An architectural order describes a style of building.

In classical architecture each order

is readily identifiable by means of its proportions and profiles, as well as by various
aesthetic details. The style of column employed serves as a useful index of the style
itself, so identifying the order of the column will then, in turn, situate the order
employed in the structure as a whole. The classical orders—described by the labels
Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian—do not merely serve as descriptors for the remains of
ancient buildings, but as an index to the architectural and aesthetic development of
Greek architecture itself.

The Doric order

Doric order

The Doric order is the earliest of the three Classical orders of architecture and
represents an important moment in Mediterranean architecture when monumental
construction made the transition from impermanent materials (i.e. wood) to
permanent materials, namely stone. The Doric order is characterized by a plain,
unadorned column capital and a column that rests directly on the stylobate of the
temple without a base. The Doric entablature includes a frieze composed of trigylphs
(vertical plaques with three divisions) and metopes (square spaces for either painted or
sculpted decoration). The columns are fluted and are of sturdy, if not stocky,
proportions.
Iktinos and Kallikrates, The Parthenon, 447 – 432 B.C.E., Athens

The Doric order emerged on the Greek mainland during the course of the late seventh
century B.C.E. and remained the predominant order for Greek temple construction
through the early fifth century B.C.E., although notable buildings of the Classical period
—especially the canonical Parthenon in Athens—still employ it. By 575 B.C.E the order
may be properly identified, with some of the earliest surviving elements being the
metope plaques from the Temple of Apollo at Thermon. Other early, but fragmentary,
examples include the sanctuary of Hera at Argos, votive capitals from the island of
Aegina, as well as early Doric capitals that were a part of the Temple of Athena Pronaia
at Delphi in central Greece. The Doric order finds perhaps its fullest expression in the
Parthenon (c. 447-432 B.C.E.) at Athens designed by Iktinos and Kallikrates.

The Ionic order

Ionic capital, north porch of the Erechtheion, 421-407 B.C.E., marble, Acropolis, Athens

Ionic order
As its names suggests, the Ionic Order originated in Ionia, a coastal region of central
Anatolia (today Turkey) where a number of ancient Greek settlements were located.
Volutes (scroll-like ornaments) characterize the Ionic capital and a base supports the
column, unlike the Doric order. The Ionic order developed in Ionia during the mid-sixth
century B.C.E. and had been transmitted to mainland Greece by the fifth century B.C.E.
Among the earliest examples of the Ionic capital is the inscribed votive column from
Naxos, dating to the end of the seventh century B.C.E.

The monumental temple dedicated to Hera on the island of Samos, built by the
architect Rhoikos
c. 570-560 B.C.E., was  the first of the great Ionic buildings, although it was destroyed by
earthquake in short order. The sixth century B.C.E. Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, a
wonder of the ancient world, was also an Ionic design. In Athens the Ionic order
influences some elements of the Parthenon (447-432 B.C.E.), notably the Ionic frieze
that encircles the cella of the temple. Ionic columns are also employed in the interior of
the monumental gateway to the Acropolis known as the Propylaia (c. 437-432 B.C.E.).
The Ionic was promoted to an exterior order in the construction of the Erechtheion (c.
421-405 B.C.E.) on the Athenian Acropolis (image below).

North porch of the Erechtheion, 421-407 B.C.E., marble, Acropolis, Athens

The Ionic order is notable for its graceful proportions, giving a more slender and
elegant profile than the Doric order. The ancient Roman architect Vitruvius compared
the Doric module to a sturdy, male body, while the Ionic was possessed of more
graceful, feminine proportions. The Ionic order incorporates a running frieze of
continuous sculptural relief, as opposed to the Doric frieze composed of triglyphs and
metopes.

The Greek orders

The Corinthian order

Corinthian capital

The Corinthian order is both the latest and the most elaborate of the Classical orders of
architecture. The order was employed in both Greek and Roman architecture, with
minor variations, and gave rise, in turn, to the Composite order. As the name suggests,
the origins of the order were connected in antiquity with the Greek city-state of Corinth
where, according to the architectural writer Vitruvius, the sculptor Callimachus drew a
set of acanthus leaves surrounding a votive basket (Vitr. 4.1.9-10). In archaeological
terms the earliest known Corinthian capital comes from the Temple of Apollo Epicurius
at Bassae and dates to c. 427 B.C.E.
Acanthus leaf

The defining element of the Corinthian order is its elaborate, carved capital, which
incorporates even more vegetal elements than the Ionic order does. The stylized,
carved leaves of an acanthus plant grow around the capital, generally terminating just
below the abacus. The Romans favored the Corinthian order, perhaps due to its
slender properties. The order is employed in numerous notable Roman architectural
monuments, including the Temple of Mars Ultor and the Pantheon in Rome, and the
Maison Carrée in Nîmes.

Legacy of the Greek architectural canon

The canonical Greek architectural orders have exerted influence on architects and their
imaginations for thousands of years. While Greek architecture played a key role in
inspiring the Romans, its legacy also stretches far beyond antiquity. When James
“Athenian” Stuart and Nicholas Revett visited Greece during the period from 1748 to
1755 and subsequently published The Antiquities of Athens and Other Monuments of
Greece (1762) in London, the Neoclassical revolution was underway. Captivated by
Stuart and Revett’s measured drawings and engravings, Europe suddenly demanded
Greek forms. Architects the likes of Robert Adam drove the Neoclassical movement,
creating buildings like Kedleston Hall, an English country house in Kedleston,
Derbyshire. Neoclassicism even jumped the Atlantic Ocean to North America,
spreading the rich heritage of Classical architecture even further—and making the
Greek architectural orders not only extremely influential, but eternal.

Greek architecture followed a highly structured system of proportions that relates individual
architectural components to the whole building. This system was developed according to three styles, or
orders. Each order consists of an upright support called a column that extends from a base at the
bottom to a shaft in the middle and a capital at the top — much like the feet, body, and head of the
human figure. The capital was often a stylized representation of natural forms, such as animal horns or
plant leaves. It, in turn, supports a horizontal element called the entablature, which is divided further
into three different parts:
Arsitektur Yunani mengikuti sistem proporsi yang sangat terstruktur yang menghubungkan komponen arsitektur
individu dengan seluruh bangunan. Sistem ini dikembangkan sesuai dengan tiga gaya, atau pesanan. Setiap pesanan
terdiri dari dukungan tegak yang disebut kolom yang memanjang dari dasar di bawah ke poros di tengah dan modal
di bagian atas - seperti kaki, tubuh, dan kepala sosok manusia. Ibukotanya sering merupakan representasi bentuk-
bentuk alami, seperti tanduk binatang atau daun tanaman. Ini, pada gilirannya, mendukung elemen horizontal yang
disebut entablature, yang dibagi lebih lanjut menjadi tiga bagian yang berbeda:

 The architrave (lowest part)

 The frieze (middle)

 The cornice (top)

These elements, in turn, were further elaborated with decorative

moldings and ornamentation (see Figure 1). Each component of a
classical order was sized and arranged according to an overall
proportioning system based on the height and diameter of the
columns.
Figure 1: Parts of a column.

The Greeks first constructed their orders with wood, and then
switched to stone using the same forms. The ends of the wooden
beams holding up the roof, for example, were translated into stone as
a decorative element, called a triglyph(“three grooves”), in the
entablature above the column capital.

The Greeks started out using only one order per building. But after a
few hundred years, they got more creative and sometimes used one
order for the exterior and another for the interior. The proportions of
the orders were developed over a long period of time — they became
lighter and more refined.

Some folks think that the orders are primarily a question of details,
moldings, and characteristic capitals. However, in fact, the very
concept of order and an overall relationship is really the most
important thing here. Each of the orders is a proportional system or a
range of proportions for the entire structure.
DORIC: HEAVY SIMPLICITY
The oldest, simplest, and most massive of the three Greek orders is
the Doric,which was applied to temples beginning in the 7th century
B.C. As shown in Figure 2, columns are placed close together and are
often without bases. Their shafts are sculpted with concave curves
called flutes. The capitals are plain with a rounded section at the
bottom, known as the echinus, and a square at the top, called
the abacus. The entablature has a distinctive frieze decorated with
vertical channels, or triglyphs. In between the triglyphs are spaces,
called metopes, which were commonly sculpted with figures and
ornamentation. The frieze is separated from the architrave by a
narrow band called the regula. Together, these elements formed a
rectangular structure surrounded by a double row of columns that
conveyed a bold unity. The Doric order reached its pinnacle of
perfection in the Parthenon.
Figure 2: Doric order.

IONIC: THE IONIC SEA SCROLLS?

The next order to be developed by the Greeks was the Ionic (see
Figure 3). It is called Ionic because it developed in the Ionian islands
in the 6th century B.C. Roman historian Vitruvius compared this
delicate order to a female form, in contrast to the stockier “male” Doric
order.

The Ionic was used for smaller buildings and interiors. It’s easy to
recognize because of the two scrolls, called volutes, on its capital. The
volutes may have been based on nautilus shells or animal horns.

Between the volutes is a curved section that is often carved with oval
decorations known as egg and dart. Above the capital, the entablature
is narrower than the Doric, with a frieze containing a continuous band
of sculpture. One of the earliest and most striking examples of the
Ionic order is the tiny Temple to Athena Nike at the entrance to the
Athens Acropolis. It was designed and built by Callicrates from about
448-421 B.C.

Figure 3: Ionic order.

CORINTHIAN: LEAFY BUT NOT AS

POPULAR
The third order is the Corinthian, which wasn’t used much by the
Greeks. It is named after the city of Corinth, where sculptor
Callimachus supposedly invented it by at the end of the 5th century
B.C. after he spotted a goblet surrounded by leaves. As shown in
Figure 4, the Corinthian is similar to the Ionic order in its base,
column, and entablature, but its capital is far more ornate, carved with
two tiers of curly acanthus leaves. The oldest known Corinthian
column stands inside the 5th-century temple of Apollo Epicurius at
Bassae.
Figure 4: Corinthian order.
COMPENSATING FOR ILLUSIONS:
STRAIGHT OR CURVED, WHO KNEW?
The Greeks continued to strive for perfection in the appearance of
their buildings. To make their columns look straight, they bowed them
slightly outward to compensate for the optical illusion that makes
vertical lines look curved from a distance. They named this
effect entasis, which means “to strain” in Greek.

Relationships between columns, windows, doorways, and other

elements were constantly analyzed to find pleasing dimensions that
were in harmony with nature and the human body. Symmetry and the
unity of parts to the whole were important to Greek architecture, as
these elements reflected the democratic city-state pioneered by the
Greek civilization.
The architrave (bagian terendah)
The frieze (tengah)
The cornice (atas)
Unsur-unsur ini, pada gilirannya, lebih lanjut diuraikan dengan cetakan dekoratif dan
 ornamentasi (lihat Gambar 1). Setiap komponen ordo klasik berukuran dan disusun berdasarkan sistem proporsi
keseluruhan berdasarkan tinggi dan diameter kolom.

Gambar 1: Bagian dari kolom.

Orang-orang Yunani pertama membangun pesanan mereka dengan kayu, dan kemudian beralih ke batu
menggunakan bentuk yang sama. Ujung-ujung balok kayu yang menahan atap, misalnya, diterjemahkan ke dalam
batu sebagai elemen dekoratif, yang disebut triglif ("tiga alur"), dalam entablature di atas ibukota kolom.

Orang Yunani mulai menggunakan hanya satu pesanan per bangunan. Tapi setelah beberapa ratus tahun, mereka
menjadi lebih kreatif dan kadang-kadang menggunakan satu pesanan untuk eksterior dan satu lagi untuk interior.
Proporsi pesanan dikembangkan selama periode waktu yang panjang - mereka menjadi lebih ringan dan lebih halus.

Beberapa orang berpikir bahwa pesanan terutama merupakan pertanyaan detail, cetakan, dan karakteristik ibukota.
Namun, pada kenyataannya, konsep keteraturan dan hubungan secara keseluruhan adalah hal yang paling penting di
sini. Setiap pesanan adalah sistem proporsional atau berbagai proporsi untuk seluruh struktur.

DORIC: SIMPLICITY HEAVY

Yang paling tua, paling sederhana, dan paling masif dari tiga ordo Yunani adalah Doric, yang diterapkan pada kuil-
kuil yang dimulai pada abad ke-7 SM. Seperti yang ditunjukkan pada Gambar 2, kolom ditempatkan berdekatan dan
sering tanpa basis. Poros mereka diukir dengan kurva cekung yang disebut seruling. Ibu kotanya polos dengan
bagian membulat di bagian bawah, yang dikenal sebagai echinus, dan persegi di bagian atas, yang disebut sempoa.
The entablature memiliki dekorasi khas dihiasi dengan saluran vertikal, atau triglif. Di antara triglif adalah ruang,
yang disebut metopes, yang umumnya terpahat dengan figur dan ornamen. Frieze dipisahkan dari architrave oleh
band sempit yang disebut regula. Bersama-sama, elemen-elemen ini membentuk struktur persegi panjang yang
dikelilingi oleh dua baris kolom yang menyampaikan kesatuan yang berani. Doric order mencapai puncak
kesempurnaan di Parthenon
Gambar 2: Urutan Doric.
IONIC: GELOMBANG LAUT IONON?
Urutan berikutnya yang dikembangkan oleh orang-orang Yunani adalah Ionic (lihat Gambar 3). Disebut Ionic
karena dikembangkan di kepulauan Ionia pada abad ke-6 SM. Sejarawan Romawi, Vitruvius membandingkan urutan
rumit ini dengan bentuk perempuan, berbeda dengan perintah Doric "laki-laki".

Ionik digunakan untuk bangunan dan interior yang lebih kecil. Mudah dikenali karena dua gulungan, disebut
volutes, pada ibukotanya. Volute mungkin didasarkan pada cangkang nautilus atau tanduk binatang.

Di antara untaian adalah bagian melengkung yang sering diukir dengan dekorasi oval yang dikenal sebagai telur dan
anak panah. Di atas ibu kota, entablature lebih sempit daripada Doric, dengan dekorasi yang berisi kumpulan patung
kontinyu. Salah satu contoh paling awal dan paling mencolok dari tatanan ionik adalah Kuil kecil untuk Athena
Nike di pintu masuk ke Athens Acropolis. Ini dirancang dan dibangun oleh Callicrates dari sekitar 448-421 B.C.
Gambar 4: Urutan Korintus.
KOMPENSASI UNTUK ILUSTRASI: LURUS ATAU MELENGKUNG, SIAPA YANG TAHU?
Orang Yunani terus berusaha untuk kesempurnaan dalam penampilan bangunan mereka. Untuk membuat kolom
mereka terlihat lurus, mereka membungkuk sedikit ke luar untuk mengimbangi ilusi optik yang membuat garis
vertikal terlihat melengkung dari kejauhan. Mereka menamakan entropi efek ini, yang berarti "membebani" dalam
bahasa Yunani.

Hubungan antara kolom, jendela, pintu, dan elemen lainnya secara konstan dianalisis untuk menemukan dimensi
menyenangkan yang selaras dengan alam dan tubuh manusia. Kesimetrian dan kesatuan bagian-bagian secara
keseluruhan penting bagi arsitektur Yunani, karena elemen-elemen ini mencerminkan negara-kota demokrasi yang
dipelopori oleh peradaban Yunani.

Gambar 3: Ionic order.

CORINTHIAN: LEAFY TAPI TIDAK SEBAGAI POPULER
Urutan ketiga adalah Korintus, yang tidak banyak digunakan oleh orang Yunani. Dinamai setelah kota Korintus, di
mana pematung Callimachus konon menciptakannya pada akhir abad ke-5 SM. setelah dia melihat piala dikelilingi
oleh dedaunan. Seperti yang ditunjukkan pada Gambar 4, Korintus mirip dengan oron Ionic dalam basis, kolom, dan
entablature, tetapi modalnya jauh lebih banyak hiasan, diukir dengan dua tingkatan daun acanthus keriting. Kolom
Korintus tertua yang diketahui berdiri di dalam kuil Apollo Epicurius abad ke-5 di Bassae.