Penteli
Encyclopedia
Pentéli or Pendeli, is a tall mountain and mountain range situated northeast of Athens
and southwest of Marathon
. Its elevation is 1,109 m. The mountain is covered in large part with forest (about 60 or 70%), and can be seen from southern Athens
(Attica
), the Pedia plain, Parnitha
, and the southern part of the northern suburbs of Athens
. Houses surround the mountain, especially in Vrilissia
, Penteli, Ekali
, Dionyssos and north of Gerakas
.
, Penteli has been famous for its marble
, which was used for the construction of the Acropolis
and other buildings of ancient Athens. Penteli marble is flawless white with a uniform, faint yellow tint, which makes it shine with a golden hue under sunlight. The ancient quarry
is protected by law, and used exclusively to obtain material for the Acropolis Restoration Project. The roadway used to transport marble
blocks from the quarry to the Acropolis
in antiquity is a continual downhill, and follows the natural lay of the land, with research and full documentation by the chief Acropolis
restoration architect
, Professor Manolis Korres, in his award-winning book "From Pentelicon to the Parthenon". A monastery is also located in the middle of the mountain, NE of city centre.
A series of fires also occurred after the major fire devastated the mountain range, from 1998 to 2001. Many of the fires were arson-related and suspects were arrested. After the major forest fire of July 1995, three years later in the area of Drafi, mudslides blocked roads as a rock clogged off a residential road; a series of mudslides also occurred several years later and devastated some homes, continuing in part to this day.
Yet again, twelve years after the major fire, flames once more encroached on the urban areas of Athens from June 30, 2007, the same day as the Parnitha
fire, and a minor fire was seen northeast of Vrilissia
, in which tens of houses and properties fell to the flames, along with its forests. The fire even burnt its dry grass which was the chief pattern of spread; the people of the area now favour removal of dry grass from future wildfires. The blaze burnt tens of hectares and lasted through the late afternoon to the late-night hours, and was seen as far as neighbourhood streets and broader Athens. One and a half months later, a huge fire yet again battered the forests adjoining Penteli and Vrilissia. This time the wildfire was larger and more destructive, with flames towering as high as 50 to 60m, and almost blocking any view of the sky, along with an attendant smoke. The blaze spread, burning tens or hundreds buildings, many of them near the forested areas, and a western portion 10 km long from north to south, and 4 to 5 km wide from east to west. Firefighters along with the neighbourhood's panicked residents battled the blaze on neighbourhood streets, and helicopters sprayed the blaze. The fire had begun in the afternoon hours and quickly spread. One conflagration burnt trees in seconds, another extended to balconies with grills destroyed, and several roofs collapsed - the blaze lasted into the evening hours and its head burnt near the town, while Vrilissia, eastern Nea Erythraia, Ekali, and Dionyssos were also hit. Its cause, like most of the fires of 2007, was arson; a former firefighter was charged with fire-setting and has been sentenced and jailed. During the country's worst ever fire, which broke the 1950s record on August 26, 2007, flames sparked by arson ravaged the forests of the remainder of the area around Penteli and burnt pine, spruce and fir trees, lasting for several days; this was not the same blaze that had arrived from Keratea
and Markopoulo
to the south. Penteli was on high alert during the fire.
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and southwest of Marathon
Marathon, Greece
Marathon is a town in Greece, the site of the battle of Marathon in 490 BC, in which the heavily outnumbered Athenian army defeated the Persians. The tumulus or burial mound for the 192 Athenian dead that was erected near the battlefield remains a feature of the coastal plain...
. Its elevation is 1,109 m. The mountain is covered in large part with forest (about 60 or 70%), and can be seen from southern Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
(Attica
Attica
Attica is a historical region of Greece, containing Athens, the current capital of Greece. The historical region is centered on the Attic peninsula, which projects into the Aegean Sea...
), the Pedia plain, Parnitha
Parnitha
Mount Parnitha is a densely forested mountain range north of Athens, the highest on the peninsula of Attica, with an elevation of 1,413 m and a summit known as Karavola...
, and the southern part of the northern suburbs of Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
. Houses surround the mountain, especially in Vrilissia
Vrilissia
Vrilissia is a mildly urbanized northeastern suburb and a municipality of the North Athens regional unit, in the Attica region. It is located at the southwestern accessible foot of the Penteli Mountain, from which it was named after as the ancient name of the mountain was Vrilissos...
, Penteli, Ekali
Ekali
Ekali is an exclusive suburban community of Athens -- just about 20 km to the north of the city. Ekali sits between the Athenian plain and the Penteli mountains. The plain is to the west; the forests at the foot of the Penteli mountain range lie to the east...
, Dionyssos and north of Gerakas
Gerakas
Gerakas is a town and a former municipality in East Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pallini, of which it is the seat and a municipal unit....
.
Mountain
Even since antiquityClassical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
, Penteli has been famous for its marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
, which was used for the construction of the Acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis means "high city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as Citadel . For purposes of defense, early people naturally chose elevated ground to build a new settlement, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...
and other buildings of ancient Athens. Penteli marble is flawless white with a uniform, faint yellow tint, which makes it shine with a golden hue under sunlight. The ancient quarry
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
is protected by law, and used exclusively to obtain material for the Acropolis Restoration Project. The roadway used to transport marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
blocks from the quarry to the Acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis means "high city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as Citadel . For purposes of defense, early people naturally chose elevated ground to build a new settlement, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...
in antiquity is a continual downhill, and follows the natural lay of the land, with research and full documentation by the chief Acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis means "high city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as Citadel . For purposes of defense, early people naturally chose elevated ground to build a new settlement, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...
restoration architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
, Professor Manolis Korres, in his award-winning book "From Pentelicon to the Parthenon". A monastery is also located in the middle of the mountain, NE of city centre.
Fires
A fire in early July 1995 consumed much of the mountain forest, and the eastern half became residential districts of the Athens area. The volume of smoke was tremendous; it nearly covered the entire northeastern part of Athens, and all terrestrial televisual media covered the fire. The blaze lasted about 5 days; it reached east of Penteli about 5:30 p.m. local time, and then into the Pentelis and Vrilissia, consuming a group of houses on Friday night (about 9:00 p.m. EET, 7:00 p.m. UTC), the northern range on Saturday morning, Rhea on Saturday afternoon, Anoixi on Monday, and the Dionysus communities on Saturday. It consumed three quarters of the slopes of Penteli, and was the worst forest fire Athens and Greece had seen in the 20th century. Housing development took place in the eastern half of the mountain which removed what was left of nature from the mountain, and streets are grid and circular. Many are luxurious and several houses were later added; a mining area also removed what was left from nature in the eastern half. The northern half remains heavily forested.A series of fires also occurred after the major fire devastated the mountain range, from 1998 to 2001. Many of the fires were arson-related and suspects were arrested. After the major forest fire of July 1995, three years later in the area of Drafi, mudslides blocked roads as a rock clogged off a residential road; a series of mudslides also occurred several years later and devastated some homes, continuing in part to this day.
Yet again, twelve years after the major fire, flames once more encroached on the urban areas of Athens from June 30, 2007, the same day as the Parnitha
Parnitha
Mount Parnitha is a densely forested mountain range north of Athens, the highest on the peninsula of Attica, with an elevation of 1,413 m and a summit known as Karavola...
fire, and a minor fire was seen northeast of Vrilissia
Vrilissia
Vrilissia is a mildly urbanized northeastern suburb and a municipality of the North Athens regional unit, in the Attica region. It is located at the southwestern accessible foot of the Penteli Mountain, from which it was named after as the ancient name of the mountain was Vrilissos...
, in which tens of houses and properties fell to the flames, along with its forests. The fire even burnt its dry grass which was the chief pattern of spread; the people of the area now favour removal of dry grass from future wildfires. The blaze burnt tens of hectares and lasted through the late afternoon to the late-night hours, and was seen as far as neighbourhood streets and broader Athens. One and a half months later, a huge fire yet again battered the forests adjoining Penteli and Vrilissia. This time the wildfire was larger and more destructive, with flames towering as high as 50 to 60m, and almost blocking any view of the sky, along with an attendant smoke. The blaze spread, burning tens or hundreds buildings, many of them near the forested areas, and a western portion 10 km long from north to south, and 4 to 5 km wide from east to west. Firefighters along with the neighbourhood's panicked residents battled the blaze on neighbourhood streets, and helicopters sprayed the blaze. The fire had begun in the afternoon hours and quickly spread. One conflagration burnt trees in seconds, another extended to balconies with grills destroyed, and several roofs collapsed - the blaze lasted into the evening hours and its head burnt near the town, while Vrilissia, eastern Nea Erythraia, Ekali, and Dionyssos were also hit. Its cause, like most of the fires of 2007, was arson; a former firefighter was charged with fire-setting and has been sentenced and jailed. During the country's worst ever fire, which broke the 1950s record on August 26, 2007, flames sparked by arson ravaged the forests of the remainder of the area around Penteli and burnt pine, spruce and fir trees, lasting for several days; this was not the same blaze that had arrived from Keratea
Keratea
Keratea is a town in East Attica, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lavreotiki, of which it is a municipal unit.Keratea is linked with a highway to Glyka Nera and Sounio...
and Markopoulo
Markopoulo
Markopoulo may refer to places in Greece:*Markopoulo Mesogaias, a suburban town of Athens*Markopoulo, Elis, a small village in the northern part of the prefecture of Elis*Markopoulo, Kefalonia, a village in the southeastern part of the island of Kefalonia...
to the south. Penteli was on high alert during the fire.