Nine out of ten tourists who visit Athens go there to see the Acropolis. In fact, the Acropolis is so well known that when most people think of Greece, the image of this ancient temple is what comes to mind. Built in about 4,000 BC, the Acropolis originally functioned as a temple to the goddess, Athena. But the modern day Acropolis is more reminiscent of the 5th century. There are many Acropoli in Greece but the Acropolis in Athens has come to symbolize that country and it is the landmark most often associated with Greece.

To most tourists, Athens connotes an image of the Acropolis standing above the city with the proud Parthenon beckoning us to explore and sample its three millennia of history.

The Acropolis was dedicated to Athena, its patron goddess. Although evidence exists that location of the Acropolis has been an important religious site since 4,000 B.C., the view that we have of the site today memorializes Athens in the 5th century B.C., when the present day historical buildings were erected after the original temple had been destroyed by the Persians.

The modern day Acropolis, also referred to as the Sacred Rock originally functioned as a religious sanctuary restricted to very few individuals in ancient Greece. Its original buildings were temples which honored the many gods which were so important to the ancient Athenian residents. Only the very top echelons of society were permitted to enter and worship.

As Greece and Athens lost their prominence in the world, the temples gradually began to be used by invaders for a variety of purposes. When you go to the Acropolis, you need to know that you will not be allowed to go inside.

You will have to content yourself with wandering around outside. The temples are extremely fragile and the sheer numbers of yearly tourists could do a tremendous amount of damage to them so visitation is limited to the outside areas only.

In 1975, Athens began a major restoration project of the Acropolis which is now near completion. The purpose of this restoration project was an attempt to reverse centuries of decay and lack of attention, damage caused by a multitude of wars and collecting and identifying as many stone fragments as possible.

The Parthenon colonnades which had been almost completely destroyed during Venetian attacks in the 17th century have been largely restored. All the restoration has been completed with new marble and have been specially designed to be completely reversible in the event that future experts which to change things again.