Ionic order Ionic order The Ionic order forms one of the three classical orders of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian. There are two lesser orders: the Tuscan (a plainer Doric), and the rich variant of Corinthian called the composite order, both added by 16th-century Italian architectural writers, based on Roman practice. Of the three canonic orders, the Ionic order has the narrowest columns. The Ionic capital is characterized by the use of volutes. The Ionic columns normally stand on a base which separates the shaft of the column from the stylobate or platform; the
Ionic Greek city of Miletus. This alphabet eventually became the standard Greek alphabet, its use becoming uniform during the Koine era. It was also the alphabet used in the Christian Gospels and the book of Acts. Proto-Greek "ā" > Ionic "ē"; in Doric, Aeolic, "ā" remains; in Attic, "ā" after "e, i, r", but "ē" elsewhere. Proto-Greek "e, o" > Ionic "ei, ou": compensatory lengthening after loss of "w" in the sequences "enw-, erw-, onw-, orw-". In Attic, "e, o" is not lengthened. Ionic sometimes removes initial aspiration (Proto-Greek hV- > Ionic V-). Ionic contracts less often than Attic. Proto-Greek "*kʷ" before