The Parthenon - Essay Example

?THE PARTHENON: History and Architecture Ancient Greece formed the bastion of civilization upon which the Roman empire was built. At the peak of Athenian civilization, the temple stood as the symbol of religious beliefs, in honour of its most revered gods such as Zeus, Athena, and Olympia. The structure of the temple embodied the people’s religious beliefs, and this was reflected in the perfection of the architectural design according to which they were constructed. Among the earliest examples were the Doric temples, so-called because of the order used on their columns. Built circa 477 to 438 B.C.E., the Parthenon has come to stand for the ideals of the ancient Greek civilization. Despite is fame, there is only one brief description of the Parthenon, written by a Greek speaker named Pausanias, that has come down through the generations from the ancient period itself, although well after 600 years. The main focus of this short account was of the phenomenal statue of Athena, made of an overlay of gold and silver over a wooden frame (Beard, 2002, p. 25). The Parthenon is known as the “twenty-second wonder of the world” (Bipu, 2009). Through Greek-engineered techniques and currently-available masonry, the great architects of the Greek Empire have demonstrated marvelous feats of mounting stone cut figures into fully-formed foundations and architecturally-aesthetic amenities. It has been described as the primary wonder which resembles the aspects of science, art, and democracy. “It stands at 19.8 meters (65 feet) high inclusive of the superstructure and three steps acting as the base. Each step is also of distinct from one another: the lowest step, the stereobate, is at a length 72.5 meters (238 feet) by width 33.8 meters (111 feet); the stylobate (top step) is at length 68.5 meters (228 feet) by width 30.8 meters (101 feet)” (Fletcher, 112). The superstructure itself consists of colonnades resembling the Doric style in the peristyle formation. The total number of columns results in 46 columns which are 10.4 meters (34 feet) in height, with the largest diameter at 1.8 meters (6 feet). The average spacing between the ends of each column is 2.4 meters (8 feet) while those in the porticos of the Parthenon are reduced to a diameter of 1.7 meters (5 ? feet). The column system applied to its Doric colonnade follows an optical illusion technique known as the entasis, which makes use of varying intervals in order to provide a logical symmetry to the building’s exterior (Lambrinou, 2010). The main openings of the Parthenon lie in the porticos through the east – west orientation axis. Their entry doors are measured 7.3 meters (24 feet) high, 2.1. meters (7 feet) wide and 31 centimetres (1 foot) long.” (Matthews, 2011.). The rooms are clearly defined as the Parthenon is a place of divine worship for the highest among the Greek gods. The temple primarily devotes worship to the goddess Athena Parthenos, who is significant as the deity of the city-state. The interior of the temple had been highly-decorated with sculptures of mythological heroes, both mortal and immortal, of the Greek era, while the exterior mouldings within the pediment symbolize significant events of both historical and mythological accounts. These also utilized indispensable cornerstones to an advantage, portraying the complex according to the flourishing lifestyle typical of the ancient Athenians. Through its geography, they have mastered the art of seemed proportions regardless of the uneven terrain of the Acropolis. Its colonnade arrangement suggested masculinity conveyed in the hard, stable form of the columns and straight figures, embodying both the stability of the foundation and the artistic nature of the structure (Matthews, 2011). “Designed by Greek masons Ictinus, Callicrates and Phidias,” (Matthews, 2011) the Parthenon was meant to withstand the harsh climatic effects of Mediterranean wind storms and heat waves. Because of this, the colonnade and portico assembly had been made by the designers. However, the presence of today’s Parthenon had been gravely diminished because of its historical experiences: it had overcome earthquakes, battle scars, explosions, wild fires, and renovations according to church, mosque and market-place design standards. “Today, the building had been undergoing multiple restoration strategies although based on the historical secrets of the ancient Greek civilization. Although celebrated as a symbol of beauty and symmetry, it is actually a series of unique elements; each marble drum and column was distinct from one another. Besides the desired construction of a a perfect building atop the peak of the Acropolis, another reason for such an optical refinement to be executed is that of the possibility of compensating a sag in the terrain. ” (NOVA, PBS.org) It was also an important part of the Acropolis complex since it served as storage of classical Greek knowledge dating back to the Greco-Persian War (c. 502 – 499 B.C.E.). This also marked as “the repository of even the greatest known philosophers of the time of the Greek democracy established by Pericles” (NOVA, PBS.org). Some of these intellectual philosophers included Socrates, Hippocrates, and Herodotus. To the forefathers of the democratic rise, the Parthenon was respected as a compilation of historical wonders that had taken place during the 5th century B.C.E. of Greece. The architectural plan reflects the activities and the hierarchy of the gods and goddesses. During its completion on the 5th century B.C.E., the sculptures were greatly accentuated by the heavy details of the marble figures and their legacies and significant roles in the religious influence of the ancient Athenians. Each component of the building has been constructed with architectural decorations. Within the frieze lay marble carvings of emperors, warriors and horsemen, called metopes, which interchange with small groved blocks called triglyphs. This proportionate phenomenon follows a pattern based on the Golden Ratio (1: 1.618), a formula which was believed to be representative of the beauty close to the human body. It has also been prominently demonstrated throughout the measures of not only in the entablature, but also along the relationships of all its parts, such as the architrave, tympanum, and the acroterion located at the tip ends of the pediments. The same precision method is used also for the Doric column formation, designers, restorers and masons devise and retest their refined finishes, whether it pertains to drum parts of the columns or the capital divisions. Afterwards, these renewed parts are then fitted into the original portions still intact, yet heavily weathered. Though a logical basis for fittings to the three-dimensional puzzle, it was also believed that the ancient Greeks had used a system derived from carvings which resemble the actual human scale arms, hands and feet. This stone carving is coined as the Salamis stone. Found in the island of Salamis during the fourth century B.C.E., this mineral contained figures of the human proportions which were discovered to be references for linear measurements which were applicable to each type of Greek order. The figures are also proposed to imply a common concept to a proportional sketch created by Leonardo Da Vinci called the Vitruvian Man, named after the great architect, Vitruvius. Another trick commonly applied by the craftsmen of Vitruvius was adapted from the Egyptian builders, in which “cedar pegs are made with a cylindrical tool interlocking within the central axes of the column’s marble drums. Some of the other connections include the installation of lead couplings. This former approach can help stabilize the intertwined drums during times of earthquakes, while the latter is a means to prevent rusting in the blocks” (Kingfisher Kaleidoscopes). The Parthenon itself stood at years of successful achievements and changes, but as the dawn of the Peloponnesian War came, Pericles had less of a formidable chance against the forces of the Spartans who siege the Athenian government that it gradually subjected in favour of the Spartans, and eventually, to conquerors proceeding them, such as Christians, Muslims, and even the traders that have changed the face of the Parthenon as it stood through the tests of time. The architectural structure was comprised of well-defined figures and sculptures at its golden age, but as the years gone by, the details gradually disappear and the surfaces break apart by natural calamities. The Foundation of the Parthenon is constructed out of three huge marble slabs, the stereobate (the two bottom slabs), and the stylobate (top slab). Mounted directly on the stylobate are the colonnade arrangements of the Parthenon’s structural grid. Placed above the stylobate is the structural component, the column. Particularly for the Parthenon, the Doric order was applied to the design. The Doric order is the very first columned type invented by the Greeks during the 300 B.C.E. “It was first used in places like South Italy, Sicily and Mainland Greece, which included Cyrenaica, North Africa” (Spawforth, 79). The strong, architectural structure consists of a cushion-like capital which resembles a sea urchin (echinus) and a square slab placed on it. The thickness of this cushion later evolved through the ages. “The dimensions of the Doric indicated a height of four times the specified diameter (for the common type) and seven times the diameter (for the Hellenic type of Doric order). Its shaft was primarily designed with twenty (20) flutings (groves). The column’s parts were simple, but the minute portions were made artistic to the naked eye since it embodied the beauty and perfection of man and his gods’ images alike. The Doric column, in particular, has two sub-parts: the shaft and the capital. The capital had been consisted of parts which gave depth to the Doric’s simple characteristics. These parts are known as the abacus and the echinis. The shaft is designed with a necking which complements the fluting along it. It was the simplest form among the different types of such orders which now exist around the world” (Kingfisher Kaleidoscopes). Above the column layout lays the entablature, which is created by the architrave and the frieze layers in the temple’s facade. The architrave is commonly described as a thick slab placed above the colonnade of the Parthenon. This design was not just for aesthetics, but also for cases of quake absorption that allows the architrave to distribute weight and impact among the supporting colonnade. (Neils, 115) The frieze is further decorated with miniature sculptures of Greek athletes and other gladiatorial figures along recess parts, the metope, and the triglyph, which are small-scale decorations similar to the flutings of the columnar shaft. The exterior roofing elements were heavily decorated with acroterion which had been redecorated accordingly to the preceeding design made by the ancient Classical Greeks of the 5th century B.C.E. Though possibly incomplete, the design has been increasingly challenging to restore due to the debris affected by the natural calamities. Some convey that the statues that were carved onto the slab were depicted as saints and their legacies in their past experiences in Greece” (Lambrinou, 63). Another architectural amazement was the use of the human proportions even in the narrowest of corners within the tympanum mouldings of the pediment of the Parthenon’s roof. The acroterion decorations symbolize the angelic figures made known by the Greek believers and seers then. The temple’s interior was widely spaced for the provisions of the idols to be placed depending on the hierarchy of their importance to the people of Athens. The porticos along the East – West axis are the main proper entry points for worshippers. Upon entering the eastern doorway, one would enter the Hecatompedos, which is commonly described as the main hallway of the building. The central highlight of the Parthenon temple will supply a sculpture as a form of tribute to the goddess Athena Parthenos. The 40-foot stature stood at its glory with golden accessories, a shield held on its left hand, and a bird on its right. “The architectural stylings of the Greek Parthenon included the layouting of simple, rectangular, floor plans with symmetrical patterns” (Spawforth, 2006). The marble building is constructed with linkages of clamps and wooden or lead dowels. The bracings and truss system is fashioned out of cut triangular cedar chords to fit the golden ratio requirements and the pediment decorations are inclined depending on the roof’s pitch angle. The most prominent characteristic which gives the Greek its original architectural beauty is their vast range of curvilinear mouldings, thoroughly visible within the exterior and interior details of the infrastructure. From basic foundation plans, to the well adorned images gods and goddesses highly venerated by their people, the Parthenon proves to be one of the most spectacular cultural and architectural wonders from the dawn of the golden age. It is just one of the legacies from the ancient Greeks through which modern man had been enlightened through various aspects of art, science, religion, and politics. Bibliography Beard, Mary The Parthenon. London: Profile Books, Ltd., 2002 Bipu. “The Parthenon” Wonders of the World. October 10, 2009. 19 March2011. http://maniza.com/wonders_of_the_world.htm Cruickshank, Dan. Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture: Twentieth Edition. India. Architectural Press, Reed Educational and Professional Publishing Ltd. 1996. pp. 106 – 153. Grindley, Sally. The Art of Construction. Kingfisher Kaleidoscopes. A Living Encyclopedia. 1995 Lambrinou, Lena. Preserving a Monument: The Example of the Parthenon. UK. W.S. Maney and Son Ltd. 2010. pp. 60-74 Matthews, Kevin “The Parthenon” Greatbuildings.com. 2011. Accessed 19 March 2011. http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/The_Parthenon.html Neils, Jenifer The Parthenon: From Antiquity to the Present. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005 NOVA “The Secrets of the Parthenon”, NOVA.pbs.org, 2008. 18 March 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLCW0zKR4xk Spawforth, Anthony. The Complete Greek Temples. London. Thames and Hudson Ltd. 2006. P.79 Read More