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The Parthenon and its influence on today
The Parthenon and its influence on today
Ancient Greece Contributions to Modern Western Times
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Introduction Between 334 and 323 B.C Alexander the Great and his armies conquered and created an empire that covered Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt, Persia and India. The spoils of war included much Greek art, and encouraged the spread of Greek culture. Consequently, these influences are found in the architecture of the Parthenon and the Pantheon, and in other aspects of life at the time. Content Perikles, an Athenian politician, built the Parthenon in 447 B.C. This was a time when Athens was considered in today’s terminology, a superpower, and it was completed in 432 B.C. The Pantheon was completed in 14 A.D during the reign of Augustus Caesar, was built by his deputy Marcus Agrippa, and despite the length of time between the erection of both temples, they each reflect the style of the Greek architectural order. In my opinion, the columns are the strongest features of …show more content…
the temples; the Parthenon reflects the Doric order with its rounded capitals at the top of the large columns, whilst the Roman Pantheon is of the Corinthian order with more slender columns and capitals that are decorated with leaves. On a personal note, the striking features of the Pantheon and the Parthenon lie in symmetry and the structural use of geometry. The frontal view of the Roman Pantheon is similar to what obtains in Greek architecture - the rectangular shape, rows of columns in the front and down a portion of the sides, (almost like a front porch). There is however a dome behind the rectangular front, which has a round opening at the top, and lets light into the dome. The Parthenon is not surprisingly characteristic of Greek architecture, with rows of columns on all four sides and steps on each side, a pronaos or front porch, and an inner shrine or cella, which would have been occupied by a sculpture of the Greek goddess Athena. Yet another similarity is that the Pantheon had some steps to the front of the structure, but these have been removed due to re-constructions over the centuries. Greek culture spread even further after the death of Alexander the Great and during the Hellenistic period. Some of his generals birthed new dynasties by dividing the empire into smaller kingdoms for themselves, and making alliances with Greek city-states. The interface between culture and commerce became richer in content and variety with increased mobility of peoples, such that a common dialect evolved - Koine. Skilled artists also became more available and numerous works of art; jewelry, sculpture and architecture were produced. Destroyed a number of times, the Pantheon was always rebuilt, restored and today it is used as a church.
On the right and left of the entrance are niches that may have held sacred representations of the different gods; the influx of peoples and cultures resulted in their worship and the dedication of this temple, to all the gods of Rome, may have served to unify differences. The Parthenon was built to house the goddess Athena, but was first used as a treasury. There is some symbolism to its location as the acropolis on which the temple is sited, was also the place other temples had been, but the Athenians rebuilt after the Persian wars and the Parthenon was according to this week’s reading from Reed College, one of those structures built ‘to commemorate their victory and in gratitude to heaven’ (n.d, Reed College) Conclusion In my opinion, The Greek Parthenon and the Roman Pantheon have more similar physical attributes than differences, and the Hellenistic period, which lasted almost 3 centuries, forced a meeting of various cultures that in turn impacted the worship of gods and other aspects of
life.
Recall the ancient Greeks and the sculptor Phidias, who created the row of sculptures that sit above the columns of the Parthenon. The Parthenon, built in 447 to 438 BC, is in Athens, Greece. The Greeks used the Golden Ratio, which they called the Golden Section, as the basis for the design of the Parthenon as it created a balance in the design.
The Parthenon was an amazing and important temple. Dedicated to Athena, the goddess of war and wisdom, it was a very important temple to the Greeks. Greeks worshiped all of their gods by building temples for them and giving sacrifices. Most of the sacrifices were sacred tiles designed especially for the gods, not many were human.
Hellenistic art, let alone architecture, was a period of dramatic transformations that deterred greatly from the Greek Classical period. While the Classical Greek concepts were not entirely abandoned, the Hellenistic period expanded the formal horizons with dramatic posing, sweeping lines, and high contrast of light, shadow and emotion, something greatly different from the Classical artists ideas. The conventions and rules of the Classical period gave way to experimentation and a sense of freedom that allowed the artists of the Hellenistic period to explore their subjects from unique points of view that they had not previously done. The Altar to Zeus in Pergamon is the perfect representation of the Hellenistic period. Pergamon contained the Altar to Zeus in the same way that the Athenian Acropolis contained the Parthenon and is considered by the Greek art historian Gisela Richter to be “the most famous altar of Hellenistic times” (Handbook 32). The Altar of Pergamon is uniquely suited as an ideal example of 2nd century Greek culture that is tied to the ideals of the people, and shows off Hellenistic characteristics that define the time just as the Parthenon is a staple in the Classical period. [Stokstad]
Ancient Greece contributed architecture and government to western civilizations. The Parthenon was built to dedicate the goddess, Athena. This famous temple has columns and pediment that characterize Greek architecture. The Greek architects were concerned with conveying a sense of perfect balance to reflect harmony and order in the universe. The balance of the lines are still used in government buildings today. Pericles' government goals were to strengthen democracy, hold strength in the empire, and to glorify Athens. According to Pericles, he wanted all citizens to have an equal opportunity to serve their country. The citizens were also expected to participated in political decisions regardless of their social position.
...tures derived from their religions is astounding. The communal bond brings Christian and Roman communities together during festivals, mass and other community activities. While both Christians and Romans shared very similar core framework for their cultures, their religious practices are clearly distinct. It is these practices from multiple deity worship and separation of church and state we see that these two cultures contrasts put them on a collision course. While we know which religion ultimately usurps the other, it is still interesting to analyze these cultures differences.
The Parthenon was built to honor the goddess of wisdom, Athena. When structures are built using straight lines they tend to look slightly distorted due to the science of optics. The architects Iktos and Kallikretes were skilled architects of their time and they used illusory tactics to create an ideal aesthetic for The Parthenon. The architects compensated for these visual illusions by counteracting them in their design. The end result is a structure that is not composed of straight lines, but when viewed by the human eye, looks perfectly straight. Plato would have mentioned one of his famous dictums, ?That which changes least is most real.? He would have viewed Iktos and Kallikretes designs as less real than other designs that do not u...
The Parthenon is an amazing Greek temple that was built 2,500 years ago. Even the architects of today have numerous questions about how it was constructed and how it has held up through its eventful past. The Parthenon's detailed appearance is not its only meaningful quality. The Parthenon was constructed as a temple to the goddess, Athena, and as an icon of the Greek people themselves. The Parthenon represents the Greek ideals of humanism, idealism, and rationalism.
The Parthenon was built during the Golden age in Athens, Greece. The Parthenon is made of mainly columns; there is a 9:4 ratio. It was almost destroyed in war; the ruins that remained were dedicated to Athena. The purpose of the Parthenon was to house the statue of Athena, made of ivory and gold, and also Athena’s treasure. The ratios and the equations used to make the Parthenon were used as a sign of the harmony in the natural world around us. The mathematical harmony in the world shows how we can work with the world rather than destroy to make it what we want. The Parthenon also has no straight lines. The columns of the Parthenon are angled going up getting smaller the higher they get. This was done so that you could get the best lighting
In Nashville, Tennessee during the late 1800’s a replica was built of The Parthenon to celebrated the 100th anniversary of Tennessee 's entry into the union in 1796, even though it ended up being delayed. It has everything that the original has or would’ve had if it hadn’t been destroyed such as the huge statue of Athena and all the frieze’s. The Parthenon in Nashville also has a basement unlike the original which was supposed to be used to hold art and not take away from the fact that The Parthenon was supposed to be a place for worshipping not an art gallery. Another version of The Parthenon is in Rome, Italy and it sits on an old project that was contracted by Marcus Agrippa during the reign of Augustus. This Parthenon is probably the most intact and well-kept building in ancient Rome. Also like the original Parthenon it was built as a temple for people to come and worship and dedicated to the Gods. Inside it has a magnificent dome shape and has The statues of Augustus and Agrippa as you entered the Temple. The last building that I wanted to talk about that I feel is a replication of the original Parthenon is The Panthéon located in Paris, France. The Panthéon is a church in the Latin Quarter of Paris. It was initially a monastery devoted to St. Genevieve, but now is just mainly a place that holds the tombs of famous French people. The
Just as in math, science, literature, largely philosophy etc., ancient Greeks birthed in the foundation of what comes latter. As already mentioned, the Greek induced Parthenon was a blueprint for modern and present time architecture. Various political purpose structures today are constructed with marble, if not an almost exact material related to marble. Mostly these political structures, even some libraries, use the basis of Greek columns to support the roofs of the structures. To sum up, the metopes and friezes of the structures, like the Parthenon, are profoundly
...ory of the contest between Athena and Poseidon to claim Athens, in which Athena won and thus being worshipped by people (Hyginus, pp. 264). Therefore, the Parthenon was built to dedicate to Athena, their virgin patron.
I will describe how each represent the style, function, and culture of Greek and Roman life. The Parthenon was constructed using the traditional methods of the time. Its differences, however, lie in the style of how it was created. As a temple, the Parthenon represented the ideals of Greek culture.
Greek and Roman temples are the most influential temples of all time. It is argued that the Greeks influenced the Romans and this may be the reason why their temples are so alike. The Parthenon and the Pantheon are the most popular temples of both eras. However, the Pantheon does not look like other Roman temples would to Greek temples – and this is because it has interior space and thus has a completely different composition. Despite their quite similar looks, Roman and Greek temples have unique differences in material, method, purpose, and others.
There are differences and similarities between Greek and Roman architecture because the Romans built on the earlier Greek knowledge but invented from there. Roman architecture was highly influenced by Greece, but the Romans also diverged to create a separate identity and uniqueness. Similarities between
The Greeks and the Romans, two completely different civilizations and yet so similar. They both had their different customs and traditions and may have been years apart, but they are the same, or as the same two different people can be. Both had the ability for greatness, and both were able to create a far reaching empire full of many different types of people.