Abstract
Acropolis literally means “city on the edge.” In Greek, Acropolis means “highest city.” The word Acropolis is associated primarily with the Greek cities Athens, Argos, Thebes, and Corinth. The most famous example is the Acropolis of Athens, known worldwide as “the Acropolis.” The most famous building of the Acropolis is the Parthenon. (Exhibit 1)
Exhibit 1- Parthenon (Acropolis Museum, 2009)
Acropolis (Exhibit 2) was rebuilt under the leadership of Pericles, during the Golden Age of Athens (460–430 BC). Phidias, a great Athenian sculptor, and Ictinus and Callicrates, two famous architects, were responsible for the reconstruction. During the 5th century BC, the Acropolis acquired its final shape. After winning at Eurymedon in 468 BC, Cimon and Themistocles ordered the reconstruction of the southern and northern walls, and Pericles entrusted the building of the Parthenon to Ictinus and Phidias.
Twenty-five centuries later, on 26 March 2007, the Acropolis of Athens was formally proclaimed as the pre-eminent monument on the European Cultural Heritage list of monuments.
In 1976, the building of the Acropolis Museum in this particular site was envisioned by Constantinos Karamanlis, Greek Prime Minister (1974–1977), and is located in the historical area of Makriyianni, southeast of the Rock of the Acropolis, on Dionysiou Areopagitou Street in Athens.
Exhibit 2 – The Acropolis (http://sasgreekart.pbworks.com/f/1228797850/Parthenon1.jpg)
On 20 June 2009, this unique project was completed. The Acropolis Museum, with over 4,000 exhibits and built on the slopes of Acropolis, opened its doors to the public for the first time during an astonishingly grand opening ceremony. This $175 million project, with a total square-foot area of 250,000 feet, took about 8 years to complete.
Background
Exhibit 3 – Acropolis http://www.theodora.com/wfb/photos/greece/acropolis_athens_greece_ert.jpg
The monuments of the Acropolis have withstood the ravages of past centuries, (Exhibit 3) both of ancient times and those of the Middle Ages. Until the 17th century, foreign travelers visiting the monuments depicted the classical buildings as being intact, which remained the case until the middle of the 17th century, when the Propylaia was blown up while being used as a gunpowder store.
Thirty years later, the Ottoman occupiers dismantled the neighboring Temple of Athena Nike to use its materials to strengthen the fortification of the Acropolis.
The most fatal year for the Acropolis was 1687. In 1687, many of the building’s architectural pieces were blown into the air and fell into heaps around the Hill of the Acropolis; this explosion was caused by a bomb from the Venetian forces. After the explosion, foreign visitors to the Acropolis searched through the rubble and took fragments of the fallen sculptures as souvenirs.
In the 19th century, Lord Elgin removed intact architectural sculptures from the frieze, the metopes, and the pediments of the building.
The Old Acropolis Museum
In 1833, the Turkish withdrew from the Acropolis. Immediately after the founding of the Greek State, discussions about the construction of an Acropolis Museum on the Hill of the Acropolis began.
In 1863, it was decided that the Museum be constructed on a site southeast of the Parthenon, and foundations were laid on 30 December 1865. The total space of the old Acropolis museum was about 800 square meters (8611 square feet). The building program for the old Museum used this simple formula:
- Height of museum building <= height of the stylobate of the Parthenon.
With only 800 square meters of floor space, the building was rapidly shown to be inadequate for accommodating the findings from the large excavations on the Acropolis that began in 1886. So, the construction of a second museum, called the “Little Museum,” was announced in 1888. The final changes occurred between 1946 and 1947, when the second museum was demolished and the original museum was extended to about 2,000 square meters (21,527 square feet) (50-meter x 20-meter building).
By the 1970s, the old Acropolis Museum could not cope satisfactorily with the large numbers of visitors passing through its doors. The inadequacy of the space frequently caused problems and downgraded the sense that the exhibition of the masterpieces from the “Rock” sought to achieve!
Project Initiation
The idea for a new Acropolis Museum was initially conceived by Constantinos Karamanlis, the Greek Prime Minister, in September 1976. Prime Minister Karamanlis also selected the site upon which the Museum was finally built three decades later!!! With his penetrating vision, Constantinos Karamanlis defined the need and established the means for a new Acropolis Museum, which would be equipped with all the technical facilities necessary for the conservation of the invaluable Greek artifacts. The main goal was to eventually reunite all the Parthenon sculptures.
For these reasons, architectural competitions were conducted in 1976 and 1979, but without success. Ten years later, in 1989, Melina Mercouri, the Minister of Culture, started a campaign for the return of the Parthenon Marbles from the British Museum and also initiated an international architectural competition for the design of the new Acropolis Museum. The results of this competition were annulled, following the discovery of a large urban settlement on the Makriyianni site, dating back from Archaic to early Christian Athens. This new discovery now needed to be integrated into the New Museum, which was to be built on this site.
The Acropolis Museum is located in the historical area of Makriyianni, southeast of the Rock of the Acropolis, on Dionysiou Areopagitou Street in Athens. It is only 300 meters from the Acropolis Hill, two kilometers away from Syntagma, in Athens’ main city square, and next to the Acropolis Metro station. The Museum entrance is at the beginning of the pedestrian walkway of Dionysiou Areopagitou Street, which constitutes the central route for the unified network of Athens’ archaeological sites.
In 2000, the Organization for the Construction of the New Acropolis Museum announced an invitation to a new tender, which was realized in accord with the Directives of the European Union. This tender came to fruition with the awarding of the design tender to Bernard Tschumi and Michael Photiadis and their associates and the completion of construction in 2007.
The project was co-financed by the Hellenic Republic and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The total budget was €130 million (about $175 million USD). The project’s customer was Mr. Dimitrios Pandermalis, President of the Organization for the Construction of the New Acropolis Museum.
The project stakeholders in favor of the project were the government and all Greeks worldwide. Among the negative project stakeholders was the British Museum, because Greece would eventually ask for the return of the Elgin marbles and some landowners adjacent to the new Acropolis Museum.
The Design of the New Museum
Professor Dimitrios Pandermalis, President of the Organization for the Construction of the New Acropolis Museum, said the following about the design of new Acropolis museum.
“The design was chosen for its simple, clear, and beautiful solution that is in accord with the beauty and classical simplicity of the Museum’s unique exhibits and that ensures a museological and architectural experience that is relevant today and for the foreseeable future.” (Dillon, 2009, ¶2)
Exhibit 4, The new Acropolis museum (Acropolis Museum, 2009)
The general contractor was AKTOR SA, one of the leading Greek construction companies. Leonidas Pakas was the project manager and Costis Skroumbelos was the architectural consultant. Other people involved in the project were
| Architect | Bernard Tschumi Architects New York/Paris |
| Associate Architect | Michael Photiadis ARSY Ltd, Athens, Greece |
| Structure Consultant | ADK and Arup, New York |
| Mechanical and Electrical Consultant | MMB Study Group S.A. and Arup, New York |
| Civil Consultant | Michanniki Geostatiki and Arup, New York |
| Lighting Consultant | Arup, London |
| Glass Consultant | Hugh Dutton Associates (HAD) |
The Results of the Project
Exhibit 5, The new Acropolis museum (Acropolis Museum, 2009)
Exhibit 4 – Museum Construction Specifics
Materials Used
The materials used on the project were:
- Structure: Reinforced concrete and steel
- Glass façade: Purified “low iron” glass with an invisible selective UV coating and printed frit
- Inner core: Precast and cast-in-place concrete with acoustical dampening perforations
- Skylights: Frosted glass panels
- Railings: Glass panels with steel handrails
- Floors: Beige marble_for galleries; dark marble for circulation; heat-strengthened, laminated safety glass with textured dots to prevent slippage
- Displays: Marble pedestals, glass vitrines, and steel niches
Exhibit 6 - Exhibit 6 The new Acropolis museum (Acropolis Museum, 2009)
Project Schedule
The project schedule (Exhibit 5) dates are shown in the following table:
Exhibit 5 – Project Schedule
The Five Collections of the Acropolis Museum
- The Gallery of the Slopes of the Acropolis
- The Archaic Gallery
- The Parthenon Gallery
- Propylaia, Athena Nike, Erechtheion
- From the 5th Century BC to the 5th Century AD
The First Collection: The Gallery of the Slopes of the Acropolis
After crossing the ground floor lobby, toward the turnstiles of the Museum, the first collection lies before the visitor. An ascending, wide glass-floored gallery houses the finds from the slopes of the Acropolis. The occasional transparent floor provides a view of the archaeological excavation, whereas its upward slope alludes to the ascent to the Acropolis.
The Gallery of the Slopes of the Acropolis houses finds from the sanctuaries that were found on the slopes of the Acropolis, as well as objects Athenians used in everyday life from all historic periods.
On the left-hand side, finds from some of the key sanctuaries of the slopes are exhibited; on the right-hand side, there are displays of finds from the smaller sanctuaries and settlements that developed on the slopes of the Hill.
The Second Collection: The Archaic Gallery
Archaic is the period that spans the 7th century BC through the end of the Persian Wars (480–479 BC). This period is characterized by the development of the city–state and the transition from aristocracy to tyranny and, eventually, democracy.
In the Archaic Gallery, visitors have the opportunity to view three-dimensional exhibits from all sides for the first time. With the benefit of the changing natural light, visitors can discern and discover the delicate surface variations of sculptures and select the vantage points from which to observe the exhibits.
On the south side of the Gallery, depictions of young women (the Korai), horse riders (the Hippeis), and many other historical characters provide striking pictures of the Acropolis during the Archaic Period.
The Third Collection: The Parthenon Gallery
In the center of the Parthenon Gallery, on the third floor, the visitor can observe a video presentation about the Parthenon and the sculptural decoration of the monument. In the same area, ancient marble inscriptions, recording detailed cost records of the construction of the Parthenon and the statue of Athena Parthenos, are displayed. As a result, visitors learn about how democratic bodies functioned during the 5th century BC.
The installation of the Parthenon frieze on the rectangular cement core, with the exact same dimensions as those of the Parthenon, enables a comprehensive view of the details of the frieze, as one takes the perimetric walk around the Gallery.
Exhibit 7: Parthenon floor plan http://sasgreekart.pbworks.com/f/parthenon_flooplan.jpg
The Fourth Collection: Propylaia, Athena Nike, Erechtheion
The visitor’s descent from the third floor down to the first floor, to the last gallery in the Museum, affords views of unique works that have become the prototypes for subsequent periods—from antiquity through modern times.
For the first time ever, it is possible to view the coffered ceiling of the Propylaia, the sculptures from the parapet of the temple of Athena Nike, and the Caryatids—or Korai of the Erechtheion—at close proximity, from the balcony overlooking the Gallery of the Slopes of the Acropolis.
The main monuments that constitute the Classical Acropolis are the Propylaia, the temple of Athena Nike, and the Erechtheion.
- The Propylaia, the monumental entrance to the Acropolis, was built between 437 and 432 BC, following designs by the architect Mnesikles, in order to replace the earlier gateway (the Archaic Propylon).
- Between 427 and 423 BC, the temple of Athena Nike was built, perhaps by the architect Kallikrates, on the bastion southwest of the Propylaia, to replace an earlier small temple on the same site.
- The Erechtheion is the last of the Periclean buildings. Construction began during the Peace of Nicias (421-415 BC) and ended after 410 BC.
The Fifth Collection: From the 5th Century BC to the 5th Century AD
The exhibition concludes on the north side of the first-floor gallery. Impressive portraits, Roman copies of classical masterpieces, and depictions of philosophers and historical figures are the exhibits covering the period from the 5th century BC to the 5th century AD.
These collections include the Sanctuary of Artemis Brauronia, the votives of the Classical and Hellenistic periods, and the votives of the Roman period.
The Opening Ceremony
Exhibit 8, The new Acropolis museum opening ceremony (Acropolis Museum, 2009)
On 20 June 2009, this unique project was completed. On this date, during an astonishingly grand opening ceremony, the new Acropolis Museum in Athens, Greece, built on the slopes of Acropolis opened its doors to the public for first time.
More than 300 honored guests had the opportunity to visit the new Acropolis Museum during the opening ceremony. The Museum has over 4,000 exhibits.
The President of the Museum, Mr. Dimitrios Pandermalis, stated (http://www.theacropolismuseum.gr/default.php?pname=Welcome&la=2) :
“The new Acropolis Museum was designed with two objectives: the first to offer the best conditions for the exhibition of its exhibits, and second, to be a Museum that welcomes and befriends its visitors. A walk through its galleries is a walk through history—between the masterpieces of the Archaic and Classical periods—but also the ancient neighborhoods of Athens. The Museum offers many opportunities for rest and recreation, as well as a visitor-friendly environment for some of the most emblematic works of antiquity.”
Mr. Antonis Samaras, the Greek Minister of Culture, stated ( Acropolis Museum, 2009)
“Welcome to the new Acropolis Museum. 188 years since the declaration of the Greek Independence, 33 years since Constantinos Karamanlis took the far-sighted decision to build it in this particular site, and 27 years since the campaign of Melina Merkouri, a duty is fulfilled and a dream is realized!”
New Project: “Returning the Elgin Marbles Home!”
A new project has recently been initiated in the hearts of all Greeks and millions of people worldwide: to return the Elgin marbles home!
Elgin marbles, also known as the “Parthenon marbles,” are a collection of classical Greek marble sculptures, inscriptions, and architectural pieces that originally belonged to the Parthenon and other buildings on the Acropolis of Athens. Thomas Bruce, the seventh Earl of Elgin, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire between 1799 and 1803, obtained a controversial permission from the Ottoman authorities to remove these pieces from the Acropolis. Between 1801 and 1812, Elgin’s agents removed about half of the surviving sculptures of the Parthenon, as well as architectural pieces and statues from the Propylaea and Erechtheum. Today, the Elgin marbles are displayed in the British Museum.
Summary
The unique project of a lifetime— to build the new Acropolis Museum— faced many challenges: from selecting the right place to build it, securing the funds, and relocating the marbles from the Acropolis. Nonetheless, the unique final result is astonishing!