Cymatium (from Greek κυμάτιον "small wave"), the uppermost molding at the top of the

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...

in the

classical order An order in architecture is a certain assemblage of parts subject to uniform established proportions, regulated by the office that each part has to perform. Coming down to the present from Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek and Ancient Roman civiliz ...

, is made of the s-shaped cyma molding (either ''cyma recta'' or ''cyma reversa''), combining a concave cavetto with a convex

ovolo Ovolo is an Italian language, Italian word that means "little egg". The ovolo or echinus is a convex molding (decorative), decorative molding profile used in Ornament (architecture), architectural ornamentation. Its profile is a quarter to a half ...

. It is characteristic of Ionic columns and can appear as part of the

entablature An entablature (; nativization of Italian , from "in" and "table") is the superstructure of moldings and bands which lies horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and ...

, the epistyle or architrave, which is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...

s, and the capital itself. Often the cymatium is decorated with a palmette or

egg-and-dart Egg-and-dart, also known as egg-and-tongue, egg-and-anchor, or egg-and-star, is an Ornament (architecture), ornamental device adorning the fundamental quarter-round, convex ovolo profile of molding (decorative), moulding, consisting of alternating ...

ornament on the surface of the molding.

The heights of the parts of the capital are to be so regulated that three of the nine parts and a half, into which it was divided, lie below the level of the astragal on the top of the shaft. The remaining parts are for the cymatium, abacus, and channel. The projection of the cymatium beyond the abacus is not to be greater than the size of the diameter of the eye f the volute

In the case of a concave-convex profile, a distinction is made between cyma recta and cyma reversa, with the cyma reversa, the inverted and therefore hanging cyma, being the usual form. Originally, the individual types of cymatia were linked to the corresponding individual building codes and the associated ornament systems and in this way could be clearly distinguished from one another. In the Hellenistic and Roman periods, however, the types mixed, at the same time further refinement and embellishment with numerous details (acanthus, palmettes, medallions) took place.

References

Columns and entablature {{Architecturalelement-stub

See also

References