The Chalkotheke on the Athenian Akropolis
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The Pedimental Sculpture of the Hephaisteion
THE PEDIMENTALSCULPTURE OF THE HEPHAISTEION (PLATES 48-64) INTRODUCTION T HE TEMPLE of Hephaistos, although the best-preserved ancient building in Athens and the one most accessible to scholars, has kept its secrets longer than any other. It is barely ten years since general agreement was reached on the name of the presiding deity. Only in 1939 was the evidence discovered for the restora- tion of an interior colonnade whicli at once tremendously enriched our conception of the temple. Not until the appearance of Dinsmoor's study in 1941 did we have a firm basis for assessing either its relative or absolute chronology.' The most persistent major uncertainty about the temple has concerned its pedi- mental sculpture. Almost two centuries ago (1751-55), James Stuart had inferred 1 The general bibliography on the Hephaisteion was conveniently assembled by Dinsmoor in Hesperia, Supplement V, Observations on the Hephaisteion, pp. 1 f., and the references to the sculpture loc. cit., pp. 150 f. On the sculpture add Olsen, A.J.A., XLII, 1938, pp. 276-287 and Picard, Mamtel d'Archeologie grecque, La Sculpture, II, 1939, pp. 714-732. The article by Giorgio Gullini, " L'Hephaisteion di Atene" (Archeologia Classica, Rivista dell'Istituto di Archeologia della Universita di Roma, I, 1949, pp. 11-38), came into my hands after my MS had gone to press. I note many points of difference in our interpretation of the sculptural history of the temple, but I find no reason to alter the views recorded below. Two points of fact in Gullini's article do, however, call for comment. -
Th1rzne CEEK
HESPERIA 68.2, I999 "'ADYTO N ," "OPI STHO DOO S," AND THE INNER ROO/ OFr TH1rznECEEK/ T EMPLED For Lucy Shoe Meritt We know very little of what took place inside a Greek temple. Sacrifice, the focal act of communal religious observance,was enacted outside, on an open-air altar usually opposite the main, east, facade of the temple, while the interior contained objects dedicated to the deity, including a cult statue. In form most Greek temples had a single main interior room, or cella; some had an additional small room behind it, accessible only from the cella. Such a subdivision of interior space suggests that the inner chamber served a special function. This study is designed to ascertain why some temples had inner rooms and how these chambers were used, questions that shed light on the nature of the temple itself. Examination of termi- nology used for temple interiors and of archaeological remains of temples with inner rooms, together with literary and epigraphical references to activities that occurred in temples, indicates a larger economic role for many temples and less secret ritual than has been assumed.1 Nomenclature is a central issue here, as naming incorporates a set of 1. This article is dedicatedto Lucy Since the 19th century, the in- Shoe Meritt, with gratitude,for her assumptions and a specific interpretation. generosityin sharingher expertisein ner room has been called 'a'UTOV (adyton, "not to be entered"), a term and enthusiasmfor Greek architecture. known from ancient sources. The usage of "adyton" in literary and In the uncommonlylong develop- epigraphical testimonia led scholars to consider the inner room a locus of ment of this article,I have received cult ritual of a chthonian or oracular nature, mysterious rites conducted exceptionalassistance from Susan within the temple. -
Greek Architecture
STATE OF THE DISCIPLINE Greek Architecture BARBARA A. BARLETTA Abstract however, that the list of works cited, which is provided The study of Greek architecture grew out of the me- at the end of this article, will assist the reader in locat- ticulous recording of buildings and their components by ing those contributions. 18th- and 19th-century investigators. Although the aims have changed, with an increasing emphasis on historical history of the discipline and social context, the basic methods of documentation remain the same. This essay traces the history of the disci- The study of Greek architecture has evolved consid- pline as a background to modern approaches, geographic erably from its origins in the 18th century, but some emphases, and new perspectives. It surveys the work of of the basic principles have remained the same. It was archaeological schools and conference bodies, followed initiated by architects seeking to preserve a record of by general studies of architecture and its components as monuments of the past and to use them as a source of well as individual building forms and complexes. A focus is placed on recent literature, from 1980 to the present, “good taste” in their own times. They were already fa- and on books rather than articles.* miliar with buildings in Rome, but by the 18th century, their interests had shifted to Greece. Stuart and Revett state the reasons for this shift in their 1748 applica- introduction tion for financing for what would be the first project Many contributions have been made to the field sponsored by the Society of Dilettanti. -
The Doric Essence COMMONWEALTH of AUSTRALIA Copyright Regulations 1969
ABPL90267 Development of Western Architecture the doric essence COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA Copyright Regulations 1969 Warning This material has been reproduced and communicated to you by or on behalf of the University of Melbourne pursuant to Part VB of the Copyright Act 1968 (the Act). The material in this communication may be subject to copyright under the Act. Any further copying or communication of this material by you may be the subject of copyright protection under the Act. do not remove this notice from masonry to timber to masonry proto-doric column chamfering & fluting the echinus and abacus capital synthesis of the echinus and the fluted shaft from rubble to ashlar (dressed stone) at Samos from wooden to stone columns at Olympia proto-doric chamfering and fluting tomb chapel of Amenemhat, Beni Hasan, c 2000 BC ; Portico of Anubis Deir-el-Bahari, Egypt, c 1490 BC ; column from Assur, c 1050 BC Lewis, Architectura, p 176; Miles Lewis the echinus and abacus capital Palace of Knossos, c 1600-1400 BC; Treasury of Atreus, Mycenae, c 1325 Knossos slide set, no 1; Miles Lewis the synthesis of the echinus capital and the fluted shaft model column fragments: fluted column; chamfered half column: National Museum, Athens, no s 7529,7591; Minoan column from Gortyn, C13th BC, Herakleion Museum Miles Lewis the first Heraeum, Samos, mid C8th: plan the 2nd Heraeum, Samos, mid C7th: plan and reconstructed section Scranton, Greek Architecture, pl 23 J J Coulton, Greek Architects at Work (London 1977), p 33 Heraeum, Samos visible masonry of the second -
Reconstructions in Interpreting Ancient Greek Experience of Ritual Spaces
Open Archaeology 2019; 5: 540–552 Original Study Efrosyni Boutsikas* The Contribution of ‘Total Environment’ Reconstructions in Interpreting Ancient Greek Experience of Ritual Spaces https://doi.org/10.1515/opar-2019-0033 Received April 1, 2019; accepted November 9, 2019 Abstract: The temple of Epikourean Apollo in Bassae has long been suspected to have been constructed with astronomical considerations, aimed at influencing ancient religious experience. The study presented here involves the use of Virtual Reality software to reconstruct the temple in its original position and orientation, combined with an accurate reconstruction of the sun’s position during the Classical period. The aim is to test the hypothesis of deliberate solar considerations associated with the temple’s east entrance. The reconstruction also discusses the application of Virtual Reality Models (VRM) and their potential impact on understanding ancient spatial movement and memory, emotionality and cognition. In addition, it explores the possibility of ancient natural light manipulation in enhancing experience of religious architecture. This paper not only presents the first VRM of Apollo’s temple, but also a model with an accurate reconstruction of the sun’s position at specific moments in the year. The importance of such reconstructions in understanding religious experience is exemplified. A great deal is revealed about the proposed solar effect in relation to human observation, and the connotations of such an effect in specific religious contexts. This study could facilitate discussion on the contribution of digital technology in understanding ancient Greek ritual experience. Keywords: Virtual Reality Modelling, Apollo Epikourios Bassae, Greek religion, ancient astronomy, light in archaeology 1 Introduction We tend to investigate ancient sites from above. -
The Ionic Friezes of the Hephaisteion in the Athenian Agora
The Ionic Friezes of the Hephaisteion in the Athenian Agora Katerina Velentza King’s College London Classical Archaeology Class of 2015 Abstract: This paper examines in depth all the features of the Ionic friezes of the Hephaisteion, their architectural position, their visibility, their iconography, their audience, their function and the intention of their construction. In contrast to the existing scholarship that examines separately single aspects of these architectural sculptures, in this research I have tried to investigate the Hephaisteion Ionic friezes as a whole and incorporate them in the ensemble of the other preserved Ionic friezes of fifth-century BC Attic Doric temples. My research started during the summer 2014 when I was working in the excavations of the Athenian Agora conducted by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. During this time I had the opportunity to familiarise myself in detail with the topography, the monuments of the site of the Agora and the excavation reports of the American School and carry out an autopsy in the Hephaisteion. Additionally, I was granted permission from the First Ephorate of Classical Antiquities, to enter the interior of the Parthenon in order to investigate in detail the architectural position and the visibility of the copies of the Ionic frieze still standing at the Western side of the temple. I also visited the temple of Poseidon at Sounion and the Archaeological Museum of Lavrion to examine the Ionic frieze surviving from this temple. Through the autopsy of these three temples and their Ionic friezes and after the detailed study of modern scholarship, I tried to understand and interpret the function and the purpose of the Ionic friezes within Athenian Doric temples as well as their broader cultural and historical context. -
The Temple of Hephaistos Is the Best Preserved Doric Temple in Existence, Both in Athens and in Greece
The Temple of Hephaistos: Innovations in Art and Architecture by Jamie Heidenreich Dr. Barletta’s Seminar, Spring 2010 The Temple of Hephaistos has provided scholars valuable insight into stylistic innovations of 5th century Athens, as well as heated debates concerning almost every aspect of the building. This is because the Hephaisteion is both the best preserved Doric temple in all of Greece, as well as an oddly idiosyncratic structure. Because its foundations were laid c. 450 B.C., the Hephaisteion holds a unique place in history, straddling the early and high classical periods. Although construction began around this pivotal date, the temple was not completed until between 421-415 B.C. Thus, the temple has provided a multitude of insights into the stylistic evolutions during one of the most influential periods of Art History. By recounting briefly what is known about the Hephaisteion, and providing a descriptive overview of the structure, I will highlight some of the sculptural and architectural innovations of the Hephaisteion in relation to the stylistic developments of the early and high classical period. The Temple of Hephaistos is located on the Kolonos Agoraios, a hill overlooking the Athenian Agora. For years, scholars named the temple after the favored Athenian hero Theseus, in part due to the numerous depictions of him within the temple’s reliefs. This identification has been largely discredited for several reasons. Firstly, another Theseum was discovered making it less likely that this temple is also dedicated to Theseus. Furthermore, the temple is surrounded by metalworking and pottery sites, making a temple to Hephaistos highly appropriate. -
Paper a Method Is Presented for the Estimation of the Vertical Deformations of the Stylobate of Ancient Temples
ESTIMATION OF THE VERTICAL DEFORMATIONS OF THE STYLOBATE OF ANCIENT TEMPLES - THE CASE OF THESEION Dr. George GEORGOPOULOS and Dr. Elisavet TELIONI Rural & Surveying Engineering School, Department of Topography National Technical University of Athens, Greece Abstract : In this paper a method is presented for the estimation of the vertical deformations of the stylobate of ancient temples. The surface of the stylobate – the upper surface of the temple’s crepis- is a curved one with different transversal and longitudinal gradients. Its original shape can be derived from the uneven heights of the columns’ lowermost drums. Since these drums are not affected by distortional features through out the centuries, their heights, if measured accurately, can be used for the determination of the original shape of the temple’s stylobate. Using least squares techniques the best fitting surface can be determined. Finally the deformations of the stylobate can be estimated from the comparison between the estimated best fit surface and the nowadays profiles of the stylobate. The settlements of the stylobate of the temple of Hephaestus (Theseion) are presented as a case study. The original curved profiles of the four sides of the monument are approximated by a best fitting line , and the settlements of the temple’s stylobate are estimated. 1. INTRODUCTION One of the main problems in restoration of ancient monuments (temples, theatres etc.) is that their original form (shape and dimensions) is not known. Their parts have deformed throughout the centuries up to nowadays, due to various causes of natural as well as human effect, and, obviously, the “original plans” do not exist. -
Inscriptions and Memory in the Temples of Late Antique Greece and Asia Minor
University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations 2017 The Writing On The Wall: Inscriptions And Memory In The Temples Of Late Antique Greece And Asia Minor Anna Marie Sitz University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Classics Commons, and the History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons Recommended Citation Sitz, Anna Marie, "The Writing On The Wall: Inscriptions And Memory In The Temples Of Late Antique Greece And Asia Minor" (2017). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2886. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2886 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2886 For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Writing On The Wall: Inscriptions And Memory In The Temples Of Late Antique Greece And Asia Minor Abstract This dissertation documents late antique (fourth to seventh century CE) Christian responses to earlier, pagan inscriptions at sanctuaries, as seen in the archaeological record. I argue that Christians in Greece and Asia Minor neither ignored nor unthinkingly destroyed older inscriptions, but rather were generally tolerant toward these legible reminders of the pagan past, selectively editing them only occasionally. In order to clarify the types of inscriptions that Christians encountered on temple walls and architraves, I have assembled the first catalog of inscriptions on temples, which er veals that the majority of texts inscribed on sacred structures between the seventh century BCE and the third century CE were, counterintuitively, not about religion, but rather civic matters: political privileges, economic/territorial rights, and elite social structures. -
The Architecture of the Hera I Temple of Paestum: an Archaeological Comparative Study
The architecture of the Hera I temple of Paestum An archaeological comparative study Jolan van der Stelt Cover photo: Hera I temple at Paestum (Norbert Nagel/Wikimedia Commons, License: CC BY-SA 3.0) The architecture of the Hera I temple of Paestum An archaeological comparative study Jolan van der Stelt, S1237047 Bachelor thesis Classical Archaeology Supervisor: Dr. M. E. J. J. van Aerde Leiden University, Faculty of Archaeology Leiden, 15 December 2017, Final version 2 Table of content 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 4 1.1 Research question .......................................................................................................................... 4 1.2 Greek colonisation and Magna Graecia ........................................................................................ 4 1.3 A historical overview of Poseidonia/Paestum ............................................................................... 7 1.4 The excavations of the Paestum area ............................................................................................. 8 1.5 Surroundings and site context ....................................................................................................... 8 1.6 The temples of Paestum .............................................................................................................. 10 2. The first Hera temple at Paestum ................................................................................................. -
The$Adyton$At$The$Temple$Of$Apollo$At$ Bassae:$
! ! ! The$Adyton$at$the$Temple$of$Apollo$at$ Bassae:$ Multiple!Cult!Worship!in!the!Adyton.! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! By! Nikki!Carter! ! A!thesis!submitted!to!the!Victoria!University!of!Wellington!! in!fulfilment!of!the!requirements!for!the!degree!of!! Master!of!Arts!in!Classical!Studies! 2016.! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! To#my#sister#Lauren,# Thank#you.# The Adyton at the Temple of Apollo at Bassae Table of Contents: Acknowledgements: ...................................................................................................................... 3 Abstract .............................................................................................................................................. 4 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 6 2. Cults of Bassae ......................................................................................................................... 12 Apollo ......................................................................................................................................................... 14 Apollo Epikourios ................................................................................................................................... 16 Apollo Bassitas ....................................................................................................................................... -
On the Corinthian Column at the Temple of Apollo Epikourios at Bassae*
1 On the Corinthian Column at the Temple of Apollo Epikourios at Bassae* Antonios Thodis Introduction The Greek Temple, despite its persistence and role as a paradigm of architectural beauty in Western Architecture discourse for centuries, poses substantial questions regarding its source of inspiration and the origin of some of its most essential architectural and typological elements. Other than the passing accounts of Pliny and Theophrastus, our current understanding relies upon Pausanias1 and Vitruvius,2 who wrote from a Hellenistic perspective, upon archaeology, or upon such efforts to link philosophy with temple building as Hahn’s Anaximander and the Architects (2001). The temple of Apollo Epikourios at Bassae (fifth century B.C.) by Ictinus, located in a remote but sacred part of mountainous Arcadia, exhibits unique architectural peculiarities. The most prominent of these are the earliest known coexistence of the three Classical Orders and appearance of the Corinthian column, which make it a fundamental monument for scholarly investigation into the Greek temple’s typical architectural elements and the aspirations of its builders and commissioners influenced by religious developments and the inventive spirit of Classical period. For these reasons, the temple from the moment of its discovery in the late eighteenth century has attracted the * I would like to express my deep gratitude to Professor Gregory Nagy for his support and Professors Peter Carl and Erika Naginski for their guidance and insightful discussions. Also, I would like to thank my brother Ioannis for his assistance in the creation of the digital models used in this work. 1 Pausanias Description of Greece with an English Translation by W.