Welcome to Greek Architecture's Web Page

Revised by
Corrina Philips
Portland State University

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History Briefs
Architectural Styles
Building Materials
Roof Types
Columns
Buildings
Links
Bibliography

Greek Architecture

-A History Brief-

7th century B.C.

Temples were sporadically located and were mostly a small altar, but larger temples called sanctuaries were being created. These consisted of altars and assembly halls for political or religious needs or events.

6th century B.C.

Stone temples are constructed in large numbers all over Greece. Architectural design is being experimented with and a greater variety of styles are developed.

Building Materials

Mud-brick, stone, and wood were used for temples in the seventh century B.C., regular buildings for the sixth century, and houses in the fifth. Marble and limestone were used from the end of the seventh century and used more and more through the fifth. Roofing in the sixth century was a new material called terra cotta, which was baked tile, which was also used as an ornamental material for peaks and gables.

Roof Types

There were two main types of roofs which were characteristic of Greek architecture: Laconian and Corinthian. Laconian roofs were made up of large, concave pan tiles and convex cover tiles. Corinthian roofs were made with flat pan tiles and pitched cover tiles. When determining the roof type, all roofs consisting of curved tiles were classified as Laconian, while roofs with flat tiles were Corinthian. Many pieces of Laconian roofs have been found at Sparta, while examples of Corinthian style were found at Delphi and Olympia. The majority of the temples constructed before the seventh century BC had roofs that were made of clay or thatch, supported by wooden posts.

Click here to see pictures of Laconian and Corinthian roofs

Columns

In ancient Greece three types of columns can be found; Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. All three types of columns have three separate parts to their structure (base, shaft, and capital) with the exception of Doric which has no base. The base is all one piece as well as the capital. The shaft is composed of several pieces which fit together in a tongue-and-groove type of securing. Columns were constructed in a raw fashion first before the final product was produced

Doric Style

Of the three columns found in Greece, Doric columns are the most basic and undecorative, with a square and circular capital and a plain 20 sided shaft. There is no base to spruce up this basic design which leaves this column with a very straightforward but powerful presence in its design. During the early sixth century B.C., Doric columns were shorter compared to their height and diameter. Doric capitals showed an evolution from a broad flaring to a more compact form. Doric, like most Greek styles, emitted a strong horizontal presence in its architectural design. The area above the columns, the frieze and architrave, had no set style and is found to have a wide variety only following the simple pattern shown in the image file. The metope,separated by triglyphs, housed sculpted drawings of history, myths, religious events, etc..
 

Ionic Style

Ionic columns were taller than Doric compared to their height, and also had what is called entasis; which is a convex swelling to prevent an illusion of concavity in a column shaft. The bases were large and textured with a profile like that of stacked rings. Ionic capitals consist of a scroll-like portion above a decorative shaft portion. The Ionic style is a little more decorative in the capital, and also instead of the single scene drawings of the Doric style in the frieze, the Ionic had a continuous band of drawings depicted. The Ionic cornice is virtually the same as its Doric counterpart with only minor differences.
 

Corinthian Style

The Corinthian columns are the most decorative and usually the most appealing to the modern eye. They too use entasis to correct the optical illusions of the massive Greek structures. The Corinthian capitals have flowering, leaf-like structures below a lesser scroll design than that of Ionian capitals. The shaft has indented sides and the base is a more refined version of the Ionian. Unlike the Doric and Ionian roofs, which are at a slant, the Corinthian roofs are flat. The Corinthian frieze is the same as the Ionic frieze, but on a smaller scale.
 

Buildings

When building the first temples, ancient Greek architects ran into many problems, the first being the problem of design. When an architect first began his temple, he had to begin at the bottom and work his way up. The foundation must be strong and level in order for the temple to be a success. One mistake in the beginning would have been impossible to correct. One important restriction in drawing the design plans was the size of the paper. They only had small pieces of paper, made from papyrus. Although many prices were glued together to make a bigger piece of paper, it still was not large enough to show enough of the necessary details of the drawing to the builders. As a result, detao;s were overlooked and could cause serious errors. The Greeks came up with two solutions to help this problem. The first was to design simple buildings. The second was to have the architect at the site to tell the builders exactly what he wanted. Another problem architects came upon, was the demand for large temples. If the width of the building was increased, the weight of the columns would increase. The solution to this problem was a simplistic design. The basic plan was a long rectangular hall with a portico of columns around all four sides. This plan did not cause an increase in the roof span, and consequently did not put extra weight on the columns. There are many buildings which show the classic Greek style of architecture. These buildings, however, contain many different aspects, ranging from the roof type, to size, to column type.

The Temples of Hera

There were two Temples of Hera at Samos, which were called the First Temple of Hera at Samos, and the Second Temple of Hera at Samos. They were two of the earliest Greek temples which show their primitive way of constructing temples, as opposed to the later temples on the Acropolis. The first temple of Hera at Samos was built in the first half of the eighth century BC. It had a simple design with a rectangular hall 100 feet long, with posts down the middle. Later, wooden posts were added around the four sides, each with a circular stone base. It is believed that the addition of the posts around the temple, or the portico, was an attempt at monumental architecture. The portico was an important step which eventually led to the characteristic white columns of later Greek temples. The walls of the temple were made of two kinds of stones with little binding. Neither the roofs, nor the columns were made of durable materials. The second temple of Hera was built at the same site in the middle of the seventh century BC. The second temple was similar to the first, with two exceptions: the row of columns down the center had been excluded, and the portico was included in the design from the beginning. The roof was still made of clay, and the columns were still made of wood.

Click here for a picture of the Temples of Hera

The Parthenon

The Acropolis was destroyed in 480 BC by the Persians, just ten years after the miraculous victory of the Greeks over the Persians in the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC. The "Older Parthenon" was a temple which had been built in celebration of the victory and as a thank you to the gods. The Greeks made an oath after the defeat, the Oath of Plataia, not to rebuild any of the destroyed temples, as a reminder of the constant Persian strength and threat. Pericles decided, several years later, that the Acropolis should be rebuilt into a magnificent, gorgeous city, dedicated to the gods. Pericles wanted the Parthenon to be the centerpiece of the new Acropolis. The Parthenon was built in honor of the goddess Athena Parthenos (which means maiden). Construction of the Parthenon began in 447BC, by the architects, Iktinos and Kallikrates. In building the Prthenon, only Pentelic marble was used, except for the wooden roof frame and bronze casings. The Parthenon is a Doric building with many Ionic aspects. There were eight columns in front, and seventeen on each side. There were six pronaos and opis columns, which were Ionic. This opposed the traditional Doric style of two columns. Also opposing Doric style were the eight columns in front and back of the Parthenon. The Parthenon was completed in 432 BC.

Click here for a picture of the Parthenon

The Propylaia

There was once a jagged, narrow road which led up to the Acropolis. The Greek people had decided that this road was not a satisfactory ascent to the Acropolis, so a ramp was built. Soon after the ramp was built, The first Propylaia was built and then destroyed by the Persians in 480 BC. The new Propylaia was designed and built by Mnesikles from 437-432 BC. The Propylaia was the Doric gateway onto the Acropolis in Athens. It was built on two different levels, due to the uneven ground. The Propylaia served as a gateway from the land of the humans, to the land of the gods on the Acropolis. In the interior, two parallel rows of three Ionic columns were used, which were taller than the Doric columns in the front and the rear of the temple. This helped to balance the building, since it was built on two levels.

Click here for a picture of the Propylaia

The Erechtheion

The Erechtheion, and Ionic temple, was started in 421 BC and finished in 406 BC. The temple was made out of white Pentelic marble. It replaced the old Temple of Athena Polias. When it was built, the architects and builders had to be careful not to make the Erechtheion more beautiful or bigger than the neighboring Parthenon. Instead, the Erechtheion complements the Parthenon nicely. The east porch was built in the Ionic style, as was the north. Within the east hall, there were one room reserved for a sculpture of Athena Polias, and one reserved for Poseidon.The west part of the Erechtheion was built on two levels. It is on the north side that six statues of young women, or caryatids, are found.

Click here for a picture of the Erectheion

The Temple of Nike Athena

The temple of Nike Athena was a small isolated Ionic temple near the Propylaia. It was created near 420 BC, during the Peloponnesian War. The Athenians worshipped Nike Athena in hopes of a victory over the Spartans and their allies. Athenians had been fighting on land and sea against them and felt that it was time for another victory. The theme of victory is shown by the frieze running on the temple, of a victory over the Persians. The temple has a portico of four short and sturdy Ionic columns in the front and back of the cella. The cella is the main room of the temple where the statue is kept. The temple looks the same from the front and the back. In having th same view from both sides, the temple served two purposes. It overlooked the city below, while it welcomed people from the back on the Acropolis. Each column rested on a three-stepped base, instead of the usual two-stepped one. It is thought that the short sturdy columns were built because of the confinement of space, due to the massive neighboring monuments.

Click here for a picture of Temple of Nike Athena

Here are some other sites you might want to check out


 


Macedonian History Page

The Parthenon

The Acropolis of Athens


my bibliography
The Arts