Greece - Korina Miller [61]
Feast for the Eyes Dining in Thisio or Plaka, with a view of the floodlit Acropolis
Magic Nights Enjoying summer nightlife, lively bars, glamorous beach clubs and moonlight cinema Click here
Museum Masterpieces Admiring the Parthenon sculptures in the new Acropolis Museum
POPULATION: ATHENS 3.7 MILLION; ATTICA 4 MILLION
AREA: 3808 SQ KM
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ATHENS ΑΘΗΝΑ
HISTORY
Early History
The early history of Athens is inextricably interwoven with mythology, making it impossible to disentangle fact from fiction. What is known is that the hill-top site of the Acropolis, with two abundant springs, drew some of Greece’s earliest Neolithic settlers. When a peaceful agricultural existence gave way to the war-orientated city-states, the Acropolis provided an ideal defensive position.
By 1400 BC the Acropolis had become a powerful Mycenaean city. It survived the Dorian assault in 1200 BC but didn’t escape the dark age that enveloped Greece for the next 400 years. Little is known of this period.
After its emergence from the dark age in the 8th century BC, a period of peace followed, during which Athens became the artistic centre of Greece, excelling in ceramics. The geometric vase designs from the dark age evolved into a narrative style, depicting scenes from everyday life and mythology (known as the Proto-Attic style).
By the 6th century BC, Athens was ruled by aristocrats and generals. Labourers and peasants had no rights until Solon, the harbinger of Athenian democracy, became arhon (chief magistrate) in 594 BC and improved the lot of the poor, with reforms such as the annulment of debts and the implementation of trial by jury. Continuing unrest over the reforms created the pretext for the tyrant Peisistratos, formerly head of the military, to seize power in 560 BC.
Peisistratos built up a formidable navy and extended the boundaries of Athenian influence. A patron of the arts, he inaugurated the Festival of the Great Dionysia, the precursor of Attic drama, and commissioned many splendid sacred and secular buildings – most of which were destroyed by the Persians.
Peisistratos was succeeded by his tyrant son Hippias in 528 BC. Athens managed to rid itself of this oppressor in 510 BC with the help of Sparta. Hippias went to Persia and returned with Darius 20 years later, only to be defeated at the Battle of Marathon.
Athens’ Golden Age
After Athens finally repulsed the Persian Empire at the battles of Salamis and Plataea (again, with the help of Sparta), its power knew no bounds.
In 477 BC Athens established a confederacy on the sacred island of Delos and demanded tributes from the surrounding islands to protect them from the Persians. It was little more than a standover racket because the Persians were no longer much of a threat. The treasury was moved to Athens in 461 BC and Pericles (ruler from 461 BC to 429 BC) used the money to transform the city. This period has become known as Athens’ golden age, the pinnacle of the classical era.
Most of the monuments on the Acropolis today date from this period. Drama and literature flourished in the form of the tragedies written by such luminaries as Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. The sculptors Pheidias and Myron and the historians Herodotus, Thucydides and Xenophon also lived during this time.
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GODS & MYTHS
Athena, the city’s patron deity, dominates Athens’ mythology and the city’s great monuments are dedicated to the goddess. As the myth goes, Athena won this honour in a battle with Poseidon. After Kekrops, a Phoenician, founded a city on a huge rock near the sea, the gods of Olympus proclaimed that it should be named after the deity who could produce the most valuable legacy for mortals. Athena (goddess of wisdom, among other things) produced an olive tree, symbol of peace and prosperity. Poseidon (god of the sea) struck a rock with his trident and a horse sprang forth, symbolising the qualities of strength and fortitude. The gods judged that Athena’s gift would better serve the citizens of Athens than the arts of war personified