Quezi

Modern Corinthian splendor, U.S. Supreme Court - courtesy Rob Crawley - CC-BY

The Corinthian Order is named for city of Corinth in Greece though most of its development was in ancient Athens.  The foliage surrounding the capital represents acanthus leaves.

Legend has it that the idea came from seeing a basket sitting on an acanthus plant.

It was also the latest of the Classical Orders, not arriving at full development until the middle of the 4th cent. B.C.

The oldest known example of a Corinthian column is in the Temple of Apollo Epicurius.  Surprisingly it is not part of the order of the temple itself, which is Doric on the outer face and Ionic within the sanctuary enclosure.

In the center of the sanctuary, a single Corinthian column stands alone, supporting nothing.  It was perhaps a votive column, though archaeologists and historians are not sure.

The Corinthian Order was at first considered a variation of the Ionic Order as it copied all the details of that order with the exception of the more decorative capital.

Though Greek in origin, is was only sparingly used by them.  It was the Romans who developed its use to the fullest and several Roman variations exist.

The column base, shaft and entablature of the Corinthian Order are quite similar to those of the Ionic Order,  and just as the Ionic Order, the entablature incorporated dentils.  In several Roman examples, a band of brackets normally not found in Ionic were added to give extra support to the projecting cornice.  Another major difference is that Romans generally used smooth – as opposed to fluted – shafts.

In Byzantine usage, the leaves may be blown sideways, as if by the wind of Faith.  This interpretation only came about after the Eastern Roman Empire adopted Christianity.

The Corinthian Order is still widely used today on government and other public buildings, as well as many large private residences.

For more information about Classical Architecture