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How did Greek influence change Roman temple design during the Roman Republic?
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Western architecture
Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire, England; designed by James Paine and Robert Adam.
During the Roman Republic, increasing contact with Greece significantly transformed Roman temple design, which had originally emerged as an Italic style characterized by a podium, a triple cella, and a broad, low porch.1
As Greek influence grew from approximately 200 BCE, it began to modify both the sculptural forms and spatial arrangements of these structures. Key changes included:1
- Plan and Layout: Roman temples began adopting the Greek single-cella, peripheral plan. However, they retained distinct Italic features, such as the high podium and a deep, emphasized entrance portico, rather than the Greek style of having steps on all sides.12
- Columnar Treatment: While Greek temples were typically surrounded by a full colonnade, Roman designs often reduced this to a row of engaged columns or pilasters along the cella walls, except on the entrance facade.2
- Ornamentation: Architects incorporated and modified Greek Ionic order elements. By the late Republic, this evolved into a native freedom of arrangement, featuring highly elaborated moldings and floral forms in the entablature.1
These developments created a hybrid style that blended Greek aesthetic principles with traditional Roman structural preferences.1