Greek Architecture

Greek Architecture is the product of Greece and the Greek colonies from about 1100 BC to the 1st century BC. It has its roots in Aegean civilization, but its unique qualities have made it one of the strongest influences on subsequent Western architecture. Few undamaged originals of Greek architecture or large sculpture remain. Architecture up to about 320 BC had primarily a public function, being employed to produce religious objects and to commemorate important secular events, such …

…e of a period in Greek art but also a term for Greek and Roman art in general, and beyond that a term meaning the best of its kind (see Classic, Classical, and Classicism). Academic artists and architects imitated the outward characteristics of Greek art, often without grasping its spirit. In the 20th century, artists reacting against outworn academic traditions came to value Archaic Greek art more highly than that of later periods.