The Art and Architecture of

ancient Greece
 Greek Architecture.
Architecture, defined as building executed to an aesthetically
considered design, was extinct in Greece from the end of the Mycenaean
period (about 1200 BC) to the 7th century BC, when urban life and prosperity
recovered to a point where public building could be undertaken. But since
many Greek buildings in the colonization period (8th - 6th century BC), were
made of wood or mud-brick or clay, nothing remains of them except for a few
ground-plans, and almost no written sources on early architecture or
descriptions of these embryonic buildings exist.
 Architectural History
Around 600 BC, the wooden columns of the old Temple of Hera at Olympia
underwent a material transformation, known as "petrification", in which they
were replaced by stone columns. By degrees, other parts of the temple were
petrified until the entire temple was made of stone. With the spread of this
process to other sanctuaries, Greek temples and significant buildings from
the 6th century BC onwards were built largely from stone, and a few
fortunate examples have survived through the ages.
Most of our knowledge of Greek architecture comes from the late
archaic period (550 - 500 BC), the Periclean age (450 - 430 BC), and the early
to pure classical period (430 - 400 BC). Greek examples are considered
alongside Hellenistic and Roman periods (since Roman architecture heavily
copied Greek), and late written sources such as Vitruvius (1st century). This
results in a strong bias towards temples, the only buildings which survive in
numbers.
 Structure and style of Greek temples
The standard format of Greek public buildings is known from
surviving examples such as the Parthenon and the Hephaesteum at Athens.
Most buildings were rectangular and made from limestone or tufa. Marble
was used mainly for sculptural decoration, not structurally, except in the very
grandest buildings of the Classical period such as the Parthenon.
The basic rectangular plan was surrounded by a colonnaded portico
of columns on all four sides (peripteral or peristyle) such as the Parthenon,
and occasionally at the front and rear only (amphiprostyle) as seen in the
small Temple of Athena Nike. Some buildings had projecting columns forming
the entrance (prostyle), while others featured a pronaos facade of columns
leading on to the cella.
The Greeks roofed their buildings with timber beams covered with
overlapping terra cotta or occasionally marble tiles. They understood the
principles of the masonry arch but made little use of it, and did not put
domes on their buildings these elaborations were left to the Romans.
 Pediment and Entablature.
The low pitch of the gable roofs produced a squat triangular shape at each
end of the building, the Pediment, which was typically filled with sculptural
decoration. Between the roof and the tops of the columns a row of lintels
formed the entablature, whose outward-facing surfaces also provided a space
for sculptures, known as friezes The frieze consisted of alternating metopes
(holding the sculpture) and triglyphs. No surviving Greek building preserves
these sculptures intact, but they can be seen on some modern imitations of
Greek buildings, such as the Greek National Academy building in Athens
 Greek Public Architecture
The temple was the most common and best-known form of Greek
public architecture. The temple did not serve the same function as a modern
church. For one thing, the altar stood under the open sky in the temenos or
sacred fane, often directly before the temple. Temples served as storage
places for the treasury associated with the cult of the god in question, as the
location of a cult image sometimes of great antiquity, but from the time of
Pheidias often a great work of art as well. The temple was a place for
devotees of the god to leave their votive offerings, such as statues, helmets
and weapons. The inner room of the temple, the cella, thus served mainly as
a strongroom and storeroom. It was usually lined by another row of columns.
 Other architectural forms

Other architectural forms used by the Greeks were the tholos or circular
temple, of which the best example is the Tholos of Theodorus at Delphi
dedicated to the worship of Athena Pronaia; the propylon or porch,
forming the entrance to temple sanctuaries (the best-surviving example is
the Propylaea on the Acropolis of Athens); the fountain house, a building
where women filled their vases with water from a public fountain; and the
stoa, a long narrow hall with an open colonnade on one side, which was
used to house rows of shops in the agoras (commercial centres) of Greek
towns.
Greek towns also needed at least one bouleuterion or council chamber, a
large public building which served as a court house and as a meeting place
for the town council (boule). Because the Greeks did not use arches or
domes, they could not construct buildings with large interior spaces. The
bouleuterion thus had rows of internal columns to hold the roof up
(hypostyle). No examples of these buildings survive.
 City Planning and Houses
The Greeks had begun to lay out cities in a grid-like pattern before the
start of the Classical period in the early 5th century BC, with streets
regularly intersecting at right angles. Yet the Greeks credited the invention
of the right-angled plan to Ionian architect Hippodamus. He planned new
cities for Piraeus and the Athenian colony of Thuril. The late 5th century
Olynthus showed his influence in the city's uniform streets and blocks. By
the 4th century BC, carefully planned cities and civic spaces had become
common in the Greek city states.
 The Theatre
Finally, every Greek town had a theatre. These were used for
both public meetings as well as dramatic performances. These
performances originated as religious ceremonies; they went on to
assume their Classical status as the highest form of Greek culture by
the 6th century BC. The theatre was usually set in a hillside outside the
town, and had rows of tiered seating set in a semi-circle around the
central performance area, the orchestra. Behind the orchestra was a
low building called the skene, which served as a store-room, a
dressing-room, and also as a backdrop to the action taking place in the
orchestra. A number of Greek theatres survive almost intact, the best
known being at Epidaurus
The restored Stoa of Attalus, Athens

The reconstructed Stoa of Attalos, the Agora, Athens

The Theatre and Temple of Apollo in mountainous country at Delphi
Every Greek town had an open-air theatre. These were used for both public meetings as well
as dramatic performances. The theatre was usually set in a hillside outside the town, and had
rows of tiered seating set in a semicircle around the central performance area, the orchestra.
Behind the orchestra was a low building called the skênê, which served as a store-room, a
dressing-room, and also as a backdrop to the action taking place in the orchestra
Pebble mosaic floor of a house at Olynthus, depicting Bellerophon
Bellerophon is a hero of Greek mythology. He was "the greatest hero and slayer of monsters,
alongside Cadmus and Perseus, before the days of Heracles",[1] whose greatest feat was
killing the Chimera, a monster that Homer depicted with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a
serpent's tail: "her breath came out in terrible blasts of burning flame."
The Acropolis, Athens, is high above the city on a natural prominence.
The Acropolis' construction started in 447 BC and ended in 438 BC. The Parthenon
was the temple of the Greek Goddess Athena. During the Classical Period the
Parthenon, the Erechtheion, and the Temple of Nike were built over the old ruins on
The Acropolis.
The Islands of the Aegean from Cape Sounion with the Temple of Poseidon.

The temple overlooks the Aegean sea, so named because King Aegeus threw
himself into the sea from this point when he thought his son was dead. The
temple's location was important because every boat coming to Athens passed
by this point.
Delos cubic floor mosaic
A cubic floor mosaic in a house on the Greek island of Delos.
 Epidaurus Stadium
The asclepieion at Epidaurus was the most celebrated healing center of the Classical
world, the place where ill people went in the hope of being cured. To find out the right
cure for their ailments, they spent a night in theenkoimeteria, a big sleeping hall. In their
dreams, the god himself would advise them what they had to do to regain their health.
Found in the sanctuary, there was a guest house for 160 guestrooms. There are also
mineral springs in the vicinity which may have been used in healing.
Golden spiral in rectangles.
 Greek street – III century BC.
Greek street - IV-III century BC - Porta Rosa - Velia - Italy The Porta Rosa road was the main street
of Elea. It connects the northern quarter with the southern quarter, through the viaduct called Porta
Rosa. The street is 5 meters wide and has an incline of 18 % in the steepest part. It is paved with
limestone blocks, girders cut in square blocks, and on one side a small gutter for the drainage of rain
water. The building is dated during the time of the reorganization of the city during Helenistic age
(IV-III century BC)
 The House of Masks Delos

The island of Delos , near Mykonos, near the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most
important mythological, historical and archaeological sites in Greece.
 The House of Masks Delos
The island of Delos, near Mykonos, near the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most
important mythological, historical and archaeological sites in Greece.
Model of ancient Olympia
This model represents the Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens which was
one of the largest temples in ancient Greece.
Palaestra at Olympia is an ancient edifice in Olympia, Greece,
Part of the gymnasium at thesanctuary. It is a sixty-six metre square building dates to the end of the third or
beginning of the 2nd century BC. It was a building in ancient Greece devoted to the training of wrestlers and
other athletes .
 The Parthenon
The Parthenon is a temple on the Athenian Acropolis, dedicated to the maiden goddess Athena,
whom the people of Athens considered their patron deity. Its construction began in 447 BC. It
was completed in 438 BC, although decoration of the building continued until 432 BC. It is the
most important surviving building of Classical Greece,
 Priene Bouleuterion

A bouleuterion was a building which housed the council of citizens (boule) in Ancient Greece. There are
several extant remains of Bouleuterions around Greece and former Greek territories of ancient times.
The boule, a basic institution of the ancient city-state in historical times, consisted of the citizens'
representatives who assembled in order to confer and decide about public affairs. The word Bouleuterion is
composed from Greek 'boule' (council) and the suffix -terion (place for doing something).
 The Altar of Hiero II at Syracuse

The altar of Zeus Eleutherios (the Liberator) was constructed by Hieron II, tyrant of Syracuse, as part of his
building program in this area; it is approximately contemporaneous with the nearby theater and nymphaeum.
Diodorus states that 450 oxen were able to be sacrificed simultaneously atop the altar during the annual feast
of Zeus Eleutherios. Despite its enormous length (600 Doric feet; ca. 196 m), the altar was quite narrow and it
stood ca. 11 m high. Narrow stairways were located at each end of the front, flanked by telamones.
 Theatre of Dionysus Eleuthereus
Greek theaters in antiquity were in many instances of huge proportions but, under ideal conditions of
occupancy and weather, the acoustical properties approach perfection by modern tests. We know
that the theater of Dionysus in Athens could seat 17,000 spectators
Temple of Hephaistos
It was dedicated to Hephaestus, the god of smiths and metal-workers.
It was also erroneously know as Thissio (temple of Theseus).
Temple of Hephaistos
Detail of Doric column base It was dedicated to Hephaestus, the god of
smiths and metal-workers.
It was also erroneously know as Thissio (temple of Theseus).
Temple of Hephaistos
Detail of Capitals
 House on the island of Delos. Typical plan

The houses of the island of Delos give an accurate picture of the private home Hellenistic one . The
houses form the vast majority of buildings excavated at Delos in a good state of preservation.
Athena Parthenos
Recreation of the colossal statue of Athena, once housed in the
Parthenon, with sculptor Alan LeQuire
Gargoyle
The lion's head gargoyle is fixed to a revetment on which elements of a
formal frieze have been painted.
Black figure Amphora, Atalante painter (500-490 BC),
shows proportion and style that are hallmarks of
Ancient Greek art

Black figure Amphora, Atalante painter (500-490 BC), shows proportion

and style that are hallmarks of Ancient Greek art
The lion's head gargoyle is fixed to a revetment on which elements of a formal
frieze have been painted.
Early wooden structures, particularly temples, were ornamented and in
part protected by fired and painted clay revetments in the form of
rectangular panels, and ornamental discs
 Classical Orders
The Doric order is the oldest and simplest of the classical orders. It is composed of a vertical cylinder that is
wider at the bottom. It generally has neither a base nor a detailed capital
Doric Order
Parts of an Ancient Greek temple of the Doric Order:
14. Capital 15. Abacus 16.Echinus 17. Column 18. Fluting
Pediment of the Parthenon (part)
The left hand group of surviving figures from the East Pediment of
the Parthenon, exhibited as part of the Elgin Marbles in the British Museum.
Ionic Order-Erechthium
Corner capital with a diagonal volute, showing also details of the fluting
separated by fillets.
Frieze
Frieze of stylised alternating palms and reeds, and a cornice decorated
with "egg and dart" moulding.
 Caryatids
A caryatid is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural support taking the place of a column or a
pillar supporting an entablature on her head. The Greek term karyatides literally means "maidens
of Karyai", an ancient town of Peloponnese. Karyai had a famous temple dedicated to the
goddessArtemis in her aspect of Artemis Karyatis: "As Karyatis she rejoiced in the dances of the nut-tree
village of Karyai, those Karyatides, who in their ecstatic round-dance carried on their heads baskets of live
reeds, as if they were dancing plants" (Kerenyi 1980 p 149).
 The Erectheum
The Porch of the Caryatids[edit]
On the north side, there is another large porch with six Ionic columns, and on the south, the famous "Porch of
the Maidens", with six draped female figures (caryatids) as supporting columns. The porch was built to conceal
the giant 15-ft beam needed to support the southwest corner over the metropolis, after the building was
drastically reduced in size and budget following the onset of the Peloponnesian war.
Erechtheion
Erechtheion: masonry, door, stone lintels, coffered ceiling panels
Corinthian Order
The capital combines both semi-naturalistic leaves and highly stylised
tendrils forming volutes.
Temple of Hephaestos
The Temple of Hephaestos, Athens, is a well-preserved temple
of peripteral hexastyle plan.
Capital of the Ionic Order
Capital of the Ionic Order showing volutes and ornamented echinus
Corinthian Order
Capital of the Corinthian Order showing foliate decoration and vertical
volutes.
The Parthenon
The Parthenon, shows the common structural features of Ancient Greek
architecture: crepidoma, columns, entablature, pediment.
The Temple of Zeus Olympia, Athens.
The Temple of Zeus at Olympia was an ancient Greek temple in Olympia,
Greece, dedicated to the chief of the gods, Zeus. The temple, built between
472 and 456 BC, was the very model of the fully developed classical Greek
temple of the Doric order.[1]
Temple of Aphaia
At the Temple of Aphaia the hypostyle columns rise in two tiers, to a
height greater than the walls, to support a roof without struts.