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Secondary sourceArtifact444-440 BC

Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion

444-440 BC

A marble temple to the sea god Poseidon, built during Pericles' ascendancy to mark Athens' naval power.

Built during Pericles' ascendancy as part of the same era of monumental building he championed in Athens.

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Ruins of the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion under a deep blue sky: a rectangular stone colonnade of white Doric columns, some still topped by sections of entablature, with scattered marble blocks and steps in the foreground and a hill on the right.
Temple of Poseidon, Cape Sounion, 444-440 BC.

About this source

What it is

This temple stands on Cape Sounion at the southern tip of Attica, overlooking the sea lanes to Athens' port. The surviving temple was constructed from 444 to 440 BC, replacing an earlier Archaic temple destroyed by the Persians, during the time Pericles also rebuilt the Parthenon in Athens.

Why it matters

Poseidon mattered greatly to Athens because of its dependence on sea trade and its navy. Scholars argue the temple's dramatic coastal position served both religious and strategic purposes, letting Athenians watch for incoming ships and declare their naval strength to anyone sailing past. It stands as part of the wider building programme associated with Pericles that celebrated Athenian power after the Persian Wars.

Look closer

  • Why would Athenians build a temple in such a visible, exposed location?
  • What does dedicating a temple to Poseidon tell you about what mattered most to Athens at this time?
  • What practical, non-religious purposes might this building have served?

This artifact is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Pericles on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Manuscript page in Greek handwriting with a decorative heading at top, showing the text of a speech in dense lines of script on aged parchment with marginal notes at left and right edges.Speech

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Thucydides · 431/430 BCE

Photograph of the Parthenon temple on the Athenian Acropolis, seen from the front-left under a deep blue sky. White marble Doric columns and a partly damaged pediment stand on a stepped base, with scattered marble blocks and ruins in the foreground.Artifact

Primary source

Parthenon

447-432 BCE

Marble bust of a bearded man wearing a tall Corinthian-style helmet with a raised crest and cheek guards. Curly hair and beard are carved in detail. The bust rests on a tan stone pedestal against a grey wall.Sculpture

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Kresilas · Roman copy, from a Greek original near Pericles' lifetime

Facsimile page of Greek manuscript handwriting in minuscule script, nine lines of dark ink on white, headed 'Facsimile No. 57', with a transcription and caption 'Thucydides.—Tenth Century' below.Book

Primary source

History of the Peloponnesian War

Thucydides · 5th century BCE

Book

Secondary source

Life of Pericles

Plutarch

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