Greek Revival Style
Columns are key in Greek Revival architecture — just have a look at many banks and civic centers
Think Greek (architecture, that is), and columns should come to mind. More than 2,000 years ago, the Greeks developed three orders of columns: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. Each column had a base, shaft and capital, and each order was decorated and proportioned in a different way. A revival of Greek architecture spread across the United States in the early 19th century, stemming from democratic ideals and the ability to copy the orders, which had been documented for centuries. The main trait of a Greek Revival house is a columned portico (porch) with a pediment, typically on the front in a symmetrical composition.
Greek Revival has been popular for civic buildings, banks and other institutions whose owners wanted to express the virtues associated with Greece, the cradle of democracy. Residences in the same style therefore appear grand, owing to large columns (often two stories tall) and a pediment above, usually highlighted with an attic window.
This house has columns in the Doric order — the simplest order, with a smooth shaft and a capital that appears to bulge under the weight of the attic above.
Inside the same house, the architect used an Ionic column in an opening between two rooms. The Ionic order is a step up in complexity from the Doric. The shaft is fluted (it has vertical concave grooves), and the capital is articulated as a spiral scroll, called a volute.
Elsewhere in the house is a Corinthian column, which has a fluted shaft (the same as the Ionic order) but is capped by sculptural acanthus leaves.
In many cases the Greek Revival portion of a house is the porch with columns and pediment; the piece behind it can be of a different style — for example, Georgian, as in this case.
Here is another Greek Revival front and Georgian back.
Even a pared-down and modest design, when it embraces the porch, columns and pediment, can recall the Greek Revival style.