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information guide about Athens, Greece
The Ancient Agora
History
The Agora was the heart of ancient Athens, the focus of political,
commercial, administrative and social activity, the religious and
cultural center and the seat of justice. The site was occupied
without interruption in all periods of the city's history. It was
used as a residential and burial area as early as the late Neolithic
period (3000 BC). Early in the 6th century, in the time of Solon,
the Agora became a public area.
After a series of repairs and remodeling, it reached its final
rectangular form in the 2nd century BC. Extensive building activity
occurred after the serious damage made by the Persians in 480/79
BC, by the Romans in 89 BC and by the Herulae in 267 AD while,
after the Slavic invasion in 580 AD, It was gradually abandoned.
From the Byzantine
period until after 1834, when Athens became
the capital of the independent Greek state, the Agora was again
developed as a residential area.
The first excavation campaigns were carried out by the Greek Archaeological
Society between 1859 and 1912 and by the German Archaeological
Institute between 1896 and 1897. In 1890, a deep trench cut for
the Athens-Piraeus Railway brought to light extensive remains of
ancient buildings. In 1931 the American School of Classical Studies
started the systematic excavations with the financial support of
J. Rockefeller and continued until 1941. Work was resumed in 1945
and is still continuing. In order to uncover the whole area of
the Agora it was necessary to demolish around 400 modern buildings
covering a total area of about 12 hectares.
In the 19th century the four colossal figures of Giants and Tritons
at the facade of the Gymnasium were restored by the Greek Archaeological
Society. In the years 1953 to 1956, the Stoa
of Attalos was reconstructed
to become a museum and in the same period the Byzantine church
of Agii Apostoli (Holy Apostles), built around 1000 AD, was restored
by the American School. Between 1972 and 1975, restoration and
preservation work was carried out at the Hephaisteion; the area
was cleared of the vegetation. The roof of the temple was repaired
by the Archaeological Service in 1978.
Interactive map of the Ancient Agora of Athens
Click
on the numbers for detailed information about the buildings
1
Painted
Stoa
11
Monument
of the Eponymous Heroes
22
Enneakrounos
(Nine-spouted fountain house)
2
Sanctuary
of Aphrodite Ourania
12
Old
Bouleuterion and the Metroon
23
South-west
Temple
3
Panathinaic
Way
13
New
Bouleuterion (council house)
24
Nymphaeum
4
Royal
Stoa (Basileios Stoa)
14
Tholos
25
Mint
5
Stoa
of Zeus Eleutherios
15
Strategeion
26
Souteast
Temple
6
Altar
of the Twelve Gods
16
South-west
fountain house
27
Eleusinion
7
Temple
of Ares
17
Heliaia
(court house)
28
Private
houses
8
Temple
of Apollo Patroos
18
South
Stoa
29
Library
of Pantainos
9
Arsenal
19
Odeion
of Agrippa
30
Stoa
of Attalos
9a
Statue
of Hadrian
20
East
building
31
Ancient
Agora Museum
10
Temple
of Hephaistos (Theseion)
21
Middle
Stoa
32
Agii
Apostoli Solaki (Holy Apostles Solaki)
Murder in the Ancient Agora
Normally political murder ruled the events of the Agora, but one
day in 513 BC, when Athens was ruled by the tyrant Hippias, sexual
jealousy, personal affront and political conspiracy led to an
event that Athenians believed to be a turning point in their
history.
Harmodios was a very handsome young man loved by an older man named
Aristogeiton. Trouble arose when Hipparchos, the brother of the
tyrant Hippias, made sexual advances to Harmodios, who spurned
them. Aristogeiton, overcome with jealousy and rage, decided to
overthrow the tyranny. Meanwhile Hipparchos, rejected a second
time by Harmodios, decided on revenge. He invited Harmodios' little
sister to carry a basket in a religious procession (a great honor)
and then claimed that he had never invited her at all because she
was unworthy.
Aristogeiton, supported by Harmodios and other haters
of the tyranny, decided to assassinate Hippias on the day of the
great Panathenaic procession but when they saw one of their fellow
conspirators talking to Hippias outside the city in the Potters
quarter (Kerameikos), Aristogeiton and Harmodios thought that their
plan had been revealed to Hippias. Thus they ran into the Agora
and killed Hippias' brother Hipparchos near a sanctuary called
the Leokoreion. Both lovers were killed by Hippias' guards.
Aristogeiton and
Harmodios immediately became legendary heroes and were honored
as tyrannicides because many Athenians believed (wrongly) that
Hipparchos was a tyrant at the time of the assassination. The assassination
did not end the tyranny (which lasted for 3 more years) and all
it accomplished was to make Hippias and his other brothers angry.
As a result of the assassination, Hippias became paranoiac and
put many citizens to death. Statues of Aristogeiton and Harmodios
were set up in the Agora, the originals of which were carried off
by the Persians in 480 BC and were replaced soon after.
IOANNIS TRAVLOS
Ioannis Travlos was a prominent Greek architect-archaeologist
of the post-war era. He was born in Rostov, Russia, in
1908 and he moved to Athens with his family when he was
four. He died there in 1988.
Ioannis Travlos graduated from the Department of Architecture
of the Athens Technical University. From very early on, he
was interested in archaeological research and restoration.
During the 1930’s he worked in Eleusis, Megara,
Olynthos and Athens where he participated in excavation works
on Pnyx Hill, in Plato’s Academy and in the Ancient
Agora.
From 1940 to 1975 he was in charge of the restoration works
in the Ancient Agora where he worked on the arcade of Attalos
and the church of the Holy Apostles Solaki. He also took
part in the excavations in the Temple
of Zeus (Olympeion),
Hadrian’s
Library and the southern side of the Acropolis.
Throughout his long career he made architectural drawings
and models for numerous monuments and archaeological sites
in Greece. Ioannis Travlos was also interested in the Byzantine
architecture and the neoclassical architectural style in
Greece. Among his most important published works are “The
Development of Town Planning in Athens” (1960), "Neoclassical
Architecture in Greece” (1967) and “Bildlexicon
zur Topographie des antiken Athen” (Image lexicon on
the Topography of Ancient Athens - 1971).
As an architect Ioannis Travlos worked on the family graves
of the Korizis, Andreadis and Avgerinou families in the First
Cemetery of Athens.
The first excavation campaigns were carried out by the Greek Archaeological
Society between 1859 and 1912 and by the German Archaeological
Institute between 1896 and 1897. In 1890, a deep trench cut for
the Athens-Piraeus Railway brought to light extensive remains of
ancient buildings. In 1931 the American School of Classical Studies
started the systematic excavations with the financial support of
J. Rockefeller and continued until 1941. Work was resumed in 1945
and is still continuing. In order to uncover the whole area of
the Agora it was necessary to demolish around 400 modern buildings
covering a total area of about 12 hectares. 
Opening
hours and admission){kind=small}
Monastiraki
research and restoration.
During the 1930’s he worked in Eleusis, Megara,
Olynthos and Athens where he participated in excavation works
on 
