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Odeon of Herodes Atticus

August 24, 2010 - By 
Key Dates

Built between 160 and 174 BC. First archaeological digs commenced in the 1850s; performances started to be staged there again from 1867 and continue to be staged there to this day. The seats and stage were replaced in the 1950s.

Athens
Greece
Key People

The Odeon was built by the wealthy Greek rhetorician Herodes Atticus in memory of his wife, Aspasia Annia Regilla.

Originally constructed as a music venue, the Odeon of Herodes Atticus – which lies on the southern slope of the Acropolis of Athens – is a spectacular 80-metre diameter ancient amphitheatre. Its steep stepped slopes are capable of seating 5,000 spectators; originally it had a three storey front wall and a wood and tile roof but both were destroyed by a huge fire only 100 years after the structure was built.

Just ten years after the first excavations were carried out at the site in 1857, it started to host public performances again of all different kinds. It continues to function as a venue to this day, most notably during the annual Epidaurus Festival of contemporary arts.