Opus 4

The oldest and largest building on the Akropolis is the Parthenon, temple of the goddess Athena, and is built using the oldest orders on the Akropolis: Doric. In addition to showcasing its power through its size, the structure and orders of the temple also clearly define its importance. The Doric columns are stout, maternal, and strongly distinguish the hearth of the Akropolis. The designers and skilled laborers that crafted the Parthenon used optical illusions such as varied column placement and obscured verticality to create the ideal temple form. (Roth, p. 235-241)



While much of Ancient Greek architecture blends with the natural environment, this temple sits on the highest point and stands out from the surrounding elements. “Rising 300 feet above the city, it put the gleaming white marble buildings in view of the residents of the entire polis…symbols of the victory of the Greeks…and perpetual evidence of their military spiritual superiority.” (Roth, p.232) The Parthenon was built to memorialize the goddess of war, the victories of Greek civilization and herald their victory to anyone near. In this way, the Parthenon firmly claims its position of grandeur within the hierarchy of buildings on the Akropolis.



The second building in the hierarchy of the Akropolis is the Erechtheion. This building was built to celebrate the Parthenon as well as be an important structure in its own right. It sits where King Triton’s trident hit the land while fighting the goddess Athena and so marks an important part of Greece’s history as well. It was built from 421-402 B.C. and thus is made of Ionic columns. Its Porch of the Maidens faces the Parthenon and provides a location for important men of the time to address the citizens of Greece. These Maidens gaze at Athena’s temple to reiterate the power and importance of the Akropolis and Parthenon itself. “If the Parthenon represents logos, clarity, and precision, the Erechtheion…seems to bring order out of a kind of casual disorder. The Erechtheion is the embodiment of an Ionian flexibility and elegant grace in contrast to the Doric Olympian austerity of the Parthenon.” (Roth, p. 235) Standing at the Erechtheion, the maiden’s gaze also reiterates the power of the speaker to his entourage below during the Pan-Hellenic Procession and the architecture surrounding the audience is a constant reminder of the importance of the event taking place.

The Propylaia makes up the porch of the Akropolis and is a source of energy for the community as a whole. The arrangement of buildings and columns moves people in, out and through space and onto the open area beyond, the court. The energy and excitement that builds within this space spills out onto the Akropolis and projects this emotion onto the entire site. The energy of the porch and court are almost humbled by the hearth, here the Parthenon. Also representing energy and magic, sitting atop the Propylaia is the temple to Athena Nike. This tiny perfect jewel of a temple houses the goddess of victory and keeps Athena informed of happenings and news of the empire. Placed here on the Propylaia, the temple of Athena Nike signifies her watching over those approaching the Akropolis and announcing their arrival to the goddess Athena.



The Akropolis of Ancient Greece is organized in respect to the porch, court and hearth first seen in Greek building and community organization. The porch and court are more energetic spaces while the hearth is the most important feature, the ideal location, and represents a more comfortable, humbling environment. (Roth, p.218-219)The orders used and size of the building itself reiterates its importance. Here the oldest, Doric columns of the Parthenon signify age, and possibly, wisdom. These columns are the prototypes for the remaining orders on the Akropolis, while the Parthenon itself is the archetype for Western architecture. (Blakemore, p.28-29) It is the ideal form. Great care was taken to visually create a perfect building, each section handcrafted and hand carved to fit precisely within the ideal arrangement. In my opinion, this building surpasses most in fitting all of the components of commodity, firmness and delight. Few hybrids to follow can so surely fit these standards over such a broad range of scrutiny.


In studio we are working on the renovation and upfit of the Revolution Mill in Greensboro with an urban middle school. I relate this to the Erechtheion of the Akropolis. Here we have an older, beautiful, historic building that exists in all its grandeur on the site while we work to fit within this space an important environment of its own right. We must celebrate the existing structure and its history while creating a space that will build an important history of its own – one that nurtures children’s learning and growth. We will use new technology and design ideals, like the ionic columns of the Erechtheion, and create a space that rivals the historic nature of the mill, while at the same time celebrating its beauty.