What I can see

Almost at the centre of the Agora, there is the “Gymnasium” or “Palace of the Giants”, built on the ruins of the Odeon of Agrippa. The decorative forms of the north side of the building are Tritons and Giants. The Tritons were sea gods, sons of Poseidon and Amphitrite. They had a human body and a fish tail. The Giants were earthly deities, the sons of Gaia and Uranus, and had a human body and a serpent’s tail.

What I can't see

The conservatory, which no longer exists but for some scattered remains, was an imposing building, built on a donation by the Roman general Marcus Agrippa Vipsanius. It included a square central hall, with cavea (koilon), semicircular orchestra, and a rectangular raised stage. In the first construction phase it had a capacity of 1000 spectators, which was large enough to host musical events. Because the main hall was 25m long, however, and there was no internal colonnade to support the roof, in 150-175 AD the roof collapsed due to static problems. After repairs the capacity was reduced to 500 people, and it thereafter was used only for philosophy lectures. The conservatory was given many different names through the centuries, like “Grand Conservatory”, “Odeon”, “Theatre of Keramikos” and “Agrippeio”. Its north side was later converted into a stoa, supported by the sculptures of Tritons and Giants.

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