A Brief Comparison of Greek and Roman Architecture

The ancient Greek world was one of the most dynamic, innovative, and progressive periods of art in Western civilization. The Greeks were a people who fought for naturalism and perfection in their art. In his buildings, the exterior structure and aesthetics were the main concern. The Greeks considered beauty to be a distinguishing feature of the gods and their pursuit of beauty was almost a religious exercise. The job of the ancient Greek architect was to make a beautiful temple for the god. The development of Greek temple design also gave rise to the three orders of columns; Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian, which were used extensively in Greek buildings and have greatly influenced other cultures.

The Romans were the first builders in Europe, and probably the first in the world, to recognize the advantages of the arch, the vault, and the dome. The structures they left behind are a reminder of Roman engineering genius. They invented concrete and loved building arches and monuments for themselves. They also loved to be entertained. The Romans enjoyed everything from chariot races to gladiatorial contests, musicals and ballet. Three of the most important buildings designed for mass entertainment were the theater, the amphitheater, and the circus.

The Hepaisteion, Athens

The primary function of a Greek temple was to house the god for whom it was built. That is why the temples were decorated on the outside, nobody entered. No part of a Greek temple was symbolic or meant anything other than what it was, a temple to a god, with a protected colonnade for worshippers. Greek architects did not strive for individuality, the ancient Greek builder could erect a standard temple with a brief verbal description.

The early Roman temples differed from the Greek ones both internally and in their relationship to their surroundings. Often as many as three gods were housed together, while their rooms were cramped, the temple as a whole tended to be loftier and grander than Greek temples.

The Hepaisteion is a typical peripteral style temple. It has a massive appearance with simple Doric capitals and thick, heavy columns made of stone drums built around it. Their mass and volume shapes are simple rectangles, cylinders, and cones with a triangular roof. The temple stands alone, resting on a low base, accessible from all sides by three steps. The temple site was almost as important as the temple itself. Unlike the Greeks, the Roman temples had a focus and most only had a front entrance.

The Hepaisteion is basically a room called a cella with a porch at the front and back, which is enclosed within a colonnade that supports the roof, which in turn protects the cella from rain and sun. Many of the early Roman pagan temples are similar to the Hepaisteion, but with the difference that the cella is pushed to one end of the room and the decoration inside the temple.

Stone was the main building material used in the construction of Greek temples. Wood was used on the ceiling and roof. Terracotta roof tiles were also used. Anything that was marble was cut into large blocks and held together with clamps and dowels. Paint was used to highlight the moldings to strengthen the contrasting elements of the frieze.

Theater of Marcellus, Rome

The Greeks may have invented drama, but the Romans revolutionized theater design. They changed the Greek theater, a structure usually built into the side of a hill, with its circular orchestra and free-standing stage, into a free-standing structure linking the auditorium and the stage. The back of the stage was as high as the auditorium so that the audience could not see the outside as in a Greek theater. Many Roman theaters, like Roman amphitheaters, had a velarium, or canopy, that was rigged to shade the audience from the sun. Roman theaters were regularly built on concrete vaults that supported the auditorium and allowed easy access to seating, as crowd control was a major concern of the Roman builder.

The Theater of Marcellus in Rome was first commissioned by Julius Caesar and completed during the reign of his great-nephew and adopted son Augustus. The façade was made of travertine and had forty-one bays with a half column on both sides of each bay. This style was widely copied after the construction of the theater. Similarities can be seen in the Colosseum, which was built much later. Like many Roman structures, the Theater of Marcellus was built with concrete and baked bricks 3.5 to 4.5 centimeters thick. The bricks were very porous to absorb the mortar and give better adhesion. The half-circle shaped structure that was a standard design for Roman theaters. The back of the stage area or the scaena frons was decorated with a continuous row of columns three levels high running the width of the stage. The scaena frons was another Roman innovation first used in the 4th century BC. C. but did not reach its ideal until the second century AD.

In Roman theaters, the orchestra was part of the audience. It was often installed with mobile chairs for the VIPs. The Greeks used the orchestra as a stage area.

Resume

There are many differences between Greek and Roman architecture. The Greeks built many structures on top of the hills, the Romans transformed the hills into architectural structures. The early Greeks used the post and lintel system, while the Romans used the arch, vault, and dome extensively. Concrete was an important building material for the Romans, the Greeks were always trying to find better building materials and used huge stones held together with clamps and dowels.

In theater design, both the Greeks and Romans preferred to use hillsides, but due to large cities, the Romans were forced to build their theaters on level ground. This practice brought with it the revolutionary design of an independent theater structure.

The Greeks took their religion seriously and built their temples for the gods. The Romans took the view, took it inside the temple and declared that what happened inside was very important, so the temple had to look good inside too.