How Ancient Leaves Became Features of Timaru’s Architecture?

Let’s begin in the Middle Ages, a 900-year period between the fall of the Roman Empire and the Renaissance, from around 500 to 1500 AD. During this time, architecture shifted from the grand, classical style of ancient Rome to more practical, fortified, and religious buildings with thick stone walls, rounded arches, small windows and towers, known as Romanesque. Later, French Gothic architecture spread across Europe and became the dominant style for cathedrals by the late 1400s.

In 1414, a set of ten ancient books titled De Architectura (On Architecture) was rediscovered in a Swiss monastery. Written around 100 BCE by Marcus Vitruvius Pollio, a Roman military engineer, architect, and theorist under Emperor Augustus, these texts are the earliest known works on architecture.

Vitruvius wrote them as a handbook for Roman architects. His ideas played an important role in reviving Greek and Roman design principles during the Renaissance, and went on to influence both classical and modern architecture.

Vitruvius believed that the human body had divine, balanced proportions, and that buildings should reflect the same harmony. This idea inspired Leonardo da Vinci’s famous drawing, the Vitruvian Man, created around 1490, and influenced many other artists, including Francesco di Giorgio Martini.

Vitruvius also told the story behind the Corinthian style. According to him, a Greek architect and sculptor named Callimachus, who is credited with inventing the Corinthian order, saw acanthus leaves growing around a basket placed on the grave of a young girl. A roof tile had been set on top, and as the plant grew, the leaves curled outward. This inspired the design of the Corinthian column, which is recognised for its curly acanthus leaves and elegant, decorative form. It became the most ornate of all Greek columns.

The name "Corinthian" comes from the city of Corinth in Greece, located on the narrow isthmus between mainland Greece and the Peloponnese. Destroyed in 146 BC and later rebuilt as a Roman colony in 44 BC, Corinth became a thriving centre of trade, culture, and politics. Its association with wealth and beauty helped the Corinthian style spread and influence architecture for centuries.

Much of this classical knowledge was lost or forgotten during the Middle Ages. However, it was revived during the Renaissance, between 1400 and 1600, when artists and architects rediscovered ancient texts and ruins.

In 1762, during the Georgian era of architecture, British architects James Stuart and Nicholas Revett published their book The Antiquities of Athens in London. At the time, King George III was on the throne. Their work, based on studies of ancient ruins in Greece, featured detailed illustrations of classical buildings. It helped spark a wave of Neoclassical architecture across Britain, Europe, and beyond. The acanthus leaf soon appeared in buildings, furniture, and art around the world.

Greek architects created the first three of five classical orders: Doric, Ionic, Corinthian. The Romans later added two more: Tuscan, a simpler version of the Doric order, with unfluted columns and a plain capital. Composite, a more elaborate style that combines the volutes of the Ionic with the acanthus leaves of the Corinthian.

According to Vitruvius, temple design must follow the same principles of symmetry and proportion found in the human body. Since temples were built to last, he insisted that their design reflect nature’s balance and harmony, ensuring both structural integrity and divine beauty. The Greeks considered 10 a perfect number due to finger counting, while mathematicians saw 6 as perfect for its divisibility.

Both Greeks and Romans made use of the Acanthus mollis in the form of garlands, with which they adorned their buildings, their furniture, and even their clothing.

A picture of the leaves of Acanthus Montanus ( Nees).caliban.mpiz-koeln.mpg.de/mavica/index.html part of www.biolib.de.  An acanthus (A. mollis) flowering in the ruins of the Palatine Hill, Rome, May 2005

The origin of the Corinthian order, engraving (Paris: J.-B. Coignard, 1684), illustrated in Claude Perrault's Vitruvius, 2nd ed. (1684).

Column capitols that you can find in Timaru's CBD - photography by Geoff Cloake

Custom House and the neighbourhood in 1874