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.
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.
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.
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.
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.