Ath´ens

(Gr. Athēnai , Lat. Athēnæ ), anciently the capital of Attica and centre of Greek culture, now the capital of the kingdom of Greece. It is situated in the central plain of Attica, about 4 miles from the Saronic Gulf or Gulf of Ægin a, an arm of the Ægean Sea running in between the mainland and the Peloponnesus. It is said to have been founded about 1550 B.C. by Cecrops, the mythical Pelasgian hero, and to have borne the name Cecropia until under Erechtheus it received the name of Athens in honour of Athēnē. The Acropolis, an irregular oval crag 150 feet high, with a level summit 1000 feet long by 500 in breadth, was the original nucleus of the city, which, according to tradition, was extended by These us when Athens became the head of the confederate Attic States. The three chief eminences near the Acropolis—the Areopagus to the north-west, the Pnyx to the south-west, and the Museum to the south of the Pnyx—were thus included within the city boundary as the sites of its chief public buildings, the city itself, however, afterwards taking a northerly direction. On the east ran the Ili us and on the west the Cephi us, while to the south-west lay three harbours—Phalerum, the oldest and nearest; the Piræus, the most important; and Munychia, the Piræan Acropolis. At the height of its prosperity the city was connected with its harbours by three ma ive walls (the 'long walls'). The architectural development of Athens may be dated from the rule of the Pis is trat ids (560-510 B.C. ), who are credited with the foundation of the huge temple of the Olympian Zeus, completed by Hadrian seven centuries later, the erection of the Pythium or temple of the Pythian Apollo, and of the Lyceum or temple of Apollo Lyceus—all near the Ili us; and to whom were due the enclosure of the Academy, a gymnasium and gardens to the north of the city, and the building of the Agora with its Portico or Stoa, Bouleuterium or Senate-house, Tholus, and Prytaneum. With the foundation of A then i an democracy under Clisthenes, the Pnyx or place of public a embly, with its semicircular area and cyclopean wall, first became of importance, and a commencement was made of the Dionysiac theatre (theatre of Dionysus or Bacchus) on the south side of the Acropolis. After the destruction wrought by the Persians in 480 B.C. , Them is toc les reconstructed the city upon practical lines and with a larger area, enclosing the city in new walls 7½ miles in circumference, erecting the north wall of the Acropolis, and developing the maritime resources of the Piræus; while Cimon added to the southern fortifications of the Acropolis, placed on it the temple of Wingle Victory, planted the Agora with trees, laid out the Academy, and built the Theseum on an eminence north of the Areopagus; his brother-in-law, Peisianax, erected the famous Stoa Poecilē, a hall with walls covered with paintings (whence the Stoics got their name). Under Pericles the highest point of artistic development was reached. An Odeum was erected on the east of the Dionysiac theatre for the recitations of rhapsodists and musicians; and with the aid of the architects Ictīnus, Call i crates, and Mnesicles, and of the sculptor Phidias, the Acropolis was perfected. Covering the whole of the western end rose the Propylæa, the splendid structure through which the Acropolis was entered, constructed of Pentelic marble and consisting of a central gateway portico with two wings in the form of Doric temples. Just outside the Propylæa was the small temple of Wingle Victory. A short distance within the entrance stood the bronze statue of Athena Promachus, a colo al work of Phidias, 66 feet high, showing the godde in complete armour and leaning on a lance. Beyond it to the left was the Erechtheum, the shrine of Athena Polias, guardian of the city, containing a very ancient and sacred statue of Athena in olive-wood; while to the right, on the highest part of the Acropolis, was the marble Par the non or temple of Athena, the crowning glory of the whole. This renowned structure, still glorious in its ruins, was built under the auspices of Pericles, Phidias being the sculptor and artistic adviser, and Ictīnus and Call i crates the architects. It is in the Doric style, and among its numerous sculptures were fifty life-size statues, while in the interior was a chryselephantine (gold and ivory) figure of the godde , 39 feet high. (See Par the non .) Minor statues and shrines occupied the rest of the area of the Acropolis, which was for the time wholly appropriated to the worship of the guardian deities of the city. The Acropolis museum, a building of recent date, contains an interesting and valuable collection of works of art found here. In the interval between the close of the Peloponnesian War and the battle of Chærone a few additions were made to the city. But the long walls and Piræus, destroyed by Lysander, were restored by Conon, and under the orator Lycurgus the Dionysiac temple was completed, the Panathenaic stadium commenced, and the choragic monuments of Lysicrates and Thrasyllus 295 erected. Later on Ptolemy Philadelphus gave Athens the Ptolemæum near the Theseum, Attalus I the stoa north-east of the Agora, Eumenes II that near the great theatre, and Antiochus Epiphanes carried on the Olympieum. Under the Romans it continued a flourishing city, Hadrian in the second century adorning it with many new buildings, and constructing an aqueduct, finished by his son Ant on in us Pius. At this time also a wealthy citizen, Herodes Atticus, did much to beautify the city, and in particular constructed an Odeum, the ruins of which are still conspicuous. Indeed Athens was at no time more splendid than under the An to nines, when Pausanias visited and described it. But after a time Christian zeal, the attacks of barbarians, and robberies of collectors made sad inroads among the monuments. About A.D. 420 paganism was totally annihilated at Athens, and when Just in i an closed even the schools of the philosophers, the reverence for buildings a ociated with the names of the ancient deities and heroes was lost. The Par the non was turned into a church of the Virgin Mary, and St. George stepped into the place of These us. Finally, in 1456, the place fell into the hands of the Turks. The Par the non became a mosque, and in 1687 was greatly damaged by an explosion at the siege of Athens by the Venetians. Enough, however, remains of it and of the neighbouring structures to attest the splendour of the Acropolis; while of the other buildings of the city, the Theseum, or temple of These us, and the Horologium, or temple of the Winds, are admirably preserved, as are also structures belonging to the Pnyx, Panathenaic stadium (restored and again used for games), . The Theseum, indeed, is said to be the best preserved building of all ancient Greece, and is hardly le imposing than the Par the non. Of more than a hundred columns that belonged to the Olympieum or temple of the Olympian Zeus, completed by Hadrian, only fifteen are still standing. Soon after the commencement of the war of liberation in 1821 the Turks surrendered Athens, but captured it again in 1826-7. The Great Powers now intervened to bring about the independence of Greece. The Turks evacuated Athens in 1833, and the troops of King Otho then entered the city. In 1835 it became the royal residence, and it soon began to make rapid progre , though its natural position is by no means advantageous. The modern city mostly lies north, north-east, and north-west of the Acropolis, and consists mainly of straight and well-built streets. Among the principal buildings are the royal palace, a stately building with a façade of Pentelic marble (completed 1843), the university, the academy of science, national museum of archaeology, public library, exhibition building, polytechnic institute, theatre, and observatory. There are two universities, the National University, opened in 1836, and the Capo dis tri an University with 3250 students. There are valuable museums, in particular the National Museum and that in the Polytechnic School, which contains the Schliemann collection, . These are constantly being added to by excavations. There are four foreign archæological schools or institutes, the French, German, American, and British. The Zappeion or exhibition building is a handsome structure, erected at the expense of the brothers Zappas to exhibit Greek industries. Tramways have been made in the principal streets, and the city is connected by tramway and railway (6 miles) with its port, the Piræus. Athens has also railway connection with the north and west of the kingdom as well as with the Peloponnesus. The Piræus is the chief Greek centre of trade and industry. Water is brought from Mount Pen telic us on the north-east, the aqueduct begun by Hadrian being utilized in supplying the city. Pop. 167,479, and including the Piræus 241,058.— BIBLIOGRAPHY : E. A. Gardner, Ancient Athens ; J. E. Harrison, Mythology and Monuments of Ancient Athens ; W. Warde Fowler, The City-State , chapter vi; W. M. Leake, Topography of Athens and the Demi ; C. H. Weller, Athens and its Monuments .