Parthenon as a Paragon

In the time of Ancient Greece, the Parthenon was the epitome of all Greek temples, possessing desired traits from hut-like temples, the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, and other temples. All the column styles were established in 6th century BCE, but the styles were named afterwards (Spawforth 62). The chief column styles of Greek temple building were Doric and Ionic, and they were named in the 5th century BCE (Spawforth 62). The Corinthian column style was named in the 4th century BCE (Spawforth 62). Doric columns from the 4th century BCE are skinnier than the 6th century BCE columns (Spawforth 62). The “Aeolic” column, related to the Ionic column, was developed by the Aeolian Greeks (Spawforth 62). The Ionic and Aeolic columns has scrolls at the top, but only the Aeolic column’s scrolls spring outwards in a vertical direction, making it unique from the Ionic column (Spawforth 62). The Doric columns were created by the Dorians; the Ionic columns were created by the Ionians (Jenkins 15, 17). Each column consists of a column, base, shaft, capital, and entablature. The entablature consists of the architrave, frieze, and cornice (Summerson). The Romans used columns as ornaments, but the Greeks used the columns for structural stability (Summerson). The Parthenon was a Doric temple (Spawforth 64). The Parthenon was the centerpiece of acropolis renewal (Jenkins 76). The marble is from Mount Pendelikon (Jenkins 76). The Parthenon is a culmination of long tradition (Jenkins 28). The Parthenon is the Romantic Symbol of a cultural age; it is viewed with great fondness and nostalgia in the Western civilizations’ cultural memory (Nardo 12). The Parthenon is not at ground level; it stands on a three step stylobate (Corbett). In the 6th century, the ...

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...olis). The reconstruction of the façade of the Temple of Apollo at Thermon, due to the unpleasant front side of the temple, ended in 500BCE (Nardo 19). Stone replaced the Temple at Thermon’s wooden entablature and columns in the 600s to keep it from weakening further (Nardo 19). If this issue had left untended, it would have led to the place of worship’s eventual collapse. The Temple of Apollo at Thermon was one of the few temples of its time on Ancient Greece that was solid enough to uphold a tiled roof (Nardo 19). The tiled roof would not have been supportable, had the façade, entablature, and columns not been replaced. The Temple of Apollo at Thermon was a Doric temple (Guido).

The Temple of Zeus at Olympia contributed to the timelessness of the Parthenon, as it was the trial for it. The hut-like temples were the first known forms of temples. Make it better!