Although not much to see today, this hill was home to the Supreme Judicial Court in the Classical period. The Athenians often conducted their affairs outdoors. The hill takes its name from Ares, and the mythological trial that took place here when Ares was acquitted of murdering the son of Poseidon.
The nearby Cave of the Furies inspired Aeschylus to set his play, The Furies here.
In the Christian era, St Paul. Delivered his sermon in AD 51 here “On an unknown god” and gained his first convert, Dionysios the Areopagite. Dionysios became the patron saint of Athens.
This sanctuary was founded in 420 BC and was dedicated to the god of healing. Worshipers would come to find a cure for whatever ailed them and would need to complete various purification rites before entering the sanctuary facilities.
Greece in Focus 