To the northwest of the Acropolis, delineating the southern border of the Ancient Agora, lies the hill of the Areopagus. It is a steep rocky hill, approximately 115 metres high, which gave its name to one of the most significant civic institutions of ancient Athens, the Areopagus council, which convened there.

There are several myths surrounding the naming of the hill. According to one of them, the god Ares was tried there by the twelve Olympian gods for the murder of Poseidon’s son, Halirrhothius, who had raped the daughter of the god of war, Alcippe. Another myth states that the Amazons, daughters of Ares, after a series of unsuccessful attacks against the king of Athens, Theseus, performed a sacrifice to Ares there. It is also mentioned that Orestes, son of Agamemnon, was tried at the Areopagus for the murder of his mother Clytemnestra. Orestes was judged by the Twelve Gods in a vote and was acquitted thanks to the vote of Athena, which contributed to the tie. Since then, it is believed that tie votes in courts started to work in favour of the accused. Afterwards, Orestes honoured the goddess Athena, who also bore the cultic epithet Areia, by dedicating an altar to her.

There are no documented records for the early history of the Areopagus. It is believed that during the period of the monarchy (Basileia), a group of aristocrats from Athens, known as the king’s council, held sessions there. Before the time of Solon, the Areopagus judged mainly murder cases, but later, the Council of the Areopagus, as it came to be known, began to acquire unlimited judicial powers and handled the most important state cases, including the most serious crimes. After the mid-5th century BCE, the powers of the Council of the Areopagus were restricted, as many of them were transferred to the Ekklesia (Assembly of the Demos), the Boule and the Heliaia.

Although archaeological data is incomplete, many scholars believe that the court sessions took place at the highest point of the rock, where there is a plateau. Pausanias (2nd century CE) mentions that there were two stones: the Stone of Hubris, which served as the defendant’s bench, and the Stone of Aidos, where the accuser stood. However, other researchers argue that the court took place in the natural caves located at the foothills of the rock, at the northeast, as the space there is smooth and protected from weather conditions.

On the hill of the Areopagus, Pausanias saw the sanctuary of the Eumenides, who were the accusers of the matricide Orestes and, after his acquittal, they vanished into a chasm. The chasm corresponds to a cleft in the northeastern part of the rocky hill. The same author reports that within the enclosure of the sanctuary of the Eumenides, there was the tomb of Oedipus containing the bones of the hero, which were transferred from Thebes. Finally, sources state that on the hill, there was the altar of Athena Areia, the sanctuary of the Amazons, and the sanctuary of Boreas. Besides the religious landmarks, the continuous human presence on the hill during antiquity is evidenced by visible signs of use and habitation. Carvings defining spaces, carved stairs, tanks, conduits, thresholds, pedestals, rainwater cisterns, walls, floors, and a multitude of pottery shards have been discovered.

The hill of the Areopagus is closely tied to Christian tradition. It is believed that Apostle Paul, during his sole visit to Athens in 54 CE, preached the new religion from the highest point of the rock. His teachings took place in front of the Council of the Areopagus, whose role was to examine new philosophical or religious systems. According to tradition, Apostle Paul’s preaching won over Dionysius the Areopagite, who became the first Archbishop of Athens.