The Parthenon in Europe and Nashville

When John was in the Navy a few years ago (right after he graduated from high school), he was able to visit the Parthenon (no pictures).  When I was in London, I saw the Elgin Marbles  (the friezes are pictured) from the Parthenon that are displayed in the British Museum. 

By the way, the Parthenon was built in 438 BCE before all these mounds we've been seeing.

In Nashville (known as the Athens of the South) we were able to see the only full-size replica of the Parthenon with a best-guess of the original stonework.  It was built in 1897 for the Tennessee Centennial and International Exposition. It was originally built with temporary materials but was rebuilt with more permanent materials to reopen in 1931.  It’s not marble, just concrete column, but it does give you a feel for the size of the Parthenon.  I’ve seen pictures of the Parthenon, but I didn’t really understand how tall the columns were.

If you’ve seen the movie Percy Jackson, you know there is a statue of Athena (Goddess of Wisdom) inside.  Turns out the movie was filmed outside the building, but a set was used inside.  So, we didn’t find the jewel to return from Hades like in the film.  But we did see a carving of Medusa on the shield.

 

 

Enjoyed the sculptures too.