Anta
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An anta (pl. antæ) (Latin, possibly from ante, 'before' or 'in front of', as in modern Spanish) is an archaic architectural term describing the posts or pillars on either side of a doorway or entrance of a Greek temple - the slightly projecting pilaster strips which terminate the winged walls of the naos. Rather than being simply pillars, they are generally more square and are directly connected with the walls of a temple. They owe their origin to the vertical posts of timber employed in the early, more primitive palaces or temples of Greece, as at Tiryns and in the Heraeum at Olympia, as load-bearing structures to carry the roof timbers, as no reliance could be placed on the walls built with unburnt brick or in rubble masonry with clay mortar. Later, they became more decorative as the materials used for wall construction became sufficient to support the structure.
In Greek architecture, the antae would have ornamentation on neither the capital (top) nor the base of the pillar, except for simple designs. However, in later Roman designs, the antae came to more closely resemble separate columns. The term anta-cap (pl. antæ-caps) was used to refer to the capital or top of an anta.
When between these winged walls there are columns to carry the architrave, so as to form a porch, the latter is said to be in-antis. (See temple.)
An anta can also describe a short, outwardly projecting wall from the front or back of a building, including non-temple buildings such as castles.
Further reading
[Vitruvius, Book 4, Chapter 4 (translated)]References
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