Step Into a Painstakingly Recreated 3D Model of the Parthenon, Now Restored to Its Ancient Glory
New Research
Step Into a Painstakingly Recreated 3D Model of the Parthenon, Now Restored to Its Ancient Glory
A researcher simulated the Athenian temple’s lighting conditions at different times of the day, discovering that its interior was actually “quite dark and dim”
The reconstructions show that the Parthenon’s internal appearance was constructed to provoke maximum awe—and even fear.
Juan de Lara
By combining archaeology and technology, a researcher has shed light on a longstanding architectural mystery: how the ancient Greeks experienced the inside of the Parthenon, the Athenian Acropolis’ largest temple, built and dedicated to the goddess Athena in the fifth century B.C.E.
Today, the Parthenon is a broken-down rectangle of grand marble columns, and its interior is largely vacant. But when the temple was constructed between 447 and 438 B.C.E., designed in part by the legendary architect Phidias, it hosted a 40-foot-tall, gilded statue of Athena. For many centuries, historians assumed that in ancient times, the chamber was brightly illuminated by the Grecian sun.
But now, Juan de Lara, an archaeologist at the University of Oxford, has created a virtual model of the Parthenon that upends such beliefs. As he writes in the journal Annual of the British School at Athens, the temple’s interior was actually “quite dark and dim.” This lighting might have emphasized the space’s religious purpose.“Imagine entering the Parthenon—your eyes still weary from the bright sun outside, slowly adjusting to the gradual darkness within,” says de Lara in a statement. “As sunlight filters through the temple’s doorway, it strikes the gold of the goddesses’ robes with a luminous vertical beam. This was the effect the architects and Phidias intended to create. It must have been magical.”
De Lara spent four years on the project, using 3D modeling tools and conducting physical simulations to calculate paths of light and reflection. He has “precisely recreated how both natural and artificial lighting interacted with the elements of the Parthenon,” including the massive ivory and gold statue of Athena, the statement notes. He accounted for openings in the temple’s roof, windows, interior pools of water and the reflection potential of polished white marble.
“I’ve long been fascinated by spaces that no longer exist, and by the challenge of imagining how they might have felt,” de Lara tells classicist Jeremy Tanner in an interview for the “Cambridge Core” blog. “Given my background in 3D modeling and, this project offered a unique opportunity to explore that question.”
A hypothetical reconstruction of the temple's artifact-filled chamber
Juan de Lara
The resulting reconstructions show that the Parthenon’s internal appearance was constructed to provoke maximum awe—and even fear—by presenting a monumental golden goddess emerging from darkness. The temple’s architects were “working with special effects in a sense,” de Lara tells IFLScience’s Russell Moul.
De Lara’s project simulates how the temple’s interior would have looked at different times of the day, as well as at night, when it might have been filled with people holding torches. According to the statement, de Lara discovered that the sun probably shined directly onto the statue during summer mornings, meaning that during the Panathenaea, a summer festival celebrating Athena, the goddess’ likeness acted as a shining beacon at the start of each day.
The ancient Greeks built many, many temples dedicated to gods or goddesses. Though it’s the most famous, the Parthenon isn’t the only temple on the Acropolis, the ancient complex of buildings nestled atop a hill in Athens. The site also hosts the Temple of Athena Nike—whose name refers to a hybridization of Athena and Nike, the goddess of victory—and the Erechtheion, which was dedicated to Athena, the mythical king Erechtheus and Poseidon, the god of the sea.
A rendering of how the temple might have looked on a morning in late August
Juan de Lara
As de Lara explains to Tanner, each Greek temple’s visual experience was different. They varied based on the location and the deity being worshipped. But from the fifth century B.C.E. onward, “There is a marked increase in a conscious staging of the religious experience.”
Still, “we know little about what actually took place inside the Parthenon,” de Lara tells Artnet News’ Richard Whiddington. “What rituals were performed? Who was allowed to enter and when?”
In general, de Lara says to Tanner, temples “acted as museums, safeguarding objects of both material and emotional value.” Thanks to ancient inventories, researchers have been able to discern the Parthenon’s probable interior furnishings, like numerous incense burners that would have enhanced a visitor’s sensory experience.
“Given that the Acropolis and the Parthenon are among the most visited monuments in the world,” de Lara tells IFL Science, “… it becomes even more relevant to offera more complete image of the site. If visitors can carry a richer, more accurate vision in their minds, the encounter with the monument becomes far more meaningful.”
How the light of torches might have illuminated the Parthenon
Juan de Lara
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#step #into #painstakingly #recreated #modelStep Into a Painstakingly Recreated 3D Model of the Parthenon, Now Restored to Its Ancient Glory
New Research
Step Into a Painstakingly Recreated 3D Model of the Parthenon, Now Restored to Its Ancient Glory
A researcher simulated the Athenian temple’s lighting conditions at different times of the day, discovering that its interior was actually “quite dark and dim”
The reconstructions show that the Parthenon’s internal appearance was constructed to provoke maximum awe—and even fear.
Juan de Lara
By combining archaeology and technology, a researcher has shed light on a longstanding architectural mystery: how the ancient Greeks experienced the inside of the Parthenon, the Athenian Acropolis’ largest temple, built and dedicated to the goddess Athena in the fifth century B.C.E.
Today, the Parthenon is a broken-down rectangle of grand marble columns, and its interior is largely vacant. But when the temple was constructed between 447 and 438 B.C.E., designed in part by the legendary architect Phidias, it hosted a 40-foot-tall, gilded statue of Athena. For many centuries, historians assumed that in ancient times, the chamber was brightly illuminated by the Grecian sun.
But now, Juan de Lara, an archaeologist at the University of Oxford, has created a virtual model of the Parthenon that upends such beliefs. As he writes in the journal Annual of the British School at Athens, the temple’s interior was actually “quite dark and dim.” This lighting might have emphasized the space’s religious purpose.“Imagine entering the Parthenon—your eyes still weary from the bright sun outside, slowly adjusting to the gradual darkness within,” says de Lara in a statement. “As sunlight filters through the temple’s doorway, it strikes the gold of the goddesses’ robes with a luminous vertical beam. This was the effect the architects and Phidias intended to create. It must have been magical.”
De Lara spent four years on the project, using 3D modeling tools and conducting physical simulations to calculate paths of light and reflection. He has “precisely recreated how both natural and artificial lighting interacted with the elements of the Parthenon,” including the massive ivory and gold statue of Athena, the statement notes. He accounted for openings in the temple’s roof, windows, interior pools of water and the reflection potential of polished white marble.
“I’ve long been fascinated by spaces that no longer exist, and by the challenge of imagining how they might have felt,” de Lara tells classicist Jeremy Tanner in an interview for the “Cambridge Core” blog. “Given my background in 3D modeling and, this project offered a unique opportunity to explore that question.”
A hypothetical reconstruction of the temple's artifact-filled chamber
Juan de Lara
The resulting reconstructions show that the Parthenon’s internal appearance was constructed to provoke maximum awe—and even fear—by presenting a monumental golden goddess emerging from darkness. The temple’s architects were “working with special effects in a sense,” de Lara tells IFLScience’s Russell Moul.
De Lara’s project simulates how the temple’s interior would have looked at different times of the day, as well as at night, when it might have been filled with people holding torches. According to the statement, de Lara discovered that the sun probably shined directly onto the statue during summer mornings, meaning that during the Panathenaea, a summer festival celebrating Athena, the goddess’ likeness acted as a shining beacon at the start of each day.
The ancient Greeks built many, many temples dedicated to gods or goddesses. Though it’s the most famous, the Parthenon isn’t the only temple on the Acropolis, the ancient complex of buildings nestled atop a hill in Athens. The site also hosts the Temple of Athena Nike—whose name refers to a hybridization of Athena and Nike, the goddess of victory—and the Erechtheion, which was dedicated to Athena, the mythical king Erechtheus and Poseidon, the god of the sea.
A rendering of how the temple might have looked on a morning in late August
Juan de Lara
As de Lara explains to Tanner, each Greek temple’s visual experience was different. They varied based on the location and the deity being worshipped. But from the fifth century B.C.E. onward, “There is a marked increase in a conscious staging of the religious experience.”
Still, “we know little about what actually took place inside the Parthenon,” de Lara tells Artnet News’ Richard Whiddington. “What rituals were performed? Who was allowed to enter and when?”
In general, de Lara says to Tanner, temples “acted as museums, safeguarding objects of both material and emotional value.” Thanks to ancient inventories, researchers have been able to discern the Parthenon’s probable interior furnishings, like numerous incense burners that would have enhanced a visitor’s sensory experience.
“Given that the Acropolis and the Parthenon are among the most visited monuments in the world,” de Lara tells IFL Science, “… it becomes even more relevant to offera more complete image of the site. If visitors can carry a richer, more accurate vision in their minds, the encounter with the monument becomes far more meaningful.”
How the light of torches might have illuminated the Parthenon
Juan de Lara
Get the latest stories in your inbox every weekday.
#step #into #painstakingly #recreated #model
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