AHSTARC : On Greek Architecture.

When I first heard the term Greek Architecture, the first few things that came into my mind were the majestic Parthenon located on the very impressive Acropolis. The Parthenon is known as the largest temple the Greeks build to honor Goddess Athena. The Acropolis as a whole on the other hand represents the high point in ancient Greek architecture. One can see that these Greek structures had very good proportions. Compared to the Egyptian structures, the Greek structures are very different when it comes to function, structure and aesthetics. If the Egyptians were more into the Function and Form of their buildings, the Greeks were conscious in their structures’ design and gave a big consideration to the aesthetics as well.  

Architecture continues to develop from one period to another. Egyptian architecture influenced the Greek’s in some way, like the use of columns which almost all Greek structures possess. What make the Greek’s different from the Egyptians is the elegance and the class their structures have. They devised a system of building proportions known as the Classical orders; the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian, that is timeless and widely used to this day.

It is evident in the Greek structures that people during that time gave importance to their social lives. Business was starting to emerge, physical activities were given importance, and a form of government was born. Each structure they built served a purpose. The Agora was built for socializing and business purposes, Bouleterion and Prytaneion were constructed for their local city council, theatre/Odeion was built for performing arts and the stadium, Hippodrome, Palaestra, Pyrataneion and Gymnasium were made for their physical games and exercises. Greek society was very active and comparable to ours nowadays. Just like any other civilization, the Greeks had their own beliefs. They had numerous Gods and goddesses whom they dedicated different temples for.  As time passed, Greek temples became larger and even grander.

Greek Architecture continued to evolve as years passed.  Their creativity led to the construction of some magnificent structures in history. Their architectural contributions were not only beneficial to their civilization but to the ones after them as well.

SKETCHES TO BE POSTED LATER :)