At the time of its construction, the Parthenon was the largest building ever to have been erected in
mainland Greece. Its importance, however, lies not in its size but in the sophistication of its design and in
the refinement of its decoration. Like many Greek temples of the Archaic and Classical periods, the
Parthenon consists of a rectangular inner building, usually referred to by the Latin word cella, surrounded
by columns (figure 48). The plan of the building is based on simple geometric shapes and continues a
two-century tradition of temples built to a similar plan. The architects of the Parthenon had learned from
the products of that tradition that absolutely straight lines and perfectly uniform angles give an appearance
that is mechanical and lacking in spontaneity. For this reason, the marble floor of the Parthenon was made
with a very slight rise toward the middle, the columns were made to lean gently inward, and the tapering
of the columns included a moderate swelling at the center (figure 49). The visual effect of these subtle
deviations from rigid consistency is to give the structure a more pleasing, organic character and to allow
it to “breathe.” A similar effect is created in music by the sensitive use of phrasing and by slight
deviations from strict rhythm to avoid machine-like uniformity. In addition, an organic feel was imparted
to the Parthenon by the sculptured decoration that graced parts of the building. This type of decoration
was a common feature of ancient Greek temples, but the quantity of the relief sculpture that the Parthenon
contained and, as far as we can tell from what has survived, the skill with which it was executed set this
building apart. Meager remains can be seen of the sculpture that originally filled the nearly square panels
(called metopes) above the spaces between the columns and the large triangular areas (the
PEDIMENTS) just under the overhang of the roof at either end. These sculptures, carved in marble and
originally painted, represented scenes from mythology. They are very badly preserved, owing to the
effects of the elements to which they were for a long time exposed and as a result of defacement, neglect,
and belligerence by later Christians and Muslims. (The Parthenon was converted, successively, into a
church, a mosque, and an arsenal for the storage of gunpowder.)
Figure 48 Plan, drawn by Gottfried Gruben, of the Parthenon in Athens; length 72.3 m, width 33.7 m,
447–432 BC.
Source: Reprinted with the permission of Hirmer Verlag GmbH from G. Gruben, Die Tempel der
Griechen (Munich 1966) p. 160, fig. 132.