Monument sights in Athens
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A
Statue of Athena Promachos
Along the Panathenaic Way, which cuts across the middle of the Acropolis, you will see the foundations of pedestals for the statues that once lined the path, including one that held Pheidias' 9m-high statue of Athena Promachos (promachos means 'champion'). Symbolising Athenian invincibility against the Persians, the helmeted goddess held a shield in her left hand and a spear in her right. The statue was carted off to Constantinople by Emperor Theodosius in AD 426.
By 1204 it had lost its spear, so the hand appeared to be gesturing. This led the inhabitants to believe that the statue had beckoned the crusaders to the city, so they smashed it to pieces.
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B
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
The war memorial known as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is guarded by the city's famous statuesque evzones, the presidential guards whose uniform of short kilts and pom-pom shoes is based on the attire worn by the klephts (the mountain fighters of the War of Independence). The changing of the guard takes place every hour, while every Sunday at 11:00 the evzones perform an extended changing of the guard ceremony in full ceremonial dress, accompanied by a military band.
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C
Erechtheion
Although the Parthenon was the most impressive monument of the Acropolis, it was more of a showpiece than a sanctuary. That role fell to the Erechtheion, built on the part of the Acropolis held most sacred. It was here that Poseidon struck the ground with his trident and where Athena produced the olive tree. Named after Erichthonius, a mythical king of Athens, the temple housed the cults of Athena, Poseidon and Erichthonius.
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D
Parthenon
The Parthenon is the monument that more than any other epitomises the glory of ancient Greece. Parthenon means 'virgin's apartment'. This is the largest Doric temple ever completed in Greece, and the only one built completely (apart from its wooden roof) of Pentelic marble.
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