The Parthenon, standing proudly on the Athenian Acropolis, is considered by many historians and archaeologists to be the undisputed symbol of Athenian democracy and the cradle of Western civilization.
The monument is also considered by many architects around the world to be one of the most beautiful buildings of all time. It attracts millions of tourists every year and was designed by the most famous sculptor of antiquity, Phidias, while two of the most influential architects ever , Ictinus and Callicrates, supervised the actual construction work of the temple.
Acropolis, with Parthenon. (moofushi/Adobe Stock)
The mystery of the ancient temple
Contemporary scientists have admitted – even though the Parthenon is the most imitated building in history – that even with modern technology and contemporary architectural techniques, it is virtually impossible to rebuild Exactly the same building in every detail.
But why is the Parthenon so special? What makes it different from all the others? What details and secrets did ancient people know that have been lost over time? Why can’t we build a building identical to the original Parthenon even though technology, machinery and architecture have advanced so much since then? There are so many mysteries involved in the construction of the Parthenon, only a few of which can even remotely begin to be unraveled.
First, the Parthenon may need decades to be restored in modern times, but the Athenians mysteriously built it in a decade, from 447 to 438 BC.
The temple was built under the rule of Pericles. Marble bust of Pericles, Roman copy after Greek original from ca. 430 BC. (Public domain)
The iconic monument is an octagonal Doric temple with Ionic architectural features, surrounded by a colonnade of 8 horizontal columns and 17 vertical columns, counting the upper columns. corner twice.
The main entrance of the temple faces east while the internal length is 100 Attic feet, which is 30.80 meters (101 feet). And although most of these numbers seem random, the reality is that many historians believe these numbers have significant proportions.
Low angle perspective of the Parthenon columns at sunset, Acropolis, Athens. (Alex Green/Adobe Stock)
Messages in measurements
One attic foot is equivalent to 0.30803 meters, or 1/2F (φ), where F (φ) = 1.61803, also known as the Golden Ratio. The golden number F, the number 1.618, is commonly found in nature, in human facial features, in human body measurements, in flowers and other plants, in art, in most creatures that live on earth, in seashells, and in honeycombs. , among many other things, but most importantly, it is often tied to the structure of the universe and planetary orbits in our solar system.
Furthermore, in aesthetic science, the Golden Ratio is considered the most accurate standard for expressing perfection. So could this all be just a coincidence? Not likely, because inside the Parthenon we find something more impressive— the Fibonacci Sequence, which in mathematics describes the phenomenon in which a number is equal to the sum of the previous two numbers: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8 , 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, etc. Even more strangely, the ratio of consecutive pairs tends to be called the Golden Ratio, or F-Number (φ).
Golden ratio. ( CC BY-SA 2.0 )
Additionally, the number Pi (π), 3.1416 can also be found inside the temple, appearing in the mathematical relation 2F2/10, but more impressively, we see the number e = 2.72, which is a constant The most important mathematics is the base of natural logarithms.
What makes things more complicated is that the three numbers present in the Parthenon are also present in all of nature and are present in all creation, and nothing can function without them.
Mathematical mysteries
As one would expect, there are many questions arising from the above facts. Did the creators of the Parthenon know these numbers and their significance? And if so, how were they able to put them into a building so detailed and precise that we cannot recreate today even with all our technology and know-how?
How could the ancient Greeks, or more precisely Ictinus, Callicrates, and Phidias, have known about the Golden Ratio when Midhat J. Gazalé and so many other scholars assure us that it was not until Euclid came out? Only then will the mathematical properties of the Golden Ratio be clearly defined. have learned?
Phidias shows his friends the Parthenon relief. (Public domain)
How did they know about the Fibonacci Sequence when it was first officially recorded in 1202, nearly 1,700 years after the Parthenon was built? And most importantly, how could the facade of the Parthenon, as well as many of its specific elements, be surrounded by yellow rectangles when the computer technology we take for granted today did not exist? at that time to create such shapes?
To all these questions, many more may be added as one seeks to discover the specifics of the function and mysteries of the sacred temple; for example, how was the building lit when there were no windows and, even more strangely, no traces of soot were found, which rules out the use of torches?
Signal under the sun
Another mystery that many experts in different fields have tried unsuccessfully to solve is why during the day when there is sunlight, shadows created around the temple always appear to indicate to other specific destinations in Greece? What exactly they show and why this happened, or whether there is any special meaning behind this event, have long been studied by scientists, but there are many opinions. different, making it impossible for us to find a solution.
Despite all the scientific, mystical, and mythical mysteries surrounding its legend, the Parthenon remains the cradle of Western civilization—and certainly one of humanity’s most important monuments. Generally speaking.
And it continues to attract millions of curious visitors every year. The only certainty is that we can only learn and benefit from the iconic monument, its unlocked codes and its artistic features, which will hopefully be decoded in the near future .
The Parthenon is an extremely impressive monument. (TTstudio / Adobe Stock)
Additional information about the Parthenon
The Parthenon is often called sacred because it was dedicated to the goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered the patron and protector of the city.
The temple was built under the rule of Pericles, who is considered Athens’ greatest statesman ever and is also credited with the birth of democracy.
The most impressive and glorious part of the Parthenon unfortunately no longer exists. It is a giant statue of Athena designed and sculpted by Phidias. It is made of ivory and gold and is of course dedicated to her.
Phidias was also the artist who sculpted the statue of Zeus at Olympia, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
The Parthenon is considered the most copied building in history. Some of the most famous buildings built upon it include the New York Stock Exchange, the Reichstag building in Berlin, and the main entrance to the White House.
Loving the Acropolis and the Areus Pagus in Athens, Leo von Klenze, 1846. (Public domain)
