Greek and Roman Architecture
This week’s reading and learning of classical architecture, continues. And so, does the ongoing comparison of two equally famous ancient ruins, the Parthenon in Greece, and the Pantheon in Rome. Each structure was built for a specific purpose, which I will discuss. I will also address similarities between the two structures, if any. Finally, I will address some of the obvious differences, aside from the obvious influence of the Parthenon, which was built ahead of the Pantheon.
The Parthenon was built long before the Pantheon. It was built in Greece in honor of the lovely goddess Athena, who used to adorn the structure, itself. But her sculpture was looted long before it could be removed for preservation. This happened after the fire that destroyed part of the Parthenon and when most of the temples were closed. Now, it’s just beautiful ruins that remind us of an epic period in time. Six hundred years later, the Pantheon was built in Rome. It too was built to honor “the Gods”, this time Roman, but when it was given to Pope Poniface IV it was converted into a church, and is still used as such today. …show more content…
This was the only similarity that I could find between the two structures, that had any relevance to the time it was built. As for differences, the design of each building, while similar, definitely varied, especially with the Pantheon’s dome. According to this week’s reading in Wikipedia, “the Pantheon’s dome is still the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome”. That, itself sets the Pantheon aside from the Parthenon; it also set a standard as that building is over two thousand years old and it is still standing. There are also differences in the Corinthian and Ionic columns, and materials of marble, limestone and granite, each different for each
This week’s reading and learning of classical architecture, continues. And so, does the ongoing comparison of two equally famous ancient ruins, the Parthenon in Greece, and the Pantheon in Rome. Each structure was built for a specific purpose, which I will discuss. I will also address similarities between the two structures, if any. Finally, I will address some of the obvious differences, aside from the obvious influence of the Parthenon, which was built ahead of the Pantheon.
The Parthenon was built long before the Pantheon. It was built in Greece in honor of the lovely goddess Athena, who used to adorn the structure, itself. But her sculpture was looted long before it could be removed for preservation. This happened after the fire that destroyed part of the Parthenon and when most of the temples were closed. Now, it’s just beautiful ruins that remind us of an epic period in time. Six hundred years later, the Pantheon was built in Rome. It too was built to honor “the Gods”, this time Roman, but when it was given to Pope Poniface IV it was converted into a church, and is still used as such today. …show more content…
This was the only similarity that I could find between the two structures, that had any relevance to the time it was built. As for differences, the design of each building, while similar, definitely varied, especially with the Pantheon’s dome. According to this week’s reading in Wikipedia, “the Pantheon’s dome is still the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome”. That, itself sets the Pantheon aside from the Parthenon; it also set a standard as that building is over two thousand years old and it is still standing. There are also differences in the Corinthian and Ionic columns, and materials of marble, limestone and granite, each different for each