Naiskos funerary in marble of soldier Aristonautes. Necropolis of the Ceramic of Athens. 350-325 a. C.
The naiskos (in Greek ναΐσκος "templete", diminutive of ναός naós "temple") is a small temple or temple of classical order with columns or pillars and pediment.
It is often used as an artistic motif. It is not uncommon in ancient art. It can be found in the architecture of the temples as in Aigeira or in the one of Apolo in Dídima and especially in the funerary architecture of the cemeteries of the ancient Attica like in reliefs of tombs or small sanctuaries like the example of the Ceramic, in Athens and in the paintings of glasses of black and red figures, like lutrophobes and little arms. Although these vessels of naiskos (plural, naiskoi) show portraits of men who died, they lack columns and are properly "stele of tombs".
There are also naiskoi of the type figurines and the type of terracotta beds, many of them preserved in the Louvre Museum in Paris. All naiskos, anywhere, have a religious background, especially in relation to the Greek funerary cult.
A similar style, called edículo, is observed in the art of Ancient Rome.
wiki
