Acroterion

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Examples of acroteria

An acroterion or acroterium (pl. akroteria)<ref name=":0" /> is an architectural ornament placed on a flat pedestal, the acroter or plinth, and mounted at the apex or corner of the pediment of a building in the classical style.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> An acroterion placed at the outer angles of the pediment is an acroterion angularium (Template:Lang means ‘at the corners’).

The acroterion may take a wide variety of forms, such as a statue, tripod, disc, urn, palmette or some other sculpted feature. Acroteria are also found in Gothic architecture.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> They are sometimes incorporated into furniture designs.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Etymology

The word comes from the Greek Template:Transliteration (Template:Lang 'summit, extremity'), from the comparative form of the adjective ἄκρος, ("extreme", "endmost") + -τερος (comparative suffix) + -ιον (substantivizing neuter form of adjectival suffix -ιος). It was Latinized by the Romans as Template:Lang.<ref>Template:OED</ref> Akroteria or Acroteria is the plural of both the original Greek<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Latin form.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>

According to Webb, during the Hellenistic period the winged victory or Nike figure was considered to be "the most appropriate motif for figured akroteria.”<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>

Gallery

• Ancient Greek marble acroterion in the form of Nike, Archaeological Museum of Samothrace, Samothrace, Greece
  Ancient Greek marble acroterion in the form of Nike, Archaeological Museum of Samothrace, Samothrace, Greece
• Ancient Greek acroterion of a Nereid on horseback, Template:Circa380 BC, marble, National Archaeological Museum, Athens
  Ancient Greek acroterion of a Nereid on horseback, Template:Circa380 BC, marble, National Archaeological Museum, Athens
• Ancient Greek akroterion, 350–325 BC, marble, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
  Ancient Greek akroterion, 350–325 BC, marble, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
• Akroterion of the grave monument of Timotheos and Nikon, 350–325 BC, marble, Metropolitan Museum of Art
  Akroterion of the grave monument of Timotheos and Nikon, 350–325 BC, marble, Metropolitan Museum of Art
• Ancient Greek acroteria from a temple of Artemis, 330-300 BC, marble, Archaeological Museum of Epidaurus, Epidaurus, Greece,
  Ancient Greek acroteria from a temple of Artemis, 330-300 BC, marble, Archaeological Museum of Epidaurus, Epidaurus, Greece,
• Ancient Greek acroteria of the Tomb III, Agios Athanasios, Greece, 325-300 BC
  Ancient Greek acroteria of the Tomb III, Agios Athanasios, Greece, 325-300 BC
• Simplified Ancient Greek acroteria of the pediment on an honorary decree, Template:Circa300-250 BC, bronze, National Archaeological Museum, Athens<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
  Simplified Ancient Greek acroteria of the pediment on an honorary decree, Template:Circa300-250 BC, bronze, National Archaeological Museum, Athens<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• Romanesque acroterion of the Église Saints-Pierre-et-Paul de Rosheim, Rosheim, France, unknown sculptor or architect, Template:Circa1150
  Romanesque acroterion of the Église Saints-Pierre-et-Paul de Rosheim, Rosheim, France, unknown sculptor or architect, Template:Circa1150
• Renaissance acroteria of the Villa La Rotonda, outside Vicenza, Italy, designed by Andrea Palladio, 1566-1590s<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
  Renaissance acroteria of the Villa La Rotonda, outside Vicenza, Italy, designed by Andrea Palladio, 1566-1590s<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• Neoclassical acroteria with mascarons on the Grave of Lupin-Roux family, Loyasse Cemetery, Lyon, sculpted by Pierre-Marie Prost, Template:Circa1830
  Neoclassical acroteria with mascarons on the Grave of Lupin-Roux family, Loyasse Cemetery, Lyon, sculpted by Pierre-Marie Prost, Template:Circa1830
• Neoclassical acroteria of a window of the Großer Blumenberg, Leipzig, Germany, designed by Albert Geutebrück mid-19th century
  Neoclassical acroteria of a window of the Großer Blumenberg, Leipzig, Germany, designed by Albert Geutebrück mid-19th century
• Neoclassical pediment with acroteria of the Grave of Alexandrina Grejdanescu and Barbu Grejdanescu, Bellu Cemetery, Bucharest, Romania, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1871
  Neoclassical pediment with acroteria of the Grave of Alexandrina Grejdanescu and Barbu Grejdanescu, Bellu Cemetery, Bucharest, Romania, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1871
• Greek Revival sphinx acroterion of the Academy of Athens, designed by Theophil Hansen, 1885
  Greek Revival sphinx acroterion of the Academy of Athens, designed by Theophil Hansen, 1885
• Japanese acroterion, illustrations by Abel Guérineau, 1887
  Japanese acroterion, illustrations by Abel Guérineau, 1887
• Beaux Arts acroterion of the Collège Franklin (Boulevard Louis-XIV no. 5), Lille, France, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1900
  Beaux Arts acroterion of the Collège Franklin (Boulevard Louis-XIV no. 5), Lille, France, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1900
• Beaux Arts acroterion above a window of Strada Grigore Cobălcescu no. 14, Bucharest, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1900
  Beaux Arts acroterion above a window of Strada Grigore Cobălcescu no. 14, Bucharest, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1900
• Beaux Arts acroterion above a window of Strada Bocșa no. 2, Bucharest, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1900
  Beaux Arts acroterion above a window of Strada Bocșa no. 2, Bucharest, unknown architect or sculptor, Template:Circa1900
• Art Nouveau acroterion of a stove in the Mița the Cyclist House (Strada Biserica Amzei no. 9), Bucharest, possibly designed by Nicolae C. Mihăescu,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> 1908
  Art Nouveau acroterion of a stove in the Mița the Cyclist House (Strada Biserica Amzei no. 9), Bucharest, possibly designed by Nicolae C. Mihăescu,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> 1908
• Art Deco acroterion of the Dinicu Golescu Entrance of the Northern Railway Station, Bucharest, designed by Victor Gh. Ștephănescu, 1935<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
  Art Deco acroterion of the Dinicu Golescu Entrance of the Northern Railway Station, Bucharest, designed by Victor Gh. Ștephănescu, 1935<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• Postmodern acroterion of the Harold Washington Library, Chicago, by Hammond, Beeby & Babka, 1991<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
  Postmodern acroterion of the Harold Washington Library, Chicago, by Hammond, Beeby & Babka, 1991<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• Postmodern acroteria on the pediment of the Children's Museum of Houston, Houston, US, by Robert Venturi, 1992<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
  Postmodern acroteria on the pediment of the Children's Museum of Houston, Houston, US, by Robert Venturi, 1992<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• New Classical acroteria on the pediment of the Maitland Robinson Library, Downing College, Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK, by Quinlan Terry, 1992
  New Classical acroteria on the pediment of the Maitland Robinson Library, Downing College, Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK, by Quinlan Terry, 1992

See also

• Antefix
• Finial
• List of classical architecture terms

Further reading

• Danner, Peter (1989). Griechische Akrotere der archaischen und klassischen Zeit [Greek acroteria of the archaic and classical periods]. Rivista di archeologia, supplementary vol. 5. Rome: Bretschneider, Template:ISBN.
• Goldberg, Marilyn Y. (1977). Types and distribution of archaic Greek akroteria. Bryn Mawr.
• Reinhardt, Corinna (2018). Akroter und Architektur. Figürliche Skulptur auf Dächern griechischer Bauten vom 6. bis zum 4. Jahrhundert v. Chr. [Acroter and architecture. Figurative sculpture on the roofs of Greek buildings from the 6th to the 4th century BC]. Image & Context, vol. 18. Berlin/Boston: de Gruyter, Template:ISBN.

External links

• Template:Cite encyclopedia