‹‹‹ Vitr. 3.3.2 | Table of Contents | Vitr. 3.3.4 ›››
3This, no less than the former arrangement, is faulty; because matrons, ascending the steps to supplicate the deity, cannot pass the intercolumniations arm in arm, but are obliged to enter after each other; the doors are also hidden, by the closeness of the columns, and the statues are too much in shadow. The passages moreover round the temple are inconvenient for walking.
3These two kinds have practical disadvantages. When the matrons mount the steps for public prayer or thanksgiving, they cannot pass through the intercolumniations with their arms about one another, but must form single file; then again, the effect of the folding doors is thrust out of sight by the crowding of the columns, and likewise the statues are thrown into shadow; the narrow space interferes also with walks round the temple.