Two Days in the Footsteps of the Gods Quiz

Answer:

Acropolis
Acropolis, from akron+polis, the top of the city, was the highest part of a city, usually on a hill, chosen for religious and defensive purposes. The Acropolis of Athens was built as the spiritual and symbolic center of ancient Athens. It was first inhabited in the 3rd millennium BCE, and the first religious buildings dated to the 6th century BCE. During the 5th century BCE, under Pericles' leadership, the Parthenon (dedicated to the goddess Athena), the Erechtheion (famous for its Caryatid Porch), the Propylaia (grand entrance gateway), and the smaller Temple of Athena Nike were built. Throughout the centuries, the Acropolis and its buildings were conquered, occupied, bombed, looted, and damaged, but after 2500 years, it still gives a strong sense of how mighty Athens once was.

Odeon of Herodes Atticus
A Roman-era theatre built in 161 AD by the wealthy Herodes Atticus in memory of his wife, Regilla. Located on the southwestern slope of the Acropolis, its stone facade and earlier restoration make it still usable today for concerts and performances. In the summer of 2025, it closed for three years for restoration.

Theatre of Dionysus
On the southeast slope of the Acropolis, the Theater of Dionysus, built in the 6th century BCE, is considered the world's first major theater. Originally wooden and later rebuilt in stone, it hosted the tragedies of Sophocles, Euripides, and Aeschylus and the comedies of Aristophanes and Menander. It is connected with the worship of Dionysus the Liberator (Eleuthereus), and it was used for the annual festival (Great Dionysia). Its capacity in its prime was around 17,000 spectators. Nowadays, it is largely in ruins.

Temple of Olympian Zeus (Olympieion)
The construction of the Temple of Olympian Zeus was initiated by Peisistratos in the 6th century BCE, but it was completed under Roman Emperor Hadrian in the 2nd century CE. Enormous in scale, it had 104 colossal Corinthian columns of which only a few remain standing, but the scale and ambition are still evident. Standing on the site of the Olympeion and looking towards the Acropolis, Hadrian's Arch, a monumental gateway, is visible. It was built in 132 CE to commemorate the triumphant arrival of the Roman Emperor Hadrian.

Ancient Agora and Temple of Hephaestus
Continuously occupied since the Late Neolithic era (3000 BCE), the Agora was the marketplace and civic hub of ancient Athens. It was there that citizens met, philosophers spoke, and democracy was practiced. In the late 19th century, an entire neighborhood called Vrysaki or Vlassarou was demolished to reveal the extensive archaeological remains: the Stoa of Attalos (Roman), the Poikile Stoa (classical), and the giant statues of Titans and Tritons. Within the Agora sits the Temple of Hephaestus, one of the best-preserved Doric temples in Greece, built around 449-415 BC. It's dedicated to Hephaestus (god of craftsmanship and metalwork) and Athena, and, strangely enough, it owes its preservation to its later use as a Christian church.

Kerameikos Cemetery
Kerameikos was the burial ground of ancient Athens, used from the 12th century BCE through the 6th century CE. It includes elaborate funerary monuments, tombs, steles (grave markers), and a small museum with very significant artifacts. The Dipylon Gate on the grounds marks the entrance inside the city walls and the beginning of the Sacred Way to Eleusis, and the Panathenaic procession. The archaeological site of Kerameikos offers a coherent insight into how death, memorial, and social status were expressed in ancient Athens.

Sanctuary of Demeter and Kore
Eleusis is one of the most sacred religious sites of ancient Greece. The name comes from the verb "eleuftho", to come or arrive, and it connects to the Eleusinian Mysteries, the initiation rites related to Demeter and her daughter Persephone, the goddesses linked to agriculture, death, and rebirth. The Sanctuary encompasses the Telesterion (initiation hall), the Roman Court, a number of lesser buildings supporting the initiation process, and the processional paths. Eleusis has deep mythological and spiritual resonance, highlighted by the Sacred Way, the crossing from Athens to Eleusis, as a ritual procession of entering a divine realm for initiates.

Marathon
The village of Marathon is famous for the Battle of Marathon in 490 BCE, where Athenians defeated the Persians. Three monuments define the sacred site: the tumulus (grave mound) marks the place where the fallen were buried, one for the Athenians named Soros, and a second for the Plateans who fell at the same battle, and a replica of the victory column, originally erected by the Athenians but destroyed at some point in history. The local museum exhibits artifacts from different periods, starting with the Neolithic era, including those related to the battle (weapons, grave reliefs) and findings from local cemeteries.

Temple of Poseidon, Cape Sounion
Perched dramatically atop a 60-meter cliff overlooking the Aegean Sea, the Temple of Poseidon was built around 444 BC, during the same period as the Parthenon. Dedicated to the god of the sea, it marked the southernmost point of Attica, Cape Sounion, and served as both a sanctuary and a maritime landmark for ancient sailors. Sixteen of its original white marble Doric columns still stand, offering breathtaking panoramic views of the Aegean. Legends connect this spot with King Aegeus, who leapt to his death here, thus naming the sea that embraced him. Today, Sounion remains one of Greece's most iconic viewpoints, both for sunsets and the full moon, which rises between the columns, blending myth and history with the infinite beauty of sea and sky.

Sanctuary/Cave of Pan, Fyli Cave
On the slopes of Mt. Parnitha (Parnes), near the ancient municipality (demos) of Fyli, this is a cave sanctuary dedicated to the god Pan and the nymphs. Worshippers left offerings, especially lamps, hence its alternate name "Lychnospilia" (lamp cave), over many historical periods, Mycenaean, Classical, and Roman. The practice continues to this day, to a much lesser extent, by some romantics, and most probably as a Christian offering, but it gives a sense of how religious practice was integrated with landscape and nature.