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ATHENS…Ancient & Modern |
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ATHENS…Ancient & Modern |
THE ACROPOLIS
The crowning glory of the Greek capital is without a doubt
the Parthenon on the Acropolis. Since
the age of Pericles, this imposing natural fortress dominates the scene from
whichever angle you
view it. From central Athens, the
walls of the Acropolis peek through downtown buildings suddenly and
surprisingly, offering an ancient backdrop to a modern Metropolis.
Miraculously,
after 2,500 years, the Periclean Acropolis is still standing despite the ravages
of modern pollution, which have sent the remaining statues and frescoes inside
the Acropolis Museum. Nonetheless,
there is still a feeling of wonderment when one views the once pagan site and
the view from up there is a panoramic one.
The
rock of the Acropolis with its natural spring, the “klepsydra” and its caves
(mostly on its northern side) has been inhabited since the Neolithic times.
During the Mycenaean Age, it was fortified with Cyclopean walls, which
protected the King’s palace and the residences of the senior officials on the
summit.
In
early historical times, the palace was super ceded by a temple dedicated to
Poseidon, god of the spring and to Athena, goddess of the olive tree.
In archaic Times, the temple was twice destroyed and rebuilt.
On the second occasion (in the years of the Pesistratids towards the
close of the 6th century B.C.), it was adorned with excellent carved
gables while a second temple, dedicated to Athena, began to be built further
south of the rock.
In
the meantime, after the Panathenaean festivals were established (in 566 B.C.),
the first monumental Propylaea were built on the western approaches to the rock,
together with an altar dedicated to Athena Niki.
Apart from these, various other temples and shrines stood on the rock,
dedicated to various gods and demi-gods, heroes and demons and there were also
some open-air-altars. In 480 B.C., all temples on the Acropolis and the entire city
of Athens were sacked by the Persians and burnt.
Today’s layout of the fortified citadel is the work of Pericles who,
aided by his principal collaborator Pheidias, had the temples on the Acropolis
rebuilt, after first having completed defensive walls begun by Kimon.
The
Parthenon was the first temple to be built.
It was dedicated t the Virgin goddess Athena. Iktinos was its architect while Pheidias and his pupils had
charge of the general constructional supervision and the decorative carvings.
It was the first time that a temple in the Doric style was decorated all
round with a sculptured frieze (160 meters long) illustrating the Panathenaean
Procession. The 92 me topes were
also sculptured with relief’s representing a battle with giants, a battle with
Amazons, battles with centaurs and scenes from the Trojan War.
The gold and ivory Statue of the goddess Athena, the work of Pheidias,
was erected in the interior.
When
construction of the temple had been completed, the pedimental sculptures were
added.
The
birth of Athena, from the head of Zeus, was depicted on the eastern Pediment,
the dispute
between
Poseidon and Athens for the possession of Attica was shown on the western
pediment. Then followed
construction of the impressive Propylaea by the architect Minisicles.
A
little later, a third architect, Kallikrates, built the elegant Temple of the
Wingless Victory (on the tower which had been formed to the south
of the Propylaea). Its
frieze was decorated with the scenes from the historic battle of the
Plataeai while its marble balustrade showed
Athena Niki and other Niki figures.
Last to be built, in the Ionic style, was the Erechtheion
temple which occupied the site of the former
temple of Athena and Poseidon and was dedicated to the
two deities. However, it also became the resting place for the tombs of
the creators of Athens, Erechtheus and Kekrops.
The elegant porch of the Karyatids gives only a faint notion of the
luxurious construction of this temple. Of
all other buildings and votive offerings, which decorated the rock in classical
times, traces only are left (e.g. the sanctuary of Vranvronia
Artemis, the Halkothiki, etc.) In
Roman times, a small circular temple of Augustus and
Rome was added but did not survive.
Two
open-air theaters flank the Acropolis: the Herode Atticus Odeon (circa
A.D. 200) and the more ancient Theater of Dionysus (circa 400 B.C.). The Dionysus theatre is the actual site where plays first
evolved out of the orgiastic rituals of Dionysus.
The Herode Atticus is the home of the Athens Festival in the summer.
After
exploring the Acropolis, it is a must to walk down the northwest side of the
hill in order to wander through the site of the ancient Agora, where so many
scenes of Plato’s Republic occurred.
The Plaka, the oldest living neighborhood in Europe, is nearby, offering a great place to eat lunch or shop before heading back to the hotel. Plaka’s winding narrow streets, some only fit for one person at a time to get through Plaka has been restored to its former glory; the charm of its pastel colored walls and wrought iron balconies, geraniums spilling onto stone steps, small churches everywhere, each with their own congregation, and tavernas and souvenir shops vying for visitors attention. Plaka after hours is also something to experience, offering a rich taste of Greek culture.
A
further attraction in this sprawling capital is the tiny Chapel of St. George
atop of Mount Lycabettus sitting right in the center of the city.
This quite high mount (909’) looks like a fairly land at night and
walking up there can be quite a strenuous exercise.
Steps leading from Xenocratous Street and Ploutarchou lead up to the
funicular railway, which takes visitors to the top for a fee.
Once up there, one can admire the slightly fuzzy view over the city, or
on a windy day glory in the panorama right across the city to the nearest
islands.
Leading
down from Mount Lycabettus, at the base is one of the smallest districts in
Athens, Kolonaki or Little column, a name derived from a small ancient
column in its main square. Kolonaki
square is great for people watching, an art form in Greece. Coffee shops line two sides of the square and some great
restaurants dot the area. Also
to be found there are the
Near
Athens, there is plenty to do for the typical sun and fun vacationer.
Beaches line the Athens coast, some as near as half an hours drive from
the city center. One may water ski,
play tennis, play golf, sail, visit three islands on a unique one day cruise,
spend a day in Delphi, an afternoon at the ancient temple on Cape
Sounion, take a flying dolphin to the nearer islands, or just simply
vegetate on a beach.
The
summer nightlife scene is explosive in the affluent suburb of Glyfada,
only a short drive from the center of Athens.
Nightclubs line the coastline to satisfy the appetite of any jet setter
way into the early morning hours; and please feel free to dance on the tables!
By day Glyfada offers a more lounge like environment for coffee and
people watching. Don’t forget to
bring your credit cards, because Glyfada offers an array of boutique style
shopping, from Gucci to Hugo Boss.
Athens
is a city offering variety, ancient or modern.
It’s all here, in some cases for thousands of
years, and in others for merely a month.
In any event you will not be disappointed.
There
are archaeological sites all over Greece.
The ancient stones rise amid meadows of wild flowers; they crown rocky
hills. Museums are usually built
within the site to shelter finds from the excavations, finds which can be
marvels of art, or simply items used in everyday life by the people of
antiquity.
Touring
Greece, the sophisticated traveler who has already admired Classical Greek art
in all the museums of the world would be able to see it and appreciate it more
under the light of the world, which gave birth to it.
The
following are some of the most important archaeological sites and museums to
visit, listed by art periods:
Knossos,
Festos, the Heraklion Archaeological Museum in Crete; Akrotiri in Santorini and
Thera collection in the Archaeological Museum in Athens.
Mycenae;
Tiryns; Athens Archaeological Museum; Thebes Museum; Palace of Nestor in Hora
Peloponnese.
GREEK
ART OF 6TH, 5TH and 4TH CENTURIES B.C.
Athens
Acropolis; Corinth; Olympia; Delphi; Epidaurus; Delos; Vergina; Pella;
Thessaloniki-their respective museums and the National Archaeological Museum in
Athens.
Dafni Monastery; Ossios Loucas Monastery; Meteora; Mystras; Mount Athos; Byzantine churches in Athens; Thessaloniki; Kastoria; Benaki Museum in Athens.
Benaki Museum in Athens; Greek Popular Art Museums in Athens, Rhodes and Heraklion in Crete.
Museum
is a Greek word, and the first center of intellectual activity know to us by
that name was the Museum connected to the famous library in the Palace of the
Ptolemies, in the great
Hellenistic
city of Alexandria, founded by Alexander the Great in 332 B.C. But already a
century earlier, in the Athens of Pericles, the instinct to preserve works of
art was evident in a collection of paintings which had been gathered together on
the north side of the Propyleum of the Acropolis, in a large hall called the
Pinakothiki (picture gallery).
Although
the Greeks lived for centuries under foreign rule, the memory of their glorious
past never left them, and they retained a reverence for the splendid monuments
of their ancestral inheritance. But
this was not enough to prevent the ravages of time and human ignorance.
NATIONAL
ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM
The Museum displays from all parts of the ancient Greek world, which date from Neolithic times to the last years of the Roman Empire.
·
Art of the Pre-Historic Period Up to1100 B.C.
·
Art from the Historic Period
Sculpture and ceramics make up the main branch of the art of this period but there is also a variety of miniature arts, coins and goldsmith work. Next to the originals of works, mainly of the classical period, are copies from the Hellenistic and Roman times.
The
National Museum also houses:
*
The Epigraphic Collection
*
The Numismatic Collection
*
The Thera Collection
In the Museum Store, copies and castings of the exhibited objects are on sale.
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