Parthenon in Athens VS Pantheon in Rome
The Parthenon and Pantheon are ancient temples found in Athenian Acropolis, Greece and Rome, Italy. While the Parthenon was built between 447-438 BC for the goddess Athena, Pantheon was built in 126 AD to celebrate Roman gods. The Parthenon was built by Iktinos and Kalikrates while Pantheon was built by Publius Aelius Hadrianus. Today, the Pantheon serves as a Roman catholic church while the Parthenon serves as a museum (Langmead, and Christine, 240). This paper identifies similarities and differences between the two structures in terms of design, style, history, and usage.
Perhaps, one of the most remarkable and prominent works of architecture; the Parthenon was built under the rule of Pericles as a temple for the goddess Athena of the city of Athens. Today, the temple, which serves as a temple, stands astoundingly intact. This emanates from the fact that its Doric columns that were built in Greek style were formidable. Conversely, the construction of the Pantheon happened much later after the Parthenon for the Roman gods (MacDonald and Lloyd, 158). It contained several architectural designs of the Pantheon. The most conspicuous difference between the two structures lies in their architectural designs. The Pantheon has an immense 4,535 metric tons of concrete rotunda designed in a circular model with a porch held brickwork Corinthian columns. The structure is made from several materials that include concrete, brick, marble, and granite. On the other hand, the Parthenon was designed as a Doric sanctuary supported by ionic columns. With a rectangular floor, the temple is made exclusively from marble with a base made of limestone. Furthermore, the temple has an ionic fresco that runs around its exterior walls (Senseney, John, 22). The temple has distinctive features on its west pediment that illustrates a contest between Poseidon and Athena on the patronage of the city’s god. The east pediment of the temple illustrates the birth of Athena.
The designs of both structures signify revolutionary elements that preceded their erection. The design of Parthenon shows a remarkable turning point for Athenian people and their interest in embracing novel ideas of viewing the world. The building represents the Ionian Revolution, which sparked the Greek philosophy. The building targets the humankind as the principal audience as it compensates for the misrepresentations innate in human vision. The building resembles Egyptians models, a fact represented by the Doric styles used throughout the building. The building illustrates the Athenians superiority over barbarians as saturated in the artwork of the building. The building also shows the remarkable attribute that Athenian committed to the gods.
On the other hand, the Pantheon describes the enigma of glories attributed to Roman gods. The building does not conform to the style or imagery of the structures that were prevalent during its construction, which shows the remarkable and unparalleled style used on it by the masterpiece engineer. Perhaps, the iconography of the building suggests that the Romans strived for universalism for their established empire. The building suggest that it was filled with luxurious items and the people who harbored its premises played leading roles in the development of the Roman empire.
The Parthenon, which served as the temple for Athens’ patron goddess, was built by Iktinos and Kallikrates between 447-438 BC. During the 3rd AD, a fire destroyed its roof, although it remained aloof afterwards. The temple remained a temple until Theodosius II ordered the closure of all pagan temples. In the 5th century AD, the temple was ransack and Athena’s image taken to Constantinople. Surprisingly, the temple was converted into a Christian cathedral in 590. The battle between Venetians and Turks led to partial destruction of the temple in 1687. On the other hand, Marcus Agrippa as suggested in the inscriptions on its front that reads “M Agrippa L F.” built the Pantheon in 27 BC. Later, the entire building was destroyed except its portico, although Hadrian later rebuilt the building in 126 AD. In 609 AD, people converted the structure into a Christian cathedral to save it from destruction. The building housed numerous royal tombs including the tomb of Renaissance.
Both buildings were originally built to serve as temples in their respective communities. This shows that religion was an inherent component of ancient Athenians and Romans. Their purposes as temples show that the communities worshipped several gods. The Pantheon borrows many of its exterior designs and styles from Parthenon, a fact reflected by its uniqueness to other architectural designs in Rome. Furthermore, both structures use eight supporting columns that serve as support materials for pediment. The two structures have faced countless destructions and rebuilding, which shows that battles were waged between communities during their existence.
In addition, at one time in history people used the buildings as Christian churches to save the buildings from destruction. Although religious relations saved the Pantheon from raiding, most sections of the Parthenon were stolen during 1700s. The buildings also show that there was a connection in the forms of cultures that the ancient Greeks and Romans practiced. The borrowed style of Parthenon illustrates this fact. Conclusively, the architectural designs and styles of the buildings demonstrate the uniqueness that people placed on their gods.

Works Cited
Langmead, Donald, and Christine Garnaut. Encyclopedia of architectural and engineering feats. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2001. Print.
MacDonald, William Lloyd. The Pantheon: design, meaning, and progeny. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1976. Print.
Senseney, John R.. The Art of Building in the Classical World: Vision, Craftsmanship, and Linear Perspective in Greek and Roman Architecture. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2011. Print.