Megan's+Reports+and+Essay

Essay

Athens is the modern day capital of Greece. Though it may seem as a small city, Athens has a very large and vast history. It was originally named after the Greek goddess Athena who was the son of Zeus and the goddess of war and wisdom. So that is how Athens got its name. In the present day Athens is a cosmopolitan area and is also the center of finance and political life in Greece.

Now that we know a little about the modern day let's talk about the history of Athens. Athens was a very powerful city-state. It was the centre of arts, learning and philosophy. The heritage of the classical era is also still very evident in the city, represented by a number of ancient monuments and works of art.

The most famous being the Parthenon. The Parthenon was built to the greek goddess Athens. After Athena made the city of Athens hers the people of Athens were proud to be blessed by Athena and felt that they had a to build a nice temple in the center of the city in her honor. The original version of the Parthenon was called the pre-parthenon however during the persian invasion of 480 B.C the pre-partenon was destroyed. After the devastating destruction the Parthenon was re-built and this time it was just called the Parthenon. To this day this magnificent building with such and interesting history is still present in Greece. However it is not in the best condition for it is about 2000 years old. Greeks are trying hard to preserve the building for as long as they can.

Another interesting artifact in athens is the ﻿C ave of Schist which has been dated to between the 11th and 7th millennium BC. By 1400 BC the settlement had become an important center of the Mycenaean civilization and the Acropolis was the site of a major Mycenaean fortress whose remains can be recognised from sections of the characteristic Cyclopean walls. Unlike other Mycenaean centers, such as Mycenae and Pylons, it is not known whether Athens suffered destruction in about 1200 BC, an event often attributed to a Dorian invasion, and the Athenians always maintained that they were "pure" Ionian with no Dorian element. This wonderful landmark is another great example of the Greeks hard work.

Now lets talk a little about the geography of Athens. Athens sprawls across the central plain of Attica. This large basin is found of four large mountains, Mount ﻿Aegaleo to the west, Mount Parnitha to the north, Mount Penteli to the northeast, and of course Mount Olympus. Mount Olympus is the tallest of the four mountains and it has been declared a national park. Athens is built around a number of hills. Lycabettus is one of the tallest hills of the city proper and provides a view of the entire Attica Basin. The Aegean also borders Athens. From all these facts you can see that Athens is not that flat considering the fact that they have about four mountains and many tall hills. The Ionian Sea is also another major sea that borders Athens.

Another thing that makes Athens special is its unique style and architecture. Athens contains a variety of different architectural designs, ranging from Greco- Roman, Neo- Classical, to modern. They are often to be found in the same areas. Many of the most prominent buildings in the city follow these designs. Some of the neo-classical structures to be found are public buildings erected during the mid-nineteenth century. But, most of these things were ancient architecture and pre-historic styles. Athens developed a more modern architecture around the mid 1930's. Greek architects were suddenly influenced by a variety of different architectural movements around the world. In the present day Athens has many modern buildings present in the city but a variety of ancient buildings, designs and artifacts are still present as well. The most common example being the Parthenon.

Museums display all this wonderful information on athens as well. Athens has had a very interesting history with many major events that caused the city to develop its unique styles and ways of life. The Athenians are proud of there history and where they come from. They still look back at the ancient leaders who once guided Athens, and see what they can learn from them. In other words they try to see how they can follow their influence. Athens was and still is a very powerful and string city with a great heritage.

749 words

By Megan

