Ancient Greek temple three steps, the "crepidoma". The uppermost level of the "crepidoma" provides the surface on which the columns and walls are placed; it is called stylobate. Placed on the stylobate are the vertical column shafts, tapering towards the top. They are normally made of several separately cut column drums. Depending on the architectural order, a different number of flutings are cut into the column shaft: Doric columns have 18 to 20 flutings, Ionic and Corinthian ones normally have 24. Early Ionic columns had up to 48 flutings. While Doric columns stand directly on the stylobate, Ionic and Corinthian ones possess a
Corinthian order colonettes within the same system. During the 16th century, a sequence of engravings of the orders in architectural treatises helped standardize their details within rigid limits. Sebastiano Serlio; the "Regola delli cinque ordini" of Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola (1507–1573); the "Quattro libri di Architettura" of Andrea Palladio, and Vincenzo Scamozzi's "Idea della Architettura Universale," were followed in the 17th century by French treatises with further refined engraved models, such as Perrault's. Corinthian order The Corinthian order is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order which