Greek Architects had almost an obsession with perfectionwhen building temples and monuments.
This is something The Parthenon and the Templeof Apollo have in common. Both temples have trabeation structures and followthe Greek idea that they had to be perfect from all sides. This means that the columnscontinue around the whole structure and the building does not have a back, unlikeRoman Architecture. Both temples were built to adjust subtle optical illusions.For example, the Parthenon has shorter corner columns causing the whole floorto be domed, and curved columns vertically in order to correct the illusion ofconcavity. The temple of Apollo was designed to create a sense of upwardmovement they did this by reducing the scale of the capitals and the height of theentablature. This was in the style of a Hellenistic ionic temple whereas The Parthenonwas designed in the style of a Classical Doric temple. This means that thecolumns used for The Parthenon were shorter and wider with a larger Frieze,compared to the Ionic columns which were thinner and taller.
They had a smallerfrieze and a more intricate capital. The difference in style of the templesshows how Greek architecture progressed and was refined between the classicaland Hellenistic buildings. Both temples stand on a raised platform. However,the Parthenon is all on one level with a tunnel of columns forming a wide cella.This was designed to frame the view and house the statue of Athena. In contrastthe temple of Apollo has a raised entrance which is 13 feet higher than thecourt bellow. Within the court is a shrine surrounded by bay trees.
There is a hiddenroom at the same level as the entrance which has two tunnels that lead to thecourt, it is said that they may have been the oracles which the temple wasknown for. Another big difference in organisation of the temples is how theyare approached. The Parthenon has a set of monumental stairs leading from thewest approaching the corner of the building.
This was designed so that youcould see the whole structure instead of the front to emphasise this idea thatit was perfect form all sides. Leading up to the temple are a series of statuesof warring gods placed in intricate groupings. The temple itself has a fairlysimple layout inside, perhaps in order to draw attention to the statue ofAthena. This is in complete contrast to the drastic difference in heightbetween the entrance and the court found in the temple of Apollo. Perhaps this isbecause the architects were trying to create a sense of privacy and intimacy withthe gods while the Parthenon was more of a public celebration of Athena explainthe openness of the structure.
