A must visit in a lifetime - Athens

Athens, the capital and largest city of the Hellenic Republic, is located at the southern tip of the Balkan Peninsula, surrounded by mountains on three sides and the sea on one side. Known as the "cradle of Western civilization", Athens' cultural and political achievements had a major impact on European and world cultures as early as the 5th to 4th centuries BC. Athens still preserves many historical sites and a large number of works of art, the most famous of which is the Acropolis, which is regarded as a symbol of Western culture.

Acropolis Theater of Atticus

Greece is one of the countries with the earliest developed civilization in the world's ancient history, and the ancient Greek culture shines in the temple of world culture and art. Whether in music, mathematics, philosophy, literature, architecture, sculpture, etc., the Greeks have achieved great success. Athens was once the ancient Mediterranean power and cultural center, known as the "source of Western culture", and still preserves the remains of the Roman, Byzantine and neoclassical architectural eras. Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle were also known as the "Three Sages of Greece." Socrates was born in Athens and is widely regarded by posterity as the founder of Western philosophy. In the 5th century BC, Athens produced three major comedic poets: Kratinus, Euboles and Aristophanes.

Athens

The Acropolis is located on a hill with an average height of 156 meters in the Greek capital of Athens, with a core area of 3.04 hectares and a buffer zone of 116.71 hectares. The Acropolis was built on a steep hill on all sides. It became a center of religious activity in the 5th century BC. The Acropolis is home to numerous historical monuments, including the Parthenon, the Propylaea, the Erechtheon and the Temple of Athena Nike. The Acropolis has a history of more than 3,300 years, is known for its ancient civilization and is the most outstanding ancient architectural complex in Greece.

Parthenon

The Acropolis and its monuments are the largest architectural and artistic complex left by ancient Greece for the world, a universal symbol of the classical spiritual and civilizational forms. The Acropolis is the most outstanding ancient architectural complex in Greece, an integrated public building that serves as a religious and political center. In the second half of the 5th century BC, Athens gained leadership in other ancient city-states after defeating the Persians and establishing a democratic system. Thereafter, as ideas and art flourished, a special group of artists threw themselves into the extraordinary Athens project of the illustrious statesman Perikles, inspired and guided by the sculptor Pheidia, to transform the hill of the rock into a monument of one-of-a-kind ideas and art. The most important buildings were built during this time: the Parthenon built by Ictinus, the Erechtheon designed by Mnesicles, the huge entrance gate of the Acropolis (Propylaea) and the Temple of Athena Nike.

Temple of Erechtheion

It became a center of religious activity in the 5th century BC. The Parthenon is the most famous building of the Acropolis, the main representative of the architecture and carving of Greece in its heyday, known as the "National Treasure of Greece", and a bright pearl in the treasure house of human art. Built entirely of white marble, the temple is rectangular in shape, about 69 meters long and 31 meters wide, and the exterior is composed of 46 columns arranged in a circular arrangement of about 10 meters high. The Parthenon is a masterpiece in the Acropolis complex. The Parthenon originally housed a statue of the goddess Athena. Later, the statue disappeared after being robbed, and now only one of them remains. Now the roof of the Parthenon temple has disappeared, showing the ruins and broken walls, but the entire frame of the temple supported by white marble columns remains, towering over the mountain.

Gate

Democracy, philosophy, drama, freedom of speech and expression were born on the hill of the Acropolis, which provide intellectual and spiritual values to the world today. The monuments of the Acropolis have been baptized by war, explosions, bombings, fires, earthquakes, looting, intervention and reconstruction, and have adapted to different uses, civilizations, myths and religions after nearly 25 centuries of ups and downs.

Acropolis

The Parthenon symbolizes the glory of ancient Athens and was built in honor of Athena, the patron saint of Athens, and is the most famous building in the entire ruins of the Acropolis. The rock-solid Acropolis stands majestically on top of the hill and remains a classic landmark of Western civilization. As the sun sets, golden sunlight floods the Acropolis, and standing on the Acropolis overlooking the whole of Athens, every visitor will be immersed in its beauty, vicissitudes and magnificence. In 1987, the Acropolis, Athens was inscribed on the World Heritage List by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee as a cultural heritage.

Acropolis boulder

The author of this article is in the Acropolis

The Temple of Zeus, the religious center of ancient Greece, is located southeast of the Acropolis and was built to worship Zeus and is one of the largest temples in ancient Greece. The Temple of Zeus was built in 470 BC and completed in 456 BC. Today, the temple has been destroyed, leaving only 15 stone pillars that stand tall in the sky, telling people about the glory of that year.

Panoramic view of the ruins of the Temple of Zeus

Ruins of the Temple of Zeus

The Olympic Games originated in ancient Greece and were named after the Olympic Games. Athens is the birthplace of the modern Olympic Games, having hosted the first Summer Olympic Games in 1896 and then the 28th Summer Olympics in 2004.

Venue of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896

The National Archaeological Museum of Greece, founded in 1866 and completed in 1889, is the largest museum in Greece and the most extensive of all the museums in Greece, with a comprehensive and concentrated display of ancient Greek culture.

Exterior of the National Archaeological Museum

"Bronze Statue of a Boy and a Horse" in the National Archaeological Museum

The exhibition area of the museum is mainly divided into two floors, with more than 50 rooms such as halls and exhibition rooms, collecting nearly 20,000 pieces of high-value cultural relics from various periods unearthed throughout Greece, dating from prehistory to late antiquity, these cultural relics comprehensively and intensively display ancient Greek culture, which can be described as a collection of ancient Greek cultural relics. At the entrance to the museum, in the most prominent place is the Agamemnon gold mask. The bronze statue of Poseidon, the god of the sea, was perfectly depicted in both the human body structure and the human form, which makes people have to sigh at the height reached by the ancient Greeks in the art of sculpture. In the exhibition hall, there is also a rare treasure salvaged from the Coast of Greece in 1928 - a giant bronze horse and a small rider. It is a work from 140 BC and is cast in bronze. The bronze statues of the boy and the horse in the museum were also in distress and sunk to the bottom of the sea in the same boat, which has been preserved to this day. The National Archaeological Museum of Greece is the largest museum in Greece and the most extensive of all the museums in Greece, with a comprehensive and concentrated display of ancient Greek culture.

Interior view of the National Archaeological Museum

Syntagma Square, the main square in the Greek capital of Athens, is located in front of the Greek Parliament Building, named after the Greek Constitution ratified by King Otto after the uprising on September 3, 1843. On the east side of Syntagma Square is a monument to the Unknown Soldier, built in 1928 to commemorate the unsung heroes who died for their country in the war with Turkey. In the middle of the monument is a relief of an ancient Greek warrior lying on his back. There are also countless place names under the reliefs, all of which are places where the Greek army fought against foreign troops. The Monument to the Unknown Soldier is preceded by guards dressed in Greek national costumes, most notably the hourly changing of the guard. This is one of the most characteristic rituals in Greece and attracts tourists from all over the world. The guards are dressed in traditional Ionian costumes, and the handsome appearance and exaggerated walking posture of the guards are the biggest attractions.

Houses of Parliament

Constitution Square Guards

The guards are dressed in traditional Ionian costumes, and the handsome appearance and exaggerated walking posture of the guards are the biggest attractions

The guard's exaggerated gesture felt like it was going to fly

Between University Street and Academy of Sciences Street in the center of Athens, there are three neoclassical buildings, namely the National Library, the University of Athens and the Academy of Athens. The Academy of Athens was part of the 1859 architectural "trilogy" of Danish architect Theophil Hansen, drawing on the essence of Classical Greek architecture. The Academy of Athens is an architectural masterpiece in the neoclassical style, together with the National Library and the University of Athens next to it, collectively known as the "Neoclassical Trilogy". The Academy of Athens, a major landmark of Athens, was built in 1859 and completed in 1885. Visit the Academy of Athens, and don't miss the 4 statues at the entrance of the academy as well as the sculptures of the gods on the lintel. At the top of the two tall marble deities stand two of the more famous Greek gods: on the left is athena, who holds a spear and shield symbolizing wisdom and bravery, and on the right, the Apollo god who holds a lyre in his left hand to represent light and music. On either side of the steps at the entrance are marble statues of two great philosophers of ancient Greece, on the left is Socrates and on the right is Plato, and on the lintel of the Academy of Athens there is a row of sculptures of the gods, in the center is Zeus, the lord of the gods, and the other gods stand on either side of it.

Academy of Athens

On the left is Socrates and on the right is Plato

Athens is one of the oldest cities in Europe and even in the whole world, dating back more than 3,000 years and always occupying the most important place in Greek history. As the birthplace of Western civilization and democracy, Athens has made great contributions to world art, philosophy and culture over the millennia. The city of Athens plays an important role in the development of Western culture, Athens is not only the cradle of Western civilization, but also the origin of the modern Olympic Games.

Street view of Athens

Ancient Athens was a powerful city-state and an ancient city of culture known all over the world. Athens still preserves many historical sites and a large number of works of art, the most famous of which is the Acropolis, which is a symbol of Western culture. Time flies, time flies, life is a journey, Athens is a must go place in life.

Sun Keqin wrote and photographed