Neoclassicism in stone: between historicism and eclecticism
- Sep 15, 2025
- 5 min read
Architectural Neoclassicism, which emerged at the end of the 18th century, is much more than a style: it is the product of a dual intellectual and political movement. On one hand, historicist thinking, the desire to place architecture within the continuity of great models from the past, e.g. Antique Greece and Rome. On the other hand, eclecticism, which transforms these references into a reservoir of available forms to be adapted according to modern needs. As we saw in the precedent article, this return to the Antique style is never neutral, whether it is in France or elsewhere: it responds to political stakes, whether to glorify the monarchical state, celebrate the Empire, or legitimise the Republic.
Each neoclassical building must therefore be read as an inscription of power in stone, but also as a civic space where collective values are expressed.
In France, Jacques-Germain Soufflot is one of the most emblematic figures of Neoclassicism. His most significant work is undoubtedly the Church of Sainte-Geneviève in Paris, commissioned in the mid-18th century at the request of Louis XV. The monarch intended to replace the dilapidated abbey church with a monument worthy of the capital and of the kingdom. The project was entrusted to Soufflot, who proposed a design that would reconcile the rigorous rationality of Classical forms with the lightness and structural boldness of Gothic construction. Its construction began in 1755 but was only completed in 1790, at the wake of the Revolution. Soufflot’s Panthéon is laid out on a Greek-cross plan, inspired by both the Roman basilica and the Christian church. At the intersection of its arms rises a monumental dome soaring to a height of 83 metres. Directly inspired by the Pantheon of Agrippa in Rome and the Brunelleschi’s dome in Florence, it is designed as dominant visual element within the Parisian skyline, which reinforce its significance. Yet the dome does not function as an isolated element: rather, it acts as a crowning element that stabilises and enhances the architecture of the base, unifying the cruciform plan. The Antique inspiration is further proclaimed by the building’s entrance, framed by a majestic Corinthian colonnade that evokes the solemnity of a Grec or Roman temple. This peristyle/portico does not only serve a decorative function but also as a direct dialogue between the sacred space of Christianity and the civic grandeur of Antiquity. Just below the dome, rises a circular colonnade of Corinthian columns, forming a tholos that supports the dome. Architecturally, it reduces the mass of the drum and helps distribute the dome's weight more evenly. Visually, it acts as an elevating element, making the dome appear higher and more detached from the base. This setup ensures the dome is visible from a distance and when viewed up close; it enhances the lines of ascent, guiding the eye toward the lantern atop the dome. From an urban standpoint, this circular colonnade accentuates the vertical thrust of the monument.
The Panthéon’s symbolic meaning has never been fixed. Consecrated as a church in 1790, it was almost immediately secularised by the Revolution in 1791 to serve as a temple of the nation. It shifted between sacred and civic functions under Napoleon and the Bourbon Restoration before finally being settled as the definitive mausoleum of national heroes with the transfer of Victor Hugo’s remains in 1885. The famous inscription on its façade, “Aux grands hommes, la patrie reconnaissante”, encapsulates this political redefinition.
Other French monuments of the late 18h and early 19th centuries embed this historicism through their use of colonnades, monumental stairways, triumphal arches, and commemorative columns. From the Hôtel de Thellusson (nowadays destroyed) to the Palais Brongniart, and from the Théâtre de l’Odéon to the Church of La Madeleine, architectural forms drawn from Antiquity were reinterpreted according to new civic, economic, or religious functions. The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, the Arc de Triomphe Porte d’Aix in Marseille, or the Vendôme Column illustrate how the antique model of triumphal celebration was revived and adapted to the political narratives of the Empire. In each case, historicism is not a matter of imitation but of translation, whereby ancient forms are recontextualised within the modern city. At the same time, the eclecticism of the period is revealed in the way these diverse structures, temples, theatres, palaces, and commemorative monuments, picked up selectively on Greek, Roman, or Renaissance precedents, combining them into an architecture of power and memory that served the ideological needs of the time.
Neo through Europe and beyond
In Europe also, the neoclassical architecture is characterised by the reinterpretation of the antique.
In Prussia (former Germany), the multiples study trips of artists will allow them to discover archeological and architectural order, notably from the antique Greece, that will inspire and shape the new construction of a national identity for Prussia. Karl Friedrich Schinkel put into perspective this return to the classical Greece with the Altes Museum. Built between 1828 and 1830 by order of King Frederick William III of Prussia, the museum is built as a grec temple with colonnades, a dome and coloured facings rediscovered in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The coffered dome, which reveals models from antiquity, serves as a covering for a large rotunda.
Kirche St. Nikolai in Postdam is another example. Here Schinkel, also use the grec temple reference at the entry of this church. Like the Panthéon in Paris, we have a dome in tholos: we can see a copy of the Tempietto de Bramante. The Bradenburger Tor (1790) in Berlin is inspired by the traditional Roman triumphal arch, yet it represents one of the earliest examples of Greek Revival Architecture in Prussia. The gate features twelve Doric columns, six on each side, creating five passageways. Additionally, walls between the pairs of columns at the front and back are adorned with classicising reliefs of the Labours of Hercules. In its pursuit of a national identity, Prussia also created a Panthéon, namely: the Walhalla, a reference to the place where brave warriors who have died are taken in Nordic traditions. In line with the mytholgy, the Walhalla in Daunaustauf is a museum dedicated for prominent german personalities. Largely inspired by the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis, th Walhalla is located on a platform that elevates the temple, composed of rigid Doric columns. The building is placed directly on the stylobate, which raises the architecture and place it high above, reminiscent of the paradise of Norse mythology.
Across the Channel and across the Atlantic also, every nation draws inspiration from antiquity uniquely.
The king's architects combined English royal architecture with European styles to modernise the England's capital. George IV commissioned Cumberland Terrace, designed by John Nash, to enhance Regent's Park. Nash's terraces, named after the king's brothers, form a unified ensemble. Cumberland Terrace spans 250 meters with about thirty English-style houses. The rear entrances feature ancient influences, such as a triumphal arch, rare in England. Colonnades add rhythm to the space.
This ancient style's influence is evident worldwide, especially in countries with educational connections to Europe, like the United States and Brazil. The first capitol, designed by William Thornton in 1793, was constructed by a U.S.-trained architect who had traveled in Europe. Clearly inspired by antiquity, as observed in English museums, he trained specifically in Scotland. We notice the colonnade, the dome... The expansion was necessary in 1827. Here, Thornton drew inspiration from the Pantheon. He visited France between the two constructions, reflecting a preference for grand European architecture.
