The complex of temples atop the
rugged rock we call the Acropolis of Athens...
The
Acropolis of Athens
is is an
archaeological site
perched atop an
impressive rock in
the center of
Ancient Athens, and
it's the most
visited monument in
Greece today.
ACROPOLIS OF ATHENS
Parthenon.
The complex of
temples atop the
rugged rock we call
the Acropolis of
Athens in Greece are
not a mere
collection of ruins,
nor are they a mere
tourist destination.
Acropolis (akro +
polis) literally
means edge or point
of the city, and
throughout the
centuries in has
embodied a much more
significant position
not in relation to a
city, but in
relation to an
entire civilization.
A heavy burden to
say the least; but a
burden that the
discolored marbles
carry with
effortless grace.
Erechtheion.
The Acropolis was
always a sacred
place for ancient
Athenians going back
to Mycenaean times.
They worshiped their
gods in temples
there, conducted
their festivals, and
they fortified
themselves on it
whenever the enemies
managed to reach the
city of Athens. The
temples of the
Acropolis of Athens
were destroyed or
burned several times
in ancient times,
and the monuments as
we see them today
were the result of a
terrific public
project the
Athenians undertook
during "The
Golden Age of
Perikles" circa
450 BC. The whole
project was
supervised by the
famous sculptor and
Perikles' personal
friend, Phedias.
It
was designed as a
monument to
everything that the
Athenian thought
pattern represented
and which placed man
in its center of
interest. In the
monuments of the
Acropolis the ideals
which forged western
thought and culture
are embodied in
artistic expression
and formal
stylization of the
highest degree. The
Parthenon itself
managed to push the
aesthetic
conventions of its
time to their
logical conclusion:
a building that
touched the ideal in
every formal detail.http://www.greeklandscapes.com
The Theatre of Dionysus
Eleuthereus is a major open-air theatre and one of the earliest
preserved in Athens.
It
was used for
festivals in honor
of the god Dionysus.
It is sometimes
confused with the
later and
better-preserved
Odeon of Herodes
Atticus, located
nearby on the
southwest slope of
the Acropolis
The site of the
Theater of Dionysus
Eleuthereus, on the
south slope of the
Athenian Acropolis,
has been known since
the 18th century.
The Greek
Archaeological
Society excavated
the remains of the
theater beginning in
1838 and throughout
most of the
following century.
Early remains in the
area relating to the
cult of Dionysus
Eleuthereus have
been dated to the
sixth century BCE,
during the rule of
Peisistratus and his
successors, but a
theater was
apparently not built
on the site until
the fifth century
BCE. The only
certain evidence of
this early theater
consists of a few
stone blocks that
were reused in the
fourth century
BCE.[1]
During the sixth
century BCE,
performances
associated with the
festivals of
Dionysus were
probably held in the
Athenian agora, with
spectators seated on
wooden bleachers (ikria)
set up around a flat
circular area, the
orchestra, until the
ikria collapsed in
the early fifth
century BCE, an
event attested in
ancient sources.
After the collapse
of the stands, the
dramatic and musical
contests were moved
to the precinct of
Dionysus on the
slope of the
Acropolis.
http://en.wikipedia.org
The Odeon of Herodes Atticus is a
stone theatre....
structure located on
the south slope of
the Acropolis of
Athens. It was built
in 161 AD by Herodes
Atticus in memory of
his wife, Aspasia
Annia Regilla. It
was originally a
steep-sloped
amphitheater with a
three-story stone
front wall and a
wooden roof, and was
used as a venue for
music concerts...
Ηρώδειο is the Roman
Theatre of Athens.
The impressive Roman
theater at the foot
of the sacred hill
of Acropolis of
Athens is located on
the south side and
built in the 2nd
century AD. An
Athenian nobleman
Tiberius Claudius
Atticus Herodes
wanted to honour the
memory of his wife,
Aspasia Annita
Rigillis. He spent
resources to build
the theater and,
therefore, the
initial name was
after his wife
Rigillis and then
his own - Odeon of
Herodes Atticus or
just the Odeon.
The Odeon of
Herodes Atticus in
its original form
had a wooden roof
with 32 rows of
seats and could
accommodate around
5,000 spectators for
its performances.
Like most theaters
of the Roman era,
the orchestra had a
semicircular shape.
The stage had three
stores, two of whom
survived, so we can
enjoy them today.
The Odeon of
Herodes Atticus was
nearly destroyed
during the centuries
by the damage it
suffered. In 1857 it
came back to light
through excavations
but rebuilt in its
present form despite
the decades. Since
1950, every summer,
it has been hosting
performances during
the Festival of
Athens.
virtualtourist.com
The Areopagus. The
philosophers brought Paul to the Areopagus to tell them about
his "new teaching"
The
Areopagus is both a
small rocky hill,
adjacent to the
Acropolis, and a
Council with certain
judicial functions
which met there.
The word Areopagus means "Hill of Ares," god of war.
(Ares was called Mars by the Romans, therefore, "Mar's
Hill.") Paul's appearance before the Council of the
Areopagus, although not an official judicial procedure,
"deliberately echoes the trial of Socrates for
proclaiming new deities and leading the populace to
question its beliefs in the traditional gods." (Oxford
Companion to the Bible, p. 65). We listened to a reading
of Acts 17:22-31, Paul's sermon, including the
well-known reference to "an unknown god," as we stood at
the bottom of the ancient rock stairs leading to the
flat top of the Areopagus hill. The text is also
inscribed in Greek on a bronze plaque and set in a rock
at the foot of hill.
Paul doesn't say anything about
Athens in his letters except that he was there (I Thess.
3:1), but Luke, the author of Acts, tells an interesting
story of Paul's activities there (Acts 17:16-34).
According to Luke, while waiting for his companions,
Paul explored the city. He no doubt visited the
Acropolis, a religious shrine, for "he saw that the city
was full of idols." He visited the synagogue and
discussed his message with "the devout." And he walked
in the Agora every day conversing with anyone who
happened to be around. There, he attracted the attention
of some Epicurean and Stoic philosophy teachers, the
leading philosophies of the day, who invited him to
speak to them.
Looking up at
the Acropolis, that monument to imperial power and the
gods who profit from it, as we listened, the words took
on new life in that spot.
The Pedestrianisation of
Dionyssiou Areopagitou - Apostolou Pavlou Axis and Its Adjoining
Open Urban Spaces
The
archaeological sites
of Athens constitute
the principal
element of the
city's cultural
heritage as well as
the most vivid
witness of its
historical
continuity through
the ages. Their
unification had been
a dream for
architects and urban
planners for
decades.
The term
"unification" implies the creation of a network of major
cultural landmarks such as the principal monuments and
archaeological sites of the city, interconnected with a sequence
of open spaces, commons, public utility installations and areas
designated for cultural activities and recreation. The idea has
finally been made real in the form of the “Athenian Walk”, a 3km
network of pedestrian routes, passing below the Acropolis
and connecting the six main archaeological sites of Athens
stretching from Panathenaico Stadium, Olympieion, Philopappos
Hill, Pnyx, Ancient Agora and ending at the Keramikos
Archaeological site. Including plazas and panoramic views,
Dionyssiou Areopagitou - Apostolou Pavlou Axis forms the
“backbone” of the unification system, provides access to the
most important monuments and links up quiet residential areas to
thriving business zones of small-scale commerce.
In 1996,
the Greek Ministry of the Environment, Physical Planning and
Public Works and the Ministry of Culture began implementing this
dream of integrating all the various archaeological sites in
Athens into a continuum, by launching an architectural
competition for the design of The Pedestrianisation of the
Dionyssiou Areopagitou - Apostolou Pavlou Axis and Its Adjoining
Open Urban Spaces.
The Ancient Agora of Athens is
the best-known example of an ancient Greek agora!
Located
to the northwest of
the Acropolis and is
bounded on the south
by the hill of the
Areopagus and on the
west by the hill
known as the Colonus
Agoraeus.
The
agora in Athens had
private housing,
until it was
reorganized by
Peisistratus in the
6th century BC.
Although he may have
lived on the agora
himself, he removed
the other houses,
closed wells, and
made it the centre
of Athenian
government. He also
built a drainage
system, fountains
and a temple to the
Olympian gods. Cimon
later improved the
agora by
constructing new
buildings and
planting trees. In
the 5th century BC
there were temples
constructed to
Hephaestus, Zeus and
Apollo.
The
Areopagus and the
assembly of all
citizens met
elsewhere in Athens,
but some public
meetings, such as
those to discuss
ostracism, were held
in the agora.
Beginning in the
period of the
radical democracy
(after 509 BC), the
Boule, or city
council, the
Prytaneis, or
presidents of the
council, and the
Archons, or
magistrates, all met
in the agora. The
law courts were
located there, and
anyone who happened
to be in the agora
when a case was
being heard would
probably have been
able to view the
spectacle, though
only those adult
male citizens
appointed by lot
would have been able
to serve as jurors.
