FIG. 1.16. A Greek capital, “Historic Ornament, A Pictorial Archive,” Dover Publications.
acanthus, in architecture and decorative arts, a stylized ornamental motif based on a characteristic Mediterranean plant with jagged leaves, Acanthus spinosus. It was first used by the Greeks in the 5th century bc on temple roof ornaments, on wall friezes, and on the capital of the Corinthian column. One of the best examples of its use in the Corinthian order is the Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens. Later the Romans used the motif in their Composite order, in which the capital of the column is a three-dimensional combination of spirals resembling rams’ horns and full-bodied acanthus leaves. The acanthus leaf has been a popular motif in carved furniture decoration since the Renaissance.
Acanthus is a genus of about 30 species of flowering plants in the family Acanthaceae, native to tropical and warm temperate regions, with the highest species diversity in the Mediterranean Basin and Asia. This flowering plant is nectar-producing and depends on butterflies, such as Anartia fatima, and other nectar-feeding organisms to distribute its pollen. Common names include Acanthus and bear's breeches. The generic name derives from the Greek term แผκανθος (akanthos) for Acanthus mollis, a plant that was commonly imitated in Corinthian capitals.[3][4]
The genus comprises herbaceous perennial plants, rarely subshrubs, with spiny leaves and flower spikes bearing white or purplish flowers. Size varies from 0.4 to 2 m (1.3 to 6.6 ft) in height.
Crataegus (/krษหtiหษกษs/),[2] commonly called hawthorn, quickthorn,[3] thornapple,[4] May-tree,[5] whitethorn,[5] Mayflower or hawberry, is a genus of several hundred species of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae,[6] native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Europe, Asia, North Africa and North America. The name "hawthorn" was originally applied to the species native to northern Europe, especially the common hawthorn C. monogyna, and the unmodified name is often so used in Britain and Ireland. The name is now also applied to the entire genus and to the related Asian genus Rhaphiolepis.
Taxusis agenusofconiferoustreesorshrubsknown asyewsin the familyTaxaceae.Yews occur around the globe in temperate zones of the northern hemisphere, northernmost inNorwayand southernmost in theSouth Celebes. Some populations exist in tropical highlands.
Yews typically occur in the understory or canopy of moist temperate or tropical mountain forests. Elevation varies by latitude from 3,000 m (9,800 ft) in tropical forests to near sea level in its northernmost populations.[2] Yews are common in landscape architecture, giving rise to widespread naturalized populations in the United States. There, both T. baccata and Taxus cuspidata are common ornamental shrubs.[12]
T. baccata appears throughout Europe and into western Asia.[2] T. cuspidata occurs over much of East Asia, in China, Japan, Korea, and Sakhalin.[13] Taxus brevifolia ranges in the United States from California to Montana and Alaska,[12] while Taxus canadensis appears in the northeastern United States and southeast Canada.[2]