The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1930-06-13

istophaneS-the long roll of the great
ones of Greece!
1t is related of Socrates that once,
when he was being lampooned and
| burlesqued in this theater, he arose
| gravely from his seat and stood for
little space, until the audience could
make comparison between the orig
inal and the copy.
The theater of today is Roman; the
! site only is from the earliest period.
| 1t will be recalled that the Romans
| introduced the stage in the modern
| sense; the Greek actors wore a high
laced boot with a thick sole, called
cothurnus, to raise them above the
| chorus.
Leaving the theater, one walks to
| the inevitable goal, passing on the
right the precincts of Aesculapius and
| various remains, including the charm
ing Odeion built by Herod of Attica,
another Roman benefactor, of the Sec
Ond century, A. D., and on to the iron
gates which mark the lower precincts
of the Acropolis. Passing through
these and walking up the long incline.
one comes to turning ON the right
and sees ahead the gates, or Propy-
laea, of the AcropoliS.
High up on the right is the little
Temple of the Wingless Victory, while
corner of the Parthenon can be de-
scribed over the retaining wall. A
steep stairway which leads from the
outer gate of the Propylaea to the
upper level must be climbed before
one reaches the platform on which is
the Victory temple.
Perfection of the Victory Temple.
The view outward from this plat
form is marvellous, but the shrine COM
pels attention. Nothing can exceed in
delicacy and charm this exquisite lit
tie structure. Four Ionic columns,
each some 13 feet in height, support
the architrave, but so perfect are their
proportions that it is only when stand
ing beside them that one realizes that
they are twice the height of tall
man.
This diminutive, yet perfect edifice
was demolished by the Turks in order
to build bastion, and was later re-
constructed with the fragments of the
original building.
A pleasing tradition which dies hard
was that Victory had so constantly
perched on the Athenian banner that
she had lost her pinions and had come
permanently to reside at Athens.
However learned and cruel men have
shown the Wingless Victory is really
one of the manifestations of Athena.
Nearby is the spot from which the
aged King Aegeus took his stand to
catch the first beam glittering on the
sail of the returning ship in which his
son Theseus had sailed to Crete to
kill the Minotaur.
Inside the temple are spots to which
traditions cling. In the Treasure
house, at the west end, it is said was
stored the booty taken at Salamis,
which included Xerxes' great golden
throne.
In another spot various Christian
bishops, one is told, slept through long
centuries. Just here it is recalled that
the ParthenOn really served as a
Christian church longer than as
pagan temple, and from it prayers
have gone up to Jove, to Christ and
to Allah.
The portico commands superb
view of the Saronic gulf; at every
turn names familiar as household
words came to the observers lips
Salamis, the Bay of Eleusis, the dome
like rock of Acrocorinth, Aegina, and
in the distance the soft line of hills
marking the Peloponnesus.
Porch of the Maidens.
Turn again and you will face the
Porch of Maidens-the Caryatids.
These are too familiar to everyone to
require any description and elabora-
ton, but, as with other Greek sculp-
lures, are admired whOle-heartedly
The perfection of the draperies, the
radiant youth animating the figures,
the dressing of the hair, massed to
give added strength to the neck, are
a few of the elements of loneliness.
Despite the latter device, however, in
later times it has been found neces-
sary to make a sort of iron frame on
which to support the weight of the
roof
A dozen PAGES from the Erechtheum,
whose portico stands today In almost
untarnished beauty, are the walls built
by Themistocles after the destruction
of the first temple by the Persians in
$50 B. c. In 1T were used number
of the drums of the ancient columns.
Immediately below these walls lies
little hill which is pointed out as
the Areopagus, or Hill Of Mars. Phys
ically, the place is of little interest.
There is short flight of steps cut in
the rock, and at the top are the sites
| of ancient affairs.
The ancient Court of the Areopagus,
consisting of venerable and eminent
| Athenian citizens, held it's sittings on
this hill, and 1t is usually assumed
| that it was from here that st. Paul,
the future captive of Imperial Rome,
in A. ID. "a spoke to Athenian skeptics
with a reference to an altar "To the
| Unknown Cod