Parthenon and Lincoln Memorial free essay sample

As many people know, the architects of many buildings have used a multitude of techniques and methods from ancient architecture to build newer buildings. For example, the Capitol Building uses Greek and Roman architecture in its columns, while the Washington Monument is in the style of an Egyptian Obelisk. One of the monuments, the Lincoln Memorial, is based off the styles and methods of the Architecture of the Parthenon. Because of this, there are many similarities, but also differences, between the Parthenon and the Lincoln Memorial. The architects of the Parthenon were Iktinos, Kallikrates, and Phidias. Although not much is known about Iktinos and Kallikrates, other than that they were partners in designing the Parthenon, Phidias was a very distinguished sculptor and architect at the time. While Iktinos and Kallikrates oversaw the structural aspect of the Parthenon, Phidias oversaw and designed all of the art and the sculpting aspects of the project. Phidias is famous for three monuments to  Athena  on the Athenian Acropolis (the Athena Promachos, the Lemnian Athena, and the colossal Athena Parthenos for the Parthenon) and the colossal seated Zeus for the Temple of Zeus at Olympia† (Britannica). His last major project, the statue of Zeus, is considered one of his greatest masterpieces, along with the Athena Parthenos. After completing the statue of Zeus, Phidias died less than a year later in 430 b. c. More than 2000 years later, architect Henry Bacon toured Europe and was inspired by the buildings he saw in Greece, including those with the art of Phidias such as the Parthenon and the Athena Parthenos. He liked it so much that, â€Å"He decided to incorporate that style into his design for the Lincoln Memorial,† (National Park Service). Henry Bacon lived from 1866 to Adam 2 1924, in which he designed the Lincoln Memorial, his last and most well-known creation. Along with Henry Bacon, another artist who contributed to the Building of the Lincoln Memorial was Daniel Chester French, who sculpted the statue of Lincoln. Born April 20th, 1850, French, before he was a sculptor, was a Lawyer and a Judge, among other occupations. In Ancient Greece, the Greeks widely believed in Gods and Goddesses such as Zeus, Poseidon, Aphrodite, and Athena. The patron Goddess of Athena was Athens, and the Athenians believed that pleasing their patron Goddess would give them good luck and fortune. This may be one of the reasons that Athena Parthenos and the Parthenon were built. Another believed reason that the Parthenon was built was that the leader at the time, Pericles, wanted to show the power and wealth of Athens. In comparison, the Lincoln Memorial was built to honor the 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. One of the reasons that Bacon had for basing the memorial on the Parthenon was to draw a parallel between the two governments- â€Å"What better way existed to remember a man who struggled to defend democracy, than to model his tribute after one found in the birthplace of democracy? † (National Park Service). In terms of the monuments themselves, the Parthenon and the Lincoln had many similarities and many differences. For instance, both of the monuments were designed in the Greek temple style. They both hold Doric columns-the Parthenon had 86, while the Lincoln Memorial had 36 columns. Although there are many more columns in the Parthenon, the Lincoln Memorial has much larger columns. Doric columns came from the Doric order, a style of architecture that contains columns, a beam or stone ridge across the top of the columns, and a triangular prism top. The Doric order is very prominent in the Greek temple style. However, even though the Lincoln Memorial and the Parthenon were primarily based in the Greek temple style, the Lincoln memorial has many differences from the original Doric order. For example, on the top of the Lincoln memorial, the prism is not triangular, but rather rectangular, unlike the Adam 3 Parthenon. This is called an attic, which is a form of Roman architecture. On the attic are carvings of the states in the union at the time of Lincoln’s death. The Lincoln Memorial also has a much longer entrance of stairs than a usual Greek temple, with a long and wide case of stairs. What is different about the Parthenon in comparison to the Doric order is that it includes some of the characteristics of the Ionic order, a different style of architecture that was developed on the Ionian Islands off of the coast of Greece. It is believed that the project of the Parthenon was changed from Doric to Ionic in the middle of construction because â€Å"when Athens lost the Peloponnesian War to Sparta, they decided to stop using the Doric order, which was more reminiscent of the strictness in the Spartan society, and instead use the Ionic order, because they had become allies with Ionia,† (All the Greeks). Some of the elements of the Ionic order found in the Parthenon are the Ionic frieze, which is a carving from a stone wall, the inside columns, which are made differently from the Doric columns, and the inside structure of the naos, which is the inner chamber of a Greek temple. Another difference between the two monuments is that they were both made from different materials. While the Parthenon was made from stone found near the Athens area, the materials for the Lincoln Memorial came from many places, which are stated in â€Å"Lincoln Memorial Design Individuals:† The granite at the terrace level came from Massachusetts, the marble of the upper steps and outside facade came from Colorado, while the pink marble floor of the chamber came from Tennessee. One will notice the Indiana limestone on the interior walls and columns of the chamber, and the Alabama marble used for the ceiling tiles (soaked in paraffin to give them a translucent appearance). The statue of Lincoln was carved from Georgia marble. These stones from several parts of the United States symbolize the importance of the Union to Lincoln. Adam 4 Athena, the patron Goddess of Athens, was depicted in Phidias’s statue of Athena, also known as the Athena Parthenos, and was placed in the middle of the Parthenon to be worshipped and glorified. Although the statue has crumbled and has been lost over time, we know what it looks like because â€Å"we have enough accounts of its existence along with a number of smaller marble copies, including the one on exhibit at the National Museum of Athens,† (The sculpture was a chryselephantine statue- that is, made out ivory and gold, and it stood approximately 40 feet high. In contrast, the Lincoln Memorial is made out of Georgian Marble, and is only 20 feet high. However, the Athena Parthenos was built from a hollow, wooden frame, whereas the Lincoln Memorial is made out of solid material. In both of the statues, the hands are both symbolic and very detailed. In the right hand of the Athena Parthenos stands a small statue of Nike, who represents victory. The statue’s left hand rests on the Goddess Athena’s shield which shelters a snake that represents Erichthonius, who was involved in a myth containing Athena, Hephaestus and Gaia. The left hand of Lincoln is clenched around the arm rest, which represents his firm manner during the Civil War, while his right hand is resting and relaxed, to show that after the Civil war he was kind in letting the confederate states back into the union. At a first glance, the Lincoln Memorial and the Parthenon may seem like, being from two different places and two different eras, completely different buildings. However, because Henry Bacon based the Lincoln Memorial on the Parthenon, the two monuments share many similarities, as well as differences. Furthermore, because of the improvements made to structural engineering and the difference of motives and culture, there are many apparent differences between each other the monuments. The Similarities and Differences between the Parthenon and Lincoln Memorial.