Characteristics of the IONIC order and its important WORKS

The calls orders of greek architecture They are different construction styles whose main difference is the arrangement of different architectural elements and their proportions. Thus, in Greece there were three basic architectural types: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. The first two arose between the 7th and 6th centuries BC, while the Corinthian appeared at a later time, in the 4th century BC.

In this lesson from unPROFESOR.com we show you which are the main characteristics of the Ionic order so you can distinguish it and discover the most outstanding works of the Ionic order.

Index

1. What is the Ionic order in Greek architecture
2. Characteristics of the Ionic order
3. Ionic order proportions
4. Examples of Ionic order

The Doric and Ionic orders were maintained throughout Classical Antiquity, although with a variety of proportions, something that is especially appreciated in the height and diameter of the columns. Thus, the columns were becoming more slender and the entablatures were lightened. But

The ionic order is considered as the second order from the chronological point of view, having its origin in the coastal region of Ionia, in Anatolia (Turkey) and in the Cyclades Islands, an archipelago located in the southeast of Greece, in the Aegean Sea. An area the ancient Greeks settled.

The Ionic order emerged and developed through mid 6th century BC, spreading across mainland Greece by the 5th century. This order was contemporary or slightly later than the Doric order, although it focused more on peninsular Greece.

At first these orders were used in the wooden construction of temples. Although the first samples of Ionic art are some stone columns located in the city of Izmir. A moment in which the capitals are already decorated with fine floral motifs.

The Ionic order took its inspiration from asian temples and it was used both in architecture and in the decoration of furniture and other objects. Thus, the Ionic order is considered to be influenced by temples of Asia Minor such as the Neandrian temple, Troy. A temple from the 7th century BC that, like other temples in the area, had a notable relevance in the development of this architectural order.

Along with the Doric and Corinthian orders, the Ionic makes up the triad of architectural orders of classical Greek architecture. Each of the orders it can be easily identified both by their profiles and their proportions. Thus, the Ionic order is usually associated with the feminine given its elegance and slenderness in comparison with the Doric order, considered by Vitruvius as robust and strong as the male body.

Image: UNED

The Ionic order, originating from the banks of the rivers of Asia Minor, was used in the temples of the goddesses due to its association with the feminine. The characteristics of the ionic order best known are:

• Column with Attic base. A base made up of two bulls separated by a scotch, sometimes it also rests on a plinth or square pedestal.
• Fluted and grooved cylindrical shaft. It is usually in one piece and lacks enthesis, that is, an optical correction that consists of the thickening of one of the sections central spine to prevent it from being perceived as narrower at that point, something that is observed in the Doric and Corinthian.
• Entablature with decorated pediment.
• Decorated cornice with molding, teeth and ovules.
• Running and decorated frieze with bas-reliefs.
• Smooth architrave and divided into three horizontal stripes,
• Decorated capital with two large scrolls on the sides, in addition to being decorated with a line of eggs and a cord. The capital is the most prominent and representative architectural element of this order as it is easily recognizable by the scrolls or spirals that adorn it. Scrolls inspired by Egyptian and Phoenician capitals.
• The capital ornament is completed with other elements such as darts and eggs, finishing the capital with a narrow rectangular abacus.
• The column rests on a base formed by two moldings or bulls and a scotland. It usually has between 20 and 24 vertical grooves. The base rests on a plinth or prism-shaped piece.
• The shaft is circular in section with slight gauge.
• In the area of ​​the entablature it accounts for a fifth of the entire order, consisting of architrave, frieze and cornice. The architrave has three horizontal bands, while the frieze is a beam decorated with reliefs and discharges directly onto the architrave.
• The cornice, at the bottom of the entablature, it is decorated with denticles. The cornice is finished off with a cover in which the pediment stands out, decorating the sides with acroteras or decorative elements that finish off the pediments and on which they place ornaments such as flower pots or statues. It is finished off with the eaves and forms a projection that with a cymbal type molding,
• They have a continuous frieze of sculptural reliefs, although it is much less decorated than Doric and polychrome is often used.
• The size of the Ionic temples of the 6th century is higher that of later temples.

The complete order is 22 and a half meters, corresponding 18 meters to the column and 4 and a half meters to the entablature.

Inside of the entablature we met with:

• Cornice: 1 meter and ¾
• Frieze: 1 meter and a half
• Architrave: 1 meter and ¼

In the column we met with:

• Capital: 1 meter
• Shaft: 16 meters
• Base: 1 meter

Image: Pure Architecture

The Ionic order developed at archaic period (VII-VI), a time when Doric predominated. The constructions of the time were long and narrow temples with very close columns. Once these styles were consolidated, the tyrants promoted the construction of the polis, constituting a moment of emergence of Greek art.

After knowing the Egyptian stone temples, the Greeks began to build also in this material, specifically limestone in southern Italy and Sicily, marble in the Greek islands Examples of Ionic temples in the Artemision of Ephe-so, some remains of that of Naucratis in Egypt and the Erechtheion of Athens. Already from the 6th century the archaic Ionic Temple of Artemis in Ephesus stands out,

During the classical period (V-IV)At the height of Greek art, Ionian art was gaining ground due to its decorative richness and the Erechtheion was built in the Parthenon.

Among the main examples of the ionic order the following stand out.

Temple of the goddess Hera

This temple was one of the first buildings built according to the Ionic order. It was located on the island of Samos and was built between 570 and 560 BC. by architect Rhoikos.

The temple was dedicated to the goddess Hera and was destroyed by an earthquake within a few years of its construction.

Acropolis of Athens

The Acropolis is considered the jewel of classical Greek art. This acropolis of Athens is considered the most emblematic of the Greek acropolis or high cities. Its function was both defensive and the area in which the places of worship were located.

Within this acropolis we find some of the classic examples of the Ionic order, the Erechtheion, built between 421 and 405 BC, and the Propylaia or entrance area or access to the Acropolis (437-432 BC C).

At Erechtheum You can also see the Caryatids, six columns in the shape of a woman and that are supposed to represent the daughters of King Erecteus.

Also on the acropolis we find the Temple of Athena Nike. A building built between 427 BC and 424 BC. And it is considered the oldest Ionic temple in the area. It was the work of the architect Kallikrates.

Temple of Artemis

In Ephesus is the Temple of Artemis, built in the 6th century BC and with clear Ionic elements such as the decoration with a running frieze. This temple had dimensions of 90 meters long and had more than 100 columns that kept a rectangular central room that housed the statue of the divinity.

A dipterous and octasty temple that was the first completely built in marble. It was burned by Erostrato in 356 BC, rebuilt by Alexander, and destroyed in 263 AD by the Goths.

Tholos of Epidaurus in Epidaurus

The Tholos of Epidaurus is a circular temple surrounded by 26 columns of the Ionic order and with 14 Corinthian columns inside. It was built in 350 BC.

Philippeion or Filipeo Olympia

This is an Ionic circular monument of gold and ivory in Olympia and in which the statues of the family of Philip, Alexander the Great, Olympia, Amyntas III and Eurydice I were housed. It was the work of the Athenian sculptor Leocares and was built in 339 BC.

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• Kitto, Humphrey (1970) The Greeks, Eudeba, Buenos Aires.
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