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information guide about Athens, Greece
Ancient Agora
North side
The Painted Stoa
The Painted Stoa or Stoa Poikile
was located along the Panathenaic Way just across from the Royal
Stoa (Stoa Basileios) on the northern boundary of the Agora.
Its west end was discovered as recently as 1981. It was one of
the most well-known and busy buildings in Ancient Athens.
The
Painted Stoa was built in ca. 460 BC on the north side of the
Agora along the Panathenaic Way facing the Acropolis.
It was a large Stoa (36 m by 12,5 m – 118.1 ft by 41 ft)
with an exterior in Doric style and an Ionic colonnade inside.
The Stoa was called “Poikile” (meaning
painted) because it was decorated with a series of painted wooden
panels. These paintings were the work of famous Athenian artists
of the time: Polygnotos, Mikon and Panainos. The paintings depicted
military achievements taken from the mythology and history
of Athens: the Amazonomachy (the battle with the Amazons),
the battle of Marathon, the siege and capture of Troy and the
victory over the Spartans at Oinoe. Battle trophies were also
displayed on the walls of the Painted Stoa, like the Spartan
shields taken as spoils by the Athenians at Pylos in 425/424.
In contrast to the other Stoa,
the Painted Stoa had no designated function. It simply served
as a meeting place for citizens and it was only occasionally
used for official public purposes such as the hearing of legal
cases.
Often proclamations were issued
in the Painted Stoa announcing those who had qualified for participation
in the Eleusinian Mysteries. Furthermore, the Stoic, one of the
most important philosophical schools of Antiquity, took its name
from the Poikle Stoa. In about 300 BC the founder of Stoicism,
Zenon from Kition in Cyprus, taught here.
The
Sanctuary of Aphrodite Ourania
The Sanctuary of Aphrodite Ourania
(Heavenly Aphrodite) was mentioned by the traveller Pausanias.
It was here that he saw the cult statue of the goddess made by
Pheidias. Archaeologists looking for the site of the sanctuary
had searched on the northern slopes of the Kolonos Agoraios hill
on top of which the Temple of Hephaistos is.
According to a more recent view,
the site must have been to the west of the Painted Stoa (Poikile
Stoa). The ruins of an elaborate Archaic (ca. 500 BC) marble
altar dedicated to Aphrodite have been found there. The base
of the altar (5,10 m by 2,40 m - 16,72 ft by 7.87 ft) can
be seen in the excavation area on the northern side of Adrianou
street.
The Panathenaic Way
The Panathenaic Way or
Panathinaic Road led from the Dipylon Gate to the Acropolis,
crossing the central square of the Agora diagonally. This was
the route of the great processions and climax of the Panathenaic
Festival from which it received its name. It was also known as
the “Dromos”. it had a total length of 1050 m (0.65
mile) and its width fluctuated from 10-12 m to as much as 20
m (32.8-39.3 ft – 65.61 ft)
Today, only a few parts of the
Panathenaic Way are still visible. The most characteristic section
is that which ascends to the Acropolis, behind the church of
Agii Apostoli (Holy Apostles). A large part of the Way is Adrianou
Street now.
Although it was one of the main
routes of ancient Athens, its construction was very simple. Throughout
its long history, the surface of the Panathenaic Way consisted
largely of packed gravel that had to be renewed many times. It
was in the Hellenistic period that its south-western side was
bordered by a stone pipeline. In the 1st and 2nd century
the section in the south-east corner of the Ancient Agora and
that along the west side of the Eleusinion was paved with stone.
The planning of the Panathenaic Way is dated to Prehistoric times
and it is known that, as early as the Iron Age, it led to the Kerameikos
cemetery.
In
the 6th century BC it was incorporated in the plan of the Agora.
It served to orientate the Altar of the Twelve Gods. Along the
section that skirted the Agora, ikria (special wooden tears or
grandstands) were later constructed to allow spectators to watch
the Panathenaic festivities. Excavations along the two sides
of the route brought the sockets to light that held wooden posts
for supporting the tiers that were built in the 5th and the 4th
century BC.
It appears that the Panathenaic
Way hosted athletic events at least until the construction of
the large stadium in the Illissos area in 330 BC. In 1971 stone
poles of the starting line, in use in the 5th century BC, were
discovered east of the Altar of the Twelve Gods. It is said that
during the Panathenaic festivals an event, called the “apovates
dromos”, took place in which the athlete in full armor
jumped on and off a fast moving chariot. There also was a training
area for horsemen there.
The Panathenaic Way was the
most significant thoroughfares. It served the needs of the civic
and commercial center of the city from the 6th century BC up
through the first centuries AD. Alongside the road there were
significant religious structures (altars and temples) and buildings
both public (the archon’s office, law courts) and private
(houses and shops).
The Royal Stoa
At
the north end of the Agora, near the Panathenaic Way and next
to the present railway, is the Royal Stoa. The drawing shows
a reconstruction of the Royal Stoa, or Stoa Basileios, the headquarters
of the King Archon who was in charge of religious affairs, including
murder. The statue in front is that of Themis (Justice). It was
located in the northwest corner of the Agora. It was in front
of this building that Socrates met Euthyphro and had the conversation
that Plato recreated in his Euthyphro. Socrates came to this
building to be formally charged with impiety by Meletus in the
presence of the King Archon. Copies of the laws of the city were
kept in this Stoa.
The Royal Stoa or Basileios
Stoa was small (18 m by 7,5 m – 59 ft by 24,6 ft). The
ruins of this Stoa are notaccessible
to visitors. Theycan only be seen between Adrianou street and
the railway tracks. It is said that Solon’s laws were set
up inscribed on wooden stelae, the kyrbeis, in the Royal Stoa.
The Stoa is of the Doric order. The roof of the building was
decorated by terracotta acroteria (corner ornaments) depicting
mythological scenes. Small wings were added to the north and
south end of the Stoa facade during the 4th century.
The northwest corner of the
Agora, in which the Royal Stoa was located, was known as the
Herms because of the great number of Herms set up there. Herms
which consisted of a bust of Hermes on top of a square bronze
or marble pillar with male genitals attached. They were a familiar
sight in public areas and in front of houses because they were
believed to be protectors of houses and of the city. In 415 BC
a scandal arose when vandals violated Herms in Athens, possibly
the ones in the northwest corner of the Agora. This incident
was one of the factors that led to the exile of Alcibiades.
STOA OF THE HERMS
Numerous inscribed bases
and parts of herms haven been found in front of the Royal
Stoa. Based on the archaeological research, this was
the Stoa of the Herms which was already known from written
sources. Nevertheless, no trace of this Stoa was preserved.
It was built possibly by Cimon, shortly after 479 BC,
to house the Herms assembled in the area.
The Stoa of Zeus Eleutherios
This
Stoa was dedicated to Zeus Eleutherios (Freedom), a cult founded
after the Persian
Wars. It was unusual for a religious building to take the
form of a Stoa rather than a temple and considering its central
location it is likely that the building also served other civic
purposes. The stoa possibly is one of the accomplishments of
Mnesikles, the architect of the Propylaea
on the Acropolis.
The roof, like those of temples,
was decorated with statues (acroteria), at least one of which
was a statue of the Winged Niki, now housed in the Stoa of Attalos.
The Stoa also celebrated democracy. In this building there were
paintings of the Twelve Gods and of Theseus, the legendary king,
whom the Athenian people believed (wrongly) to be the founder
of democracy. In the fourth century a number of paintings depicting
Athenian victories were displayed. Plato mentions this Stoa as
a favorite resting place where one could sit and talk with friends.
The Stoa of Zeus Eleutherios
was build ca 430-420 BC. Its floor plan had the shape of the
Greek letter Π. It had a Doric colonnade along its façade
and an Ionic within. Pausanias mentions a statue of Zeus in front
of the Stoa. In Roman times two chambers were annexed to the
back of the Stoa. They probably were dedicated to imperial cult.