Tuscan Columns

HISTORY
The Tuscan Order, or what may be considered a

simplified version of the Doric Order, originates in the
temples built by the Etruscans, native Italic people
whose civilization predates the foundation of Rome
and at its height encompassed the areas around Rome
known as Latium and Campania. The Etruscans were
known to the Greeks and featured prominently in the
early history of Rome before they were fully
assimilated into the Roman Republic. The Temple of
Jupiter Optimus Maximus, which was on the Capitoline
Hill in Rome, is among the best known Tuscan style
temples.
First described by Vitruvius, but not codified
until the Renaissance, the Tuscan Order has a column
height of seven diameters, widely spaced columns
possible due to its having a wood architrave, and
simple, bold molding profiles. Etruscan temples had a
stone base, but the upper levels were largely made of
wood, mud, and terracotta, hence archeological
evidence is scant. To protect these vulnerable upper
walls, the Etruscan temple incorporated a roof with a
deeply projecting eave to shed water away from
temple.
Generally, the Tuscan Order is characterized
by squat proportions and its simple base and
capital.Its capital is composed of a square abacus,
which is sometimes finished with a fillet, a round
echinus, and a fillet prior to the neck of the
column. The neck is separated from the column shaft
by a round astragal and fillet before the hypophyge
curves down to the column shaft, which is smooth,
without flutes. A Tuscan base, from the Renaissance
onwards, is composed of a square plinth and a round
torus topped by a fillet before the apophyge curves up
into the shaft of the column. Both archeological
evidence and Vitruvius, however, describe the plinth
as round. Either plinth would be correct today.
The Tuscan entablature was simply a wood
architrave supporting the deeply overhanging roof, but
Renaissance authors show the entablature with its
typical three parts of architrave, frieze and cornice. In
some treatises the architrave is shown split into two
fasciae, and in others, only one. Some authors also
show an ovolo instead of a cyma recta for the

cymatium of the cornice.
All in all, ornamentation is minimal, lines are
plain, and proportions bold; all contributing to the
simple strength conveyed by the Tuscan Order. With
this in mind, the Tuscan Order is suitable to more
plain buildings or where an essence of firmness and
robustness is desired.
Text by: Christine G. H. Franck | Designer, Author,
Educator
www.christinefranck.com
The Architecture of Robert Adam (1728-1792)

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THE TUSCAN ORDER

Essay by Julian.Small. 3D computer visualisation by Sandy Kinghorn.
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The Tuscan Order was the simplest of the Classical Orders . It is thought
to have derived from Etruscan and early Roman temples and that, like the
Doric Order, it reflects wooden construction. The most obvious distinction
between the Tuscan and other orders is that the columns are never fluted
but are always smooth. The columns possess capitals and bases, but these
are simpler than those of the other orders, and the entablature is also quite
plain. Robert Adam provided un-fluted columns in many of his designs,
for example the Doric columns at the entrance to Edinburgh
University and the Ionic and Corinthian columns on the facades
atCharlotte Square, Edinburgh, and in this he refuses to follow the rules of
classical architecture as laid down by such authorities as Palladio; but in
other examples, for example at theRegister Office in Edinburgh, the
columns are fluted. Only with the Tuscan order are columns not supposed
to be fluted.
The Tuscan Order was rarely used in later Roman architecture, but it is
referred to by Vitruvius, and Palladio devotes a chapter to it, as he does to
each of the orders. Palladio recommends that its plainness make it suitable
for use in buildings of utilitarian function, such as farm buildings, and
specifically states that the ratio of height to width in the intervals between
the pillars, mean that it is possible to manoeuvre a farm wagon between
them.
Robert Adam used the Tuscan Order in the Riding House he designed for
Edinburgh in 1763. The preliminary sketch-design has Doric pillars
flanking the door, but the final version - in simpler form than Adam's first
thoughts - uses the Tuscan Order both here and in the interior. It may well
be that the utilitarian nature of the Riding House led him to consider it
appropriate to use it here. However, in later years Adam was to renounce
its use, declaring in 1774: "as to the Tuscan, it is, in fact, no more than a
bad and imperfect Doric," and it cannot be said that even at the start of
Adam's career, it frequently features in his designs.
The Tuscan Order, as used by Robert Adam at the

Edinburgh Riding House, designed in 1763. Note the
simple form of the entablature and of the capital and
base of the column.
Published by Cadking Design Ltd, Edinburgh, Scotland - Copyright Cadking Design 1997-2001
Last Update 14 June 2001- Optimised for IE5+ and Netscape 4.5+
Tuscan Column. Photo morrismedia / iStockPhoto
Definition:
Tuscan was a simple architectural form practiced in ancient Italy. A Tuscan column is
plain, without carvings and ornaments.
Features of a Tuscan Column:
Shaft sets on a simple base
Shaft is usually plain, not fluted (grooved)
Shaft is slender, with proportions similar to a Greek Ionic column
Smooth, round capitals (tops)
No carvings or other ornaments

Tuscan and Doric Columns Compared:
A Tuscan column resembles a Doric column
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from ancient Greece. Both column styles are simple, without carvings or ornaments.
However, a Tuscan column is more slender than a Doric column. Also, the shaft of a
Tuscan column is usually smooth, while a Doric column usually has flutes (grooves).
Origins of the Tuscan Order:
Historians debate when the Tuscan Order emerged. Some say that Tuscan was a
primitive style that came before the famous Greek Doric, Ionic,
and Corinthian orders. But other historians say that the Classical Greek Orders came
first, and that Italian builders adapted Greek ideas to develop a Roman Doric style
that evolved into the Tuscan Order.
Buildings With Tuscan Columns:
Considered strong and masculine, Tuscan columns were often used for utilitarian
and military buildings. In his Treatise on Architecture, the Italian architect Sebastiano
Serlio (14751554) called the Tuscan order "suitable to fortified places, such as city
gates, fortresses, castles, treasuries, or where artillery and ammunition are kept,
prisons,
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seaports and other similar structures used in war."
Centuries later, builders in the United States adopted the uncomplicated Tuscan form
for vernacular Georgian and Greek Revival homes with simple, easy-to-construct
columns. Examples:
Oak Alley Plantation
A Georgian Colonial Revival Home

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HISTORY

The Tuscan Order, or what may be considered a

show an ovolo instead of a cyma recta for the

The Architecture of Robert Adam (1728-1792)

THE TUSCAN ORDER

The Tuscan Order, as used by Robert Adam at the

Tuscan Column. Photo morrismedia / iStockPhoto

Shaft sets on a simple base

Shaft is usually plain, not fluted (grooved)

Shaft is slender, with proportions similar to a Greek Ionic column

Smooth, round capitals (tops)

No carvings or other ornaments

Oak Alley Plantation

A Georgian Colonial Revival Home

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