Since childhood I dreamed of visiting Greece. The mysterious country from a school history textbook I read long ago always attracted me and seemed like an amazing place. But what do we really know about her?
Probably, each of us, when we hear the word “Greece,” imagines the bright sun, the sound of the sea, the taste of olives and majestic ancient ruins. And most people probably remember the same ruins of the ancient Parthenon, located on a rocky hill - a huge structure with high marble columns and a crowd of tourists nearby. Which, however, is not surprising, since this is the most recognizable temple in Greece and must have been one of the most famous buildings of antiquity. In a word, this is a unique place, next to which I feel as if I am going back in time.
A little history of the Parthenon
As I already said, the Parthenon is located on the Acropolis of Athens - an ancient city on a high rocky hill. It was built in 447-438 BC. e. by order of the Athenian ruler Pericles by the architect Callicrates and decorated in 438-431 BC. e. under the leadership of Phidias, the great ancient Greek sculptor. The same one who is the author of one of the wonders of the world - the statue of Zeus in Olympia.
The Parthenon was built in honor of the patroness of the city, the goddess of wisdom and just war. During the heyday of the Athenian state, it was the main temple of the city, and the treasury was also kept there. But as the years passed, in the Middle Ages the Parthenon was first a Catholic and then an Orthodox church, and after the conquest of Greece by the Ottoman Empire, a mosque was built inside.
In general, when I climbed the Acropolis and stood at the steps of the Parthenon, an unforgettable sight opened up: at the foot of the hill a huge city stretched for many kilometers, surrounded by small mountains on one side and the sea on the other. In ancient times, when the Parthenon in Athens was just being built, the sea was much closer, and if you give free rein to your imagination, removing the chimneys of factories on the outskirts and power lines above houses, you can try to see Greece as the ancient Greeks saw it - with the endless blue sea and green hills around. I was there in May, and the picture was complemented by the incredible smell of oranges growing in the gardens at the foot.
The Parthenon itself is a building 70 meters long and 30 meters wide, it is surrounded by a colonnade of 8 columns in the facades and 17 on the sides. Another unique architectural feature is that the Parthenon is built in such a way that it looks perfectly rectilinear, but in reality it has practically no straight lines in its contours. Needless to say, the ancients knew how to build - there are no other similar buildings in the world. The temple was once decorated with high reliefs, many of which have survived - some in the Acropolis Museum (a large glass building next to the entrance to the Acropolis), some in (and this is already in London). But, unfortunately, you won’t be able to get inside the Parthenon - the temple is under restoration.
How to get to the Parthenon
The Parthenon is located at the southern end of the Acropolis of Athens, a huge rocky hill that is visible from almost everywhere in the city center. Exact address: Dionysiou Areopagitou 15, Athens 117 42.
Now I will talk about the most convenient way to get to the Parthenon:
- On foot. If you are staying in the center, then, as mentioned above, the Parthenon is visible from everywhere, and finding it will not be a problem. The nearest residential areas are Plaka and Anafiotika. Not a bad option for those who are staying in the city center or just like to walk around beautiful places, like me.
- Metro. The nearest station is Akropoli. A ticket costs 1.2 euros, people over 65 years old and under 18 years old - 0.6 euros, they are sold in special terminals. For 70 minutes, the pass will also be valid for the tram, so this method will be convenient if you are coming from the outskirts of the city. I recommend this option: it is cheaper and faster.
- By taxi. There are a lot of them in Athens, they are yellow and can be found almost everywhere. The price starts from 1 euro and then 0.34 euros/km, which makes a taxi a fairly inexpensive mode of transport. But remember that traffic jams and rush hours have not yet been canceled, and not every driver can deny themselves the pleasure of making extra money on tourists by raising the price.
Conditions for visiting the Parthenon
The Parthenon is open daily from 8.00 to 18.30 from April to October, from 8.00 to 17.00 from November to March.
The ticket costs 12 euros, sold at the box office at the entrance to the Acropolis. There are several ticket offices, as well as entrances. There, for 20 euros, they sell a complex ticket, which includes visits to the Kerameilos cemetery, the Temple pf Olympian Zeus, the Roman Agora, the Ancient Agora of Athens and the Theater of Dionysus. Dionysus). This ticket allows you to save a pretty penny on seeing all these places (and they are worth it), and, apparently, for this reason, information about its existence is given in small print in the corner of the ticket office.
There are a lot of tourists at any time of the day, so I recommend coming early to avoid standing in line in the heat.
On a note
I will give some more tips that may be useful to you:
Take water with you. Although there are tents with drinks and food on the territory of the acropolis, the path from the top to them is not short.
Be sure to take a hat with you - you will have to climb to the top of the hill, it will be hot.
Like other Greek landmarks, the Parthenon is closed on public holidays: January 1, January 6, March 25, May 1, August 15, October 28, December 25–26. It is also closed on religious Orthodox holidays: Easter, Clean Monday, Good Friday, Spiritual Day, Ascension of the Lord, Trinity.
There is no need to leave trash behind - there are no employees only at first glance, but they are there and they see everything.
The great temple, the Parthenon, was built in Athens during the heyday of Greece in the 5th century BC. as a gift to the patron goddess of the city. Until now, this amazing temple, even being heavily destroyed, never ceases to amaze with its harmony and beauty. The fate of the Parthenon is no less fascinating - it had to see a lot.
After the Greek victory over the Persians, the “golden age” of Attica began. The actual ruler of Ancient Hellas at that time was Pericles, who was very popular among the people. Being a very educated man, possessing a lively mind and oratorical talent, enormous endurance and hard work, he had a great influence on impressionable townspeople and successfully carried out his plans.
In Athens, Pericles launched large-scale construction work, and it was under him that a magnificent temple ensemble grew on the Acropolis, the crown of which was the Parthenon. To implement the grandiose plans, the architectural geniuses Iktion and Callicrates and one of the best sculptors Phidias were brought in.
The grandiose construction also required colossal expenses, but Pericles did not skimp, for which he was more than once accused of wastefulness. Pericles was adamant. Speaking to residents, he explained: “The city is sufficiently supplied with the necessities of war, therefore the surplus in funds should be used for buildings that, after their completion, will bring immortal glory to the citizens.”. And the citizens supported their ruler. The entire construction cost was enough to create a fleet of 450 trireme warships.
In turn, Pericles demanded that the architects create a real masterpiece, and the brilliant masters did not let him down. After 15 years, a unique structure was built - a majestic and at the same time light and airy temple, the architecture of which was unlike any other.
The spacious premises of the temple (approximately 70x30 meters) were surrounded on all sides along the perimeter by columns; this type of building is called a periptor.
White marble was used as the main building material, which was brought 20 km away. This marble, which had a pure white color immediately after extraction, began to turn yellow when exposed to sunlight, and as a result, the Parthenon turned out to be unevenly colored - its northern side was gray-ash in color, and its southern side was golden yellow. But this did not spoil the temple at all, but, on the contrary, made it more interesting.
During construction, dry masonry was used, without mortar. Polished marble blocks were connected to each other with iron pins (vertically) and clamps (horizontally). Currently, Japanese seismologists have become actively interested in the construction technologies used in its construction.
This temple has another unique feature. From the outside, its silhouette appears absolutely smooth and flawless, but in fact there is not a single straight detail in its contours. In order to level out the results of perspective, slopes, curvatures or thickening of parts were used - columns, roofing, cornices. Ingenious architects have developed a unique adjustment system using optical tricks.
Many people believe that all ancient temples had a natural color, but this was not always the case. In the ancient period, many buildings and structures tried to be colorful. The Parthenon was no exception. The main colors dominating his palette were blue, red and gold.
The interior was decorated with many different sculptures, but the main one among them was the legendary 12-meter statue of Athena in the form of the goddess of war, Athena Parthenos, the best creation of Phidias. All her clothes and weapons were made of gold plates, and ivory was used for the exposed parts of her body. More than a ton of gold was spent on this statue alone.
Dark days of the Parthenon
The history of the Parthenon is quite sad. The heyday of the temple occurred during the heyday of Greece, but gradually the temple lost its significance. With the spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire in the 5th century, the temple was reconsecrated and turned into the Byzantine Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary.In the 15th century, after the capture of Athens by the Turks, the temple began to be used as a mosque. During the next siege of Athens in 1687, the Turks turned the Acropolis into a citadel and the Parthenon into a gunpowder magazine, relying on its thick walls. But as a result of being hit by a cannonball from a powerful explosion, the temple collapsed and there was practically nothing left in its middle part. In this form, the temple became completely useless to anyone, and its looting began.
At the beginning of the 19th century, with the permission of the authorities, an English diplomat exported to England a huge collection of magnificent ancient Greek statues, sculptural compositions, and fragments of walls with carvings.
They became interested in the fate of the building only when Greece gained independence. Since the 20s of the 20th century, work began on the restoration of the temple, which continues to this day, and the lost parts are being collected bit by bit. In addition, the Greek government is working to return the exported fragments to the country.
As for the most important value of the Parthenon - the statue of the goddess Athena by the brilliant Phidias, it was lost irretrievably during one of the fires. All that remains are its numerous copies, stored in various museums. The Roman marble copy of Athena Varvakion is considered the most accurate and reliable of the surviving ones.
Of course, there is no hope that the temple will ever appear in its original form, but even in its current state it is a real masterpiece of architecture.
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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 Parthenon is a world-famous ancient temple, which is a monument of ancient architecture. It is located on the territory of the architectural complex of the Acropolis in Athens. The Parthenon Temple was built in honor of the goddess Athena, the patron goddess of the city. Today the temple is half destroyed and restoration work is underway.
The construction of the temple took place from 447 to 438 BC. The main architect was Callicrates, but the design of Ictinus was used during construction. The decoration and decoration of the Parthenon was carried out in 438 - 431 BC by one of the greatest sculptors of the ancient period, Phidias.
Features of the Parthenon architecture.
Ancient Greece did not strive to overwhelm the viewer with gigantic, superhuman scales. On the contrary, they relied on the peculiarities of visual perception by human vision of shapes and sizes, and therefore tried to bring each part of their structure into a single, harmonious ensemble.
The Parthenon was built in the oldest of the architectural orders. At first glance, the columns of the building are located at equal distances from each other. In fact, at the ends of the temple, the spans between the columns gradually and imperceptibly increased towards the center, which helped to give harmony to the structure.
The peculiarity of the perception of objects by the human eye is that against the background of a light sky, objects appear somewhat smaller or thinner. Ancient Greek architects were well aware of this, and used the technique of distorting lines to give the building a more perfect shape.
So, the columns do not stand strictly vertically, but slightly inclined inward towards the walls of the building, and this makes them look much taller and slimmer. In the construction of cornices, steps, ceilings, the imperfections of human vision are taken into account everywhere.
The exterior of the Parthenon is slightly curved, everything is done in such a way that all parts of the structure look perfectly correct and harmonious. For the Greeks, the columns represented the feathers of a bird, so the temple buildings were called “peripterus” - which translated means “feathered”.
The colonnade surrounded the temple with an air layer, which made it possible to make a soft, gradual and completely natural transition from an architectural object enclosed by walls to the space of nature. The Greeks spared no effort or money to build the Parthenon, completed in the 5th century BC.
Relief images.
The main holiday of the Athenians, Panathenaia, was celebrated annually for 5 days (from the 24th to the 29th) of the month of Hecatombaion, which fell in the period July - August according to the modern calendar. The Panathenaic Games were cult solemn celebrations in Ancient Hellas in honor of the goddess Athena.
At first, poetic works were read, theatrical performances and sports competitions were held. Then people lined up in a procession and went to present Athena with peplos - a solemn gift, which was made of wool. The architectural ensemble of the Acropolis was located on a hill, and due to the features of its construction, it was designed for the leisurely and solemn movement of religious processions.
On marble relief. encircling the Pathenon building, naked youths are depicted preparing and caring for horses, and their comrades who have already ridden bareback animals. Girls in long robes are driving the steep-horned bulls chosen for sacrifice.
The elders, calm and noble, walk important. The figures either come closer or move away from each other, or merge into picturesque groups. All movement is directed towards the eastern facade, where above the entrance to the temple there is a relief that completes the entire ensemble. The relief image shows a feast of the twelve most important gods revered in Ancient Greece.
The gods in the relief image are presented in an ordinary, completely human form - that is, they are not superior to the participants in the procession, neither in height, nor in appearance, nor in beauty, nor in the splendor of their attire. The procession on the relief is perceived by the Greeks as an eternal procession, in which every participant in the celebration was included.
Having rounded the Parthenon, the procession approached the eastern facade, where in the center of the pediment the main ancient Greek god Zeus solemnly sat on a throne. Near Zeus is a naked male figure with an ax in his hands, slightly leaning back. This figure depicted the god - the blacksmith Hephaestus, who had just cut open the skull of the Lord of the Gods, and from it appeared the goddess Athena in armor and a helmet, with the constant attribute of wisdom - a snake.
To the right and left of Zeus were other gods. And in the corners of the pediment are depicted the heads of snoring horses. Noble animals pull the chariots of Helios, the god of the Sun, and Selene, the god of the Moon. The faces of the gods are calm, but by no means indifferent, they are restrained, but restraint is worth composure. readiness for immediate action.
Athena statue.
In the Parthenon, meeting the procession, stood a 12-meter statue of the goddess Athena. The beautiful head of the goddess, with a low, smooth forehead and a rounded chin, was slightly tilted under the weight of the helmet and wavy hair. Her eyes were made of precious stones, and the craftsmen managed to give them an attentive and searching expression.
The goddess in the form of a beautiful woman is the proud personification of Athens. The sculptor Phidias embodied in her image the desire for the common good, by which the Greeks meant justice. According to ancient mythology, Athena was once the chairman of the highest court of Greece - the Areopagus, and therefore the judicial system was under the patronage of Athena.
Thousands of plates made of expensive material - ivory - were so skillfully fitted to the wooden base of Athena that it seemed as if the head and hands of the statue were sculpted from one piece of noble material. The slightly yellowish tint of the ivory looked delicate, and the statue's skin looked translucent, thanks to the contrast with the goddess's glittering robe of gold.
The helmet, hair and round shield were also made of chased gold plates, the total of which amounted to more than one ton. On the golden shield, in low relief, the battle of the Greeks with the warlike Amazons was minted, and in the center of the battle, Phidias depicted himself as an old man lifting a stone.
Peloponnesian War.
In the 5th century BC, the Greeks were a very proud people, and arrogantly considered other peoples to be inferior. Gradually, the inhabitants of Athens began to oppose themselves not only to other nations, but also to the rest of the Greeks living in other cities-states throughout the country.
During the Persian Wars, the Greeks bore all the hardships of the common struggle, but half a century later the Athenians began to attribute the laurels of victory only to themselves. The allied policies responded to Athens with ever-increasing suspicion and could barely contain their indignation.
In 431 BC, the Peloponnesian War began between Athens and Sparta for supremacy over the rest of the city-states of Ancient Hellas. At that time, Sparta was ruled by kings. The war was fierce, devastating and bloody, but the forces were approximately the same for a long time, so after 10 years peace was concluded.
One of the most revered goddesses by the ancient Greeks, Pallas Athena, was born in a rather unusual way: Zeus, her father, swallowed her mother, Metis (Wisdom), when she was expecting a child. He did this for one simple reason: after the birth of his daughter, he was predicted to have a son who would overthrow the Thunderer from the throne.
But Athena did not want to sink into oblivion - so after a while the Supreme God began to suffer from an unbearable headache: her daughter asked to come out. His head hurt so badly that the Thunderer, unable to bear it, ordered Hephaestus to take an ax and hit him on the head with it. He obeyed and cut his head, releasing Athena. Her eyes were full of wisdom, and she was dressed in warrior clothes, holding a spear in her hand, and an iron helmet on her head.
The goddess of wisdom turned out to be an active resident of Olympus: she came down to the people and taught them a lot, giving them knowledge and crafts. She also paid attention to women: she taught them to do needlework and weave, and took an active part in government affairs - she was the patroness of a just struggle (she taught them how to solve problems peacefully), taught them to write laws, thus becoming the patroness of many Greek cities. For such a majestic goddess it was necessary to build a temple, which, according to descriptions, would not be equal in the whole world.
The Parthenon is located in the capital of Greece, Athens, in the southern part of the Acropolis, an ancient architectural complex located on a rocky hill at an altitude exceeding 150 meters above sea level. m. You can find the Athenian Acropolis Parthenon at the address: Dionysiou Areopagitou 15, Athens 117 42, and on a geographical map you can find out its exact location at the following coordinates: 37° 58′ 17″ N. latitude, 23° 43′ 36″ e. d.
The Parthenon Temple, dedicated to Athena, began to be built on the territory of the Acropolis around 447 BC. e. instead of the unfinished sanctuary destroyed by the Persians. The construction of this unique architectural monument was entrusted to the architect Kallikrates, who erected the building according to the design of Iktin.
It took the Hellenes about fifteen years to build the temple, which at that time was a fairly short term, considering that construction and finishing materials were brought from all over Greece. Fortunately, there was enough money: Athens, whose ruler was Pericles, was just experiencing a period of greatest prosperity and was not only the cultural capital, but also the political center of Attica.
Callicrates and Iktinus, having access to considerable funds and opportunities, during the construction of the temple were able to implement more than one innovative design solution, as a result of which the architecture of the Parthenon turned out to be unlike any other structure of this type.
The main feature of the sanctuary was that the facade of the building from one point was perfectly visible from three sides at once.
This was achieved by installing the columns in relation to each other not parallel, but at an angle. Also, the fact that all the pillars had a different shape played a role: so that from a distance the central columns seemed slimmer and not so thin, all the pillars were given a convex shape (the outermost columns turned out to be the thickest), slightly tilting the corner columns towards the center, the central ones away from it .
Penelian marble, mined near the Acropolis, was used as the main building material; according to the description, it is a rather interesting material, since initially it is white, but after some time, under the influence of sunlight, it begins to turn yellow. Therefore, the Parthenon in Athens, upon completion of construction work, turned out to be unevenly painted, which gave it an original and interesting look: on the north side the temple had a gray-ash tint, on the south it turned out to be golden-yellow in color.
Another feature of the ancient temple was that when laying marble blocks, Greek craftsmen did not use either cement or any other solution: the builders carefully ground them around the edges and adjusted them to size to each other (at the same time, they did not trim the inside - this saved time and labor). Larger blocks were located at the base of the building; smaller stones were laid on them, fastened horizontally with iron fasteners, which were inserted into special holes and filled with lead. The blocks were connected vertically with iron pins.
Description
Three steps lead up to the temple, which was dedicated to Athena and is a rectangular building. The Athenian Acropolis Parthenon, about seventy meters long and a little more than thirty wide, was surrounded along the perimeter by ten-meter Doric columns about ten meters high. There were seventeen pillars along the side facades, and eight at the ends where the entrances were located.
Unfortunately, due to the fact that most of the pediments were destroyed (only thirty statues survived in very poor condition), there are very few descriptions of exactly what the Parthenon's exterior looked like.
It is known that all sculptural compositions were created with the direct participation of Phidias, who was not only the main architect of the entire Acropolis and developed the plan for this architectural complex, but is also known as the author of one of the wonders of the world - the statue of Zeus at Olympia. There is an assumption that the eastern pediment of the Parthenon contained a bas-relief depicting the birth of Pallas Athena, and the western pediment depicted her dispute with the god of the seas, Poseidon, about who would be the patron of Athens and the whole of Attica.
But the friezes of the temple are well preserved: it is absolutely known that on the eastern side of the Parthenon the struggle of the Lapiths with the centaurs was depicted, on the western side - episodes from the Trojan War, on the southern side - the battle of the Amazons with the Greeks. A total of 92 metopes with various high reliefs were installed, most of which have been preserved. Forty-two slabs are kept in the Acropolis Museum of Athens, fifteen in the British Museum.
Parthenon from inside
To get inside the temple, in addition to the external steps, it was necessary to overcome two more internal ones. The area in the middle of the temple was 59 meters long and 21.7 meters wide and consisted of three rooms. The largest, central one, was surrounded on three sides by 21 columns, which separated it from two small rooms located on either side of it. The inner frieze of the sanctuary depicted a festive procession from Athens to the Acropolis, when the maidens carried a gift to Athena.
In the center of the main platform was the statue of Athena Parthenos, made by Phidias. The sculpture dedicated to the goddess was a real masterpiece. The statue of Athena was thirteen meters high and showed a proudly standing goddess, with a spear in one hand and a two-meter sculpture of Nike in the other. Pallas wore a three-crested helmet on his head, and near his feet there was a shield on which, in addition to scenes from various battles, the initiator of construction, Pericles, was depicted.
It took Phidias more than a ton of gold to make the sculpture (weapons and clothes were poured from it); ebony from which the frame of the statue is made; Athena's face and hands were carved from ivory of the highest quality; precious stones shining in the eyes of the goddess; the most expensive marble was also used. Unfortunately, the statue did not survive: when Christianity became the ruling religion in the country, it was taken to Constantinople, where it was in the 5th century. burned during a strong fire.
Near the western entrance to the shrine there was an opisthodome - a closed room in the back where the city archives and the treasury of the maritime union were kept. The length of the room was 19 m and the width was 14 m.
The room was called the Parthenon (it was thanks to this room that the temple got its name), which translated means “house for girls.” In this room, selected maidens, priestesses, made peplos (sleeveless women's outerwear sewn from light material, which Athenians wore over a tunic), which was presented to Athena during a solemn procession that took place every four years.
Dark days of the Parthenon
The last ruler who favored and cared for this architectural monument was Alexander the Great (he even installed fourteen shields on the eastern pediment and presented the goddess with the armor of three hundred defeated enemies). After his death, dark days came for the temple.
One of the Macedonian rulers, Demetrius I Poliorcetes, settled here with his mistresses, and the next ruler of Athens, Lacharus, tore off all the gold from the sculpture of the goddess, and the shields of Alexander from the pediments, in order to pay off the soldiers. In III Art. BC e a major fire occurred in the temple, during which the roof and fittings collapsed, the marble cracked, the colonnade partially collapsed, the doors of the temple, one of the friezes and ceilings burned down.
When the Greeks adopted Christianity, they made a church out of the Parthenon (this happened in the 6th century AD), making appropriate changes to its architecture and completing the premises necessary for Christian rituals. The most valuable thing that was in the pagan temple was taken to Constantinople, and the rest was either destroyed or severely damaged (primarily this applies to sculptures and bas-reliefs of the building).
In the XV century. Athens came under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, as a result of which the temple was transformed into a mosque. The Turks did not make any special alterations and calmly held services among Christian paintings. It was the Turkish period that turned out to be one of the most tragic events in the history of the Parthenon: in 1686, the Venetians shelled the Acropolis and Parthenon, where the Turks stored gunpowder.
After about seven hundred cannonballs hit the building, the shrine exploded, as a result of which the central part of the Parthenon, all the internal columns and rooms were completely destroyed, and the roof on the north side collapsed.
After this, the ancient shrine began to be robbed and destroyed by everyone who could: the Athenians used its fragments for domestic needs, and Europeans were able to take the surviving fragments and statues to their homeland (currently, most of the found remains are located either in the Louvre or in the British Museum ).
Restoration
The revival of the Parthenon began no earlier than Greece gained independence, in 1832, and two years later the government declared the Parthenon a monument of ancient heritage. As a result of the work carried out, already fifty years later on the territory of the Acropolis there was practically nothing left of the “barbarian presence”: absolutely all buildings that were not related to the ancient complex were demolished, and the Acropolis itself began to be restored according to the surviving descriptions of what the Parthenon looked like in ancient Greece (currently the temple, like the entire Acropolis, is under the protection of UNESCO).
In addition to the fact that the Parthenon was restored to the best of its ability, and the original statues were replaced with copies and sent to the museum for storage, the Greek government is actively working to return the exported fragments of the temple to the country. And here there is an interesting point: the British Museum agreed to do this, but on the condition that the Greek government recognizes the museum as their legal owner. But the Greeks do not agree with this formulation of the issue, since this would mean that they have forgiven the theft of the statues two hundred years ago and are actively fighting for the statues to be returned to them without any conditions.
