Thursday, March 19, 2020

The History of Corinthian Columns

The History of Corinthian Columns The word Corinthian describes an ornate column style developed in ancient Greece and classified as one of the Classical Orders of Architecture. The Corinthian style is more complex and elaborate than the earlier Doric and Ionic Orders. The capital or top part of a Corinthian style column has lavish ornamentation carved to resemble leaves and flowers. Roman architect Vitruvius observed that the delicate Corinthian design was produced out of the two other orders. He described the Corinthian column as an imitation of the slenderness of a maiden; for the outlines and limbs of maidens, being more slender on account of their tender years, admit of prettier effects in the way of adornment. Because of their opulence, Corinthian columns are rarely used as common porch columns for the ordinary home. The style is more suited for Greek Revival mansions and public architecture such as government buildings, especially courthouses. Characteristics of Corinthian columns include: Fluted (grooved) shaftsCapitals (the tops of each shaft) decorated with  acanthus leaves and flowers and sometimes small scrollsCapital ornaments that flare outward like bells, suggesting a sense of heightProportion; Vitruvius tells us that the height of their capitals gives them proportionately a taller and more slender effect than Ionic columns Why Are They Called Corinthian Columns? In the worlds first architecture textbook, De architectura (30 B.C.), Vitruvius tells the story of a young girl from the city-state of Corinth. A free-born maiden of Corinth, just of marriageable age, was attacked by an illness and passed away, writes Vitruvius. She was buried with a basket of her favorite things atop her tomb, near the root of an acanthus tree. That spring, leaves and stalks grew up through the basket, creating a delicate explosion of natural beauty. The effect caught the eye of a passing sculptor named Callimachus, who began to incorporate the intricate design onto column capitals. Because the sculptor found this design in Corinth, the columns that bear it became known as Corinthian columns. West of Corinth in Greece is the Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae, thought to be the oldest surviving example of the Classical Corinthian column. This temple from about 425 B.C. is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Tholos (a round building) at Epidauros (c. 350 B.C.) is thought to be one of the first structures to use a colonnade of Corinthian columns. Archaeologists have determined the tholos to have 26 exterior Doric columns and 14 interior Corinthian columns. The Temple of Olympian Zeus (175 B.C.) in Athens is said to have had more than 100 Corinthian columns. Are All Corinthian Capitals the Same? No, not all Corinthian capitals are exactly alike, but they are characterized by their leafy flowers. The capitals of Corinthian columns are more ornamented and delicate than the tops of other column types. They can easily deteriorate over time, especially when they are used outdoors. Early Corinthian columns were used primarily for interiors spaces, and thus were protected from the elements. The Monument of Lysikrates (c. 335 B.C.) in Athens features some of the earliest examples of exterior Corinthian columns. Replacing deteriorated Corinthian capitals must be done by master craftsmen. During the 1945 bombing of Berlin, the royal palace was heavily damaged, and it was later demolished in the 1950s. With the reunification of East and West Berlin, the palace was reinvented. Sculptors used old photographs to recreate the architectural details in the new facade, in clay and in plaster, noting that not all of the Corinthian capitals were the same. Architectural Styles That Use Corinthian Columns The Corinthian column and the Corinthian Order were created in ancient Greece. Ancient Greek and Roman architecture is collectively known as Classical, and so Corinthian columns are found in Classical architecture. The Arch of Constantine (A.D. 315) in Rome and the Ancient Library of Celsus in Ephesus feature examples of Corinthian columns in Classical architecture. Classical architecture was reborn during the Renaissance in the 15th and 16th centuries. Later derivatives of Classical architecture include the Neoclassical, Greek Revival, and Neoclassical Revival architectures of the 19th century, and the Beaux Arts architecture of the American Gilded Age. Thomas Jefferson was influential in bringing the Neoclassical style to America, as seen in the Rotunda at The University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Corinthian-like designs can also be found in some Islamic architecture. The distinctive capital of the Corinthian column comes in many forms, but the acanthus leaf appears in most designs. Professor Talbot Hamlin suggests that Islamic architecture was influenced by the acanthus leaf design: Many mosques, like those at Kairouan and Cordova, used actual ancient Corinthian capitals; and later Moslem capitals were often based on the Corinthian scheme in general pattern, although the tendency toward abstraction gradually removed all remaining signs of realism from the carving of the leaves. Famous Buildings With Corinthian Columns In the United States, famous buildings with Corinthian columns include the U.S. Supreme Court Building, the U.S. Capitol, and the National Archives Building, all of which are in Washington, D.C. In New York City, buildings with these columns include the New York Stock Exchange Building on Broad Street in Lower Manhattan and the James A. Farley Building, which is across the street from Penn Station and Madison Square Garden. In Rome, check out the Pantheon and the Colosseum, where Doric columns are on the first level, Ionic columns on the second, and Corinthian columns on the third. Great Renaissance cathedrals throughout Europe are apt to show off their Corinthian columns, including St. Pauls Cathedral and St Martin-in-the-Fields in London.

Monday, March 2, 2020

Innovative Ways to Teach Math

Innovative Ways to Teach Math Believe it or not, math can be taught in some very innovative ways, and private schools are some of the top educational institutions pioneering new ways to master a traditional subject. A case study in this unique approach to teaching math can be found at one of the top boarding schools in the US, the Phillips Exeter Academy. Years ago, teachers at Exeter developed a series of math books containing problems, techniques, and strategies that are now being used at other private day and boarding schools. This technique has become known as Exeter Math.   The Process of Exeter Math What makes Exeter Math truly innovative, is that the traditional classes and course progression of Algebra 1, Algebra 2, Geometry, etc., is done away with in favor of students learning the skills and computations necessary to solve problems. Every homework assignment contains elements of each traditional math course, rather than separating them out into segmented annual learning.  The math courses at Exeter are centered on the math problems  written by the teachers. The entire course is different from traditional math classes in that it is problem-centered rather than topic-centered. For many, the traditional middle or high school math class generally presents a topic within the class time with the teacher and then asks students to complete lengthy assignments at home that consist of repetitive problem-solving exercises, intended to help students better master the procedures for homework. However, the process is altered in Exeters math classes, which involve little direct instruction drills. Instead, students are given a small number of word problems to complete each night independently. There is little direct instruction about how to complete the problems, but there is a glossary to help students, and the problems tend to build on each other. The students direct the learning process themselves. Each night, students work on the problems, doing the best they can, and log their work. In these problems, the learning  process  is just as important as the answer, and teachers want to see all of the students’ work, even if it is done on their calculators. What If a Student Struggles With Math? Teachers suggest that if students are stuck on a problem, they make an educated guess and then check their work. They do this by making up an easier problem with the same principle as the given problem. Since Exeter is a boarding school, students can visit their teachers, other students, or the math help center if they are stuck while doing their homework in their dorms at night. They are expected to carry out 50 minutes of concentrated work per night and to work persistently, even if the work is very difficult for them. The next day, students bring their work to class where they discuss it in a seminar-like style around a Harkness table, an oval-shaped table that was designed at Exeter and is used in most of their classes to facilitate conversation. The idea is not to just present the right answer but for each student to have a turn presenting his or her work to facilitate conversation, share methods, work out problems, communicate about ideas, and support other students. What Is the Purpose of the Exeter Method? While traditional math courses emphasize rote learning that does not connect to everyday issues, the purpose of the Exeter word problems is to help students really understand math by working out the equations and algorithms themselves rather than just being given them. They also come to understand the applications of the problems. While this process can be very difficult, particularly for students new to the program, students learn traditional math areas such as algebra, geometry, and others by working out the ideas themselves. As a result, they really understand them and how they relate to mathematical issues and problems they could encounter outside of the classroom. Many private schools across the country are adopting the Exeter math class materials and procedures, particularly for honors math class. Teachers at schools using Exeter math state that the program helps students own their work and take responsibility for learning it- rather than simply having it handed to them. Perhaps the most important aspect of Exeter math is that it teaches students that being stuck on a problem is acceptable. Instead, students realize that it’s all right not to know the answers right away and that discovery and even frustration are in fact essential to real learning. Updated by Stacy Jagodowski.