Athena's Communal Identity

Monuments and art forms frequently are identifying factors within communities. For example, the Old Well is a form of identity for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This trademark image is seen on everything from T-Shirts to official documents. From this Twenty-First Century example or from the Greek Early Iron Age through the Classical Period, communal identity may be connected to significant monuments and art within the community. Communal identity attributes to both bringing a community together but sometimes contributes to dividing a cities population. Throughout the Fifth Century BCE, mythology was used to form a communal identity, as seen in Athens's coinage depicting Athena, the Parthenon's pediment depicting Athena and

The coin had the owl of Athena on one side and Athena's silhouette on the other side. These two images significantly represent Athens knowledge, wisdom, and power. Thus creating the city as being closely tied to the goddess of Athena's power. Communal identity was created amongst the citizen of the city-state, Athens, as having the favor of the goddess Athena. Thus supporting the fact the communal identity was created through mythology as Athena and the owl of Athena both derive from Greek mythology and both images served as the source of community identification. However, this communal identity also divided the citizens of Athena, because only certain people had regular access to the coinage. Therefore, they were the only people with common knowledge of the design. For example, merchants would have an easier accessibility to the coins, because of their frequent use of these coins to conduct everyday business. On the other side of the coin (pun attended), aristocratic women would have been unaware of the motif’s power to create a sense of communal identity. These women would usually not take part in shopping and other daily activities involving coins because these women would have slaves do this futile task for them. This discrepancy creates a communal identity amongst those who usually use currency, but not the ones who actually

This structure demonstrated communal identity through a Greek myth, because of Zeus and the goddess, Nike, in his hand were mythological gods. Through this statue, Olympia was able to demonstrate their greatness in comparison to Athens, because the same sculptor, Pheidias, and the same materials of ivory and gold, were used in the creation of the cult statue of Athena, at the Parthenon in Athens. The statue in Olympia was only one meter taller but depicted Zeus in a sitting position. This position of Zeus made him much taller than Athena’s statue if they were both standing. Panhellenically, the statue brought the attention of how great Olympia was in comparison to others, because of their capability to honor their patron god in such an extravagant manner. Thus, making the statue was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Regionally, the statue creates a communal identity, because Zeus was the patron god of Olympia. Therefore, showing how the statue was a trademark for a citizen from Olympia. This communal identity had also created division amongst the citizens of Olympia because only elites were allowed into the Temple and could see the greatness of the cult statue for themselves. Thus, Olympia reserved the greatness of Zeus and Olympia to only be admired by