The Sacred Rock of Athens

Saturday, 2 November 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The second part of Chinthaka Thenuwara and Poornima Jayasinghe’s Grecian adventure takes us on an architectural tour of ancient Greece and

further into the ancient ruins of the Acropolis. The Acropolis hill (acro – edge, polis – city), also called the “Sacred Rock” of Athens, is the most important site in the city and constitutes one of the most recognisable monuments in the world. It is the most significant reference point of ancient Greek culture, as well as the symbol of the city of Athens itself as it represent the apogee of artistic development in the 5th century BC. During Pericles’ Golden Age, ancient Greek civilisation was represented in an ideal way on the hill and some of the architectural masterpieces of the period were erected on its ground. The Propylaea are the monumental entrances to the sacred area dedicated to Athena, the patron goddess of the city. Built by the architect Mnesicles with Pentelic marble, their design was avant-garde. To the south-west of the Propylaea, on a rampart protecting the main entrance to the Acropolis, is the Ionian temple of Apteros Nike, which is now being restored. The first habitation remains on the Acropolis date from the Neolithic period. Over the centuries, the rocky hill was continuously used either as a cult place or as a residential area or both. The inscriptions on the numerous and precious offerings to the sanctuary of Athena (marble korai, bronze and clay statuettes and vases) indicate that the cult of the city’s patron goddess was established as early as the Archaic period (650-480 B.C.). Pix by Chinthaka Thenuwara and Poornima Jayasinghe