The document discusses Greek city planning and architectural principles and elements. Some key points: - Greek cities had three main sections - the acropolis (sacred area atop hills), agora (gathering place), and town (residential area). Newer cities followed a grid street plan. - Architecture was ordered and proportioned using classical columns and entablatures. Temples, theaters, and stoas were common building types. - Athens' Acropolis contained the Parthenon and other temples, while the Agora was the civic center below. Buildings were carefully sited and designed to be visually appreciated.

1. Greek City Planning and
Design

2. Greek City Planning and Design
Planning and Design Principles
• The ancient Greek civilization had established
principles for planning and designing cities
• City form were of two types
• Old cities such as Athens had irregular street
plans reflecting their gradual organic
development
• New cities, especially colonial cities established
during the Hellenistic period, had a grid-iron
street plan
• Certain things were common among cities

3. Greek City Planning and Design
Planning and Design Principles
• Towns had fixed boundaries and some were
protected by fortifications
• Much of the town was devoted to public use
• The Greek City was usually divided into three
parts; the acropolis, the agora and the town.
• Site planning and design was centered on the
appreciation of buildings from the outside.
• The location of buildings was therefore such that
it could command a good view to it.

4. Greek City Planning and Design
The Acropolis
city are located
sacred
ground
and theaters were generally regarded as part of
ground to the hills of the Acropolis
• The Acropolis was the city of temples
• It is the location where all the major temples of a
• It was built to glorify the gods
• Greeks considered high places to be important &
• The Acropolis were usually located on the highest
• Other public buildings such as gymnasia,
stadia, religious rituals
• They are normally found attached on lower

5. Greek City Planning and Design
The Agora
• The Agora was the most important gathering place in a
Greek city
• It started as an open area where the council of the
city met to take decisions
• With time buildings were constructed to define and
enclose the space
• It also transformed into a place for combined social,
commercial and political activities
• It emerged as the heart of Greek intellectual life and
discourse.
• It was usually located on a flat ground for ease of
communication
• It was placed to be easily accessible from all directions
• In many cities, it is also located close to the Acropolis

6. Greek City Planning and Design
The Town
• The town was where the people lived
• This was the domain of women, who did
not have any public role
• Early Greek towns had an irregular
street pattern, resulting from its organic
growth
• Later Hellenistic towns such as Prienne
had a formal rectilinear pattern
• The town was made up of only
residential houses

7. Greek City Planning and Design
The Town
• Houses were usually constructed of mud
bricks
• Houses were of the courtyard type, with
rooms arranged around a courtyard
• Houses vary according to standing in the
society
• Houses of poor people were very simple
compared to the house of the rich, which
had more rooms and better finishing

8. Greek Architecture in Athens
Architecture, Planning & Design
• Athens is a very good example of a typical
ancient Greek city
• The city has the three components of acropolis,
agora and town found in a Greek city
• The Acropolis and Agora in Athens also have
some of the best examples of ancient Greek
architecture
• We will examine the Acropolis and Agora in
Athens to understand Greek architecture,
planning and city design.

9. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Acropolis in Athens
• The acropolis in Athens was a
religious precinct located on
one of the hills of the city.
• The Earliest versions of the
Buildings in the Acropolis
existed until 480 BC
• In 480 BC, the Persians under
Xerxes burnt Athens and the
Acropolis to the ground
• Not long after that the Greeks
defeated the Persians

10. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Acropolis in Athens
rebuilt in about 450 BC
was begun by Pericles, the wise
BC to 429 BC
and architects to build a new city
orders and ionic orders in a
buildings; the Propylea, the
and the temple of Nike.
• The Acropolis in Athens was
• The rebuilding of the Acropolis
statesman who ruled from 460
• Pericles commissioned artist
of temples to glorify the gods
• The acropolis combined Doric
perfect composition in four
Parthenon, the Erechtheumn,

11. Greek Architecture in Athens
Acropolis Athens
emphasis on visualization in
seen at the Acropolis at
Acropolis are designed to be
Acropolis are place at an
seen on two sides
from two sides, it is
• The best example of Greek
design and site planning is
Athens
• All the buildings on the
seen than use
• All the temples on the
angle that enables them to be
• If a building cannot see be
completely hidden

12. Greek Architecture in Athens
Acropolis Athens
• From the entry at the
Propylae, a visitor has a
view of all the prominent
buildings in the Acropolis
• Buildings are also position
at a distance that ensures
the appreciation of their
details
• The central axis of view
from the propylae is left
free of building for a view
into the country side

13. ACROPOLIS, ATHENS GREECE
GREECE

14. ACROPOLIS, ATHENS GREECE
GREECE

15. Greek Architecture in Athens
Propylae
• The propylae is the entrance to the
Acropolis
• It was built around 437 B.C by
Mnesicles
• The image highlights what is
currently left of the propylae
• To reach the acropolis, people
had
to enter through the center section
of the propylae
• The two wings on either side
were never finished
• The columns on the outside of
the propylae were Doric
• The columns in the interior were
however Ionic

16. Greek Architecture
Propylae
in Athens
proportions of the Doric and Ionic
interior, the height of the roof would
used the Ionic column which is much
picture gallery with a place for people to
propylae were usually left wide open
wooden doors of the propylae were
the acropolis
• Explanation for this is found in the
columns
• If the Doric order were used in the
make its diameter very large
• To overcome this difficult, the designers
slender than the Doric column
• Inside the propylae was a library and
read and rest
• In times of peace, the gates of the
• When an enemy threatened, the
closed and there was no other access to

17. PROPYLAEA

18. Greek Architecture in
The Parthenon
Athens
most prominent building
Acropolis
Ictinus and Callicrates in
most perfect Doric
graceful than previous
• The Parthenon was the
on the Athenian
• It was designed by
447 BC
• The Parthenon is the
temple ever built.
• It was lighter and more
temples

19. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Parthenon
• It also embodies the
perfection of the Greek
system of proportioning
• The proportions of the
Parthenon are based on
the proportions of a
man, which is seven to
one
• The ideal human body
was seven heads tall

20. Greek Architecture in
The Parthenon
Athens
temple with 8 columns in front
the best example of the
in plan; the treasury, which is
naos or inner sanctuary
Athena, 11 meters tall carved
noas or inner sanctuary of the
• The Parthenon is an octastyle
and 17 columns by its side
• In the Parthenon we also find
application of entasis
• The Parthenon had two rooms
most often empty and the
• An ivory gold statue of
by Phidas once stood in the
Parthenon

21. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Parthenon
• The statue reached the wooden
roof of the temple
• Parts of the inside and outside
of the Parthenon were once
painted
• The inside of the temple was
often not used
• Processions and ceremonies
were held outside
• The temple’s alter was placed
on the Eastern side
• During the Christian period, the
Parthenon was used as a
church

22. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Parthenon
• Later the Turks converted it
into a Mosque
• In 1687, the Turks used it to
store ammunition and when
they were attacked by the
Venetians, it exploded
• The images shows what
remains of it
• In 1801 An English man
gathered the broken pieces
and shipped them to the
British museum in England

23. PARTHENON, ACROPOLIS
GREECE

24. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Erectheum
• The erechtheum is located at
the point of a mythical fight
between Poseidon and
Athena for the possession of
Athens
• Athena is believed to have
won the fight and so Athens
was named after her
• The erechtheum was named
after Erechtheus, the
legendary king of Athens,
whose mother was the
goddess of the earth and
whose father was the fire god

25. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Erectheum
• He was brought up by
Athena and is believed
to have judged the fight
between Poseidon and
Athena
• The shape of the
erechtheum is not a
perfect rectangular and
it does not have a
colonnade surrounding
it

26. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Erectheum
• Two porches spring out from the
core rectangle of the temple at
different levels
• A small porch faces the Parthenon
• This has columns in the shape of a
woman called caryatid
• The caryatids are linked to a
historical story
• The caryatids are a people who lived
in Asia minor
• They were believed to have fought
with the Persians against the
Greeks
• When the Greeks won, they
destroyed the cities of the caryatids

27. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Erectheum
brought back the women as
the Caryatid slave women in
the roof the Erechtheum for all
from the top of the head of the
side has ionic columns
characteristics of the Ionic
• They killed all the men and
slaves
• For revenge the Greeks copied
stone and forced them to carry
time
• The weight of the roof is carried
caryatid through their leg
• A larger porch on the northern
• The ionic columns have all the
order

28. THE ERECTHEION

29. THE ERECTHEION

30. CARYATID
GREECE

31. Greek Architecture in Athens
Temple of Nike
is the Temple of Athena
Athena
BC and was designed by
Peloponnesian wars
worshipped Athena Nike
• Just beside the propylae
Nike, meaning victorious
• It was built around 420
Callicrates during the
• The Athenians
in the hope of victory

32. Greek Architecture in Athens
Temple of Nike
no longer exist
entrance of four ionic
same from the front
• This is an ionic temple
• It had a pediment that
• The temple has an
columns on two sides
• The temple looks
the
and back

33. Greek Architecture in Athens
The Agora
• The Agora in Athens was a
space used for social,
commercial and political
activities
• The Agora at Athens was
located at the base of the
hill of the Acropolis
• Civic and religious buildings
were progressively erected
around the perimeter of the
Agora space

34. Greek Architecture
The Agora
in Athens
• Of all the buildings, the
stoa was the most
important
• Stoas were useful
buildings in the context of
the Agora
• They provided shelter and
served for many other
purposes
• They also served to
embellish the boundary of
the Agora

35. AGORA
GREECE

36. Greek Architecture in
Introduction
Athens
contains other
for the meeting of the
circular building where
council when in office
the
buildings for the meeting
• The Agora at Athens
administrative buildings
• There was the bouleterion
council
• There was also a tholos, a
standing committee of the
dined at state expense
• There were also two
of the jury court.

37. Greek Architecture in
Introduction
Athens
remains of Alexander was
was free of building
reconstruction of how
the Agora
social
of the Agora carrying out all
Acropolis prominent in the
hopefully looking after them
• And a shrine where the
buried
• The central area of the Agora
• This image shows a
life may have taken place in
• People would be in the space
sorts of activities with the
background and the gods

38. BOULEUTERION
GREECE
STADIUM

39. Architectural Characteristics

40. Buildings & Other Arch
Elements

41. Buildings & Other Arch. Elements
Building Types
the order and their principal building type is the temple
theater, council chamber, stoa, etc
rational methods of expressing beauty
how the whole building looks
capital, and an entablature
column
cornice
• The major architectural element of the Greek civilization is
• Greek buildings also feature civic buildings such as
• Greeks invented the classical orders of architecture
• Their invention of the orders was a result of the search for
• The orders embody a system of proportion that determines
• An order consist of a column shaft with its base and
• All its dimensions were derived from the diameter of the
• The entablature is further divided into architrave, frieze and

42. Buildings & Other Arch. Elements
Building Types
• Three orders of architecture were invented by Greeks;
Doric, Ionic and Corinthian
• Doric was the earliest and has a square capital and the
stoutest proportion, resembling the power of a man
• Ionic was taller in its proportion, has a volute capital and
resembles the proportion of a maiden
• Corinthian has the same characteristics with the Ionic
except that its capital is decorated with the Acanthus leaf
• Temples were the principal building types of the Greeks
• Temples were considered as house of the Gods and
efforts to beautify them pushed architectural development

43. Buildings & Other Arch.
Building Types
Elements
appreciated rather than used
temple forms based on them
there was also a focus on civic construction
their democratic institutions and also satisfy
among the civic buildings that became popular
• Temples were design to be seen and
• The evolution of the orders led to standard
• Towards the later part of the Greek civilization,
• The Greeks needed civic buildings to support
their social and recreational needs
• Council chambers, theaters, Stoas, were
with the city states

44. Materials, Const. & Tech.

45. Materials, Construction & Tech.
Materials
• Examination of Greek architecture points to three common
materials of construction
• These are Stone, timber and clay
• Stone was the most common construction material for
buildings
• Greece had an abundant supply of stone, particularly
marble
• Stone was used for all types of temple and civic
construction
• It was used for all type of building elements
• The characteristic grey color of the stone of the area is
also what gives most ancient Greek buildings their
characteristics color

46. Materials, Construction
Materials
& Tech.
limited length
buildings was restricted and
beyond a certain width
only very important
mostly in housing construction
construction
• Timber was used mainly for roofing
• It was a very scarce commodity and it also had
• This limited its use
• The limitation in length meant that the width of
buildings such as the Parthenon could go
• We did not examine Houses but clay was used
• Clay was made into sun dried blocks for use in

47. Materials, Construction & Tech.
Construction and Technology
Greece was stone
trabeated or column and beam construction
civic buildings
stones in semi-prepared state from quarries,
in position on the building
sized to the right proportion
• The principal Building Material of ancient
• The principal construction system was
• Combined, the two were used for temples and
• Construction technology involves ordering
• On site, they were roughly shaped and placed
• Elements placed in position would be been

48. Materials, Construction & Tech.
Construction and Technology
held in position by their weight
the final form and treatment of the building
buildings of a particular order
mastery of construction
and capital decoration on columns
decorated with appropriate relief carving
• Building blocks were not bonded, but are rather
• Then the rough stones were finished to achieve
• Finishing enables the builders to create
• It is in finishing that the Greeks showed their
• Finishing work involved creating the fluting, base
• The Frieze and cornices of buildings were also

49. Materials, Construction & Tech.
Construction and Technology
which in temples depict stories of the gods
on strategic places on the outside of the temple
sculpture and decoration
of beauty into tangible buildings
contributions in the aspect of building
• Pediments were also finished with relief carvings,
• Full statues of gods were also carved and
placed and also as the major element in the interior
• The Greeks essentially formalized architectural
• They were able to effectively translate their ideas
• Ancient Greeks did not make significant
technologies

53. Principles of Arch.
Organization

54. Principles of Arch. Organization
Principles
• It is possible to understand forces and
principles shaping Greek architecture by
examining the following issues;
– The role of religion in architectural development
– Ideas about architectural aesthetics
– Principles of architectural organization
– Principles of city planning and urban design

55. Principles of Arch. Organization
The Role of Religion in Arch. Dev.
development of Greek architecture
the right form of the temple
beautiful
resulted in the establishment of Greek ideals of
mathematical proportions
• Religion played a significant role in the
• Architecture started in the service of religion
• The important question for Greek architects was
• Temples were the house of the Gods
• The duty of the architect was to make them
• The search for how to make the temple
beautiful beauty
• Greek ideals of beauty was rooted in

56. Principles of Arch. Organization
Ideas about Architectural Aesthetics
• The Greeks believed that mathematical
proportion is at the root of beauty
• They also believed that the human body has the
best of proportions
• Greeks also valued harmony, balance and
symmetry in design
• Greeks developed principles based on their
believes about aesthetics
• These principles were refined over time as they
are applied in building
• With time they developed into a standard that is
widely applied

57. Principles of Arch. Organization
Ideas about Architectural Aesthetics
• Builders exerted great effort in ensuring
that buildings were created to meet the
aesthetic ideals of the society
• The Greeks in essence became the first
society to have well established ideas
about architectural aesthetics with
principles for their translation into physical
design

58. Principles of Arch. Organization
Principles of Organization
• The Greek ideals of mathematical
proportion was applied in architecture
through the use of the orders
• The orders provide a means to codify
mathematical proportioning, by linking all
the elements of the building with the
diameter of the column
• The orders were also viewed as
anthropomorphic, representing the human
body

59. Principles of Arch. Organization
Principles of Organization
• The Doric represents a man and the Ionic
and Corinthian represent a woman
• The use of the orders also provided a
means for the Greeks to design buildings
to meet their ideals of harmony, balance
and symmetry
• The use of optical correction, entasis, is a
pointer to the desire of the Greeks to
achieve their ideals of beauty in
architecture

60. Principles of Arch. Organization
Principles of City Planning & Design
• Ancient Greeks not only develop ideals of architectural
aesthetics, but they also developed principles for the
design and planning of cities as location for architecture
• The ancient Greek city states developed a standard plan
of the city
• The city consisted of three defined elements; the town,
acropolis and Agora
• Principles were developed for organizing each element of
the city based on activities and its symbolism
• The town was a place to retire for the day
• It was composed of simple courtyard houses separated by
streets
• It could either be organic or grid-iron

61. Principles of Arch. Organization
Principles of City Planning & Design
beauty were placed to be seen rather than used
arranged in open space
and political activities
to contain space for activities
loosely define the space
porticoes along the side of the court with occasional
• The Acropolis was the city of the gods
• This is where buildings reflecting the highest ideals of
• The principle of its design is that of isolated objects
• The objects are arranged to be seen in three-dimension
• The Agora was a mundane place for social, commercial
• The principle of its design centers on creating boundaries
• In practice, stoas and other civic buildings are used to
• These are usually treated with continuous colonnades
or
penetrations by footpaths