There are many meanings and definitions to the word foundation. However let us focus on two definitions found on dictionary.com, “the basis or groundwork of anything” and “the act of founding, setting up, establishing, etc.” In the case of foundations, the time periods covered were Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The reason this section covers these eras are because of its significance as founders, or ancestors, to the rest of architecture. It starts off in Egypt, then on to Greece who inherits certain styles and details from them, and lastly to Rome who does the same with Greece. Throughout these times, certain themes surface and design movements occur.
Although Mesopotamia and Sumeria were the first settlements, their main influence to architecture deals with stacking which the Egyptians took for themselves. Life in Egypt of continual certainty was vastly different from Mesopotamia and Sumeria’s continual uncertainty, who were constantly at war with invaders. The Egyptians had a more peaceful life because of their location which did not allow easy accessibility to outside intrusion. The Nile River had an endless cycle which allowed for continuous farming; and this continuous farming led the Egyptians to belief in an afterlife. Egyptians were influenced by Mesopotamia’s and Sumeria’s architectural stacking and created mastabas, which were burial sites for priests made out of mud-brick or stone. The building of mastabas led to the building of pyramids, which were tombs for pharaohs and the royal family. The most commonly known pyramids are the Pyramids of Giza. However, pyramids were not only inspired by mastabas but they became structures with their own implications. Its biggest implication dealt with competition in a masculine way by out doing each other in grandeur. Most pharaohs were men but there were occasionally women who ruled Egyptian, sparingly. Out of the few female pharaohs, Queen Hatschepsut was an example of a pharaoh who did not compete with the other male pharaohs by building a pyramid. Instead, she built a temple that closely emulated mastabas. Her temple was only two stories high, closer to the ground than a pyramid, and had many openings that allowed her people to feel welcomed when they came to worship – that might have been partially due to her peaceful nature and joining of Upper and Lower Egypt during her reign. Another place for worship similar in significance as a precedent for Ancient Greece is the Hypostyle Hall at the Temple of Karnak. The Hypostyle Hall was part of the Karnak temple that contains columns and hieroglyphics, which influenced Greek architecture greatly.
Similar to Mesopotamia and Sumeria and unlike Ancient Egypt, Greece was not as secluded from the rest of the ancient world. Since Greece was mostly surrounded by water and full of mountainous terrain, it was more susceptible to invaders. That vulnerability influenced some of its architecture which included walled cities especially those along the coast. Greece had easy access to the water, which allowed them to sail frequently around the Mediterranean Sea. While visiting new places, such as Egypt, these discoveries influenced the development of Greek culture. The developments encouraged individuality which led a more philosophical and logic state of mind. As previously mentioned, the most influential details the Greeks incorporated into their architecture from the Egyptians were columns and hieroglyphics. In the Egyptian’s case, their columns were inspired by plant materials – for example the lotus bud, stem, flower, and papyrus blossom – and had hieroglyphics carved into them. The Greeks took the idea of columns and put their own touch to them which later introduced three of the ‘Five Orders’ – Tuscan, Doric, and Ionic. Egyptian hieroglyphics became friezes and carved statues in the Greek world inspired by plants and patterns. The encouragement of individual development led to concepts of idealism and perfection which were attempted in its architecture but never truly achieved. The best example of this endeavor is the Parthenon at the Acropolis in Athens. It was meant to be the most ideal building; however it has imperfections, like different sized columns to give an optical illusion of proportion. These architectural details continue to pass along into a new era, Ancient Rome.
The next most influential era that came after Greece was Rome. Greece influenced Rome’s architecture greatly by becoming its revival, as well as a melting pot for different cultures. Unlike Greek civilization with its city-states, Roman culture spread much farther, becoming a collective and leading into an empire. Based on this Greek influence, Rome assimilated its architecture and then adapted to their ideas and concepts. In Ancient Greece, columns were fundamental parts of a building – they had a structural function – but in Rome they became a decorative element to a building, which introduced the Corinthian Order. The friezes and statues from Greece remained during Roman times but frescoes and trompe l’oeil decorations were also added to its decorative element. However, Rome’s architectural forms where not constant throughout the entire empire because of its extensive borders. Instead the farther away from the center of Rome – Athens – you were, the more the original forms were altered to accommodate the smaller cultures on the outskirts of the empire. These alterations influenced other parts of the world and the cycle continued.
Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome are considered foundations for elements in architecture. Ancient Egypt can be considered the prototype, the beginning model that the Greeks used for their own building. While the Greeks can be seen as the archetypes, an improved model which the Romans continued to improve upon. And Rome, as the hybrid of both with Corinthian columns that are closely related to Egyptian columns in appearance with lotus capitals; and frescoes inspired from Greek friezes. The Colosseum, in Rome, is a great example of Roman architecture as a hybrid. It has Doric columns on the lower floor, followed by Ionic and Corinthian columns, and ending with Corinthian pilasters – as shown in the image below.
Although Mesopotamia and Sumeria were the first settlements, their main influence to architecture deals with stacking which the Egyptians took for themselves. Life in Egypt of continual certainty was vastly different from Mesopotamia and Sumeria’s continual uncertainty, who were constantly at war with invaders. The Egyptians had a more peaceful life because of their location which did not allow easy accessibility to outside intrusion. The Nile River had an endless cycle which allowed for continuous farming; and this continuous farming led the Egyptians to belief in an afterlife. Egyptians were influenced by Mesopotamia’s and Sumeria’s architectural stacking and created mastabas, which were burial sites for priests made out of mud-brick or stone. The building of mastabas led to the building of pyramids, which were tombs for pharaohs and the royal family. The most commonly known pyramids are the Pyramids of Giza. However, pyramids were not only inspired by mastabas but they became structures with their own implications. Its biggest implication dealt with competition in a masculine way by out doing each other in grandeur. Most pharaohs were men but there were occasionally women who ruled Egyptian, sparingly. Out of the few female pharaohs, Queen Hatschepsut was an example of a pharaoh who did not compete with the other male pharaohs by building a pyramid. Instead, she built a temple that closely emulated mastabas. Her temple was only two stories high, closer to the ground than a pyramid, and had many openings that allowed her people to feel welcomed when they came to worship – that might have been partially due to her peaceful nature and joining of Upper and Lower Egypt during her reign. Another place for worship similar in significance as a precedent for Ancient Greece is the Hypostyle Hall at the Temple of Karnak. The Hypostyle Hall was part of the Karnak temple that contains columns and hieroglyphics, which influenced Greek architecture greatly.
Similar to Mesopotamia and Sumeria and unlike Ancient Egypt, Greece was not as secluded from the rest of the ancient world. Since Greece was mostly surrounded by water and full of mountainous terrain, it was more susceptible to invaders. That vulnerability influenced some of its architecture which included walled cities especially those along the coast. Greece had easy access to the water, which allowed them to sail frequently around the Mediterranean Sea. While visiting new places, such as Egypt, these discoveries influenced the development of Greek culture. The developments encouraged individuality which led a more philosophical and logic state of mind. As previously mentioned, the most influential details the Greeks incorporated into their architecture from the Egyptians were columns and hieroglyphics. In the Egyptian’s case, their columns were inspired by plant materials – for example the lotus bud, stem, flower, and papyrus blossom – and had hieroglyphics carved into them. The Greeks took the idea of columns and put their own touch to them which later introduced three of the ‘Five Orders’ – Tuscan, Doric, and Ionic. Egyptian hieroglyphics became friezes and carved statues in the Greek world inspired by plants and patterns. The encouragement of individual development led to concepts of idealism and perfection which were attempted in its architecture but never truly achieved. The best example of this endeavor is the Parthenon at the Acropolis in Athens. It was meant to be the most ideal building; however it has imperfections, like different sized columns to give an optical illusion of proportion. These architectural details continue to pass along into a new era, Ancient Rome.
The next most influential era that came after Greece was Rome. Greece influenced Rome’s architecture greatly by becoming its revival, as well as a melting pot for different cultures. Unlike Greek civilization with its city-states, Roman culture spread much farther, becoming a collective and leading into an empire. Based on this Greek influence, Rome assimilated its architecture and then adapted to their ideas and concepts. In Ancient Greece, columns were fundamental parts of a building – they had a structural function – but in Rome they became a decorative element to a building, which introduced the Corinthian Order. The friezes and statues from Greece remained during Roman times but frescoes and trompe l’oeil decorations were also added to its decorative element. However, Rome’s architectural forms where not constant throughout the entire empire because of its extensive borders. Instead the farther away from the center of Rome – Athens – you were, the more the original forms were altered to accommodate the smaller cultures on the outskirts of the empire. These alterations influenced other parts of the world and the cycle continued.
Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome are considered foundations for elements in architecture. Ancient Egypt can be considered the prototype, the beginning model that the Greeks used for their own building. While the Greeks can be seen as the archetypes, an improved model which the Romans continued to improve upon. And Rome, as the hybrid of both with Corinthian columns that are closely related to Egyptian columns in appearance with lotus capitals; and frescoes inspired from Greek friezes. The Colosseum, in Rome, is a great example of Roman architecture as a hybrid. It has Doric columns on the lower floor, followed by Ionic and Corinthian columns, and ending with Corinthian pilasters – as shown in the image below.
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| Colosseum http://www.citypictures.net/r-europe-148-italy-222-rome-220-the-colosseum-rome-italy-2569.htm |
Hey Linda,
ReplyDeleteI love how detailed and informative your point essay is. It shows that you definitely did your research and put time into writing out all that information. Good job with including cultural context.
The image is great, as well as the fact that you explained why you chose it.
And your word count is amazing - 986 words!
Overall, great work. :)
good blog post. your ideas are articulated well and you have a good grasp of the ways these civilizations serve as foundations for each other, as well as future societies. i like the fact that you pointed out specific examples of how elements for previous societies show up in other buildings. The image goes with your ideas, so good job!
ReplyDeleteYour essay is overall well-written. You obviously have a really good grasp on what was covered in the foundations unit. The image you included is beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you approached to foundation unit especially having a definition at beginning. Also,i enjoyed the way that you brought history of three different locations and explained each concepts. I could know that i did not know before like detail. your essay is really interesting and made me want to keep reading. Nice work!
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