Interactive Acropolis

| Developed by A. Ficek, Baruch College, CUNY |

OER: An interactive view of the Acropolis in Athens, Greece

Interactive views of ancient sites are excellent OERS to incorporate into Survey 1 lectures. Unlike photos, or even videos, these views allow students to more actively engage with the site. These work particularly well in ‘case-study’ style lectures dedicated to single sites, which allow for discussions of art and architecture of a single culture. These 360 views, which can be incorporated into several different lectures, allow for better discussions of the spacial realities of architectural sites, as well as their place within modern cities and nations, both physically and in relation to the identity of a modern country. Students respond extremely positively to contemporary debates and controversies surrounding ancient sites.

Link to interactive resource

COURSE ACtivity

• About mid-way through the lecture, after the instructor has given a brief historical background and the class has had a chance to discuss the readings, show the students the interactive view of the Acropolis.
• First, as a group, explore the different views of the site, and explain and point out the structures that have been previously discussed in the first half of the lecture.
• After the discussion, focus the 360 viewer on the most clear and recognizable view of the site.
• Ask students to draw a map of the Acropolis site, labeling the important structures (allow 5-10 minutes for this part of the activity)
• Finally, review the key sites once again, discussing their function within the Acropolis in general, finishing with the newly-built Acropolis Museum
  • • • This allows the discussion to turn to what the Acropolis means to Greece as a nation, and Greek national identity.
      • It is helpful to assign readings prior to class about the Parthenon (Elgin) Marbles in the British Museum which allows students to engage in a discussion on cultural patrimony and whether or not the marbles should be returned.

Suggested Assigned Readings

• Let’s do a Brexit deal with the Parthenon Marbles
• Greece Demands UK Open Negotiations over the Return of the Elgin Marbles
• Greece Unveils Museum Meant for ‘Stolen’ Sculptures
• Elgin Marble Argument in a New Light

Learning Goals

After completing this activity, students will be able to:

• Accurately identify key aspects of Greek architecture
• Understand the spatial realities of the Acropolis site: where each of the major structures is located, where it is located within the city of Athens and where the Acropolis Museum is located.
• Question the ongoing role of ancient art, artifacts and sites in the formation and understanding of modern nations.
• Engage in ongoing debates on cultural patrimony and the repatriation of cultural material

LICENSing information

The Interactive Acropolis assignment is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

The interactive resource, AirPano, and all of the suggested assigned readings linked above are zero cost but not OER or openly licensed.