page_title: Cave Sanctuaries of the Akropolis
section_title: Terrace of Zeus, Apollo and Pan
hierarchical_section_title: Cave Sanctuaries of the Akropolis / Terrace of Zeus, Apollo and Pan
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Bas-relief votif, représentant Pan et les nymphes dans une grotte, avec une dédicace à Neoptelmos de Melite. Vers 300 av.J.-C. Exposé dans la Stoa d'Attale, Athènes. Italiano: Rilievo votivo, raffigurante Pan e le Ninfe in una grotta, con la dedica del devoto Neottolemo di Melite. Ca. 330 a.C. Esposto lungo il portico della Stoà di Attalo, che ospita il Museo dell'antica agorà ad Atene. Deutsch: Weihrelief, gestiftet von Neoptolemos. Ελληνικά: Ο Παν και οι Νύμφες, μαρμάρινο αναθηματικό ανάγλυφο, υπό του Νεοπτόλεμου του Μελιτέως, 330 π.Χ. (Στοά του Αττάλου - Αθήνα). Βρέθηκε κατά τις αρχαιολογικές ανασκαφές στην Αρχαία Αγορά της Αθήνας. English: Sculpture of Pan and Nymphs. Votive relief dedicated by Neoptolemos of Melite, ca. 330 BC. Exhibited along the portico of the Stoa of Attalus, which houses the Ancient Agora Museum in Athens. Museum of the Ancient Agora &#160;&#160;&#160; (Inventory)Native nameΜουσείο Αρχαίας Αγοράς ΑθηνώνLocationAthensCoordinates37°&#160;58′&#160;30.3″&#160;N, 23°&#160;43′&#160;27.2″&#160;E &#160;Established1957&#160;Web pageodysseus.culture.grAuthority control : Q2383284 VIAF:&#8201;149504649 ULAN:&#8201;500306464 LCCN:&#8201;no2013060376 GND:&#8201;1086308700 NLI:&#8201;004252421 WorldCat institution QS:P195,Q2383284
context_page_description: The Cave Sanctuaries of the Akropolis, Athens, are the natural fissures in the rock of the Akropolis hill that were used as sites of worship for deities of the panhellenic pantheon in antiquity. Traditionally a sharp distinction has been drawn between the state religion practised on the summit of the akropolis and the cult practice of the shrines on the lower slopes. Recently, however, interest has burgeoned in the individual religious experience or personal piety in Greek society of which these cult sites may be the expression. The proceeding description follows the order of the shrines from the Klepsydra at the northwest face of the akropolis clockwise via the Peripatos round to the foot of the Nike bastion.
context_section_description: The northwestern slope of the rock of the Akropolis is dominated by three cave openings dedicated to the worship of Pan,  Zeus and Apollo respectively. The most westerly cave on the terrace is not a shrine but a sculpted cavity, called cave A in the archaeological literature, with a carved surface in the form of a podium was used as a viewing area for the Panathenaic procession. Moving easterly the next cave along, cave B, is that of the Apollo Hypoakraios (Apollo under the Long Rocks, also worshipped as Pythios). Here, according to tradition, Apollo was united with Erechtheus'  daughter Kreousa.  From that liaison Ion  the Athenian hero, was born. The sanctuary was identified after finding marble plaques nearby which detail a crown and an inscription that they were a dedication to Apollo from the nine archons.
  The Middle Cave, also called cave C in the archaeological literature, is dated to the 5th century and attributed to Zeus Olympios or Zeus Keraunios, based on the interpretations of Thucydides and Strabo.
  The excavation of Kavvadias in 1896-1897 uncovered a previously unknown cave system (identified as D-D₁, and latterly another, D₂), this eastern most cave on the terrace was dedicated to the god Pan. According to tradition, the God contributed to the victory of the Greeks in the battle of Marathon in 490 BCE. by causing panic and fear amongst the Persians. The Athenians returned their gratitude to the God by establishing his worship in the city. The sanctuary was tripartite in form with carved niches for the reception of votives. The identification of the sanctuary was based on the testimonies of Euripides, Aristophanes and Pausanias as well as the finding of two votive reliefs on the site one of which depicts the God sitting on a rock playing the pipes while a nymph stands before him, and the other is the Pan Relief which shows the God amongst other deities. In the Christian period, the furthest eastern part of the Sanctuary (named cave D₂) was converted into a chapel dedicated to Saint Athanasius  from which traces of frescoes in the niches are preserved today. Next to this cave is a narrow stairway that leads up to the akropolis.
caption: Pan relief, Agora Museum,
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