The earliest known examples of Doric temples, built originally of stone, are at =Corinth= and that of =Phœbus Apollo= on the island of =Ortygia=, at the entrance to the harbour of Syracuse. In these, which are attributed to the seventh century <small>B.C.</small>, the columns are monoliths with widely projecting capitals, and set so close together that the intercolumniation was less than one diameter of the column. For the early Greeks appear to have been distrustful of the bearing capacity of stone as compared with wood. Belonging to the sixth century are the colossal =Temples= =of Zeus= at =Selinus= and =Agrigentum= and the =Temple of Poseidon= (Neptune) in =Pæstum=. In the last the columns are composed of sections or “drums,” and there are still in position in the cella the smaller columns, superimposed on the main ones for the support of the roof. The temples of the fifth century are distinguished by increased refinement in the matter of proportion and details and by superior skill and workmanship. They include the =Temple of Athene= (Minerva) on the island of =Ægina=; the so-called =Theseum=, supposed to have been dedicated to =Heracles= (Hercules), in =Athens=; and the =Temple of Zeus= which forms one of the group of temples at =Olympia=. It is the most complete temple-group yet discovered, and was the scene of the religious ceremonies in connection with the Pan-Hellenic Games. With the second half of the fifth century began the supremacy of Athens in the affairs of Hellas under the rule of Pericles, which enabled her as custodian of the Hellenic treasury to undertake the beautifying of the Acropolis. This culminated in the =Parthenon=, the noblest example of the Doric style and, as Mr. A. D. F. Hamlin writes, “the most faultless in design and execution of all buildings erected by man.” Following, apparently, the tradition of worshipping in groves, the Dorians placed their temples in a _temenos_, or enclosure in which were other shrines, altars, and treasuries. Whether this temenos was on a hill-top, as in the case of the Acropolis in Athens and the site of the temple-group in =Agrigentum=, or in a valley on sloping ground as at =Delphi=, the irregularities of the ground were taken advantage of in the disposition of the buildings. Thus was created an ensemble in which art and nature united, while in the case of a level site, as at =Olympia=, =Delos=, and =Pæstum=, the temples were grouped in picturesque irregularity. =Temple Plans.=--The nucleus of the temple plan was the _naos_, containing the statue of the deity. Adjoining it were other chambers, connected with the ritual of worship; and this aggregate of naos and chambers, enclosed within walls, is known as the _Cella_. It was approached from the front, which faced the _east_, by a covered, columned vestibule, open at the sides, called the _pronaos_. This was often repeated at the rear under the name of _epinaos_, or, as the Romans called it, _posticum_.