ARCHITECTURE

The book of (Genesis 4:17,20,22) appears to divide mankind into two great characteristic sections, viz., the “dwellers in tents” and the “dwellers in cities.” To the race of Shem is attributed (Genesis 10:11,12,22; 11:2-9) the foundation of those cities in the plain of Shinar, Babylon Nineveh and others. The Israelites were by occupation shepherds, and by habit dwellers in tents. (Genesis 47:3) They had therefore originally, speaking properly, no architecture. From the time of the occupation of Canaan they became dwellers in towns and in houses of stone. (Leviticus 14:34,45; 1 Kings 7:10) The peaceful reign and vast wealth of Solomon gave great impulse to architecture; for besides the temple and his other great works, he built fortresses and cities in various places, among which Baalath and Tadmor are in all probability represented by Baalbec and Palmyra. But the reigns of Herod and his successors were especially remarkable for their great architectural works. Not only was the temple restored, but the fortifications and other public buildings of Jerusalem were enlarged and embellished. (Luke 21:5) The town of Caesarea was built on the site of Strato’s Tower; Samaria was enlarged, and received the name of Sebaste. Of the original splendor of these great works no doubt can be entertained; but of their style and appearance we can only conjecture that they were formed on Greek and Roman models. The enormous stones employed the Assyrian Persepolitan and Egyptian buildings find a parallel in the substructions of Baalbec and in the huge blocks which still remain at Jerusalem, relics of the buildings either of Solomon or of Herod.

AR'CHITECTURE arises out of the necessities of human life, and before it becomes an art it administers to the primary demands of civilization. Cain built a small city, Gen 4:17, and after the Flood other cities were built. Gen 10:10-12; Gen 11:1-9. Damascus and Hebron existed in the days of Abraham. Remains of Arch of Bridge between Zion and Moriah, and near the Jews' Wailing-place. (From Photograph.) The patriarchs, being nomads, lived in tents. During their sojourn in Egypt the Hebrews became acquainted with architecture as an art, and they were compelled by force to take part in the construction of huge monuments. Ex 1:11. Hence it was natural that their imagination should be deeply impressed by Egyptian architecture, and that they acquired some knowledge of the science on which it was based. But during their wanderings in the wilderness they had no opportunity to display it, except in the construction of the tabernacle; and at the conquest of Canaan they found forts and cities prepared by other hands. Jud 1:16-26. It was not till the reigns of David and Solomon that Hebrew architecture suddenly started into existence. The influence from Egypt at once made it self felt. David enlarged Jerusalem, improved its fortifications, and built a palace on Mount Zion, perhaps also the original walls of the great mosque at Hebron. Solomon built another palace, "the house of the forest of Lebanon," a palace for his wife, the daughter of Pharaoh, gigantic water-works south of Bethlehem, still known under the name of "Solomon's Pools," and finally the greatest, and we may say the only great, monument of Hebrew architecture, the temple. These buildings were, to a large extent, erected by Phoenician workmen, 2 Sam 5:6-11, and we may easily believe that Phoenician taste has made itself felt in many details. But so far as it is possible to reconstruct the temple after the descriptions given of it in the Bible, it must as a whole have reminded the spectator of Egyptian architecture. The remains of an arch of the bridge between Zion and Moriah, and the remnants of the old wall, called the "Wailing-place of the Jews," show the massiveness of the old Hebrew structures; and from the descriptions it is apparent that everywhere in these buildings, the temple as well as the palaces, the straight line and the right angle were predominant. But massiveness of construction and straightness of form are two of the most prominent features of Egyptian architecture. The successors of David and Solomon continued to build, and several kings of both Israel and Judah are mentioned as having encouraged architecture. Nor did the nation as a whole forget the art. After the return from Babylon the Jews were able to fortify Jerusalem and rebuild their temple themselves. Ezr 3:8-10; Ezr 6:14; Neh 3; Neh 6:15. Herod the Great was a great builder, and introduced the Greek and Roman styles of architecture. The temple reconstructed by him before and during the life of our Lord was totally destroyed in a.d. 70. For further details see Temple; for details concerning the Jewish architecture, see Dwelling.

Part of speech: noun (n.)

1. The art or science of building; especially, the art of building houses, churches, bridges, and other structures, for the purposes of civil life; -- often called civil architecture. Many other architectures besides Gothic. Ruskin.

2. Construction, in a more general sense; frame or structure; workmanship. The architecture of grasses, plants, and trees. Tyndall. The formation of the first earth being a piece of divine architecture. Burnet. Military architecture, the art of fortifications. -- Naval architecture, the art of building ships.