
The Ionic column is typically identified by its capital, which includes large paired spiral scrolls, or volutes. It has the tallest base of the three classic Greek orders. Columns in this style can be found throughout Capitol The United States Capitol, often called the Capitol Building, is the home of the United States Congress and the seat of the legislative branch of the U.S. federal government. It is located on Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Though no longer at the geo…United States Capitol
What are some examples of Ionic columns in architecture?
Western architecture is filled with examples of Ionic columns. The Colosseum in Rome (80 AD) was built with Doric columns on the first level, Ionic columns on the second level, and Corinthian columns on the third level.
What is an Ionic column on Capitol Hill?
The Ionic column is typically identified by its capital, which includes large paired spiral scrolls, or volutes. It has the tallest base of the three classic Greek orders. Columns in this style can be found throughout Capitol Hill, including the U.S. Capitol, the Supreme Court Building and the exterior of the Longworth House Office Building.
How many Ionic columns are in the Supreme Court building?
Eight Ionic columns of variegated marble quarried along the Potomac River support the Chamber’s gallery on the east wall; they were inspired by the columns of the Erechtheion in Athens. The Supreme Court Building’s grand Court Chamber is a dignified room lighted by side windows behind screens of Ionic columns.
What is the Ionic order in architecture?
The Ionic order is defined by the Ionic column. In ancient Greece, buildings were made with a number of columns that held up their roofs. The column was the architectural staple of Greece, both from a practical and artistic standpoint. Columns supported the weight of the roof and let the Greeks build larger temples.

What modern buildings use Ionic columns?
Ionic columns can be seen throughout Capitol Hill in Washington including the U.S. Capitol Building, The Supreme Court Building, and the Longworth House Office Building.
What Greek buildings use Ionic columns?
Ionic Column History The Greek architect Vitruvius suggests that while Doric architecture was modeled after the male body, Ionic design was brought about by elements of the female body. The Temple Hera and the Temple of Artemis were the first large buildings to be designed in the Ionic style.
Which building is Ionic?
All About the Ionic Column. Ionic Columns of the US Treasury Building in Washington, DC.
When were Ionic columns used?
5th century BCThe Ionic order column was being practiced in mainland Greece in the 5th century BC. It was most popular in the Archaic Period (750–480 BC) in Ionia. The first of the great Ionic temples was the Temple of Hera on Samos, built about 570–560 BC by the architect Rhoikos.
Where is Ionic columns used today?
It has the tallest base of the three classic Greek orders. Columns in this style can be found throughout Capitol Hill, including the U.S. Capitol, the Supreme Court Building and the exterior of the Longworth House Office Building.
Does the Parthenon have Ionic columns?
The Parthenon combines elements of the Doric and Ionic orders. Basically a Doric peripteral temple, it features a continuous sculpted frieze borrowed from the Ionic order, as well as four Ionic columns supporting the roof of the opisthodomos.
What columns are on the White House?
7 replies. The White House is a grand mansion in the neo-classical Federal style, with details that echo classical Greek Ionic architecture.
What buildings have Corinthian columns?
Columns in this style can be found inside and outside of the buildings on Capitol Hill, including the U.S. Capitol, the Supreme Court Building, the Russell Senate Office Building, the Cannon House Office Building and the Library of Congress.
What are the 3 types of columns?
There are three basic orders, the Doric, the Ionic, and the Corinthian.
What are the 3 styles of Greek architecture?
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.
What are the three types of architecture?
While most people are familiar with the idea of an architect who designs buildings, there are several different architecture types....What Different Types of Architecture Can I Major In?Building architects.Landscape architects.Naval architects.
What is Greek architecture called?
The two principal orders in Archaic and Classical Greek architecture are the Doric and the Ionic. In the first, the Doric order, the columns are fluted and have no base. The capitals are composed of two parts consisting of a flat slab, the abacus, and a cushionlike slab known as the echinus.
What buildings use Doric columns?
Columns in this style can be found throughout Capitol Hill, including the U.S. Capitol, the Supreme Court Building, the Russell Senate Office Building and the Cannon House Office Building.
Which Greek order is the most decorative a Corinthian Ionic Doric?
The Corinthian orderThe Corinthian order is the most ornate of the Greek orders, characterized by a slender fluted column having an ornate capital decorated with two rows of acanthus leaves and four scrolls. It is commonly regarded as the most elegant of the three orders. The shaft of the Corinthian order has 24 flutes.
What buildings are influenced by Greek architecture?
The British Museum, the US Capitol and Brisbane City Hall all reflect elements of ancient Greek architecture. Although none of the buildings are an exact replica, the key elements are used. Ian Jenkins writes, "Doric, Ionic or the later Corinthian order... no two temples were ever made alike....
What did the Greeks use to create their magnificent columns?
The Greeks certainly had a preference for marble, at least for their public buildings. Initially, though, wood would have been used for not only such basic architectural elements as columns but the entire buildings themselves.
What is the difference between Ionic and Corinthian columns?
The Corinthian order grew out of the Ionic order, meaning both styles of column are relatively similar. Both are tall and slender, but Ionic column...
Is Ionic a Greek architectural style?
The Ionic order is one of three orders of Greek architecture. An order in classic architecture refers to the design style of a building. Ionic colu...
What are the 3 Greek orders?
The three orders of Greek architecture are the Doric order, the Ionic order, and the Corinthian order. The Doric order was developed at the beginni...
What is the difference between Ionic and Doric columns?
The Doric order was the first order to be invented in ancient Greek architecture. Its columns were often thick, stocky, and short. They were also n...
What is the name of the building with ionic columns?
Basilica Palladiana: The European Renaissance of the 1400s and 1500s was a period of Classical reawakening, which explains why architecture such as the Basilica Palladiana can be seen with Ionic columns on the upper level and Doric columns below.
What architectural styles use ionic columns?
Architectural styles that use Ionic columns include Classical, Renaissance, and Neoclassical.
What are some examples of ionic columns in Athens?
The Propylaia (c. 435 BC), the Temple of Athena Nike (c. 425 BC), and the Erechtheum (c. 405 BC) are early examples of Ionic columns in Athens.
What are the characteristics of ionic columns?
Though Ionic columns are most easily recognizable for their volutes, they feature other unique characteristics that set them apart from Doric and Corinthian equivalents as well . These include: A base of stacked disks. Shafts that are usually fluted. Shafts that can be flared at both the top and bottom.
How many sides does an ionic column have?
In response, some Ionic columns end up being "two-sided" with one very wide pair of volutes, while others squeeze in four sides or two narrower pairs atop the shaft. Some Ionian architects considered the latter design preferable for its symmetry.
Why are ionic columns so easy to recognize?
Ionic columns are easy to recognize at first glance in part because of their volutes. A volute is the distinctive spiral whorl design, like a spiral shell, characteristic of the Ionic capital. This design feature, stately and ornate as it may be, presented plenty of problems for early architects.
What is the ionic order?
Updated November 14, 2019. Ionic is one of three column styles builders used in ancient Greece and the Ionic order is one of five classical orders of architecture.
What is the base of an ionic column?
A column was made up of several parts. The base is the stone platform at the bottom of the column. There are usually multiple layers to the base. On top of the base is the shaft, the long part of the column with groves running down the sides. At the very top is the capital, the decorative stone that bears the weight of the roof. Ionic columns tend to be more slender, but the defining feature of the Ionic order is the volute. The volute is the spiral, scroll-like capital of the Ionic column.
What is the ionic order of columns?
The division of the columns to the entablature and base are measured by the same ratio. The Ionic order is one of the three orders of classical architecture, the others being Doric and Corinthian. It is most recognizable by its columns. Every column is made of a base, a shaft, and the volute on top.
What Is the Ionic Order?
Although most ancient Greek and Roman buildings are now ruins, we can still picture them. We see them in movies and magazines because these buildings set the standards for what we still consider to be good architecture. We just like our modern architecture to be a little less...ruined.
What is the cornice in the ionic order?
The cornice in the ionic order has saw-like squared edges. In architecture, the post and lintel system refers to any building in which the weight of the roof is supported by load-bearing upright sections and a horizontal section on top of those. The entablature is a lintel, and the columns are the posts.
What is the ionic order of the Roman temples?
Another Ionic building was the Temple of Artemis, which was said to be one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. According to the Roman architect Vitruvius, the Doric order was based on the proportions of the male body, while the Ionic order was modeled after the more graceful elements of the female body.
What is the ionic order of Greek architecture?
The Ionic order is defined by the Ionic column. In ancient Greece, buildings were made with a number of columns that held up their roofs. The column was the architectural stap le of Greece, both from a practical and artistic standpoint. Columns supported the weight of the roof and let the Greeks build larger temples.
Why are Greek temples shaped like a rectangle?
Greek temples are shaped like a rectangle because the ratio between height and width can be measured by phi. The division of the columns to the entablature and base are measured by the same ratio.
What ensures us to distinguish the ionic column capital from other capitals and orders?
The thing that ensure us to distinguish the ionic column capital from other capitals and orders is volutes. There are volutes resembling a spiral flower, one on each side of the heading.
What does the ionic order architecture reflect?
In “De Architectura”, Vitruvius said that ionic order architecture reflects the beauty of women. The author conveyed that when classic greek architects invent the ionic order, they have benefited grace, fineness, rate and fanciness of women body. In addition, according to him, doric order reflects the plain beauty of men body and as for corinth represents beauty of maiden’s body.
What is the ionic order?
Ionic order together with doric and corinthian orders are the most important classical greek orders of architecture. It’s regarded to has emerged in the 600s BC. Nike Apteros Temple, known as one of the first important examples of ionic order temples, was built in 427 BC.
What is the key element of Greek architecture?
The key element of classical greek architecture is the pillar . Greeks used to pillars as the bearing component of doric, ionic and corinthian orders. Beside this, they also evaluated columns in terms of the aesthetic and make them the most importants of greek structures. So, how to identify an ionian column?
What is the separating layer between the column capital and the architrave?
Another element, the abacus, is the separating layer between the column capital and the architrave. Although there is abacus in the ionic pillar capital, it was not used in the archaic period. Besides, there was no frizes in the structures in that period.
How to identify Greek order?
The simplest way of identify a classical greek order is looking at columns of the structures. These pillars relay critical informations about what kinds of order were buildings designed with. As for the part of columns that vary most from each others is their capital. Because, while the body of most of them differs only as dimensionally, column capitals have more apparent features.
What are the elements of the temple?
The most remarkable of these are the architrave consisting of horizontal moldings, the frieze with various drawings and statues, the cornice and the pediment on it. The pediment, which means fronton, was arranged in a triangular shape in the first times, yet it has undergone formal changes in the following periods.
What is Greek ionic column?
The Greek Ionic column is correlated to femininity, elegance, and grace. ROMAN IONIC. The column height is equal to (9) diameters. Shaft is tapered and usually fluted with (24) flutes, but it can also be plain / smooth. Instead of ending at the top & bottom of the column shaft, the flutes are commonly rounded off.
What is an ionic base?
The Ionic (Attic) base is the correct base style to utilize, and it consists of (2) rings - an upper & lower torus that is separated by a scotia (concave molding). Very early Attic bases did not rest on a square plinth, but the Order has evolved to include a square plinth.
What are the sections of the entablature?
They rest on a square plinth. The entablature consists of (3) sections (top to bottom): the cornice, the frieze, and the architrave. It is recognized as having elaborate ornamentations. Garlands are regularly a featured ornamentation in the frieze section of the entablature.
How many flutes are in a Greek Ionic?
GREEK IONIC. The column height is equal to (9) diameters. Shaft is tapered and usually fluted with (24) flutes, but it can also be plain / smooth. Instead of ending at the top & bottom of the column shaft, the flutes are commonly rounded off.
Why are doric columns important?
This architectural marvel became popularized hundreds of years ago because of its design and durability. Interestingly, architects all over the globe still use doric columns in some of the most magnificent buildings in history.
How many columns does the Crypt have?
The design of this building is known to have several columns – with different types. There are some parts of the building to have Doric columns. Crypt is a large room in the middle of the building that has forty neoclassical Doric columns to support the upper floor of the building.
What is the oldest building in the US Capitol?
Cannon House Office Building. This building opened in 1908 and is recognized today as the oldest House of Representatives building. It has a part in the building with thirty-four Doric columns. The construction of this building led to the improvement of the US Capitol and relieved it from being overpopulated.
What is the most famous monument in the United States?
Until today, the Lincoln Memorial is one of the most famous historical places in the United States, and it is well-known in having Doric columns.
When was the Senate building built?
Similar to the Cannon House Office Building, this is the oldest Senate office building. The construction began in 1903 and finished in 1908. The appearance of this building pretty much resembles the Cannon House Office Building, as well as the thirty-four Doric columns facing the Capitol.
What are the columns in skyscrapers?
An exotic form of columns which has become popular in the skyscrapers today is the Solomonic Columns. These are also known as Barley-Sugar columns and are in the shape of a spiral shaft. It appears as a corkscrew and is mainly known for its unique design. There is no specific classical order that is associated with this kind of column. It has been used in only a few structures of the ancient times so as to ornament the buildings through better designing.
What is the most recent design to columns?
Perhaps the most recent newly added design to the columns is the Postmodern Column which is designed in a neoclassical style. The postmodern architecture came into existence in the 1960s with the industrial revolution just taking place. The style further flourished in the 1980s and 1990s when the tall towers were being constructed. This led to much popularity of the postmodern columns towards modern constructions.
Why are Columns used?
In addition to that, the columns are particularly used so that a structure is able to resist the different types of natural disasters that occur such as the Earthquakes, floods, and other such catastrophes that may disintegrate the entire structure.
What are composite columns?
Although they were not the columns that were introduced by the Greek, they were inspired by the Greek order columns. Composite order columns are usually 10 diameters in height. Composite columns are a combination of two traditional structural forms: structural steel and structural concrete.
Why are steel columns considered stronger than concrete?
Many of the buildings constructed today also have the steel columns within them as a structural support. Steel columns are considered better than concrete columns because of their strength. These are known to be the strongest columns as compared to all the other ones that have been mentioned above. Steel columns are also used in many buildings as well as mega infrastructures such as in the case of a steel suspension bridge.
What are the Fluted Columns?
The design of these types of columns resembles the bundled reeds and plant stamps. In historical context, many historians suggest that these were the first ever columns that were produced from stone.
When were Roman columns first used?
The Romanesque Columns were first used in the 1850s and onwards in Rome. The massive Roman arches used these in the Romanesque Homes. Henry Hobson Richardson was the guy behind the creation of these columns. Unlike other pillar structures, these columns are quite different because they are square in shape as well as they rest on the trapezium bases which are quite big in their size. To add more to their design, they have floral and other decorations on their capital.

Characteristics of An Ionic Column
Ionic Column History
- Though the inspiration behind the Ionic style is unknown, its origins are well-recorded. The design originated in 6th century BC Ionia, an eastern region of Ancient Greece. This area is not referred to as the Ionian Sea today but is part of the Aegean Sea, east of the mainland where the Dorians lived. Ionians migrated from the mainland in about 1200 BC. The Ionic design originated around …
Buildings with Ionic Columns
- Western architecture is filled with examples of Ionic columns. This column style can be found in some of the most prestigious and historic buildings in the world, such as the following examples. 1. The Colosseum in Rome: The Colosseum highlights a blend of architectural styles. Built in 80 AD, this building features Doric columns on the first level...
Sources
- “History of the Treasury Building.” U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Government, 27 July 2011.
- Pollio, Marcus Vitruvius. “Books I and IV.” The Ten Books on Architecture, translated by Morris Hickey Morgan, Dover Publications, 1960.
- Turner, Jane, editor. “Architectural Orders.” The Dictionary of Art, vol. 23, Grove, 1996, pp. 477…
- “History of the Treasury Building.” U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Government, 27 July 2011.
- Pollio, Marcus Vitruvius. “Books I and IV.” The Ten Books on Architecture, translated by Morris Hickey Morgan, Dover Publications, 1960.
- Turner, Jane, editor. “Architectural Orders.” The Dictionary of Art, vol. 23, Grove, 1996, pp. 477–494.