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roman architecture between 800B.C - 400A.D?

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1. [edit] History Around 600 BC, the wooden columns of the old Temple of Hera at Olympia underwent a material transformation, known as "petrification", in which they were replaced by stone columns. By degrees, other parts of the temple were petrified until the entire temple was made of stone. With the spread of this process to other sanctuaries, Greek temples and significant buildings from the 6th century BC onwards were built largely from stone, and a few fortunate examples have survived through the ages. Most of our knowledge of Greek architecture comes from the late archaic period (550 - 500 BC), the early to pure classical period (400 - 430 BC), and the Periclean age (450 - 430 BC). Greek examples are considered alongside Hellenistic and Roman periods (since Roman architecture heavily copied Greek), and late written sources such as Vitruvius (1st century). This results in a strong bias towards temples, the only buildings which survive in numbers. Structure and style of Greek temples The standard format of Greek public buildings is known from surviving examples such as the Parthenon and the Hephaesteum at Athens, the group at Pasteum, the temple complex at Selinunte (Selinus) and the sanctuaries at Agrigentum. Most buildings were rectangular and made from limestone or tufa, of which Greece has an abundance, and which was cut into large blocks and dressed. Marble was an expensive building material in Greece: high quality marble came only from Mt Pentelicus in Attica and from a few islands such as Paros, and its transportation in large blocks was difficult. It was used mainly for sculptural decoration, not structurally, except in the very grandest buildings of the Classical period such as the Parthenon.
2. Good Question. I really get the gist of what you are asking.