Architectural Achievements

One of the greatest hidden architectural feats of the modern day are the buildings at MIT, a mismatch of oddly-shaped buildings named after numbers rather than people. Although some people have even said that the non-homogeneous, non-ivy-covered buildings are just plain ugly, in actuality, many of MIT's buildings are literally works of art.

"I don't think it really matters very much whether most students know that buildings are famous, or even know the names of the architectural professionals. It just matters that the buildings are good, and contribute positively to the quality of student life," said Dean of the School of Architecture and Planning William J. Mitchell.

Mitchell cited the dormitory Baker House as an example. "It was designed by Alvar Aalto -- probably the greatest architectural genius of the 20th century. It's one of only two buildings he did in the United States, and though quite modest in its scale and construction it's an undoubted masterpiece. Every architectural professional and architecture student who visits Boston makes a pilgrimage to see it, and there's much for design professionals to learn from it. But I think Aalto would have been happiest to know, simply, that it has turned out to be a great place to live," he said.

Baker House, designed so that 80 percent of the rooms have a view of the river, is currently undergoing renovations. There will be a special 50th anniversary celebration scheduled for October 1999, entitled "Interpreting Aalto".

The Parthenon is a temple of Athena, built in the 5th century BC on the acropolis of Athens. It is the most famous surviving building of ancient Greece, and has been praised as the finest achievement of Greek architecture. Its decorative sculptures are considered one of the high points of Greek art. The Parthenon is an enduring symbol of ancient Greece and of Athenian democracy, and is regarded as one of the world's greatest cultural monuments.

The name of the Parthenon likely derives from the monumental cult statue of Athena Parthenos housed in the eastern room of the building. This statue was sculpted in ivory and gold by Phidias. Athena's epithet parthenos refers to the goddess's unmarried and virginal status.

The Parthenon replaced an older temple of Athena that had been destroyed by the Persians in 480 BC. Like most Greek temples, the Parthenon was used as a treasury, and for a time served as the treasury of the Delian League, which later became the Athenian Empire.

In the sixth century AD, the Parthenon was converted into a Christian church dedicated to the Virgin. After the Turkish conquest, it was converted into a mosque. In 1687, a Turkish ammunition dump inside the building was ignited by Venetian bombardment. The resulting explosion severely damaged the Parthenon and its sculptures. In 1806 AD, Lord Elgin removed some of the surviving sculptures and took them to England. These sculptures, now known as the Elgin Marbles or Parthenon Marbles, are on display in the British Museum. An ongoing dispute concerns whether the Elgin Marbles should be returned to Greece.

The Parthenon, along with the other buildings on the Acropolis, is now one of the most visited archaeological sites in Greece. The Greek Ministry of Culture is currently carrying out a program of restoration and reconstruction.

There is no doubt that the parthenon boasts amazing architectural skills in its creation and design down to the perfection placed in its columns, and ornate symbolistic stonework.