Stoa
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A stoa (Template:IPAc-en; plural, stoas,<ref name="oebvxd">"stoa", Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd Ed., 1989</ref> stoai,<ref name="oebvxd" /> or stoae Template:IPAc-en<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>), in ancient Greek architecture, is a covered walkway or portico, commonly for public use.<ref>Template:Citation</ref> Early stoas were open at the entrance with columns, usually of the Doric order, lining the side of a building; they created a safe, enveloping, protective atmosphere.
This, an "open-fronted shelter with a lean-to roof", is the meaning in modern usage, but in fact the ancient Greeks "made no clear distinction in their speech" between these and large enclosed rooms with similar functions.<ref>Lawrence, 252</ref>
Later examples were built as two storeys, and incorporated inner colonnades usually in the Ionic style, where shops or sometimes offices were located. These buildings were open to the public; merchants could sell their goods, artists could display their artwork, and religious gatherings could take place. Stoas usually surrounded the marketplaces or agora of large cities and were used as a framing device.<ref name=khan>Template:Cite web</ref>
Other examples were designed to create safe, protective atmospheres which combined useful inside and outside space. The name of the Stoic school of philosophy derives from "stoa".<ref>Template:Citation</ref>
Famous stoas
- Stoa Poikile, "Painted Porch", from which the philosophy Stoicism takes its name
- Stoa of Attalos
- Stoa Basileios (Royal Stoa)
- Stoa of Zeus at Athens
- Stoa Amphiaraion
- Stoa of the Athenians
- Royal Stoa of Herod's Temple
See also
References
<references />
- Lawrence, A. W., Greek Architecture, 1957, Penguin, Pelican history of art