Cult at the Athenian Agora

An agora was a communal space found in most Greek cities that contained religious structures alongside those with commercial and civic functions, but it can also be thought of as a quasi-religious space in its own right. Specific points of religious focus within the Agora in Athens include, for example, the Altar of the Twelve Gods, a temple to Apollo Patroos, an altar to Aphrodite Ourania, the crossroads enclosure, and the Metroon. In addition, the Archon Basileus, the official in charge of religious festivals, had his headquarters in the Stoa Basileus; a calendar for sacrifices was inscribed on a wall there. Religion was embedded within the political institutions, so when governing bodies met in a building like the tholos or bouleterion there were ritual actions to start the meetings. Images of gods and heroes were present in herms and monuments like that to the Eponymous Heroes. The area as a whole was marked by horoi (boundary stones) and those who could pollute it were banned (e.g., murders), similar to other kinds of religious space. Although the political roles of the Athenian Agora began to wain in the Hellenistic period and were transformed by the Roman, it was still used for religion, as we can see by the importing of temples from elsewhere in Attica presumably for use in Imperial Cult there.Non UBCUnreviewedFacult