ARCHITECTURE OF THE MEDITERRANEAN OIKUMEN: HE BIRTH OF THE MONUMENTAL FACADE (2 MILLENNIUM BC) AND ITS TRANSFORMATION INTO A PORTICO (FIRST HALF OF THE 1ST MILLENNIUM BC)

The article presents a general picture of the development of architecture of the Ancient World in the 3nd - 1st millennium BC. identified three main style-making cultures of the Mediterranean (Egypt, Mesopotamia with the Levant, the Aegean world with Antalya) which were formed in 3 thousand BC. and changing trends in the development of their architecture, the birth of the facade composition and its change from plane to spatial, which, according to the author, reveals historical development through architectural form – socio-cultural, worldview changes. At the level of 3 thousand BC. it is possible to state formation of a theme of a monumental portal: in Egypt and in the Mesopotamia. But meaningful construction of the facade, the creation of a presentable facade composition has not yet taken place. from the middle of 2 thousand BC in Egypt and Assyria, symmetrical planar façade compositions were formulated (paired pylons in the temple in Egypt and paired towers at the entrance arch portal in palaces and citadels in Assyria and the Hittites). This architecture stops the visitor not only in its form: small entrance opening against the dominant deaf array presents secrecy, remoteness and elitism of the content of the building. Instead, the traditions of secular open facade with a two-column loggia on the facade denote the megarons of the acropolises of the Aegean world and a bit-hilani house. An echo of such traditions can be considered two-column facades of Georgian traditional folk housing darbazi, which can be considered as characteristic of the region not only of the Caucasus. It should be noted as a change in the ratio of the area of the opening to the plane of the facade indicated the degree of elitism, esoteric or vice versa - democracy of a society and a certain type of building. It is established, as after long stagnation of development and conservation of achieved ideals in schemes of facade compositions noticeable changes occurred around 6-5 centuries. BC, when both in the Aegean region and in Antalya and Persia the formation of the composition of the open facade took place in monumental elite and sacred architecture. Mediterranean architecture opens up, becomes public, social, humane - it is time to form the space of a secular public city square surrounded by columned symmetrical portico facades - time of antique classical architecture.