Ἀγορά.. say it with me now: ah-go-RAH

The next day took us to the Agora. In ancient Greek city-states, the Agora was a place of open assembly (get it? agoraphobia is the fear of open places). They later become a sort of a marketplace where merchants set up shop to sell their goods.

Basically, the agora was the place to be. It was the political, commercial, and social center of the city.

In fact, back in they day you could find Socrates himself hanging out in the agora, heckling passersby, asking them about their understanding of the meaning of life. It is said that this was where Plato overheard Socrates on just such an occasion, and then decided to become a philosopher himself.

One of the most impressive structures in the agora was the Temple of Hephaestus, seen here. This is one of the best preserved temples of ancient Greece. This temple is of the Doric order. Basically, what this means, is that the columns stand flat without a base, and with 20 vertical grooves. Their capitals are smooth and flare from the column. The other two orders are Ionic and Corinthian, and hopefully I can dig out some good examples of those to show later.

Anyway! Hephaestus was the god of metal-working, as there were a number of metal-working factories in the area. In the 7th century AD, the temple was converted into a Christian church dedicated to Saint George.

Water Clock

Even though we were stumbling around the agora in blistering heat (with very little shade), I still managed to pay attention to some things! Like this water clock, which kept time for speeches, with water emptying at a controlled speed from one bowl into another.

We were able to escape the sun and its deathly rays by going into the museum and looking at some of the goodies they found in the ancient forum.

Little birds

Pre-Nazi Swastikas

Grave goods

Jewelry, found in the graves of women

Little boots!

Ostraka

From the Agora we split off into groups to find lunch and our own ways back to the hotel. We stumbled upon this little gem, located directly across from the Astor:



Yes, that would be a wine cellar located directly below a chocolate shop. It is now Tracie and my's dream to own such a shop. I think the appropriate math is chocolate + wine = heaven?


Later that evening the group got together and headed out to go watch traditional Greek folk dancing. It was quite the production, complete with live music and fancy costumes.