Athena Nike Temple. Parapet. North slab V. Nike
Inventory number
Ακρ. 996
Artist
Agorakritos' workshop
Category
Architectural sculpture
Period
Classical Period
Date
Around 410 BC
Dimensions
Height: 0.47 m
Length: 0.29 m
Material
Marble from Penteli
Location
First Floor, West, Open case. Parapet of Athena Nike Temple
Slab fragment from the north side of the parapet that was constructed around the Temple of Athena Nike. It was found in 1835 when the Ottoman gun emplacement in front of the Propylaia was pulled to pieces.
A standing Nike is preserved from neck to thighs. Her right arm was raised as she puts down her left arm beneath which was an unidentified object. She wears a peplos girded at the waist. Her belt connects with straps that cross over her chest with a small disc marking their joint. A himation worn over the peplos falls from her back over her left forearm where it is gathered.The parapet enclosed the three sides of the bastion, on which the temple was built. It consisted of slabs approximately one meter in height whose outer surfaces were decorated with relief scenes visible by those ascending the Acropolis. The holes preserved on the upper surface of these slabs indicate that there was originally a metal railing, which further raised the height of the parapet.
The theme depicted on the parapet is a celebration of the military victories of the Athenians against their enemies, either Persians or other Greeks. The narrative is not continuous; instead it is composed of separate, individual scenes which – with slight variations – recur on each side of the parapet: winged Nikai lead bulls to sacrifice or hold weapons and adorn victory trophies with Greek or Persian armour. Among them sits goddess Athena, resting after victorious battles. The carving of the temple's sculptures was carried out by many different artists under the supervision of Agorakritos. These sculpted figures are highly representative of the end of the 5th cent. BC style called by archaeologists the "Rich Style".
In 1687 the temple and the parapet of Athena Nike were dismantled by the Ottomans and the material was used for the reinforcement of a gun emplacement and the fortification of the west side of the Acropolis against the attacks by the Venetians under the command of the general Francesco Morosini. Between 1835 and 1836 the gun emplacement was demolished and the Temple of Athena Nike was restored for the first time under the supervision of Ludwig Ross, the administrator of antiquities at the time. A second reconstruction was carried out in 1940, while a third was completed in 2010.
Πιττάκης, Κ.Σ., «Αρχαιολογική Εφημερίς», Αρχαιολογική Εφημερίς 1842, σελ. 594, αρ. κατ. 1044
Heller, B.K., Archäologisch-artistische Mittheilungen über die Ausgrabungen auf der Akropolis zu Athen 1835, 36 und 37, Nürnberg, 1852, σελ. 7
Michaelis, A., «Die Balustrade am Tempel der Athena Nike auf der Akropolis von Athen, Arch. Zeit», Archäologische Zeitung 20, 1862, σελ. 249-250
Kekulé von Stradonitz, R., Die Balustrade des Tempels der Athena Nike in Athen, Leipzig, 1869, σελ. 24, 30, πίν. ΙΙΙ.Κ, αρ. κατ. 15
Sybel, L. von, Katalog der Sculpturen zu Athen, Marburg, 1881, σελ. 360, εικ. 12
Kekulé von Stradonitz, R., Die Reliefs an der Balustrade der Athena Nike, Stuttgart, 1881, σελ. 2-3, 8, πίν. ΙΙΙ.J, αρ. κατ. J
Petersen, E., «Βιβλιοκρισία του R. Kekulé, Die Reliefs an der Balustrade der Athena Nike,», Zeitschrift für die Österreichischen Gymnasien, 32, Wien, 1881, σελ. 265
Le Bas, M.P., Reinach, S., Voyage Archéologique en Grèce et en Asie Mineure 1842-1844, σχολιασμένη έκδοση, Paris, 1888, σελ. 128-131, εικ. 11.V, αρ. κατ. V
Casson, S., Brooke, D., Catalogue of the Acropolis Museum. Sculpture and Architectural Fragments, with a section upon the Terracottas, II, Cambridge, 1921, σελ. 161-162, εικ. 15, αρ. κατ. 15
Heberdey, R., «Die Komposition der Reliefs an der Balustrade der Athena Nike», Jahreshefte des Österreichischen Archäologischen Institutes in Wien 21-22, 1922-1924, σελ. 20, 54, 62, 81, εικ. 15
Dinsmoor, W.B., «The Sculptured Parapet of Athena Nike», American Journal of Archaeology 30, 1926, σελ. 19, 28-30
Carpenter, R., The Sculptures of the Nike Temple Parapet, Cambridge Massachusetts, 1929, σελ. 24-25, 75, πίν. VIII, αρ. κατ. 15
Carpenter, R., «The Sculptural Composotion of the Nike Parapet», American Journal of Archaeology 33, 1929, σελ. 473, 476
Dinsmoor, W.B., «The Nike Parapet Once More», American Journal of Archaeology 34, 1930, σελ. 282-283, 293-295
Picard, C., F. Boissonas, L’Acropole d’Athenes, l’enceinte, l’entree, le bastion d’Athena Nike, les Propylees, Paris, 1930, εικ. 47
Linfert, A., «Vier klassische Akrotere», Archäologischer Anzeiger 1968, σελ. 432 υποσημ. 9
Hiller, F., Formgeschichtliche Untersuchungen zur griechischen Statue des späten 5. Jahrhunderts v. Chr., Mainz am Rhein, 1971, σελ. 54 υποσημ. 118
Ridgway, B.S., Fifth Century Styles in Greek Sculpture, Princeton, 1981, σελ. 97-98, εικ. 68
LIMC II, Athena, σελ. 499, αρ. κατ. 671
Μπρούσκαρη, Μ., Το θωράκιο του Ναού της Αθηνάς Νίκης, Αρχαιολογική Εφημερίς, Αθήνα, 1998, σελ. 179-181, εικ. 43
Harrison, E.B., «Style Phases in Greek Sculpture from 450 to 370 BC», Πρακτικά του XII Διεθνούς Συνεδρίου Κλασικής Αρχαιολογίας, Αθήνα 4-10 Σεπτεμβρίου 1983, Γ, Αθήνα, 1988, σελ. 104
Zimmer, F. von, Eule, J. C., Maischberger, M. (επιμ.), Die griechische Klassik - Idee oder Wirklichkeit, Ausstellung im Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, 1. März-2. Juni 2002 und in der Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Bonn, 5. Juli-6. Oktober 2002, Mainz, 2002, σελ. 395, 398, εικ. 270, αρ. κατ. 270
Λεβέντη, Ι., Πόλη σε κρίση, Αθήνα, 2014, σελ. 100-106
