Classical Athens revision 💀
Religion (Excluding myths)
The Parthenon
The Parthenon was made to worship Athena.
It was located on the Acropolis.
The word Parthenon is Greek for maiden or unmarried girl. Athena was an unmarried goddess, hence the name of her temple.
The Pediments
A pediment is the triangular upper part of a classical building.
On the Parthenon, there were sculptures on the pediments. They showed the importance of Athena to the Athenians.
The first pediment shows Athena’s birth. She was born from Zeus’ head.
The second pediment shows the contest between Poseidon and Athena for the naming of Athens.
The pediments show the importance of Athena to the Greek as they celebrate her birth and her being the patron of Athens.
The Metopes
The metopes were on all four sides of the outside of the temple.
They depict different parts of warfare, including Greek victories. This shows the importance of Athena as a war goddess who leads the Athens to victory.
The Statue of Athena
The main reason the Parthenon was built was to hold a statue of Athena.
This shows how she was worshipped as a goddess of victory in battle.
The Parthenon Frieze
A frieze is a continual sculptured band of stone.
The frieze showed a procession during one of Athen’s Panathenaic festivals.
It showed everyone taking part in the procession, such as:
- Horsemen
- Men in chariots
- Youth carrying trays or water-jars
- Animals for sacrifice
- Musicians
- Girls carrying jugs and bowls
- Citzens
- The Gods
The Athenians chose to depict the procession on the frieze because of how important honouring Athena is to them.
Summary Table
| Feature of the Parthenon | Description | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Frieze | Depicts the Panathenaiac procession and all those involved (sacrafices , musicians, etc.) | The procession was the key event in the festival honouring Athena. |
| Pediment 1 | Shows the birth of Athena from Zeus’ head. | This shows how the Parthenon was used to celebrate Athena |
| Pediment 2 | Shows the contest for Athens between Athena and Poseidon. | This shows how the Parthenon was used to celebrate Athena becoming the patron goddess of Athens. |
| Metopes | Shows the famous battles between the Athenians and their enemies. | This shows how the Athenians worshipped Athen as goddess of war. |
| Statue of Athena | The statues has Athena holding the goddess of victory, Nike. | This shows how the Athenians worshipped Athena as a goddess of military success. |
The Panathenaia
- The Ancient Greeks worked all week, they had no weekends off.
- The only time the Greeks got off work was during a festival.
- There were around 120 festivals a year.
- During the Panathenaia people would have tine off work to be involved in the festival.
- The Panathenaia was centered around Athena.
- The Panathenaia took placed every year around the time of Athena’s birthday.
- Every 4th year it was celebrated with extra special honour and was called the Great Panathenaia.
The Peplos
The peplos was the central icon of the Panathenaia.
The peplos was a purple and yellow cloth.
Woven into it is the scenes depicting the myth of the Olympians’ victory over the Giants, with Zeus and Athena at the forefront.
The peplos was woven by a team of young women (women thus played a vital role in their city’s grandest festival)
A second peplos may have been made for the Great Panathenaia: records indicate that a much larger peplos was attached to a ship-cart and wheeled along as part of its procession.