Object Description
Postcard glued to a transparent glass plate. The postcard features the text, "Athenes. Theatre d'Herode" with a receding view of the back of the Herodes Amphitheater (you do not see the semicircular seating area) with a series of trees that have been colored green. The postcard is in black and white. The glass plate appears to be acting as a framing device for the print and there are intersecting gold lines (inscribed on the glass's underside) around the print as a framing device. The plate was painted with brown paint which has worn down and is chipping away. When looking at the underside of the plate, you can make out the lines for an address and the dividing line between letter content and address that are the trademarks of a postcard.
Origin
The Herodes Amiptheatre was built in 161 AD by the Athenian magnate Herodes Atticus in memory of his wife, Aspasia Annia Regilla. It was originally a steep-sloped amphitheater with a three-story stone front wall and a wooden roof made of expensive, cedar of Lebanon timber. It was used as a venue for music concerts with a capacity of 5,000. It lasted intact until it was destroyed and turned into a ruin by the Heruli in 267 AD.
The audience stands and the orchestra (stage) were restored using Pentelic marble in the 1950s. Since then it has been the main venue of the Athens Festival, which runs from May through October each year, featuring a variety of acclaimed Greek as well as international performances.
The postcard's view emphasizes the non-audience-facing side of the theatre's ruins. This is a rear view that is not commonly photographed.
Rights and Reproduction
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Citation
Postcard, National Hellenic Museum, https://hellenic.whirlihost.com/Detail/objects/10413. Accessed 05/06/24.