Department of Architecture
College of Environmental Design
King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals
Module 3: Architecture of the Ancient Near East
Comparison with Previous Civilizations
How does the architecture of the ancient Near East civilization compare with that of civilizations before it? As part of our exploration of the civilizations, we will attempt a brief exploration aimed at comparing civilizations we have studied with those before it to determine the kinds of progress that has been witnessed in the aspects of buildings and other architectural elements, materials systems and technologies and architectural organizing principles. We will also seek to understand the historical evolution of architectural practices as we carryout these comparisons.
Buildings and other Architectural Elements
In Prehistoric period, main architectural elements are: Dwellings and settlements, Funeral structures, and Ritual buildings. In the ANE main architectural elements are: Houses and cities, Temples, and Palaces. The two civilizations only share dwellings and settlements as common architectural elements. Further review however shows difference in emphasis on development. In prehistory, settlement forms were in initial stage of development. In ANE, Cities had become common and house and settlement form had become established and fixed. In general architectural elements in the two civilizations reflect their level of development.
Materials, Construction Systems and Technologies
The principal construction materials used during prehistory were wood and other plant materials, mud and stone. During the ancient Near East, the materials of construction were mud bricks, stone and wood. There are common materials that are shared between the two periods. But a review of the architecture of the civilizations reveals a difference in their use of such materials. In Prehistory, the use of materials was strongly tied to available. Materials of construction reflected what was available in specific locations. In the ancient Near East, mud brick was the predominant material construction material because it was available. This did not however preclude the use of other materials, which were imported from different places and used in construction. The practice marks the developing ingenuity of human beings to acquire the use of what is not immediately available. The level of preparation and use of stone in the ancient Near East was generally more advanced than in prehistory.
The construction system used during the prehistoric period varied with both location and time. Early Stone Age people had different practices from new Stone Age people and different geographical regions had different practices. There was no noticeable technology that was applied to houses during the prehistoric period. In the ancient Near East, construction systems used include mud brick wall construction with flat, vaulted or dome roof as the most common and columnar or trabeated construction. People of the ancient Near East also had a passive system of heat control using courtyards and water supply using aqueducts. Construction in the Ancient Near East was generally more advanced than during the prehistoric period and they also applied different technologies to service their buildings. They mastered the art of vault construction to address the limits of mud as a material, and they used the technologies to address conditions arising from the geography of the area.
Architectural Organizing Principles
In prehistory, it is difficult to identify unique principles of architectural organization. Rather it is possible to identify factors that organize and shape building form. These factors include function, availability of materials, symbolic belief and social differentiation. In the ancient Near East, principles of architectural organization include the use of courtyard system, elevation of buildings and organic organization of the city fabric. Three forces account for the principles observed the geography of the location, symbolism and meaning and also social forces. Comparing the two periods, we find both common elements in the factors shaping architecture as well as differences. Geography and symbolic belief are predominant in both periods. In the ancient Near East however we notice that practices had led to the emergence of high aesthetics consciousness. This high aesthetics conscious is evident in the art of the Assyrians and the buildings, the façade treatment of the Babylonians and the palace of the Persians, where conscious attempt is made to create architecture from and treatment that is majestic and beautiful as a reflection of the power and authority of the ruling king.
References
- Norwich, J. J. (2000) Great Architecture of the World, London: Mitchell Beazly
- Trachtenberg M. & Hyman Isabelle (1986) Architeture- From Prehistory to Postmodernism, B. V., the Netherlands: Harry N. Abrams
- Kostof S. (1995) A History of Architecture- Settings and Rituals, Oxford: Oxford University Press
- Cruickshank D. (1996) Sir Barnister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture, Oxford: Architectural Press
Web links index