Parthenon Frieze _ North XXVIII, 73-74

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This chariot scene mirrors the action unfolding before us: the chariot immediately ahead of the horsemen comes to a halt, yet those in front build up speed into a headlong dash until the lead chariot is pulled short to avoid collision with the pedestrian figures ahead. This section of the frieze suffered significant damage during the 1687 explosion. The head of a team of horses stands a groom, as shown on the previous block (Block XXVII). A fragment in the Acropolis Museum, Athens preserves the lower part of this same group. We see the rear parts of two horses, their tails arched, the chariot carriage, part of a foot soldier and standing above and behind him, the charioteer. The mood of the group is one of anticipation for the chariot race that lies ahead. The foot soldier grasps the handrail of the chariot carriage and raises his right leg as he mounts the carriage. Above the left shoulder of the charioteer, we see the remains of the crest of his helmet, indicating that he looked back. The foot soldier's left leg and left arm were carved on Block XXIX. The charioteer stands in his long robe with his arms bent at the elbow and his hands extended to hold the reins. A fragment attaching to the block shows the head of the foot soldier, now preserved in the Acropolis Museum, Athens. The North frieze is split between two museums: half resides in the British Museum while the other half can be found in the Acropolis museum. The total length of the north frieze measures 58.70 meters. Scenes on this portion of the frieze commence at the northwest corner of the opisthonaos as a continuation of the procession that began on the west side, running from block N XLVII to block N I. Action unfolds gradually, transitioning from quiet preparation to a gallop. Disregarding the divisions between blocks, horsemen are depicted moving in groups of seven or eight, with horses partially overlapping one another. The continuous flow of horses and riders is interrupted only by the marshal on block XXXIV. Despite this uniformity, variety is achieved through differing garments, stances, and gestures among the most beautiful of the horsemen, as well as occasional depictions of a man turning his head to look back. The frieze of the Parthenon forms a continuous band featuring scenes in low relief that encircle the upper part of the cella within the outer colonnade. The theme represented is the procession toward the Acropolis taking place during the Great Panathenaia, commemorating the birthday of the goddess Athena. Numbering taken from I. Jenkins' book "The Parthenon Frieze," published in 1994. Frieze slabs are marked with Roman numerals while people are denoted using Arabic numerals.