Tuscan order
The Latin phrase Ordo Tuscanicus first appeared in the 6th century within Isidore of Seville's Etymologiae. This text grouped a simple columnar style with other classical forms for the first time. Roman architects like Vitruvius did not list this style as a distinct order alongside Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian systems. They described round columns without flutes but never named them Tuscan. Etruscan vernacular architecture across Italy featured these sturdy unfluted columns long before Renaissance theorists cataloged them. The Romans ignored the classification while building temples and public spaces throughout their empire. It remained an informal part of local Italian building traditions until scholars revived it centuries later.
Sebastiano Serlio published his fourth book Regole generali di architettura sopra le cinque maniere de gli edifici in 1537. He introduced five orders including what he called the solidest and least ornate Tuscan order. Fra Giocondo had illustrated a Tuscan capital in his 1511 printed edition of Vitruvius. That drawing showed egg and dart enrichment which actually belonged to the Ionic order instead. Andrea Palladio carefully delineated the most rustic version of Serlio's design in his own treatises. Vignola published Cinque ordini d'architettura in 1562 with clear illustrations of the system. These printed works defined proportions that earlier builders had only used by habit or local custom. Theorists sought precedents in Vitruvius even though he offered no indication of the column's specific capital shape.
A typical Tuscan column features a simple base that is circular rather than squared as seen in other orders. The shaft remains unfluted while both capital and entablature lack any adornments. A plain astragal or taenia ringed the column beneath its cap. The modular proportion of the column was 1:7 according to Vitruvius and later Palladio. Serlio alone gave a stockier proportion of 1:6 for this style. It follows the ratios of the Ionic order despite its overall simplicity. This strong order appeared suitable for military architecture where durability mattered more than decoration. The entablature contained no triglyphs or guttae found in Doric systems. Architects could use it in one-storey buildings like villa barns without looking pretentious.
Serlio described the style as suitable to fortified places such as city gates and fortresses. He listed treasuries, prisons, seaports and structures used in war as ideal applications. Docks and warehouses received dignified architectural treatment when built with this sturdy system. Andrea Palladio noted the rough nature made it rare above ground except in huge structures. He cited the arena of Verona and the Pula Arena as Roman precedents for arcuated buildings. These ancient examples did not present columns and entablatures in the standard way. Baldassarre Peruzzi designed Palazzo Massimo alle Colonne in Rome between 1532 and 1536 using the form. Pietro da Cortona added a pronaos portico to Santa Maria della Pace from 1656 to 1667.
Inigo Jones completed St Paul's church in Covent Garden in 1633 using the Tuscan order. Lord Bedford gave him a very low budget and asked for a simple church not much better than a barn. The architect replied that he would provide the handsomest barn in England. Nicholas Hawksmoor used the order outside Christ Church in Spitalfields between 1714 and 1729 while placing Corinthian within. The stable court at Wentworth Woodhouse in Yorkshire dates to 1768 and features Tuscan elements. West Wycombe Park displays a loggia facade with Tuscan on the ground floor and Corinthian above. This mode became part of the vernacular Georgian style that lingered deep into the 19th century. Carpenter's Doric provided simple elegance to gate posts and fences in traditional garden contexts across New England and Ohio.
Common questions
When did the Latin phrase Ordo Tuscanicus first appear in historical texts?
The Latin phrase Ordo Tuscanicus first appeared in the 6th century within Isidore of Seville's Etymologiae. This text grouped a simple columnar style with other classical forms for the first time.
Who published the fourth book Regole generali di architettura sopra le cinque maniere de gli edifici in 1537?
Sebastiano Serlio published his fourth book Regole generali di architettura sopra le cinque maniere de gli edifici in 1537. He introduced five orders including what he called the solidest and least ornate Tuscan order.
What are the physical characteristics of a typical Tuscan column shaft and base?
A typical Tuscan column features a simple base that is circular rather than squared as seen in other orders. The shaft remains unfluted while both capital and entablature lack any adornments.
Which buildings did Inigo Jones complete using the Tuscan order in England?
Inigo Jones completed St Paul's church in Covent Garden in 1633 using the Tuscan order. Lord Bedford gave him a very low budget and asked for a simple church not much better than a barn.
When was Palazzo Massimo alle Colonne designed by Baldassarre Peruzzi in Rome?
Baldassarre Peruzzi designed Palazzo Massimo alle Colonne in Rome between 1532 and 1536 using the form. This structure utilized the sturdy system despite its informal origins before Renaissance theorists cataloged them.
All sources
3 references cited across the entry
- 1bookThe Etymologies of Isidore of SevilleIsidore of Seville — Cambridge University Press — 2006
- 3bookAnecdotes of painting in EnglandHorace Walpole et al. — J. Dodsley — 1782