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5th c. BC Painting:
- Evolution:
- Similar developments in human representation as in 5th c.
BC sculpture: e.g. contrapposto, movement
- But: on a two-dimensional surface
- Appearance of large-scale painting:
- Athens: Large wooden panels or frescoes in public
buildings: not preserved, but known through the ancient
writers (e.g. Famous painter Polygnotos)
- Painted examples known from elsewhere:
- E.g Poseidonia/Paestum (S Italy): ‘Tomb of the
Diver’:
- Attention for anatomical detail and three-
dimensionality
- Colours used to create lifelike representations

Poseidonia/Paestum, Tomb of the Diver, General decorative programme; diver; athlete accompanied by a man and
female flute player; symposion scene (ca. 470 BC)

- Developments in pottery painting (white-ground and red-figure):

- In white-ground vase painting (coloured pigments applied on a white calcareous
coating layer): Using darker and lighter tones next to each other to create three-
dimensionilty (volume and mass):

White-ground kylix (drinking-cup) (ca. 460-450 BC) attributed to the Sotades painter, Glaucos and
Polyeidos in the tomb (Diameter: 13.3cm)

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- Placement of figures on multiple groundlines to represent depth of space ( figures in the background
located higher than figures in the foreground)

Attic red-figure krater known as the ‘Niobid Krater’ (ca. 460-450 BC) (H.: 54cm)

- Detailed depiction of human figures, seen from different view angles (e.g. attention for individual body parts)
- Expression of movement (e.g. contrapposto; use of drapery)

Attic white ground lekythos attributed to the Achilles Painter (ca. 440 BC) (H.: Attic red-figure skyphos (drinking cup) attributed to the
15.5cm), Muses on Mount Helikon Penelope Painter (ca. 450-440 BC) (H.: 20.5cm), Penelope and
Telemachos at the loom

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- Last quarter of the 5th c. BC:

- Development of a wet drapery style: thin garments clinging to the body
and revealing the anatomy underneath

Attic red-figure epinetron (pottery piece worn by women on their thighs of women during
wool preparation) attributed to the Eretria Painter (ca. 425-420 BC) (H.: 16cm), Bridal
reception of Alkestis; object and detail

5th c. BC Innovations in Urbanism:

- Large-scale application of regular city planning
- Earlier applied in the new colonies from the Archaic Period onwards
Piraeus - Features:
- N-S and E-W streets
- Definition of functional zones (religious, commercial, residential, harbour....)
- ‘Hippodamian plan’:
- Named after the architect Hippodamos of Miletos:
- Said to have re-designed Miletos after the destruction by the Persians (not certain)
=> Name: ‘Milesian city plan’
- Responsible for the layout of Piraeus (harbour of Athens):

Miletos (479 BC) – Citadel – Harbour – Agora Piraeus (Early 5th c. BC) – Harbour – Agora

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5th Century Temple Architecture and Its Sculptural & Relief Decoration:
- Doric temples:
- Reaching their canonised form:
- Fixed plans
- Columns on short and long sides: 6:13 ratio (x:2(x) + 1)
- Nevertheless: space for variation and flexibility making each building individual
- E.g. Temple of Hera II at Poseidonia/Paestum (S Italy) (ca. 460 BC):
- Standardised Doric plan: Pronaos – Naos – Opisthodomos
- But: Colonnade: 6:14
- 24.26m x 59.98m
- Ceiling of the naos supported by two rows of columns

Poseidonia/Paestum, Temple of Hera II (ca. 460 BC); General view and plan with 6 by 14 columns

- E.g. Temple of Zeus at Olympia (ca. 470-457 BC):

- Largest temple built on the Greek Mainland at that time
- Standardised Doric plan: Pronaos – naos – opisthodomos
- Canonised colonnade: 6:13 (x:2(x) + 1)
- 27.7m x 64.1m
- Ceiling of the naos supported by two rows of columns
- Enormous statue of Zeus made by Pheidias:
- Chryselephantine statue (< chrysos (‘gold’) – elefantinos (‘of ivory’): made of
gold and ivory on a wooden frame
- One of the ‘Seven Wonders of the Ancient World’
- Dimensions just fitting the naos (H.: 14.3m)

opisthodomos cella pronaos

Olympia, Temple of Zeus (470-457 BC); general view, plan and reconstruction of the side and interior with Pheidias’ statue of Zeus

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- Sculptural decoration of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia:

- Two pedimental groups (L.: 26.0m; H. of central figures 3.15m):
- W: Centauromachy (fight between the Lapiths and the centaurs at the wedding of Peirithoos and Deidameia)
- E: Oath of Pelops and Oinomaos before their chariot race

Olympia, Temple of Zeus, West pediment with Centauromachy East pediment with oath before the chariot race

- Twelve metopes:
- Above the pronaos and opisthodomos
- Representing the twelve deeds of Herakles
- Figures not entirely finished
- Representing a narrative

Olympia, Temple of Zeus, Twelve metopes

5th labour: Cleaning the 6th labour: The 11th labour: Atlas and the
stable of Augeas Stymphalian Birds Apples of Hesperides

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The Akropolis at Athens:

- Massive building programme started in 449 BC on initiative of Perikles:
- Political leader of Athens
- Developing the Delian-Attic League into an empire directed by Athens
- Calling for to rebuilding of the temples destroyed by the Persians (thus far
left in a destroyed state as memory)
- Financed by:
- Revenue from the Attic silver mines
- Treasury of the Delian-Attic League: brought from Delos to Athens
Perikles (495-429 BC)

Parthenon

Erechtheion

Athene Nike
Temple

Propylaia

Athens, Akropolis

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- Parthenon (‘The Temple of the Virgin’):

- Construction:
- 447-438 BC: Designed and built by architects İktinos and Kallikrates
- 437-432 BC: Finishing work and pedimental sculptures
- Plan:
- Largest temple on the Greek Mainland
- Doric with some Ionic elements (relief frieze; 4 Ionic columns in the treasury room)
- Pronaos – Cella – Space for the Delian-Attic Treasury – Opisthodomos
- Colonnade: 8:17 (x:2(x) + 1)
- 69.51m x 30.88m
- Large dimensions to fit the large cult statue of Athena
- Entirely based on a 4:9 proportion

Athens, Parthenon (447-432 BC); View from the northwest and plan with indication of the sculptural programme

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- Adjustments for viewer perception:

- Interspace between the columns at the corners less wide than in the center: giving the impression of regular spacing
- Columns leaning inwards: making them appear vertical
- Corner columns thicker: making them look of the same diameter
- Stylobate curved (10cm higher in the center of the long side): making the stylobate look horizontal

Athens, Parthenon, East end, southern portico and optical effects used to represent an ‘ideal’ temple construction

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- Marble:
- First large temple entirely built out of marble
- Used for one of the largest ensembles of architectural sculpture for a temple:
- Akroteria (sing. akroterion; architectural ornament at the corners and top of a pediment)
- 92 metopes on all sides of the building, made by Pheidias:
- Iconographical topics:
- N: Trojan War
- W: Amazonomachy (fight between the Athenians and the Amazons)
- S: Centauromachy (fight between the Centaurs and Lapiths)
- E: Gigantomachy (fight between the Gods and Giants)
=> Greek indirect way to refer in a propagandistic way to the victory of the Athenians and the Greeks over the Persians
- Style:
- In line with bronze and marble sculpture
- But: some of them showing better movement and having thinner body proportions

Metopes of the S side, representing a Centauromachy

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- Frieze of ca. 160m around the naos, made by Pheidias:

- ‘Elgin Frieze’
- Element taken over from Ionic architecture
- Panathenaic procession: procession of Athenians, bringing a new peplos for the cult
statue of Athena (or mythological narrative?)
- Introduction of an Ionic decorative element in a Doric temple
- Considered the climax of Classical relief art:
- Perfect proportions of the human figure
- Expression of movement
- Precise perspective and three-dimensionality

Horsemen

Parthenon Frieze

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- 2 pedimental groups, made by Pheidias:

- Iconography:
- W: Contest between Athena and Poseidon to become the
patron of Athens
- E: Birth of Athena
- Perfectly adapted to the triangular shape of the pediment:
- From the centre to the corners: standing, seated and
reclining

East Pediment: Dionysos(?), Persephone, Demeter and Artemis East Pediment: Hestia, Dione or Themis and Aphrodite

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- Chryselephantine statue of Athena, made by Pheidias:

- Made of gold and ivory on a wooden core
- Internal layout of the Parthenon designed in accordance with this
statue (H.: 11.5m)
- Full of references to Athens’ power and prestige:
- Representation of Athena after winning a combat
- Carrying a Nike on her right hand
- Amazonomachy depicted on her shield
- Centauromachy decorating the sides of Athena’s sandals
- Birth of Pandora represented on the statue base

Nashville, Tennessee, Centennial Park, Replica of the

Athena statue

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Parthenon

Erechtheion

Athene Nike
Temple

Propylaia

Athens, Akropolis

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- Propylaia (‘Gateways’)
- Monumental gate with five doorways to the Akropolis
- Designed by the architect Mnesikles
- Started in 437 BC; works stopped 5 years later due to the Peloponnessian War; never finished
- Allowing visitors an impressive view on the sanctuary with a large Athena statue and the Parthenon

Athens, Propyleia, Reconstruction drawing West facade East facade

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- Challenging project:
- Built on a sloping, irregularly shaped site
- Problem solved by making the gate building look symmetrical while it is not symmetrical:
- 2 Doric facades at the inner and outer sides
- 2 sections each with a separate roof
- Interior space with higher Ionic columns to form a transition between the 2 sections
- Smooth transition from downhill to uphill by means of steps and a central ramp

Plan East-West section (from the South)

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- Hall for ritual meals on the northwest side

- Lack of a corresponding hall on the southeast side camouflaged by a screen wall (due to running out of money?; to avoid
removing parts of the Mycenaean Cyclopean walls?)
Gate

Hall Screen wall

Aerial view Restiution drawing of the West façade

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- Erechtheion (‘The Building of Erechtheus’):

- Built between 421 and 406 BC (after the death of Perikles who died in 429 BC)
- Possibly designed by Mnesikles, the architect of the Propylaia
- Dedicated to local traditions (versus the Parthenon expressing Athenian imperialism)
- Incorporating the cult of Athena Polias as well as secondary cults to various gods and heroes of Attic mythology
(e.g. marks of Poseidon’s trident; sacred olive tree planted by Athena; burial place of the mythical king Erechtheus)

Athens, Erechtheion, general view from the southwest Plan

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- Challenge for the architect:

- Temple to be built at a limited, deeply sloping space in between already existing buildings
- Issue solved by creating one of the most original designs of Greek architectural history:
- Giving the temple 4 different facades of different height:
- East: ‘Normal’ facade of a Ionic temple with 6 columns
- West:
- Expected corresponding 6 columns moved towards the north (turning around the corner)
- Screen with 4 half-columns
- North: Facade with porch omposed of 6 Ionic columns
- South: Small porch with 6 Karyatids (female figures carrying the entablature)e)

East facade West facade North porch South facade

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- Very lavish decoration:

- Carved pattern bands running around the porches and main building
- Finely carved Ionic capitals: coloured and inlaid with glass
- Sculpted frieze of the North porch: White marble figures placed on a blue
limestone background
- Karyatids: traditional Kore type executed in the Late 5th c. BC style: clothing
clinging to the body and showing the body parts underneath

Karyatids

Carved decoration Ornamented Ionic capital Frieze of the North porch

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- Temple of Athene Nike:

- Built on a bastion of the Bronze Age Akropolis walls
- Planned between the 440s and 420s (possibly still part of Perikles’ building programme); built in ca. 421-415 BC
- Designed by the architect Kallikrates, one of the architects of the Parthenon
- Small Ionic temple of the amphiprostylos type (row of 4 colums at the front and the back)

Athens of Athena Nike, view from the West Plan

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- Sculptural decoration:
- Pediments:
- E: Gigantomachy (battle of the gods and the Giants)
- W: Amazonomachy (battle of the Greeks and
Amazons)
- Ionic frieze running around the building:
- E: Athena, Zeus, Poseidon and other gods
- Other side: exceptional historical representations
- Versus the Greek custom to represent
historical events with mythological battles
- S: Battle between the Greek and Persians (with
characteristic dress)
- N and W: perhaps scenes from the
Peloponnesian War (Athens >< Sparta)
East facade

South frieze showing a battle between Greeks and Persians

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- Low parapet wall:

- Added to the bastion ca. 407 BC
- Carved frieze of winged Nikai in procession bringing a bull to Athena; Nike
adjusting or removing her sandal: Late Classical style
- Referring to the Parthenon frieze (e.g. through procession scenes)
- Relief art following similar developments as the contemporeneous statuary

Athena seated on a rock resting Two Nikai leading a bull to sacrifice Nike adjusting her sandal
after victorious battles

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