ASSIGNMENT 1

The classic city

1. How do you think Athenian Democracy has helped in city planning in ancient Greece?

 Athenian Democracy was inspired by political genius of Pericles

 Democracy in the age of Pericles produced that inherent dignity of the individual born of free speech,
a sense of unity with ones fellowman and a full opportunity for participation in affairs of the
community.
 Athenian citizen experienced the exhilaration of freedom and accepted the challenge of responsibility
 Philosophy was nurtured, and there were no depth that the wise and intelligent were afraid to plumb
 Reason was encouraged, logic invited, and science investigated
 This culture produced Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle
 The affinity between freedom and spiritual values was symbolized in the temples built upon the
acropolis
 In them was reflected the exalted stature of democratic man
The humble city-:
 During the early years of Athenian democracy, the Greek city was a maze of wandering unpaved
lanes, lacking in drainage and sanitation
 Water was carried from local wells
 Waste was disposed of in the streets
 There were no palaces, and temples, public buildings were few and simple
 The common assembly place was the pnyx, an open air podium where the citizen met to consider and
discuss affairs of state
 The agora or marketplace, the center of urban activity, was irregular in form
 Little distinction between the dwellings of the rich and poor
 Few rooms that comprised the house were grouped about an interior court behind a windowless
façade that faced one of the randomly faced streets
 For the Greek citizen the temple was the symbol of his democratic way of life, the equality of men
 Upon the temples he lavished all his creative energies, and in them we find a refinement of line and
beauty of form that expressed the dignity and humility of the Athenian
 Then the city having agora at center, grid iron street system of Hippodamus, sanitation, drainage
system (drainage line beneath the dwelling) etc. introduced
 Agora was regular shaped (rectangular or square shaped) and shops are arranged along it
  Dwellings were arranged climatically because people started to find logic and science
 Public buildings are placed near agora so that everyone can take part in the meetings and social
gatherings
2. Discuss the contribution of Hippodamus in Greek city planning.
 It was natural that an atmosphere of philosophical inquiry should impel a search for order in the city
 It was a topic that engaged the attention of teacher philosophers and politicians alike
 In the latter part of the fifth century B.C. an architect from Miletus by the name of Hippodamus
advanced positive theories of the art and science of the city planning
 He introduced the idea of gridiron street system (This is not entirely accurate)
 A semblance of geometrical form had been present in early towns of Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the
Indus valley, and a formal rectangular pattern was used in part in the rebuilding of some earlier Greek
cities after their destruction by the Persians in the sixth century
 Hippodamus nevertheless vigorously applied the grid iron pattern to obtain a rational arrangement of
buildings and circulation
 The city plan was conceived as a design to serve all the people
 The individual dwelling was the main focus of this arrangement. Blocks were shaped to provide
appropriate orientation for the dwelling with in them
 The functional uses of buildings and public spaces were recognized in the arrangements of streets
 Streets were provided for the circulation of people and vehicles without interference with the
orientation of dwellings or the assembly of people in the marketplace
 Superimposing the rigid geometrical form of the Hippodamian street system upon the rugged
topography of the sites occupied by most Greek cities created numerous streets and these could be
negotiated only with steps (Since the movement of people was almost entirely on foot, this did not
present the problem it might assume today)
 The principal traffic streets were placed to allow the circulation of the few horse drawn vehicles that
entered the town

3. What are the principles considered for planning of (i) public and (ii) private spaces within
the city in ancient Greece?

(i) Public spaces with in the city in ancient Greece -:

 The expanding affairs of government required appropriate facilities in the city for meetings, social
gatherings etc.
 The Agora was the center of business and political life, and shops and market booths were lined about
it
 Assembly hall (ecclesiasteron), council hall (bouleuterion), and council chamber (prytaneum) were
accessible from agora square, but not facing upon it
  The agora was usually located in the approximate center of the town plan, with the major east west and
north south streets leading to it
 It was designed to accommodate all the citizen having business buildings
 The open space enclosed by the agora occupied about 5 % of the city area, the dimensions being
approximately one fifth of the width and breadth of the town itself
 The agora was geometrical in form, square or rectangular open spaces were surrounded by colonnaded
porticoes sheltering the buildings
 This arrangement was meant to avoid interference between the movement of people across the open
space and those who assembled for trade and business in the market
 Streets generally terminated at the agora rather than crossing it, the open space being reserved
primarily for pedestrian traffic and circulation

Ex- The library of Alexandria in Egypt

 There is reference to laws restricting buildings from encroachment upon the streets and prohibitions
against the projection of upper floors beyond the first floor wall
 Windows were not permitted to open directly upon the streets and water drains were not allowed to
empty into the street
Examples

Priene and Miletus-:

 These cities demonstrate the Hippodamian plan as it developed toward the end of the Hellenic
period
 The agora occupies the approximate geographical center of the town
 About it are the temples shrines, public buildings and shops are placed
 The dwelling blocks are planned to provide the appropriate orientation of the house
 Recreation and entertainment facilities are provided in the gymnasium, stadium, and theater
 The contours of the site indicate that some of the streets were very steep, steps being
frequently required. But the main streets connecting the gates and the agora were generally
placed so that beasts of burden and carts could traverse them readily

(ii) Private spaces-:

 Privacy was given importance in their houses

 Most of the social contacts and all business affairs were carried on outside the homes
  Small merchants frequently had shops adjacent to their houses, but business and politics were
generally conducted in and adjacent to the agora
 Sports and recreation were concentrated in the gymnasium, drama and festivals in the theater
 Feasts and other celebrations seldom took place in the private dwellings
 A small alter was usual in the home, but religious exercises and worship occurred in the
temple
 There was little distinction among the dwellings in the town
 Early houses were enclosed about a central heart
 A hole in the roof allowed the smoke to escape and also permitted the collection of rain water
in the cistern
 Terra cotta braziers supplemented the heart as a source of heat in the larger houses
 In late Hellenic towns sanitation was improved by the paving of streets and the installation of
underground drains beneath dwellings
 The town maintained reservoirs but there was no water distribution system
 With the improvement of drainage, an increasing number of homes appeared with private
baths
 Sanitary disposal of sewage was apparently not provided, the portable latrine and private
cesspool continued in use
 Arrangement of rooms were done in relation to the site
 Dwellings were oriented considering climatic data of the site
1. The maximum amount of sunshine inside the dwelling was desirable in the winter months
2. Heat could be conserved if the rooms were shielded from the cold north winds
3. The heat of summer was relieved when the direct rays of the sun were excluded

These criteria were satisfied in the plan of Greek house

 The principal rooms faced to the south, opening upon the private courtyard
 A colonnade projecting from the rooms was tall enough to permit the warming low rays of the
winter sun to enter, while it sheltered them from the high hot rays of the summer sun
 The north wall of the house was punctured with only a few small windows
 This type of plan was used in practically all dwellings in the town, whether the street entrance
was on the north, south, east, or west.

4. Discuss the reasons of decline and decay of Greek cities. Mention the characteristics of
Hellenistic city planning.
  It cannot be assumed that political affairs always ran smoothly in the age of Pericles
 The teachings of the Sophists were disturbing some of the well-established customs
 In addition, a little man by the name of Socrates subjected many of the prevailing habits to serve
questioning
 He insisted upon inquiry and the application of reason to the activities of men
 He raised questions about the existence of God
 There were some democrats who believed Socrates was wrong in rising these questions
 They brought charges against Socrates for heresy and for subverting the youth of Athens
 There were those who loved this wise man whose only ambition was the quest for truth. They
appealed to him to flee his accusers as was the custom, but Socrates would not
 Socrates found guilty and was sentenced to die, and in 399 B.C. he died
 The lesson of Socrates has been repeated in history
 The institutions of men must change or decay, grow or wither
 Socrates showed a way for men to command their destiny by seeking truth
 He strove to improve the institutions that they might better serve the people, and for this his
fellowmen found him guilty of treason
 During the fourth century B.C. there was evidence of growing indifference towards the responsibility
of Govt.
 Accustomed to liberty, the people were taking it for granted, and they were inclined to allow affairs
to run themselves
 Freedom guaranteed by democracy was coming to mean that “the people has the right to do what it
pleases”
 Some people were “even building private houses whose magnificence surpasses that of certain public
buildings”
 Well to do citizen spent more of their time in their country villas, where common people found the
difficulty of earning a living more absorbing than participation in public affairs
 The middle class was disappearing
 A wide gap was growing between those with money and those without it
 They perceived a growing abuse of individual liberty and became increasingly critical of democracy
itself
 Other philosophers were gripped with cynicism while maintaining the fight for democracy

Characteristics of Hellenistic city planning-:

 The Peloponnesian wars weakened Athens financially, and corrupt politicians began to gnaw at the
moral fiber of the people
 Athens became easy prey for a conqueror
 The Greek were conquered by mighty armies, but their culture dominated the conqueror
 Greek influence spread throughout the Mediterranean shores, and the Hellenistic period brought
new city building
 Old cities were flourished and new cities were founded
 The city became the scene of luxury, ruddy with the display of empire
 Magnificent public buildings (the odeion, the treasury, the library, the prison) were added to agora
 The assembly retained its traditional place among these monumental structures, but it remained, as
Percy Gardner expressed it in his the planning of Hellenistic Cities, for the citizen
 Baths, palaestrae, and stadia were built for entertainment and festivals
 Gardens and parks were introduced from the Orient
 An entourage of royalty built fine villas in the urban environs, and distinctions in caste grew more
apparent
 Small kings, wealthy families, and ambitious desirous of acclaim within this frame of monumental
splendor bestowed generous gifts upon the city
 Empty honors were accorded for their beneficence