72 THE PARTHENON AND ITS SCULPTURES. and polishing. In 437 Phidias, banished from Athens, probably began his great Zeus of Olympia.* The size of the Parthenon, measured at the top step, was 101.4 by 228.3. Good plans, according to recent opinion, have been published by Penrose, Uorpfeld, L. Magne, and Middleton. (Fig. 60.) The superstructure rests on a colossal foundation ; as it was built in part over the sloping sides of the Acropolis rock, its southern foundation is built up from a depth of about 50 feet. There are continuous walls under the internal columns, and underneath the floor solid courses of masonry are extended over the whole area many feet in depth. The foundations in part belong to an older temple. The inner rows of six columns at the two ends of the temple stand above the level of the Fig. 58. — The Acropolis a century ago. peristyle on two steps, and are less in scale than the outer ones. (Figs. 60, 62.) The positions of the columns which divided up the chief cella are clearly marked in some places upon the pavement. They had a diameter of about 3 feet 7 inches, and from the size it is obvious that there must have been two stages, as at Olympia and other places. Penrose speaks of pieces of the upper architrave found on the site. A portion of one of the eastern responds of the internal colonnade still remains by the entrance door. At the other end the colonnade returned behind the great statue. In the smaller cella, or opisthodomos, were four columns which divided the ceiling into nine equal
- Lechat.
