Gabb, Thomas: Finis pyramidis or Disquisitions concerning the antiquity and scientific end of the great pyramid of Giza, or ancient Memphis, in Egypt, and of the first standard of linear measure (Retford, 1806)

t m )

a circumlocution for, epistytiis, which is ä Greek coal«
pound, not expressible by any Word, either in latin,
French, or English : for, architrave, is a barbarous term,
and ought to be exploded, and epistyle established in
it's place, which, it is true, is purely Greek, but so is
arithmetic, geometry, peristyle, prostyle, systyle, eus*
tyle, and innumerable other Greek terms of the arts and
sciences, familiarly used, and perfectly understood ; and
why not epistyle ? But it appeared to Philander and
other commentators, the expression, on the tops of the
shafts, in sumniis scapis, determined the word, collocati*,
to belong to capitutis ; and then, puzzled, as they well
might be, to set capitals on the shafts, and not true to
the level, but to the sequalis modulus, of which they
knew not the meaning, gave up the whole passage»
Barbaro labored to explain it, ànd Perrault as usual/
pronounced it corrupted.

Certainly capitals are placed ort the shafts, and the
epistyles apparently are sustained by the capitals, but
ßot in reality : the Greeks and all experienced archi*
tects, suffered not the workmen to repose the sofBts of
the stone, or marble epistyles, on the whole extent of
the abacus, by which the edges of the cymatia would
he crumbled and broke ; but on the middle of the sum-
mit of the capitals, the stone was left a small matte*
Irigher, than on the extremities, to receive the bedding
of the epistyle, and this, being equal to the upper part
of the shaft, was called by Vitruvius summits j«/>«*•

Thus, I flatter myself, I have rendered this passage
intelligible. Which Perrault boldly asserts to he mani-
festly corrupted : Baldus, however, who was a much
better linguist than Perrault, saw no corruption in thé
text, but mistaking the import, imagined that, whatever

was