Crepidoma (steps)There are usually three steps. They were often too tall to climb easily, so a ramp was sometimes built at the front.
StylobateIt is the crepidoma's top level.
ColumnsThey stand on the stylobate and taper toward the top. Each was normally built from several drums, cut separately.
EntablatureThe capitals at the tops of the columns hold it up.
PedimentIt is the gable end of the roof. The back of the temple has one too.
TympanumIt closes the end of the roof. It is set back, which leaves a ledge for sculpture.
AcroterionThe plural is acroteria. Early ones were plain shapes; later ones were leafy or carved as figures.
The floor plan 7
PeristyleAlso called the peristasis. The covered walk behind the columns sheltered visitors and gave room for processions.
Naos (cella)Held the statue of the god or goddess the temple was for. Cella is its Latin name.
PronaosThe side walls run forward past the door to form it. Two columns stand between their ends.
OpisthodomosNo door joins it to the naos. It repeats the front so that the temple looks the same at both ends.
AntaeOne is an anta. Two columns that stand between them are said to be in antis.
DoorIt leads from the pronaos into the naos.
Cult statueIt stood on a pedestal in the naos. Only its base is drawn here.
How this list was compiled: Every name and detail checked on 2026-09-30, a name kept only where both sources use it: (1) Allan Marquand, Greek Architecture, Macmillan, 1909, public domain, https://archive.org/details/greekarchitectur00marquoft (the krepidoma as a stepped base with the stylobate beneath the columns; steps rarely low enough to climb, and the ramp; the tympanum as the triangular wall that ends the gable roof, set back for gable sculpture; the pediment and its acroteria; pronaos or front porch and opisthodomos or rear porch; the naos or cella with the cult statue on a pedestal; peristyle; antae); (2) Wikipedia, Ancient Greek temple, text only, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greek_temple (the elevation in three zones: crepidoma, columns, entablature; the stylobate as the top level of the crepidoma; column drums; the capitals supporting the entablature; the tympanon and acroteria; the naos or cella and its cult statue; the pronaos formed by the antae with two columns between them, and its door; the opisthodomos with no door; the peristasis that sheltered visitors and processions; hexastyle for six columns). Licence: own work
The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; nothing traced. Not to scale. Licence: own work
How it works
To label the parts of a Greek temple, write a name on the line for each number. Numbers 1 to 7 climb the front, from the steps to the roof ornament. Numbers 8 to 14 are on the floor plan.
Read the full guide
Word bank to label a Greek temple
In alphabetical order, to copy onto the board: acroterion, antae, columns, crepidoma, cult statue, door, entablature, naos, opisthodomos, pediment, peristyle, pronaos, stylobate, tympanum.
Numbers that get swapped
On the front, 1 points at the flight of steps (crepidoma), 2 at its top step alone (stylobate). The line from 5 ends on the frame of the triangle (pediment); 6 sits on the flat wall inside it (tympanum). On the plan, 10 is the porch at the entrance arrow (pronaos) and 11 the porch at the far end (opisthodomos). The line from 12 ends on a wall end (antae), the line from 13 in the gap between two rooms (door).
When marking, peristasis is right on line 8 and tympanon on line 6.
The plan has thirteen column dots along each side and six across each end. Many Classical temples had that count: twice the front, plus one.
Questions and answers
What color was a Greek temple?
White, blue and red, with black now and then: only these basic colors were used. The steps and columns were mostly white. Paint went mostly on parts that carry no load. Color also marked out the frieze, a band of the entablature.
Which way did a Greek temple face?
East. Virtually all Greek temples had the main door on the east side, partly to catch the light of the rising sun. A few faced west or ran north to south. On this sheet the entrance is at the right.
What was the opisthodomos used for?
Usually storage. The room at the back of the temple held equipment for the cult, and it could also hold the temple's treasury.
Where did worship take place at a Greek temple?
Outside. Rituals took place in the open, in the sanctuary around the building. The temple itself housed the statue of the god or goddess, and it was often used to store offerings.
Does the worksheet to label the Greek temple have an answer key?
Yes. The answer key prints both drawings with the fourteen names on their numbered lines, from crepidoma to cult statue.