Culture Ancient Greece famous for its immortal architectural and sculptural masterpieces. The majestic antique style of construction is rightfully considered one of best examples ancient art. The most famous example of this style is the Parthenon.

The Great Temple: the meaning of the word “Parthenon”

Construction of the Parthenon began in Athens in 447 BC, and construction was completed in 432 BC. The temple was named after the goddess Athena Parthenos, who was its patron. The word “Parthenos” itself translated from ancient Greek means “virgin”.
The temple was designed by Calicrates and Ictinus during the reign of Pericles, and it was built on the foundation of the old one. The ruler of Athens planned to make the Parthenon a symbol of the greatness of his state. Mostly marble was used for its construction, only the roof was wooden. To date, scientists have found that all parts of the complex of temple buildings with the Acropolis have a “golden proportion” relationship.

Where is the Parthenon?

Famous Athenian temple, dedicated to Athena the Virgin, is located in the city center, at the highest point of the Acropolis. Therefore, you can watch from almost everywhere. At night, it looks especially attractive because it is specially illuminated.
The Parthenon has experienced many events during its lifetime. It was plundered by conquerors, survived a strong fire, after which it was restored. In 426 AD. the temple was turned into Christian Church, and after the conquest

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 - 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 goddess Athena is the strangest (in terms of motivation) character in Greek mythology.

After all, she is the goddess of “smart” war, but at the same time she tries to resolve all issues peacefully.

She despises the pettiness of the other Olympians and rarely interferes in their conflicts.

But in the event of a threat to the Pantheon itself, Athena will be the first to enter the battle.

The goddess Athena repeatedly served as the punishing sword of Olympus, punishing the most self-confident mortals, but it was she who founded the greatest city of Greece, and then remained to watch over these mortals after the gods of Olympus had left forever.

And it is not surprising that her greatest sanctuary, the legendary Parthenon, also faced a very difficult and at times simply amazing fate.

Where is

The Parthenon is located in the very center of the capital, on the Acropolis of Athens.
The center of Athens is easy to navigate. There are many pedestrian areas, and the attractions are concentrated closely. It is impossible to get lost - two guiding hills rise above the main plane of the city: the Acropolis and Lycabettos.
Acropolis (Akropolis) - translated from Greek: “upper city” - was built on a rocky hill 156 meters high, which served as a natural fortification during sieges.

Parthenon during ancient Greece

The Parthenon is located on top of the Acropolis, the nearest Athens metro station from which you can get here is called Akropolis.

The large pedestrian street Dionysiou Areopagitou leads from the center of Athens to the main attraction of Greece.
Follow it straight, without turning anywhere. Gradually climbing up the mountain, it will lead you straight to your goal.

The Parthenon in Athens is visible from almost everywhere and looks especially beautiful at night when the lights are turned on.

Moreover, at first glance at the Acropolis, you can understand that the gods played a very important role in the life of the Greeks - it is literally crammed with various temples and sanctuaries of almost all more or less noticeable Olympians, from the powerful and formidable Zeus to the eternally drunk, but no less formidable Dionysus.

It is worth noting that the Parthenon is not the first sanctuary of the Acropolis dedicated to Athena. 200 years before its construction, not far from its current location, there was another temple - Hekatompedon. Scientists even admit that for some time, temples existed in parallel.

History of the temple, who built the Parthenon

Parthenon during restoration

Construction of the Parthenon began in 447 BC. The project is attributed to the architect Icten, and the construction was led by Callicrates, who was practically the court master of the ruler Pericles.

In addition to the Parthenon, Callicrates built several more temples on the Acropolis, and also actively participated in worldly life city, bringing to mind and completing the project of the Long Walls, which then very unpleasantly surprised the Spartan army during the Pelloponnesian Wars.

True, the offended Spartans still razed the walls to the ground thirty years later, but, alas (or maybe vice versa, fortunately), Kallicrates did not see this. In addition, the city residents restored the walls and they served as a symbol of Athenian independence for another three hundred years.

The Parthenon is the master’s main masterpiece. The temple still did not turn out the way Callicrates intended it. Construction took more than nine years, and all these years the Athenian government regularly reported to its people for every coin spent on construction (archaeologists managed to find marble tablets with reports).

Panatheneon holiday

At the Panathenaic festival of 438 BC. e., the temple was solemnly opened to visitors, but decorative work continued for another six years under the direction of the sculptor Phidias, successor of Callicrates and creator of one of the Seven Wonders of the World - the statue of Zeus at Olympia. For the Parthenon, Phidias created an equally beautiful statue of Athena Parthenos, which became the main decoration of the temple.

Alas, the glorious history of the sanctuary did not last even two hundred years - the last ruler who truly honored Athena was Alexander the Great. After his visit to the temple in 323 BC. e., Athens gradually slipped into tyranny, and was later repeatedly captured, first by barbarian tribes, and then by the Romans. Around the same time, there was a big fire in the temple and the statue of Athena Parthenos was lost (however, by the time of the fire it was practically worthless - all the gold elements were torn off in advance so that the then ruler of Athens could pay the soldiers).

Byzantine era Parthenon

After the fire, the temple was restored and it served as the final refuge of the goddess for almost 800 years, until under Patriarch Paul III it was turned into the Cathedral of St. Sophia.

All the treasures were taken to Constantinople, however, by that time there were few of them left. The temple was significantly rebuilt, but overall retained its characteristic appearance.

But in 1458, Athens again changed its state affiliation, becoming part of the Ottoman Empire.

The Turks placed a military garrison in the Acropolis, and turned the Parthenon into a mosque, rebuilding it into Once again and seriously damaging the paintings inside the temple. What’s interesting is that, apart from painting over all subjects that are contrary to Muslim culture, there are no other changes in interior decoration the temple was not brought in.

In 1687, during the war between the Ottomans and the Holy League, the Parthenon, which served the Turks as a warehouse and shelter, was fired upon from a commanding height - Philopappou Hill. A direct hit on the powder magazine literally destroyed the temple, burying more than 300 Turks under it.

Parthenon in 1840

For the next two hundred years, the ruins of the Parthenon served as a historical monument, until restoration began in 1840.

The process of restoring the main ancient temple is still going on, with varying success, but the fact that many archaeological discoveries have been made is difficult to deny.

True, in last years, the restoration project was frozen - after joining the EU, Greece simply did not have any money left to restore the monuments.

What the Ancient Greek Parthenon looked like

The ancient Greek Parthenon was a truly magnificent sight.

Parthenon in section

The basis of the temple is the stylobate that has survived to this day - a three-stage rise leading to the temple. The temple itself is a rectangular building, with a colonnade on each of the four sides. The dimensions of the base rectangle are 69.5 × 30.9 meters.

There were 8 columns on the facades of the temple, and another 17 on the sides, which in total gives us 48 supports (the corner columns are simultaneously elements of both the facade and the side part).

Interestingly, the columns were not perpendicular, but located at an angle, leaning inward. Moreover, the angle of inclination of the corner columns is much less than that of others. The columns themselves were classic examples of the Dorian order, although they were unusually large in size.

One of the surviving friezes of the Parthenon

Inside the temple, two additional steps were made, which led to the central platform, surrounded on the facades by another 12 columns.
The site was divided into three naves, a large central one and two small ones on the sides. The central nave was surrounded by three sides 21 columns. In its center was the same, later missing, statue of Athena Parthenos.

The internal frieze of the temple was made in the Ionic style and depicted a festive procession on the last day of Panathenaia.

A total of 96 plates of this frieze have survived, most of them in the British Museum. For many decades, the Greek government has been trying in vain to return the marble fragments of the Parthenon to their historical place.

As for the exterior, quite little is known about it. The pediments of the Parthenon were destroyed back in the Middle Ages, so they are being restored mainly by guesswork.

The east pediment may have depicted the birth of Athena, but almost no details of the sculptures remain. The western one most likely shows the dispute between Athena and Poseidon for the possession of Attica. A total of 30 statues from the pediments have survived, but their condition is quite deplorable, especially those that were in the British Museum at the end of the 20th century - they were subjected to a rather barbaric cleaning.

The external friezes of the Parthenon are a little better preserved - at least we know exactly what was depicted on them.

On the eastern side of the temple was depicted the history of the war between the centaurs and the Lapiths, on the western side - the Trojan War, in the north - the Gigantomachy, and in the south - scenes from the battle of the Greeks and the Amazons.

Most of the surviving high reliefs are in the Athens Museum, and their exact copies are gradually taking their places in the restored Parthenon.

Athena statue

The most successful copy of the famous statue of Phidias

The statue of Athena is described as one of Phidias' greatest works. The statue of the goddess was made of wood covered with gold (about a ton) and decorated with ivory.

Instead of emphasizing the inaccessibility and aloofness of the deity (as he did with Olympian Zeus), Phidias portrayed Athena as simple and close to her people.

The statue was relatively low (13 meters) and depicted a proudly standing Athena, holding a spear in one hand, and a two-meter figure of the goddess of victory Nike in the other.

The goddess's head was decorated with a three-crested helmet, and at her feet there was a shield depicting scenes from battles.

Alas, the statue cost the Parthenon architect his life - in an effort to immortalize not only the divine Athena, but also himself, the master included a bald old man with a sculptor’s hammer in one of the scenes decorating the goddess’s shield.

Phidias on the shield of the sculpture of Athena the Virgin

The Athenians did not appreciate the humor and condemned it for blasphemy. Phidias died in prison.

The famous statue was probably destroyed by fire, probably in the 5th century BC. e., but there are several copies of varying degrees of accuracy.

The most reliable one, called “Athena Varvarikon”, can be seen in the National Archaeological Museum.

Modern Parthenon

Modern Parthenon

It makes no sense to describe in detail what the Parthenon looks like today - Greek archaeologists and builders brought it as close as possible to the ancient temple.

Of course, all the gloss and beauty of the Parthenon sculptures have been lost, but the building still amazes the imagination.

Every year the temple becomes more beautiful and the stories of the guides more impressive, so visiting the Parthenon is an experience that is interesting to repeat every few years.

How much does a visit cost?

Surviving sculptures on the roof pediment of the Parthenon

Access to the main monument of ancient Hellenic architecture is open from 8.30 to 18.00.
It is recommended to visit it in the early hours or in the evening, when the heat is not particularly strong and the influx of tourists is not very large. At the entrance there is a small stall selling sparkling water and freshly squeezed juices (4.5 euros). Please note that you will not be allowed inside with a glass, and the glass is quite large.

Bring a bottle of water; there are fountains and a toilet upstairs in front of the entrance and to the left.
Login from big bags is also prohibited, but there are storage lockers on site where you can leave them.

There are several entrances and ticket offices, including from the side of the museum and on the south-eastern side, near the Theater of Dionysus.

The line at the ticket office on the museum side is usually shorter.

The ticket price for entry to the Parthenon territory (12 euros) includes visits to 6 attractions, including the Temple of Olympian Zeus, the Ancient and Roman Agora, the Theater of Dionysus and the oldest district of Athens - Ceramics.
The ticket is valid for 4 days.

The ancient Parthenon temple in Athens is not only a grandiose monument. This is also national symbol Greece, of which the country is very proud.

Incredibly beautiful in its simplicity, the building successfully stood the test of time and fell only under shells from heavy cannons made thousands of years after the construction of the last sanctuary of Athena.

Isn’t this worthy of admiration for the work of ancient masters!

Even though the temple greek goddess It has been restored for a long time and is surrounded by scaffolding, being near it is an amazing and exciting feeling.
If you happen to visit Athens, be sure to visit the Parthenon - the great spirit of ancient Hellas, frozen in Pentelic marble.

For almost 2500 years, the Parthenon has reigned over Athens, the Temple of the Virgin Athena is the symbol of the city, its pride. ancient architecture. Many experts consider it the most beautiful and harmonious temple Ancient world. And most tourists who see the Parthenon with their own eyes share this opinion.

History of construction

For many years after the destruction of the main temple of Athena, the Hekatompedon, by the Persians, there was no sanctuary in Athens worthy of the patroness of the city. Only after the end of the Greco-Persian wars in 449 BC. e. the Athenians had enough money for large-scale construction.

The construction of the Parthenon began during the reign of Pericles, one of the greatest political figures of Ancient Greece. This was the "golden age" of Attica. Recognition of the leading role of Athens in the fight against the Persians led to the creation of the Delian Maritime League, which included 206 Greek city-states. In 464 BC. e. The treasury of the union was transported to Athens. After this, the rulers of Attica had virtually no control over the funds of most of the states of Greece.

The money was used not only to fight the Persians. Huge amounts of money were spent by Pericles on grandiose construction work. During his reign, a magnificent temple ensemble grew on the Acropolis, the center of which was the Parthenon.

Construction of the Parthenon began in 447 BC. e. V highest point Acropolis hill. Here back in 488 BC. e. The site for the new temple was prepared and work began on its construction, but at the initial stage they were interrupted by the renewed war.

The Parthenon project belonged to the architect Ictinus, and the progress of the work was supervised by Callicrates. The great sculptor Phidias took an active part in the construction of the temple, who was engaged in the external and internal decoration of the building. Were involved in the construction the best masters Greece, and general control of the work was carried out by Pericles himself.

The consecration of the temple took place in 438 at the annual Panathenaic Games, but the finishing work on the building was finally completed only in 432 BC. e.

Architectural appearance of the Parthenon

Architecturally, the temple is a classical peripterus with one row of Doric columns. There are 50 columns in total - 8 on the end and 17 on the sides. The width of the end sides is larger than the traditional one - 8 columns instead of 6. This was done at the request of Phidias, who sought to achieve the maximum width of the cella, the interior space. The height of the columns was 19.4 meters with a diameter at the bottom of 1.9 m. The corner ones were somewhat thicker - 1.95 m. Towards the top, the thickness of the columns decreased. Each column has 20 longitudinal grooves - flutes - machined into it.

The entire building rests on a three-stage base 1.5 m high. The size of the upper platform of the base, the stylobate, is 69.5 by 30.9 meters. Behind the outer row of columns, two more steps with a total height of 0.7 m were built, on which the walls of the temple stand.

The main entrance to the Parthenon was located on the side opposite the main entrance to the Acropolis - the Propylaea. Thus, to get inside, the visitor had to walk around the building on one side.

The total length of the temple (without the colonnade) is 59 m, width 21.7. The eastern part of the temple, where the sanctuary of Athena itself was located, had outer size 30.9 m and was called hecatompedon, “hundred-foot” (Attic foot - 30.9 cm). The length of the cella was 29.9 m. The cella was divided into three naves by two rows of 9 Doric columns. In the middle nave there was an altar of the goddess, as well as the famous statue of Athena Parthenos, the creation of Phidias.

The western part of the building was occupied by an opisthodome - a room in which offerings to Athena and state archive. The dimensions of the opisthodome were 13.9 x 19.2 m. It was here that the treasury of the Delian League was transported. The name of the opisthodome, Parthenon, was subsequently transferred to the entire temple.

The building was built from marble quarried from Mount Pentelikon, 20 km away. from Athens. The peculiarity of Pentelicon marble is that, being almost white immediately after extraction, over time it acquires a yellowish color. This explains the golden hue of the Parthenon. The marble blocks were held together with iron pins, which were inserted into drilled grooves and filled with lead.

Unique project Iktina

Art historians consider the Parthenon to be a standard of harmony and harmony. His silhouette is flawless. However, in reality there are practically no straight lines in the outlines of the temple.

Human vision perceives objects somewhat distorted. Iktin took full advantage of this. Columns, cornices, roofing - all lines are slightly curved, thereby creating the optical illusion of their ideal straightness.

A building as significant as the Parthenon, located on a flat area, would visually “press through” the base, so the stylobate was made rising towards the center. The temple itself was moved away from the center of the Acropolis to the south-eastern corner, so as not to overwhelm the visitor entering the citadel. The sanctuary seems to grow as you approach it.

The solution to the colonnade is interesting. Ideally straight columns would seem too thin, so they have an imperceptible thickening in the middle. To create a feeling of lightness of the building, the columns were installed slightly inclined towards the center. The corner columns were made slightly thicker than the others, which gave the building visual stability. The spans between the columns increase towards the center, but to the viewer walking along the colonnade it seems that they are exactly the same.

By using this feature of human perception in the Parthenon project, Iktinus thereby discovered one of fundamental principles, on which the architecture of subsequent centuries grew.

Parthenon sculptures

The best craftsmen of Greece took part in the work on the sculptures of the temple. The general supervision of the sculptural decoration of the sanctuary was carried out by Phidias. He is also the author of the main shrine of the Parthenon - the statue of Athena the Virgin.

The best preserved is the bas-relief frieze that encircled the entire temple above the colonnade. The total length of the frieze is 160 meters. It depicts a solemn procession in honor of Athena. Among the participants in the procession are elders, girls with palm branches, musicians, horsemen, chariots, and young men leading sacrificial animals. Above the entrance to the temple is depicted the final act of Panathenaia - the priest of Athena, surrounded by gods and the most prominent citizens of Attica, accepts peplos (a type of women's outerwear) woven by the Athenians as a gift to the goddess.

Remarkable works of art are the Parthenon metopes - relief images that were located above the frieze. Of the 92 metopes, 57 have survived to this day. The reliefs are grouped thematically and are dedicated to subjects common in Hellas. Above the eastern entrance was depicted the battle of the gods with the giants, above the entrance to the opisthodome in the west - the battle of the Hellenes with the Amazons. The metopes of the south reproduced the battle of the Lapiths with the centaurs. The metopes of the northern part, which told about the Trojan War, suffered the most.

The pediment sculptures have survived only in fragments. They depicted key moments for Athens. The eastern group reproduced the scene of the birth of Athena, and the western pediment depicted the dispute between Athena and Poseidon for the right to become the patron of Attica. Legendary figures from the history of Athens are depicted next to the gods. Alas, the condition of the sculptures does not allow us to accurately determine the identity of most of them.

In the central nave of the temple there was a statue of Athena 12 meters high. Phidias used the chrysoelephantine technique, when he first created a wooden frame for the sculpture, and plates of gold, representing clothing, and ivory, imitating open parts of the body, were fixed on it.

Descriptions and copies of the statue have been preserved. The goddess was depicted wearing a comb helmet and standing at full height, but otherwise eyewitness accounts differ. Famous geographer of the 2nd century AD. e. Pausanias claimed that Athena held a spear in one hand, and in the palm of her other hand stood the messenger of victory, Nike. At Athena’s feet lay a shield, and on the goddess’s chest was an aegis - a shell with the head of Medusa the Gorgon. In the copies, the goddess rests on a shield, but there is no spear at all.

On one side of the shield the battle of the gods with the giants was depicted, on the other - the battle of the Greeks with the Amazons. Ancient authors passed on the legend that Phidias depicted Pericles and himself on the relief. He was later accused of blasphemy for this and died in prison.

The further fate of the Parthenon

The temple was highly revered throughout Greece even after the decline of Athens. Thus, Alexander the Great made rich donations to the Parthenon.

However, the new rulers of Attica treated the sanctuary with much less respect. In 298 BC. e. By order of the tyrant Lahar, the golden parts of the statue of Athena were removed. In the 2nd century AD e. There was a severe fire in the Parthenon, but the building was restored.

Timeline of changes in the appearance of the Parthenon from the moment of construction to the present day

In 426, the Parthenon became the Temple of Hagia Sophia. The statue of Athena was transported to Constantinople, where it was destroyed in a fire. In 662, the temple was reconsecrated in honor of the Mother of God, and a bell tower was added to it.

The Turks, who conquered Athens in 1460, built a mosque in the Parthenon, rebuilding the bell tower into a minaret, and in 1687 tragedy struck. During the siege of Athens by the Venetians, a Turkish gunpowder warehouse was set up in the temple. Hit cannonball into barrels of gunpowder led to powerful explosion, as a result of which the middle part of the building was destroyed.

The destruction of the temple continued into Peaceful time, when city residents stole marble blocks for their needs. IN early XIX century, the bulk of the sculptures, with the permission of the Sultan, were exported to England. Nobody cared about the building itself until Greece gained independence. The Parthenon was recognized as part of the historical heritage of Greece, and restoration work began in the 20s of the 20th century. The Foundation for the Preservation of the Parthenon, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has been established.

Work to restore the Parthenon is ongoing. Alas, there is no hope of seeing the temple in its original form - too much has been lost. However, even in its current state, the Parthenon is a masterpiece of ancient architecture and leaves no doubt about the genius of the architects and builders who once erected it.

The rocky rock of the Acropolis, which dominates the center of Athens, is the largest and most majestic ancient Greek shrine, dedicated primarily to the city's patroness, Athena.

The most important events of the ancient Hellenes are associated with this sacred place: the myths of ancient Athens, the largest Religious holidays, the main religious events.
Temples Athens Acropolis blend harmoniously with their natural surroundings and are unique masterpieces of ancient Greek architecture, expressing innovative styles and trends in the correlation of classical art, they have had an indelible influence on the intellectual and artistic creativity people for many centuries.

The Acropolis of the 5th century BC is the most accurate reflection of the splendor, power and wealth of Athens at its highest peak - the "golden age". In the form in which the Acropolis appears before us now, it was erected after its destruction by the Persians in 480 BC. e. Then the Persians were completely defeated and the Athenians vowed to restore their shrines. The reconstruction of the Acropolis begins in 448 BC, after the Battle of Plataea, on the initiative of Pericles.

- Erechtheion Temple

The Myth of Erechtheus: Erechtheus was a beloved and revered king of Athens. Athens was at enmity with the city of Eleusis; during the battle, Erechtheus killed Eumollus, the leader of the Eleusinian army, and also the son of the god of the sea Poseidon himself. For this, the thunderer Zeus killed him with his lightning. The Athenians buried their beloved king and named the constellation Auriga after him. At the same place, the architect Mnesicles erected a temple named after Erichtheus.

This temple was built between 421 and 407 BC and housed the golden lamp of Callimachus. Construction of the Erechtheion did not stop even during the long Peloponnesian War.

The Erechtheion was the most sacred place of worship in Athens. The ancient inhabitants of Athens worshiped Athena, Hephaestus, Poseidon, and Kekropos (the first Athenian king) in this temple.

The entire history of the city was concentrated at this point and therefore the construction of the Erechtheon temple began in this place:

♦ in this place a dispute broke out between Athena and Poseidon over the property of the city

♦ in the northern porch of the Erechtheion temple there is a hole where, according to legend, the sacred serpent Erechtonius lived

♦ here was the grave of Kekrops

The east porch has six Ionic columns, to the north there is a monumental entrance with a decorated gate, on the south side there is a porch with six maidens, known as caryatids, who support the vault of the Erechtheion, in this moment they have been replaced with plaster copies. Five of the caryatids are in the new Acropolis Museum, one is in the British Museum.