A day in the life of an ancient Greek architect - Mark Robinson

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Helen Chang

As dawn breaks over Athens, Pheidias is already late for work.

雅典的天空才剛破曉，

要去工作的菲迪艾斯已經快遲到了。

The year is 432 BCE,

這一年是西元前 432 年，

and he’s the architekton, or chief builder,

他是建築長，

for the Parthenon— Athens’ newest and largest temple.

要建造的是帕德嫩神廟—— 雅典最新、最大的神廟。

When completed, his masterpiece will be an enormous shrine to the goddess Athena,

他的傑作完成時將會是一座 供奉雅典娜女神的巨大的祭壇，

and a testament to the glory of the Athenians.

也是代表雅典人榮耀的證明。

But when he arrives onsite he finds five epistatai, or city officials,

但當他抵達工地時，

他發現五位市官員 等在那裡要和他對質。

waiting to confront him.

They accuse Pheidias of embezzling gold

他們指控菲迪艾斯盜用黃金，

designated for the temple’s sacred central statue.

那些黃金是要用來建造 神廟的神聖中央雕像。

He has until sundown to provide all the temple’s expenses

在太陽下山之前，他必須提出 建造神廟的完整開銷明細，

and account for every flake of gold— or face the judgement of the courts.

並說明每一片黃金的用途——

不然就要面對法庭的審判。

Though he’s insulted by these false charges, Pheidias isn’t surprised.

雖然菲迪艾斯覺得這些誣告 很侮辱人，卻不感到驚訝。

Pericles, the politician who commissioned the Parthenon,

負責發包帕德嫩工程的政治家

伯里克里斯在市政府中有許多敵人，

has many enemies in city government,

and this project is somewhat controversial.

而這個包案有些爭議性。

The public is expecting a classic temple in the Doric style:

大眾所期望的是一座 多利斯風格的古典神廟：

simple columns supporting a horizontal entablature,

用簡單的圓柱來支撐水平的柱頂楣構，

crowned with a triangular roof.

上頭再蓋上三角形的屋頂。

But Pheidias’ plans are far more radical by Athenian standards.

但菲迪艾斯的設計圖 在雅典人看來是相當極端的。

His designs combine Doric columns with a sweeping Ionic frieze,

他的設計是將多利斯風格的圓柱 與大片愛奧尼橫飾帶結合，

hosting a vast panorama of the city’s Great Panathenaic festival.

上面是一連串 該城市的泛雅典節活動。

Not only will this sculpture show humans and gods side by side—

這種雕刻不僅將神和人並列

something never before seen in a temple’s décor—

——未曾有神廟採用這種裝飾——

it will also cost much more than the traditional approach.

成本也會比傳統方式高很多。

Praying to the Gods that his colleagues have been keeping track of their spending,

菲迪艾斯向神禱告希望同事 一直都有記錄花費之後，

Pheidias sets off to prove his innocence.

便出發去證明他的清白。

First, he checks in with his architects Iktinos and Callicrates.

首先，他先去找他的建築師 伊克提諾斯和卡利克拉提斯。

Rather than using a blueprint,

他們並沒有使用藍圖，

they pore over the syngraphai, or general plan,

只有審視 syngraphai，即總圖，

and paradeigma, a 3D model.

及 paradeigma，一種立體模型。

Without an exact blueprint, the team often has to resolve issues in real time,

因為沒有明確的藍圖， 團隊通常要邊做邊解決問題，

guided only by careful calculation and their instinct for symmetry.

只能靠仔細的計算 和他們對於對稱性的直覺。

Maintaining this symmetry has proven especially difficult.

結果證明，要維持 這種對稱性非常困難。

The Parthenon is built on a curve with the columns leaning slightly inwards.

帕德嫩神廟建造在弧面上，

圓柱有些許向內傾斜。

To project strength,

為了呈現出力量，可能也是為了

and potentially keep the columns looking straight from a distance,

確保圓柱從遠方看起來是直的，

the architects incorporated entasis, or slight bulging, in each column.

這些建築師把每一根圓柱

加上了圓柱收分線，即微小的凸起。

For the temple’s other elements,

團隊為神廟的其他元素 計算對稱性的方式

the team calculates symmetry by employing relatively consistent proportions

是採用整個設計中相對一致的比例。

across the design.

But their shifting plans require constant recalculations.

但平面圖不斷更動， 需要經常重新計算。

After helping solve one such computation,

在協助解決了一個 這種計算問題之後，

Pheidias collects his colleagues’ gold records

菲迪艾斯取得了他同事的黃金記錄，

and heads off to receive a special delivery.

下一站是要去接收特殊遞送。

Immense marble blocks for the Parthenon’s pediment have just arrived

帕德嫩神朝的三角楣飾需要 用到的巨型大理石塊剛剛抵達。

from quarries at Mount Pentelikon.

是從彭特利庫斯山的採石場運來的。

The usual ramps would collapse

一般的圍欄若承載這種

under the weight of these 2 to 3 ton stone blocks,

兩、三公噸的石塊就會崩壞，

so Pheidias orders the construction of new pulleys.

因此菲迪艾斯下令建造新的滑輪。

After recording the additional expense

在花了一個下午記錄 額外的費用並監督工程之後，

and supervising the construction all afternoon,

he finally arrives at the sculpture workshop.

他終於抵達了雕塑工作坊。

His sculptors are carving 92 mythical scenes, or metopes,

他的雕塑師正在雕刻九十二個 神話場景，也就是排檔間飾，

to decorate the temple.

用來裝飾神廟。

Every carving depicts fighting from different epic battles—

每一面雕刻都描繪不同 史詩級戰役的對戰場面

each a mythical representation of Greece’s victory over Persia

——每一戰都代表約四十年前

希臘擊敗波斯的神話。

about 40 years earlier.

No temple has ever used so many metopes before,

以前從來沒有神廟 使用這麼多神話場景，

and each scene adds to the temple’s ballooning expenses.

每一個場景都讓神廟的費用大增。

Finally, Pheidias turns to his primary responsibility,

最後，菲迪艾斯回到他的首要責任，

and the focal point of the entire temple.

也是整座神廟的焦點。

Covered in thick layers of gold, minutely decorated,

這座雕像上面覆蓋了層層黃金， 裝飾得非常仔細，

and towering above her worshippers,

高聳屹立在崇拜者之上，

this will be a statue of the city’s patron and protector: Athena Parthenos.

它就是該城市的守護者及保護者：

雅典娜帕德嫩。

When the temple is complete, throngs will gather on its perimeter—

神廟完工後，

雕像周邊會聚集大批人潮

offering prayers, performing sacrifices,

禱告、獻祭，

and pouring libations for the goddess of wisdom.

為這位智慧女神斟奠酒。

Pheidias spends the rest of the day

菲迪艾斯把那天剩餘的時間 都用來設計雕像最後的修飾，

designing finishing touches for the statue,

and as the light fades, the epistatai arrive to confront him.

當天色漸暗時，市官員來和他對質。

After looming over his records, they look up triumphantly.

在不懷好意地看過了他的記錄後， 他們得意洋洋地抬起頭。

Pheidias may have accounted for the temple’s general spending,

菲迪艾斯雖然說明了 神廟的總體花費，

but his records show no mention of the statue’s gold.

但他的記錄沒有提及雕像的黃金。

At that moment, Pericles himself arrives to save his chief builder.

那時，伯里克里斯本尊 抵達現場來拯救他的建築長。

The temple’s sponsor tells them that all the gold on the statue

這位神廟的贊助人告訴他們， 可以把雕像的所有黃金

can be removed and weighed individually to prove Pheidias’ innocence.

通通拿下來個別秤重， 以證明菲迪艾斯的清白。

Assigning laborers to the task—

指派工人去執行這項任務——

and charging the officials to watch them late into the night—

並託付官員在深夜看管他們——

Pheidias and his patron leave their adversaries

菲迪艾斯和他的守護者將他們的對手

to the mercy of mighty Athena.

交給全能的雅典娜來擺佈了。