PRE HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE AND EGYPTIAN ARCHITECTURE – VOCABULARY FLASHCARDS

PRE HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE

  • Monolith or Menhir

  • Dolmen or Cromlech

  • Dolmen

  • Tent

  • Rock cave

  • Beehive Hut

  • Beehive Hut (duplicate in source)

  • Stonehenge (example of prehistoric megalithic architecture)

INFLUENCES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF ARCHITECTURE

  • THEORY OF DEVELOPMENT OF ARCHITECTURE (overview of how architecture evolves over time)

  • INFLUENCES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF ARCHITECTURE

    • A. Geographical

    • B. Geological

    • C. Climatic

    • D. Religious

    • E. Social–political

    • F. Historical

PRE HISTORIC STRUCTURES AND CULTURAL STAGES

  • CULTURAL STAGES

    • I. STONE AGE

    • a) Paleolithic (Old Stone Age)

    • b) Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age)

    • c) Neolithic (New Stone Age)

    • II. BRONZE AGE

    • Covered the Minoan Period of Crete & Greek Period

    • III. IRON AGE

    • 25 to 50 years before Julius Caesar

  • CONSTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLES

    • A. POST & LINTEL (Trabeated)

    • B. ARCH & VAULT

    • C. CORBEL OR CANTILEVERED

    • D. TRUSSED

  • CLASSIFICATIONS OF EARLY KNOWN TYPES OF ARCHITECTURE

    • 1. Dwellings

    • 2. Religious Monuments

    • 3. Burial Grounds

FROM THE DWELLINGS STRUCTURES

  • A. ROCK CAVE – Earliest form of dwellings

    • 3 STAGES OF THE EVOLUTION OF CAVE

    • 1. NATURAL CAVE

    • 2. ARTIFICIAL CAVE

    • 3. CAVE Above the Ground

  • B. TENTS AND HUTS – Made from tree barks, animal skins & plant leaves

    • HUTS – usually made up of reeds, brushes and wattles

RELIGIOUS MONUMENTS

  • 2 CLASSIFICATIONS OF RELIGIOUS STRUCTURES

    • A. MONOLITH – isolated single upright stone also known as major standing stones; Menhir

    • Menhir = memorial of victory over one tribe; prototypes of Egyptian pyramids

    • B. MEGALITHIC – several stones used together

    • 1. Dolmen – 2 or more upright stones supporting a horizontal slab

    • 2. Cromlech – 3 or more upright stones capped by an unshaped flat stone

      • Indicates place of religious rites; e.g. found at Lanyon, Cornwall

    • 3. Stone Circle or Stone Row – made up of many upright stones; e.g. Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain

STONEHENGE (detailed note)

  • Concentric rings with key elements:

    • A. Outer ring diameter: 106' (approximately)

    • B. Isolated blue stones (sarsen or bluestone components)

    • C. Innermost circle

    • D. Smaller blue stones within the inner rings

BURIAL MOUNDS AND PROTOTYPICAL PYRAMIDS

  • BURIAL MOUNDS: Tumuli or Barrows – earthen mounds for burials of multiple individuals

    • Prototypes of pyramids in Egypt and of beehive huts

  • PROTOTYPES OF PYRAMIDS (as context for ancient monumental tombs)

    • Step Pyramid

    • Bent or Blunt Pyramid

    • Slope Pyramid

ELEMENTS OF CLASSICAL SUPPORTS

  • 1) BASIC FORMS

    • a) Pier

    • b) Column

    • c) Pilaster

    • d) Pedestal

    • e) Engaged Column

    • f) Baluster

  • 2) SPECIAL FORMS

    • a) Caryatids – draped female figure without hands, bearing a load

    • b) Canephorae – Caryatids with a basket on the head

    • c) Atlas or Atlantes – male figures in kneeling position supporting the world at the shoulders

    • d) Telamon or Telamones – male figures in standing position in place of a column

    • e) Anta Column – pier or pilaster thickened at the end of a wall

  • REPRESENTATIVE FORMS

    • Pier, Pilasters, Column, Engaged Columns, Balusters, Pedestals

  • CLASSICAL ORDERS

    • FROM GREECE

    • 1. Doric order – simplest, earliest, often wooden in origin

    • 2. Ionic order – more sophisticated, lighter than Doric

    • 3. Corinthian order – slender, elegant, most elaborate

    • FROM ROME

    • 4. Composite order – Roman elaboration of Corinthian

    • 5. Tuscan order – simplified Doric with no shaft flutes

  • SUPERCOLUMNATION (SUPERIMPOSITION)

    • Placing one order above another

  • INTERCOLUMNATION

    • The clear space between two adjacent columns

  • ARCADE

    • A line of counterthrusting arches raised on piers

  • ENTASIS

    • A swelling or curving along the shaft to counteract optical illusion of straight lines

  • NOTE ON ENTASIS

    • Counteracts the visual effect that a straight-shaft would appear to bend inward

TWO KINDS OF ENTASIS

  • 1. Single

  • 2. Double

EGYPTIAN ARCHITECTURE (overview)

  • TIME FRAME

    • From 5000 B.C. – 1st Century A.D.

  • A. GEOGRAPHICAL INFLUENCE

    • Egypt is the land of Pharaoh; the Nile is the lifeline and highway; fertile soil is a major wealth

  • B. GEOLOGICAL INFLUENCE

    • BUILDING MATERIALS: soft stones (limestone, sandstone, alabaster); hard stones (granite, quartzite, basalt, porphyry)

    • BRICKS: sun-dried bricks of clay with chopped stone

    • PLANT MATERIALS: date palm for roofing; palm leaves for roofing; acacia for boats; sycamore for mummy cases

  • C. CLIMATIC INFLUENCE

    • Absence of rain leads to no downspouts, gutters; limited windows; heat penetration considerations; sandstorm exposure

  • D. RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE

    • Pyramids built for life after death; preservation of the body; Pharaoh as both king and god; transition from monotheistic theory to polytheistic practice

    • GODS (selected list): Amun-Ra, Ra, Atum, Osiris, Isis, Horus, Set, Thoth, Anubis, Ptah, Serapis

  • E. HISTORICAL INFLUENCE

    • 30 dynasties (from early kingdoms to Roman period); Egypt part of Persian Empire for two centuries; Alexander the Great

    • REGIONS/TIMES OF INTEREST

    • 1. ANCIENT KINGDOM (1st–10th dynasty)

      • Tomb types: Mastaba and Pyramid

    • 2. MIDDLE KINGDOM (11th–17th dynasty)

      • Notable figures: Mentuhotep II (rock-cut tomb), Senusrets (earliest obelisk at Heliopolis), Amenemhat I (Temple of Ammon Kharnak)

    • 3. NEW EMPIRE (18th–30th dynasty)

      • Notable figures: Thutmose I (additions to Ammon Kharnak), Hatshepsut (funerary temple at Der-el-Bahari), Thutmose IV (sphinx clearing), Amenophis III (Colossi of Memnon), Ramesses I (Great Hypostyle Hall at Kharnak), Ramesses II (Hypostyle Hall completion, Abu Simbel temple, Thebes remission/ Thebes)

    • 4. PTOLEMAIC PERIOD

      • Notable figures: Ptolemy II (construction of Pharaohs or the Lighthouse), Ptolemy III (Serapeum at Alexandria)

  • F. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL INFLUENCE

    • MONARCHY – form of government

    • PHARAOH – king, ruler, highest priest; divine status

    • SON OF PHARAOH – typical successor

    • VIZIER – king’s most powerful official

    • CHANCELLOR – controls royal treasuries, granaries, census

    • CHIEF STEWARD – in charge of king's estate and household

  • SOCIAL RANKS

    • 1. Noble families – royal throne and family

    • 2. Soldiers, viziers, chancellors, chief stewards – leadership tier

    • 3. Fishermen, farmers, craftsmen, merchants – ordinary people

    • 4. Slaves – lowest rank

  • G. ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER

    • 1) SIMPLICITY

    • 2) MONUMENTALITY

    • 3) SOLIDITY or MASSIVENESS

  • SYSTEMS OF CONSTRUCTION

    • POST & LINTEL; COLUMNAR or TRABEATED

  • FEATURES OF EGYPTIAN ARCHITECTURE

    • 1. BATTER WALL – base to top inclination on façades

    • 2. HIEROGLYPHICS – used as wall ornamentation

EXAMPLES OF STRUCTURES (EGYPTIAN)

  • TEMPLES (two types)

    • A. MORTUARY temples – for pharaohs

    • B. CULT temples – worship of gods; entry restricted to high priests

  • PARTS OF AN EGYPTIAN TEMPLE

    • 1) Entrance Pylon – massive towers, obelisks at gateways

    • 2) Hypaethral Court – outer court open to sky

    • 3) Hypostyle Hall – roof rests on columns

    • 4) Sanctuary – internal sanctuary and surrounding passages

    • 5) Avenue of Sphinx – line of mythical guardians

  • EXAMPLES OF TEMPLES

    • 1) Great Temple of Abu Simbel – grand façade with four colossal seated statues; Ramesses II

    • 2) Great Temple of Ammon at Karnak – vast complex; originated in Dynasty XII and expanded through Ptolemaic period; described as the grandest Egyptian temple planning

    • 3) Temple of Ammon, Der-el-Bahari

    • 4) Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, Mount Der-el-Bahari

    • 5) Temple of Hathor, Dendera

    • 6) Temple of Horus, Edfu

    • 7) Temple of Isis, Philae

    • 8) Temple of Khons, Karnak

    • 9) Temple of Luxor

    • 10) Temple of Ramesses II (Mamimisi) and Ramesses I at Thebes

    • 11) Temple of Mentuhotep, Thebes

    • 12) Temple of Seti I, Abydos

    • 13) Temple of Ramesses II (Ramesseum), Thebes

  • OBELISKS

    • Monumental pillars, usually in pairs at temple entrances; symbol of Heliopolis; square plan, height often 9–10 times the diameter at base

    • Examples: Cleopatra’s Needle (London), Piazza of St. John Lateran (Rome)

  • SPHINX

    • Mythical creature with body of a lion; head of a human (often with variations such as heiroph sphinx or criosphinx)

    • Example: Great Sphinx at Gizeh near the Cheops pyramid

  • CAPITALS & COLUMNS

    • Bud and Bell Capital

    • Polygonal Columns

    • Palm type capital

    • Hathor Head Capital

    • Volute Capital

    • Osiris Pillars

    • Papyrus Capital

    • Square Pillars

    • Composite Capital

  • MOULDINGS

    • Torus moulding common in Egyptian temples to cover edges

  • ORNAMENTS

    • Lotus, Papyrus, Palm symbols for fertility and life

    • Solar discs and wings for protection

    • Spiral and feather ornament for eternity

    • Scarab (sacred beetle) symbol of resurrection

  • HIEROGLYPICS WITH HATHOR COLUMNS

    • Decorative integration of inscriptions with Hathor columns (visual reference on pages showing these motifs)

SUMMARY NOTES ON LOCATION, FORM, AND SIGNIFICANCE

  • Egyptian architecture is defined by its emphasis on function in relation to rite of passage (death and afterlife), monumental scale, and symbolism expressed through: monuments, tombs, temples, obelisks, sphinxes, and hieroglyphic ornament

  • The Nile shaped geographic and economic planning; stone and brick materials were chosen based on availability and purpose; religious belief dictated monumental building programs across dynasties

  • The evolution from mastaba to pyramids reflects a shift in tomb architecture and religious belief about afterlife and divine kingship

  • Temple complexes evolved into grand precincts with axial alignments, processional routes, and hypostyle halls designed to amplify ritual significance and allow access to deified rulers and deities

  • The Ptolemaic period demonstrates continued monumental building with a blend of native Egyptian and Hellenistic influences

KEY TERMINOLOGY (glossary)

  • Menhir: a single upright standing stone, used as a monument or boundary marker

  • Dolmen: a megalithic tomb formed by two or more vertical stones supporting a horizontal capstone

  • Cromlech: a prehistoric ceremonial circle of standing stones

  • Megalithic: large stone construction; large stones used in monuments

  • Mastaba: a flat-roofed, rectangular tomb with sloping sides, predecessor to pyramids

  • Hypostyle Hall: a hall with a roof supported by columns

  • Pylon: a monumental gateway with sloping sides in Egyptian temples

  • Hypaethral Court: an open courtyard within a temple complex

  • Sarsen/Blue stone: types of stone used in Stonehenge and other megalithic monuments

  • Obelisk: tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument with a pyramidal top

  • Karnak: major temple complex dedicated to Ammon; expanded over many dynasties

  • Abu Simbel: rock-cut temple complex commissioned by Ramesses II

  • Ramesses II, Ramesses I: prominent pharaohs associated with major architectural programs

  • Thutmosis, Hatshepsut, Amenhotep, Tutmosis, Seti I: notable pharaohs linked to temple projects

  • Khafra, Khufu (Cheops), Menkaura (Mykerinos): Great Pyramid builders at Gizeh

  • Lotus, Papyrus, Palm: symbolic motifs used in ornamentation

  • Hieroglyphics: writing system used for temple inscriptions and decoration

REFERENCES TO SPECIFIC DIMENSIONS AND FACTS

  • Great Temple at Abu Simbel entrance: façade with four colossal seated statues; overall scale described as imposing ( Ramesses II)

  • Great Temple of Ammon at Karnak: considered the grandest temple, begun in the early period and expanded through dynastic periods; area and layout described in the source

  • Height of the Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops): approximately 146.4\ \text{m} tall; plan area approximately 750\ \text{m}^2, noted as twice the area of St. Peter’s Basilica for comparison

  • Heights and dimensions for other pyramids (Khafra, Menkaura) provided as historical references: 143.0\ \text{m} and 109.0\ \text{m} respectively

  • Outer ring diameter for Stonehenge: 106\ \text{ft} (approx.)

KEY STRUCTURAL AND DESIGN THEMES

  • The use of post and lintel, vaults, esp. in temple architecture, contrasts with the rock-cut and pillared hall traditions seen in Egypt

  • Optical corrections such as entasis (bulging shaft) demonstrate early awareness of visual perception in architecture

  • The interplay of religious ritual, political power, and monumental construction is central to understanding ancient Egyptian architecture

PRACTICAL TAKEAWAYS FOR EXAM PREP

  • Distinguish between prehistoric structures (monoliths, megaliths, and tomb forms) and classical orders (Doric, Ionic, Corinthian; Roman additions)

  • Recognize the typology of Egyptian architecture: mastabas, pyramids, rock-cut tombs, mortuary and cult temples, and the symbolic program of temple complexes

  • Understand the influence of geography and climate on building materials, methods, and forms in ancient Egypt

  • Recall major temple complexes and notable rulers associated with architectural milestones (Karnak, Abu Simbel, Hatshepsut’s temple, Luxor, Thebes, etc.)

  • Be able to explain the main parts of an Egyptian temple and the typical sequence of interior sacred spaces

  • Identify major decorative and symbolic motifs used in Egyptian architecture (lotus, papyrus, palm, solar disks, scarab, hieroglyphic inscriptions)