Portara of Naxos
The Portara of Naxos, also known as the Temple Gate of Naxos , is a fragment of the Temple of Apollo on Naxos , an island in the Cyclades , and is considered the symbol of Naxos. The gate is on a peninsula in front of the city of Naxos .
The Portara made of Naxos marble stands on the former island of Palátia in front of the port . It is 5.95 meters high and 3.65 meters wide and the only remaining part of the temple. The temple gate consists of a door jamb and a door lintel , each made of a piece of island marble from the Flerio quarries. Each of the two reveals weighs around 20 tons. The lintel weighs a little less. These workpieces were transported from the Flerio quarries about ten kilometers away.
It is not known why the entrance step of the gate is divided. Throughout history, the unfinished temple was used as a quarry for other structures. Only the heavy gate was not dismantled, possibly due to the heavy weight. In the Flerio quarry, there is a 7.49 meter long and 25 ton heavy lintel as an unfinished boss stone , which was prepared for the gate, which was originally planned to be wider. This unfinished workpiece was obviously left lying around during transport, because there is no sign of any excavation in the quarry nearby.
In the 6th century BC The approximately 57.5 × 26.5 m large temple for Apollo was to be built, but it was never completed. Only the temple gate and the lowest foundations are preserved today. Recent studies have shown that planning was rescheduled during the construction phase and that construction began around 550-540 BC. Took place. In a subsequent plan, which dates from around 530 BC. The building was rotated 180 degrees for planning purposes.
The temple gate can be reached via a dam, which can be washed over by the water in the wind. The gate is a tourist attraction that is often visited in the evening, because the glittering marble gate stands out clearly against the blue sky or the setting sun.
literature
- Gottfried Gruben : Naxos and Delos. In: Yearbook of the German Archaeological Institute 1998, ISBN 3-11-015369-6 , p. 262 ff.
Web links
Individual evidence
Coordinates: 37 ° 6 ′ 37.1 ″ N , 25 ° 22 ′ 20.1 ″ E