Manasara Series (I. A Dictionary of Hindu Architecture; II. Indian Architecture according to Manasara-Shilpashastra; III. Manasara on Architecture and Sculpture: Sanskrit Text; IV. Architecture of Manasara: Translation; V. Architecture of Manasara: Illustrations; VI. Hindu Architecture in India and Abroad; VII. An Encyclopaedia of Hindu Architecture) v4.c29.s5.9

v4.c29.s5.9

The next four chapters (XIII—XVI) deal with the column and its different component parts, namely, the pedestal, the base, the shaft and the entablature, and their various mouldings and ornaments. Twelve kinds of pedestals are described with detailed measurements of the various mouldings of each pedestal. The variety, the beauty of proportion, and the richness of ornaments are remarkable. The same remark is true with regard to the bases also which are described in detail under sixty-four varieties. While in Graeco-Roman orders the forms and dimensions of both the base and the pedestal are fixed by invariable rules with respect to the orders in which they are employed, in the Indian orders, it will be noticed, the choice is left to the option of the architects. The entablatures, including the capital, and comprising the architrave, frieze and cornice, are described in detail under eight varieties. Their massiveness offers a striking contrast to the lightness of the Grecian entablatures.