Rudiments of ancient architecture, containing an historical account of the five orders, with their proportions, and examples of each from antiques also, extracts from Vitruvius, Pliny, &c. relative to the buildings of the ancients (London, 1810 (4. Aufl.))

ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE. 11

There are instances of many buildings
of considerable elegance and extent which
have no plinth to the columns. Suchas the
temple of Erictheus at Athens. The tem-
ple of Vesta at Tivoli, and some others :
and the old Dorics have neither plinth nor
base.

The Torus, or swell above the plinth,
may have originated from the root or lower
part of the tree being thicker than the part
above, which also fixed it more firmly on
the plinth; or, as by some it is conjectur-
ed to have been only a rope or bandage
round the trunk, to prevent its splitting.
According to Vitruvius it represents the
shoe.

The Shaft of the column has been al-
ready noticed.

The idea of the Capital may have ori-
ginally been suggested by some tree, whose
arms spreading just above where it was
necessary the upper parts should be cut off
(to be of a proper length), the swell of the
arms very likely gave the first idea of the
swell of the capital, which was also at-
tended with this advantage, by being
broader on the top, it was better formed