Parthenon
2 of the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Parthenon. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
par'the-non, a temple in honor of Athena Parthenos. The word means the Virgin. The Parthenon was the chief temple of Athens, the most noted temple of antiquity. It stood on the Athenian Acropolis. The foundation was of limestone. The temple itself was wholly of marble. It rested on a rectangle of marble drawn in on all sides by three steps. The temple proper was 228 feet long, 100 feet wide, and 66 feet high. The architecture was Doric, the severest and the most chaste of the three Grecian styles. A lofty porch ran around the entire building. It was supported on a double row of pillars thirty-four feet in height. These pillars were six feet in diameter at the base and narrowed slightly as they rose. The outer row contained forty pillars, eight across each end and seventeen on a side. The frieze and gables were formed of richly carved marble slabs. From traces of color still left, it is known that rich paints--Tyrian purple, red, and blue--were employed to color the ornamental portion of the edifice. The interior was sacred to Athena and sheltered a statue of that goddess, the masterpiece of Phidias. The general outline of the Parthenon was broad and flat, not unlike a barn, every line straight. There were no spires or projections of any kind; and yet it is regarded as the most perfect structure yet erected by man. Richness of material, faultlessness of sculpture, and the color scheme employed added charm, but the real beauty of the building lies in its massive simplicity and in the harmony of proportion. Width, length, and height combine to please the eye. The pillars are of the diameter, distance apart, and height to produce a pleasing effect. The belt of stonework resting on the pillars seems almost musical in the happy proportion of massiveness, width, and grace. The roof stands just right, rising beyond criticism. The groups of sculpture seem to fit naturally into their places, square in the frieze and triangular in the gables. There is no cramping of figures, straining of material, or overloading of stone anywhere. The general effect upon the eye is pleasing beyond all description. Whether the traveler approach by boat or by rail, his first glimpse of Athens is of the Acropolis crowned by the remains of the Parthenon, beautiful still and inspiring. See Athens ; Athena; Phidias ; Elgin Marbles; Architecture ; Acropolis The Parthenon, restored
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a celebrated temple at Athens, consecrated to Athena or Minerva, the protectress of the city. The Parthenon was built on an elevated rock near the Acropolis, and has always been regarded as the most perfect example of Grecian architecture; it was built in the Doric style. The Parthenon was erected about 448 B. c., in the time of Pericles, Phidias being the chief sculptor. It had a length of 228 feet, by a breadth of 100. The principal object of art was a statue of Minerva, 26 cubits high, made of ivory and gold, in an erect position, with a lance in her hand, a shield at her feet, and Medusa's head on her chesta work regarded as the masterpiece of Phidias. It had resisted the ravages of time down to the 17th century, till at the siege of Athens by the Venetians, in 1687, a shell fell on the roof of the Acropolis or citadel, which, firing the magazine beneath, shattered that building and the Parthenon. Early in the 19th century, it was mutilated by Lord Elgin, who removed to England its noblest sculpture.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Aiton's 1910 claim that the Parthenon has "every line straight" is one thing modern visitors are told is not so: the stylobate curves upward and the columns lean inward, refinements surveyed in detail in the 19th century and now standard in any account of the building. Collier's placed it "on an elevated rock near the Acropolis" — it stands on the Acropolis summit itself, and since 1975 the Acropolis Restoration Service has been dismantling and re-setting the ruin, partly to undo the early 20th-century repairs by Nikolaos Balanos, whose iron clamps rusted and split the marble. Athenian air pollution forced the surviving original sculptures indoors; they were replaced on the building by casts, and since 2009 the pieces still in Greece have been displayed in the new Acropolis Museum, built with a gallery deliberately sized to hold the sculptures Collier's says Lord Elgin "mutilated" the temple to take. Greece has formally demanded their return from the British Museum since 1983, and the dispute is unresolved.
Written for this edition, 2026.