The Parthenon: A Short Story

Building the Parthenon was a greater feat than they ever would have known. Work on the Parthenon began in 477 BC. A much smaller shrine already stood on this site, one to which we can attribute various pieces of surviving decorative material--lions and snakes, a cornice incised with flying birds, and a blue-bearded trinity that may conceivably represent Cecrops, Erechtheus, and Poseidon. If such an edifice in fact existed, it was torn down to make way for a huge limestone platform, roughly 252 by 103 feet in size, that was built as a base for the new temple. The slope of the Acropolis was such that while on the north side the foundations rested directly on bedrocks, the southeast corner needed to be built up with no

There are two pediments on the Parthenon; one on the East side over the Naos (interior room), the other on the West side over the Opisthodomos (back porch). The East pediment shows the birth of Athena. Zeus had eaten Metis, who was pregnant with Athena at the time. She gave birth in Zeus’ stomach and Athena climbed into his head. It hurt so much that Zeus ordered Hephaestus to cut open his head with an axe. Athena then leaped from the wound in full battle armour. On this pediment, Zeus and Athena are portrayed as being the same size, which is unusual as men were seen as superior to women so were portrayed as larger. This is significant because it shows how highly the Athenians thought of their patron goddess; enough to be the equal of the king of the gods. The Athenians chose this myth to be shown on the pediment because it represents how highly Athena is thought of and it is also the story of her birth, which without there would be no Athens. This reflects the social context of the Parthenon because…

The Greeks finished building an exquisite temple to their beloved goddess, Athena in the year 432 BCE. (Sayre 60). The name of this enriched, unique temple was the Parthenon. The Parthenon took the Greeks approximately fifteen years to complete and as Pericles stated, it was built to give gratitude to their goddess Athena for the salvation of their city, Athens and all of Greece in the Persian Wars (Sayre 60). It was also a symbol of their power and superiority among other cultures. It was something the Greeks took great pride in and recognized it to a great extent. The Parthenon was built on the highest point of the city of Athens to look over the precious Greek city. On the exterior walls of the Parthenon there was beautiful artwork that

Athena was the Greek Goddess of many ideas, but she was famous mostly for her superior wisdom, her cunning skills in times of war, and her implausible talent for household tasks, such as weaving and pottery. She was celebrated more than any other God in ancient mythology, was the supposed inventor of countless innovations, and her figure gave reason for Greek woman to gain rights long before others of their time. The goddess of war, the guardian of Athens, and the defender of Heroes; Athena’s impact on the lives of Ancient Greeks is outstanding.

The Parthenon was home to the Athena Parthenos, but where it was located in the Parthenon is crucial. It was located in a special chamber called the cella.*footnote* The only people that were actually allowed into the Parthenon were priests, who are could be considered the holiest of all people in their culture.*footnote* This elevates the Athena Parthenos to a very high level of holiness, that most would consider to be Goddess-like. Normal citizens of Athens had to worship in a courtyard outside of the Parthenon, which means that they couldn’t even be under the same roof as the Athena Parthenos.*footnote* The placement of the statute clearly indicates a very high level of religious standing, that could be best described as Goddess-like.

Athena, once again, is shown as having power over men and mortals, the citizens feel "sheltered under Athene`s wings" (3.1000-02) she brings justice and leads the tragic trilogy to a conclusion , just as she helps conclude Odysseus` nostos to Ithaca.

T. shows the theme of relationship of man to God when he prayed to Athena to retrieve her help, and as a reward of doing all good she appears to help his cry. “…

“The Parthenon was commissioned by Pericles sometime after Greek victories over the Persians between 490 and 480 BC” (Glancey 26, 27). During the Persian Greek wars, Athens believed that Athena watched over them and that she helped them throughout the war. The Parthenon represents the wealth, power, society, and culture of Athens. The building of the Parthenon cost the Athenians four hundred and sixty nine talents, which symbolized Athens as wealthy.

The goddess also kept those people strong and faithful to the success of our hero even if they had heavy doubts. In the very beginning, Athena disguised herself as a prince in order to gather crewmen for his ship. She also provided hope when it was needed for characters around Odysseus and Telemachus. For instance, when Penelope learned of her son’s absence she cried at the thought of losing yet another loved one. Athena helps Penelope by presenting herself as the phantom of Iphtime, Penelope’s sister and tells her, “Courage! Don’t be overwhelmed by all your direst fears. He travels with such an escort, one that others would pray to stand beside them.”

42. | The Athena Parthenos refers specifically to which aspect of Athena? | | virgin |

The Acropolis is a large worship complex built on a mountain overlooking the city of Athens. Both the residents of the city and those traveling to Athens would have been able to see it at all points throughout the day. Inside the structure lies the Parthenon, the main temple, dedicated to the goddess Athena, who was the guardian of the city of Athens. The location itself was a holy site as it was believed to be the place where Athena won against Poseidon and earned her patronage. Poseidon gave the Greeks a salt well where as Athena gave them a olive branch, and as her gift was deemed better, they erected the Parthenon in her name. There is also a smaller temple dedicated to Poseidon in the Acropolis. The olive branch given to them was said to be within the Parthenon and the salt well was said to be in the temple to Poseidon. Finally, the Parthenon is covered in the carved stories of the victories of both Athens and Athena herself. These re-introduced their beliefs and glorified Athena for her helping of

In the beginning, Eris, the goddess of discord, cunningly left a deceitful apple engraved with “To the fairest” at the wedding of King Peleus. Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite all immediately clashed over this pseudo-gift. Towards the middle, the three goddesses (Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite) became weary of their argument and, spying young Paris, found an end to their bitter rivalry. Together, they presented the apple to the herder and bade him to pick she who most deserved the gift. Each goddess offered him something different- her own exchange gift- but in the end, Paris chose Aphrodite. The Goddess of Love won his favor by offering Paris a woman who far surpassed any other in sheer loveliness.

In the article "Arachne the Spinner" Athena(Goddess of the crafts)did not treat Arachne fairly. Athena didn’t treat Arachne fairly because of various reasons.

The Parthenon had sculptured panels along its exterior above the columns (called metopes) and sculptures in the triangular spaces underneath the roof line at both ends of the building (called pediments) and a unique sculptural feature the Ionic frieze which was around the top of the walls (wikipedia, 2006). The Parthenon's frieze depicted the Athenian religious ritual called the Panathenaic festival, in which a procession of citizens paraded to the Acropolis to present to Athena a new robe woven by specially selected Athenian girls, which was held every 4 years. The frieze showed men riding spirited horses, women walking along carrying sacred implements, and the gods gathering together at the head of the parade to observe their human worshippers (‘Parthenon', 2006). This showed how over-confident the spirit of the Athenians where, because they dared put themselves where ordinarily only gods and heroes might be found.

One of the most impressive accomplishments of Ancient Greece is the remarkable structure of the Parthenon on the Acropolis. The Parthenon is one of the most inspiring works of architecture known to mankind. The project of the extraordinary Acropolis was taken on by one of the most influential leaders of history, Pericles. Pericles influenced not only the building of one of the grandest works but the example of democracy displayed by the Greeks. The architecture was unique for its time, it featured excellent structure,the breathtaking Metopes featuring the epic battles of the gods, the Frieze a detailed sculpture displaying a procession of Greeks, and was built to house the magnificent statue of Athena adorned in gold. The Parthenon was