Construction
of the Parthenon
began in 447 BC on the site where construction of another temple
had begun in 490 BC. The older temple, known as the Pre-Parthenon,
was destroyed by the Persians in 480 BC before it was completed.
The Parthenon opened to the public in 438 BC during the Panathenean
Games even though the sculpted decorations had not yet been
completed. They probably were finished in 432 BC..
