The rain sanctuary and the marble of the Athenians

Hymettus is bound to the history of ancient Athens. The Athenians saw it every day, and they made it a place of worship.

The sanctuary of Zeus Ombrios. On the summit stood a sanctuary of Zeus Ombrios, the "rain-giver", with many offerings dating mainly from the 8th and 7th centuries BC. The site now lies inside a military installation and cannot be visited.

Marble and honey. Marble quarries worked on the western side. The marble was used for monuments of the Hellenistic and Roman periods. On the western slope there is also an ancient quarryman's hut, one of two buildings in ancient Attica that keep their roof, according to English Wikipedia. The mountain was also known for its thyme honey.

The first excavators. In 1921 J. M. Prindle of Harvard University discovered a small Geometric and Classical site. In 1923 Carl Blegen made a trial excavation, and in 1924 T. Leslie Shear excavated the site at his own expense.

Byzantine times. In Byzantine times worship continued through monasteries. At Kaisariani Monastery the present church (katholikon), dedicated to the Presentation of the Virgin, dates to around 1100. The Monastery of the Hunter is placed in the early 12th century and is mentioned in a letter of Michael Choniates in 1207. The katholikon's frescoes at Kaisariani, however, are Ottoman: according to the inscription, they were painted in 1682 by Ioannis Ypatos.