엔타시스와 배흘림에 관한 건축사적 고찰 - 법륭사건축론(法隆寺建築論)을 중심으로 -

This paper elucidates conceptions of entasis in East Asian context based on the architectural theory of Horyuji Temple, built in 711, advocated by Japanese architect Ito Chuta in 1893. The use of the word 'entasis' for Japanese or Korean wooden columns has not been academically defined nor agreed among historians, but it has been widely used in both countries to describe columnal curvature in traditional temples. In this context, this paper intends to build a historical account of Ito's theory and its dissemination. Japanese scholar Watsuji Tetsuro's best selling publication in 1919 eulogized Horyuji Temple with a reference to Ito's theory suggesting entasis might be a fossil remnant of cross-continental cultural interchange. It greatly promoted Ito's theory countrywide and the idea of entasis being homogeneous phenomenon is continuously practiced today. Recent scholarship upon classic architecture has shown that entasis is largely exaggerated in the earlier studies. For example, entasis in the Parthenon is not observable by naked eyes. Its subtle existence is aesthetical rather then optical. This paper argues that the lack of reliable scholarship has fed and patronized recurrent fantasies of ancient East-West relations.