In Classical architecture, a peripteros (; see ) is a type of ancient Greek or Roman temple surrounded by a portico with . It is surrounded by a colonnade ( pteron) on all four sides of the cella ( naos), creating a four-sided arcade, or peristyle ( peristasis).[
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By extension, it also means simply the perimeter of a building (typically a classical temple), when that perimeter is made up of columns.
Definition
The
peripteros can be a
portico, a
kiosk, or a
chapel. If it is made up of four columns, it is a tetrastyle; of six, hexastyle; of eight, octastyle; of ten, decastyle; and of twelve, dodecastyle.
If the columns are
Engaged column instead of standing alone, the building is a
pseudoperipteros.
