Greek Architecture

The history of art and architecture in Ancient Greece is divided into three basic eras: the Archaic Period
(c.600-500 BCE), the Classical Period (c.500-323 BCE) and the Hellenistic Period (c.323-27 BCE). [See
also: Aegean art.] About 600 BCE, inspired by the theory and practice of earlier Egyptian stone masons and
builders, the Greeks set about replacing the wooden structures of their public buildings with stone structures
- a process known as 'petrification'. Limestone and marble was employed for columns and walls, while
terracotta was used for roof tiles and ornaments. Decoration was done in metal, like bronze.
Like painters and sculptors, Greek architects enjoyed none of the enhanced status accorded to their
successors. They were not seen as artists but as tradesmen. Thus no names of architects are known before
about the 5th century BCE. The most common types of public buildings were temples, municipal structures,
theatres and sports stadiums.
Architectural Methods of Ancient Greece
Greek architecture used simple post-and-lintel building techniques. It wasn't until the Roman era that the
arch was developed in order to span greater distances. As a result, Greek architects were forced to employ a
great many more stone columns to support short horizontal beams overhead. Moreover, they could not
construct buildings with large interior spaces, without having rows of internal support columns. The standard
construction format, used in public buildings like the Hephaesteum at Athens, employed large blocks of
limestone or a light porous stone known as tuff. Marble, being scarcer and more valuable was reserved for
sculptural decoration, except in the grandest buildings, such as the Parthenon on the Acropolis.
Greek Building Design
The typical rectangular building design was often surrounded by a columns on all four sides (eg. the
Parthenon) or more rarely at the front and rear only (eg the Temple of Athena Nike). Roofs were laid with
timber beams covered by terracotta tiles, and were not domed. Pediments (the flattened triangular shape at
each gable end of the building) were usually filled with sculptural decoration or friezes, as was the row of
lintels along the top of each side wall, between the roof and the tops of the columns. In the late 4th and 5th
centuries BCE, Greek architects began to depart from the strictly rectangular plan of traditional temples in
favour of a circular structure (the tholos), embellished with black marble to highlight certain architectural
elements and provide rich colour contrasts.
These buildings were famously adorned with a huge range of Greek sculpture - pedimental works, friezes,
reliefs and various types of free-standing statue - of a figurative nature, depicting mythological heroes and
events in Greek history and culture.
Principles of Greek Architecture: Classical Orders
The theory of Greek architecture - arguably the most influential form of classical Greek art - was based on a
system of 'Classical Orders' - rules for building design based on proportions of and between the individual
parts. This resulted in an aesthetically pleasing consistency of appearance regardless of size or materials
used. There were three orders in early Greek architecture: the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian. The Doric style
was common in mainland Greece and later spread to the Greek colonies in Italy. The Ionic style was
employed in the cities of Ionia along the west coast of Turkey and other islands in the Aegean. Where the
Doric style was formal and austere, the Ionic was less restrained and more decorative. The third style,
Corinthian, came later and represented a more ornate development of the Ionic order. The differences
between these styles is most plainly visible in the ratio between the base diameter and height of their
columns. Doric architecture (exemplified by most surviving Greek structures, like the Parthenon and the
Temple of Hephaestus in Athens) was more popular during the Classical age, while the Ionic style gained the
upper hand during the more relaxed Hellenistic period.
Famous Buildings of Ancient Greece
Famous examples of ancient Greek architecture include: the Acropolis complex (550-404 BCE) including
the Parthenon (447-422 BCE), the Temples at Paestum (550 BCE onwards), the Temple of Zeus at Olympia
(468-456 BCE), the Temple of Hephaistos (c.449 BCE), the Temple of Athena Nike (427 BCE), the Theatre at
Delphi (c.400 BCE), the Tholos Temple of Athena Pronaia (380-360 BCE), and the Pergamon Altar of
Zeus (c.166-156 BCE). See also:Sculpture of Ancient Greece.

Roman Architecture
Unlike the more creative and intellectual Greeks, the Romans were essentially
practical people with a flair for engineering, construction and military matters.
In their architecture, as in their art, they borrowed heavily from both the
Etruscans (eg. in their use of hydraulics for swamp-clearing and in the
construction of arches), and also the Greeks, whom they regarded as their
superiors in all visual arts. However, without Roman art - with its genius for
copying and adapting Greek styles - most of the artistic achievements of
Greek antiquity would have been lost.
Architectural Priorities of Ancient Rome
Roman architecture served the needs of the Roman state, which was keen
to impress, entertain and cater for a growing population in relatively confined
urban areas. Drainage was a common problem, as was security. This,
together with Rome's growing desire to increase its power and majesty
throughout Italy and beyond, required public buildings to be imposing, large-
scale and highly functional. This is exemplified by Roman architectural
achievements in drainage systems, aqueducts (eg. the aqueduct at Segovia,
100 CE, and over 11 aqueducts in the city of Rome itself, such as Aqua
Claudia and Anio Novus), bridges (eg. the Pont du Gard) roads, municipal
structures like public baths (eg. the Baths of Caracalla and the Baths of
Diocletian), sports facilities and amphitheatres (eg. the Colosseum 72-80 CE),
even central heating systems. Numerous temples and theatres were also
built. Later, as their empire spread, the Roman architects seized the
opportunity to create new towns from scratch, designing urban grid-plans
based on two wide streets - a north-south axis (the cardo) and an east-west
axis (the decumanus). The town centre was located at the intersection of the
two roads. They also built upwards; for example, Ostia, a rich port city near
Rome, boasted a number of 5-storey apartment blocks.
Architectural Advances: Arches & Concrete
Roman architecture was assisted by major advances in both design and new
materials. Design was enhanced through architectural developments in the
construction of arches and roof domes. Arches improved the efficiency and
capability of bridges and aqueducts (fewer support columns were needed to
support the structure), while domed roofs not only permitted the building of
larger open areas under cover, but also lent the exterior an impressive
appearance of grandeur and majesty, as in several important secular and
Christian basilicas, like the Pantheon.
Developments in materials were also crucial, as chronicled by the Roman
architect Vitruvius (c.78-10 BCE) in his book De Architectura. This is
exemplified by the Roman invention of concrete (opus cementicium), a
mixture of lime mortar, sand, water, and stones, in the 3rd century BCE. This
exceptionally strong and convenient substitute for stone revolutionized Roman
engineering and architecture. As tile-covered concrete began to replace
marble as the main building material, architects could be more daring.
Buildings were freed from the rectangular Greek design-plan (with its
undomed roofs and lines of pillars supporting flat architraves) and became
less geometric and more free-flowing.
Like their Egyptian and the Greek predecessors, architects in ancient Rome
embellished their public buildings with a wide range of artworks,
including:Roman sculpture (especially reliefs, statues and busts of the
Emperor), fresco murals, and mosaics.
Famous Buildings of Ancient Rome
Two of the greatest structures of Ancient Rome were the Colosseum (the
elliptical Flavian amphitheatre in the centre of Rome) and Trajan's Column (a
monument to the Emperor Trajan). Situated to the east of the Roman Forum,
the Colosseum took 8 years to build, had seating for 50,000 spectators.
Historians and archeologists estimate that a staggering 500,000 people and
over 1 million wild animals perished in the 'games' at the Colosseum. Trajan's
Column, located close to the Quirinal Hill, north of the Roman Forum, was
finished in 113 CE. It is renowned for its magnificent and highly detailed spiral
bas relief sculpture, which circles the shaft of the monument 23 times, and
narrates Trajan's victory in the Dacian Wars. The shaft itself is made from 20
huge blocks of Carrara marble, each weighing about 40 tons. It stands about
30 metres in height and 4 metres in width. A smaller but no less important
Roman monument was the Ara Pacis Augustae (13-9 BCE).
Impact of Politics and Religion on Roman Architecture
In 330 CE, about the time St Peter's Basilica was completed, the Roman
Emperor Constantine I declared that the city of Byzantium (later renamed
Constantinople, now Istanbul in Turkey), was to be the capital of the Roman
Empire. Later, in 395 CE, following the death of Emperor Theodosius, the
empire was divided into two parts: a Western half based first in Rome until it
was sacked in the 5th century CE, then Ravenna (See Ravenna mosaics); and
an eastern half based in the more secure city of Constantinople. In addition,
Christianity (previously a minority sect) was declared the sole official religion
throughout the empire. These twin developments impacted on architecture in
two ways: first, relocation to Constantinople helped to preserve and prolong
Roman culture, which might otherwise have been destroyed by the barbarian
invaders of Italy; second, the emergence of Christianity provided what
became the dominant theme of architecture and the visual arts for the next
1,200 years.