ATHENA 159

all honoring Athena, whose great statue was housed in the temple. The whole pro-

gram was directed by Pheidias, creator of the statue of Zeus at Olympia.

The east pediment of the Parthenon immortalized the dramatic moment of

the birth of Athena, who stood in the center before the throne of Zeus, from

whose head she had just sprung full grown and fully armed. Hephaestus, who

had assisted in the birth, and Hera were probably present, while the announce-

ment of the birth was brought to other divine figures waiting to observe the mir-

acle. At the corners, to set the divine event in cosmic time, were the horses of

Helius, rising from the sea, and of Selene, sinking into it.

As at Olympia, the west pediment was a scene of violent action, celebrating

the victory of Athena in her contest with Poseidon for control of Athens and At-

tica. The central figures pull away from each other as they produce the gifts with

which they vied, and to each side were figures of divinities and heroic kings of

early Athens who attended the contest. Athena with her spear created an olive tree;

Poseidon with his trident, a salt spring. Athena was proclaimed victor.^2 Poseidon

continued to be worshiped (in conjunction with the Athenian hero Erechtheus) in

the nearby sanctuary of the Erechtheum (described on pp. 550-551).^3 There the marks

of Poseidon's trident were enshrined and Athena's olive tree continued to grow.

There were two friezes on the Parthenon. The exterior Doric frieze consisted

of ninety-two metopes (each 1.2 meters high), thirty-two on each of the long sides

Metopes (on four sides, exterior) N Frieze (on four sides)

W e s t P e d i m e n t

• •••••

I

Statue of

Athena

Parthenos

Cella

f

E a s t P e d i m e n t

(^150) feet
Figure 8.1. Plan of the Parthenon (After J. Travlos)