Parthenon
History
The Parthenon is a former temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their patron. Its 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.
Architecture
The Parthenon is a peripteral octastyle Doric temple with Ionic architectural features. It stands on a platform or stylobate of three steps. In common with other Greek temples, it is of post and lintel construction and is surrounded by columns ("peripteral") carrying an entablature. There are eight columns at either end and seventeen on the sides. There is a double row of columns at either end. The colonnade surrounds an inner masonry structure, the cella, which is divided into two compartments. At either end of the building, the gable is finished with a triangular pediment originally occupied by sculpted figures. The columns are of the Doric order, with simple capitals, fluted shafts and no bases. Above the architrave of the entablature is a frieze of carved pictorial panels (metopes), separated by formal architectural features called triglyphs. The metopes of the east side of the Parthenon, above the main entrance, depict a battle between gods and giants. The rest of the metopes depict battles between Greeks and centaurs.
Sculptures
The most characteristic feature in the architecture and decoration of the Parthenon is the Ionic frieze running around the exterior walls of the cella. Carved in bas-relief, it most likely depicts the Panathenaic procession from the Dipylon Gate in the Kerameikos to the Acropolis. In this procession held every year, with a special procession taking place every four years, Athenians and foreigners were participating to honour the goddess Athena, offering sacrifices and a new peplos (dress woven by selected noble Athenian girls called ergastines).
Preservation and Restoration
The Parthenon survived as a temple to Athena for a thousand years. It was then converted into a church, then a mosque, and then a gunpowder store, which led to its ruin. Since the 1970s, a team of Greek and foreign architects and engineers have been working on the difficult task of restoring the building. The restoration project, which is costing many millions of euros, involves erecting a crane in the middle of the building, which is being used to move blocks of marble and is visible from all over Athens. The project is due to be completed by 2020.