Greek Revival Architectural Style

Greek Revival-style influenced the architectural world with its ornamental design details.

Filed under: Design Style, Home Types

Greek Revival
Sometime around 1820, classic Greek proportions and ornament made a comeback in architecture abroad, and then swept across the ocean to America and spread rapidly along the coast and into the frontier. A reminder of the ideals of ancient Greek democracy, Greek Revival design was a natural for civic monuments, and even the most modest farmhouse felt the influence.

Columns — Doric, Ionic, or Corinthian — are a predominant feature of Greek Revival style, commonly used to support a triangular pediment, the type you might see on an ancient Greek temple. On everyday homes, such columns might boost a rectangular transom over the door. Greek Revival exterior details include Ionic swirls atop a Doric column, the anthenium decorations based on a honeysuckle pattern, and the repeating angular patterns of a "Greek key" pattern on trim.