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The Temple of Athena Nike
John D. Kudrysch
COL Sheldon
Date Turned In: 10/02/14
HI 304X-01
Help Received: George Allan and Sam Whelan (in the class) helped me
with formatting the footnotes and bibliography
2
The Acropolis of Athens is a monument for several very famous structures that represent
the Classical age of ancient Greece. Among these structures is the temple of Athena Nike. The
temple is smaller in size compared to the other structures, but very famous Ionic structure has
made it iconic for those that look up at the Acropolis rock. The temple was originally built as an
altar to worship Athena in the Archaic Age of ancient Greece the altar was eventually destroyed.
In its place a new temple was erected in honor of the Goddess of Victory during a time of war.
Within the temple was a statue of Athena Nike where a wingless representation of her stood for
the people of Athens. Towards the end of the 5th century BCE in ancient Greece the temple was a
symbol of victory over the Spartans during the Peloponnesian war and hopeful prosperity.
The current temple that stands on the Acropolis of Athens is not the original temple that
once stood where it is. In 480 BCE the Persians demolished the first temple dedicated to Athena
which was built during the Archaic Age of ancient Greek history12. The desire and ambition to
defeat Sparta during the late 5th century during the Peloponnesian war was the purpose behind
the decision in constructing the temple of Athena Nike3. The location on a rocky ledge allowed
the Athenian people to look towards the temple in their prayers for success and prosperity in the
war’s outcome. The current Classical temple was not completed until 420 BCE. The construction
of the Temple of Athena Nike marks the first notable and iconic architectural structure on the
Acropolis of Athens4. After its completion a parapet was constructed several years after the
1
"Temple of Athena Nike." Ancient Greece (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.ancient-greece.org/architecture/athena-nike.html
2
“Temple of Athena Nike.” Wikipedia. Date Accessed October 1, 2014
http://En.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Athena_Nike
3
"Temple of Athena Nike, Athens." Sacred Destinations (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.sacred-destinations.com/greece/athens-temple-of-athena-nike
4
Ibid.
3
completion of the temple in order to prevent people from falling off the edge of the Acropolis
rock from where the temple was located5.
After its counterpart was destroyed by the Persians, the current temple of Athena Nike
was constructed in stages of the Peloponnesian War. While small compared to the other
structures on the Acropolis of Athens the temple greets visitors who approach the Propylaea of
the Acropolis. Located on the southeast edge and facing the east, the Temple of Athena Nike is
one of the most visible structures when looking up at the Acropolis rock 6. The Temple of Athena
Nike rests on the Acropolis rock thanks to the Athenian architect Kallikrates. Credited for the
design of the temple, Kallikrates is also credited with being a co-architect with a Greek man
named Ictinus, where the two of them designed the Parthenon together and oversaw its
construction together7.
The architectural designs of the small temple give it diffident proportions, but the temple
served its purpose to the Athenians during the time period it was constructed. The four column
style of the temple gives it its iconic design where the dimensions of 27 feet long, 18.5 feet wide,
and 23 feet tall,” represent the entirety of the temple8. The space in the center of the temple,
known as a cella or naos, is merely 5m x 5m. The columns are unlike the other columns, having
a height to diameter 7:1 ratio compared to the more common 9:1 or 10:1 ratio of Ionic buildings
of the time9. Across the bands, or entablature, of the temple were frieze depictions of various
5
"Temple of Athena Nike." Ancient Greece (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.ancient-greece.org/architecture/athena-nike.html
6
"Temple of Athena Nike." Ancient Greece (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.ancient-greece.org/architecture/athena-nike.html
7
Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "Callicrates," Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/89892/Callicrates
8
"Temple of Athena Nike, Athens." Sacred Destinations (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.sacred-destinations.com/greece/athens-temple-of-athena-nike
9
Ibid.
4
scenarios and figures. The style that the frieze was sculpted in is that of the known classical era
type of architecture10.
As a person scales upward towards the Propylaea of the Acropolis the parapet on the
temple can be observed. On the parapet is a frieze where a montage of figures in different poses
decorates the exterior. The figures vary on location around the frieze, and they appear to portray
different Athenian thoughts and views about the Peloponnesian war. Some sections of the frieze
portray a man laying down as if he was going to be defeated, and others show the figures
seemingly dead and losing a massive battle11. Elizabeth Pumberton speculates that the frieze has
been interpreted differently depending on the scholar12. This repetitious design across the parapet
suggest that the war was thought as rough and construed something that had to be endured for
the citizens of Athens13.
The name Athena Nike is translated as the goddess of victory. The victory against the
Spartans is what inspired the construction of the temple in the first place. The center of the
temple, the cella, stood a statue of Athena Nike. This statue is recorded to be made of wood,
where Athena was holding a pomegranate in her right hand and a shield in her left hand 14. The
Nike statues of the time period had no wings, so as customary the Athena Nike statue did not
have wings when it was created during that time. The name Apteros Nike was given to the
10
"Temple of Athena Nike, Athens." Sacred Destinations (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.sacred-destinations.com/greece/athens-temple-of-athena-nike
11
Pemberton, Elizabeth Gummey. “The East and West Friezes of the Temple of Athena Nike,”
American Journal of Archaeology 76. 3 (July 1972) 304. Accessed October 1, 2014.
12
Ibid., 304
13
"Temple of Athena Nike." Ancient Greece (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.ancient-greece.org/architecture/athena-nike.html
14
Ibid.
5
temple and goddess statue by Athenians a few centuries later. Apteros Nike means wing-less
victory, where it is said that the statue is wingless so that it cannot leave the city of Athens15.
After the period of ancient Greece the temple went through a series of mishaps, abuse,
and eventual destruction. In the 5th century AD the temple was eventually converted into a
church rather than a temple that praised Athena16. During the period of the Ottoman period, the
temple was used as a munitions store17. Instead of a church or temple it was now a market for
weapon distribution. Eventually the Turks destroyed it in the late 17th century, and the temple
was not rebuilt until the 19th century after the Greek War of Independence18.
The temple of Athena Nike is small in dimension compared to the other ancient Greek
structures on top of the Acropolis of Athens, but the temple has made its mark of being very
symbolic and iconic in nature for the Athenian people in the Classical age of ancient Greece. The
temple itself sits over the city of Athens for all of the Athenians to see during the Peloponnesian
war as a symbol of hope, victory, and prosperity. During the great struggle of the war the frieze
architecture depicts a series of Athena Nike poses in a symbolization of victory against the
Spartans during the great struggle. Converted into a church, munitions store, and eventually
destroyed the Temple of Athena Nike still stands after being reconstructed yet again.
15
"Temple of Athena Nike, Athens." Sacred Destinations (Temple of Athena Nike) Date Accessed September 24, 2014
http://www.sacred-destinations.com/greece/athens-temple-of-athena-nike
16
Ioanna Venieri. "Temple of Athena Nike." Ministry of Culture and Sports. Last Modified January 1, 2012
http://odysseus.culture.gr/h/2/eh251.jsp?obj_id=982
17
Ibid.
18
Ibid.
6
Bibliography
Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "Callicrates," accessed September 24, 2014,
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/89892/Callicrates
Google: Google Images
http://www.aviewoncities.com/img/athens/kvegr0450s.jpg
Pemberton, Elizabeth Gummey, “The East and West Friezes of the Temple of Athena Nike,”
American Journal of Archaeology 76. 3 (July 1972) 303-310
"Temple of Athena Nike." Ancient Greece (Temple of Athena Nike). Accessed September 24,
2014. http://www.ancient-greece.org/architecture/athena-nike.html
"Temple of Athena Nike, Athens." Sacred Destinations (Temple of Athena Nike). Accessed
September 24, 2014. http://www.sacred-destinations.com/greece/athens-temple-ofathena-nike
“Temple of Athena Nike.” Wikipedia. Accessed October 10, 2014.
http://En.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Athena_Nike
Venieri, Ioanna. "Temple of Athena Nike." Ministry of Culture and Sports. January 1, 2012.
Accessed September 24, 2014. http://odysseus.culture.gr/h/2/eh251.jsp?obj_id=982