An introduction to the important metrics and construction technologies behind the classical Greek Temple. The Greeks were a colonizing people, and built temples throughout the Mediterranean region wherever they settled. To do this, they required a set of standards, rules, and planning guides to ensure the integrity and proprietary of their temples, considered the domicile of the gods on Earth. These rules produced a synthesis of beauty, proportion, and practicality that characterizes classical Greek architecture, and which continues to inform culture and society today.

1. The Greek Temple
Motives, means & Methods
ARCH 644-600
William B. Lanigan
Fall, 2006

2. Prologue
The Greek temple expresses the spirit of an age
during which the foundation ideas and
aesthetic principles of western culture were first
articulated.
In a single iconic gesture, it incorporates
balance, order, and transcendent beauty, and
remains a compelling image today even as
man ventures forth beyond the earth.
Its formal vocabulary has been re-imaged
again and again by cultures throughout the
world to produce structures of enduring worth
and beauty.
It is more than deserving of our consideration.

3. Role and meaning
Antecedents: Fusion
> Greek temples are a fusion of diverse aesthetic and technological themes.
coming late in the pre-Christian era,, they recapitulate the accumulated
knowledge, craftsmanship and artistry of prior cultures.
Sacred space: temenos
> Like the Egyptians, the Greeks held certain spaces to be sacred, and set
them apart from the domiciled community. Such spaces were dedicated to a
god, and were associated with natural phenomena.
God-Gift: anathema
> The community, which relied on the natural world for its very existence,
sought the god’s intervention in its economic, civic and military affairs. The
temple symbolized the community’s association with the god, and was given to
the god as an offering.

4. Antecedents: fusion > Greek temples evolved from
many tributaries: Mycenae,
Egypt, the river cultures of
Mesopotamia and the island
cultures of the aegean.
> The temple’s plan and
massing recalls archaic
wood and brick building
types, for example: the
megaron.
> Monumental stone masonry
was borrowed from Egypt,
as did formal features, such
as the fluted,
upward-tapering Doric
column.
> Painted Terra Cotta panels
decorated Assyrian and
Hittite structures, and were
common wherever alluvial
clay deposits were plentiful.

5. Sacred space: Temenos> The Greek word for sacred
space was ‘temenos’,
which derives from the
Greek ‘temnw’ which
means “to cut off” or “set
apart”.
> The temenos was often sited
in the natural surround, and
was associated with divine
manifestations in the
physical world, such as a
sacred plant, animal, or
water source.
> A temenos included an open,
outdoor altar, as well as a
consecrated space, the
sanctuary, each dedicated
to a specific god (or, more
precisely, an aspect of a
specific god).

6. God-gift: anathema
> Stone masonry structures are
all that survive from the
classical period. Marble and
stone were costly materials,
and were reserved for
important public structures.
> Temples might be built by
an entire city, or by individual
citizens within the city, or
even by non-citizens.
Whoever built them, Temples
were not buildings - they
were consecrated
monuments, dedicated to a
god.
> Temples were thought of as
“god-gifts” from the polis – the
city – and were best
experienced publicly, from the
outside. For most Greeks, the
temple was a free-standing
object in space, not an
accessible interior space
where one went to pray.

7. Organization & design
base: Krepis
> The Greek temple’s podium is the krepis. It consists of three steps, the first two are the
Stereobate. The third, the stylobate, is the base of the columns and interior walls.
Structure: Stylos
> Greek temples are described by the number and disposition of their columns, each of
which is divided into three parts: the Base, shaft and capital. In all-masonry structures,
columns are closely-spaced, which imparts stylistic effects.
Superstructure: Entablature & Roof
> The entablature comprises the temple’s upper works, excluding the roof. It consists of
three divisions: the architrave, the frieze and the cornice. The roof assembly was supported
by the entablature and interior columns and walls.
Interior: Naos
> The temple’s interior space – the naos - contains up to four separate rooms: the
pronaos, the cella, the opisthodomos and the adyton. Access to these spaces, which were
not considered public spaces, was reserved to public officials and priests.

8. Base: Krepis > The krepis, or krepidoma, is the
podium on which a Greek
temple rests. It separates the
temple from the ground and
elevates the temple both
physically and symbolically.
> The krepis consists of a rubble
stone base, which is faced with
limestone or marble.
> The Krepis is formed into three
steps, the lower two of which
are the Stereobate. The third,
the stylobate, is the base for the
temple’s columns and walls.
> In some cases, The krepis steps
were too high to climb easily,
and so a ramp might be
provided at the entrance.

9. Structure: stylos> The temple’s primary structure
was provided by the columns
– the stylos – which carried
the entablature and roof. AS
stone masonry has little
tensile strength, the columns
were closely-spaced,
> The number of columns
was by convention, the
number of columns on the
front was doubled, plus one,
to determine the number of
columns along the side.
> quarry-cut masonry drums – the
spondylos - were stacked one
atop the other, and were
aligned using a wood block
and iron dowel - the
Empolion.
> column shafts were inclined
slightly inwards to reinforce
the visual effect of support.

10. Superstructure: Entablature> The entablature supported the
roof assembly, and rested
atop the columns. Its lower
register, the architrave, in
both form and function,
acted like a beam.
> The frieze consisted of
triglyphs and metopes.
Triglyph decoration was
canonized and never
changed – metope
decoration was local and
specific.
> The cornice’s eave protected
the frieze from rain, and
consisted of masonry –
geison blocks – and terra
cotta accessories.
> The geison blocks were cut to
receive and support the
roof’s timber framing.

11. Enclosure: Roof System> Temple roofs were assemblies
of terra cotta tile laid over
wood framing: a beam &
rafter system braced at the
eaves by the geison blocks;
and across the interior span
by wood posts.
• > Mechanical fasteners were
not used – stability depended
on the roof’s shallow pitch
and dead load.
> roof tiles had ‘feet’ that fit
into pre-cut slots in the
rafters. Two profiles were
used: a flat area tile and a
curved, or angled, flashing
tile.
> Terra cotta Décor – acroteria –
were attached with iron rods
to the geison blocks around
the perimeter of the roof.

12. Interior space: Naos
> The Naos comprised the
temple’s interior space. It
was divided into rooms, each
of which had a purpose.
> The first space facing visitors
upon entering was the
Pronaos, the porch or
anteroom to the cella.
> The cella housed the cult
statue of the god to whom
the temple was dedicated –it
was the temple’s essential
component.
> The other interior spaces of
the temple were the adyton
and the Episthodomos, both
of which were attended by
initiates, and which might
hold treasure, plunder or
official records.

13. Means and Methods
Timber Framing
> Traditional Greek building was based on wood and mud brick construction. As the
Greeks became a Maritime people, they acquired sophisticated timber framing skills and
tools, all of which were transferable to on-shore building projects.
Stone Masonry
> Monumental stone masonry first appeared in Greece during the 7th
century b.c. as a
result of contact with Egypt and the Mesopotamian kingdoms to the East. It reached its
zenith in the 6th
and 5th
centuries when Greek communities ranging from Asia Minor to the
coast of Spain erected monumental stone sanctuaries,
Iron Accessories
> Iron replaced mortar as a way to keep stone masonry in position and aligned. Though not
well-understood by the Greeks, iron’s tensile strength provided structural reinforcement to
masonry blocks spanning vertical supports.

14. Timber Framing
> Temple roofs were supported
with rafter & beam framing.
The roof pitch was shallow to
reduce lateral thrusts.
> There were lateral thrusts,
however, and perimeter
geison blocks were used to
resist them. In some cases,
the blocks were notched to
form a continuous horizontal
shelf angle; in others, there
were vertical slots.
> The interior spans were
collected by beams and
carried to vertical posts
placed atop the interior
columns and walls.
> Some temples from the
western colonies may have
used trusses, which would
have eliminated lateral
forces entirely.

15. Stone Masonry> Monumental stone masonry
was a highly developed art
in Egypt long before it was
introduced into Greece.
> Commerce gave rise to Greek
trading ports in Egypt, such
as the city of Naukratis, and
broad cross-cultural
sharing.
> The Greeks adopted Egyptian
quarrying, transport,
erection and finishing
methods, as well as stylistic
features, producing a
synthesis of Greek and
Egyptian themes.
> The Greeks observed that
beams respond differently
to stress at different points
on their cross-sections,
and carved away material
to reduce dead loads while
preserving strength.

16. Iron: Clamps, Ties and Dowels
> Iron was known to Minos and
Mycenae, but was not widely
used owing to the difficulty of
converting it to a useful
state.
> From 800-550 B.C., during the
period of Greek colonization,
iron was an important trade
good and its use expanded
accordingly.
> Iron devices were used to
align, adjust and stabilize
masonry blocks. They were
countersunk into stone
blocks and sealed with lead
to prevent corrosion and
staining.
> Iron devices may have first
been used aboard ship, and
then later to replace wood
accessories (which were
used by the Egyptians) in
monumental stone
construction.

17. Decoration and Detail
Dimensional System
> Greek temples were built using prescribed dimensional relationships, all based on a
single modulus: the width of the Triglyph. Every member of the building crew knew how their
part of the structure related to the Triglyph width, and to the whole.
Columns: Base, Shaft and Capital
> Temple columns were segmented, much like a vertebrae, after which the individual
column drums were named. Columns were decorated with mouldings, channels and
geometric solids, and were sized and positioned according to a multiple of the Triglyph
width.
Sculpture: Pediment, Frieze and Cult Statue
> Temple sculpture had both an artistic and expositional role – the figures were invariably
well-proportioned and graceful, and each played an essential part in the historical or
mythological narrative. This was especially true for the cult statue, which represented the
god to whom the temple was dedicated.
Terra Cotta Decoration
> Terra cotta was used by the Greeks to make household objects, some of which were richly
decorated. It was lightweight, non-structural and durable, and its use pre-dated stone
masonry in monumental Greek building construction by several centuries.

18. Dimensional System > Greek temples were complex
sets of systems and
sub-systems, with a limited
tolerance for dimensional
errors.
> Proto-literate societies relied
on oral and pictoral
communication when
executing large-scale
building projects.
> The Greeks developed a
system of metric
relationships that was
understood by every
member of the building
team,
> The basic dimensional unit
was the triglyph width, which
fixed the metope width, the
lower column drum diameter,
the inter-axial column
spacing, and virtually every
other dimension in the
temple.

19. Columns: Base
> The size of the lowest column
drum was set by the triglyph,
and the column narrowed as
it rose in height. The Column
profile was curved for
aesthetic effect – the
entasis.
> Base drums were
pre-finished, including flutes,
close to the ground to
prevent damage to the
krepis. The same was true at
the top to protect the
architrave.
> The pre-cut flutes gave the
masons reference points for
laying out the rest of the
column.
> The Base drums rested
directly on the stylobate,
which was a continuous
base for the temple as a
whole.

20. Columns: Shaft > Column diameters and
interaxial spacing were
based on the triglyph width,
which was the basic modulus
of the whole structure.
> Alignment of the Column drums
was achieved using an iron
rod and wood block – the
‘empolion’ - set in the center
of each column drum.
> Column fluting was always
in multiples of four, perhaps
an artifact from Egypt when
polygonal columns were
made from square sections –
20 and 24 were the most
common choices.
> Erecting and finishing a single
Doric column required a
five-man team working
seventy days.

21. Columns: Flutes
> Fluted columns appeared in Egypt
in the III Dynasty (ca. 2900 b.c.),
and were common in masonry
structures.
> fluting began at the quarry and
ended once the column drums were
erected on-site. The masons divided
the column surface into sections,
producing a faceted surface.
>In some cases, the Egyptians left
them as faceted polygonal columns.
More often, the facets were
hollowed out into concave sections,
after which they were polished and
finished.
> The Greeks adopted column
fluting as a decorative device in the
Doric Order, employing the same
procedure as the Egyptians.
Column Flutes

22. Columns: Capital
> The Doric capital, prefigured in
both archaic Greek and
Egyptian structures, served
two purposes: to carry the
entablature and to provide
decoration.
> It consisted of three parts:
the abacus, a flat rectangular
slab; the echinus, a thick,
convex moulding; and the
necking, a set of narrow
annular rings between the
capital and the shaft.
> The capital was cut from a
single masonry block and
mounted atop the uppermost
column drum.
> Stylistically, Doric capitals
ranged from very wide and
flat to narrow and compact.

23. Sculpture: Pediment
The temple pediment is formed
by the two pitched ends of a
gabled roof. it signifies the
temple entrance, and the
most prominent place for
expositional sculpture.
> the pedimental sculpture
usually depicted a mythic
narrative related to the god
to whom the temple was
dedicated.
> Pedimental sculpture was
heroic in stature, gesture
and content. the idealized
figures displayed attitudes of
stress and conflict.
> The pieces making up a
pedimental sculptural were
carved separately and
installed one-at-a-time as a
composite scene.

24. Sculpture: Frieze> The frieze consisted of two
alternating panels: the
Triglyph and Metope. these
elements set the column
spacing,
> Besides being the basic module
for the temple, the Triglyph
was decorated with four
vertical grooves cut nearly its
full height.
> The Metope, by contrast, might
be undecorated; or richly
embellished with a busy cast
of characters engaged in
mortal combat; or anything in
between.
> Triglyphs and Metopes, which
always told a single story,
might be made of terra cotta,
limestone or marble and were
erected using ropes, hoists
and pulleys.

25. Sculpture: Cult Statue > The most important sculpture
was the cult statue. It was
the physical manifestation of
the temple god on earth.
> The cult statue was the
intermediary between the
polis and the heavens, and
embodied the hopes,
aspirations and civic
conceits of the people.
> The cult statue could be
anything from a relic to a
heroically-sized figure of the
personified god. One of the
seven wonders of the
ancient world was the cult
statue of Zeus at Olympia.
> Cult statues were made of
noble materials: gold, ivory
and ebony, an assemblage
called chyselephantine.

26. Terra Cotta Decoration> Terra cotta, which is heat fired
clay brick, was one of the
oldest crafts of the Greeks. It
was common among all
established cultures
throughout the region, and
was used for a host of
purposes,
> Terra cotta was cheap, easy to
work and durable; and was a
both a household (amphora,
hydria) and utility (pipes,
drains and casings)
technology.
> By the 6th
century, terra cotta
was a canonical component
of the temple building
program. The Greeks used it
to make panels (triglyphs
and metopes), mouldings
(sima), sculpture (acroteria)
and roof tile.

27. Epilogue
The Greek temple is a synthesis of technology and
art – it collected together the legacy crafts of
the ancient world and extended them forward
to the threshold of modern usage, in the
process, creating a great and noble art.
The timber truss, hollow beam and iron
reinforcement were building technologies of an
architectural future, not the past; and they
facilitated the tectonic themes that continue to
inform architecture today.
Technology alone doesn’t explain the audacity
of the Greek temple, but it had a decisive
effect. While Technology may never be wholly
deterministic, it is always a primary factor in
the development of form.