ATHENS. 



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beauty. Incalculable sums were spent on it. Jt\vns 

 from time to time enlarged, and rendered more beau- 

 tiful, until, at length, it was finished by Adrian. The 

 outside of this temple was adorned by nearly 120 

 fluted columns, sixty feet high, and six feet in dia- 

 meter. The inside was more than half a league in 

 circumference. Here stood the renowned statue of 

 the god made by Phidias, of gold and ivory. The 

 Pantheon (sacred to all the gads) must not be forgot- 

 ten. Of this the Pantheon at Rome is an exact 

 copy. Besides these wonderful works of art, Athens 

 contains many other places which must always be 

 interesting, from the recollections connected with 

 them. The old philosophers were not accustomed, 

 -as is well known, to shut up their scholars in lecture- 

 rooms, but mingled with them on the freest and 

 pleasantest terms, and, for this purpose, sought out 

 spots which were still and retired. Such a spot was 

 the renowned academy where Plato taught, lying 

 about six stadia north of the city, forming a part of a 

 place called Ceramicus. This spot, originally marshy, 

 had been made a very pleasant place, by planting 

 rows of trees, and turning through it streams of fresli 

 water. Such a place was the Lyceum, where Aris- 

 totle taught, and which, through him, became the 

 seat of the Peripatetic school. It lay on the bank 

 of the Ilissus, opposite the city, and was also used for 

 gymnastic exercises. Not far from thence was the 

 less renowned Cynosarges, where Antisthenes, the 

 founder of the Cynic school, taught. The sects of 

 Zeno and Epicurus held their meetings in the city. 

 Zeno chose the well-known Poikile, and Epicurus 

 established himself in a garden within the walls, for 

 he loved both society and rural quiet. Not only 

 literary, but political assemblies gave a particular 

 interest to different places in Athens. Here was the 

 court of areopagus, where that illustrious body gave 

 their decisions ; the Prytaneum, or senate- house ; the 

 Pnyx, where the free people of Athens deliberated. 

 After twenty-three centuries of war and devastation, 

 of changes from civilized to savage masters, have 

 passed over this great city, its ruins still excite 

 astonishment. No inconsiderable part of the Acro- 

 polis was lately standing. The Turks have surround- 

 ed it with a broad, irregular wall. In this wall one 

 may perceive the remains of the old wall, together 

 with fragments of ancient pillars, which have been 

 taken from the ruins of the old to construct new 

 edifices. The right wing of the Propylaeum, built 

 by Pericles at an expense of 2012 talents, and which 

 formed the ancient entrance, was a temple of victory. 

 The roof of this building stood as late as 1656, when 

 it was destroyed by the explosion of some powder 

 kept there. In a part of the present wall, there are 

 fragments of excellent designs in basso relievo, repre- 

 senting the contest of the Athenians with the Ama- 

 zons. On the opposite wing of the PropylaBum are 

 six whole columns, with gate-ways between them. 

 These pillars, half covered on the front side by the 

 wall built by the Turks, are of marble, white as 

 snow, and of the finest workmanship. They consist 

 of three or four stones, so artfully joined together, 

 that, though they have been exposed to the weather 

 for 2000 years, yet no separation has been observed. 

 From the Propylaeum we step into the Parthenon. 

 On the eastern front of this building, also, there are 

 eight columns standing, and'several colonnaJdes on 

 the side. Of the pediment, which represented the 

 contest of Neptune and Minerva for Athens, there is 

 nothing remaining but the head of a sea-horse, and 

 the figures of two women without heads ; but in all 

 we must admire the highest degree of truth and 

 beauty. The battle between the Centaurs and La- 

 pithffi is better preserved. Of all the statues with 

 which it was adorned, tliat of Adrian alone remains. 



The inside of this temple is now changed into a 

 mosque. In the whole of this mutilated building, 

 we find an indescribable expression of grandeur and 

 sublimity. There are also astonishing remains to be 

 seen of the Erectheum (the temple of Neptune Erec- 

 theus), especially the beautiful female figures called 

 Caryatides, and which form two arch-ways. Of both 

 theatres there is only so much of the outer walls re- 

 maining, that one can estimate their former condition 

 and enormous size. The arena has sunk down, and 

 is now planted with corn. In the lower city itself, 

 there are no vestiges to be found of equal beauty 

 and extent. Near a church, sacred to Santa Maria 

 Maggiore, stand three very beautiful Corinthian 

 columns, which support an architrave. They have 

 been supposed to be the remains of a temple of Ju- 

 piter Olympius, but the opinion is not well grounded : 

 probably, they are the remains of the old Poikile. 

 The temple of the Winds, built by Andronicus Cyr- 

 rhestes, is not entire. Its form is an octagon : on 

 each side it is covered with reliefs, which represent 

 one of the principal winds : the work is excellent. 

 The preservation of this edifice is owing to its being 

 occupied by the dervises as a mosque. Of the monu 

 ments of distinguished men, with which a whole 

 street was filled, only the fine one of Lysicrates re- 

 mains. It consists of a pedestal surrounded by a 

 colonnade, and is surmounted by a dome of Corin- 

 thian architecture. This has been supposed to be 

 the spot which Demosthenes used for his study, but 

 the supposition is not well supported. What lord 

 Elgin has done for the preservation of the remains of 

 old Grecian architecture, may be seen by a reference 

 to the articles on Elgin, and Elgin's Marble Monu- 

 ments. Some prostrate walls are the only remains of 

 the splendid gymnasium built by Ptolemy. Outside of 

 the city, our wonder is excited by the lofty ruins of 

 the temple of the Olympian Jupiter. Of 120 pillars, 

 16 remain ; but none of the statues are in existence. 

 The pedestals and inscriptions are scattered here and 

 there, and partly buried in the earth. The main 

 body of the temple of Theseus has remained almost 

 entire, but much of it, as it now stands, is of modern 

 origin. The figures on the outside are mostly de- 

 stroyed, but those which adorn the frieze within are 

 well preserved. They represent the actions of the 

 heroes of antiquity. The battle between Theseus 

 and the Centaur is likewise depicted. On the hill 

 where the famous court of areopagus held its sittings, 

 you find steps hewn in the rock, places for the judges 

 to sit, and over against these the stations of the ac- 

 cuser and the accused. The hill is now a Turkish 

 burial-ground, and is covered with monuments. The 

 Pnyx, the place of assembly for the people, not far 

 from the Areopagus, is very nearly in its primitive 

 state. One may see the place from which the ora- 

 tors spoke hewn in the rock, the seats of the scribes, 

 and, at both ends, the places of those officers whose 

 duty it was to preserve silence, and to make known 

 the event of public deliberations. The niches are 

 still to be seen, where those who had any favour to 

 ask of the people deposited their petitions. The 

 paths for running are also visible, where the gym- 

 nastic exercises were performed, and which Herodes 

 Atticus (q. v.) built of white marble. The spot oc- 

 cupied by the Lyceum is only known by a quantity 

 of fallen stones. A more modern edifice stands in the 

 garden in the place of the academy. In the sur- 

 rounding space, the walks of the Peripatetics can be 

 discerned, and some olive-trees of high antiquity still 

 command the reverence of the beholder. The long 

 walls are totally destroyed, though the foundations 

 are yet to be found on the plain. The Piraeus has 

 scarcely any thing of its ancient splendour, except a 

 few ruined pillars, scattered here and there: the 



