On top of Agoraios Kolonos hill, which is delimiting the Ancient Agora of Athens to the west, stands the temple of Hephaestus, broadly known as “Thisio”. It is one of the best preserved ancient temples, partly because it was transformed into a Christian church. According to the traveller and geographer Pausanias (1, 14, 5-6), two deities were jointly worshipped in the temple: god Hephaestus, protector of all metallurgists, and goddess Athena Ergani, protecting all potters and the cottage industries. ...

One of the more significant public buildings of the Agora is the Tholos, a round structure, with six interior columns and a propylon at the east that was added in the 1st century BC. It was the headquarters of the 50 prytaneis who served as the executive committee of the Boule (Council) for an interval of 35 or 36 days, after which they were replaced by prytaneis from another tribe, so that by the end of the year representatives of all ten tribes had a turn in the administration. Those in office ...

Ο Ναός των Αγίων Αποστόλων του Σολάκη οικοδομήθηκε λίγο πριν το 1000 μ.Χ. και εδράστηκε εν μέρει πάνω σε ένα Νυμφαίο του 2ου αι. μ.Χ. Aποτελούσε το κέντρο μιας βυζαντινής συνοικίας που αναπτύχθηκε στην περιοχή. Η αρχική κάτοψη του ναού ήταν σταυροειδής εγγεγραμμένη, με αψίδες στις τέσσερις πλευρές και νάρθηκα στη δυτική πλευρά. Τον τρούλο στήριζαν τέσσερις κίονες. Η Αγία Τράπεζα και το δάπεδο του ναού ήταν μαρμάρινα. Στην εξωτερική τοιχοποιία διατηρούνται περίτεχνα κεραμοπλαστικά κοσμήματα από οριζόντιες ...

Rectangular prostyle building. It served as a meeting-place of the 500-member Boule (Senate), made up of fifty citizens, from each of the ten Athenian tribes, chosen by allotment each year. As a legislative body the Senate prepared the bills that afterwards were voted on in the assembly of all citizens (Ekklesia of the Demos). For a time the New Bouleuterion functioned along with the Old Bouleuterion, which apparently because of a lack of space came to be used only as a repository of state archives. ...