The sacred architecture of Rhodes during the late Classical and Hellenistic periods commonly favoured small buildings, preferably with a prostyle or in antis front, as attested by the temples at Lindos, Ialisos, Kameiros, Theologos and Rhodes town. In addition, as widely attested throughout the period considered, there was a tendency to mix features of the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian orders and to enrich the design of inner rooms while exterior façades were comparatively sober. The temple of Athana Polias in Ialysos is, in this respect, quite interesting: the temple was studied some years ago by the Italian Archaeological School in Athens, and a new interpretation of the structures was proposed. Recent research has also resulted in a new configuration being put forward for the temple of Aphrodite in Rhodes town; this temple was excavated during the Italian occupation of the Dodecanese and never published in full. Its amphiprostyle scheme is suited to its position, looking towards the plateia to the acropolis and also towards the eastern and military harbours. Besides the well-known Rhodian sensitivity to scenic effects, evident in the arrangement of town’s buildings, this temple also uses different architectural orders for the inner room and the outer façade, as is the case on the Ialysos temple. Another interesting characteristic of Hellenistic architecture in Rhodes is the preference for unfinished or bossed surfaces; these created a sort of ‘naturalistic’ aspect, as is evident in the nymphaea and grottoes of Rodini or in the sacred buildings on the acropolis. A side effect of this phenomenon is an architecture with simplified profiles, visible, for instance, on the altar of Zeus Atabyrios in Rhodes. The altar was a ‘court altar’ of Ionic type, with a large ramp and dates to approximately the 3rd century B.C. Its architecture can be compared to rural buildings in Rhodes, and to Carian buildings on the opposite coast, thereby constituting a clear link between these two area. This architecture stands in contrast to the Rhodian architecture, with its similarities with Alexandria, which are evident in more monumental edifices.

L’architettura sacra di Rodi nel periodo tardo classico ed ellenistico attesta una considerevole predilezione per edifici di non grandi dimensioni, preferibilmente prostili o in antis. Inoltre, come attestano esempi a Lindo, Ialiso, Camiro, Theologos e a Rodi città, l’uso degli ordini rivela la tendenza alla commistione di dettagli morfologici derivanti dal Dorico, dallo Ionico e dal corinzio e la parallela tendenza a monumentalizzare gli interni in contrasto con le fronti esterne, più sobrie. L’esempio del tempio di Athana Polias a Ialiso è a questo riguardo interessante: l’edificio è stato studiato anni fa dalla Scuola Archeologica Italiana, proponendo una nuova interpretazione delle strutture. Recenti ricerche hanno inoltre proposto una nuova configurazione anche per il tempio di Afrodite a Rodi città, pure scavato durante l’occupazione italiana del Dodecaneso e mai pubblicato nel dettaglio. Il suo schema anfiprostilo è adatto alla sua posizione, affacciato su una delle plateiai che conducono all’acropoli e allo stesso tempo dominante il porto orientale e quello militare. Oltre quindi alla nota sensibilità rodia per gli effetti scenografici nella disposizione degli edifici, l’edifico mostra la stessa tendenza già evidenziata per il tempio di Ialiso ad impiegare diversi ordini architettonici per l’interno e la fronte esterna. Un altro interessante carattere dell’architettura rodia risiede nella preferenza per il ‘non finito’, visibile nel bugnato rustico di molte superfici, lasciate così per creare una sorta di aspetto ‘naturalistico’, visibile ad esempio nei ninfei e nelle grotte di Rodini o negli edifici sacri dell’acropoli. Un effetto collaterale del fenomeno è da riconoscere nelle architetture con profili semplificati. Il fenomeno è riscontrabile, ad esempio, nell’altare di Zeus Atabyrios a Rodi, altare ionico del tipo ‘a corte’, accessibile tramite una larga rampa, datato a circa il III secolo a.C. I suoi caratteri architettonici trovano confronto in architetture rurali dell’isola e in edifici della costa caria, definendo un legame tra queste due diverse aree, diverso da quello con l’architettura di Alessandria che sembra invece improntare gli edifici maggiori.

Sacred architecture in Hellenistic Rhodes / Rocco, Giorgio. - In: THIASOS. - ISSN 2279-7297. - ELETTRONICO. - 7:2(2018), pp. 7-37.

Sacred architecture in Hellenistic Rhodes

Rocco, Giorgio
2018-01-01

Abstract

The sacred architecture of Rhodes during the late Classical and Hellenistic periods commonly favoured small buildings, preferably with a prostyle or in antis front, as attested by the temples at Lindos, Ialisos, Kameiros, Theologos and Rhodes town. In addition, as widely attested throughout the period considered, there was a tendency to mix features of the Doric, Ionic and Corinthian orders and to enrich the design of inner rooms while exterior façades were comparatively sober. The temple of Athana Polias in Ialysos is, in this respect, quite interesting: the temple was studied some years ago by the Italian Archaeological School in Athens, and a new interpretation of the structures was proposed. Recent research has also resulted in a new configuration being put forward for the temple of Aphrodite in Rhodes town; this temple was excavated during the Italian occupation of the Dodecanese and never published in full. Its amphiprostyle scheme is suited to its position, looking towards the plateia to the acropolis and also towards the eastern and military harbours. Besides the well-known Rhodian sensitivity to scenic effects, evident in the arrangement of town’s buildings, this temple also uses different architectural orders for the inner room and the outer façade, as is the case on the Ialysos temple. Another interesting characteristic of Hellenistic architecture in Rhodes is the preference for unfinished or bossed surfaces; these created a sort of ‘naturalistic’ aspect, as is evident in the nymphaea and grottoes of Rodini or in the sacred buildings on the acropolis. A side effect of this phenomenon is an architecture with simplified profiles, visible, for instance, on the altar of Zeus Atabyrios in Rhodes. The altar was a ‘court altar’ of Ionic type, with a large ramp and dates to approximately the 3rd century B.C. Its architecture can be compared to rural buildings in Rhodes, and to Carian buildings on the opposite coast, thereby constituting a clear link between these two area. This architecture stands in contrast to the Rhodian architecture, with its similarities with Alexandria, which are evident in more monumental edifices.
2018
Sacred architecture in Hellenistic Rhodes / Rocco, Giorgio. - In: THIASOS. - ISSN 2279-7297. - ELETTRONICO. - 7:2(2018), pp. 7-37.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11589/122807
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