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Abacus in Architecture of Classical Greece

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Parts of the column. Mooney S. (2006). “Abacus in Architecture”. In World Book Encyclopedia ©2002 by Woodward S. Photo by Edwardtbabinski (2006). CC BY 2.5. Image cropped. Drawing source: “Abacus (architecture)” (2020). In: Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia.

In plural: abacuses or abaci; from Latin: abacus; from Greek: ábaks.

A square plate constituting the uppermost part of the capital (head) of a column. In the Doric order, the abacus together with the echinus form the actual capital; in Ionic and Corinthian orders, it is a thin profiled and decorated plate; in Ionic and Composite orders, the sides of the abacus are recessed and decorated with a rosette. In the arcade system, in late antique and medieval art, the abacus often turned into impost.

Featured image: Doric capital of the Parthenon from Athens with a squared plate of abacus. Photo by Codex (2012). CC BY-SA 3.0. Photo source: “Classical order” (2020). In: Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

“Abacus (architecture)” (2020). In: Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia. Available at <https://bit.ly/3c4f9gk>. [Accessed 22nd January, 2021].

“Classical order” (2020). In: Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia. Available at <https://bit.ly/364embC>. [Accessed 22nd January, 2021].

Koch W. (2009) Style w architekturze. Arcydzieła budownictwa europejskiego od antyku po czasy współczesne. [Baustilkunde], pp. 16, 424. Baraniewski W., Kunkel R., Omilanowska M., Sito J., Zięba A., Żak K. trans. Warszawa: Świat Książki.

PWN (2007). Słownik terminologiczny sztuk pięknych, p. 1. Kubalska-Sulkiewicz K., Bielska-Łach M., Manteuffel-Szarota A. eds. Wydanie piąte. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.