Sunday, April 23, 2023 – Day 123
Our view of the Parthenon atop the Acropolis.
Our port of call today was Piraeus, Greece, but Athens, as short drive away, was our ultimate destination. Athens is one of the world’s oldest cities. Its recorded history goes back over 3,400 years. Evidence of human presence as far back as the 11th and 7th centuries BC.
Our excursion for the day took us past several notable sites on our way to visit the main attraction, the Acropolis.
Panathenaic Stadium, the location of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896
This is the statue called ‘Dromeas’ (The Runner) now located across from the Olympic Stadium. Made of shards of glass, the Athens artist, Costas Varotsos, has said it depicts the speed of everyday life. The work was begun in 1988 and finished in 1994. It certainly looks like a runner in motion!
The Academy of Athens, also, the National Academy of Greece, established in 1926. It is the highest research establishment in the country.
Parliament Building with crowd gathering at its base for the changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Our first glimpse of the Parthenon atop the Acropolis Hill.
It was a bit of a walk up the hill to the entrance point for the start of the real walk up to the top of the hill. We had to wait in a bit of a line to get into the site, but fortunately the weather was very pleasant.
Climbing up the final set of steps to the top of the Acropolis (our new friend Joe taking a picture of the amazing view looking back down)
Ugh, more steps to get into the site, but it looks amazing!
Finally entering the gate. We thought it was crowded, but our guide told us we were very lucky to be visiting ‘before the season got started’! More than 7.2 million people climb up these steps every year. That’s an average of over 20,000 people a day during the 359 days of the year they are open. They are much busier from April-October than November – March.
The Parthenon! Scaffolding at this end is the ongoing restoration work.
Restoration at this end is finished.
This structure across from the Parthenon is The Erechtheion, erected in 430 BC as a Temple to Athena (possibly also Poseidon). It is the last building constructed on the Acropolis hill.
Standing between the Parthenon (behind Jeff) and The Erechtheion, looking back towards the entrance/exit, modern Athens in the distance.
Reconstruction of the entry structure from the inside.
Some of the new sections (very white colored) look like Legos!
View of modern Athens on our way back down.
Leaving the Acropolis on our way to the new Acropolis Museum. The top level of the museum is oriented to match the position of the actual Parthenon just up the hill.
Back at the bottom of the hill walking to the museum.
The museum is built atop an ancient ruin still being excavated. They’ve used glass floors in places so that the ruins can be seen by visitors.
The top level of the museum is built to the actual size of the ancient Parthenon on the hill. Each steel grey column in the museum represents a marble column up at the ancient site. The exhibit continues, covering all four sides of the ancient site. The outer walls of the museum, on this floor, are all glass to present the exhibit in natural light.
The “Parthenon Marbles” (the square pieces of marble with amazing carvings on them) are placed exactly where they would be at the ancient site, if the walls were still standing. Some of the Marbles here in the Acropolis Museum are reproductions clearly labeled to explain that the originals are in the British Museum, and in a few cases other locations. Not all of the marbles are known to still exist and are denoted by empty place holders. Many other empty spaces await the return of the Marbles (aka The Elgin Marbles) from primarily the British Museum in London. The Marbles and other items were removed from the Parthenon and other structures by agents of Thomas Bruce, the 7th Earl of Elgin between 1801-1812. It seems generally accepted that they were acquired with permission; but not everyone agrees. It was/is considered theft or vandalism, or at the very least unethical by many.
Greece has made requests for the return of the Marbles directly to the British government and through the United Nations.
For a long time, the response was that Greece did not have an acceptable museum to house them. That’s certainly not the case now; the new Acropolis Museum is a spectacular, state of the art facility. We were also told that they’d be better off in this museum, because the British Museum leaks!
There are strong opinions on every side of the argument for Britain to keep them or return them. Issues like the long-term economic stability of the host country, where can more people see them, the legal precedent that would be set, if returned, for all other displaced treasures in the world’s museums. It’s a complex issue that will likely continue to be discussed for decades to come. It was certainly a hot topic of discussion on our ship!
A scale model of the east pediment of the Parthenon.
Life sized remains of the actual pediment, or reproductions if the located elsewhere.
Marble carvings from the interior walls of the Parthenon.
Standing in the museum looking out and up the hill to the actual Parthenon.
Five of the original six Caryatids, with a place holder for the sixth.
Five of the original Caryatids (female figures used in place of columns to support structures) from the Erechtheion now stand on a special balcony in the new Acropolis Museum. The detail of the braided hair is amazing. Replicas of the Caryatids stand at the ancient temple site a top the Acropolis. An empty pedestal sits in the exhibit in place of the one removed by Elgin and currently residing in the British Museum.
A marble carving from the Erechtheion, from the size it looks like it could have been a ‘crown molding’ type of item.
Our selfie skills have not improved one iota, but at least we can prove we were here!
Back on-board setting sail for Italy. After a day at sea, our first stop will be Messina on the island of Sicily.
Good night from the Mediterranean Sea. Only 15 days of our grand adventure remain. As far as the travel goes, time has flown. But when thinking of home and family and friends, it feels like a lifetime!
Looking forward to seeing you soon!