DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.9177#0071
CHAPTER IV
the house and the tomb
We naturally and almost necessarily derive our notions of
Greek architecture from the Temple, for the temples are by
far the most important and interesting buildings which have
come down to us. In just the same way we derive our knowl-
edge of Gothic art from the cathedrals and churches which were
so abundant and so stately, and which have survived the contem-
porary secular buildings, as religious ideas, beliefs and in-
stitutions are always more durable than those which serve only
the secular needs of every day. But in the case of both an-
cient Greece and mediaeval Europe, religious architecture and
secular architecture really exhibited the same principles and
were developed on similar plans. We have still among us the
ruins of mediaeval castles. And some Greek buildings of secu-
lar character still survive in mutilated form. A notable ex-
ample may be found in the Propylaea of the Athenian Acropolis,
which served as a magnificent porch at the gate of the sacred
place of Athena, and as a picture-gallery, but was not closely
related to religion. Another building, perhaps of non-religious
character, which surprises us by its beauty, is the circular
tholos at Epidaurus. One of the so-called temples of Paestum,
having in front an uneven number of columns, and so deviating
from the fixed form of the temple, may not have been an abode
of the gods. These buildings, however, are so similar to temples
in construction and decoration that they do not require a
separate discussion.
More distinctive are the military works of the Greeks and
their theatres.
51
the house and the tomb
We naturally and almost necessarily derive our notions of
Greek architecture from the Temple, for the temples are by
far the most important and interesting buildings which have
come down to us. In just the same way we derive our knowl-
edge of Gothic art from the cathedrals and churches which were
so abundant and so stately, and which have survived the contem-
porary secular buildings, as religious ideas, beliefs and in-
stitutions are always more durable than those which serve only
the secular needs of every day. But in the case of both an-
cient Greece and mediaeval Europe, religious architecture and
secular architecture really exhibited the same principles and
were developed on similar plans. We have still among us the
ruins of mediaeval castles. And some Greek buildings of secu-
lar character still survive in mutilated form. A notable ex-
ample may be found in the Propylaea of the Athenian Acropolis,
which served as a magnificent porch at the gate of the sacred
place of Athena, and as a picture-gallery, but was not closely
related to religion. Another building, perhaps of non-religious
character, which surprises us by its beauty, is the circular
tholos at Epidaurus. One of the so-called temples of Paestum,
having in front an uneven number of columns, and so deviating
from the fixed form of the temple, may not have been an abode
of the gods. These buildings, however, are so similar to temples
in construction and decoration that they do not require a
separate discussion.
More distinctive are the military works of the Greeks and
their theatres.
51