Events
6 June 2019 Start
6 June 2019 End
19.00 Time
Greece Netherlands Institute at Athens 11 Makri str., 117 42 Athens

Τηλ.: 210-9210760
e-mail.: [email protected]

The case of the Propylaia of the Athenian Acropolis

Thursday, 6 June, 2019

Τasos Tanoulas (National Technical University of Athens) will address the topic “Identities transformed for an iconic monument: the case of the Propylaia of the Athenian Acropolis”. The lecture is organised by The Netherlands Institute at Athens.

Abstract

The Propylaia, the classical gateway to the Athenian Acropolis, is the most innovative
building of its time, establishing a new concept for architecture. It influenced immensely
public architecture in Antiquity and, since the renaissance, it was the model for several
modern buildings. In the fortified Acropolis of the Middle Ages, it was involved with the
fortifications of the west slope, which provided the only access to the top, remaining always the gateway to the citadel until well into the 15th c. In late Antiquity the northern wing was turned into the residence of the archbishop and since the late 13th c. it became the core of the fortified residence of the Latin dukes of Athens. In the first half of the 15th c. the fortified palace included the central unit of the building. In the meantime, the original identity of the Propylaia was forgotten and, since the 15th c., a series of identities followed. The identities of the Propylaia and the other Acropolis monuments were restituted only a few decades before the establishment of the modern Greek state. In the 19th c., the Acropolis emerged among the other classical monuments in Athens as the symbol of the nation’s identity, at the expense of the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine monuments. This still remains an important factor, not only in the frame of archaeological and conservation implementations, but also of political ideology and practice too.

For seat reservation contact [email protected], or phone 210-9210760