in which the voice, assisted from 
 below, ascends with increased force, and reaches the 
 spectators with distinctness. Thus the powers of the voice 
 may be augmented if proper attention be bestowed upon 
 the choice of a situation for the theatre. We shall be 
 enabled, by attending to the instructions here given, to 
 construct theatres upon the most approved principles; and, 
 by instituting some variations in the plans, adapt them 
 to the theatrical exhibitions either of the Grecians or 
 Romans. In the first instance we must begin by inscribing 
 three squares in the circle of the orchestra; and in the last 
 by substituting four equilateral triangles for the three 
 squares. 
 
 x 
 
155 
 
 CHAP. IX. 
 
 OF THE PORTICOES AND WALKS BEHIND THE THEATRE. 
 
 Porticoes are generally built behind the scene of the 
 theatre, that when a sudden fall of rain causes an interruption 
 to the exhibition, the spectators may retire to them for 
 shelter: they will likewise afford ample space for the 
 rehearsal of the dances. Of this kind are the porticoes 
 constructed about the theatre of Pompey; and the portico 
 of Eumenes adjoining the theatre of Bacchus at Athens. 
 To those who are quitting the theatre on the left hand the 
 odeum presents itself. This building was erected by Pericles 
 with stone columns, which he covered with masts and yards, 
 the spoils of the Persian fleet. After its destruction in the 
 Mithridatic war it was rebuilt by Ariobarzanes. The 
 Stratoniceum at Smyrna, and the porticoes constructed on 
 both sides of the stadium at Tralles, like the scene of a 
 theatre, answer the same purpose. 
 
 In all cities where skilful architects have been employed 
 there are porticoes and walks about the theatres. The first 
 are generally double; the front consisting of Doric columns, 
 with corresponding epistylia and entablatures. The distance 
 measured between the columns of the exterior and interior 
 ranges is equal to the height of the outer columns; the same 
 distance is observed between the walls of the portico and the 
 
J 56 
 
 columns of the interior range; these are either Ionic or 
 Corinthian, and a fifth part higher than the others. 
 
 The proportions of the columns employed in porticoes 
 ought not to he similar to those which are used in the 
 decoration of temples; because sacred edifices should be 
 made to assume a character of solidity: but porticoes and 
 other profane buildings should have an appearance of greater 
 lightness. Hence, when edifices of this description are 
 embellished with Doric columns, their height, including 
 the capital, should be divided into fifteen parts, and one 
 of them made the modulus; according to which every other 
 part of the building is to be proportioned. The shafts at 
 the base should be two moduli, and their intervals five 
 moduli and an half: the height of the shaft should be 
 fourteen moduli, leaving one modulus for the capital, whose 
 abacus should be two moduli and a sixth part. The 
 remaining parts of the portico should be proportioned to 
 the lower diameter of the columns, according to the rules 
 already given for sacred buildings. 
 
 If Ionic columns are used, their height, exclusive of the 
 base and capital, should be divided into eight parts and an 
 half, and one part given to the diameter of the shaft at 
 the base. The bases should be half the diameter; and 
 the capitals formed according to the principles already 
 explained. 
 
 If the columns are intended to be of the Corinthian 
 order, the shaft and base should be similar to those of Ionic 
 columns, and the capitals formed according to the method 
 
157 
 
 related in the preceding section. The addition which is 
 given to the stylohate when unequal scamilli are used, is 
 here to he introduced in the same manner as in the porticoes 
 of temples. The epistylia, coronae and every other part, 
 should be proportioned to the diameter of the columns, 
 according to the rules given in the foregoing sections. 
 
 The open area, surrounded by the porticoes, should be 
 planted ; and hypaethral walks, which are so essential to 
 health, formed between the trees. They are beneficial to 
 the eyes in an eminent degree, because where there are green 
 trees the air is attenuated and subtilized by their motion, 
 and therefore, penetrating readily, clears the sight: moreover 
 by purging the gross humours of the eye, it sharpens the 
 organ itself, and renders the images distinct. And when 
 exercise has produced a gentle perspiration, the air draws 
 forth the humours from the body, and dissipating what is 
 superfluous, renders them more easy of circulation through 
 the vessels, and leaves the temperament of the body less 
 inclined to be plethoric. This will be readily comprehended 
 by attending to the appearance about places where springs 
 of water are under cover, or where the earth abounds with 
 subterraneous damps; for no vapours are there found to 
 arise: but in situations exposed to the air, when the action 
 of the sun's rays becomes sensible upon the earth, vapours 
 arise from the humid spots, which are condensed, and 
 ultimately ascend. Hence, if it appear that the noxious 
 humours of the body are dissipated by the action of the air, 
 in the same manner that vapours are attracted by the action 
 of the sun upon the earth, in places exposed to the air, no 
 
158 
 
 doubt can exist that hypaethral walks in all cities, sufficiently 
 spacious and properly planted, may be made conducive to 
 the health of the inhabitants. 
 
 In order to render the walks firm and free from damps, 
 the earth must first be dug out to a proper depth, and 
 drains of brick-work constructed on each side, and channels 
 left in the walls with a gentle inclination from the walks 
 into the drains. The whole space may be then filled in 
 with charred wood, and the surface covered with sand, 
 which, when levelled, forms the walks. Whatever water 
 falls, will either be carried by the channels into the drains, 
 or will filtrate through the charcoal, leaving the surface of 
 the walks firm and free from moisture. 
 
 Our ancestors appear to have availed themselves of the 
 resources which works of this kind presented in cases of 
 public emergency. In sieges every requisite of subsistence 
 is more easily obtained than fuel. Salted provisions may 
 be procured without much previous notice, and corn easily 
 collected by the community and individuals: when these 
 fail, oil, flesh and vegetables may be substituted for them. 
 Water may be obtained by sinking wells, or collecting the 
 rain from the roofs of houses, as it falls from time to time. 
 But to collect a sufficiency of fuel, which is essentially 
 necessary in the preparation of food, requires both time 
 and assiduity; because those stores which have been long 
 collecting are quickly consumed. In extremities like these, 
 the public walks are still a resource; and the wood may be 
 distributed equally amongst the inhabitants. Hypaethral 
 walks therefore, above all other national works, possess two 
 
159 
 
 important advantages ; inasmuch as they afford the means of 
 health to the inhabitants in days of peace, and in times of 
 war they may be made to contribute to the exigences of 
 the state. For these reasons it may be expedient to make 
 walks, not only behind the scene of the theatre, but also 
 around all sacred edifices. 
 
 Having dwelt sufficiently upon this subject, we shall 
 proceed to explain every thing which is necessary to be 
 observed in the construction of baths. 
 
161 
 
 CHAP. X. 
 
 OF THE PARTS OF THE BATH AND THEIR SEVERAL USES. 
 
 The situation chosen for baths ought to be sheltered from 
 the north and north-east. The caldaria and tepidaria should 
 be made to receive their light from the winter-west : or, 
 should local circumstances not admit of this disposition, 
 they may both be made to face the south; because the 
 general time of bathing is from mid-day until sun-set. One 
 thing necessary to be observed is, that the caldaria of that 
 division of the bath which is appropriated to the women 
 should be contiguous to that exclusively used by the men, 
 and have the same aspect; for then the coppers of both 
 may be heated from the same furnace. 
 
 Three brazen vessels are fixed over the furnace, which 
 are severally called caldarium, tepidarium, and frigidarium: 
 they are so arranged, that whatever heated water is taken 
 from the first, is replaced by warm water from the second; 
 the deficiency of which is supplied, in a similar manner, 
 from the third. The concave coverings of the small tubes 1 
 of both baths are likewise heated from the same furnace. 
 
 The insulated stages of the caldaria are thus constructed. 
 The floor is?made inclining towards the furnace; so that if 
 a ball were placed upon any part of it, it would not remain 
 
 1 In the manuscripts, these tubes are called alveoli. The printed editions read 
 alveorum for alveolorum, and thereby confound them with the alveus, or passage, 
 around the bath, between the wall and pluteum. 
 
 Y 
 
162 
 
 at rest, but take a direction towards the mouth : by which 
 means the flame will more easily pervade the interval between 
 the floor, which is paved with tiles a foot and half square, 
 and the suspended stage. Upon the floor earthen props, 
 eight inches each way, are arranged at such intervals as to 
 receive upon them square tiles two feet in length : the props 
 are two feet in height; the tiles which form them are 
 cemented with clay and hair mixed together: the square 
 tiles which they support form the substratum of the 
 pavement of the caldaria. 
 
 It is desirable that the roofs of the caldaria should be 
 constructed with masonry; but when formed of timber, 
 the ceilings must have a covering of tiles; which may be thus 
 effected. Rings or cramps of metal are made and fixed to 
 beams of the ceiling at equal intervals, and so far asunder, 
 that tiles, without margins, may rest upon two : in this 
 manner the entire ceiling, supported by iron-work, is 
 completed. The joints of the tiles above should be covered 
 with clay mixed with hair; and the lower surface of the 
 ceiling first coated with a composition of lime and pounded 
 tiles, and afterwards made smooth with stucco. The work 
 will be more perfect if the ceilings of the caldaria are made 
 double : for then whatever vapour escapes through the first 
 will never penetrate to the wood-work, and thereby occasion 
 its decay; but will be condensed and carried off in the void 
 interval between the two ceilings. 
 
 The magnitude of the bath must be proportioned to 
 the population of the place : but in all instances its dimensions 
 should be such that the width, exclusive of the schola of 
 the bath and the passages around, may be a third part less 
 
163 
 
 than the length. The bath should receive its light from 
 the upper part of the apartment on every side; so that 
 persons who are standing around may not intercept the 
 light from those who are using the bath. 
 
 The schola of the labrum should be sufficiently spacious 
 to accommodate those who are obliged to wait until the 
 bath is unoccupied. The alvei between the walls and the 
 pluteum ought not to be less than six feet, of which space 
 the lower step and the bench occupy each two. 
 
 The laconicum and sudatories should be contiguous to 
 the tepidarium : the height of the latter from the floor to 
 the line whence the hemispherical roof springs, should be 
 equal to their width. The air is admitted through an 
 aperture in the centre of the roof, from whence a brazen 
 shield is suspended by chains. 
 
 The temperature of the sudatory is regulated by elevating 
 or lowering the shield. The plan of the laconicum 1 should 
 be circular, in order that the flame and heat within it may 
 be equally diffused over its concave surface. 
 
 1 Vitruvius here alludes to the plan of the laconicum, and not to the shield and 
 the aperture through which the air is admitted. The painting found in the baths 
 of Titus exhibit a laconicum of a circular form within the sudatio concamerata. 
 According to this the laconicum forms a part of the sweating bath, and seems there 
 intended for the purpose of warming it. By attending to the construction of the 
 passage, the meaning of Vitruvius may be rendered sufficiently clear. " Laconicum 
 sudationesque sint conjungendae tepidario. Eaeque quam latae fuerint, tantam 
 altitudinem habeant ad imam curvaturam hemisphaerii, mediumque lumen in 
 hemisphaerio relinquatur, ex eoque clypeum aeneum catenis pendeat, per cujus 
 reductiones et demissiones perficietur sudationis temperatura; ipsumque ad circinnum 
 fieri oportere videtur . . . ." 
 
165 
 
 CHAP. XL 
 
 OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF PALAESTRAE. 
 
 The nature of our treatise seems to require that some 
 account should be given of palaestrae, and the method of 
 constructing them, prevalent amongst the Greeks; although 
 they are not in use in the states of Italy. 
 
 In palaestrae there are peristyles which are two stadia 
 in circuit; from which space is derived the Greek term 
 diaulos: they are built sometimes in a square form, and 
 sometimes longer than they are wide. Three of these are 
 single porticoes, but the fourth, which is made to face the 
 south, is a double portico; so that the rain is never driven 
 by the wind into the interior ambulatory. 
 
 Within the three porticoes there are spacious exhedrae, 
 containing seats for the accommodation of philosophers, 
 rhetoricians, and other professors of literature, who are 
 accustomed to meet and converse there. 
 
 Various apartments are within the double portico : in the 
 centre is the ephebeum, which is an extensive exhedra, a third 
 part greater in length than in width, surrounded with seats. 
 On the right is the coriceum, and next that the conisterium : 
 beyond the conisterium, in the return of the portico, is the 
 cold water bath, which the Greeks term loutron. On the 
 left of the ephebeum is the elaeothesium ; and next that the 
 frigidariuui; beyond which, in the return of the portico, is 
 
166 
 
 the passage to the propnigeum. Within this the sudatory 
 is placed, opposite the frigid arium, in length equal to twice 
 its width; and has on one side the laconicum, constructed 
 in the manner already described; and opposite the laconicum 
 the heated water bath. This is the disposition, generally 
 adopted, of the parts of a palaestra within the peristyles '. 
 
 Without the building there are three porticoes, one 
 opposite to the entrance into the peristyle, and two on the 
 right and left, which are formed like stadia. That which 
 
 1 The construction of this and the following passage is worthy of consideration, 
 before we attempt to illustrate the description of Vitruvius by a reference to the 
 supposed ichnography of the palaestra. In all the plans hitherto given, the peristyle 
 is represented, like that of Greek houses, surrounded by the buildings constituting 
 the palaestra ; but in the gymnasium at Ephesus, of which considerable vestiges 
 remain, it is evident that the peristyles were without ; and the apartments 
 enumerated by our author occupied that space which, in the supposed plans, is 
 represented as an open court. In a scientific treatise written in a language no 
 longer in use, we must expect to meet with some terms whose signification can 
 only be explained by internal evidence. This is not the only difficulty which 
 presents itself to a translator of the work of Vitruvius; because his style is far from 
 perspicuous. Nor is it to be wondered at that those who know the palaestra 
 chiefly through the description of Vitruvius, should fail in the attempt to represent 
 it as it really was. It is incumbent on those who have been enabled to restore the 
 plan of the Greek gymnasium from the actual existence of parts of it, to shew 
 how his description may be made to accord with it. The plan of the gymnasium, 
 or palaestra, is given at the end of the section. It varies altogether from those 
 which have hitherto been given in illustration of the text ; but the variation is founded 
 upon the position of the porticoes, which, in these, are shewn surrounded by the 
 buildings, and not surrounding them. The passage which concludes the description 
 of the buildings forming the palaestra is as follows: — " In palaestra peristylia, 
 quemadmodum supra scriptum est, ita debent esse perfecte distributa," the obvious 
 meaning of which seems to be, " The peristyles of the palaestra, to be well arranged, 
 must be disposed in the manner above mentioned." The commentators seem to 
 have been of opinion that the words beginning the passage, necessarily determined 
 the position of the peristyles. 
 
167 
 
 faces the north is double, and of ample width. The others are 
 single, and have margins, like foot-ways, ten feet in breadth, 
 next the walls and the columns: the intermediate space 
 between the margins is excavated and levelled, and a descent 
 is made to it from the margins by two steps a foot and a 
 half each: the area alone is not less than twelve feet wide. 
 On this account those who are taking exercise in the 
 margins meet with no interruption from those engaged in 
 gymnastic sports within the area. A portico of this kind 
 is called by the Greeks xystos, because the athletae practise 
 during the winter in stadia protected from the weather. 
 The xysta are placed so far apart, that the intermediate space 
 between the porticoes may admit of plantations and walks 
 amongst the trees, with seats here and there formed of 
 cement. Next the xysta and the double portico, hypaethral 
 walks are made, which the Greeks call peridromides, although 
 with us these are termed xysta. In temperate weather 
 during the winter the athletae leave the xysta and exercise 
 in these walks. Behind the xystum is the stadium, so 
 formed as to contain, without inconvenience, the multitude 
 who resort there to witness the athletic exercises. This 
 concludes the description of every public building which is 
 required to be situated within the boundary of the city. 
 
169 
 
 CHAP. XII. 
 
 OF PORTS AND BUILDINGS CONSTRUCTED IN WATER. 
 
 The opportunity which presents itself of giving some account 
 of ports, and by what means protection may be afforded to 
 ships from the elements, ought not to be neglected. The 
 positions best adapted by nature to such a purpose are bays, 
 with capes and promontories at their extremities; from which 
 the shore recedes inwardly in a curved line. Upon shores 
 of this description docks may be built or porticoes erected ; 
 or a channel cut from the port to the emporium, defended 
 by towers on each side; in which machines may be constructed 
 for throwing booms across the passage. 
 
 If however no situation can be found capable by its 
 formation of protecting vessels against the violence of the 
 sea, we must search for a spot where a promontory presents 
 itself on one side, and where no river discharges itself so as 
 to oppose its application to the purposes of a harbour; and 
 supply the want of a corresponding projection on the other 
 by building walls and buttresses. The walls, which it 
 becomes necessary in this case to construct in the water, 
 may be thus formed. Sand should first be procured from 
 that part of the coast lying between Cumae and the promontory 
 of Minerva, and mixed with lime in the proportion of two 
 parts to one : then rows of grooved beams must be driven in 
 the water, connected by oaken planks; and bound together 
 
 z 
 
by chains. The surface of the ground below the water, on 
 which the wall is to be reared, must then be made even by 
 means of transtilli, and the space comprehended between 
 the beams filled with a composition consisting of rough 
 stone and cement, made in the manner just described. Such 
 is the quality of the sand produced in these spots that the 
 composition becomes a solid wall. 
 
 But if the beams cannot be firmly fixed on account of 
 the tides, or from being exposed to the swell of the open 
 sea, a strong buttress must be built upon the border of the 
 water. A portion somewhat less than half the upper surface 
 of the buttress should be constructed upon an horizontal 
 level; and the remaining part inclining towards the sea. 
 Upon the edges of this part of the buttress, walls, a 
 foot and a half in thickness, should be raised to the height 
 of the level part, and the intermediate space filled with sand. 
 Upon this foundation a solid pile may be built; and after 
 being finished may be left to dry for two months at least. 
 The walls which were raised upon the edges of the inclined 
 surface of the buttress, and which confine the sand, should 
 then be destroyed; and the water washing away the sand 
 by degrees will undermine the pile, and cause it to be 
 precipitated into the sea. This operation should be repeated 
 until the whole is completed. 
 
 In places where this sand is not to be procured we must 
 resort to other methods. The space which the mole is 
 intended to occupy should be inclosed by a double range 
 of beams, connected together by planks and chains; the 
 interval between the two ranges should then be filled with 
 
171 
 
 loam rammed into baskets made of the ulva palustris: when 
 the space is filled by masses of this kind, stowed as close 
 together as possible, the water contained in the enclosed 
 area may be removed by cochleae, rotae, and tympana. 
 When the ground is left perfectly dry, the foundations may 
 be dug of greater width than the walls they are intended to 
 support; and filled in with rough stone, lime, and sand. 
 Piles of charred alder, olive, or oak, must first be driven in 
 the ground if it be soft, and the intervals between them 
 filled with charred wood in the manner already described 
 for forming the foundations of the walls of theatres. The 
 walls should be built upon these foundations with squared 
 blocks of considerable length; so that the stones between these 
 blocks, which extend across the wall, may be bound firmly 
 together. The space inclosed by the walls may be filled in 
 with rubble or stone-work ; and be made so firm that a tower 
 may be erected upon it. 
 
 The mole being completed, the docks should be built 
 facing the north; because the greater heat of a southern 
 aspect occasions a more rapid decay; and engenders and 
 nourishes moths, ship worms and other noxious insects. 
 Timber should be used as sparingly as possible in works of 
 this kind, that they may not be liable to accidents by fire. 
 No certain rules can be given for the size of the docks, 
 but they should be capable of containing ships of the greatest 
 burden; so that if at any future period it should be necessary 
 to receive vessels of a larger size there may be ample room 
 for them. 
 
172 
 
 In this book I have treated of all the public buildings 
 which appear to me necessary in every city ; in the succeeding 
 section I propose to discuss the proportions and applications 
 of the several parts of private edifices. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 VlTRUVIUS treats in the fifth book of the public buildings 
 of the Romans, such as the fora, theatres, baths and palaestrae. 
 There were two fora at Rome before the time of Augustus, 
 who added a third. Succeeding emperors increased the 
 number; amongst which that of Trajan was the most 
 celebrated. The forum was an area of considerable 
 magnitude, generally of a quadrangular form, inclosed with 
 porticoes two ranges in height. The lower of these was 
 occupied by the shops of the bankers, and the other was 
 appropriated to the reception of the public, who resorted 
 there to view the exhibitions; particularly the shew of 
 gladiators, which were exhibited in the forum before 
 amphitheatres were in general use. 
 
 The forum of Trajan, some remains of which are still 
 existing, appears to have been of a semicircular form at the 
 ends. In fact, all those of a date posterior to the time of 
 Augustus, like that of Nerva and this of Trajan, differed in 
 their ichnography from that of the forum described by 
 Vitruvius. The reason for departing from the original form 
 might probably be the discontinuance of the gladiatorial 
 
176 
 
 exhibitions, after the construction of amphitheatres had 
 become general. 
 
 PLATE I. 
 
 PLAN OF THE BASILICA BUILT BY VITRUVIUS AT FANUM. 
 
 The basilicae were spacious halls, built for the administration 
 of justice, and for merchants to assemble in during the winter. 
 They were surrounded within by porticoes two ranges in 
 height; in the upper of which persons might walk unseen 
 by those below. 
 
 A basilica, the plan of which is represented in this plate, 
 is described by Vitruvius to have been built by him at Fanum : 
 the mode of its construction was different from that generally 
 followed in structures of the same kind. The buildings 
 connected with the basilica, excepting the pronaos of the 
 temple in one of its sides, are added from conjecture, founded 
 upon the remains of the forum of Trajan; on one side of 
 which the basilica was built, with the chalcidica and 
 entrances at the ends. 
 
 On the side of the basilica opposite the forum was 
 the pronaos of the temple of Augustus, containing the 
 tribunal, or elevated stage, upon which the magistrates used 
 to sit and determine causes. The front of the tribunal was 
 made receding, in a curved line, from the porticoes of the 
 basilica, so that the affairs of the magistracy might not 
 interfere with the business of the merchants. 
 
177 
 
 The middle area of the basilica was 120 feet long and 60 
 wide: whence it follows, that the intervals between the 
 columns of the sides and the ends were unequal. The 
 distance between the antae of the pronaos could not have 
 been quite 49 feet, whereas the width of the pronaos itself 
 must have been 60 feet, in order that the culmen, or 
 ridge of the roof, might unite with that of the basilica, in the 
 manner described by Vitruvius. Hence the antae could not 
 have terminated the lateral walls of the temple, but must have 
 projected on each side into the pronaos; in conformity with 
 the description, which states that they extended forward so 
 as to be in contact with the extremities of the circular front 
 of the tribunal. The chord of the front is said to have been 
 46 feet, which would have been, within less than an inch, 
 the extent measured between the bases of the antae. 
 
 a The middle area. f. Part of the forum. 
 
 bb.... Porticoes. g Lower porticoes of the 
 
 cc . . . . Chalcidica. forum. 
 
 d Cella of the temple of hh... Offices of the bankers. 
 
 Augustus. ii Staircases leading to the 
 
 e Tribunal in the pronaos. upper porticoes. 
 
 PLATE II. 
 
 SECTION OF THE BASILICA AT FANUM. 
 
 In order to reduce the expences of building, the interior 
 entablature of the basilica appears to have been constructed 
 
 A A 
 
178 
 
 with timber, and covered with stucco. The epistylium was 
 first formed of three pieces of timber, two feet square, placed 
 one above the other; making that division of the entablature 
 six feet in height: which is nearly the proportion it ought 
 to bear according to the principles given in the third chapter 
 of the first section. For by extending the scale we shall 
 have a tenth part of the height of the columns for the 
 epistylium of such as are from forty to fifty feet; which, 
 added to a seventh part for the cymatium, would amount to 
 nearly five feet nine inches. This proportion will not appear 
 to have been too great, when it is considered that the greatest 
 distance at which the columns might be seen by a spectator 
 within, could not have been 150 feet; consequently the 
 epistylium must have appeared much foreshortened. It has 
 been thought by some that our author's expressions do not 
 convey the idea that the three beams were placed one above 
 the other: but then a difficulty arises as to the method in 
 which this uneven number could have been otherwise 
 arranged. 
 
 It seems more consistent with reason to suppose that the 
 entablature was formed of stone on the outside ; for although 
 the intervals between the columns at the ends were more 
 than three times the diameter, and consequently the species 
 araeostyle, which seems to imply a necessity for constructing 
 the epistylia with timber, yet those of the flanks were little 
 more than two diameters and a half; and therefore within 
 the limits of the diastyle species; in which the epistylia were 
 constructed with stone or marble. 
 
 Pilae were placed immediately over the columns above 
 
179 
 
 the epistylium; they were blocks of stone three feet in 
 height and four feet in width each way. These determined 
 the height of the zophorus. The intermediate spaces were 
 probably closed with masonry without, and the opus 
 intestinum within. The corona was formed in the same 
 manner as the epistylium, but with two beams only two feet 
 high each; which supported the timbers of the roof. 
 
 PLATE III. 
 
 PLAN OF THE THEATRE OF MARCELLUS. 
 
 Although general opinion favours the supposition that 
 Vitruvius wrote during the reign of Augustus, some have 
 contended that the fact is by no means established. It is 
 asserted on the contrary, that many passages in his work 
 authorize an inference that his proems were addressed to 
 some subsequent emperor. 
 
 Without attempting to refute the arguments adduced in 
 support of this opinion, we shall content ourselves with 
 mentioning one circumstance ; which is of sufficient weight 
 to induce us to receive with caution any hypothesis in 
 opposition to the prevailing belief, which considers Augustus 
 and Vitruvius to have been contemporaries. 
 
 This circumstance, which carries with it the conclusion 
 that his work was composed in the early part of that 
 emperor's reign, is the absence of any mention of the theatre 
 of Marcellus. Besides, the general mode of construction 
 which he recommends, differs materially from that which 
 
180 
 
 was followed in erecting this magnificent monument of 
 Roman splendour. In this as well as in every other building 
 of a later date, constructed for the exhibition of dramatic 
 performances or public games, the external arcades, tier 
 upon tier, constitute a principal feature of the edifice; and 
 consequently seem to require a much more ample description 
 than the scene, which was simply a facade resembling the 
 front of the forum: yet this is described by our author at 
 some length. These arcades, from their connexion with the 
 vomitoria, would have afforded a more immediate shelter 
 from the sudden fall of rain ; and superseded the use 
 of porticoes behind the scene, which were constructed 
 principally for that purpose previously to the period in 
 which Vitruvius wrote. If it be asked to what purpose the 
 space below the several ranges of seats, which in the theatre 
 of Marcellus is occupied by corridors and staircases, was 
 appropriated in theatres built prior to the reign of Augustus? 
 it may be replied, that the early theatres of the Romans, like 
 those of the Greeks, their acknowledged prototypes, were 
 situated in the side of a hill, upon the ascent of which the 
 seats of the audience part were built. In directing the 
 choice of a spot for the theatre, Vitruvius says, that such a 
 situation is to be preferred; because in this case the labour 
 in constructing foundations will be comparatively small. 
 But if at any time circumstances should require a theatre to 
 be built upon level ground, the want of natural ascent must 
 be supplied by solid substructures. This is the only passage 
 alluding to a mode of construction different to that which 
 had its origin amongst the Greeks. 
 
181 
 
 Various plans of the theatre of Marcellus have been 
 given by different authors. Serlio pretends to have obtained 
 one, which is published in his work, from Baldessare an 
 architect of Sienna; who was employed in erecting the 
 buildings which now occupy a great portion of the site of 
 the theatre. The plan given by Degodetz was procured by 
 him during his residence at Rome; it does not vary materially 
 from that of Serlio. The plan, however, which carries with 
 it internal evidence of being the most correct, was published 
 by Piranesi in the fourth volume of the Antichita Romane. 
 The ichnography and sections of the parts which then 
 remained, are given without any attempt to restore them : 
 there is, however, sufficient to authorize the restoration of the 
 whole of the audience part. 
 
 The ground plan of the theatre is represented as restored 
 in Plate 3. The positions of the staircases between the 
 cunei, were determined from an attentive consideration of 
 the plates of Piranesi. It ought here to be observed, that 
 the openings in the circular walls at the top of the staircases, 
 b.b, ought to have been closed, had we attended strictly to 
 the representation of the ground plan ; since, in fact, they 
 are ten feet above the level of the entrances into the orchestra : 
 the openings are here left in order to shew more clearly the 
 communication with the staircases between the converging 
 walls. 
 
 The restoration of the scene and the parts adjoining, 
 were effected chiefly from a fragment of the old plan of Rome 
 existing in the capitol : the front of the scene being previously 
 determined, according to the method given by Vitruvius, by 
 
182 
 
 inscribing four equilateral triangles in the circle embracing 
 the area of the orchestra. The extent of the front was 
 ascertained by a pilaster and an engaged column, which were 
 in part existing at s. From these vestiges, it appears that 
 the front of the scene must have been 386 Roman palms in 
 length; and the two returns of the scene, provided the line of 
 the front had been determined by the base of the first 
 triangle, would together have been equal to the radius of 
 the orchestra, which was 1<24 Roman palms. Hence the 
 length of the scene, including the returns, would have been 
 510 palms. Vitruvius directs the length of the scene to be 
 made twice the diameter of the orchestra; which measure 
 this extent exceeds by 14 palms. 
 
 At the time that the plans of Piranesi were taken, there 
 were considerable remains of the uppermost seats in the 
 second range of cunei; the highest of which was nearly 
 level with the cornice of the second external order of columns : 
 whence it is evident that this, like every other Roman theatre 
 of a date subsequent to the age of Augustus, must have been 
 built with more than two external ranges of columns and 
 arches. 
 
 The other plans which have been mentioned represent 
 the orchestra and proscenium preposterously large compared 
 with the body of the theatre. There is another plan given 
 in a work entitled Gli Edifici antichi di Roma, published by 
 Piroli, the general dimensions of which agree very nearly 
 with those given by Piranesi. 
 
 The positions of the staircases separating the cunei of the 
 first cavea of a Roman theatre, were determined by seven 
 
183 
 
 angles of the triangles inscribed in the circle bounding the 
 orchestra : the positions of those in the second cavea, were 
 intermediate between every two in the first. The staircases 
 of the theatre of Marcellus appear to have had a disposition 
 nearly similar, although not correctly so. The five remaining 
 angles determined the position of the several parts of the 
 scene : the middle one was opposite the doors called regiae ; 
 those on the right and left of that were over against the 
 hospitalia; and the remaining two faced the entrances which 
 were situated in the two returns of the scene. 
 
 a.a..Passagestotheorchestra. k One of the door-ways 
 
 b.b. Staircases to the first termed hospitalia. 
 
 cavea. 1... One of the itinera versurarum. 
 
 c.c. Staircases to the second m..The first praecinction. 
 
 cavea. n... Second praecinction. 
 
 d.d. Staircases to the third o... Third praecinction. 
 
 cavea. p... Portico, 
 
 e.... Orchestra. q..Plan of half the roof of the 
 
 f.....Pulpitum. scene. 
 
 g.g. Front of the scene. r.r.Walls against the horns of the 
 
 h....Oneof the scenestermed cunei. 
 
 periacti. S....A column and pilaster 
 
 i Doors called regiae. belonging to the return 
 
 of the scene. 
 
184 
 
 PLATE TV. 
 
 PLAN OF THE THEATRE AT POLA. 
 
 The plan of the theatre of Marcellus, as it is given by 
 Piranesi, being incomplete from the want of the scene, the 
 plan of a theatre at Pola, which has the scene as well as the 
 porticoes behind it in part remaining, is here introduced 
 from the plates of Serlio. It corresponds in many particulars 
 with the description Vitruvius gives of the Roman theatre, 
 such as the position of the scene, and the arrangement of 
 the interior. 
 
 Four equilateral triangles are inscribed in the area 
 formed by completing the circle of the orchestra, a. a. Are 
 those angles which determine the position of the staircases 
 between the lower cunei. d.d. The base of the first trigon, 
 which is in a line with the front of the scene, b. The valvae 
 regiae. c.c. The door-ways, called hospitalia. The line 
 a. a. which passes through the centre of the circle divides 
 the orchestra, A from the proscenium, B. e.e. The entrances 
 in the returns of the scene, f.f. The revolving scenes termed 
 periacti. g.g. The lower range of seats divided into cunei 
 by staircases leading to the first praecinction, h. 
 
 The seats of the senators were arranged in the orchestra, 
 which, like that of the Greek theatre, was at first a level 
 area; but in after-times a gentle ascent was given to it. The 
 benches of the orchestra were termed sedes by Vitruvius in 
 
185 
 
 contradistinction to those of the cunei, which he calls 
 subsellia: they were placed at equal distances asunder, and 
 not fixed. 
 
 PLATE V. 
 
 SECTION THROUGH THE CAVEA OF A ROMAN THEATRE. 
 
 Although the plans of the theatre at Pola, which are 
 given by Serlio, do not afford sufficient authority for a 
 restoration so complete as is here represented, the general 
 plan of that theatre is sufficient to form the ground-work 
 of a section. The passages and staircases are taken in part 
 from Serlio, and in part from the section given by Piranesi 
 of the theatre of Marcellus. The return of the scene is added 
 from conjecture, aided by the remains of the scene of a 
 theatre at Patara on the coast of Lycia in Asia-minor. 
 
 PLATE VI. 
 
 PLAN OF THE THEATRE AT TAUROMENIUM. 
 
 The disposition of the parts of a Greek theatre did not 
 vary materially from that of the Roman ; but as recitations 
 alone took place upon the stage, which in the Roman theatre 
 was common to both actors and dansers, that division was not 
 necessarily so large in proportion to the entire theatre. The 
 circle which incloses the area of the orchestra, if it were 
 
 £ B 
 
1B6 
 
 completed, would touch the front of the scene; and if 
 three squares be inscribed in it, that side of one of them 
 which is parallel and nearest to the front of the scene, 
 determines the extent of the proscenium. The form of the 
 orchestra was not alike in all theatres : sometimes it was a 
 semicircle prolonged by lines drawn from its extreme points ; 
 like that of the theatre at Tauromenium. Sometimes it 
 was a greater segment of a circle than a semicircle; as in 
 the theatre of Herodes Atticus at Athens, and in the theatres 
 of Asia-minor. According to Vitruvius, the orchestra was 
 formed by arcs of different circles, thus; a diameter of the 
 circle was drawn parallel to the front of the scene, and the 
 points where it cut the circumference, were assumed as 
 centres from which arcs were described, with a radius equal 
 to the diameter, whose lengths were terminated by the line 
 of the proscenium. 
 
 The proscenium and the pulpitum, or xoy«w, have been 
 thought by some writers to have had the same signification : 
 the text, however, of Vitruvius notices them as distinct parts; 
 and the words, " pulpitum proscenii," shew that the one 
 was an appendage to the other. Pollux mentions the 
 proscenium amongst the permanent parts of the theatre; 
 and it was probably the solid stage constructed in front of 
 the scene, like that which still exists in the theatre at 
 Tauromenium. It is there considerably above the level of 
 the orchestra; and if a square were inscribed in the circle of 
 the orchestra, the side next the scene would be very nearly 
 in contact with the front of the proscenium, in conformity 
 with the description of Vitruvius. The pulpitum was 
 
187 
 
 therefore, in all probability, a wooden stage, affording a 
 temporary extension of the proscenium when dramatic 
 performances were recited; and was removed when dances 
 and other exhibitions took place in the orchestra; or when 
 the theatre was used for other public purposes. In the 
 permanent stage there is no indication of apertures for the 
 entrance of ghosts and the furies, which were sometimes 
 introduced in the Grecian drama; and, according to Pollux, 
 were made to ascend from below the stage by staircases, 
 which were termed charonian, situated next the orchestra; 
 the apertures were probably made in the pulpitum. Had 
 the action been confined to the proscenium, a view of what 
 was passing would have been denied to a considerable 
 portion of the audience. Indeed it is evident that there 
 must have been a temporary stage over the proscenium of 
 the theatre, whose plan is represented in the plate under 
 consideration; for otherwise the entrances to the stage a. a. 
 in the returns of the scene, could not have communicated 
 with the scene : yet those who were supposed to be entering 
 from the forum or the port, approached the scene through 
 these door-ways. In order to give more space to the orchestra 
 on public occasions, or when dances were performed, the 
 pulpitum might have been removed; and the action of the 
 mimi extending itself over the whole area of the orchestra, 
 the greater part of it would have been within view of all the 
 spectators, whatever their situation in the theatre. 
 
 Pollux, from whom we gain our knowledge of various 
 particulars relating to the stage, wrote during the reign of 
 Commodus; that is, about two hundred years subsequent to 
 
188 
 
 the age in which Vitruvius is supposed to have lived. His 
 descriptions, notwithstanding, apply to the Greek theatre 
 and not to the Roman; for his appropriation of the 
 proscenium and the orchestra is similar to that which, 
 Vitruvius informs us, obtained in the former. 
 
 Our author observes that, amongst the Greeks, the 
 persons employed in theatrical representations were divided 
 into two classes: they were termed either thymelici or 
 scenici, according to their several occupations. The first 
 performed in the orchestra ; and the latter, in which were 
 comprehended the tragic and comic actors, exhibited in 
 front of the scene. It is not possible to ascertain whether 
 or not by the thymelici, Vitruvius meant those only who 
 formed the chorus in tragedy or comedy; or whether, in 
 this class, he intended it to be understood that the dansers, 
 properly so called, and inferior performers were included. 
 The words of Pollux, which appropriate the stage to the 
 actors, and the orchestra to the chorus, seem to favour the 
 former supposition. 
 
 The nature of the thymele, which gave to one class the 
 denomination of thymelici, cannot be defined by any 
 authority deduced from ancient writers. M. Boindin, who 
 has written a treatise upon the subject of the ancient theatres, 
 printed in the first volume of the Histoire de t Academic Royale 
 des Inscriptions, imagines the thymele to have been a stage 
 in front of the proscenium, upon which the chorus exhibited; 
 and that the orchestra was appropriated to the dansers and 
 those employed in mimic representations. In support of 
 such an opinion it may be urged, that the evolutions of the 
 
189 
 
 few who composed the chorus of the ancient drama, could 
 not have required a space so extensive as the orchestra of 
 the Grecian theatre. It may be remarked likewise that, by 
 admitting the existence of a stage in front of the scene, 
 virtually increasing the extent of the proscenium, we should 
 identify the ancient thymele with the Roman pulpitum. 
 
 On the other hand it ought to be observed, that the 
 words Pw» and p*^;, which Pollux uses to describe the nature 
 of the thymele, seem to indicate that it was of no great 
 magnitude. He proceeds to state that it was anciently the 
 custom to place an altar in front of the scene, upon which 
 the coryphaeus was stationed to direct the movements of 
 the chorus : from which it might be inferred that the 
 thymele was nothing more than the altar of an earlier age. 
 
 A part of the theatre mentioned by Pollux is altogether 
 unnoticed by Vitruvius; that is the hyposcenium; which 
 appears from his account to have been the ornamented front 
 of the proscenium facing the orchestra; and probably was 
 not seen but during the exhibitions of the orchestra, when 
 the pulpitum and all the occasional scenery were removed. 
 He states it to be below the pulpitum, and adorned with 
 pedestals and small statues. The proscenium of the Greek 
 theatre appears from Vitruvius to have been from ten to 
 twelve feet above the level of the orchestra. It would 
 therefore be necessary to give to the front of it some 
 character in order to unite it with the scene itself, at those 
 times when the latter was exposed to the view of the 
 audience. This might be effected in the manner described 
 by Pollux. It is necessary to observe that the literal 
 
190 
 
 meaning of the words employed to express the ornaments 
 composing the front of the hyposcenium is, columns and 
 small statues : the height therefore assigned to the proscenium 
 would not seem to admit of decorations of this kind, unless 
 we may be allowed to give a meaning less general to *'W, 
 when we find it coupled with the diminutive dy*\ v .a.riov . 
 
 According to M. Boindin, the hyposcenium was a 
 considerable space before the proscenium, within the limits 
 of the orchestra. He supposes it to have been occupied by 
 those who played upon musical instruments and accompanied 
 the chorus in tragedy, and the mimi in their dances. It 
 does not appear however that the chorus, in the performance 
 of the Greek drama, was ever accompanied by more than a 
 single instrument; and those who were engaged in the 
 exhibitions of the orchestra generally accompanied their 
 action either with playing or singing. In either case there 
 is no reason for supposing that a number of musicians were 
 employed. 
 
 In speaking of the disposition of the scenes, in the 
 seventh chapter of this section, Vitruvius is thought by his 
 commentators to have alluded to the parts of the architectural 
 scene : and that, by using the word vulvae, he intended it 
 should be understood, he was speaking of the doors of the 
 scene. It is obvious, however, that he is there treating of 
 the moveable scenes. They might probably be termed 
 valvae, from being, like folding doors, in two parts or leaves, 
 which, instead of moving upon hinges, were made to run in 
 a groove and connect with the scene in the centre. Scenes 
 of this kind were termed ductdes, in contradistinction to 
 
191 
 
 revolving scenes, which were called Versailles. The 6ipu of 
 Pollux were the same thing. This author, in treating of the 
 parts of the theatre, says that the s B >« dpio-rep*, or the scene on the 
 left hand, sometimes represented a house of mean appearance ; 
 at other times a ruined temple; and sometimes was without 
 any device of this kind, according to the subject of the piece 
 represented. It would be absurd to suppose that the changes 
 of the scene were effected by different paintings upon the 
 doors of the permanent scene. 
 
 We now come to the consideration of a practice mentioned 
 by our author, upon the subject of which no research has 
 hitherto thrown any light. This was the disposing of 
 brazen vases below the seats of the spectators in order to 
 assist the powers of the voice. It is a matter of doubt 
 whether the practice to which he alludes was ever resorted 
 to; and whether the mention he makes of it might not have 
 been prompted by the desire of reducing all practice under 
 the guidance of physical principles which, as we have before 
 observed, manifests itself in various parts of his work. The 
 idea might have been suggested by an observation of 
 Aristotle * upon the efficacy of hollow vessels in causing 
 the vibration of sounds, and extending their effects, when 
 covered and buried. 
 
 There is a passage in Pliny which alludes to a mode of 
 building peculiar to the walls of theatres: for in constructing 
 the walls of other edifices, the interior space between the 
 two faces of the wall was filled in with rubble; whereas in 
 theatres, hollow vessels of earthenware were immured : and 
 
 1 Prob. 8 and 9, Sect. II. 
 
192 
 
 whenever it was required to prolong the vibrations, or to 
 increase the powers of the voice, the orchestra was strewn 
 with sand or saw-dust; by which means the voice being 
 directed to the body of the house, the sounds were carried 
 along the walls so long as there was no impediment to 
 obstruct their course. Pliny in describing this mode of 
 building, might have had our author in view; whose mention 
 of vases received a degree of confirmation from the fact that 
 earthen vessels were sometimes inserted in the masonry of 
 ancient buildings. An instance in which this practice has been 
 adopted, occurs in the circus of Caracalla. Vases are found 
 regularly distributed in the stone-work above the crown of 
 the arches which were constructed for the purpose of giving 
 a proper degree of elevation to the seats of the spectators. 
 The object of their introduction seems to have been the 
 diminution of weight. Vitruvius confesses that there was 
 no theatre at Rome which had vases for such a purpose; 
 although he states them to have been in use in the provinces 
 of Italy, and in most of the cities of Greece. It is certain, 
 however, that in the various theatres which have fallen 
 within our observation, no provision has been made for 
 the reception of vases in the situation which Vitruvius assigns 
 to them. 
 
 Lucius Mummius is said by some authors to have 
 brought away brazen vases from the theatre of Corinth. 
 This fact is adduced by Vitruvius in corroboration of the 
 application of his principle to practice. But the purpose to 
 which these vessels were previously applied is not mentioned. 
 Strabo gives an account of some Corinthian vases which 
 
193 
 
 were found when the city was rebuilt by Caesar, who sent 
 thither a colony for that purpose. In clearing away the 
 ruins some old sepulchres were opened, and a great many 
 vases discovered; some of which were brass, but the 
 greater number earthen-ware. The workmanship of these 
 was so exquisite, that they were held in the highest 
 estimation at Rome, and sold for great sums. The vases 
 brought away by Mummius were probably of this 
 description; because, to have been an object worthy of 
 deportation amongst the rich spoils of that city, they must 
 have been valuable either on account of their workmanship, 
 or the worth of the metal; neither of which could have been 
 the case with the vases used for the purposes mentioned by 
 Vitruvius. It must be remembered that the reputed 
 Corinthian brass is supposed to have been a mixture of 
 metals which were run together during the conflagration of 
 the city; and was carried to Rome in that state, and there 
 manufactured into vases. 
 
 PLATE VII. 
 
 PLAN OF THE THEATRE OF HERODES ATTICUS AT ATHENS. 
 
 There are no traces of staircases between the cunei to be 
 discovered in the ruins of this theatre; but in the wall 
 which surrounds the upper praecinction there are remains 
 of niches, or recesses, which, like the real door-ways in 
 other theatres, were probably opposite to the ascents. Upon 
 
 c c 
 
194 
 
 this supposition, their disposition would correspond very 
 nearly with that which we are desired by Vitruvius to 
 adopt; for the ascents would begin from the angles of the 
 squares inscribed in the circle of the orchestra. 
 
 It will be seen on referring to the plan, that the cunei 
 on the right and left of the scene were of greater extent 
 than the others; a similar inequality is likewise apparent in 
 the plan of the theatre at Tauromenium; and seems to 
 have been dictated by the propriety of giving the same 
 facility of access to all the cunei. The staircases at the 
 extremities of the cavea afford access to the seats of the 
 two cunei only contiguous to them; whereas each of the 
 others communicates with those of the two cunei which it 
 separates: so that were the cunei of equal extent, the 
 facility of approaching the seats of those next the extremities 
 would be greater than what was afforded to the others. 
 
 The theatre having been excavated in the side of the 
 rock of the Acropolis, there were no other approaches to 
 the praecinctions than those at the back of the scene. 
 
 The orchestra is the segment of a circle greater than a 
 semicircle. It is probable that Vitruvius had a theatre 
 similar to this in view when he represented the orchestra of 
 the Greek theatres as formed by arcs described from three 
 several centres. The form of the orchestra in the theatres at 
 Stratonicea, Miletus, Laodicea and Jassus, was a considerable 
 portion of a circle. 
 
195 
 
 PLATE VIII. 
 
 PLAN OF THE BATHS AT BADEN-WEILER. 
 
 There is perhaps no instance remaining of Roman baths 
 which will so well illustrate the description Vitruvius gives 
 of them, as those at Baden-weiler; a plan of which is the 
 subject of this plate. 
 
 The baths described by our author were buildings of 
 much less importance than the thermae, which were 
 introduced during the reign of Augustus by Agrippa. 
 
 The thermae contained not only apartments for bathing, 
 but likewise exedrae, xysta and every other part of a Greek 
 palaestra, which Vitruvius enumerates. The most celebrated 
 were those of Domitian, Antoninus and Dioclesian. 
 
 The building of which we are now treating, contained a 
 set of baths for men and women; with the several apartments 
 generally attached to them. The plan is copied from that 
 given by Rode in the Berlin edition of Vitruvius. 
 
 a.a Hypocaust. g.g... Rooms which had floors like 
 
 b Furnace. those of the caldaria; heated 
 
 c.c Caldaria. by the stoves 1.1. 
 
 d.d.... Vaulted sudatories, h.h... Vestibules. 
 
 e.e . . . . Tepidaria. i.i Elaeothesia. 
 
 f.f.....Frigidaria. k.k... Exedrae. 
 
196 
 
 PLATE IX. 
 
 PLAN OF THE PALAESTRA AT EPHESUS. 
 
 In the observations already made upon the eleventh 
 chapter of this section, it has been remarked, that the 
 palaestra has hitherto been represented as consisting of a 
 court surrounded by peristyles; after the manner of the 
 great courts of a Greek house. Such a disposition is there 
 shewn to be erroneous. The remains of a building atEphesus, 
 which is known by the appellation of the Gymnasium, 
 prove that the apartments, forming the palaestra of the 
 Greeks, were comprised within the area surrounded by the 
 porticoes. At Alexandria Troas there are also considerable 
 remains of a building of this kind ; from which it is apparent 
 that the disposition of the parts was originally similar. In 
 this latter the arcades, or porticoes, were open all around; 
 but in the Gymnasium at Ephesus they were closed on 
 every side; forming, what was termed, a cryptoporticus. 
 
 a. a Porticoes full of exedrae. h Hypocaust. 
 
 b The interior portico on i.i.... Vaulted sudatories; at 
 
 the south. one end of which was the 
 
 c Ephebeum. warm water bath, and at 
 
 d Elaeothesium. the other the laconicum. 
 
 e Apodyterium. k.k..Tepidaria. 
 
 f Second elaeothesium. l.l....Frigidaria. 
 
 g Second apodyterium. m....Sphaeristerium. 
 
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THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTURE 
 
 OF 
 
 V I T R U V I U S. 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
THE 
 
 CIVIL ARCHITECTURE 
 
 OP 
 
 VITRUVIUS. 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 ON THE MODE OF ADAPTING BUILDINGS TO VARIOUS 
 
 CLIMATES. 
 
 XHE manner in which we arrange the several parts of private 
 houses, should be made subservient to our position upon 
 the earth's surface conjointly with the nature of the climate. 
 Egypt should have a mode of building peculiar to itself- 
 Spain another; Pontus a third; and again Rome another: 
 and generally in all countries the method of building ought 
 to depend upon local circumstances. 
 
 In some countries the heat of the sun is frequently 
 oppressive; in others it is scarcely felt: again in others 
 the temperature is a mean between these extremes. 
 Since, therefore, different spots upon the earth's surface are 
 unequally affected by the inclination of the poles and the 
 sun's motion through the zodiac, it follows, that the aspects 
 which buildings are made to assume should have a certain 
 
200 
 
 relation to the position of the country upon the globe, and 
 the climate to which it is exposed by its situation. 
 
 In northern regions houses ought to be built with 
 covered courts, and sheltered as much as possible; and 
 their aspects towards the quarters most exposed to the action 
 of the sun. On the other hand, the houses of more southern 
 countries, or hotter climates, should have open courts, and the 
 apartments made to face the north or north-east : so that in 
 either case the natural inconveniences of the climate may be 
 obviated by the judicious disposition of the houses; for it is 
 generally in our power to qualify the disadvantages of 
 situation, however affected by the inclination of the earth's 
 axis, by adopting precautions of this nature. 
 
 In order to accomplish this end it will be necessary to 
 investigate the nature of the climate, and even to study the 
 construction of the frame and limbs of the natives. In 
 those countries where the heat of the sun's rays is not so 
 intense as to disperse entirely the vapours arising from 
 the earth, the bodies of the inhabitants retain a proper 
 degree of temperament: and in those which are parched by 
 excessive heat, the natural humours of the body are 
 exhausted. On the contrary, in cold climates and in 
 regions remote from the south, the heat is not sufficiently 
 powerful to effect the dispersion of vapours; on this account 
 the atmosphere is charged with damps, and causes an 
 accumulation of the humours of the system; by which the 
 body is rendered corpulent, and the tones of the voice 
 bass. From this cause it happens that the inhabitants of 
 northern regions have a large stature, and fair complexions, 
 
201 
 
 their hair straight and red, their eyes blue, and their veins 
 full of blood; all of which characteristics are to be attributed 
 to the prevalence of damps, and the coldness of the climate. 
 In those countries which border upon the equator, and are 
 exposed to a vertical sun, the natives have a low stature and 
 dark complexions; their hair curled, their eyes black, their 
 limbs weak, and their blood vessels empty; all of which 
 peculiarities originate in the heat of the climate. Owing to 
 the deficiency of blood the natives of these countries are 
 apprehensive of wounds; but they endure calentures and 
 fevers without much inconvenience, because their limbs are 
 inured to heat. For reasons of a similar nature the inhabitants 
 of cold countries are fearful of encountering heat and fevers; 
 but are regardless of wounds by which the copiousness of 
 blood is diminished. 
 
 The tones of the voice amongst different nations vary in the 
 same degree, and observe a gradation corresponding to the 
 different inclinations of the circle, termed by mathematicians 
 the horizon, which forms a boundary between the upper 
 and lower divisions of the system of the world, and is crossed 
 by the sun at rising and setting. In order to comprehend 
 this, let a line be drawn from the northern point of the 
 circle to that at the extremity of the southern axis; and from 
 this another, in an oblicpie direction, to the north pole; these 
 lines will form a diagram, resembling in form the musical 
 instrument which the Greeks call samhaca. The less therefore 
 the distance is from the lower pole to the southern point of 
 the axis, the more acute and shrill are the tones of voice 
 among the nations, the elevation of whose pole it designates : 
 
 2 i> 
 
202 
 
 analagous to the sounds of those chords which are nearest 
 the angle of the instrument. In the same manner the 
 nations more remote, those in the middle of Greece for 
 example, have the tones of the voice softer, as the lower 
 axis keeps advancing- towards the north point; and as the 
 elevation of the poles increases, the tones of the inhabitants 
 increase in deepness, from the nature of their situation upon 
 the earth's surface. 
 
 Thus the whole conformation of the globe with regard to 
 the influence of the sun upon the human frame, seems to have 
 been regulated upon the principles of harmonic progression; 
 the gradations in the tones of the voice observing a certain 
 proportion to the different elevations of the pole, which 
 produce different modifications of the sun's powers. Those 
 nations, therefore, where the lower pole is equidistant 
 from the northern and southern extremities of the meridional 
 axis have mean tones of voice, analogous to the middle 
 chords of the musical instrument. As they approach the 
 north, the lower pole constantly receding from the southern 
 point, the voice is affected by the moisture of the climate, and, 
 by the same natural causes, the inhabitants are compelled to 
 utter tones according with the hypate and proslambanomenos: 
 and, as the lower pole approaches the southern point, the 
 inhabitants of the countries express themselves by tones, 
 which are shrill and weak, like the paranete and nete. 
 
 The truth of the position here assumed, that humid 
 climates render the voice bass and deep, and, on the contrary, 
 that climates exposed to the great heat of the sun render it 
 sharp, may be demonstrated by the following experiment. 
 
203 
 
 i 
 
 Two vases of equal weight, and hardened by the same degree 
 
 of heat, when struck, will emit similar sounds: if one of them 
 
 be immersed in water and afterwards emptied, they will be 
 
 found to be of unequal weight; and when struck will 
 
 produce different tones. Thus it is with the human frame; 
 
 for although the principles of its formation are invariably 
 
 the same, and it is composed of the same elements, yet 
 
 in some climates the voice is rendered acute by the heat, 
 
 and in others it assumes a deep tone from the prevalence of 
 
 moisture. For reasons nearly similar, the inhabitants of 
 
 southern regions, through the fineness of the atmosphere 
 
 occasioned by the intensity of heat, possess lively imaginations 
 
 and rapidity of thought: on the contrary, the inhabitants of 
 
 the north, inhaling a denser atmosphere, have their intellectual 
 
 powers rendered inert by the qualities of a climate charged 
 
 with moisture. This truth is made evident by the natural 
 
 history of the serpent tribe; for these animals, when the cold 
 
 humours of the body are dissipated by the warmth of the 
 
 season, are active; bat in cold weather and in winter the 
 
 change of atmosphere chills the humours, and they relapse 
 
 into a state of torpidity. Hence it is not surprising that 
 
 heat should invigorate the intellects of man, and cold render 
 
 them inert. 
 
 Although the inhabitants of southern nations are gifted 
 with powers of discrimination, and are celebrated for their 
 prudence, they are deficient in courage; their bodily faculties 
 being affected by the heat of the climate. On the other 
 hand, the natives of northern regions are prone to war, and 
 encounter the greatest perils without dismay; but, being 
 
204. 
 
 hurried on by imprudence, their measures are adopted 
 without premeditation, whence their enterprises seldom 
 succeed. 
 
 Thus by the ordinance of nature, the human frame in 
 different parts of the world is formed by very unequal 
 mixtures. The Romans have been placed by the ruler of 
 the universe in the middle regions between the extremes : on 
 this account the natives of Italy possess those qualities of 
 mind and body which result from an equal mixture of the 
 opposite temperatures: so that strength of body and vigour 
 of mind are given to them instead of mere personal courage. 
 
 The position of Italy between the nations of the north 
 and south is analogous to that of the planet Jupiter; whose 
 orbit is situated between the torrid region of Mars and the 
 frigid circle of Saturn. In this happy situation it enjoys an 
 equal mixture of the attributes of both: and the faculties 
 with which her people are endowed enable her to conquer, 
 by stratagem, the ferociousness of the barbarians of the 
 north; whilst the sagacity of the southern nations is 
 unavailing when opposed to their greater courage. Thus, 
 Heaven has placed the capital of Italy in the most desirable 
 and temperate of climates, and thereby invested the Romans 
 with the sovereignty of the world. 
 
 It appears, therefore, that the nations of the globe are 
 affected in different degrees by the inclination of the earth's 
 axis, and their inhabitants are born with different animal 
 faculties, and with forms of various properties; hence it cannot 
 be doubted, that their habitations should be constructed 
 with reference to the climate and the natural qualities of 
 
205 
 
 the people; nature itself having clearly pointed out its 
 propriety, and indeed necessity. 
 
 We have now explained, with as much brevity as the 
 subject would allow, the qualities and properties of different 
 regions arising from the nature of their situation; and 
 likewise how we ought to adapt the nature of our buildings 
 to the sun's course, and the inclination of the earth's axis. 
 We shall proceed shortly to explain the proportions of the 
 constituent parts of houses, taken generally and in detail. 
 
207 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 OF THE PROPORTIONS OF PRIVATE HOUSES. 
 
 Nothing ought to engage the attention of an architect 
 more than the proportions of all the parts in the houses he 
 constructs. After having determined upon such proportions 
 as the necessity for the commensuration of the parts with 
 the entire building seems to require, the greatest judgment 
 must be exercised in adapting them to the nature of the 
 spot, the use to which the edifices are designed, and the 
 appearance they ought to assume. And this must be done 
 by making such additions or deductions that although the 
 proportions are not strictly what they ought to be, the eye 
 may not be conscious wherein they fail. 
 
 The same objects appear differently under dissimilar 
 circumstances; if near the ground or at a considerable 
 elevation; if in a confined space or an exposed situation. 
 Under every peculiar circumstance, great judgment is 
 necessary in calculating the effect which will be ultimately 
 produced. 
 
 The impression made upon the sense of seeing is not 
 always a correct image of the object; for in a painting, 
 columns, mutules and statues are made to appear projecting 
 and detached; when, in fact, every object represented is in 
 one and the same plane. In the same manner the oars of a 
 vessel appear bent, although the part below the surface is 
 in a straight line with the other. At the instant they touch 
 
208 
 
 the surface of the water they appear, as they really are, 
 straight; but when they are in part immersed in this 
 transparent medium, images of themselves are impelled to 
 the surface of the water: the direction of the parts immersed 
 therefore is apparently changed, and the sensation of bent 
 objects is thereby created. Whether it is that the object 
 is constantly impelling forward images of itself, or that the 
 eye emits rays, whatever opinion philosophers adopt, it is 
 evident that a false impression is made upon the sense. Since, 
 therefore, objects sometimes assume an appearance of being 
 otherwise than they really are, it will not be denied that 
 additions and deductions may be made, as the nature of the 
 situation or the exigences of particular occasions require, in 
 such a manner, that the deviation from the general laws of 
 proportion will not be perceptible. This deception may be 
 effected by the exercise of the faculty of reasoning, and 
 cannot be taught by precepts alone. 
 
 It therefore becomes necessary in the first place to 
 institute laws of proportion upon which all our calculations 
 must be founded: according to these the ground plan, 
 exhibiting the length and breadth of the whole work 
 and the several parts of it, must be formed. When the 
 magnitude of these is once determined, the parts must be 
 arranged so as to produce that external beauty which 
 suffers no doubt to arise in the minds of those who examine 
 it as to the want of proportion in any part. How this may 
 be effected remains to be stated : we shall begin with the 
 explanation of the manner in which cavaedia should be 
 constructed. 
 
209 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 OF CAVAEDIA. 
 
 There are five kinds of cavaedia which, from their mode of 
 construction, are severally denominated, Tuscan, Corinthian, 
 tetrastyle, displuviatum and testudinatum. They are termed 
 Tuscan, when the beams, which are thrown across the court, 
 have timbers and gutters extending diagonally from the 
 angles made by the walls of the court to those made by the 
 junction of the beams : and the rafters of the eaves are made 
 to incline every way towards the centre of the compluvium 1 . 
 The timbers and compluvia of Corinthian cavaedia have a 
 disposition in all respects similar; but beams are made to 
 project from the walls, and are supported upon columns 
 arranged around the court. 
 
 A tetrastyle cavaedium has columns placed at the angles 
 
 1 The compluvium was the open space, comprehended between the gutters of the 
 roofs over the porticoes, or covered passages, on the four sides of the court, which 
 admitted the rain. The commentators of Vitruvius have for the most part given 
 explanations of the compluvium differing from each other. Varro, in describing the 
 cavaedium, introduces the following passage: " Si relictum erat in medio, ut 
 lucem caperet, deorsum, quo impluebat, impluvium dictum : et sursum, qua impluebat, 
 compluvium: utrumque a pluvia." "Whence it appears that the compluvium was the 
 open part through which the rain was admitted, and the impluvium the area of the 
 court upon which it fell. In the latter part of the fourth chapter, the M S S. of 
 Vitruvius describe this opening as the " lumen compluvii." The printed copies, 
 through a misconception of the meaning of the term compluvium, are obliged to 
 substitute impluvium for it; a -word no where used by our author. 
 
 E E 
 
210 
 
 where the beams meet, which afford them great support: 
 they also obviate the necessity of using beams of a 
 considerable length, and relieve them from the pressure of 
 the diagonal timbers. 
 
 The cavaedium displuviatum is that kind in which the 
 timbers, supporting the gutters, are so inclined, that the 
 water dripping from the eaves is thrown back towards the 
 walls '. This kind is favourable to the admission of light 
 into the winter triclinia, because the compluvium is elevated : 
 but on the other hand, great inconvenience arises from the 
 necessity of constant repairs; for the pipes which convey 
 away the water flowing from the eaves and from the gutters 
 surrounding the walls, do not always discharge themselves 
 sufficiently fast. The water, therefore, overflowing the 
 gutters, decays the wood-work and injures the walls. 
 
 The cavaedium testudinatum is used where the width of 
 the court is not very great: and spacious apartments are 
 constructed over them. 
 
 1 Various conjectures have been offered as to the manner in which the porticoes 
 surrounding the court were roofed; none of which will answer in every respect to 
 the context. There cannot be any doubt that the roofs of the cavaedium 
 displuviatum, in contradistinction to those of the other kinds of cavaedia, were 
 inclined towards the walls of the court; by which means the rain, falling from the eaves 
 above upon the roofs of the porticoes, was reflected towards the walls. The words of 
 Vitruvius are as follows: " Displuviata autem sunt in quibus deliquiae, arcam 
 sustinentes, stillicidia rejiciunt." The foregoing supposition is confirmed by a 
 subsequent passage, in which an objection to this mode is stated to arise from the 
 probability of the gutters overflowing, and damaging the walls: whence it is evident 
 that the gutters must have been adjoining the walls. See the explanation of Plate I. 
 
211 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 OP ATRIA, TABLINA AND PERISTYLES. 
 
 Atria are constructed of various forms, the proportions 
 of the width to the length being determined in three several 
 ways: one of which is by dividing the length into five parts, 
 and making the width equal to three of them. Another mode 
 is to divide the length into three parts, and to assume two 
 for the width. The third mode is to proportion the length 
 to the width by describing a square, one of whose sides is 
 made equal to the latter ; the diagonal of this square 
 determines the length of the atrium. The height below the 
 trabes ' should be three fourths of the length of the atrium : 
 the lacunaria and the gutters above the trabes occupy the 
 remaining fourth. 
 
 The width of the alae on the right and left of the atrium 
 should be proportioned to its length: when this is from 
 thirty to forty feet, the width of the alae is a third of it; 
 when the length is from forty to fifty feet, it is divided into 
 three parts and an half, one of which gives the width for the 
 alae. In atria whose length is from fifty to sixty feet, the 
 
 1 By mentioning" trabes," Vitruvius means it to be understood, that the entablature 
 over the columns of the atrium Was formed of timber, in the same manner as the 
 interior of the entablature of the basilica at Fanum. If the simae, or epitithides, be 
 included in the height of the entablature, which was probably meant, since gutters 
 were formed by hollowing the simae, a fourth of the height of the columns would be 
 very nearly a just proportion for the whole entablature. 
 
 
212 
 
 width of the alae is made a fourth of it. The length of 
 those which are from sixty to eighty feet, is divided into 
 nine parts, and the width of the alae is made equal to 
 two of them. The width of the alae on the right and left 
 of atria which are from eighty to an hundred feet long, is 
 made equal to a fifth part of this extent. The trabes, 
 extending from column to column of the alae, ought to be 
 made as high as they are wide \ 
 
 When the atrium is twenty feet wide, the tablinum is 
 made two thirds of it: when it is from thirty to forty feet, 
 the tablinum is half the width. The tablinum is made 
 equal to two parts of five into which the width of the atrium 
 is divided, when this is from forty to sixty feet. Atria of 
 small dimensions ought not to have the same proportions as 
 those which are very spacious; because if we were to adopt 
 the proportions which obtain in large atria, in those which 
 are of small dimensions, the alae and tablina would be too 
 inconsiderable to answer the purposes for which they are 
 designed : and, on the contrary, if we apply the proportions of 
 small atria in building those of ample size, the alae and tablina 
 
 1 Barbaro, Gaiiani, Palladio and Perrault agree in the supposition that this 
 passage alludes to the height of the alae, or porticoes on each side the atrium; but 
 they are led to this by the belief that the atrium was within the house; in which 
 opinion the editor of the Berlin edition concurs. In our explanation of the plan of 
 the houses of the Romans we have agreed with Pitiscus, that the atrium was the 
 great court before the house, having on the right and left the porticoes called alae; 
 in which were the cellae familiaricae, or rooms appropriated to domestic purposes. 
 Vitruvius has mentioned the height of the atrium below the beams of the columns 
 in a preceding passage : in this he alludes to the height of the beams themselves. 
 The printed copies read " Trabes earum liminares ita alte ponantur ut altitudines 
 latitidinibus sint aequales." Alte may probably have been written for altae. 
 
213 
 
 would be colossal. I have therefore thought it expedient 
 to state the proportions which, in all particular instances, 
 are best calculated for convenience and beauty. 
 
 The height of the trabes, measured from the floor, should 
 be equal to the width of the tablinum, with the addition of 
 an eighth part: and the height of the lacunaria equal to 
 the same width increased by its third part. 
 
 In atria of small dimensions the entrance ! is made two 
 thirds the width of the tablinum; and in spacious atria 
 it is half the width. The statues with their ornaments 
 should be equal in height to the width of the alae. The 
 proportions of the height and width of the door- ways 
 depend upon the order of architecture: whether this be 
 Doric or Ionic the proportions must be determined according 
 to the principles already given for the thyromata of different 
 orders, in the second section. 
 
 The compluvium of the cavaedium, through which the 
 light is admitted, ought not to be more than a third of the 
 width of the atrium nor less than a fourth; the length must 
 be determined in the same manner as that of the atrium. 
 
 The peristyles should be greater in extent, measured 
 transversely, than in length: the columns equal in height 
 to the width of the porticoes of the peristyles; the 
 
 1 The " fauces" meant probably the entrance from the vestibule into the atrium; 
 corresponding to the thyroreum of the Greek house ; which Vitruvius calls a passage 
 of inconsiderable width. The word is used by Virgil in this figurative sense, 
 
 " Angustaeque premunt fauces aditusque maligni." 
 
 The porter's cells were on one side of the thyroreum of a Greek house. 
 
214 
 
 intercolumniations of which ought not to be less than three 
 nor more than four diameters. But if columns of the Doric 
 order are introduced in the peristyle, the modulus must be 
 assumed in the manner related in the second section; 
 according to which the disposition of the triglyphs is 
 necessarily determined. 
 
215 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 OF TRICLINIA, OECI, EXEDRAE AND PINACOTHECAE. 
 
 The length of triclinia should always be made double the 
 width. The height of all apartments, which are longer than 
 they are wide, is determined by making it half the sum of 
 the length and width added together. When, however, the 
 plan of the oecus and exedra is a square, the height is made 
 greater in proportion by the addition of half the width. 
 The pinacotheca, as well as the exedra, ought to be of 
 ample dimensions. The kinds of oeci, which are termed 
 Corinthian and tetrastyle, and those which are called 
 Egyptian, ought to have the same proportions as triclinia; 
 but their actual dimensions should be much greater, because 
 columns are introduced in them. There is this difference 
 between Corinthian and Egyptian oeci: the Corinthian have 
 a single range of columns in height, only, all around; which 
 is either elevated upon a podium or rest upon the floor; 
 and epistylia and coronae, constructed either of wood-work 
 or stucco, are placed over them. The lacunaria above the 
 coronae are vaulted, and the ribs made in a circular form. 
 But in the Egyptian, above the columns are epistylia; and 
 from the epistylia, extending to the walls, is a paved floor, 
 forming a platform around, which is exposed to the air. A 
 second range of columns is placed above the epistylia, 
 immediately over the columns of the lower range ; a fourth 
 
216 
 
 part less in height. Upon the epistylia and coronae of 
 these columns the lacunaria are arranged ; and windows are 
 inserted in the intervals between the columns, so that the 
 oeci seem intended for basilicae rather than Corinthian 
 
 triclinia. 
 
217 
 
 CHAP. VI. 
 
 OF OECI AFTER THE MANNER OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 There are likewise oeci built in a manner different to what 
 is generally adopted in Italy- these are called by the Greeks 
 Cyziceni. They are situated so as to face the north, and 
 have generally their windows towards the garden, with 
 doors in the centre. Their length and width are such that 
 two triclinia, facing each other, may be placed in them, 
 with ample space around them. Folding windows are 
 inserted on the right and left of these apartments, in order 
 that the gardens may be within the view of those who are 
 reclining upon the couches. The height of these oeci is 
 made half as much more than their width. 
 
 In these various kinds of buildings the proportions here 
 related are to be observed if no local impediments interfere. 
 There will be no difficulty in making them airy where 
 there are no high walls to intercept the light. But if any 
 difficulties occur, through the want of space or other 
 circumstances, then there will be occasion for the display 
 of judgement, by making additions or diminutions so as to 
 produce the same general effect as would result if every 
 part were proportioned according to the laws of perfect 
 symmetry. 
 
 F F 
 
219 
 
 CHAP. VII. 
 
 OF THE ASPECTS, BEST ADAPTED TO CONVENIENCE AND 
 
 HEALTH, FOE, THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF 
 
 BUILDINGS. 
 
 The principles which should be attended to in allotting to 
 each kind of building an appropriate aspect, remain to be 
 explained. 
 
 The winter eating-rooms and baths ought to face 
 the winter-west; because the use of them requires that thev 
 should be light at the time of the sun's setting: besides 
 ^vhich the western sun being immediately opposite to them, 
 renders their temperature mild at the close of the day. 
 The sleeping apartments and libraries should be made to 
 front the east; because the morning light is necessary for 
 them; and books are better preserved when the air and 
 
 light are received from that quarter. When libraries have 
 a southern or a western aspect they admit those winds; 
 which, at the same time that they carry with them moths, 
 instil also damp vapours into the books, which, in process 
 of time, cause their decay. 
 
 The vernal and autumnal triclinia should face the east, 
 because the windows being turned from the sun's rays, 
 whose heat increases as the sun advances towards the west, 
 their temperature is cool at the hours they are generally 
 used. 
 
220 
 
 The summer triclinia should front the north; because 
 having that aspect they will be least exposed to the sun ; 
 and the temperature of the apartments will be grateful, at the 
 same time that it is conducive to health: no other aspect 
 possesses equal advantages; for the sun during the solstice 
 would render the air of all others sultry. This aspect is 
 necessary for pinacothecae, and the apartments in which the 
 pursuits of embroidery and painting are followed : because 
 the colours used in works of this kind retain their brightness 
 longer when exposed to an equable and regular light. 
 
221 
 
 CHAP. VIII. 
 
 OF THE KINDS OF HOUSES SUITABLE TO THE DIFFERENT 
 RANKS OF THE COMMUNITY. 
 
 Having determined upon the aspects which the different 
 apartments ought to have, it becomes expedient to consider 
 by what rules we are to be governed in the arrangement 
 of those parts of private houses, which are exclusively 
 appropriated to individuals of the family: and in what 
 manner these ought to be connected with the apartments 
 into which strangers are admitted. For there are several 
 parts of a house which may not be approached by those who 
 are not of the household, unless expressly invited : such as 
 the sleeping rooms, triclinia, baths, and those apartments 
 which are in general use. The parts which are accessible 
 to all, and into which any person may enter uninvited, are, 
 the vestibule, cavaedium, peristyle, and whatever others are 
 built for purposes of a similar nature. Neither magnificent 
 vestibules, tablina nor atria, therefore, are necessary in the 
 houses of those of moderate fortune ; for such are clients of 
 the rich, and are without dependants upon themselves. 
 
 Those who expose to sale the produce of the country, 
 should have shops and stables at the entrances to their 
 houses; and within them cellars, granaries, storehouses, and 
 other apartments calculated for the preservation of their 
 merchandize ; without any regard to propriety of appearance. 
 
222 
 
 The houses of bankers, and those who farm the revenue, 
 should be upon a scale of greater magnitude ; respectable in 
 appearance, and secured against depredations. The houses 
 of lawyers, and men distinguished by their eloquence, ought 
 to be more elegant and spacious for the accommodation of 
 those who resort to them for advice and instruction. 
 
 The nobles, in whom is vested the discharge of the 
 duties of the magistracy, should have their houses constructed 
 with splendid vestibules, lofty atria and extensive peristyles; 
 with plantations and spacious walks disposed with every 
 attention to magnificence of appearance. Besides which 
 they should have libraries and picture galleries; and in 
 some instances basilicae, upon a scale of grandeur little 
 inferior to that of national buildings: for it often happens 
 that public meetings are held there, and the causes of 
 individuals heard and determined. 
 
 If therefore houses are arranged according to these 
 principles, and with attention to those laws of propriety, which 
 indicate what is consistent with the different conditions of 
 men, every thing that convenience requires and experience 
 suggests will have been accomplished. 
 
 The same principles will equally apply to houses of the 
 same kind built in the country : we must however vary the 
 arrangement of the parts; because in the city it is necessary 
 that the atrium should be contiguous to the entrance; but in 
 the country, when houses are intended to resemble those in 
 the city, the peristyle should be next the entrance; and then 
 the atrium, surrounded by paved porticoes, commanding a 
 view of the palestra and walks. 
 
 / 
 
223 
 
 The manner of constructing the dwellings of those who 
 live within the city, being described in a general way, let 
 us now proceed to treat of the proper situation for houses to 
 be built in the country; and shew by what means they may 
 be made subservient to the purposes for which they are 
 designed. 
 
225 
 
 CHAP. IX. 
 
 OF THE PARTS AND PROPORTIONS OF THE FARM. 
 
 The nature of the situation, wherein it is proposed to build, 
 ought to be investigated with the same regard to healthiness 
 as would be thought necessary in selecting a proper site for 
 a city. The magnitude of the buildings must depend wholly 
 upon the quantity of land attached to them, and upon its 
 produce. The number of courts and their dimensions must 
 be proportioned to the herds of cattle and the quantity of 
 oxen employed. The kitchen should be situated in the 
 warmest part of the court; and the stable for the oxen 
 contiguous to it: the stalls should be made to face the 
 hearth and the east; because when oxen are constantly 
 exposed to light and heat they become smooth-coated. No 
 husbandman, however ignorant, will suffer cattle to face 
 any other quarter of the heavens than the east. The width 
 of the stables ought not to be less than ten nor more than 
 fifteen feet: their length proportioned to the number of 
 vokes; each of which should occupy an extent of seventeen 
 feet. The scalding-rooms should adjoin the kitchen, in 
 order that the operation of cleaning the utensils may be 
 performed upon the spot. 
 
 The press-room should likewise be near the kitchen, for 
 then it will be conveniently situated for the preparation of 
 oil. The wine cellars should adjoin the press-room, and 
 
 G G 
 
226 
 
 have their windows facing the north; for if they were 
 exposed to the sun, the wine would he affected hy the heat, 
 and become vapid. The store-rooms in which oil is kept 
 should he made to face the south, so that they may receive 
 their light from the warmer quarters of the heavens ; because 
 oil is injured if suffered to congeal, but tempered by 
 exposure to a certain degree of heat. The size of these 
 rooms must be proportioned to the produce of the olive and 
 vine-yards; and to the number of casks which contains it. 
 Every vessel containing twenty amphorae will occupy four 
 feet. If the presses be worked with levers and beams, 
 without the aid of screws, the press-rooom ought not to be 
 less than forty feet long; in order to afford space for the 
 action of the levers: nor should its width be less than 
 sixteen feet; for then those who are employed at the press 
 will not have their operations obstructed through want of 
 room. If it be necessary to have two presses, the width of 
 the room should be twenty-four feet. 
 
 The courts for sheep and goats should be so spacious as 
 to allow not less than four and an half, nor more than six 
 feet, to each animal. 
 
 The granaries should be above ground, and made to front 
 either the north or north-east, in order that the grain may 
 not be liable to ferment; but, on the contrary, by exposure 
 to a cold atmosphere, may be preserved a long time. All 
 other aspects encourage the propagation of worms, and 
 insects destructive to grain. 
 
 The stables should be built in the warmest part of the 
 villa most distant from the hearth: because when horses are 
 
227 
 
 stalled near fire they become rough-coated. It is likewise 
 expedient to have stalls for oxen at a distance from the 
 kitchen, in the open air; these should be placed so as to 
 front the east: because if they are led there to be fed in 
 winter, when the sky is unclouded, they will improve in 
 appearance. The barns, the hay-yards, the corn-chambers 
 and the mills ought to be without the walls; so that the 
 farm may be less liable to accidents from fire. 
 
 If it be desirable that farm-houses should possess a 
 certain degree of the magnificence of habitations in the city, 
 the same disposition of parts which obtains in these may be 
 applied to them; provided the arrangement be not such as 
 to defeat the purposes of utility, which ought to be the 
 chief consideration in the construction of country houses. 
 
 Great attention must be paid to render buildings of every 
 description sufficiently light. No difficulty in accomplishing 
 this end will occur in country houses : but in cities the 
 proximity of divisional walls, and the limited areas to 
 which houses must necessarily be confined, make it difficult 
 to obviate the insufficiency of light. In order to ascertain 
 where the apertures should be made so that an apartment 
 may receive a proper degree of light from a particular 
 aspect, a line must be drawn from the summit of the wall 
 which opposes its free admission, to that point where it is 
 most required : if apertures can be made above this line, they 
 will permit a considerable portion of the sky to be seen 
 through them, and thus the light will not be intercepted. 
 But if beams, or lintels, or floors interfere with the openings, 
 the light must be received from windows made above them. 
 
228 
 
 Above all it must be observed, that the windows be placed, 
 so that the sky may be seen from them, otherwise the 
 apartment will not possess sufficient airiness. 
 
 If light be so necessary in triclinia and other living 
 rooms, it cannot be less so in passages, ascents and 
 staircases; because in these parts, more especially, persons 
 carrying burdens are constantly encountering each other. 
 
 The distribution of the buildings of the Romans has 
 been here described with as much precision as was thought 
 necessary to make it intelligible to those concerned in 
 building. In order to give some conception of the manner 
 in which the Greeks construct their houses, I shall next 
 proceed to treat briefly on that subject. 
 
229 
 
 CHAP. X. 
 
 OF THE HOUSES OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 Since the customs of the Greeks do not make the use of 
 atria necessary, they do not build them 1 ; but on entering 
 the gates a passage, by no means spacious, presents itself; 
 on one side of which are the stables, and on the other the 
 apartments of the porter. This passage is terminated by 
 the inner gates, and is termed by the Greeks thuroreion: the 
 gates give admission to the peristyle. 
 
 The peristyle has porticoes built on three sides: on the 
 fourth, which fronts the south, there are two antae placed a 
 considerable distance asunder, supporting beams : two thirds 
 of the interval between the antae are given to the breadth 
 of this area, which is called by some prostas, and by others, 
 pastas 2 . Near this place great apartments are constructed 
 within, in which the mistress of the family occupies herself 
 
 1 The printed copies begin this chapter with the following passage : " Atriis 
 Graeci quia non utuntur, neque nostris moribus aedificant," The latter words 
 convey a meaning so contrary to fact, that there cannot exist a doubt but that the 
 author has been misrepresented. On examining the MSS. I find that there is no 
 authority for introducing the words " nostris moribus." 
 
 2 The printed editions alter tbe word itaa-ra.;, to ■na.paata.i, imagining that the term 
 was derived from the antae, or parastades. The MSS. however, read *a.<r?a;, which 
 signifies a vestibule. In the expedition of the Argonauts, when Jason arrives at 
 the palace of Hypsipyle, the servants throw open the folding doors, and conduct 
 him through the vestibule, ha xaXyjs irao-rcLSos. Apoll. Rhod. i. 789. 
 
 Herodotus uses the word ita.a-ta.; to signify the vestibule, or pronaos, of a temple 
 of Minerva. 
 
 Ha,<rra,$ XiShrj y<rKYHJ.ivv) <ytoXonn xoti fn aAAif laMcLvj, ii. 169. 
 
230 
 
 and her household at the loom. On the right and left of 
 the pastas are small apartments termed the thalamus and 
 amphithalamus. Around the porticoes are placed the triclinia 
 in common use, the sleeping-rooms and the apartments of the 
 household. This part of the building is termed Gynaeconitis. 
 
 Adjoining to this is the great peristyle, surrounded by 
 porticoes, which are generally of ecpial height; although 
 sometimes the columns of that which faces the south are made 
 more lofty than the others. A peristyle thus constructed is 
 termed Rhodian. This division of the house has spacious 
 vestibules and doors of corresponding importance; the walls 
 of the porticoes are covered with plaster and stucco, and 
 the lacunaria are formed of wood work. 
 
 In the portico which fronts the north, the Cyzicene 
 tridinia and the pinacothecae are situated : the libraries are in 
 the eastern portico, and the exedra in the western. In the 
 portico fronting the south oeci are built; sufficiently spacious 
 to contain four triclinia, with ample room for the attendants 
 and those engaged in the business of entertainments. In 
 these apartments banquets are given, to which men only 
 are invited; for it is not the custom for women to place 
 themselves at table with the men. These peristyles are 
 termed andronitides ; because here the men may occupy 
 themselves without being interrupted by the females. On 
 right and left of these oeci there are small habitations, which 
 have their peculiar gates, triclinia and sleeping rooms, for 
 the use of guests; who are not entertained in the peristyles 
 but in these hospitalia. For when the Greeks were more 
 refined and wealthy, they were accustomed to have triclinia, 
 
231 
 
 sleeping-rooms and servants' apartments reserved for the 
 reception of strangers: these were invited to sup on the 
 day of their arrival; and on the following day presents were 
 sent them, consisting of poultry, eggs, herbs, fruits and 
 other productions of the country; and hence it was that 
 painters in representing those things which were commonly 
 presented to strangers, called them Xenia. In these 
 hospitalia the traveller enjoyed the ease of his own private 
 dwelling, free from the publicity which is inseparable from 
 the houses built for the reception of strangers. 
 
 Between the two peristyles l and between the hospitalia 
 are courts which are termed mesaulae 2 ; because they are 
 situated in the middle between two aulae. The Romans 
 call them andrones; which is somewhat remarkable, because 
 that term does not express the use to which they are applied 
 either by the Greeks or Romans. For the Greeks call the 
 oeci in which men alone are entertained and 'rones ; because 
 the women are not permitted to approach them. There 
 are various other terms in use amongst the Romans, the 
 significations of which are at variance with their application 
 by the Greeks; such as xystus, prothyrum, telamones and 
 
 1 The printed copies read " Inter haec autem peristylia et hospitalia," supposing 
 the mesaulae to have been between the andronitis and the hospitalia: but the MSS. 
 read " Inter duo autem peristylia et hospitalia," which shews that the mesaulae were 
 situated between the two peristyles and likewise between the hospitalia. The 
 reason of their being termed mesaulae was because they were between the two 
 aulae, or peristyles, as the concluding part of the passage explains. 
 
 2 Vitruvius describes the mesaulae, as itinera, or passages; they were, however, 
 smaller courts. The mesaulae are mentioned by Apollonius Rhodius, who, 
 describing the reception of the Argonauts in the palace of Aeetes, conducts them 
 first into the vestibule, then through the folding gates into the mesaula; which had 
 thalami here and there, and a portico, a*Sou«s, on every side. 
 
<232 
 
 some others. The word xustos with them is applied to a 
 spacious portico in which the athletae exercise themselves 
 during winter: the Romans, on the contrary, term the 
 hypaethral walks xysti, which are called peridromides by the 
 Greeks. With them likewise the word prothyra signifies 
 the space before the doors of their vestibules, but with us it 
 means that which they call diathura. Moreover, the figures 
 which are made to support mutules and coronae are termed 
 by us telamones : but wherefore they should be thus called 
 no conjecture can be formed from any thing which history 
 has left us. Amongst the Greeks such figures are termed 
 atlantes: for Atlas is represented in history as supporting the 
 globe ; because he was the first to discover, by the aid of great 
 genius and application, the courses of the sun and moon, and 
 the laws, according to which the planets revolve. In testimony 
 of the benefit mankind derived from his discoveries, he is 
 represented by painters and sculptors supporting the globe; 
 and the Atlantides his daughters were placed amongst the 
 stars of Heaven. This constellation is called by the Greeks 
 Pleiades, and by us Vergiliae. 
 
 I have not introduced this subject for the purpose of 
 making a change in the customary acceptance of words, but 
 because it appeared to me expedient that philologists should 
 be made acquainted with the different significations of the 
 terms. 
 
 The manner in which the houses of the Greeks and 
 Romans are built, and the proportions observed in the 
 formation of both, having been related, nothing remains but 
 to explain how they may be constructed with solidity, so 
 that they may continue unimpaired for a length of time. 
 
233 
 
 CHAP. XL 
 
 OF THE SOLIDITY OF BUILDINGS, AND THEIR SUBSTRUCTURES. 
 
 When buildings are reared from the ground, if their 
 foundations be made in the manner already described for 
 the walls and for theatres, they will endure for ages. But 
 if it be necessary to construct vaults below ground, their 
 foundations must be more substantial than the walls of the 
 buildings which are to be built upon them. The walls, 
 pilae and columns of the latter must be placed immediately 
 over those below them ; so that solid may bear upon solid : 
 for if walls or columns project beyond the substructure, 
 their duration must necessarily be short. 
 
 It will conduce to the strength of a building if posts be 
 placed under lintels, near the pilae and antae; because when 
 lintels and beams are charged with a superincumbent weight, 
 they yield in the middle, and cause fractures in the building. 
 But if posts of this description be placed under them, and 
 forced to their bearings by wedges, the beams will be 
 prevented from yielding to the pressure. Great care must 
 be taken that arches, formed by stones shaped like wedges, 
 the joints of which tend to one centre, be introduced wherever 
 it is necessary to relieve the beams of the superincumbent 
 weight. When arches, constructed in this manner, spring 
 from beyond the ends of lintels or beams, these are neither 
 liable to bend, because the weight no longer presses upon 
 
 2 H 
 
234 
 
 them, nor will injury ensue to the building if they decay, 
 because they may be replaced without difficulty. 
 
 When buildings are raised upon piers which are connected 
 by arches formed by wedges, the joints of which tend to one 
 centre, the piers at the ends must be greater than in other 
 places; in order that they may be enabled by their weight 
 to resist the pressure: because when the wedges are 
 acted upon by the weight above them, their tendency to 
 yield exerts itself against the imposts. When therefore the 
 angular piers are sufficiently strong, they retain the wedges 
 in their situations by the resistance they oppose; and thus 
 give firmness to the whole building. It is not of less 
 importance that every part of the structure should be 
 perpendicular to the horizon; nor ought any part to overhang. 
 
 The chief attention must, however, be directed to the 
 foundations, to prevent the many evils which arise from the 
 pressure of earth against them; because its pressure is not 
 always uniform, but increases during the winter through the 
 constant absorption of moisture, to which it is not exposed in 
 summer. Hence it has a tendency to thrust out the walls 
 of the substructure. In order to guard against this 
 inconvenience, we must be careful to proportion the thickness 
 of the walls to the quantity of soil in contact with them. 
 At the same time buttresses, or shores, must be constructed, 
 equal in thickness to the walls of the substructures, at 
 distances from each other equal to their height. They 
 should project before the face of the wall at the bottom as 
 much as the thickness of the substructure there, and contract 
 gradually towards the top, where their projection ought to 
 
235 
 
 be as much as the thickness which is there given to the walls. 
 Besides these, others should be constructed inwardly to act 
 in a direction opposite the pressure, in form like the teeth 
 of a saw : they ought to project as much as the height of 
 the substructure, and their thickness should be equal to 
 that of the walls. Others also should be built extending in 
 a diagonal direction from wall to wall, at a distance from 
 the angles equal to the height of the substructure; from 
 the middle of which walls should be built uniting them with 
 the angles of the building. The buttresses and diagonal 
 walls will counteract the pressure of the earth against the 
 substructure, by opposing a resistance in an opposite direction. 
 
 I have now explained in what manner buildings may be 
 constructed so as to be free from defect; and the measures 
 which ought to be pursued in the first stages of building. It 
 is. not necessary to be so circumspect with regard to tiles, 
 tigna and asseres ; because whatever proves defective in these 
 may afterwards be replaced without difficulty. I have 
 likewise shewn by what means those foundations which do 
 not appear firm may really be rendered so. 
 
 Of the preference to be given to the kind of materials 
 employed, it is not in the power of the architect to determine; 
 because, as I have before observed, the same things are not to 
 be obtained in all countries. Besides which it remains with 
 the proprietor of the building to decide whether it should 
 be constructed of brick, or of rough or hewn stone. The 
 merits of building may be made to appear in three several 
 ways ; in the beauty of the execution, in the costliness of the 
 material, and in the general effect of the whole. When the 
 
236 
 
 resources of opulence have been lavishly employed, the cost 
 is admired; when the workmanship is excellent, the skill of 
 the artificers is commended; but when an imposing effect is 
 produced by the beauty and symmetry of its parts, it redounds 
 to the fame of the architect. In order to attain this, it 
 behoves us to pay attention to the opinion of artists, and even 
 of the ignorant, because men in general, not architects alone, 
 are judges of what is striking. This difference, however, 
 will always exist between architects and those who are 
 ignorant of the science; these are judges only of what they 
 see executed; those, on the contrary, as soon as the conception 
 is formed, know, before the building is begun, its utility, the 
 propriety of its appearance, and the effect it will produce. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES 
 
 TO 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 THE sixth book of Vitmvius treats of the domestic 
 architecture of the Greeks and Romans : perhaps there is no 
 part of the work of our author which involves so many 
 difficulties, with such scanty means of surmounting them. 
 Of temples and theatres and other public buildings there 
 are many remains; and whenever difficulties occur in 
 illustrating edifices of this kind, we have various specimens 
 to which reference may be made, with the probability that 
 a consideration of the method observed in constructing them 
 will assist us in throwing light upon the subject. But we 
 are without any authority to which we can refer with the 
 certainty of obtaining a just conception of the arrangement 
 of their dwellings. The descriptions of the villas of Cicero 
 and Pliny abound in terms ; but little advantage can be 
 derived from them, inasmuch as they convey no idea of 
 the magnitude, or the relative position of the several parts. 
 The ravages of time have nearly exterminated all traces 
 of the private habitations of the ancients : and the preservation 
 of those remains of ancient dwellings which have recently 
 
240 
 
 been discovered at Pompeii, is owing to an extraordinary 
 convulsion of nature, which hid them for ages from our 
 knowledge. The buildings, however, of a city which makes so 
 inconsiderable a figure in the annals of history, can afford us 
 very little assistance in investigating the prevailing form and 
 disposition of parts in the palaces of the opulent and 
 enlightened citizens of Rome. Under these circumstances, 
 the most we can hope to effect is to give some idea of the 
 general arrangement of the entire house. And even here is so 
 wide a field for conjecture, that we ought not to be surprised if 
 those who have attempted to illustrate the text of Vitruvius 
 on this subject, by presenting us with their own conceptions 
 of the houses of the Romans, have produced plans which are 
 at variance with each other; no one of which seems entitled 
 to be preferred above another. 
 
 Most of those who have undertaken to illustrate our author 
 have adopted the idea, that the atrium was part of the house 
 itself: there are however some who suppose it to have been 
 the court before the house, immediately upon entering the 
 vestibulum, corresponding to the aula of the Greek house. 
 With this opinion, for reasons which will be mentioned when 
 this particular subject comes to be discussed, I concur 
 decidedly; and in describing the plan of the Roman houses 
 I shall take it for granted that such was really the case. 
 The mode of arranging the several parts of the house which 
 must necessarily ensue from such a disposition of the atrium, 
 will be found to be different from any hitherto offered. 
 
 If the domestic architecture of the Romans be involved 
 in obscurity, how much more impenetrable is the veil which 
 
241 
 
 hides from our knowledge that of the Greeks. Vitruvius is 
 the only author who enumerates the different apartments of 
 their houses, and he is by no means diffuse in his account of 
 
 mi 
 
 their general arrangement. To assist us in determining this, 
 we must be permitted to argue synthetically, and to avail 
 ourselves of such light as we have been enabled to throw upon 
 the mode of construction which was adopted in the private 
 habitations of the Romans; convinced as we feel that this, 
 as well as every other subject connected with the arts and 
 sciences, was derived immediately from a Greek original. It 
 will not be denied that, in order to attain a certain degree 
 of knowledge of the prototype, it will be a material assistance 
 if we consider the copy attentively. 
 
 The mention of different parts belonging to a Greek 
 residence frequently occurs in the writers of antiquity; but 
 little can be gathered from them which leads to the discovery 
 of the connection subsisting between the several members 
 of the fabric. 
 
 As the scene of the latter books of the Odyssey lies almost 
 wholly in the palace of Ulysses, continual mention is made 
 of various parts of it; and by comparing several passages in 
 the poem with the context, some conjecture may be formed 
 of the general disposition which prevailed in the houses of 
 the Greeks during the time of Homer. To this subject we 
 propose returning, when the Greek houses of a later age 
 shall have been considered. 
 
 i i 
 
242 
 
 PLATE I. 
 
 SECTION OF A ROMAN CAVAEDIUM. 
 
 The cavaedium was one of the courts of a Roman house, 
 generally surrounded by a covered passage; having the 
 middle area exposed to the air. There was, however, 
 a kind of cavaedium termed testudinatum, in which no part 
 was left open. 
 
 The commentators upon Vitruvius have, for the most 
 part, confounded the atrium with the cavaedium; because, 
 in the description of the Tuscan cavaedium, the porticoes 
 are said to be formed by throwing beams across the atrium 
 from its opposite sides. The word atrium, however, can 
 only allude to the court around which the porticoes are 
 constructed; and not the atrium properly so called. But 
 what does away every idea of the identity of the atrium 
 and the cavaedium is the account given by Pliny of his 
 Laurentine villa; in which they are mentioned as distinct 
 courts of the house. 
 
 Plate I. is intended to represent the section through the 
 cavaedium, termed by Vitruvius displuviatum, the porticoes 
 of which he tells us were roofed in a different manner from 
 those of other cavaedia. This mode has been explained in 
 various ways: that which is here offered differs from all 
 hitherto given. A slight review of the text will be sufficient 
 to convince us that Vitruvius intended the roof of the 
 
243 
 
 porticoes in a cavaedium of this kind, to be inclined towards 
 the walls of the court; for, in the first place, he says that 
 the deliquiae, or rafters which support the gutters, are made 
 to throw back the water which drips from the eaves; that is 
 to say, of the surrounding buildings. Again, the compluvia 
 of the porticoes being erecta, or rising from the walls, do not 
 intercept the light from the triclinia. It is evident that by 
 inclining the roof towards the walls, an opportunity would 
 offer itself of giving more light to the rooms around the 
 court, by making the columns of the cavaedium more lofty 
 than when it is made inclining from the walls : supposing the 
 interval between the windows of the upper and lower floor 
 the same in both instances. In the third place, he says 
 that there is a chance of gutters sometimes overflowing, 
 when the roof is constructed in this manner, and thus 
 injuring the walls and the wood-work; which evidently 
 implies that the gutters must have been between the roof of 
 the compluvium and the walls of the surrounding buildings. 
 The section is supposed to be made across the court 
 transversely. The building which rises above the portico 
 is intended to represent the exterior of the Egyptian oecus; 
 the section of which is shewn in Plate III. 
 
 PLATE II. 
 
 PLAN OF A ROMAN HOUSE. 
 
 We have before alluded to the difference of opinion 
 which exists as to the nature of the atrium and cavaedium. 
 
244 
 
 Some authors have contended that the atrium formed part 
 of the house; and that the vestihulum was the court which 
 presented itself on entering from the street: others, on the 
 contrary, make the atrium the great court itself, and the 
 vestibulum the portico immediately in front of the entrance 
 into the court. Although Vitruvius speaks of the vestibulum 
 in general terms, he gives no account of its situation in the 
 houses of the Romans. He mentions the vestibulum amongst 
 those parts of a Greek house which constitute the andronitis; 
 where it seems to mean that part corresponding to the 
 pastas of the gynaeconitis. The word atrium, in its general 
 signification, seems to mean any area comprehended between 
 four walls; and would therefore be equally applicable to 
 the great court of the house, or to any apartment of 
 considerable dimensions, under cover. In this latter sense 
 it is frequently used by the Latin poets. The author of the 
 Lexicon Antiquitatum Romanarum has discussed the subject 
 at some length, and is of opinion that the atrium, properly 
 so called, was a great court, surrounded by porticoes, 
 corresponding to the aula of a Greek house. There cannot 
 be any doubt but that such was the atrium of Vitruvius; 
 because the dimensions which he assigns to some are too 
 considerable for any apartment in the habitation of an 
 individual. 
 
 The proportions of the atrium were determined in three 
 several ways. In some the width was made three fifths of 
 the length : in others it was two thirds : in others the length 
 was made the diagonal of a square, each of whose sides was 
 equal to the width. The least width, therefore, which an 
 
245 
 
 atrium of an hundred feet in length could have, was sixty 
 feet. 
 
 On the right and left of the atrium were the alae 
 or wings; which were covered porticoes; within which, 
 sometimes, were the cellae familiaricae, or apartments for 
 domestic purposes. Servius observes upon a passage in 
 Virgil 1 , that the culina, or kitchen, was in the atrium; 
 whence he infers that the term was derived; because, on 
 that account, it was atrum, black, from the smoke. In 
 these porticoes statues were placed. Each of the alae of 
 an atrium an hundred feet long, would have been twenty- 
 five feet. 
 
 The tablinum was entered from the atrium. When the 
 latter was from forty to sixty feet in width, the tablinum 
 was two fifths of it. The tablinum therefore is made 
 twenty-four feet in the plate before us. The mention of 
 the cavaedium succeeds that of the tablinum : the width of 
 its compluvium is directed to be not less than a third nor 
 more than a fourth of the width of the atrium : its length 
 was proportioned to its width in the same manner as the 
 atrium. 
 
 The peristyle of the gynaeconitis is directed to be made 
 of greater extent transversely than the width, measured in 
 the direction of the house. 
 
 The exedra and bibliotheca are represented, in the plan, 
 under the porticoes of the cavaedium; because, although 
 Vitruvius does not inform us in what division of the house 
 
 1 Aen. I. 726. III. 353. 
 
246 
 
 they were placed, he mentions the cavaedium amongst the 
 parts Avhich the clients and friends of the proprietor were 
 at liberty to enter uninvited: whence it is probable that 
 these, being public apartments, were situated in this court. 
 The triclinia, or common eating rooms, on the contrary, 
 being amongst those parts of the house which could not be 
 approached by any, excepting the persons of the household, 
 unless when expressly invited, are represented in the 
 porticoes of the peristyle. 
 
 Besides the triclinia there were grand banqueting rooms, 
 called oeci, for public occasions. Of these one kind was 
 termed Corinthian, another Tetrastyle, a third Egyptian, 
 and a fourth kind Cyzicene. The oecus, in the plan before 
 us, is supposed to be of the latter kind : it has doors in the 
 centre of the ends; and windows in the walls on the right 
 and left, looking upon the gardens; in compliance with the 
 mode of construction described by our author. In the plans 
 usually given of a Roman house, all the several kinds of 
 oeci are introduced: it seems more probable, however, that 
 there was but one large banqueting room in the generality 
 of houses; for, although several varieties are mentioned, it 
 does not follow that they were all to be found in the same 
 palace. We might with equal propriety suppose that the 
 four kinds of cavaedia were several courts of the same house. 
 
 Vitruvius is altogether silent upon the use to which the 
 apartments on the upper floor were destined. It is generally 
 allowed that they were almost wholly appropriated to 
 sleeping-rooms and store-chambers. He mentions staircases, 
 but does not point out their situations. 
 
a....Vestibulum. 
 
 b.... Atrium. 
 
 c.c.Alae. 
 
 d.d.Cellae familiaricae. 
 
 e.e. .Courts of the offices. 
 
 f.....Tablinum. 
 
 g....Cavaedium. 
 
 h....Exedra. 
 
 i Bibliotheca. 
 
 k....Cyzicene oecus. 
 1.1. ..Gardens. 
 
 247 
 
 m...Pinacotheca. 
 
 n . . ..Rooms for embroidery. 
 
 o Peristyle. 
 
 p Vernal triclinium. 
 
 q Summer triclinium. 
 
 r Winter triclinium. 
 
 s Cold bath. 
 
 t Tepid bath. 
 
 v Warm bath. 
 
 w.w. Sudatories. 
 x.x..Cubicula. 
 
 PLATE III. 
 
 SECTION OF AN EGYPTIAN OECUS. 
 
 PLATE IV. 
 
 PLAN OF THE HOUSES OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 The Greeks had no atrium, but instead of it was 
 a passage, called thyroreum, by which the peristyle was 
 approached. On the side of the peristyle opposite the 
 entrance was a kind of vestibule called pastas : on the right 
 and left of which were apartments termed severally thalamus 
 and amphithalamus. Beyond these were oeci, or halls of 
 a square form, in which the mistress of the family was 
 accustomed to employ herself and her household in the 
 occupations of spinning and weaving. 
 
248 
 
 In the first peristyle were the triclinia in daily use, and 
 the apartments of the domestics; this division of the house 
 was called gynaeconitis. In the south portico of the greater 
 peristyle, which was termed andronitis, were the Cyzicene 
 oecus and pinacothecae; in the eastern the bibliotheca; in 
 the western the exedra, and in the northern the great oecus, 
 or banqueting room. The hospitalia, consisting of triclinia 
 and sleeping-rooms appropriated to strangers, were situated 
 on the right and left of the great oecus. There were likewise 
 courts or passages attached to the hospitalia, called 
 mesaulae. 
 
 a Thyroreum. k.k.. Square oeci. 
 
 b Stables. 1 Great oecus. 
 
 c.c.Cellae of the porter, m. in. Mesaulae. 
 
 d.d.. Courts. n.n... Apartments for strangers. 
 
 e Peristyle of the o Vestibule. 
 
 gynaeconitis p Great peristyle. 
 
 f.f... Common triclinia. q Bibliotheca. 
 
 g Pastas, or vestibule, r Exedra. 
 
 h Thalamus. s Cyzicene oecus. 
 
 i Amphithalamus. t.t...Pinacothecae. 
 
 PLATE V. 
 
 SUPPOSED ICHNOGRAPHY OF THE PALACE OF THE ODYSSEY. 
 
 It seems reasonable to suppose that the plan upon which the 
 houses of the Homeric age were generally built, was present 
 
249 
 
 to the writer whenever it was necessary to mention any parts 
 of the palace; and not, that the description would accurately 
 apply to the individual habitation of Ulysses: for that degree 
 of precision did not fall within the province of the poet. 
 In fact, it would seem essential that the description should 
 be so general as to be recognized by all to whom the tale 
 might be recited. 
 
 This being the case, it is of little importance that the 
 remains of the palace, if any such really exist, cannot be 
 made to accord with the description of Homer. Mr. Gell, 
 in his interesting work upon the geography and antiquities 
 of Ithaca, has described some ruins discovered upon the 
 site, as he imagines, of the dwelling of Ulysses ; and shews, 
 with great ingenuity, under what circumstances they may be 
 made to agree with Homer's account of the palace of 
 that chief. We, however, proceeding on the grounds of 
 presumption already stated, shall attempt to prove that the 
 ichnography of Greek houses of a later period coincides in 
 many respects, as to the general disposition of parts, with 
 the plan which may be collected from scattered passages in 
 the Odyssey. 
 
 The progress of civilization, whose dawn first taught 
 mankind to construct houses as a shelter from the inclemency 
 of the seasons, in after times enabled them to adapt them 
 to the nature of the climate and the customs of the 
 inhabitants. And although, in the interval between the 
 age of Homer and the date of the houses described by 
 Vitruvius, some change in manners might have taken place, 
 yet they must at that time have been so far established 
 
 K K 
 
250 
 
 as to render the supposition of any important revolution 
 inadmissible. The continuance of the same climate, and 
 the existence of nearly the same customs, seem to point out 
 the necessity for an adherence to the same principles in 
 building. 
 
 Greek houses, according to Vitruvius, appear to have 
 consisted of three divisions; two of them having an open 
 court surrounded by apartments for various purposes. These 
 were the andronitis and gynaeconitis : the intermediate one 
 was termed the oecus quadratus, or banqueting room. In 
 like manner the palace of the Odyssey seems to have had 
 the same number of separate divisions; which were the afoj 
 and juiya/w yuvaixwv, corresponding respectively with the andronitis 
 and gynaeconitis; and the p-ya/w, or coenaculuin, which, like 
 the great oecus of the Vitruvian palace, appears to have 
 served as the banqueting room of the numerous suitors of 
 Penelope. It is also probable that the prothyrum and 
 prodomus, on opposite sides of the coenaculuin, corresponded 
 with the pastas and vestibulum which led to the two courts 
 of the Greek house from the great banqueting room : and in 
 both instances were the only avenues from one to the other. 
 We shall therefore assume this general arrangement, and 
 mention various passages to shew that it is consistent with 
 the description of Homer. If this point can be established, 
 it will sufficiently prove that the general principle, upon 
 which the houses of these different ages were constructed, 
 were alike. And this is all the light that can be expected 
 to be thrown upon the subject; considering what are the 
 means of elucidation left to us. 
 
251 
 
 We shall begin by shewing that the scene of the conflict 
 between Ulysses and the suitors was confined to the ^ya^, or 
 coenaculum, from whence the only ways of escaping were 
 through the doors leading to the womens apartments, and 
 the prothyrum. The former were closed before the contest 
 began; and the latter was defended by Ulysses and his 
 friends. There were indeed other doors leading to the 
 upper parts of the palace; but they did not admit of the 
 escape of the suitors. One of them led to a window 
 whence the town might have been alarmed ; but the position 
 of Ulysses allowed of its being guarded by one person. 
 
 Let us take the several parts in the order in which 
 they occur; observing, however, that the chief approach 
 to the houses of the Greeks gave immediate access to the 
 gynaeconitis; whereas that to the palace of the Odyssey 
 appears to have opened into the aotf, or andronitis; after the 
 manner of the Romans. In comparing the plans of the 
 two we must therefore reverse the order of the courts. 
 
 The first object which presented itself on approaching 
 the palace was the «<%»?> or wall of the aula 1 , in which were 
 the doors leading to the aula, or principal court: these were 
 termed t»fm rfs *vtf s - Euryclea is desired by Eumaeus to shut 
 the doors of communication between the coenaculum and 
 the gynaeconitis, whilst Philaetius goes out silently and 
 fastens these doors with a cable, which is kept, for that 
 purpose, under the portico; w uiMry 2 . The object of this 
 movement seems to have been to prevent succours arriving 
 
 1 XVIH. 101. * XXI. 390. 
 
2.52 
 
 from the town. The aula, or court, was entered through these 
 gates. In this court was an altar of Jupiter, whither Phemius 
 and Medon repair during the slaughter of the suitors 1 . Here 
 the suitors hold their feast in honour of Apollo: the victims 
 are brought to he slain and confined under the portico": not 
 that cattle were usually kept in this court, but in an area in 
 front of the gates 3 . 
 
 The <M°<»r* was either a portico surrounding the court 
 constructed with columns, corresponding to the peristyle of 
 a Greek house; or, like the simple cavaedium of the Romans, 
 was a certain space around the walls covered with a pent or 
 roof, under which were the thalami of the men 4 , after the 
 manner of the later Greeks. There is certainly no mention 
 made of columns, nor of the use to which it was applied : 
 but it must have been roofed over, because the thalami are 
 said to be «v attovoy . subter porticum. 
 
 On the side of the aula opposite to the entrance was the 
 prothyrum, corresponding to the *zo-to. s of the Greek houses 
 described by Vitruvius. It was a vestibule before the 
 coenaculum exposed on one side to the court. It is here 
 that Ulysses and Irus contend; the latter is dragged by the 
 heels from the prothyrum through the aula, and left by 
 Ulysses on the outside reclining against the wall of the 
 aula 5 . Minerva, at the opening of the poem, presents herself 
 before the prothyrum, and is discovered by Telemachus, Avho 
 is seated, together with the suitors, within the prothyrum; 
 whence he goes and conducts her hrwfov si^w 6 , within the 
 
 1 XXII. 379. " XX. 189. s XVII. 298. 
 
 4 III. 399. 5 XVIII. 101. 6 I. 126. 
 
253 
 
 coenaculum, away from the confusion of the prothyrum; 
 that he might have an opportunity of obtaining some 
 information concerning his father 1 . 
 
 On another side of the coenaculum was the prodomus, 
 or vestibule of the gynaeconitis. The oifa, or pavement, of this 
 vestibule is termed Mim, in contradistinction to that of the 
 prothyrum, which is sometimes called ^' ya r, but is more 
 frequently used without any epithet 3 . It appears however to 
 have been of wood 4 . The prodomus must have been in the 
 side opposite to the prothyrum; for Ulysses shoots through the 
 rings from his seat 5 , and the arrow flies through the door- way : 
 the position of his seat was manifestly near the door-way of 
 the prodomus; because Telemachus, when he conducts him 
 within the coenaculum, seats him near the stone threshold: 
 hrh &<rra.ho S fisydpto itapoL xdhcv ovSbv 6 . It is further evident that the door- 
 way through which the arrow flies was that of the prothyrum ; 
 for the doors of the gynaeconitis were shut before the trial 
 took place. The terms which Homer uses to express these 
 door-posts, <rtaB[u>) rsyks, clearly indicate that they were those 
 leading from the gynaeconitis: the word *fy>s, according to 
 Eustathius 7 , signifying the upper part of the house inhabited 
 by women. Hesychius interprets fty™ te^tm, chambers in the 
 upper part of the house. According to Pollux also, *iyos 
 signifies the upper part of the house. This is further evident 
 from many passages of the poem; for women descending 
 from their chambers take their station near these door-posts : 
 
 1 I. 135. 2 XXII. 2. 3 XXII. 127. XVIII. 17. 33. 109. XVII. 413 
 
 * XVII. 339. s XXL 420. 6 XX. 258. 7 II. VII. 248. 
 
254 
 
 thus Nausicaa is represented as stationed in the palace of 
 Alcinous, wzp* rraApw riytc s . The station of Penelope is described 
 in the same words': when she descends to join the suitors in 
 the coenaculum, she places herself here 2 . After she has 
 visited the armoury, she returns to the same place 3 . Entering 
 through the same door-way after the slaughter of the suitors 
 she passes the stone threshold 4 , and seats herself against the 
 wall opposite Ulysses. These passages prove that the door- 
 way, whose situation with regard to the prothyrum has 
 been shewn, was that leading to the gynaeconitis. 
 
 Ulysses is represented as sleeping in the prodomus; and 
 near this place must have been the thalamus of Penelope; 
 for from hence he hears her voice lamenting. Penelope also 
 from her thalamus hears what is passing in the coenaculum. 
 The thalamus of the queen might therefore be on one side 
 of the prodomus, and the thalamus of Ulysses on the other; 
 like the thalamus and amphithalamus of a Greek house, 
 which Vitruvius represents as situated on either side the 
 vestibule. On hearing the voice of Penelope, Ulysses rises 
 in haste; and taking with him the couch which had been 
 prepared for him, leaves the fleeces upon a seat within the 
 coenaculum, and carries the ox-hide abroad with him 5 . 
 
 The general disposition of the palace therefore accords 
 with that of the Greek houses described by Vitruvius. We 
 shall proceed to notice other passages, in which the various 
 parts of the building are mentioned; none of which militate 
 against the arrangement here assumed. 
 
 1 XVI. 415. 2 XVIII. 208. 5 XXI. 64. 
 
 4 XXIII. 88. 5 XX. 97. 
 
255 
 
 In speaking of the coenaculum, Homer generally uses 
 the term pA/apsi although *«>« and &>><>$• are sometimes employed 
 to express the same place. When Telemachus sneezes, the 
 sound echoes, <*/*?» &«>«, around the coenaculum, in which the 
 suitors are sitting. At the beginning of the conflict Ulysses 
 leaps upon the great threshold 1 which is stated to be within 
 the door-way, S^wfe fopdm 2 . This limen was therefore a kind of 
 platform extending into the coenaculum, before the doors, 
 from which there was a descent by steps. It was of 
 considerable extent; for Ulysses and his three assistants 
 are represented as possessing it whilst the suitors were 
 within the coenaculum, hi*oU sfawv 3 . The doors were at this 
 time behind the four combatants; for at the suggestion of 
 Agelaus, six of the suitors throw their javelins at the same 
 instant against Ulysses ; no one of which wounds him, but 
 they strike either the door-posts, or the doors themselves; 
 which, from this circumstance, appear to have opened 
 inwardly 4 . 
 
 The way to the street, which was also common to the 
 orsothyra 5 , or window which commanded a view of the 
 town, as well as the door-way of the staircase leading to the 
 thalamus in which the arms had been deposited, could not 
 have been far distant from the door- way of the coenaculum; 
 for, in the beginning of the contest, the care of the first, 
 which is described as being at the end of the limen or 
 threshold, is committed to Eumaeus 6 : and Telemachus, 
 
 1 XXII. 2. 2 XVII. 339. 3 XXII. 204. * XXII. 258. 
 
 5 Hesychius defines lp<ro66px thus. o«r« 66 pa jm) i<xpwct rov f«9/*w tpi; ?ri yji, dKK' dth/ti^y. 
 rou £$d<povs, ohy 6vpl;. y 6ipa, e\; vtepwoy dvdyovo-a. 
 
 6 XXII. 127. 
 
256 
 
 after going to fetch arms, returns unmolested by the suitors; 
 which he could not have done, had the passage to the 
 thalamus, in which the arms were deposited, been beyond 
 the reach of protection from the triumvirate left engaged 
 in the conflict. The door-way, therefore, conducting to the 
 staircase of the thalamus on one side of the door-way, might 
 have corresponded with that of the staircase leading to the 
 orsothyra on the other. 
 
 There must have been another approach to this thalamus, 
 through the rooms adjoining the coenaculum, by which 
 Melanthius went to procure arms for the suitors, not far 
 distant from the womens apartments, and distinct from that 
 by which Telemachus went; for, on perceiving the suitors 
 armed, Ulysses calls out to Telemachus to tell him that this 
 act of treachery is either done by Melanthius or some one 
 in the womens apartments 1 . The way by which he gains 
 access to the room, in which Ulysses and his son had 
 concealed the arms, is described to be dm ^ycc; ^ y d ? m^ which 
 the scholiast interprets as small door-ways leading to 
 chambers in the upper part of the house. It was probably 
 the same by which the weapons were conveyed, when they 
 were taken down from their station within the coenaculum; 
 for the doors of the womens apartments were closed by 
 order of Telemachus before their removal 2 . The room, in 
 which they were concealed, was in that part of the house 
 formerly appropriated to Ulysses 3 . 
 
 1 XXII. 15. 2 XIX. 30. 
 
 3 Melanthius might go to the thalamus of Ulysses above the apartment marked 
 n. in the plan, by the staircase/). And when Eumaeus went to detect him, he might 
 leave the coenaculum by the door-w r ay leading to the staircase t. 
 
257 
 
 The suitors al length retreat towards the end of the 
 coenaculum % and Ulysses advances and withdraws his 
 weapons from the bodies of the slain. At this instant the 
 minstrel Phemius is standing with his lyre in his hand near 
 the orsothyra, doubting whether he should not leave the 
 coenaculum, which the advance of Ulysses gave him an 
 opportunity of doing, and retreat to the altar of Jupiter in 
 the court. Ulysses addresses him and the herald Medon, 
 and desires them to withdraw into the aula. 
 
 The coenaculum must have been an extensive room 
 adorned with columns; for when Ulysses and Telemachus 
 are conveying the armour into an interior apartment, the 
 latter exclaims that the columns and walls appear to be on 
 fire 2 - and after the slaughter Penelope finds Ulysses placed 
 near a great column 3 . 
 
 Now that we are upon the subject of the Homeric 
 architecture, it may not be improper to notice a building 
 called tholus, which appears to have been near the walls of 
 the court 4 ; the use of which Eustathius has attempted to 
 explain. He says it was a circular room in which the 
 furniture in daily use was kept ; such as tables, goblets, and 
 drinking cups. There is not, however, any passage in the 
 Odyssey in which allusion is made to the use of this building, 
 so that the opinion of Eustathius may have been founded 
 upon conjecture only. 
 
 From a consideration of its form and situation conjointly, 
 a conjecture may be made of the use which the tholus of 
 
 1 XXII. 270. 2 XIX. 33. 3 XXIII. 90. 4 XXII. 442. 
 
 L L 
 
2.58 
 
 the Odyssey was calculated to answer. The area, in which 
 the building stood, appears to have been allotted to that 
 division of the palace which, in the villa pseudo-urbana of 
 the Romans, was termed rustica; and contained the stables, 
 corn-yards, barns, granaries and other buildings for 
 agricultural purposes 1 . This being its situation, we are 
 next led to consider the use to which its circular form 
 might be best adapted. A knowledge of the customs, 
 noticed in the works of Homer, would at once suggest that 
 it was calculated by its form to serve as a threshing floor. 
 The operation of threshing amongst the ancients was 
 performed by placing the corn in a circular area, and 
 beating out the grain with the hoofs of oxen, which were 
 yoked together and driven over it. This mode is related by 
 Homer himself in the following terms; rp&pevai xp to«i» ^xi*? 
 h>d}wj 2 . A similar custom prevails in Greece at this day. 
 Eustathius supposes the word tholus to be derived from 
 ihiv, and S\w' f equivalent to mpMopevw, signifying running around. 
 This etymology would apply better to 6i*-» s , considering it 
 as the area, or threshing floor, than in any other point of 
 view. The Roman area was of a circular form, and open 
 on all sides to the wind, as we learn from Varro 3 . 
 
 The great column of the tholus, mentioned in the 
 Odyssey 4 , was probably in the centre, about which the 
 oxen were made to go; and perhaps served to uphold a 
 
 1 Vide Cato de R. R. III. 1. IX. 1. Varro. XIII. 6. 
 
 2 11. XX. 496. Heyne reads eux7i/*»Tj, for eityoxaAp. 
 
 3 R. R. I. 2. 4 XXII. 466. 
 
259 
 
 conical roof, with which the earliest buildings of a circular 
 form, yet existing in Greece, are found to have been 
 covered. The building in this state would resemble an 
 umbrella ; the column, which may be supposed to have 
 passed through the roof 1 , being represented by the handle 
 or stick. It is a curious circumstance that the prytaneum 
 at Athens was termed both flfow and ™«j 2 ; which latter word 
 signifies an umbrella. If we can imagine a roof of this kind 
 supported on the sides with props placed in the periphery of 
 the area, the whole building will present us with the prototype 
 of that kind of temple called by Vitruvius monopteral; the 
 covering of which he terms tholus. The sepulchre of 
 Porsenna mentioned by Pliny 3 was roofed in a similar 
 manner: the account he gives of it is in the following 
 words, " supra id quadratum pyramides stant quinque, 
 quatuor in angulis, et in medio una, in imo latae pedum 
 septuagenum, ita fastigiatae, ut in summo orbis aeneus et 
 petasus 4 unus omnibus sit impositus." 
 
 a The gates of the wall. e Prothyrum. 
 
 b....The aula or great court, f..... Doors of the coenaculum. 
 
 c.c. .Portico called aithousa. g The wooden threshold, 
 
 d.d..Thalami under the h Coenaculum. 
 
 portico. i The stone threshold. 
 
 1 This supposition will explain the manner in which the cable was made to 
 surround the roof after it had been fastened to the great column. 
 
 2 2ij/xaiy£i Ss ko.) flv Tt&ga. 'Afyvaiois Xeyopevov ioAw. Suidas in V. ^Mtx,;. 
 
 3 XXXVI. 13. 
 
 4 The petasus was either a bonnet or umbrella, and was sometimes termed 
 tholia. Schol. in Theocr. Idyl. XV. 38. 
 
260 
 
 k Doors of the prodomus. r Thalami of Ulysses. 
 
 1 Apartment, over which s Ascent to the orsothyra. 
 
 was the cubiculum of t A staircase corresponding 
 
 Penelope. to the last, 
 
 m. . .Apartment, over which v Courts corresponding to 
 
 was the cubiculum of the hospitalia of a Greek 
 
 Ulysses. house, 
 
 n.n. .Apartments corresponding w... Court of the house 
 
 to the Greek oeci. corresponding to the 
 
 o Staircase to the thalami gynaeconitis of the 
 
 of Penelope. Greeks, 
 
 p Staircase to the thalami x.x.. Apartments of the 
 
 of Ulysses. domestics, 
 
 q.... Thalami of Penelope. 
 
SeetdKFkl. 
 
 Zoivrg ScuJ/t. 
 
 FiiblJif/ifdcur tJisAct i&j-ecb'.iSij, bitJ.t?ntfmjzn & C? UtternotftBr-Rotv. 
 
Sect. IT PL? 
 
 MlllLvllll 
 
 e m I n. e 
 
 _ P U1..X..IL I _ 
 
 h 
 
 b'o feet 
 
 I * 
 
 I d 
 
 tra 
 
 • • • • 
 
 Xowry Sculp. 
 
 Tubli,rh(-t1 us rheJ-ct directs, 1S14, by Zonmmm & C?£iteriw.sterHoiv. 
 
Sect.IKTl.3. 
 
 Zoivry Sculp . 
 
Sect.ir.Pl.4. 
 
 H ' ! H 
 
 11 Bl 
 
 ZofVrv Sculp. 
 
 ?iij>lishedasth&d.ctdirecte,i8z4,byZc>rt{FmMb8:C?'J?itf£rn0sfrrRotr, 
 
Sect.W.PU. 
 
 Zowrr Sculp. 
 
 FublL?hedastIie<Act directs, i.'h /. by .Longman & G? JtetemosterHow. 
 
GLOSSARY. 
 
GLOSSARY. 
 
 Abacus. The square member upon the capital of Ionic columns. 
 
 The abacus of Corinthian capitals is not a square figure ; 
 the sides, although equal, being curved inwardly. The 
 word abacus is derived from the Greek «£«& signifying a 
 small table. 
 
 Acroteria. Small pedestals at the angles and vertex of a pediment. 
 
 The gate of the Agora at Athens is the only instance in 
 which they appear in Grecian buildings. The Greek 
 word dxpwlypioy signifies the extremity, or vertex of any 
 thing, and also a promontory; in which sense the word 
 acroterium is used by Vitruvius. lib. v. c. 12. 
 
 Ampluprostyle. A temple which has a portico in both fronts. See 
 Prostyle. 
 
 Ancunes. The ornaments depending from the corona of Ionic 
 
 door-ways, against the antepagments : they were likewise 
 termed prothyrides. The Greek term «yx»'v, from which 
 the Latin ancon is derived, signifies the arm, or bend of 
 the arm. Vitruvius calls the sides of a right-angle triangle, 
 subtending the right-angle, ancones. lib. iii. c. 3. 
 
 Antae. The square pilasters terminating the walls of a temple. 
 
 "When a temple had no portico in front, two columns were 
 made to intervene between the antae ; and the aspect of 
 the temple was said to be in antis. The Greeks called 
 the antae, wapao-rafcy 3 and the temple thus constructed, mis w 
 
 vrctfm<rrd<riy. 
 
264 
 
 Antepagmenta. The three pieces constituting the frame of a door-way : 
 
 the transverse piece was sometimes called antepagmentum 
 
 superius, and supercilium. Pegmata has the same meaning. 
 
 The Greek words for the antepagmenta were, o-rdfyot and 
 
 wiy^ara: the transverse piece was sometimes distinguished 
 
 by the term vvepfopa. 
 
 Apophyge.~\ The small fascia or band at the top and base of the 
 
 Apothesis. > shaft of columns. The introduction of this member is 
 
 Apophysis.) supposed to have arisen from the use of iron rings, with 
 
 which trees, the columns of early days, Avere bound to 
 
 prevent their splitting. The Greek word diro<puy^ signifies 
 
 an escape, or remedy. 
 
 That species of temple which has its columns placed 
 widely asunder: derived from the Greek words dpuos, 
 signifying thinly placed, and <rn\os, a column. 
 
 The gutters of the cavaedium. The word area is used 
 to signify a beam of wood which has a groove, or channel, 
 hollowed in it from one end to the other. 
 
 Small rafters immediately beneath the tiles of a roof. 
 A small moulding, whose contour is circular, at the 
 neck of the shafts of columns next the apophysis. It also 
 occurs in the base of Ionic columns, and below the fasciae 
 of the Corinthian epistylium. The Greeks called the 
 dice, or pieces, with Avhich the game of the wxiv&lov was 
 played, d<rrpdyx\oi, because they were commonly formed of 
 the vertebrae, or bones of the neck. If a number of these 
 bones be strung together, they will be found to bear some 
 resemblance to the astragal at the hypotrachelium of 
 Roman columns. 
 Atrium. The court of a Roman house entered immediately from 
 
 the fauces of the vestibulum. The atrium and cavaedium 
 did not differ materially in their construction. Varro 
 makes the atrium the same as the open cavaedium of 
 Vitruvius. De ling. lat. iv. 33. In the description which 
 
 Araeostyle. 
 
 Arcae. 
 
 Asseres. 
 Astragal 
 
Axes. 
 
 265 
 
 Pliny gives of his villa, both the cavaedium and atrium 
 are mentioned. 
 
 Those timbers of a roof which form two sides of a 
 triangle, the tignum being the base. These timbers are 
 termed principals by us. 
 
 B. 
 
 Baltei. 
 
 Basilica. 
 
 The bands in the flanks of Ionic pulvinated capitals. 
 Balteum and balteus were generally used by the Romans 
 to signify the belt by which the sword or quiver was 
 suspended. 
 
 A hall of justice, in which also merchants used to 
 assemble : as in the exchange of modern days. So called 
 from the Greek /Saa-ixixai, scil. <rro<£», because kings used to sit 
 and hear causes in them, upon a raised stage which was 
 called the tribunal. 
 
 C. 
 
 Caldarium. 
 Canterii. 
 
 Capreoli. 
 
 The hot bath. The vase which supplied the hot bath 
 was likewise termed caldarium. 
 
 Beams of wood, in the frame- work of a roof, extending 
 from the ridge to the eaves; corresponding to the rafters 
 of a modern roof. The word canterii was also applied to 
 mean two inclining reeds, fixed in the ground some 
 distance asunder, and meeting at the top, for the support 
 of vines. 
 
 Those pieces in the roof which serve to prop or uphold 
 the axes, or principals. A fork inclined so as to afford 
 support to any thing was likewise termed capreolus. 
 
 M M 
 
266 
 
 Cavaedium. The court of a Roman house, which was either covered 
 
 or exposed in part to the air. See Atrium. 
 
 Cella. The body or principal part of the temple : anciently 
 
 written cela. It is thought to be derived from celandus, 
 to be concealed, or shut out from public view ; because 
 in early temples the cella could only be entered by 
 privileged individuals. 
 
 Chalcidica. Chambers attached to the basilica; they were built at 
 
 one end when the situation would admit of it. See Note 1. 
 Sect. iii. c. 1. 
 
 Columbaria. The holes left in walls for the insertion of pieces of 
 
 timber ; so called from resembling the niches of a pigeon- 
 house. The niches of a mausoleum, made to receive the 
 cineral urns, were likewise termed columbaria. 
 
 Columen. The term applied to the upright timbers of the roof, 
 
 which correspond to the modern king-posts. 
 
 Compluvium. The interval between the roofs of the porticoes which 
 
 surround the cavaedium. The rain was admitted through 
 this opening and fell upon the area below, which was 
 termed by some authors impluvium. 
 
 An apartment in the palaestra, in which sand Avas kept 
 for sprinkling the athletae, after they had been anointed. 
 The word is derived from w\s, signifying dust, or sand. 
 
 The members constituting the uppermost of the three 
 divisions of the entablature of a portico, or any other 
 building in which columns are introduced. This division 
 is termed cornice by us. See Epistylium. 
 
 Corsa. See Fascia. 
 
 Coryccum. Philologists are not determined as to the application of 
 
 that part of the palaestra which was thus called. Baldus 
 and Barbara derive the term from xwpvxiov, a small ball ; and 
 suppose it to be a room nearly corresponding to our tennis- 
 court. 
 
 Conisterium. 
 
 Corona. 
 
Cuneus. 
 
 Cymatium. 
 
 267 
 
 One division of the audience part of a theatre 
 comprehended between two adjoining scalaria, or staircases, 
 which lead from one praecinctio to another: so called 
 from its form, which resembles a wedge. The foremost 
 cunei were termed cavea prima; the middle, cavea media; 
 and the uppermost, cavea summa. The whole of the 
 audience part, exclusive of the orchestra, was likewise 
 called cavea. 
 
 An undulated moulding, the profile of which resembles 
 the letter S. The term is derived from the Greek word 
 Ku^xfiov, which signifies a little wave. 
 
 D. 
 
 Decastyle. A portico consisting of ten columns in front: derived 
 
 from ftfxa, ten, and prv\o;, a column. 
 
 Denticulus. A member in the Ionic and Corinthian entablatures, 
 
 occurring between the zophorus and corona; and is, 
 properly speaking, part of the latter. So called because it 
 represents denticuli, or small teeth, placed at equal intervals 
 apart. 
 
 Diastyle. A species of building in which the columns are placed 
 
 a considerable distance asunder, which, however, is not so 
 great as in the araeostyle. Derived from ft*, through, and 
 trt6\ftu a column; because the interval allowed of a free 
 passage between the columns. 
 
 Diathyra. The vestibule before the doors of a Greek house, 
 
 corresponding with the pro thy ra of the Romans. Derived 
 from Stdj over against, and Ufa., a door-way. 
 
 Diaulon. The race course, the circuit of which was two stadia, 
 
 or twelve hundred feet; from whence it was used to 
 signify a measure of two stadia. 
 
 Diazomata. See Praecinctions. 
 
268 
 
 Dipt er os. 
 
 A temple surrounded by a double range of columns. 
 Derived from 3V and tsrifw, having two wings or ranges of 
 columns. 
 
 E. 
 
 Echinus. 
 
 Ecphora. 
 
 Entablature. 
 
 Entasis. 
 Ephebeum. 
 
 Episcenium. 
 
 Epistylium. 
 
 A member of the Doric capital, so called from its 
 resemblance to the echinus, or large vase, in which 
 drinking cups were washed. The form of the vase might 
 probably be suggested by the echinus marinus, divested 
 of its spines, and placed with the open part upwards. 
 
 The projection of any member or moulding before the 
 face of the member or moulding next below it. Derived 
 from B'xfepny, to carry forward. 
 
 Those members of a portico which were constructed 
 upon the columns; consisting of the epistylium, zophorus 
 and corona. Vitruvius uses the words ornamenta 
 columnarum to signify these members; and somtimes 
 he includes the three several parts in the term epistylia. 
 
 The swell of the shaft of columns. See note. Sect. ii. 
 c. 2. 
 
 An apartment in the palaestra, in which the youth 
 were exercised. It appears to have been a kind of exedra. 
 The Greek word *>j/3o;, from whence it is derived, signifies 
 a youth, or one arrived at years of puberty. 
 
 A division of the scene of a theatre. The scene 
 sometimes consisted of three divisions made by ranges of 
 columns one above the other. The lower was termed 
 scena, and the others episcenia. 
 
 The lower of three divisions of the entablature, or 
 superstructure upon the columns of a portico; formed by 
 pieces extending from centre to centre of two adjoining 
 columns. Derived from hi upon, and reixts, a column. 
 
Epitithides. 
 
 Eustyle. 
 
 Exedra. 
 
 269 
 
 The upper member of the corona surmounting the 
 fastigium of a temple ; which was also continued along 
 the flanks. Derived from l*ir/flij/*«, to place over. The 
 Latin term for this member is sima, which is probably 
 derived from the Greek «/*oj ; *«. «^a being sometimes put 
 for places difficult of access. It does not appear improbable 
 that the Latin word might be written cyma ; derived from 
 the Greek xv^a, a wave ; the profile of the moulding being 
 in the form of the letter S, or waved line. The term 
 cymatium, which is applied to a small moulding, whose 
 profile is similar, is evidently derived from xu^dnov, a 
 diminutive of xu/t«. 
 
 That species of temple which, from the proportion of 
 the diameter of the columns and their intervals, was 
 thought to possess the greatest beauty. Derived from 
 bS, graceful, and rti\*s, a column. 
 
 The portico of the Grecian palaestra in which 
 disputations of the learned were held: so called from 
 its containing a number of Ztyau, or seats. In private houses 
 the exedrae were rooms for conversation; and were 
 generally open, like the pastas, or vestibule, of a Greek 
 house. Pollux makes the exedra and pastas synonymous 
 terms. See note on the word Pastas. Sect. iii. c. 10. 
 
 F. 
 
 Fasciae. 
 
 The bands, of which the epistylium of the Ionic and 
 Corinthian orders is composed. The antepagments of 
 Ionic door-ways were likewise divided into three fasciae or 
 corsae* Fasciae were bands, which the Romans were 
 accustomed to bind round the legs. The word corsa was 
 probably derived from xo'/smj, the temple of the head; which 
 might have given the term to the fillets, or bands, with 
 
270 
 
 which the Roman women were accustomed to bind the 
 temples, or head. Amongst the ornaments of the head 
 Pollux mentions the <rr?i$m, which was a zone or girdle, 
 lib. iv. 15. 
 
 Fastigium. The pediment of a portico ; so called because it followed 
 
 the form of the roof, which was made like a triangle ; the 
 sides being equally inclined to carry off the water. This part 
 of the portico was termed by the Greeks air^jxa, from dkos, 
 an eagle; because the outline resembled that of an eagle 
 with its wings extended. 
 
 Femur. The plane space between the cavities of a triglyph ; the 
 
 word signifies a thigh. The Greek term for this part of 
 the triglyph was m?Is, which has the same signification. 
 
 Frigidarium. The cold bath. The reservoir of cold water in the 
 
 hypocaustum, or stove room, was termed ahenum 
 frigidarium. 
 
 G. 
 
 Guttae. 
 
 Gynaeconitis. 
 
 Ornaments resembling drops, placed in the epistylium 
 of the Doric order below the triglyphs. They occur 
 likewise in the under face of the mutules in the Doric 
 corona. They are supposed to have originated from the 
 intention to represent drops of water, which, running off 
 the roof, adhered to the under surface of the canterii, or 
 rafters, of early buildings. Vitruvius is silent as to the 
 form which is to be given to the drops; they were 
 sometimes of a cylindrical shape, and sometimes conical. 
 
 That part of the Greek house to which the women were 
 allowed to have free access. It was also called gynaeceum, 
 from the Greek word ywcuwos, appropriated to women. The 
 andronitides were those courts in which were the libraries, 
 picture galleries and banqueting rooms ; which the women 
 were forbidden by custom to approach. 
 
271 
 
 Hexastyle. 
 Hospitalia. 
 
 Hypaethral. 
 
 H. 
 
 A portico which has six columns in front. Derived 
 from lh six in number, and vrixos, a column. 
 
 The door-ways in the scene of a theatre on the right 
 and left of the valvae regiae, or principal door-way. So 
 called because the moveable scenes, representing inns, or 
 places appropriated for the reception of strangers, were 
 generally placed near them. 
 
 A temple whose cella was in part exposed to the air. 
 These temples had a double range of columns within the 
 cella, dividing it into three alae or aisles. The alae 
 on either side were roofed, but that in the middle had no 
 covering. The term is derived from faoufyos, signifying, open 
 to the sky. 
 
 That part of the frame of a door-way which was over 
 the supercilium, or transverse antepagment. Derived 
 from Sitsp, above, and Sv§«., a door-way. 
 
 The stove-room of a bath in which was placed the 
 praefurnium, or furnace, for heating the caldaria. The 
 term is derived from uVo, below, and wxtew, to kindle. 
 Hypotrachelium. That part of the capital of a column which occurs 
 between the shaft and the annulets of the echinus. Derived 
 from iiro, below, and fpdx^os, the neck. In the Ionic order 
 the hypotrachelium is no member of the column ; but 
 merely means the point of junction between the capital 
 and the shaft. 
 
 Hyperthyrum. 
 
 Hypocaustum. 
 
 I. 
 
 Impages. 
 
 The horizontal parts of the framerwork of doors; which 
 with us are termed rails. 
 
Interpensivae. 
 
 272 
 
 Timbers in the roof of the cavaedium; extending in a 
 diagonal direction from the angles, made by the walls of 
 the court, to the angles made by the junction of the 
 beams supporting the roof. They were used to carry 
 colliquiae, or gutters. 
 
 L. 
 
 Laconicum. A circular stove for the purpose of heating the sudatories, 
 
 or sweating rooms, of a bath. The use of the dry bath is 
 said to have been prevalent amongst the Lacedemonians. 
 The term is derived from Laconia, the country inhabited 
 by that people. 
 
 Lacunaria. The ceiling of the ambulatory around the cella of a 
 
 temple, or of the portico. The beams, which extended 
 from the walls to the entablature, were intersected by 
 others ranged longitudinally: the scmare spaces made by 
 these intersecting beams were contracted towards the top, 
 and were sometimes closed with single stones, which might 
 occasionally be removed. 
 
 Logeam and \tyhw. The pulpitum, or wooden stage, of a theatre placed 
 upon the proscenium, or permanent stage. In the Greek 
 theatre the pulpitum extended into the orchestra beyond 
 the proscenium ; and was only used during the recitation 
 of dramatic performances. 
 
 Lysis. Some member above the corona of a podium ; introduced 
 
 in temples and in the scene of a theatre. Perhaps derived 
 from d\v<rn, a band. 
 
 M. 
 
 Maeniana. Seats in the upper porticoes of the forum, from whence 
 
 the spectators used to behold the shew of gladiators. 
 
273 
 
 Mesaulac. 
 Metoche. 
 
 Metopae. 
 
 Monopteral. 
 
 Monotriglyph. 
 
 Mutules. 
 
 The maeniana were probably the divisions comprised between, 
 two columns of the upper porticoes, corresponding to the 
 boxes of a modern theatre. They were called maeniana 
 after Maenius, who, when he sold his house adjoining the 
 forum, is said to have reserved to himself the right of one 
 column, or, more properly speaking, an extent of front 
 from one column to the next adjoining; whence he might 
 view the exhibitions in the forum. There is an inscription 
 given by Marangoni in his Dissertatione delle memoire sacre 
 eprofane del Anfiteatro Flavio, published in Rome 1746: 
 in which the word menianum occurs three times. It there 
 means the several ranges of seats. 
 
 The middle courts of a Greek house; situated between 
 the courts of the andronitis and gynaeconitis. 
 
 The intervals between two denticuli in the Ionic 
 entablature. The Greek word fMfojrf signifies the act of 
 partaking in common with others ; which meaning seems 
 to have no reference to the interval between the denticuli. 
 Perhaps oxk, which signifies a stay, may be allowed to apply 
 to the asseres, or rafters of a roof; the projecting ends of 
 which the denticuli may be said to represent. See 
 Metopae. 
 
 The spaces between two triglyphs in the Doric entablature. 
 Derived from ^ra, between, and wif, the cubilia, or places 
 upon which the beams rest. 
 
 A temple which has no cella, but consists of columns 
 disposed in the form of a circle, covered with a conical 
 roof. Derived from pww, only, and mrepov, a wing, or range 
 of columns. 
 
 The interval observed between the columns of a Doric 
 portico, when a space was left sufficient for the insertion 
 of one triglyph only, between those immediately over two 
 contiguous columns. Derived from peW, one, and fp(y\v<po^ 
 
 Ornaments in the Doric corona placed over every triglyph 
 
 N I* 
 
274 
 
 and over the centre of each of the metopae. In the under 
 surface there are eighteen guttae, or drops, arranged in 
 three rows. 
 
 O. 
 
 Octostylos. A portico which has eight columns in front. Derived 
 
 from cWt«, eight, and oyuaoj, a column. 
 
 Odeum. A small theatre for the recitation of musical compositions : 
 
 generally in the neighbourhood of the theatre. The odeum 
 at Athens was contiguous to the theatre of Bacchus. The 
 odeum at Pompeii also adjoins the theatre. 
 
 Oecus. The banqueting room of a Roman house. There were 
 
 several kinds of oeci ; viz. Corinthian, Tetrastyle, Cyzicene, 
 and Egyptian. In the Greek house the oeci were spacious 
 apartments, in which the mistress of the family employed 
 herself and servants at the loom. The word is derived from 
 the Greek o«o?, which was generally used to signify the 
 whole house. 
 
 Opae. The cubilia, or beds, of the beams of a roof. See 
 
 Metopae. 
 
 Orchestra. The area of the theatre comprised between the lower 
 
 range of seats and the proscenium. In the Roman theatre 
 the orchestra was appropriated to the senators ; but in the 
 theatres of the Greeks the orchestra was the scene of action 
 of the dancers, who were termed opxurrw, or wx.wrws '> whence 
 the term «>arf<nyia is derived. 
 
275 
 
 P. 
 
 Palaestra. 
 
 Paradromides. 
 
 Parastatae. 
 
 Periacti. 
 
 Peripteral, 
 
 Peristyle. 
 Pilae. 
 
 Pinacotheca. 
 Plinth. 
 
 A building amongst the Greeks; appropriated to the 
 rehearsal and exhibition of gymnastic sports. Derived 
 from waxij, the exercise of wrestling. 
 
 Hypaethral walks attached to the Greek palaestra. The 
 Romans called these walls xysta: whereas the xysta of 
 the Greeks were covered porticoes, in which the athletae 
 used to exercise in winter. The term is derived from &apa, 
 near, and fyopj, the course. 
 
 Square columns, or antae; called also parastades and 
 parastaticae. Vitruvius uses the term to signify the square 
 posts placed behind the columns of the basilica for the 
 support of the floors of the upper porticoes. 
 
 The revolving scenes of the theatre, called by the Romans 
 scenae versatiles. They were placed before the itinera 
 versurarum, or those entrances to the stage which were in 
 the returns of the permanent scene; the term is derived 
 from the Greek ■mspidyeiv, to revolve. 
 
 A temple which had its cella surrounded by columns. 
 Derived from vrepl, around, and mrepw, a wing, or range of 
 columns. 
 
 A portico which surrounds an open court. • It also 
 signifies the porticoes surrounding a temple. 
 
 Square blocks placed upon the epistylia, immediately 
 over the columns in basilicae ; for supporting the timbers 
 of the roof. Pilae were also buttresses built against the 
 walls of a mole, to resist the force of the water. 
 
 The picture gallery of a Roman palace: derived from 
 the Greek wha%, a picture, and ifa, a repository. 
 
 The square footing below the bases of Ionic and 
 Corinthian columns. In Grecian architecture plinths do 
 
276 
 
 Pluteus. 
 
 Podium. 
 
 Praecinctiones. 
 
 Pronaos. 
 
 Proscenium. 
 
 not appear to have been employed, the bases of the 
 columns resting upon the upper step of the building. The 
 Latin word plinthus is derived from the Greek vtivfos, which 
 signifies a tile. 
 
 The wall which was sometimes made use of to close 
 the intervals between the columns of a building ; and was 
 either of stone, or some material less durable. The latter 
 method was adopted only in places under cover, whence 
 that kind of building was called opus intestinum. The 
 pluteus was also a kind of podium intervening between 
 any two orders of columns placed one above the other. 
 The word is used in this sense in the descriptions of the 
 basilica and the scene of the theatre. The pluteus has 
 been adopted between every two orders of columns in the 
 exterior of all the theatres and amphitheatres of the Romans 
 which are known to us. 
 
 The raised stylobate of a temple ; consisting of a plinth, 
 base, die, corona and lysis; which were continued without 
 interruption around three sides of the building. The 
 podium was also adopted in the scenes of theatres; and 
 here, instead of being uninterrupted, it was frequently 
 broken round the bases of the columns; and formed what 
 are commonly called pedestals. 
 
 The passages or corridores which separated the several 
 ranges of seats in the Roman theatre. They are likewise 
 termed baltei, or belts. These divisions were termed 
 fcafupwa by the Greeks. 
 
 The area immediately before the mis, or temple itself. 
 It is often put for the portico in front of the building. The 
 posticus in one front corresponded to the pronaos in the 
 other: in some temples the cella was approached through 
 both. The generality of Grecian temples had two 
 approaches. 
 
 The area in front of the scene of the theatre, which was 
 
277 
 
 Prostyle. 
 
 Prothyrides. 
 
 Prothyrum. 
 
 Psendodipteral. 
 
 Pteroma. 
 
 Pulpitum. 
 
 Pycnostyk. 
 
 seen when the pulpitum was removed: when, it is probable, 
 the temporary scenes were taken away, in order to exhibit 
 the front of the permanent scene. 
 
 A temple which has a portico in one front, consisting of 
 insulated columns with their entablature and fastigium. 
 Derived from wpo, before, and elites', a column. "When 
 the temple had a portico in both fronts it was termed 
 amphiprostyle, or prostyle in all fronts; from «>?}, on all 
 sides, and ■a^arix^. 
 
 See Ancones. 
 
 See Diathyra. 
 
 A temple which has a single range of columns in the 
 flanks at the same distance from the walls of the cella as 
 although the temple had been dipteral. Derived from 
 tWSw, to deceive, and siwtspos. 
 
 The spaces between the walls of the cella of a temple 
 and the columns of the peristyle: called also ambulatio. 
 Derived from vrrepw, which word was applied to signify 
 a range of columns. 
 
 The wooden stage of the theatre, upon which the mimic, 
 as well as dramatic, exhibitions of the Romans were 
 represented. In the Greek theatre the pulpitum was used 
 only by the histriones, or performers in the drama; and 
 was probably removed before the amusements of the 
 orchestra were exhibited. 
 
 A species of temple in which the diameter of the columns 
 was great in proportion to the intervals. Derived from 
 ■mmvls, dense, or thick, and atixos. 
 
 Q. 
 
 Quadrae. 
 
 The bands or fillets of the Ionic base : between which 
 
273 
 
 the scotia, or hollow, occurs. The quadra also means 
 the plinth, or lower member, of the podium. 
 Quadrifores. Folding doors whose height was divided into two. Folding 
 
 doors which opened in one height were termed fores 
 valvatae, or valvae. Vitruvius directs the door-ways to be 
 made wider when these were used : and the height to be 
 increased when the folding doors were divided in height. 
 The bifores of Vitruvius were two single doors. See the 
 note upon the fores valvatae, Sect. 11. c. 6. 
 
 R. 
 
 Regula. 
 
 Replum. 
 
 A band below the taenia of the Doric epistylium, 
 extending the width of the triglyph; and having six guttae 
 depending from it. It also signifies the space between two 
 adjoining canals of the triglyphs. The words femur and 
 mp°s have the same signification. 
 
 The pannel of the impages, or horizontal rails, of a framed 
 door. See the explanation of Plate ix. Sect. 11. 
 
 S. 
 
 Scatnillus. A small plinth below the bases of Ionic and Corinthian 
 
 columns. See the explanation of Plate v. Sect. 1 . 
 
 Scena. The permanent architectural front which faced the 
 
 audience part of the theatre. It sometimes consisted of 
 three several ranges of columns one above the other. 
 
 Schola. The margin or platform surrounding the bath. It was 
 
 occupied by those who waited until the bath was cleared. 
 The schola was also a portico, corresponding to the 
 exedra of the Greek palaestra, and was intended for the 
 
279 
 
 Scotia. 
 
 Sima. 
 Stadium. 
 
 Stylobate 
 Stereobatc 
 
 .1 
 
 Supercilium. 
 
 Systyle. 
 
 accommodation of the learned, who were accustomed to 
 assemble and converse there. 
 
 The hollow moulding in the bases of Ionic columns. 
 Derived from the Greek word <ntoViOf, signifying shady; 
 because, from being hollow, part of it is always in shadow. 
 The scotia is likewise a groove or channel cut in the 
 projecting angle of the Doric corona. The Greeks termed 
 the scotia of the base tpox^w, which signifies the groove in 
 a wheel or pulley. 
 
 See Epitithides. 
 
 Part of a Greek palaestra. Its plan was similar to that 
 of the Roman circus. The athletae used to be exercised 
 in the stadium ; which was provided with seats rising one 
 above the other for the accommodation of spectators. 
 
 The substructure of a temple below the columns; 
 sometimes formed of three steps, which were continued 
 around the peristyle; and sometimes of walls raised to a 
 considerable height ; in which case it was approached by a 
 flight of steps at one end. 
 
 The transverse antepagment of a door-way. The word 
 is also used to denote the small fillets, or bands, above and 
 below the scotia of the Ionic base. 
 
 That species of temple in which the proportion of the 
 intervals to the diameter of the columns was greater than 
 in the pycnostyle. 
 
 T. 
 
 Tablinum. 
 
 Taenia. 
 
 An apartment of a Roman house which was entered 
 immediately from the atrium. In this room records were 
 preserved in cases ; and the hereditary statues were placed. 
 
 The band or fillet surmounting the Doric epistylium. 
 
280 
 
 Templa. 
 
 Tetrants. 
 
 Tetrastyle. 
 
 Tholus. 
 
 Thyroma. 
 
 Thyroreum. 
 
 Certain timbers introduced in the roofs of temples : they 
 were placed upon the canterii, or principal rafters, extending 
 the whole length of the temple from one fastigium to the 
 other. They correspond in situation and use with our 
 purlins. 
 
 The four equal parts into which the area of a circle is 
 divided by two diameters drawn at right angles to each 
 other. 
 
 A portico consisting of four columns. A cavaedium 
 was called tetrastyle when the beams of the compluvium 
 were supported by columns placed over against the four 
 angles of the court. 
 
 An appellation given to all buildings of a circular form. 
 Vitruvius uses it to signify the roof of a circular building. 
 IV. 7- VII. 5. Suidas says the building at Athens, where 
 the Prytanes used to assemble, was termed 8i\os t on account 
 of its circular form. A circular building at Epidauria was 
 likewise termed M\os. The laconicum of a bath was also 
 called flo'xoy, and is described as being of a circular form. 
 The word fiox/* was also used to signify the bonnet or 
 petasus. In the fifteenth Idyllium of Theocritus, Praxinoe 
 demands her cloak and Soxlx, which either meant an umbrella 
 or bonnet. The scholiast upon the passage informs us that 
 the petasus and umbrella were both named fioxia, from their 
 resemblance to the flo'xoj. Pollux informs us that the floAfc 
 was a plaited shade, which women were accustomed to use 
 before umbrellas were invented. VII. 23. 4. 
 
 The doors of a temple or house. The term sometimes 
 signifies not only the doors themselves but every thing 
 connected with them, whether stone or wood. Derived 
 from flu/aa, a door-way. 
 
 A passage in the houses of the Greeks ; at one end of 
 which was the entrance from abroad, and at the other the 
 
281 
 
 Tigna. 
 
 Torus. 
 Transtra. 
 
 Triclinium. 
 
 Triglyph. 
 
 Trochilus. 
 Tympanum. 
 
 door-way leading to the peristyle. Derived from 8u>*, a door- 
 way, and oSpos, a keeper; because on one side of the passage- 
 were the apartments of the porter. 
 
 The principal timbers of a roof extending across the 
 temple: in contradistinction to the trabes, which were 
 timbers placed upon the columns or walls in the same 
 direction with them. The tigna correspond to our tye-beams. 
 
 The convex member of the Tuscan and Ionic bases. In 
 the Attic base there is both an upper and lower torus. 
 
 Horizontal timbers in the roof of a building. The term 
 is applied to the transverse beams of a galley which extend 
 from side to side and connect the ribs, in the same manner 
 as these horizontal pieces connect the axes, or principals, 
 of a roof. 
 
 The eating room of a Roman house, so called from the 
 Greek word xfcVij, signifying a couch ; because in general it 
 contained three couches, upon which the ancients used to 
 recline at their meals. It is also applied to the couches 
 themselves. 
 
 An ornament above the epistylium in a Doric entablature, 
 placed over every column; with sometimes one in the 
 interval between so placed, and sometimes more. The 
 word is derived from the Greek yxupk, an incision or 
 channel, of which there were three in this ornament. 
 
 See Scotia. 
 
 The triangular pannel of the fastigium of any building, 
 comprehended between its corona and that of the entablature. 
 The pannels of a framed door were likewise called tympana* 
 
 Vestibulum. Part of the andronitis of a Greek house ; similar, pro- 
 
 bably, to the prostas of the first peristyle or court. The 
 
 o o 
 
282 
 
 vestibulum also means the portico in front of a Roman 
 house. 
 Volute. An ornament of the Ionic capital, in form like a spiral. 
 
 The introduction of volutes is said by Vitruvius to have 
 arisen from an imitation of the mode in which women 
 were formerly accustomed to ornament their hair. But 
 they are thought, with greater probability, to have 
 represented the horns of the Ammonian Jupiter. In early 
 days the statues of the heathen deities were merely blocks; 
 which, as the arts progressively advanced, were rounded 
 into columns, and afterwards a representation of the human 
 head was sculptured upon them; so that they resembled 
 the termini of later ages. Small volutes occur in the 
 capitals of Corinthian columns; they are said to be in 
 imitation of the spiral tendrils in the stalk of the acanthus ; 
 which plant first suggested the introduction of leaves in 
 the capitals of columns. 
 
 Xystus. See Paradromides. 
 
 Z. 
 
 Zophorus. The centre of the three divisions of the entablature over 
 
 Ionic and Corinthian columns ; having the epistylium 
 below and the corona above it. The word is derived from 
 the Greek gwoipopw, which is compounded of ffiw , an animal, 
 and <pejui 9 to bear: because the representation of animals 
 and men were frequently sculptured in this member. With 
 us it is termed frize. 
 
 THE END. 
 
T. DAVISON, LOMBAHD-STREEVWHITEFRIAItSj 
 LONDON. 
 
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 15510