The Parthenon, built in 447 and 438 BCE, is one of the most famous monuments of ancient Greek civilization. It shows the greatest works of Greek architecture, history and ancient Greek religious beliefs. Although it lies largely in ruins today, it towers over Athens and continues its legacy as one of the greatest examples of the country's power and wealth. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on 'Why violent video games should not be banned'? Get the original essay Work began on the Parthenon in 447 BC, built on the Acropolis, to replace a temple destroyed by rivals of the Greeks, Persians, in 480. BC. The construction of the Parthenon cost Greece 469 talents of silver, and work began under the order of Pericles who wanted to demonstrate the wealth and exuberance of Athenian power to rival nations. The name "Parthenon" derives from a cult statue entitled "Athena Parthenos" which was to be installed in the east room of the building. The Parthenon, constructed of ivory and gold, was sculpted by the famous sculptor of the time; Pheidias. Following the reason behind most of the buildings constructed on the Acropolis, the Parthenon is dedicated to the goddess Athena. To truly make the Parthenon an exceptional architectural monument, many people were involved in the construction of the building, including Pericles, Phidias, Kalamis, Ictinus. , and Caliber. As previously stated, Pericles was the leading statesman of the time. Both Phidias and Kalamis were in charge of designing the sculptures and decorations. Ictinus and Calibrates were the chief architects of the entire project. Most of the funds used to build the Parthenon were spent on transporting necessary materials, such as stone from Mount Pantelakos, located 10 miles from Athens to the Acropolis. The architecture bears many resemblances to Doric design with many iconic architectural features. The architects Ictinus and Calibrates used ingenious visual effects in their models of the Parthenon, making the building more symmetrical than it is. It was so popular that it was used in architecture in the last century, particularly in Roman times. The Parthenon contained many different architectural elements, such as the colonnade of baseless fluted columns with square capitals on a base that supports the roof, made of stone strips. The colonnade also contains eight columns on the east and west sides of the building and 17 on the north and south sides. All these columns were made to enclose a rectangular chamber called a cella. Behind the Cella was another small room, which was not connected to the Cella but placed individually on the west side. It also consists of a frieze (an artistic mosaic) of vertically grooved blocks and plain blocks to help ease the decoration of the wall. The only light that entered the Parthenon came from the east door, except for some light that penetrated through the marble tiles of the roof and ceiling. As we can see, the Parthenon is an excellent example of an extraordinary number of architectural refinements, which combined to give a plastic and sculptural appearance to the building. The carved decorations on and inside the Parthenon gave the building a softer appearance thanks to its vast and imposing exterior. Many different images were depicted on the building, such as a battle between gods and giants; and on the south side of the Parthenon, Greeks and centaurs; to the west, more Greeks and Amazons were..