The Greek Architecture

Introduction

Last year we discussed the history of architecture in English, and the subject that I more liked was about Greek architecture. Since I was a child, I have always been enthusiastic about Greek culture, even if unfortunately I have never been in Greece. We are dealing with the same subject in the history of ancient art, even if more from the artistic point than the architectural point of view of the year before. On the cover, I represented a typical example of architectural style developed in Greece from the VI century BC, specifically the Ionic capital.

Definition of architecture

Architecture is the “art and science of designing and constructing buildings” and “design or style of a building”. By “style” we mean a particular or characteristic way of making a thing, especially a work of art. According to the Roman architect Vitruvius, a building must meet the following requirements to qualify as architecture: it must conveniently serve the purpose for which it was built (utilitas), it must be structurally sound (firmitas) and it must be beautiful (venustas).

Classical art

Greek art was called a Renaissance term that meant that ancient formal model of ideal valences that recognized the merit of arriving at perfection. For the first time, the human figure is placed at the centre of the art and the representation of half-human divinity, as it happened in Egypt, was abandoned for using a schematic language in the forms and naturalistic.

Greek architecture

The first civilization in the Mediterranean region around Greece developed on the island of Crete. Tribes from the North then settled on the mainland of Greece and built strong, fortress-like palaces with thick outer walls. Mycenae was the most famous city, and there can be seen the famous Lion Gate which led to the city. Around 600 B.C., a new architectural form appeared in Greece. The Greeks venerated a great variety of gods to whom they dedicated several temples, places of worship where the god was worshiped with tributes and sacrifices, and every city had its patron god.

Greek gods

Zeus, king and god of heaven and thunder. His symbols are the lightning, the bull, the eagle, and the oak. His cult took place on the heights of the mountains such as the Olympus.

Hera was one of the most important goddesses, and patron of marriage and childbirth. The cult of Hera was particularly active in her sanctuaries, which stood in Argos and Mycenae. Temples dedicated to Hera were located in Olympia, Corinth, and on the sacred island of Delos.

Apollo was the god of the sun, all the arts, music, prediction, and medical arts. His influence illuminated poetry and science.