Material Marble
Technique Doric
Parthenon: Gallery of Images
Description of the work of art.
The Parthenon which was constructed between 447-432 BC during the height of the Athenian Empire. It was a Doric style, post and lintel temple that was made up of a rectangular floor that had a series of low setting steps on each side. The Architects incorporated the Doric ration of 9:4. The Doric design also consisted of a series of Triglyphs and metopes that were situated on the entablature or the roof. The metopes were accompanied by a panel that was made up of a relief sculpture. There was also a colonnade of Doric style fluted columns that have square top on which rests a three-step base. The columns were then capped off by a wide beam and a block of stone that is referred to as an abacus. This structuring helped to relieve the tension that would have been in the beam. The colonnade surrounded the outside of the entire building. There are 46 outer columns and 23 inner columns. In front of each entrance there was six columns. The larger of the two rooms inside was where the cult statue was located, while the smaller room was utilized as a treasury. Even though the design of the Parthenon is Doric, they did borrow from the Ionic style when it came the friezes as well as for four Ionic style columns that support the roof. The white marble that was used created an ideal backdrop on which to create the friezes. This is because the whiteness of the marble helped to give the appearance of the images being exactly aligned. The horizontal and perpendicular lines are actually outside of the planes. This was done to correct the distorted perspective.
Who, When and How
In the fifth century the Athenian Leader Pericles decided to undergo an extensive building project. A number of well-known buildings were constructed at this time including the temple of Athena Nike, the Erechtheion and the Parthenon. Pericles paid for the Parthenon by taking money from the treasury of the Delian League (Starr) The Parthenon had been built to replace the two previous temples to Athena that had been located on the Acropolis. These Temples had been destroyed by the Persian invasions that had occurred in 480 BC. The architects of the Parthenon were Iktinos and Kallikrates and the sculptor who made the massive chryselephantine cult statue of the goddess was Pheidias. The 42-foot statue is made of ivory and gold and it sits facing the east doorway which was lit by the sun. The room that housed the statue however had no windows and despite the sun hitting the doorway of the room it did not reach the statue itself. The majority of the light around the statue came from torches. There was also a pool of water in front of the statue that acted to reflect the light of the torches onto the statue. The temple is aligned to the star cluster Hyades (Boutsikas& Hannah). While the Parthenon is referred to as a temple it was not one on the same level of the other temples in the region. The Parthenon only had a small shrine to Athena, but it did not have a statue of Athena Polias, who was the patron of the city of Athens. It was said by many historians of the time that there was gold. Persian weapons and statues that were made from gems and precious metals located in the temple. Archaeologists have discovered that the stones used in the Parthenon were at one-time colored, this is indicated by small pain fragments on the friezes, stonework and statue.
Creative Process
The Parthenon was made by Iktinos and Kallikrates who constructed it using both Doric and Ionic influences. One representation of the Ionic influence used in the temple are the friezes, which in turn contain 92 metopes. There are fourteen on the east showing the battle between the gods and the giants and west showcases the battle of the Athenians and the Amazons and thirty-two on the north show the Sack of Troy and south illustrating the battle of the Lapiths against the centaurs. All of which are carved using a high relief. The most recognizable feature of the Parthenon is the frieze that runs along the exterior walls of the cella. The frieze is thought to show the procession from the Dipylon Gate to the Acropolis that took place annually. There are also pediments on both the east and west sides. The east pediment shows the born of Athena from the head of Zeus. There is also a sculpture of a reclining Dionysus, seen here:
." Parthenon: Gallery of Images
The west pediment shows the contest between Poseidon and Athena as they fought to become
the city’s patron.
Function: Why was this work of art made?
The Parthenon was created as both a treasury and a shrine. Some scholars also believe that it may have been used to house the young girls who were selected to serve the goddess. This is because of the name, which means maiden. The building also housed the Delian League and a couple other branches of government.
Why this work of art is important?
The Parthenon is important because it represent the cultural history of Ancient Greece. It is also important because of its structure and the pediments, friezes and metopes that remain because these tell a story not just of the religious beliefs of the Ancient Greek people but of the Greek people themselves. An example of this is the pediment that shows the Sacking of Troy. This is a depiction of a real event that occurred in the history of Greece and the imagery gives people in modern times a kind of reference for it in terms of fighting style, weapons, armor and clothing.
Works Cited
Boutsikas, Efrosyni, and Robert Hannah. "Aitia, Astronomy And The Timing Of The Arrhēphoria." The Annual of the British School at Athens Annu. Br. Sch. Athens 107 (2012): 233-45. Jstor. Web.
"Parthenon: Gallery of Images." Parthenon: Gallery of Images. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 June 2016.
Starr, Chester G. A History of the Ancient World. New York: Oxford UP, 1965. Print.
