Older Parthenon
Encyclopedia
The Older Parthenon or Pre‐Parthenon, as it is frequently referred to, constitutes the first endeavour to build a sanctuary for Athena Parthenos
on the site of the present Parthenon
, Athens
, Greece
. It was begun shortly after the battle of Marathon
(c. 490–88 BC) upon a massive limestone
foundation that extended and leveled the southern part of the Acropolis summit. This building replaced a hekatompedon
(meaning "hundred‐footer") and would have stood beside the archaic temple dedicated to Athena Polias.
The Old Parthenon was still under construction when the Persians
sacked the city in 480 BCE and razed the acropolis
. The existence of the proto‐Parthenon and its destruction was known from Herodotus
and the drums of its columns were plainly visible built into the curtain wall north of the Erechtheum
. Further material evidence of this structure was revealed with the excavations of Panagiotis Kavvadias of 1895-1890. The findings of this dig allowed Wilhelm Dörpfeld
, then director of the German Archaeological Institute, to assert that there existed a distinct substructure to the original Parthenon, called Parthenon I by Dörpfeld, not immediately below the present edifice as had been previously assumed. Dörpfeld’s observation was that the three steps of the first Parthenon consist of two steps of poros limestone, the same as the foundations, and a top step of Karrha limestone that was covered by the lowest step of the Periclean Parthenon. This platform was smaller and slightly to the north of the final Parthenon, indicating that it was built for a wholly different building, now wholly covered over. This picture was somewhat complicated by the publication of the final report on the 1885–90 excavations indicating that the substructure was contemporary with the Kimonian walls, and implying a later date for the first temple.
If the original Parthenon was indeed destroyed in 480, it invites the question of why the site was left a ruin for 33 years. One argument involves the oath sworn by the Greek allies before the battle of Plataea
in 479 BCE declaring that the sanctuaries destroyed by the Persians would not be rebuilt, an oath the Athenians were only absolved from with the Peace of Callias
in 450. The mundane fact of the cost of reconstructing Athens after the Persian sack is at least as likely a cause. However the excavations of Bert Hodge Hill led him propose the existence of a second Parthenon begun in the period of Kimon after 468 BCE. Hill claimed that the Karrha limestone step Dörpfeld took to be the highest of Parthenon I was in fact the lowest of the three steps of Parthenon II whose stylobate dimensions Hill calculated to be 23.51x66.888m.
One difficulty in dating the proto‐Parthenon is that at the time of the 1885 excavation the archaeological
method of seriation
was not fully developed: the careless digging and refilling of the site led to a loss of much valuable information. An attempt to make sense of the potsherds found on the acropolis came with the two-volume study by Graef and Langlotz published 1925–33. This inspired American archaeologist William Bell Dinsmoor
to attempt to supply limiting dates for the temple platform and the five walls hidden under the re‐terracing of the acropolis. Dinsmoor concluded that the latest possible date for Parthenon I was no earlier 495 BCE, contradicting the early date given by Dörpfeld. Further Dinsmoor denied that there were two proto‐Parthenons, and that the only pre‐Periclean temple was what Dörpfeld referred to as Parthenon II. Dinsmoor and Dörpfeld exchanged views in the American Journal of Archaeology in 1935.
Athena Parthenos
Athena Parthenos was the title of a massive chryselephantine sculpture of the Greek goddess Athena made by Phidias and housed in the Parthenon in Athens. Its epithet was an essential character of the goddess herself...
on the site of the present Parthenon
Parthenon
The Parthenon is a temple on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their virgin patron. Its construction began in 447 BC when the Athenian Empire was at the height of its power. It was completed in 438 BC, although...
, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. It was begun shortly after the battle of Marathon
Battle of Marathon
The Battle of Marathon took place in 490 BC, during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It was fought between the citizens of Athens, aided by Plataea, and a Persian force commanded by Datis and Artaphernes. It was the culmination of the first attempt by Persia, under King Darius I, to subjugate...
(c. 490–88 BC) upon a massive limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
foundation that extended and leveled the southern part of the Acropolis summit. This building replaced a hekatompedon
Hekatompedon temple
The Hekatompedon or Hekatompedos called also as the first Parthenon was an archaic temple built from limestone, some say that it was placed in the position of the present Parthenon. The temple built in the second half of 6th century BC, during the Peisistratids age, and was the older temple of...
(meaning "hundred‐footer") and would have stood beside the archaic temple dedicated to Athena Polias.
The Old Parthenon was still under construction when the Persians
Achaemenid Empire
The Achaemenid Empire , sometimes known as First Persian Empire and/or Persian Empire, was founded in the 6th century BCE by Cyrus the Great who overthrew the Median confederation...
sacked the city in 480 BCE and razed the acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis means "high city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as Citadel . For purposes of defense, early people naturally chose elevated ground to build a new settlement, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...
. The existence of the proto‐Parthenon and its destruction was known from Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
and the drums of its columns were plainly visible built into the curtain wall north of the Erechtheum
Erechtheum
The Erechtheion is an ancient Greek temple on the north side of the Acropolis of Athens in Greece.-Architecture:The temple as seen today was built between 421 and 406 BC. Its architect may have been Mnesicles, and it derived its name from a shrine dedicated to the legendary Greek hero Erichthonius...
. Further material evidence of this structure was revealed with the excavations of Panagiotis Kavvadias of 1895-1890. The findings of this dig allowed Wilhelm Dörpfeld
Wilhelm Dörpfeld
Wilhelm Dörpfeld was a German architect and archaeologist, the pioneer of stratigraphic excavation and precise graphical documentation of archaeological projects...
, then director of the German Archaeological Institute, to assert that there existed a distinct substructure to the original Parthenon, called Parthenon I by Dörpfeld, not immediately below the present edifice as had been previously assumed. Dörpfeld’s observation was that the three steps of the first Parthenon consist of two steps of poros limestone, the same as the foundations, and a top step of Karrha limestone that was covered by the lowest step of the Periclean Parthenon. This platform was smaller and slightly to the north of the final Parthenon, indicating that it was built for a wholly different building, now wholly covered over. This picture was somewhat complicated by the publication of the final report on the 1885–90 excavations indicating that the substructure was contemporary with the Kimonian walls, and implying a later date for the first temple.
If the original Parthenon was indeed destroyed in 480, it invites the question of why the site was left a ruin for 33 years. One argument involves the oath sworn by the Greek allies before the battle of Plataea
Battle of Plataea
The Battle of Plataea was the final land battle during the second Persian invasion of Greece. It took place in 479 BC near the city of Plataea in Boeotia, and was fought between an alliance of the Greek city-states, including Sparta, Athens, Corinth and Megara, and the Persian Empire of Xerxes...
in 479 BCE declaring that the sanctuaries destroyed by the Persians would not be rebuilt, an oath the Athenians were only absolved from with the Peace of Callias
Peace of Callias
The Peace of Callias is a purported treaty established around 449 BC between the Delian League and Persia, ending the Persian Wars. The peace was agreed as the first compromise treaty between Achaemenid Persia and a Greek city....
in 450. The mundane fact of the cost of reconstructing Athens after the Persian sack is at least as likely a cause. However the excavations of Bert Hodge Hill led him propose the existence of a second Parthenon begun in the period of Kimon after 468 BCE. Hill claimed that the Karrha limestone step Dörpfeld took to be the highest of Parthenon I was in fact the lowest of the three steps of Parthenon II whose stylobate dimensions Hill calculated to be 23.51x66.888m.
One difficulty in dating the proto‐Parthenon is that at the time of the 1885 excavation the archaeological
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
method of seriation
Seriation (archaeology)
In archaeology, seriation is a relative dating method in which assemblages or artifacts from numerous sites, in the same culture, are placed in chronological order. Where absolute dating methods, such as carbon dating, cannot be applied, archaeologists have to use relative dating methods to date...
was not fully developed: the careless digging and refilling of the site led to a loss of much valuable information. An attempt to make sense of the potsherds found on the acropolis came with the two-volume study by Graef and Langlotz published 1925–33. This inspired American archaeologist William Bell Dinsmoor
William Bell Dinsmoor
William Bell Dinsmoor, Sr. was an architectural historian of classical Greece and a Columbia University professor of art and archaeology.-Biography:He was born on July 29, 1886 in Windham, New Hampshire....
to attempt to supply limiting dates for the temple platform and the five walls hidden under the re‐terracing of the acropolis. Dinsmoor concluded that the latest possible date for Parthenon I was no earlier 495 BCE, contradicting the early date given by Dörpfeld. Further Dinsmoor denied that there were two proto‐Parthenons, and that the only pre‐Periclean temple was what Dörpfeld referred to as Parthenon II. Dinsmoor and Dörpfeld exchanged views in the American Journal of Archaeology in 1935.