Acropolis
Acropolis
Administrator
30/11/-0001
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Location: In the most central part of the city of Athens going either on foot from Syntagma Square or with the red metro line to the Acropolis.

The word Acropolis comes from the combination of the words akros and polis and literally means city on the edge. For defensive purposes, the settlers chose an elevated point, often a hill with sharp sides. The Acropolis is one such hill with a height of about 157 m above the surface of the sea and about 70 m. above from the surface of the city of Athens. The top of the hill is trapezoidal in shape with 300m long and 150m wide. The hill is inaccessible in all the sides except the one in the west, where is located the fortified entrance, decorated with the glorious Propylaea.

On the hill of the Acropolis you will see the Propylaea, the Temple of Athena, the Parthenon and the Erechtheion.

With the Propylaea we are essentially talking about the entrance of the Acropolis that began to be built in the 436 BC.  and after the completion of the Parthenon, in designs of the architect Mnisiklis 

The temple of Athena which is a small all-marble temple, which began to be built between 427 and 424 BC. by the architect Kallikrates. Inside this temple was the statue of Athena Niki, holding a helmet in her left hand and a pomegranate in her right hand, which is a symbol of the gods of the underworld.

The Parthenon is the largest and most official building of the Acropolis and has gathered the admiration of the whole world for centuries now. The construction of this all-marble temple of Athena began in 447 BC. under the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates. The temple was completed in 438 BC. and during the Panathenaia celebrations of the following year and was dedicated to the patron goddess. It is a Doric style temple with eight columns on the narrow and seventeen on the long sides. The frieze on the walls of the nave had representations of the Panathenaic procession.

The Erechtheion point of the quarrel between Athena and Poseidon for the domination of the Athenian city. A temple built and dedicated to both in order for the inhabitants to show respect to both the winner and the loser.

Sightseeing Excursions