Colonial Revival vs Greek Revival

Colonial Revival is the cross-discipline counterpart of Greek Revival — shares a classical American lineage and white-trimmed formality, but looks to 18th-century colonial precedent.

Colonial Revival

An American revival of Georgian and Federal colonial-era building — symmetrical brick or clapboard façades, a centered classically framed entrance, and balanced rows of multi-paned, shuttered windows.

Strictly symmetrical façade organized about a central axis
Accentuated central entrance with pediment, fanlight, or portico
Balanced rows of double-hung, multi-paned windows with shutters
Side-gabled or hipped roof with classical cornice detailing (dentils)
Brick or clapboard walls with white-painted classical trim

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Greek Revival

An early-19th-century revival that modeled banks, capitols, and houses on the temples of ancient Greece — bold columned porticoes and pediments expressing democratic and civic ideals.

Temple-front portico with full pediment
Greek Doric, Ionic, or Corinthian columns reproduced archaeologically
Severe, planar wall surfaces emphasizing the orders
White stone, stucco, or painted finish evoking marble
Symmetrical, rectilinear massing with bold entablature

Full Greek Revival guide →

At a glance

	Colonial Revival	Greek Revival
Era	1876–1955	1800–1860
Discipline	Architecture	Architecture
Region	United States, Canada	United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Greece
Family	Revival	Revival, Classical
Formal traits	symmetrical, central-entry, shuttered, dentil-cornice	temple-front, columned, pedimented, planar