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The temple began to rise on its limestone foundation. Workers placed marble blocks in layers to make the stereobate, the base of the temple. Columns were assembled by stacking column drums on the stereobate. Protruding nubs of stone called “bosses” had been left on each drum at the quarry. Workers attached ropes to these bosses, and wooden cranes swung the drums through the air and set them in stacks. Each column was topped with a “capital,” and the capitals were topped with rows of rectangular blocks, creating the “entablature.” When the columns were finished, highly skilled stonemasons would climb the scaffolding to carve “flutes” (grooves) along each one. As they worked their way down the column, they removed the bosses and carefully shaped the precise flutes. A mistake at this point could not be easily fixed. Stonemasons weren’t alone on the Acropolis. Much of Athens was caught up in the giant construction project. Tool makers, carpenters, rope makers, animal handlers, road builders, and sandal makers were just a few of the many workers whose skills were in demand. It’s estimated that as many as 20,000 people worked. |