Wanloria › Destinations › Athens › Parthenon

Parthenon

The Parthenon is the Doric temple dedicated to Athena that was built at the top of the Acropolis between 447 and 432 BC, with the sculptures finished around 431 BC. It was designed by the architects Ictinus and Callicrates, and Phidias directed the decoration. It is a peripteral temple with eight columns on the short façades, which is unusual, and measures about 70 by 31 metres at the base. Its 92 metopes told four stories: the battle of gods and giants on the east, that of Athenians and Amazons on the west, that of Lapiths and centaurs on the south and scenes from the Trojan War on the north. A continuous relief frieze depicted the Panathenaic procession, and the pediments showed the birth of Athena (east) and her contest with Poseidon for Attica (west). In 1687 a Venetian bomb set off the gunpowder stored inside and brought down the central part. It has been under continuous restoration since 1975, so there are usually scaffolds and cranes.

Things to do at Parthenon: 4 missions

• Spot the temple's restoration worksWalk round the building and notice which parts have scaffolding or cranes: restoration has been ongoing since 1975. Look at which new marble pieces stand out from the old ones.
• Look for where the metopes and frieze wereLook at the upper part of the outer walls, where the metope reliefs went, and the frieze of the Panathenaic procession on the wall of the cella. The surviving original pieces are in museums.
• Count the eight columns of the east façadeStand facing the short side of the temple and count the columns on the façade: there are eight, instead of the usual six on a Doric temple.
• Recognise the gap left by the 1687 explosionLook at the centre of the temple, where the gunpowder explosion brought down the walls of the cella, and compare it with the ends, which are better preserved.

Near Parthenon

Source: Web oficial - Ministerio de Cultura (Acrópolis de Atenas)