Fig.1: Cape Sounion, looking out to the nearby islet of Patroklou

Fig.2: Sunset at Cape Sounion.

Cape Sounion (modern Greek: ακρωτήριο Σούνιο - akrotirio Sounio; Latin: Sunium promonturium; ancient Greek: άκρον Σούνιον; Venetian: Capo Colonne) is a promontory located 69 km (43 mi, by road) SSE of Athens, at the southernmost tip of the Attica peninsula in Greece (Fig.2). Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 748 KB)Cape Sounion in Attica, looking out to the Aegean islands. ... Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 748 KB)Cape Sounion in Attica, looking out to the Aegean islands. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixelsFull resolution (1200 × 799 pixel, file size: 28 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Sounion ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 533 pixelsFull resolution (1200 × 799 pixel, file size: 28 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Sounion ... The bay at San Sebastián, Spain A headland is an area of land adjacent to water on three sides. ... The term promontory has several similar meanings in English, including geographical names: A promontory is a prominent mass of land which overlooks lower lying land or a body of water (e. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ... Attica (in Greek: Αττική, Attike; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a periphery (subdivision) in Greece, containing Athens, the capital of Greece. ... A peninsula in Croatia A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered on three or more sides by water. ...

Cape Sounion is renowned for the ruins of the ancient Greek temple of Poseidon, the god of the sea in classical mythology. The remains are perched on the headland, surrounded on three sides by the sea (Fig.1). The ruins famously bear the deeply engraved name of English Romantic poet Lord Byron (1788 - 1824) (see Fig.10). The Greeks began to build monumental temples in the first half of the 8th century BC. The temples of Hera at Samos and of Poseidon at Isthmia were among the first erected. ... Neptune reigns in the city of Bristol. ... The poet George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron is often referred to simply as Byron. ...

The site is a popular day excursion for tourists from Athens, with sunset over the Aegean Sea viewed from the ruins a sought-after spectacle (Fig.2). A composite image showing the terminator dividing night from day, running across Europe and Africa. ... Look up Aegean Sea in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Site and Panorama

The site is accessible by road from Athens. This is the scenic highway 91, which closely follows the west coast of Attica (the "Attic riviera"), passing through numerous upscale residential districts and resorts, such as Glyfada, Vouliagmeni (anc. Zoster), Varkiza. There is a regular municipal bus service to Sounion from Omonia Square, in central Athens. Glyfada (Greek: Γλυφάδα) is a rather exclusive municipality of Athens in Greece south of Ellinikon and Athens with three main roads. ... Vouliagmeni (Greek: Βουλιαγμένη, meaning sunken) is an exclusive municipality 20 km south of Athens. ... Varkiza (Greek: Βάρκιζα), also Alianthos (Αλίανθος) is a suburban place that is part of the municipality of Vari in southern Attica and is the located east of the Megalo Daktylo (Large Finger). ... Night view of the noisy and busy multi-cultural Omonoia Square in the heart of Athens. ...

Fig.3: Location of Cape Sounion ("Sunium" at bottom right) on Attica peninsula.

Sounion's position is 37.650058° N 24.024466° ECoordinates: 37.650058° N 24.024466° E. The headland is roughly shaped like an axe-head. A narrow neck of land leads to the higher, gently-sloping site of the temple. On most sides of the axe-head are steep cliffs, up to 60 m (197 ft) high. Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...

There were two ancient temples on this site, one dedicated to Athena (of which only the foundations remain) and the other the famous one to Poseidon. For other uses, see Athena (disambiguation). ...

Within walking distance, there is a taverna and a hotel. Further development has been restricted by the designation of the site, and a large surrounding region, as one of 10 National parks in Greece. Greece is characterized by an extremely fragmented, rugged landscape hosting a great diversity of ecosystems and an outstanding biodiversity. ...

From this jutting headland, there is a panoramic view of the surrounding Aegean islands. Nearby are the islets of Makronisi (ancient Helena, to the east) and Patroklou or Patroclus (west, see Fig.2 map). Further away, to the south, the larger islands of Kea, Kithnos, Serifos and, on a clear day, as far as Milos, 60 miles (97 km) distant. To the east, looming behind Kea can be seen the 994 m (3261 ft) peak of Andros island. To the west, the mountainous shore of the Argolis peninsula, across the Saronic gulf. Aegean Sea Islands: map showing island groups. ... Kea, also known as Gia (Κέα / Τζια in Greek), Tzia and Keos (Ancient: Κέως), is an island of the Cyclades archipelago, in the Aegean sea, in Greece. ... Kythnos or Kithnos (Greek: Κύθνος) is a Greek island in the Western Cyclades between Kea and Serifos. ... Seriphos (or Serifos) is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea, located in the western Cyclades, south of Kythnos and northwest of Siphnos. ... Coordinates 36°44′ N 24°25′ E Country Greece Periphery South Aegean Prefecture Cyclades Population 4,771 source (2001) Area 160. ... Andros, or Andro (Greek: Άνδρος), an island of the Greek archipelago, the most northerly of the Cyclades, approximately 10 km (6 miles) south east of Euboea, and about 3 km (about 2 miles) north of Tinos. ... Argolis (Greek, Modern: Αργολίδα Argolida, Ancient/Katharevousa: Αργολίς -- still the official, formal name) is one of the fifty-one prefectures of Greece. ... The Saronic Gulf or Gulf of Aegina in Greece forms part of the Aegean Sea and defines the eastern side of the isthmus of Corinth. ...

Legend

Fig.4: Theseus slays the Minotaur. Detail from Attic red-figure pelike. c. 470 BC. From Cerveteri, Italy. Museo Gregoriano Etrusco

Fig.5: Homer, the blind epic poet. Roman copy of 5th century B.C. Greek original. Glyptothek Munich

Legend has it that Cape Sounion is the spot where Aegeus, king of Athens, leapt to his death off the cliff, thus giving his name to the Aegean Sea. The story goes that Aegeus, anxiously looking out from Sounion, despaired when he saw a black sail on his son Theseus 's ship, returning from Crete. This led him to believe that his son had been killed in his contest with the dreaded Minotaur, a monster that was half man and half bull. The Minotaur was confined by its owner, King Minos of Crete, in a specially designed labyrinth. Every year, the Athenians were forced to send 7 boys and 7 girls to Minos as tribute. These youths were placed in the labyrinth to be devoured by the Minotaur. Theseus had volunteered to go with the third tribute and attempt to slay the beast. He had agreed with his father that if he survived the contest, he would hoist a white sail. In fact, Theseus had overcome and slain the Minotaur (Fig.4), but tragically had simply forgotten about the white sail. ^[1] Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 582 pixelsFull resolution‎ (2,750 × 2,000 pixels, file size: 3. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 582 pixelsFull resolution‎ (2,750 × 2,000 pixels, file size: 3. ... Suspected of plotting to seize power in Sparta by instigating a helot uprising, Pausanias takes refuge in the Temple of Athena of the Brazen House to escape arrest. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 402 × 599 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,692 × 2,520 pixels, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 402 × 599 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,692 × 2,520 pixels, file size: 1. ... In Greek mythology, Aegeus, also Aigeus, Aegeas or Aigeas, was the father of Theseus and an Athenian King. ... Look up Aegean Sea in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Theseus (Greek ) was a legendary king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, with whom Aethra lay in one night (By some accounts, this was presented as a rape). ... For other uses, see Crete (disambiguation). ... This article is about the mythological monster. ... Front face of the MINOS far detector. ... For other uses, see Tribute (disambiguation). ...

The earliest literary reference to Sounion is in Homer 's poem the Odyssey, probably composed in the 8th century B.C (Fig.5). This recounts the mythical tribulations suffered by Greek hero Odysseus in a gruelling 10-year sea-voyage to return to his native island, Ithaca in the Ionian sea, from the sack of Troy. This ordeal was supposedly inflicted upon him by Poseidon, to whom the temple at Sounion was dedicated. The sea-god was enraged that Odysseus had blinded Poseidon's son, the Cyclops (one-eyed giant) Polyphemus. (The fact that Odysseus was forced to do this to avoid being eaten by Polyphemus- as his companions had been- evidently was not considered a mitigating factor by Poseidon). Poseidon wanted to kill Odysseus, but was forbidden to do so by Zeus, the supreme god, in response to pleas from his daughter the goddess Athena, who regarded Odysseus as her protégé and favourite. Instead, Poseidon resolved to prevent Odysseus from ever returning home. For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Odyssey (disambiguation). ... For other meanings, see Odysseus (disambiguation) Ulysses redirects here. ... For other places or objects named Ithaca, see Ithaca (disambiguation). ... The Ionian Sea. ... For other uses of Troy or Ilion, see Troy (disambiguation) and Ilion (disambiguation). ... This page is about the mythical creature. ... For the collection of short stories by Michael Shea, see Polyphemus (book). ... For other uses, see Zeus (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Athena (disambiguation). ...

We are told that, as the various Greek commanders sailed back from Troy, the helmsman of King Menelaos of Sparta 's ship died at his post while rounding "holy Sounion, cape of Athens". Menelaos landed at Sounion to give his companion full funeral honours (i.e. cremation on a funeral pyre on the beach). ^[2] The Greek ships were then caught by a storm off Cape Malea and scattered. It was this same storm that separately drove Odysseus' ship off course, to the land of the lotus-eaters (believed to be an island off the north African coast- probably Djerba, Tunisia). From there he sailed to the land of the Cyclops, where he and his surviving men were taken prisoner by Polyphemus.^[3] This article is about Menelaus the king of Sparta. ... For modern day Sparta, see Sparti (municipality). ... Cape Malea is one of the peninsulas in the southeast of the Peloponnese in Greece. ... Lotus-eaters beckon Odysseus and his men In Greek mythology, the Lotophagi (lotus-eaters) were a race of people from an island near Northern Africa dominated by lotus plants. ... Djerba [1] (also transliterated as Jerba, Jarbah or Girba جزيرة جربة) is the largest island off North Africa, located in the Gulf of Gabes off the coast of Tunisia. ...

History

Archaeological finds on the site date from as early as 700 B.C. Herodotus tells us that in the sixth century B.C., the Athenians celebrated a quadrennial festival at Sounion, which involved Athens' leaders sailing to the cape in a sacred boat.^[4]

The original, Archaic Period temple of Poseidon on the site, which was built of tufa, was probably destroyed in 480 B.C. by Persian troops during shahanshah Xerxes I 's invasion of Greece (the second Greco-Persian War). Although there is no direct evidence for Sounion, Xerxes certainly had the temple of Athena, and everything else, on the Acropolis of Athens razed as punishment for the Athenians' defiance.^[5] After they defeated Xerxes in the naval Battle of Salamis, the Athenians placed an entire enemy trireme (warship with three banks of oars) at Sounion as a trophy dedicated to Poseidon.^[6] The name Archaic Period is given by archaeologists to the earliest periods of a culture. ... Tufa is the name for an unusual geological formation. ... Darius the Great, the first to bear the title Shahanshah. ... Xerxes I (خشایارشاه), was a Persian king (reigned 485 - 465 BC) of the Achaemenid dynasty. ... Combatants Greek city states, particularly Athens and Sparta Persian Empire Commanders Miltiades Themistocles Leonidas I Pausanias Kimon Pericles Mardonius Datis Artaphernes Xerxes I Megabyzus The Greco-Persian Wars or Persian Wars were a series of conflicts between the Greek world and the Persian Empire that started about 500 BC and... The Acropolis of Athens is the best known acropolis (high city, The Sacred Rock) in the world. ... For other uses, see Battle of Salamis (disambiguation). ... A Greek trireme. ... Some loving-cup trophies seen in the London Irish clubhouse at Sunbury in 2002. ...

The later temple at Sounion, whose columns still stand today, was probably built in c.440 B.C. This was during the ascendancy of Athenian statesman Pericles, who also rebuilt the Parthenon in Athens. For the Shakespeare play, see Pericles, Prince of Tyre. ... For other uses, see Parthenon (disambiguation). ...

In 413 B.C., during the Peloponnesian War against the Spartans, the Athenians fortified the site with a wall and towers, to prevent the site from falling into Spartan hands. This would have threatened Athens' seaborne grain supply route from Euboea. Athens' supply situation had become critical, since the city's land supply - lines had been cut by the Spartan fortification of Deceleia, in north Attica.^[7] However, not long after, the Sounion fortress was seized from the Athenians by a force of fugitive slaves from the nearby silver mines of Laurium.^[8] “Athenian War” redirects here. ... For modern day Sparta, see Sparti (municipality). ... For the Greek mythological figures see Euboea Euboea, or Negropont or Negroponte (Modern Greek: Εύβοια Évia, Ancient Greek Eúboia), is the second largest of the Greek Aegean Islands and the second largest Greek island overall in area and population (after Crete). ... Laurium or Laurion (Λαύριον, Thoricum before early 1000s BC, Ergastiri throughout the medieval times and the mid to late 1000s, Ergastiri is Greek for Workplace) is a town in southeastern part of Attica, Greece and is one of the southernmost and the seat of...

Temple of Poseidon

Ancient Greek religion was essentially propitiatory in nature: i.e., based on the notion that to avoid misfortune, one must constantly seek the favour of the relevant gods by prayers, gifts and sacrifices. To the ancient Greek, every natural feature, e.g. hill, lake, stream or wood, was controlled by a god. Thus a person about to swim in a river, for example, would say a prayer to the river-god, or make an offering to that god's shrine, to avoid the chance of drowning. The gods were considered immortal, could change shape, become invisible and travel anywhere instantaneously. But in many other respects they were considered similar to humans. They shared the whole range of human emotions, both positive and negative. Thus, in their attitudes towards humans, they could be both benevolent and malicious. As humans also, they had family and clan hierarchies. They could even mate with humans, and produce demi-gods.^[9] Greek religion encompasses the collection of beliefs and rituals practiced in Ancient Greece in form of cult practices, thus the practical counterpart of Greek mythology. ... A demigod, a half-god, is a person whose one parent was a god and whose other parent was a human. ...

Fig.6: Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion, built circa 440 BC.

Fig.7: Greek hexastyle temple with Doric columns. Temple of Hephaestus, Acropolis of Athens. Built c.450 B.C.

Fig.8: Bronze statue of deity, prob. Poseidon, about to hurl (missing) trident. Height: 2.1m. c.460 B.C. Found in shipwreck off Cape Artemisium. Athens National Archaeological Museum

Fig.9: Early image of Poseidon with trident on Corinthian plaque. c.550 B.C. Louvre, Paris.

Fig.10: Byron's name carved into temple of Poseidon, prob. 1810.

Fig.11: George Baron Byron posing in Albanian costume. Painted by Thomas Phillips, 1813.

In a maritime country like Greece, the god of the sea was bound to occupy a high position in the divine hierarchy. In power, Poseidon was considered second only to Zeus (Jupiter), the supreme god himself. His implacable wrath, manifested in the form of storms, was greatly feared by all mariners. In an age without mechanical power, storms very frequently resulted in shipwrecks and drownings. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (3072x2048, 2753 KB) Summary Author: Frank van Mierlo The temple of Poseidon at Ak Sounion Greece. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (3072x2048, 2753 KB) Summary Author: Frank van Mierlo The temple of Poseidon at Ak Sounion Greece. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 445 BC 444 BC 443 BC 442 BC 441 BC - 440 BC - 439 BC 438 BC... Image File history File links Hephaistos. ... Image File history File links Hephaistos. ... The Acropolis of Athens is the best known acropolis (high city, The Sacred Rock) in the world. ... Image File history File links Poseidon. ... Image File history File links Poseidon. ... Artemisium is a cape north of Euboea, Greece. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 625 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1092 × 1047 pixel, file size: 834 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Poséidon tenant son trident. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 625 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1092 × 1047 pixel, file size: 834 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Poséidon tenant son trident. ... This article is about the museum. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Lord_Byron_in_Albanian_dress. ... Image File history File links Lord_Byron_in_Albanian_dress. ... He is a fag and an asshole. ... For other uses, see Zeus (disambiguation). ...

The temple at Sounion, therefore, was a venue where mariners, and also entire cities or states, could propitiate Poseidon, by making animal sacrifice, or leaving gifts. A sheep is led to the altar, 6th century BC Corinthian fresco. ...

The temple of Poseidon was constructed in c.440 B.C., over the ruins of a temple dating from the Archaic Period. It is perched above the sea at a height of almost 60m. The design of the temple is a typical hexastyle i.e. it had a front portico with 6 columns.^[10] Only some columns of the Sounion temple stand today (Fig.6), but intact it would have closely resembled the contemporary and well-preserved Temple of Hephaestus on the Acropolis (Fig.7), which may have been designed by the same architect. The name Archaic Period is given by archaeologists to the earliest periods of a culture. ... Look up Hexastyle in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Hexastyle is an architectural term given to a temple in the portico of which there are six columns in front. ... Categories: Architectural elements | Stub ... Temple of Hephaestus, an Doric Greek temple in Athens with the original entrance facing east, 449 BC (western face depicted) Temple of Hephaestus, Athens: eastern face The Temple of Hephaestus in central ancient Athens, Greece, is the best-preserved ancient Greek temple in the world, but is far less well...

As with all Greek temples, the Poseidon building was rectangular, with a colonnade on all four sides. The total number of original columns was 42: 18 columns still stand today. The columns are of the Doric Order, as in Figure 7. They were made of locally-quarried white marble. They were 6.10 m (20 ft) high, with a diameter of 1 m (3.1 ft) at the base and 79cm (31 inches) at the top.^[11] The Doric order was one of the orginal pokersthree orders or organizational systems of Ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. ...

At the centre of the temple colonnade would have been the hall of worship (naos), a windowless rectangular room, similar to the partly intact hall at the Temple of Hephaestus (Fig.7). It would have contained, at one end facing the entrance, the cult image, a colossal, ceiling - height (6m) bronze statue of Poseidon.^[12] Probably gold-leafed, it may have resembled the sculpture in Fig.8, which was created in the same period as the temple. Poseidon was usually portrayed carrying a trident, the weapon he supposedly used to stir up storms (Fig.9). This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Archaeological excavation of the site in 1906 uncovered numerous artefacts and inscriptions, most notably a marble kouros statue^[13] and an impressive votive relief,^[14] both now in the Athens National Archaeological Museum.^[15] The great kouros of Samos, the largest surviving kouros in Greece (Samos Archaeological Museum) A kouros (plural kouroi) is a statue of a male youth, dating from the Archaic Period of Greek sculpture (about 650 BC to about 500 BC). ... Façade of the National Archaeological museum of Athens. ...

The famous inscription (Fig.10) of George Lord Byron (Fig.11) was presumably carved on his first visit to Greece, on his Grand Tour of Europe, before he acquired fame as a poet. Byron spent several months in 1810-11 in Athens, including two documented visits to Sounion. Byron mentions Sounion in his poem Don Juan: For other uses, see Grand Tour (disambiguation). ...

Place me on Sunium's marbled steep,

Where the waves and I can only hear,

Our mutual murmurs sweep... ^[16]

Byron, a passionate philhellene, returned to Greece in July 1823, to support the Greeks in their struggle for freedom from the Ottoman Empire (the Greek War of Independence). Based at Messolonghi (Acarnania, western Greece), he spent a substantial part of his own fortune on equipping a fleet and an army. He planned to lead an assault on the crucial Turkish - held fortress of Lepanto (Navpaktos, Aetolia), which dominated the entrance to the Gulf of Corinth. But his plan was thwarted by his death from a fever at Messolonghi in April 1824, aged 36. Byron did not visit Attica during this period.^[17] Philhellenism (the love of Greek culture) was the intellectual fashion at the turn of the 19th century that led Europeans like Lord Byron to lend their support for the Greek movement towards independence from the Ottoman Empire. ... Ottoman redirects here. ... Combatants Greek revolutionaries United Kingdom France Russian Empire  Ottoman Empire Egyptian Khedivate Commanders Theodoros Kolokotronis Alexander Ypsilanti Georgios Karaiskakis Omer Vryonis Mahmud Dramali Pasha ReÅŸid Mehmed Pasha Ibrahim Pasha. ... Messolonghi is a town of about 12,000 people (as of 1991 census) in central Greece. ... Acarnania was a region of ancient central western Greece that lay along the Ionian Sea, west of Aetolia, with the Achelous River for a boundary, and north of the gulf of Calydon, which is the entrance to the Gulf of Corinth. ... Naupactus is also a scientific name, see Naupactus (beetle) Nafpaktos, Latin: Naupactus or Naupactos (Italian, Lepanto; modern Greek, Ναύπακτος, rarely Epakto), is a town in the nomarchy of Acarnania and Aetolia, Greece, situated on a bay on the north side of the... The ancient Region of Aetolia, Greece Aetolia is a mountainous region of Greece on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth, forming the eastern part of the modern prefecture of Aetolia-Acarnania. ... The Gulf of Corinth or the Corinthian Gulf is a deep inlet of the Ionian Sea separating the Peloponnese from western mainland Greece. ...

Notes

Mestrius Plutarchus (Greek: Πλούταρχος; 46 - 127), better known in English as Plutarch, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist. ... For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: Hērodotos Halikarnāsseus) was a Greek historian from Ionia who lived in the 5th century BC (ca. ... Bust of Thucydides residing in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto. ... For other uses, see Ovid (disambiguation) Publius Ovidius Naso (March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD) was a Roman poet known to the English-speaking world as Ovid who wrote on topics of love, abandoned women and mythological transformations. ... The Perseus Project is a digital library project of Tufts University that assembles digital collections of humanities resources. ... Façade of the National Archaeological museum of Athens. ... The poet George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron is often referred to simply as Byron. ...

References

The following are reference sources, in alpha order (cited in Notes):

Fig.13: Tourists await sunset at Sounion.

• Athens National Archaeological Museum, items NM 2720 and NM 3344.
• Lord Byron, Don Juan, 1818-1819.
• W. Burkert, Greek Religion (1987).
• Herodotus, Histories, Volumes VI & VIII, "The History of Herodotus" (translated), 440 BC, webpage: Fordham-HH.
• Homer, Odyssey, Volume III & IX.
• Ovid, Metamorphoses, 2-8 CE.
• 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica, article "Sunium", 1911.
• Perseus Digital Library @ www.perseus.tufts.edu (search term: 'Sounion')
• Plutarch, "Theseus" in Parallel Lives, 75 CE.
• Romantic Circles, The Byron Chronology, webpage: RC-UMD.
• Thucydides, Peloponnesian War, Volume VII and VIII, 431 BC (translated by Richard Crawley), webpage: MIT-Thuc.

Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Façade of the National Archaeological museum of Athens. ... Lord Byron, English poet Lord Byron (1803), as painted by Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, (January 22, 1788 – April 19, 1824) was the most widely read English language poet of his day. ... Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: HÄ“rodotos Halikarnāsseus) was a Greek historian from Ionia who lived in the 5th century BC (ca. ... For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Ovid (disambiguation) Publius Ovidius Naso (March 20, 43 BC – 17 AD) was a Roman poet known to the English-speaking world as Ovid who wrote on topics of love, abandoned women and mythological transformations. ... Disambiguation: This article is about the poem Metamorphoses written by the poet Ovid. ... 1913 advertisement for the 11th edition, with the slogan When in doubt — look it up in the Encyclopædia Britannica The Encyclopædia Britannica (properly spelled with æ, the ae-ligature) was first published in 1768–1771 as The Britannica was an important early English-language general encyclopedia and is still... Mestrius Plutarchus (Greek: Πλούταρχος; 46 - 127), better known in English as Plutarch, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist. ... Wikisource has original text related to this article: Plutarch in Greek Plutarchs Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans is a series of biographies of famous men, arranged in tandem to illuminate their common moral virtues or failings. ... Bust of Thucydides residing in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Sounion

• Sanctuary of Poseidon and Athena at Sounion - Greek Ministry of Culture
• 360 Panorama from Temple of Posiedon