Megaron
The Megaron (in ancient Greek: μέγαρον, a word probably derived from the Greek word μέγας, «great») is the Great Hall found in the palaces of the Mycenaean and Minoan civilizations, in Greece and Anatolia. It used to be on one side of the central patio and in front of the altar. It consisted of three parts: the portico (πρόπυλο) open with two columns in antis; the vestibule (πρόδομος), also called pronaos (πρόναος); and the main room (Μέγαρον), also called cella or naos (ναός).
Function
This building is the ancestor of the Greek temple and throughout its history it was used for various purposes. The main megaron was made up of a single room, generally of significant dimensions, in which the sovereigns received their guests, carried out ritual banquets, listened in private to presentations by aedos (epic singers) and rhapsodes, and held councils of war.
After the Dorian invasion (also known as the “return of the Heraclids”) the megaron was used to worship the gods and probably to deposit ex-votos. The room that previously housed the king and his guests, became the home of the gods represented there, through sculptures or images.
Megaron in antis
Over time, the megaron underwent great transformations until it was barely recognizable in the great Greek temples. A common form in the architectural development of this structure was the megaron in antis, so called because the two columns of the portico were framed by the side walls called antas.
Style and materials
The first buildings were built with bricks, large wooden beams and terracotta tiles for the roof. They were very colorful and their architectural style is called the “Minoan order”. In the center of the naos was a hearth or bonfire, surrounded by four columns (placed at the vertices of the ideal square in which the fire would be inscribed) on which the weapons and even the musical instruments of the aedos were eventually hung. These four columns crowned the ceiling with a skylight that allowed light to enter the room and the smoke from the bonfire to escape.
Megaron in Homer's Odyssey
The Odyssey refers to the "dark mégaron" of Odysseus Leatrid's Palace. It is in that place where Penelope's suitors meet and where Odysseus arrives posing as a stranger before everyone, to consummate his revenge. This place was undoubtedly a very important part of life in the palace. Homer also mentions the megaron of the palace of the sorceress Circe, and that of the palace of the "hero Alcínoo". Nausicaa, addressing Odysseus, describes the latter's megaron:
And once they shelter you the house and the courtyard, quickly cross the room (Megaron) to reach my mother; she is sitting in the home in the light of the fire, wounding purple flakes... supported in the column. And her slaves sit behind her. There is also the throne of my father supported against the pillar, in which he sits to drink his wine as an immortal god.Odyssey, Song VI
Relevant archaeological sites.
In addition to the references in the Odyssey, there are archaeological sites where remains of buildings corresponding to the Minoan and Mycenaean megarons have been discovered.
- Megaron of the king and of the Queen at the Palace of Knossos: On earth, two pillars mark a room illuminated by holes where traces of a throne have been found on a baldaquin placed on four columns, and it is supposed to be the courtroom. A door south of the room leads to a corridor that reached the megaron of the queen where the best known frescos, of the dolphins, which today are reproductions, on the north wall, and on the other side is the fresco of the dancer.
- Megaron de Sesklo: It is believed to be the first megaron structure although the archaeological site is currently under review. This building is, according to archaeologist E. Stamelou, the most impressive structure of the neolithic period throughout Tesalia
- They were acquitted of Micenas.
- Megaron of Micenas: Located in the acropolis, it was accessed by a courtyard. It is thought that it had a flat roof in the style of the minoic architecture (some had reconstructed it with a roof to two waters). It has two "in antis" columns that support a porch, followed by an antechamber and a chamber with four columns around a central circular structure.
- Megaron of Tirinto: Another famous megaron is in the large reception room of the King in the palace of Tirinto, in whose main hall there was a throne attached to the right wall and the central space was bordered by four columns of minoid-style wood that supported the ceiling. It is between 1400 and 1200 a. C.
- Megaron de Pilos: Also with central home.
- Megaron of Athens: Located approximately where is the current Erecteion.
Megaron of the queen in Cnosos.
The megaron of the complex of Micenas, seen from the entrance (the circular structure of the center is visible to the bottom), the anteala and the porch are observed.
