The ancient Greek civilization contributed many great new ideas and aspects to everyday life that shaped and inspired the modern day society. The Greeks are well known for their construction of temples, acropolis’ and other grand architectural structures. Among these structures stood one of the most famous, the Parthenon. The Parthenon was a symbol of Greek society and culture as it stood as one of Greece’s most important architectural buildings. Besides being the Athenians greatest architectural achievement, the Parthenon serves a basic purpose. The Parthenon is a temple devoted to Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and guardian of the city- state of Athens that got its name from her. The temple marked the zenith of ancient …show more content…
As a cause of this relationship, the Parthenon plays a trick and strikes an illusion to the eye. Greek architects Ictinus and Callicrates erected the temple atop the southern flank of the acropolis, the central hill of the Greek city –state which was used for defensive and religious purposes, then in seventeen years, Ictinus and Callicrates completed the decorations of the Parthenon (Harper OL). The Parthenon is made entirely of a marble from Mount Pentelicus called Pentelic marble and stands approximately eighteen meters high. The selections made for the material of the Parthenon were chosen with many points considered to ensure a strong and sturdy future. “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.
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
Three key features of the Parthenon that reflected the social context of the goddess Athena and the Athenians are the Pediments, the Internal Frieze and the Athena Parthenos. The Parthenon, meaning “of the virgin” referring to the goddess Athena, was built in 447 BC and opened to the public in 432 BC. It is located in the south side of the Acropolis in Athens, Greece and was built to house the cult statue of Athena.
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
One of the greatest Greek monuments is the Parthenon in Athens, built for Goddess Athena. The prominent Athenian politician, Perikles supported its construction. The work on this building began when the Athenian Empire was at the peak of its power in 447 BC and continued until 432. The Parthenon, then, represented the blossoming of Athenian imperial power (web.archive.org,
The Parthenon is a classical style of ancient Greek architecture and the most important building in the city and it self replaced on older temple of Athena, which called Pre-Parthenon. It was built and completed in 438 B.C buy Iktinos and Kallikrates, after that destroyed by Persian in 480 B.C. The Temple all made form marble and its 20 miles far from Athens. Later
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
The Parthenon at the Acropolis in Athens, Greece, built between 447 BCE and 432 BCE to honor the Greek goddess Athena. The Parthenon located in the acropolis is located on the top of a big hill. This could be a tactic to protect the structure from invaders, however, this is also symbolic of wanting to be closer to the gods, in this case closer to Athena. This great architectural piece made of huge slabs of marble creates a sense of grandness only the gods deserved. The architect included relief sculpture of larger than
The Athenians built the Parthenon in 447 BC, as a replacement of their first temple and a monument of victory after leading the Greeks to victory against the Persians. Funded by the wealthy members of the society and money appropriated by the recently moved from the Bank of Delian league, the Parthenon stood as political statement of democracy in addition to its religious function. Geographically located at the highest point of the city and within proximity of the acropolis, Athenians and visitors would be able to witness the grandeur of Athenian wealth during their height of power. Being a cultural center for art and the leaders of the other Greek City-States during the war, the Athenian claim to being the most quintessential Greeks. Through
Parthenon is a former temple,Greece dedicated it to their goddess Athena, the people of Parthenon considered it as their patron.While they were creating a building the Persians decided to come over and burn it down and where that building was after the Persians burnt it down the Greeks built the Parthenon right where the other building was.
The Parthenon is a mid-fifth century building dedicated to Athena, the goddess of wisdom, strategic warfare, and many other things. The Parthenon was built on the Athenian Acropolis, in Athens, Greece. The Parthenon is filled with many statues and pieces of art, among them, the Frieze, the Pediment Sculpture, and the Elgin Marbles.Need a thesis and vary sentence beginnings.
The most well known of the Acropolis’ monuments is the Parthenon. Dedicated to Athena, the patron goddess of Athens, it is the largest temple on the Acropolis. Construction on it was completed in 432 BC. Incredibly detailed stonework provided both function and adornment is a hallmark of the building. The temple has served several purposes over time, having been used as a treasury, Christian church, mosque, and now archaeological site.
The Parthenon or its full name which is the Periclean Parthenon of Athens is a classical Greek structure ordered by the Athenian General at that time, General Pericles, who was responsible for the construction of many important temples. The Parthenon was considered the best temple built by Pericles. It was built as a replacement for a damaged Athenian temple, which was destroyed by the Persian Empire in 480 BCE. The construction of the Parthenon was in the hands of two architects Iktinos and Kallikrates. The cost of the constructions was 469 silver talents. Soon in the middle of the 5th century BCE the construction of the Parthenon had begun. It had costed 469 silver talents for the construction of the Athenian temple. In 432 BCE, the construction of the Athenian temple finished with the same designs like many other Greek temples. The majority of many Greek temples had the same structural design, with lots of supporting columns to hold up the triangular roof. Inside is an interior room where a statue for all who come to worship is located. The interior room was too small to fit all the worshippers inside, so the worshipper had to stay outside to pray, unless they wanted to bring offerings to Athena. Inside the interior room of the Parthenon was a statue of the Greek Goddess of wisdom, Athena. This is because they believed that Athena had helped the Athenians fight against the Persian Empire. They also
The second reason why the Parthenon belongs to the Greek culture is because the temple itself is “. . . a building whose familiar form has become virtually synonymous with the boldest triumphs and highest ambitions of the age of Pericles” (Green, 11). Since Pericles is a Greek figure and all of his triumphs were for the Greek people and well-being of the civilization, it is clear that the Parthenon can be strictly claimed by the Greeks. Also, the idea behind the building of this monument was to honor the goddess Athena (“Parthenon”). This is Greek simply because Athena was a goddess of the Greek culture. Other cultures had different names for their gods and goddesses and also had different ways of honoring those divine figures. Had the Parthenon been a Roman structure, it might have been to honor Hera or Diana. Had it been an Islamic structure, it might have been to honor
Located in Athens, Greece; The Parthenon was built from 447 BC to 432 BC. The temple served two main purposes: First, It was built in dedication to the goddess of Athena, which held the Statue of Athena. People believed that she helped the Greeks conquer the Persian Empire in the Persian Wars as well as watched over them and the city. Second, it was a branch of the state treasury at the time it was built. Under the supervision of the sculptor Phidias, two architects were given the credit in the design of The Parthenon. The architects were Iktinus and Kallicrates. Phidias was a very distinguished sculptor and architect at the time when the Parthenon was being built, he oversaw all of the art and sculptures that were going in the Parthenon. While Iktinos and Kallikrates oversaw the structural aspect. “The Parthenon was a creation of a free democracy, initiated, controlled, and approved by popular assembly and its judicial organs” (Bruno 111) The Parthenon itself had replaced an older temple of Athena that had been destroyed by the Persians in 480BC. After the invasion of Greece, multiple city-states came in agreement to create a military called the Delian League. Vast amounts of resources, including warships, were donated by the city-states. Thus the construction of the Parthenon began in 447 BC.
At the height of the Athenian Empire, 5th century BCE, one of the greatest temples of all time was erected, the Parthenon a temple dedicated to the cities patron goddess Athena Parthenos. Built on the hills of The Acropolis between 447-432 BC, The Parthenon was made to an all-encompassing formula creating perfect proportions and dimensions. This perfect temple celebrates the magnificent power of Athenians years earlier that had successfully defeated the Persians during the