© Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University

ClassificationsGreek and Roman Art

Corinthian Capital

AAT Object Form/FunctionCorinthian capitals

CultureRoman

PeriodSeveran

Dateearly 3rd Century CE

MediumMarble

Credit LineGift of Harvey Smith

Dimensions14 15/16 x 10 7/8 x 14 1/2 in. (37.9 x 27.6 x 36.8 cm)

Object number1992.009

Label TextGreek architects invented the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders which have formed the basis of nearly all western architecture. Roman architects favored the Corinthian order because of the versatility and elegance of its floral capital, based on the acanthus leaf. They used the order both for structural support and as a decorative scheme in multistoried facades. The scale and unfinished backs of the capitals exhibited here suggest that they originally belonged to a facade decorated with a screen of columns. Such richly ornamented facades appear in libraries, gymnasia, theatres, gates, fountains, and bath buildings during the Imperial period. The deep drillwork suggests that the capitals belong to the Severan period around the turn of the third century A.D.
Exhibition HistoryAn Enduring Ideal: Classical Art from the Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University, Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, November 1, 1992 - February 15, 1993
MCCM Permanent Collection Galleries, 1994 - May 2004

ProvenanceEx coll. Harvey Smith (ca. 1910-1995), New York, New York.

Status

Not on view

Collections