Architecture of Ancient Athens

[Jordan Fass]

"Ω ται λιπαραί και ιοστέφανοι και
αοίδιμοι, Ελλάδος έρεισμα, κλειναί,
Αθήναι, δαιμόνιον πτολίεθρον !".
Πίνδαρος "Oh You, olive shiny and violet
crowned glorious Athens, famous in
songs rampart of Greece, divine city!".
Pindar

"Oh You, olive shiny and violet
crowned glorious Athens, famous in
songs rampart of Greece, divine city!".
Pindar

[Jordan Fass]

No other city has contributed more to the civilization of mankind than Athens. It is the place where Socrates was born, Plato, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and many others. It is the place that humanism and democracy were born. The intellectual light that Athens created will always be alive.

http://www.sikyon.com/Athens/athens_eg.html

[Jordan Fass]

Archaic Period

 


Statue of youth (Kouros),
615- 590 BC., New York





The Tricorpor Demon, early 6th century BC.
Acropolis Museum, Athens

[Jordan Fass]

Erechtheion

Caryatides (korae) in Erechtheion

[Jordan Fass]

[Jordan Fass]

[Jordan Fass]

Detail of the Anta-Capital and Wall-Band from the Erechtheion, British Museum.

[Jordan Fass]

Reconstruction of Erechtheion, view from south west.

[Jordan Fass]

Temple of Athena Nike



Temple of Athena Nike.
Designed by the architect of Parthenon Kallikrates, it was probably build at 427 BC in pure Ionic style from Pentelic marble. Due to the of lack of money, the Peloponnesian war and internal political strife's the temple was not build at once. The thorakion with the victories was constructed around 410 BC, after the war victories of Alkibiades. It was damaged in the explosion of 1645 AD, and the columns were restored, as close as possible, to the originals. 
 

[Jordan Fass]

Hill of Pnyka




It was here, where the Athenians gathered to listen to the speeches of their
leaders, like Themistokles, Perikles, Demosthenes, who spoke from the bema. 
 

[Jordan Fass]

Temple of Hephaestus
or Theseion




Temple of Hephaestus and Athena Ergane or Theseion.
The Doric temple, which stands at the western end of the Agora, on the hill
 of Agoraios Kolonos, erected by the architect Ictinos before the Parthenon
(449-440 BC), depicts the exploits of Theseus in its friezes and metopes. 

[Jordan Fass]

Reconstruction of the bronze statues of Athena and Hephaestus, inside
the temple. They were created by Alkamenes, between 421 - 415 BC.
At the base of the statues represented the birth of Erichthonios. Gaia was
holding the child Erichthonios up to Athena, a symbolism that Athenians
were aboriginals and their city had never been conquered. 
 

[Jordan Fass]

Ancient Agora




Ancient Agora with Acropolis on top.

[Jordan Fass]

View of the Ancient Agora with the reconstructed Stoa of Attalos

[Jordan Fass]

Theater of Dionysus

 


The theater of Dionysus, under the south side of the Acropolis.
It was here that every year Aeschylus, Sophokles, Euripides, Aristophanes,
played their plays during the festival of Dionysus, given by the city. The theater was
rebuild by the Athenian statesman Lykourgo, in 342 - 326 BC, from stone and in
later years by the Romans.