The Akropolis crowns a huge rocky plateau that dominates the
city of Athens and has been its
symbol since ancient times. At the height of the golden age of Athens,
the Akropolis was crowned with magnificent temples, magnificently colored and
gilded, and bronze and marble statues. The place is in ruins now, but is not
less awe inspiring.
The center of the Akropolis is the Parthenon, the ruins
of the largest Doric style temple ever
built in ancient Greece.
It used to house a gigantic statue of the goddess Athena, to whom the Parthenon
was dedicated to. The temple also was the treasure house of tribute money
collected from throughout Athens’
Greek client states.
Next to the Parthenon is the Erechtheion, immediately recognizable for its
much-photographed Caryatids, the six maidens who take the place of columns. The
Acropolis Museum
houses a collection of sculptures and reliefs from the site.
The Agora
The Agora was the Athenian marketplace and was the center of
social, economic, and political life. Here Socrates disputed philosophy with
anyone who dared to argue with him. Here St. Paul
preached the new faith of Christianity.
The highlights of a visit to the Agora include the newly
reconstructed Stoa of Attalos, where at one time expensive shops attracted well
heeled Athenians, the nearby Agora Museum, where there is a model of the
original Agora as well as artifacts from the site, the Temple of Hephaestus,
the best preserved Doric temple in Greece, the foundations of the Stoa of Zeus
Eleutherios, where Socrates could be found many days during the golden age of
Athens, and the 11th Century Church of the Holy Apostles, with its
Byzantine mosaics.
The Benaki Museum
Founded in 1931, it is the oldest museum in Greece
and one of the best. It’s collection includes Bronze Age finds from Mycenae
and Thessaly, and ecclesiastical furniture brought from Asia
Minor by refugees. There are nearly 20,000 items on display,
arranged on four levels in chronological order ranging from prehistory to the
founding of the modern Greek state. The collection includes ancient pottery,
Karaghiozi shadow puppets, and a stunning array of costumes, jewelry, textiles,
and paintings, including early works by El Greco.