Photograph · Public-domain photograph · Temple built 447–432 BC
The Parthenon, Athens
This print is a colour photograph of the Parthenon, the Doric marble temple to Athena on the Acropolis of Athens, built between 447 and 432 BC under Pericles. The photograph is a public-domain image, so it can be printed and hung without any licence.
History
The Parthenon was designed by the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates, with sculpture overseen by Phidias, and built of Pentelic marble on the highest point of the Acropolis after the Persian sack of the city. It housed a colossal gold-and-ivory statue of Athena and served, in turn, as a temple, a church and a mosque.
In 1687 a Venetian mortar shell hit the gunpowder the Ottoman garrison stored inside and blew out the centre of the building; most of the ruin you see today dates from that explosion. Many of the surviving sculptures were removed by Lord Elgin in the early 1800s and are in the British Museum. Restoration work on the site has been continuous since the 1970s.
The building is a byword for classical proportion: its columns lean slightly inward and its platform rises gently in the middle, refinements that keep it from looking rigid to the eye.
What the print shows
The temple from the north-west, with the west front and the long north colonnade in strong, low sunlight against a deep blue sky. The fluted Doric columns, the restored entablature and the scaffolding-free upper courses are sharp; the foreground is the bare rock and scattered marble of the Acropolis. The frame ratio is close to 4 : 3.
Source and licence
Source: Public-domain photograph of the Parthenon.
Licence: Public domain. The shop's catalogue records this photograph as a high-resolution public-domain image; the building itself, completed in 432 BC, carries no rights of any kind.
Also a digital download and one of the eight plates in the Vintage Masterpieces set.
Available sizes and prices
Print: paper or framed Etsy listing 4548846189
| Size | Paper | Framed |
|---|---|---|
| 8 × 12 in (21 × 30 cm) | $29.99 | $98.99 |
| 12 × 18 in (30 × 45 cm) | $44.99 | $137.99 |
| 16 × 24 in (40 × 60 cm) | $54.99 | $195.99 |
Digital download Etsy listing 4557540206
$5.99: 300 DPI files on your Etsy downloads page the moment payment clears; nothing is shipped.
Printed to order, shipped in 2–5 business days, free US shipping. Paper: matte fine-art paper. Framed: real wood (black, white, wood, dark wood), shatterproof acrylic, ready to hang.
Buy
- Parthenon Acropolis Athens (print: paper or framed): buy on Etsy, from $29.99.
- Parthenon (digital download): buy on Etsy, $5.99.
- Also in the Vintage Masterpieces Set of 8 download set, $17.99.
Frequently asked questions
- When was the Parthenon built?
- Between 447 and 432 BC, during the leadership of Pericles, by the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates. The sculptural programme was supervised by Phidias.
- Why is the Parthenon a ruin?
- Mainly because of an explosion in 1687, when a Venetian shell ignited gunpowder stored inside during a siege. Earlier conversions to a church and a mosque, and the removal of sculpture around 1801–1812, also changed it.
- Is this a painting or a photograph?
- A colour photograph. It is available as a paper or framed print and as a digital download file.
- Can I use this photograph without a licence?
- The image is public domain, so the print needs no licence; the digital file is sold for your own printing under the terms on the about page.
Sources
Published 20 Oct 2026; prices are the live Etsy prices as of 20 Oct 2026. The work is public domain; this page's text is © ThinkDotCo and may be quoted with a link.