By Roselyn Fauth

Next time you are at Caroline Bay, wander over to the waterfall fountain and pause for a moment. Around its base, you will spot a striking plant with broad, jagged leaves. It is called acanthus. At first glance it might just look like another ornamental garden choice, but this plant has a story that stretches across continents and thousands of years, reaching all the way back to the beginnings of classical architecture... and to the grave of a young girl in ancient Corinth...

Over 2,500 years ago in Greece, architects were exploring new ways to add beauty and expression to buildings. While the Doric and Ionic styles were already well known, a new idea was taking shape in the mind of a man named Callimachus.

According to the Roman writer Vitruvius, Callimachus was walking past a young girl's grave when he saw something remarkable. A basket of her toys, placed lovingly on the grave by her nurse and weighed down with a flat roof tile, had been overtaken by the leaves of an acanthus plant growing up from the soil. As the leaves curled out from under the tile, their natural grace caught Callimachus's eye. Inspired by this moment, he designed a new column capital. The result was the now-famous Corinthian style, decorated with carved acanthus leaves and known for its ornate beauty.

We do not know the girl’s name, but the legend honours her all the same. She was young, not yet grown, and her death likely came from illness. The nurse’s gentle act of placing her toys on the grave speaks of mourning, care, and love. Without knowing it, she created the moment that inspired one of architecture’s most lasting symbols.

We cannot be certain whether this story truly happened, but it became a well-known legend in the ancient world. The Corinthian style went on to become one of the most celebrated elements of Greek and Roman architecture, and it all began at the intersection of grief, memory, and nature.

What Is “Corinthian”?

The style is named after Corinth, an ancient Greek city located on the narrow stretch of land connecting the Greek mainland to the Peloponnese. In its time, Corinth was a wealthy and powerful city, famous for its art, luxury, and innovation. Naming this elegant column design after Corinth gave it an added sense of refinement and prestige.

As the Romans adopted and spread the Corinthian style throughout their empire, it became a symbol of grandeur. Over time it featured on temples, theatres, civic buildings, and triumphal arches, and eventually influenced architects in the Victorian and Edwardian eras across Europe and the colonies.

The origin of the Corinthian order, as illustrated in Claude Perrault's 1684 edition of Vitruvius, shows the votive basket and acanthus plant growing at the girl’s grave... the moment that gave rise to an architectural legacy.

The story of the young girl's grave, the basket of toys, and the acanthus leaves comes from De Architectura by Vitruvius, a Roman architect and engineer writing in the 1st century BCE. The city of Corinth was real, powerful, and wealthy in ancient Greece, known for its luxury and influence in art and architecture. From a 1684 book that translated Vitruvius work into French. Vitruvius, Les Dix Livre d'Architecture de Vitruve, Paris: Coignard, 1684. - MetMuseum 41.100.388. Bequest of W. Gedney Beatty, 1941

The story of Callimachus being inspired by the grave is a legend recorded by Vitruvius and widely repeated in architectural history, but not provable as a historical event. This image is an engraving (Paris: J.-B. Coignard, 1684), illustrated in Claude Perrault's Vitruvius, 2nd ed. (1684).

What makes this story even more remarkable is that Vitruvius’s treatise De Architectura survived through the Middle Ages in manuscript form and was rediscovered in a Swiss monastery library in the early 15th century. Its reappearance, along with the enduring ruins of classical buildings, helped to ignite the Renaissance revival of classical architecture. These ideas spread rapidly across Europe and, centuries later, influenced architects as far afield as New Zealand.

From Classical Europe to Timaru

When Timaru's city centre was developing in the late 1800s and early 1900s, architects drew heavily on the classical styles of ancient Greece and Rome. They wanted to create buildings that felt proud, permanent, and dignified.

That is why many of the facades in Timaru’s CBD are decorated with carved, moulded, or cast acanthus leaves, especially on columns, cornices, and pediments. These elegant details are not just decorative. They connect our regional city to a much larger design tradition that spans more than two thousand years. From civic buildings to banks, council chambers, and theatres, you can see traces of the Corinthian style all around you.

This is what makes the acanthus plants at Caroline Bay so special. They are not just a beautiful part of the landscaping. They are living examples of the very plant that inspired generations of architects and artists. And here they are, growing peacefully around a fountain just a short walk from the town centre.

Acanthus plants around Timaru's Piazza fountain. Photography Roselyn Fauth 2025. The plant that inspired the Corinthian column capital is known by its official botanical name Acanthus mollis. Commonly referred to as bear’s breeches, it is native to the Mediterranean region and belongs to the Acanthaceae family. Acanthus mollis is recognised for its large, glossy green leaves that are deeply lobed and soft in texture. These leaves, with their natural curves and elegant structure, were ideal for stylised carving in stone. It is widely believed that the ancient Greek architect Callimachus was inspired by this specific species when he created the ornate Corinthian capital. While there are related species such as Acanthus spinosus, which has spikier foliage, Acanthus mollis is the plant most closely associated with classical architectural design and is still grown today in gardens around the world, including those at Caroline Bay in Timaru.

Look Up in Timaru

Take a walk through Timaru’s CBD and look up. Look at the tops of buildings, along the edges of old banks and theatres, and above grand doorways. You will start to see acanthus leaves curling in stone and iron. Once you spot them, you will find them everywhere.

It is extraordinary to think that a single moment, observed by an architect in ancient Greece, led to a design style that is now part of our daily lives here in Timaru. From a grave in Corinth to a civic street in South Canterbury, the acanthus leaf tells a quiet but powerful story of beauty, memory, and design — and it all began with a girl, a nurse, a basket of toys, and the patience of a plant.

Column and Capital details in Timaruy's CBD. Photography By Geoff Cloake.

DORIC.  Simple, round design with a square top. Fluted shaft. (Masculine). (Greek)

IONIC.  Volutes (scroll-like ornaments). Slender, fluted shaft. (Feminine) (Greek)

CORINTHIAN. Ornate and intricate acanthus leaves, votive basket. Fluted shaft. (Greek and Roman)

The Timaru Customs House. Neoclassical Building by architect Daniel West. Exterior view of the Custom House at Timaru, on the corner of Cains Terrace and Strathallan Street, photographed circa 1902. Shows a stone building in a neoclassical style, with two pairs of columns framing the entrance Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. Tiaki12044242-F

The Timaru Custom House is a great example of the simplier new classic design. You can see the columns here are simplier, and dont have the corinthian leaves.

Timaru Public Library and Municipal buildings on the corner of Latter and George Streets, circa 1938. Photograph by F. R. Lamb, Christchurch. Silver gelatin print, 215 × 170 mm. South Canterbury Museum Collection, accession no. 4621.

Study of the Timaru District Council facade. Acanthus Leaf inspiration on the Tiaru District Council Building that used to be a library designed by Walter Panton in 1908 - Geoff Cloake 2025.

Upper façade of the Empire Hotel building extension on Church Street, Timaru, circa 1985. Visible signage includes Demco, the Shoe Surgery, Lazer Sportswear, and The Sandwich House. Colour positive transparency, 35 mm. South Canterbury Museum Collection, accession no. 2016/053.016.

Study of the facade. Acanthus Leaf inspiration at Maurice Devuals 1892 Empire Hotel Extension in Timaru. Photography Roselyn Fauth

Become a Timaru Architecture Spotter

Next time you are at the Bay, visit the fountain and look closely at the plants. Then head into town, camera or sketchbook in hand, and start your own Corinthian treasure hunt. How many acanthus leaves can you find? Share your discoveries with friends, post a photo, or create your own walking trail.

Because once you start seeing the ancient in the everyday, you will never look at Timaru’s buildings the same way again.

DOWNLOAD Timaru CBD Architecture Guide & Hunt A3

Vintage Map of Corinth Greece - 1894 is a drawing by CartographyAssociates which was uploaded on September 12th, 2016.