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Hadrian's Arch

Hadrian's Arch is a monumental Roman archway built of Pentelic marble, located in Athens, 325 metres from the Acropolis. It stands on an ancient road that linked the city centre to the Temple of Olympian Zeus. It is 18 metres high, 13.5 metres wide and 2.3 metres deep, with a fully symmetrical design. Its lower level has a 6.5-metre-wide arched passage flanked by Corinthian pilasters, while the upper level (attic) is made up of Corinthian columns and pilasters dividing the space into three rectangular openings, with a central aedicule topped by a triangular pediment. On the architrave of the lower level are two Greek inscriptions: one facing the Acropolis reads 'This is Athens, the ancient city of Theseus'; the other, facing the Olympieion, reads 'This is the city of Hadrian, and not of Theseus'. The arch survives to its full height, though it has lost the columns on the ground floor, and dominates the present-day Avenue Amalias. Air pollution has damaged the stone and worn away the inscriptions in recent decades.

Things to do at Hadrian's Arch: 7 missions

• Visit Arch of HadrianVisit Arch of Hadrian in Athens and recognise the place on the ground.
• Look at the triangular pedimentLook at the triangular pediment, which rested on dentils, geison and sima, flanked by antae with attached Corinthian half-columns.
• Discover the leafy acroterionLook for the small leafy acroterion at the top of the pediment.
• Look at the single arched passageAdmire the single arched passage on the lower level, 6.5 m wide and supported by pilasters topped with Corinthian capitals.
• Picture the thin stone screenConsider the thin stone screen, about 7 cm thick, that originally closed off the central opening of the upper level.
• Admire the Corinthian columns and pilastersLook at the Corinthian columns and pilasters of the upper level that divide the space into three rectangular openings.
• Examine the mounting groovesLook at the mounting grooves that survive today.

Near Hadrian's Arch

Source: Fuentes verificadas