Architecture exists since the first time someone had the idea of planning, designing and constructing a building of any type anywhere. Just think about it, when was the first time someone decided to change his own environment for good and with what knowledge? Who was the first architect on Earth? These are questions that might not have an answer but we are lucky we can enjoy buildings and constructions that can easily have more than 8,000 years of age…
When was Architecture created? It must have been during the Neolitic (more than 10,000 years BC), and thanks to this new type of men we now call architects, people could now become sedentary, as now they had new shelters, walls, houses and organized crops to be able to stay in a recently built town instead of having to move elsewhere from time to time. The era of moving from one place to another was a thing of the past.
These new constructions and buildings were created by men who could transform their environment into anything that was needed: a defensive castle, an independent or self-sufficient place, etc. People who had the ability of seeing these images on their head and making them real weren’t called architects yet, but now it is one of the most important professions in the world.
Then of course came the unbelievable constructions of the Ancient Mesopotamia with the Ziggurat of Ur, the Assyrian palace of Ashurnasrirpal II or the Ishtar Gate, which are buildings that can impress you even now, 5,000 years later.
Architecture was booming at that time, people with money wanted to become eternal and leave their footprint forever. This is how the pyramids of Giza were created or the Temple of Horus at Edfu, a typical example of Egyptian architecture.
But the trend wasn’t over yet, now it was time for the Greeks and their Agoras, surrounded by their buildings and temples. The Partenon in the Acropolis still rises as one of the most beautiful buildings of all time.
But what about the Colosseum or Coliseum? Romans took advantage of the architectural knowledge of the Greeks and even perfected it. The Roman’s aqueduct of Segovia is a good example of how important architecture can be to save or improve the lives of many people in towns and cities. The interior of the Pantheon in Rome, is also something that can amaze you now in 2018.
By then everybody knew that ‘something as external as a building could really have an impact on our daily mood’. Architecture was absolutely necessary by then and it’s still the same way today. Society needs good architects and especially the ones that go into things that aren’t mainstream like the professionals who choose to study a Master of architecture in Collective Housing.
There is such a competition nowadays that if you want to be the best you need to offer something different. This is why many students are now specialising themselves. A good example of this is what we said before: An architect that needs to specialize in Collective Housing or an Asian Historian who wants to specialize in Spanish History, for example. The fact remains, architecs are one of the most important professions today, at the same level as doctors. And from General-History we’d like to thank you all for your passion, time and effort.