| At the beginning of the second century of our | | | | district. The lower part of the gateway consists |
| era the need for expansion made it necessary to | | | | of a single arch resting on slender Corinthian |
| enlarge the circular wall of the city to the east to | | | | pilasters with quadrangular bases; the consoles, |
| include a new district that had risen round the | | | | which connected them to the circuit wall, are still |
| Olympieion. This was Hadrianopolis, so called in | | | | in place. On either side of the arch was a facade |
| honor of the most philhellene of all Roman | | | | adorned with columns in the Corinthian order. The |
| emperors, a shining new city of magnificent | | | | architraves are virtually intact and support an attic |
| temples and villas, sumptuous baths and gardens | | | | composed of a Corinthian portico with three bays, |
| which started behind the Old Parliament (now the | | | | the center bay being surmounted by a pediment. |
| National Historical Museum) on Odhos Stadiou and | | | | The inscription on the frieze above the keystone |
| included the whole of the area now covered by | | | | confirms that the arch marked the boundary |
| Plateia Syntagmatos, the National Garden, and | | | | between the old and new cities. On the |
| Zappeion Park to the beginning of Leophoros | | | | northwestern side (facing the Acropolis), is carved: |
| Syngrou, extending to the banks of the Ilissus at | | | | This is Athens the former City of Theseus; on |
| the foot of the Agrai hills. | | | | the southeastern side (facing the Olympieion): This |
| The Arch of Hadrian, a free-standing gateway of | | | | is the City of Hadrian and not of Theseus. |
| Pentelic marble, 18 m. high by 12.50 m. wide by | | | | In the eighteenth century the Arch of Hadrian |
| 2.30 m. thick, constructed on two levels and | | | | served as one of the seven gates in the |
| erected on the site of a gate of the sixth century | | | | defensive wall that the Turks built round the city |
| BC, was the ceremonial entrance to this new | | | | against the attacks of Albanian raiders. |