r,r,> 



CIVIL ARCHITECTURE. 



Crete*. 



Three 



ordert* 



been extensively introduced in their palace*, mosques, 

 and tomb*. The hand of the Mussulman has likewise 

 reached the remotest quarter* of India. 



In China, it it the repetition of tent architecture alone 

 which it every where to be found ; and, equally in the 

 pagoda and palace, some additional japanning and gild- 

 ing exhausts the limited resources prescribed by their 

 mischievous legal regulation*. 



From the eastward of the Euphrates and the Caspian, 

 the architects of the Wrst on, therefore, only glean 

 some information respecting silks, feathers, gilding, ja- 

 panning, and the slight, though sometimes elegant, Forms 

 of tent architecture ; yet, even from this slender stock 

 of materials, the man of genius will derive useful aids in 

 the practice of his art. 



It was in the small and rugged country of Greece, 

 that the arts, as well as the philosophy of Africa and 

 Asia, were collected, refined, and exalted. Here archi- 

 tecture and sculpture, instead of deriving dignity, as for- 

 merly, from their magnitude, or from the mere applica- 

 tion of an immense quantity of labour, became the sub- 

 jects of original genius and keen competition : The am- 

 bition of surpassing each other in excellence, appears to 

 have inspired not only individual artists, but whole states. 

 Thus, from a few imperfect hints, probably imported in- 

 to Greece, a totally distinct school was established, which 

 has become the canon of the western world. The three 

 Greek orders form a perfect gradation of character, and 

 when preserved of due magnitude, and properly applied, 

 never fail to command admiration ; their friezes and pe- 

 diments afford instances of the richest decoration that 

 sculpture ci/uld supply ; this was generally historical or 

 allegorical, and composed of humin, or other animal 

 figures, of the most exquiste design and workmanship ; 

 it was only in the capitals of their columns, and the sub- 

 ordinate members of their entablatures, they introdu- 

 ced vegetable forms, and these were distributed with a 

 peculiar delicacy. Our specimens of Greek architec- 

 ture having been all procured from public buildings, sel- 

 dom wholly covered on the top ; we have, therefore, 

 little knowledge of their mode of decorating ceilings ; 

 we know that the porches and walls of some of their 

 temples were painted with historical subjects by their 

 most eminent artists. Of the decoration of their doors 

 and windows, little is known, and it does not appear they 

 had any ballustradcs. In their finest temples they work- 

 ed with rich marbles ; but the essential members of their 

 orders represented the parts of a wooden edifice. In 

 Specimens, pursuing the practice of this school, the artist will find 

 a sufficient variety in the specimens collected and publish- 

 ed by Athenian Stuart, and in the Ionian Antiquities ; 

 and his own genius will have sufficient exercise in making 

 ajudicioui) selection, and in preserving the true spirit of 

 the original, when adapted to local situations and purpo- 

 ses ; and although our limits prevent us from pursuing 

 this part of the subject further, yet we cannot quit it 

 without remarking, that one of its finest members, a co- 

 lumn, will seldom have much dignity unless of considera- 

 ble magnitude, and therefore can only be introduced 

 with success in edifices of more than usual considera- 

 tion. 



In the Roman school, the profusion of decoration 

 which distinguished it, can only be considered as an inju- 

 dicious extension of the Greek manner ; and it has been 

 remarked, that in their decorations they had more re- 

 course to imitations of vegetables : But the distinguishing 

 characteristic of Roman atchitectuie' was the circular 

 forms, which, it seems probable, they originally derived 

 from the Tuscans. The use of arches enabled them to 



Column* 



houldbe 



Urge. 



Roman 



cover spaces even larger than those formerly left open by Contluiion, 

 the Greeks ; this produced the beautiful temples of the '.'t* 1 '" J 

 Pantheon and of Vesta; by this means they were enabled 

 to construct domes, and all the varieties of enriched 

 soffits which furnished models for the most superb of our 

 modern ceilings. They generally derived dignity from 

 the magnitude of their orders, but they diminished it by 

 placing them upon pedestals, instead of upon simple plat- 

 forms in the manner of the Greeks. When to the beFore- 

 mentioned advantages, we have, in some future articles, 

 an opportunity of adding their magnificent aqueducts 

 and triumphal arches, it will be seen that a new and 

 noble field was, by this people, opened to the architect 

 and engineer. 



In Gothic architecture, the ground plans were model- Gothic, 

 led indiscriminately upan the oblong platform of the 

 Egyptians and Greeks, and the square and circular forms 

 of the Roman school ; but the universal application of 

 groin arching, with the employment of materials of small 

 dimensions, and a disposition to increase in comparative 

 elevation, created a school very different from any that 

 preceded it. The various nvxles which were from time 

 to time adopted, to produce extraordinary effects, at last 

 reduced the maaonry ot the edifice to the nature of a 

 slender framing, and not unfrcquently, in some parts, to 

 resemble films of lace or filigree work. And although 

 the minuteness of parts and profusion of decoration m 

 the latter Gothic have exceeded the boui'ds of correct 

 taste, yet even in these, and in every stage of this school, 

 the discerning architect will find much to admire and to 

 imitate : amidst such variety, he will be at no loss to 

 select features suitable to most situations and circum- 

 stances, fr.-m the perfectly simple to the most highly 

 embelli'.hed character. 



In surveying each of the schools of architecture wlrch nrneral 

 have pn vailed in the western w rid, it will be evident reflectiomti 

 that the progress has hitherto uniformly been from mas- 

 sive plainnes- 10 an xtreme of delicacy and a profusion 

 of decoration. We h..pe that an attention to the gene- 

 ral principles, here pointed ou>, may, in future, prove the 

 means of preserving architrcture trom these blamcable 

 extremes. 



We are aware that the defire of rendering this article 

 perfect, has exten'!>-d it to an uncommon length, and 

 yet we ;>re conscious th.it many branches of this important 

 art will still appear to have bn almost overlooked ; this 

 renders it m>L\.-siry for us to state, that having discussed p arf , to ^ 

 the subject gr ,rr.>lly, it is our intention occasionally, trea;d e. 

 during the pio^ress of the work, to treat some of the parately. 

 particular parts at greater length, under their proper 

 heads. See particularly MASONRY. 



The following is a list of the writers upon architec- 

 ture, who have been referred to in this article : 



EGYPTIAN. Pococke, Norden, Greaves, Volncy, 

 Granger, Savary,D< nun, and French Commission of Arts. 



INDIAN. Robertson's Ancient India, Sir William 

 Jones, Asiatic Researches, Maurice on Indian Antiqui- 

 ties, Grose, D.iniel, Hodges, Col. Syme's Embassy. 



PERSIAN. Sir John Chardin, C. LeBrtin, Macdonald 

 Kinneir. 



CHINESE. Duhalde, Sir William Chambers, Le 

 Compte, Lord Macartney's Embassy, Barrow's Travels. 



GREEK. Homer, Pausamas, Diod. Sicul., Strabo, 

 Vitruvius, and from the latter author, we learn that Si- 

 lenus wrote upon Doric symmetry j Theodorus, and on 

 the Doric temple of Juno at Samos j Ctesiphon and Mc- 

 tagenes upon the Ionic temple of Diana at Ephcsus ; 

 Philios or Pythiui upon the Ionic temple of Minerva at 



