What are the main features of a Greek temple?

Greek temples were grand buildings with a fairly simple design. The outside was surrounded by a row of columns. Above the columns was a decorative panel of sculpture called the frieze. Above the frieze was a triangle shaped area with more sculptures called the pediment.

What is the characteristic of classical Greek architecture?

Classical Greek architecture is best represented by substantially intact ruins of temples and open-air theaters. The architectural style of classical Greece can be divided into three separate orders: the Doric Order, the Ionic Order, and the Corinthian Order.

What is the most famous architectural feature of classical Greece?

Periclean Parthenon of Athens
Perhaps the fullest, and most famous, expression of Classical Greek temple architecture is the Periclean Parthenon of Athens—a Doric order structure, the Parthenon represents the maturity of the Greek classical form.

What were ancient Greek temples made of?

Standard Temple Architecture in Archaic and Early Classical Greece. Originally temples in the 7th and 6th century BCE were constructed using wood. From the early 6th century BCE some temples started using marble columns topped with a wooden roof.

Who destroyed Greek temples?

After the Ottoman conquest, the Parthenon was turned into a mosque in the early 1460s. On 26 September 1687, an Ottoman ammunition dump inside the building was ignited by Venetian bombardment during a siege of the Acropolis. The resulting explosion severely damaged the Parthenon and its sculptures.

Why do Greek temples face east?

As marble is not entirely opaque, those naoi may have been permeated with a distinctive diffused light. For cultic reasons, but also to use the light of the rising sun, virtually all Greek temples were oriented with the main door to the east.

What are the main structural components of Greek temples?

The Greek temple may be divided vertically into three parts: floor, columns, and entablature. Each of these parts may be divided into three again.

What are the three orders of classical Greek architecture?

At the start of what is now known as the Classical period of architecture, ancient Greek architecture developed into three distinct orders: the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian orders.

Do oracles still exist?

Of these oracles, one of the most prolific and time-honored is the oracle that practiced at the temple of Apollo at Delphi. This unit will present a glimpse of the Delphic Oracle of ancient Greece and show the modern student that oracles still exist in the twentieth century.

Which became the architectural basis for many Greek temples?

The Doric order emerged on the Greek mainland during the course of the late seventh century BCE and remained the predominant order for Greek temple construction through the early fifth century BCE, although notable buildings built later in the Classical period—especially the canonical Parthenon in Athens—still employed …

Why did they build Greek temples?

Greek temples (Ancient Greek: ναός, romanized: naós, lit. ‘dwelling’, semantically distinct from Latin templum, “temple”) were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in ancient Greek religion. Temples were frequently used to store votive offerings.

What is the oldest temple in Greece?

The Temple of Hera
The Temple of Hera, or Heraion, is an ancient Archaic Greek temple in Olympia. Dedicated to the Hera, the highest goddess in the Greek pantheon, it was the oldest temple at the site and one of the most famous and venerable in all Greece.

What was the purpose of the temple in ancient Greece?

Greek temples (Ancient Greek: ναός, romanized: naós, lit. ‘dwelling’, semantically distinct from Latin templum, “temple”) were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in ancient Greek religion.

What kind of columns are used in Greek temples?

The temple is unusual in that it has examples of all three of the classical orders used in ancient Greek architecture. Doric columns form the peristyle while Ionic columns support the porch and Corinthian columns feature in the interior. The temple of Apollo Epicurius is presently covered in a tent in order to protect the ruins from the elements.

How tall was the average temple in ancient Greece?

Most Greek temples were oriented astronomically. Between the 9th century BCE and the 6th century BCE, the ancient Greek temples developed from the small mud brick structures into double- porched monumental “peripteral” buildings with colonnade on all sides, often reaching more than 20 metres in height (not including the roof).

Where was the temple of Concord in ancient Greece?

Temple of Concord in Agrigento, Italy. Greek temples (Ancient Greek: ναός, romanized: naós, lit. ‘dwelling’, semantically distinct from Latin templum, “temple”) were structures built to house deity statues within Greek sanctuaries in ancient Greek religion.