Column

Squat, massive columns were the signature feature of Doric architecture. Traditional Doric columns had 20 concave, shallow grooves, or flutes, to help relieve the heaviness while drawing the eye upward to the decorated frieze and pediment. Doric column flutes were wider and more shallow than those of the Ionic Order and were separated by a sharp edge, as opposed to the narrow flat plane between Ionic flutes. The overall effect was to create a more unified appearance to the columns, making them each part of a larger whole.

In the Doric Order, the column has no base; instead, it rests directly on the floor. According to the Roman writer Vitruvius, the length and width of Doric columns were based on the relationship between foot length and height in a man, with a height-to-diameter ratio of 6:1. Over time, the columns became more slender. Columns were not made from a single piece of stone; rather, a series of drums stacked on top of each other.