List of Ancient Greek temples
Encyclopedia
This list of Ancient Greek temples covers temples built by the Hellenic people from the 6th century BC until the 2nd century AD on mainland Greece and in Hellenic towns in the Aegean Islands, Asia Minor, Sicily and Italy, wherever there were Greek colonies, and the establishment of Greek culture. Ancient Greek architecture was of very regular form, the construction being "post and lintel
Post and lintel
Post and lintel, or in contemporary usage Post and beam, is a simple construction method using a lintel, header, or architrave as the horizontal member over a building void supported at its ends by two vertical columns, pillars, or posts...

". There are three clearly defined styles: the Doric Order
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...

, found throughout Greece, Sicily and Italy; the Ionic Order
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...

, from Asia Minor, with examples in Greece; and the more ornate Corinthian Order
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...

, used initially only for interiors, become more widely used during the Hellenistic period from the 1st century BC onwards and used extensively by Roman architects.

Each Ancient Greek temple  was dedicated to specific a specific god within the pantheon
Pantheon (gods)
A pantheon is a set of all the gods of a particular polytheistic religion or mythology.Max Weber's 1922 opus, Economy and Society discusses the link between a...

 and was used in part as a storehouse for votive offerings. Unlike a church, the interior space was not used as a meeting place, but held trophies and a large cult statue of the deity.
Note: Precise measurements are not available for all buildings. Some have foundations that are intact and have been well surveyed so that the dimensions can be stated with accuracy. For others the size can only be estimated from scant remains. In these cases, in converting, measurements are stated to the nearest whole number. Some measurements may have been made originally in feet, converted to metres for publication, and converted back to feet for this article, with slight differences from some older publication.

Greece, Asia Minor, Sicily and Italy

Image Name Location Date Dimensions Notes
(sort by Classical Order)
Temple of Hera
Greece:
Olympia 
37.63877°N 21.62969°W
510
c. 590 BC
18.75m x 50.01m
(61'6" ins x 164')
1
Doric peripteral hexastyle building with 16 columns at each side, being long for its breadth in the Archaic style of this date. The building was originally of wood and clay brick construction on a stone base, with the wooden external columns and internal hypostyle
Hypostyle
In architecture, a hypostyle hall has a roof which is supported by columns, as in the Great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak. The word hypostyle comes from the Ancient Greek hypóstȳlos meaning "under columns"...

 columns being replaced with stone piecemeal, so columns are greatly varied.
The Temple of Apollo
Ancient Corinth
Corinth, or Korinth was a city-state on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece, roughly halfway between Athens and Sparta. The modern town of Corinth is located approximately northeast of the ancient ruins...

Greece:
Corinth
Corinth
Corinth is a city and former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Corinth, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit...


37.90604°N 22.87916°W
560
c. 540 BC
21.36m x 53.30m
(70' x 174'10")
1
Doric peripteral hexastyle temple with 15 columns at each side with two inner chambers on a crepidoma
Crepidoma
Crepidoma is an architectural term related to ancient Greek buildings. The crepidoma is the platform of, usually, three levels upon which the superstructure of the building is erected. The levels typically decrease in size incrementally, forming a series of steps along all or some sides of the...

 of 3 steps. It was like the Temple of Hera at Olympia, but built entirely of stone. The columns were monolith
Monolith
A monolith is a geological feature such as a mountain, consisting of a single massive stone or rock, or a single piece of rock placed as, or within, a monument...

ic with seven of the original 38 surviving. The broad capitals were carved as separate pieces and coated with marble stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...

.
The Temple of Apollo
Greece:
Delphi
Delphi
Delphi is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis.In Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god...


38.48241°N 22.50145°W
590
c. 510 BC
23.82m x 60.32m
(78' 2" x 197' 11")
1
Doric temple on the side of Mount Parnassus
Mount Parnassus
Mount Parnassus, also Parnassos , is a mountain of limestone in central Greece that towers above Delphi, north of the Gulf of Corinth, and offers scenic views of the surrounding olive groves and countryside. According to Greek mythology, this mountain was sacred to Apollo and the Corycian nymphs,...

, had its legendary origins with the mythical hero architects Trophonius
Trophonius
Trophonius or Trophonios was a Greek hero or daimon or god - it was never certain which one - with a rich mythological tradition and an oracular cult at Lebadaea in Boeotia....

 and Agamedes
Agamedes
In Greek mythology, Agamedes was a son of Erginus . He was father of Cercyon by Epicaste, who also brought to him a stepson, Trophonius, who was by some believed to be a son of Apollo. According to others, Agamedes was a son of Apollo and Epicaste, or of Zeus and Iocaste, and father of Trophonius...

. This, the third temple on the site (330 BC), is by Spintharus
Spintharus
The spider genus Spintharus occurs from the northeastern USA to Brazil, with one species found in Pakistan.It is very similar to the genus Thwaitesia, and both are similar to Episinus. Unlike Argyrodes, they have two setae in place of a colulus.Specimens of S. flavidus are variable in structure...

, Xenodoros and Agathon
Agathon
Agathon was an Athenian tragic poet whose works, up to the present moment, have been lost. He is best known for his appearance in Plato's Symposium, which describes the banquet given to celebrate his obtaining a prize for his first tragedy at the Lenaia in . He is also a prominent character in...

. with sculpture by Praias and Androsthenes, retained a hexastyle form with 15 columns at the sides from an earlier building, and was constructed of porous limestone. Little of the temple remains beyond its foundations.
The Temple of Aphaia
Greece:
Aegina
Aegina
Aegina is one of the Saronic Islands of Greece in the Saronic Gulf, from Athens. Tradition derives the name from Aegina, the mother of Aeacus, who was born in and ruled the island. During ancient times, Aegina was a rival to Athens, the great sea power of the era.-Municipality:The municipality...


37.75448°N 23.53306°W
610
c. 490 BC
15.5m x 30.5m
(50' 10" x 100')
1
Doric temple which commands a high point on the east side of the island of Aegina, 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) from Athens. It has a peripteral hexastyle  plan with 12 columns along each side, showing the development towards temples that were shorter for their width. The interior has a hypostyle
Hypostyle
In architecture, a hypostyle hall has a roof which is supported by columns, as in the Great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak. The word hypostyle comes from the Ancient Greek hypóstȳlos meaning "under columns"...

 in two stages. The Doric Order demonstrates great refinement throughout. Ceramic roof ornaments and pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...

al sculpture showing the battle before Troy
Troy
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...

 have survived. No metope
Metope
"Metope" might refer to the following:*metope , the space between two triglyphs of a Doric frieze*Metope , a river nymph in Greek mythology*Metope , electronic music producer Michael Schwanen...

s have been found, and it is thought that they were of wood.
The Temple of Zeus
Greece:
Olympia
37.63786°N 21.63010°W
640
c. 460 BC
27.43m x 64m
(90' x 210')
1
Doric, architect: Libon
Libon
Libon was a 5th century BC Greek architect. Born in Elis, he built the Doric temple to Zeus at Olympia in about 460 BC. Libon, through his work on the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, is said to have inspired the technique and design of the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis - though this was obviously...

 of Elis. A refined peripteral hexastyle temple with 13 columns along each side, in the Classical manner. It had pedimental sculpture of "outstanding magnificence". The local limestone was covered with stucco, while the sculpture, tiles and gutters were marble with bronze acroteria. From 448 BC it housed a colossal chryselephantine
Chryselephantine
Chryselephantine is a term that refers to the sculptural medium of gold and ivory...

 statue of Zeus
Zeus
In the ancient Greek religion, Zeus was the "Father of Gods and men" who ruled the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father ruled the family. He was the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. His Roman counterpart is Jupiter and his Etruscan counterpart is Tinia.Zeus was the child of Cronus...

 12 metres (40 feet) high by Pheidias.
The Temple on the Ilissus
Greece:
Athens
37.96835°N 23.73305°W
661
449 BC
approx 6m x 12.8m
(20' x 42')
2
A small Ionic temple, architect: Callicrates, beside the Ilissus River which ran through Athens.(Pic: only a small part of the stream is now visible. No photo of temple available) It was amphi-prostyle tetrastyle. It differed from the small temples and treasuries by builders from Asia Minor in having a frieze around the entablature.
The Temple of Hephaestos
Greece:
Athens
37.97556°N 23.72145°W
661
449 BC - 444 BC
13.72m x 31.77m
(45' x 104'3")
1
Also known as the Theseion, a Doric peripteral hexastyle building with 13 columns at each side. It is well preserved externally, having been modified at the eastern end to serve as an Orthodox church. It has internal friezes over the porches at either end and has retained much of the original marble coffering over the ambulatory, some with original colourful paint.
The Temple of
Apollo Epicurius
Greece:
Bassae
Bassae
Bassae or Bassai, Vassai or Vasses , meaning "little vale in the rocks", is an archaeological site in the northeastern part of Messinia Prefecture that was a part of Arcadia in ancient times. Bassae lies near the village of Skliros, northeast of Figaleia, south of Andritsaina and west of Megalopolis...


37.42972°N 21.90028°W
650
c. 450 BC - 425 BC
14.6m x 38.3m
(48'2.5" x 125'7")
1
The architect, Ictinus, introduced the use of all three orders within a single building and orientated the building north south instead of east west. While the ends appear a regular hexastyle temple, it is very long for its width, about 2.3:1 The interior had many unusual features including Ionic capitals of unique design, a central Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...

 column and an asymmetrically placed statue of Apollo, lit by a side door facing the morning sun.
The Parthenon
Greece:
Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...


37.97146°N 23.72667°W
663
447 BC - 432 BC
30.86m x 69.5m
(101' 4" x 228')
1
A temple of the Doric Order commanding the Acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis means "high city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as Citadel . For purposes of defense, early people naturally chose elevated ground to build a new settlement, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...

 of Athens. The most renowned of Greek temples and one of the most influential buildings in the world of architecture. Built for Pericles
Pericles
Pericles was a prominent and influential statesman, orator, and general of Athens during the city's Golden Age—specifically, the time between the Persian and Peloponnesian wars...

 by Ictinus and Callicrates and ornamented with sculpture under the direction of Pheidias. A peripetral octastyle plan, with a ratio of about 4:9. The hypostyle
Hypostyle
In architecture, a hypostyle hall has a roof which is supported by columns, as in the Great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak. The word hypostyle comes from the Ancient Greek hypóstȳlos meaning "under columns"...

 naos contained a colossal statue of Athena
Athena
In Greek mythology, Athena, Athenê, or Athene , also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene , is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, warfare, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, justice, and skill. Minerva, Athena's Roman incarnation, embodies similar attributes. Athena is...

. A second chamber, the parthenon or "virgins' chamber" was supported on four tall Ionic columns. While the High Classical sculpture of the exterior is contained by pediment and metope
Metope
"Metope" might refer to the following:*metope , the space between two triglyphs of a Doric frieze*Metope , a river nymph in Greek mythology*Metope , electronic music producer Michael Schwanen...

 in the Doric style, a frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...

 encircles the exterior wall of the naos in the Ionic manner. The temple remained relatively intact until the 18th century, from when it suffered several incidents of serious damage. Much of its sculptured ornament is in the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...

.
The Temple of Poseidon
Greece:
Sounion
Sounion
Cape Sounion is a promontory located SSE of Athens, at the southernmost tip of the Attica peninsula in Greece.Cape Sounion is noted as the site of ruins of an ancient...


37.65023°N 24.02445°W
666
444 BC - 440 BC
13.47m x 31.12m
(44.' 2" x 102')
1
Doric peripteral hexastyle building, with attenuated columns (6.12m) and the perfected Classical proportion of being just slightly longer than twice its width and representing, with the Parthenon
Parthenon
The Parthenon is a temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their virgin patron. Its construction began in 447 BC when the Athenian Empire was at the height of its power. It was completed in 438 BC, although...

 and the Temple of Poseidon at Paestum, the ultimate refinement of the Doric Order. Remnants of its frieze depicting the story of Theseus
Theseus
For other uses, see Theseus Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, both of whom Aethra had slept with in one night. Theseus was a founder-hero, like Perseus, Cadmus, or Heracles, all of whom battled and overcame foes that were...

 and the Battle of Lapiths and Centaurs survive.
The Temple of Nemesis
Rhamnous
The site of Rhamnous , the remote northernmost deme of Attica, lies 39 km NE of Athens and 12.4 km NNE of Marathon, Greece overlooking the Euboean Strait. Rhamnous was strategically significant enough to be fortified and receive an Athenian garrison of ephebes...

Greece:
Rhamnous
Rhamnous
The site of Rhamnous , the remote northernmost deme of Attica, lies 39 km NE of Athens and 12.4 km NNE of Marathon, Greece overlooking the Euboean Strait. Rhamnous was strategically significant enough to be fortified and receive an Athenian garrison of ephebes...


38.21760°N 24.02689°W
674
436 BC - 432 BC
10.05m x 21.4m
(33' x 70')
1
Doric hexastyle temple with 12 columns on the sides, with the columns left unfluted and the stylobate unfinished.
The Temple of
Athena Nike
Greece:
Athens
37.97152°N 23.72514°W
683
427 BC
approx. 5.5m x 8m
(18' x 27')
2
Ionic temple also called "Nike Apteros" (Victory without wings), architect: Callicrates. A small amphi-prostyle tetrastyle temple, which was built close to the Propylaea
Propylaea
A Propylaea, Propylea or Propylaia is any monumental gateway based on the original Propylaea that serves as the entrance to the Acropolis in Athens...

 on the Acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis means "high city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as Citadel . For purposes of defense, early people naturally chose elevated ground to build a new settlement, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...

. The temple was demolished in 1687 and the stone reused for Turkish fortifications, but were recovered and the temple reassembled in 1836.
The Erechtheion
Erechtheum
The Erechtheion is an ancient Greek temple on the north side of the Acropolis of Athens in Greece.-Architecture:The temple as seen today was built between 421 and 406 BC. Its architect may have been Mnesicles, and it derived its name from a shrine dedicated to the legendary Greek hero Erichthonius...

Greece:
Athens
37.97206°N 23.72652°W
689
421 BC - 405 BC
approx. 11.5m x 22.85m
(38' x 75')
2
Ionic temple on the Acropolis of Athens
Acropolis of Athens
The Acropolis of Athens or Citadel of Athens is the best known acropolis in the world. Although there are many other acropoleis in Greece, the significance of the Acropolis of Athens is such that it is commonly known as The Acropolis without qualification...

 dedicated to Athena Polias, defender of the city; Erechtheus
Erechtheus
Erechtheus in Greek mythology was the name of an archaic king of Athens, the re-founder of the polis and a double at Athens for Poseidon, as "Poseidon Erechtheus"...

  and Poseidon
Poseidon
Poseidon was the god of the sea, and, as "Earth-Shaker," of the earthquakes in Greek mythology. The name of the sea-god Nethuns in Etruscan was adopted in Latin for Neptune in Roman mythology: both were sea gods analogous to Poseidon...

. Architect: Mnesicles.The building is highly irregular, as there are encroaching sacred sites on two sides, and the ground falls away steeply. The main part is a amphi-prostyle hexastyle building with its portico to the east and encircled by a frieze of black limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 previously adorned with marble figures. There are three chambers, the larger dedicated to Athena and accessed by the eastern portico. The north porch is tetrastyle two bays deep and contains a large doorway in a good state of preservation. The southern porch has six caryatid
Caryatid
A caryatid is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural support taking the place of a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on her head. The Greek term karyatides literally means "maidens of Karyai", an ancient town of Peloponnese...

s (7ft 9 ins high) supporting the entablature.
The Tholos of Athena
Delphi
Delphi is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis.In Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god...

Greece:
Delphi
Delphi
Delphi is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis.In Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god...


38.48016°N 22.50803°W
699
c. 400 BC
diameter: 14.76m
(48' 5")
3
A circular temple or treasury built by Theodorus of Phocaea
Phocaea
Phocaea, or Phokaia, was an ancient Ionian Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia. Greek colonists from Phocaea founded the colony of Massalia in 600 BC, Emporion in 575 BC and Elea in 540 BC.-Geography:Phocaea was the northernmost...

  which established the pattern of circular temples. An early example of a Doric exterior with a Corinthian interior. The exterior and interior had 20 and 10 columns respectively.
The Temple of Asclepius
Greece:
Epidauros
37.59850°N 23.07433°W
720
c. 380 BC
3,440
approx. 80m x 43m
(approx 260' x 140')
1
Doric hexastyle building with 11 columns on the sides, architect: Theodotus. It had pedimental sculpture by Timotheos
Timotheos
Timotheus was a Greek sculptor of the 4th century BC, one of the rivals and contemporaries of Scopas of Paros, among the sculptors who worked for their own fame on the construction of the grave of Mausolus at Halicarnassus between 353 and 350 BC. He was apparently the leading sculptor at the...

, including acroteria
Acroterion
An acroterion or acroterium is an architectural ornament placed on a flat base called the acroter or plinth, and mounted at the apex of the pediment of a building in the Classical style. It may also be placed at the outer angles of the pediment; such acroteria are referred to as acroteria angularia...

 in the form of small statues. The expense accounts for the construction of this temple have survived.(Picture: The ruins of the temple's foundations are in the foreground. The columns are part of the Stoa of the Sick and mark an area dedicated to Asclepius.)
The Tholos of Polycleitus
Greece:
Epidauros
37.59835°N 23.07398°W
750
c. 350 BC
diameter: 21.95m
(72')
1
A circular temple or treasury, surrounded by twenty six columns of the Doric Order
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...

 and having 14 internal Corinthian columns.
The Philippeion
Philippeion
The Philippeion in the Altis of Olympia was an Ionic circular memorial of ivory and gold, which contained statues of Philip's family, Alexander the Great, Olympias, Amyntas III and Eurydice I. It was made by the Athenian sculptor Leochares in celebration of Philip's victory at the battle of Chaeronea...

Greece:
Olympia
37.63863°N 21.62916°W
771
339 BC

(52' 6)
2
Ionic tholos
Tholos
Τholos is the name given to several Ancient Greek structures and buildings:**The Tholos at Athens was the building which housed the Prytaneion, or seat of government, in ancient Athens...

, with 18 external Ionic columns and 9 internal Corinthian columns, architect: Leochares
Leochares
Leochares was a Greek sculptor from Athens, who lived in the 4th century BC.-Works:Leochares worked at the construction of the Mausoleum of Maussollos at Halicarnassus, one of the "Seven Wonders of the Ancient World". The Diana of Versailles is a Roman copy of his original...

  It was built as a memorial to Philip II of Macedon and his family.
The Delian Temple
of Apollo
Greece
Delos
Delos
The island of Delos , isolated in the centre of the roughly circular ring of islands called the Cyclades, near Mykonos, is one of the most important mythological, historical and archaeological sites in Greece...


37.40058°N 25.26708°W
630
470 BC - c. 300 BC
approx. 13m x 30m
(42' 6" x 98' 6")
1
Doric peripteral hexastyle building with 13 columns on the sides. . With other temple buildings inside the sanctuary at Delos. It's completion was delayed. The whole site is in a ruinous state and little of the temple remains except the outer part of the crepidoma
Crepidoma
Crepidoma is an architectural term related to ancient Greek buildings. The crepidoma is the platform of, usually, three levels upon which the superstructure of the building is erected. The levels typically decrease in size incrementally, forming a series of steps along all or some sides of the...

.
The Temple of Apollo
Sicily:
Syracuse
Syracuse, Italy
Syracuse is a historic city in Sicily, the capital of the province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace of the preeminent mathematician and engineer Archimedes. This 2,700-year-old city played a key role in...


37.06394°N 15.29297°W
545
565 BC
21.57m x 55.33m
( 70' 8" x 181' 6")
Doric peripteral hexastyle building with 17 columns down each side and an additional row of columns at the eastern end. The columns at the sides are very close together.
The Temple of
the Olympian Zeus
Greece:
Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...


37.96934°N 23.73310°W
936
174 BC - AD 132
44.35m x 110.5m
(145' 6" x 362' 6")
A huge Corinthian temple, architect: Cossutius. Built as a gift to Athens by Antiochus Epiphanes and constructed in 3 stages. It was dipteral octastyle and was long for its width in the style off the much earlier Archaic period. It had 20 columns on each side and a triple row at the porticos, 104 columns, (diameter: 1.9 metres diameter, height: 17 metres high)(6 ft 4 ins; 56 ft). Some of the columns were shipped to Rome before the temple was complete and used for the Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus  where they had a profound affect on Roman architecture. It was completed and dedicated by Hadrian
Hadrian
Hadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...

, more than 300 years after it began. Only 15 columns remain.
Selinunte Temple “C”
Selinunte
Selinunte is an ancient Greek archaeological site on the south coast of Sicily, southern Italy, between the valleys of the rivers Belice and Modione in the province of Trapani. The archaeological site contains five temples centered on an acropolis...

Sicily:
Selinunte
Selinunte
Selinunte is an ancient Greek archaeological site on the south coast of Sicily, southern Italy, between the valleys of the rivers Belice and Modione in the province of Trapani. The archaeological site contains five temples centered on an acropolis...


37.58316°N 12.82528°W
550
c. 550 BC
23.93m x 63.76m
(78' 6" x 209')
One of a group of Doric temples on the Acropolis or "western group" at Selinunte. (distant view) It has similarities to the Temple of Apollo at Syracuse. It is a peripteral hexastyle temple with 17 columns at the sides and an additional row of columns at the eastern end. Like other temples at this location it had a second room, only accessible from the naos, which was narrow and had no internal columns. The aisles are correspondingly wider. Metope
Metope
"Metope" might refer to the following:*metope , the space between two triglyphs of a Doric frieze*Metope , a river nymph in Greek mythology*Metope , electronic music producer Michael Schwanen...

s from this temple showing Archaic sculpture of the Labours of Hercules are in the National Museum, Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...

.
The Temple of Hera I
Paestum
Paestum is the classical Roman name of a major Graeco-Roman city in the Campania region of Italy. It is located in the north of Cilento, near the coast about 85 km SE of Naples in the province of Salerno, and belongs to the commune of Capaccio, officially also named...

Italy:
Paestum
Paestum
Paestum is the classical Roman name of a major Graeco-Roman city in the Campania region of Italy. It is located in the north of Cilento, near the coast about 85 km SE of Naples in the province of Salerno, and belongs to the commune of Capaccio, officially also named...


40.41932°N 15.00536°W
570
c. 530 BC
24.26m x 59.98m
(79' 6" x 196' 9")
One of the earliest Doric temples to have survived substantially intact. Also known as "the Basilica", it is an unusual building with 9 columns across the front, 18 on each side and a row of columns along the centre of the naos; peripteral enneastyle in plan. Its columns have very marked entasis (cigar-shaped) and flattened bulging capitals
The Temple of Hera
Selinunte
Selinunte is an ancient Greek archaeological site on the south coast of Sicily, southern Italy, between the valleys of the rivers Belice and Modione in the province of Trapani. The archaeological site contains five temples centered on an acropolis...

,
(Temple "E")
Sicily:
Selinunte
37.58662°N 12.83480°W
650
5th century BC
25.32m x 67.74m
(83' x 222 3")
The best preserved Doric temple at Selinunte, it is in the eastern group with Temple "F" and Temple "G". It is a peripteral hexastyle temple with 15 columns at each side, wide aisles and a broad flight of steps to the stylobate. . It has a long narrow naos and inner chamber like other temples at Selinunte but has inner porches at both ends in the Greek manner.
Selinunte Temple "F"
Selinunte
Selinunte is an ancient Greek archaeological site on the south coast of Sicily, southern Italy, between the valleys of the rivers Belice and Modione in the province of Trapani. The archaeological site contains five temples centered on an acropolis...

Sicily:
Selinunte
Selinunte
Selinunte is an ancient Greek archaeological site on the south coast of Sicily, southern Italy, between the valleys of the rivers Belice and Modione in the province of Trapani. The archaeological site contains five temples centered on an acropolis...


37.58727°N 12.83492 °W
650
5th century BC
24.23m x 61.83m
(79' 6" x 202' 10")
Doric hexastyle temple with 14 columns at each side. The columns appear to have had a low screen wall running between them. In other ways it strongly resembles Selinunte Temple "C", having wide aisles, a deep colonnaded porch and a long narrow naos with a second chamber. It at the eastern temple site at Selinunte, between Temples "E" and "G". It is in a ruined state.
The Great Temple of Apollo
Selinunte
Selinunte is an ancient Greek archaeological site on the south coast of Sicily, southern Italy, between the valleys of the rivers Belice and Modione in the province of Trapani. The archaeological site contains five temples centered on an acropolis...

, (Temple "G")
Sicily:
Selinunte
37.58819°N 12.83491°W
580
c. 520 BC - 450 BC
50.10m x 110.36m
(164' 4" x 362')
Doric peripteral octastyle temple with 18 columns at the sides, in the eastern group at Selinunte, with Temples "E" and "F". It is the largest temple at this site and was never completed. It is now in a state of total ruin. An ambitious building of distinctive plan, having a stylobate rising in two levels and aisles of sufficient width to suggest that either a second row of columns was intended, or that the builders of Sicily, unlike their mainland Greek counterparts, used the trussed roof. The colonnaded inner porch has side, as well as front columns, so that the temple might be termed "pseudo-dipteral". There was a double row of columns within the cella, rising in two stages, of very much more delicate proportions than the exterior colonnade.
The Temple of Athena
Paestum
Paestum is the classical Roman name of a major Graeco-Roman city in the Campania region of Italy. It is located in the north of Cilento, near the coast about 85 km SE of Naples in the province of Salerno, and belongs to the commune of Capaccio, officially also named...

Italy:
Paestum
40.42451°N 15.00545°W
590
c. 510 BC
478
14.54m 32.88m
(47' 8" x 107' 10")
Also called the Temple of Demeter, a Doric peripteral hexastyle building with thirteen columns at the side, having proportions that were to be established as the Doric ideal in such buildings as the Temple of Poseidon at Sunion. The columns have pronounced entasis
Entasis
In architecture, entasis is the application of a convex curve to a surface for aesthetic purposes. Its best-known use is in certain orders of Classical columns that curve slightly as their diameter is decreased from the bottom upwards. In the Hellenistic period some columns with entasis are...

 and the capitals are large and wide. This temple had a number of Ionic features, including the columns of its inner porch and the moulding that ran between the architrave and typically Doric frieze of triglyph
Triglyph
Triglyph is an architectural term for the vertically channeled tablets of the Doric frieze, so called because of the angular channels in them, two perfect and one divided, the two chamfered angles or hemiglyphs being reckoned as one. The square recessed spaces between the triglyphs on a Doric...

s and metope
Metope
"Metope" might refer to the following:*metope , the space between two triglyphs of a Doric frieze*Metope , a river nymph in Greek mythology*Metope , electronic music producer Michael Schwanen...

s
The Temple of
the Olympian Zeus

>
Sicily:
Agrigento
Agrigento
Agrigento , is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy, and capital of the province of Agrigento. It is renowned as the site of the ancient Greek city of Akragas , one of the leading cities of Magna Graecia during the golden...


37.29082°N 13.58441°W
590
c. 510 BC - 409 BC
52.75m x 110m
(173' x 361')
Doric pseudoperipteral building with seven attached columns (height: approx. 17 metres)(56 ft) across the front with Atlantes
Atlas (architecture)
In the classical European architectural tradition an atlas is a support sculpted in the form of a man, which may take the place of a column, a pier or a pilaster...

 (height: 6 metres)(20 feet) (shown left) between them. The building's coarse exterior stone was coated with marble stucco.
The Temple of Athena
Sicily:
Syracuse
37.05965°N 15.29354°W
620
480 BC
22m x 55m
(72' x 180')
Of Doric hexastyle plan with 14 columns at the sides. Part of the structure is incorporated in Siracusa Cathedral.
The Temple of
Hera Lacinia
Sicily:
Agrigento
37.28860°N 13.60013°W
640
c. 460 BC
16.89m x 38.13m
(52' 6' x 125')
Doric temple built south east of the large ancient city of Agrigento, with the Temple of Concord, the Temple of Zeus Olympias and several others, in an area known as the Valle dei Templi
Valle dei Templi
The Valle dei Templi is an archaeological site in Agrigento , Sicily, southern Italy. It is one of the most outstanding examples of Greater Greece art and architecture, and is one of the main attractions of Sicily as well as a national monument of Italy...

The Temple of Poseidon
Paestum
Paestum is the classical Roman name of a major Graeco-Roman city in the Campania region of Italy. It is located in the north of Cilento, near the coast about 85 km SE of Naples in the province of Salerno, and belongs to the commune of Capaccio, officially also named...

Italy:
Paestum
40.41997°N 15.00530°W
640
c. 460 BC
18.25m x 60.35m
(60' x 198")
Doric, one of the best preserved temples, showing a consolidation of ideas of design that were developing towards an "ideal type" already prevalent in Greece. It is a hexastyle temple with rather stout columns (8.85 metres high)(29 ft) and a hypostyle
Hypostyle
In architecture, a hypostyle hall has a roof which is supported by columns, as in the Great Hypostyle Hall at Karnak. The word hypostyle comes from the Ancient Greek hypóstȳlos meaning "under columns"...

 naos rising in two stages. (also thought to have been dedicated to Hera)
The Temple of Concord
Sicily:
Agrigento
Agrigento
Agrigento , is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy, and capital of the province of Agrigento. It is renowned as the site of the ancient Greek city of Akragas , one of the leading cities of Magna Graecia during the golden...

 
37.28963°N 13.59202°W
679
c. 430 BC
16.92m x 39.42m
(55' 6" x 129' 4")
1
Doric temple (Agrigento "F") is a very well preserved peripteral hexastyle building with 13 columns at each side, in the manner of temples in Greece.
The Temple at Segesta
Sicily:
Segesta
Segesta
Segesta was the political center of the Elymian people, located in the northwestern part of Sicily, in what are now the province of Trapani and the comune of Calatafimi-Segesta....


37.94147°N 12.83239°W
686
c. 424 BC
21m x 56m
(68' 10" x 183' 9")
Doric peripteral hexastyle plan, is unusual in having unfluted columns that stand on square plinths in two stages. It also has no cella walls. These features probably indicate that the building was left incomplete, but it has been suggested that no cella was intended.
The Archaic Temple
of Artemis
Temple of Artemis
The Temple of Artemis , also known less precisely as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to a goddess Greeks identified as Artemis and was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was situated at Ephesus , and was completely rebuilt three times before its eventual destruction...

Asia Minor:
Ephesus
Ephesus
Ephesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a major Roman city, on the west coast of Asia Minor, near present-day Selçuk, Izmir Province, Turkey. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League during the Classical Greek era...


37.94968°N 27.36381°W
549
c. 560 BC,
lost 336 BC
over 50m x 110m
(appx. 170' x 360')
(shown left as a small scale reconstruction) One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
The Seven Wonders of the World refers to remarkable constructions of classical antiquity listed by various authors in guidebooks popular among the ancient Hellenic tourists, particularly in the 1st and 2nd centuries BC...

, was the fourth temple on the site. It was probably a Dipteral octastyle plan, with columns having up to 48 flutes, and a varied design on the Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...

 capitals which were each 3 metres wide (10 ft). The lower part of each column had an encircling frieze of figures and stood on a deeply moulded torus
Torus
In geometry, a torus is a surface of revolution generated by revolving a circle in three dimensional space about an axis coplanar with the circle...

 and, used here for the first time, a square plinth that was to become an accepted feature of Classical architecture. The temple was burnt out in 336 BC and rebuilt.
The Temple of Hera
Asia Minor:
Samos
Samoš
Samoš is a village in Serbia. It is situated in the Kovačica municipality, in the South Banat District, Vojvodina province. The village has a Serb ethnic majority and its population numbering 1,247 people .-See also:...


37.67190°N 26.88556°W
560
c. 540 BC
52.45m x 108.6m
(172' x 356' 3")
Ionic temple, architects: Rhoikos and Theodoros of Samos, of dipteral plan, having two rows of 8 columns at the eastern end and two rows of 9 at the western and 24 columns at each side.. It was built on the site of the earliest very large Ionic temple, destroyed by fire. It was of similar plan, and retained the bases of the earlier temple's columns within its foundations.
The Temple of Artemis
Temple of Artemis
The Temple of Artemis , also known less precisely as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to a goddess Greeks identified as Artemis and was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was situated at Ephesus , and was completely rebuilt three times before its eventual destruction...

Asia Minor:
Ephesus
Ephesus
Ephesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a major Roman city, on the west coast of Asia Minor, near present-day Selçuk, Izmir Province, Turkey. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League during the Classical Greek era...


37.94968°N 27.36381°W
774
c. 336 BC
64.3m x 119.175m
(211' x 391')
Ionic temple, architects: Demetrius
Demetrius of Alopece
Demetrius of Alopece , was a Greek sculptor of the early part of the 4th century BC, who is said by ancient critics to have been notable for the life-like realism of his statues....

 and Paeonius
Paeonius
Paeonius of Mende in Macedonia was a Greek sculptor of the late 5th century BC. The only work that can be definitely attributed to him is the statue of Nike discovered at Olympia...

 of Ephesus; sculptor: Scopas
Scopas
Scopas or Skopas was an Ancient Greek sculptor and architect, born on the island of Paros. Scopas worked with Praxiteles, and he sculpted parts of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, especially the reliefs. He led the building of the new temple of Athena Alea at Tegea...

. Centre of the Pan-Ionian festival. The 5th temple on the site, it was Dipteral octastyle at the front, with the space between the columns increasing towards the central space, where the stone lintel (height: 1.2 metres)(4 ft) spanned over 8.5 metres (28 ft). At the rear, the temple had 9 columns. The temple's stylobate was raised on a high crepidoma
Crepidoma
Crepidoma is an architectural term related to ancient Greek buildings. The crepidoma is the platform of, usually, three levels upon which the superstructure of the building is erected. The levels typically decrease in size incrementally, forming a series of steps along all or some sides of the...

  (height: 2.75 metres)( 9 ft). The Ionic capitals were much less wide than those of the Archaic temple, and the columns had the regular 24 flutes. A feature which appears to have been introduced at this temple was the cubic pedestal between the column and its square plinth. The entablature, like others of Asia Minor, had no frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...

.
The Temple of
Athena Polias
Priene
Priene was an ancient Greek city of Ionia at the base of an escarpment of Mycale, about north of the then course of the Maeander River, from today's Aydin, from today's Söke and from ancient Miletus...

Asia Minor:
Priene
Priene
Priene was an ancient Greek city of Ionia at the base of an escarpment of Mycale, about north of the then course of the Maeander River, from today's Aydin, from today's Söke and from ancient Miletus...


37.65932°N 27.29646°W
776
c. 334 BC
19.5m x 37. 2m>br> (64' x 122')
Ionic temple, architect: Pythius of Priene, of peripteral hexastyle temple, with ratio approximately 1:2. The columns (height: 11.45)(37 ft 6 ins) rest on plinths. Like many other Ionic temples of Asia Minor, there was no frieze.
The Temple of
Artemis – Cybele
Sardis
Sardis or Sardes was an ancient city at the location of modern Sart in Turkey's Manisa Province...

Asia Minor:
Sardis
Sardis
Sardis or Sardes was an ancient city at the location of modern Sart in Turkey's Manisa Province...


38.47921°N 28.03128°W
785
c. 325  BC
48.78m x 91.44m
(160' x 300')
One of the largest Ionic temples. It was dipteral octastyle, with its entrance to the west. It was left unfinished, with further construction around 175 BC and was completed by the Romans. Little remains standing except the foundations, two intact columns and several stumps.
The Temple of
Apollo Didymaeus
Miletus
Miletus was an ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia , near the mouth of the Maeander River in ancient Caria...

Asia Minor:
Miletus
Miletus
Miletus was an ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia , near the mouth of the Maeander River in ancient Caria...


37.38486°N 27.25639°W
797
313 BC – AD 41
45.75m x 109.45m
(150' x 359')
Ionic temple with early Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...

 features, architects: Paeonius
Paeonius
Paeonius of Mende in Macedonia was a Greek sculptor of the late 5th century BC. The only work that can be definitely attributed to him is the statue of Nike discovered at Olympia...

 of Ephesus and Daphnis of Miletus. This dipteral decastyle temple with 21 columns on each side, was not much smaller than the enormous Temple of Artemis at Ephesus. It was under construction for about 250 years but was never completed. The naos was never roofed, but remained a sunken courtyard in which there was a shrine that housed the statue of Apollo. The temple had a door flanked by attached columns with early examples of Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...

 capitals.
The Temple of Dionysus
Teos
Teos or Teo was a maritime city of Ionia, on a peninsula between Chytrium and Myonnesus, colonized by Orchomenian Minyans, Ionians, and Boeotians. The city is situated on a low hilly narrow strip of land connecting two larger areas of land . Teos ranked among twelve cities comprising the Ionian...

Aisa Minor:
Teos
Teos
Teos or Teo was a maritime city of Ionia, on a peninsula between Chytrium and Myonnesus, colonized by Orchomenian Minyans, Ionians, and Boeotians. The city is situated on a low hilly narrow strip of land connecting two larger areas of land . Teos ranked among twelve cities comprising the Ionian...


38.17723°N 26.78502°W
917
193 BC
18.5m x 35m
(61' x 115')
Ionic temple, architect: Hermogenes of Priene
Hermogenes of Priene
Interest in Hermogenes of Priene , the Hellenistic architect of a temple of Artemis Leukophryene at Magnesia in Lydia, an Ionian colony on the banks of the Maeander river in Anatolia, has been sparked by references to his esthetic made by the 1st century Roman architect Vitruvius .Hermogenes'...

, was peripteral hexastyle with 11 columns at the sides. The columns were set on plinths and there was a frieze of Dyonisiac scenes.

See also

  • Ancient Greek architecture
  • Ancient Greek temple
  • List of Greek mythological figures
  • Art in Ancient Greece
    Art in Ancient Greece
    The arts of ancient Greece have exercised an enormous influence on the culture of many countries all over the world, particularly in the areas of sculpture and architecture. In the West, the art of the Roman Empire was largely derived from Greek models...

  • Greek culture
  • List of Greco-Roman roofs
  • List of ancient architectural records
  • Greek technology
  • Greek theatre

Additional references

  • John Boardman
    John Boardman
    Jack Melton Boardman, commonly known as John Boardman, is an American former professor of physics at Brooklyn College.- Academic career :...

    , Greek Art, Thames and Hudson, (1964), ISBN 0 500 18036 9
  • John Boardman, Jose Dorig, Werner Fuchs and Max Hirmer, ‘’The Art and Architecture of Ancient Greece’’, Thames and Hudson, London, (1967)
  • Trewin Copplestone (editor), Lloyd, Rice, Lynton, Boyd, Carden, Rawson, Jacobus, World Architecture: an Illustrated History, Paul Hamlyn, (1968); Seton Lloyd, Chapter 1: Ancient & Classical Architecture
  • William Bell Dinsmoor, William James Anderson, The Architecture of Ancient Greece: an account of its historic development, Biblo and Tannen, (1973) ISBN 0-8196-0283-3
  • Banister Fletcher
    Banister Fletcher
    Sir Banister Flight Fletcher was an English architect and architectural historian, as was his father, also named Banister Fletcher....

    , A History of Architecture on the Comparative method (2001). Elsevier Science & Technology. ISBN 0-7506-2267-9.
  • Helen Gardner
    Helen Gardner (art historian)
    Helen Gardner was an American art historian and educator. Her Art Through the Ages remains a standard text for American art history classes....

    ; Fred S. Kleiner, Christin J. Mamiya, Gardner's Art through the Ages. Thomson Wadsworth, (2004) ISBN 0-15-505090-7.
  • Marian Moffett, Michael Fazio, Lawrence Wodehouse, ‘’A World History of Architecture’’, Lawrence King Publishing, (2003), ISBN 1-85669-353-8.
  • Donald E. Strong, ‘’The Classical World’’, Paul Hamlyn, London (1965) ISBN 9780600023029
  • Henri Stierlin, Greece: From Mycenae to the Parthenon, Taschen
    Taschen
    Taschen is an art book publisher founded in 1980 by Benedikt Taschen in Cologne, Germany. It began as Taschen Comics publishing Benedikt's extensive comic collection...

    , (2004), ISBN 9783822812266
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