The Parthenon

Most prominent and visible from the city below, and best known of the ruins on The Acropolis is probably the Parthenon, temple to Athena and completed around 438 BC.  It sits on the summit of the hill and is impressive as you approach it from the Propylaia. 

While not evident in the photos nor to the naked eye, the pillars of the Parthenon are actually built at an angle, leaning in serval degrees at the top.  If extended up into the sky above, they would form a pyramid!  The outer edges of the base are built to a slightly parabolic upward curvature to shed water, and some speculate to give the structure strength against the forces of weather and earthquakes.

Restoration of all of the structures has been ongoing for years.  Modern pollution has accelerated the deterioration of the marble, which reacts to the sulfur and other pollutants in the air.  In all of the photos you will see white areas filling in around the more faded general color of the structure.  In all cases this is new marble that has been cut to fit into an area lost to deterioration.  The new marble is always from the same mine/source as the original marble, which maintains the archeological integrity of the restoration.  Eventually the new marble should match the old.

Also notice in the photos above that the columns are actually built in sections, or slices.  This was necessary in order to handle the material and erect the columns.  Each section is actually like a donut with a hole in the middle.  A bronze or iron rod was used to form the center of each column and align the sections.  Below is a closer view of some column sections.

From the backside the Parthenon is equally impressive as seen below.  One can only imagine how impressive this hilltop fortress must have been at its prime.  Definitely an interesting and worthwhile site to visit.  We could have easily spent more time here. To learn more about the Parthenon, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenon.