What is the Parthenon? Parthenon in Greece. Greek Athena: temples and statues of the goddess
The magnificent temple on the Acropolis of Athens, known as the Parthenon, was built between 447 and 432. BC, in the era of Pericles, and was dedicated to the deity and patron of the city - Athena. The temple was built to house a new cult statue and proclaim the success of Athens to the world.
The temple remained in use for over a thousand years and, despite the ravages of time, explosions, looting and damage from pollution, it still dominates the modern city of Athens, a magnificent testament to the glory that the city enjoyed throughout antiquity.
A project to build a new temple, to replace the damaged buildings of the acropolis following the Persian attack on the city in 480 BC, and to restart the destroyed temple project begun in 490 BC, was drawn up by Pericles. And it was financed from the surplus of the military treasury of the Delian League, which rallied together to.
Over time, the confederation grew into the Athenian Empire, and Pericles therefore had no qualms about using League funds to begin a massive building project to glorify Athens.
The Acropolis itself covers an area of about 300 by 150 meters and reaches a maximum height of 70 meters. The temple, which stands on the highest part of the acropolis, was designed by the architects Callicrates and Ictinus.
Pantelian marble from nearby Mount Pentelikon was used for construction, and never before had so much marble been contained in a Greek temple.
Pantelian marble was known for its pure white appearance and fine grain. It also contains traces of iron, which oxidizes over time, giving the marble a soft honey color that shines especially at dawn and dusk.
The name Parthenon comes from one of the many epithets of Athena (Athena Parthenos), that is, the Virgin. Parthenon means "house of the Parthenos", which was so named in the 5th century BC, representing a chamber that housed a cult statue. The temple itself was known as mega neos or "great temple", which referred to the length of the inner cage: 100 ancient legs.
From the 4th century BC the entire building took on the name Parthenon.
Design and dimensions of the Parthenon
No previous Greek temples were so lavishly decorated with sculptures. The Parthenon would become the largest Doric Greek temple, although it was innovative in that it mixed the two architectural styles of Doric and the newer Ionic.
The temple had an area of 30.88 m by 69.5 m and was built using the 4:9 ratio in several aspects. The diameter of the columns in relation to the space between the columns, the height of the building in relation to its width, and the width of the internal cell in relation to its length are all 4:9.
To give the illusion of true straight lines, the columns are pressed slightly inward, which also gives the effect of lifting the building, illusorily making it lighter than the building material from which the temple was built.
In addition, the stylobate or floor of the temple is not completely level; it rises slightly in the center. The pillars also have a slight deviation in the middle, and the four corner pillars are noticeably thicker than the other pillars.
The combination of these improvements allows the temple to appear completely straight, symmetrical in harmony and gives the whole appearance of the building a certain dynamism.
Architectural elements of the Parthenon
The outer columns of the temple were Doric, eight of which were visible from the front and back and 17 from the sides. This was not the usual 6x13 Doric style, and they were also slimmer and more closely spaced than usual.
The interior was separated by six columns at the back and front. She was visible through large wooden doors decorated with bronze, ivory and gold ornaments.
Kleda consisted of two separated rooms. The smaller room contained four ionic columns to support the roof section and was used as the city's treasury.
The larger room housed the cult statue, which was surrounded by a Doric colonnade on three sides. The roof was constructed using cedar beams and marble tiles and would have been decorated with acrotherapy (of palms or figures) at the corners and central peaks. Lions' mouths were also placed in the corners of the roof to drain water.
Parthenon decorative sculpture
The temple was unprecedented in both the quantity and quality of architectural sculpture that adorned it. No Greek temple was so richly decorated.
The subjects of the sculpture reflected the turbulent times in which Athens was still involved in conflicts. Following victories over the Persians at Marathon in 490 BC, at Salamis in 480 BC, and at Plataea in 479 BC, the Parthenon became a symbol of the superiority of Greek culture against the "barbarian » foreign forces.
This conflict between order and chaos was symbolized in particular by the sculptures on the metas running along the outside of the temple, 32 along the long sides and 14 on each of the short ones.
They depict the Olympian gods fighting giants (the Eastern metropolises are the most important, as this was the side where the main entrance to the temple was), the Greeks, probably including Theseus, fighting the Amazons (Western meteors), The Fall of Troy (Northern meteors), and the Greeks fighting the centaurs.
The cutters ran along all four sides of the building (ion). Beginning at the southwest corner, the millet narratives follow either side, meeting at the far end. The temple features a total of 160 m of sculpture with 380 figures and 220 animals, mainly horses.
This was more common for a treasury building and may have reflected the Parthenon's dual function as both a religious temple and a treasury.
The frieze differed from all previous temples in that all sides depicted one object, in this case, the Panathenaic procession that took place in Athens, and which brought a new, specially woven robe to the ancient wooden cult statue of Athena, located in the Erechtheion.
The item itself was a unique choice, as typically scenes from Greek mythology were chosen to decorate buildings. The procession depicts dignitaries, musicians, horsemen, chariots and Olympian gods in the center of Athens.
To alleviate the difficulty of viewing the frieze, from such a steep angle, from the narrow space between the Kleda and the outer columns, the background was painted blue and the relief varied so that the carving was always deeper at the top.
In addition, all the sculptures were brightly colored, mainly using blue, red and gold. Bronze added details such as weapons and horses, and colored glass was used for the eyes.
The most important sculpture located in the temple
The temple passages were 28.55 m long with a maximum height of 3.45 m at the center. They were filled with approximately 50 figures, an unprecedented number of sculptures in any temple.
Only eleven of them survive, and their condition is so poor that many are difficult to identify with certainty. With the help of Pausanias' descriptions from the 2nd century AD, however, common items can be identified. The eastern pediment as a whole depicts the birth of Athena, and on the western side - the competition between and, for the patronage of the great city.
One of the problems of pediments for a sculptor is the reduction of space in the corners of the triangle. The Parthenon presented a unique solution, dissolving figures into an imaginary sea or sculpture covering the lower edge of the pediment.
Athena statue
The most important sculpture of the Parthenon is not outside, but inside - the Chryselephantine statue of Athena by Feidias.
It is a gigantic statue, over 12 feet tall and made of carved ivory for the body parts and gold (1,140 kilograms or 44 talents) for everything else, wrapped around a wooden core.
Therefore, gold parts can be removed if necessary during periods of financial need. The statue stood on a pedestal measuring 4.09 by 8.04 meters.
Athena, standing majestic, fully armed, in the aisle with the head of the famous Medusa, holding Nike.
The statue was lost (and may have been taken to Constantinople in the 5th century AD), but smaller Roman copies survive. In her right hand she holds a shield depicting scenes from the battles of Amazons and giants. Behind the shield was a large spiral snake. On her helmet were a sphinx and two griffins. In front of the statue is a large pool of water, which not only adds the necessary moisture to preserve the ivory, but also acts as a reflector for light passing through the doorway.
The admiration and richness of this temple, artistically and literally, should send a message and create a clear picture of the power of a city that could pay tribute to their patron.
The Parthenon unconditionally fulfilled its function as the religious center of Athens for more than a thousand years. However, in the 5th century AD. the pagan temple was converted into a church by early Christians.
An apse was added to the eastern end, which required the removal of part of the eastern frieze. Many of the meteopes on other sides of the building were deliberately damaged, and the figures in the central part of the east pediment were removed.
Windows were set into the walls, more parts of the frieze were destroyed, and a bell tower was added to the west.
In 1816, the British government purchased the collection now known as the Elgin Marbles, which is now housed in the British Museum of London.
Elgin took 14 metopes (mostly from the south side), a large number of the best preserved slabs from the frieze and some figures from the pediments (in particular, the torsos of Athena, Poseidon and, quite well preserved, a horse).
The remaining pieces of sculpture left at the site suffered from harsh weather, especially in the late 20th century AD, the devastating effects of chronic air pollution.
The most important pieces are now housed in the Acropolis Museum, a purpose-built modern exhibition space that opened in 2011.
Later history
The building survived in its new form for another thousand years. Then, in 1458, the occupying Turks converted the building into a mosque and added a minaret in the southwest corner.
In 1674 A.D. a visiting Flemish artist (possibly one Jacques Carey) was busy drawing much of the sculpture, an extremely fortuitous action given the disaster that was about to strike.
In 1687, the Venetian army under the leadership of General Francesco Morosini besieged the acropolis, which was occupied by the Turks, who used the Parthenon as a powder keg.
On September 26, a direct hit from a Venetian cannon set it on fire, and a massive explosion tore apart the Parthenon. All the internal walls, with the exception of the eastern side, were swollen, the columns collapsed to the north and south, and with them half of the meteors.
This was not enough, Morosini further damaged the central figures of the west pediment in an unsuccessful attempt to plunder them, and destroyed the horses from the west pediment when he realized that they were beyond his reach.
From the ruins of the temple, the Turks cleared the area and built a smaller mosque, but no attempt was made to collect artifacts from the ruins, or to protect them from the occasional robber. Often, in the 18th century, foreign tourists took a souvenir from the famous ruins of the Parthenon.
The famous ancient Greek temple, the Parthenon, is located on the famous Acropolis of Athens. This main temple in Ancient Athens is a magnificent monument of ancient architecture. It was built in honor of the patroness of Athens and all of Attica - the goddess Athena.
The construction date of the Parthenon is considered to be 447 BC. It was installed thanks to the found fragments of marble tablets, on which the city authorities presented resolutions and financial reports. Construction lasted 10 years. The temple was consecrated in 438 BC. on the festival of Panathenaia (which translated from Greek means “for all Athenians”), although work on decorating and decorating the temple was carried out until 431 BC.
The initiator of the construction was Pericles, an Athenian statesman, famous commander and reformer. The design and construction of the Parthenon was carried out by the famous ancient Greek architects Ictinus and Kallikrates. The decoration of the temple was made by the greatest sculptor of those times - Phidias. High quality Pentelic marble was used for the construction.
The building was built in the form of a peripterus (a rectangular structure surrounded by columns). The total number of columns is 50 (8 columns on the facades and 17 columns on the sides). The ancient Greeks took into account that straight lines are distorted at a distance, so they resorted to some optical techniques. For example, the columns do not have the same diameter along the entire length; they taper somewhat towards the top, and the corner columns are also inclined towards the center. Thanks to this, the structure seems ideal.
Previously, in the center of the temple there was a statue of Athena Parthenos. The monument was about 12 m high and made of gold and ivory on a wooden base. In one hand the goddess held a statue of Nike, and with the other she leaned on a shield, near which the serpent Erichthonius was curled up. On Athena's head there was a helmet with three large crests (the middle one with the image of a sphinx, the side ones with griffins). The scene of Pandora's birth was carved on the pedestal of the statue. Unfortunately, the statue has not survived to this day and is known from descriptions, images on coins and a few copies.
Over many centuries, the temple was attacked more than once, a significant part of the temple was destroyed, and historical relics were looted. Today, some parts of the masterpieces of ancient sculptural art can be seen in famous museums around the world. The main part of the magnificent works of Phidias was destroyed by people and time.
Restoration work is currently underway; reconstruction plans include maximum recreation of the temple in its original form in ancient times.
The Parthenon, part of the Acropolis of Athens, is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
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Where is the Parthenon and how to get to it
The Parthenon is located on the Acropolis, in the heart of Athens. Built on a strategic location, it stands out from the rest of the buildings of the Greek capital and is visible from literally anywhere in the city. Therefore, you definitely won’t be able to pass by or get lost. You can get to it in several ways:
- By metro - to the station called Akropolis;
- By bus - there are numerous routes to the Acropolis: 106, 24, 57, 137, 230, A3, E22;
- By trolleybus No. 15, 5, 1;
- On foot - along Dionysiou Areopagitou Street. It leads up the mountain and leads straight to the Parthenon.
History of the Parthenon
For those who are at least a little familiar with Greece and its history, the Parthenon is associated with the goddess Athena. The temple arose as a dedication to the patroness of the city. But few people know that long before him, the Hekatompedon, an ancient temple also dedicated to Athena, stood in the same place.
As a replacement for the old temple destroyed by the Persians, the Parthenon was built on the initiative of Pericles, a famous Athenian politician, famous commander and reformer. He invited the sculptor Phidias to participate in the construction, and Ictius and Callicrates were chosen as architects. The latter built several more temples on the Acropolis, but it was the Parthenon that became his main brainchild. Although for a long time it did not turn out the way it was intended. The construction of the future symbol of Athens took more than 9 years. And for every coin spent on the project, the government was accountable to the people of Athens. Some of the financial reports retain many interesting facts. For example, the most expensive and largest stone was brought from Mount Pendelikon, located 16 km from Athens. High quality marble was also used for construction.
The Parthenon was solemnly presented to the public during the Panathenaic festival - the largest political and religious festivals of antiquity. But decorative work continued for several more years. They were led by Phidias, who created the statue of Athena - it became the main decoration of the Parthenon. The way she looked has concerned historians for several centuries. They say that the statue was Phidias's best work. The wooden statue was covered with a ton of gold and decorated with ivory. The 13-meter statue held a spear in one hand and the figure of Nike in the other.
For almost 1,000 years, the Parthenon served as the main temple of the Greek religion. It was still intact in the 4th century. AD, but by that time Athens was no more than just a provincial city of the Roman Empire with a glorious past. In the 5th century The statue of Athena was stolen and transported to Constantinople. Here it collapsed several centuries later.
The Parthenon was then converted into the Christian Church of the Virgin Mary. This inevitably led to the reconstruction of the temple - pagan sculptures and some columns were removed. Most likely even destroyed. In the 15th century New changes awaited the Parthenon. This time, the Ottomans, who captured the city, rebuilt the once pagan temple of Athena into a mosque. However, they did not cause serious damage.
In the 17th century, during an attack by the Venetians, the Parthenon was literally destroyed as a result of the explosion of a gunpowder warehouse. And only in the 1840s. Its restoration began, but first of all, new and medieval buildings, as well as the Muslim minaret, were removed.
What the Parthenon looked like: past and present
In ancient times, the Parthenon looked majestic - as befits a temple of a goddess especially revered by the Greeks. It had a rectangular shape with a colonnade on all 4 sides. It is believed that the number of Dorian columns was 48. Inside the Parthenon there was a central platform, also fenced with columns. And in its center stood the now lost statue of Athena.
One of the surviving friezes of the Parthenon depicts a scene of the festive procession that usually accompanied the Panathenaea. On several sides of the temple, pages of historical events and legends were immortalized: the Trojan War, the battle of the Amazons and the Greeks. As for the pediment, several statues have survived, and even those are in a deplorable state. The originals are kept in the Athens Museum and the Acropolis Museum, and copies have been installed in their place. However, half of the remaining parts of the friezes and sculptures were taken to London and have not yet been returned to Greece.
By the way, the structure is unique in terms of geometry. If you place an object 15 cm high at one end of the Parthenon step, it will be invisible from the opposite side. This means that flat structures actually have curvature. Another secret of the Parthenon is “encrypted” in its columns - they are slightly inclined inward. It is believed that such features allowed the temple to withstand seismic loads, which once again confirms the skill of the architects.
Archaeologists have brought the modern Parthenon as close as possible to the original. It cannot regain its lost brilliance and greatness, but progress is obvious. Destruction and unfinished reconstruction did not prevent the Parthenon from becoming one of the main monuments of the world.
Visit to the Parthenon
You can visit the main monument of Athens from 8:30 to 18:00.
Ticket price - 12 euros, under 18 years of age visit free of charge.
Since there are a lot of tourists here during the season, and the summer heat brings inconvenience, it is better to come here at opening time or in the evening. For the convenience of tourists, there is a kiosk near the Parthenon where you can buy drinks, there is a toilet and a storage room - large bags are not allowed inside.
For Greece, the Parthenon is not just a historical monument. It is pride and a national symbol. Several cities around the world tried to repeat the work of architects and create their own version of the Parthenon. But no one managed to surpass the example of classical ancient architecture.
the main temple of the Athenian Acropolis, dedicated to Athena Parthenos (i.e. the Virgin), the patron goddess of the city. Construction began in 447 BC, the consecration of the temple took place at the Panathenaic festival in 438 BC, but decoration (mainly sculptural work) continued until 432 BC. The Parthenon is a masterpiece of ancient Greek architecture and a symbol of the Greek genius. Story. The new temple was erected at the highest point of the Acropolis, on a site dedicated to the gods. The ancient temples were probably small in size, and therefore significant leveling of the Acropolis was not required. However, in 488 BC. a new temple was founded here to thank Athena for the victory over the Persians at Marathon. Its dimensions in plan are very close to the current Parthenon, and therefore it was necessary to erect a retaining wall in the middle of the southern slope and lay lime blocks at the base, so that the southern edge of the construction site rose above the rock of the Acropolis by more than 7 m. The planned temple was a peripterus with , apparently, there are 6 columns at the ends and 16 at the sides (counting the corner columns twice). Its stylobate (upper platform) and steps, like the columns themselves, as well as other structural elements, were made of marble (or at least intended to be marble). When in 480 BC The Acropolis was captured and plundered by the Persians, the temple under construction, which by that time had been brought only to the height of the second drum of columns, was destroyed by fire, and work was interrupted for more than 30 years. In 454 BC The treasury of the Delian Maritime League was transferred to Athens, where Pericles then ruled, and soon, in 447 BC, construction work on the almost finished site resumed. The Parthenon was erected by the architects Ictinus and Callicrates (also called Carpion), as well as Phidias, who was primarily responsible for the sculpture, but in addition exercised general supervision over the progress of work on the Acropolis. The creation of the Parthenon was part of Pericles' plan for Athens to gain primacy not only in the military and economic fields, but also in religion and art. Regarding the further fate of the temple, we know that approx. 298 BC the Athenian tyrant Lacharus removed the gold plates from the cult statue of Athena, and in the 2nd century. BC. The building, damaged by the fire, was thoroughly repaired. In 426 AD The Parthenon was converted into a Christian church, originally St. Sofia. Apparently, at the same time, in the 5th century, the statue of Athena was transported to Constantinople, where it subsequently died in a fire. The original main eastern entrance was closed by the altar apse, so now the main entrance became the western entrance through the room behind the cella, previously separated by a blank wall. Other layout changes were also made, and a bell tower was erected in the southwestern corner of the temple. In 662 the temple was re-dedicated in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos (“Panagia Athiniotissa”). After the Turkish conquest, ca. 1460, the building was converted into a mosque. In 1687, when the Venetian military leader F. Morosini was besieging Athens, the Turks used the Parthenon as a gunpowder warehouse, which led to disastrous consequences for the building: a hot cannonball flying into it caused an explosion that destroyed its entire middle part. No repairs were carried out then; on the contrary, local residents began to take away the marble blocks to burn lime from them. Lord T. Elgin, appointed British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire in 1799, received permission from the Sultan to export the sculptures. During 1802-1812, the lion's share of the surviving sculptural decoration of the Parthenon was transported to Great Britain and placed in the British Museum (some of the sculptures ended up in the Louvre and Copenhagen, although some remained in Athens). In 1928, a foundation was created with the goal of, as far as possible, replacing the fallen columns and entablature blocks, and on May 15, 1930, the northern colonnade of the temple was inaugurated.
Architecture. The Parthenon in its current form is a Doric order peripter standing on three marble steps (total height approx. 1.5 m), having 8 columns at the ends and 17 on the sides (if you count the corner columns twice). The height of the peristyle columns, made up of 10-12 drums, is 10.4 m, their diameter at the base is 1.9 m, the corner columns are slightly thicker (1.95 m). The columns have 20 flutes (vertical grooves) and taper towards the top. The dimensions of the temple in plan (according to the stylobate) are 30.9 * 69.5 m. The interior of the temple, or cella (external size 21.7 * 59 m), is raised above the stylobate by two more steps (total height 0.7 m) and It has six-column protile porticoes at the ends, the columns of which are slightly lower than in the outer colonnade. The cella is divided into two rooms. The eastern one, longer and called hecatompedon (internal size 29.9 * 19.2 m), was divided into three naves by two rows of 9 Doric columns, which were closed at the western end by a transverse row of three additional columns. It is assumed that there was a second tier of Doric columns, which was located above the first and provided the required height of the ceilings. In the space enclosed by the inner colonnade, there was a colossal (12 m in height) chrysoelephantine (made of gold and ivory) cult statue of Athena by Phidias. In the 2nd century. AD it was described by Pausanias, and its general appearance is known from several smaller copies and numerous images on coins. The ceilings of the western room of the cella (internal size 13.9 * 19.2 m), which was called the Parthenon (the treasury of the Delian League and the state archive were kept here; over time, the name was transferred to the entire temple), rested on four high columns, presumably Ionic. All elements of the Parthenon's structure, including the roof tiles and stylobate steps, were hewn from local Pentelic marble, almost white immediately after quarrying, but over time acquiring a warm yellowish tint. No mortar or cement was used and the masonry was done dry. The blocks were carefully adjusted to each other, the horizontal connection between them was carried out using I-beam iron fasteners placed in special grooves and filled with lead, the vertical connection was made using iron pins.
Sculpture. The decoration of the temple, which complemented its architecture, is divided into three main categories: metopes, or square panels, equipped with high reliefs, located between the triglyphs of the frieze above the outer colonnade; a bas-relief that encircled the cella from the outside in a continuous strip; two colossal groups of free-standing sculptures filled the deep (0.9 m) triangular pediments. On 92 metopes scenes of martial arts are presented: gods and giants on the eastern side, lapiths and centaurs (they are best preserved) on the southern side, Greeks and Amazons on the western side, participants in the Trojan War (presumably) on the northern side. The sculptural group on the eastern pediment depicted the birth of Athena, who, fully armed, jumped out of the head of Zeus after the blacksmith god Hephaestus cut the head with an ax. The group from the western pediment represented the dispute over Attica between Athena and Poseidon, when the olive tree donated by the goddess was considered a more valuable gift than the source of salt water discovered in the rock by Poseidon. A few statues have survived from both groups, but it is clear from them that this was a great artistic creation of the mid-5th century. BC. The bas-relief strip on top of the cella (total length 160 m, height 1 m, height from the stylobate 11 m, in total there were about 350 foot and 150 horse figures) depicted the Panathenaic procession, which annually presented Athena with a new robe - peplos. Along the northern and southern sides are horsemen, chariots, and citizens of Athens moving from west to east, and closer to the head of the procession are musicians, people with gifts, sacrificial sheep and bulls. Along the western end wall, above the portico, there are groups of cavalrymen standing near their horses, mounted on them or already leaving (this part of the bas-relief remained in Athens). At the eastern end there is a central group of the procession, consisting of the priest and priestess of Athena with three young servants: the priest accepts a folded peplos. On the sides of this scene are figures of the most important gods of the Greek pantheon. They are divided into two groups and turned to face outward, towards the corners of the building, as if watching the approach of the procession. Next to them, on the right and left, are two groups of citizens or officials, and on the edges are slowly moving people leading the procession.
"Refinements" of the Parthenon. The meticulous thoughtfulness of the Parthenon's design, with the goal of depriving the building of mechanical straightforwardness and giving it life, is manifested in a number of "refinements" that are revealed only with special research. Let's mention just a few. The stylobate rises slightly towards the center, the rise along the northern and southern façade is approx. 12 cm, in the north and west - 6.5 mm; the corner columns of the end facades are slightly inclined towards the middle, and the two middle ones, on the contrary, are inclined towards the corners; the trunks of all columns have a slight swelling, entasis, in the middle; the front surface of the entablature is slightly inclined outward, and the pediment inward; The diameter of the corner columns, visible against the sky, is slightly larger than that of the others, and in addition, in cross section they represent a complex figure, different from a circle. Many details of the building were painted. The lower surface of the echinus (the extensions on the capitals of the columns) was red, as was the tenia (the belt between the architrave and the frieze). Red and blue colors were used on the bottom surface of the cornice. The marble caissons covering the colonnade were shaded in red, blue and gold or yellow. Color was also used to emphasize the elements of sculpture. Bronze wreaths were also used in the decoration of the building, as evidenced by holes drilled in the architrave for their fastening.
Collier's Encyclopedia. - Open Society. 2000 .
Greece is famous throughout the world, first of all, for its glorious ancient history, which left an incredible amount of cultural monuments. Thus, in the capital of the country, on a high hill, the monumental marble Parthenon, the main sanctuary of ancient Athens, rises above the bustle of the city. Almost 2.5 thousand years have passed since the construction of this majestic structure, which managed to survive all the troubles and hardships that befell it. Today this temple is protected by the world organization UNESCO and is gradually returning its facades to their former luxurious appearance.
History and significance of the Parthenon in Ancient Greece
The Parthenon (Greek Παρθενών, English the Parthenon) is a classic ancient Greek temple in Athens, distinguished by its unique architectural forms.
It is impossible to tell the story of the construction of this sanctuary without mentioning in which city and what country the Parthenon is located, as well as what customs and beliefs prevailed at the time of its construction. Therefore, first we will take a short historical excursion to ancient Athens and get acquainted with the deity to whom the Parthenon is dedicated to this day.
Patroness of Athens
Zeus Ancient Greece was dominated by a polytheistic religious system based on the myths of the various Gods of Ancient Greece. In connection with the Parthenon, we are interested in the main god - Zeus, and his daughter Athena.
The myth says that Zeus was predicted to have a daughter, followed by a son who would overthrow him from the throne. Therefore, when his wife Metis (Wisdom) became pregnant from him, the Supreme God did not find anything better than to swallow her. But the child of love did not want to give up, and soon Zeus began to have an unbearable headache. Unable to endure the torment, he ordered his head to be cut, and so his daughter Athena was born. Wisdom was reflected in the girl’s eyes, and on her body she wore military attire, for which she was called the Goddess of justice, wisdom, military tactics and strategy.
Unlike other deities, Athena did not stay too long on Olympus, but paid attention to ordinary people. She gave them a lot of knowledge and crafts, taught them how to draw up laws and conduct government affairs, and helped restore justice in disputes and battles. For her care, the grateful people of Greece greatly revered the wise and magnanimous Athena and sought to build the best of Greek temples in her honor.
Athena After a dispute with Poseidon, wisely resolved by King Cecrops, Athena became the patroness of the most important cultural and political center of Ancient Greece - the city of Athens. Therefore, it was decided that the Acropolis of Athens would place the Parthenon on its lands.
And if we delve deeper into history, it is worth mentioning that the architectural complex that has come down to us had a predecessor. The first temple to be built on this site was Hekatompedon, also dedicated to Athena. Unfortunately, as a result of the Persian attack, the structure failed to survive. When the Athenians won the war, they began with even greater enthusiasm to restore the old Hekatompedon and build a new, larger and more luxurious Parthenon temple in recaptured Athens.
Construction of the Parthenon
Construction of the new sanctuary began in 447. The location of the temple was chosen immediately. It was located in the upper city: the majestic Parthenon and the sacred Acropolis in the minds of the Greeks were supposed to become one.
The decision to build the temple was made by the Athenian ruler Pericles, despite the fact that the construction of the Parthenon required large financial investments. The construction budget included 450 talents, an amount unheard of for the Greeks, because in those days they built an entire ship for 1 talent! There was indignation and grumbling among the people, but Pericles managed to convince people of the need to decorate the Parthenon Acropolis with unprecedented beauty and power in honor of Athena.
The architect of the building was Callicrates, and the design of the future shrine was developed by Iktin. It was this master who achieved a unique optical perception of the temple by the eye, having decided to make the columns of the Parthenon not perfectly straight and at an angle. The famous sculptor Phidias (author of the Statue of Zeus at Olympia) was responsible for the external and internal decoration of the shrine, as well as the sculptures decorating the pediments of the Parthenon.
The architectural type of the temple is designed in the classical Greek style and has a Doric perimeter surrounded by columns. There are a total of 50 columns on all sides of the Parthenon: 8 on the central facades, and 17 on the side facades. Unlike the Colosseum, the colonnade of the classical Parthenon allows you to view the facade of three sides of the building from one point. The height of the erected temple was 14 m, width 31 m and length 70 m.
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The Parthenon was finally built in 438, and in the same year the temple was consecrated at the Festival of Panathaeus. However, another 6 years after the official opening, Phidias decorated the pediments and friezes of the erected Parthenon. He also invented and sculpted the sculpture of Athena Parthenos (Virgin, Virgin), in whose honor the sanctuary received its name.
Periods of decline and revival
The Parthenon Temple of Athena, located in the city center on the Acropolis, has gone through a lot over the years. A brief summary of the history of the Parthenon is as follows.
After its construction, the temple was revered for approximately 100 years. Its last patron was Alexander the Great, who donated 14 shields for the eastern pediment and the armor of defeated warriors to the shrine. After his death, dark days awaited the Parthenon.
The rulers allowed themselves to plunder the temple’s precious decor and turn the shrine almost into a brothel. And in the 3rd century BC. A major fire broke out in the building, destroying part of the roof, ceilings and doors of the shrine. It also caused the sculpture of Athena Parthenos to disappear without a trace. After the fire, the temple was restored, but the Parthenon looked a little different.
After 800 years, the ancient sanctuary was destined to turn into a Christian cathedral. All the ancient wealth was taken to Constantinople, and the temple itself was again slightly rebuilt in a new way. Centuries passed, and in the 15th century the Parthenon became a Muslim mosque, because... Athens was captured by the Turks. They painted over all the scenes that contradicted their faith, but nothing else was touched on the interior decoration.
Later, in 1687, ammunition was stored here during the war. The shelling of the Acropolis from above and a direct hit on the boxes of gunpowder literally turned the Parthenon into ruins. For two hundred years these fragments stood on the hill as a memory of the former glorious past. In 1840, attention was again paid to the ancient sanctuary and it was decided to carry out its restoration. This process continues to this day with varying degrees of success.
Where is the Parthenon and how to get to it
In the minds of many travelers, Greece is primarily Athens and the Parthenon.
Tourists will not have to wander for long through the streets of Athens, looking for the place where the ancient Parthenon is located. It is very easy to find it, because... The main temple of Athens, like the Roman Pantheon, is located in the historical center of the capital.
The guiding landmark is the Acropolis, the main sanctuary in Greece, located on an elevated hill. To get there, take the red line of the local metro and get to the Akropolis station of the same name. You will enter the pedestrian street Dionysiou Areopagitou, which, gradually rising uphill, will lead you directly to the Temple of Athena.
Dionysiou Areopagitou street Features of the Parthenon architecture
Unfortunately, the Parthenon, the ancient Greek temple of the goddess Athena and a monument of ancient architecture, has not survived to this day in all its glory. According to the surviving descriptions of the architectural complex, it was an innovation and breakthrough in Greek architecture of that time.
Surrounded by Doric columns, the Temple of the goddess of wisdom Athena was supposed to be the most majestic and luxurious building in Greece. But due to subsequent actions of Christian and Muslim invaders, the temple lost most of the elements of ancient decor.
The eastern pediment of the building was decorated with the sculptural composition “The Birth of Athena,” and the western part was dedicated to the dispute between Athena and Poseidon for patronage of the Greek capital. The historical scenes contained friezes and metopes of the Parthenon. In particular, they depicted the battle of gods with giants, as well as battles with Amazons, episodes of the Trojan War and solemn processions.
The statue of Athena, made of wood and decorated with gold and ivory, deserves special attention. Phidias did not spare a whole ton of gold for the brilliance and grandeur of his statue, and his descendants plundered it a century after the construction of the temple.
But the distinctive features of the architectural design are hidden not in the decor, but in the base of the temple.
Layout
The heights of the Acropolis provide natural protection during a siege, so no thought was given to the defensive function during the construction of the temple.
