# The idea - The Fountainhead: something about the Parthenon being a wooden building built out of marble - I.e. being stuck in old ways of thinking with new tools - **need to flesh this out** # Fact check! Is this a real thing? Claude says: This characterization from *The Fountainhead* is a significant oversimplification and misrepresentation of the Parthenon's architectural history and innovation. The idea that the Parthenon simply copied wooden structures in marble ignores several key points: 1. While some elements of Greek temple architecture did evolve from wooden predecessors (like the triglyphs, which may have represented the ends of wooden beams), the Parthenon's designers were fully conscious of marble's properties and exploited them masterfully. The building wasn't just a stone copy of a wooden template. 2. The Parthenon incorporates sophisticated engineering that specifically takes advantage of marble's properties. The building's famous subtle curves (entasis) were precisely calculated to account for optical illusions and create a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. These refinements would have been impossible in wood. 3. The structural properties of marble were integral to the building's design. The massive stone architraves (the horizontal beams supporting the roof) span distances that would have been impossible with wood of that era. The weight and durability of marble was essential to the building's engineering. 4. The Parthenon's sculptural elements, particularly the frieze, metopes, and pediments, were conceived specifically for marble and took full advantage of the material's ability to be finely carved while maintaining structural integrity. Rand's characterization seems to serve her novel's philosophical argument about originality and innovation, but it doesn't accurately reflect the architectural sophistication of the Parthenon. The building represents a highly evolved understanding of its materials, incorporating both traditional elements and innovative engineering solutions specific to stone construction. If anything, the Parthenon demonstrates how architectural forms can evolve from earlier precedents while still achieving remarkable innovation within a new material context. The architects (Ictinus and Callicrates) and sculptors created something that was both rooted in tradition and technically revolutionary for its time.