Editing Athena Parthenos (section)

==Parthenon and statue of Athena==
[[File:Parthenón-půdorys.GIF|thumb|left|upright=1.5|alt=Plan numéroté du Parthénon|Plan of the Parthenon:<br />1) [[Pronaos]] (east side)<br />2) [[Naos (architecture)|Naos]] ''hecatompedos neos'' (east side)<br />3) [[Chryselephantine]] statue of ''Athena Parthenos''<br />4) Parthenon (virgin room, treasure) (west side)<br />5) [[Opisthodomos]] (west side)]]

In [[480 BCE]], the [[Persians]] ransacked the Acropolis of Athens, including the [[pre-Parthenon]], which was under construction at the time.{{sfn|Holtzmann|Pasquier|1998|p=177}} After their victories in [[Battle of Salamis|Salamis]] and [[Battle of Plataea|Plataea]], the Athenians had sworn not to complete the destroyed temples but to leave them as they were, in memory of the Persian "barbarism".<ref>Neils 2006, p. 11.</ref> In the succeeding years, however, Athens grew to control much of the region through its domination of the [[Delian League]], a confederation of Greek states originally designed to protect themselves against the Persians. Within 30 years, the league had evolved into an Athenian powerhouse. By 454 BCE, the Delian treasury had been relocated to Athens, where the money was funnelled into an ambitious plan to rebuild the city and its destroyed temples, including the [[Parthenon]].<ref>Neils 2006, p. 44.</ref><ref>R. Meiggs, The Athenian Empire, Oxford, 1999, p.48.</ref>

The new Parthenon was erected between 447 and 438 BCE.{{sfn|Holtzmann |Pasquier|1998|p=177}} [[Pericles]] chose the sculptor [[Phidias]] to supervise the building program with the architects [[Ictinos]] and [[Kallikrates]].<ref>Holtzmann 2003, p. 107.</ref> The [[cella|sekos]] (closed part surrounded by the [[peristyle]]) was divided into two rooms. The small one to the west, the "Parthenon" itself (the "virgin room"), housed the treasure of the League of Delos and other offerings.{{sfn|Holtzmann |Pasquier|1998|p=177}}<ref>Neils 2006, p. 28.</ref>{{sfn|Holtzmann|2003|p=106}} To the east, the "hecatompedos neos"{{refn|group=N|The "hundred-foot" sanctuary (''neos'' being the archaic form of ''naos'') is a reference to the [[Old Temple of Athena|Archaic Temple of Athena]].}} housed the statue of ''Athena Parthenos''. The room was 29.90 m long, or around one hundred [[Pous|Athenian feet]], by 19 m wide, with a ceiling height of 12.50 m.<ref>Holtzmann 2003, p. 117.</ref>

The new building was not intended to become a temple, but a treasury meant to house the colossal chryselephantine statue of ''Athena Parthenos''.{{sfn|Holtzmann|Pasquier|1998|p=177}} It is even likely that the statue project preceded the building project.{{sfn|Holtzmann|2003|p=114}} This was an offering from the city to the goddess, but not a statue of worship: there was no priestess of ''Athena Parthenos''.{{sfn|Holtzmann|2003|p=106}}

Primary ancient sources about the statue are writings by [[Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]]{{refn|group=N|Pausanias, Description of Greece, I, 24, 5-8}} and [[Pliny the Elder]].{{refn|group=N| [[Natural History (Pliny)|Natural History]], XXXVI, 16-19}}{{sfn|Lapatin|2005|p=263-264}} Pausanias is also the originator of the surname "Parthenos." Early writings mentioned "the statue", "the statue of Athena", "the golden statue of Athena", "the ivory statue of Athena", or simply "the Athena." Since at least the end of the fifth century BCE, however, the patron goddess of the Parthenon has been known as "Athena Parthenos."<ref>Lapatin 2005, p. 288, note 1.</ref>