ACROPOLIS MUSEUM, First Floor Lioness Pediment

This area on the first level of the museum is home to the oldest exhibits, pre-dating the construction of the Parthenon and thus belonging to the Archaic Period.

The first masterpiece I’d like to mention is the lioness pediment, sculpted towards 570 BC, which once adorned the temple that was replaced by the Parthenon, known as “Hekatompedon”, meaning 100 feet long. The fragments have been reconstructed so the scene can be more easily recognized.

At the center, a bull has collapsed to the ground and is being attacked by two lionesses. The animal is in the final spasms before death, and the scene is so realistic we can almost hear it gasping for breath. On the left is a nude male figure battling with a monstrous snake, representing the mythical hero Herakles battling with the Triton, part man and part sea monster, the son of the god of the sea, Poseidon.

Depicted on the right are three smiling figures with moustaches and beards, their bodies joined into an incredible knot shaped like a snake. The figures represent a demon with three bodies, each of which is holding a natural element: the first water, the second fire, and the third a bird, symbolizing air....