entasis

(noun)

A slight convex curvature introduced into the shaft of a column for aesthetic reasons, or to compensate for the illusion of concavity.

Related Terms

  • chryselephantine
  • peplos
  • peripteral
  • megaron
  • pediment
  • stylobate
  • naos
  • pronaos
  • anta
  • opisthodomos
  • votives
  • echinus
  • entablature
  • triglyph
  • metope
  • prostyle
  • sterobate
  • tholos

Examples of entasis in the following topics:

  • Architecture in the Greek High Classical Period

    • However, in this case the colonnade is a single story, and only the columns of the temple (not the stylobate) have entasis.
  • Horyuji Temple

    • On the other hand, major Asuka-style characteristics seen in Hōryu-ji and resembling designs found in the Yungang Grottoes (from the Northern Wei in China) include the railings, decorated with repeat-patterned swastika, and the entasis columns.
  • The Parthenon

    • Finally, instead of the columns the whole building an entasis, a slight curve to compensate for the human eye.
  • Temple Architecture in the Greek Archaic Period

    • Doric columns are also noted for the presence of entasis, or bulges in the middle of the column shaft.
  • The Acropolis

    • Finally, instead of the columns the whole building an entasis, a slight curve to compensate for the human eye.
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