irect from the platform, have a complex base
consisting of a number of circular mouldings above another, the fluted
shafts are comparatively slim and tapering, and the channels in them are
divided by spaces called fillets. In the Ionic order the flat abacus of
the Doric capital is replaced by two coiled volutes projecting beyond
the echinus on either side, and the horizontal portion between the
volutes is surmounted by finely carved leaf mouldings. The Corinthian
order is specially distinguished by the ornate decoration of the
capitals, that represent calices of flowers and leaves, chiefly those of
the acanthus, arranged so as to point upwards and curve outwards in much
the same style as they do in nature. The architrave in both the Ionic
and the Corinthian orders consists of plain slabs, but the frieze--which
is not divided as in Doric buildings into triglyphs and metopes--is in
nearly every case enriched with a series of beautiful figure subjects,
and is therefore known as the Zoophorus or figure-bearer.

[Illustration: Ionic Column]

Among the most ancient remains of sacred Greek architecture are those of
the Heraeon or Sanctuary of the Goddess Hera at Olympia; of the temple
that preceded the Parthenon at Athens; and of those at Assos in Asia
Minor, Selinus in Sicily, and Corcyra in Corfu, the last a very typical
example of archaic Doric, with a pediment in which are primitive
sculptures of a gorgon flanked by lions. Of somewhat later date are the
ruined temples at Girgenti, Syracuse, and Segesta, all in Sicily, the
last the best preserved of all; the group at Paestum in Southern Italy,
of which that of Neptune is the finest, the pediments having been
originally filled in with beautifully executed sculptured figures. The
Temple of Athene in the island of AEgina marks the transition from the
extreme severity of early Doric to the more ornate buildings of the
Golden Age of Greek architecture, its decorative sculptures being of
exquisite design and execution. The Temple of Jupiter at Athens, begun
in the Doric style by Pisistratus about 540 B.C. and not completed
until about 174 B.C., has Corinthian capitals on some of its columns,
and the Temple of Theseus, of uncertain date, in the same city, that
consists entirely of white marble, ranks, in spite of its severe
simplicity, even with that of Neptune at Paestum on account of its fine
proportions and the admirable finish of every detail.

[Illustration: Ionic Entablatu