Parthenon Undressed from Sculptures

Society | December 22, 2006, Friday // 00:00

Seven sculptures will be removed from Athens' remarkable Parthenon to protect them from the ravages of pollution.

The sculptures will be replaced by facsimiles, a Greek restoration expert said on Thursday. The operation should be completed in 2008

The metopes, carved into the Doric friezes, which extend in a band below the roof and above the structure's columns, are among the temple's few remaining original sculptures.

Once removed, the metopes will be exhibited in the new Acropolis Museum, said Maria Ioannidou, director of the Acropolis restoration services.

Greek archaeologists decided to remove them to save the sculptures threatened by acid rain caused by atmospheric pollution and natural erosion.

Besides suffering depredations caused by weather and pollution, the sculptures were also defaced by Christians during the period when the Parthenon was converted into a church.

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