If the population of a densely populated Athens today it is estimated at about 4 million people, in antiquity in Attica 300-400 thousand people lived there. The city developed on the plain around it. Acropolis, which was the symbol of the city, but the noise came from the Agora, a large busy square with public buildings and sanctuaries, commercial activities. It was the place of political and social life of the ancients. On the other side of the Acropolis was the theater of Dionysus, where thousands of Athenians arrived early in the morning to watch the tragedies and comedies that were played out during the day. The Pericles Conservatory was intended for concerts and music competitions of the Panathenaic Festival.

A square building with a pyramidal roof, which was supported by wooden columns – the masts of damaged Persian ships after the naval battle of Salamis. It accommodated 5,000 listeners – the first Concert Hall. When it was destroyed, 600 years later, Herodium was built. It was covered and had innovative technology.

The rock that became a fortress and the residence of the rulers of the region was the Acropolis. From the 8th c. BC, when the city-state of Athens is created, it becomes the central sanctuary of all of Attica. Temples were built to worship Athena and other gods, adorned with sculptures that we admire today in the Acropolis Museum. There we are enchanted by the Daughters found on the Holy Rock. Statues of young women that parents paid dearly for and dedicated to the goddess to protect their children. The sculptor who accepted the order was the first to see the girl, created a clay or plaster model, copied and carved it in white marble, on which he painted clothes, hair, lips, eyes.

These are just some of the stories in the book.”History of the Acropolis – Where the People Met the Gods, Panos Valavani (Capon Publications). It can be considered a follow-up to his 2013 guide book, The Acropolis Through Its Museum, which captivated the public with its clear explanation of how and why the Acropolis monuments were built and what we admire in its museum. But it also reveals the political expediency of the time to create a monument that would function as a vehicle for projecting a national ideology.

Since then, discussions between Rachel and Moses Kapons began with an archaeologist and professor of classical archeology at EKPA about the need for such a publication for children. After all, this “light version”, as the author characterizes it, is designed not only for a young audience. Together with the skillful illustration of Kostas Theoharis, designer, artist and typographer, we reveal the secrets of monuments and works of art, imagine the people who created them, the architect, the sculptor, as well as the slaves who worked on them.

“We chose a form of dialogue and design of representations that help the reader to imagine not only the monuments, but also the people in them”, – says Panos Valavanis “K”.inviting us on a journey led by a stalwart archaeologist and diligent 12-year-old nephew who drives him crazy with questions.

“I have a lot of experience working with children and students. With the tours I have done myself, but also with the fact that because we live a lot in museums, we feel the behavior of the schools participating in the educational programs. Thus was created the imaginary nephew and stalwart archaeologist that I have been since I retired.”

The entire Parthenon had 108 columns. The state treasury was also located there, as if the central bank.

The stories that unfold in the book are unknown and known. Details, for example, of the great building program planned by Pericles and his team. To convince the citizens who went to Pnica, he used all his rhetorical art, telling them that in this great public project they would find work during a period of great unemployment. That the city will be beautiful and they will be proud of it. The Parthenon, the Propylaea, the Erechtheion, the temple of Athena Nike were built… In today’s prices, these works cost more than a billion euros, and the money was received from Persian mining and the proceeds of the sanctuary. There were 108 columns in the entire Parthenon! The state treasury was also located there, as if the central bank.

Panos Valavanis is well versed in the art of storytelling. How can we charm children? “We are still stuck in the old ways, and kids now, with the help of the internet, can approach things in a completely different way. In addition, we have a video game competition that forces us to find or invent other ways to attract them, ”responsible emeritus professor of archeology at the University of Athens and adds that ancient things will always attract attention.

Difficulties in writing

How difficult is it to decipher a scientific book about the Acropolis that can be read by children and adults? “It’s not easy, especially for those of us who aren’t gifted writers or professional children’s writers. The text of this book was written three or four times from the very beginning, in the sense that I myself showed it to my children, friends, teachers, relatives, and in each new writing I tried to lighten what I considered difficult to understand. Thus, we have reached the point where scientific reason persists without being repulsive.” Its writing took over two years. And, as he emphasizes, “it’s not so childish that it’s only for children, but it’s not so serious that it’s only for adults.”

From his teaching experience, he assures that the Acropolis and its monuments are still moving. “If it is students of model schools, all this works more. In a public secondary school or in schools where children from different regions of the world study, with adaptation problems, a lot of effort, courage and inspiration are required,” says P. Valavanis.

The values ​​of the time when the monuments were built are also associated with the challenges of the times. The vision of Pericles and his collaborators was to make Athens the leading city of the entire Greek world. And these works, in the end, overcame time and epochs and became milestones in the history of civilization. A replica of the Parthenon was built in Nashville, Tennessee, USA from 1921 to 1931, and in 1990 a replica of the chryselephantine statue of Athena inside was created. The book is an occasion for discussion about the ancient and modern city. “The monuments of the Acropolis were created not for the ruler, but for the whole people, and this means something even for our time,” says the famous archaeologist and writer. Speaking about today, he notes that modern buildings are commissioned by specific companies, and they can be used by those who have the appropriate money.

“But if it’s Zaha Hadid’s signature curves or Frank Owen Gehry’s, that’s ours too. The pleasure that we get as viewers or as users, however indirectly, is also a great achievement of architecture. Starting from the era, great works of art can become the property of all peoples, and this is a great democratic achievement.

The new book prepared by P. Valavanis will be dedicated to ancient dogs. The reason was given by a dog two years ago. “She came to us in Galaxidi and gave birth to eight puppies, which we gave away. We have the last half-dead we left behind. Thus was born the idea of ​​a new book, which has very beautiful stories and which will fill a gap in Greek literature.”