GREECE  

Athens

In Greek mythology the primary deity in Athens and on the Acropolis was Athena, whose cult here was stronger than any other Greek city.  The story goes, that she sprang fully armed from her the head of her father Zeus.  Later she was in a bitter struggle with Poseidon god of the sea, for rule in Athens. 

Standing on the Acropolis you have a panoramic view of Athens.  Most of the monuments still visible on the Acropolis (which means the highest point of the city), were built in the 2nd half of the fifth century BC  It was the most important religious center for Athens for centuries.  The Parthenon, The Propylaia, the temple of Athena Nike and the Erechtheon were all erected between 447 and 406 BC

In the Mycenean era the king of Athens had his palace on the Acropolis, in the 13th century BC  After 1100 BC the administrative center was moved to the Agora below, and the Acropolis into a religious sanctuary, with Athena as the presiding goddess.  Toward the middle of the 5th century BC, after victory over Persian invaders the Athenians reconstructed temples and other buildings. 

In the Hellenistic and Roman periods, more statues were put up, but most were plundered or destroyed in the early years of the Christian era.  When Christianity was adopted in Greece, most of the monumental buildings were converted into churches, but the Turks turned them into mosques from 1458 to 1821.  After the liberation of Greece a start was made on excavation and restoration.  In 1975 a major drive was launched for the conservation and restoration of all the monuments, which continues today.   There is much construction currently underway throughout the city in preparation for the 2004 Olympics.

The Third Macedonian War was 172-168 BC.  Lucius Aemelius Paulus of Rome defeated Perseus of Macedon at Pydna. Macedonia was divided into four republics.  In 172 BC Roman invaded Greece Mummius Achaicus attacked Corinth and dissolved the Achaean league. Rome ruled Greece from 146 BC. Romans led by Sulla sacked Athens in 86 BC.[3]  Antony made Athens his capital in 42 BC. 

Greeks living in Rome in 31 BC to 14 AD were neo-Atticists. They set out to revive the form of the Attic dialect of the Greek language, later called Koine, that had been current in the fifth and fourth centuries BC. From the Ionic dialect developed the Attic, the standard form of classical Greek. It was the language of Athens and the surrounding district of Attica and differed from the other Ionic forms chiefly in its contraction of vowels. Because of the political supremacy of Athens during and after the 5th century bc and the dominant role of Athenian art, philosophy, and drama, the Attic dialect superseded all others and became the chief literary language. 

Greece was conquered by Rome, but Rome stole, copied, and borrowed much of the Greek culture, including the Koine Greek which was spoken in much of the world. Some have said that Greek civilization conquered Rome. Thus, Koine Greek became the commercial language of the Roman Empire. The Greek language is considered by some to have been the best medium ever known for expressing theological and philosophical ideas. The principal grammatical differences between Modern and Ancient Greek are in declension and verbal conjugation. In declension, Modern Greek has abandoned two basic forms used in Ancient Greek: the dual, a form indicating that a noun, pronoun, or adjective refers to two persons or things; and the dative case, which is now used only in a few idiomatic expressions.

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The dual form has also been abolished from verbal conjugation, as have the optative mood (used in antiquity to indicate doubt or desire) and the infinitive. In place of the specific verb forms used to denote the various tenses in Ancient Greek, Modern Greek makes extensive use of auxiliary verbs. The Ancient Greek imperative forms have been largely replaced by the use of an auxiliary with the subjunctive form of the verb.[4]

Athens is the capital of Greece and the country’s largest city, Athens is dominated by the flat-topped hill of the Acropolis, site of the 2400-year-old Parthenon, one of the most famous classical monuments in the world. Close by lie the Theatre of Dionysus and the restored Odeon of Herodes Atticus Ancient Agora can be visited, as can the reconstructed Hellenistic Stoa of Attalos, which houses the Agora Museum.  Lying at the innermost point of the Saronic Gulf just outside Athens, and connected to the center by metro, Piraeus is the city’s main port. From here ferries leave regularly for the Islands.  The area surrounding Athens, known as Attica, is characterized by calm beaches slopes of Mount Parnes, Hymettus and Pentelico. As one travels northwest, towards the interior, the landscape combines fertile plains planted with tobacco and cotton, and rugged mountains, and many olive trees.

In ancient times the Athenian acropolis was accessed through the propylea — a monumental gateway. We walked through the ruins of the propylea in order to reach the top of the acropolis where the great temples are found. Many Greek cities had an acropolis, especially for purposes of defense.

The Parthenon —was built to house a great statue of Athena. goddess of knowledge. ‘Athens’ means virgin’s place’ or clear virgin’s wisdom’. Athena was born from the head of Zeus, symbolizing knowledge, wisdom.

The Parthenon was one of the best constructed buildings in all of history. The architects and builders corrected for optical illusions with slight curvatures in order to gain the appearance of straight lines. The exquisite marble for the Parthenon came from Pentelicus several miles away. Over the years it has taken on a golden glow as a result of its iron content. Originally (i.e. in the 4 century BC) the building and statues were painted.

The friezes of the Parthenon told the stories of the gods and goddesses who according to mythology founded the city: North side — citizens with sacrifices on their way to a festival West side — men and their horses, the Great Festival South side — war, chariots, travelers. East side — offerings for Athena.  The structure served as a Christian church — approx. 1000 AD - 1400 A.D., it served as a Moslem mosque — 1400 - 1600’s and was partially destroyed by the Venetians — 1687.

The Erectheon is small temple that includes the Porch of the Maidens (Caryatids), figures of women serving as columns. The figures we see today are replacements. Some of the originals can be seen in the small museum located on the acropolis. One of the originals is also located at the British Museum in London along with the "Elgin marbles," figures from the Parthenon friezes taken to London in the early 19 century by Lord Elgin.

New International airport is 17 miles N.E. of Athens.  Sounion is 43 miles from Athens.

Points of interest in Athens include: The Agora — the ancient market place. The word derives from I speak." Originally it was a place for public speaking and evolved into a market place. Every town had its Agora. The National Gardens — formerly the royal gardens at Constitution Square here also are parliament’s palace, tomb of the unknown soldier. Guards (Efzoni) wear shirts and have pompoms on the shoes. It is a very formal and ritualized changing of the guard. The Stadium — site of the revival of the Olympic Games in Athens in 1896.