This museum has the world's best collection of Greek antiquities. The Hall
of Mycenaean Antiquities is filled with gleaming gold. The center of attraction
is the Mask of Agamemnon. Other works include a marble statue from Delos of
Aphrodite with Pan and Eros circa 100BC, and a bronze statue believed to be
Poseidon or Zeus dated to 460BC. There is also an amusing sculpture of
Aphrodite raising her sandal to ward off the frisky Pan. The collection also
includes archaic, classical, late classical, Hellenistic and Roman period
sculpture, bronze and pottery.
Roman Agora
The Roman Agora is a partly excavated site and was the
center of Athenian life during the rule of the Roman Empire.
To the casual eye the place looks like a jumble of ruined stone, but is still
much to see for those with the patience to look. The entrance to the Roman
Agora is through the Gate of Athena Archegetis, flanked by four Doric columns.
To the right of the entrance are foundations of a 1st-century public latrine,
and in the southeast area are the foundations of a propylon and a row of shops.
The centerpiece of the Roman Agora is the octagonal Tower of the Winds. The
tower served as a sundial, weather vane, water clock and compass. Each side of
the tower represented a point on the compass and has a relief of a figure
representing the wind associated from that point. The weather vane disappeared
long ago. It was in the form of a bronze Triton that revolved upon the top of
the tower.
The Keramikos
The Keremikos served as the city’s cemetery from the 12th
Century BC to Roman times. Remains still stand of the city walls built in the 5th
Century BC. One can see the Sacred Gate, where pilgrims passed during the
annual Eleusian Procession and the Dipylon Gate, the main entrance to the city.
The Dipylon Gate was also a prime location of prostitutes plying their trade to
weary travelers. The Street of Tombs
consists of an astonishing array of funerary monuments with bas-reliefs calling
for a close look. Nearby is the the Oberlaender Museum, displaying stelae and sculpture from
the site, as well as an impressive collection of vases and terracotta
figurines.