Athens — Acropolis

The bare hilltop has no tourist services except for basic toilets and drinking fountains. It can be brutal in the summer heat. Pack your hat, sunscreen, water bottle, snacks, camera batteries, whatever. Backpacks are allowed in.

Avoid the huge crowds by visiting before 10 o'clock in the morning or late in the day. Early in the evening is ideal. The views of Athens are stunning, and the setting sun gives the stone a warm glow. Now, let's start that climb as we walk through 3,000 years of history at the Acropolis.

The Acropolis. The Acropolis. The Acropolis. The Acropolis.

The Acropolis. The Acropolis. The Acropolis. The Acropolis.

The Acropolis. The Acropolis. The Acropolis. The Acropolis.

Just along the way, I've invited a good friend and virtual travel buddy. Welcome, Lisa. Hi, Rick. Lisa will give us helpful directions and sightseeing tips throughout the tour.

And my first tip is to be sure you get our tour updates. Just press the icon at the lower right of your device. You'll find any updates and helpful instructions unique to this tour. Things like closures, opening hours, and reservation requirements.

There's also tips on how to use this audio tour, and even more so, and even the full printed script. Yes. So pause for just a moment right now to review our updates and special tips. It's okay. We'll wait. And then... Let the tour begin.

That's Mars Hill. In the 1st century A.D., the Christian apostle Paul climbed that rock and preached to a skeptical crowd of Athenians. Now let's enter the Acropolis. Here, Lisa.

Let me dab on just a little more sunscreen. I'm just fine, thank you. Show your ticket and enter the site. Start climbing the one-way paths that switch back up the hill.

Our first stop is a viewpoint overlooking the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, an ancient amphitheater built into the hillside below the Acropolis. As you hike to the Odeon viewpoint, let Rick give you a little historical context so your Acropolis sightseeing will make more sense. You're climbing the same paths followed by humans since the beginning of recorded time. The Acropolis, or High City, has been the heart of Athens since the Neolithic era, around 7,000 B.C.

This sheer plateau was a natural fortress faced with 100-foot cliffs and fed by permanent springs. When the Mycenaeans ruled the area around 1400 B.C., they built their palace here. By 800 B.C., the Athenians were already erecting temples to their gods, especially to Athena, the patron of the city, here on this historic hilltop. But everything changed in 480 B.C., when Persia invaded Greece.

The Athenians evacuated the city. The Persians swept in and burned all the temples atop the Acropolis to the ground. Eventually, the Persians were driven out of Greece, and Athens emerged from the war stronger and richer than ever. By 450 B.C., Athens was at the peak of its power.

It began a 50-year period of prosperity and enlightenment called the Golden Age. But in the city center, the Acropolis still lay empty, a vast blank canvas. Athens' farsighted leader, Pericles, funneled the city's wealth into a massive program to rebuild the Acropolis. Over the course of the next two generations, the Athenians transformed the Acropolis into a complex of ornate and superfluous, oversized temples.

Directing the project was the visionary architect and sculptor, Phidias. The four major monuments we'll see, the Parthenon, Erechtheion, Propylaia, and Temple of Athena Nike, were built as a coherent ensemble. They remain a snapshot of Greece's Golden Age, set in stone. For the next 2,500 years, these grand structures inspired the Western world.

As each civilization conquered, Athens, the Macedonians, the Romans, the Turks, and I guess you could say even the tourists. They added their own layers of history to the Acropolis. We'll see examples of these. One of the finest examples is just ahead, a theater built in Roman times.

Lisa. Before you reach the summit, peel off to the right and catch your breath, looking down at a breathtaking ruin. You have a bird's-eye view of the amphitheater, known as the Odeon of Herodes Atticus.

The Odeon was built in 161 A.D. by Herodes Atticus, a wealthy landowner. He built this in memory of his wife. Herodes was a Greek with Roman citizenship.

He was a legendary orator and a friend of the emperor Hadrian. This amphitheater is the most famous of the many impressive buildings Herodes financed throughout the country. In the 1950s, the ruined theater was reconstructed. Many summer nights, it hosts music, dance, and theatrical performances under the stars.

Athenians shudder when visitors, recalling the famous Yanni live at the Acropolis concert, call this stately and historic place Yanni's Theater. Continue climbing up the hill. Stay to the left, continuing uphill. Not down those stairs to the right.

Keep going uphill. You're headed for the grand entrance gate of the Acropolis, the Propylaia. As you climb, think of it. This is the same hike up the Acropolis that ancient pilgrims made once a year, for the Panathenaic Festival.

Eventually, you'll reach the base of a grand and very steep marble staircase. Stand at the base of this staircase and take it all in. Stand out of the tourist flow, if possible. This was the ancient Acropolis' main entrance, the Propylaia.

Several buildings and monuments surround this steep staircase, so pause here a few minutes and let Rick describe them. The Propylaia

The Propylaia was the covered passageway that led into the Acropolis. The building, is U-shaped. It had a large, central hallway. That's the six columns.

It's flanked by side wings that seem to reach out, embracing and welcoming the visitor. The left wing of the Propylaia was the Pinacoteca, or painting gallery. In ancient times, this space contained artwork and housed visiting VIPs. Originally, the entire Propylaia was painted bright colors and decorated with statues.

Remember, the main buildings of the Acropolis were all built within about 50 years and were intended to complement each other. The Propylaia was meant to look like a mini Parthenon. It had Doric columns and was originally topped by a triangular pediment. In other words, the Propylaia welcomed the visitor with an appropriately grand first taste of the Acropolis they were about to enter.

Before we climb those stairs, turn your attention to some of the other structures around the staircase. To the right of the Propylaia, look up high atop the block wall to find the Temple of Athena Nike.

The statue was also meant to ensure victory over the Spartans in the ongoing Peloponnesian Wars. The Athenians purposely broke the statue's wings to force Athena to stay and protect their city. So the building became known as the Temple of Wingless Athena. The other statues that once adorned the temple now displayed in the Acropolis Museum are exuberant, life-filled carvings.

They celebrate Athens' emergence from the Persian Wars. Over the centuries, the Temple of Athena Nike has undergone big changes and extensive restoration. In the 17th century, the Ottomans pulled it down and used the stone elsewhere. Two centuries later, the Greeks reassembled it.

In 1935, the temple was renovated, but that shoddy work did more harm than good. So, in 2001, the structure was completely disassembled. Then, over the next decade, cleaned up, shored up, and pieced back together again. Now, it's been done the right way and should hold for, say, oh, another 2,500 years.

Two other monuments decorate the ceremonial staircase. Start with the one to the left of the staircase, a tall, gray stone pedestal with nothing on it, the Monument of Agrippa. The Monument of Agrippa.

After defeating Antony and Cleopatra, the Roman general Agrippa, the son-in-law of Augustus, replaced that statue with a statue of himself. One final monument is behind you. Turn around and look downhill. Find it.

It's in the doorway known as the Boulet Gate. The Romans built this ceremonial entrance out of the rubble of destroyed buildings from the barbarian Herulian invasion of 267 A.D. The gate's French name, Boulet, comes from the archaeologist who discovered it in 1852. During Roman times, this gate was the official entrance to the Acropolis, making the Propylaia entry even grander.

Now let's start climbing the steps, or use today's switchback ramps for tourists. Climb the stairs and pass through the Propylaia. While you walk, let Rick describe what the ancients would have experienced.

At the heart of the procession, maidens dressed in pleated robes shuffled along. They carried gifts for the gods, things like incense burners and jugs of wine and bowls to pour out offerings. Their main gift was a sacred robe, the peplis. This had been specially woven as a gift to Athena, who resided in her temple atop the Acropolis.

How do I know what the parade looked like with such detail? Because we have a record of it, carved in stone. The parade was depicted in a 500-foot-long frieze of reliefs that surrounded the outside of the Parthenon. We'll see the scant remains of those in a moment.

As you approach the top of the stairs, you enter into the Propylaia. In ancient times, there were five different doorways, one between each of the six columns. Today's tourist route takes you through the main central doorway. Once inside the Propylaia, you can see how it was a roofed passageway.

The ceiling of marble tiles, now partially covered, partially restored, was painted sky blue and studded with stars. Floral designs decorated other parts of the building. Notice that the interior columns are ionic, and therefore a bit thinner than the Doric columns of the exterior. Also note the ruined fragments of columns lying on the ground.

These enormous round pieces are called column drums. Greek columns were not usually made from a single piece of stone, but from sections. Column drums, stacked on top of each other. Notice that some have square holes in the center.

This was where iron pins once held the drums in place. The Propylaia and its nearby monuments are certainly impressive, but this was just the opening act for Athens' star attraction. You've reached the summit. Now, continue on and enter the Acropolis.

Pass through the Propylaia. As you emerge out the other end, you're on top of the Acropolis. And there it is. The Parthenon.

Wow. It's just like in the books. I'm really here. Stand here and survey the site while Rick gets you oriented. ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶

The Athena Promakos statue was one of three well-known statues of Athena on the Acropolis. As the patron goddess of the city, Athena was worshipped for her wisdom, her purity, and her strength. Here she appeared in her strength role as front-line soldier, or Promakos, armed and ready for battle. The bronze statue was cast by Phidias, the man in charge of the overall design of the Acropolis.

It was so tall that the shining tip of Athena's spear was visible from ships at sea 30 miles away. The statue disappeared in ancient times, and no one knows its fate. Approach the Parthenon. And find a spot to appreciate this classic view of the Parthenon's West End.

In addition, there were 19 inner columns in the Ionic style. The outer columns are 34 feet high and 6 feet in diameter. In its heyday, the temple was decorated with statues and carved reliefs, all painted in vivid colors. It's considered Greece's greatest Doric temple, though not its purest textbook example because it incorporates Ionic columns and sculpture.

The Parthenon served the cult of Athena the Virgin with a statue of the goddess inside. It also served as the Fort Knox-like treasury of Athens. The west end is the classic view that greets visitors, but the building's main entrance was at the other end. This awe-inspiring temple was completed in less than a decade, from around 450 to 440 B.C.

The sculptural decoration took a few more years. The project's overall look was supervised by the master sculptor-architect Phidias. The construction was handled by well-known architects Ictinus and Callicrates. The two main sculptors were Agrec...

Help me out here, Lisa. It was the sculptors Agaracritos and Alcaminis. Yes, thank you. The names are obscure, but I think it's essential to get them right because, well, think of it, their work has astounded countless generations of artists and visitors for 2,500 years.

They certainly deserve the credit. Ictinus, Callicrates, Agaracritos, and Alcaminis. The Parthenon is big, sure, but what makes it truly exceptional is how harmonious and balanced it feels. The clever architects achieved that by employing a number of optical illusions.

For example, look at the Parthenon's... The Parthenon's steps. Architects know that a long, flat baseline on a building looks to the human eye like it's sagging. So, to create a building that looked level, the Parthenon's ancient architects compensated.

The base of the Parthenon actually arches several inches upward in the middle to counteract the sagging illusion and to drain rainwater. Now check out the columns. The architects knew that parallel columns appear to bend away from each other. So, they tilted the Parthenon's columns slightly inward.

If you extended the columns way upward, they'd eventually touch. By the way, experts say that that tilting is one of the reasons why the Parthenon has withstood so many earthquakes so well. The corner columns got tweaked also. They're thicker than the others.

Otherwise, they would have appeared too small. And all of the columns bulge imperceptibly halfway up, giving a feeling that they're bearing a lot of weight. For a building that seems at first to be all about... right angles, the Parthenon is amazingly short on straight lines.

But all these clever refinements make a powerful subconscious impression that brings an otherwise boring architectural box to life. It's amazing to think that all this was planned and implemented in stone so long ago. Stay at the Parthenon's west end, but get a little closer to appreciate the sculpture that once adorned the exterior. ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶

They depicted Athenians battling Amazons, the legendary race of female warriors. Originally, the Parthenon had 92 Doric-style metopes in high relief, mostly designed by Phidias himself. The crossbeams once supported a triangular pediment, now gone. The pediment at the West End was filled in with statues of Athena and the other gods.

It showed Athena with her olive tree competing with Poseidon and his trident to be Athens' patron god. More on that crucial event later. Today, just one statue, and it's a reconstruction. Take a few steps closer.

Look between the eight columns. Inside, there's another row of eight columns supporting a covered entrance porch. Look up above the inner eight columns. Decorating those crossbeams are more relief carvings.

This was the frieze. Originally, a 525-foot-long frieze of panels circled the entire building. It showed the crossbeams, the Panathenaic Parade, dancing girls, horses, gods looking on, and all that. Continue along the Panathenaic Way, walking along the left side of the Parthenon. This long left side is the north side. ¶¶ The Parthenon, the north side.

Now concentrate on the columns that surround the Parthenon. These formed an open-air porch around the inner sanctum. The columns are in the Doric style, stout, lightly fluted, with no base. The capitals on top of the columns are simple, consisting of a plate topped with a square slab.

These Doric capitals alone weigh 12 tons. The Parthenon's builders used only the very finest materials. The high-quality white pentelic marble came from the Pentelico mountain, 16 miles away. Unlike such grand structures as the Egyptian pyramids or the Roman Colosseum, the Parthenon was not built by slaves.

The labor force was free men who drew a salary, though it's possible that slaves did work at the quarries. The Parthenon was constructed from 100,000 tons of marble. Imagine the engineering problems of coring and transporting all that stone. Most likely, the column drums were cut at the quarry and rolled here.

To hoist the drums in place, they used four-poster cranes and Greek mathematics. They centered the drums and attached them permanently with square metal pins in the center of the drum. Remember that the Parthenon is intentionally off-kilter in places for the aesthetic effect, so each piece was unique, individually sized and cut to fit its exact place. The Parthenon stones are so well-crafted that they fit together within a fraction of an inch.

The total cost to build the Parthenon, in today's money, has been estimated at over a billion dollars. The modern cranes, scaffolding, and construction materials you see here are part of an ongoing renovation of the Parthenon. The challenge is to save what's left of the original Parthenon from the modern menaces of acid rain and pollution. They've already caused irreversible damage.

The project is funded by Greece and the European Union. It began back in 1984, which means they've been at it more than twice as long as it took to actually build the Parthenon in the first place. First, they have to catalog every single stone of the Parthenon blocks, drums, capitals, bits of rock, and so on. It's both pieces here on the Acropolis and pieces in museums scattered all around the world.

Next, archaeologists hope to put it back together like a giant 70,000-piece jigsaw puzzle. Whenever possible, the restorers use the original pieces. But you'll also see evidence of new marble used to replace damaged or missing marble. That's what those blocks of bright white new marble are lying on the ground, freshly cut from the same Pantelic quarries.

You'll notice that the pieces are not only cut but that many of the columns have lighter-colored patches where the restorers have added material. This looks like concrete or plaster, but it's actually new marble cut to fit the exact hole. In time, the new white marble will age to the same creamy color as the rest of the Parthenon. When it's complete, the renovated Parthenon won't look like the pre-1687 undestroyed building, just a shored-up version of the ruin we see today.

To get a clearer idea of the Parthenon in its heyday, see it from the original entrance. Continue up the Panathenaic Way to the Parthenon's east end. You know, if you really want to see the Parthenon in its heyday, there's a full-scale replica that's been built and open to visitors. Guess where it is.

Paris? Nope. London? Uh-uh.

Vienna? Berlin? Nope. Nashville.

Nashville, Tennessee. You're putting me on. I'm not. Seriously.

Nashville. Hmm. You learned something new every day. Oh, give me a home.

Full of Parthenon stones. Well, get along, little doggie, to the Parthenon's east end. When you reach there, find a place with a good view of the pediment over the door.

The now-missing statues were amazingly realistic and three-dimensional. They had perfect anatomy and bulging muscles showing through transparent robes. Imagine this spot during the age of Pericles and Socrates, on the big day, the Panathenaic Festival. The Parthenon is gleaming white, adorned with painted statues.

It sits on a grassy field, which is what the top of the Acropolis once was. The parade approaches. They've traveled through the Agora, up the hill, and passed through the Propylaia. Now they gather at the entrance of the Parthenon.

Musicians play flutes and tambourines. Girls dance. And men on horseback reign in their restless animals. On open-air altars, the priests offer a sacrifice to Athena.

One hundred oxen, the ultimate gift to the gods. Here at the Parthenon entrance, a select few were allowed to go inside. They proceed up the steps, entering through the majestic columns. First, they enter a foyer called the Pronaus.

Then they'd continue into the main hall, the Sela. It's cavernous, 100 feet long, 60 feet wide, and four stories tall. At the far end of the room towers an enormous statue, 40 feet tall. It's of Athena Parthenos, or Athena the Virgin.

She's dressed as a warrior, wearing a helmet with her shield resting at her side. The wooden core was plated with ivory to represent Athena's skin, and a ton of pure gold, a third of an inch thick, formed her garment. Or so say local guides. Athena's image was reflected in a pool in the center of the room.

The pool's humidity also helped preserve the ivory treasures. In Athena's left hand, she held a spear propped on the ground. In her upturned right hand was a small statuette of Nike. That is, she literally held victory in the palm of her hand.

The statue was the work of the master Phidias himself, sculpted around 440 B.C. The Athena Parthenos stood here in the Parthenon for 800 years. When classical Athens was overrun, the statue was carried off to Constantinople, where it subsequently vanished. The statue of Athena was the culmination point for the Panathenaic parade.

Here is where the citizens of Athens presented the goddess with a birthday gift of a newly woven robe, or peplum, or a peplus. Generally, the dress was intended for the life-size wooden statue of Athena kept at the nearby Erechtheion, which we'll visit next. But every fourth year was the grandest parade, culminating here at the Parthenon. The Athenians carried a huge robe, big enough to cover a basketball court.

Here they presented it to the 40-foot statue of Virgin Athena, the patron goddess of the proud people of Athens. Our next stop is the Parthenon's companion temple, the Erechtheion. Before heading there, notice the modern brown brick building near the Parthenon. This houses the Acropolis's meager facilities, including toilets with a drinking fountain nearby.

Now head across the street from the Parthenon to the Erechtheion. There were three entrances to this building, the famous Porch of the Caryatids, that's the six lady columns, the east end, to the right of the Caryatids, and the north porch, which is behind the Erechtheion. Start by enjoying the Porch of the Caryatids.

Each of the lady columns has a base beneath her feet, pleated robes as the fluting, a fruit basket hat as the capital, and, in the back, locks of hair as buttresses. Both feminine and functional, they pose gracefully, exposing a hint of leg. The Caryatids were modeled on and named after the women of Cariae, near Sparta, famous for their upright posture and noble character. These are faithful copies of the originals.

Four of the originals are on display in the Acropolis Museum right here in Athens. The others are in London and France. Time and the elements have ravaged these maidens. As recently as the 17th century, they had fragile arms holding baskets of flowers and jugs for ritual wine.

And until the 1950s, before modern smog, their now-worn-down faces had crisp noses and mouths. In a half-century of industrial-age pollution, these beautiful maidens experienced more destruction than in the previous 2,000 years. But their future looks brighter now that the originals have been brought indoors to be preserved for future generations. Near the porch, below and to the left, notice the olive tree.

Greece has more than 100 million of these trees. Though this particular tree is not ancient, there's been an olive tree in Greece for many, many years. There's been an olive tree in Greece for many, many years. There's been an olive tree on this spot for thousands of years.

It marks the sacred place where, according to legend, Athena first planted one. Olive trees have been called the gift of Athena to Athens. Let's view the Erechtheion from a different angle. Walk to the right, to the east end of the structure.

It's marked by a row of six ionic columns. Find a spot where you can look through the six columns and get a sense of what the temple was like inside. The Erechtheion, east end.

The Erechtheion is a very elegant, and topped with a scroll-like capital. In its day, the Erechtheion was a stunning building of white pentelic marble with black trim and painted columns. Now look inside the temple. You can make out that the inner worship hall, the cella, is divided in two by walls.

This complex layout accommodated the worship of various gods who had been venerated here since the beginning of time. Chief among them was, of course, Athena. Here, inside the Erechtheion, the Erechtheion once stood a life-size statue of Athena made of olive wood. It depicted her in her role as Athena Polias, the protector of the city.

Dating from around 900 B.C., this statue was much older and more venerable than either of Phidias' colossal statues. It supposedly dropped from the sky as a gift from Athena herself. It was so revered that when the Persians invaded, Pericles himself took the statue for safekeeping, as the Athenians evacuated their city. The Erechtheion is supposedly the spot where Athena and Poseidon fought it out for naming rights to the city.

Poseidon threw his trident, which opened a gash in the earth to bring forth the gift of water. It left a diagonal crack, which you can still see to this day. It's in the pavement of the lower north entrance. Cynics maintain that lightning is a more likely culprit.

Athena won the contest by stabbing a rock with her spear. This sprouted the blessed olive tree that stood near the porch of the Caryatids. The twin cellas of the Erechtheion allowed the worship of both gods, Athena and Poseidon. They're side by side to show that they were still friends.

I guess that if Poseidon had bested Athena in the naming contest, we'd be in Poseidonia today instead of Athens. Yeah, and if Zeus won, it'd be Zoostralia. And if Hades won, it'd be hot as hell. Hot as hell.

Now start walking toward our next stop. It's the lookout point at the far east end of the Acropolis, marked by the large Greek flag. As you walk, you may notice the retaining wall along the Acropolis's north border. Part of this wall was built using column drums.

These pieces of column are about all that remains of the old temple to Athena that preceded the Parthenon. That temple was destroyed in 480 B.C. when the Persians razed the entire Acropolis. As the Athenians rebuilt, they recycled these bits of column to preserve the bitter memory of that defeat.

By the way, you may also notice along the north slope that there's a modern elevator. Built for the 2004 Olympics, this carries people with disabilities up to the Acropolis. Continue to the far end of the Acropolis. There you'll find an observation platform with a giant Greek flag. ¶¶ ¶¶ ¶¶

This was one of the first well-known acts of resistance against the Nazis, and the boys' bravery is honored by a plaque near the base of the steps. To this day, Greeks can see this flag from just about anywhere in Athens and appreciate their hard-won freedom. From the observation point, survey modern Athens. The ancient Agora spreads below the Acropolis, and the sprawl of modern Athens, whitewashes the surrounding hills.

In 1830, Athens' population was about 5,000. By 1900, it was 600,000. And during the 1920s, with the influx of Greeks from Turkey, the population surged to 1.5 million. With the boom times in the 1950s and the 1980s, the city's population grew to nearly 4 million.

From this commanding perch, you're looking at the homes of one out of every one of us. One out of every three Greeks. Pan around from left to right. First, look down on the placa.

On the left, find the ancient Agora with the beautifully preserved Temple of Hephaestus. Next comes the Roman Forum, the four columns and palm trees. The Forum also features the round, white, domed monument called the Temple of the Winds. Next, directly below you is the charming Anaphyotika, which was built in the 12th-century Greek-Roman neighborhood, clinging to the Acropolis hillside.

Beyond that, find the green-and-red dome of Athens Cathedral. Further in the distance, Lycabettus Hill is Athens' highest point. It's crowned with the Chapel of St. George and has an expensive view restaurant served by a cable car that goes up the hill.

Looking still further in the distance, you'll see white bits on the mountains behind. These are the pentelic quarries, the source of the beautiful marble used to build the monuments here on the Acropolis. Continue panning to the right. You'll spot the beige neoclassical Parliament building marking Syntagma Square.

The National Garden is behind and to the right of that. In the garden is the Yellow Zapion, an exhibition hall. The green area in the far distance contains the 80,000-seat marble Panathenaic Stadium. This is where Golden Age Athens held its games.

In 1896, the ruined stadium was renovated to host the first modern Olympics. After a 1,500-year hiatus, Greece's famed Olympic Games were held once again here in Athens. Complete your visual tour of Athens at another nice viewpoint. It's located along the south edge of the Acropolis, on the far side of the Parthenon.

Start walking back in the direction of the Parthenon. When you reach the Parthenon, circle along its left side by the clifftop wall. Belly up to that wall for a stunning view looking south over modern Athens. ¶¶

The temple was part of Hadrianopolis, the emperor's planned community. The neighborhood came complete with the triumphal Arch of Hadrian at its entrance. Now, look down to the base of the hill at your feet. The Theater of Dionysus is where Golden Age Athenians came to see performances by the likes of Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes.

By the way, admission to these ruins is covered by your Acropolis ticket. ¶¶ Greek theater was invented modern theater, and many plays written 2,500 years ago are still performed today. Greek drama, like Greek art and philosophy, put human beings center stage. Greek theaters were built into the natural slopes of hillsides.

This gave the audience a glimpse of human emotions against the awesome backdrop of nature. Beyond the theater is the wonderful Acropolis Museum. It houses many of the art treasures that once decorated the Acropolis. The black-and-gray modern glass building has three rectangular floors stacked at irregular angles atop each other.

The top floor is angled to match the orientation of the building its collection honors, the Parthenon. Looking to the right, you see Philopippus Hill, the green, tree-dotted hill. It's topped with an ancient monument to a popular Roman general. This hill is from where the Venetians launched the infamous mortar attack of 1687 that destroyed the Parthenon.

More on that in a second. Farther in the distance, you get a glimpse of the turquoise water of the Aegean Sea. While the Persians were burning the Acropolis to the ground, the Athenians watched from their ships in the Aegean. Then they set out to defeat the Persians in the history-changing Battle of Salamis.

Pan farther to the right. Hiding in the distance is the port of Piraeus. This is the main departure point today for boats to the islands. Complete your visit to the Acropolis by wandering wherever you'd like.

Stroll among the ruins. Take in the views, the temples, and so much history. Ponder it all as Rick recounts the fate of the Acropolis over the years. ¶¶

The interior was stripped of pagan images and redecorated with Christian frescoes. The west end of the building became the main entrance. For 1,000 years throughout the medieval period, the Parthenon was an important stop on the Christian pilgrimage circuit. Then, in 1456, the Turks arrived.

They converted the Parthenon into a mosque complete with minaret. They used the Propylaia as a palace. Remember, at this point in time, the Parthenon was nearly 2,000 years old, but it was still basically intact. Then, in 1686, an army of Venetians attacked the city.

The Turks hunkered down here atop the Acropolis. They used the Parthenon as a safe place for storing their armaments, like gunpowder. I don't like where this is headed. The Venetians laid siege.

They could care less about Frises, Metopes, and Doric versus Ionic. They just wanted to beat the Turks. They fired away and got lucky. A mortar shell hit the Acropolis and triggered a massive explosion.

It ripped the guts out of the Parthenon, rattled the Propylaia, and wiped out the Turkish defenders. Huge pieces of the Parthenon toppled to the ground. Many of them were carried off by soldiers as souvenirs of war. Then, in 1801, came the next wave of disaster.

The British ambassador, Lord Elgin, got permission to take sculptures from the Parthenon. He gathered pieces off the ground, bought them from locals, and even sawed them off the building itself. Half of the Parthenon's precious sculptures, from the Frise, the Metopes, and the pediment, were carted off to London. These are the so-called Elgin marbles, displayed in the British Museum to this day.

Greeks claim they were simply stolen by an occupying power, and the Greek government continues to negotiate for their return. In the 19th century, newly independent Greece tore down the Parthenon's minaret and turned the Acropolis into an archaeological zone. Since then, it's been excavated and renovated. Today, this is the place to experience and appreciate the wonders of classical Greece.

The buildings of the Acropolis are some of the most influential works ever created by humankind. For 2,500 years, they've inspired architects, sculptors, painters, and engineers. Today, visitors from across the globe stand here and are awestruck by the wonders of the Acropolis. We hope you've enjoyed this tour of the Acropolis.

If you're doing more sightseeing in Athens, we also have audio tours for the Agora, the Athens City Walk, and the National Archaeological Museum. Remember, this tour was excerpted from the Rick Steves' Greece Guidebook. For more details on eating, sleeping, and sightseeing in Athens, refer to the current edition of that guidebook. For more free audio tours and podcasts, and for information about our TV shows, bus tours, and travel gear, visit our website at ricksteves.com.

Thanks to Jean Openshaw, the co-author of this tour. This tour was produced by Cedar House Audio Productions. Thanks for joining me, and enjoy the rest of Athens. Transcription by CastingWords