Further along on the gallery’s left side are finds from the sanctuary of Asklepios, the god of medicine, which was also located on the South Slope of the Acropolis. The many dedications, with scenes of worshippers approaching Asklepios and his family, and anatomical votive offerings, featuring depictions of the parts of the human body that had been healed, bear witness to the sanctuary’s great importance in the religious life of the city.

The Parthenon had the richest sculptural decoration among all ancient Greek temples. Through this carved figural work, the Athenians—employing the vocabulary of myth—manifested the leading role of their city to the Greek world. The three essential sculptural groups that adorned this large temple included the metopes, the frieze and the pediments. The sculptures were carved from white Pentelic marble and accentuated with colours and metal attachments, such as bridles, weapons and other detailing.

In this program, students meet the four most important monuments of the Acropolis (the Propylaia, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Parthenon and the Erechtheion). With the help of three-dimensional models and other visual materials, they reconstruct the Sanctuary of the classical period. At the same time, through observation of the exhibits (architectural members and sculptures), they learn about the function of each building, its architectural order, decoration and its special characteristics.

In this program, students meet the four most important monuments of the Acropolis (the Propylaia, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Parthenon and the Erechtheion). With the help of three-dimensional models and other visual materials, they reconstruct the Sanctuary of the classical period. At the same time, through observation of the exhibits (architectural members and sculptures), they learn about the function of each building, its architectural order, decoration and its special characteristics.

The bronze cut-out relief depicting the mythical Gorgon, displayed in a separate case, marks the transformation of the Acropolis from a palace centre to a sanctuary. By the end of the 8th century BC, the institution of hereditary kingship had been weakened and power transferred to a small group of aristocrats. The new leaders relocated their centre of administration to the northeast slope of the Rock, thus turning the summit of the Acropolis into a place for worshipping the gods.

The first monumental temple on the Acropolis was founded in the place of the small brick-walled temple of Athena Parthenos. Referred to by archaeologists as the "Archaic Parthenon", it was probably the “Hekatompedon” mentioned in ancient historical sources. While an exact foundation date remains unknown, many have linked its construction to the establishment of the Greater Panathenaia festival in 566/5 BC.

  Did you know that the current almost white hue of the frieze is due to time? The frieze was painted with wonderful colours. Red, blue, green, yellow and gold were some of the colours used by the ancient artists. The temple was thought to be completed only when its sculptures were also painted. Become an ancient painter and choose your favourite colours to bring the frieze to life.

Water was a principal element in ancient Greek thought. The Athenians personified it and believed in its divine control. Visitors will have an opportunity to discuss its polymorphous presence on the Acropolis and the aqueous world in cult, in myth and in the life of ancient Athens, with the Museum’s Archaeologist-Hosts. Information Greek: 1 p.m. English: Saturday talks can also be given in English, upon email request ([email protected])

The Erechtheion, designed by the architect Mnesikles, was a complex building constructed in the last twenty years of the 5th century BC. It replaced the “Archaios Neos” (Ancient Temple) of Athena Polias, part of which had been destroyed by the Persians sixty years earlier. The new temple was divided into two chambers: an eastern room dedicated to Athena, which held the goddess’ wooden cult statue; and a lower western room that accommodated shrines of Poseidon-Erechtheus, Hephaistos and Boutes, the brother of Erechtheus.

Ancient mythical figures left their mark on the most ancient cult site on the Acropolis, that of Athena Polias. The Erechtheion, a remarkable building, was the last temple to house this significant cult. Together with the Museum’s Archaeologist-Hosts, visitors will explore the unique character of this temple through its architectural, decorative, and religious features, and discuss its later history. The presentation will be enhanced by the use of models and digital tablets. Information Greek: 1 p.m.

Why does the Erechtheion differ from any other ancient temple? Why did the Athenians consider it to be the most sacred building on the Acropolis? This film presents all those features that make the Erechtheion unique, beginning with the age-old cults of gods and heroes that it housed and reaching down to its inventive architecture and outstanding sculptural decoration.

Why does the Erechtheion differ from any other ancient temple? Why did the Athenians consider it to be the most sacred building on the Acropolis? This film presents all those features that make the Erechtheion unique, beginning with the age-old cults of gods and heroes that it housed and reaching down to its inventive architecture and outstanding sculptural decoration.

  The Acropolis Museum received the renowned “Fagan fragment” for at least eight years, from the Antonino Salinas Museum in Palermo. The significance of this return does not lie in the long-term nature of the deposit of the fragment to the monument to which it belongs, the Parthenon frieze at the Acropolis Museum, but in the prospect of remaining here permanently (sine die), following the initiative launched by the Independent Regional Authority of Sicily towards the Italian Ministry of Culture.

The frieze in ancient temples was a continuous zone of panels, usually adorned with carved reliefs, which in Ionic-style buildings replaced the metopes above the columns of the outer colonnade. The Ionic frieze incorporated into the Doric Parthenon wrapped around the outer, upper walls of the cella – the temple proper. It consisted of 115 blocks that reached a total length of 160 metres and were structural elements of the building. Shown in the reliefs carved on their exterior faces were 378 human and divine figures, as well as more than 220 animals, mostly horses.

The first exhibition space, on the Museum’s ground floor, contains finds from the Acropolis slopes.

The “metopes” were the rectangular slabs that adorned the outside of Doric temples, just above the exterior colonnade. The Parthenon was the only ancient Greek temple to feature sculpted reliefs on all ninety-two of its metopes. The Parthenon’s metopes were carved between 445 and 440 BC – the first architectural members bearing sculpted decoration to be installed on the building. As they were carved by various craftsmen, they differ slightly in their style. 

Architectural design of the building

Why is the Parthenon considered an exceptional monument of world cultural heritage? Why did it grab the attention of both its earlier and current viewers to such a degree? Visitors will discuss issues related to this celebrated monument’s architecture, its decoration and the way in which it is exhibited, its symbolism and its history, with the Archaeologist-Hosts. They will also be able to observe its unsurpassed sculptures from up close, and to admire the temple itself in its natural environment through the transparent wall on the Museum’s third floor.

Why is the Parthenon considered an exceptional monument of world cultural heritage? Why did it grab the attention of both its earlier and current viewers to such a degree? Visitors will discuss issues related to this celebrated monument’s architecture, its decoration and the way in which it is exhibited, its symbolism and its history, with the Archaeologist-Hosts. They will also be able to observe its unsurpassed sculptures from up close, and to admire the temple itself in its natural environment through the transparent wall on the Museum’s third floor.

Why is the Parthenon considered an exceptional monument of world cultural heritage? Why did it grab the attention of both its earlier and current viewers to such a degree? Visitors will discuss issues related to this celebrated monument’s architecture, its decoration and the way in which it is exhibited, its symbolism and its history, with the Archaeologist-Hosts. They will also be able to observe its unsurpassed sculptures from up close, and to admire the temple itself in its natural environment through the transparent wall on the Museum’s third floor.