Parthenon

DoricParthenon

Parthenon ancient & Pericles, Maxime Collignon

Perserschutt

Parthenon restoration

Parthenon plan

The East Facade pf the Parthenon on March 22, 2021

The Parthenon is an ancient temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their patron. Construction began in 447 BC when the Athenian Empire was at the peak of its power. It was completed in 438 BC, although decoration of the building continued until 432 BC. It is the most important surviving building of Classical Greece, generally considered the zenith of the Doric order. Its decorative sculptures are considered some of the high points of Greek art. The Parthenon is regarded as an enduring symbol of Ancient Greece, Athenian democracy, and Western civilization, and one of the world's greatest cultural monuments. To the Athenians who built it, the Parthenon and other Periclean monuments of the Acropolis were seen as a celebration of Hellenic victory over the Persian Empire and as a thanksgiving to the gods for that victory.

Architecture

The Parthenon is a Doric temple with Ionic architectural features. It is rectangular, with a slightly larger area than earlier temples, measuring 69.5 by 30.9 meters (228 by 101 ft) at the level of the top step. The Parthenon had 46 outer columns and 19 inner columns, each column standing 10.4 meters (34 ft) high. The columns are of the Doric order, with the exception of the slightly more elaborate Ionic columns at the rear of the building. The use of optical refinements, such as columns that lean inward slightly, which correct the optical illusion of concavity, is a hallmark of its sophisticated architectural design.

Sculpture

The sculptures of the Parthenon, known as the Parthenon Marbles, include the metopes, the frieze, and the pediments. The metopes on the outer walls of the temple depicted scenes from Greek mythology, including the Battle of the Giants, the Trojan War, and the Battle of the Amazons. The frieze ran around the outer walls of the cella, the inner chamber, and depicted the Panathenaic Procession, a religious procession in honor of Athena. The pediments at each end of the temple showed scenes of the birth of Athena and her contest with Poseidon for the patronage of Athens.

History

The Parthenon was built to replace an earlier temple of Athena, which was destroyed in the Persian invasion of 480 BC. The construction was part of a larger project initiated by Pericles, the leader of Athens, to rebuild the Acropolis and assert Athens' supremacy among the city-states of Greece. The Parthenon itself was used as a treasury and at one point housed the treasury of the Delian League, which later became the Athenian Empire.

Over the centuries, the Parthenon has served many functions. In the 6th century AD, it was converted into a Christian church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. During the Ottoman conquest, it became a mosque in the early 1460s. In 1687, during the Venetian siege of Athens, the building was severely damaged when an Ottoman ammunition dump inside the building was ignited by Venetian cannon fire.

Preservation and Damage

The Parthenon has endured considerable damage over the centuries. Besides the damage from the Venetian siege, it has suffered from pollution, tourism, and previous misguided restoration attempts. Restoration projects have been ongoing since the 1970s to ensure the stability and longevity of this ancient structure.

Cultural Significance

The Parthenon is a symbol of the glory of ancient Greece and democracy. It is also a testament to Greek architectural innovation and its enduring beauty and precision. The debates over the Parthenon Marbles, many of which are housed in the British Museum, highlight the ongoing conversation about cultural heritage and the repatriation of artifacts.