A bouleuterion ( grc-gre, βουλευτήριον, ''bouleutērion''), also translated as and was a building in

ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...

which housed the council of citizens (, ''boulē'') of a democratic

city state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...

. These representatives assembled at the bouleuterion to confer and decide about public affairs. There are several extant bouleuteria around

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

and its former colonies. It should not be confused with the

Prytaneion A ''prytaneion'' ( grc, Πρυτανεῖον, la, prytanēum) was seat of the ''prytaneis'' (Executive (government), executive), and so the seat of government in ancient Greece. The term is used to describe any of a range of ancient structures ...

, which housed the executive council of the assembly and often served as the boule's

mess hall The mess (also called a mess deck aboard ships) is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and (in some cases) live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the o ...

Athens

The

Athenian Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Boule is better known as the Council of 500.

Solon Solon ( grc-gre, Σόλων; BC) was an Athenian statesman, constitutional lawmaker and poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in Archaic Athens.Aristotle ''Politics'' ...

was credited with its formation in 594 BC as an assembly of 100 men each from Athens's four original tribes. At the adoption of the new constitution around 507 BC, this was changed to 50 men each from the 10 newly created tribes. (Each served a one-year term) The

Old Bouleuterion Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

was built on the west side of the

Agora The agora (; grc, ἀγορά, romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Greek city-states. It is the best representation of a city-state's response to accommodate the social and political order of t ...

below the

Agoraios Kolonos Agoraios Kolonos (; grc, Κολωνός Ἀγοραῖος; ell, Αγοραίος Κολωνός, meaning "the hill next to the Agora"), located to the south and adjacently situated on a hill near the Temple of Hephaestus, used to be the meeting ...

around 500 BC. It was almost square and included an oblong antechamber and a main council chamber, a large rectangular egg with wooden benches arranged in rows along the walls. The roof was supported by five columns. It is now better known as the

Metroon A metroon (, or ) was an ancient Greek temple dedicated to a mother goddess. They were often devoted to Cybele, Demeter, or Rhea. Athens Coordinates: The Athenian Metroon was located on the west side of the city's Agora, in the Old Bouleut ...

("House of the

Mother ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given childbirth, birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the cas ...

") since it was repurposed as her temple after the construction of the New Bouleuterion. The

New Bouleuterion The New Bouleuterion is an ancient building in the city of Athens in Attica, Greece. It was located on the western side of the Ancient Athenian Agora. It is a theater with 12 rows of seats, with a seating capacity of greater than 50. A bouleuterio ...

was built west of the old building in the late 5th century BC. It was bigger and more sophisticated, with an amphitheater-like system of twelve levels of semicircular benches. Both the Old and the New Bouleuterion used the nearby Tholos.

Olympia

The

Bouleuterion of Ancient Olympia The Bouleuterion (Council House) of Ancient Olympia was a building inside the archaeological site of Olympia. A bouleuterion was an assembly house for local legislatures and other meetings. Building complex comprising two main buildings, a square ...

was shaped like an early Greek temple, a kind of square horse-shoe. It had a tiered seating arrangement and was located near the city's

agora The agora (; grc, ἀγορά, romanized: ', meaning "market" in Modern Greek) was a central public space in ancient Greek city-states. It is the best representation of a city-state's response to accommodate the social and political order of t ...

Other bouleuteria

Other notable bouleuteria are located at: * Anemourion ( Anamur,

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

) *

Aphrodisias Aphrodisias (; grc, Ἀφροδισιάς, Aphrodisiás) was a small Ancient Greece, ancient Greek Hellenistic_period, Hellenistic city in the historic Caria cultural region of western Anatolia, Turkey. It is located near the modern village of ...

( Geyre,

) *

Argos Argos most often refers to: * Argos, Peloponnese, a city in Argolis, Greece ** Ancient Argos, the ancient city * Argos (retailer), a catalogue retailer operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland Argos or ARGOS may also refer to: Businesses * ...

; * Ancient Mantineia (Gortsouli, Arkadia), Glanon ( St-Rémy,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

) * Lemnos in

* Paestum (Italy) * Philippopolis (

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the c ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

) - Bouleuterion of Philippopolis * Priene ( Güllübahçe Turun,

) * Messene (

Messini Messini ( el, Μεσσήνη, before 1867: Νησί ''Nisi'') is a municipal unit (''dimotiki enotita'') and the seat town (''edra'') of the municipality (''dimos'') of Messini within the regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') of Messenia in th ...

) *

Termessos Termessos (Greek language, Greek Τερμησσός ''Termissós'') was a Pisidian city built at an altitude of more than 1000 metres at the south-west side of the mountain Solymos (modern-day Güllük Dağı) in the Taurus Mountains (moder ...

( Güllük Dağı,

) *

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

(

Hisarlik Hisarlik (Turkish: ''Hisarlık'', "Place of Fortresses"), often spelled Hissarlik, is the Turkish name for an ancient city located in what is known historically as Anatolia.A compound of the noun, hisar, "fortification," and the suffix -lik. The s ...

)

External links

{{commonscat, Bouleuterion
Bouleuterion: Birthplace of Democracy

Bouleterion at Mantineia
Ancient Greek buildings and structures Legislative buildings Greek words and phrases

Athens

Olympia

Other bouleuteria

See also

External links