Thenian Acropolis

Athenian Acropolis

The Ancient Greece of the Classical period is a period characterized by close link between religion and politics . Unlike in the present days there was no division between church and state during their time . As a matter of fact , the first temples were constructed to accommodate religious cults . It is not surprising then that the foundations of the first Greek city-states , the political unit in the Greek world were also established around the time . City-states promoted the local cult practices because they were used to define the community . Religious

festivals and sacrifices enable citizens to confirm their affiliation in the community

The location of the temple in a city was their way of linking the building to their distant past

The Parthenon is a perfect example of this . The Parthenon is found on a hill called the Acropolis , or "High City " In second millennium , the Acropolis was believed to be where a Mycenaean citadel could be located Athenian myths believed Acropolis to be the site of the competition between Athena and Poseidon for control over Athens . Acropolis is also associated with the founding city . It used to house the Temples during the Archaic Period . The political background is vital to the understanding of the Parthenon , the centerpiece of the Periclean building movement

The Parthenon is the most important monument of the ancient Greek civilization . Today , its prestige never faded being an international symbol . It was built in honor of Athena Parthenos , the patron goddess of Athens . It was constructed between 447 and 438 B .C . Its extensive sculptural decoration was completed some time later in 432 B .C

The construction of the monument was started by Perikles . Pheidias , the famous Athenian sculptor overlook the entire project . Iktinos and Kallikrates were the commissioned architects of the building . The temple observes the Doric in its construction . It was comprised mostly of Pentelic marble . Its shape is peripteral - with eight columns on each of the narrow sides and seventeen columns on each of the long ones . The center of the temple was called the cella where the centerpiece of the sculptural programme , the famous colossal chryselephantine cult statue of Athena built by Pheidias , was found . Ancient copies and literary s depicted the statue as a chryselephantine statue made of gold and ivory , and approximately 38 feet tall

Sculpture was vital part of the architecture of Greek temples . The Parthenon stands out in this area due to the immense number of sculptural decoration found in the place . Harmony comes into play in the various elements towards a consistent sculptural program . For instance , the extensive collection with coherent theme all 92 metopes in the Doric frieze course demonstrate sculptured reliefs

The sculptural decoration of the Parthenon presents a rare mixture of the Doric metopes and triglyphs on the entablature , and the Ionic frieze which can be found on the walls of the cella . The metopes portray the Gigantomachy on the east side , the Amazonomachy on the west , the Centauromachy on the south...