Lion's Gate

The Lion Gate is the entrance gate of the Acropolis of Mycenae ( Greece ). Built in the middle of the XIII century BC. e. along with the expansion of the city's fortress wall. They got their name from the bas-relief with the image of lions placed above them, which is the oldest example of monumental sculpture in Europe .

Goal
Lion's Gate
A country	Greece
City	Mycenae
Architectural style	Cycloplastic masonry
Established	XIII century BC e.

The gates are built of four monolithic blocks of limestone (“ cyclopean masonry ”), the weight of the lintel is about 20 tons. The span of the gate is a regular square with a side of 3.1 m. In the inner part of the side walls are recesses, indicating that in ancient times they were closed by two wooden sashes. The ceiling in the middle is made wider to support the weight of the triangular stone pediment lying on it, placed between the two protrusions of the fortress wall, which form a “facilitating” triangle.

The pediment crowning the gate is made of solid limestone and is decorated with a relief image of two lions. They are depicted standing on their hind legs, turned towards each other and with their front paws resting on two altars that support the column. The roof of a building rests on the top of the column. The heads of the lions were not preserved. The preserved places for their fastening allow us to conclude that they were made of another material ( ivory or steatite ) and were probably turned towards the people entering the gate. The relief, according to one version, is the coat of arms of the Atrid dynasty, which ruled the city during the construction of the gate.