The figures of the west pediment were more easily reproduced than those
of the east pediment, as they were more completely authenticated by the
Elgin marbles and the Carrey drawings.
It should be understood that the explosion that destroyed the Parthenon
did its greatest damage to the figures themselves rather than to the
base on which they rested, and as a consequence less difficulty was
encountered by the artists in placing the sculptures in their proper
settings on the west than on the east pediment. In considering the
sculptures of the two pediments it must also be borne in mind that the
force of the explosion was greatest in the eastern portion of the
building, as evidenced by the condition of the ruin, and for that reason
also the greatest damage was to the east pediment.
The sculptures of the west pediment tell the story of the struggle
between Poseidon, the powerful god of the sea, and his niece Athena, the
goddess of wisdom, for the possession of Attica, or ancient Greece.
In the center of the pediment, to the right, is the heroic figure of
Poseidon with his three-pronged weapon or trident in his hand, his
friends and supporters to the right. Opposing him, and to the left, is
the equally heroic figure of Athena with her great spear in her hand,
her supporters to the left. Both of these gods coveted the fair land of
Attica and desired the worship of its people. They were unable to agree
and appealed to the gods for a decision. The gods held their convocation
on the Acropolis, the site of the Parthenon, and this assembly is shown
by the figures of the west pediment.
As a result of the convocation the gods decreed that the contestant who
should most bless Greece would be given the control of Athens and have
the worship of the Greeks. It was to be a battle of blessing, rather
than blood.
Poseidon, in granting his blessing, struck the solid rock of the
Acropolis with his trident, and as he was the god of the sea it obeyed
him and came up in a rushing, gushing spring of salt water, symbolic of
his promise that if the Greeks would make him their god he would make of
them a mighty maritime nation--their glory should be on the sea. When it
became Athena's turn to grant her blessing, she struck her great spear
in the earth and withdrew it and from the place sprang an olive tree,
the parent of all those which have so greatly blessed Greece from that
day to this. The gods, acting wisely, decreed that Athena's gift was of
far greater advantage to the Greeks than any promise of the glory of war
as made by Poseidon, and made her the patron goddess of Athens.
[Illustration: The East Pediment with Section of the Doric Frieze
Underneath Showing Gryphon Monsters and Acroteria on Roof]