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Types of Greek Architecture

Greek architecture contains three basic styles—the Doric style, the Ionic style and the Corinthian style. Architects and historians refer to these styles as orders. Though similar in some respects, each order uses specific details and proportions that differentiate one style from the other. A rectangle or cube served as the basic design of most Greek buildings and, because of its abundance, limestone functioned as the material of choice.

  1. Corinthian

    • Though known as a Greek architectural style the Corinthian order saw little use in Greece. The most well-known examples of this style reside in Rome. The historian Vitruvius attributes the start of the Corinthian style to an architect named Callimachus. The oldest recorded example of a Corinthian column lies at the Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae in Arcadia, ca 450 to 420 BCE. Corinthian order architecture can be identified by the ornate design at the top of its columns. Examples include the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates and the Temple of the Winds both in Athens, Greece. Of the three classic orders of Greek architecture, the Corinthian order appeared last.

    Ionic

    • The second of the Greek architectural styles became known as Ionic mainly because of its use in the town of Ionia (now the west coast of Turkey). The Temple of Hera on Samos, built by the architect Rhoikos, during 570 to 560 BCE, receives credit as the first great Ionic temple. The ancient historian and architect Vitruvius said, “Thus in the invention of the two different kinds of columns, they borrowed manly beauty, naked and unadorned for the one, and for the other the delicacy, adornment, and proportions characteristic of women.” He was describing the principals taken to form the Doric vs. the Ionic column. The Ionic developed more feminine proportions, while the Doric developed a more masculine and strong appearance.

    Doric

    • The first of the great three orders, the Doric order often gets described as the most quintessentially Greek. The Parthenon in Athens Greece remains the most familiar example of the ancient Doric order of architecture. The Doric order reached its pinnacle in the fifth century BCE and declined shortly thereafter. The Doric order became famous for its exacting proportional requirements. Based on writings from Vitruvius, the Doric order originated when Dorus built a temple in the old city of Argos in that style. Vitruvius continued, “Of whatever thickness they made the base of the shaft they raised it along with the capital to six times as much in height.” This gives the Doric column its strong, sturdy appearance.

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