The latter stages of the Acropolis building project that Pericles began with the Parthenon

include the massive entrance way on the West end, called the Propylaia,

completed about the same time as the colossal statue for the Parthenon (435-2?).

Here we look up to the Propylaia from the northwest; on the right (south) is the temple of Athena Nike

 

Here we approach up the steep ramp to the doorway.

 

And here we look to one of the imposing galleries on either side.

 

Not long after completion of the Propylaia, the Athenians began (re)building a shrine to their ancient kings

(also honoring gods associated with the founding, Poseidon and Athena): the Erectheion, to the north of the Parthenon

This structure (not completed until late in the war) is remarkable for the closed, complex,

almost labyrinthine combination of rooms and levels.

Most famous for the South Porch supported by columns in the form of figures called Caryatids

This structure is often seen as representing a turn away from the 'Periclean' idealization of community toward a more

inward concern with spirituality. Other views.

 

On a somewhat smaller in scale) is the temple to Athena and Victory (Nike),

completed soon after the Peace of 421

perched on the south shoulder of the Propylaia.

 

This structure is remarkable for the continuous frieze showing figures of Victory in various poses.

The obsession with drapery and other superficial features gives this work a mannered, 'escapist' quality,

notable in the instance of Nike adjusting her sandal.