City of Athens

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

This course traces the development of Athens from its earliest history in the Bronze Age through the present day. We will pay special attention to the archaeology of the Acropolis, the sanctuary of Athena which underwent a major building program under the leadership of Pericles and the sculptor Phidias in the second half of the fifth century B.C., and the Agora, Athens’ ancient marketplace and city-center, in use from the Archaic period (ca. 600-480 B.C.) onward. In addition to studying the archaeological evidence for ancient Athens in its heyday in the Classical period (ca. 480-323 B.C.), we will also look at the development of city under Roman rule, during the middle ages, and in the 19th century when it became the capital of the modern Greek state. Further topics to be explored through illustrated class lectures and assigned readings will include: life in the countryside of Attica, the port of Athens (the Piraeus), sanctuaries and religion, mining and the marble industry, and the results of ongoing excavations and archaeological surveys of the city and its territory. In addition to midterm and final exams, students will write a short research paper on an individual topic.