The temple of Athena Alea is one of the most celebrated temples of the Classical period and one of great importance for the history of monumental architecture and sculpture in Greece. It stands in the southernmost part of the ancient Arcadian city of Tegea and is the only visible monument of the homonymous sanctuary, the most important one in Arcadia, known and respected as a place of refuge by all Peloponnesians. Pausanias mentions (8, 45, 4 - 47, 4) that the mythical founder of the sanctuary of ...