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FA 202-2015
I.
BEHİN AKSOY
MYCENAEANS, HELLENES
AND HELLENIC COLONIZATION
Mycenaeans: from about 1600 BC to 1200 BC
A. Indo-European Hellenic speaking people
B. Myc. geography
1. Peloponnesus: esp. Argolidos-cities: Mycenae
Tiryns
the South
Argos
2. Attica : the East
3. Euboea : the East
4. Epirus : the North and North-west
C. Myc. Art and Architecture (type site Mycenae)
1. fortified citadel
2. one main gate: two rampant lions above, reminiscent of Phrygian lions
on rock monuments such as Aslantaş, Afyon (common
ancestors in the Balkans)
3. graves
a. grave circles
1) A: I-VI shaft graves/inside the fortress, 13th century BC
2) B: outside the fortress, also 13th cent.
b. tholos tombs: such as the so called “Treasury of Atreus” / 13th cent. BC,
decorated parts now missing
1) round tomb chamber
2) dromos: long corridor before the entrance to the tomb chamber
4. typical Myc. objects
a. the treasures
1) gold plated box w. embossed decoration
(hexagonal): geometric and naturalistic motifs
2) round gold pieces as ornamentation for clothing (embossed motifs)
3) silver and gold cups: decoration techniques
a) embossing
b) inlay: silver and gold, also niello (metallic alloy of sulphur
w. silver, lead, copper, etc.)
4) gold funerary masks
5) gold funerary diadems
b. figurines: esp. female/mostly draped in pleated clothing
c. life size sculpture: not many retrieved/one example stucco female head
with painted decoration on cheeks and chin
d. pottery
1) many shapes, but the stirrup jar is the most typical
2) decoration: esp. fr. 13th cent. on Minoan influence, therefore
naturalistic sea life represented the most
a) fish
b) octopuses
c) shelled molluscs
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D.
Myc. seamanship and first attempts of colonization in Anatolia
(1400-1200 BC)
1. through legend
a. Argonauts and Jason
1) group of heroes in the boat Argo
2) they sailed to Colchis
3) in search of the golden fleece (in actual fact: in search of real gold)
b. Iliad: 8th cent. epic poem of the blind poet, Homer of Smyrna (fall of Troy
is ca. 1250 – if it ever happened at all – so the poet is telling of a
tale which is in a setting of about 500 years ago)
1) siege of Troy by Achaeans (Mycenaeans)
2) fall of Troy (the wooden horse, etc.)
2. boat paintings, esp. on pottery, point out to concentrated sea-faring esp. in
the Aegean (from island to island, also coastal navigation)
3. archaeological data: Myc. pottery found in 2nd millennium levels of some
Western Anatolian sites
a. Troy
b. Çandarlı
c. Miletus
d. Müskebi
4. written sources: Hittite tablet/Hittite king granting protection to the Trojan
king against Myc. attacks
II. Dorian invasion of Greece (about 1200 BC) and aftermath
A. Dark Ages of Greece: 1200 – 1050 BC (about 150 years)
B. After the Dark Ages
1. Greek city states in the Myc. area
2. attempts at colonization of Western Anatolia, coastal areas
a. Proto-geometric pottery (arch. data) in early 1st mill.
levels of Western Anatolian sites
1) naturalistic decoration totally absent
2) geometric decoration only
a) panels: concentric circles, lozenges, etc. within them
b) bands and lines
b. Geometric pottery in slightly later levels of the same sites
1) naturalistic scenes reappearing
a) floral, faunal, human and other
b) highly stylized
c) in restricted panels
2) geometric decoration mostly
III. Intensive Hellenic colonization of Western Anatolia: 750-550 BC
A. important Hellenic colonies of this early period
1. islands
a. Chios
b. Samos
2. cities of Anatolia
a. Phocaea
b. Clazomenae
c. Erythrae
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B.
d. Teos
e. Lebedos
f. Colophon
g. Ephesus (Apasa of the Hittites)
h. Priene
i. Myus
j. Miletus (Millawanda of the Hittites)
k. Smyrna (founded somewhat later than these)
1) first founded as a meagre mudbrick village offshore on an island
2) then the island is annexed to the shore (Bayraklı suburb of Smyrna
today)
3) the archaic temple of Athena was important: of Aeolic order
a) Greek closed temples were first built in the colonies (influence
of Lydian wooden temples, now lost, but depicted on rock
monuments)
- the earliest in Samos (Heraion)
- then in Anatolia proper
- then in Greece
b) ground plan: megaron (basic Western Anatolian and island house
plan from Late Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age on)
Basic periods of art in the Hellenic World
1. Orientalizing Period: end of 8th, beginning of 7th centuries, esp. East Greek.
a. influence of Oriental cultures, esp. Anatolian, on Greek Art.
b. Cybele, the Mother Goddess of the Lydians, draws special attention
c. mixed creatures also draw special attention: esp. reminiscent of Lydian
decoration on pottery
1) sphinxes (body: lion, head: human)
2) griffons (body: lion, head: bird)
d. counterpart of Orientalizing pottery of East Greeks in the West is
Proto-Corinthian
pottery: shift now more to the naturalistic w. less geometric decoration.
2. Archaic Period: Late 7th and 6th centuries BC
a. life size statues in the round increase, esp. in Greece (much under
Egyptian influence)
1) rigid postures
2) very little movement
3) interest in the naked human body already present, esp. male
a) young boy: kouros, mostly naked
b) young girl: kore, mostly dressed
4) “archaic smile”: corners of the mouth upturned
b. pottery
1) in Greece
a) Corinthian: plain background, drawings in dark brown (purplish)
on all the available surface
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b) Attic/black figure “firnis” (had a natural glazed effect after firing
because of the chemical composition of the black paint)
- mostly black painted overall or wide bands
- black figures in light preserved background
- preferred a lot in all the Hellenic world of the Mediterranean
2) Anatolia: local pottery production continuing, but there is a distinct
preference for the Attic black figure
3. Classical Period: 5th cent. BC
a. sculpture in the round and in relief
1) much tendancy, esp. in Greece, toward sculpture
2) sculptors mostly from mainland Greece
a) Myron
b) Phidias (responsible for the sculpture of the temple of Athena
Parthenos in the Acropolis, Athens)
c) Polycleitus
d) Cresilas
3) sculpture in Anatolia is also mostly by mainland Greek sculptors
b. pottery: black and mostly red figure Attic vases predominant
IV. Greek “polis” (city-state): basic architectural features
A. the plan: regular grid plan w. insulae
1. influence of the earlier Anatolian cities
2. finally developed by Hippodamos of Miletos (therefore known as
“Hippodamian plan”)
3. appearance of plan
a. regular streets cutting each other at 90o
b. regular insulae: square or rectangular
c. usually two main streets cutting each other at a certain point
d. major buildings usually at the junction point of the main streets
B. major architectural features
1. bouleuterion: city council building (boule: city council)
2. agora: market place
a. open square
b. stoa: gallery of columns (usually around the square)
c. shops behind the stoa
3. gymnasion: school and place for exercise (palaestra) for young boys
and the youth
4. stadion
a. U shaped area w. seats around
b. not all cities necessarily have it
c. for athletics and races
5. temple: one always dedicated to the patron god or goddess of the city
6. odeion:
a. for music and poetry contests
b. small enough to be closed by a roof without having a forest of columns
c. amphitheater form
d. not all cities have an odeion
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7. theatre
a. cavea: amphitheatre built on a hill slope
b. diazoma: walks of the cavea in line with the orchestra
c. loge: seats of honour near the orchestra
d. skene: stage building
1) acting is done on the skene
2) earlier theatres do not have permanent skenes
e. proskene: front part of the skene
f. orchestra
1) complete circle form: the early ones
2) semicircular form: later ones, esp. from Hellenistic Per. on
3) where the chorus sings and dances
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LYDIANS AND THE
GRECO-PERSIAN PERIOD
I.
Persians: replace the Medians as ruling power in Iran
A. extent of the Empire
1. before the battle with Croesus, the Lydian King, in 546 BC
a. Halys in Central Anatolia: West
b. River Oxus in Central Asia: East
2. after the battle in Sardis (546 BC)
a. Western Anatolian coastal area: West
b. Central Asia: East, including
1) Syria (Near East)
2) Mesopotamia (Near East)
3. Egypt
B. Persian capitals
1. Ecbatana
a. in Hamedan, Iran
b. it was the capital of the Medians as well
2. Pazargadae: original capital of the Persians
3. Susa
a. capital after the conquest of Babylonia
b. the beginning of the renowned “royal road” which ended in Sardis, the
capital of the Lydian Kingdom in the West
4. Persepolis: the last capital, perhaps summer residence of the Persian kings,
because Susa always remains the official capital
C. religion: Zoroastrianism
1. Zoroaster (Zerdüşt): the teacher of the religion
2. Zendavesta: the book compiling Zoroaster’s teachings
3. Ahuramazda: the symbol of the religion w. wings
a. Ahriman: evil
b. Ormazd: goodness
4. fire temples: where a symbolic fire always burns (symbolizing both evil
and goodness at the same time)
D. art and architecture
1. architecture
a. fire temples: high tower-like buildings
b. palaces: quite large with many halls
c. apadana: large throne hall for audience
1) many columns to support the roof of the large hall
2) also seen in other parts of the Near East: eg.Urartu in the Iron Age
2. architectural decoration
a. reliefs depicting royalty mostly
b. friezes also outside buildings
1) like the lines of soldiers in Persepolis
2) for those, who are not allowed to go in, to see and admire from the
outside, something similar to the ceremonies inside
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II.
c. relief tile decorations esp. in Susa
1) influence of Assyria and Babylonia
2) Persian novelty: figures in relief
d. foreign influences
1) Mesopotamian: tile decoration
2) Anatolian
a) Ionian type columns but without fluting (esp. in Pazargadae)
b) pyramidal tomb in Pazargadae: reminiscent of the one in Sardis
(both may be Egyptian influence in turn)
e. column capitals
1) quite different from the Anatolian of the period
2) protomes of animals (two) back to back
f. basic style
1) formality in positions and postures: in that respect compares better
w. Eastern Anatolia, Mesopotamia and Egypt
2) contrast w. esp. 5th cent. Greek tendencies
a) laxness and freedom in position (even the deities in the Parthenon
frieze)
b) tendency to show esp. male human body naked
c) clothes also in free falling draperies
3. not much sculpture in the round (one eg. head of a young prince or a queen)
4. tombs
a. tomb chamber built of stone (like the pyramidal tomb in Pazargadae)
b. usually carved as tomb chambers in rocks: eg. Nakş-i Rüstem, the royal
necropolis of the Persians
5. not much pottery known
6. royal treasures: eg. Oxus Treasure
a. omphalos bowl: compares well w. contemporary Lydian work
b. gold vessels: usually embossed like their counterparts in the West
c. head of man: compares well w. even the later Roman portrait tradition
Western Anatolia in brief at the time of the Persian conquest
A. Lydians
1. capital: Sardis
a. most of the ruins restored today are Hellenistic and Roman
b. Lydian levels excavated
1) House of Bronzes area: w. the hasty burial of a young girl after the
Cimmerian attack
2) part of the Lydian fortification wall: reinforced after the
Cimmerian attack
3) Lydian Market
4) some Lydian shops and houses (Pactolus North)
a) house decoration: painted terracotta plaque friezes
b) lamp shop w. early style oil lamps
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5) gold refinery area
a) work areas for
- cupellation: refinement of gold or silver
- cementation: separating gold and silver from the natural alloy
electrum
b) kilns
c) possibily shops of private jewellers
d) shrine: for Cybele
- altar w. lions only
- poss. compares with a tomb painting in Tarquinia, Italy,
probably painted by a Lydian artist who had fled to Italy after
the Persian conquest
- figure of the goddess was not found
e) minting of coins
- coins: invention of Lydians
- denominations: Stater and Hekte (1/6 of a Stater)
- decorations as legend: lion and bull (hand pressing results in
irregular shapes)
- state controlled and guaranteed
6) acropolis: fortification walls of the Lydian Period partly
excavated, well worked stones
2. cemeteries
a. simple inhumation graves around Sardis: with small burials gifts
1) Şeytanderesi
2) İntepe
b. pyramidal tomb: influence of Egypt?
c. Bintepeler: royal cemetery of the Lydians
1) between the Gygean Lake and Sardis
2) many tumuli (tumulus: artificial grave mound covering a tomb
chamber)
a) crepis wall: wall surrounding the chamber
b) tomb chamber
c) earth piled on the chamber
3. pottery: more of the Orienatalizing style, which was influenced by
Lydian pottery
4. treasures
a. Lydian kings extremely rich, the richest was Croesus, the last king of
the last dynasty, the Mermnadae
b. the aristocracy also quite rich, the so called “Treasures of Croesus” from
Uşak actually come from tombs of the rich (recently returned by the
Metropolitan Museum of Art)
5. Lydian inscription
a. different from the Greek alphabet
b. proper names deciphered
c. not many examples
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B.
Greek colonies
1. all along the coastal areas of Anatolia
a. Western Anatolia
b. Mediterranean / spreading North and South because Lydians
c. Black Sea
/ do not allow them to spread inland
2. tax paying to the Lydians (first to the Phrygians in the 8th cent. BC),
they pay taxes to the Persians after the Persian conquest
III. Greco-Persian period in Anatolia: 546 – 334 BC
A. Persian administration
1. provinces (satrapies) and appointed governors (satraps): a number of them
in Anatolia
2. military troops stationed at strategic points (army also includes
Greek mercenaries)
3. network of roads
a. for trade (caravans)
b. moving of troops
c. messengers (on horseback)
1) changing at stations at regular intervals
2) covering the whole span of the empire within a week
4. organization of spies, called the “ears of the King”
B. Art and Architecture of the period: a synthesis which can be called
“Greco-Persian”
1. Greek and Persian in detail
2. mostly Persian in concept
a. monumental tombs
1) Monument of the Nereids: now in the British Museum, orig.
fr. Xanthus
2) Mausoleum of Halicarnassus: also in the Brit. Mus.
a) built for Mausalos, the Satrap of Caria
b) by his wife Artemisia
b. mixed creatures: basically oriental concept
IV. Anabasis of Xenophon/ The Return of the Ten Thousand
A. group of Greek mercenaries returning from Babylon
1. they cross the whole of Eastern Anatolia after many adventures
2. finally they reach the sea near Trebizond
B. important event which put into the Greek mind that the East could be
penetrated
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MACEDONIANS AND
ALEXANDER THE GREAT
I.
II.
Macedonia in Philip II’s time
A. extent of the kingdom: 336 BC
1. Macedon proper: including Therma (Thessalonica) and Chalcidice
2. Thrace : Northeast
3. Epirus : West
4. Euboea : Southeast
5. Attica :
“
6. part of Peloponnesus: South
7. Greek colonies of Western Asia (certain amount of control over them): East
B. Capitals
1. Aegae: West of Thessalonica, modern Vergina
2. Pella : to the Northeast of Aegae
C. the frontiers formally established after the Battle of Chaeronea: 338 BC
(Alexander as Crown Prince takes part in the battle)
Philip II’s tomb in Vergina
A. the tomb chambers excavated in the great burial mound
1. the tomb destroyed in ancient times
2. looted tomb
a. burial gifts all looted
b. wall paintings
1) important
a) because almost all original 4th cent. Greek painting has been
destroyed in time
b) known mostly through descriptions of ancient writers or Roman
copies
2) nature of the paintings
a) Hades in a chariot abducting Persephone (daughter of Demeter) to
the underworld
b) heavily draped sitting woman of middle age
- the actual woman buried?
- or Demeter symbolizing her
3. Philip’s tomb
a. front façade
1) boar hunting scene on the frieze
a) indicates that it is a man’s tomb
b) season: autumn (bare trees) right time for hunting
2) triglyph alternating w. undecorated metope (below the frieze)
3) pilasters (piers treated as columns)
4) heavy stone doors
b. chambers
1) main chamber (entered fr. the vaulted roof by the archaeologists)
a) sarcophagus: opposite the door to the antechamber, containing
a gold casket
- Macedonian sunburst symbol on the lid
- contents: Hellenistic style diadem w. oak leaves and acorns
(gold), purple fabric, burnt bones (washed w. wine)
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b) burial gifts
- bronzes in one corner: greaves, vessels, shield cover, iron tripods,
Mac. diadem of kings, lantern, sponge in
good condition.
- silver and bronze vessels in the other corner
- body armour (corselet) made of iron plates covered with cloth and
leather, lion’s head adornments (gold): at the center of the room
2) antechamber
a) sarcophagus
- on top of it ostrich feathers (queen’s trappings)
- gold casket inside: smaller than the other, simpler in decoration,
but has the sunburst symbol, contains
burnt bones, purple fabric threaded w. gold
wrapped around the bones
- Cleopatra’s (last wife of Philip II) sarcophagus?
b) burial gifts
- on the doorstep of the door leading to the main chamber
- beautifully decorated gold quiver
- two bronze greaves
- one is shorter than the other
- Philip was lame
- other things around (pottery, etc.)
c. the data pointing to the fact that this is Philip II’s tomb
1) one of the greaves is shorter than the other (Philip was lame)
2) small ivory portraits: recalling the five statues of Philipeion in
Olympia
a) one resembling the known portraits of Philip II
b) young man resembling the known portraits of Alexander
3) Macedonian diadem of ruling king
4) Philip being the only Mac. king who died in the years the tomb
is dated to
III. Alexander the Great’s conquests and journeys
A. Anatolia
1. visiting of Troy and Achilles’tomb
2. Battle of Granicus: 334 BC
a. Mac. warfare
1) renowned Macedonian phalanx
2) tactic of attacking slantwise (echeloned)
3) Alexander leading w. his immediate companions as shock brigade
4) about 30.000 men altogether
b. Persian warfare
1) long established formal tactics
2) lack of rapid movement
3) about 100.000 men altogether
3. visiting of Sardis (where only the Hellenistic temple of Artemis
remains from that period)
4. visiting of Ephesus
a. the cult center of Artemis of Ephesos
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1) following the cult of Cybele (Cybebe) of Lydia and Phrygia
a) Kupaba of the Neo-Hittites
b) Hepat of the Hittites
c) female figurines of the prehistoric periods (Early Bronze Age,
Chalcolithic, Neolithic)
2) archaic Artemision: burnt the year Alexander was born, 356 BC
3) Alexander offers to pay for the new one (some sources say Ephesians
did not accept this offer
b. he is not much welcomed by Ephesians
5. visiting of Miletus: Milesians did not readily accept Alexander
6. visiting of Didymaion: Hellenistic temple of Apollo in Didyma
7. visiting of Halicarnassus: Alexander gives the throne to the rightful heir,
the old Princess Ada, the sister of Artemisia and
Mausalos, the former Satrap of Caria
th
a. 4 cent. Mausoleum
1) one of the seven wonders of the world at the time
2) the word mausoleum is derived from the proper name of Mausolos
in allusion to his monumental tomb
b. the rest of the 4th cent. remains almost totally missing these days
8. travels in Lycia: the area best known for its interesting shaped sarcophagi
a. Trysa
b. Phaselis
9. travels in Pamphylia
a. Perge
: monumental Hellenistic gate
b. Aspendus : nothing of the Hellenistic Period
c. Side
: part of the city wall still Hellenistic
10. inland towards the mountains
a. Termessus
b. Sagalassos in Pisidia (Lake District)
11. visiting Gordion: former capital of Phrygia (legend of the knot cut by
Alexander w. one blow of his sword)
12. Central Anatolian plateau on the way to Ancyra (Ankara)
13. Cappadocia
14. Cilician Gates and Cilicia
a. Alexander suffers from his first severe attack of illness
b. cured by his own doctor from childhood
15. Battle of Issus: 333 BC/critical moment when Alexander the Gr. (III) and
Darius III come eye to eye
B. Egypt
C. Babylonia
D. Persia: Battle of Gaugamela near Arbela in 331 BC/ final victory of
Macedonians over the Persians
E. Central Asia as far as Oxus River (Kingdom of Bactria founded after the
Macedonians leave Central Asia)
IV. Death of Alexander: 323 in Babylon
A. second severe attack of illness: high fever of the plains
B. death
1. either caused by the actual high fever
2. or poisoned through medicaments
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HELLENISTIC KINGDOMS
I.
The division of the loose Hellenistic Empire of Alex. the Gr. after his death among
his immediate successors/the diadochoi (sing. diadochos)
A. General Ptolemy: Egypt; Caria, Lycia, and Pamphylia in SW Anatolia
B. General Seleucus: all the Eastern provinces and kingdoms of the Empire incl.
East Anatolia
an example from E. Anat.: Kingdom of Commagene
(Kummuhu of Late Hittite Period)
1. nothing much remains of the cities
2. two extremely important monuments: Nimrud Tumuli, Adıyaman, Kâhta
a. Karakuş Tumulus (the bridge on the way is later Roman)
1) the tumulus of a queen
2) there are four columns on four sides of the tumulus w. figures on them
b. actual Mount Nimrud Tumulus: grave monument for King Antiochus I
1) the tumulus itself: mound of pebbles, the chamber not found
2) two terraces
a) West
- reliefs on stelae showing the ancestors of the king
- other reliefs (dexiosis scenes: king shaking hands w. deities)
- colossal heads (fallen fr. the original enthroned positions)
- head of eagle (no. of them)
- lion
- head of Helios (sun-god)
- head of Commagene (goddess of the country)
- head of Heracles (deified hero)
- head of Zeus (main god)
b) East
- reliefs
- colossal heads
- head of eagle (no. of them)
- lion (no of them)
- head of Herecles
- head of Antiochus
- altar
C. General Lysimachos
1. Pergamon and Western Anatolia
2. Alexander’s treasure, guarded by General Philetairos, whose descendants
also seize the throne (the Attalid Dynasty)
3. a survey of the Hellenistic remains of the Acropolis of the city of
Pergamon, the capital of the Attalid Kingdom
a. Upper Acropolis
1) city walls enlarged in time of different kings
2) from North to South the Hell. buildings
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a) arsenal buildings (five of them)
- close spaced foundation walls: indication of heavy weight
stored above
- hundreds of different calibre shots were found (now stored in the
lower agora)
- no remains of the wooden catapults
b) water supply system
- water brought by pipes from Mount Madara to the North, passing
from the higher ridges of mountains (pipes still remain in certain
parts)
- cisterns: both private and public
c) palaces: five of them (I-V)
- the Roman Trajaneum has taken up most of the space of the palace
gardens to the west
- plan is usually peristyle (courtyard, gallery of columns around
and rooms behind)
- beautiful floor mosaics: that of P.V are in very good condition
-signed Hephaistos
-motif: var. basic geometric motifs, naturalistic patterns as well
(garlands), realistic depictions
d) Athena Sanctuary
- an Ionic temple dedicated to Athena
- temenos area beautifully enclosed on three sides w. stoas
- the stoa in the north has two rows of columns and there is access
to the library from the second floor of this stoa
- second floor parapets of the stoa have beautiful reliefs
depicting symbols of Athena
- behind SE corner of the sanctuary there is an entrance to the
upper acropolis from the city wall
e) Heroon: monument dedicated to the heroes
- east end is the actual part for the heroes
- there is a place reserved for feasts in front of the part dedicated to
the heroes
f) Altar of Zeus: built in commemoration of the final victory of the
Pergamenes over the Gauls (190 BC)
- now in Pergamon Museum in Berlin
- temenos enclosed by stoas all around
- entrance fr. behind the altar (east)
- visitors have to go round S or N to come to the front of the altar
- reliefs on the altar frieze
- East side: Athena and Zeus group (Gigantomachi/battle w. the
giants, symbolic of the battle w. Gauls)
- South side: Helios group (assoc. w. day and light)
- North side: figures assoc. w. darkness and the underworld
- West side: figures assoc. w. night and darkness
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g) theatre
- seating about 10.000 spectators
- stage building: not permenant, set up when there is
a performance
- cavea divided into three parts by diazomas (walks)
- building for the changing of actors south of orchestra
- Temple of Dionysos at the end of the promenade
b. Lower Acropolis
1) residential area between the upper acropolis and the major buildings
of the lower acropolis
2) important features
a) Heraion
- temple dedicated to Hera
- exedra on the west side of it
- stoa on the other side (west)
b) gymnasion
- upper: much changed in the Roman Period reserved for the
young men
- middle: remains mostly Hellenistic, reserved for the youth
- lower: Hellenistic, reserved for boys
c) Demeter Sanctuary
- for special rituals assoc. w. women
- was originally outside the city walls
- seats for the elderly on the east half of the north side
- stoa all around the sacred area
- altars in front of the temple
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HELLENISTIC ART
I.
City planning
A. Hippodamian plan: influenced by former developed cities of Anatolia
1. finally developed by Hippodamos of Miletos
2. regular plan
a. square or rectangular insulae
b. streets cutting each other at 90o
c. two main streets cutting each other at a certain point
B. Priene: a model Hellenistic city
1. acropolis
2. upper city
a. bouleuterion: city council building
1) square shaped amphitheatre (three sides)
2) small enough to be closed by a roof without having a forrest of
columns
b. theatre
1) round amphitheatre/cavea
2) one diazoma (walk) at the top of the cavea
3) orchestra: semicircle
4) stage building
a) skene
b) proskene: front of the skene
5) two entrances on either side of the cavea
c. agora
1) rectangular square: stelae of decrees
2) stoas on three sides, street on the north and another stoa
3) shops behind the stoas
d. Temple of Zeus: adjacent to the agora on the narrow east side
1) temenos (sacred area) closed by regular stoas
2) plan of the temple: small prostyle (prostylos)
e. Temple of Athena Polias (temple dedicated to the patron goddess
of the city)
1) peripteros (one row of columns around)
2) high terrace (temenos area)
3) altar (rectangular, to the front of the temple)
4) propylon (monumental entrance to the temenos area)
f. houses
1) basic plan: peristyle w. andron (rooms reserved for men in the
front part of the house)
2) the other Greek house plan: house w. a pastas (forecourt)
g. streets
1) paved w. regular worked stone
2) drainage canals in the middle of the street
3) street leading to the lower city paved with cobbles
17
C.
h. gymnasion: school and exercise grounds
1) square palaestra: the open square area for exercise
2) classrooms (graffiti on the walls made by the students)
i. city walls: built w. regular worked square stones (ashlar masonry)
Hellenistic temple architecture
1. mostly of Ionic order in Anatolia
a. capital
1) volutes
/
2) listel
/
3) bolster
/// abacus on top
4) anthemion /
5) necking /
b. shaft: the actual column made with drums and fluted
c. base
1) upper torus /
2) Scotia
/
3) lower torus /// there are variations
4) plinth
/
5) stylobate (the actual terrace ground on which the temple stands)
2. basic plans
a. templum in antis
b. peripteros (one row of columns)
c. dipteros (two rows of columns)
d. pseudo-dipteros (second row of columns half columns on the wall
of the cella)
e. polipteros (more than two rows)
3. façade above the columns in the front and the back
a. architrave
b. frieze
1) trighlyph
2) metope
c. cornice
d. pediment: triangular in shape and there are statues placed in it
4. decorative elements
a. motifs
1) palmettes
2) acanthus leaves
3) meander
4) guilloche
5) chimation
6) egg and dart
7) bead
8) floral (vine and ivy esp. loved)
b. reliefs: on the metopes and cella frieze
c. sculpture: in the pediments, actual image of the deity inside the cella
opposite the front entrance
18
II.
5. three important Hellenistic temples
a. Didymaion: Temple of Apollo in Didyma
1) cella never meant to be closed
a) below the naos and pronaos: stairs
b) templum in antis opp. the naos in cella (a separate building)
2) Ionic order and the bases mostly beautifully decorated
b. Artemision in Ephesus: Ionic order
1) was one of the seven wonders of the world
2) now only one column remaining
3) 36 columns in the pronaos w. relief decorations at the bottom
a) one in the British Museum (showing Hermes)
b) the decorated columns of the original archaic temple were
presents of Croesus, the last king of Lydia
4) the original Artemis of Ephesus cult statue is lost, but there are
Roman copies
a) in shape she is Cybele, the Mother Goddess of Lydians and
Phrygians
b) in name she is Artemis
c. Artemision of Sardis: three different phases
1) the last phase in relatively good shape
2) Ionic order
6. Hellenistic walls
a. sometimes built with irregularly worked stones
b. usually of regularly worked stones/ashlar masonry
Hellenistic Art
A. Sculpture
1. relief: mostly high/altar of Zeus in Pergamon the best example
2. round
a. Pathetic School of Sculpture in Pergamon
1) far away nostalgic look
2) slightly opened mouth
3) contorted muscles
4) sad faces (sad subjects)
b. material used: mostly bronze, also stone (marble) (Roman copies
are marble)
c. some examples
1) Alexander head from Pergamon
2) Alexander statue by Menas found in Magnesia
3) nymph (sea fairy) from Tralles (Aydın)
4) running athelete (bronze) from the sea near Nicomedia
5) satyr (bronze): goat’s legs have disappeared in Hellenistic Period
d. terra cotta figurines
1) decorate the houses of the aristocrats and the rich
2) painted
3) variety of subjects: ordinary people, deities, etc.
19
B.
C.
D.
E.
4) Myrina figurines are quite famous
5) one important example: Aphrodite found in Dardanos, Çanakkale
a) shown naked
b) preparing for her bath
c) she is still wearing her jewellery (painted with gold)
Hellenistic sarcophagi: a good variety found at the royal necropolis of the
Kingdom of Sidon
1. Alexander sarcophagus: depicting hunting scenes and battle scenes
of Alexander
a. Alexander himself is shown as the first figure on one of the long sides,
central fig. his friend Hephaistion, who died in the battle of Gaugamela
(331 BC) in Persia
b. original paint still remaining on
1) blue
2) yellow
3) red
c. the lid made as temple roof w. all the acrotheria and the lions’ heads
2. the sarcophagus of the mourning women
a. the sarcophagus representing an Ionic temple
b. women shown in between the columns
c. each woman has a different position and different way of showing
her grief
3. Lycian tomb
a. shape typical Lycian, only lacking the fake wooden beams
b. on narrow sides: centaurs fighting (Kentauromachi)
c. on long sides: hunting
Hellenistic wall paintings and mosaics
1. not much original wall painting remaining: 4th cent. paintings in the
looted tomb and Philip II’s tomb in Aegae, give us an idea, also
Roman copies
2. mosaics
a. floor mosaics of the palaces of Pergamon: best examples
b. there are some examples from the Kingdom of Kommagene as well
c. we get an idea from Roman mosaics much influenced by Hellenistic
mosaics
Pottery
1. tradition of relief decorated and painted pottery from 4th cent.
2. real glazed pottery in Late Hellenistic Period
3. Pergamene pottery: beginnings of terra sigillata
4. black glazed (firnis) w. white painted ivy leaves, usually fluted
jewellery: some actually found in tombs, etc. w. distinct style, seen also
on figurines, etc.
20
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
TO THE WORLD OF ROME
I.
Foundation legend
A. Aeneas: a Trojan
1. son of Anchises
2. flees from Troy after it falls to Achaeans, about 1250 BC
3. wanders about until he reaches Italy
a. marries Lavinia, princess of Latium
b. Askanius/Julius: Aeneas’ son from earlier marriage (Julius – line of
Julians – also Julias Ceaser, 100-44 BC)
1) becomes king after his father
2) from the same line Numitor is dethroned by his brother Amulius
3) Numitor’s daughter Rhea Sylvia has twins by the god Mars in the
Vesta Temple, where she was put by his uncle
a) Romulus /a she wolf takes care of them,
b) Remus / they are finally saved by the shepherd Faustulus and
his wife Laurentia near Palatina
B. Rome founded
1. April 21st, 753 BC
2. by Romulus
3. on Palatine Hill/”Roma quadrata” the core of the eternal city Rome
4. special protectors of the city: the DIOSCURI (gemini: twins) w. pointed
caps
a. Castor : mortal
/ statues on the
b. Pollux : immortal / Capitoline Hill, Rome
II. Rome becomes an Empire
A. Augustus Period: Sept. 2nd, 31 BC, the Sea Battle of Actium
B. Trajan Period: largest frontiers, 98 – 117 AD
III. What is characteristically Roman in Art
A. regular city planning: Roman garrison city
1. decumanus maximus: main street in East-West direction
2. cardo: main street in North-South direction
B. Architecture
1. features
a. the wall
1) stone: opus quadratum /eg. Augustus Temple, Ancyra (Ankara)
2) brick: fired bricks and mortar/Roman novelty
a) opus latericum: eg. Serapeion, Pergamon
b) usually covered with marble plaques, often alternating colours
3) brick a. stone: opus listatum or mixtum, eg. East Gymnasion, Ephesos
b. the arch
1) used as gates, eg. Hierapolis, Denizli
2) used as triumphal arches
a) eg. Arch of Titus: South of Forum Romanum, Rome
- commemorating victory over Jews
- 70 AD
b) eg. Arch of Constantine: near the Colosseum, Rome
21
c. the vault and its variations
1) barrel vault: eg. Supporting Temple of Zeus, Aizanoi
(Çavdarhisar, Kütahya) Hadrian Period: 117-138 AD
2) groined vault: buttressing each other eg. Trajan Market Halls, Rome
d. the dome: eg. Pantheon, Rome temple to all gods of
Rome, Hadrian Period, 117 – 138 AD
e. Corinthian order: in Anatolia used together w. the Ionic order
f. triumphal column: eg. Trajan’s Column, Rome
2. forms
a. Forum (plural Fora)
1) monumental town centres for political and official gatherings
2) in Anatolia they are called “State Agora”
3) egs. Forum Romanum, Forum Trajanum, etc. in Rome
b. temples: edifices which could be entered by the public (differing from
the Greek temple)
1) recantangular: eg. Temple of Saturn, Forum Romanum
2) round: eg. Vesta Temple, Rome
c. waterworks and forms associated w. them
1) bath (thermae)
a) making use of the most of the novel architectural features
b) hypocaust: important novelty/heating through air channels in
the basement
2) fountains: elaborate fountain houses,
egs. Nympheum in Corinth and Nimes
3) aqueduct: arches used to bring water to cities
eg. Pont du Gard, Nimes, France
4) bridge: some Roman bridges are still in use
eg. Cendere, Kâhta, Adıyaman
d. theatres
1) regular theatres
a) built on arches and vaults if necessary
b) skaene frons: tall façade of the stage
- cutting the theatre from the outside world
- screening the noises from the street
2) amphitheatres: esp. for gladiatorial games and games w. wild
animals (typical Roman)
a) built on arches and vaults
b) most important example Colosseum/Amphitheatrum Flavium,
Flavian Dynasty Period, 80 AD
e. Roman house
1) basic types
a) Roman villa: mansion in the country
b) House w. an Atrium: courtyard around which the busts of the
ancestors of the family are displayed
2) decorative elements
a) strictly architectural pieces used also as decoration
(column capitals, etc.)
22
b) strictly decorative elements
- mosaics/floor and wall/tessera (square piece), plural: tesserae
- opus settile/piece work/geometrical shaped marble pieces
- wall paintings: esp. in Pompeii and Herculaneum,
also Ephesos, Turkey
- sculpture/statues, busts, statuettes and figurines
f. basilica: rectangular roofed hall
1) meeting place
a) social
b) commercial
g. tombs
1) monumental round tombs
a) eg. Tomb of Augustus, Rome
b) eg. Tomb of Hadrian, Castel Sant’Angelo, Rome
2) house shaped tombs, eg. Hierapolis, Denizli
3) sarcophagi
23
BASIC ROMAN CHRONOLOGY
AND ART, ESP. SCULPTURE
I.
II.
Basic Roman Chronology of events and monuments (Please consult the
photocopied page fr. Picard, G., Living Architecture: Roman)
Roman Sculpture: emphasis on portrait
A. life size or larger sculpture :
1. whole body or just bust
2. material used
a. marble
b. bronze
B. statuettes and figurines
1. usually whole body
2. material used
a. marble
b. bronze
c. ivory
d. terra cotta
C. general classification
1. deities
a. some are copies of original Greek sculpture
b. some are original Roman work
c. some basic statues and statuettes that fall under this category
1) gods
a) Zeus (Jupiter): elderly man w. an eagle
b) Apollo
- god of music and also of the rising sun
- young man w. long hair and often w. a lyre
c) Hermes (Mercury)
- messenger of gods, protector of travellers
- young man w. traveller’s hat w. wings, sandals w. wings, money
pouch
d) Dionysus (Bacchus): an inebriate w. wine, grapes and vine leaves
e) Asclepius
- god of healing
- elderly man, upper body usually naked, w. a long walking stick
f) Dioscouros: young man w. pointed scull cap
g) foreign gods
- Horus: Egyptian, fertility, w. cornucopia
- Attis: Phrygian
- Mithras: Persian
- Men: Anat., moon god
2) goddesses
a) Athena (Minerva)
-goddess of intellect and intelligence
-young woman w. aegis a. helmet, shield a. sword
24
b) Aphrodite (Venus)
- goddess of beauty and love
- esp. upper part of body shown naked, w. mirror, w. Eros,
sometimes w. shield because of husband Hephaistos (Vulcan),
god of blacksmiths and lover Mars (Ares), god of war
c) Artemis (Diana)
- goddess of wild nature, associated w. the moon, twin of Apollo
- young woman shown as huntress w. quiver, arrows, sometimes w.
deer and dogs
- of Ephesus
- w. high polos on head
- fertility symbols
- lions (attribute animals of Cybele)
- deer (huntress Artemis)
- lots of necklaces, etc.
d) Hygeia
- goddess of health
- daughter of Asclepius, god of healing
- shown w. snake
e) Nemesis
- goddess of retributive justice
- w. griffon
f) three graces (Charites): three maiden together
- Aglaia (Brilliance)
- Euphrosyne (Joy)
- Thalia (Bloom)
g) foreign
- Isis
- Egyptian goddess of motherhood
- w. cornucopia (fertility) a. knot across her breast
- usually shown enthroned
2. mythological figures
a. Marsyas: Phrygian Silenus w. Horsetail
b. Meleagros : hunter
c. Heracles: hero/lion’s skin and club, 12 labours
3. individuals
a. official people
1) emperors : in various form
a) cuirass : wearing military outfit (esp. Trajan and Hadrian)
b) priest : Roman emperors are chief priests and they are deified
after death
2) empresses
3) priests (wearing priestly outfit and crown w. busts)
4) priestesses (draped in mantles, w. long necklaces)
5) nobility (eg. Plancia Magna, fr. Perge)
6) individuals unidentified (no name inscribed and features unknown,
but still the real features shown)
25
III. Roman reliefs
A. as part of architectural decoration
1. doorways
2. windows
3. in frieze form around enclosed areas
B. sarcophagi
26
ROMAN ART AND
ARCHITECTURE IN
ANATOLIA
I.
Pergamon
A. the Acropolis
1. Romanized slightly (esp. the gymnasion), mostly remains Hellenistic
2. Trajanaeum/Temple of Trajan
a. on a high podium
b. Corinthian order
c. now restored
B. lower city
1. theatre
2. Serapeion/Temple of Serapis
C. outside the lower city
1. tumuli: artificial burial mounds
2. Asclepion
a. named after Asclepius, god of healing
b. healing place using some therapeutic methods
c. general plan and architectural features
1) Via Tecta: colonnaded street fr. Pergamon leading to Asclepion
(Roman Imperial Period)
2) propylon (monumental entrance)
a) rectangular courtyard
b) commissioned by Claudius Charax, in the reign of Emp.
Antoninus Pius (138-161 AD)
c) niches on either side for worship
3) the Emperor’s room: to the north of the propylon
a) rectangular
b) also used as a library
c) there are inscriptions about the library
4) Temple of Asclepius
a) round building
b) small replica of Pantheon
c) erected by Consul L. Cuspius Pactumeius Rufinus
d) about 150 AD
e) south of the propylon
5) building for medical treatment
a) round
b) south of the Temple of Asclepius
c) two storeyed
d) w. six apses inside
6) colonnades on north, west and south
27
7) theatre
a) built on a slope in the Greek style
b) seating 3500 people
c) west end of North Stoa
8) tunnel
a) leading to treatment room
b) going diagonally, starting somewhere at the centre of the square
II.
Sardis
A. gymnasion
1. large square palaestra
2. monumental façade at the end of the palaestra restored (west end)
3. pool behind the façade
4. dedication
a. Empress Julia Domna (wife of Septimus Severus)
b. to their sons
1) Caracalla
2) Geta: in 211-212 AD his name is erased, because he was murdered
(Publius, part of his name still remains)
B. synagogue: the largest in the ancient world
1. south side of the palaestra
2. a long basilical edifice
3. entrance hall at the back
4. long hall
a. altar opposite the entrance
b. floors: decorated w. mosaics
c. walls: decorated w. opus settile (piece work, done by different shaped
geometric pieces)
III. Ephesus: general plan and important buildings
A. along the cardo
1. Vedius gymnasion
2. stadion
3. harbour gymnasion and baths
4. theatre gymnasion
5. theatre
6. Temple of Serapis
8. Celsus Library
a. erected 110 AD
b. by Consul Gaius Julius Aquila
c. as a Heroon
d. for his father Gaius Julius Celsus Polemaenus Aquila (buried in a
lead casket within a marble sarcophagus in a niche)
e. architectural aspects
1) monumental façade restored (was in relatively good shape after the
reading room burned in antiquity)
2) second storey as a balcony in the reading room
3) books and scrolls kept in niches
28
4) wall on either side of the entrance: cuts the noise from the busy street
5) a pool made in front of the library, after the destruction of the reading
room (about) 400 AD) (beautiful façade would reflect in the pool)
B. along the Decumanus maximus
1. Scholastica baths
2. Hadrian’s Temple
a. Corinthian order
b. Hadrian Period: 117-138 AD
3. a rich house known as “the House on the Slope”
a. built on five terraces
b. each terrace a storey
c. used for many generations
4. Trajan’s fountain (Trajan Period 98-117 AD)
a. originally a colossal statue of Trajan stood in the middle of the façade
b. now only the base, the feet and a globe remains
5. Prythaneion: the town hall of autonomous Ephesos
6. State Agora
7. Odeion
8. private baths
9. East Gymnasion
10.Magnesian Gate
IV. Miletus: original name Millawanda (in Hittite times, 2nd millennium BC),
home town of Hippodamos, the architect who finally perfected the
regular city building in grill plan
A. main harbour area
1. Roman baths to the east of the harbour
2. to opotropaic lions protecting the harbour entrance
3. Harbour Monuments
a. large Harbour Monument
1) three stepped round base
2) inscription: prob. erected in honour of Augustus on the occasion
of the victory of Actium, 31 BC
3) some reliefs of tritons (minor sea gods) still lying around
4) concave triangular base
5) ship form
6) trophy at the top
b. small Harbour Monument
1) portion of the base remains
2) concave, three sided monument
3) second half of 1st century AD (Flavian Dyn.)
4) modelled after the large one
4. synagogue
a. behind the harbour monuments, southwest of harbour
b. basilical form (central nave and two aisles on either side)
29
B.
5. Harbour Stoa: south of the harbour
6. small market place
a. enlarged in Hellenistic and Roman times
b. surrounded by shops
c. behind the Harbour Stoa
7. North Agora
a. behind the Harbour Stoa
b. enlarged in Hellenistic and Roman times
8. Harbour Gateway: southeast of harbour
9. Delphinion: southeast of harbour
10. Processional Road
11. Capito baths and gymnasion
12. Temple of Asclepius (?) and sanctuary of imperial cult (?)
13. Bouleuterion: erected 175-164 BC (Hellenistic)
a. propylon
b. colonnaded courtyard
c. roofed auditorium (seating up to 1500)
14. Nymphaion
a. opposite the Bouleuterion
b. 2nd century AD
c. monumental three storeyed building
d. rich architectural decoration
15. North Gate
16. South Agora
a. enormous courtyard
b. erected in Hellenistic times, enlarged in Roman times
17. storage building: to the west of the South Agora
18. Heroon
19. Serapis Temple
20. Faustina Baths
a. erected by Faustina II; wife of Emp. Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD)
b. well preserved/mainly Corinthian order
c. does not conform to the Hippodamian plan
d. statues of muses in niches (now in the Museum)
e. statues of river god and lion in their original positions in the
three-roomed frigidarium
Area around the second harbour
1. theatre: to the northeast
a. Hellenistic (four phases)
b. enlarged in Roman times (seating cap. 15.000)
2. stadion: south of harbour
a. 150 BC (Hellenistic)
b. altered in Roman times
c. gates in east and west
3. West Agora
4. Temple of Athena
30
V.
Aspendus: ancient name Estwediya (derived fr. the name of King Asitawada/Late
Hittite, 8th cent. BC)
A. remains of the city: all Roman, no trace of earlier remains found so far
B. theatre
1. the building
a. entirely built on barrel-vaulted substructures
b. also rests partly on a hillside (conforming to old Greek tradition)
c. paradoi (side entrances)
1) not diagonal but parallel to the auditorium in the Roman fashion
2) roofed, also a Roman aspect
d. one horizontal diazoma at the cavea
e. colonnaded arcade at the top of the cavea, Roman aspect
f. stage building
1) scaenae frons (façade)
a) in very good condition
b) cutting the theatre completely from the outside world
c) five doors giving entrance to the proscenium
2) proscenium: platform in front of the façade where the performance
takes place
2. designed by architect Zeno, son of Theodorus
a. inscription giving the information
b. during the reign of Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD)
c. dedicated by two brothers (Greek and Latin inscr.)
1) Curtius Crispinus / “to the gods of the country and to
2) Curtius Auspicatus / the imperial house”
VI. Side
A. important architectural features of the city
1. outer city
a. main gate: the East Wall
b. city fountain/Nymphaion
1) outside the main gate
2) Antonine Period (138-192 AD)
3) large basin and three tiered façade behind it
a) lower tier w. three niches and spouts in good condition
b) statues and reliefs found now in the museum
c. colonnaded street
d. baths near the agora (now a museum)
e. Agora: 2nd cent. AD
1) monumental entrance
2) large square area
3) surrounded by colonnades and shops
4) now only the foundation walls remaining
5) round temple remains at the centre (Tyche: (Fortuna) the city
goddess)
6) public lavatory in the northwest corner
31
B.
f. theatre: mid 2nd cent. AD
1) built on barrel vaulted substructures (Roman)
2) cavea and orchestra exceeding a semicircle (in the Greek tradition)
3) arcades outside: two-tiered, superimposed
4) stage building
a) skene: three-tiered w. niches, columns, statues and reliefs
b) proscenium: above the level of the orchestra
g. monumental gate: between the theatre and the baths
1) arched
2) giving access to the inner city
2. inner city
a. Dionysus Temple: next to the theatre
b. colonnaded street continuing fr. the monumental gate until the harbour
c. harbour baths
/
d. Temple of Apollo
/ all near
e. Temple of Athena
/ the harbour
f. Temple of Men (the Anatolian Moon God) /
waterworks
1. water supply comes mostly fr. the mountains
2. conveyance of water
a. outside the city
1) natural beds and canals carved into rocks on mountains
2) in the plains
a) tunnels
b) open canals
c) aqueducts
d) bridges on naturally flowing rivers (Nadas Bridge: in its Seljuk
and Ottoman form, still in use)
b. within the city
1) hole in the city wall for the entrance of the pipe: east wall, to the north
2) aqueduct
a) running somewhat parallel to the north wall
b) restored by a wealthy citizen: 3rd cent. AD
- Lollianos Bryonianos
- Quirinia Patra (wife)