European Architecture

Temple of Apollo

Side, Asia Minor (Turkey)

2nd century CE

The Temple of Apollo is a hexastyle Corinthian temple in Side, Turkey. It originally had 6 front columns and 11 side ones. 5 of its columns were re erected in modern times.  What made it different from other temples of that era, is its antechamber which had a pair of massive Corinthian columns. It is believed to be the place where Anthony met Cleopatra; he presented the Apollo Temple as a token of his love and devotion to her.

From an architectural point of view, this temple was a peripteros i.e. it was surrounded by a colonnade on all four sides of the inner chamber (called cella or naos). In the case of the temple of Apollo this colonnade was executed in the Corinthian order. Each longer side of the building was originally adorned with 11 columns and both shorter sides were decorated with 6 columns.

The stylobate of Apollo’s temple, that is the top step of the platform on which colonnades of temple columns were placed, has the dimensions of about 16 meters (52 feet) by 30 meters (98 feet). Five columns that are currently standing were re-erected as part of the reconstruction work carried out in the 80s of the 20th century under the supervision of Professor Jale İnan. The frieze placed above them depicts the heads of Medusa - a mythological monster that had the face of a human female with living venomous snakes in place of hair.

The two main deities of Side in Roman era were Apollo and Athena. One of the two temples built in Side during the period known as the Roman Peace is the Temple of Apollo. Apollo is known as the god of music, poetry, sun, and light in Roman mythology. The other temple constructed in this period is the Athena Temple built in the honor of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and skill. These two temples lie close to each other on the tip of Side peninsula.

It is believed to be the place where Anthony met Cleopatra; he presented the Apollo Temple as a token of his love and devotion to her. (according to a local legend, and not backed by any account)

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Forte de Nossa Senhora da Graça, Elvas, Portugal

🏰 McDermott’s Castle is a National Monument located in County Roscommon, Ireland. The historic seat of the McDermott clan.

McDermott’s Castle is located on Castle Island, an island of 0.23 ha (0.57 ac) in the southeast corner of Lough Key.

The McDermott clan were the ruling dynasty in this area from the 10th to the 16th century and a castle has stood on the island since the 12th century. The McDermotts lost the island in 1586 and the current castle is a folly built in the late 1700s by the King family who owned the land at the time. It was built as a summer house and burned down during the Second World War.

- - 🏰 Замок МакДермотт - национальный памятник, расположенный в графстве Роскоммон, Ирландия.

Замок находится на острове, площадью 0,23 га (0,57 акра) в юго-восточной части озера Лох-Ки.

Клан МакДермотт был правящей династией в этой области с X по XVI век, а замок стоит на острове с XII века. МакДермотт потерял остров в 1586 году, а нынешний замок - безумие, построенное в конце 1700-х годов семьей Кинга, которая в то время владела землей. Он был построен как летний дом и сгорел во время Второй мировой войны.

#McDermott #castle

Design for a grand vestibule and staircase for a private residence, Paris

Zamek Moszna skrzydło wschodnie (między 1896 a 1900) foto z dnia 8 września 2012

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Moszna Castle, Poland the eastern wing (between 1896 and 1900) taken on 8 September 2012

© lugwig fuchsik - residential and commercial building - vienna, austria - 1895

Porta Nigra 

Trier, Germany

200 CE

The Porta Nigra was built in grey sandstone between 186 and 200 CE. The original gate consisted of two four-storied towers, projecting as near semicircles on the outer side. A narrow courtyard separated the two gate openings on either side. For unknown reasons, however, the construction of the gate remained unfinished. For example, the stones at the northern (outer) side of the gate were never abraded, and the protruding stones would have made it impossible to install movable gates. Nonetheless, the gate was used for several centuries until the end of the Roman era in Trier. It serves as an entrance to town.

In Roman times, the Porta Nigra was part of a system of four city gates, one of which stood at each side of the roughly rectangular Roman city. The Porta Nigra guarded the northern entry to the Roman city, while the Porta Alba (White Gate) was built in the east, the Porta Media (Middle Gate) in the south, and the Porta Inclyta (Famous Gate) in the west, next to the Roman bridge across the Moselle. The gates stood at the ends of the two main streets of the Roman Trier, one of which led north-south and the other east-west. Of these gates, only the Porta Nigra still exists today.

Cathédrale Saint-Pierre, Geneva, Switzerland, 17.04.15.

Robert & James Adam |  The British Coffee House | Londres, Reino Unido  | 1770

Batalha Monastery, Portugal.