A photo tour at the Acropolis

[Spartan_X]

A few months ago i made a thread with a few photos from the Ancient Agora. Today we continue the tour ... upwards To the Acropolis.

To reach the "Sacred rock" of Athens the shortest way is to take the metro and disembark at the Acropolis station. From there it is a very short distance to the Acropolis, passing through the beautiful Dionysiou Aeropagitou str. I decided to not take this road, instead the starting point of this tour will be the ancient road of the Panathinea, the road that crosses Kerameikos and the Ancient Agora and leads to the Acropolis.

So, here we go
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We pass through the ruins of the Ancient Agora...
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The ancient road still exists
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Continuing upwards we encounter the church of Agioi Apostoloi ( Saint Apostles ) a 11th century byzantine church.
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A Detail of the Dome
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Leaving the church we continue to follow the road.
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Reaching the base, the road takes a turn...
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And we end up at the rocky hill of "Areios Pagos". The hill was used as the council of the city elders in the pre-classical period, and in classical times as a high court. It is also believed that St. Paul from the top of this hill preached to the Athenians.
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The stairs leading to the top of the hill.
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A view at the Acropolis from the Areios Pagos.
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We leave Areios Pagos, and we reach the stairs leading up the Acropolis... We pass through the large door of the outer walls.
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And we reach the Propylaea, the main gateway to the Acropolis.
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A work of the architect Mnesicles, the Propylaea were built during the 5th century ( during Pericles time. ). However they where Left forever unfinished. A large part of the monument that was planned to be built, was never constructed. A lot of restoration work has been contucted on the propylaea over the years, and still this work hasnt finished yet. 2500 years after their construction ( a main reason for their bad shape is a large explosion that they suffered in 1656 ) they still look astonishing.
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The columns are identical to those on the Parthenon, yet they are smaller.
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Security was tight on the Propylaea, not only because the sanctity of the place... On the Acropolis the treasury of Athens was held.
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Passing through the Propylaea we see the very familiar image of the Parthenon. A work of the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates ( Phidias did the decoration ), the temple was built during the 5th century b.c
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The temple is surrounded by scaffolding today due to the much needed restoration work.
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The temple columns are not completely vertical but lean slightly inwards...
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A detail
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On the floor beside the Parthenon, something is written. What it may say?
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Although damaged from time and humans, the Parthenon still echoes the minds of those who built it...
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A view from another angle.
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The colors of Greece
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The southern wall is the most damaged part of the temple, due to a explosion of a gunpowder magazine in 1687 during a attack of the Venetians in Athens.
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Slowly the damaged building takes a more complete shape...
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... And the wrongdoings of the past are slowly corrected.
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A detail of the inside.
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Our next stop is the Erectheion. Built also during the 5th century bc ( but after the Parthenon ) its a work of the architect Kallimachos
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The Erectheion is one of the most impressive ( and for many reasons, unique ) Ionic rythm temples.. It housed not only a shrine to Athena, but also it housed altars to Poseidon and Hephaestus. According to legend also the Erectheion is the site of the tomb of Cecrops, the ancient founder of the city of Athens.
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The Caryatids from below... These Caryatids of course are not the real ones. The real Caryatids are to be housed in the new Acropolis museum.
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A view of the east entrance
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A closer look at the door of the temple
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The of the door decoration is exceptional. It is also obvious how this style of decoration inspired the neoclassical buildings of the 19th and 20th century.
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The north entrance to the temple. The thinner Ionic rythm columns are a contrast to the Dorian-rythm columns of the Parthenon
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A peek on the inside.
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After a lot of restorion work on the Erectheion, the building seems to be in very good shape..
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A last peek at the Caryatids.
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Leaving the Erectheion we are reaching the northen part of the Acropolis, The flag pole.
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From there you have a marvellous view of the Athens below. Far away in the distance you can see the Athens tower, like its looking at the Acropolis... The ancient spirit and the future joining together.
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And So, with this last photograph, this is the end of this small "tour". I sure hope that you liked it

[LEAFS FANATIC]

AMAZING!
SPECTACULAR!
INCREDIBLE!

These are just some of the words that came to my mind when I read this thread!

Thanks for the explanations Spartan X! As usual, your pictures are amazing!

Thank you and well done!

[gm2263]

A much needed update on the holy of holies of our civilization. Thanks very much for sharing these gems

[canaris]

Thank you very much for sharing those photos with us...I can't wait when the Parthenon is completely restored.

[MetroGuardian]

Εξαιρετικές οι φωτογραφίες σου Spartan. Αν πράγματι είναι δικές σου, πες μου να μεταφέρω το thread στο Art & Photography και αφήνω σε αυτό το section ένα μόνιμο redirection link αφού το θέμα είναι σχετικό.

[Spartan_X]

Ναι δικές μου είναι. Τη περασμένη κυριακή το πρωί τις τράβηξα.

Εδω να σημειώσω πως όποιος θέλει να επισκευτεί τους αρχαιολογικους χώρους, το χειμώνα τις κυριακές η είσοδος είναι ελεύθερη, χωρίς εισητήριο. Αν δε κάνω λάθος, αυτό ισχύει μέχρι τη τελευταία κυριακή του μαρτίου.

[Giorgio]

Wow excellent!

[ellis896]

MAGNIFICENT!I really enjoyed that tour Spartan!
I hope one day i will go and see Parthenon and the Acropolis which i admire a lot!
Btw i took this photo with my mobile from Thissio last July.Does anyone know what's the name of that "building" or was it a temple there or any info?I'm sorry if i'm ruining the topic with this question but the buildings look related so...i didn't know where to ask!

[NickyF]

Ellis896
If I remember correctly, this is the remaining portico of a building in the Roman Agora in Athens.

[Spartan_X]

Yeap, it is. It is the entrance to the Roman temple of Athena.

[ellis896]

thanks guys for your information!

[NickyF]

Ellis896....I've got a more precise answer for you.
It is the "Gate of Athena Archegetis" the entrance to the Roman Agora in Athens. It was built during the Roman period in the doric style.

[ellis896]

Thank you NickyF for your detailed answer!I will now search on the internet for more extra info.Thanks again!

[Sodnal]

When is the scaffolding going to be removed? I kid you not, when I first visited the Acropolis in 1967 the scaffolding was there! I understand they have to do renovation, but does it have to go on continually??

[pilotos]

I believe that we have a separate thread about the restoration of the acropolis, the answer should be there.