Page:A history of architecture on the comparative method for the student, craftsman, and amateur.djvu/708

 650 COMPARATIVE AKCHITECTUR?:. moulded base, without capital of any kind, but provided with bracketed tops of various design (No. 283 a, b, g). Such a treatment differentiates Chinese architecture from most others, in which the capital forms one of the most important of archi- tectural features, giving the date and style of a structure. Japan. — According to Mr. J. Conder, the intercolumniation is regulated by a standard of about six feet, called a " Ken," which is divided into twenty minutes, each minute being divided into twenty-two seconds. Pillars are square, round, or octagonal ; the round ones being often reeded and the square ones panelled Sometimes they are inclined inwards, instead of being vertical. F. Mouldings. These appear to be little used. Their place was taken by the colored glazed tiles, projecting ends of timber rafters, and the like. The bases to columns are often of moulded bronze, consisting of cyma and ovolo, or cavetto and ovolo (No. 283). G. Ornament. China. — The ornament faithfully expresses the national charac- teristic of oddness. All Eastern nations appear to have a natural instinct for harmonizing color, and to this the Chinese are no exception. Colored ornament is applied to the buildings in the form of enamel glazed tiles, painted woodwork, and landscape and figure subjects. It is in the minor arts that the Chinese and Japanese excel, in their silk and cotton manufactures, in their carvings in wood and ivory, and their vessels of porcelain. The umbrella is an old symbol of dominion and power, and the triple umbrella is one of the most important insignia of the Emperor of China. Japan. — -The colored and carved panels forming the inclosing walls, the elaborately formed and colored projecting eaves to the roofs, and the ramma or pierced ventilating friezes under the cornices are characteristic. In these, panels in high relief frequently occur, representing such subjects as the chrysanthe- mum and jay, or the stork and pine tree. For ornamental purposes, brass caps, usually gilded to preserve them from corrosion, and incised in patterns, are fixed to the ends of projecting timbers, to the junctions of beams and pillars, the bases and neckings of posts, and on doors to hide the connection of the stiles and rails, and the open joints due to shrinkage. Embossed gilt metal work is also liberally applied to the gable boards and pendants. Color decoration, introduced, it is said, from China in the sixth century, is very generally applied to the inside and outside of