Part 9

ENTASIS.—A slightly convex curvature given in execution to the outline of the shaft of a column, just sufficient to counteract and correct the appearance, or fancied appearance, of curvature in a contrary direction (_i. e._ concavely), which might else take place and cause the middle of the shaft to appear thinner than it really is. Entasis is therefore nothing _positive_: it is not intended to show itself, for were it to do so,—were there to be any visible swelling,—it would be a deformity; yet such deformity has been studiously adopted by many Modern Architects, merely, it would seem, for the sake of making evident that at all events they took pains to guard against an imaginary defect. The subject of entasis has been made one of those _nugæ difficiles_ which those who can do nothing else make great parade with. To such, then, be left all such sublimated transcendental niceties. If a column only 30 or 40 feet high would appear thinner in the middle than it really is, unless there made somewhat thicker than it would be were its profile a straight line, the same appearance would take place in any other lofty object, and in a greater degree in proportion to actual height; so that a tower of great loftiness, both positively and proportionally, _ought_—unless entasis were given it, to look thinner in the middle than at top and bottom. If such appearance really does take place, it is one perfectly in accordance with the laws of vision, therefore no more than a natural and perfectly proper one. In all such cases the judgment corrects the eye, and prevents mistakes. It would, in fact, require a very great stretch of imagination to fancy what we know to be straight, and of the same breadth throughout, is not so: if we can fancy that, we can also fancy that the further end of a building is not so high as the nearer one, and that instead of being horizontal, the cornices slope downwards. So much for the fuss made about entasis, including that about the hypothetical curvature in the horizontal lines of the Parthenon, where curvature was administered, if administered at all, in an exceedingly homœopathic ratio.

EPISTYLIUM.—The architrave or horizontal course resting immediately upon the columns. Hence we should denote as _Epistylar Arcuation_ that system in which columns support arches instead of horizontal architraves and entablatures. See p. 75.

EPITITHEDAS.—A term applied by some writers, by way of distinction, to the cymatium on the sloping or _raking_ cornices of a pediment, which _superimposed_ moulding (as its name implies) was frequently largely developed, and enriched with an ornamental pattern.

FENESTRATION, termed by the Germans _Fenster-architektur_, is, in contradistinction from columniation, the system of construction and mode of design marked by windows. Fenestration and Columniation are so far antagonistic and irreconcileable, that fenestration either interferes with the effect aimed at by columniation with insulated columns, as in a portico or colonnade, or reduces it, as is the case with an engaged Order, to something quite secondary and merely decorative. Astylar and Fenestrated ought, therefore, to be merely convertible terms; but as they are not, we may be allowed to invent that of _columnar-fenestrated_, to denote that mode of composition which unites fenestration with the _semblance_, at least, of the other. Employed as a collective term, Fenestration serves to express the character of a building or design with regard to the windows generally: thus we say, the Fenestration is excellent, or the contrary,—ornate or meagre,—well arranged or too crowded,—which last circumstance is a very common fault, and is destructive both of grandeur and of repose. _Si quæris exemplum, circumspice._

FILLET.—Any narrow flat moulding or surface is so termed. Fillets are used either to separate or finish other mouldings. The intervals or spaces between the flutes on the shaft of a column are also called fillets, although not actual members, but merely the surface left between the hollowed channels or flutes themselves.

FLUTING.—The collective term for the channels cut on the shafts of columns. Hitherto this has been restricted to little more than two modes, viz. with arrises or sharp ridges, as in the Doric Order (p. 17), or with fillets. A different mode of _striating_ the shafts of columns is described at page 39, and many others might easily be devised.

FRIEZE.—The middle one of the three divisions of an entablature. It derives its name from the Italian _Fregio_, ornament, as being that part of the entablature especially appropriate for sculptural embellishment, yet, in contradiction to such signification, the frieze is all but invariably made a mere plain surface by Modern Architects; except the Order employed happens to be Doric, and then triglyphs are introduced as matter of course, but the metopes left blank, even though ornateness is studied in other respects, and in parts not comprehended in the Order itself. For the Ionic Order, Modern Architects have sometimes employed the so-called _pulvinated_ frieze (p. 50), that is, one whose face is curved convexly; but upon what principle they have appropriated such form of the frieze to that Order in particular, when it is just as suitable for the Corinthian, is not said, and not to be guessed.

HYPOTRACHELIUM.—The necking of a capital introduced between the capital itself and the shaft of the column. In the Grecian Doric, the hypotrachelium is little more than nominal, being marked only by one or more horizontal channels or incisions, and the flutings continued through them; whereas to the Modern Doric capital a distinct necking is given by the astragal which separates the capital from the shaft, and marks its commencement. But that is considered an essential part of the capital, and as to the Corinthian capital it does not admit of any necking; wherefore the Ionic one possesses a great advantage over either of them, inasmuch as it may have a distinct necking or not, and it may be either plain or enriched.

INTERCOLUMN and INTERCOLUMNIATION.—The subject of Intercolumniation is treated of at page 77, &c. These two terms are generally confounded together; or rather, the second is very improperly substituted for the other, contrary to all analogy of language and distinctness of meaning. Having only a general collective import, _Intercolumniation_ can, like _Columniation_, be used only in the singular. We may say of a portico, &c., that its intercolumniation is good or poor, close or straggling, but not that it consists of so many intercolumniations (according as the number may be), since such mode of expression is no better than a solecistical vulgarism. We might just as well describe a tetrastyle portico as having four _columniations_, as say that it has three _intercolumniations_.

‘LYSICRATES’ CAPITAL, 55.

METOPE.—The spaces between the triglyphs of the Doric frieze, which in the Parthenon, for instance, were filled in with sculpture; but in modern porticoes that pique themselves upon being _after the Parthenon_, they are mere blanks.

MINUTE.—The sixtieth part of the diameter of the column as a proportional measure. Minutes are written thus, 10′, _i. e._ ten minutes.

MODILLION.—The small bracket-shaped members or ornaments in the Corinthian cornice are termed _modillions_. See page 61.

MODULE.—The semi-diameter of the column, or 30 minutes. See _Diameter_.

MOULDINGS.—The principal mouldings and the difference of their profiles in the Grecian and Roman styles are here exhibited.

MONOTRIGLYPHIC.—That mode of intercolumniation in the Doric Order according to which there is only a single triglyph over each intercolumn, 20.

MUTULES.—The small blocks or plates attached to the soffit of the corona in the Doric cornice.

NECKING.—See _Hypotrachelium_.

OVOLO.—See _Echinus_.

PEDESTAL.—No constituent or essential part of an Order, but merely a casual addition to it, 7.

PEDIMENT answers to the Gable in Gothic Architecture, &c., it being the vertical triangular plane at the end of a roof which slopes downwards on each side from its ridge. The Pediment differs from the Gable in having a _tympanum_, or clearly defined triangular surface with a horizontal cornice below and two sloping or raking cornices. See page 24.

PILASTER.—Unknown to Greek Architecture, in which only antæ (see _Antæ_) were admitted: Pilasters are employed by the Moderns as substitutes for an Order in engaged columns, and are, perhaps, even preferable to the latter, inasmuch as they combine better and more naturally with the wall to which they are attached.

PLAN.—A plan may be familiarly described as an architectural _map_, or map of a building: therefore only those who cannot comprehend a geographical or topographical map—a degree of obtuseness hardly credible—can be at any loss to understand an architectural one, the latter being precisely of the same nature as the others, with this difference in its favour, that it is much less conventional. To define it more exactly,—a plan is a _horizontal section_ supposed to be taken on the level of the floor through the solid parts of the fabric—walls, columns, &c., so as to show their various thicknesses and situations, the dimensions of the several spaces or rooms, the position of the doors by which they communicate with each other, and various particulars that cannot otherwise be explained. Studying buildings without plans is like studying geography without maps. Nevertheless, most persons ignore—affect a genteel ignorance of such vulgar and technical drawings as plans. Plan frequently costs the Architect more study than all the rest of his design. Very much mistaken are they who suppose that convenience alone has chiefly to be considered. Convenience is, of course, or ought to be, made a _sine quâ non_; yet it is not so much a positive merit in itself, as the want of it is a positive defect. Mere convenience is not an artistic quality: from that to beauty of plan,—to striking combinations, and studied effects, and varied play of arrangement, the distance is very great. A common-place plan is but a very dull uninteresting affair. It is no more than what any builder can accomplish; but a plan replete with imagination, piquant play, and well-imagined contrasts, is no every-day matter.

PODIUM.—A continued pedestal; a dwarf pedestal wall; a closed parapet employed instead of an open balustrade.

POLYSTYLE.—Having a number of columns. Where columns occur behind columns, as where a portico has inner columns, like that of the Royal Exchange, such portico may be termed _polystyle_.

PORCH.—Any small portico considerably lower than the main structure to which it is attached may be so termed, in contradistinction from one carried up the height of the building, or as high as the principal cornice.

PORTICO.—For the different plans and denominations of porticoes, see p. 69.

PROFILE.—The outline of a series of mouldings, or of any other parts, as shown by a section through them.

PROPORTION.—The magnitude of one part as compared with some other. The term ‘proportion’ is used absolutely in the sense of ‘good proportion;’ although every thing that has shape has proportions of some kind or other. The subject of Proportions has been greatly mystified by writers who have laid down certain fixed proportions as the best of all on every occasion, and as the _ne plus ultra_ of artistic taste. But fixed proportions can be followed mechanically by every one alike; whereas it requires ability to deviate successfully from routine measurement, and apply the _poco piu_ or the _poco meno_ as the particular occasion or the particular effect aimed at may require—at least justify. It is the eye that takes cognizance of proportions; and the Architect’s own eye ought to be quite as correct as that of other people.

PROSTYLE.—A portico which projects from the body of a building, or the rest of a façade. See page 69.

PULVINATED.—A frieze whose face is convex instead of plain is said to be _pulvinated_, from its supposed resemblance to the side of a cushion, which swells out when pressed upon. See page 50.

RAKING CORNICES.—A term, rather unmeaning in itself, applied to the inclined cornices on the sloping sides of a pediment.

RUSTICATION.—Although Rustication is not spoken of in this treatise, the term is here inserted for the purpose of remarking that what is so called might frequently be more correctly described as _Decorative Masonry_, since, so far from expressing rudeness or coarseness, it may be made to display the most studied nicety and elaborate finish. Rustication, no doubt, originated in a very rude mode of construction; but what was at first clumsiness and irregularity, was afterwards refined into an artful and symmetrical disposition of the stones and courses of masonry, by a similar æsthetic process to that which converted the original amorphous stone pillar into the Doric column. To call such masonry, as some have done, only _cicatrizing_ and _gashing_, betrays a loss for both arguments and words. Decorative masonry is most assuredly not according to Greek taste or practice; for the Greeks affected to suppress the appearance of _articulation_ in masonry, and thereby to give their buildings, as far as possible, the look of not being _fabricated_, but _carved_ out of one block of solid material. Yet it does not therefore follow that the other mode of decidedly articulating and pronouncing the joints and courses of the stones is bad, because it is an opposite one. So far from being unæsthetic, it possesses much that recommends it artistically, for it gives _colour_, and produces richness of surface where there would else be blankness. A wall whose face is so decorated forms an admirable ground to columns or pilasters, which it serves to relieve very effectively, as is exemplified in the screen façade of Dover House, that little architectural gem by Holland, which, though by no means faultless, has more of genuine artistic quality than any other building of its time in the whole Metropolis.

SECTION.—A vertical plan of the interior of a building, showing it as it would appear upon an upright plane _cutting through it_. Though rarely shown, sections are almost as indispensable as plans, like which, they show the thicknesses of the walls; and in addition those of the ceilings and floors; and show also _heights_, both of the rooms themselves, and of doors and windows;—moreover, the forms of the ceilings, whether flat, or coved, or vaulted. In one respect, too, a section partakes of the nature of an elevation, the plane parallel to the line of section being an elevation of the interior, or rather consisting of as many elevations as there are separate rooms or divisions. Sections may be described as either _furnished_ or _unfurnished_; the former show only construction and the strictly architectural parts, wherefore, if the side of a room happens to be quite plain, without door, chimney-piece, or other feature, that side or space will be a blank, or little better. Furnished sections, on the contrary, exhibit, besides what strictly belongs to the Architecture and its decoration, mirrors, pictures, statues, furniture, draperies, and all other accessories. The number of sections required depends upon the nature of the plan, and what there is worth showing. If the design be worthy of it, there should be as many sections as will suffice to show every side of every principal apartment; though it may not be necessary to repeat the entire section through every floor. Sections are the _deliciæ_ of architectural illustration, and, it would seem, far too precious to be frequently exhibited.

SOFFIT.—From the Italian _soffitto_, a ceiling; the under surface of any projecting moulding or member.

STYLE, in the sense of a column (from the Greek στύλος, a column), enters into a great number of useful compound terms referring to matters connected with columniation, and which may here be grouped together, so that any word ending in ‘style’ may be found here, though passed over in its alphabetical order. The number of columns in the front of a pedimented portico is briefly expressed at once by any of the following terms:

Distyle in antis, two columns and two antæ. Tetrastyle ” four columns. Hexastyle ” six ” Octastyle ” eight ” Decastyle ” ten ” almost the greatest number that can be placed beneath a pediment.

As regards Intercolumniation, we have—Pycnostyle—Eustyle—Aræostyle, 79. The terms descriptive of the plans and columniation of ancient temples are—Prostyle—Amphiprostyle—Peristyle, 69. Also, Monoprostyle, a prostyle with _one_ intercolumn on its flanks. Diprostyle ” ” _two_ ” ” Triprostyle ” ” _three_ ” ” To which may be added— Heterostyle, composed of different Orders, as where one Order is employed for the centre of a composition, and another for the wings. Macrostyle denotes a large Order, that is, one forming the height of the building. Microstyle, on the contrary, denotes a lesser Order, belonging only to some low division of the building, as for instance, a porch. Thus porticoes are _macrostylar_, porches _microstylar_. In Italian composition, microstylar doors and windows, _i. e._ doors and windows decorated with small columns, are of frequent occurrence.

STYLOBATE.—That part of a structure on which an Order is raised, and on which the columns immediately stand. The term is, however, restricted to what partakes of the character of a pedestal, and not to a mere plinth or socle on the one hand, or to a lower fenestrated floor on the other.

VOLUTE.—The characteristic ornaments and indicial marks of the Ionic capital formed by circumvolving spiral mouldings are termed volutes. The small circle in which the spiral or springs terminate is called the _eye_ of the volute.

Printed by Hughes & Robinson, King’s Head Court, Gough Square.

ARCHITECTURE OF THE METROPOLIS.

A New and considerably Enlarged Edition, with many additional Subjects and Plates.

It is proposed to publish, in 20 Monthly Parts, this very important work, to contain 180 plates and 800 pages of letterpress description of the Public Buildings of London. Each Part will contain 9 plates and 40 pages of text, Price 2_s._ 6_d._, to be ready for delivery on the Magazine day of each month, beginning with (December 31, 1848) January 1, 1849.

To the Architect, Builder, the Student in Architecture, and the Amateur, this desirable work for professional use and study is offered at an extremely small charge, and published at such intervals as to be convenient for all classes, entitled

ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE PUBLIC BUILDINGS OF LONDON:

Originally edited by the late AUGUSTUS PUGIN, JOS. GWILT, BRITTON, and others.

NEWLY EDITED AND ENLARGED BY W. H. LEEDS.

Manifold as are the publications which represent the various structures of the metropolis, this is the only work which describes them, not _ad libitum_, in views which, even when perfectly correct, show no more than the general aspect and locality of each building from a certain point, and consequently afford no information beyond mere external appearance—but exhibits them _architecturally_ by means of plans, elevations, and occasionally both sections and interior perspective views. Thus a far more complete and correct knowledge may be obtained of each edifice, in its entire arrangement in all its parts and dimensions, than by pictorial views of them.

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