This image shows a diagram with a cross-sectional view of the Great

Pyramid’s walls. Note how thick the walls are, in order to hold up such a
great weight of stone, and not cave in, in load bearing construction.
Ziggurat, Ur, c. 2100 BCE.

The shapes of these buildings in ancient Mesopotamia are wider

and flatter than the Egyptian pyramids, suggesting the foothills
that lead up to mountains. Mountains held special significance,
as the Sumerians believed that mountaintops were the source of
water, as well as the dwelling place of the gods.
Post-and-Lintel Construction…

 Post-and-lintel construction: In architecture, this is a

system of building in which two posts support a
crosspiece, or a lintel, that spans the distance between
them.
 Post-and-lintel construction is fundamental to all Greek
architecture.
 The posts are known as columns, and the rows of
columns set at regular intervals around their buildings are
known as colonnades.
The Lion Gate, Mycenae, Greece, 1250 BCE.

The walls are built with load-bearing technology, but the

gateway is made with post-and-lintel construction.
Corner of the First Temple of
Hera, Paestum, Italy, c. 550
BCE.

The temple was built with post-

and-lintel construction. A row
of columns is called a
colonnade.

Notice how the columns are

not solid pieces of stone. They
are made of several chunks,
called drums. The grooves that
are carved into the stone are
called fluting.

The slight swelling of the

columns is referred to as
entasis.