Been to the Parthenon? Oh no you haven’t…
Dutch scholars say we have been getting the name of iconic Acropolis temple wrong for 2,000 years
SITTING on top of the Acropolis, the Parthenon is one of the most dazzling buildings from antiquity. Yet it seems for 2,000 years we have been getting its name wrong, according to research.
Dutch scholars claim that the term
“Parthenon” – popularised in the Roman period – originally belonged to an entirely different building, not the vast stone temple that looms over Athens and attracts millions of tourists a year.
The real Parthenon was, in fact, an ancient Greek treasury that contained offerings to the goddess Athena, claims research by Utrecht University.
Known as the Erechtheion today, it is about 100 yards from the main temple on the Acropolis, the massive rocky escarpment that rises from central Athens. Rather than being known as the Parthenon, the big temple should be known by its original ancient Greek name, Hekatompedon.
“That means ‘the 100ft temple’ and the main room of the big temple was indeed exactly 100ft long,” Janric van Rookhuijzen, the archeologist behind the research, told The Daily Telegraph.
He says that Hekatompedon, which is mentioned in archives dating back 2,500 years, does not exactly roll off the tongue. A more user-friendly name would be the Great Temple of Athena.
“Hekatompedon is a difficult name to pronounce. That may be part of the reason that Parthenon caught on – it was much more catchy,” he said. Dr Van Rookhuijzen says his research, based on a study of archeological data and ancient texts, did not go down very well initially with Greek archeologists.
“[They] were, of course, very suspicious. But they’re now saying there is some merit to the theory I have put forward.”
Parthenon means “house of virgins” and the smaller temple is indeed decorated with stone caryatids, sculpted female figures which act as pillars, holding up the roof.
Devoted to the ancient cult of
Athena, it would have housed a treasury containing precious objects associated with the goddess, including musical instruments and swords from Persia.
“Where the scientific community is concerned, Dr Van Rookhuijzen’s insight will cause a minor seismic shift,” said Josine Blok, professor emeritus of ancient cultures at Utrecht University.
“Not only will the names need to be adjusted, this changes our image of the cult of Athena and the Acropolis as a whole.”
Ineke Sluiter, professor of Greek language and literature at Leiden University, said: “This study demonstrates the permanent importance of never blindly trusting that the commonly held wisdom is actually true.”
The research has been published in the American Journal of Archaeology and the Dutch edition of National Geographic Magazine.
An icon of ancient Greek culture, the Parthenon and its marbles have been at the heart of discord between Greece and Britain for 200 years, ever since Lord Elgin brought some of the friezes back to London.