Editing Classical order (section)

== Vignola defining the concept of "order" ==
[[File:Table of architecture, Cyclopaedia, 1728, volume 1.jpg|thumb|Illustrations of the Classical orders (from left to right): [[Tuscan order|Tuscan]], [[Doric order|Doric]], [[Ionic order|Ionic]], [[Corinthian order|Corinthian]] and [[Composite order|Composite]], made in 1728, from [[Cyclopædia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences|Cyclopædia]]]]

{{Main|The Five Orders of Architecture}} 
Following the examples of Vitruvius and the five books of the ''Regole generali di architettura sopra le cinque maniere de gli edifici'' by [[Sebastiano Serlio]] published from 1537 onwards, [[Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola]] produced an architecture rule book that was not only more practical than the previous two treatises, but also was systematically and consistently adopting, for the first time, the term 'order' to define each of the five different species of columns inherited from antiquity. A first publication of the various plates, as separate sheets, appeared in Rome in 1562, with the title: ''Regola delli cinque ordini d'architettura'' ("Canon of the Five Orders of Architecture").<ref>The most recent English translation is the one, with an introduction and commentary by Branko Mitrovic, New York. 1999</ref> As David Watkin has pointed out, Vignola's book "was to have an astonishing publishing history of over 500 editions in 400 years in ten languages, Italian, Dutch, English, Flemish, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, during which it became perhaps the most influential book of all times".<ref>David Watkin, Introduction to the ''Canon of the Five Orders of Architecture'', translated by John Leeke, reprint of the 1699 edition, New York, 2011</ref>

The book consisted simply of an introduction followed by 32 annotated plates, highlighting the proportional system with all the minute details of the Five Architectural Orders. According to Christof Thoenes, the main expert of Renaissance architectural treatises, "in accordance with Vitruvius's example, Vignola chose a "module" equal to a half-diameter which is the base of the system. All the other measurements are expressed in fractions or in multiples of this module. The result is an arithmetical model, and with its help each order, harmoniously proportioned, can easily be adapted to any given height, of a façade or an interior. From this point of view, Vignola's Regola is a remarkable intellectual achievement".<ref>{{cite web |title=Architectura – Les livres d'Architecture |url=http://architectura.cesr.univ-tours.fr/traite/Notice/ENSBA_LES64.asp?param=en}}</ref>

In America, ''The American Builder's Companion'',<ref>{{cite book| last = Benjamin| first = Asher| title = The American Builder's Companion: Or, a System of Architecture Particularly Adapted to the Present Style of Building| year = 1827| publisher = Dover Publications| isbn = 978-0-486-22236-3 }}</ref> written in the early 19th century by the architect [[Asher Benjamin]], influenced many builders in the eastern states, particularly those who developed what became known as the [[Federal architecture|Federal style]]. The last American re-interpretation of Vignola's ''Regola'', was edited in 1904 by William Robert Ware.<ref>{{cite book| last = Ware| first = William R.| title = The American Vignola: a guide to the making of classical architecture| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=nV3eiQFnwyAC| year = 1994| publisher = Courier Dover Publications| isbn = 978-0-486-28310-4| pages = 160 }}</ref>

The break from the classical mode came first with the [[Gothic Revival architecture]], then the development of modernism during the 19th century. The [[Bauhaus]] promoted pure functionalism, stripped of superfluous ornament, and that has become one of the defining characteristics of [[modern architecture]]. There are some exceptions. [[Postmodern architecture|Postmodernism]] introduced an ironic use of the orders as a cultural reference, divorced from the strict rules of composition. On the other hand, a number of practitioners such as [[Quinlan Terry]] in England, and [[Michael Middleton Dwyer|Michael Dwyer]], [[Richard Sammons]], and [[Duncan Stroik]] in the United States, continue the classical tradition, and use the classical orders in their work.