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Podcast Transcript
Perched on a rocky hill overlooking the city of Athens, the Acropolis was once a religious centre, military fortress and cultural centre.
The Acropolis is one of the most important sites in all of Greece and indeed all of Western civilization.
Perched atop the Acropolis is the Parthenon, a masterpiece of ancient Greek architecture and one of the most recognizable landmarks of classical civilization.
Watch this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily to learn more about the Acropolis, the Parthenon, and their role in history.
I’m pretty sure most of you are familiar with the Acropolis and Parthenon. If you’ve ever been to a Greek restaurant, chances are they have a picture of it, or the restaurant may have been named after it.
Technically, the Acropolis and the Parthenon are two separate things, but they are often confused with each other.
The Acropolis refers to the entire ancient citadel on a rocky hill in Athens, containing various structures including temples, sanctuaries, and portals, including the Parthenon.
On the other hand, the Parthenon is a temple in the Acropolis dedicated to Athena Parthenos, the patron saint of Athens, and is also the most iconic building on the Acropolis.
The story of the Acropolis is intertwined with the history of Athens itself.
The first thing to know is that the term acropolis is a general term. In any Greek city, the acropolis was the central citadel of the city. It was usually built on a hill and served as a fortification for Greek cities.
If you say “Acropolis” without any qualifier, it is almost always associated with the Acropolis, since it is the most famous acropolis.
For the rest of this episode, I will refer to the Acropolis collectively as the Acropolis, but keep in mind that there are other acropolises.
The earliest history of the Acropolis can be traced back to the Mycenaean period from 1600 to 1100 BC. The Acropolis became a famous castle with a massive wall and palace complex, reflecting its role as a center of political and military power.
Cyclopean is a type of masonry used during this period that involves large amounts of limestone blocks and little or no mortar.
The possible existence of a shrine dedicated to a local god laid the foundation for the site’s later religious significance.
After the decline of the Mycenaean civilization, the status of the acropolis gradually weakened.
However, it retained religious importance, with worship focusing on Athena, the patron goddess of Athens.
One of the important temples built on the acropolis in subsequent periods was Hekatompedon.
Hekatompedon, meaning “hundred feet” in Greek, is an early temple on the Acropolis of Athens, built during the Archaic period around 570 to 550 BC. Dedicated to Athena and named for its approximately 100 feet in length, this temple was the predecessor of the Parthenon.
Constructed of limestone, the Hekatompedon is decorated with richly painted sculptural panels, including mythological scenes such as a lion devouring a bull, symbolizing strength and protection. It is located to the south of the Acropolis and plays a central role in the religious life of the city.
The Hekatompedon was demolished around 500 BC, probably to make way for the “Old Parthenon”, and some of its architectural fragments were later reused for the Acropolis after the Persians sacked Athens in 480 BC Fortifications.
The Old Parthenon is an early temple dedicated to Athena, built before the iconic Parthenon on the Acropolis. It began around 490 BC, after Athens’ victory at the Battle of Marathon, and symbolized the city’s growing power and devotion to its patron goddess.
I covered the Battle of Marathon in my last episode.
Constructed primarily of limestone, the Old Parthenon was an ambitious project that reflected Doric architectural principles. However, its construction was interrupted by the Persian invasion in 480 BC, during which the temple was destroyed and left unfinished.
After the destruction of the old Parthenon, the Acropolis began its “golden age” under Pericles.
Pericles was an outstanding statesman, orator and general during the Golden Age of Athens in the 5th century BC. He is renowned for his leadership in developing Athenian democracy and spearheading the city’s cultural and architectural progress.
Under Pericles, several large buildings were built on the Acropolis, which later became the outline of the mountain. The four main statues still stand in some form today.
One of the earliest buildings is the Shanmen.
The Propylaia, the magnificent gateway to the Acropolis, was built between 437 and 432 BC. The pediment, designed by the architect Mnesikles, marks the formal entrance to the sacred area and embodies grandeur and symmetry. Its design combines Doric and Ionic architectural elements and features a central hall with five porticoes flanked by two projecting wings.
Due to the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War, construction of the Propylaea was halted, leaving it unfinished, but its unfinished state did not diminish its status as an architectural marvel.
The Temple of Athena Victory is a small temple on the Acropolis of Athens, built during the Peloponnesian War between 427 and 424 BC as part of Pericles’ architectural program.
Designed by the architect Kallikrates and dedicated to Athena Nike, the goddess of victory, it symbolized Athens’ hopes for success in the ongoing conflict. Inside the temple stands a 30-foot-tall bronze statue of Athena, holding a pomegranate, symbolizing peace, and wearing a helmet, symbolizing war.
The Erechtheion is a temple with a unique architectural style on the Acropolis of Athens, built between 421 BC and 406 BC. It was dedicated to Athena and Poseidon and was designed to house a variety of religious activities and sacred sites, including an olive tree gifted by Athena and a salt spring created by Poseidon in a competition for the mythical city’s patronage.
The temple is famous for its asymmetrical layout and elegant columns, as well as its caryatid portico, which has six cloaked female statues as supporting columns.
All these structures can be found on what is today the Acropolis.
However, the main attraction is the Parthenon.
The Parthenon was built between 447 and 432 BC. It is dedicated to Athena Parthenos, the patron saint of Athens, and was designed by the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates.
The central feature of the temple is a massive statue of Athena covered in gold and ivory. It is constructed entirely of Pantelicus marble from Mount Pentelicus outside Athens.
The Parthenon is 69.5 meters long and 30.9 meters wide, with 8 columns on the short side and 17 columns on the long side.
The Parthenon is considered the greatest example of classical Greek architecture, a distinction it has held for more than 2,000 years.
What makes the Parthenon so special is not just its proportions and proportions. There are many extremely subtle details that most people simply won’t notice outside of close inspection.
One such detail is the bulge, a slight expansion in the center of the column that offsets the optical illusion of concavity and makes the column appear straight to the observer.
Additionally, the pedestal (the platform of the temple) has a slight upward curvature, which prevents sagging lines and aids in rainwater drainage.
The columns also slope slightly inwards so that, if extended, they would intersect nearly 1.5 kilometers above the temple, creating a harmonious sense of connection.
Finally, the pillars in the corners are all slightly wider in diameter.
The Parthenon can be seen almost everywhere in Athens, and its prominent position on top of the Acropolis is one of the reasons why it has become an iconic image of the city.
Although the buildings of the Acropolis were built during the Golden Age of Athens in the 5th century BC, the history of the area and the buildings did not stop there, as evidenced by the fact that they are still standing today.
When the Romans conquered Greece, the function of most buildings did not change. The Greeks continued to worship the Greek gods, although the Romans did use the Parthenon as a treasury building, given how heavily fortified the Acropolis was.
During this period, Athens remained a center of culture and learning, and buildings were constantly maintained.
With the decline of the Western Roman Empire and the rise of the Greek-speaking Christian Byzantine Empire in the East, the Parthenon was repurposed as a church.
It is dedicated to the Virgin Mary and is named Panagia Arciniotissa.
During this time, many pagan statues and decorations were removed or damaged, most likely including the massive statue of Athena inside.
Athens remained a Byzantine Orthodox city until the Fourth Crusade in the 13th century. Athens fell under Frankish control and was ruled as the Principality of Athens, with the Parthenon used as a Roman Catholic church.
During this period, the Franks built a brick tower on the Acropolis, called the Frankish Tower. The tower overlooks the entire city and was used for defensive purposes.
The Frankish period lasted from 1204 to 1458.
The Ottomans used the Parthenon as a military building.
As late as 1687, the Parthenon looked much closer to its original design than it does now.
In 1687, during the Morean War between the Ottoman Empire and Venice, where the Ottoman army had been using the temple as a powder magazine, a Venetian mortar hit the Parthenon, causing catastrophic damage.
An explosion on September 2 of that year destroyed the roof and most of the walls of the Parthenon, causing many columns to collapse and severely damaging sculptural decorations.
This event transformed the Parthenon from a relatively intact ancient structure into the ruins it is today.
Between 1801 and 1812, agents of Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin and British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, removed several artefacts from the Acropolis, including important parts of the Parthenon frieze and pediment sculptures. Elgin shipped the marbles to England, where they were later acquired by the British Museum in 1816, where they are still on display today.
I covered the Elgin Marbles in my last episode and they remain a diplomatic sore point between Greece and Britain.
In 1834, Greece became independent from the Ottoman Empire.
Greek independence changed the status of the Acropolis. It is now seen as a symbol of national identity and, as such, efforts are made to preserve it.
At the end of the 19th century, archaeologists demolished the Frankish Tower in the hope of restoring the Acropolis to its classical appearance.
Restoration work began to protect its structure, focusing on undoing the damage caused by centuries of neglect and war, and ensuring that no further damage occurred.
Archaeological excavations have revealed important artifacts and provided insight into the history of the Acropolis.
The Acropolis and Parthenon have become Athens’ premier tourist attractions.
In 1987, the entire Acropolis area was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
In 2009, the Acropolis Museum opened. It is a state-of-the-art archaeological museum dedicated to the preservation and display of artifacts from the Acropolis and its surrounding slopes.
Located only 280 meters from the Parthenon, the museum covers an area of 14,000 square meters and has a collection of more than 4,250 items, giving visitors a comprehensive understanding of ancient Greek civilization.
There is also a large open space for future display of the Elgin Marbles…if they come back.
Today, the Acropolis complex receives approximately 4 million visitors per year.
The Acropolis complex is a testament to the artistic, architectural and cultural achievements of ancient Greece.
It embodies the ideals of democracy and philosophy, as well as the art and architecture that shaped Western civilization.
A center of worship and power for thousands of years, it reflects Athens’ diverse history from prehistoric times to modern times.
