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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