Frankly, with a few notable exceptions, there’s not much left to see at the agora site.

Many of the agora structures are in a very poor state of preservation. You’ll be looking at a lot of foundations when you tour here: “This is where the Tholos used to sit … this is the outline of the Royal Stoa.” But don’t let the lack of visible remains fool you into thinking less of the agora than you should. There are stories—rich and historic stories—lurking under every rock.

Some barely discernable remains:

1. The Altar of the Twelve Gods—one of the oldest structures in the agora and the spot from which ancient road marks were measured (“45 stadia to the Altar of the Twelve Gods”)
2. The Painted Stoa—where Athens hung the shields of Spartans defeated at Sphacteria
3. The Stoa of the Basileus (or Royal Stoa)—where (most likely) Socrates stood trial
4. Bouleuterion—where the Athenian Senate met
5. Tholos—where selected senators ate and slept to provide a 24/7 presence to handle emergencies
6. Simon the Cobbler’s shop—where Socrates and Pericles may well have met and talked.
7. The State Prison—a likely spot for the death of Socrates.

The notable exceptions:

1. The Hephaestion—built at the same time as the Parthenon, but with all it’s columns still standing and retaining its roof. The best preserved Classical Greek temple in the world.
2. The Stoa of Attalos—rebuilt by the American School of Classical Studies in the 1950’s as an exact replica of the original … even incorporates some of the original floor, walls, and columns.