 The Corinthian capital is essentially round at the bottom where it sits on a circular column and square at the top, where it supports the wall or arch.This form of capital was maintained in the general proportions and outline of the Romanesque capital.This was achieved most simply by cutting a rectangular block and taking the four lower corners off at an angle so that the block was square at the top, but octagonal at the bottom, as can be seen at St. Michael's Hildesheim.