Alexander the Great then conducted the Greeks into Asia, and there began once more a struggle for universal dominion in which the Greeks overthrew the empire of the Persians and carried their conquering arms even to India. Thus there was opened through Asia a way for Greek cul ture, which here began its world-wide domination. But there was also a relaxing of those restraints of delicacy, nobility, and harmony of form which until then had confined Grecian art within due bounds. While thus limited it reached a degree of perfection which previously it had not attained, and which has never been surpassed. The works of the flour ishing period of Grecian art could not compare in area with those of Egypt or Asia, nor in fancifulness of appearance with the fairy-like fabrics of the latter; but Asia, while receiving the Greek culture, exercised an influence upon its further development through the introduction of new elements, and gave to it a soft voluptuousness and a heretofore unknown richness of forms.
Gorinthia,, have already followed the decadence of the Doric and the advance of the Ionic; henceforward we must follow that lavish application of ornament which was evidenced by the intro duction of the Corinthian capital. But the extension of the power of Greece over Asia and the admixture of Asiatic forms with Hellenic also resulted in giving new purposes to Architecture. From this period it is no more the simple cella containing the image of a deity: the palace equal in grandeur and magnificence to that of the Asiatic monarchies, and works of luxury of every' kind, henceforward demand our notice.
the Great built in Egypt the metropolis which bears his name, and which is perhaps the grandest example of a city deliberately outlined and immediately built up in full artistic com pleteness. Deinokrates, the first architect of his time, laid out the thoroughly-considered plan upon an excellently chosen site between Lake Mareotis and the sea. A magnificent harbor in the Mediterranean and a canal between it and Lake Mareotis, which served as a harbor for the Nile vessels, completed its connection with the outer world. The city was laid out in straight parallel streets and was intersected by two main streets, one of which, about ioo feet wide, ran westward from the Canopic gate to the Necropolis. The principal streets ran north and south, allow ing passage to the fresh winds from the sea. Canals ran through the streets and conducted the waters of the Nile into the cisterns of the houses. The latter were exclusively of stone, with vaulted storeys and terraces instead of roofs.
Temples and Public himself erected the Temple of Poseidon, the theatre, with a stadium and hippodrome, a palace for the supreme court, and a gymnasium with extensive porticoes. The royal citadel, which included a fourth part of the entire city, contained, besides the royal palace, the museum with its porticoes and the world-renowned library and academy; to it also belonged the Tombs of the Kings, as well as the Sonia, which Ptolemy Soter built to receive the remains of Alex ander the Great. This was in temple-form with porticoes surrounded by
columns. The following Ptolemies all contributed to the beautifying of the city with public buildings. The entire city and the citadel were dom inated by an artistically-designed terraced pyramid which contained a grotto dedicated to Pan. A serpentine passage led to the summit. The entire structure was incontestably designed after the Chaltheo-Assyrian model. Asiatic influence is also evident in the vaulting of the houses. Such vaulting occurred in the Assyrian buildings, which were only a few centuries older. We meet with it again in the ruins in Central Syria, several centuries later, and it is still conspicuous in the Orient.
T'anlied Greeks were indeed previously acquainted with vaulted construction; they had seen it in Asia, and furthermore they could not have been strangers to the works of the Etruscans. Though they did not adopt it into that sacred language of forms which, based on an ancient tradition, they developed in their temples, they showed their knowledge of it as soon as they turned their attention to buildings devoted to the needs of life. We know that the Romans manifested a predilection for Grecian architecture, and they would certainly not have employed the vault in a manner so extensive and so magnificent had it been opposed to the spirit of Greek profane architecture in the same way that it was opposed to the spirit of Greek temple-construction.
Alexander founded seven cities in Babylonia, Persia, and India, but of these cities, as of ancient Alexandria itself, nothing now remains.
litsphaution's work which the fancy of the Orient imposed upon Greek culture was the pyramid of many stages which Alexander, following Assyrian models, erected in Babylon as the tomb of his deceased favorite, Hephxstion. Diodoros has left us a description of this structure, which Deinokrates raised to a height of rho ells at a cost of twelve thousand talents. Upon a substructure of brick it held thirty chambers, the roofs of which were built of pahn-stems. Around were two hundred and forty golden prows of ships decorated with colossal statues of kneel ing archers and standing warriors. The second storey was adorned with torches 15 ells high, which were ornamented on the handles with golden wreaths, on the flame with outstretched eagles, and on their bases with dragons, which reared their heads against the eagles. The third storey was bedecked with sculptures of the chase; the fourth displayed in gold a battle of centaurs, while the fifth bore golden lions and bulls placed alter nately. On the highest stage were arrayed the weapons of the Mace donians and of the conquered barbarians, and the summit was crowned with statues of sirens, which were hollow, so as to contain the persons who sang the funeral dirges.