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 …show more content…
Culturally this idea placed women in a position of subordination under men, where they could only be seen as “proper” when they were mothers upholding familial traditions or housewives supporting the men of the family and therefor the core of what made the Athenian community, democracy, and society. The metopes depicting the Amazonomachy shows the Amazons as products of untamed, wild women that need to be tamed by men and who are easily bested by men. Showing their incompetence when compared to men, is on the ___ Pediment, where the story of the naming of Athens through the picking of patrons leads to a disastrous aftermath, due to two wrong decisions made by the women. Of course the men were forced to clean up the aftermath of the women and resulted in the loss of the women’s voting rights to appease the gods, thus saying that the subordination of women was decided by the gods. Again their inadequacy is shown with the procession when they aren’t worthy enough to directly present Athena with the sacred cloth (despite them being competent enough to make it). Their representation in the procession is also limited to only two instances, where visual effects are used to show how women are meant to bare the the burden of the community through their fertility and abilities to produce- as seen with …show more content…
Starting at the eye level of the viewer is the myth of Pandora’s creation, where as the first woman she brought about everything that calls men misery. An example of the consequences of Pandora and the burden of women is shown in the souls of Athena’s shoes, slightly higher than the base. During the Centauromachy the men had to protect women from the centaurs’ misconduct and uncontrollable sexual urges which shows the societal views as men as protectors. By being born solely as a product of a man, any positive accomplishments of Athena can be attributed to her masculinity and any flaws from her being a female. Athena as a goddess is also unable to represent proper Greek women as a virgin that has given up her right to motherhood. Additionally, in the same way that she is always by the side of Zeus, Athena will always side with men who maintain a sense of logic and the men of her
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
Greek creation myth highlights how men and women differ in their status and roles. Women were the inferior sex when compared to men, they were seen as intellects, and child
The Parthenon is a beautiful building located in the center of Athens atop of the acropolis. It was built to help Athens become the most beautiful city in all of the Greek city-states. The project of building the Parthenon began in 447 BC by Pericles, the ruler. The structure is more than 200 pous long and 100 pous wide. The Athenians were careful, not to make the building too tall making it appear flimsy nor too wide making it appear squat. The Parthenon is built in one of the three orders used to build buildings in ancient Greece. The order of the Parthenon is called the Doric order. The Doric order is the most simplest and is also the lowest and widest.The Parthenon is a temple that was built to honor the goddess, Athena. Both in and outside
Ancient Greece was a patriarchal society, meaning that their social system was one in which men were the primary holders of power. Within Ancient Greek society, women were unable to take part in government or own assets. This included the ability to vote, having input on societal changes, or owning land. In times of war, women were often treated more as a commodity than human. Women were viewed only as objects of procreation, living their lives completely in the control of their father or husband. The way that men of the time viewed women is depicted in Aeschylus’s Oresteia and in the further reading of our course material from Penn Museum.
The Parthenon is located in Athens, Greece and was completed in 432BC. It was championed by Perikles, a local politician. It was built as a temple for the goddess Athena, the goddess of wisdom, courage, justice, law, and mathematics. Additionally, she was seen as the patron goddess of Athens (Athena, nd). The Parthenon was built at the height of Athenian power, and served the additional function of a show of strength and wealth (Parthenon, nd).
The Parthenon’s location is on top of a hill, called the Acropolis. This location was very convenient to the Greeks because it was right in the middle of all their temples and altars. Since the Parthenon a large building on the top of a huge hill, it can be seen from very far away, and the Greeks liked this because they could show it off to visitors from competing countries. This architecture was also so advanced, that to this day, people use the kind of the same style in designing other buildings. The Parthenon is a foundation for modern architecture and without the amazing minds of the Greeks, it wouldn’t
“Earth proudly wears the Parthenon as the best gem upon her zone” -Ralph Emerson. The Parthenon temple was constructed in Athens between 447 and 432 bc; located on a hill known as the Acropolis (meaning “high city”), the Parthenon has been admired for its beauty and master craftsmanship for millennia. When built, the temple was considered “the most decorated temple to have ever been built in ancient Greece”, however over the many years raids, explosions, and natural weathering have damaged its appearance. Nonetheless, to this day the Parthenon is an amazing sight to see. The temple was dedicated to the goddess Athena, its name being an epithet: Athena Parthenos, meaning virgin. The temple’s miraculous detail describes Athenian accomplishments
“It is difficult to imagine Greece without this spectacular structure,” stated by author De Medeiros. The Parthenon is a beautiful Greek structure that is filled with a story to tell. It was built to replace an older one that had been destroyed by the Persians and the Athenian leaders wanted to show the
After standing for approximately 2500 years, the Greek Parthenon is still a marvel of engineering and even though it is in disrepair, one can still see the ultimate beauty of the personification of classical Greek architecture. Construction began in 448 B.C.E., 32 years after most of Athens was destroyed by the Persian Army, Perikles with the guidance from Phidias employed the best artist and artisans to rebuild the grand acropolis. Architects Iktinos and Kallikrates, started building on the highest point on the Acropolis with the Parthenon standing as the largest Doric building on the Greek Mainland. What makes the Parthenon look so beautiful is the facade based on the Golden Section. The Golden Section is defined as a structure with a
The Parthenon was one of the buildings on the Acropolis of Athens. The original building was built as an offering to honor Athena the goddess of wisdom the people of Athens believed that she was the one that watched over their city. The leader that was put in charge of sculpture in the Parthenon was Phidias he was responsible for all the sculptures. The building was completed in 432 BCE it took about 15 years for the construction to be complete. Sadly, the Parthenon was horribly damaged by the Persians when they attacked Athens in 480 BC. After the war was over the city was in ruins and they needed to repair other buildings so the rebuilding of the Parthenon was delayed for about 30 years. Pericles started construction in 447 BC to try to
The Parthenon Sculptures of Athens, as stated by the Greek Historian Anaxagoras “Are a true representation of the splendour of Athens. They are a gem to the world, worthy of decorating that of Olympus”. Built in 447BCE, during the construction of the Acropolis of Athens, the Sculptures are considered by many in the modern world as being the finest samples of Greek Art during the supposed “Gilded Age” of Greek Culture from 600BCE to 150BCE. They consist of a vast collection of over 92 Metopes, 524 feet of elegant Frieze and 17 standing sculptures. Each of these constructions were formed through the usage of Parian Marble found in the Greek island of Paros, and were constructed alongside that of the Parthenon of Athens by the Athenians. Their primary purpose was to lavishly decorate the Parthenon, an Athenian temple constructed to worship the Greek God Athena. The Marbles were envied by other nearby Mediterranean nations such as Ancient Rome for
Before the Parthenon ever existed, a temple before it was destroyed by the Persians during the Persian War. The Parthenon was built to replace the fallen temple before it. The temple was started in 447 B.C and was finished completely in 432 B.C. At around this time, Athens was at its height of its power. It was built of gold and ivory and was used to show the world the dominance and power of Athens. The Parthenon was dedicated to the goddess Athena to give thanks for
Ancient Greek civilization provided notable ideas and approaches due to their large emphasis on creativity and individualism. Much of the Greek’s culture is currently shown through various forms including philosophy, sport, democracy and food. In particular, Greek architecture plays an important role in how structures are built in present day society. One of the most impressive and extraordinary structures built during the Ancient Greek period is the Parthenon. Built in honor of the Greek goddess Athena, the Parthenon stands as a symbol of Greek architecture and culture. Although the Parthenon served many functions,“the temple’s main function was to shelter the monumental statue of Athena that was made by Pheidias out of gold and ivory” (The
While the men….women attained the most difficult job of all, bearing children. These women in the society had very little freedom, actually no freedom at all. Can you imagine being locked inside a house all day with the windows locked? In the Ancient Greek society, women were actually very important to keeping the society together and functioning. Men did not give them the credit they deserved.
The area on which the Parthenon was built was not always a barren rock hill. The area surrounding the Parthenon used to be a village complete with houses and gardens. It was like this until the 1830s when the Greeks won their war for independence from Turkish rule. There was then a new ascension to the throne by a Bavarian Prince named Otto. He wanted to find a way to showcase symbols of patriotism in a country that was starting anew at the end of the war. Because of this, the area around the Parthenon is now The Acropolis hill, which is no longer a village, rather it is a hill with many monuments and sculptures from the Fifth