4. Athens is one of the worlds oldest named cities, having being continuously
inhabited for at least 7000 years. The name of Athens, connected to the
name of its patron goddess Athena originates from an earlier pre-greek
language. Athens became rich because Attica also had valuable sources of
silver, lead and marble. Athens also had the biggest navy in Greece. Athens
was a beautiful and busy city. People came to the city from all over Greece,
and from other countries, to study and to trade. The city's most famous
building was the temple called Parthenon. It stood on a rocky hill called the
Acropolis. Inside the Parthenon stood a statue of the city’s protector
goddess Athena.
5.
6.
7. Olympia was first settled during the 3rd millennium BC, the earliest structures were
built then. They were built of uncut stone and had one apsidal wall. Traditions hold
that the first Olympic games were held in 776 BC. The games were a peace treaty
between Sparta and Elis, and soon it became that all Greek states could participate as
long as they withhold the truce to held during the games. It started out just being for
a month, but quickly many states began to take part, so they extended it for 3 months
during the summer. Because the truce gave all the kings and leaders to meet
unarmed, Olympia became an important place for trade and political discussions.
8.
9. The Olympic games originally
included wrestling, chariot racing,
pentathlon, horse racing, long
jump, and running. By the 4th
century the athletes competing
were professional and were
highly sponsored and rewarded.
10.
11. The first human presence on the island of Santorini dates back to the Neolithic Period.
The city was very similar to those found in the island of Crete, with many wall ornaments,
and pottery showing naturalistic landscapes, animals, and humans of the same ancient
Minoan style. In ancient times, Santorini Island was known as ‘Stongili’, which means
round in Greek. The island is near the joint of two tectonically plates., which means the
area is very likely to have earthquakes. The eruption in 1625 B.C. caused the island to
remain uninhabited for 300 years and caused the destruction of the Minoan Civilization.
Then, around 1100 BC, the island was occupied by the Lacedaemonian. Around 825 BC,
the inhabitants of the island, then named Thera, were using the Phoenician alphabet.
Between 1200 AC and 1579 AC, the island was under Byzantine and Venetian reign, and
from 1579 to1821 AC fell under the Turkish occupation until the Greek Revolution and
independence.
