Acropolis of Athens, 400 BCE

2,500 years ago, the city of Athens successfully led a defensive coalition of Greek city-states against a great foe, the mighty Persian Empire. In the decades that followed, the city became the center of an unprecedented cultural revolution. From the tragedies of Aeschylus to the philosophy of Socrates, Athens was radiating. But there was one thing for which the Athenians were prouder; their democratic system, the first of its kind in history. Pericles, the prominent Athenian statesman, envisioned a building program that would transform the sacred hill of Acropolis into a grand monument to democratic Athens’ achievements. In the center of Pericles’ program stood the Parthenon, the architectural marvel that became a symbol of the Athenian Golden Age.

Since then, the Acropolis survived many destructive events. a symbol of the civilization that millennia ago changed everything, and birthed the Western World as we know it.