Dionysus is the ancient Greek god of wine and ecstasy and in being so he was well worshiped among the Greeks who held grand festivals in his honor. In doing so they helped develop theater and thus on the Southern slope of the Acropolis they built the Theatre of Dionysus Eleuthereus. Established some time in the 5th century B.C. it was destroyed and rediscovered only in the 18th century A.D.
This theater is not to be confused with the adjacent Odeon of Herodes Atticus built in 161 A.D. It was used as an amphitheater to sit 5000 people under it's wooden roof built from imported Lebanese cedar. This ancient theater was given a make over in the 1950's when marble seating was added. It still retains it's ancient outer structure which remains in excellent condition, making this theater a unique ancient structure still utilized in the modern world.
No comments:
Post a Comment