The Lion Gate at Mycenae
A lintel of some twenty tonnes relieved by a corbelled triangle, closed by the oldest monumental relief in Europe; cyclopean and ashlar walls.
The rules it illustrates
Relieve the lintel with a triangle. Over a large lintel leave a triangular opening by corbelling the courses on either side, so that the wall’s weight passes to the jambs; close the triangle with a thin slab.
Cyclopean walls. Build fortification walls of huge, roughly shaped limestone blocks, with small stones packed into the gaps between them; reserve cut ashlar for gates and façades.
Where it appears in the book
In the styles Aegean Bronze Age.
In the chapters Post and Lintel, The Ancient World.