Orders of Architecture, Vintage Entablatures

Vintage illustrations of antique architectural elements, entablatures. The entablature consists of three horizontal layers, all of which are visually separated from each other using moldings or bands. The three layers of the entablature have distinct names: the architrave comes at the bottom, the frieze is in the middle and the molded cornice lies on the top. In Roman and post-Renaissance work, the entablature may be carried from column to column in the form of an arch that springs from the column that bears its weight, retaining its divisions and sculptural enrichment, if any. There are just three ancient and original orders of architecture, the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian, which were invented by the Greeks. To these the Romans added the Tuscan, which they made simpler than the Doric, and the Composite, which was more ornamental than the Corinthian.