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The Galleries Below
Where the original marbles rest, lit from above
Most of what was once carved into the buildings has been lifted down, gently, and rehoused in the long, light-filled galleries at the foot of the rock. The columns above are weathered survivors; the figures below are the originals.
How the rooms are arranged
The visit climbs the rock in miniature: the slopes, then the archaic temples, then the long top-floor gallery whose dimensions exactly match the great temple above — so that the surviving frieze blocks can be read in their original sequence, with the city itself framed in the windows.
The Maidens, reunited
Five of the six original caryatids stand together in a single hall, lit so that the folds of their robes seem to move. The sixth remains abroad. The empty plinth is left in place.
What to look for last
The painted fragments. Traces of red, blue and ochre survive on several pieces — proof that the white marble we know was once a city of bright colour, now faded to the bone.