Greek Sanctuaries and Temple Architecture: An Introduction

Description

Assuming no prior knowledge, this book introduces the reader to a selection of sites and temples, exploring them in detail and explaining all technical terms along the way. Intended for college-level students and the interested general reader, this book aims to equip the student of Greek architecture for further study, and can also serve as a handbook for visitors to the sanctuaries. The book covers many of the most popular sites, including Delphi, Olympia and the Athenian Acropolis. In this second edition there are new chapters on Western Greece, covering the site of Paestum in Magna Graecia (South Italy), and the unique temple of Olympian Zeus in Acragas, Sicily. The book also offers a concise account of the evolution of Greek architecture, explores aesthetic ideas underlying Greek architectural design, and gives consideration to specific buildings in their social and religious context. This second edition has expanded the discussion of the most important temples and lays emphasis on architectural sculpture as part of the meaning of the whole building. Along with an updated bibliography and a glossary, an abundance of plans, photos and drawings helps clarify the text. Title Page Copyright Page Contents Preface to the Second Edition Acknowledgements Acknowledgements to the First Edition List of Illustrations Chapter 1: Introduction Temples of the mind The sameness of Greek temples Landscape Ancient and modern Chapter 2: What Was a Sanctuary? Who used sanctuaries? What was in a sanctuary? Local or Panhellenic Sacred places Sacred events The meaning of public worship Priests Access to temples Chapter 3: From Mud Hut to Marble Temple: Doric and Ionic Orders Predecessors ‘Dark Age’ temple building Stone-working ‘Petrification’ of wooden forms Use of materials The Greek architectural orders Doric ground plan Doric style Ionic style Major Ionic temples in East Greece Chapter 4: Architectural Sculpture Sculptured components of a temple Doric decoration Ionic decoration Colour An early archaic Doric pediment: The temple of Artemis at Corcyra Chapter 5: Delphi The landscape The Castalian Spring The Sacred Way The treasuries The Siphnian Treasury Architectural detail Pediments Frieze The Athenian Treasury Frieze Date Further reflections on date The polygonal wall and the Athenian Stoa The temple of Apollo The temple building and its altar Architectural sculpture The Lesche of the Knidians The theatre, stadium and hippodrome Athene Pronaia (Marmaria) The tholos Exterior Interior The gymnasium Votive offerings and monuments at Delphi Conclusion Chapter 6: Olympia Manning a sanctuary Control of the sanctuary The Sacred Way The temple of Hera The building Contents The temple of Zeus: 471–457 bc The building The cella and the statue of Zeus Pheidias’s workshop and the statue of Zeus Architectural sculpture The east pediment The role of sculpture The west pediment The metopes Heracles and Olympia The ash altar of Olympian Zeus The Pelopeion The Hippodameion Oinomaos’s pillar Treasuries The Nike of Paionios The Philippeion The Echo Stoa and the stadium Other buildings Conclusion Chapter 7: The Athenian Acropolis: Historical Background The archaic era: From tyranny to democracy Archaic buildings on the Acropolis: ‘Bluebeard’ and the ‘old Athene temple’ The fifth century: From the burning of Sardis to the building of the Parthenon Salamis The Delian League The oath of Plataea Pericles Chapter 8: The Parthenon The platform The Doric Parthenon Porches Interior Roof and acroteria Refinements The Ionic Parthenon Parthenon sculpture The pediments, 438–432 bc West pediment East pediment The statue of Athene Parthenos The base of the Parthenos Interpretation of Parthenon sculptures Did the Parthenon serve any practical purpose? Conclusion Chapter 9: The Propylaia Before Pericles The Periclean Propylaia Ground plan and cross-section The central section The north and south wings Ionic spacing Decoration Iron beams Propylaia and Parthenon Unfinished work? Chapter 10: The Sanctuary of Athene Nike The bastion The date and the priestess document The Nike buttress The temple The sculptural programme The balustrade Chapter 11: The Erechtheion Myth Interest in ‘roots’ The style The building The site: What was there before the Erechtheion? The building The east porch The frieze The lotus-and-palmette border The north porch The west end The south porch Inside the temple Was the building a triumph or a disaster? Chapter 12: The Hephaisteion The building Ionic features Innovations The metopes The Ionic friezes The internal colonnade The cult statues Conclusion Chapter 13: Views and Their Meanings: the Acropolis and its surroundings The view from the west Looking west from the Acropolis Looking south from the Acropolis The view from the south Looking east from the Acropolis The view from the east The north cliff of the Acropolis Looking north from the Acropolis The view of the ramparts from the north Chapter 14: The Sanctuary of Apollo Epikourios at Bassae The building The cella The frieze Dating the temple The statue Apollo Epikourios Chapter 15: The Age of Greek Expansion to the West: Paestum What was a colony? Land-hunger Magna Graecia Sybaris and Troizen Paestum Starting a colony Temple of Hera I Temple of Athene Temple 3 The exterior The Agora The hero shrine The Heraion at Foce del Sele Summary Chapter 16: The Temple of Olympian Zeus at Akragas, Sicily Sicily Akragas The surroundings of the temple of Zeus The temple of Olympian Zeus The exterior The roof The Telamons The Pediments The interior Influences Further thoughts on the Telamons Conclusion Chapter 17: Looking at Art in Sanctuaries Bibliography Glossary Index