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Definition: acropolis from Philip's Encyclopedia

Hilltop fortress of an ancient Greek city. The earliest known examples were fortified castles built for the Mycenaean kings, and it was only later that they became the symbolic homes of the gods. The most famous acropolis, in Athens, acquired walls by the 13th century bc but the Persians destroyed the complex. The surviving buildings, including the Parthenon, the Erechtheion, the Propylaea, and the Temple of Athena Nike, date from the late 5th century bc.


Acropolis

From The Encyclopedia of Ancient History
Of all Greek acropoleis, the Athenian Acropolis (lit., "high city" or "city on the heights") was culturally and historically (if not geologically) the most impressive. Natural springs at its base attracted inhabitants as early as the Neolithic period, and clusters of huts probably dotted its slopes and summit by the fourth millennium bce . But it was not until the Late Bronze (or Mycenaean) Age that the monumental history of the site began. A palace was built on a series of terraces on the north side of the summit: like the megaron-palaces of Mycenae and Tiryns (which it must have resembled), it was defended by a thick, high wall of "Cyclopean masonry" constructed around 1250 bce – a wall that remained the Acropolis' principal defense for almost eight centuries. If self-serving Athenian legend is to be believed, the Acropolis escaped the destructions that befell other Mycenaean citadels in the twelfth century. But what it looked like after that, in the so-called "Dark Age" (1100–760), …
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Full text Article acropolis

From Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World
Also known as: akropolis The word acropolis comes from the Greek “ akro “ (“high”) and “ polis “ (“city”). It generally refers to a hilltop citadel and was a vital feature of most ancient Greek cities, providing both a refuge from attack and an elevated area of religious sanctity. The best-known…
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Full text Article acropolis

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
(Әkrŏp'Әlĭs) [Gr.,=high point of the city], elevated, fortified section of various ancient Greek cities. The Acropolis of Athens, a hill c.260 ft (80 m) high, with a flat oval top c.500 ft (150 m) wide and 1,150 ft (350 m) long, was a ceremonial site beginning in the Neolithic period and was walled…
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Full text Article Acropolis, Athens

From The World's Heritage
The Acropolis of Athens (pictured right) and its...
Greece Criteria - Human creative genius; Interchange of values; Testimony to cultural tradition; Significance in human history; Heritage associated with events of universal Significance The Athenian Acropolis is the supreme expression of the adaptation of architecture to a natural site, a unique…
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Full text Article acropolis

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Citadel of an ancient Greek town. The Acropolis of Athens contains the ruins of the Parthenon and surrounding complexes, built there during the days of the Athenian empire. The term is also used for analogous structures. The Acropolis of Athens stands on a rock about 45 m/150 ft high, 350 m/1,150 ft…
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Used to designate a ‘high city’, acropolis actually means ‘high part of a city’. There are many examples in Greece, but the most famous is in Athens, because that is where the spectacular monuments were built in the fifth century BCE . It is these monuments more than any others that have acted in…
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Full text Article acropolis

From Dictionary of Architecture and Construction
acropolis: Acropolis at Athens. A, Propylaea; B,...
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Full text Article acropolis

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
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Full text Article acropolis

From The American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language
acropolis the Parthenon at the Acropolis Athens,...
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Full text Article acropolis

From The Macquarie Dictionary
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Full text Article Acropolis

From The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Houghton Mifflin
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