Classic Athens

In many cases classical Athens will be what the modern tourist is looking for, and partly knows from school. It is the time of temple building in the Greek world, with as highlight of course the Parthenon on the Acropolis of Athens. At the same time, we see Athenian-Ionian culture peaking here, both in the literary field (with the historians Herodotos, Thucydides, the play-writers Aischylos, Sophocles and Euripides, the philosophers Plato and Aristotle), and in the field of sculpture and painting (see the numerous museums in Greece for this). Finally, during this period we first see the great clash between the Persians and the Greeks in the so-called Persian wars and then the clash between the Spartan (anti-democratic) power block on land and the Athenian (democratic) empire at sea. For an extensive discussion of the history of classical Athens, see the introduction to Pausanias or a history book.

The Kallimarmaro stadium or stadium  of Lykourgos