Neoclassical style

Neoclassical style

An architectural style based primarily on the use of forms of Classical antiquity used in both public buildings and opulent homes; aspects of this style are imitative of the earlier Classical Revival style (often called Early Classical Revival) that was most popular from about 1770 to 1830; others are imitative of the Greek Revival style that was popular from about 1830 to 1850. Buildings in this style are generally characterized by: a smooth ashlar façade, an attic story, an enriched entablature, and a parapet; a symmetrical façade, commonly having a visually important full-width portico with full-height wood or stone classical columns or with square columns (sometimes paired) and full-height pilasters, or a one-story-high portico; an unadorned roof line; often a side-gabled roof, hipped roof, or gambrel roof; a moderate overhang at the eaves or boxed eaves; balustrades frequently located just above the eaves; commonly ornamented with statuary; a wide frieze below the cornice; double-hung, symmetrically arranged, with lintels above the windows; in homes, usually six-over-six or nine-over-nine double-hung windows; a doorway at the center of the façade, capped with a decorative lintel or with a broken pediment; ornamental elements usually surround the door. The terms Classical Revival, Neoclassical Revival, and Neoclassicism are sometimes used as synonyms for the Neoclassical style.