Yale University, School of Architecture

Vitruvius and the Origins of the Orders: Sacrifice and Taboo in Greek Architectural Myth
Author(s): George L. Hersey
Source: Perspecta, Vol. 23 (1987), pp. 66-77
Published by: The MIT Press on behalf of Perspecta.
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Vitruvius
andtheOrigins
oftheOrders:
Sacrifice
andTabooinGreek
Architectural
Myth
L. Hersey
George

WhenVitruvius'
areanalyzed,
theorigins
oftheDoricandIonicorders
immyths

66

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RITUS

partgruesomelessons.Theyare tales of betrayal,

enslavement,
invasion,
colonialism,
thoughalso ofmarriageand
procreation.
But eventheCorinthianorder,theoutcome of thatprocreation,
memorializesan unwonteddeath ....
The rows of columnsin
Greektemples,these'rhythms'of punishedor exalted ancestors,are figuresfroma
sacreddance or march,figuresthathold aloftthewitnessesof sacrifice.

67

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oftheOrders
TheOrigins

THE ORIGINS OF THE ORDERS1

writerVitruviuswas esteemedby Renaissancearchitects,

The Roman architectural
honoredhis treatiseas theonlysuch book to survivefromantiquity.But
who rightly
his reputationhas diminishedin thepast one hundredyearsor so as thetruenatureof
Greekand Roman buildinghas graduallybecomeevident.It has been shownthathe
had a distortedview of his subject.He ignoredimportantbuildingsof his own time
describedGreekbuildingshe had apparently
(the firstcenturyA.D.) and incorrectly
treatisesthathe quotesor
notseen.His knowledgeofthenow-lostGreekarchitectural
paraphrasesseemssecondhand,and his own languageis oftenconfusing.
These chargesare well-founded.YetthefactremainsthatVitruviuspossessedan
advantagethatwe lack: he was steepedin an architecturalsensibilitythatvanished
two thousandyearsago. For all his narrownessand bias he had at leastseenbuildings
and books, and had encounteredarchitectural
ideas, about whichwe knowonlywhat
he has related.So, in spiteof his faultyGreekand pretensionsto highculture,it belet us closelyanalyze his mythologyof the
hooves us to pay attention.Specifically,
orders,about whose originshe tellsfivestoriesthatdeal withracial or nationalbetrayal,colonization,and individualdeath.
THE CARYATIDS OF SPARTA

textis thatofthecaryatids
sensecartaleinVitruvius'
Thefirst
(i.z). Inthestrictest
butwithout
thetaleoftheir
oribasicorders,
arenotoneofthethree
question
yatids
a
He
that
were
invented
Persian
scheme.
of
Vitruvius'
is
says caryatids
during
gin part
thatof490o
orthatof480B.C.' During
theseinofthePeloponnesus-either
invasion

LouisDuc,Doriccapitalrestoration,
The
Colosseum,
Rome,I829.
LouisDuc,Ioniccapital
The
restoration,
Colosseum,
Rome,1829.
LouisDuc,Corinthian
capitalrestoration,
TheColosseum,
Rome,I82.g.

detail.
Erechtheion,
Athens,
Caryatid,

aedicula.
Charles
P.F. L. Fontaine,
VillaAlbani,
Percier,
c.179o,caryatid

vasions manysmallerGreekstatesallied themselveswiththe Persians.The town of

Caryae, in northernLaconia, was one such. Afterthe Persianswere defeatedand
drivenaway,all Greeceturnedagainstthetraitor-town:
"[It] was capturedand all themenfolkkilled.The marriedwomenwereled offin capnor weretheyallowed to removetheclothingand ornamentthatshowedthem
tivity,
to be marriedwomen. They were led throughthe citynot in the mannerof a triumphalprocessionheld on a particularoccasion but ratherweredisplayedas permanentexamplessustaininga weightof punishmentfortheirheavysins beforethecity.
ofmatronsplaced
ofthattimedesignedforpublicbuildingsfigures
Thus thearchitects
ofthesinoftheCaryaeanwomen
to carryheavyburdens;in orderthatthepunishment
and historically
recorded."
mightbe knownto posterity
In otherwords,thematronswereset intoa multiplepillorythatmade themlook like
piersor columns.

68

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George
Hersey

But beforeturningfullyto this text let us notice the associationsof the word
"Caryatid,"whichmeanssimply"inhabitant(or child)ofCaryae,"as theyreferto the
SpartantownofKapial. Theretherewas a famoustempleofArtemiswhosepriestesses
or femaleworshipperswere called KapudlSeq. The focusof the ceremonieswas an
outdoor statueof the goddess. An annual round-dancecalled the caryatawas performedby the youngpeople.3Kapui--lq was also, naturallyenough,an epithetfor
Artemisherself.4
Artemiswas a sternand sometimescruelgoddesswho in earlytimesdemanded
humansacrifices.s
Lateron surrogatevictimswereoffered.
For example,in Spartaand
elsewherevirgingirlsoffered
her goats.6One of the mostfamousimagesof Artemis,
thestatuein theVilla Albani,showsheras thereceiveroflamb-victims.
The philological sourcesand etymologicaloriginsforArtemis'namehaveto do withbutchery,
murder,and hanging.A publichangingor,evenmore,thedisplayofa criminalbona scaffold,are punishments
analogous to thatoftheCaryaeanmatrons.
The caryatisdance is describedin detailbyLucian as a fighting
dance,performed
beforebattles,inwhichat theclimaxthedancersraisetheirhandsas theylineup rowby
row in battleformations.7
The neatlinesofcaryatisdancerspredicttherowsin which
caryatidsare so oftendisplayed.(Rows of columnsin Greek are
rhythms.)
u0p1a,1
That the womenin Vitruvius'tale are punishedby beingmade to dance theirnative
war dance would certainlybe an appropriateirony.'
As to thedancers'raisedarms,a fragment
fromtheplaywright
Lyncaeusshows
thatthesecould be interpreted
A
as supporting
in
character
the
weight.
play,Eucrates,

I.

Someoftheideasinthisarticle
appeared,
in
inmy"TheClassical
Orders
form,
preliminary
ofArchitecture
inVitruvian
as Totems
Myth,"
a Romanelquattrocento
Umanesimo

(RomeandNewYork,I984),p. 213ff.
2..

Herodotus
I.I83.
3-

Pratinas
Lyricus,
Fragmenta
lyrica,
ed.T. Bergk,
p.4.
4.

Pausanias
3.xo.7, 8.
5.

AdolfClaus,
De Dianaeantiquissima
natura,
apudGraecos

diss.(Breslau:
1881),p.36.Friedrich
Schwenn,
"DerKrieg
indergriechischen
Religion,"
fir Religionswissenschaft,
Archiv

19zz,p. z2; PaulStengel,

Diegriechische
Kultusaltertimer

(Munich,
1898),pp.3,133;Walter
Burkert,
Religion
Greek

(Cambridge:
1985), p. 151ff.
6.

WalterBurkert,
HomoNecans:
Interpretationen
Opferaltgriechischer
riten
andMythen
(Berlin,1972), p. 77.
7.

Lucian,

De saltatione,

p. Io.
8.

Graecarum,
Corpus
Inscriptionum
P. 1444.
9.

Lycaeus,

Frag.6.241d.
IO.

Roscher,

Lexikon,
s.v.,citing
Homer,
Iliad,
7.308; Plato,
Kratyl.,
406b.

D. Magnan,
VillaAlbani,
withstatue
ofArtemis.
1775,aedicula

scoffs
atsomepeoplewhoarepartying
ina roomwhoseceiling
iscollapsing.
He says
tothem:"Youeatwithyourright
handsbutwithyourleftyouhavetoholdupthe Roscher,
likethecaryatids."'
Thedance'sraisedarmgesture,
inother
washere Lexikon,
words,
ceiling
(573
s.v. "Artemis,"sect.
xo
ft.).
a roofjustas theCaryaean
tosupport
matrons
do inVitruvius'
adapted
story.
Buttheconnection
between
andArtemis
Caryatids
goesdeeperthanthis.Acto
Roscher's
Lexikon
the
common
noun
cording
chastity.'o
cpeprjlqmeansreligious
themainstories
aboutArtemis-her
and
the
taboo
so
Certainly
untouchability
against
muchas looking
wasActaeon's
downfall-reinforce
thisidea.When
uponher,which
Greek
women
married
often
a lockofhairtoArtemis
sacrificed
ina riteknown
as
they
thenpo
towardoffherangerat their
renunciation
ofvirginity."
Thismatrieiela,
monial
theme
inVitruvius'
isrecalled
Itisonlythemarried
account.
women
ofCaryae
whowerepunished,
whichseemsto imply
somespecialculpability.
Thismayhave
beenlinked
totheir
Proteleia
vows.Insum,theassociational
auraoftheword"carinGreek(orLatin)from
different
whatitisinEnglish.
yatid"isvery
II.

69

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oftheOrders
TheOrigins

THE PERSIAN PORTICO

Thethemes
ofGreek
victories
over
andofsacrifice,
inVitruvius'
Persians,
appear
again
Inthesentence
oftheorders.
histaleoftheCaryaean
immediately
etiology
following
inthissameinvasion,
thatwhen,
women
herecords
under
a general
Spartan
troops
aninfinitely
named
Pausanias
Persian
as a "trophy
ofvictory
force,
conquered
larger
a portico:
totheir
built
descendants"
they
inbarbaric
"There
oftheir
their
they
placedstatues
captives
dress-punishing
pride
with
theroof,
that
their
deserved
insults-to
enemies
the
support
might
quake,
fearing
andthattheir
fellow
ofsuchbravery,
of
citizens,
workings
looking
upona pattern
be
andprepared
forthedefense
offreedom.
manhood,
bysuchglory roused
might
from
have
set
Persian
statues
to
There
architraves
and
their
ornamany
up
support
fortheir
works
somestriking
ments.
Thismotive
hassupplied
variations.""2

I 2.

Vitruvius
1.1.6.
SeePausanias
3.xII.3.

a retelling
oftheCaryaean
talewith
thesubstitution
Thisisessentially
ofPersian
men
ofsorts,
fortheCaryatids,
forGreek
women.
Sothe'Persids'
aremates,
buttrophies
too.Andthere
isnohint
ofArtemis,
shewasoneofthechief
inciters
ofGreek
though
thePersian
patriotism
during
invasions."3
incommon
Thetwostories
havemore
thantheir
structure.
ofallboththe
First
women
ofCaryae
andthecaptors
ofthePersians
areSpartans.
Artemis-worshipping
Both
ofportico
were
invented
tocommemorate
victories
andbothusecostume,
types
andweaponry
toidentify
thepunished
Above
tell
decoration,
all,bothstories
groups.
were
ofnewtypes
howactshostile
totheGreeks
ofcolumn.
punished
bytheinvention

13.

Aristophanes,
Lysistrata
I2.48 ff.

THE DORIC AND IONIC ORDERS

I4.

1.56;
Herodotus

DiodorusSiculus4.37.58 ff.

ofZeus,Agrigentum,
of
restoration
Temple
theorder,
withtelamones.

InBook4.I wediscover
thatthecolumnar
commemorations
ofPersian
defeat
belong
ofcolumn
invention.
Vitruvius
heredescribes
toa mucholdertradition
theorigin
of
theDoricorder.
This,hesays,wasinvented
byDorus,sonofHellenandthenymph
Dorusrepresented
a raceofconwhoruledAchaeaandthePeloponnesus."
Phthia,
oftheGreekpopulation
andruledoneoffourbasicsubdivisions
(theothers
querors
theIonians,
andtheAchaeans).
Under
hisdescendants
moreand
beingtheAeolians,
moreofthePeloponnesus
wastakenover.Thucydides
datesthefinal
Dorianconquest
to abouteighty
theTrojanWar,thatis,during
thelatetwelfth
orearly
yearsafter
B.C.
eleventh
century
Thebeginnings
ofthishegemony
aremarked
bytheinvention
ofa newtypeof
column.
Thefirst
temple
withthenewcolumns
wasbuiltbyDorusinArgosanddedicatedtoJuno.
Lateron,saysVitruvius,
other
temples,
imitating
Dorus'original,
were
constructed
throughout
thecities
ofAchaea.Thecolumn
wasnamed
after
itsinventor:
"Afterwards
theAthenians,
in accordance
withtheresponses
ofApollo,andbythe
general
consent
ofallGreece,
founded
thirteen
colonies
inAsiaatonetime.Theyappointed
chiefs
intheseveral
colonies,
andgavethesupreme
authority
toIon,theson
ofXuthus
andCreusa(whomApollo,inhisresponses
atDelphi,haddeclared
tobe
hisson).He ledthecolonies
intoAsiaandseizedtheterritory
ofCaria.Thereheestablished
thelargecitiesofEphesus,
Miletus,
Myus[etc.].Thesecitiesdroveoutthe
CariansandLeleges
andnamedthatregion
ofearthIoniafrom
their
leaderIon,and
establishing
theresanctuaries
oftheimmortal
gods,theybeganto buildtemples
in
7o

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vonKlenze,
NewHermitage,
withatlantes.
Leopold
Leningrad,
portico
1840-50,

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TheOrigins
oftheOrders

15.

AtMycalethere
wasa Pan-Ionium
to
dedicated
Apollo.
atticarum,
Corpus
inscriptionum

as navi(vloq,
III.I175.ForApolloandArtemis
Herodotus
"all-Ionian,"
I.I48,Roscher,
"Panionios,"col. 1535.

16.

4.1.5,6.
Vitruvius

I7.

LewisandShort,

LatinDictionary,
Oxford

s.v."Caria,"quoteas a proverb:
"Quid?detota
Carianonne
hocvestra
vocevulgatum
est,si
inCareidpotvelis,
quidcumpericulo
experiri
issimum
essefaciendum."

special cults," and Artemishad a famous shrine at Mylasa. Callimachus' hymnto her

describesit:

18.

Roscher,
ibid."Apollon,"
"Artemis,"
col.582 ff.,

"Once on thebanksofEphesustheAmazonwarriorserectedyourimageat thefootof

a beech-tree.
Hippo [theirqueen] celebratedtheritesand, O Queen Oupis [a namefor
theirarmeddance,theswordArtemis,meaningunknown],theAmazonsperformed
dance, around the statue,and thenformedtheirgreatchoirin a circle.The sharp,
astringentmusic of the syrinxsustainedtheirfeetas theystampedon the earthin
unison; . . . the echo resoundedas far as Sardis,and to the countryof Berecynthe
noise and theirquiversdanced."
[Phrygia].Theirfeetstampedwithstirring

col. 440 ff.

ig.

Roscher,
Lexikon,

s.v."Artemis."

ZO.

FortheAthenian
colonyat Miletussee Roscher,

"Artemis,"col. 574.

them.First,to Pan-IonianApollo"stheyestablisheda templebased on thosetheyhad

knownin Achaia. Then theycalled it Doric because theyhad firstseen it builtin that
style.Whentheywishedto place thecolumnsin thattemple,nothavingtheirproportions,and seekingby what methodtheycould make themfitto bear weight,and in
theirappearanceto have an approvedgrace,theymeasureda man'sfootstepand applied it to his height.Findingthatthe footwas the sixthpartof theheightin a man,
theyappliedthisproportionto thecolumn.... So theDoric columnbeganto furnish
"
theproportionofa man'sbody,itsstrength
and grace."
In otherwordsVitruviusis sayingthattheDoric templesdesignedbyDorus himself,in thePeloponnesus,werenot proportionedaftermen,but thatthoseerectedby
Ion in Ionia were.It was thissecondtypeofDoric thatbecamedefinitive.
That Caria, a mountainousregionin what is now southwestern
Turkey,should
have almostthesame name as theSpartantownwhere,centurieslater,caryatidswere
to be invented,is a coincidenceworthconsidering-especially
sincetheseAsian Carians, liketheCaryatidmatrons,werenotoriousfortheirtreachery."The coincidence
is also ironicin thatApollo and Artemisare notonlybrotherand sisterbut,in certain
In Caria theyweretheobjectsof
ways,male and femaleaspectsofthesame divinity."8

The poetthengoes on to describethesanctuary.

Butwhatinterests
us is thedance,forit
is clearlythecaryatisor somevariant.It is morewarlikethanLucian'sversion,forhere
the dancerswear weapons. These Ionian honorswere appropriate,for,like Apollo,
Artemiswas a divinityof colonization,20and indeed Vitruviussays the firsttemple

builtinIonia,whichwasalsothefirst
ofallIonictemples,
wasdedicated
toher(4.1.7).

Butabove all Vitruvius'accounttwicemakesnewcolumns,inventedto marknew

Dorian conquests,into personifications.
Indeed he adds that Greek Doric columns

2I.

Hippocrates,
Epidemiae,
3.1.

have no flutes(4.I.7; an error:he is thinkingof Roman Doric) but ratherhave plain

undecoratedshaftslikenakedDorian warriors.Moreover,he uses theword"entasis"
to describethe slightoutwardcurvaturein the silhouetteof theDoric shaft
(3.3.I3),
and
whichmeans "tension,straining,exertion"of the humanbody.21
Both
Evaolq,
theAchaian and theIonian Doric, however,personified
conquerorsratherthanprisoners,and theIonian Doric actuallypossessedin a sensetheformand proportionsof
those conquerors.
The Dorians fulfillthe nextstep in Vitruvius'designwiththe inventionof their
secondorder,theIonic. The proportionsofthecolumnweremodeledon thebodiesof
theirwomen. So Ionic columnshave 'caryatid'proportionsin two senses: theyare
metaphorsforwomen'sbodies, and the women in questioninhabitCaria-not the
Spartanone but theAsian one.

71.

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George
Hersey

Richard
Morris
Museum
ofArt,NewYork,19oz2,
Corinthian
Hunt,Metropolitan
capitals.

Connecticut
Gordon,Tracyand Swartwout,
SavingsBank,New Haven,1906,Ioniccapital.

Thereis a third'caryatid'
addsthatIoniccolaspectto Ioniccolumns:Vitruvius
notonlythephysiques
butthecharacteristic
umnsresembled
dressand ornament
of
inimitation
thecaptured
women.Theshafts
arefluted
ofthewomen's
pleatedchitons,
and thecurledvolutesoftheircapitalsareliketheirrolledhair.Finally,
thefactthat
inconjunction
theDoricandIonicordersintheaccountoriginate
witheachother,as
it were,reflects
hereearlierpairingofthewomenofCaryaeandthePersianinvaders.
THE CORINTHIAN ORDER

The lastmythVitruvius
tellsabouttheoriginsoftheordersputsthefinalelement
in
hispattern.
It dealswiththeCorinthian
an
capital.The storygoesthatCallimachus,
one dayspottedthetombofa Corinthian
architect,
girlwhohad diedjustbeforeher
thetombwitha basketcontaining
Thegirl'snursehaddecorated
theyoung
marriage.
collection
of
and
on
of
the
basket
had
laid
a
to keep
tile
woman'sprized
goblets,
top
to Vitruvius,
withtime,an acanthusplantgrewup
thegobletsin place.According
fromthebase of thebasket,itstendrils
transcurlingtowardthetile.Callimachus
formed
thelittletableauintotheCorinthian
capital.He useditwithdetailsthatwere
eitheroriginalto it (4-1-9)or borrowed
fromtheDoricand Ionicorders(4.1.1). So
22.
theneworderhad thegenesofbothparents."LiketheDoric,Caryatid,
and Persian For
theacanthus,or bearsfoot
as itis called,see
Helmut
Baumann,
theCorinthian
to thedead.
is a memorial
columns,
Die Griechische
inMythos,
Kunstund
Pflanzenwelt
Thereis a sortofplottoVitruvius'
fivetales.Thefirst
threetypesofcolumnmark Literatur,
(Munich,
1982),p. 169ff.
Greekvictories,
the expulsionof Easterninvaders,and thentheestablishment
of
GreekcoloniesintheEast.Theappearance
oftheIonicis a turning
point.Itmarksthe
endoftheperiodofwarand,withitslinking
ofmaleandfemale,
a marriage,
suggests
one thatin factresultsin a Corinthian
This daughter,
likeall theother
daughter.
humanphysique
orcostume:
Vitruvius
orders,
saysithasthephyspossessesa specific
notonlythatit is thedaughter
whichsuggests
ofDoric
ique ofa younggirl
(4.I.9),
and Ionicbuta personification
oftheoriginalCorinthian
maiden.Furthermore,
her
deathbeforemarriage-of
whichVitruvius
makesa point-prevents
new offspring.
Thatis,in termsofthefivemyths,
thegirl'sdeathprevents
thebirthofnewtypesof
2.3?
column.Thepattern
ofthetalesis complete."
doesnotdiscuss
theComposite
order
Vitruvius

common
thread
Another
thatunites
thefive
talesisthetheme
ofsacrifice.
The
ofCaryae
andthePersians
ritual
matrons
victims.
and
maybetermed
Theysinned,
were
tothegods.TheIonian
butmore
offered
colonists
alsosacrificed,
The
positively.
first
twotemples
inthenewlandwerededicated
respectively
tothebrother
andsister

orother
(Corinthian
capitalwithIonicvolutes)
variants.
TheTuscantemple
hascolumns
with
andforwhich
nomyth
is
very
simple
capitals,
provided(4.7).

colonization
divinities,
ApolloandArtemis.
Meanwhile
theCorinthian
girl's
tombwas
alsosacrificial,
foritwillhaveresembled
analtardecorated
witha basket
ofofferings.

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TheOrigins
oftheOrders

SACRIFICE AND TABOO

24.

Burkert,
Necans,
Hormo
outthatthough
the
41,whopoints
accepted
cannot
beproven.
proposition
truly

25.

Salomon
Reinach,
"La Mortd'Orphee,"
inhis
etreligions,
mythes
Cultes,
1909),p. Io3 f.
zd ed.,2, (Paris,
2.6.

Livy,
3, 55,72-7.
Sophocles,
Antigone,
2.56.

Itisoften
saidthat
aretheplots
ofsacrificial
Thisgives
usallthemore
myths
rituals.24
reason
tointerpret
thepunishment
oftheCaryaean
matrons
as a sacrifice
ofatonement
toArtemis.
ThesamegoesforthePersians:
a god,weassume,
Artemis
perhaps
toldtheSpartans
tobuildtheportico.
itwasherbrother,
again,
Certainly
Apollo,
whodirected
theAthenians
toinvade
sacrifice
wasmadeinhis
Ionia,andtowhom
newtype
oftemple
asArtemis
wasinhers.
Thesearethemyths.
Therituals
would
be
therepetitions
ofthese
ofthefirst
ofthecolumn
whenever
myths,
repetitions
carving
artisans
the
forms
of
these
orders.
repeated
Ritual
in
this
form
of
isthetranslation
intorules
ofornaarchitecture,
repetition,
ment
oftheoriginal
actsofrevenge-sacrifice,
anddeath-sacrifice
marriage-sacrifice,
that
aredescribed
inthese
Thevery
word
ornamentum
means
toequip,
asAeneas
myths.
himself
for
sacrifice
on
the
occasion
of
hisfather's
death
equipped
Fabulae
(Hyginus,
Another
characteristic
of
sacrifice
is
bound
themost
173-14).
great
upwith
dangerous
ofalltaboos:
those
invoked
when
a sacrifice
succeeds
andthegodarrives
inthemidst
ofhisworshippers.
Suchsacrifices
were
but
also
beneficial-the
most
benedangerous
ficial
a community
actions
couldundertake.
"wasbecause
the
"This,"
saysReinach,
actofslaughter
released
anambiguous
force-or
rather
a blindone,terrible
bythe
veryfactthatitwasa force."25

Tabooistheprotection
thisdanger.
Yettaboo,
likesacrifice
isperilagainst
itself,
Both
Greek
andLatin
this
intheir
double-edged.
words
forit,respecously
emphasize
Thuswithin
thesameplay,Antigone,
tively
usesfyoqto
Sophocles
ciyoqandsacer.26

meanbothpollution
andescape
from
Tabooscluster
around
in
pollution."
buildings
thick
clouds.
aresacred
anddamned
atonce.Andthese
taboos
They
gohandinhand
with
thesacrifices
that
maximize
boththedangers
andthebenefits
ofthetaboos.
We
seethis
inVitruvius'
five
accounts.
Theweight
borne
is
bythecolumn
personifications
either
thatofevilorthatofgood,either
sinorvirtue,
either
defeat
orvictory.
CaryatidsandPersids
areemblems
ofa treachery
anda barbarism
thatsought
toundermine
ordestroy
Greece.
and
orders
areemblems
Doric,
oftheGreek
Ionic, Corinthian
reply.
Iftabooisthearmor
that
sacrifice
from
protects
themetal
going
tragically
awry,
ofthatarmor
is scrupulosity.
Therulesforsacrifice
werelegion.
Blood-sacrifice
is
the
most
other
werenotfarbehind.
usually
complex,
Thebreeding
though
types
andtraining
ofthevictim,
hisdressandornament
ingarlands
andgold-plated
horns,

the ceremonialforbringinghim to the altar,the ritesof slaughter,the

or
loud cryfromthewomenat themomentwhenthebeast dies and thegod6.o.iryrl
appears-an
eventwhichincidentally
was accompaniedby the caryatid-like
raisingof arms (Iliad
cooking,
the
distribution
of themeat,thecommunionmeal, and thedis6.30I)-the

position
oftheremains,
wereallsubject
tominute
specification.
Often,
evenwhenall

2.8.

Vernant,
Jean-Pierre
et mise mort
rale du sacrifice
"Th aorie
g~n
dans la 29 grilcque,"
OlivierReverdin
and
BernardGrange,eds.,
Le Sacrifcedansr'antiquitd,

wentwell,thepriestsor priestessesthemselves
had to be sacrificedafterward,
so filled
weretheywithtaboo. Even theact itselfwas denouncedby theveryparticipantsas a
crime.The knifethatdid thedeed, in theAthenianBouphonia,was cast intothesea,
and theslaughteredox, afterthesacrifice,
was stuffed
and hitchedto his plow,as ifto
show thatnothinghad happenedto him afterall."2Meanwhilethe leftovers-bones,
head, garlands,and ribbons-weredisposedon a tableofofferings
or hungin a tree."
The rulesfortheorders,whichwereafterall inventedforthebuildingsin which

74

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GeorgeHersey

JamesGambleRogers,EdwardS. Harkness
House, New York, 1904-o7, guttae.

RichardMorrisHunt,Metropolitan
MuseumofArt,New York,1902oz,
anthemions
withfaces.
Hardt](Geneva,1980),pp. io ff.,
or beforewhichsacrificesoccurred,werefurther
formsofsacrificialtaboo. Vitruvius' [Entretiens
I7.
of theserulesmakessuch a conclusionalmostinevitable.Thus in 3.1 he
presentation
29.
dividesup thehumanbody-one wantsto say sacrificially,
theway a priestdividesa
"Theoriegenerale,"
Vernant,
pp. 1o ff.,17 ff.
G. S. Kirk,
partsmeasuredin fractionsof thewhole,thosefractionsin turnbeing "SomeMethodologicalPitfallsintheStudyof
victim3?-into
in Reverdin
and
AncientGreekSacrifice,"
who saved this Grange,
palms,and feet.He also uses thehead, again likethesacrificer,
fingers,
LeSacrifice,
partofthevictimtilllast and caused itstongueto utter.The body-partsare thencorp. 70.
relatedwithspecificproportionsor fractions,forexample,the81iolpog,two-thirds,
30.
MarcelDetienneandJean-Pierre
thenev-dpolpoq,five-sixths,
and so forth.The elementsof templesare divided,meaVernant,
La Cuisine
dusacrifice
enpaysgrec
sured,and namedin termsof thesebody-parts.In theIonic Order,forexample,after (Paris, 1979), p. 84 ff.
the columnbases are in place, the thicknessof the plinthsset on top of themmust
equal one-halfthe column diameter,and projectone-sixthof a diameterfromthe
shaft.These are theonlyoptions.As ifto provethepointthisone-sixthprojectionhas

a nameofitsown, K)o0pd.Ifthebase is Attic,furthermore,

itsheightis dividedso

thattheupperpartisone-third
thecolumn
diameter.
Thelowerpartofthislatter
isin
turndivided
intofourparts,
withan uppertorusmolding
thatis onefourth
ofthat
distance.
Thelowertwopartsmust
ofanother
consist
torus
anda scotia(3-5.-).Or,to
moveonto3.5.Io:"Thecymatium
ofthearchitrave
should
bemadeoneseventh
ofits
andtheprojection
ofitthesame.Theremainder
thecymatium
is
height
apartfrom
tobedivided
intotwelve
fasciais tohavethree;
thesecond
partsofwhichthelowest
five."
the
four, top
Andsoon,pageafter
wearemadetoregard
the
page.Whentherulesarebroken,
notas solecism
result
butblasphemy.
hisadmonitory
minuteness,
tone,his
Vitruvius'
invocations
ofthegods,givehistextthequalityoftheseemingly
endlessdifrequent

taboosin Deuteronomy
14 andLeviticus
etary
i i, orthelonglistsofprohibitions
insomeOrphic
orPythagorean
tothepresent
sect;or,appropriately
discussion,
they
soundliketheprescriptions
forblood-sacrifice.
THE ENTABLATUREAS A TABLE OF OFFERINGS

Allthismakestheentablature
ofa temple
notonly6yogforgoodorevil,buta sacrificial
as well.Indeedthevery
word"entablature,"
not
representation
though
English
Latin(theLatinisepistylium,
beamontopofcolumns),
thatitcouldbethought
suggests
ofas a table,liketheoneinthesanctuary
onwhich
theremains
ofsacrifice
werelaid.
evidence
thatalthough
animal
Archeological
strongly
suggests
partsweresetonthese
themostfrequent
tables,
materials
ofsacrifice
werevegetables,
grain
plants,
andother
31.
food,including
ribbons,
andgarlands
thathadornamented
the Kirk,
eggs.3Theflowers,
offering
orvictim
werealsolaidon thetable.In a burnt
offering
thesethings
would "Pitfalls,"77.
havesuffered
andconsumption
scorching
byfire.Theremains
ofanimals
thathad
beenpartly
consumed
bythecommunicants
werealsostored
here.Normally
these
consisted
ofthehorned
heador skull,thigh
bonesor femurs
covered
withfat,and
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oftheOrders
TheOrigins

other
boneswithskinstretched
overthem.
Theprimary
of fripaivov,
meaning
drum,
comesintoplayhere.A drumis an animalskinstretched
overa framework,
andthe
earliest
Greekdrums,
whichwereusedintheworship
ofDionysus
andtheMother
ofbone.3"It
is probably
fromthisbackground
thatthecenGoddess,hadframeworks

32.

Herodotus
4.76.

33Pausanias
7.I8.II

ff.

34.
GiuliaPiccaluga,
diPatrai,"
Reverdin
andGrange,
"L'Olocausto
Le Sacrifice,
p. 243. ff.

tralpanelina pediment
cametobecalledthetympanum.
toArtemis,
Sacrifices
thegoddess
mostinvolved
inVitruvius'
couldinvolve
myths,
wildbirdsandanimals
as wellas thedomestic
animals
tootherdivinities.
sacrificed
Themostnotorious
ofthewild-animal
sacrifices
werecelebrated
atPatras."A platform
ofdry,
woodwassurrounded
ofgreen
woodthatwas
easilyburnt
bya palisade
uninflammable.
The
sacrificers
assembled
wildanimals
andbirdsthathad
relatively
beencaught
ina ritual
the
withlivegamethatweresecured
hunt,
so
filling platform
could
not
The
set
fire
to
the
andthecelebrants
they
danced
escape. priestesses
platform

arounditina circle,
as inthecaryata.34
Thissacrifice
wouldhaveproduced
bird'sbeaks,
skulls,teeth,bones,andthelike,butalso thenets,darts,andotherimplements
with
whichthegamewas caught,andwhichwereconsidered
sacramental.
Now letus return
to classicalmoldings.
Thistimewe shalllooknotat theirproportionsbutat theirnames.A taeniais a hairribbon;a coronais a crown,garland,
chaplet,or wreath;a cavettomolding
getsitsnamefromheavyrope;anda guilloche
is a bias-cutnet.We are all familiar
withthedartsthatflankeggsin egg-and-dart
moldings.A similarmoldingis theegg-and-tongue.
Ovolo, anothermolding,also
meansegg,anda cymais a sproutofcabbage.Theanthemion,
orcamomile,
is another
edibleplant.A dentilis a tooth,as byextension
a rostrum
is a bird'sbeakmolding.
TheseareamongthemostcommonAnglo-Latin
namesforclassicalmoldings.
If
we go to theGreeknamesthatVitruvius
setsuchstoreby,we getmoreofthesame.
Ancones,dyKW~
elbows;Apophysis,
veq,(doorlintelcorbels)areprimarily
dn6'#uoq,
thehollowcurvebetween
a column's
baseandshaft,
is partofa boneor bloodvessel;
an astragal,doCpacydAoq,
refers
to vertebrae
or otherbones;a base,as in a column
is
base,Pdoiq, a foot.Capital,KeCd6Auov,
meanshead.Similarly
thecolumen
or main
blockin a tympanum
is in GreekKOpUviaOV,whosefirst
is theupperrimof
meaning

a hunting
netandwhosesecondis "theheadpartsofsacrificed
animals."
A fastigium
orpediment
withitsdescending
is
an
oftheCorinwings
eagle.Thecolicolus
deu6q,

thiancapital,theupright
is a K6UA10ov,stalk.The spacebegrowthat thecorners,

tween
thechannels
ina triglyph
is calleda femur
inLatinanda prlp6q
inGreek,
the

thighor thighbonethatwas particularly

important
in sacrifice.
The verticalfillets
createdbycarving
flutes
ina columnarecalledhd
rods,
80m, staves,orwands,a word
usedalso forspearshafts.
Thetrachelion
andhypotrachelion,
partsofthenecking
or
upperhorizontal
molding
in a columnshaft,
comefromtpdXeAog,
neckor throat.A
torusor oncipais a twisted
rope.
WhenVitruvius'
mythsare analyzed,theoriginsoftheDoricand Ionicorders
impart
gruesome
lessons.Theyaretalesofbetrayal,
enslavement,
invasion,
colonialism,
thoughalso ofmarriage
andprocreation.
ButeventheCorinthian
order,theoutcome
ofthatprocreation,
memorializes
an unwonted
death.FlankedbyApollo,thepresidinggoddessformuchofthefive-part
storyis Artemis.
Therowsofcolumnsin Greek
temples,
these'rhythms'
ofpunishedor exaltedancestors,
arefigures
froma sacred
danceor march,figures
thatholdaloftthewitnesses
ofsacrifice.
Finally,
practically
all classicalmoldings
arecalledafterthingsusedin catching
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GeorgeHersey

ofthefriezedecoratedwithimplements
ofsacrifice
and bulls'skulls.
TempleofVespasian,Rome,fragment

and eatingvictims-human,animal,or vegetable-orafterbits and pieces of the victimsthemselves.The moldingsof a Greek templeare patternsof war and hunting
weapons,ofanimalparts,and ofsacrificialfood.As surelyas do thecaryatidsand the
Persianprisoners,whose porticoeswould in any case have been deckedwithsome of
theseforms,the classicalordersmemorializesacrifice.

ThomasHastings
V.Meeks,
withEverett
Alumni
WarMemorial,
YaleUniversity,
New
base.
Haven,1927,column

77

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