Lazarus at 17:06, December 8, 2007

2007-12-08T17:06:00Z

Irlandos at 09:54, February 4, 2006

2006-02-04T09:54:42Z

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A '''caryatid''' is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural element such as a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on its head.

Some of the earliest known examples were found in the treasuries of [[Delphi]], dating to about the [[6th century BC]], but their origins can be traced back even further to ritual basins, ivory mirror handles from Phoenicia and draped figures from archaic Greece. The best-known and most-copied examples are those of the six figures of the Caryatid Porch of the [[Erechtheion]] on the [[Acropolis, Athens|Acropolis]] at [[Athens]].

One of those original six figures, removed by Lord Elgin in the early 1800s, is now in the British Museum in London. The other five figures, although they are damaged by erosion, are in the Acropolis Museum.

The Romans also copied the Erechtheion caryatids, installing copies in the Forum Augustum and the Pantheon in Rome and Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli.

The origins of the term are unclear. It is first recorded in the Latin form ''caryatides'' by the Roman architect Vitruvius. He stated in his [[1st century BC]] work ''De architectura'' that the female figures of the Erechtheion represented the punishment of the women of Caryae, a town near [[Sparta]] in [[Laconia]], who were condemned to slavery after betraying [[Athens]] by siding with Persia in the [[Greco-Persian Wars]]. The [[Greek language|Greek]] term ''karyatides'' literally means "maidens of Karyai" or Caryae.

However, Vitruvius' explanation is doubtful; well before the Persian Wars, female figures were used as decorative supports in Greece and the ancient Near East. Caryae had a famous temple dedicated to the goddess [[Artemis]] in her aspect of Artemis Caryatis. The Erectheion caryatids may therefore represent priestesses of Artemis.

The male counterpart of a caryatid is referred to as a ''telamon'' or ''Atlas'' (plural, ''atlantes'') – the name refers to the legend of [[Atlas]], who bore the world on his shoulders. A caryatid supporting a baskets on her head is called a ''canephora'', representing one of the maidens who carried sacred objects used at feasts of the gods.

==External links==

*[http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/artemis.html Artemis at Pantheon.org]

{{Credit wikipedia}}

[[Category:Ancient Greek architecture]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:06, December 8, 2007
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		+	[[Image:Caryatid Erechtheion BM Sc407.jpg\|thumb\|250px\|Caryatid from the Erechtheion in Athens. Marble, Greek artwork, ca. 420 BC.]]
	A '''caryatid''' is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural element such as a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on its head.		A '''caryatid''' is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural element such as a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on its head.

Caryatids - Revision history

Lazarus at 17:06, December 8, 2007

Irlandos at 09:54, February 4, 2006