Art in the Classroom, January 2013 Subject: Ancient Architecture Examples: The Parthenon, The Great Pyramids, The Taj Mahal Although we usually discuss paintings in Art Smart, it's important to know that art comes in many forms. In addition to traditional artwork, such as painting, drawing, and sculpture, architecture is considered a large part of the history of art. Today, we are going to discuss three very famous buildings, created thousands of years ago. The styles and methods of construction can still be found in modern day architecture! The Parthenon Built: 447BC -- 432BC (Explain how "BC" years are counted backwards to the year 1!) The original Parthenon was built in 1300BC, but the one we study today was constructed in the 440's BC as a part of the world's first democracy. Size: 228 feet by 101 feet. Builders: The Athenians hired two important architects, Callicrates and Ictinus, along with a great sculptor, Phedias to rebuild the Parthenon. Phedias created a giant statue of Athena, made of gold and ivory, which is still very famous today. Location: On top of The Acropolis, Athens, Greece History: The Parthenon is considered the finest example of Greek architecture. It was built on the highest hill in Athens called the Acropolis ("High City")*, a complex of many religious temples. The Parthenon is a temple, built in honor of the Goddess Athena. The people of Ancient Greece were famous for their understanding of shapes and geometry. Many classic shapes, such as triangles, squares, and circles, can be found in Ancient Greek architecture. [*An acropolis is where the inhabitants could go as a place of refuge in times of invasion. It's for this reason that the most sacred buildings are usually on the acropolis. It's the safest most secure place in town.] Like most temples of its time, The Parthenon was mainly used as a treasury - sort of like a bank. It was also used as a Christian Church, an Orthodox Greek Church, and an Islamic Mosque, depending on which group of people were ruling this area of Greece at different periods of history. This is just like the Old Academy Schoolhouse near the Fairfield Town Hall that was used a school, a hospital, an inn, and a museum throughout the history of our town. Style: Classical Greek The first step in understanding The Parthenon is learning about the classic "orders", or styles, of architecture: Doric, Ionic and Corinthian. The most recognizable feature of each order is the columns used in the construction of public building and temples. Most of the surviving ruins of ancient Greece are of the Doric order, which is the most basic, featuring sturdy, thick, unadorned columns set directly on a foundation. The Parthenon has 46 Doric columns! Elegant and slender Ionic columns are taller and more refined than Doric columns. Ionic columns sit on a base and include vertical fluting and a crown featuring a scroll-like design. Corinthian architecture is the most ornate of the three orders. You'll find examples of ancient Greek architecture in many modern buildings (photo examples would be helpful here!): Inspired by the Parthenon, the Lincoln Memorial may be the finest example of classic Doric architecture in America. The Lincoln Memorial features thick and masculine Doric columns an impressive colonnade and unadorned architrave. The Jefferson Memorial features graceful Ionic columns, while The General Grant National Memorial, better known as "Grant's Tomb" in New York City, incorporates both Doric and Ionic features in its design. The influence of Greek architecture is also apparent on the "Greek Revival- style" homes of the antebellum American south. Some of these homes feature grand columns and colonnades, while others are simpler row houses in the city, with small columns around the entrance. Savannah, Georgia, has many examples of these gracious homes. Examples of the three types of columns: Questions: Have you seen examples of Ancient Greek columns in Fairfield? Can you spot different shapes in the pictures of The Parthenon? The Acropolis is considered a special place because it is very safe -- can you think of safe places to go in our town? Additional information on the types of columns: Of the three columns found in Greece, Doric columns are the simplest. They have a capital (the top, or crown) made of a circle topped by a square. The shaft (the tall part of the column) is plain and has 20 sides. There is no base in the Doric order. The Doric order is very plain, but powerful-looking in its design. Doric, like most Greek styles, works well horizontally on buildings, that's why it was so good with the long rectangular buildings made by the Greeks. The area above the column, called the frieze [pronounced "freeze"], had simple patterns. There are many examples of ancient Doric buildings. Perhaps the most famous one is the Parthenon in Athens, which is probably the most famous and most studied building on Earth. Buildings built even now borrow some parts of the Doric order. The Parthenon Ionic DESCRIPTION: Ionic shafts were taller than Doric ones. This makes the columns look slender. They also had flutes, which are lines carved into them from top to bottom. The frieze is plain. The bases were large and looked like a set of stacked rings. Ionic capitals consist of a scrolls above the shaft. The Ionic style is a little more decorative than the Doric. The Temple of Athena Nike in Athens, shown above, is one of the most famous Ionic buildings in the world. It is located on the Acropolis, very close to theParthenon (shown in the Doric section above). The Great Pyramids Built: 247 BC Size: 481 feet tall ( The Great Pyramid remained the tallest building in the world for 3800 years!) Location: Giza, Egypt History: The most famous pyramid was built for the Pharoah Khufu and called The Great Pyramid. Pyramids were considered "houses of eternity" where important people were buried with their most treasured belongings. Pyramids had storage rooms, courtyards, secret passageways, and fancy traps to prevent robbers. Theft became such a problem that Egyptians stopped building pyramids after this era. Ancient Egyptians didn't bury their Pharoahs and return to their lives. They built cities around the pyramid during its construction called Pyramid Cities which were paid for by the Pharoahs during their lifetimes -- there were many jobs created during the construction besides building -- guarding and maintaining the site, bakers to cook for the workers, basket weavers to create goods for the homes, and many other kinds of merchants. The people built the pyramids to both ensure a good "afterlife" for their pharoah and for themselves. The massive pyramids were built by hand -- each stone weight 1 1/5 tons and requires twelve men to put it into place. Workers were typically local Egyptians, supplemented by nearby farmers who helped with the pyramids during the flood season when their fields were under water. There were no power tools, trucks, or even running water to make the job easier. It's hard to believe the pyramids were built without any modern tools, but historians say it was the Egyptians' knowledge of mathematics and precise calculations that allowed the stones to fit together so perfectly and last for thousands of years. The first pyramids were "step" style -- each side looked like a staircase and resembled the pyramids built by the Ancient Mayans in Mexico. Later, a new style emerged featuring smooth sides and no steps -- this was the look of the Great Pyramid. It took 30,000 people to construct the pyramids! Questions: Have you ever seen a building in the shape of a pyramid? Do you think this shape would make a practical house? Why or why not? Do you think pyramids would be a good structure at the beach? In the woods? On a mountain? Why or why not? The Taj Mahal Built: 1632 -- 1653 (Mughal Era of Architecture) Location: Agra, India Size: 538,292 square feet -- the equivalent of 10 (2,000 sq. ft. houses)! History: This famous monument was built for the Emperor of India in honor of his wife who died giving birth to their 14th child. The name Taj Mahal was based on a nickname the Emperor called his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, meaning "beloved ornament of the palace". The Emperor was so devastated when his wife died, he commanded his court to remain in mourning for two years! The Taj Mahal is a tribute to Mumtaz Mahal, but also a mausoleum or tomb, where she is buried. The Taj Mahal was a tremendous project and required the muscle of 22,000 workers and 1,000 elephants over 20 years! It was built with all white marble, brought in from all over India and Asia. The monument is decorated with 28 types of precious and semi-precious jewel stones inside and outside the building. The bas relief method is also used to decorate the walls, depicting historical events and stories. Bas relief is a raised and sculpted form of plaster, and is also featured in The Parthenon. The building's exterior also includes passages of the Koran (the Islamic equivalent of the Bible) written in beautiful calligraphy. Although the primary architectural style is Mughal, the Taj Mahal contains influences from Islamic, Persian, Ottoman Turkish, and other Indian styles. The Taj Mahal is known for its extremely large domed top (similar to the shape of an onion...just like The Kremlin in Russia and the Capitol Building in Hartford, CT!). On top of the dome is a finial -- a decorative ornament -- that was originally solid gold and was replaced by bronze on the early 19th Century.