A stoa (; plural, stoas,"stoa", ''Oxford English Dictionary'', 2nd Ed., 1989 stoai, or stoae ), in

ancient Greek architecture Ancient Greek architecture came from the Greek-speaking people (''Hellenic'' people) whose culture flourished on the Greek mainland, the Peloponnese, the Aegean Islands, and in colonies in Anatolia and Italy for a period from about 900 BC unti ...

, is a covered walkway or

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

, commonly for public use. Early stoas were open at the entrance with columns, usually of the

Doric order The Doric order was one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of col ...

, lining the side of the building; they created a safe, enveloping, protective atmosphere. Later examples were built as two stories, and incorporated inner

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

s usually in the Ionic style, where shops or sometimes offices were located. These buildings were open to the public; merchants could sell their goods, artists could display their artwork, and religious gatherings could take place. Stoas usually surrounded the

marketplace A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a '' souk'' (from the Arabic), ' ...

s or

agora The agora (; grc, ἀγορά, romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Greek city-states. It is the best representation of a city-state's response to accommodate the social and political order of t ...

of large cities and were used as a framing device. Other examples were designed to create safe, protective atmospheres which combined useful inside and outside space. The name of the Stoic school of philosophy derives from "stoa".

Famous stoas

Stoa Poikile The Stoa Poikile (, ) or Painted Porch, originally called the Porch of Peisianax (, ), was a stoa (a covered walkway or portico) erected during the 5th century BC and was located on the north side of the Ancient Agora of Athens. The Stoa Poikile ...

, "Painted Porch", from which the philosophy

Stoicism Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium in Athens in the early 3rd century Common Era, BCE. It is a philosophy of personal virtue ethics informed by its system of logic and its views on the natural world, asser ...

takes its name *

Stoa of Attalos The Stoa of Attalos (also spelled Attalus) was a stoa (covered walkway or portico) in the Agora of Athens, Greece. It was built by and named after King Attalos II of Pergamon, who ruled between 159 BC and 138 BC. The current building was recon ...

Stoa Basileios Stoa Basileios ( el, στοά βασίλειος or τοῦ βασιλέως), meaning Royal Stoa, was a stoa constructed in Ancient Athens in the 6th century BC and substantially altered in the 5th century BC. It was located in the northwest corn ...

(Royal Stoa) * Stoa of Zeus at

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Stoa Amphiaraion Stoa Amphiaraion (also known as the Enkoimeterion) is located on the east side of the Sanctuary of Amphiaraios, southeast of the Theatre. It was built c. 360 BC. The two-aisled stoa opens towards the southeast with an outer Doric colonnade of fo ...

Stoa of the Athenians The Stoa of the Athenians is an ancient portico in the Delphic Sanctuary, Greece, located south of the Temple of Apollo. The southern side of the polygonal wall of the platform forms the north wall of the stoa. It was constructed c. 478 BC-470 BC ...

*Royal Stoa of Herod's

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

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YASOU
* {{Authority control Ancient Greek buildings and structures Colonnades

Famous stoas

See also

References

External links