“Entasis,” ĕnˈta-sĭs. A gentle, almost imperceptible swelling of the shaft of a column.
“Ionic.” This style of architecture was so called from Ionia, where it took its rise. Its origin is not certain. A writer says: “The explanation of Vitruvius is that the Ionian colonists, on building a temple to Diana, wished to find some new manner that was beautiful. Following the method which they had pursued with the Doric (proportioning the column according to the dimensions of a man), they imparted to this the delicacy of the female figure.” The distinctive feature in the three orders is the capital of the column. In the Doric this is very simple; a curved moulding, round like the shaft, is surmounted by a large square block or abacus. In the Ionic the capital has two scroll-like ornaments, called volutes. There are more mouldings used, and the proportions are more slender. Asia Minor contains numerous remains of Ionic architecture. The Erectheium at Athens is the best known. The temple of Diana was included among the seven wonders of the world, as was the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, another Ionic temple recently discovered.
“Vestiges.” Latin, Vestigium. Marks of the foot on the earth. Tracks, traces, signs. “What vestiges of liberty or propriety have they left.”—Burke.
“Corinthian.” Vitruvius says of this order that it was arranged “to represent the delicacy of a young girl whose age renders her figure more pleasing and more susceptible of ornaments which may enhance her natural beauty.” The Corinthian capital is the most ornamented of the three orders. It is generally formed of various arrangements of acanthus leaves, and is much larger and more showy than the others. The monument of Lysicrates at Athens is the best example of this style.
“Cyclopean,” cy-clo-pēˈan. Pertaining to a class of giants, who had but one eye in the middle of the forehead. They were said to inhabit Sicily, and to be assistants in the workshops of Vulcan, fabled to be under Mt. Etna.
P. 263, c. 1.—“Jupiter Capitolinus.” This temple was built in the early days of Rome, and is said to have derived its name from the builders discovering, during the excavation, a freshly bleeding head (caput). According to the interpretation of the sages this sign indicated that the place should become the head of the world. The temple was dedicated to Jupiter as king of the gods. From it the hill on which it was situated took its name of the Capitoline.
“Appian Way.” The way or road from Rome to Brundusium, constructed partly by Appius Claudius, B. C. 313.
“Q. Metellus Macedonicus,” me-telˈlus măc-e-dŏnˈi-cus.
“Roman.” In the ground plan of Roman architecture there is a great difference from the Egyptian and Greek styles. The first employed the ellipse, the circle, the octagon, and combinations of these various forms in their plan, while the rectangle was the almost inevitable form in the two latter. Instead of the massive blocks of stone of former buildings, the Romans used small stones cemented with a cement of extraordinary power. They could build anywhere and of anything. The roofs were arched and in domes; the openings almost invariably arches; the columns and ornaments were generally varieties of Greek styles.