A temple was dedicated to a God and used as a place of worship, although access was restricted to priests and it housed the statue of the god/goddess. An altar, where sacrifices would be made to deities was placed outside of a temple so that many people could see and that the smoke would drift up to the home of the Gods, Mount Olympus. Therefore the focus of religious worship was in the surroundings …
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showed last 75 words of 1157 total
…this temple began in the 430s or 420s BC and ended in 405 BC. The Erechtheum would have been one of the most elaborate buildings on the Acropolis. Porches projected from three sides of the Erechtheum, but they were at different heights and are not centred on each side. Ionic columns supported the porches on the eastern and northern sides. Caryatids (columns carved in the shape of female figures) supported the porch on the south side.