Maison Carrée, (Nimes, Southern France); 2 AD; Roman



Maison Carrée is a building in Nimes, France. Its name is French for “square house”. The construction of Maison Carrée was completed in 2 AD and it is one of the best preserved Roman temples. Originally, the Maison Carrée was dedicated to the grandsons of Augustus, a Roman statesman and military leader. The Maison Carrée is raised on a 2.85 m high podium and the temple itself forms a rectangle that is 26.42 m by 13.54 m. On the front of the temple, there are six Corinthian temples holding up the building. Along the sides, there are twenty columns that hold it up. The door is very large and measures 6.87 m high by 3.27 m wide but it leads to a small interior space with no windows.

Over the years, the Maison Carrée went through many restorations. It used to be part of a large complex that joined with other buildings. They ended up being demolished because the Romans would have enjoyed the isolation that this temple ended up being in. The Maison Carrée ended up being inspiration for future buildings such as the Église de la Madeleine in Paris, France and the Virginia State Capitol in the United States.




Citations

Nemausus (Nîmes), Maison Carrée. (n.d.). Retrieved March 15, 2018, from http://www.livius.org/articles/place/nemausus-nimes/nemausus-nimes-maison-carree/

Maison Carree, Nimes. (n.d.). Retrieved March 15, 2018, from http://www.architecturecourses.org/maison-carree-nimes


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