HISTORY OF ROMAN ARCHITECTURE
MAISON CARREE No.1
: Maison Carree; France, Nimes; approx. B.C.19
- Nimes in Provence was a city of the Celts in the end of B.C.3c and called Nemausus in ancient time.
In B.C.27, Nimes belong to the Rome under the reign of Augustus.
In this period the urban civilzation was established systematically by Augustus with the structures such as the city wall, city gate, Pont du Gard, the amphitheater and so on.
- Meison Carree is one of those built in about B.C.20-19 by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Augustus' son-in-law.
- Mason Carre is a pseudoperipteros temple with 6 Corinthian columns in front in Early Imperial Rome period when the Roman temples have been strongly influenced by Greek temple style.
But the typical Roman temples in this period had also own Roman style in same time. Those are high podium, wide front steps in the midst of front part of podium and prostylos columns in front of cella.
This characteristic Roman style came from Etruscan temple style. The early Roman temple style composed with Etruscan composition and Greek detail and concepts.
Photo: Yasuhiko Nishigaki
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