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What is the Megaron?/Appearance

The megaron (plural megara) (Ancient Greek: μέγαρον) is the great hall of the Grecian Palace complexes. It was a rectangular Hall, fronted by an open, two-columned porch, and a more or less central, open hearth vented though an oculus in the roof above it and surrounded by four columns. It was particularly Aegean, due to the open porch which was usually supported by columns . The entrance is the feature that helps to distinguish the megaron, due to it’s position at the entrance, which is along the shorter wall so that the depth is larger than the width . There are often many rooms around the central Megaron, such as archive rooms, offices, oil-press rooms, workshops, potteries, shrines, corridors, armories, and storerooms for food/alcohol .

The structure of the Megaron has foreshadowed an image for the eventual layout of Greek temples. This includes a columned entrance, a pronaos, and a central naos or cella . It is the architectural predecessor of the classical Greek temple. The design of the megaron originated in Russia from the earliest dated examples, and these originals are Neolithic . An early Megaron has a pitched roof, and there were other roof types as well such as the flat roof and barrel roof . These are always destroyed in the remnants of the early Megaron, so the definite roof type is not known. [Roofs] See Ancient Roofs for examples. In the theory of architecture, the Megaron is considered to be the earliest architectural act.

The floor was of patterned concrete, covered in carpet. On the walls were inlaid paintings called frescoes, these were often of Phoenician style . Originally it was very colorful — made with the Minoan architectural order, the insides made of fired brick and a wooden roof supported on beams. The rooftop was tiled with ceramic and terracotta tiles . There were wood ornamented metal doors often two leaved, and footbaths were also used in the megaron .

The proportions of a larger width than length is a similar structure to early doric temples .

Purpose

There are many purposes for this large greek central room. It was used for creating poetry, having Feasts, worship, Sacrifice, formal royal functions, Council, and is said to be where guests of the King would stay during their visits. Feasting was a central activity for the Greeks, so a large room was necessary to fit these needs.

Examples

A famous megaron is in the large reception hall of the king in the palace of Tiryns, the main room of which had a raised Throne placed against the right wall and a central Hearth bordered by four Minoan-style wooden Columns that served as supports for the roof. This was from a Cretan influence , and evolved into the palace type from Minoan Architecture. After that the myceneans took over this design, making it characteristically Greek. An example from Pylos shows figures eating and drinking in their frescoes, which were important activities in Greek culture . Bulls were also a trend in many greek Frescoes . Other famous central megaron units are at Tiryns, thebes, Mycenae, Pylos. The decoration unifies each Megaron suite decoratively, This also distinguishes famous megarons, making them unique. Different Greek cultures had their own unique megarons, and for example the people of the Mainland tended to separate their central megaron from the other rooms whereas the Cretan don’t do this .