Object description

The Theatre of Dionysus is an ancient theatre in Athens on the south slope of the Akropolis hill, built as part of the sanctuary of Dionysos Eleuthereus . The first orchestra terrace was constructed on the site around the mid- to late-sixth century BC, where it hosted the City Dionysia. The theatre reached its fullest extent in the fourth century BC under the epistates of Lycurgus when it would have had a capacity of up to 17,000, and was in continuous use down to the Roman period. The theatre then fell into decay in the Byzantine era and was not identified, excavated and restored to its current condition until the nineteenth century.