PREHISTORIC ARCHITECTURE: PERIODS OF PREHISTORY

NEAR EAST
1. STONE AGE
Prehistory is the period of human existence
before the availability of written records. This period began about 2.6 million years ago
and lasted until about 3,300 years ago, so-
The culture of hunting-gathering societies up called when scholars discovered evidence
to when man started to build settlements that early humans used stone tools. Stone
were understood by modern people by age is divided into Paleolithic, Mesolithic and
examining their material culture. The Neolithic periods.
domestication of animals, the beginning of
agriculture and social institutions were a) Paleolithic period (Greek paleo =
theorized by scholars based on artifacts. old, lithos = stone) - dated around
There is so much to learn about the 1,750,000-10,000 BC and further divided
prehistoric period which rely on archaeology into:
for the recovery and analysis (thru carbon-
 Lower Paleolithic -- the longer period
dating; only organic matter can be carbon- covering 75% of the Old Stone Age.
dated) of artifacts to complete the story of
early humans. o Zinjanthropus boisei
Was found in Tanganyika, Central
1. Stone Age - considered
Africa; he walked erect
the preliterate period, covering at least 95% o Pithecanthropus erectus
of man's existence and did not end until (Java Man)
about 5000 BC. It is subdivided into The oldest man-like creature was
Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic discovered in Java, Indonesia in 1891
periods. o Sinanthropus pekinensis
o (Peking Man)
2. Metal Age - human history based upon Discovered in 1929–37 during
written records or a history of civilized excavations at Zhoukoudian near
nations. Divided into 3 principal ages – Beijing, China
Copper, Bronze and Iron. This period o Fontechevade Man
enabled man to acquire greater knowledge Found in 1947 in Charente, SW France
about their environment and its resources. o Homo Neanderthalensis
Discovered in Neander Valley, near
VOCABULARY:
Dusseldorf, NW Germany in 1856
 Material Culture - refer to corporeal, tangible
objects that are created, used, kept and left behind Lower Paleolithic men had the capacity
by past and present cultures
 Artifact - an object, such as a tool, that was made in
for speech and logical thinking;
the past discovered that stones could be
 Carbon-dating - or radiocarbon dating is a method chipped, and the sharp parts can be
that provides objective age estimates for carbon- used for cutting. They used hand ax or
based materials that originated from living
organisms. An age could be estimated by measuring fist hatchet.
the amount of carbon-14 present in the sample and
comparing this against an internationally used
reference standard.
Neanderthal man - left evidence of
 Preliterate - not yet employing writing as a cultural
medium improved methods of stone chipping by
 Lith/flint = stone using only the flakes:
- He developed spearheads, borers
and superior knives
- Built flint-working floors and b) Mesolithic period (meso = middle) -
stone hearths (fireplace), an dated around 10,000 until 4,000 BC
indication of group life or the
beginning of social institutions Scholars recognize this period as a
- Took good care of the dead by transition from hunting-gathering to
interring them with tools and other primitive agriculture. The Mesolithic
valuable objects in shallow graves was a period of unstable climate that
made life difficult for the stone age
 Upper Paleolithic - 40,000 years ago people. When climate stabilized around
9,000 BCE people moved in former
Cro-Magnon - discovered in the Cro- glaciated areas where they found new
Magnon cave in Dordogne, France ways to survive. Hunting was still the
main food source, but they learned to
- His tools were better made, and he fish and eat plant resources like
had tools for different purposes, acorns, hazelnuts, and nettles. This was
like bone needle, fishhook, harpoon, also the beginning of the domestication
dart thrower, and the bow and of animals. The Mesolithic
arrow breakthroughs are the following:
- His tools were not only made of
stone but also from reindeer horn &  They were the first land developers:
ivory. they cut down trees to make fire and
- Built large hearths, suggesting he burned swamps and wetlands to
cooked his food. In Solutre, France, a build roads for boats and canoes to
mass of charred bones, estimated to safely cross.
contain the remains of 100,000 large  They left the caves and started
animals was found building houses and fishing vessels.
- He lived in cave homes but managed  Archeologists found microliths (very
to build huts. small stone tools) mounted together
- They banded together to form as points for arrows and harpoons.
communities that included  Did not just use stones but also
professional artists and skilled animal bones, antler, and wood to
craftsmen. make adzes and chisels. Evidence of
- Had elaborate burials by painting their use of needles, and fishhooks
corpses and folding the arms over were found.
the heart.  Larger tools, such as clubs, were
- Formulated an elaborate system of made of ground stone. Polishing of
sympathetic magic based upon the stone was also seen.
principle that ‘imitating a desired  Improved hunting and gathering
result may bring about that practices allowed for an increase in
result’. Scholars have reason to leatherwork and basketry. Baskets
believe that cave drawings were not were used to trap fish in streams.
mere accounting of the animals
hunted but a form of sympathetic
magic
- Credited for the first mathematical
record through drawings of animals
slain in the hunt
c) Neolithic Period (neo = new) - circa  State -- an organized society
10,000 BCE until 3,000. This is the period occupying a definite territory and
when stone weapons and tools were possessing an authoritative
made by grinding and polishing instead government (Spencer, 19);
of chipping. community customs was the law, the
blood-feud is the way to
 Bearers of Neolithic culture administer justice; Torts (private
scattered throughout Norther Europe wrongdoings) between individuals or
and Africa from western Asia. families and the acceptance
 Neolithic people were believed to of wergeld (blood money) was a
have better mastery of common practice.
the environment and were less
prone to die from changes in climate This period is also credited for the
or the failure in their food supply. following:
 They domesticated animals and
developed agriculture, the 2 factors  Invention of the calendar to guide
that were responsible for people when to plant and harvest
a settled mode of existence. crops.
 There was an increased population  Discovery of metal tools like bronze
due to a stable food supply, so bigger and then iron initially for
communities then villages to cities agricultural use.
emerged.  Development of irrigation systems
 Neolithic man developed the arts of  Metal weapons became a necessity
knitting, of spinning and weaving to defend their villages and resources
cloth; they also discovered how to
VOCABULARY:
produce fire by friction.
 Pottery was invented to preserve and  polyandry - polygamy in which a woman has more
store their food supply. than one husband.
 polygyny - polygamy in which a man has more than
Another very important development is one wife
the establishment of social institutions:
2. METAL AGE
 Family – may be both monogamous
This period started around 4,000 BC and
and polygamous forms, possibility
ended about 405 BC. Metal Age is further
of polyandry and polygyny.
divided into Copper, Bronze and Iron periods.
 Religion -- an expression of a sense
a) Copper Age (c. 4500 - 3500 BC)
of dependence on a power outside
ourselves, a power which may be Another name given to this period
spiritual or moral (Radcliffe- is Chalcolithic (Greek khalkos = copper
Brown,1952); early religion was + lithos = stone) and is also recognized as
ritualistic and not really a belief Eneolithic or Aenelithic (Latin aeneus =
system. The myths, dogmas were copper). The many references to this
rationalizations of the rites; primitive period was the result of theories that both
man believed that unless he copper or bronze was the material for tools
performed sacrificial rites, rain and and weapons during Bronze Age. It was John
other natural phenomena will occur. Evans who recognized in 1881 that copper
This was due to his dependence on preceded the use of bronze. In 1884,
nature for his existence.
Gaetano Chierici renamed it in Italian as The start of the period marks the end to the
eneo-litica, or "bronze-stone" transition, not Stone Age. The ancient Sumerians are
as another lithic period but as recognition believed to be the first to start adding tin to
that stone continued to be used until the copper to make bronze. Tools and weapons
Bronze and Iron ages. This period therefore, made from bronze are harder and more
is an archaeological period considered as the durable than copper. This period also marks
transition between the Neolithic and the the rise of kingdoms or city-states under a
Bronze Age. The widespread production of central government led by powerful rulers.
copper tools is a major contribution of the Well-known Bronze Age kingdoms include
Chalcolithic period. In the ancient Near East, Mesopotamian Sumer and Babylonia, and
the Copper Age began about 5th millennium Athens in Ancient Greece. They were
BC. developed societies with high degree of
specialization, laws in place of customs and a
Copper was a predominant metal used wide network of trade relations with other
before early man discovered that the kingdoms thousands of kilometers away.
addition of tin to copper could create bronze Cities grew from independent city-states and
which is harder and stronger than copper or later as empires.
tin. Metallurgy was believed to have started
in the Fertile Crescent. Greece became the activity center on the
Mediterranean during the Bronze Age,
 Tell Halaf in Syria was discovered to starting with the Cycladic (from Cyclades
have a copper metallurgy technology Islands) civilization in the Aegean Sea around
that is older than the copper axes 3200 BC. The Minoan civilization emerged in
and adzes from Catalhoyuk in Crete a few hundred years later, who had the
Anatolia. first advanced civilization in Europe. The
 The Yarim Tepe in Iraq, a late Minoans traded timber, olive oil, wine and
Neolithic settlement, also yielded dye with Egypt, Syria, Cyprus and the Greek
copper tools and weapons. mainland for their metals and other raw
 Copper mining and smelting in Timna materials.
Valley (Yemen) dates to about 7000-
5000 BC. Aside from the early centers of civilization,
other agrarian societies emerged and
Polychrome nomadic pastoral peoples also developed.
- Painted pottery is another characteristic of They traded and fought with farming clans
the Chalcolithic era. Pottery with wall and city states that the more developed
openings possibly for burning incense and civilizations regarded them as barbarians.
storage jars with spouts were also found.
Farmers domesticated animals like sheep- The invention of the wheel, the first writing
goats, cattle and pigs but continued with systems were the notable accomplishments
hunting and fishing. Milk and milk by- of the period. This period suddenly ended in
products were important, as well as fig and 1200 BC because of what scholars believe to
olive. Local products were used and traded be a combination of natural disasters.
for copper and silver ores, basalt bowls, Earthquakes and invasion by nomadic tribes
timber and resins. may also be blamed. Archaeological
evidence of droughts (leading to famine) in
the eastern Mediterranean lasting over 150
b) Bronze Age (ca. 3300 - 1200 BC) years may have contributed to the collapse
of the Mycenaean, Hittite and Egyptian
civilizations.
c) Iron Age (ca. 1200 - 600 BC) Earliest iron smelting using the furnace was
found at Tell Hamme in Jordan dated around
This is an archaeological period when ferrous 930 BC.
metallurgy was the dominant technology.
The presence of cast or wrought iron in tools The end of the Iron Age was marked by the
and weapons is not the determining factor of start of the historiographical record. In the
it belonging to the period because early man Near East it coincided with the establishment
started experimenting with iron even before of the Achaemenid Empire (c. 550 BC) which
this period. As an example, Tutankhamun's is considered historical by way of the record
dagger made of meteoric iron comes from by Herodotus. In Central and Western
the Bronze Age. Archaeology identifies the Europe, the Roman conquests of 1st century
end of Bronze Age and the beginning of BC marks the end of the Iron Age.
large-scale iron production around 1200 BC.
VOCABULARY:
Anthony Snodgrass suggested that the shift
to iron was due to trade disruptions and  polychrome - the practice of decorating
architectural elements, sculpture, etc., in a variety of
shortage of tin in the Mediterranean around
colors. The term is used to refer to certain styles of
1300 BC that forced metalworkers to find an architecture, pottery or sculpture in multiple colors.
alternative to bronze. Many bronze  historiographical - the body of literature dealing
with historical matters; histories collectively.
implements were recycled to make weapons
during that time.

Iron Age was believed to have started in the

Mediterranean and Near East after the
collapse of prominent Bronze Age societies.
Tools and weapons made from iron and steel
were being manufactured in Asia, Europe
and some parts of Africa. However, in
ancient Greece, this was a period of cultural
decline. This is also the era when nomadic
pastoralists developed a state that would
become known as Persia.

Iron only became superior to bronze when

the early people learned to add carbon in the
metal, also known as carbon steel. Nine
small beads made of meteoric iron found in
Egypt is considered the earliest iron artifacts
dating to 3200 BC. Meteoric iron is a metallic
state that required no smelting of ores, a
pre-Iron Age technology.

The earliest evidence for iron-making

incorporating the appropriate amounts of
carbon, was found in the Proto Hittite layers
of Kaman-Kalehoyuk, dated to around 2200-
2000 BC.
INFLUENCES TO ARCHITECTURE  Anatolia: Hittite Empire, Assuwa,
Arzawa
Architecture is a product of the natural  Caucasus and the Armenia (Urartu)
environment (geography, geology and
climate), and human beliefs and activities
through time (religion, social/historical 2. Geology
aspects). The wide expanse of the study The mountain ranges and their caves were the
area, its varying topographical features and common shelter sites. Around 8000 BC, the
climate variability, provided the site for cultivation of barley, wheat and other plants
different groups of people and cultures. began. Building stone, precious metals and
timber were rare in the region but may be
1. Geography
exchanged for agricultural products with
The ancient Near East is located at the neighboring tribes. Plentiful supply of soil
intersection of the 3 continents of Asia, mixed w/ water produced sun-dried
Africa and Europe and has 3 broad zones: bricks. Bitumen available in Mesopotamia
the Arabian Peninsula going north to Syria, and the neighboring plain of Susa (Elam) was
the Fertile Crescent, and the coastal areas first used in Neolithic times as mastic.
of the Aegean, Turkey & Levant Eventually its water-proofing properties were
(Mediterranean). The area is surrounded by realized and used to reduce erosion of mud-
the Persian Gulf, the Mediterranean, Black, brick walls.
Caspian and the Red Seas. The area is a
complex topography of desert, mountain 3. Climate
ranges with pocket oases. The site of the
early settlements was the area along bodies The Holocene period (12,000-11,500 BC) is a
of water on the western portion. On the geologic time when plants thrived in the
eastern portion, the Tigris and Euphrates warm and moist climate. This is also termed
rivers have headwaters on the Taurus as the 'Age of Man' because man became the
Mountains of north-eastern Turkey and the master of his environment. Around this time,
Zagros Mountains of Iran, then joins towards earth began to warm to spread forests across
south and dislodges onto the Persian Gulf. the Zagros and Taurus Mountains.
Water from the seas and rivers, for both Prehistoric man's food supply was
agriculture and barter, was the main factor threatened with the extinction of mammoths
for the creation of cities in ancient times. as they failed to adapt to a warmer
Water features also define territories and
climate. Agriculture, therefore, was a
function as defensive barriers for the
necessity.
ancient Near East had a lot of sub-regions,
namely: Melting ice fed the rivers of the Near East.
Moisture from the Mediterranean was
 Minoan civilization: Cyprus
captured by Taurus and Zagros Mountains,
and Crete
converting an arid area into a productive
 Mesopotamia: Sumer, Assyria,
Babylonia, and Akkad ecosystem. Farming without irrigation (dry-
 Ancient Egypt farming) in some parts of Mesopotamia was
 Elam possible with ample rainfall.
 Levant: Canaan, Ugarit, Ebla,
4 Religion
Mitanni
Religion in the ancient Near East was communities as response to these natural
mostly polytheistic in nature with the conditions. There were many kingdoms that
common belief in the forces of flourished in the ancient Near East and for
nature. Possible spread of religious beliefs this lesson the regional division of these
was through cultural contact with other cultures will be discussed separately.
groups in the region. The earliest to appear
a.) The Levant
were Mesopotamian mythology and Egyptian
religion (ca. 2500 BC). It was the Sumerians
who designated high grounds as  Natufian
sacred places, the possible model of Greek
Acropolis. Early people established settlements in the
fertile areas of the Levant, where wild plants
The highest authority was the triad of storm and animals flourished. British
(Enlil), water (Ea) and sky (Anu) gods. A later archaeologist Dorothy Garrod called these
triad included the moon (Sin) and sun sites Natufian (Shuqba cave in Wadi an-
(Shamash) gods, and the goddess Ishtar. A Natuf) culture. Garrod also named
belief in the mother goddess, (Inanna, Ishtar, the Kebara (1931) of Kebara cave in Mount
Astarte, Cybele) who was more patronizing Carmel and the Zarzian (1928) excavated
of humans than the other gods, developed in Zarzi in Iraq. The
into a cult. The mother goddess was Natufian communities were the predecessor
of agrarian village life. The development of
considered queen of heaven and earth and
settlements and subsistence strategies created
goddess of love. She was also a combination
tools for harvesting and processing plant
of religious and political beliefs, and had a
resources. Sickles made of bone and flint,
hand in the redistribution of resources, grinding stones, mortar and pestles made
fertility of crops, development of first urban of basalt were unearthed. The dead were
centers and the rise of state-level buried under the floors of some houses,
organization. Common religious practices in a symbolic behavior for 'respect'.
the Near East were:

 Purification and cleansing rituals In Israel, the Mugharet Es Skhul cave on

 Sacrifices (plant, animal and human Mount Carmel is the first recorded cave
sacrifice) and libation dwelling. On the other hand, Jebel Qafzeh is
 State-sponsored religions the first rock shelter found on Mount
(theocracy) Kedumin in Galilee. Human remains on both
sites dated to about 90-110,000
 Sacred prostitution
years old, whose features differ from the
 Divination
Neanderthals that lived in the region. Later
 Magic (invocations, conjuring and
discoveries of Neanderthals (61-48,000 bp) in
talismans)
Kebara cave (65-35,000 bp) of Carmel Range
5. Social/Historical Influences and the Shanidar Cave in the Zagros
Mountains in Iraq confused scholars with the
The rise in global temperatures and increase
implication they were different species that
in rainfall resulted to the profusion of plant
coexisted on the Levantine corridor.
and animal species during the Holocene
Different patterns of mobility and use of
period. Humans started to shape their
landscape were seen in their stone tools and
environments by planting and establishing
assemblage of animal bones. Aside from
rock shelters and caves, open air sites hinted of the community) buildings and
at growing communities and a settled mode experimentation with pottery and
of life in the Levant. metallurgy, Cayonu is a model
on changing food economy and lifestyle.
Food from hunting was supplemented by
 Abu Hureyra and Tell Mureybet cultivating grapes, figs, rye, lentils
and einkorn wheat. Later, their diet included
Discovered in 1972 during the construction the meat of domesticated sheep and goats.
of Lake Assad, Abu Hureyra (11,500-7000 BC) Domesticated dogs were also
in Syria provided glimpses into Late Paleolitic discovered in the village.
and Early Neolithic diet and food
production. People lived in clustered pit-  Göbekli Tepe
houses, circular dwellings with sunken floor
Gobekli Tepe is located on a gently rounded
and central posts supporting the roof. Walls
plateaus that rises 50 feet above the
were probably built of light materials such as
surrounding landscape. It was not a
wood and mud. As settled hunter-gatherers,
settlement as archaeologist Schmidt posited
they took advantage of the resources near
because of the absence of cooking hearths,
their home. Wild sheep, cattle and the
houses or trash pits. Stone working tools
migratory gazelle were hunted. Selective
found on the site are as old as those from
planting of rye seeds was discovered
nearby sites which date to about 9000 BC.
probably because rye can tolerate harsh
Scholars believe that Gobekli was a religious
conditions.
site. Its ceremonial center presents a
different view of the role of ideology in the
 Jericho (Tell es-Sultan) early Neolithic. Comprised of 20 circular
Jericho (10,000 - 1100 BC) in the Jordan features that were formed by stone walls,
Valley was seasonally occupied by Natufian the largest being 12 meters in diameter
hunters and gatherers. Houses were built of interiorly and 30 meters in diameter at its
mud and straw and the early town featured outermost concentric wall. Within the walls
an enclosing wall excluding the eastside stand limestone stelae (pillars) carved with
spring. The wall stands about 4 meters high wild and dangerous animal images, including
with stone towers. There is evidence of dinosaurs. The preservation of the structure
agriculture and later of animal husbandry. was due to intentional burying of circular
Complex burial rituals were discovered in rooms at the end of their use. Another
wall graves and beneath the floors of theory for the construction of Gobekli was as
houses. a place of feasting.

 Cayonu (7400-6880 BC) b.) Anatolia

Cayonu was one of the earliest villages in the From the Greek word anatole meaning
Near East to try metallurgy. Copper deposits rising, the place where the rising of the sun
were sourced from the Ergani Maden in the takes place. The name is still being used
Taurus Mountains. The practice though did today to refer to Turkey's highlands. The
not last or spread. Pottery was evident area is also considered as the land bridge
beginning 6000 BC. Aside from the between the Near East and Europe. The part
construction of communal (for common use of Turkey between the Aegean and
Euphrates is sometimes called Asia Minor,
the site for the Late Bronze Age Hittite The Hittite army used bow and bronze-
Kingdom and the Iron Age kingdoms of tipped arrows. Their soldiers used bronze
Phrygia, Lydia and Urartu. shields, daggers, lances, spears and battle-
axes for close combat. The chariot armies
 Catalhoyuk
were also feared by the people in the Near
One of the first Neolithic villages discovered East. Egypt and Hattusa fought at the Battle
in the region, located in the Konya basin on of Kadesh in 1274 BC employing thousands of
the Central Anatolian Plateau. Its size, chariots by each side carrying archers. Egypt
material culture and complex urban won the war but Hattusa retained its Syrian
structures make Catalhoyuk a subject for territory. Remarkably, both countries signed
multi-disciplinary investigation. Favorable a peace accord 16 years after the Battle of
site conditions are credited for the Kadesh. The Eternal Treaty has 2 versions,
development of a settlement of terraced one found at the Temple of Karnak and the
mud-brick houses occupying a total of 13 other one found at the Hattusa
hectares. Around 40 shrines were discovered archaeological site.
within the different terrace levels,
c.) Mesopotamia
elaborately decorated leading to speculation
on the roles of ritual activities in their For convenience, historians refer to this
society. Scholars found clay figurines civilization as the Mesopotamian
depicting female forms believed to be linked (Greek mesos = middle + potamos = river),
to fertility rituals and beliefs. While consisting of two major parts: northern or
continuing with hunting and gathering Upper Mesopotamia, and southern
practice, the villagers also domesticated Mesopotamia, often called Babylonia. The
plants and animals. They also made pottery northern portion was the homeland of the
vessels, cups and boxes. Old, Middle and Neo-Assyrian empires, and
the Mitannian empire. The southern part,
 Hattusa (Hittites)
Babylonia, was the homeland of the
The Hittite kingdom was a superpower Sumerian city-states comprised of the
and true rivals of the mighty Egyptians. empires of Hammurabi, the Kassites and the
Many scholars believe that the Hittites had Neo-Babylonian kings like Nebuchadnezzar
the first constitutional monarchy. Check and II.
balance in government was through the
Mesopotamia lacked natural defensive
Pankus, a possible assembly of noblemen,
boundaries but was on fertile lands that were
which monitored the king's rule and had the
able to support agriculture. Unlike Egypt, its
power to remove him as needed. The law of
political history was marked by sharper
succession was not yet established in 1500
interruptions. Its racial composition was less
BC so the death of a king was a subject of
homogenous, and its social and economic
power struggle. The government eventually
structure gave wider scope to individual
moved to authoritarian rule that diminished
initiative. They spoke a language unrelated
the Pankus. At the height of its power, the
to any now known but their culture bore a
Hittite ruler was called the Great
certain resemblance to the earliest
King, vassal states pledged loyalty in return
civilization of India.
for military protection and trading status.
The age of writing began in the Near
East when humans began to draw or inscribe
symbols on clay and other suitable surfaces, The sixty-sixty of time-keeping is credited to
as a way to record information. Although the Sumerians who divided hours and
there were many systems, for the Egyptians minutes into sixty parts. The most important
it was hieroglyphics, the Mesopotamian city contribution of the Sumerian civilization was
of Uruk has the earliest example of writing the technology of writing. Their cuneiform
on square/rectangular clay tablets. Dating to documented administrative activities, trade
about 3300 BC the cuneiform script or and inventories, literary texts, and most
wedge-shaped writing followed a simple importantly poems about Gilgamesh, the
pictograph where signs were represented by king of Uruk.
easily recognizable objects.
 Babylonia
 Sumer
Named after the most important ancient city
The ancient Sumerians called themselves of Babylon, Babylonia like Sumer, was on the
as Saggiga, the black-headed people and southern side of Mesopotamia. Considered
their country Kengir. Their control of as the most powerful state in its time,
southern Mesopotamia lasted almost 2000 Babylon covered a period of 3 phases: (1)
years until the Babylonians took over in 2004 the Middle Bronze Age ruled by the likes of
BC. Early Sumerians were also known as the Hammurabi from the Amorite dynasty; (2)
Ubaid people, known for farming and raising the Late Bronze Age Kassite Kingdom, and (3)
cattle, textile weaving, pottery, carpentry and the Neo-Babylonian kingdom, famous under
beer. Their native tongue became the the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II.
dominant language spoken in southern
Mesopotamia was comprised of small city-
Mesopotamian in the Early Bronze Age.
states with no supreme state to control the
Sumer was divided into 14 city-states with region, until a group of people known as
Uruk, Ur and Eridu as the better known Amorites took over. They were Semitic like
states. the Akkadians. The Amorites developed a
central government for easy land control,
Each city was ruled by the ensi (lord)
under a king who was believed to be the
or lugal (great man).
God. Tax was collected and the city states
Separation of the religious and secular had no local power. Babylon flourished
authority was practice because the king under Hammurabi, who attempted territorial
shared control of the state with priests. But expansion and increased popoulation
in some states, the kings were absolute through war. He believed that more people
rulers who extended their power over other meant more taxes. The large population was
states. also a deterrent to invasion by neighboring
countries.
The Sumerians made advances in
anatomy and surgical instruments and were The Code of Hammurabi was a compilation of
also pioneers in removing chemical parts 282 rules carved from a 4-ton black stone
from natural substances. Their system of diorite . It was built to celebrate
medicine was based on herbalism and Hammurabi's just and pious rule where the
magic. They were also great hydraulic doctrine 'an eye for an eye' was one of the
engineers, with great feats on flood control established standards for family,
and irrigation to take advantage of the administrative law and professional
waters of Tigris and Euphrates for farming. contracts. The code had different standards
for different classes of Babylonian society -- Their army was the first to have a separate
the rich, freemen and slaves. It included engineering unit for setting up ladders and
harsh punishments like cutting of guilty ramps, filling in moats and digging tunnels to
party's tongue, hands, eye or ear. Written in infiltrate walled cities.
if-then form, the crime committed then the
They were the first to build chariots which
punishment to be given. Because of this,
were used offensively and as protection on
Hammurabi's military power was well
the battlefield. These advancements allowed
disciplined.
the Assyrians to conquer neighboring areas
The Babylonians were great city planners, to expand its empire. At the height of its
with surveyors for measuring and making power, the empire occupied Egypt, Iran and
boundaries, and to record land ownership. the whole of the Fertile Crescent.
After Hammurabi died, Babylonia was
The Assyrian lasted for hundreds of years
reduced in size and was defeated by the
until it collapsed from within. The system of
Hittites.
dividing the empire into manageable unit of
The Kassites followed and renamed the provinces, employing governors and
empire as Karanduniash. inspectors, building a network of roads and
garrisons not only guaranteed the survival of
The Assyrians, under Sennacherib rebuilt
the empire but was a much-copied strategy
Babylon to its old grandeur.
to rule the ancient Near East.
Nebuchadnezzar, rebuilt religious structures
Assyrian cities were secured with high walls
destroyed in war and improved canals
to keep invaders out. Small cities had one
carrying water from the Euphrates.
temple, the larger ones had numerous
Nebuchadnezzar enclosed his empire with a
temples with priests treated like head of
double wall to protect the people.
families. The priests also made sure that
The empire entered the Neo-Babylonian food and other needs were provided to the
period under the rule of Persian Cyrus the entire community. The king had absolute
Great who invaded Mesopotamia from the power, took care of the temples and ensured
east. Cyrus established his capital in the the people are safe and protected. Assyrian
empire where it flourished as a center of art women were dependent on male relatives,
and education. and were homemakers without decision-
making power in the family.
 Assyria
VOCABULARY:
Assyria grew from a small Mesopotamian
city-state to become the world's first military  mudbrick or mud-brick - an air-dried brick, made
of a mixture of loam, mud, sand. Firing bricks are
power. Its florescence began by being
known to increase their strength and durability.
subjected to Babylonian and later to Mittani  bitumen - an asphalt of Asia Minor used in ancient
rules. When the Hittites overthrew the times as a cement and mortar.
 mastic - a waterproof filler and sealant used in
Mittanis, the Assyrians rose to fill the power building.
vacuum beginning with Adad Nirari II, who  polytheistic - belief that there is more than 1 god
 pit house - a house that is semi-underground,
used new techniques in warfare using iron.
usually built of stone and roofed with thatch.
 vassal - under the protection of a feudal lord to
They were the first to use iron which whom he has vowed homage and fealty : a feudal
was superior to bronze. tenant
 Semitic - relating to the peoples who speak Semitic started producing food that needed to be
languages, especially Hebrew and Arabic
stored and defended. Thus, aside from
the development of defensive tools their
houses showed inrease in size and
complexity, improved resource use and
building technology. The following are
the categories for huts:

 Wood and grass hut

 Stone hut - Foundations made of
stone sunk beneath the floor, walls
ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
were usually of drystone or packed
AND BUILDING TYPES
clay and the roof was made of
What were the character and types of thatch.
buildings created by the prehistoric people in  Mud hut or beehive hut - (from
the Near East? An architectural typology (a 2,000 BC) made entirely of mud or
classification of characteristics found in clay bricks to cool the interior during
buildings) is the result of the influences of intensely hot climate. The house
site (geography, geology and climate) and tapers to form a dome-like roof
user requirements (religion, social and using corbelling technique and has
historical influences). 3 broad typologies an open top to prevent hot air from
are identified: dwellings, shrines and collecting in the interior. The
temples, and tombs. beehive shape can withstand
earthquakes, wind storms and
1. Dwellings
seasonal heavy rains. The houses
a.) Cave Dwellings
can be expanded by opening one
The distribution of caves in the wall to create an archway.
mountainous regions of the ancient Near c.) Pit houses
East has predetermined the site for the Houses with floors that are lower
development of civilization. The than the ground level (semi-
simplest, most durable shelter for the subterranean) to provide shelter
hunter-gatherers is the unmodified from extreme weather conditions.
natural cavern. Examples:

Flint-working floors and stone hearths  Abu Hureyra, Syria (ca. 13,000-
where huge fires have been made were 12,000 BC) - walls were probably
found inside caves suggesting the origins built of perishable materials such
of co-operative group life. as wood and mud, with central
wooden posts supporting thatch
b.) Huts roof.
 Ain Mallaha (Israel) - semi-
A hut is a primitive dwelling, the first
subterranean huts in the
man-made structure using various local
Natufian area that was occupied
materials such as wood, stone, grass,
circa 10,000-8,000 BCE. This
branches or earth. As Neolithic people
settlement is an example of the
settled down to begin agriculture, they
transition from hunting-
 gathering to farming and the been occupied by at least 3,000-
earliest known archaeological 8,000 inhabitants. Terraced mud-
evidence of dog domestication. brick houses formed on the east
 Wadi Hammeh 27, Jordan (ca. mound of Catalhoyuk while a
14,500 -14,000 bp) - considered settlement from Early Bronze
a 'base camp' for seasonal period developed on the west
dwelling that was maintained mound.
and revisited over generations.  Tell Hassuna - Dry irrigation was
The main excavation area was the legacy of the Neolithic
discovered with 2 large, Hassuna culture. Level 1 of Tell
curvilinear structures made of Hassuna yielded hearths and pits
rubble stones. Oriented north- over which rectilinear houses of 2-
south but open on the west side, 3 rooms made
the house had with adjoining of pise or tauf (packed mud)
walls to a still unexcavated site. surfaced. Underground storage
d.) Tell houses were lined with bitumen.
Levels 2-6 of the tell were larger
A tell is an artificial mound from an
adobe stone houses around open
accumulation of mudbrick remains
courtyards. Baking ovens and
and other refuse, usually associated
refuse pits showed they kept
with the Near East. It is comprised of
domestic animals and dogs.
more than 2 houses.
e.) Palace
Example: A palace is the official residence of a
ruler. The size and type of palace
 Tell Mureybet, Syria (10,200 - architecture is a testament to the
8,1000 BC) - Early settlers built kind of rulers that inhabit them. In
rectilinear houses made of mud the ancient Near East, some palaces
brick creating a tell. When the old were adopted from temple
houses collapsed, new houses architecture to seal the ruler's divine
were constructed over it. epiphany. Some palaces include a
 Jericho or Tell es-Sultan, temple within its complex of spaces.
Jordan (ca. 10,000 - 9,000 BC) - The ruler's importance can be seen in
recognized by UNESCO as the the size of the throne room, and his
oldest town in the world. economic power can be equated
Collapsed houses made of sun- with the size and number of his
dried mud bricks were used as storerooms.
base for new houses. 25 building Example:
levels was discovered.  Palace at Mari, Syria -Discovered
 Catalhoyuk (7300 - 6200 BC) - in 1933, the ancient City of Mari
Catalhoyuk was a big settlement has been the subject of French
with complex urban structures archaeological studies for over 75
located in the moist climate of the years. The site of Mari led to the
Konya basin. It is a double tell of discovery of Ebla and provided
2 large mounds of nearly 21 archaeologists and historians a
meters high and believed to have
 clear understanding of Bronze Age A prehistoric monument possibly as old
Syria. as England's Stonehenge. But unlike
 Palace of Sennacherib – Stonehenge which is built of huge
Also called Shanina-la-ishu monoliths, Rujm is made up of 42,000
("Nonesuch) or a 'palace without pieces of basalt rocks that totals
rival'. Sennacherib's greatest approximately 40,000 tonnes.
achievement was the rebuilding  Catalhoyuk, Anatolia -
of Nineveh. He fortified the city There are at least 40 shrines
by erecting an inner wall 13 km in discovered within Catalhoyuk that
length, and an outer wall both of resembled an ordinary house. What
which can still be seen today. He distinguished it from the rest of the
designed parks, gardens and surrounding buildings was the interior
orchards because he was fond of full of figurines and images of the bull
flowers and had them flown from and other deities. The interior space is
different parts of his empire. divided into 3 parts comprising of
2. Shrines and Temples columns decorated with animal skulls,
horn and women giving birth.
Architecture can be used to organize society
b.) Temple
and affirm power. Shrines and temples
The temple is a sacred place associated
fulfill not just the religious but also the social
to a religion. It is the accepted house of
aspect of citizenship or sense of
god/s. The temple is where people go to
belonging. "Temples and shrines were not
do the rituals of their religion.
constructed in isolation, but existed as part
 Gobekli Tepe (12,000 bp)
of what may be termed a ritual landscape,
Discovered in 1994, it is recognized as
where ritualized movement within individual
the world's 'first temple' and believed
buildings, temple complexes, and the city as
to be older than the development of
a whole shaped their function and meaning."
pottery, metalworking and other
megalithic sites.
a.) Shrine  White Temple of Uruk (Warka, Iraq) -
A shrine is a dedicated place for an Seen from a great distance on the flat
important or holy person of a plain of Uruk, White Temple stands on
society. "Shrines may take up an entire the Anu Ziggurat and together is
room, a hillside, or the bank of a river." approximately 40 feet (12meters) high.
 Dumat al-Jandal, Middle East -  Beehive Temple at Tell
believed to be built by pastoralists in Arpachiyah (a.k.a. Tepe Reshwa,
small nomadic groups. The prehistoric Mosul, Iraq)
monumental ruins is one of thousands belongs to the Halaf settlement dating
found in the Arabian Peninsula and the to 5,000 BC. The temple has a long
southern Levant. Other sites include passage leading to a chamber of
'kites' (alignment of stones that drystone and corbelled dome. The
archaeologists think may have been long anteroom and tholos chamber is
giant traps for hunting), tombs and also known as the keyhole plan.
other platforms of the type. c.) Ziggurat
 Rujm el-Hiri (Arabic "stone of the A stepped pyramid tower that is a
wildcat"), Israel religious and civic structure of
 Mesopotamian cities built around 2200 and probably left as grave offerings for the
until 500 BCE. The steps may vary from 2 dead.
up to 7 levels. Its core is made of mud
The categories of prehistoric tombs are the
brick and covered on the outside with
following:
baked brick. Ziggurats have no interior
spaces and were usually built square or a.) Cave Tombs
rectangular in plan of about 50 meters Cave sites dating to about 250,000-
square. There are 25 known ziggurats in 46,000 bp (c. Middle Paleolithic) have
Sumer, Babylonia and Assyria and their produced evidence of collective human
average height is 170 feet (51meters). burials and individual human bones.
 Nanna Ziggurat, Ur (Iraq) - Stratified remains in Kebara and Qafzeh
Also known as the Great Ziggurat of caves are those of Neanderthals who
Ur, it is a well-preserved and best- were food hunters.
reconstructed ziggurat. Its local name b.) Dolmen
is “Etemenniguru,” which is A megalithic tomb with a large flat stone
the Sumerian for “temple whose laid on upright ones (wiki).
foundation creates a great aura.” This megalithic (giant stone) structure is
 Temple of Eridu (Tell Abu Shahrain, composed of 2 or more uprights
Iraq) - Dated to about 5400 BCE, supporting a horizontal stone table,
Eridu is considered the first city in the usually for single-chamber tombs.
world built by the ancient Sumerians. c.) Tumulus
It is a tell of 7 meters high and 18 levels Many graves from the Neolithic period
of settlement with structures dating to were sometimes covered
6th-4th millenium BC. The temple with barrow (earth mound) or cairns (a
platform has an oven-baked brick pile of small stones) to form
measuring over 150 x 200 feet that is a tumulus (mound placed over a grave).
believed to have supported an d.) Cist Tomb
imposing structure. The Temple of A cist is a small stone-built coffin-like
Eridu was constructed by box or ossuary used to hold the bodies of
Nebuchadnezar on the Ziggurat of the dead.
Amar-sin which resembles the
description of the biblical Tower of
Babel from the Book of Genesiss.
3. Tomb

A tomb is a repository for the remains of the

dead. The term generally refers to any
structurally enclosed interment space or
burial chamber, of varying sizes. The word is
used in a broad sense to encompass a
number of types for interment or burial.
Pottery and human skeletons were the aid in
determining burial practices in the Levantine
area in as early as Middle Bronze Age.
Ceramics from tombs are found more intact
 foundations of European civilization.
Cattle were raised for the provision of
meat and dairy. Oxen were used
for traction (for plowing and for wheeled
vehicles) and sheeps were for manure
and wool. Discovery of plowing marks
preserved in the soil about the end of the
4th millenium BC and actual wheels from
northern Europe by 2500 BCE are
evidence of this pastoral way of life. A
clay model of a wheeled cart from the
same period was excavated from a grave
at Szigetszentmárton, Hungary.
PREHISTORIC ARCHITECTURE:
EUROPE Only the simplest tools were required for
primitive buildings such as huts of perishable
Old Europe is a term used to describe the materials, shrines for worship, stockade or
continent during the Neolithic and fortification (fence to keep out enemies) for
Copper ages, before the migration of defense, and cairns or mound over the
Indo-Europeans around 4500-2500 BCE. grave. Poles as framework, mud and animal
Human occupation of Old Europe was skins for walls and thatch (made of dried
first seen in the cave paintings (20,000 leaves) or earth mound as roofing
BCE) in France. By 5,000 BCE social materials are repetitions of the
stratification began to emerge. The typologies discussed in the Near East. But
traditions of Old Europeans disintegrated prehistoric Europe has more in store.
when Indo-Europeans brought their Henges, longhouses and other structures are
patriarchal social structure, pastoral specific to the area.
economy and male-dominated group of
gods. It was first Crete, Thera and other INFLUENCES TO ARCHITECTURE
Aegean and Mediterranean islands
(Greek group) that were subjected to this 1. Geography
quiet invasion. The western part of
Europe however, remained unchanged The European continent has 4 major
for a thousand years longer. To the early regions: the Northern Highlands, North
Greeks, the people of Europe European Plain, Central Uplands and the
were barbarians (Greek barbarophonos Alpine Mountains.
= incomprehensible speech).
The Northern Highlands define the
The first settlers who brought physical landscape of Finland, Iceland,
cultural and technological changes in Scotland, Ireland, Brittany region of
Europe were believed to have appeared France, Spain and Portugal, and the
about 55,000 BCE. Farming and the Scandinavian region (Norway, Sweden
establishment of permanent settlements and Denmark). Most of the areas were
at the end of the glaciation period covered with ice but later produced
beginning 7th millennium BCE laid the abundant marshslands, lakes
and fjords when the glaciers receded.
The North European Plain is below 152 Europe lies on peninsulas with the
meters (500 feet) in elevation Scandinavian peninsula as the biggest
and includes parts of France, Belgium, covering an area of 800,000 square
the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, kilometers. 7% of Europe's land area is
Poland, the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia comprised of islands majority of which
and Lithuania), and Belarus. This region belong to Greece.
is known for its navigable rivers like the
Rhine, Weser, Elbe, Oder and Vistula. 2. Geology
This land feature supported
communication, travel and In Iceland, northern Scandinavia and
agriculture and is the most densely Russia can be found a treeless region
populated region in Europe. called tundra. Only small mosses lichens
and ferns grow that feed herds of
The Central Uplands include western reindeer abundant in the area.
France and Belgium, southern Germany, The taiga, a coniferous forest, sits below
the Czech Republic and northern the tundra and extends across northern
Switzerland and Austria. It is less rugged Europe. Moose, bear and elk are the
than the Alpine region, populated by animals you can find in the taiga. Below
trees and has low altitute. In our modern the taiga is a mixture of coniferous and
period, this region has a small population deciduous trees in what remains as
except in the Rhine, Elbe and Danube Europe's forest area. Lastly, the
River valleys. Mediterranean Sea is bordered by
vegetation that includes pines, cypress
The Alpine Mountain includes northern and oak.
Spain, southern France, and the Italian
and Balkan peninsulas. High elevation Agriculture imported from the Near East
and rugged plateaus are apt descriptions adaptated to the different European
of the mountains of the Alps, Pyrenees, regional environments to produce not
Apennines, Dinaric Alps, Balkans and only food products but also wine and
Carpathians. The highest peak in Europe cloth, among other things. Agricultural
is Mount Elbrus at 5,642meter societies, initially preferred the prime
elevation located in the Caucasus arable soils like the loess of central
mountains of Russia. Active volcanoes Europe, were later able to exploit many
like Vesuvius, Etna, both in Italy, also dot less fertile soils with the use of sheep.
the Alpine region.
Agricultural revolution spread to
The length of Europe's coastline is an southeast Europe in 7000 BCE while a
outstanding feature of the Neolithic culture flourished in the Aegean
continent totalling to 78,000 km length. and Adriatic areas abut 6500 BCE. Areas
As the second smallest continent, Europe in central Europe and around the Danube
is described as a peninsula (land that is river became food-producing
almost entirely surrounded by water) by economies in 6000-5500 BCE. Copper
the presence of the Arctic and Atlantic artifacts from 5500 BCE suggests a fully
Oceans, and the Mediterranean, Black developed copper culture in the 5th
and Caspian Seas on the south. 28% of millenium BCE. Agrarian cultures
appeared in western and nothern Europe climate. The Atlantic Ocean on the north
2 millenia later. and west, and the Mediterranean Sea on
the south are great modulators of
The northward movement of the African European climate. The climate,
plate into the Eurasian plate in the geographical position and sea-integrated
Mediterranean basin is a prominent terrain are the factors for the habitation
geologic aspect in Europe. Movement of of Europe from the first appearance of
the African plate caused the elevation of man on earth.
the Pyrenees, the Alps and Carpathian
Mountains. Pushed upwards are 4. Religion
limestones and sediments of the ancient
floor of the Tethys Sea. The African Archaeology reconstructed the beliefs
plate is also credited for stimulating and practices of Old Europe through the
active faults and volcanoes such as examination of temples, altars, frescoes,
Mount Etna. rock carvings, caves and tombs, figurines,
masks and cult vessels. Evidence were
3. Climate uncovered in southeastern and Danubian
areas up to the Carpathian Mountains on
Earth came out of the last ice age with the north, comprising the countries
climatic changes that took place around of Greece, Italy, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria,
18,000-10,000 years ago. The Pleitocene Romania, Ukraine, Hungary, and the
pattern of warm and cold periods Czech and Slovak Republics. A second
characterized the climate during area for cult artifacts is from western
Paleolithic period. Human occupation European countries like Spain, Portugal,
varied irregularly as response to these France and the British Isles. Megalithic
conditions. Most of Scandinavia, the tomb monuments with engraved symbols
North European Plain and Russia were and images of gods, stone stelae and
unoccupied during the Paleolithic and figurines for burial were well-preserved
Mesolithic. The Antarctic Cold Reversal for study revealing the commonality in
around 14,000 years ago helped Europe, deities and practices even in diverse
Asia and North America escape the icy locations.
grip of kilometer-thick ice sheets.
Temperatures in the northern Archaeological evidence of female sacred
hemisphere began to increase by as images depicted in various forms
much as 10degees centigrade in a single of aniconic icons showed goddess
decade. worship through-out Europe and
northern
The temperate climate of Europe made it Asia. The gynecocentric (centered on
the most favored region on earth as it is women) religious beliefs in Old Europe
away from climatic excesses of during the Paleolithic era was concerned
continuous rainfall and high with feminine cycles, lunar phases and
temperatures. Meteorological conditions seasonal changes that created a mother,
is another important reason for wanting root gatherer, and seed planter. The sky
to live in Europe -- its indented coast- and stars of Indo-European myth had no
lines provided a beneficial effect on place in symbolism. Prominent images
are those of earth's vitality and richness culture, Hungary) is from Upper Paleolithic
showing sprouting seeds, eggs, catepillars period.
undergoing transformation. Trees,
The religion of Old Europe therefore,
springs and serpents that emerge from
was polytheistic and female-dominated. The
the ground were taken as symbols of
great female goddess was the absolute ruler
rising and spontaneous life. The interplay of human, animal and plant life and the
between creation and destruction, birth controller of celestial movements. Scholars
and death are symbols of the changing contradict the notion of goddesses
nature of life on earth. The moon phases representing fertility because fertility of the
-- new, waxing and old -- are the trinity of earth became a concern only during the
deities maiden, nymph and crone. food-producing era. Fertility is not the
goddess' primary function, nor as wives of
Goddesses include the water-bird gods and not as Venus figures. They
goddess associated with divine moisture represent life, death and regeneration more
from the oceans, rivers, lakes and skies. than they represent motherhood and
The snake goddess was a symbol of fertility.
fertility and family well-being. In tomb-
5. Social and Historical Influences
shrines, a winding snake figure is a
symbol of regeneration. The birth-giving The Atapuerca Mountains in northern Spain
goddess is a well-documented paleolithic is the earliest known and dated location of a
art in France, whose maleficent twin is group and generation of individuals in Old
the vulture or owl goddess, appearing as Europe. Fossils of human bones and stone
death through vulture, owl or predatory artifacts suggesting Lower Paleolithic
bird representations that bear hooks and occupation over 3 million-300,000 years ago
axes. The goddess of regeneration is are scattered over a wide area and
represented by a fish, toad, hedgehog, periods. Homo antecessor (homo erector
triangle, hourglass, bee and butterfly. antecessor), homo heidelbergensis and
Neanderthals left enough historic data to
The pregnant goddess (mother earth) is
attest their prolonged presence in Old
depicted as a nude with hands on her Europe. Homo heidelbergensis was
enlarged belly. She is also graphically discovered in numerous sites in Germany,
represented as a snake, Great Britain and northern France. Homo
triangle, lozenge (rhombus or diamond), neanderthalensis is the earliest European
and 2 or 4 lines. (350,000 and 600,000 years ago) whose
records were found in limestone caves and
2 male gods are recorded from the period, other large areas like the Mousterian (from
the sorrowful ancient and the mature male Le Moustier rock shelters in Dordogne,
holding a crosier (a hooked staff). The France). The Neanderthals disappeared
sorrowful ancient is depicted as a sitting man between 40,000 and 28,000 years ago with
with hands on knees or supporting his face, no clear explanation for their extinction. It
usually appearing beside the seated pregnant was during the Mesolithic that homo sapiens
figurines. Ganditorul (above) or 'The Thinker began populating the region. Lepenski Vir in
of Cernavodar" is a terracotta sculpture that Serbia is the earliest settled community with
was excavated in 1953 in Romania and buildings and large store of food. However,
believed to be from circa 5000 BCE. Mature the earliest evidence of farming in
male excavated in Szegvár-Tüzköves (Tisza Europe was discovered in Starcevo
(Serbia). Copper smelting was started by 4. Eastern Europe: basically central and
the Vinca culture around 7,000 years ago eastern Ukraine and parts of
in Belovode and Plocnik areas of Serbia, southern Russia and Belarus (Dniepr-
which provided no link of transitioning to Don culture). Apparently, they were
the first to domesticate horses
the Chalcolithic Age. The introduction of
though some Paleolithic evidence
metals not only initiated technoloical
could disprove it.
progress but also the social distinction 5. Atlantic Europe: a mosaic of local
between rich and poor. Iron Age culture cultures, some of them still pre-
in Europe arrived in northern Europe by Neolithic, from Portugal to southern
500 BC and was influenced by the Sweden. In around 5800 BC, western
Hittites. France began to incorporate the
Megalithic style of burial.
The Near East, Mediterranean and
Caucasus were the origins of European
Neolithic. Thessalia in Greece was the The Chalcolithic period saw the rise of
first to engage in agriculture, cattle communities and their specializations, where
herding and pottery in what is known materials distributed over wider regions
began to be produced in specific areas.
as pre-Sesklo culture. It was eventually
Stone and metal mining and processsing was
the Thessalian Sesklo culture (8000 BC)
developed in some areas.
that branched out into Europe. From
there the Balkan Peninsula was fully The copper period began to be used in the
occupied in the 6th millennium BCE. Balkans and eastern and central Europe from
5500 BC. It was also around this time when
There became a fully-formed Neolithic the Yamna people from Volga filtered into
Europe with 5 main cultural regions: eastern Europe, creating the Sredny
Stog culture and pushing the natives
1. Danubian cultures: from northern
northwest to the Baltic and to Denmark.
France to western Ukraine. Now split
This is the Kurgan hypothesis explaining the
into several local cultures, the most
spread of the IndoEuropeans in the north.
relevant ones being the Romanian
Another cultural branch, the Cernavoda I, left
branch (Boian culture) that expanded
traces in the lower Danube in what is
into Bulgaria, the Rossen culture that
believed to be another invasion. For both
was pre-eminent in the west, and the
instances, the main factor for mobility is the
Lengyel culture of Austria and
use of horses.
western Hungary, which would have
a major role in later periods. On the other hand, the cultures in the
2. Mediterranean cultures: from the Czech Republic and Poland got absorbed in
Adriatic to eastern Spain, including the Danubian Lengyel culture, only to
Italy and large portions of France and disappear later on. The Boian-Marica people
Switzerland. They were also (Bulgaria and southern Romania) left a royal
diversified into several groups. cemetery near the Black sea hinting of a
3. The area of Dimini-Vinca: Thessalia, monarchial set-up, which is seen to have
Macedonia and Serbia but extending been copied by the Bodrogkeresztur culture
its influence to parts of the mid- in the Tiszan region. The Michelsberg
Danubian basin (Tisza, Slavonia) and people from the western Danubian region
southern Italy. (the Rhine and Seine basins) displaced
the Rossen culture. Meanwhile, Chassey in
southeastern France and La Lagozza in  fjords - a narrow inlet of the sea between cliffs or
northern Italy fused into a functional culture steep slopes.
 loess - a loamy deposit formed by wind, usually
due to the distribution network of silex (a yellowish and calcareous, common in the
silica, especially quartz or flint) but signs of Mississippi Valley and in Europe and Asia
conflict left skeletons with violent injuries.  aniconic - symbolic rather than literally
The people beyond the Volga took over representational or not designed as a likeness
 protohistory - a branch of study concerned with
southern Russia and Ukraine. In the west, a the transition period between prehistory and the
megalithic super-culture from southern earliest recorded history
Sweden to southern Spain formed the
Danubian grouping which divided into
smaller groups.

During the middle Chalcolithic period,

fortified towns appeared in the Iberian
Peninsula: the Villa Nova de Sao
Pedro culture in Portugal and the Los
Millares people from southern Spain. Both
towns appeared to have friendly and
productive exchanges. Villa Nova de Sao
Pedro lasted 1300 years but vanishes around
the Bronze period. There are numerous rise
and fall of cultures in different parts of ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER AND
Europe. The sea peoples destroyed some BUILDING TYPES
parts of Greece (Troy and Mycenae) but on
the Atlantic side, Great Britain became the Old Europe has a long architecture history
center of Atlantic cultures. It was also extending back to the Lascaux cave of 20,000
around this time that the Villanova culture, BCE until the Roman occupation, and those
the possible predecessor of the Etruscan architecture have provided unique solutions
civilization, appeared in central Italy. to problems in the different regions. The
architecture of Old Europe is not a single
Most of Europe entered the historical identity but more of a collage of entities. The
period during the Iron Age. The territorial following character and building typologies
expansion by the Greeks and Romans
are presented according to period and the
diffused literacy in large areas, continuing in
country/region of archaeological discovery.
altered form on the remote regions of
Greenland and Old Prussians. The Celtic La 1. Dwellings
Tene culture defined the 2nd phase of Iron a.) Paleolithic Period
Age in Europe around 400 BC. They
 Caves were abundant in the
expanded into the Balkans, British Isles and
region and were ready for
other regions of France and Italy. Germanic
occupancy usually by the hunter-
tribes (from Scandinavia and Lower
Germany) superseded the Celtic power. The gatherers who were constantly
remaining history is country or on the move. Artifacts of flints,
region specific, a protohistory, and no longer human and animal bones were
European prehistory. the signs of cave occupancy
during the paleolithic. An
VOCABULARY: improvement of cave dwelling is
the lean-to (a shed erected
 against 1 wall of the cave) near survived the harsh climates in
the cave entrance by draping a simple animal-hide tents located
curtain of animal skin or thatch near a cave mouth or under a
over the posts and building a rock-overhang or in open air.
hearth inside. Straight tree branches were used
Example: for the teepee (portable conical
Le Lazaret (Nice, France) tent made of animal skins)
- home to either Homo draped over with hides and were
Heidelbergensis or proto- weighed down by rocks in place.
Neanderthals of about 200,000 Example:
year-old juvenile, archaeologists Gonnersdorf, Germany - the
date the more than 20,000 settlement covered an area of
fossilized bone fragments to the 650 square meters. Tent houses
Lower Paleolithic period. had circular plans with a
 Hut - round or oval in plan made diameter of 6-10 meters and
of stakes (wooden posts with colored red on the inside and
pointed end driven into the outside. The floors were paved
ground) and built along with slate (gray or green
the shore. The flooring was a metamorphic rock easily spslit
thick bed of organic matter and into flat pieces). The
ash, with pebble-lined or shallow Gonnersdorf people lived during
pit central hearth. a cold phase but lived
Example: comfortably in tents. The hearth
Terra Amata (Nice, France) is located near the central pole
- Central posts carry tree to allow smoke to escape thru
branches in A-frame position and the opening at the top. The
are held in place on the ground framework construction was very
with stones. There is a central sturdy and also allowed
hearth and an opening on the household items to be hung from
roof for venting smoke. the beams.
Molodova, Ukraine  Pit house - semi-underground
- located on the Dniester River in houses that are thermally
Ukraine, it has a 5 Middle efficient, common where climate
Paleolithic (Molodova 1-5), 3 was severe. The house may be
Upper Paleolithic and 1 oval or trapezoidal in plan with
Mesolithic occupations under the central post holes for the roof.
Mousterian culture. 26 hearths
were found at Molodova I with b.) Mesolithic Period
diameters ranging from 40x30cm
 Hut
to 100x40cm. About 2,500
mammoth bones have been Lepenski Vir, Serbia - houses
recovered from Molodova were arranged in a fan shape
1 layer 4. across the sandy banks of the
 Tent - common in glaciated Danube River. Wood houses
parts of Old Europe. Early man had a central hearth for roasting
 fish and the floors were covered and must be 'killed' by
with limestone plaster. The last performing rituals to make the
known use of the houses at house habitable. Afterwards,
Lepenski Vir was as a burial site. they burned and buried their
langhus in mounds as
 Pit house observance of the cycle of life
and death.
Soroki, Ukraine - has shallow
 Drystone house
oval pits roofed with light
Skara Brae, Scotland - A late
timber structure. Houses
Neolithic settlement dating back
contained hearths and stone-
to 3200 and 2200 BC. The 8
working areas.
houses were one-room
c.) Neolithic Period rectangular plans that were
 Timber-framed house - a rounded at the corners. Built of
house made of big pieces of double walls of undressed
wood stones, it can be accessed thru a
Nea Nikomedeia (Greece, 6190- long doorway closed by a stone
6150 BC) slab. Houses were connected
- square dwellings about through paved alleys. The roof
8meters x 8meters with was made from turf (a patch of
walls made of wattle and ground), thatched seaweed or
daub (wattle = framework of straw. Skara Brae was
twigs and branches; daub = to abandoned when it became
plaster with mud) on timber embedded in its own rubbish.
frame.
 Longhouse - The Neolithic long
house type was traced back in
5000 BCE to 7000 years ago. The
first farmers who lived in
western and central Europe
introduced this longhouse type.
The house was occupied by the
extended families.
Elsloo, Holland
- a model of a
Viking langhus (longhouse) of
several rooms and a large
hearth. Openings on the roof for
smoke also provided ventilation
and illumination in the interiors.
Width of houses were usually 5-7
meters and length can vary from
15 meters up to 75 meters.
Vikings believed that the house
was alive during construction
 both the Mediterranean and the Arabian
seas made ancient Egypt a very
important country in terms of trade and
politics. Desert covered 90% of Egypt but
the annual inundation of the Nile
converted the desert sands into fertile
alluvial soil for farming. Nile valley was
where the Egyptians established their
cities for the living and the dead.

The country was divided into Upper

Egypt (south) and Lower Egypt (North).
This can be explained by the topography:
Nile River flows from the high elevated
south to the low land in the north. The
country was unified only during the rule
of Menes around 3200 BC which
consequently started a great civilization
that lasted for 3500 years.

The earliest people that occupied the

EGYPTIAN ARCHITECTURE area near the Nile River valleys were
The ancient Egyptian civilization originated from the settlements of Fayum which
along the Nile River and lasted over 30 was a farming community in the early
centuries of pharaonic rule. Egyptology, both 5200 BCE. Early settlers left potteries as
as a philological discipline and a branch of evidence of agrarian communities.
archaeology, has made us understand the Fayum was known to have an ideal
civilization's literature, religion, art and setting for a comfortable life but that
architecture. The ancient Egyptians left changed after 1000 years. It was
extant samples of how they lived through believed that the waters dried up and the
their architecture which continue to wildlife migrated to a more lush
fascinate modern scholars. The pyramid is environment. The people who continued
probably the building form most associated to inhabit the river valleys formed
to this civilization, although earlier theories communities that later grew into
of its use is still debated on. This Egyptian cities. This period predated the
architecture history is one of the most establishment of a monarchy.
colorful and enjoyable to study.
2 Geology
INFLUENCES TO ARCHITECTURE
Architecture is the most important material
1 Geography remains of ancient Egypt with geology as
apparent influence of their distinctive style.
Kemi was the ancient name for Egypt, Timber and stone were abundant while
meaning “black land”, located on both metals were scarce. Mud was amply
banks of the Nile River. The access to provided by the Nile River valley which was
used with reeds, papyrus and palm ribs to
reinforce mud bricks. In many examples in flooding in the Nile pushed settlements away
the Near East, both massive civic and from the flood-prone areas while the desert
religious buildings, and small houses made of became drier. Egyptian societies along the
mud bricks collapsed and disappeared over Nile from 3500-3000 BC grew crops and the
time. Egypt did not experience that first unifying pharaohs emerged about 3200
problem with its solid geology. But it is the BC. Rains further decreased in the equatorial
quality and quantity of the stones required region beginning 2200 BC leading to the fall
for extensive monumental structures like the of Old Kingdom due to famine and political
pyramids that highlight the architecture of instability.
ancient Egypt with quarrying operations,
transport logistics and stone masonry that 4 Religion
can rival our modern era. Cut stones were
reserved for religious buildings or as Amun Ra (or Amon Re), the sun god
surfacing units. Limestone, sandstone and and Isis occupy the highest position in the
granite were quarried in different parts of hierarchy of Egyptian religion, and the lower
the country and transported by boat to the rank gods and goddesses number about 700.
construction site. Stone was initially used as Some gods were popular for several
foundation to mud walls but eventually generations but were forgotten later.
became widely used in the 3rd Dynasty. Their Heka (magic) was the underlying principle of
advanced knowledge of geology gave the religion because Heka was present in the act
world its first geological map. of creation. As god of magic and medicine,
Heka made the other gods perform their
3 Climate functions, was the intermediary between
man and god, and sustained the principle
Located in the African continent, Egypt of ma'at (harmony) on which life depended.
was filled with desert and only the Nile Valley The ma'at as a cause-effect principle enabled
was inhabited. The country had winter from the understanding that actions taken by a
November to April, and summer from May person affect other people and the operation
until October. The climate was generally of the universe. Ma'at, the goddess of justice
warm and calm. Storm and fog were rare. personified as a white feather, decided if a
Rain was experienced only during the winter person is worthy of reaching the afterlife by
and it is when the Nile flooded. These may weighting her feather against the dead
be the reasons why many of the buildings person's heart (soul). The belief that
have been preserved for thousands of years. everything had its rightful place in the world
including religion, society and seasonal
The Nile River was a more lush region than it changes was central in the ancient Egyptian
is today because the Mediterranean had culture. Ma'at was balance and order and
more water, influencing rainfall conditions in her opposite was isfet (chaos).
the Near East. The north African region was
conducive for hunting and gathering, and 5. Social Influences
farming may have been possible in the
Middle East area although it was not the The pharaoh occupied the top of the
economic focus in Egypt between 8,000-5000 social triangle followed by the members
BC. Climate shifted beginning 5000 BC that of his court, the viziers, and then by the
parts of the Nile dried up to become a single high priests. Fourth in line were the
large stream river. Around the Nile valley regional governors also called
grew dense settlements as agriculture the nomarchs, or the military generals
became more important than hunting and
(characteristic of the New Kingdom ).
herding. By3700 BC, the unpredictable
The scribes, artisans and farmer/laborers houses were the early form of domestic
were the last three categories in the architecture.
stratification. Not included in the
illustration above were the slaves who  Archaic Period: 3200-2650 BC
were war captives, and the natives who
were criminals. It is unfortunate to see Egypt was divided into Upper and
that the farmers and laborers were Lower Egypt with their own kings. The
regarded as low-class citizens when they country was unified through an invasion
provided the resources that was headed by Menes (sometimes referred to
responsible for the progress and survival as Narmer) from Upper Egypt to defeat
of Egypt for 3,000 years. the king of Lower Egypt. The
development of early system of writing
Ma'at, technically meaning hieroglyphics (Greek, hieroglyphicos =
harmony and balance, was the universal sacred writing) was from this period.
law that justified the social order. From
the pharaoh to the bottom in the  Old Kingdom (2800 – 2200
hierarchy, every one knew their place B.C.)
and their responsibilities to the kingdom.
The ancients also believed they had a The first pharaohs created a
perfect life with everything they needed powerful State, with its capital in
on the perfect land, and under the king Memphis, which governed all of Egypt
who represented their gods. The and achieved a long period of stability.
pharaoh was responsible for keeping the The great pyramids of Giza were
ma'at, and if successful all other things constructed in this period
fell into place.

6 Historical influence
 Middle Kingdom (2050 – 1780
 Pre-dynastic period: 5000-3000 B.C.)
BCE
The capital was moved to Thebes. Its
Discovery of the solar calendar of pharaohs extended their dominion as far
365 days around 4251 BC. Agricultural as the region of Nubia and brought about
settlements along the Nile River delta great cultural development. The empire
were discovered by decayed because of attacks by the
archeologists. Marmada Bani Hyksos, coming from Mesopotamia.
Salama and Fayum were located on the
southwest, and were both dated as Stone
Age settlements. Deir Tasa on the
eastern bank of the Nile, was established
 New Kingdom (1580 – 1100
in 4800. Al Badary, also on the east, was B.C.)
more sophisticated by its use of copper
The unification of the territory,
to manufacture tools. Oval-shaped
achieved by the pharaoh Ahmose I
houses made of mud and sometimes pit
allowed the broadening of its dominions
as far as Palestine and Syria. In addition, reduced to a province of the
Amenhotep IV established a new religion Roman empire.
in Egypt based on the cult of the god
Aten and established his capital in Tell El-
Amarna.

 Late Period (1100 – 30 B.C.)

In this period the decline of Egypt
began, as it suffered from Assyrian and
Persian attacks. Alexander the Great
successfully conquered it In the 4th
century and by year 30 B.C Egypt was

The architectural accomplishments of each period in ancient Egyptian history is presented

in the table:

Period Dynasty Impt. events

 civilization progressed
1st & 2nd  writing & hieroglyphics were introduced
 tomb of kings known as mastaba
Old
Kingdom
 royal mastabas evolved into the true pyramid
3rd
 Stepped Pyramid of Zoser @ Saqqarah

 pyramid building fully evolved: Pyramid

@Meydum
1. Pyramid @ Dahshur
4th
2. Great Pyramid @ Gizeh
3. Pyramid of Chephren
4. Pyramid of Mykerinos

 many more pyramids followed

5th 1. Pyramid of Sahura @ Abusir
2. Pyramid of Unas @ Saqqarah

 favorite site of pyramid at Saqqarah

 decline of Egypt and a period of anarchy followed
 6th

 period of anarchy, buildings were destroyed and

7th – 10th
defaced

 return to order
 Mentuhetep II united the country
 built an elaborate terraced Mortuary Temple @
11th Der-el-Bahari
 pyramid building declined w/ new pyramids made of
crude brick faced w/ stone
 rock-cut tombs now more popular

 Amenemhat I surveyed the country and set

Middle boundaries, carved out irrigation & opened quarries;
Kingdom also restored temples
12th
 founded the Great Temple of Amon, Karnak
 open fronted Tombs @ Beni Hasan
 Senuseret I erected the Heliopolis

 time of confusion
Succeeding
 Hyksos invasion of Egypt, introduced the horse and
dynasties
chariot

 Ahmose expelled the Hyksos

 Tutmosis (Thotmes) I added to the Temple of
Amun, Karnak, also first to build rock-hewn
corridor tombs at Theban mountains with Valley of
Kings
 Queen Hatshepsut patronized art of peace and re-
established religious rites
17th – 18th  Thotmes III built and rebuilt many temples
New  Amenhotep (Amenophis) III built the greater part of
Kingdom the Temple @ Luxor
 Amenophis IV changed his name to Ikhnaten
(Akhnaten), broke dynastic & religious traditions
 established his capital at Tel El-Amarna
 Tutenkhamen’s rule was short-lived but famous for
his impressive tomb
ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER so ancient builders used stone and clay to
span their columns. Since the length of
General characteristic: stones were minimized to make them
workable and transportable, the supports
Mysterious, otherworldly; post and lintel that carry them should be large and closely
construction. space.

1. Sun-baked bricks made of puddled clay 5 Wall surface decoration or hieroglyphics

and reeds were incised on early plastered wall

2 Gorge cornice (roll molding) The ancients made sure that their way
of life and belief systems were depicted on
The lack of precipitation of any form walls and pillars of their buildings.
allowed the Egyptians to put clay or stone for
their roof, the weight of which resulted to 6 Flat & windowless surfaces
the curvature on the upper portion of the
supporting wall. Sun exposure was unwanted and walls
were designed thick to shut out the heat
3 Batter wall from outside. Windows were small
(sometimes they were merely slits) and
A batter wall is a sloping wall that is located high above the wall.
wide at the base and narrow at the top. The
habitable Nile valley was less than 5 percent 7 Egyptian columns have vegetable origin
of the country's land area and the rest were and gathered at base
less hospitable dry land and mountains. The
soil type therefore, was generally sandy. The absence of verdant features in the
Because of this, batter walls were landscape were compensated by applied
constructed wide at the base for stability and designs on building parts like walls
narrow at the top to lessen wall mass. and columns.

4 Massive walls & close-spaced columns The types of Egyptian capitals (column head
or the uppermost part of the column, usually
Metals were absent and good timber decorated) are:
were reserved for more important structures
1. Papyrus
2. Lotus
3. Lotus Bud
4. Palm
5. Composite
6. Hathor Head
Egyptian column types:

1. Fluted Column - first appeared in

Dyoser's Step Pyramid. The column
resembled plant stems.

2. Palmiform - can be found in the

Pyramid of Unas Mortuary complex (5th
dynasty). The use of this column was
rare after the 5th dynasty.

3. Papyriform - can be found at Dyoser's

pyramid, but columns were attached to
other structures. Widely used during the
New Kingdom. There were 2 variations:

- circular shafts (body of column)

representing a single plant

- ribbed shafts representing a plant with

multiple stems

4. Coniform - can be found at Dyoser's

pyramid enclosure wall. It was
characterized by a fluted shaft with 8. Brick vaults without centering
capital of a conifer tree.
The arch and vault were Egyptian
5. Tent pole - can be found in
inventions but were not widely used. The
the Festival Temple of Tutmosis III at
vault, however, were used in the interiors
Karnak. This was a rare type and built to
to create spaces under a pile of stones.
imitate the wooden "poles" used to
The vaults were created without the use
support light structures like tent, ship
of support.
cabins and shrines.

6. Campaniform - The flower capital

9. Egyptian ornaments
supported by column or pillar (square  solar disk of vulture w/ spread wings
shafts). Can be found in the Hall of -- signify protection
Annals of Tutmosis III at Karnak.

7. Composite - common during the

Graeco-Roman period. Took the form of
combined capitals.
 scarab or sacred beetle -- symbol for ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
resurrection
1. MONUMENTAL ARCHITECTURE

Religion played an important part in Egyptian

architecture. The biggest edifices were built
for their gods and the pharaohs who were
descendants of their gods. There were two
types of monumental architecture in ancient
Egypt, tomb and temple architecture.

a.) Tomb Architecture

 papyrus, lotus, palm -- fertility The belief in afterlife necessitated the

building of lasting tombs. The ancient
Egyptians regarded their houses as
temporary lodging and tombs as permanent
abode. Pharaohs embarked on
constructing their own tombs early in their
rule. These projects entailed a lot of
expenses and may be one of the reasons for
the spread and promotion of slavery to
 spiral, feathers & rope -- eternity ensure availability of workers.

Mastaba

- The first mastabas were built in Giza just

like the pyramids. Early Egyptologists called
it mastaba because the tomb resembles a
bench (Arabic, mastaba = stone bench). It
was the earliest form of funerary structure
for Egyptian royalty. Mastabas were
rectangular in plan, of mud bricks and batter
walls (sloping sides). The building rests on
stone foundations underground. The earliest
mastabas were constructed in the 1st
Dynasty and the full evolution of this building
type happened from the 5th to 6th Dynasty.
 

First Dynasty mastaba features:

2nd & 3rd Dynasties mastaba features:
 Mastabas were designed as houses
for comfort, where food was  Development of stairway
rationed and other items the dead mastaba, where the underground
might need in the afterlife were burial structure was connected to
made available. the roof through a stairway
 The building was oriented along  also followed the north-south axis
the north-south axis which ancients  stairway @ the north side descended
believed was a guarantee to enter to the level of the tomb chamber
eternity  tomb chamber and
 It had several rooms but attendant magazines (a storehouse
the sarcophagus (elaborate tomb) or repository) sunk deeper and cut in
was located at the center, deep the rock below
below the ground  after the burial, portcullises (grating
 The burial chamber also contained a of wood, steel or stone to seal off
seated statue of the dead grave entrances) were dropped from
called Ka, looking thru an opening on the top
the wall  recesses along the east side, looking
 The rooms around the burial towards the Nile; southern recess
chamber functioned as reception for was a false door allowing the spirit to
the generous funerary offerings leave and return at will; in front of it
 The roof was covered with wood and was a table for the daily offerings of
further covered with barrow (earth fresh food
mound)
 Batter wall was usually at 75degrees,
the outer face may be plain or
serrated with palace
facade (alternating recess and
protrusion of the wall surface)
 The exterior wall was painted in
bright colors
 The mastaba building was
surrounded by temenos (sacred
enclosure around a temple or holy
spot)
Mastaba @ Beit Khallaf -- guarded by 5 portcullises 5th & 6th Dynasties mastaba features:

 offering room became more

elaborate
4th Dynasty mastaba features:  may have a group of rooms w/in or
adjacent the mastaba mounding w/c
 shaft mastaba and a small offering included 1 or more serdab
chapel developed
 parts of a mastaba:
1. mastaba mound
2. offering chapel
3. columned hall – walls w/
scenes from daily life of the
dead
4. serdab (a closed chamber for
the Ka statue of the
deceased) with small holes
for the soul to roam freely
5. stele (grave marker) located
inside the offering chapel
 tomb chambers sunk deeper,
approached by short horizontal
passage from a vertical shaft from
the north Mastaba of Ti
 majority of mastabas were made of
limestones b.) Royal Pyramids

The pyramids are the best-known structures

of ancient Egyptian civilization. It is a true
representation of the power of the pharaoh,
the people's belief in him and their
preparation for the life beyond the physical
world. The pyramids are the world's first
largest monuments.

3 kinds of pyramids are descriptive of their

profiles:
1. Step pyramid

There is only one step pyramid in history, the

one for Dyoser located in Saqqara and was
considered the cornerstone of pyramid
building. It was designed by Imhotep,
Dyoser's prime minister, who was later
deified for his skills in construction and
medicine. This pyramid started as a mastaba
plan and was finished as the world's first
pyramid. At op the original mastaba,
Imhotep built another smaller mastaba and
continued adding until there were 6 steps
about 60 meters high. The Stepped Pyramid
of Dyoser also had chapels, a massive
courtyard for the festivals and an enclosing
wall.

The Bent Pyramid was a building complex

that included a small chapel on the east,
a causeway or ramp, and a valley temple
where the last rites and mummification
2. Bent Pyramid were performed.

Like the Step Pyramid of Dyoser, the bent

pyramid is also a class of its own. The bent
pyramid was built for the pharaoh Sneferu,
who built a total of 3 pyramids for himself.
The first pyramid began as a step pyramid,
then modified to a true pyramid.
Unfortunately, the ground on which it was
built was unstable so the project was
abandoned. A second pyramid was an
experimentation on the true pyramid form,
but halfway through the construction the Sneferu's bent pyramid was never used
blocks started to cave in the burial because he built a third pyramid which was a
chamber so the angle of incline was reduced successful true pyramid form. It is called the
from 54.4 degrees to just 43.9 degrees, a Red Pyramid from the use of red limestone
'bending' of the pyramid. The bent pyramid blocks. The Bent Pyramid of Sneferu,
profile was not intentional, it was actually a therefore, was a cenotaph, a false grave for a
solution to lessen the mass on the upper person buried elsewhere.
portion of the structure.
3 True pyramid - the perfect pyramid
form. The Red Pyramid of Sneferu was the
first true pyramid and so became the
benchmark for the next pyramids. It
included burial chambers within the pyramid
core, a mortuary temple for the veneration
of the pharaoh, and a causeway to the valley
temple. This formula for pyramid
construction and design was passed on to his
son, Khufu, who built the largest pyramid at
Giza. The famous 3 pyramids at Giza was for
Khufu, the second largest pyramid was for his
son Khafre, and the smallest was for his
grandson, Menkaure.

Included among the Seven Wonders of the

Ancient World, the 3 pyramids were built on
a rocky area of the Nile valley and have
connected causeways to mortuary temples
on the lower part of the valley. These
temples were linked to the Nile by a canal.

The pyramid was part of a complex & has to preserve the mummified remains of the
attendant structures: pharaoh resulted in the construction
of 'hidden' tombs. This was also the reason
 walled enclosure why mortuary temples became independent
 offering chapel with a stele usually structures. Rock-hewn tombs were generally
on the east side of the pyramid but a 'corridor type' with stairs, passages as
occasionally on the north access to the tomb chambers which may
 mortuary temple, projecting from extend deep into the mountain side.
the enclosure normally on the east
side but on the north in Zoser’s
complex
 a causeway
 valley temple or valley building
 pyramid foundation on living rock
made of limestone from the locality
and built of concentric sloping layers,
course by course dressed from top to
bottom with finer limestone from
Tura, the apex stone or pyramidion,
gilded
 entrances normally on the north side

3. Rock-hewntomb
a tomb chamber under the surface of
relatively level rock. This is different from
cave or cavern tombs of China and India
because Egyptian rock-hewn tombs were
excavations in hills and mountains. The need
 2 Temple Classifications:

1. Cult temple

a building for the veneration of gods or a

'residence' for the gods. Cult temples were
large spaces where priests pray and tend to
the gods. The Egyptian masses not only gave
offerings but participated in rituals of
worship.

for the worship of the ancient and

mysterious gods. It has a palisaded court
and a pavilion comprising a vestibule and
sanctuary at the end of the court. A barque
station or barque chamber (the storeroom
for the miniature boat that carried the god’s
statue) can also be found. On the other
hand, a barque shrine points along the
processional way where the barque stopped.

BUILDING TYPES
1. MONUMENTAL ARCHITECTURE

TEMPLES

The temple was an important part of the

ancient Egyptians' daily life which held social
and political power. Like an enterprise,
temples owned farmlands which provided
food and goods and employed priests and
craftsmen. Temples that were under the Temple of Isis, Philae
good graces of the pharaoh were given more
land and other goods. 2. Mortuary temple
a building for the veneration of the pharaoh. Central portal is lower in height than
Mortuary temples were initially attendant the flanking towers.
structures to the pharaohs' tombs but later  Scenes depicting the pharaoh and
became separate from the tomb. gods were carved and painted on the
pylons to remind the people of the
place of worship for deified pharaohs. king's authority
People continued to offer food and clothing  Before the entrance pylon, pair
to the dead pharaoh in the belief that he of obelisks (carved monuments that
could continue helping the people. Mortuary are monolithic, 4-sided, tall and
temples are strictly for the pharaohs, which slender with
at first were part of the tomb complex. In a pyramidion (capstone)
later period, the temples were located far were positioned, or sometimes the
from the pharaoh's tomb to ensure that the statue of the pharaoh
dead was not disturbed.  Inner court - a large court open to
the sky and surrounded by
Mortuary temple features: colonnades. It was a space of
transition between the outside world
 originated from the offering chapels and the holy parts of the temple. It
of the royal mastabas and pyramids was a place of gathering for the
 the mortuary temples were once the people during festivals.
more important of the temple types  Hypostyle hall - a roofed hall that is
especially during the Middle riddled with columns. The size and
Kingdom when burials were done at frequency of the columns help
the hillside support the wood/clay roof. Since
 later their distinction from the cult the hypostyle hall has a dark interior,
temples was eventually lost, the the clerestory (windows positioned
merging of features now have the at varying heights of the roof)
following: avenue of sphinxes, provided illumination indoors. The
pylons, entrance pylons, great courts, capital of the massive column often
hypostyle hall, inner sanctuary and in the shape of the papyrus flower.
secret rooms. Only the priests and the pharaoh
were allowed to enter the hypostyle
hall.
 Sanctuary - the most sacred part of
the temple. It was a very dark and
Both the cult and mortuary temples relatively small room, located
consisted of the following: farthest from the entrance. The floor
level is raised and the ceiling level
 Series of monumental gateways - dropped at the sanctuary where the
the propylon (first gate), statue of the god can be found.
pylon (succeeding gates or the last Although the temple can house many
stand-alone gate before the temple gods, the main deity was positioned
facade) and entrance pylon (the along the main axis and the lesser
temple facade); all 3 may look ones at the sides. Sometimes
identical. a double sanctuary was provided for
 The propylon/pylon central portal is 2 gods of equal importance. The
flanked by 2 truncated pyramids that material wealth of the deities were
are surmounted by gorge cornice.
 housed in several rooms adjacent to square base and tapers to a pyramidion top.
the sanctuary. They stood in pairs before temple entrance
 Sacred lake - Many temples built pylons with height of about 9-10 times their
during the New kingdom were sited diameter and 4 sides incised w/
near a lake because the priests hieroglyphics.
needed water to perform rituals in
the temple.

a.) Cult Temples

for the worship of the ancient and

mysterious gods. It has a palisaded court
and a pavilion comprising a vestibule and
sanctuary at the end of the court. A barque
station or barque chamber (the storeroom
for the miniature boat that carried the god’s
statue) can also be found. On the other
hand, a barque shrine points along the 2 obelisks of Tuthmosis II (right) and Queen Hatshepsut
processional way where the barque stopped. (left), Karnak, Egypt (New Kingdom 18th Dynasty)

Many Egyptian obelisks found their way

in Europe, as pictured below:

The Obelisk, Piazza S. Giovanni in

Laterano, Rome

OBELISK

From the Greek word obeliskos = spit, nail,

pointed pillar. Although obelisks are not Cleopatra's Needle, Thames
habitable spaces, they are important features Embankment, London
of ancient Egyptian architecture. An obelisk
was originally a sacred symbol of Heliopolis,
the sun god. Carved from a huge, single
stone (monolith), the obelisk has a square
 The excavation at Deir el-Medina (Tell
Amarna) revealed multi-storied houses
that were almost square comprised of 3
main spaces: sleeping and living area, and a
yard with baked clay oven which functioned
as a kitchen. The walls in the living area
had niches for statues of gods. A wood
grinding area for making bread or beer was
sometimes present but the 2 cellars for
storage were a regular feature.

The flat room had a vent for exhausting hot

air from below and catching cool breezes.
The Egyptians also made the roof area as the
extension of their living, sleeping and storage
areas especially during the hot months.
Small pottery for storing grains were found
on the roof. The front yard served as a
workshop like pottery or carpentry for the
craftsman. The yard was also used for taking
care of the pets and for animal husbandry.
2. NON - MONUMENTAL ARCHITECTURE

a ) Dwellings

Desert location of the country means that

there were no forests in Egypt so wood is
scarce and mud was the chief building
material. This is the reason why monuments
are still around while traces of ancient homes
can no longer be found. Stones were used to
build monuments and mud as a material for  Houses of the rich
the houses crumbled over time. Mud had to
be replaced or strengthened. The abundance City-dwelling for the noblemen were 3-4
of reeds enabled the people to use them to storeys high townhouses on constricted
reinforce mud and prevent it from cracking. plots. Most houses had at least three rooms
Reeds were also used to make thatch or as and all houses had flat roofs which formed
mats to cover doors and windows. Houses part of the living area. High ceilings were
were 1 to 2 storeys high with mud roof painted with scenery. They had private
usually with parapet (low wall protecting the gardens and planted courtyards to provide
roof or balcony) for the loggia (open sided shade and privacy. A pool is sometimes
extension to a house). Rooms looked out a present and stocked with fish from the Nile.
north-facing court. Windows were placed on Houses also had granaties, stables and areas
the high end of the walls as solution to the for the servants. This depiction of the houses
heat of the sun. The floor is packed earth for the rich were from scaled models found
covered with reed mats. buried with their owners.

 Houses of the poor

 Best example of a fortress was located in
Nubia, in Buhen, an Egyptian colony. It was
believed to be built by a number of kings,
especially Senuseret III. Fortresses were
able to send signals to one another in case of
an attack, and the Fortress of Buhen.

Egyptian military architecture revealed:

 the main wall was reinforced along

The houses of the rich people were stronger the exterior by projecting rectangular
because they could afford to build their towers
home from stone were often located on  along revetment (retaining wall) of
spacious estates in the countryside. paved rampart (a wall surrounding a
Mansions of high government officials had fortification having a walkway on top
gardens and pool, and were built around a and usually with parapet) were semi-
courtyard where flowers, fruit and circular bastions (projecting part of
vegetables were grown. Indoor toilets and the wall for defensive firing) having
bathrooms were also built for the rich, the triple loopholes w/
sewage was disposed of through a cesspit or single embrasure (small opening on
by throwing it in the river. the parapet)
 ditch 9m wide by 7m deep was dry
· w/ a scarp
 on outer side of ditch is
a counterscarp surmounted by a
narrow-covered way of brickwork
beyond w/c a glacis (artificial slope)
sloped down to the natural ground
level

scarp and counterscarp - A scarp and

a counterscarp are the inner and outer sides,
respectively, of a ditch or moat used in
fortifications. Attackers (if they have not
bridged the ditch) must descend the
b ) Fortresses counterscarp and ascend the scarp. In
permanent fortifications the scarp and
A fortress is a stronghold, especially a counterscarp may be encased in stone. In
fortified town for a large number of soldiers. less permanent fortifications, the
counterscarp may be lined with paling fence
set at an angle so as to give no cover to the
attackers but to make advancing and
retreating more difficult.

Bastion

Rampart