ANHS1600 Lecture Notes - Lecture 20: Urban Design, Opportunism, Attalid Dynasty
15 May 2018
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Lecture – Hellenistic Urban Landscapes
17/05/16
323- 31 B.C. → Hellenistic Period. The date is absolute, but the change and transition isn’t.
Lecture components:
- Changing Urban landscape
- The way things were: Previous unplanned Greek cities (Athens)
- Urban design in a new world: mature orthogonal planning (Priene)
- Hellenistic kings and urbanism (Pergamon)
What’s new in the Hellenistic world:
- A world of empires and kingdoms rather than city states
- The return of the king
- The hybridization of Greek culture
- A shift in focus from mainland Greece.
- There was a difference in the cities where he got to lay down foundations and prepare, which set
the tone for the foundation of specific cities unlike others where he just got to touch base on.
(Alexander the Great)
- Fierce competition raged across many cities.
- Many developments in art, lifestyle and architecture.
The way things were: Organic Urban Growth
- Traditional Greek cities grew organically, usually centred on a local acropolis/water supply. Streets
follow contours, leading to fixed destinations.
- Panathenaic way was the major structuring system.
Athens focal points:
- City walls and Gates → Defence
- Acropolis → High city
- Agora → Market Place
- Theatres/Gymnasia
- Cemeteries → Outside of walls.
Organic Plan: Structured by Panathenaic Way
(Gate-Agora-Acropolis)
Orthogonal planning: Regular lots, straight streets, broad avenues, geometric design.
- Originally explained by Aristotle
- Archaeology tells us that it goes way back earlier to the 8th century B.C.
- This kind of grid was only opposed when they had the opportunity of a new city. In the Hellenistic
cities they completely rewrite and modify topography and terrain.
- New cities of Alexander were planned from the outset.
Document Summary
The date is absolute, but the change and transition isn"t. The way things were: previous unplanned greek cities (athens) Urban design in a new world: mature orthogonal planning (priene) A world of empires and kingdoms rather than city states. A shift in focus from mainland greece. Many developments in art, lifestyle and architecture. Traditional greek cities grew organically, usually centred on a local acropolis/water supply. Panathenaic way was the major structuring system. Orthogonal planning: regular lots, straight streets, broad avenues, geometric design. Archaeology tells us that it goes way back earlier to the 8th century b. c. This kind of grid was only opposed when they had the opportunity of a new city. In the hellenistic cities they completely rewrite and modify topography and terrain. New cities of alexander were planned from the outset. Priene (western turkey-ionian coast) new city constructed with a rigid, defining orthogonal plan c.
