Ancient Greece is renowned for cultural developments that ultimately laid a foundation for modern Western tradition. Their profound innovations in art and architecture greatly influenced the development of the world and will continue to echo through time. There is no better reflection of their architectural ambition and genius than the Parthenon. The Parthenon, constructed between 447 and 432 BCE on the Athenian Acropolis, stands as the most lavish, technically refined, and programmatically cohesive temple on the Greek mainland, a fitting commemoration of the Athenians ' spectacular and unexpected victories in the Persian Wars. This colossal structure was not only built in honor of the goddess Athena, believed to have aided Greece during
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These pediments were decorated with massive statues in honor of Athena. The west pediment shows a rivalry between Athena and Poseidon competing for the patronage of the city. Greek mythology describes the event occurring at the Acropolis. A water fountain emerged from the earth as Poseidon tapped his trident to the ground, and Athena followed by creating an olive tree. The glory was prized to Athena, which was determined by the practicality of her gift. Athena 's birth is depicted on the eastern pediment in which she emerges as an adult fully armed from the head of Zeus. Although the pediments have suffered greatly through time, the quality of the carvings is apparent through the defined musculature of the men and the flowing garments of the females. The carvings were designed to sit high atop the pediments, but each of the pediments were carved along the back as if they were intended to be seen all the way around. The final sculpture completed for the temple was the extravagant statue of Athena Parthenos, created by Pheidas himself. This massive gold and ivory statue was housed in the cella of the temple. Modern copies and documented descriptions provide clues to it 's appearance, but nothing remains of the statue today. Standing forty feet tall, Athena held a shield in one hand and Nike in the other. Her helmet and drapery were made of gold while her body was made of plates of ivory. Mythological scenes …show more content…
Several structural changes were made, but the most significant was a pulpit and bishop 's throne put in place of the statue of Athena. In addition, motifs and other statues that depicted more than one God were removed and destroyed by the Christians. The Parthenon was a church until 1458, when it was converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. The Ottomans managed to maintain the Parthenon well until the late 1600s when they were attacked by Venetians. Tragically, a large portion of the Parthenon was damaged by an explosion caused by Venetian rockets meeting the ammunition the Ottomans had stored in the center of the structure. The Venetains inevitably looted the valuable objects remaining and destroyed others, leaving it in partial ruin as seen in the present day. Most of the depictions and sculptures were stolen while others were destroyed, the real depiction of the temple can only be seen from the drawings of Jacques Carrey, a Flemish artist in the 1670s. From 1801 to 1803, Thomas Bruce, Lord Elgin, brought most of the surviving sculptures to England. For the past two centuries, they have been on exhibit in the British Museum, although Greece has appealed many times for the return of the “Elgin Marbles” and built a new museum near the Acropolis to house them. In 1975, the British government with collaboration and help of some European countries started
These pediments were decorated with massive statues in honor of Athena. The west pediment shows a rivalry between Athena and Poseidon competing for the patronage of the city. Greek mythology describes the event occurring at the Acropolis. A water fountain emerged from the earth as Poseidon tapped his trident to the ground, and Athena followed by creating an olive tree. The glory was prized to Athena, which was determined by the practicality of her gift. Athena 's birth is depicted on the eastern pediment in which she emerges as an adult fully armed from the head of Zeus. Although the pediments have suffered greatly through time, the quality of the carvings is apparent through the defined musculature of the men and the flowing garments of the females. The carvings were designed to sit high atop the pediments, but each of the pediments were carved along the back as if they were intended to be seen all the way around. The final sculpture completed for the temple was the extravagant statue of Athena Parthenos, created by Pheidas himself. This massive gold and ivory statue was housed in the cella of the temple. Modern copies and documented descriptions provide clues to it 's appearance, but nothing remains of the statue today. Standing forty feet tall, Athena held a shield in one hand and Nike in the other. Her helmet and drapery were made of gold while her body was made of plates of ivory. Mythological scenes …show more content…
Several structural changes were made, but the most significant was a pulpit and bishop 's throne put in place of the statue of Athena. In addition, motifs and other statues that depicted more than one God were removed and destroyed by the Christians. The Parthenon was a church until 1458, when it was converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. The Ottomans managed to maintain the Parthenon well until the late 1600s when they were attacked by Venetians. Tragically, a large portion of the Parthenon was damaged by an explosion caused by Venetian rockets meeting the ammunition the Ottomans had stored in the center of the structure. The Venetains inevitably looted the valuable objects remaining and destroyed others, leaving it in partial ruin as seen in the present day. Most of the depictions and sculptures were stolen while others were destroyed, the real depiction of the temple can only be seen from the drawings of Jacques Carrey, a Flemish artist in the 1670s. From 1801 to 1803, Thomas Bruce, Lord Elgin, brought most of the surviving sculptures to England. For the past two centuries, they have been on exhibit in the British Museum, although Greece has appealed many times for the return of the “Elgin Marbles” and built a new museum near the Acropolis to house them. In 1975, the British government with collaboration and help of some European countries started