Propylaea
Propylaea or Propylaia,
means any entrance or gate to a tamale an Acropolis Rock in the ancient Greece
era. The ancient Greek built the Propylaea and designed them as guides to lead
visitors to destinations in the building in a certain way. The Acropolis meant
a lot to them and they designed it beautifully and they also were so precise
about the circulation and the movement of people. The Propylaea’s are usually
on top of a hill and there is a ramp leads all the way up to it. “The
Propylaia is a building of the Doric order with few Ionic columns supporting
the roof of the central wing. It was a complex structure to conceive and
assemble, and was clearly designed to make a lasting impression for the
approaching visitor.” Ancient-Greece.org
There are a lot of
propylaea’s in there and we can focus in the most important ones. for example,
The Propylaea of Athens that was built in c. 437 BCE as
part of Pericles great rebuilding programme for Athens. the building is separated
to three parts, the first is Pinakohtake, the second is the Propylaea, and the
third is The tamale of Athena Nike. There are 24 Doric and Ionic columns
located in three different parts of the building. The main 12 big
Doric columns are placed
horizontally in the front divided to six on the lower level, three on the right
of the entrance and other three on the left, and once you step up the stairs
inside the building there will be other six organized in the same way of the previous
ones. Beside the Doric columns, the Ionic columns are aliened vertically
in your way stepping inside the building three to the right and other three on
the left. as
Mark explained the measurement and circulation in his article that says “The
principal entrance to the acropolis had always been on the west side of the
escarpment since Mycenaean times and the Propylaea was built on the exact site
of the Old Propylon (a modest columned porch) built from 490 BCE and destroyed
by the Persians in 480 BCE. Constructed with white Pentellic marble, the new
Propylaea lies on an east-west axis and was designed to mirror the
architectural style and proportions of the nearby Parthenon. A steep bank 80 meters
long and 10 meters wide (with steps added under Claudius c. 52 CE) leads up to
the Propylaea which consists of a central porch in the style of a Doric temple
with a six Doric columns façade, a corridor with three Ionic columns either
side and another six Doric columns on the west side exit. Independent wings stand
on either side of the porch and it is the inner chambers of these annexes which
were the part of the original project left unfinished. One of these wings, the
Pinakotheke, measures 10.75 by 9 meters and was originally planned to be a
gallery for art and a place for banqueting. The Propylaea actually provided
five entrances, four for pedestrians and one larger central entrance for
wheeled traffic and the coffered roof interior had a design in gold stars and
palmettes on a blue background.” Mark Cartwright, Ancient History Encyclopedia
In this way, we can see the
details of the building that is still very inspiring and shows us how great was
the ancient Greece architecture. In addition, this design had a strong influence
at that time and we also can find a lot of similarities in most of the other
propylaea’s that were built in the time of ancient Greece. The materials are
heavy and solid as well as the circulation and organization that it
makes.
References:
http://ancient-greece.org/architecture/propylaia.html
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