Athens and around - The Rough Guide to Greece - page 77

The Roman baths
Leóforos Amalías • Metro Akrópoli or Sýndagma
Roman Athens expanded beyond the Classical Greek city to cover much of the area
around the National Gardens. The most concrete evidence of this lies in a large Roman
baths complex that was discovered during excavations for the metro. Dating originally
from the late third century AD and substantially expanded over succeeding centuries,
the baths are now visible under a metal and perspex cover alongside the busy avenue,
100m or so north of Hadrian's Arch. Complete rooms have been well preserved and are
now exposed to the gaze.

1

Hadrian's Arch
Leóforos Amalías • Unfenced • Free • Metro Akrópoli
Hadrian's Arch stands in splendid isolation across from one of the busiest road junctions
in Athens, the meeting of Amalías and Syngroú. With the traffic roaring by, this is not
somewhere you are tempted to linger, but it's definitely worth a look on your way to
the Temple of Olympian Zeus. The arch, 18m high, was erected by the emperor to
mark the edge of the Classical city and the beginning of his own. On the west side its
frieze - damaged and hard to make out - is inscribed “This is Athens, the ancient city
of Theseus”, and on the other “This is the City of Hadrian and not of Theseus”. With
so little that's ancient remaining around it, this doesn't make immediate sense, but you
can look up, westwards, to the Acropolis and in the other direction see the columns of
the great temple completed by Hadrian.

The Temple of Olympian Zeus
Entrance on Vasilíssis Ólgas • Daily: Summer 8am-6.30pm; winter 8am-3pm • €2 or joint Acropolis ticket • Metro Akrópoli
Directly behind Hadrian's Arch, the colossal pillars of the Temple of Olympian Zeus
- also known as the Olympieion - stand in the middle of a huge, dusty clearing
with excellent views of the Acropolis and constant traffic noise. One of the largest
temples in the ancient world, and according to Livy, “the only temple on earth to
do justice to the god”, it was dedicated by Hadrian in 131 AD, almost 700 years
after Peisistratos had begun work on it. Hadrian marked the occasion by
contributing a statue of Zeus and a suitably monumental one of himself, although
both have since been lost.
Today, just fifteen of the temple's original 104 marble pillars remain erect. To the
north of the temple enclosure, by the site entrance, are various excavated remains
including another impressive Roman bath complex. The south side of the enclosure
overlooks a further area of excavation (not open to the public) where both Roman and
much earlier buildings have been revealed.

The Grand Avenues
Northwest from Sýndagma, the broad and busy avenues of Stadhíou , Panepistimíou
(officially called Venizélou, though the name is rarely used) and Akadhimías head
towards Platía Omonías. Initially lined with grandiose mansions, some converted
to museums, squares with open vistas and opulent arcades with chichi shopping,
they move steadily downmarket as you approach Omónia. There are three museums
here of rather specialist interest: the National Historical Museum (Stadhíou 13,
Platía Kolokotróni; Tues-Sun 9am-2pm; €3, free on Sun; W nhmuseum.gr),
focusing on Greek history from the fall of Constantinople to the reign of King
Otto, the City of Athens Museum (Paparigopoúlou 7, on Platía Klafthmónos; Mon
& Wed-Fri 9am-4pm, Sat & Sun 10am-3pm; €3; W athenscitymuseum.gr),
occupying the residence of King Otto in the 1830s, and the Numismatic Museum