An anta capital is the crowning portion of an anta, the front edge of a supporting wall in

Greek temple Greek temples (, semantically distinct from Latin , " temple") were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in ancient Greek religion. The temple interiors did not serve as meeting places, since the sacrifices and ritu ...

architecture. The anta is generally crowned by a stone block designed to spread the load from the superstructure (

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 ...

) it supports, called an "anta capital" when it is structural, or sometimes "

pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...

capital" if it is only decorative as often during the Roman period. In order not to protrude unduly from the wall, these anta capitals usually display a rather flat surface, so that the capital has more or less a brick-shaped structure overall. The anta capital can be more or less decorated depending on the artistic order it belongs to, with designs, at least in

ancient Greek architecture Ancient Greek architecture came from the Greeks, or Hellenes, whose Ancient Greece, culture flourished on the Greek mainland, the Peloponnese, the Aegean Islands, and in colonies in Asia Minor, Anatolia and Italy for a period from about 900 BC ...

, often quite different from the design of the column capitals it stands next to. This difference disappeared with

Roman times In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman civilisation from the founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingd ...

, when anta or pilaster capitals have designs very similar to those of the column capitals.

Doric anta capital

The Doric capital was designed in the continuity of the wall

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 ...

. It is characterized by a broad neck, a beak molding and an

abacus An abacus ( abaci or abacuses), also called a counting frame, is a hand-operated calculating tool which was used from ancient times in the ancient Near East, Europe, China, and Russia, until the adoption of the Hindu–Arabic numeral system. A ...

. The decoration is usually very sparse, except for the capitals displaying a transition with the

Ionic order The Ionic order is one of the three canonic classical order, orders of classical architecture, the other two being the Doric order, Doric and the Corinthian order, Corinthian. There are two lesser orders: the Tuscan order, Tuscan (a plainer Doric) ...

Ionic anta capital

The Ionic anta capital is very different in that it is very rich in moldings. It remains however essentially brick-shaped. The Ionic anta capitals of the

Erechtheion The Erechtheion (, latinized as Erechtheum ; , ) or Temple of Athena Polias is an ancient Greek Ionic temple on the north side of the Acropolis, Athens, which was primarily dedicated to the goddess Athena. The Ionic building, which housed the ...

take the shape of very decorated brick-shaped capitals, with designs essentially in the continuity of wall cornices, with some additional horizontal moldings. Some temples in

Ionia Ionia ( ) was an ancient region encompassing the central part of the western coast of Anatolia. It consisted of the northernmost territories of the Ionian League of Greek settlements. Never a unified state, it was named after the Ionians who ...

tend to have a very different design of anta capital, flat at the fronts but with volutes on the side, giving them the shape of sofas, hence the name they sometimes take of "sofa capitals". In this case the sides of the capital broaden upward, in a shape reminiscent of a couch or sofa. This capital can also be described as pilaster capitals, which, strictly speaking, are normally decorative rather than structural components. File:Didim RB9.jpg, Anta capital,

Didyma Didyma (; ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek sanctuary on the coast of Ionia in the domain of the famous city of Miletus. Apollo was the main deity of the sanctuary of Didyma, also called ''Didymaion''. But it was home to both of the Ancient ...

. File:Anta capital from Miletus.jpg, Anta capital from

Miletus Miletus (Ancient Greek: Μίλητος, Mílētos) was an influential ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia, near the mouth of the Maeander River in present day Turkey. Renowned in antiquity for its wealth, maritime power, and ex ...

(front view). File:Temple of Apollo in Didyma The Front and Profile of a Capital of the Pilasters.jpg, Anta capital at the Temple of Apollo in Didyma, front and profile. 4th century BCE. In

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, an anta capital of a quasi-Ionic type was discovered, and dated to the 3rd century BCE. It has a central flame palmette motif framed by Ionic volutes and placed between horizontal rows of decorative motifs. It is thought that its creation was due to the influence of the neighboring

Seleucid Empire The Seleucid Empire ( ) was a Greek state in West Asia during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 312 BC by the Macedonian general Seleucus I Nicator, following the division of the Macedonian Empire founded by Alexander the Great ...

, or a nearby Hellenistic city such as

Ai-Khanoum Ai-Khanoum (, meaning 'Lady Moon'; ) is the archaeological site of a Hellenistic city in Takhar Province, Afghanistan. The city, whose original name is unknown, was likely founded by an early ruler of the Seleucid Empire and served as a mili ...

."These flat, splaying members with cavetto sides, have a long history in Greek architecture as anta capitals, and the rolls at upper and lower sides are also seen" John Boardman, "The Origins of Indian Stone Architecture", p.19 : "An interesting flat capital which, though differing from the classic forms, bears a distinct resemblance to the capitals of the pilasters of the Temple of Apollo Didymaeos at Miletos

/ref>

Corinthian anta capital

Corinthian anta capitals tend to be much closer in design to the capitals of the columns, although often with a flattened composition: during the Greek period, Acanthus (ornament), Acanthus leaves are crowned by a central motif, such as a

palmette The palmette is a motif in decorative art which, in its most characteristic expression, resembles the fan-shaped leaves of a palm tree. It has a far-reaching history, originating in ancient Egypt with a subsequent development through the art o ...

, itself bracketed by volutes. This design was widely adopted in

for

Indo-Corinthian capital Indo-Corinthian capitals are capitals crowning columns or pilasters, which can be found in the northwestern Indian subcontinent, and usually combine Hellenistic and Indian elements. These capitals are typically dated to the first centuries of the ...

s. During the Greek period, anta capitals had designs different from those of column capital, but during Roman and later times this difference disappeared and both column and anta capitals has the same types of designs.The Classical Language of Architecture by John Summerson, p.47 "Anta" entr

/ref> At the same time, decorative pilaster designs multiplied during Roman times, so that many of the Corinthian anta capital designs are actually purely decorative pilaster designs.

Notes

References

* ;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Anta capital Architectural elements Ancient Greek architecture

Doric anta capital

Ionic anta capital

Corinthian anta capital

See also

Notes

References