Acropolis in Athens, Greece
The Acropolis is the supreme expression of the adaptation
of architecture to a natural site. Towering above a rocky
promontory, it's visible from all angles in the city of Athens.
Following a victory against the Persians and the establishment
of democracy (wow) , Athens pulled together the best Greek
artists and architects to build a fortress, a symbol of unity and
strength that is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Originally built as a military fortress, due to its position
with view of the land and sea, the Acropolis evolved
into a religious center, to worship the goddess Athena.
Armed Greek military still stand guard today.
See the white sections in the columns? Those are new marble
filler sections for missing pieces. A major restoration project
has been ongoing since 1975. The goal is to reverse
the decay of centuries of attrition, pollution, acts of war
and misguided past restorations. Current reconstruction
is being done with titanium dowels, and is completely
reversible, in case future experts decide to change things.
Even cleaning technology has evolved - laser impulse
is now used to clean the 20,000 tons of marble used
to construct the Acropolis.
Part of the restoration has been to disassemble and reassemble
marble pieces that were once thought to "fit" in certain places.
Orthographic (from the Greek! "Orthos" means straight,
and "graphe" means draw) projection can be used to show
how the pieces should fit together.
Detail from the roof of the Pantheon (one of four buildings
in the Acropolis). Does it look like there are pieces
missing? There are! The British Prime Minister to Greece,
in a (to put it mildly) controversial move, actually hired
workers to pry off huge sections of the Acropolis,
which he carted back to London, where they are now
the pride of the British Museum. Athens has wanted
them back ever since they were stolen in 1867.
Good luck with that.
Beautiful Doric columns, fluted with concave grooves,
represent the pinnacle of classical Greek architecture.
Not your average construction site! The Acropolis
Restoration Committee is a joint scholarly supervision
by 250 experts in archeology, architecture, civil engineering,
chemical engineering and conservation.
Pericles, arguable the most prominent and influential
Greek statesman, was a promoter of arts and literature.
Through his efforts, the Acropolis project began.
It beautified and protected the city, exhibited its glory
and gave work to the people. He said,
"We live under a form of government which does not
emulate the institutions of our neighbors.
On the contrary, we ourselves are the model,
which some follow rather than be the imitators
of other peoples. Our government is called a
democracy, because its administration is in
the hands not of the few but of the majority."
The Erechtheon, another building at the Acropolis,
includes the "Porch of the Caryatids (Maidens),
who seem to be watching over the
sprawling Athens landscape.
