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Dionysiou Areopagitou, the Most Beautiful Street in Athens

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Dionysiou Areopagitou, the Most Beautiful Street in Athens

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Strolling down Dionysiou Areopagitou, the most beautiful street in Athens, feels like taking a journey back into the history of Greece’s ancient capital. Surrounded by monuments and archaeological sites right below the Acropolis, this paved promenade is one of the most impressive streets in the world which, will also soon be getting a lighting makeover that will further enhance its beauties.

Dionysiou Areopagitou street starts at the Arch of Hadrian beside the Temple of Olympian Zeus on Vassilisis Sofia Avenue and ends at Filipappou Hill around the archaeological area of the Acropolis and the Ancient Agora, after about 830 meters. It was named after Dionysius the Areopagite, the first member of the Areopagus Court, who converted to Christianity in 52 AD during the visit of Paul the Apostle to Athens.

The street was initially located further north than it is today, right in front of the

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. In 1955, the acclaimed Greek architect Dimitris Pikionis, who also designed the paved pathways around the Acropolis, redesigned the road.

In the 1990s the archaeological sites around Dionysiou Areopagitou were connected to the emblematic street—the long-time vision of the late Melina Merkouri, Greece’s famous actress and politician who became known for her fight to bring back the Parthenon Marbles. The street was paved in 2003, and since then it has become a colorful river of visitors and locals mingling together to admire the many attractions around the road.

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Some notable buildings and monuments on Dionysiou Areopagitou Street

Dionysiou Areopagitou street is awash with modern and neoclassical luxurious houses, as well as with several monuments, all amid a lush greenery including old plane trees, strawberry trees and oleanders.

The most notable is probably

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, next to the Weiler, a brick building combining byzantine and neoclassical architectural elements that served as a Bavarian military hospital during the war. The world-renowned museum bejewels the street, from where visitors can look through the glass of its top floor and enjoy the Parthenon Marbles that remained in Greece after Lord Elgin removed the rest in the early 1800s and transported them to Britain.

Αυτή την Αθήνα αγαπώ, Διονυσίου Αρεοπαγίτου

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— L3ŋą (@L3naRain)

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On the other side of the street is the Theater of Dionysus, the first theater in the world, which was part of the sanctuary of Dionysus Eleuthereus. This is where some of the greatest plays were performed in antiquity and where Aeschylus, Euripides and Sophocles, ancient Greece’s great tragedians, strolled around. When the theater was completed in the 4th century BC, it is estimated that up to 16,000 spectators could watch a play.

Across the street there’s the smallish Saint Sophia’s Church of Acropolis, which was built at the beginning of the 20th century and is dedicated to Saint Sophia and her three daughters, Pisti, Elpida and Agapi (Faith, Hope and Love). On this site there once lay an ancient temple dedicated to the Goddess Athena.

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On the southern slopes of the Acropolis one can see the steps that lead up to the entrance of Odeon of Herodes Atticus, known as “Herodeon” to Greeks, one of the must-see attractions of Athens. It was built around 161 AD by Athenian benefactor and Roman senator Herodes Atticus as a memorial to his late wife, Regilia.  The restored ancient theater hosts Greek and international performances under the Acropolis.

The end of Dionysiou Areopagitou Street, where it intersects with Apostolou Pavlou Street which leads to Thiseio, is adorned with the picturesque church of Saint Demetrios Loumbardiaris. The church was built while Greece was under Ottoman occupation and materials belonging to an ancient temple were used in its construction. It was restored in the 1950s by architect Pikionis, who created a peaceful point of reflection in one of Athens’s most beautiful corners.

Notable residents of the street have included the late Vangelis Papathanasiou, a world-famous Greek composer and musician, Konstantinos Parthenis, a famous Greek painter, Akis Tsochatzopoulos, a Greek politician embroiled in corruption scandals and Xenofon Zolotas, a Greek politician and a former Prime Minister of Greece.

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Dionysiou Areopagitou Street in Athens soon to get new lighting

Earlier in the year, the Municipality of Athens announced that it will install new lighting on Dionysiou Areopagitou Street, designed by Eleftheria Deko, the Greek lighting designer who also created the Acropolis’ night illumination in 2020.

The project will be realized in collaboration with the Onassis Foundation, which runs a program of gentle interventions in neighborhoods, playgrounds, monuments and buildings. A bronze sculpture bench of C.P Cavafy, honoring the great Greek poet, will also be installed on the emblematic street.

The new lighting intervention is expected to begin in 2025. The Onassis Foundation said in a statement that “Through the eyes of Deko, light, in unison with the immediate setting transforms one of the city’s most emblematic promenades, bequeathing an imprint that revitalizes public space.”

Ο ομορφότερος δρόμος της χώρας χωρίς συζήτηση για μενα είναι η Διονυσίου Αρεοπαγιτου

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#Dionysiou #Areopagitou #Beautiful #Street #Athens

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