Editing Ancient Greek architecture (section)

=== Structure ===

==== Post and lintel ====
[[File:Doric.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|Parts of an Ancient Greek temple of the Doric Order:<br />
1. [[Tympanum (architecture)|Tympanum]], 2. [[Acroterium]], 3. [[Sima (architecture)|Sima]] 4. [[Cornice]] 5. [[Mutules]] 7. [[Frieze]] 8. [[Triglyph]] 9. [[Metope (architecture)|Metope]] <br />10. [[Regula (architecture)|Regula]] 11. [[Gutta]] 12. [[Taenia (architecture)|Taenia]] 13. [[Architrave]] 14. [[Capital (architecture)|Capital]] 15. [[Abacus (architecture)|Abacus]] 16. [[Echinus (molding)|Echinus]] 17. [[Column]] 18. [[Fluting (architecture)|Fluting]] 19. [[Stylobate]]]]

The architecture of ancient Greece is of a trabeated or "[[post and lintel]]" form, i.e. it is composed of upright beams (posts) supporting horizontal beams (lintels). Although the existent buildings of the era are constructed in stone, it is clear that the origin of the style lies in simple wooden structures, with vertical posts supporting beams which carried a ridged roof. The posts and beams divided the walls into regular compartments which could be left as openings, or filled with sun dried bricks, lathes or straw and covered with clay daub or plaster. Alternately, the spaces might be filled with rubble. It is likely that many early houses and temples were constructed with an open porch or "pronaos" above which rose a low pitched gable or pediment.<ref name="BF3" />

The earliest temples, built to enshrine statues of deities, were probably of wooden construction, later replaced by the more durable stone temples many of which are still in evidence today. The signs of the original timber nature of the architecture were maintained in the stone buildings.<ref name=Strong3>{{harvnb|Strong|1965|pp=38–40}}.</ref>

A few of these temples are very large, with several, such as the Temple of Zeus Olympus and the Olympians at Athens being well over 300 feet in length, but most were less than half this size. It appears that some of the large temples began as wooden constructions in which the columns were replaced piecemeal as stone became available. This, at least was the interpretation of the historian [[Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]] looking at the Temple of Hera at Olympia in the 2nd century AD.<ref name="HG2" />

The stone columns are made of a series of solid stone cylinders or "drums" that rest on each other without mortar, but were sometimes centred with a bronze pin. The columns are wider at the base than at the top, tapering with an outward curve known as [[entasis]]. Each column has a [[Capital (architecture)|capital]] of two parts, the upper, on which rests the lintels, being square and called the [[Abacus (architecture)|abacus]]. The part of the capital that rises from the column itself is called the echinus. It differs according to the order, being plain in the Doric order, fluted in the Ionic and foliate in the Corinthian. Doric and usually Ionic capitals are cut with vertical grooves known as [[Fluting (architecture)|fluting]]. This fluting or grooving of the columns is a retention of an element of the original wooden architecture.<ref name="Strong3" />

==== Entablature and pediment ====
The columns of a temple support a structure that rises in two main stages, the [[entablature]] and the [[pediment]].

The entablature is the major horizontal structural element supporting the roof and encircling the entire building. It is composed of three parts. Resting on the columns is the [[architrave]] made of a series of stone "lintels" that spanned the space between the columns, and meet each other at a joint directly above the centre of each column.

Above the architrave is a second horizontal stage called the [[frieze]]. The frieze is one of the major decorative elements of the building and carries a sculptured relief. In the case of Ionic and Corinthian architecture, the relief decoration runs in a continuous band, but in the Doric order, it is divided into sections called [[metope]]s, which fill the spaces between vertical rectangular blocks called [[triglyph]]s. The triglyphs are vertically grooved like the Doric columns, and retain the form of the wooden beams that would once have supported the roof.

The upper band of the entablature is called the [[cornice]], which is generally ornately decorated on its lower edge. The cornice retains the shape of the beams that would once have supported the wooden roof at each end of the building. At the front and rear of each temple, the entablature supports a triangular structure called the pediment. The [[tympanum (architecture)|tympanum]] is the triangular space framed by the cornices and the location of the most significant sculptural decoration on the exterior of the building.

==== Masonry ====
Every temple rested on a masonry base called the [[crepidoma]], generally of three steps, of which the upper one which carried the columns was the [[stylobate]]. Masonry walls were employed for temples from about 600 BC onwards. Masonry of all types was used for ancient Greek buildings, including rubble, but the finest [[ashlar]] masonry was usually employed for temple walls, in regular courses and large sizes to minimise the joints.<ref name="BF3" /> The blocks were rough hewn and hauled from quarries to be cut and bedded very precisely, with mortar hardly ever being used. Blocks, particularly those of columns and parts of the building bearing loads were sometimes fixed in place or reinforced with iron clamps, dowels and rods of wood, bronze or iron fixed in lead to minimise corrosion.<ref name="Boardman1" />

==== Openings ====
Door and window openings were spanned with a lintel, which in a stone building limited the possible width of the opening. The distance between columns was similarly affected by the nature of the lintel, columns on the exterior of buildings and carrying stone lintels being closer together than those on the interior, which carried wooden lintels.<ref name=BF5>{{harvnb|Fletcher|1996|p=107}}.</ref><ref name=BF20>{{harvnb|Fletcher|1996|p=155}}.</ref> Door and window openings narrowed towards the top.<ref name="BF20" /> Temples were constructed without windows, the light to the naos entering through the door. It has been suggested that some temples were lit from openings in the roof.<ref name="BF5" /> A door of the Ionic Order at the Erechtheion (17 feet high and 7.5 feet wide at the top) retains many of its features intact, including mouldings, and an entablature supported on console brackets. <small>(See Architectural Decoration, below)</small><ref name="BF20" /><ref name="BF21">{{harvnb|Fletcher|1996|p=159}}.</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Boardman|Dorig|Fuchs|Hirmer|1967|p=25}}.</ref>

{{multiple image
|total_width = 800
|align     = center
|direction = horizontal
|header_align = center
|header    = Structure, masonry, openings and roof of Greek temples
|image1    =O Partenon de Atenas.jpg
|width1    = 255
|alt1      =
|caption1  = The [[Parthenon]], shows the common structural features of Ancient Greek architecture: ''crepidoma'', columns, entablature, pediment.
|image2    = 20100410 athina116.JPG
|width2    = 267
|alt2      =
|caption2  = [[Temple of Hephaestos]], fluted Doric columns with abacuses supporting double beams of the architrave
|image3    = Erecteion interior del portico.JPG
|width3    = 134
|alt3      =
|caption3  = [[Erechtheion]]: masonry, door, stone lintels, coffered ceiling panels
|image4    =Templo de Afaia3.JPG
|width4    = 238
|alt4      =
|caption4  = 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.
|image5    =
|width5    = 210
|alt5      =
|caption5  =
}}{{clear}}

==== Roof ====
{{Further|List of Greco-Roman roofs}}
The widest span of a temple roof was across the [[cella]], or inner chamber. In a large building, this space contains columns to support the roof, the [[architectural form]] being known as [[hypostyle]]. It appears that, although the architecture of ancient Greece was initially of wooden construction, the early builders did not have the concept of the diagonal truss as a stabilising member. This is evidenced by the nature of temple construction in the 6th century BC, where the rows of columns supporting the roof of the cella rise higher than the outer walls, unnecessary if roof trusses are employed as an integral part of the wooden roof. The indication is that initially all the rafters were supported directly by the entablature, walls and hypostyle, rather than on a trussed wooden frame, which came into use in Greek architecture only in the 3rd century BC.<ref name="BF3" />

Ancient Greek buildings of timber, clay and plaster construction were probably roofed with thatch. With the rise of stone architecture came the appearance of fired ceramic [[roof tiles]]. These early roof tiles showed an S-shape, with the pan and cover tile forming one piece. They were much larger than modern roof tiles, being up to {{convert|90|cm|2|abbr=on}} long, {{convert|70|cm|2|abbr=on}} wide, {{convert|3|-|4|cm|2|abbr=on|lk=out}} thick and weighing around {{convert|30|kg|0|abbr=on}} apiece.<ref>{{harvnb|Boardman|Dorig|Fuchs|Hirmer|1967|p=12}}; {{harvnb|Rostoker|Gebhard|1981|p=212}}.</ref> Only stone walls, which were replacing the earlier [[mudbrick]] and wood walls, were strong enough to support the weight of a tiled roof.<ref name=MG>{{harvnb|Goldberg|1983|pp=305–309}}.</ref>

The earliest finds of roof tiles of the [[Archaic period in Greece]] are documented from a very restricted area around [[Corinth]], where fired tiles began to replace [[Thatching|thatched]] roofs at the temples of [[Apollo]] and [[Temple of Isthmia|Poseidon]] between 700 and 650 BC.<ref name=OW>{{harvnb|Wikander|1990|pp=285–289}}.</ref> Spreading rapidly, roof tiles were within fifty years in evidence for a large number of sites around the Eastern [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]], including Mainland [[Greece]], Western [[Asia Minor]], Southern and Central [[Italy]].<ref name="OW" /> Being more expensive and labour-intensive to produce than thatch, their introduction has been explained by the fact that their fireproof quality would have given desired protection to the costly temples.<ref name="OW" /> As a side-effect, it has been assumed that the new stone and tile construction also ushered in the end of overhanging eaves in Greek architecture, as they made the need for an extended roof as rain protection for the mudbrick walls obsolete.<ref name="MG" />

[[Vault (architecture)|Vaults]] and [[arch]]es were not generally used, but begin to appear in tombs (in a "beehive" or cantilevered form such as used in Mycenaea) and occasionally, as an external feature, [[exedra]]e of [[voussoir]]ed construction from the 5th century BC. The [[dome]] and vault never became significant structural features, as they were to become in [[ancient Roman architecture]].<ref name="BF3" />

==== Temple plans ====
{{Further|List of Ancient Greek temples}}
[[File:Greek temples.svg|thumb|600px|{{center|Plans of ancient Greek temples<br /> Top: 1. ''[[distyle in antis]]'', 2. ''amphidistyle in antis'', 3. ''tholos'', 4. ''prostyle tetrastyle'', 5. ''amphiprostyle tetrastyle'',<br /> Bottom: 6. ''dipteral octastyle'', 7. ''peripteral hexastyle'', 8. ''pseudoperipteral hexastyle'', 9. ''pseudodipteral octastyle'' }}]]
Most ancient Greek temples were rectangular, and were approximately twice as long as they were wide, with some notable exceptions such as the enormous [[Temple of Olympian Zeus, Athens]], with a length of nearly 2{{frac|1|2}} times its width. A number of surviving temple-like structures are circular, and are referred to as ''tholos''.<ref name=BF6>{{harvnb|Fletcher|1996|pp=107–109}}.</ref> The smallest temples are less than 25 metres (approx. 75 feet) in length, or in the case of the circular ''tholos'', in diameter. The great majority of temples are between 30 and 60 metres (approx. 100–200 feet) in length. A small group of Doric temples, including the [[Parthenon]], are between 60 and 80 metres (approx. 200–260 feet) in length. The largest temples, mainly Ionic and Corinthian, but including the Doric [[Temple of the Olympian Zeus, Agrigento]], were between 90 and 120 metres (approx. 300–390 feet) in length.

The temple rises from a stepped base or [[stylobate]], which elevates the structure above the ground on which it stands. Early examples, such as the Temple of Zeus at Olympus, have two steps, but the majority, like the Parthenon, have three, with the exceptional example of the Temple of Apollo at Didyma having six.<ref name=BF>{{harvnb|Fletcher|1996}}.</ref> The core of the building is a masonry-built "naos" within which is a cella, a windowless room originally housing the statue of the god. The cella generally has a porch or "pronaos" before it, and perhaps a second chamber or "antenaos" serving as a treasury or repository for trophies and gifts. The chambers were lit by a single large doorway, fitted with a wrought iron grill. Some rooms appear to have been illuminated by skylights.<ref name="BF" />

On the stylobate, often completely surrounding the naos, stand rows of columns. Each temple is defined as being of a particular type, with two terms: one describing the number of columns across the entrance front, and the other defining their distribution.<ref name="BF" />

Examples:
*''[[Distyle in antis]]'' describes a small temple with two columns at the front, which are set between the projecting walls of the ''pronaos'' or porch, like the Temple of Nemesis at Rhamnus. <small>(see above, figure 1.)</small> <ref name="BF6" />
*''Amphiprostyle tetrastyle'' describes a small temple that has columns at both ends which stand clear of the ''naos''. ''Tetrastyle'' indicates that the columns are four in number, like those of the Temple on the Ilissus in Athens. <small>(figure 4.)</small> <ref name="BF6" />
*''Peripteral hexastyle'' describes a temple with a single row of peripheral columns around the ''naos'', with six columns across the front, like the Theseion in Athens. <small>(figure 7.)</small> <ref name="BF6" />
*''Peripteral octastyle'' describes a temple with a single row of columns around the ''naos'', <small>(figure 7.)</small> with eight columns across the front, like the Parthenon, Athens. <small>(figures 6 and 9.)</small> <ref name="BF6" />
*''Dipteral decastyle'' describes the huge temple of Apollo at Didyma, with the ''naos'' surrounded by a double row of columns, <small>(figure 6.)</small> with ten columns across the entrance front.<ref name="BF6" />
* The Temple of Zeus Olympius at Agrigentum, is termed ''Pseudo-periteral heptastyle'', because its encircling colonnade has ''pseudo'' columns that are attached to the walls of the ''naos''. <small>(figure 8.)</small> ''Heptastyle'' means that it has seven columns across the entrance front.<ref name="BF6" />

==== Proportion and optical illusion ====
The ideal of proportion that was used by ancient Greek architects in designing temples was not a simple mathematical progression using a square module. The math involved a more complex geometrical progression, the so-called [[Golden ratio|golden mean]]. The ratio is similar to that of the growth patterns of many spiral forms that occur in nature such as rams' horns, [[nautilus]] shells, fern fronds, and vine tendrils and which were a source of decorative motifs employed by ancient Greek architects as particularly in evidence in the volutes of capitals of the Ionic and Corinthian Orders.<ref name=BF15>{{harvnb|Fletcher|1996|p=126}}.</ref>

:<math> \frac 1 \varphi = \varphi - 1;\; \varphi = \frac{1 + \sqrt{5}}{2} \approx 1.618 </math>

The ancient Greek architects took a philosophic approach to the rules and proportions. The determining factor in the mathematics of any notable work of architecture was its ultimate appearance. The architects calculated for perspective, for the optical illusions that make edges of objects appear concave and for the fact that columns that are viewed against the sky look different from those adjacent that are viewed against a shadowed wall. Because of these factors, the architects adjusted the plans so that the major lines of any significant building are rarely straight.<ref name="BF15" /> The most obvious adjustment is to the profile of columns, which narrow from base to top. However, the narrowing is not regular, but gently curved so that each column appears to have a slight swelling, called ''entasis'' below the middle. The ''entasis'' is never sufficiently pronounced as to make the swelling wider than the base; it is controlled by a slight reduction in the rate of decrease of diameter.<ref name="BF3" />

{{multiple image
|align     = center
|direction = horizontal
|header_align = center
|header    =
|image1    = Parthenon-uncorrected.jpg
|width1    = 183
|alt1      =
|caption1  = The main lines of the Parthenon are all curved.
|image2    = 
|width2    = 176
|alt2      =
|caption2  = Diagram showing the optical corrections made by the architects of the Parthenon
|image3    = NautilusCutawayLogarithmicSpiral.jpg
|width3    = 182
|alt3      =
|caption3  = A sectioned [[nautilus]] shell. These shells may have provided inspiration for voluted Ionic capitals.
|image4    = Golden spiral in rectangles.svg
|width4    = 222
|alt4      =
|caption4  = The growth of the nautilus corresponds to the Golden Mean
}}
The [[Parthenon]], the Temple to the Goddess [[Athena]] on the [[Acropolis]] in Athens, is referred to by many as the pinnacle of ancient Greek architecture. [[Helen Gardner (art historian)|Helen Gardner]] refers to its "unsurpassable excellence", to be surveyed, studied and emulated by architects of later ages. Yet, as Gardner points out, there is hardly a straight line in the building.<ref name="HG4" /> [[Banister Fletcher]] calculated that the ''stylobate'' curves upward so that its centres at either end rise about {{convert|2.6|inch|mm|round=5|order=flip|abbr=off}} above the outer corners, and {{convert|4.3|inch|mm|order=flip|abbr=on}} on the longer sides. A slightly greater adjustment has been made to the entablature. The columns at the ends of the building are not vertical but are inclined towards the centre, with those at the corners being out of plumb by about {{convert|2.6|inch|mm|round=5|order=flip|abbr=on}}.<ref name="BF3" /> These outer columns are both slightly wider than their neighbours and are slightly closer than any of the others.<ref name=MFW2>{{harvnb|Moffett|Fazio|Wodehouse|2003|pp=50–53}}.</ref>{{clear}}